December 1876

December the first        Mr TOTTY and Frank M went to Roston.    Sam and Daniel was here
[BTM]  Rosston is a little town south east of Forestburg in Montague County, TX.      Again the SPENCER Kin, Sam and Daniel are here for a visit.

2      Mrs YANDEL put up my other comfort    the old man and Frank M got back    bought a mule from Tom BERRY       I found my pen to day writes better
[BTM]  Tom BERRY evidently was their neighbor or acquaintance over in the south east part of Montague County in Rosston, Tx.    Here again is my other great great grandmother YANDELL finishing the other quilt and I am a road block on what her given name is.  They are not listed in the census records in Montague Co. TX but here they are in 1876 and Rhoda still does not mention her given name ):

3      Me and Bettie and Lillie went to see Mrs TINDAL   Spent the day with her and the girls..      Billy BEAN here this morning
[BTM]    Mrs Tindal is her neighbor here, but she is not found in the 1860, 1870, or 1880 census for Montague County, Tx.

4       killed hogs fixing to go to HARVILLEs now
[BTM]  Rhoda was always going to visit one of her children, this time to see Anna, John and little baby Sidney Harvile that she delivered.

5th     come home from HARVILLEs
[BTM]  Now I wonder if Rhoda got to visit with the Harville family or not, she did not mention anything in particular happening while she was out visiting.

6th     Been busy puting away my lard     Mr WIRTMAN here to night      excitement about Measles    Dilse come down to night     glad to see the nigger
[BTM]   Most likely after killing the hogs they renendered their lard from the fat.    My Mom and Dad always told of making Lard and lye soap after killing the hogs, along with one of their favorite snacks, cracklings.   I guess I should say,  I remember as a young child, my parents & and the neigbors killing hogs and making the lye soap.     In fact when I was 6 years  one of the old boars got loose and ran into our house, which was, what they call a dog trot type house back then.  The hog scared me enough to remember it to this day.  My dad just ran him on out the other door and killed him before he hurt anyone.   This is the beginning of the Measles that grips the settlement.   Rhoda spoke of  her visitor as  welcomed, I'm am sure that the slang used back then was not ment in a harmful way to identify any race of our neighbors or families.

7th    went to Johns and Bens   saw Mrs CHESSER.
[BTM]  Again Rhoda is going visiting and seeing her other neighbor Mrs Chesser, and her son John TOTTY and son in law Ben GAGE.

8th     Dilse washed for me       Frank M.  got done corn gathering
[BTM]   Corn all gathered, so the work begins for Rhoda in putting it up for the rest of the winter, and the guys for putting up what's left for the animals.  I am sure Rhoda was very grateful for the help from her friend Dilse.

9th     Jase and BOURLAND killing hogs and John killed his     been a very cold day       be a hard freeze to night
[BTM]  My late Dad, Vernon TOTTY always said after the first freeze of the season, it was hog killing time.  Usually it was cold enough to keep the meat from spoiling too fast, and giving them time to salt it down for curing the meat out.  This was a job for more than one man, and most often they and their neighbor's got together to help each other during this "hog killing season."    Jase TILLMAN, and most likely Sam BOURLAND and John TOTTY? or John HARVILLE? were making good use of the hard freeze that was expected that night.

10th      John  Bart and Tilda come down to day     Bettie Sick again       been a beautiful day     Lillie went home with Tilda
[BTM]  Son John, Bart and Matilda TOTTY TRAYLER coming to visit the parents again.   Bettie sure has a time of it with always being sick.  Even though her daughter is sick, Rhoda still thinks it is a beautiful day.    I am sure because it helps because the meat being put up yesterday for the winter.

11th      Just got home from John's      from the house raising       left Bettie and Lillie      feel lonely    nobady home but my self
[BTM]   Here Rhoda has been off visiting again, don't you know Rhoda had a really great time during the "house raising" for John, as she loved being with her family.   House raising was the norm for neighbors and family back then, it was a time of work, but also for family and friends gathering around for fellowship and foods as they worked, visited with each other.

12th     went to see Mrs SPRINGER and Dolly      Daniel here to night  Mr and Mrs YANDEL here to rent the house
[BTM]  I think it is really interesting that my 2nd great grandparents YANDELL, were renting from my other 2nd great grandparents Capt. and Rhoda TOTTY.   Rhoda off visiting Ballie SPRINGER.     Daniel would be Rhoda's SPENCER Kin.

13th     all hands been hauling cotton   old man very tired    Mrs BROCK called this evening    John and Ben here this morning
[BTM]   Mrs BROCK is the TOTTYs neighbor.  Capt TOTTY showing effects of his days work hauling cotton, I remember as a child working in the cotton fields and it was hard work, pulling those hundred pound sacks of cotton as you went along the rows, not to mentions all those scratches and cuts.

14th     All hands got their cotton gined    some got home in the night
[BTM]   The farmers took their cotton to the Gin and had to wait in line for their turn, causing some to get back home later than most would like after working so hard all day
.
15th      All gone to Dallas     I was sick this morning..   feel beter to night..    John come down brought Tennie
[BTM]    John is still a widower after the loss of his 1st wife Matilda aka Martha Ann Walker.  Tennessee or "Tennie" was just a small baby at this time for my great grandfather to care for on top of all the chores around the farm.  No wonder the men had to find another wife as soon as possible when they were left with small children.

16th      Lewis and Jane come up to day     went home with John    Mr Munn? took dinner and talked big.
[BTM]   Who is Mr. Munn?, I have not found him on the Montague Co., TX census, but sounds like he may have been from out of town & visiting.

17th      Anna come to see us    Louisa and John was here in the evening    Lillie went with Anna a bad norther blew up This evening   cold as blazes to night
18th got up before day could not sleep   still cold and clear

[BTM]   The next page is the last page in her entry before she changes type of paper.  There are just scribbles and doodles on this page at the top with a few notes at the bottom. 

Mr LATHAM here to day    Mrs YANDEL spent the evening    Jase and Bettie and Pea all alone to night    John   Bart hauled wood to day        -Ohio-  -Kentucky-  -Arkansas-   Mississippi   Missour Kansas  -Georgia-  -Alabama-  -Louisana-
ink all froze  have to scrach with it
[BTM]   Rhoda or someone marked through these states with a line, Ohio, Kentucky Arkansas, Georgia Alabama and Louisana.  I could not tell her meaning, but likely could be that these states were places the TOTTY family had been at sometime.

19th      went to HESTERS and GRIGS      brother Sam staying with us to night     my ink is froze      YANDEL got corn and a shoulder of meat
[BTM]   It must really be cold for her ink to be froze, the writing here was very faint and hard to make out.    the YANDELL family likely was low on meat to go out in the bad weather for a supply.

20th      went to LATENS last night come home to cold day    sick to night  my ears stopped up with   [edge of paper, did not finish this part of her sentance here]  me and Bettie and Pea all alone 
[BTM]    I wonder if she was trying to write LATHAMs? which were from Montague Co. Texas.

21      made my dress    cloudy  looks like snow    feel beter to night 
22      Bart and Tilda come down       staying to night   Ben at HESTERS  GRAYHAM and GRIGGS 

[BTM]   The rest of this month is missing.  Will start next with the year 1877.

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Transcribed from Original Diary by Birdie (Totty) McNutt ©1999
Posted May 2, 1999