Electricity And Telephone Service
Reach Chandler Township
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~ Electricity ~
Photo Below: Power Line Going Straight Up Chandler Hill...
Chandler Township resident Marion Mackie Wood, wife of Howard Wood, wrote to her daughter Isabel Wood Oldham in Chicago IL about receiving electricity. Marion also wrote in her diaries as documented below, some of the historical information about Chandler Township receiving electric service. Following are a mixture of Marion's letters, and her diary entries. |
June 17, 1940:
Mr. Townsend was here last eve & they are going to get electricity in here [Chandler Township] in September- I can hardly imagine, and he was getting signers. We want to see Walter Weigandt [Grandson-in-law] to see how much this house would cost to wire. It’s $2.50 flat charge, up to a certain amt. you use, per month, & one has to deposit 5.00 as a guarantee of good faith (you get it back) and then each family has to wire their own rooms and pay for the fixtures. So we are thinking about it. We could get Leo [Matz] or Walter [Wiegandt] to install if we have it. They let handy men install, subject to inspection by the State men. If they don’t get us, the line will stop at Eastwoods as Connie [Gallop] doesn’t think she can have it now, & then it might be years before it comes by here. But if we’d get it, Connie could hook on any time. It will depend on what Walter says it would cost to wire, I guess. Of course we can’t afford it, but neither can anyone else. Mr. T.[Townsend] says Irma is planning on all kinds of equipment- & he with his legs in the grave- as far as his watch pocket. Don’t know about Creo and Ward [Mackie]. She was here all day yesterday, but we didn’t get down as far as “Chapter 10-Electricity” on the list, haha. I’d want an iron, a vac. cleaner, & the lights, & that’s all I’d care so awfully about. A vac would be my idea of luxury. One plug in the upstairs hall would clean the rugs and the mattresses, and another near the double door down stairs. Ward is very interested in it, but like all of us, he thinks sadly of that 30.00 a year. |
June 8, 1945:
The man was here yesterday (Supt. of the REA) and it’s the electric line I mean all planned to Connie’s but we ought to have another subscriber bet. here and there. He said he thought it would go thru tho. July 27, 1945: The man, Mr. Gold was here about the electricity & stayed quite a while. I guess we are going to get it. The main lack now is poles, I hear. August 7, 1945: In Re. the electricity, I don’t fancy it will be in this fall- They are all ready to let contracts, except getting poles. They had 8 car loads of southern poles here & switched them to over near Gaylord, as there was a good district over there & Public Utility was all ready to take it over & start installing. So they took our poles to start over there to get ahead of the P.U. Mr. Gold was here last week picking up the last signers to the right of way. November 2, 1945: Did I tell you it said in the paper the REA [Rural Electric Association] had let contracts for I don’t know how many miles of high line? from the Boyne City plant. Connie [Gallop] heard they were planning on getting all the line staked this Fall, so we will have our electricity some time in the early summer, I bet. See if you can tear me a couple of those fixtures off June’s wall, or Cora’s, Har! December 3, 1945: "Gim" Glazier, Leo [Matz], Mr. Biz [Bizonette], and Ernest [Walton] all are brushing for the new electric line. Sounds near-doesn't it?" December 29, 1945: I heard Karl [Howard] was working on the R.E.A. so he won't be around for a while. I hate to have him work out - he has enough to do at home. December 30, 1945: Cub's tired from his week's work for the R.E.A. He made 30.00 last week. He wants to buy a saw mill & it will be a marvelous thing for the neighborhood to have it. January 19, 1946: The high line stakes are set in Mr. Townsend's lane - Howard saw them the day he went to town. January 23, 1946: The R.E.A. men were in the yard today & set their stakes for Electricity, Hah! January 24, 1946: Mr. Gold, REA man, was here looking up descriptions about right of way - the boys are brushing near Barney Howard's & will soon be up here on The Hill. |
Photos above were both taken 16 September 2006. The top photo shows the "terrible hill between Carl Clark's place & Roscoe's" about which Marion Mackie Wood had written on 16 February 1947. The top photo was taken from in front of where Roscoe's 1947 homestead was located. A swath had to be cut to accommodate the poles that climbed up the hill... with poles showing way at the top of Chandler Hill, and electricity lines still running overhead across the road to reach the farmhouse. The photo above shows the electricity pole, on top of Chandler Hill, heading across the field toward the previously mentioned Clark farm with the silver metal roof showing at the right.
|
March 15, 1946:
Did I tell you the swath for the power poles is brushed out in our slashing? I can’t believe it right up here. They are supposed to start setting poles April 1st and the contractors have about 3 mos. to fill the contract. Connie & Bud are having hot arguments about how many outlets to have in the house. Bud wants a lot & of course Connie is conservative. I told her not to be too careful, & said I’d have to see my attorney - you [Marion's daughter Isabelle], & find out how many I should have. But said “You both better shut Isabel & me up in your houses with a brace & bit & we will make holes for the outlets.” & I said “Gosh Connie the houses would look like the woodpeckers had been at them.” I don’t hardly dare think about it. I’ll probably want to use my old Aladdin oily on Sundays & birthdays.
January 4, 1947:
Boys of REA [Rural Electric Association] dug holes here for the line... The 4 REA crew came & ate their lunch here. They are digging holes for the poles for our Hi Line. They used dynamite (2 blasts) in the post hole inside the cow yard gate. I was afraid it might blow in our D.R. window, but boy-who chewed gum very fast-said it wouldn’t & it didn’t. Sounded about like the discharge of a heavy rifle.
Wednesday [Possibly February 1947]:
Cub is working on the R.E.A. now, so Marion came in the pickup.
February 16, 1947:
The electricity is up to Bob Fraley’s transformers on the posts. Very fine. They, the R.E.A., can’t take a horse up that terrible hill between Carl Clark’s place & Roscoe’s so I guess they’ll wait until spring. A friend of Lew Barne’s is going to do his inside job & Connie & Bud will have him look at theirs & I told Bud I wanted to see him when they have him. He does it by the job & is all licensed & ever’thing. Trouble is I feel very weak when I wonder what we want.
February 26, 1947:
The electric line is in use as far as Bob Fraley’s. Seeing almost too much. My mother would never believe it if she were here today. Many wonderful things have been done in my lifetime.
March 20, 1947:
Johnnie Howard and a nice electrician from Petoskey were here-Mr. Ross-& he’s going to start wiring Johnnie’s house next Tuesday-We will likely have him do our job, I think. Connie & Bud will have him do theirs too. I lent Johnnie Jerome’s speech, & Howard spoke about Bernice being on the town board April 7th. She’ll like that.
April 25, 1947:
There was a call from Mr. Gold in Boyne City, & he left us our electric meter and collected $2.50 for Inspection of the meter... Carl Clark and Mr. Townsend were with Mr. Gold.
May 1, 1947:
Mr. Ross & Johnnie Howard came & I don’t believe that the wiring job will be so expensive.
May 3, 1947:
The great tall poles 36 feet long are in the slashing & the yard-sure looks like the R.E.A. is soon to be an accomplice.
May 7, 1947:
Cub has his barn all wired now, & he poured nearly 30 feet, 10 feet wide, of cement on the East end of his barn- 4 inches thick- all in one day- all start alone, -my gosh, that man is not human. I hope he don’t kill himself-
May 9, 1947:
Douglas & his helper came about 9:30AM and got to work on the outside electric fitting & had the entry made & fuse box in the cellar by lunch time. They left at 4:30 & have 8 openings cut in the walls, but will not finish tomorrow.
May 10, 1947:
Douglas & Bruce came & are working... I think the boys have 13 openings in here now or 14. I am beginning to have a slightly sick feeling about it as the air holes grow in number. Howard will have a nice day with Bud-he is going to draw $200.00 out of the bank-to pay the wiring. Howard drew $175.00 out of the bank to pay for the wiring.
May 11, 1947:
I made my green seer sucker sleeves about 1 1/2 inches longer & I like ‘em better. When I get my electric iron I’m going to do my dresses up.
May 12 1947:
Mr. Ross brought a very-to me-unattractive light for the d. Rm price $12.50 but we are not going to take it. Guess we’ll have a fluorescent. It's 3:20 and Mr. Ross is fishing the cable up to the center light in the D.Room. The upstairs is all in but one on the n. side of the boy’s room.
May 13, 1947:
Marion [Marion Wood's granddaughter] liked the wiring and she said I should take the floor lamp...We [Marion & Howard Wood] counted up & calculate the work will come to $146.00 about, so we’ll see how near we come. He has one switch to put in the Parlor. The bulkhead & basement, finish the back porch lite (lantern) and the flood lite, and a box & fixture in the N. room.
May 16, 1947:
Men finished wiring house. Mr. Ross and Bruce came about 9:30 & put the switch into the parlor in just a few minutes. They have the two florescents up now and the light in Pantry. Have to set the floodlite and put the switch in the basement, & I guess then it’s done... The boys worked to finish until about 5:15 & Howard paid Mr. Ross $174.00. That included 2 florescent lights and the $4.00 porch lantern & flood lite.
29 openings $101.50
entrance $45.00
2 florescents $20.00
1 porch lite (lantern) $3.50
1 flood-lite $4.00
$174.00
May 17, 1947:
Seems nice our wiring job is done... Connie & Bud were over last nite a few minutes to inspect the wiring. They don’t know yet what they will do...Writing Belle to tell her the wiring is done.”
May 22, 1947:
R.E.A. men put fitting on the yard post... Our yard is dotted with men doing things to the long posts. A man told Bud yesterday the juice would be on in ten days (an R.E.A. man).
May 28, 1947:
The men were in the yard, digging the hole deeper by hand for the big 36 ft. pole. The boy said they wanted to be in here & through by Saturday.
June 2, 1947:
The men were doing something about the Hi line post holes, & the man said they wanted to get them set by Wednesday.”
June 3, 1947:
Men in the yard, setting our R.E.A. poles-I saw them going up, the one in the cow yard-over the fence with a truck & it was a thrill. The poles are finished. Next thing the wires & the ‘juice’.
June 4, 1947:
I admire our long line of poles.
June 6, 1947:
Howard got the flood lite bulb & (100 watts), a battery for the lantern, and stove kindling-all badly needed. We have to have 8 more bulbs to go around....an electric truck was here a few minutes-asking the way to Petoskey. They are putting more wires on.
June 11, 1947:
The R.E.A. men brought our transformer today.
June 30, 1947:
They finished the R.E.A. line into the house-at long last. Expect it will be turned on by July 4th-so that’s that.
July 5, 1947:
Bud [Gallop] ran in for the milk [Marion and Howard gave Bud the milk for his animals, but they sold the cream for income.] in P.M. with the news that the juice was on at Townsends & over at the lake [Thumb]-clear to the double Crossing-leaving eight of us until Mon.-we hope- Waltons, Johnnie Howards, Clarks, Barnes, Eastwoods, Penfolds, Connies & us - Bob Tousley & Howard Crissman not wired yet.
July 7, 1947:
Whoop! at 10 to one Jim Pearson came & at 1P.M. the lights came on. Surely an event-important to all of us on Chandler Hill - July 7, 1947. One side of the electric wiring is not working-owning to a burnt out cartridge fuse-Amp 50-Have to get one. Jim says one bulb in the kitchen fluorescent is nearly gone. Doug put a second hand one over on us, darn him.
July 8, 1947:
The big radio is fine, after it got thru barking & bumping and Keith [Marion's grandson] got good reception on his little one after dark-not before.
July 9, 1947:
Belle got the cartridge fuse (50 amperes) & H. [Howard] put it in so both our circuits are working now....The girls [Belle and friend Myrtle Arsenaeu) bought ice cream-delicious! Ice for the refrigerator.
July 19, 1947:
Cub, Marion & the two little ones came with a pkg. from The Plumbs containing a broiler (electric) and a nice heating pad-I am so glad for the pad if I can run it.
July 20, 1947:
Rained awhile in the nite and is overcast now, wet our new bulkhead roof. It looks so nice with the light lit & shining on the stone steps. It’s going to be a comfort... Radio was a little noisy-and it poured rain in the P.M... Bonnie [the cow] came & I milked her & the others came as Ernest & Marge Walton were leaving after nine, but with the yard lite it was no job to milk the other two.
July 21, 1947:
Keith and Howard finished putting roof on bulkhead... They took shingles off the east side of bulkhead. I cut my finger on the box of the Bulkhead plug box. It’s dangerous. I bled like mad.
July 22, 1947:
Our roof looks so nice & so neat. I am pleased to look at it. Keith nailed some clapboards on the south gable of the kitchen. Howard nailed some more this morning-We had electric waffles this noon.-Recipe: 3 eggs, rounding table spoon soft fat-3 level teaspoons calumet-2 cups sweet milk-2 teaspoons sugar, salt, 3 cups flour-very good. Do Not grease waffle iron.
July 25, 1947:
Our meter card came for the R.E.A.
August 7, 1947:
Our electric bill is 1.71 for 19 days.
September 7, 1947:
Hallie [Wiegandt] was here for a little while this P.M. with Lynne [Wiegandt]. Sue [Wiegandt] stayed at Marion’s & Walt [Wiegandt] intended to finish up Cub’s wiring [House]. Hallie was Marion Wood's granddaughter.
October 11, 1947:
Howard is full of trouble. The hens ate more of our putty off the windows of the cellar & he finally covered them all up until the stuff is dry. H. is pulling down Keith’s tree house for the kindling out off the shady tree... Howard gathered kindling for me & I ironed his 2 good shirts & is that iron of mine a honey-Connie told me it was too, but I think I haven’t appreciated it until right now. Anyway I’m glad Gene [Oldham, Marion's son-in-law Art Oldham's brother] let me have it.”
November 6, 1947:
Our new bill for electricity came $2.94 I think it gains every month.
November 26, 1947:
Marion was making a train trip from Chandler to Chicago to see Jerry and wrote in her diary: "Well! got here nearly-seven A.M. Our accident & all the lates made us 14 minutes late for the Chicago train last eve-& I sat & I sat in the G.R. depot until 12:15 A.M. but it came at last. That nite train from G.R. on Pere Marquette is a major horror. Stop & start. Clatter and BUMP! & your spine nearly parts in the middle. I couldn't eat after seeing that poor boy lying dead by the tracks. Life is like electricity- things are all lit up nice, & some one turns it off." [It is interesting that Marion is so quick to make a metaphor about life as related to electricity once she had access to electricity in her home.]
February 24, 1948:
Juice went off in the middle of Fibber & Molly-It was off all P.M. too from eleven until 5 P.M.
February 25, 1948:
The lites are still off this morning. I don’t know what Connie & Bud will do for water if this is general-I think it is-& folks with milking machines & separators & Geo & Cleo [Penfold] with their electric range... The lights sneaked on at 9:20.
May 12, 1948:
Jay [Marion's son Jerome's nickname] wants me to have a refrigerator. He may send me his little one if he moves [from New York to Florida]. He’s a good lad.
June 14, 1948:
She [Belle] did a marvelous job of cleaning the mattresses with the ‘Rex Aire’. That’s an instrument!...
August 11, 1948:
Card from Jerome, saying they are moving to Florida [from New York] about the 16th... Jerome says he thinks the refrigerator will be on the way in a few days. They had it put in good condition.
August 30, 1948:
Letter from Jerome with $25.00 in it to pay for the Express on my refrigerator which he sent. It came in 3 days & they have been in Florida some days so the refrigerator should be here soon...
August 31, 1948:
Jerome & the children moved to Miami, Florida around the 16th, 1948-I hope the move gives them good luck-Jerome is sending me their little refrigerator. Such a boon! I just couldn’t see how we could buy one. I’m a lucky cuss-wish it would come.
September 21, 1948:
Card from Jerome says the refrigerator went out of N. York the 10th of this month-11 days-Should be here soon.
October 2, 1948:
I cleaned the burners of the gas stove yesterday, put in one new chimney... I sent Bud in the day we were in Boyne Falls to see if the little refrigerator had by chance arrived, but it hadn’t. So it’s the same old story. I don’t know why it takes so long.
October 18, 1948:
...a letter from a Van Co in Jamaica, L. I. [Long Island NY] having shipped the w. machine & the refrigerator-So it’s really on the way- $18.00 for crating and shipping- I have almost all the old cover off the bathroom floor, thank goodness.
December 12, 1948;
Howard also made out our electric bill-for $4.27. First full one we’ve had since the refrigerator came to us.
January 5, 1949:
Howard tended to paying Elec Bill $3.90.
January 19, 1949:
I hated to bake today for I am trying to keep the electric bill down, but had to do it. We had no bread.
February 14, 1949:
Howard put up the new light tube in the fluorescent light in dining room. Both tubes are new now, & I think only one in four is still in use from the 1st maybe they’ve all been changed. It will be 2 years in July-the 7th.
March 4, 1949:
Oh Belle, I shall hold my breath till you test Peter’s Tidy Vac for I have been nursing a secret determination that when Spring came I was going to invest some money in a Rexaire, but if this one is good, I’d rather have it. The Rexaire is so complicated & I always got the tube into the wrong blow hole- Art thinks he always fixed it up, to start, but he doesn't know how many hours I struggled with it while he was working. He laid it all to my reading “Owen Westar” & “How Green are the Pastures,” all the time he was away- nothing could be nicer than to have something to dust mattresses and garner the cobwebs around here. Try it out. I can help pay for it.
March 5, 1949:
Letter from Bell & she is promoting a Tidy Vac-(small vacuum cleaner) for my gift from her & Jerone. It would be a wonderful one-I could even help pay for it. Would I like it! They are like an electrolux, something, similar, in use, to a Rexaire-$40.00. Mrs. Peters (in Belle’s building) has one & loves it.
March 26, 1949:
I have been studying septic tanks & have definitely made up my mind to run the pipes out the south cellar window hole- That would locate the tank better & where the toilet is now. The Frigidaire was turned off-I don’t know how long-I don’t know how to regulate the little hussy-
June 21, 1949: Bell may get me a Gen. Elec-vacuum that Marie Hart has-for 20.00. I hope it’s a good one-
June 28, 1949: Belle & Keets came two days ahead, & the house looked a fright, but the new vacuum certainly soon cleared up the dust upstairs. I am tickled to pieces with it-it has an extra little cleaner that is light to handle and that will be an extra comfort.
August 6, 1949:
I tried to use the big vac but the spring seems to be dead. It won’t go- The little one works fine. have to take it into town I expect. Darn!
August 7, 1949:
After that awful rain storm last nite, I got a sharp shock when I was pumping water at the new sink. Electricity went off many times, but came back on. It was gruesome! One of the worst storms I have ever seen. Regular cloud burst. Marge would have been scared to death. I was uneasy myself....Bud reported their telephone was struck & their radio disabled.
September 6, 1949:
Hallie was here over the weekend at Marion’s and Cub and Walt worked on wiring the new barn. It takes Cub to get things done.
September 25, 1949:
Cub has his lights in his barn & it makes me drool-such a barn. He has almost 1/2 of surface on the E. side done- & all alone- he didn't have anyone help him.
December 12, 1949:
Well! It was a wild nite of wild winds! back to 28º so the meat [newly butchered pig] is safe for the time being. The heavy clothes on the line were blown dry-just need a little finishing-It’s up to me to work on the pig now. The roads are bare & dry, absolutely no electricity-that irritates me so! The farmers will be on the telephone line tho-They’ll soon repair it....Electricity-on again at noon.
January 26, 1950:
Juice was all off all day. Off a few minutes after 9 A.M. - came on a few minutes at 7:15 P.M. Then off until 9:10 P.M. We sat in the dark of the electric lantern & it was gruesome.
March 30, 1950:
Got at the ‘wash’ and it was 1:30 & got thru about 3:30 P.M. all cleared up & everything. Am proud to think I didn’t bust anything- I don’t trust my electric gadgets very much.
October 2, 1950:
Howard got his electric card back- & the bill will be $5. 51 hot darn! dinners in the the roster- cost something!
September 8, 1952:
Belle got up around 8 A.M. The electricity went off, until nearly noon, putting in extra lines, I suppose.
Did I tell you the swath for the power poles is brushed out in our slashing? I can’t believe it right up here. They are supposed to start setting poles April 1st and the contractors have about 3 mos. to fill the contract. Connie & Bud are having hot arguments about how many outlets to have in the house. Bud wants a lot & of course Connie is conservative. I told her not to be too careful, & said I’d have to see my attorney - you [Marion's daughter Isabelle], & find out how many I should have. But said “You both better shut Isabel & me up in your houses with a brace & bit & we will make holes for the outlets.” & I said “Gosh Connie the houses would look like the woodpeckers had been at them.” I don’t hardly dare think about it. I’ll probably want to use my old Aladdin oily on Sundays & birthdays.
January 4, 1947:
Boys of REA [Rural Electric Association] dug holes here for the line... The 4 REA crew came & ate their lunch here. They are digging holes for the poles for our Hi Line. They used dynamite (2 blasts) in the post hole inside the cow yard gate. I was afraid it might blow in our D.R. window, but boy-who chewed gum very fast-said it wouldn’t & it didn’t. Sounded about like the discharge of a heavy rifle.
Wednesday [Possibly February 1947]:
Cub is working on the R.E.A. now, so Marion came in the pickup.
February 16, 1947:
The electricity is up to Bob Fraley’s transformers on the posts. Very fine. They, the R.E.A., can’t take a horse up that terrible hill between Carl Clark’s place & Roscoe’s so I guess they’ll wait until spring. A friend of Lew Barne’s is going to do his inside job & Connie & Bud will have him look at theirs & I told Bud I wanted to see him when they have him. He does it by the job & is all licensed & ever’thing. Trouble is I feel very weak when I wonder what we want.
February 26, 1947:
The electric line is in use as far as Bob Fraley’s. Seeing almost too much. My mother would never believe it if she were here today. Many wonderful things have been done in my lifetime.
March 20, 1947:
Johnnie Howard and a nice electrician from Petoskey were here-Mr. Ross-& he’s going to start wiring Johnnie’s house next Tuesday-We will likely have him do our job, I think. Connie & Bud will have him do theirs too. I lent Johnnie Jerome’s speech, & Howard spoke about Bernice being on the town board April 7th. She’ll like that.
April 25, 1947:
There was a call from Mr. Gold in Boyne City, & he left us our electric meter and collected $2.50 for Inspection of the meter... Carl Clark and Mr. Townsend were with Mr. Gold.
May 1, 1947:
Mr. Ross & Johnnie Howard came & I don’t believe that the wiring job will be so expensive.
May 3, 1947:
The great tall poles 36 feet long are in the slashing & the yard-sure looks like the R.E.A. is soon to be an accomplice.
May 7, 1947:
Cub has his barn all wired now, & he poured nearly 30 feet, 10 feet wide, of cement on the East end of his barn- 4 inches thick- all in one day- all start alone, -my gosh, that man is not human. I hope he don’t kill himself-
May 9, 1947:
Douglas & his helper came about 9:30AM and got to work on the outside electric fitting & had the entry made & fuse box in the cellar by lunch time. They left at 4:30 & have 8 openings cut in the walls, but will not finish tomorrow.
May 10, 1947:
Douglas & Bruce came & are working... I think the boys have 13 openings in here now or 14. I am beginning to have a slightly sick feeling about it as the air holes grow in number. Howard will have a nice day with Bud-he is going to draw $200.00 out of the bank-to pay the wiring. Howard drew $175.00 out of the bank to pay for the wiring.
May 11, 1947:
I made my green seer sucker sleeves about 1 1/2 inches longer & I like ‘em better. When I get my electric iron I’m going to do my dresses up.
May 12 1947:
Mr. Ross brought a very-to me-unattractive light for the d. Rm price $12.50 but we are not going to take it. Guess we’ll have a fluorescent. It's 3:20 and Mr. Ross is fishing the cable up to the center light in the D.Room. The upstairs is all in but one on the n. side of the boy’s room.
May 13, 1947:
Marion [Marion Wood's granddaughter] liked the wiring and she said I should take the floor lamp...We [Marion & Howard Wood] counted up & calculate the work will come to $146.00 about, so we’ll see how near we come. He has one switch to put in the Parlor. The bulkhead & basement, finish the back porch lite (lantern) and the flood lite, and a box & fixture in the N. room.
May 16, 1947:
Men finished wiring house. Mr. Ross and Bruce came about 9:30 & put the switch into the parlor in just a few minutes. They have the two florescents up now and the light in Pantry. Have to set the floodlite and put the switch in the basement, & I guess then it’s done... The boys worked to finish until about 5:15 & Howard paid Mr. Ross $174.00. That included 2 florescent lights and the $4.00 porch lantern & flood lite.
29 openings $101.50
entrance $45.00
2 florescents $20.00
1 porch lite (lantern) $3.50
1 flood-lite $4.00
$174.00
May 17, 1947:
Seems nice our wiring job is done... Connie & Bud were over last nite a few minutes to inspect the wiring. They don’t know yet what they will do...Writing Belle to tell her the wiring is done.”
May 22, 1947:
R.E.A. men put fitting on the yard post... Our yard is dotted with men doing things to the long posts. A man told Bud yesterday the juice would be on in ten days (an R.E.A. man).
May 28, 1947:
The men were in the yard, digging the hole deeper by hand for the big 36 ft. pole. The boy said they wanted to be in here & through by Saturday.
June 2, 1947:
The men were doing something about the Hi line post holes, & the man said they wanted to get them set by Wednesday.”
June 3, 1947:
Men in the yard, setting our R.E.A. poles-I saw them going up, the one in the cow yard-over the fence with a truck & it was a thrill. The poles are finished. Next thing the wires & the ‘juice’.
June 4, 1947:
I admire our long line of poles.
June 6, 1947:
Howard got the flood lite bulb & (100 watts), a battery for the lantern, and stove kindling-all badly needed. We have to have 8 more bulbs to go around....an electric truck was here a few minutes-asking the way to Petoskey. They are putting more wires on.
June 11, 1947:
The R.E.A. men brought our transformer today.
June 30, 1947:
They finished the R.E.A. line into the house-at long last. Expect it will be turned on by July 4th-so that’s that.
July 5, 1947:
Bud [Gallop] ran in for the milk [Marion and Howard gave Bud the milk for his animals, but they sold the cream for income.] in P.M. with the news that the juice was on at Townsends & over at the lake [Thumb]-clear to the double Crossing-leaving eight of us until Mon.-we hope- Waltons, Johnnie Howards, Clarks, Barnes, Eastwoods, Penfolds, Connies & us - Bob Tousley & Howard Crissman not wired yet.
July 7, 1947:
Whoop! at 10 to one Jim Pearson came & at 1P.M. the lights came on. Surely an event-important to all of us on Chandler Hill - July 7, 1947. One side of the electric wiring is not working-owning to a burnt out cartridge fuse-Amp 50-Have to get one. Jim says one bulb in the kitchen fluorescent is nearly gone. Doug put a second hand one over on us, darn him.
July 8, 1947:
The big radio is fine, after it got thru barking & bumping and Keith [Marion's grandson] got good reception on his little one after dark-not before.
July 9, 1947:
Belle got the cartridge fuse (50 amperes) & H. [Howard] put it in so both our circuits are working now....The girls [Belle and friend Myrtle Arsenaeu) bought ice cream-delicious! Ice for the refrigerator.
July 19, 1947:
Cub, Marion & the two little ones came with a pkg. from The Plumbs containing a broiler (electric) and a nice heating pad-I am so glad for the pad if I can run it.
July 20, 1947:
Rained awhile in the nite and is overcast now, wet our new bulkhead roof. It looks so nice with the light lit & shining on the stone steps. It’s going to be a comfort... Radio was a little noisy-and it poured rain in the P.M... Bonnie [the cow] came & I milked her & the others came as Ernest & Marge Walton were leaving after nine, but with the yard lite it was no job to milk the other two.
July 21, 1947:
Keith and Howard finished putting roof on bulkhead... They took shingles off the east side of bulkhead. I cut my finger on the box of the Bulkhead plug box. It’s dangerous. I bled like mad.
July 22, 1947:
Our roof looks so nice & so neat. I am pleased to look at it. Keith nailed some clapboards on the south gable of the kitchen. Howard nailed some more this morning-We had electric waffles this noon.-Recipe: 3 eggs, rounding table spoon soft fat-3 level teaspoons calumet-2 cups sweet milk-2 teaspoons sugar, salt, 3 cups flour-very good. Do Not grease waffle iron.
July 25, 1947:
Our meter card came for the R.E.A.
August 7, 1947:
Our electric bill is 1.71 for 19 days.
September 7, 1947:
Hallie [Wiegandt] was here for a little while this P.M. with Lynne [Wiegandt]. Sue [Wiegandt] stayed at Marion’s & Walt [Wiegandt] intended to finish up Cub’s wiring [House]. Hallie was Marion Wood's granddaughter.
October 11, 1947:
Howard is full of trouble. The hens ate more of our putty off the windows of the cellar & he finally covered them all up until the stuff is dry. H. is pulling down Keith’s tree house for the kindling out off the shady tree... Howard gathered kindling for me & I ironed his 2 good shirts & is that iron of mine a honey-Connie told me it was too, but I think I haven’t appreciated it until right now. Anyway I’m glad Gene [Oldham, Marion's son-in-law Art Oldham's brother] let me have it.”
November 6, 1947:
Our new bill for electricity came $2.94 I think it gains every month.
November 26, 1947:
Marion was making a train trip from Chandler to Chicago to see Jerry and wrote in her diary: "Well! got here nearly-seven A.M. Our accident & all the lates made us 14 minutes late for the Chicago train last eve-& I sat & I sat in the G.R. depot until 12:15 A.M. but it came at last. That nite train from G.R. on Pere Marquette is a major horror. Stop & start. Clatter and BUMP! & your spine nearly parts in the middle. I couldn't eat after seeing that poor boy lying dead by the tracks. Life is like electricity- things are all lit up nice, & some one turns it off." [It is interesting that Marion is so quick to make a metaphor about life as related to electricity once she had access to electricity in her home.]
February 24, 1948:
Juice went off in the middle of Fibber & Molly-It was off all P.M. too from eleven until 5 P.M.
February 25, 1948:
The lites are still off this morning. I don’t know what Connie & Bud will do for water if this is general-I think it is-& folks with milking machines & separators & Geo & Cleo [Penfold] with their electric range... The lights sneaked on at 9:20.
May 12, 1948:
Jay [Marion's son Jerome's nickname] wants me to have a refrigerator. He may send me his little one if he moves [from New York to Florida]. He’s a good lad.
June 14, 1948:
She [Belle] did a marvelous job of cleaning the mattresses with the ‘Rex Aire’. That’s an instrument!...
August 11, 1948:
Card from Jerome, saying they are moving to Florida [from New York] about the 16th... Jerome says he thinks the refrigerator will be on the way in a few days. They had it put in good condition.
August 30, 1948:
Letter from Jerome with $25.00 in it to pay for the Express on my refrigerator which he sent. It came in 3 days & they have been in Florida some days so the refrigerator should be here soon...
August 31, 1948:
Jerome & the children moved to Miami, Florida around the 16th, 1948-I hope the move gives them good luck-Jerome is sending me their little refrigerator. Such a boon! I just couldn’t see how we could buy one. I’m a lucky cuss-wish it would come.
September 21, 1948:
Card from Jerome says the refrigerator went out of N. York the 10th of this month-11 days-Should be here soon.
October 2, 1948:
I cleaned the burners of the gas stove yesterday, put in one new chimney... I sent Bud in the day we were in Boyne Falls to see if the little refrigerator had by chance arrived, but it hadn’t. So it’s the same old story. I don’t know why it takes so long.
October 18, 1948:
...a letter from a Van Co in Jamaica, L. I. [Long Island NY] having shipped the w. machine & the refrigerator-So it’s really on the way- $18.00 for crating and shipping- I have almost all the old cover off the bathroom floor, thank goodness.
December 12, 1948;
Howard also made out our electric bill-for $4.27. First full one we’ve had since the refrigerator came to us.
January 5, 1949:
Howard tended to paying Elec Bill $3.90.
January 19, 1949:
I hated to bake today for I am trying to keep the electric bill down, but had to do it. We had no bread.
February 14, 1949:
Howard put up the new light tube in the fluorescent light in dining room. Both tubes are new now, & I think only one in four is still in use from the 1st maybe they’ve all been changed. It will be 2 years in July-the 7th.
March 4, 1949:
Oh Belle, I shall hold my breath till you test Peter’s Tidy Vac for I have been nursing a secret determination that when Spring came I was going to invest some money in a Rexaire, but if this one is good, I’d rather have it. The Rexaire is so complicated & I always got the tube into the wrong blow hole- Art thinks he always fixed it up, to start, but he doesn't know how many hours I struggled with it while he was working. He laid it all to my reading “Owen Westar” & “How Green are the Pastures,” all the time he was away- nothing could be nicer than to have something to dust mattresses and garner the cobwebs around here. Try it out. I can help pay for it.
March 5, 1949:
Letter from Bell & she is promoting a Tidy Vac-(small vacuum cleaner) for my gift from her & Jerone. It would be a wonderful one-I could even help pay for it. Would I like it! They are like an electrolux, something, similar, in use, to a Rexaire-$40.00. Mrs. Peters (in Belle’s building) has one & loves it.
March 26, 1949:
I have been studying septic tanks & have definitely made up my mind to run the pipes out the south cellar window hole- That would locate the tank better & where the toilet is now. The Frigidaire was turned off-I don’t know how long-I don’t know how to regulate the little hussy-
June 21, 1949: Bell may get me a Gen. Elec-vacuum that Marie Hart has-for 20.00. I hope it’s a good one-
June 28, 1949: Belle & Keets came two days ahead, & the house looked a fright, but the new vacuum certainly soon cleared up the dust upstairs. I am tickled to pieces with it-it has an extra little cleaner that is light to handle and that will be an extra comfort.
August 6, 1949:
I tried to use the big vac but the spring seems to be dead. It won’t go- The little one works fine. have to take it into town I expect. Darn!
August 7, 1949:
After that awful rain storm last nite, I got a sharp shock when I was pumping water at the new sink. Electricity went off many times, but came back on. It was gruesome! One of the worst storms I have ever seen. Regular cloud burst. Marge would have been scared to death. I was uneasy myself....Bud reported their telephone was struck & their radio disabled.
September 6, 1949:
Hallie was here over the weekend at Marion’s and Cub and Walt worked on wiring the new barn. It takes Cub to get things done.
September 25, 1949:
Cub has his lights in his barn & it makes me drool-such a barn. He has almost 1/2 of surface on the E. side done- & all alone- he didn't have anyone help him.
December 12, 1949:
Well! It was a wild nite of wild winds! back to 28º so the meat [newly butchered pig] is safe for the time being. The heavy clothes on the line were blown dry-just need a little finishing-It’s up to me to work on the pig now. The roads are bare & dry, absolutely no electricity-that irritates me so! The farmers will be on the telephone line tho-They’ll soon repair it....Electricity-on again at noon.
January 26, 1950:
Juice was all off all day. Off a few minutes after 9 A.M. - came on a few minutes at 7:15 P.M. Then off until 9:10 P.M. We sat in the dark of the electric lantern & it was gruesome.
March 30, 1950:
Got at the ‘wash’ and it was 1:30 & got thru about 3:30 P.M. all cleared up & everything. Am proud to think I didn’t bust anything- I don’t trust my electric gadgets very much.
October 2, 1950:
Howard got his electric card back- & the bill will be $5. 51 hot darn! dinners in the the roster- cost something!
September 8, 1952:
Belle got up around 8 A.M. The electricity went off, until nearly noon, putting in extra lines, I suppose.
Marion Mackie Wood never tired of this view of electric poles cutting through her woods
because she had wished so hard to finally have electricity in her home.
Marion wrote in her diary on June 4, 1947: “I admire our long line of poles.”
because she had wished so hard to finally have electricity in her home.
Marion wrote in her diary on June 4, 1947: “I admire our long line of poles.”
My mom, Marion Bush Howard, held my brother David, as I stood beside them when we stood by our home on top of Chandler Hill. The electricity pole with its transformer was in the yard, and I remember how the poles, seen in the background, did go across that field which led to John Howard's home on Walton Road. ~ Karla Howard Buckmaster
~ Telephone ~
Marion Mackie Wood, Chandler Township resident wrote in her diary:
January 26, 1949:
Farmers are fixing up the telephone line - setting posts. They got to Cub's from this end.
February 5, 1949:
Kenneth [Howard] & Karl came before 9 & borrowed our ladders to help them fix the wires [telephone wires] at this end.-Wouldn't stay a second. They had someone's pickup... the boys didn't bring back the ladders-the farmers have worked 2 weeks now to get their line up & Cub seemed to think they are not near done yet.
February 6, 1949:
Cub says they will be quite a lot longer time before they get the line finished for the telephone.
February 10, 1949:
Before we ate breakfast Marion & Karlie came in the car-Karl was going to work on the telephone, so Mamie came to see if I wanted to wash.
April 11, 1949: Marion came & Karlie & stayed a couple of hours. Their telephones are all fixed & they can talk around the neighborhood, but are not connected to Central yet. She says they work just fine-now. New lines & all.
January 26, 1949:
Farmers are fixing up the telephone line - setting posts. They got to Cub's from this end.
February 5, 1949:
Kenneth [Howard] & Karl came before 9 & borrowed our ladders to help them fix the wires [telephone wires] at this end.-Wouldn't stay a second. They had someone's pickup... the boys didn't bring back the ladders-the farmers have worked 2 weeks now to get their line up & Cub seemed to think they are not near done yet.
February 6, 1949:
Cub says they will be quite a lot longer time before they get the line finished for the telephone.
February 10, 1949:
Before we ate breakfast Marion & Karlie came in the car-Karl was going to work on the telephone, so Mamie came to see if I wanted to wash.
April 11, 1949: Marion came & Karlie & stayed a couple of hours. Their telephones are all fixed & they can talk around the neighborhood, but are not connected to Central yet. She says they work just fine-now. New lines & all.
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This photo above was taken between 1947 and 1950... That was my dad Karl "Cub" Howard up in the tree across the road from our home on Chandler Hill Road, with Johnny Howard's farm across the field in the background. My dad was doing something having to do with either the electricity, or the telephone. ~ Karla Howard Buckmaster
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Roscoe Howard's daughter Shirley Howard Hiar grew up right at the bottom of Chandler Hill. Shirley remembers, as do I, that EVERYONE was on a party line back then... and one always figured that someone was "listening in" when a call came in. Shirley remembers that their phone number was "40F12" which was four longs and a short. Their last phone number was 549-2479. Shirley tried calling that number one time and after all that time of 28 years then, the number was still disconnected. Shirley jokingly told her niece Jill about it, and said, "Wouldn't it be cool as if in the twilight zone - they answered!" ~ Karla Howard Buckmaster
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Sign of the Times