My Life Story - Mabel Rachel Collins
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| Mabel Collins school picture, first row second girl. |
When I small child, all children
tease me – I had snow white hair with kink in it. Mama could not make it stay
down – it stood strait up. I was teased a lot, when I start school ma combed
and braided my hair but braid stand out and they call me cotton top and lots of
names. One day teacher called in and give each child name they didn’t like it -
so kids better then to me. I had one good friend walk to school with me and
help me one day coming home one older boy start teasing me and my friend – so I took my dinner pail hit over
head and made deep gash in his head, but he was expelled from school for couple
weeks.
When
I about 12, we move to Grand Rapids
in log house nine miles out of town. We had five miles to go to school so I
never went any more. Started about six months mother got so home sick we move
back to Iowa.
We let my uncle live in place to take care of stock and chickens. Dad had game
chickens fighting kind – he would take them fighting and bet who win. When we
move back Iowa
few years my uncle sold or traded them.
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| Top row middle - Mabel, next Harvey and in front left Mary Collins |
I
was 17 when we move back to Iowa; I had met my
first boy friend in Iowa he came from Ohio. So we corresponded
for a year, then he sent me my fare money so I went to Ohio. We were married in spring. On my way
to Ohio, my suitcase was stolen in Columbus, which had my wedding dress,
picture I treasured and about everything I owned - so when I arrived in
Portsmouth, Ohio, I had no clothes but what I had on. His folks live on farm
and he had sister who lent me some clothes to ware till my trunk arrived two
weeks latter. So I got married in black and white blouse and purple skirt of
his sister’s and her friend’s. We all when to town in horse buggy; on the way
to town he, Victor, said lets get married so we got licenses and got married April
1918. I was 18 and he was 20. I never forget there was Big Sheverree on us next
night. They were go ride Vic on fole but I stop that I could fight for my right
and did. We stayed with his folks for a couple of weeks then found apartment;
no one wanted to rent to us they thought I was too young. We were married 10
months when I got little boy. That was
year war ended of 1918, I remember night it ended people were out in streets
saying….love everyone. Just 8 months later I got mail from home to come home as
my brother passed away.
My man worked in
steel mill there. Started out with nothing rent house in town, work slack that
winter so sold our furniture came back to Minnesota in January - our first son
was born - he, Vic, cut wood with my dad and sold it in Rapids, they buy
grocery so one day came home was so cold, so walk behind sled and horses got
scared and ran away so the groceries all along the road…. seem much colder than
it does now.
Dad
told us come back as I had just lost my brother. I knew some thing had happened
at home because we heard a rap on our door on 23 December at 10:30 pm, we both
looked but no one was there. Vic went to work the next day and we got telegram
my brother had passed away at that time with flu and my sister was very sick.
We ask doctor if
we could go if we got sleeper car as our first child was soon to be born. We
couldn’t afford sleeper car so we sold our furniture and we left for Rapids. We
were home two weeks when my son was born early - didn’t think he would live but
he made it. After my brother died my sister said she could not live now, so dad
and my man took her to hospital in sleigh and horses ran away ……cot she was on.
She lived two days after that. She also had dropsy real bad, but doctor though
he… taf… her as water around heart so she drown before they could do operation.
Then February 8, 1919 my sister died she could not stand shock of all she had
bad heart.
On January 21 our
fist child was born but was such shock to me seeing my sister so sick, she had
heart trouble and said don’t worry I am going to be with my brother soon;
February 8 we lay her away too so we just about lost baby as he came too soon –
traveling home and shock was too much on me that was a hard cold winter one I
never forget.
After Mary died my
folks sold out and move to Iowa.
My man got job in words. Then I got flu, doctor gave me up as I was expecting
again. We called another doctor and he and with God guiding hand save me. Five
months later had another boy. We move to small town and moved on farm with no
road and had move on rail way track had one horse and one pull sled - was five
miles from track. This is where my second son born with no doctor, I call my
husband – we had rail road iron hanging up I hit the iron and he hear song and
came home to deliver baby. No one knew it till baby was five days old. They
building new road some men stop in to see why he did not come to work.
Baby was one week
old. Model T pull in it was my dad and brother-in-law and friend …..I was going
to get out of bed they said stay there. So
my man cook them food it was they stayed one week then went back to Iowa. My dad said this
no place to live; you would never get out her if something go wrong. So we went
back to Iowa when it safe - baby two week old we walk two miles to rail track
got train to Iowa left everything there we could carry he got work in Iowa.
Then in spring we
move to Ohio again; stayed there two years
then back to good old Minnesota
and move in small town and had a two room house. We got another little boy; my
man got work in woods cut logs to wood. We put in cold hard winter that year
with ……we got by. My mother said work never kill any one so we put in big
garden, I pick wild berries can everything I could. In May we got little girl
then move to St. Paul, Minnesota. My man work at packing plant was
there seven years. While we were there my oldest boy was sick with TB and had
to keep him out of school for one year - so move back to country. Then the depression
hit I was very sick too. Doctor said had abscess between heart and lining. They
also found I was pregnant again and heart had enlarged lots fluid around heart
they afraid I not pull through so I could do hardly any work. My girl was six
years old then and my husband got laid off then doctor thought there was no
hope and I was pregnant again so we took what money we had and got old truck to
move back to small town we had our house there yet (it was about 200 miles from
St. Paul). In
May 1932 we bought 100 lbs sugar and 100 lbs of flour and 50 lbs of lard. We
had no electricity or water to pay we had our own place four rooms, two up and
two down. Also that was year of bug fire that burned one town down and many
homeless and woods were all black. I was
seven months then and began to feel better so I said we put in garden. All help
us over hump so took me to doctor he examined me and said triplets. In a couple
of weeks I might feel sick so I went to plant 100 cabbage plants. He called
doctor and twins were born. But good Lord was with me; I had twin girls four
and five pounds but they were very fat look like little dolls. Doctor came to
house he had 22 miles drive to house. But I never had labor pain only pain in
heart. Another miracle- raise those two babies, we so poor neighbor …..our barn
for cows so gave us milk for babies. Neighbor came in took care babies for 3 or
4 days her family and mine had whooping cough so the children could see the
babies only through window.
I seem to get
better all along the doctor said it was another miracle happened my heart got
ok. When girls were one and half years old we bought larger farm and had 18
milking cows and was doing ok when my dad came up from Iowa and said you can
have my place and he went back to Iowa. It took us one year to get thing
straightened out. We move on that place and when girls were six years old had
another boy. When he was two years old, I got so sick & went to doctor he
said it is a goiter - so went to city to hospital. When I was in hospital my man
cut his toe off with buss saw then he got call to come and get me. Dr. McCloud
he said she sick girl we better operate right away my man said we have no
money, Dr said, who said anything about money, we can’t let her die. So I was
operated on in week. The goiter had worn out my windpipe so then doctor had to
stitch it to keep it from collapsing and they thought it was cancer. I went
back to doctor he said I have good news for you, it wasn’t cancer.
Two years later
the war was on with Germany.
My second boy (Ralph) join up and had one in shop yard work. My husband went to
Greenland. My third boy (John) got his call he
was 18. That left me with two girls 10 years old (Margaret and Marie) and one
boy three years old (Pat). I had my oldest girl (Mary)’s baby boy (Jerry
Elliott) as she was working in Nebraska to help her county (in a rifle factory)
as her husband (Leo Elliott) was in Japan in army. I had six cows, team of horses
and three pigs to take care of. I got up early to milk cows and do chores
before girls go to school. That fall before crop were all in one horse got sick
and died. Neighbor let me have another but she would do nothing. I went to neighbor they let me have two
burner oil stove so we cook on it few days. But could not bake anything it get
too cold with just heater stove so I got latter and got up on house got tin
snip and stove pipe cut pipe in four places and bent it for chimney hole and we
had fire in stove that way till my man got back home he was gone about one
year.
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