Author: ellenparkerwrites

My age is showing again. My mother attended a one room rural school for eight years. A few of my classmates attended the same for varying lengths of time.

From all accounts, the key to success was organization. The teacher had a lot of responsibility. In addition to teaching the children, she often had to arrive early and stay late to tend the stove. Few of the rural buildings had electricity or indoor plumbing until years after the small towns acquired these modern conveniences.

This schedule covers all the basics — plus music, art, and agriculture. Students were ready for high school, or quite often, farm work and housekeeping. After all, they could read newspapers, keep household books, and understand the world enough to be a good citizen.

In the fictional town of Elm Ridge, Illinois, the citizens supported education. However, the immigrants the reader meets in New Dreams, a sweet romance set in 1851, were out of the schoolroom. For more on this story of new beginnings click here: https://amzn.to/3vWydWE

In preparation to write today’s blog, I reviewed some photos from September vacations. (That has been the general theme for this month.)

I had to pause on this one taken in a Wisconsin museum:

Hours and hours of my life, prior to college graduation, were spent filling, using, and draining a twin of this laundry aid. For those of you who grew up NOT using a wringer washing machine, this is a fine pair of rinse tubs. You arranged your equipment for the wringer to squeeze out the soapy water back into the washer and the clothes into the first tub. Then you rinsed, and rinsed, by hand, before you positioned the wringer to return the water to the first tub and the clothes into the second. Repeat your rinsing and then use the wringer between second tub and basket.

Presto! You’re ready to take the basket of clothes out to hang on the line.

Several hours later, you brought the dry clothes inside. (Quicker if a sudden shower arrived on the scene.) They were now ready to be ironed. A few could be folded directly from the line after ‘wash & wear’ fabrics were available. But in our household — we ironed almost everything.

The above description is a great improvement over doing the laundry in 1851. A scene in New Dreams, a sweet romance set in a fictional Illinois village, describes portions of the process. Find information about the book here: https://amzn.to/3vWydWE

Imagine for a moment you live in 1835. It’s graduation from West Point, and you are nervous as you open the envelope with your first assignment.

Fort Howard, Territory of Wisconsin.

Do you need to consult a map? Or are you familiar with your geography enough to know you’ll be at the junction of the Fox River and Green Bay?

You’ll find a thriving fort, a small town, and much forest. Will the Native Americans remain friendly? Will one of the many fevers put you in the hospital? Can keep your shooting skills sharp leading hunting parties? Or will your work be mundane — watching supplies, grooming horses, or supervising the guards?

No matter what the Army has in store for you — you can be certain that the winters will be long and the summer mosquitos plentiful.

Sounds like a good place to have a supply of books. Your choices would have been more limited than today. Religion, army manuals, naturalist’s journals, and a few novels.

I’m glad I live now and can read a sweet romance set in 1851 and consider it historical. New Dreams will be just right. But I wouldn’t mind reading while sitting on one of the many porches facing the parade ground. https://amzn.to/3vWydWE