Apr. 18th, plowed and hauled a load of hay to feed over the river because the river was raising. Went to Prayer Meeting, Frank & I. Got a letter from Pa. Grandpa is no better. Got a letter from Mary & Lizzie Bench. Mary and Lizzie Bench are daughters of James Calvin (or Colbert) Bench, James Bench’s younger half-brother. They are…
Tuesday, April 17, 1900
On 17th Frank & I went up to section 5 to see about the cattle & horses. Found 20 cattle & 10 horses out. Plowed in the afternoon. Charley started to school to Mrs. Smith on 16th. It rained again today. I plowed with my overcoat on last week. Geo. took his mother a load of wood today. Mrs. Smith is…
Monday, April 16, 1900
16th, piled brush, drug logs, got wet, it rained. It snowed on the 11th. Rained on the 15th & 16th. Got wet on the 15th & 16th.
Sunday, April 15, 1900
Sun. 15th went to S.S. [Sunday School] & Young People’s Meeting. Resolve to be a better Christian.
Saturday, April 14, 1900
14th, cut corn stalks & went to a party at Boones given by G.O.Willard. “[Jesse] is cleaning out the remaining stalks with a harrow so he can plow… so, after cutting, shocking and being left out in the field, in May those are the dregs.” Thank you to Kenneth and Troy Snelling of Excelsior Springs, Missouri, for that explanation!
Friday, April 13, 1900
13th, I harrowed on “70”. Went to cottage Prayer Meeting in the evening.
Thursday, April 12, 1900
12th, I cultivated & plowed. Got a letter from Pa — Grandpa stills lingers. There are multiple steps to breaking up the soil and preparing a field for planting crops. Plowing is a deep breaking up of the soil so that the other, lighter kinds of tilling can take place. Cultivating is breaking up the soil and pulling weeds along…
Wednesday, April 11, 1900
11th, I cultivated on the “70”. Went to Prayer Meeting in the evening. Jesse notes a few days later that it snowed on April 11th.
Tuesday, April 10, 1900
10th, Frank & I cultivated, John sowed oats & Geo. plowed on the “70”. In July 1888, we moved from the old Williams place to the Green Cooper place (this place) by the bridge. Cooper went West & came back broke. It is possible that the “old Williams place” is south of Dawn, Missouri. In the 1980s, Bench genealogists were told…
Monday, April 9, 1900
Apr. 9th I cultivated for oats over on the “70”. John sowed oats, Geo. & Frank plowed on the “70”. Pa has not returned yet from down South, nor we haven’t heard from him yet. James Bench’s property is shown in the Livingston County Plat Map of 1917. In the plat map of 1878, the land had been owned by…