wir_n Mrs. Midred CoLe. b" MlchaeL DanteLvana Treasure 2ollection; July 8. l86,
_-ANTE: Before we start taonng about your adult ore, wOUld You just tell us what it was like growing up in that part of the county, around Pasuchi Island.
COLE: Well, no. I didn't ;row up around Pasuchl Island. I can see we're off to a wrong start now.
CC: : :rew up. :s this on?
ML': it's running, but 1 wasn't •;oins to make any big fuss about it.
MC: I oant oae wnat .t doing. so I tn:.k itavbe
better not go through this thing.
MD: Well, see all you have to do 15 just talk. That's
just about all we want to know.
MC: I see you got wrong information about me. I went to
Pasuthj. Island to aa:hes, but we were ten
mis :rom L'asucn... Iiajd. Co nght maybe. we to drive our team. I thought you'd start out where was born and raised.
ND: well, we can just start there. That's no problem.
MC: Okay. Well, was born down in the Proving Ground
:rea, on the Little Neck Farm. JIichael's
illa's address. It was farm lana. Under the proving ground now. it was a farm that my father, he didn't own it, but we rented it. I was born there. February 7, 1907. What's next?
MD: What were your parents like when you were growing
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up there?
MC: My parents were -- my father was a farmer. We lived on that farm for arcut f:ve -- cidno remernbor cause I was about two years cia wnen we novea up to another farm nearby. Up on Bush River. It was Chilbury Farm. We rented it. Mv father farmed there. My baby brother was just a year old when we moved there. We stayed there for quite a long time. I have some very pleasant memories and I have sad memories, because my mother died when I was eight years old -- on that farm. Then we had housekeepers
large
that '.e lived on. Ther' e did have a lot ci
help. We had a lot of colored help, we called it in those days. We had tenant houses. We had a five hundred acre farm. Raised wheat and corn. Hogs and had cows. horses. Everything you have on a farm is a lot of work. Colored people to help us. Or farm heir. :t wasn't necessr:ly colored. : don't oean that. it was a very lovely place though because it
,Vtt C'A LS £ iL . S
go swimming there if we wanted to. We always had to have somebody with us. We didn't go on our own.
Then we got old enough to go to school. My
4-¬ - hr', and the wagon
horse and carriage, rather. We had a buggy. Then
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or ten, we drove cur --- an- Drotner and i I nad
one brother. seventeen months younger than I am. He
away to Perryman. Perrvman
was three miles from our .-,ome. From Chilbury Farm. We were able to drive. We took turns. Then we went to school at Perryman. So, I don't know what cisc you -- am I doing all right?
MD: Oh yes. That's --
MC: Is this what you want me to do?
MD: Yes. That's perfectly fine.
MC: Well, then -- that's something
". you ."au ufl
you
MC: You dont put all this in. what I'm saying?
I didn't know how you were coing to do this. I
could have had some of this ready.
MD: That's culte all riaht. It's more --
MC: I could have vr:ttan it down.
MD: Well, see, we Just nice to near you ;ust ten us
ciout wrist _t was n:e yrowing up. ie con neec
like any formai write-up or anytning.
MC: Well, my father farmed. i went to school in
Perryman. course. in 1918. World War I broke
cougno _anc were.
Aberdeen. Or this area, thi. 5it of tria iric.
for a proving ground. I remember discussing
people, and the area tnat I lived -- oelow us -- had to move out and get other places to live. All of my family, my relac:ves. livea :n -,his area down .ej.uw Perryman. Arouna Perryman -- Micnaeisviie -
That was all included in the proving ground. Fortunately our farm was not taken. We were right on the line and we did not have to go. In 1917/18 is when they bought the land. All my relatives did. All my family. My fathers people. My mothers people had lived there for generations.
We stayed at Chilbury and we went to school at Perryman. Then the proving ground came and my father stayed on one farm as long as he could.
Ever',t&' the hired halp rushed to the crovinc
ground to get jobs, because it paid more money. In the meantime my mother passed away. In 1915 when I was just eight years old. We had to sort of fend with ourselves and the hired help. it was three veers that my father married again.
When it was time to go to hign school, i came to Aberdeen. I got on the train at Eusn River. Rode the train from -- it was a fifteen minute ride from Bush River to Aberdeen. That's where I started high school. However, my father had to give the
'aft zh.a came to Aberdeen to lc;'e.
He went into the slaughter business. He started a
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'flT fl .1 j.j j
meat market with another man that was already in the business. Mr. Harder. We used to travel
;oLned them. They naa a partnership for a while. :e nvea up on Eusn Ihapew Roac. i had to wa:n to school, to Aberdeen. It was just about a mile. We moved. I graduated from Aberdeen High School in 1925. My brother was oust, as I say, seventeen months younger. We went to school together. He did not finish high schoc:,nowever. I did finish high school.
From then I went on to Maryland State Normal School,::
tollega. 1 was going through training for a
teacher. I thought : wanted to teach school.
have my fifty-fifth picture here. When I was retired. I attended that fifty-fifth anniversary of my graduating class.
MD: It's very nice.
MC: That was in 1982. Now it's 1986, :o : will be eighty years old on my next birthday. That pictures my
After I graduated from high school, I taught in
Havre de Grace, Maryland. Mr. C. Milton was the Superintendent at that time. Did you ever hear of
iv,?
MD: Oh yes. Our school's named :ftsr him.
MC: Yes. Well, he was my first Superintendent. He
hired me. I was thrilled tecause Havre de Grace was the largest school in the county. I was very proud
to be selected, or able to qualify for the scno• t
Havre de Grace. I had first grade. There were three first grades. Mr. Walter Davis was my principal.
Then I taught for ten years in Havre de Grace. In the meantime, I met my husband, Mark Cole. I mer him through my school work. He was connected with
the school for the division of Collier
Publishing Company. So, he had Havre de Grace High School as one of h:z loces to come every year to
sell magazines for school -- solely magazines :3: children. He directed ill the operations that went along with it.
My, my. here I am. Oh. I married 1933. Auqust. 1933 to Mark Cole. Then I kept on -- you'll have to cut me off because I'm going to -- I'm teaching school at Havre de Grace. I got married in 1931. 1 taught. After I was married in 33 I stayed through the thirties. Summer, that June that Marcia was born in December. So I had worked that
I stopped in June, and I didn't come back that fall. My oldest daughter was born December 22. 1937, ChrIstmas baby.
but two daughters. fwo cnildren. Then i stoppec teaching, of course. and raised my family. It was
leasure. SithC .ue. ny husbana
was doing very well. We bought a home nere in Aberdeen. I would not go back to work for ten years. They kept after me though. to come back substitute. I didn't want to. I didn't have to, at that time. I said. "No. I'm going to stay with my youngsters."
Finally, in 1947. January, 1 accepted a position
at Hall's Cross Roads. The after the
because it was bad t:neS then. Teachers were ;o:ng aria coming. 1 mean, peopie wouLa move in -- the next day -- en dave they'd atav or two montns Cr six months, and they were gone. So. I stayed with
them. Oh no. Then I chanced r.hools '5. T
went to Aberdeen Elementary. There I am. Cut that out from there -- let me think.
Ten years from Aberdeen Elementary. Then I wanted to go to the new school, which is
Bake.-field. They built a new school. So. I was transferred to Bakerfield in 1963. It was verY nice to be in a new school. I've never been in a new school before. So, I went to Bakerfield. I retired in 1973
So. then I enoyed my retirement. Thaw had -¬lovely
lovely party for me. I've taken advantage of a lot
of social affairs. There are different clubs and organizations that I belong to. All that's different was my netirea Teacners Association, of course. Then i belong to the Historical Society o--
f
Harford
Hartord County; Genealogy Club; the Bird Club:
Democratic Club: Aberdeen 2nd District C luo. I did work with the Harford Democratic Club. What do you call it after you retire? Alumni -- The Harford High School Alumni Association. I belong to Grove Church. I worked there as a teacher for a number of years. I attend regularly. I belong to the PEO,
that's the Phlanthrcpic Education that I
belong co. _ou;e earu ut ZE6. I love to worK at ,¬-me in my flower seas and. flower ;araens.
to keep up with that kind of work. I do some nand
work - I made each one -- ''i'n rO i-arc an fahan
like this. Each one a pillow. That's called qutckflame. Belong to the Hospital AuxtIary. Worked at the gift shop, where I met -- on, I just stopped that. i worked there thirteen years.
I love to travel. I've done a lot of traveiinc I've been to Europe four tlmes. My son and daughter
Three years
they were there. I went over in oummertime.
Stopped . Summer vacation. So. all
over Europe went. Then he travelled. Sc, it was
very nice. I've been back to Spain. I went to
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Spain since then. lye been to Mexico. Been to dawaii. Had a nice travel experience all through the states ana different places.
I've always been busy with my family. My two
daughters -- they are both married. One lives here in Aberdeen now. Marcia married Charley Chilton. They live in Audubon, Pennsylvania. We all keep together. They're back and forth and we nave all kinds of celebrations. Birthday parties and we keep together.
I still keep up with my activities as best I Cone days 1 don't feel too ambitious and other
days I keep moving. Oh, I •lso taught at the
-- the 31's that couldn't read or write. We had eighteen-year-old soldiers down here that couldn't read or or-to. I did !t for two -mars ,t niht. Two nights a week I taught at the Aberdeen Proving Ground. Teach them how to read, particularly. That was most interesting.
So, now you've got to ask me some things. Oh. I
did want to tell you about being here by this this is a historical thing. At Old Baltimore -¬ I attended this commemoration -- when they put this sign up. That was down in the proving ground area.
I had this, we all lived there, all my family.
Lived in o groving ground area. So, then they
donated -- the Historical Society put that monument
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up. Do you think you would ever hear anything about that
MD: I might nave. I'm not ±aminar wtn tnat area though.
MC: That was a monument put up recognizing where Harford County -- or this part of it -- claim was first -- well, it was the site of Old Baltimore.
really. They first claimed that its a village down or a place called Old Baltimore. It's in the proving ground area. That is of interest. That's historical news. They didn't decide to do it. They went on down the bay further. This was the top of the -- off of the .ay at thusn niver. But then they chose Baltimore, where it is today. That's nice to know. I was there.
Oh this was a thing that I remembered when I was
a child. I bring this up because it's I We
used to go over to Pasuchi Island. Well, you know where Pasuchi island is?
MD: I'm familiar with it.
MC: it's off of the orovinci around. Lieu, we had to have our teachers every year -- we came -- when you lived on a farm you just provided your own food. You'd can and you'd put this away, put this up in
season. We alwa' -r own peaches and did our
:wn tc....in order to :ct :or peaches had to
take a team -- we just had one -- it was
JUSt like a delivery wagon. it was a four
wheels. It was pulled by horse. Wed go over to Pasucni Island to get our peaches. Over there would be three farms. Mr. Zealer had this peach orchard. We went every summer about this time to get peaches. I remember now. I was just seven years old, something like that. It was a big deal. We were allowed to go, my brother and I. We loaded up the peaches in the
Also about the farm! I remember hog killing time. We used to kill our own hogs. I'm going back now.Put the hogs out and kill them, hang them up
un a gave.. naa a big :arm. i4e [jaG tue oeer --
that's what : want to tell you about this one. They were good experiences. Hog killing and then the harness maker came and mend the harnesses. Stayed a week in our house. Cause they had all these -¬work horses had to have all these harnesses, and they had to be mended. We all liked to see
bring his old tools and the thing he sat on and the machine he -- he stayed a week. He stayed a week every year mending harnesses.
Hog killing time and the thresher week time. thresh the wheat. Old fashioned threshing machine.
It was ethiene. Nr. Lee. who they hitched up
Per-r—an :t hat time. : the machine.
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come and thresh our wheat. Then they had to take it -- what we call a big wagon and a team of horses.
Took it down to the river and t-om Havre de
Grace to Florence came in Bush River by our farm
This schooner would come in and dock out there. They'd drive the team out to meet the scow that came in. They'd put the bags of wheat in that schooner. Then they'd go to the boat and they had a big hull, you know, the middle part of the boat, and dump the wheat in it -- took it to Boomer. That's how they delivered it to the farm to the city, where they put the elevators in stores or
whatever they did with it. inany was maae into
flour. That's how we had to get it to the city. By boat. So, they sent it by train. Today it would be like a big truck would come and pick it up. Or something.
The canning factory was at Perryman when I was a child. Where they canned the corn. We raised corn for the canning factory. I'm going back now.
MD: That's quite all right.
MC: I'm thinking things. We raised corn for
the people who had it today. Of course, the old folks were gone. There were some there. Grandson
there. Mr. Mitchell. 1 remember
iem very, very well as a child. Of course, they used to be quite old. Ask me some questions.
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MD: In the area around Nichaeisvifle, that later became the Aberdeen Proving Ground. what was the life like then? Like the families you knew? The type of WO r ::
MC: Oh, I knew all the families. I remember a lot of
them were The man that brought the
proving ground here was my fathers cousin, Ed Stockham. He was responsible for the proving ground coming here. He had a friend that lived in Jersey or some place. See, Sandy Hook was the original proving ground. Cousin Ed knew somebody and he
said, " I can get you some property." So, he
:ne pro
here.
Michaeisville was just a small village. That was
were I first went to Sunday School when I was about five years old. One old building. There was a blacksmith's shop and a store. The post office was in the store. That was our address when I lived at Little Neck. I was born on Little Neck Farm. Michaelsville was our address. Just a small. country village. One telephone. I was born 1907. They had one telephone. Dr. Skyler had to get on horseback, come from Perryman, down to
Michaelsville, near It was a snowy
night; a cold, bitter night. February 7th. My father had to ride over to the village at
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Michaelsville, where this phone was -- call Dr. Skyler -- he came and had his ears -- and he
all this till has dying day -- about getting his ears frosted when I was born. So, he nvea be quite an old man. But he lived in Perryman. Finally, when we moved to Bush River, then our address was Perryman. Our mail was brought down by -- we had a postman who rode horse and buggy. Had mail boxes in the lane. Our lane was a mile long.
My mother was a great lover of horses: She liked to ride horseback. Sometimes she'd take one Ji L40 WSt..A. AASJ. ni AACJ. ilorse j• go get tue mail at the end of the lane. Cause our lane was a mile long from the Bush River Neck Road to into our farm, which was chilbury's. Our farm was named Chilbury Farm. It's still there. The gas and electric people own that property now. We never owned it. We rented it.
[End of side one, tape one]
MC: Now I'm going to tell you what I've been doing lately.
MD: Oh, no. I yst have a fey other :'1onS.
the schooling. You said you are a teacher. what
were some of the materials you used? Like the
taxtDooics, the taaca.ng methods you used when you first startea out?
MC: We tad enough supplies when I first started out. it wasn't too, too bad. We had enough. We used the -¬oh, what was the -- the green book, so popular :n those days. Oh, I just got to tell you this, because I have to look all this up. I can co l:cc some of this up, you see.
ND: Oh, that's all right.
NC: That's what I'd like to do.
MD: That's quite all right. We just want to hear about some of your experiences as a teacher.
WC: we!,, "au c31e -- thj1uU.i, .ju: :nac 0 7er1
important. The old boox that i used wasno -- of course, a new book to me. They were using old old books when I went to school. I was well supplied with good material. I wasn't overly supplied, but we had a good series of books by Scotts Wardman. Scotts Wardman was a publisher. I'm trying to remember the name of the series. Dick and Jane. Dick and Jane time when I came along. I taught
at the beginning. I stopped, you see, for so long. When I went back it was gone even better. We had more types. More publishing companies. Moo: things to do with. Dicto machines to make copies.
II :nds of :po;us -- what do you call them -- to show pictures.
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MD: Oh. projectors.
MC: All kinds of projectors. it was very different from when I taught my first ten years. See. I stopped.
I -aught :an "ear:. tcttaa :or 03n -aara.
I went back in 1942, and taught till '73. 1 retired
in 1973. I was 66 years old when I retired. saw
quite a change between 1927 and 1973. But I was out
ten years :t:::i. XII :J:2tior
thirty-six and a ha±f years.
From 1937 to 47 : stayed home with my
children. Ten years I was out ana cnen went back.
I went back in mid-term and taught till 1973. : retirec. They haa a Lovely party tor we. The ?TA. Because I was very active in the PTA.
I loved my parents. I loved my children. I was very close to them. Kept up contacts with them. Other activities, PTA; and I still, often, go back once in a while something's going on over here at our school. Over at Bakerville. That's where I
ended up at 3akerv1le. -ften go over to
something that's going on.
I started teaching at Havre de Grace, and I stopped for ten years. When I started back I went to Hall's Cross Roads. I was there five and a half years, then I went to Aberdeen Elementary. T"-d Aberdeen Elementary and yent to a brand .iew ::hocl -- at Bakerville. So, that was nice. Since then I
have been traveling. I've been taking care of my house and my garden. I still work in my flowers.
As much as I can. This kind of weather I'm not
acing .LUZI1 anything. They're dying. I had
beautiful flowers out in the yard, but the weather's been so bad.
I do a lot of activities with my family. We just keep
daughter just came In. She brought me some things. Some vegetables. She has a garden. I've done a lot of travelilng. : enjoy my travelling very much. Are you going to ask me some more. I can answer
quesci. u:r Cthafl peai .is. a..... .. Z.ZS
you want to know. Did I answer what you asked me?
ND: Oh, yes. Can you tell us some more changes you've seen in the school system like students?
NC: I guess so. We didn't have drug problems in my day. Never heard tell of such of thina. Once in a while
there would be a bad youngster. remember when _-
was
was going to school when I was a child going to
Bowdin. I started a little school, I forgot to ten you in the first part. Down in the proving ground. It was called Bowdin. Miss Anne Morgan -- this'll be good history -- cause she'd be older than a
Anne
Morgan wa: first
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the farm i lived on at Chaibury. We drove down there. Later, after i left Bowdin, 1 went to
Parrvmane that vas a rrl,-rC
back.
MD: That's quite all right.
MC: Bowdin was a one-room school and Perryman was a
two-room school. Then we got to third grade and we drove ourselves, my brother and I. I was old enough to drive then. I was driving at nine or ten years oid -- drove the horse and buggy twenty miles. We parked it at Mr. Mitchell's barn. Went down at noontime and ;a7s in an oar of corn. Oh, my
goodness, one-LOL1 SLe out
eighteen or twenty kids. All in one school I didn't stay there very long. I was just there from February to June. The next year I went to Perryman. We didn't have the drug problem. Children obeyed the teachers. There weren't any -- too much -- oh. once in a whila there'd be a little bit, but not enough to worry about.
When I was it was beginning to show up
in high schools -- discipline problems and this going on -- whatever they go on -- dope. We had respect. We didn't have any -- What we said, they did. You sit down. You get up. Nhich maybe was too much of being a dictator. when 1 "as coming along. You just took terror. You were the boss.
That was it. I told them today, "The first thing I remembered -- well, I went back. 1 just sat down in front of them and said.'I'm here to help you and I'm going to but yours going to do what I ask you to do'." I was serious. That's just what I meant to say. "It's just that simple," I said. I remember saying those words. I thought I was very important. Now, : couldn't. I just wouldn't attempt to go into a class. Well, I go back to visit. The little ones
are -- I don't say that but the high school. I
just could not cope with it. I had no idea. I wouldn't know who-- tc star ith it.
Even when wy ;hilJren were joing, t dasn o like it 15 today. in that world we had just two schools in those days. White and the blacks had their own school. Now they're integrated. I taught after --mean, 1954 was when we integrated, or 1953. 1 taught children after we integrated. As I say, I taught till 1973. I retired June, 1973. Thirty-six and a half all together. I think that's what I had
on my records. I some of this
information. I didn't know what your interview was going to be like.
MD: That's quite all right.
MC: What else is Thera I :hc'j.ld tall you? I left out a lot. The last years were the most important years.
I guess. We had more supplies and things to do
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with. I didn't have any trouble getting -- It was just heavenly to have all these machines to work with. Dicto machines and opaque machines. A moving
machine. A nice victrola. Victrola in my days.
Now they're -- All this sort of things tapes.
We had recorders when I left. My chldren could use them. There was a big change from 1927 till -- I went back in '47 I started in the second term -- and then even after that, in the fifties, no 5iXtiS -¬so much changed before I retired. I had all kinds of --
[door bell interruption]
They're working to start tnose people. Arouna
the proving ground it was Mr. Ed Stockham. He's related to them. To my family. You've heard of the Stockham's? It has here Chilberry Farm. I'm sure it was Chilbury. I think they spell it both ways. Well, what else?
MD: When you were growing up in that area, I guess. Michaelsville and on Chilbury, what were some of since that is now, most of it's part of Aberdeen Proving Grounds?
MC: Yes. Most of it , .•iury Farm snt.
That's Gas and Electric own there. They own
.t. We didn't own chat v :atl-ler -
it.
MD: Do you remember anything like the different work, or
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the way of life, or the folklore, or the different things they had then? Arts and crafts.
MC: Well, they had -- the church was our socaals.
Church and the school had a festival once ill a
while. When I was a child in that era you're
going back seventy years ago. In those days they had for the young folks -¬ I belonged to the Homemakers Clubs. They had one for hign school. What did they call .t? The can up here at the Eel Air now.
MD: Mr. Trevin.
MC: Trevin. Extension office. We had that when I was
coming up. We hac nuns witn tne gins cnat raiSu chickens on the farm. The boys had a little garden. Boys and girls could have a garden. Raised chickens. So if you lived on a farm you sort :f followed the farm life. The children had a
what's it called? A club.
MD: 4-H Club?
MC: 4-H Club. Yes. I belonged to 4-H Club. They had
those activities in my day. Just beginning, I imagine. They were just beginning. I remember Miss Gidinger was our demonstrator. She came around. We had little sewing clubs. Also, you raised some
T
hat. Oh, it was quite a day.
They the schools had Field Day, where we
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participated in games, competition. They don't have at any more. Not county-wide. We looked forward to it. Wed practice all year. Havre de Grace against Aberdeen. Aberdeen against Eel Air. Then they only had the five high schools. It wasn't called North Hartford then, it was called Highlandsville, I guess. Highlands. Highlands School. Eel Air. Havre de Grace. Aberdeen. Didn't have these down here --- Joppa and. -- that was on her little -- I think tnere was just five high schools. Oh, we had a lot of one-room schools when I started.
MD: How many years of schooling did you have?
NC: Teaching?
ND: No. How many years were you required to do to school?
MC: Oh. Eleven. High School. Eleven years grade school.
MD: There was still one-room schools when you went? MC: Yes. I started in a one-room school. I started at
Bowdin. After he has that down. A one-room school
down here in -- below Perryman, down in
Between Perryman and Michaelsville and Bush River Neck. That's the area I came from. Bush River Neck to Michaelsville. Of course. that's all the fruit
thoy :ntarmar o' They :ntarmarr:ed cousIns. chard
cousins. Well, that was it. They didn't.
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was cur big town to go to. To do our big
shopping.
Mn o' did you get there?
MC: We went by train. I got on at Bush River. Went by train. I was not quite six years old and my father got hs first automobile. That was quite an experience. My mother learned to drive the car and we put on robes and caps. You didn't have .-- it wasn't framed in with glass. Had curtains in the wintertime. You had to button those curtains on. You don't remember that?
MD: What kind of car was it?
nC: uicx. ?ir. lice Lee from Perryman was :na salesman.
The Lee Buick for a long time. Stayed at Perryman and then Boyle's bought it out. Now it's on Route 24, going down to Edgewood -- Lee's Buick at Perryman. When I first started teaching, of course. that's the first thing I bought. We got rid of the -- 1927 1 started teaching. Mr. C. Milton Light gave me my job, and I went up to see him and signed the papers. Came back to -- Mr. Rowe here in Aberdeen was the agent then -- and bought myself a Chevrolet. Made ninety-five dollars a month. That would be interesting. Ninety-five dollars a month
.rhar1 •r '''1 ''J C?
in a day. That's a time change nn't at?
Oh I wouldn't say it was unheard of. Probably was one or two, maybe, in the county or somebody was ctett1g into ometh:ng 1iJc9 tht. "oti ;c ahead, this ought to be formed into a -- its been jumpy, very jumpy. You'll round it out. That's your job.
MD: Yes. Fortunately. Over, I guess, it would be
almost eighty years that you've lived here; what different changes have you seen? Like in the schools or transportation or communication, different changes like that.
MC: Some things are better and some things are worse.
iou could depend upon tnings. ,411en CU ;7a a cnid you sort of depend upon older ones to take care of you, but now. it's -- well, everything's so different. You have all these modern conveniences. We never thought about sitting in air conditioned rooms. We had hot days. We just were used to it. We didn't have air conditioning. We didn't have -¬we walked or went horseback to get the mail on the farm. Now, you have it brought right to your door. Well, we had to get the mailbox at the end of our lane.
Telephone -- we did have a telephone. We always
o1eohcno 'To lA?' rtr oar.
our car just for the church and we still had a horse
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and forth to the store. We didn't have television. We didn't have radio. It wasn't long -- the first radio. I guess, I listened to was when I was about thirteen or fourteen. You had to have ear phones. Of course, television, that's modern. That's very modern to me.
MD: So, you didn't have those things. Did you gather around the piano?
MC: Oh, yes. They got together ifl the home and had
festivals, and lawn parties and home parties. Candy
pulling. Remember that? Did you ever do that? MD: You mean taffy pulling?
AC And we played gaines. ;t d - part:es.
think, we had a lot of home parties. We played cards. My folks played some card games. When I came along -- and when I was in my teens, I played bridge and five hundred. I learned to play cards, but not when I was a young, young child. We played a lot of games, though. We played parcheesi, and they still play that I guess. Ouiji boards, I remember those, we had ouiji boards, parcheesi, chess, not chess, checkers. My brother was quite a checkers players. He could play checka. I never cared for checkers much. I played with my grandson. That'T one .me that's kept up throuah the years --checkers. He's sixteen now, but when he was ten, twelve, he loved to play checkers, and I used to
play a lot of checkers with him.
This is what they did when I was a child. The younger folks like his age -- his age? He's in high school -- he's coming out of high school.
MD: I'll be coming out next year. Next spring.
MC: We'd gather around the piano. I used to love to ao and listen. They'd sing. Everybody gathered around the piano. I always had somebody that could play.
They had popular songs. World War I, I
remembered my cousins. The boys were here then the proving ground. There were some stationed around. See, the proving ground didn't come In at
arzs ere taken sSLta. a:er
on. There were boys camped over at Old Baltimore and then they'd come up to Chelsea, where my cousins lived. Then they'd play. Yes. I remember going down there and listened. They were older -- my cousins that lived at Chelsea. That was a farm that was in the proving ground area. A canning factory was on that.
That was a big ndustrv here. Canning. Canning's always been an industry since I was a child. Corn and tomatoes. A lot
their The Mitchells and the Michaels and
the Stockhams. That'-- her they made their money. They were the money people here at one time. They made it through the canning factory. My cousin had
7
a canning factory. Chelsea. Old Chelsea. That's a good old name to know. Chelsea Farm. It's down in the rovina crround -rea. Old 3altimore: wher7 used to go on picnics. That's down on the proving ground. Always every church and every family had a lot of picnics. Some time you'd go and stay all day. Some of the picnics the churches had. The
churches were down there Around Perryman.
Michaelsville nad a church -- a Methodist churcn there -- and Bush River Neck had a school, one-room school at Bush River Neck. Bowdin Michaelsville. Perryman had a two-room school.
went cc owuin nan a year ana :nen went on up to Perryman. We lived half way between Perryman and Bowdin.
MD: Closer to the water?
MC: No. Bowdin wasn't close to the water. Powdin was over near -- between Michaelsville and the water. It wasn't far from the water. but it wasn't on the water. Old Baltimore was right on the it's where Baltimore was first supposed to be planted, but they didnt stay there. They moved on down here the beginning of the. They put the of the bay. That :t made a better fort. I guess.
t'n 'cme 'son :'-e forcTotten n 'h" they didn'
use Bush River. It could have been -- like this would all have been Baltimore now, if they'd settled
at. Aberdeen would be part of Baltimore. If they
settled it, I imagine, cause it's on the river. on Bush River. Old Baltimore.
So, I've seen a lot of changes. I cant realize that I've livec these many years. Time has gone so fast. It's really gone fast since I retired. I've been retired thirteen years. I've loved it.
been pretty good health. I never remember tt being this not. Cause I feel it more.
MD: I've heard so many people say it's never been --and the weather forecasters, too. In the
wintertime, what did you do-
.1(_: ,incertime -- went Ice skating.
MD: Did you skate on the bay or
MC: On the Bush River and ponds. I lived on the
country. We had a nice pond here in Aberdeen. Kraus' Pond. Any field that would have low ground and would freeze over. We'd get it. At Havre de Grace. The kids used to cross over there. They'd say the
MD: horse and buggy into those days?
MC: I don't remember that. That was my father's time.
He told me i. :: in t¬,1. :e
them go across the river. Now. I never heard -- in
'morn 10fl1 Ht
happened when I was early -- '081,09 -- I don't remember that young. I don't remember much till I
'nt
was about four or f:ve. I remember things then. MD: Did they celebrate Christmas the way they do now?
MC: '!o. Of c our, e we -idn't bve the money. Not :rr
family. We celebrated and we had ;ood tLes. We met together. Seems like the families got cogetner more, cause they didn't run over -- now as I got older, cause I've travelled a lot and I've seen a lot of changes. When I first remember, we didn't yet ne coys. We were never wnat you call çocr, poor. Cause on the farm, you had everytning to eat, you wanted, and big rooms and a big house. We always heated with coal. : never remember hav:n -- Lurnt ooa in :fle icitcnen, ut in the living icom we had a coal stove. Dining room we had a coal stove. The pipe went up and the room above was heated. Used to run over that to get dressed by. Upstairs, to get out of the bed was ice cold and getting that little -- just a little hole about that big from that pipe -- I remember that.
Snow. They didn't have the snow shoveling that we have now. Kind of remember up the porch. We had
a big porch around our house. That would be up well it'd stay i; there oil ;inter. Cems like we had snow all winter long. Now. it's gone.
If "r'n 'o 1'c nrl.r
over, under, or around, or something. I don't think
we have heavy snows. Well, they take care of it
30
quicker too, than they used to. Yes, we always had a nice Christmas. We didn't overdo it like kids today. I look at my r'nii1dren's tree. It looks like a department store. It's dumped everything there. Piled. Well, we got two or three things we were doing fine. My children
now, they 7ame long, I saw that they got plenty. In my time, we really had just a few things, but we were talcen care of.
MD: Was it going to church more?
MC: Oh, I was going to church all my life. My folks were very church going people.
fALfl Was Cnristmas a CThULLAS sioliday:
MC: Yes. We had a church program. We were off from school. We used to have a lot of programs. Now, today in church -- we used to have Children's Day and a Christmas program. They don't do that much anymore. The school doesn't. We always did a lot of that in school. Always had nice -- and sometimes we made money at school. We had a money making cause. We'd have a fund raiser. But now, they don't do that. It was good for the children because
-- ---- -, - ----------- -_...____-._.-t__--_---_. 1 - 1
• scLiLaesves in a play or a poem or singing. I used to love to put on When I first started teaching we did. When I stopped, it was very seldom that we had any kind of a school program. Had May Day outside. Some
festivity like that. But to have an indoor program where you have a little skit or a little play, or
somebody get up and recff oce" oven classes.
poetry, ::aAu of lost after a while. I always stuck with t, because I like poetry. I still like poetry. I like my poetry. I read a lot of poetry. Do you like poetry?
MD: Yes. I have friends that do a lot of writing in the Be! Air area. Mrs. Ranson, Im not sure 1± you re familiar with her.
MC: We used to teach poetry when I first started. I always had a poem, at least, a month that they had
to seam. cil, cant tnnk of the author every
body knows him.
MD: James Reilly?
MC: Reilly and another one? MD: Oliver Wendell Holmes. MC: More common than that.
"I like to go up in a swing,
Up in a swing so high."
MD: Stevenson.
MC: Robert Louis Stevenson. I loved his poems. That
was in my era. I loved to teach poetry. They
called me back last year a couple of -years ago
one of the girl: over h9r.
[End of tape one, side two
MC: Get rid of this stuff, I dont know. They'll have a job. Housecleaning. All the pictures and all the
books. Then T lona to these organizations.
the Historical, and the Bird Club. You belong to the Bird Club don't you?
MD: No. I have never --
'fit'. fm, :ou'd like that.
MD: I'm sure I would.
MC: Then the Democratic Club. i love the Genealogy.
I'm not going to be what I want to do though. It takes a lot of looking and doing. Go up to Bel Air
at the Court House and go through those records.
MD: You'd have a good time up tflere, oecause your family's all here. Your records are all here.
MC: I know. But holding those books and getting them down. I have some. I have my charts made. I have back my grandparents -- their names back to the fourth generation, I guess. Maybe fifth. Livsey boys helped me a lot. John Livsey. He has a lot to do with genealogy. I like it.
MD: They say he could build a whole separate room on his house for his genealogy.
MC: What's that?
MD: He has a whole separate room built onto his house for his aenealcay.
Oh, I guess he does. Yes. He does. He's crazy about it. He's helped me with what I have.
COLE
MD: You folks are lucky to live in a county where things haven't changed that much. You know the people are here. The records are here.
MC: Yes. But this town has changed. Aberdeen has changed. Ed Gariman. Perryman was my town wnen I grew up. Now, the station -- there used to be a railroad station there and a post -- well the post office is still there. Three stores were at Perryman. Country Stores. They're gone. We usea to have so much right here in Aberdeen. Now, .t's moving out. I guess, were going to expand the west and of town. Looks like something's coming to town.
s so jammec up ana so pisea up, znar we isaYe £1c people out in the store here -- down at Gibson's Corner. You could get --
MD: Where's Gibson's Corner?
MC: That's right down here on the -- where the cross roads -- where Eel Air Avenue and Route 40. The old, old store, Hangway's, where we used to get our shoes. When I was a child, I'm talking about. Then Havre de Grace, we went to Levi's. That's been gone for years.
MD: Then there was a big fire in Aberdeen, when was that?
MC: Yes. 1914. 1 think they had two fires. 1914 and 1918. We had two fires here. I remember '15
well.
MD: That destroyed pretty much the --
MC: The down town section. But they built up. Built it better. Then here lately, they've taken so much away. The movie's gone. We have no movie in Aberdeen. The only things down town now to go to and we used to have a nice dress shop. We do have the shoemaker, he's trn the street. The dry cleaner. we do still have a dry cleaner. He's not on the main street though. The Mobil Dealer right in the middle of town. They go out in the country now. Smith's Motors was there. So much has moved out. And this monstrosity we have in the middle of
town, 110W, ;ust ruins Aberceen. No trains througn. Well, we have a train stop, but it's not like
There was a train every hour. You could get in and out of Aberdeen either going north or south. There was a seven o'clock -- I went to school by train. Would go from Bush River to Aberdeen, went to high school. I forgot to tell you that. Had to get up and meet the seven o'clock train at Bush River, to get up here. School would start at nine o'clock.
We were up here in twenty minutes time. 30. 1ou
know what that meant. The kids got together and we had a gay time. Throwing erasers around. Kids were full of life. They weren't bad bad, but they had plenty of life in them. Cause they had to get to school too early, anyway. That was too early. Went
35
home real good. We got out of school about quarter of four and there was a five minutes of four train.
a year :nd a half. That wasn't
too long. Was a nice experience -- I drove the horse and buggy to school?
MD: As a student?
MC: As a student. When I was in fi - grader my mother took us to school. Then we drove ourselves when I got in third grade. My brother and I drove. Then I took the train and then I walked. When I taught I drove my own car. I got out of college in '25, went up to Bel Air and got my job, and the first thing I
ougnt, I told you, was my car. I've had one ever since.
MD: About your college, what was that like? Your college years?
MC: Oh. I graduated high school in '25. 1 entered
State and went till '27. Then I was a full fledged teacher. I was qualified for the rest of my life, however, as I told you, I stopped in 137 to have my baby. I didn't go back till '47. When I went back, I started working on my degree. I transferred my credits to the University of Maryland. Graduated from Maryland when I was a
'E2. I was a grandmother 'hen I finished college. Summer courses. 1962 I got my diploma. Full fledged degree. When I first started, didn't
have to nave a degree. Got the same money. i was increased. However, after I got my degree, then I
better -- I ended up very well. Mv s' increased most very year. till 1973. Yes. I forgot to tell you, I'm a college graduate, University of Maryland. Here's our olass, part of
Them. that went -- he ift-fifth nn
at . Not all of them. Half of them are
dead.
MD: That looks like Marselene Adams. It isn't is it? MC: Ford was her name.
MD: Marselene was a
MC: No. She was a rofl ama sne married a Lord, Decause
I dont know what her maiden name was. I've forgotten. I have most of them here. I'm here.
That's awful of me. Just terrible. Terrible.
Grin. I don't know what I was grinning for. This girl was sick. That's all that came. There was a good number of us when I graduated. Mrs. Talson there in 1927. But this was taken at our fifty-fifth.
Now, let me see. That was taken in 1979, wasn't it? '82. Now, four years more on that. This would be my fifty-ninth year. So, next year they'll have -- Every five years they have a celebration. Just Sea and I are the only ones from Harford County. She's from down Halethorpe. Western Maryland. There
COLE 37
There were lots more in our class. We went all the counties. Twenty-three counties. We had a nice
It ras nice to go back and have that man-. Jus: in my class. Class of '27. After fifty-five years. That wasn't too bad, was it? Now is there anything else?
MD: I: there nvth±nc else you'd just like c dd befor we head back to the library? Any other stories or memories?
MC: Hey, I could talk all day. But I dont know. I didn't know. I thought he was going -- I'd just have to answer questions. But he want me to sort of go through.
MD: Well. that's what we really like, more to just hear you talk instead of yes or no.
MC: Than you'll take out what you want to put in?
MD: Oh. that's no problem. Not what we're going to be doing.
MC: Oh, I see. Well, I don't know if I've given you information you want.
MD: A lot of it is quite interesting about your teaching career. The APG.
MC: Yes. I saw the APG come here, it was fields and farms. People in my family, my relatives went to get peaches on Pasuchi Island, I told him all that story. They've gotten this picture here, but this is not the picture that got in here. Do you get
38
this?
??: Historical Society?
MC: About me crossing the Narrows down here. Mrs. C--.'--crosses
olecrosses Pasuchi Island with her father on the --
maybe it's my mother probably. MY mother, she was
quite a horse lady. She loved the horses. She
trained horses. Broke ham to the carriages and
different conveyances. We had a date and then we'd take the date and we'd go across Pasuchi Narrows and get out peaches every year, in a wagon like that. Now they call this a dayton, but we didn't call that a dayton in my day. That was a fancy carriage. This was a uayton. it caycon had a top. We had a top on our dayton. It was like a delivery truck with a round -- it would hold four people.
7?: How did you spell that?
C: Just like it's in the dictionary. D - A - y - T - 0 - N.
7?: Yes. It's over here.
MC: Mabel put that in. Mabel Anders. You know Mabel?
So you went in a dayton to get peaches. But the
proving ground just developed over the years.
MC: Well, no. The proving ground came here. They were
hunting for more land.
[unclear - two people talking]
Where were they? New Jersey weren't they?
??: Yes.
COLE 39
MC: Yes. New Jersey some place. What was the name of the place?
MD: I thought it was near Cherry t:ll.
MC: It had a name. It all moved down. A 1t of people from Jersey came down here. A lot of Jersey people lived here. Moved here. They built this housing corporation in Aberdeen o -r-:fit: h: people that came from the upper part of Jersey and New York
State. Sandy Hook. Sandy Hook moved here. You've
heard of the word Sandy Hook? Sandy Hook came down, and of course, this is seven miles wide. I think It extends down for twenty-three miles. it's counting cne £dgewood area. Twenty-three miles. I thinK that's the length and breadth of it. Are you taping this too?
MD: Oh, yes.
MC: I think it's seven miles across at the widest place and it's twenty-three miles from the top
ground down beyond Edgewood sonic place, including the two provinces. That's where all my people lived. Born and :aised here for generations. Michaels? Did you know them? The Michaels?
MC: Michaels? Some of them are related to me. They intermarried. That's what happened. So many intermarriages here. Cousins. Third cousins married third cousins or fourth cousins. So, that's what happened.
COLE 40
Yes. I've seen a lot of changes. I can't realize it. I can't realize that I'm as old as I Where have the years gone? Especially those since I've retired. I travel a lot. I travel a lot since I've retired. I've travelled some before I retired. I've been to Europe. My daughter was. as
I said before, :ver in Europe three years. That helped a lot. My family come and go now. They're close. One daughter lives here. One daughter lives
in Audubon. T.79 do lot of things together. ?an.ly
reunions. We still - They still come home. I live alone. So far and make out pretty well. : , ;ary
nely at times. I stall drive. uon t arive tar.
I drive to Be! Air and I drive to Havre de Grace. don't drive to Baltimore anymore. Too much traffic. Seen a big change in Baltimore, too. but it's lovely. Baltimore was our shopping center. Big
hoptir ntr "' - theetre
the Arts Gali?r Druid -iIi ?arc, that was
family affair. We did go into Baltimore. I had a aunt that lived there. We always went out to Druid
Hill. We went on the Chester boat. Emily
Giles was a boat. That would an interest to somebody.
??: That was the amusement park at
Toichester?
MC: The amusement park at Tolchester, instead of having
COLE 41
-- oh, what do they have today? People would go to today? They still have carnivals. We have our town
carnival. I don't',now if -'our :eccl ave--- The
fire departments have the carnivals. We had big museum in Baltimore. Big parks. In
Park, we used to have all these rides. In Baltimore
was Carlin' Park. You remember? But -iouve heard it? A lot of amusement parks. That was quite the thing in my day. They get on these
MD: Roller coasters.
MC: Roller coasters. Yes. You never been ca coaster?
sW: Oh yes.
MC: Have you? Where do you have them now?
MD: They have -- north they have some in Pennsylvania. They have Six Flags in New Jersey.
MC: I bet in Hershey. Hershey Park has roller
coaster.
MD: Hershey.
MC: But we had them in Baltimore. There was Bayshore Park, There was Druid Hill -- no, Druid Hill never had a roller coaster. Druid Hill was an animal park. Carlins. Carlins was a big park. Everybody went to Carlins. Went day and night. Even when the young folks would -- when automobiles came in. They would get in the cars, like you'd go to the movies now. We'd go to Carlin's Park. That was
-
ia they nave a aance :icor :nere:
Mr -lr'-"-
-
YOU -- pole 31'r5, ioud get up on :ne poLe anc. sit for so many days. What'd they call them., Nenthons. I remembe' 1l that. i remember the
words too, but nave to think. Oh, we d java crazy
things would Sit up there for days and -they'd get
some :ind of The¬ cok them food up.
-
-4 -:_`_4da O'n tt a rha:a and than they' have
:ncaa dance -non-. co. you rememoer thenL-
Jh9 yes. We were reading about them.
MC: las. Lance all c.ay ana asl night. One thing here
that I miss in Hart Ord County was cur County Fair.
Did you live in Harford County when they had that? ??: When I first came here they had the -County Fair.
NC: it lasted afl week wasn't --reek of
??: Yes. Down where the mall as.
-----. waa
had races. We got two days off from school. That was when I first started teaching. That was wonderful. We always looked forward to the fat:.
ecause we got two aays of:. eacners like noilcays
toc Not 'ust the kids.
Of course, they had all the agricultural display¬-MC: Oh yes. Animals. That's what they liked. There's
a lot of 4-H Clubs then The kids took: an anterest
a lot of 4-H Clubs then. The kids 000: an interest in it. There were a lot of things for children to do. They didn't have to walk the streets. They had plenty of opportunities. We've had movies ever --ince I remember. I didn't ;et to go to them. 13ecaus3 I lived zoo
.:.sj had a aoVie. Now, we don C d ;ovLo.
• :hs movie that they have, we don't want to see them.
I guess. I don't :-,now. n" more.
Something special, 1 cc.
,hac nme re ;ou uppced :0 e p:cizea p Be! Air?
[End of Tape 2, side I [End of Interview]
Harford County Living Treasures - Harford County Public Library
