Thursday, Sept. 3, 1931

Uncle Fred & Aunt Mary came up this morn. & had dinner with us.  This afternoon Henry & family came up, he finished plowing & took the team home.  We all went to the funeral of Mrs. Rittmeyer except papa, she had a pink coffin, & dress, gold ring on & a diamond hair pin, she looked good.  Steve Rennecker was over a while.  Odillo Eichenseer came, he wanted to see our paper.  Mrs. Eichenseer came too so he had to take her to Red Bud to the doctor.  This morning Fr. Grooten’s had Mrs. Pete Watchel, Mrs. Henry Kern, Henry Rausch & Odilo Eichenseer, in Waterloo in front of Bollinger’s in the room, Pete Watchel & Rausch [crossed out by Bertille] paid the expense, as far as we know.

Tuesday, August 25, 1931

Our company had breakfast , & stay a little while then left for Ben Neff’s.  Uncle Fred & Aunt Mary where also over here.  Henry was here for lunch this morning.  He was also here for dinner, lunch supper.  Ed Pautler the oil man was here too, he brought Henry some oil up here.  I seen in the paper that Joe Mueth & that married Ben Neff’s daughter Minnie have a little baby girl born last Friday, it is the first born.  Frances Eichenseer’s wife of Belleville is under going medical attention at St. Elizabeth’s Hospital.  Clarence Wiegand’s wife of near Smithon [sic] is also at the hospital, they also have a little baby girl, first child.  George Neff is sick with the dropsy, has changed doctors, 3 one already, he is by Osies now.  The way they say everything was free last night, played euchre free, ice cream & soda, & dancing all free.  We went down to the cemetery this evening, it just looks awful there, they started yesterday, today they never plowed they just took the tombstones & rocks & haul them out, some of them back of the house.  Uncle Fred & Aunt Mary was there too, we took the rose bushes what was left on the grave along home, but only 2 we got.

Monday, August 17, 1931

Papa & Rosalia went after the peaches this morn, they got 2 bus. from Gross Orchard for 65¢ a bus. there where so many trucks there loading.  Uncle Fred & Aunt Mary came up to help to peel them, we caned [sic] 32 qts. so far, the green ones we layed back, they where here for lunch & supper, we also canned 1 qt. pickles, 2 tomatoe, 1 greengage.  This evening there was a big truck around with peaches from Ava, Ill. they sold quite a few in town here, the Eichenseer’s got 8 bus. they where also 65¢ bu.  Aunt Mary & Bertille where at George Wagner’s this evening.  Henry & family where all here, he went to Eckert’s, & Kessler’s, looking for peaches.  Eggs 15¢ & wheat 42 at Red Bud today.

Saturday, July 25, 1931

Most of the threshing machines are starting out at 9 o’clock this morning.  Vic Eichenseer & Odillo where here & fixed the pump again.  This afternoon we all went to Henry’s threshing, we had lunch & supper, they threshed 421 bus. from lunch on.

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.

Wednesday, July 22, 1931

Papa & Rosalia duged [sic] potatoes this morning.  Bertille baked bread & coffeecake.  This afternoon the threshing machines where all going to start again, but around 1 o clock we had a shower rain, so that put them back another day, I guess.  Just before noon today, there was a car passed here, with 4 ladies dressed as gypsies.  Clifford told us they took $15.00 from George Neff, the two of them where in Eichenseer’s store.  Clifford brought our mail along too.  Uncle Fred & Aunt Mary was here again this evening, he went to Red Bud.  It rained mostly all night.

Sunday, July 19, 1931

We all went to Belleville to church this morning.  We had a little shower of rain this afternoon.  Rosalia & Bertille went up to Mamie’s, then we walked the streets awhile, she came along home with us.  Uncle Fred brought us some more plums this morning we got 5 qts & 11 glasses of Jelly now.

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 9, 1931

It is raining this morning.  We got our beets in from the garden here & the truck patch, we got 5 quts & 1/2.  Mrs. Katie Klotz was here this morning to see if she could get a can of cistern water at Uncle Fred’s place, because they are getting the thrashers this evening, & they wanted the water to wash the dishes.  Papa went up to Eichenseers, & went along out with Vic & Odillo, to fix Henry pump, they put 5 ft. pipings on it, there is 30 ft. of water in it yet.  Papa called up for Rosalia to come out & bring some wrenches along from the store.  Mrs. Klotz was telling me about a fire at Albert Gregson’s on Tues. night, the road men had a fire burning the grass on piles, & they left without putting the fire out, & during the night the fire creeped & burned all the way through the woods, nearly too the house, they just got it out in time.  George Lorberg was called with a tank of water on his truck & also Joe Shilling’s, Louis Armstutz’s & a fire apartment, I don’t know if it was Smithon’s [sic] or Red Buds, fire out later, it happened around 12 o’clock in the night that is when George Lorberg left.  This evening we went out & lawend [sic] at the cemetery, & looked at Frank’s pigs, sheep.  Eggs are 12¢ now.