Childhood Memories

*Describe the house you grew up in
The house I grew up in was a small four room affair. It was in its day a nice brick house with a large lot and a lot of fruit trees, apples, peaches and such. It wouldn’t be classed as anything today because now if you had six or eight kids you have to have six or eight bedrooms plus kitchen, bathroom, living room, laundry room, family room and what else? But we felt we had plenty of room and were a close knit family.

*Describe your yard as a child.
When I was growing up our yard was much like any other yard in the little town. There were corrals in one end, with the granary and sheds close to them. Everyone had a chicken coop where he got the eggs and a fat hen or rooster now and then. It was my job to cut their heads off with the ax. The poor things would really flap around in the snow. We would hang them up so they would bleed out good and cool out also. Then we would have a good meal.

*What toys did you play with as a child?
The first thing I can remember playing with was a kiddy cart. It was a three wheeled cart made from wood which you pushed with your legs. This acted as a motor (your legs I mean). After we wore that out and got a little older, Dad got us a bicycle. We also made stick horses and would take the bark off to make any color we wanted. If we wanted a white horse we’d take all the bark off. This was like the one Fred Thompson rode and was very popular. Hoot Gibson rode a black with a white face, so we’d take the head bark off for his horse. It was lots of fun. I had two friends who would come down all the time – George Jackson and Arthur Jackson. Their dad had died so they didn’t have much to do. George Jackson got to be a big boy and was the fullback for BYU. He died in Salina two years ago, his wife also.

*What games did you play as a child?
The game I liked the best was Run Sheep Run. When we trimmed the fruit trees every spring the limbs were put in piles to be burned. When they got dry we would get all the kids in the neighborhood and have a good time roasting potatoes and corn over the fire and then play games such as Run Sheep Run. We wold burn all the limbs, even twigs. We always had good times in the good old days.
Also Carl and I got a basketball and hoops for Christmas one year. We went out in the yard and put the standards up and by the afternoon had the neighbors there playing ball. This ball was I think the best Christmas present I ever got. I enjoyed it along with half the kids in town. We have had as high as 15 or 20 playing ball at one time. We finally put a basket up at either side of the yard because of the amount of playing.

*Tell about your neighbors as a child.
Our neighbors as a child were the best. There were the Bennetts on one side along with the Turners on the other. Our Aunt Sue was a funny woman. She’d not let her kids play with us for fear of us teaching them bad habits, so we didn’t get to play with Jess or Ned much. The Turners on the other hand were opposite as can be. We’d play all the kids games at night, or whenever we got together. Donald Turner, or just plain Don, was my best friend then and now with the exception of family.

*Describe the downtown of your childhood.
I remember the down town of Holden. We had two places to buy candy and soft drinks. The main road went through the place. We saw some cars and a lot of wagons and buggies. I really enjoyed this place. We lived two blocks from the main road and went to one of the stores nearly every day.

*Describe the stores you went to when you were young.
When I was young the town had two stores: Wood’s Market and the old co-op store, just west of the church house. This store was the oldest in town. It was started by a few of the richest men in Holden. At first they sold tokens for the money used only at the store. They sold everything from candy to cloth and axes and shovels, everything you could buy. It wasn’t too big, but it was quite a store. When I was in about second grade the school teacher we had sent me over to the co-op to buy some adhesive tape. I went over and got it for her and I thought I was something special to get assigned that job. Only then I found out what she wanted the tape for. I was the first one she used it on. I got my mouth taped shut for talking out of turn in class. There were three or four other boys who later got this as well, but I was the first. Anyway, the co-op was later owned by the Edward Stevens family, but finally closed sometime in the late twenties or early thirties. The Wood’s Market was started by John and Edward Wood. Later on John bought Edward out and ran the store. It has been in the Wood family since it started. It is now owned by Max Wood, and his son plans on buying it. We are related to all of these men. John and Edward Wood are our uncles.

*Do you recall any special summer trips or vacations while you were growing up?
The best trip I can remember was the one in Spanish Fork. We had two of Dad’s sisters living there. Every year the town had a 4th of July celebration so that is the time we climbed in the old Model T and went to Spanish Fork. Trips from Holden to Spanish Fork would take all day and there were always lots of flat tires. Still, we looked forward to those times. I had two cousins who were a little older than me, but we always got along and had a good time. One day while we were at the park a man let a big balloon get away from him. It floated up in the sky where the wind started blowing and the balloon headed for parts unknown. I thought it would come down, so I started after it. I ran till I was pooped out and the balloon never did come down. It was a good time anyway.

*Tell about the medical care you had growing up. How does this compare to today?
When I was growing up only the bigger towns had doctors. The smaller towns had people who were good with the old time remedies. Holden was no exception. Maranda Giles Turner was her name, and she was a dandy. If any of us kids had ailments Mom would send us up to Maranda’s. She only lived 1 1/3 block from our place so the trail got hot from just me. I’d cut me with a knife and had rashes galore. She fixed me up and everyone else in town. She was a fine woman and we owe her a lot. She wouldn’t take any money. Today you get in the car and drive to Fillmore to the hospital which today costs you an arm and both legs. However, we are lucky to have it. A lot of lives have been saved because of it.

*How much was your first allowance? When did it start? Was it conditional?
On Sundays Dad would give me five cents if he had it. I can’t remember when it started, but not very early. It didn’t hurt me, because not many others had one either.

*As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
I kinda laugh now when I think of the thoughts I had on what I wanted to be. All the boys wanted to be cowboys and the girls nurses. Later on I changed my mind. I decided I wanted to be a fighter pilot, although to this day I’m a coward for flying. It’s funny how things turn out.

*Tell about any pets you had as a child.
When I was growing up I wanted a dog, so Dad said I could have one. I can’t remember who I got him from , but he was black in color with a tip on his tail, so we called him Tip. When he was about a year old he was run over by a car and killed. When I went to pick him up by the side of the road I felt terrible. I cried all the way home where we buried him. After getting over the pain of losing this one dog I got another. He was about the same color and lived about the same amount of time. This one was shot by a man. A pack of dogs got in the man’s cattle and my dog was one of them. I felt so bad Dad said no more dogs. I never tried to get another dog because I’d feel so bad at losing them.

*What is a special smell you remember from your childhood?
My Grandma Bennett made a special kind of bread called saltrisen. This was something the pioneers made. It had a funny smell, but it sure tasted good, especially when it was warm and had plenty of butter. Also I like the smell of potatoes and onions.

*Did you ever steal as a child? If so, were you caught? What happened?
The first time I ever stole was up to Grandpa Bennett’s. The old lady who lived next door was named Mary Evans. She had a pie cherry tree just through the fence. They were ripe, so I thought I’d try a few. But about the time I got going good she showed up and chased us out, then came up to Grandma and told her score. When Dad came home from the field Grandma told him, so he got me by the hand and we went to the lady’s house to ask forgiveness. I also got caught later on getting the same thing (cherries). They were my weak point, and I still like them.

*Have you ever tried anything really dangerous? How did it feel?
When I was young, I was a climber. Nothing seemed to frighten me. We had some big poplar trees near our house and when the wind would blow I would go up in the trees and let the wind blow the branches I was on. I got a great kick out of this and always had a good time with no problems, which was lucky and good.

*What were you afraid of as a child?
The first fear I can remember was of the horse traders who camped on the lower street about a block from Dad’s house. I’m sure they were not as bad as we thought, but then if our parents said they would trade us to the horse traders we all did an about face and did better. The animal I was afraid of was a skunk. We were down the lane picking plums one day - I can’t spell the kind of plums they were so I won’t try – but a skunk ran up the ditch right through us kids and I’ve never gotten over it. I’d still rather fight a bear than a skunk and that’s a fact.


Holidays

*Tell about Easter as a child.
I remember Easter as being a day of running wild in the hills east of town. We’d take our lunch and stay all day. When I got old enough to ride horses we’d go on them and go farther. There were about three springs within five or six miles of town. We’d go to Church Springs. Wild Goose was another neat place, and of course Bennett Field. This would happen on Saturday, the day before Easter. Then on Sunday we would go to church.

*Tell about 4th of July during your childhood.
During the 1930’s the 4th of July used to be a big thing. It started with fireworks, and included a little parade and program in the town hall (which has since been torn down). The people of the town would vote on a young woman to be Miss Liberty. She was the most important person for the day. Our sister Blanche was voted Miss Liberty one year. She gave a very moving speech. She was a fine speaker. They don’t have anything now except a day off from work.

*Tell about Halloween as a child.
When I was young, Halloween was a big day and night. The school had programs and costumes. At night the bigger kids did things that were not very good. One such thing was getting an old outside toilet up in front of the store or some other public building or taking buggies apart and putting it together again up on a big barn or granary. I helped do some of these things when I got bigger. In those days they used to milk cows by hand, and would let the calf suck part time while milking. We would go and turn the calves in with the cows and when the person got ready to milk the found the cow already milked by the calf. These things weren’t very good, but everyone did it when they were young, so folks took these things in stride.

*Tell about Thanksgiving when you were growing up.
When I was young the dinners we’d have up to Grandma and Grandpa’s house were the best. All the uncles and aunts and cousins would come and we’d have a time. I don’t know how the old folks stood the kids all running around and talking as loud as possible. They had two big tables in two different rooms with all kinds of food on each. Then, after the prayer and blessing we started in on the food. I was one of the most rowdy kids and every year Dad would warn me about not letting me come next year, but I always went. Those good old folks are all gone now and so are the good old fashioned Thanksgivings.

*Describe a night at Grandma’s house.
Thanksgiving at Grandma Bennett’s house was always a big treat. All the brothers and sisters would be there, as well as all their kids. They would arrive the day before so that made it so we had to sleep over. They had a room that was for sleeping. We had wall to wall people in the room that was for the boys and laughed and talked all night. The old people would yell “You kids shut up and go to sleep!” but we never did. I wish sometimes things could go back to the way they were then, but I know they never will. All of those I called old people are all gone now as well as a lot of those who slept on the floor.

* Describe getting a Christmas tree as a child.
We had beautiful trees and would always go to the mountains and pick the best one we could find. We had good times trimming them. We didn’t have any of the things they have now, but did have a lot of popcorn and would string it in long lines to put on the tree. Also we would make paper chains of red and green paper to put on the tree. We had a little angel for the top which made it very pretty. As a child that was the best time of the year.