#18. Where there's a Will. John McHenry Jasper

#18. Where there's a Will.  Or Not!

John McHenry Jasper


John McHenry Jasper, my 3rd Great Grandfather, has been a mystery to me.  Although the family kept scraps of paper on everything and everybody as well as numerous stories, John was not documented other than he died in 9 August 1845 in Whitesville, Missouri.

He was married to Mary "Polly" Heath in Kentucky and they had migrated  to Missouri in 1841.  When he died, he left a widow and eight children; the oldest was Elizabeth at age 16 and the youngest was Minerva at age 14 months.

There is no family information as to where he was buried.  It was in 1854 that Polly's son, Andrew
came back from Oregon and took his mother, her spinster sister Lois and the remaining siblings (Gilla, Lois, William, Thomas & Minerva) west to Oregon.

So when one is interested, one has to research!

The first information discovered was the Letter of Administration given to Thomas P. Jasper to administrator the estate since John McHenry Jasper died intestate.  His son, Thomas P. Jasper was 9 years old at the time so he couldn't be the administrator.  Although some people have attributed the administration of the estate to the son, it was obvious he was too young.  Further research led to a Thomas P. Jasper, living in the 1850 census at Platte, Andrew County, Missouri.  He was 35 years old at that time.  In the 1850 census, Mary Jasper and her 6 children were living in Tremont, Buchanan County, Missouri.  All of this information was found at Ancestry.com.

Further research at Familysearch.org led to the probate records of Andrew County, Missouri.  These records were not indexed, so I flipped through 43 images for the details of the probate.

Even though John Jasper died without a will, his estate was intestate, and probated.  Thomas P. Jasper was appointed as the administrator of the estate and thus had to follow the laws of the Andrew County, Missouri.

One of the tasks of an administrator is to make an inventory of the estate.  From this information there is a certificate of preemption for land. Which meant as settler he had the right to purchase public lands at a federally set price.  The land description is provided:  the Northwest quarter of Section 26 in township 6 of Range 34.  There was also a day book of accounts for smithing from February 25th to August 9, 1845.  The family story is that he died August 9, 1845; no further proof has been found.

Smithing...he was a blacksmith!  That information was new to me.  The inventory list includes blacksmith tools, guns, a shot pouch, a cary plow, drawing chains and hames, one red steer, one white cow, one red heifer, one brindle yearling heifer, one black cow and calf, one yoke of oxen, one lot of hemp.  But there were also debts; one from William Heath given on 25 May 1842 for $15.50 at six percent (6%) interest.  Who is he?   There is also a promissory note due A. C. Jasper dated 5th October 1847 for A. C. Jasper.  (I have yet to figure out who A. C. Jasper is).

The inventory also includes who he owed money to as well as who had not yet paid him for smithing.

The inventory tidbit was the sale of the land.  There is receipt signed by Mary Jasper on the 21st of January 1848 which states that she received from Thomas P. Jasper thirty dollars ($30) in part of my dower of said estate. (Since women could not own property, the dower right was the right of a non-owner spouse in real property). There is also a paper selling the property to William Combest for $100.75 in March of 1847.  (William Combest was married to John Jasper's sister, Gilla Ann Jasper)
Some of the money had to be used to pay off the debts.  Mary did receive money after the sale of the cattle and guns.

 I have transcribed most of it but follow the money does need to be finished!  Besides figure out who is A. C. Jasper.  The note from William Heath is also interesting since he died in 1829, is the note from her brother?  She did have a brother by that name.

Needless to say, I need to do further research on John Jasper's estate.

#17 Land. Lois Jasper Lloyd

#17 Land. 52 Ancestors in A Year

My ancestors all owned land.  Many families continued to own the land for several generations as it was inherited by heirs.  Some of the ancestors purchased their land, while others homesteaded.  

Why own land?  Owning land was a dream sought earlier generations since it gave them freedom to  earn their destiny.

There were many opportunities to own land in the United States.  But it was unusual for a woman (single or married) in the 1860’s to buy her land.

But that is exactly what my great great grandmother, Lois Jasper Lloyd did.  She had an amazing life, being born in 1841 in Kentucky, immigrating to Missouri and then traveling on the Oregon trail in 1854 when she was just 13 years old.  Marrying Albert Gallatin Lloyd in 1858, she moved to Walla Walla county, Washington in 1859 with a 2 month old baby, to a crude log house with a dirt floor and no windows.  But she had  brought garden seeds from her home in Oregon.  

Lois H. Lloyd-A young woman

Since Lois arrived too late to break ground into a garden, she used the dirt from gopher holes.  Gophers throw out dirt as they make their tunnels so next to their hole, is a pile of loose dirt.  Hard-working Lois, planted her seeds into that dirt.  I suspect that she probably had to haul water to those hills of dirt.  But her garden grew and she saved seeds for the next year’s crop.

From this meager start, Lois continued gardening, even raising a larger garden and selling produce to miners and others passing through.  Lois even darned socks for miners who would stay a night at their house, known as the “half-way house”.  She put that money in a little sugar bowl on the top shelf of her cupboard.  By1865 she had accumulated enough money to buy 120 acres of land east of her house.   A little later she sold one of her young mares in 1866 to buy another 40 acres adjoining her first purchase.  

The Patent for the 120 acres signed by President Abraham Lincoln

The Patent for 40 acres purchased in 1866, signed by President Andrew Johnson

Her husband, A. G. Lloyd, had purchased 160 acres and received the patent in 1865.  

Lois worked hard for her purchases but she had satisfaction knowing that it was hers alone.  Albert G. Lloyd died in 1915.  Lois continued to operated the farm with her sons until moving from the farm into Waitsburg.  Lois died in 1930.  She lived to see the land harvested by cradle and flail, reaper, binder, a header and thrasher and finally the combine harvester.  

#16 Air

#16. Air—Montana

Big Sky Country!  Montana!  Lots of air!

We all know how important AIR is to our life.  In Eastern Montana, we can see the air coming; meaning that we can see the horizon and immediately know what type of AIR is coming. Will it be a snow storm?  Will it be hail?  Will it be windy?  Will it rain?  Will it be hot and dry?  We learn by looking at clouds and wind direction. 

Thunder clouds are forming.

Looking for rain streaks or Hail streaks in the clouds

Heavy rain and hail headed our way!

By looking at the air, we anticipate what will happen.  Pioneers and our ancestors learned the important knowledge of what the air was going to do, long before we had a weather service giving us daily, hourly and radar reports.  Oh there were errors, many which cost lives; but respect for the air only multiplied.  

Red skies in morning-Sailors warning

Red skies at night-Sailors delight

Morning at the farm!

It is vital in our life and livelihood to know what the air is going to do.  Our daily life depends on what the air will do.  If it rains; we cancel brandings and seeding.  If it snows perhaps we are snowed in for days at time.  If cold weather comes, that means extra feed for the cows and if it is to be a prolonged snowy and windy storm, maybe feed cows enough to last several days.  If it is going to rain, hurry and plant crops.  If the air is coming from the east, we now that a storm will soon be here.

A very frosty cold morning at the farm!

Cows get more feed to help stay warm.

The color of the streaks in the cloud might indicate hail, rain or wind.  If hail, the rush to cover plants, put vehicles in sheds and then pray that the crops are not ruined.

Rain or hail streaks in clouds

Driving into a storm

Before the hail storm

After the hail storm and realizing the impact to the farm's crop.

Children raised on a farm or a ranch, know that when the weather report comes on the TV or the radio; they are to remain silent.  

#15 Fire--Old Farm Buildings-burning history

15-2020 Fire--Old Farm Buildings-52 Ancestors in a Year

Farmers often have old buildings on their property that are no longer used.  Often it is a granary or a chicken coop, a barn or even a house that sits in the way & collects weeds.  These old buildings are often used for storage of farm equipment but often their usefulness is lost due to the deteriorating condition of the buildings.  It is often too expensive to repair or fix up the buildings.  

In 1973, my husband’s family burnt the original buildings were my husband first lived.  They moved to his house about 1947.  This house was on the farm property that they rented, their first farm.

The First House

It was a 3 room house; living room, kitchen/dining room and bedroom.  The kitchen had a pitcher pump for water and finally water was piped into the house but no drain so his mother still had to empty buckets under the sinks. There was no bathroom, but there was an outhouse. The house was heated by central heat; an oil heater in the living room. And baths were taken in front of the heater, in a galvanized tub.

The granary, which had been a house at one time, had a room in front for storage while the back was the granary.

The granary

There was a barn, where milk cows were kept. The family also raised chickens and pigs. Cream was sold for money to buy groceries.

The barn is the middle building.

Leroy’s parents moved from this house about 1957.  The house was then used for migrant help in the summer.

So in 1973, it was time to remove the buildings.  The local fire department used the buildings for training.  

The fire removing history

For some reason, I took my camera to the burn.  I guess I thought it was necessary to document the house and buildings so we would remember them.  The pictures help remember the memories and the life.  

I don't know if there any pictures of the house when it was lived in.  Maybe someday I find them.  

Little did I know that I would be the family historian and would need these pictures for a blog!

#14-2020 Water

#14-2020 Water

In the arid west, water is vital for life.  Agriculture depends on water for livestock or growing crops.  A lot of the land does not have access to water and thus raises “dryland” crops, like wheat, durum or peas; the river bottoms depend on the irrigation water coming from the mountains.

Homesteaders knew the value of water as they built near a creek, river or spring.  The closer they were to the water, it was easier for the wife to pack buckets of water.  Having water piped into a house from a spring or well was a luxury!    

To attract homesteaders to the west, the Bureau of Reclamation began to create irrigation projects.  Congress in April of 1904 authorized the beginning of surveys of land along the Yellowstone and Big Horn Rivers.  The Huntley Project Irrigation District was authorized In April of 1905, by Secretary of the Interior, E. A. Hitchcock.  It became the 5th project authorized under that Act. Plans and specifications for construction of a canal and lateral system to service 35,000 acres were developed with a goal to deliver water for the 1907 season.

The Dredger used to dig the canal and laterals on the Huntley Project Irrigation District.

Lands for the Huntley Project were first opened homestead entry in 1907.  By 1910 there were 352 farm units compromised of 20,905 acres.  The farm units were to consist of 40 acres.  The Homesteaders had to repay a construction cost which could be paid back in annual installments.  It was soon discovered that 40 acres could not support a family.  Thus many farms were sold as other increased their holdings.  For many years farmers on Bureau of Reclamation projects were held to 160 acres, then 360, then 960 acres.  

Because of water, a variety of crops could be raised such as sugarbeets, corn, hay and wheat.

The creation of the canal, laterals and 40 acre fields, was well thought out and developed.  The water continues to this day (2020) to be delivered to fields via the plan developed in 1907.  The landowner continues to pay a charge for the water delivered to his property.  Since the Huntley Project system is a full service project, there are yearly costs for maintenance of the system. 

Delivery of water by laterals and ditches is very labor intensive.  During the spring, the crops are planted, cultivated and ditched.  Which means when the ground is workable, small ditches are created along each row of crops.  A ditcher is pulled behind a tractor, often the field must be ditched twice in order to make a firm ditch.  At the end, head ditches are pulled across for the delivery of the water and end ditches are pulled to drain the water.

A field that has been ditched.

And then the hard work begins as row ditches must be shoveled at the head ditch to make a good placement for the siphon tubes.  And end ditches must have cuts at various places to allow drainage.

Siphon tubes are used in each row, or every other row, placed at the head ditch.  Learning to fill a tube and siphon the water is a skill learned by all farm children.  There are various methods to fill the siphon tube; some submerge the tube and throw it over the ditch while others stand on the ditch and “pump” the tube to create a siphon.  

Since the land is very flat in many field, the drain water must be watched and water changed before drowning the end of the field.  Plants will drown with standing excess water which cuts off the oxygen to their roots.  And plants will “boil” if left standing in the water when the outside temperature gets hot.    Irrigating is a balancing act, especially when you have various field, size of fields, crops and slope to the field.  

Turning drylands, which have limited crops available to raise, into irrigated land increased the variety of crops available for the homesteader to grow. Not only was the homesteader able to provide for his family, he was able to produce crops for sale, thus increasing his income potential.  Thus irrigated land became more valuable than dry land.  

#13-2020. Nearly Forgotten. Living at the "Home for the Friendless"

#13-2020.  Nearly Forgotten. 52 Ancestors in a year

Mary Catherine Shaffner

Mary Catherine Shaffner also known as Catherine, was the daughter of Gabriel Shaffner and Margaret Maria Fetter.  She was born  the 20th of August 1857 in Manheim, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.  She was the youngest child in the family of 4. Her older brother, John Martin Shaffner, was my Grandfather’s (John F. Shaffner)  father.  Thus Mary Catherine would have been my grandfather’s aunt.

Mary Catherine never married.  She lived with her parents living for many years at 401 Herr St. in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.  Gabriel was a hatmaker, a cabinet maker and even owned a grocery business. Catherine’s occupation is listed in the Harrisburg City Directory of 1887-1890 as a bleacher.  She and her father’s business, Harrisburg Bleachery, operated at 401 Herr St.  It is said that she took over her father’s hat making business when he died in 1891.

What is a bleacher?  At dictionary.com a bleacher is a person or thing that bleaches.  I suspect Catherine took in laundry to bleach.

In the 1900 census, Mary and her mother were living at 401 Boas Street.  

But I can not find Mary in the 1920 census.

In the 1930 census, Mary is living at “The Home of the Friendless” on 5th and Muench St. in Harrisburg.  There is no mention of when she entered the home.  She was 72 years old at the time the census was taken.

In the 1940 census, Catherine is living at The Home of the Friendless.  She is 83 years old.  And the census notes that she was living there in 1935.

(All census searches were done at Ancestry.com and Familysearch.org)

"Home of the Friendless". 2005

It is now the "Home Center"

Home of the Friendless admitted both childen (almost exclusively young girls) and elderly woman for the first 40 years.  By 1920 the Home was exclusively an old age home.  The Home is at Fifth and Muench in Harrisburg.  It was founded in 1872 by 18 women to provide a place for widows & orphans struggling to survive after the Civil War.  

Here is a link to the history of "The Home for the Friendless":

https://www.pennlive.com/business-news/2017/05/homeland.html


But what a sad name for a facility.  It is heart breaking to think that anyone needed that facility, especially a relative.  Catherine had no immediate family left, although she had nieces and nephews.  But who could have cared for her?

Dean Shaffner, son of my grandfather, John F. Shaffner, wrote on September 13, 1986 about a visit to Mary Shaffner.  Dean writes:  John F. Shaffner, Della (his parents) and Dean visited her (Mary Shaffner) in 1938.  She was in a rest home.  We stayed there for a night or two.  She gave me a gold wedding band.  It had belonged to her mother.  I was about 14 at that time.  I lost it at the homestead and always thought it fell through a crack in the floor of the bunk house.  Often wanted to look for it with a Geiger counter.  At that time I met Marybell Bixler.  She was a young woman then.  (Marybell was her Great-Niece)

Obituary from "The Patriot", Harrisburg, PA, Tuesday, December 3, 1940 states that Miss Mary C. Shaffner,  1901 North Fifth Street, daughter of the later Gabriel and Mary Shaffner, Harrisburg, died yesterday at her home.  She was 82 [83] years old.  Miss Shaffner was the last surviving charter member of Otterbein United Brethren Church.  Several nieces and a nephew survive.  Funeral service will be held at 2 PM Thursday at the funeral parlors of Hawkins, Inc., 1007 North Second Street.  The Rev. Charles R. Beittel of Otterbein Church, will officiate and burial will be in East Harrisburg Cemetery.  Friends may call between 7 and 9 PM tomorrow at the funeral parlors.

Information from the East Harrisburg Cemetery Company on February 25, 1986 lists Miss Mary C.  Shaffner, age 83,  is buried at the East Harrisburg Cemetery in Section 2, Lot 117

Catherine was nearly forgotten. 

I visited the Cemetery in 2005 and located her grave.  She was buried near her father and mother. My grandfather had many photos in his collection of family members, but there are none of Mary Catherine.  

We will not forget about our ancestors.

#12-2020. Popular Labor Day weekend in Dillon-1979

#12-2020 Popular.  1979 Labor Day weekend in Dillon, Montana!  A popular weekend!

In September 1979 I was in Dillon, Montana for the annual Labor Day weekend festivities.  It was and is a very popular weekend in southwestern Montana.  It is the County Fair and Rodeo weekend.  It is the weekend that many return to their “roots”, hold family reunions and celebrate the end of summer.  

Dillon, Montana is in Beaverhead County, the largest county in Montana.  There were and still are more cows than people.  My father was the veterinarian and had a veterinary practice in the county and parts of other counties.  His speciality was large animals, and cows were a big part of his practice.  He traveled to many ranches through the year, often eating in homes or cookhouses at the ranches because of the distance from Dillon.  Sometimes he was gone for a couple of days during calving time or fall rush of working cattle.  For many years the roads were not even paved so ranchers were very generous to provide him a hot meal.  

And so began the tradition of my Mom (Helen) & dad (Don) hosting a “feed” at their house in Dillon after the parade on Labor Day.  This was their way of thanking clients and friends for feeding Don!  It was common knowledge that Helen would have food available.  And of course, my sister & I grew up with many of the ranch kids, so our house was often the common meeting place for many.  She feed lots of people throughout the Labor Day weekend!

Since it was a popular weekend, my grandfather volunteered to babysit my son for an evening.  This would be his first time at Dillon Labor Day weekend!  Of course I  joined my friends and family in the local celebrations downtown.  The celebrations occurred in the bars up and down Main Street.  Meeting friends & relatives you haven’t seen in years, is always fun and requires a “cheers” or more than one!

On Monday of Labor Day weekend is the Parade.  It is the last day of the festivities with a rodeo in the afternoon.  It is a very popular day.  But since I had celebrated too much, I thought attending the parade was not a wise decision and it would be best to stay at my parent’s house & stir the goulash and help get things ready. Mom took Greg, my son.   It was normal to have 50 people descend on the house after the parade, quickly eat and rush to the rodeo which started about 2 hours after the parade ended.

This is my mother's recipe for goulash. 

She gave me this recipe when I married.

She made more than 1 batch for a crowd.

Since I didn’t feel 100%, I laid down to rest.  Yep, fell asleep.  Suddenly my mother was at the bedroom door, holding my son who had attended his 1st parade, crying loudly.  I woke up immediately!  My first thought was I had burned the goulash!  And believe me, mother’s goulash was good, expected at the lunch and heaven help me if I had burned it!  Through tears she told me about the jets flying over of the parade and that one had hit the grain elevator where the parade passed by.  In disbelief of the events unfolding, and that my immediate family was safe, I rushed to the hospital.  The human hospital.  Dad was on the board of trustees for the hospital & had already left for the hospital to provide help.  He even stopped at his veterinary hospital to get x-ray film.  I was a medical lab technician and I had worked with the medical technologist there.  Anticipating injuries and fatalities, I rushed to help. The lab welcomed me with open arms.  We prepared for a major disaster as it was common to have thousands of people in town for the weekend and at the parade.  People, who had ever been employed at the hospital rushed to help.  I said, I can draw blood on patients until my best friend is brought in.  Knowing she was at the head of the parade on a horse and the jet had gone down near the front of the parade, I was worried sick.  And then we waited.

Suddenly Dad came into the lab and said he was going home to eat.  What???  Dad leaving; highly unusual.  He told us there was limited injuries; maybe 2 or 3 with burns.  Imagine our surprise!  But a welcome surprise.  There were many things that happened that day, many positive things displaying how a small community comes together & works together in a crisis.  Some things were truly unbelievable.  

My husband who was at home in Huntley, was on a tractor piling corn silage during harvest, and heard the first news of the crash on his radio.  He knew my family always stood by the depot for the parade.  He rushed to the phone to call my parents house.  He was quite glad to hear good news that we all OK!

My family is standing in the lower right of the left hand picture.  

So a popular weekend turned into a popular memory; one I will never forget!  Nor will the town of Dillon or anyone who was there!  And I think of it every time I make goulash!