MARCH 1879

[BTM] Day 1-3 is missing, part of Day 4 as follows:

……old man got back   got a  pain in his hip  Said he reckond 
it was the devil in his bones   Louisa Chadwick Come this evening
[BTM] Could likely have been Arthritis instead of the devil in his bone’s.  Rhoda’s neighbor Louisa Chadwick came to visit.

5 Day   Crawford come to see about his brothers land matters
Ben Come to get his boots mended   boys at work in the field
Me and Lillie went to See Bettie She was gone to Siris   I lay down
And read and got up and eat got ready to Come home when She
Come home  I Staid till late and then come home  I was
Tired when I got home getting Supper    feel very well to night
[BTM] In the 1860 Montague Census there was a H. Crawford listed in HH631/651with his family Melvina 23, John 19, Dianna 18, Rebecca 10, James 4 and Mary 2.    By 1879 Either H. Crawford’s  son’s John or James could be the Crawford mentioned as coming to see about his brothers land.     Siris, may likely be Cyrus or his brother Silas Hudson found in the 1860 & 1870 Census of Montague county, but not found there in the 1880 census.   Rhoda made herself at home reading and eating while she waited on daughter Bettie to return home. 

6 Day    Manda Spent the day  I was glad to See her Mollie 
come this evening  glad to have them come we laughed and 
talked some    old man went to Chadwicks  got him another 
overseer   think he will keep him a week    I planted some
garden Seed   Lillie been ironing   warmest night that been
[BTM] Amanda “Manda” Perrin BEAN, was often a visitor to the TOTTY families.  She was the dau-in-law of  William and Betsy Caroline Reeves BEAN.  Betsy was the dau. of  Nancy Reeves BEAN was the dau. of William S. and Nancy TOTTY REEVES.  Nancy TOTTY REEVES was the daughter of Robert TOTTY and Sandal ANDREWS TOTTY, Robert TOTTY was the s/o Francis TOTTY, s/o William TOTTY, s/o Thomas TOTTY of Henrico County, Virginia.
 

7 Day   Mollie come   John an Anna drove up this
……….. I was so glad to see them   had not been here
…………..tion.
[BTM]  Mollie is Mary Elizabeth SPRINGER, later first wife of Frank TOTTY.   Rhoda was glad to see her son in law John HARVILLE and dau. Anna Totty HARVILLE who evidently had not been to visit in a while.

9 Day  March    Pa and every boddy else here seems like
…….k as ill as a cat     I think he is better  but he will not
………it    Mollie Come again   I am so glad to have her
[BTM]  Frank must be the one “ill as a cat”.    Mollie Springer becoming quite attentive to Frank and Rhoda seems to approve of her being around.  Love in the making.

….Day   Dr here says Frank is better      old man run
or walked fast to moores got his gun and killed the turkey
for a wild one and had it for dinner   it was my black hen
………..give us a calf   I was glad when he left    Bart and Till
..ent home    old man and Paul gone after Bens wagon
[BTM]  Capt. TOTTY must have loaned his gun out to his neighbor Moore.   There were several Moore families listed in the 1880 census.  Could have been  Morgan Moore in HH# 316/317,or  Theodore in HH# 349/395 just to name a couple of their MOORE neighbors.    Could Paul be the one who gave them a calf?

…..Day  bettie come   Frank Still better     Mrs Moore washed for me …
Come talked Some  George and mollie here to night glad of that
[BTM]  Neighbor Mrs. Moore helping Rhoda out with the washing.   Siblings George and Mollie Springer 
came to check up on Frank to see how he was doing.

12 Day  Saturday   Pea Sick   Totty layout come   Frank on the mend
gone home I don’t think I ever was much tireder in my life  don’t think
I can Stand it much longer    John Harvile called to day  Jase come
[BTM] Rhoda has her hands full of sick folk again.   Who could the TOTTY layout be, Lillie? She hasn’t been mentioned in a few days.

13 Day  Sunday   Frank mending he got up and walked to the fire
Lewis Johnny and Willie all started home  Lillie gone to
[BTM] Frank finally getting up and around, but Pea is most likely keeping Rhoda in jitters worrying about him.    Rhoda mentions Lillie today, and she is off again to? She must have been the TOTTY layout mentioned yesterday. 
 

planting corn heard of another death at the brock place  don’t 
know who it is in death   Seems to be about in the Land  two fellers
here to wanting to see Frank   me and Lillie Sewing  Pea gone to Jases
[BTM] Any idea who died in the BROCK family?   My husband has BROCK connections from Montague Co., Texas through his WOOD family which I am still working on.
 

26 Day  warm  this morning every thing looks green  turned green
in the nigh  me and Lillie washed got done and got to the house
as the clock Struck nine    Some boddy moved in to the Bourland
home  (don’t know whether to be glad or sorry   time will shew)
    Sam tooke up his boat so he said  told me to sit it down I done So
    Had storm of rain and hail this evening   all Staid out till they got wet
Then  dessy ran in out of the Storm  Staid all night   Frank got home
Still Sick don’t know whats the matter with him think its
Ensipelas So uneasy about him  I am nearly crazy
[BTM] Sam is Rhoda’s ½ brother Samuel SPENCER, who got away with telling her to “sit it down”.   Sam had a daughter named Dessy, this is most likely her or a namesake. 

27 Day   warm  Lillie gone to Jases to See Rob  Come back with fever
Frank no better
[BTM] Fever or something must be catching for the TOTTY family to all be staying sick.

28 Day  my new neighbors come his name is moore..  mad……….
went to See her this evening “oh what big mouths they have……
………………………………………………………………………..
[BTM] They must be talker’s for Rhoda to make a comment like that.

                           March 29 1879    old man me and Lillie………
Dr Seals to a birth day dinner  enjoyed it very well com……………
Bettie and Louisa Stayed all night   Frank went to the Burg………..
Back with high fever    Lillie went home with Duck
30 Day  Sunday   Willie C. Come had a message from Nellie
Mr and Mrs Springer Spent the evening (mollie Staid with
Frank very clever of her he thought)
[BTM] Rhoda is on to Mollie paying so much attention to her boy Frank.  Any idea who Nellie is?

31 and the last Day of march  Frank went to the Dr got medicine  Lillie Started
to School (Jase come he is Sick)  Pea not got back  (old man and Sa…………
in the field alone)            Bart and Tilda come old man went and hired
Paul)   Storming and rained to night a little
[BTM]  This may be Sam SPENCER working in the field with F. M. TOTTY.  Daughter and son in law Tilda and Bart Traylor coming by for a visit to her parents.    Could this Paul that was hired, be the neighbor listed in the 1880 Montague Co., Census?,  in HH#379-380 as P.T. BURKS WM 31 farmer b: MO and parents from Virginia.   His wife Ada 24, and daughters  Olive 7, Evaline 3, Cora 2 months.
 

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Transcribed from Original Diary by Birdie (Totty) McNutt ©2000