Thursday, Sept. 10, 1931

Mrs. William Braun, nee Schilling will be buried today, leaving the house at 8:30, church at 9, then to the cemetery.  She was 35 yrs. old & has 7 children living & 4 dead.  Henry & Leona, Aunt Mary, Rosalia & Bertille all went to the funeral it was a large one, we went to the house, church, cemetery.  Fr. Janssen of Smithon [sic] had the ceremony, he had a wedding in the home first, Frank Kroll got married.  Fr. Grooten is awful bad sick with nervous breakdown.  Papa took care of the kids this morn.  Uncle Fred & Aunt Mary where here for dinner.  All the Schillings where out today, Jonny, Sam, Gabriel, Martin, Joe, & George, all at the funeral, Degenhardts, Natz, Mosbacher 1 daughters.

Uncle Fred & Papa went to help Roy Staunfbiel get his father’s coping from the cemetery this afternoon.  Mrs. Stauenfbiel was here to see if she could get a ride home from Belleville on the 15 of Sept.  She & papa have to go in to be witness on Val. Fristche’s will, to snigfy [sic] there writing.  The egg man was here again from St. Louis, but we didn’t have any.  Henry & family where up this evening, he paid his threshing bill.

Tuesday, Sept. 8, 1931

Papa is hauling wood today.  The bells where tolling this morn. at our church for the first time, for Mrs. William Braun, she died this morn. around 6 o clock at the Belleville Hospital.  Kock got her from there & took her to Red Bud & fixed her up, brought her home around 1o o clock, Henry & Leona, Rosalia, Bertille, Aunt Mary went down to see her this evening, there wasn’t many people there because they didn’t bring her home till late.  They have 7 children, oldest is 13 & youngest 4.  Joe Watchels have a little baby boy born Sun. 6 Sept.  Lester Gregson’s have a little boy since last week Thurs. 2 [crossed out] or 3 Sept, they christined [sic] it Virgil Lee, Lee Gregson & Agnes where sponsors.  Jack & Willie Ganley & Fr. Grooten where by Hill’s this evening.

Friday, Sept. 4, 1931

Today Rosalia is 20 yrs. old.  The bunch came & surprized [sic] her, where: Mr. & Mrs. Henry Birkner & family, Henry Brand & family, Fred Papenberg & family, Alf. & Elsa Eckert, Rosalia & Rita Braun, Clem & Elmer, Bessie Parker, Hy. Hillsheim, Odillo & Mamie Eichenseer, Christ Buehler & family, Henry Spalt, Mr. & Mrs. Steve Rennecker, Uncle Fred & Aunt Mary.  The basement was cleared & dancing begun till 12 o clock, Uncle Fred & Henry furnishing the musci [sic].  Beer, cake, where served.  Uncle Fred & Aunt Mary where here for lunch& supper.  It is also Mrs. Geodell’s birthday, they had the celebration Thurs. evening.  Fr. Grooten gets in trouble with everybody, Richert was fined $15.00 & all night in jail for having plum wine, Jack Ganley was arrested, cutting the wires on Hillsheims machine & one thing another, lots news in Hecker, in 1931.  But ain’t so claims it.

Thursday, July 30, 1931

Papa & Rosalia are fixing fence along the road this morning.  I noticed this morning that Lester Gregson has a new truck to haul milk, now.  There was 2 ladies here & wanted something to eat, there machine broke & they & the family had nothing to eat, so we gave them a half loaf bread & sausage, they didn’t have no money, some gas station gave 2 gals. to go on they said.  I seen in the paper that Mrs. George Schilling got $50 for the turkey’s that was killed by stray dogs.  Bill Haudrich & Florence Buss where published last Sun. for the first time.  Hecker ball team where lucky last Sun. they both won, one at Valymer [sic] & the other with Hecker & Red Bud.  Papa drove up to Barthel’s to get the Whippet repaired.  Eggs are 14¢ now.  Alvera Braun is awful bad sick the way we heard, she is in bed all the time now, swollen so bad.

Friday, July 24, 1931

Henry was here this morning & the kids, they brought a wash tub plums & box apples.  We didn’t keep all the plums, it was to many.  Mr. Ed Meng was here this morning, to tell papa that Ratz had a cheap team for him, that if he wanted to he should come & look at them this afternoon.  But he aint going.  Papa got crushing done this morning.  They say Phil Braun’s machine is going to start threshing this afternoon they must not of had any rain there.  Vic Eichenseer was here & fixed our pump this morning, it works again now.  We cleaned our truck patch & sowed some more turnip seed again today & also some radishs.

Thursday, July 16, 1931

Today Ed Pabst’s is threshing, papa has to go down around eleven oclock & also Eichenseers.  Edwin Reheis has a little girl since last Sat.  Rosalia & Bertille went to church this morning when Hy. Braun was getting buried.  It was a large funeral.  This afternoon we went out to Parker’s, they didn’t take it to church, they went from the house to the cemetery.  The baby was 7 mo. old.  Koch had both funerals.  Papa went to Pabst’s, he had dinner there, we got 62 bus. for our share but we are 5 short now.  So I don’t know how it will be now.  Vic & Odillo hauled it here, they where both here for lunch.

Tuesday, July 14, 1931

Papa went out in the woods this morning to get some poles.  Today Slyvester [sic – Sylvester] Miller & Hilda Bertram are getting married.  Leona went to church to see it.  Her sister & brother where the attendants.  We got the report this morning that Henry S. Braun died last night at 7 o clock & will be buried Thurs. morn.  We heard he had heart failure & indigestion trouble & then again we heard, he went to get a drink of water by the well & fell over dead.  Clarence Wittenauer was here, he wants 3½¢ to haul wheat from Pabst’s to our place & takes 3 to Red Bud & 4 to New Athens & 5 to Freeburg.  So Papa got Eichenseer’s to haul it, they will do it for 3¢.  Bertille was by Mrs. Rennecker about a half hr. this evening.

Thursday, July 2, 1931

We finished digging our potatoes this morning, it was nice & cool.  Joe Schilling started thrashing his wheat today.  Ed Wittenauer’s is also thrashing wheat.  Uncle Fred & Aunt Mary where up this afternoon, they sold there onions, 90¢ a bu. they had 3 bus., sold them to Braun’s.  We got a letter from Burkhardt, receiver of Hecker Bank, a check for $9.75, paying out 15¢ [possibly mean percent] now, to everybody.  Emery Kreher’s baby died, 10 mos. old & was buried at Paderborn.  In today’s paper was that 500 people died at Chicago.  It is clouding up again, for rain, & it came.  Rosalia got some ice cream this evening, it sure was good.

Sunday, June 21, 1931

Uncle Fred & Aunt Mary where here for pie lunch this morn.  After mass this morn – the chances were raffled from the Pinic [sic], Tom Havey won the stove, Mrs. Hy S. Braun won the tea set, Lester Miller won a quilt, Uncle Joe won something too.  There was 5 articles raffled out.  This afternoon we all went out to Henry’s, he was up for church this morn – then went home & started cutting wheat again, Gus Geodell’s was out too, he was sitting on the binder.  We helped to bake dewberry pie.  Then it started in a raining & we went home.  George Wagners have lots of company today, it is Charles Birthday he is 4 yrs. old.  The Merhmans, Fritsche’s, Ettlings, Kammlers where all there.  It is a real lawn party.

Friday, May 15, 1931

Papa & Rosalia went down to the truck patch this morning, & this afternoon went out to Henry’s to get a load of oats.  Uncle Fred & Aunt Mary came up again this afternoon to work there potatoes.  They where here for lunch.  Mr & Mrs. Louis Birkner where by them today.  We planted our cabbage & tomato plants out this evening.  We all went to the show, we took the car, we could see nice from there.  The [racial slur omitted] Jake gave Ed. Koehlers boy a 50¢, him & Walter Braun, each had a pan of bread & milk, they had to feed one another with the spoon, the one that ’emptied’ the bowl first was the winner.  Emmy Eckert received the blanket.  The name of there play was The “Doctor’s Shop.”