I was born 26th of December 1913 in Great Falls, Montana. I remember Mom saying she had 42 boarders when I was born. She had to get extra help while confined as she had to cook and keep things neat and clean for the roomers.
Dad homesteaded on the bench in 1915 and I can remember as a little girl going out in the summer to stay with Dad. I was in the fourth grade when we moved permanently to the ranch. We lived in a two-room house with a cellar and a coal shed attached. Later on Dad moved his homestead house and attached it on.
Our deep well was about a quarter of a mile from the house, and it was very hard, but oh so good to drink. We hauled the water to the house on a stone-boat and two barrels. Mother caught water in barrels for washing clothes, as the well water was too hard. We saved water to water flowers.
We went to the Bergmann School about a mile from home and we walked and took our lunch every day. It was a one- room school with a room for the teacher to live in. The heat was a big stove with a jacket around it, so the kids wouldn't get burned. It was a wood and coal stove. We would hang our gloves on the jacket part to dry in the winter or when wet after a rain.
Bill, Gene and I were the only kids living on the ranch. I always wanted my own horse so Dad bought a horse for Gene and I. Mine cost $1.50 and Gene's $3.00. Dad had a saddle but we were not allowed to use it and rode bareback. I learned to milk cows, but Mom did most of the milking until us kids learned. After we had our saddle horses we would get the cows, but before that we had to walk after them and that wasn't so pleasant as there were a lot of rattlesnakes in the coulees.
We had one real mean Holstein bull, so one day Dad decided to butcher him as he had chased us kids and him. We got him in the corral but he got out. The boys weren't home, so Dad wanted me to get on the horse and round him up. I never could jump up on a horse before, but that day I did when the bull started my way. I nearly jumped over the other side. The bull got in the yard and ripped a quilt to shreds that was on the clothesline, ran by the house and tore the cucumber vines with his horns. Dad gave me a binder whip which I used, but it wasn't easy as the bull would be chasing me and then me chasing him. Finally we got him back in the corral. It was a great relief to get rid of that bull.
I always wanted to work with the boys in the field, but didn't get much chance. My job was to help Mom, haul water, and fill troughs for horses and housework. In other words, I did chores.
We had a player piano and the folks would let us dance and sing. Sometimes my Dad played the violin or accordion.
We had some very bad hailstorms. One time the hail was as large as a golf ball and was 4 inches deep. The year cut- worms were so bad my memory is of big pans set in the field with lanterns burning at night so the millers would see the light and fall in the oil in the pans. My job was to help keep the chimneys clean.
Harvest time was so exciting, hired men, neighbors helping and oh so much cooking and dishes to wash. I learned to drive a tractor before a car.