Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1921-08-25

DICTAGRAM

a large and well improved farm IN
Randolph County, Indiana, and
bought larger acreage of cheaper
lands in Ionia county, Michigan, which /
sons and daughters in tracts of forty |
or eighty acres each according to
their several needs and deserts. Most
Of these lands were covered with a
! heavy growth of timber. Some OF
these tracts We're stimproved'' to the
extent of small log house or cabin
and a small patch or at least few
acres of clearing, well garnished
| with stumps and stones. One of the
| best of these improved farms" he
| selected for his own home which was
to be the center of his colony, the
| others being located around about
within a radius of two miles.
Late in the summer or fall OF 1865
| DIR. Downing and his immediate fam
| ily with two sons-in-law and their
| families, started to move to the new
| homes up in Michigan, there being
about twenty persons in this first
caravan which consisted of four COW
cred wagons. They started on their
| pilgrimage on Sunday morning,
travelling northward by way of Union
| City and old FIT. Recovery on the Ohio
Indiana stated ine- The weather was
cold and wet and the roads one long
stretch of mire. Sometimes they We're
lucky enough to get sleeping rooms
for the women and smaller children
in farm houses along the way while
| the men took chances in the wagons
or in barns-any place to get out of
| the rain. The teams were overloaded
SO at FIT. Wayne, Ind, some of the
| heavier boxes were unloaded and
shipped ahead by railway 1t was at
FIT. Wayne, also, that the younger
members of the family first saw
canal. Passing FIT. Wayne, the
weather was no better, and some of
the roads were even worse. They
travelled over plank roads, full of
holes and in bad repair, and paid toll
for the privilege. Up in Michigan
they came upon "crossways" consist
ing of logs and poles laid across the
roadway in lieu of p1anks and covered
with earth. Of course the wheels cut
through the wet, soft earth, these
< | crossways made pretty rough riding.
e The movers called them michigan
= washboards" and the spring
wagon in the outfit was dubbed the
e SPEAKER After passing Co1dwate1
s and Marshall, Michigan, the weather
$ became more sunny and the movers
s were in better spirits, but suffered E
= new annoyance. To keep out the rair
: the white wagon covers had been over
y laid with black oil cloth, which, fol-
e some reason or other, caused tht
y party to be taken for a band OF
:, -fgypsies". At Battle Creek tn.
n younger members were on tiptoe tt
k get a glimpse of the battle field
(They had been hearing much abou
battles and other was news for tn.
last four years.) Finally, after tw.
= weeks spent in covering less than TIVE
II hundred and fifty miles, the colonista
| reached their destination where the,
Ii were little later joined by othel
| members of the Downing famil,
and two neighboring families.
III The descendants of DR.. Down1ns
now number several hundred, includ
ing preachers, teachers, doctors, law
HI yers, farmers merchants and mechan
II les. They are widely scattered, 1iv
II ing in ten or twelve different state:
III east west and south, but his orr
II gina1 Michigan home is still occupied
II by his youngest daughter and annual
III 1y in recent years there has been helt
II reunion of the relatives in tina
neighborhood, some of them travel
i ing hundreds of miles to be present
Ill In their new home those colonist
were located among settlers from
New York and New England and wer
compelled to learn new language
Wagon @<bed' became wagon ~box,
the tongue, "pole''; coupling pol,
reach; sing1etree, 'swhiff1etree'
III doubletree, "evener''; axle "ex";
I'LL skillet became SPIDER Sugar tire
III and sugar water became tehard maple
Hi and sap. The grounding was
I'LL "woodchuck", porcupine, Hedgehog
and a ground squirrel was only
III chipmumk". Instead of saying
~ declare, they learned to say
swami" as well as many other strans
iii terms, words and phrases
Hill Many changes have talser, rIaoe