Thursday May 31, 2012

Today we left Chanute and followed Roger & Leta to Louisburg, KS.  On our way to Louisburg we stopped at the Bronson Cemetery where my great grandparents on both the Elliott and Rogers side are buried.  We then stopped in Fort Scott, KS at a historical site.  It was an old army base during the Civil War.  In 1861 the Civil War begin.  The conflict brought the Army back to the town which had grown up around the abandoned post.  The Army rented back most of their former buildings and occupied or built more throughout the town.  Fort Scott was an important supply base and staging area for the Union Army. 

They still have brick sidewalks

One of the buildings we went into.  There were around 13 building like this one surrounding the parade ground.  There were sections cut out of some of  the buildings so you could see how the foundations and buildings were built.

The hospital was housed in one of the buildings.

The laundry room

Where the cannons were housed

Lead for the bullets were stored in these boxes.

More of the buildings

We will be here until Monday and then we will be traveling to Branson MO for a few days.  Hope you are enjoying reading about our trip.

Day #20 of our trip - May 30, 2012

Can't believe we have been gone since May 11th.  We have done and seen so many things and have kept busy.  Yesterday Lester, Leta and I went to Iola and while we were there we had to go to A & W and get a root beer float in a glass mug.  It has been a very long time since I have had a root beer in a frosty mug.  Below are some pictures of the last few days events.

Jason & Tera's kids have the Green Machine which Craig is riding.  It only has sticks to guide it with.

They talked Leta into riding it and look she is having fun!!

I was doing my blog on Monday and Leta talked me into riding it while my pictures were uploading.

This isn't so bad to steer, I can do this.

I saw Craig slide the back end around and so I thought I would try it but I guess it takes more practice.  I flipped it and hit my head on the railing.  I didn't even break the railing!!

Tera made a tarp and sprayed water on it so Cody could slide on it.  He was having lots of fun and it was 94 degrees on Monday!

Yesterday we went to Humboldt and Iola.  During the civil war the south burned all the buildings in Humboldt except one doctors house.  Humboldt was rebuilt and it only has one stop light in the whole town.  I actually attended high school in Humboldt my Sophomore year.

Buildings on the south side of the square in Iola.

The A & W in Iola KS

Lester would you hurry up and bring us our root beer floats?

This is really yummy!! Tastes just I remember it 30 years ago.

This morning we walked the old Katy railroad track trail again.  We walked a total of 2.8 miles today.

The trail goes under the underpass north of town.

We had borrowed a DVD of Osa & Martin Johnson the other day and we returned it back to the Safari Museum today while we were on our walk which is located in the library.

We are leaving Chanute tomorrow and going to Kansas City with Roger & Leta.  Heading to Branson MO on Monday morning and Roger & Leta are following us there and will spend a few days camping with us.  So tomorrow is a travel day.  May stop to sight see on the way so will post more when we get to KC

Day #18 of our adventure Memorial Day May 28, 2012

I am sitting out on Jason & Tera's deck which wraps around three sides of their house.  It is 90 degrees but there is a breeze blowing out here and I am able to pick up their internet from here which is really nice.  Yesterday we had coffee at the Grain Bin with some friends of ours Bob & Elaine Kaufman from Chanute.  Last evening we invited some couples out to Roger Leon & Leta's house to visit and had a meal.  It was nice to see them again.  Below are some pictures:

Ramona Brooks, Catie Elliott & Lester

Tera Elliott serving drinks and at the table left to right is Beverly Hole, Roger & Ramona Brooks

Left to right is Cody, Craig, Jason and Catie Elliott.  Tera is in the back

Left to right is Catie Elliott, Naomi & Bob Leedy, Beverly & Charley Hole

Bob Leedy, Lester, Roger Brooks, Roger and Charley Hole recalling times of the past.

This morning Lester, Leta and I went to Leta's brother, Larry, down the road and walked 3 1/4 miles on the gravel road.  Below are some pictures of our walk.

The wheat field along the road on our walk.  It is just about ready to harvest.

Leta & I are leading the pack.  Lester & Larry are tagging behind.

The cows were lined up along the fence to watch us walk by.

Believe it or not the boys are back there but they are so far you can't see them.

A flower along the roadside.  Can you see the butterfly on the flower?  We don't see too many butterflies in WA which I miss in the spring.

Larry and I sitting on the steps at his house after our walk.

When we got back from our walk we went to the garden at Leta's dads place and picked some lettuce and radishes.  The pictures below were taken on our way back to Roger's.

This would make a good picture to frame.  This barn in on Leta's dad's home place.  This is where we went fishing on Saturday and picked the lettuce & radishes from the garden.

This is the house that Lester & I built in 1978.  When we left there were no trees around it.  It is just down the road from Roger & Leta's.

Just another view of the house.

When we got to Jason & Tera's today Tera said she had a present for Leta & I and we just needed to hunt and find it.  Tera is very crafty and below is the present she made for us.  Roger & Leta's is the same only the name has been changed to protect the innocent.

She made this out of old license plates and nailed them on wood.  How cleaver.  Thank you Tera!!  Of course Roger & Leta's is ELLIOTT.  Until next time.

 

Sunday May 27, 2012

Joint Rural High School in Start KS where I went to high school.  It is located out in the country next to the railroad tracks.  We had our football games across the road in the cow pasture.  The last class that graduated from Stark was 1967.  The alumni have kept it up and it is now used as a community center.

The top picture is the class of 1962 graduating class which is hanging in the hall of the school.  The picture below is how we look now.  One of my classmates contacted all of us and asked us to send in a bio of what had happened after graduation and a little about our life.  Also asked each of us to send a picture of when we were in our 30's and a recent picture.  She then made up the board above and had it on display for the reunion.

They had a reception time before the banquet and Marilyn is talking with Don Richwine.  He married Nancy Rice which graduated in 1966.

Here is Marilyn with Jim McGee and his wife Nelda Sue.  Nelda Sue lived just across the creek from us when we lived on the farm.  They have twin boys.

In my freshman year there were only four girls in the class.  The picture here is the four of us, Elizabeth Mahoney, Berva Rost, Sharen Defebaugh and Marilyn.  We talked about how we four took drivers ed together.  In our sophomore year they consolidated the Elsmore and Glaesburg high schools and they all attended Stark High school.

After the banquet we had pictures taken of the whole class.  It was very interesting to see how we all have changed.  If you have ever seen the movie "A League of Their Own" where they organized a girls baseball team during the war and then forty years or so later they were inducted into the Hall of Fame; well, that is the feeling I had last night when I saw all of my classmates.  It was hard to believe that is has actually been 50 years since we were all together.

Lester & I after the banquet and just before leaving the school.  Hope you enjoy!!

Saturday May 26 2012 - Update & Pictures

 Wednesday when we arrived I was at McDonald's using their wi-fi and my nephew stopped by on his way to KC.  Leonard lives in Bothell, WA and was on a business trip and took his grandma Carder to dinner.  It was quite a surprise to Roger & Leta because I did not tell them he was in town.

This is Lester and Roger Leon in their house before we left to go on our tour of Chanute and walk down the Katy Railroad trail on Thursday.

Thursday May 24th we took a walk on a trail which used to be the old Katy Railroad tracks.  Then on Friday we went on a 3 1/2 mile walk from the Chaute Municipal Airport.  It was quite a walk.

Last night we went to the bean feed at the Stark High School.  They cooked 100 lbs of beans and 30 lbs of ham.  People from the community came to the event.  They brought their table and chairs, a pan to fill up with beans and ate on the grounds.  It was really windy so I imagine it was hard to keep the fires going under the beans all day yesterday but they were really good!!

This morning we went fishing at Leta's dads pond.  Jason, Tera and their kids Craig, Catie and Cody went with us.  Cody and Craig caught between them 15 or 16 fish.  Lester helped Cody ad he really enjoyed catching fish.  We had a great time.

Tonight we are attending the Stark Alumni Banquet.  This is my 50th year class reunion.  I will take pictures and post them later tomorrow or Monday.  Everyone have a great day!!