Oct. 29. 1923

Second Florida Trip

Left home about 10 oclock. Got to Mothers had dinner. Went on in to Greenville. Stoped at Evas a few minutes. Finly got to Richmond. Stoped and got a wash pan and little aluminum pan at the second hand store. 5 ct for the wash pan and 10 ct for the other. Went to ten ct store and got this tablet. Went to a variety store and gave 49 ct for a coffee pot and 15 ct for a cup. A gray granit cup.

Got together and started out and our left hind tire was down. Had a leak in it so we had to get out and fix it. While they were fixing it I am writing this. It has rained some all after noon and is getting worse. Looks like it was starting in for good.

Got started out of Richmond a little before three. Got as far as East Germantown and had to stop and fix the tire again. The first tire trouble we have had all summer. Still raining. This is an old fashion looking town. The streats are widened on account of the streat car and the side walks are built close to the houses. No front porches. It looks nice and clean. There is a strip of grass and large shade trees between the highway and side walk. School is just out. We had two tires fixed at ashmans. That is inertubes patched. They are no good. Drove back to a garage and had two tubes patched, one put in, and got on to Cambridge City and went in the camp ground. Had a good camp. Free kitchen had a cook stove. Looked good but was perfectly worthless. Burnt cobs in it. But we managed to get our meals on it.

Did not set the tent up. It rained all night. George got rained on. His bed close got pretty damp. He was all out of sorts. There was a man and woman from Kansas there. They slept in a tent. Had a mattress laid flat on the ground. It rained them out. They had to get up and sit in the kitchen from 12 oclock till morning. A man from Dayton was going to Neb. his old home. He looked like Luther Beard. He was a nice man to talk to he and the boys talked until 11 oclock.

In the morning our tire was down so we went and bought a new one. 12.50 for tire and tube. A Fiske tire. It was so cold. I never noticed the cold more than from Cambridge to Dunreith. Then we turned south and put the curtains on and faired better. We bought good bacon in Richmond for 18 ct a lb. and fresh meat for 15 ct.

We stoped in Greensburg and ate our dinner. Just a lunch cost us 50 ct. sandwitch and cup of coffee a piece. Stop at Seymour and got some cards and at Crothersvill and got some gas. 7 gal. 1.51. Got within 30 miles of Louisville and made camp in a big woods. Had water out of a branch. The woods was between two big hills. Made it warm. Kept the wind from us. Frank made George a bed with one of the boxes and some poles covered with leaves. Made it in the tent. So he fared better than the night before. Got to Louisville in the morning. Had pavement out to West point. Stoped just out of West point. Made a stick fire and had hot coffee. Started on for Etown. The Dixie Highway was one mass of rocks all the way thro camp Knox and farther but if they had let us stay on that we would have been glad but they gave us a detour that was awful and after that they gave us one that was worse. 25 miles long. I never saw such roads. Never of all the roads we ever traveled they were the worst but we made over 100 miles that day. After we got to Upton we had better roads. We met a man and woman from Lexington Ohio on the 25 mile detour. They were going back home. He was grouched. I dont think he wanted to go back. If they had turned south instead of north at Upton they would have been all right for roads. We stoped between Upton and Mumpsfordville at a farm house. A Mr. Noe. George slept in his house car. He was going to start for the south the next week. That was the fourth camp out. We made good time.

Nov 1.

We passed the old school house at Bowling Green where Carries and we nearly frose to death on down over what we called mountains but what the Tenn. people called a ridge at the foot of the mountain. 15 miles from Nashville we camped at a school house where they had a bucket like a piece of spouting in the well. There was 2 cars from Lansing Mich. camped there. They were none of them young but the one couple the man was 74 and his wife looked to be as old as he was. A little frail woman. She said she had her feather bed with her. George went to a house and slept. They were Jews. They had a boy that was not right and he walked all night and kept George awake. They did not charge him anything for his bed.

We got to Nashville and to avoid paying toll took the Murphysboro road and had 2 detours. Bad ones but not quite as bad as Ky. on down to Fayettsville where we camped right in town by a big garage. Had to pay 25 ct. They were having a big revival across from the camp and a Wis. lady and I went across the street and listened to the singing. Then George Frank and I went up town and walked around the square went back to camp and went to bed. About mid-night it began to rain. George slept in the tent.

It was raining next morning but we started and got out from town to a station called Wells Hill. Got some gas went a little ways and found that our our front spring was broken. Kept trying to find a place to get it fixed. Bought a piece of a spring at Hazel Green and thought we would fix it our selves but it was so cold and miserable we gave it up and went on to Huntsville and had a new spring put in. I sat in the office while the work was being done and how it did pour down rain. We got out of Huntsville and eat our dinners and put the curtains on and let her rain and it did. Rained on us until we got to New Hope about 5. oclock. We went in camp there where an old church used to be but had been moved a way. The old grave yard was there all moss grown and gray. George went to a house near by and got a bed at Mr Handrey[?] Pillers. Said he had a good bed. It rained about all night and and in the night some time the wind blew a gale.

Misty Sunday morn but we started on about 10 oclock. People were just going to Sunday School. Some were black and some were white. Frank gave 5 ct a piece to 3 children. We had camped on their land. Had some cement road and some clay road from there to the Tennessee River. They had two ferry boats there that would haul about 4 cars. 1.00 a piece. They took two cars and a wagon across when we went across. Then we had the very best of paved road up Gunters Mountain and part of the way across. It is quite aways across two or three towns on top of the mountains. We made good time down thro Ala and reached Center Ala where we camped three years ago and met Bitners. We did not see the camp up on the Mountain. They paved the road and have changed it I suppose.

Monday the rain was over. It was so wet that we all set in the car Sunday night but did not rest much. George in the front seat and Frank and I in the back. Nothing happened Monday the roads were good. We went thro Atlanta without any trouble. Stoped at Bennie Jaxsons and ate quite a few persimmons. They were good. Wish I had some now. But Bennies were gone and “pore white trash” lived there. They had fixed the house up just a little bit and built a barn about as big as a hen house but we knew the place all right. We camped at Orrs Monday night where we had camped before missing the camp where the nigers charged us for our water but we recognized the place. At Orrs a man and his wife from Chicago Mr and Mrs Jones camped with [us]. We had met up with them first back in Tenn. I think crossed the Tenn. River with them. But they drive faster than we do. We gain on them by early starts. That is the only time we camped with them. They came over in our tent a while. We have not saw them since. I expect they have reached St Petersburg. They have a home there.

Tuesday we came on down thro Griffin the town where everything was cheap and it is still a cheap place to buy. They have the nicest 5 and 10 Woolworth store. We spent about an hour there then on to Barnsville. Stoped there a few minutes. On to Ft Valley. Got bread for 4 ct a loaf. Got 5 loaves. Got meat all thro Georgia only at Cartersville for 15 20 ct. a lb. but they soaked us 35 ct a lb at Cartersville. Gas was 20 ct all thro Ga. They had a 3 ct tax on gas.

We got down to what we called the Georgia Hill Tuesday eve. Frank went up to the house after water and asked if the same man lived there. He did not. Frank told him about the man giving him some sweet potatoes so it was not long untill he came down with 5 or 6 great big sweet potatoes. We have not tried them yet. He stayed quite a while. We enjoyed his company.

We did not get a very early start. Slept late. We were 60 some miles from Valdosta. Had a down tire. Had to stop and fix it then stoped and ate our dinner so did not get to Valdosta untill after noon. From Valdosta to Lake City we had good roads then we had to detour off of the highway by way of Ft White and had bad sand road in to Columbia Fla. where we camped. That was the first we were bothered with hogs. They were the wild kind. The old jug noses. We did not see any of them untill then. The hogs have all been good.

Every thing looks better than it did three years ago. So many more pretty yards. Nearly every yard was full of Christanthimum that is not spelled right but why worry. They had such lovly cream colored ones. I was like Betsy W. I wanted a slip but unlike Betsy did not get any. Started that morn. Got to Gainesville all right. Started for Ocala. Struck sand roads. Had a down tire. Fixed that. Found our front spring had sliped. Had no bolt to fix it. An Ind. man came along and stayed with us. He had no bolt. Stoped 2 or 3 cars but they had no bolt so we put a block of wood in between the springs and came on to a little town. Got a bolt and Frank and George are fixing the spring and I am writing.

It is now afternoon. We will not make a very good drive today. We got our spring fixed and started on over the bad roads and had not gone far when we found the body had sliped on the back spring. Stoped and fixed that with the help of some men that came along. Went on over bad roads and detours untill evening. Got to a small place called Lowel. Camped in a yard having an empty house. It belonged to the store keeper. George slept in the house. We did not pitch the tent. This is the only night that we have not pitched it. It has been cold all of the time.

Got a fairly early start and by going around on another road a fair clay road missed the highway so had no more detours thro the sand. Left Gainesville about 10 oclock Thursday and reached Ocala about 10. Friday a distance of 42. miles. Had good roads the rest of the way and good luck. Reached Dundee Friday evening. Came thro some large ornge groves. Some big trees some not so big. Some ripe and some green. Stoped at a place to get water. No one lived there. Frank got some tangerines that were on the ground. Got some guavas but they were not good.

Camped at Dundee near a lake. Got water from the lake to wash and to wash dishes. It was very soft. Did not get up very early. Was almost noon before we started on. George shaved. We all washed our faces. I curled my hair. Frank put on a clean shirt. George and I could not put on any clean close. They were packed to deep. I put on clean stockings. My others were wore out. I threw them away.

We are now at Frost Proof about 12 miles from Avon Park. Frank has gone to get shaved. We have some bad roads a head of us. The highway is under construction and you have to travel over the new grade part of the way. We had about a mile of bad road. We were just in the notion of going back and sending George the rest of the way on the train when we got off of the detour on a better road so went on reaching hear sometime in the afternoon. They were surprised to see us. We have just sat around resting up. The men took a ride yesterday, Sun. afternoon, but I felt like I had had enough ride for a while. It is warmer today. It has been to cold to be pleasant all the way down and since we have been here. The people here think it is very cold.

Pop has gone to town to see where Paul is working. He has just come back. He has a notion to try plastering if he can get a job. Paul gets 1.50 an hour. Pop would not get so much I don't expect.

This is armistice day. I don't wheather they are celebrating or not. We have been visiting the Heaths since Sat. They look old fashioned. Pop has got back he can get plenty of work at plastering. They have so much work to do. He met a man named Robbins that wants him to work for him so if he can stand the work we may stay here a while. I think it is a high priced place to live. The vegtables are high and that is what we like. They are packing ornges now. Mabe I will try packing ornges or working in the caning factory. George is laying out in the swing. I don't know how he likes it. He don't say. I don't know wheather I can send this all in one letter or not. You may send your letters to Avon Park. If we go away George can send them on to us. Mom

Monday Nov 26

Well kidos all. We are well and having a good time. It will soon be Xmas. The oak trees around our camp are full of Mistletoe but there is no Holly. I suppose you are making presents. You surly had a time having company but you had plenty of meat to feed them on. We have had bacon all of the time. We are getting tired of it but I have plenty of grease. We had some Florida beef steak Sat but it was tough and not very good.

So Jaunita and Doyle are looking for Santa. If they are good he will be sure to come and I think the house slippers will be nice. I saw a doll here like granny had when she was a little girl. If the little niggers don't take them all she may bring one home. Yes I expect Santa comes to the niggers to if he does not get stuck in the sand.

We have not heard from Grandma R. yet. Mabe she did not get our letter so will write again this week. Have had 2 letters from mother. I am going uptown this morning. Pop went to Sebring with a man this morning who goes over there to work. But Pop is not going to work. Just sightseeing Well I will close for this time.

Mom.

Look in the envelope a red flower

[27]

Guess this is 27. Don't know. Anyway it is Nov. 12 in the afternoon. They had a carnival up town. Ret and I went up in the afternoon. I thought it was very thin. Everyone looked so tacky. I felt like I was out with Coppesses and Annie Blacks with a few nigers thrown in. Ret and Paul went up in the evening to a show. The rest of us stayed at home. Ret and I went up to a little grocerie Tuesday afternoon. I got some bread and corn grits. Ret got a bed for George to sleep in. Frank got a job at plastering. Began at noon the 13 of Nov. It made him awful tired and sore

Nov. 14.

Nothing much to write. We have been eating with Heaths but started cooking our own grub today We pitched tent across from their house. Frank went back since dinner to finish his work. He will have one coat on the room then he will not work any more today. George went up town with him. Ret and I went to a little store on the edge of town and got a few things. Thursday we did not go any place or do anything out side of cook and eat and sit around. I worked button holes in my gingham dress. Ret washed. Friday was about the same. We went up to the packing house and got some ornge and grape fruit and in the evening we went to the school house to a musical. It was good for the kind. Some of the pupils were not more than six or seven years old so it was not very heavy. From that to 15 or 16. Some of it was real good. The men did not go.

Sat we went up town. Ret ordered groceries. I let Frank get ours. He has been working part of every day and some times all day but it made him so sore and the lime ate his hands so. Mickey Paul went to see his girl over at Arcadia Sat. Frank George and Bill took a walk Sunday afternoon out to some lake about 4 miles out thro palmettos and cactus. Did not get back till dark. Ret and I took a short walk along a lake that is close to there house. It was cold all day. Frank wrote letters in the forenoon. One to Deo[?] Teaford and one to Roys and one to Albert. Monday I wrote to mother and Charlie.

Frank went to work again I took the letters up in the afternoon. Got some postcards and stamps and some beef steak. We had gravy and grits for supper. Western steak is 35 ct and Fla steak is 25. We eat the Western. You would to if you could see the poor cows they have here. We stoped off at the packing house got some more fruit. Went in and watched them pack ornges. Some pack fast and some pack slow. They have to stand all of the time I am afraid I could not stand it.

We went over to Bills and sat by the fire place a while in the evening. We go every night. They have a nice place. George is cleaning it up since he is here. He has pulled the red top grass all out of the garden. About a wagon load. They have a few ornge trees and what they call sorrel. It is what we brought home and called Fla. cranberry. Ret cooked some and it tasted like cranberry. They grow on big bushy plants. They grow high as your head. The oak trees here have great bunches of mistletoe in them but they have no berries on yet.

When I came home from town I thought I had found a string of white and pink beads but it was a snake about 1 foot long. I called George and he came with his shovel and cut its head off. Paul said it was a coral snake. Tuesday Frank went over to town and finished his job of plastering. He had worked 27 hours for Mr Gray at 1.25 an hour.

Ret and I went after dinner over where they used to live and visited her old neighbors Mr and Mrs. Barof. He is 84 years old and she looks to be about my age. Then we went to see the man that lives in Rets old house. He is sick and lives alone. They had a real nice place but not so nice as the one they have now. They had a 2 acre ornge grove there. We stoped at a little store and bought some things. I got some cheese and some butter beans. It was a good long mile over there but I walked over and back and was not tired. My feet do not hurt me. I am feeling fine. It was on the other side of the lake. Lake Tolane they call it.

After supper we all went up to the band concert in the park. They have a park in the center of Main street with one way streets on each side with a band stand and benches for people to sit on. We sat in the car. Frank and George walked up town.

Wednesday I washed. Our cloths were awful dirty. Hemed the mattress in the afternoon. Had cabbage and salt pork for dinner. Frank wrote two letters and six cards in the afternoon and took them up to the office. We have had only one letter so far. Will surly get some soon. Wed. and Thursday We dident do any thing unusual. Frank went up and helped Mickey plaster Thursday. I ironed cooked and washed dishes. It is not a very big job. Frank worked Friday. George went up town met a man from Union City that told him about Tom Hart getting killed. We had a letter from Mother Thursday. We had a letter from Blanche. Frank worked Sat forenoon. He can not stand it to work steady. He gets so sore. Mickey works every day at St. Petersburg. They are paying $114.00 a week for plasterers.

An old man from Lima came on the job the other day but he was off today. The work is so hard. Resting up for the next week. He said he knew grandfather Copeland. He is an old timer. Ret and me went up town in the morning. Got beefsteak for dinner. Stop at the packing house and got some ornges. They are so sour they would make a pig squeal. Not good at all. In the afternoon we called on some people that have a sick baby. It has colitis and a cold. It is very sick.

Frank has gone up town to get some thing for supper. Don't know what it will be. Whatever he gets will cost enough in this mans town. Today while we were in the store a man came in and got three apples and they cost him 23 ct. I thought the poor old man would faint. They look right at you and never bat an eye and charge charge. Charge. We are going to hunt a cheaper place some of these days.

George has Heaths place all cleaned up. He and Bill are building a kitchen now. Sat evening Frank and I Went up town. We walked. I was tired when we got back. That was two trips to town for me that day and we walked around and saw the sights. There is about as much to see as there is in Ansonia. The business houses are all on one side of the street but they are putting up a big block on the other side. That is where Frank worked last week. It is a fine building. Will have a bank opera house and other business rooms. After we got back we went in and sat a while with the Heaths.

This takes us up to Sunday Nov 25. It was a very quiet day. We did not even write letters. The men took a drive in the afternoon out to some lake. Bill has to go frog hunting they never get any. We saw a squirrel in a tree close to the tent and watched it about an hour. It stayed there nearly all afternoon. Ret Paul and I went to the Baptist church in the evening to preaching. They got one joiner. The preacher was very common. Monday forenoon went up town got some cranberrys and made some