Family History 101

My grandfather, John Augustus Gaylord, was an interesting guy.  His friends called him Gus.  He died when my own father was six years old.  Consequently I never knew or called him anything.

St. Cloud 1880

He entered St. Cloud College in 1877, at the age of 18, on a special program designed to increase the number of qualified teachers in Minnesota. He signed a contract vowing to teach at least two years in the area in exchange for free tuition.





He gave his occupation as 'teacher' to the 1880 census taker.  At that time he was living with his sister and brother-in-law on their farm in Maine, Minnesota. The St. Cloud College reports him among their Class of 1883 graduates.

He married a fellow teacher in 1891, Mary Webster.  In 1902 she died of consumption. Two years later he married my grandmother, Clara Davis.

Based on the documentation that I have seen to date, it appears that between the years 1877 through 1902 he led a quiet, predictable life of teaching school and farming during the summers.

Four months after Mary's death the first of many occupational changes takes place.

In October 1902, the Fergus Falls Weekly Journal reports that he is a manager of a Ladies Tayloring School. It appears that this was a short-lived endeavor.  In fact, approximately every two years Mr. J.A. Gaylord can be found running a different business.  Opening and closing many stores and at least one restaurant over the next 20 years until his death in 1922.

At one time he took his family into Canada to live. Two years later he was back in Minnesota running a store. An explanation for his restlessness can only be pure speculation since I have never seen any letter written to or from relatives to explain to us his motivations. I have my own theories but that is for another time.

The one bit of history that I'll pass on is about his ownership of the Basswood store.

Basswood is not a city nor a town or even a village. It is a crossroad in Otter Tail County. 

Aren't the signs in Otter Tail County adorable? I don't know what the Otter Trail is but I guess we were on it.















The man who built the general store at this crossroad sold it to J.A. in 1910. It was here where Shirley Monroe and Dora Mae were born.

Selling groceries to local farmers lost its glamor for J.A. and he sold the store to his brother-in-law who ran the business for the next 40 years or so.

Ray and I dropped by the old place a few years ago and sadly this is what we found . . .

 

I'm speechless

When in Rome . . .

Before you leave home to head for the Gaylord reunion you need to be aware of some important laws in Washington State. I want to help you stay safe and avoid meeting any of our official personnel.

Don't misunderstand me -- our men and women in blue are a nice enough bunch but they tend to leave slips of paper at the end of their interactions with you -- usually resulting in money out of your pocket.

So, with that in mind, I'll begin with the speed limit. To be on the safe side never drive more than 5 miles over the posted limit. However, there are rumors that 9 miles over can be acheived without offical encounters but personally, I don't advise that you put that theory to test.






And while we're in the car -- hands-free telephoning is the only approved way to communicate with those who aren't in the car with you and texting while driving is a crime that comes with a heafty fine if you are seen and stopped by one of those people we talked about above.

However, there is no law against multi-tasking with food and non-alcoholic drinks while driving. I've never heard of anyone being pulled over and reprimanded for munching and slurping.

Cigarette/cigar smoking in any public building is strictly not allowed. Even smoking in the great outdoors is often frowned upon depending on how many other people (non-smoking people) there are around, especially children. If you look around you will find designated areas for smokers tucked far away from the rest of the breathing population.

It's hard to be a smoker in Washington State.

Now you may have heard the ridiculous report that it is LEGAL to possess and smoke cannabis within state boundaries. It is true.

Last November the voters said they were tired of being arrested for possessing an ounce or less of the plant. But like cigarettes, you can't smoke just anywhere. Other than in a private home, smoking weed anywhere else will get you in trouble.

Oh, and buying, selling or growing weed is still illegal. Don't ask me how you're going to possess it -- it's a mystery to me.

I do know that if you have a medical card saying that you need weed there are places you can buy it.  Without a card -- you're on your own.

Have fun and stay safe.

What else to bring

The sky is gray and the wet drippy rains of winter will be the norm for the next few weeks ahead making it difficult to image a bright, sunny day in August when the Gaylord family gathers.

But there are preparations that can be done on these dark days of winter.

Do you enjoy looking at family photos?  Or do they bore you to death?  Are you the keeper of the old family photos?  Or is your idea of a family photo the snap on your security badge for work?

A family reuion is a great time to share photos and stories of the landmark moments in your life. Now is the time for going through your albums and/or boxes of photos gathering up those rare and wonderful snapshots for all of the rest of us to enjoy.

If toting armloads of old photo albums isn't appealing to you perhaps you could scan the photos and have them available digitally, either on your iPad or laptop or on a disk or thumb drive that can be plugged into an available laptop.

 

Photos that would be of particular interest are any from the early days of Garner, Warren, Shirley and Dora, as well as their spouses.  I have a handful from my own father, Stanley, which I will have available.  We of the planning committee are hoping to have the technology on site to duplicate and share any and all photos with those who are interested. 

I have two photos of John A. Gaylord.  Does anyone have others? 

How about those photos from the 1950's and 60's?  Any time the brothers and Dora were visiting?  I have a few but not many -- would love to see more.

There was a trip that Shirley, Stan and Warren made together driving back to their Minnesota home roots.  I have two snaps from that trip.  I'm hoping that you have many more and will arrive at the Tumwater Historical Park ready to show and tell.



Then there are the ones from the next generation.  Family photos from the 1970's and 80's.  Give us all a chance to laugh at the hair dos we thought were so great and those wonderful polyester leisure suits.

Hopefully this post has stimulated your memory of great times and photos you want to share with the rest of us.