School Days 1913-1918

The first automobile I recall was the one owned by the Husband of Mother's cousin, Jed Skeen. I do not remember the make but it was an open affair with a top that was fastened down by straps going down to the front fenders. Gradually more cars began to appear and I remember one evening mother and dad had a long serious talk and a few days later dad bought his first car, a Buick. It was an open air touring car and I remember clearly when we were out with the salesman demonstrating it. He got it up to 15 miles per hour and mother screamed because we were going so fast. It seemed to me that we were almost constantly fixing tires to keep the car running but it was really a big help to dad who has an artificial left leg from the knee. He lost his leg in a hunting accident when he was 15 years old. Shortly after this the delivery wagons were replaced by Ford delivery trucks and dad built a garage in the back yard to house the car and sold the horses. Sometime later the barn was converted into a gym with basketball standards in each end and several of the big high school basketball stars of that time got their start out in our old barn.


YEAR (FILE ) PICTURE AND SUBJECT
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1918 (1418) Group - The First Car with Donald, Elsie and Ben

One event that for an inexplicable reason stands out clearly in my memory is a program put on at the Madison school when I was in the fourth grade. This particular part of the program was to be put on by the fifth and sixth graders. The teacher who was teaching them the song which they were to sing, however, was a close personal friend of mother's (Mrs Guy Clark; her husband passed away suddenly leaving her with four children, and she taught school to support them) and she let me sing with them. We were dressed in soldiers uniforms and sang the following son to the tune of Yankee Doodle:

"My mother says I grow so fast
She cannot keep my measure.
I eat so much and play so hard
And am so fond of pleasure.

Very soon I'll be a man
Then look out for the battle
For I'll be a soldier brave
And make the rifles rattle."

Participating in this program was one of the greatest thrills of my young life although it was merely a single elementary school program attended principally by the mothers and fathers of those on the program.

During my elementary schooling the old Madison school was remodeled and all of the students were sent up to the Quincy school located on Quincy Avenue between 25th and 26th streets. We were there only a year when it was decided to transfer us down to the Dee school located on 21st just below Adams. This school was located immediately across the street from the cemetery and an old vacant hill. I recall that we used to go over there during recess and catch lizards and bring them back to school, much to the annoyance of our teachers.

When I was in the third grade at the Madison school, our teacher used to read to us for a half hour each day from The Wizard of Oz and other "Oz" books. I used to look forward to this time and enjoyed very much these books.

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