My Grandfather kept diaries most of his life. This is from his 1902 journal when he was 16 and living in Sycamore, Illinois. I post a month each Monday.
Saturday, March 1, 1902
It has been cloudy all day and snowing most of the time but the snow has amounted to nothing. It has also been a good deal colder than usual.
Mrs. Hill went into Chicago this morning at six o’clock. She came back tonight and brought Mrs. Ostrum out to stay all night with her.
I have staid home all day.
George took the milk up to the customers this morning this Edward. [?]
///Ask George and Edward about the sausages///
Louise went up town this afternoon and brought Mrs. Hill and Mrs. Ostrum back.
The roads are very bad now.
Sunday, March 2, 1902
It has been cloudy all day and has been snowing some of the time.
I took the milk up to the factory and brought Papa back who came home from Iowa this morning bringing with him about a hundred cattle and some other things.
We did not go to Sunday school today because the roads are so bad.
Mrs. Ostrum has come here to make a visit of two or three days.
It snowed so last night that all the ground was covered but the roads did not freeze hard all over.
Monday, March 3, 1902
It has been cloudy all day and colder than usual.
Papa went up town tonight to a school board meeting.
Tuesday, March 4, 1902
It has been cloudy almost all day, the sun appearing at times for about five minutes.
Eleanor staid up to Grandma’s tonight to take her music lesson and Papa went up town to take his singing lesson.
Wednesday, March 5, 1902
It has been a very nice day and the roads are drying up a little.
Thursday, March 6, 1902
It has been a nice day all day but it clouded up tonight and I think it will either rain or snow.
We all went over to Nellie Wild’s for dinner today because Grandma was going to have a party.
I sold a dozen eggs this morning.
Friday, March 7, 1902
It has been cloudy all day and a little colder than yesterday.
I walked home after school tonight.
Eleanor and Louise went up to a home talent show given at the Universalist Church tonight and Papa went up town.
I saw three different flocks of ducks today, one of which was flying north, one east and the other south.
Saturday, March 8, 1902
It has been cloudy all day.
I took the milk up to the factory this morning. I went to a basketball game this afternoon when the Syc. H. S. Boys played the second team of the Normal school at DeKalb and beat them by a score of 26 to 13. Right after this the Syc. H. S. Girls played the DeKalb H. S. Girls and were beaten by a score of 24 to 6.
I shot my rifle at targets for a little while this morning.
Mrs. Hill and Louise went up to Grandma’s for a little while this afternoon.
Sunday, March 9, 1902
It has been cloudy all day.
I took the milk up to the customers this morning and went to Sunday school at noon.
The roads are getting fairly good in some places again.
Monday, March 10, 1902
It has been cloudy all day and has been raining a little tonight.
I walked home after school tonight.
Tuesday, March 11, 1902
It has been cloudy all day and it commenced raining a little after four and is still raining at nine o’clock.
Eleanor staid up to Grandma’s tonight to take her music lesson. Papa went up town tonight.
Wednesday, March 12, 1902
It rained all of last night and all of today until about two o’clock when it began to snow which stopped about half past three.
Papa went into Chicago this morning.
Because it was raining so hard Grandma sent their dinners to them at the school house but Nellie and I went to her house as usual.
It rained very hard all the time that it rained and snowed about two inches deep which began to melt at once.
The roads are very bad again as there are now big mud holes.
Thursday, March 13, 1902
It has been a very nice day and the roads are drying up fast from yesterday’s rains.
I walked home after school tonight.
Friday, March 14, 1902
It has been a very nice day.
I did not have any school in my room today. I went up town this morning but came right back.
I rode the pony over to DeKalb this afternoon with Walter Walrod to see a basketball game between Sycamore H. S. and the Second Normal team. sycamore won by the score of 15 to 13.
Louise went to a dance tonight and I did not go because I was too tired.
Saturday, March 15, 1902
It was cloudy this forenoon and commenced raining this afternoon. It quit about four o’clock.
I took the milk up to the factory this morning. I piled wood in our woodshed this afternoon with George and Edward until it began to rain when we quit.
Sunday, March 16, 1902
It has been blowing a gale all day and snowing a little.
I took the milk up to the customers this morning on foot because the roads were so rough but I did not go to Sunday school.
Grandma’s woodshed got on fire tonight and Papa and I ran most of the way up there to see it. Nobody knows how it was started but it had been gotten under control before were were up there.
Papa has bought some new white chickens and has sold the rest. The hen house has been filled up and I am going to take care of them this year.
Monday, March 17, 1902
It has been very cold and the wind has been blowing hard all day. We all walked to school this morning because the roads were so bad and I walked home again tonight.
Eleanor staid up to Grandma’s all night.
Papa is going sing at a private recital at the Waterman Hall and went up with Mrs. Hill.
There is a bad case of small-pox in town now and a good deal of fear of it spreading.
The fire at Grandma’s last night left a part of the walls standing but burnt most of the inside up.
Tuesday, March 18, 1902
It has been a nice day but it is still a little cold.
I walked to school this morning and home tonight.
Papa sold all the milking cows today except two and bought some steers.
Wednesday, March 19, 1902
It has been a fairly nice day today.
We were all vaccinated at noon today.
Thursday, March 20, 1902
It has been partly cloudy and partly fair today. It sleeted a little bit this morning.
Grandma went into Chicago this morning.
It is Edward’s birthday today and he is ten years old.
Friday, March 21, 1902
It has been cloudy all day.
I helped Papa drive two cows up to the stockyards after school this afternoon. School let out today for the Spring vacation because so many people have been vaccinated that the school board were afraid that they would not attend school. We will have sore arms now most of the vacation.
Two boys Walter Walrod and Harry Hennigan were expelled from school today because they had copied some words for an essay.
Grandma came back from Chicago tonight and Eleanor will go in Chicago tomorrow.
Saturday, March 22, 1902
It has been a very nice day.
I took the milk up to the factory this morning and then went to see Roy Knights who has been sick but is well now.
Eleanor went into Chicago to hear Paderewski today.
I went out hunting along the creek this afternoon but did not get anything and when I got back I rode the pony up town.
I piled wood for a little while before dinner and played ball a little while before that.
George and Edward went up to Charles Townsend’s and played ball most of the afternoon.
Sunday, March 23, 1902
It has been a very nice day today.
I took the milk up to the customers this morning. I went to Sunday school at noon.
Monday, March 24, 1902
It has been a nice day today.
I took the milk up to the factory this morning and then have piled wood in the woodshed all the rest of the day. Just before supper I went up to the stockyards and helped drive two cattle home.
Tuesday, March 25, 1902
It has been a nice day today.
I took the milk up to the customers this morning and then piled wood all the rest of the forenoon. I helped whip two carpets this afternoon.
Wednesday, March 26, 1902
It has been cloudy nearly all day and has been raining a little.
I took the milk up to the factory and then piled wood the rest of the forenoon. This afternoon I went down to the new farm on the pony and staid there most of the time.
Papa has set a stove up in the dining room and built a fire in it for the first time tonight. He also has had a hardwood floor put in the wash room.
A strong south wind has been blowing all day and there was not enough rain to make the roads muddy.
Thursday, March 27, 1902
It has been a very nice day.
I whipped carpets most of the morning but went up town after the meat just before dinner on the pony. Right after dinner I rode the pony and drove some steers back into our pasture that had gotten out. As soon as I got home I raked up the lawn for a little while.
Friday, March 28, 1902
It has been cloudy all day and has commenced to rain tonight.
I went after some more stray cattle this morning and found them. When I came back I went down to the new place with George and Edward and picked up brush and burned it.
Eleanor went uptown tonight to a kind of party at the Somonauk Hotel.
Papa went up town just before supper and has not come back yet. George took the milk up to the factor this morning and Edward went with him.
Saturday, March 29, 1902
It has been cloudy all day.
I took the milk up to the customers this morning and got a haircut while up town. As soon as I came home I began beating carpets, I piled wood, washed a buggy and beat carpets this afternoon. I went up town for a little while after supper.
Sunday, March 30, 1902
It has been cloudy all day and colder than usual.
I took the milk up to the factory this morning and went both to church and to Sunday school.
Uncle Will, Aunt Mary and Jane came out from Chicago last night.
Monday, March 31, 1902
It has been cloudy all day and a cold strong north wind has been blowing all the time. There was a little bit of snow last night but it did not amount to anything.
We commenced going to school again this morning.
Always Backroads 