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Shreve or

Kegley  Ancestors 

 

Arch Shreve before the wedding.	Arch and Ona before marriage. I remember him telling me about driving to see her in the wagon and sleeping on the way back whil the horse trudged along.	Arch and Ona's wedding picture.
At Red Mound Farm around 1922. Shown from left to right, are the hired girl, Myrtle Hammond, Ona Shreve holding John R. Shreve, Maxene Shreve, Arch Shreve and Arch's uncle, ? Newlun.	From left to right, Arch Shreve, Laura Kegley Olson, Irene Shreve ? and Mable Bruce.	A gag photo of Arch Shreve from September 1948.

Early Days in the Family of Arch and Ona Shreve

by Maxene Mayenschein

 I have written what I remember from early days of family life. You might say we were a  poor but happy family. We all had our special work to do. It was some time in the 1920's that we had a small radio. 

Our trips by car were mostly to grandparents' and relatives' homes. Sometimes we went to a picnic, especially on the fourth of July. If we went anywhere by car in winter, we had a hot brick to our feet. The first cars had side shades that fastened on instead of glass windows.  

Mostly our early Christmas trees had strings of popcorn and cranberries and red berries. One year we had open lit candles on the tree, which was really a fire hazard. Usually we were lucky to get one gift and clothes, some hand made or a sled or wagon. I remember that when someone gave me a nickel I would go and buy an apple.  

I loved paper dolls, but I cut mine out of mail order clothes catalogs and then cut out clothes facing the same way to put on them. I still have some put away.  I had a glass set of little dishes, a little pitcher and tiny glasses, which I still have. I only had two dolls. The boys had a few little wooden and metal cars and toys. We played games such as dominoes, Checkers, Lotto, Old Maid and so on. 

We were a musical family.  Dad played the harmonica, Joe played the guitar, Jack played the guitar and mouth organ together, Mom played the pump organ and I played it also.   We sang a lot of songs and hymns at home and at church. 

Mother and I sang many duets together. She sang alto and I sang soprano. Dad's favorite song was The Old Rugged Cross. We all sang My Wild Irish Rose on radio after Daryl and I were married and living in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin. The choice of song was because Mom was part Irish. 

I also learned to play the Hawaiian  guitar up there and sang for many special occasions. I also sang a few lines with a girls' trio over the radio. 

I'm sure we kids did our share of building snowmen and sledding in the winter. I learned to skate by going around the county court house in Viroqua and falling. At Debello, we went to special night services on top of Debello Ridge by old highway 80.

I remember when we rented Uncle Clem Shreve's farm. I went to the little brick Green Creek school, a mile and a half from my home. I was the only "English" girl. The rest were Bohemian and Norwegian boys. One time there was a storm coming up, so we all went to the cellar. There was a big clap of thunder and my brother, John (Jack), asked "Am I hurt?"   One time Joe waded in the creek in his shoes and said there were "fishes in my shoes".  

I remember that) there I fell through the hay mow on that farm. I had been gathering eggs and walked into the hole. I asked Jack and Joe to not tell my parents. They didn't, but the next morning I couldn't get out of bed. A few years after my marriage, I had headaches. I went to a chiropractor and she said I had a hard fall earlier, which is the one I related. She treated me and then I had no headaches.

At Uncle Clem's place, I had the mumps in July. No one else got it then , but in late December, we went to the church Christmas program and then all the others came down with it. 

A few years later while living in another place in the Debello district, everyone else in the family came down with the flu. My parents got Aunt Ellen Kegley to help me take care of them.   

Jack went to Debello school and Joe's first one was in Hillsboro. I graduated from high school there in three years. A little saying of Joe's was " Jack is going to be short and fat".  Although Jack was shorter, he was not fat. 

I remember when the two boys were punished, it was usually for fighting. Mom would paddle them and tie each one to a chair. Jack wasn't happy and cried, but Joe usually just sat there. It didn't bother him. 

At our wedding in June 1936, my mother had both my brothers dressed in white shirts and pants. Joe decided to polish his brown shoes and got some of it on his white trousers. So he ended up wearing brown ones instead . 

Jack and Joe were both good basketball players. Joe was tall but Jack was quick. Jack graduated from high school at Chetek, Wisconsin where the folks spent a year. After that, they returned to West Lima, where Joe graduated. 

Back in our childhood days, food was cheap and wages were low. Most people planted gardens and then canned vegetables and fruit. The only freezers those days were the ones that used ice saved from the winter, which was my dad's job in Viroqua. Many people had beef and hogs butchered and had also chickens and eggs on the farm.  

I was born on a farm on June 4, 1915. Jack was also born on a farm on September 4, 1920. Joe was born in Viroqua on August 26, 1922. Jack always took care of the boys who tried to pick on Joe. Most of them were afraid of Jack. .

When Daryl and I were married on June 4, 1936, hamburger was three pounds for 25 cents. I cooked on a kerosene stove one place we lived and food and kerosene cost us $13 a month. I have known the time that we couldn't afford a 5 cent ice cream cone, but we were happy. 

One time Jack and Joe decided they would hitchhike up to our place in Chippewa Falls. They got a ride to LaCrosse, but had to walk through the entire town. While walking on, Joe began to look for a farm barn to sleep in. Finally someone picked them up and brought them to Eau Claire. There they were 12 miles from Chippewa Falls and they got a ride there. They never tried hitchhiking again.   

From the early 1920's and taken at Red  Mound Farm. 

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