We were way out in the middle of the country in Logan County.  I went to another one room school with one teacher for eight grades.  It was about a two mile walk which I made with friends.  There was no church in the area.  I think they had services at the school house. The only thing I can remember about Holidays is we would have a Christmas Party at that school.  The Smiths were the closest family to us.  I am sorry that I did not discuss that with Ruby Smith, who lives at the  same retirement Village as Mabel and Paul in Tahlequah.  I talked to her about various things but I didn't talk to her in connection with that subject.  (This discussion was in 1990).  I remember they did have box suppers at school and they had the Christmas Service there with a tree and every thing.  I think they had a Santa Claus but I do not remember of getting any gifts.  The first Christmas gift I remember was from my Grandpa when I was about eight years old.

 

There was a family named Rose that lived in the neighborhood but I can not remember much about where.  Then there was a family by the name of McKinley.  They lived at the section line north of us on the north west corner.  I would say they were possibly the wealthiest of the neighbors.  In 1950 we stopped there and talked to the occupant.  He knew about our former neighbors.                                                                                  

Our closest neighbor was Charlie Smith who lived North of us on the west side of the road.  We lived on the east side.  They had a boy who was probably 4 or 5 Yrs older than I, whose name was Lester.  They had 2 or three girls.  One of them was named Irene.  She was about my age.  Another was named Ruby.  Edwards lived North of us on the same side of the road but seems to me it was a very long lane and farther east than our house.  They had a boy named Sylvan, probably about 16 years old.  I remember visiting with him in Enid after they moved there years later.  Incidentally years later Smiths also moved to Enid.  I remember there was a nice clear little brook on Smiths farm.  There was a hole large enough to get into.  I remember going down there wading & Lester took his clothes off and floated in it.  I thought that was a pretty good trick to float.  This was the first time I had ever seen anyone float.                                                                         

 

Distances were all much longer to me at that time.  The trees were much taller, too.    In our pasture there were some large flat rocks with a coyote den under the rocks.  At night you could hear the coyotes howling.  There were times when the cows were dry and we would need to buy milk.  I remember going to Edwards's at about twilight to get milk.  I remember hearing the coyotes howling as I would go along the road at twilight and it gave me kind of an uneasy feeling.

 

I remember herding cattle on a horse.  I can't remember the exact circumstances but there must have been some good pasture around the corn field but they didn't want the cattle to get in the corn.  I remember some varmints being around the place in the evening, possibly coyotes, and Papa going out and shooting at them with a shot gun.  Evidently he didn't hit them.

 

There must have been some good pasture around the corn field.  They did not want the cattle to get in the corn so I herded the cattle on a horse.  When Ruth was born at our home, I was sent over to Smiths' for the day.  I thought it rather odd.  When I went back home, there I had another sister.  The Smith girl named Irene was about my age.  I think she was the youngest one.  She one time gave me a home-made valentine.  I think it considerably embarrassed  me.  I would have been six to eight years old.  Incidentally, they moved to Enid after we did.  We had contact with them after they moved.       

 

I did not ever see a car in Logan County.  I was very much interested in such things and one time I found a car track in the road.  That really interested me.  I walked in that track for a while.  Incidentally on that road I one time found a German Silver spoon.  I kept it as my personal spoon for many years and even had it several years ago.  It was perfectly smooth except for the imprint on it "German silver".  I remember discontinuing use of it for fear it would get lost or broken or something.  I would still like to keep it.  That spoon would be at least about eighty years old now.