The house itself is quite small, these pictures (with exception of this first one) make it look larger than it is. Notice my dad is standing in front of the entryway to give you scale.
The lathe and plaster walls have been completely removed, but the floor is in surprisingly good shape. This picture was taken from just inside the entryway (entryway as pictured above faces West, while the door enters from the North) in an area which I suppose was the kitchen/dining area. The camera is facing Northeast.
This is a view to the North from what dad and I guess is the living room. This window is visible from the far left of previous picture. You can see on the left through the window is the old Boehme (pronounced bay-me) home. This is a name dad remembered as we first drove up to the creamery. That is pretty amazing since he was only six when they moved from here to Hazelton!
This picture is taken from the living room looking to the South.
This is looking out the large window in the center room toward the East. The Wyoming boarder is only about half a mile away from this home. Grandpa Gardner's home town of Afton,Wyoming is only 35 miles away.
This is a view of the house from the Southeast.
The Old Creamery
Though presently the creamery is wired for electricity, according to the neighbor across the road, Mr. Delbert Marx, this was not the case when Grandpa worked here. This means that the process of making cheese was a much more time intensive line of work than it is today. This explains why Grandpa mentions in his audio recorded history having difficulty attending his Sunday meetings as he would have liked. Mr. Marx said electricity would have been connected to the house and creamery in the mid 1940s. This being said, many of the features in the barn are different today than they would have been in 1937 when Grandpa left for Hazelton.
From the attic window on the right of the building Dad remembers watching as the Gypsies approached. This is a story that I will include in full detail in a later post.
The above picture is inside the main room of the creamery. The boards on the floor are covering a gutter that runs the full length of the room. Jack Hart is pictured crossing the gutter, Dad is on the right. Behind Dad you can see the main entry which opens to the South.
You will also notice that there is a stack of lumber in the left background of the photo. According to Mr. Marx, this building is listed as a historical building and apparently is about to be restored. I am glad we made this trip when we did!
This image is of the "cheese room" as Dad calls it. He remembers taking a bite out of several blocks of cheese. Something for which Grandpa probably wasn't very happy.
This is the room just up the stairs in the first indoor picture. I am not sure what the purpose of this upstairs room was, if any of you have any ideas I would appreciate your help!
On the next post I will put some pictures of the school and some of the surrounding areas of Geneva.
It was a very enjoyable and informative day. I felt like I connected with my Dad and my Grandpa in a way that I haven't before. It is interesting to see a piece of what life was like for them as they lived out that part of our family history! On this trip I imagined a young father who was just a year or two younger than I am now, probably only 34 years of age. He probably hadn't given much thought yet to what his posterity would be!
It is amazing to see the far-reaching effects of some of the little decisions that were made in such a humble place. It was here that Grandpa lived as he received a call to be bishop in a far away ward in a town he likely hadn't heard of before. It was here that the Spirit started preparing him for that very call in advance by prompting him to save up money and start buying cattle for a future opportunity to return to work on a farm. It was here too that Uncle Reid was born (in nearby Montpelier). Truly much has come from this humble little place!
On the next post I will put some pictures of the school and some of the surrounding areas of Geneva.
It was a very enjoyable and informative day. I felt like I connected with my Dad and my Grandpa in a way that I haven't before. It is interesting to see a piece of what life was like for them as they lived out that part of our family history! On this trip I imagined a young father who was just a year or two younger than I am now, probably only 34 years of age. He probably hadn't given much thought yet to what his posterity would be!
It is amazing to see the far-reaching effects of some of the little decisions that were made in such a humble place. It was here that Grandpa lived as he received a call to be bishop in a far away ward in a town he likely hadn't heard of before. It was here that the Spirit started preparing him for that very call in advance by prompting him to save up money and start buying cattle for a future opportunity to return to work on a farm. It was here too that Uncle Reid was born (in nearby Montpelier). Truly much has come from this humble little place!
If you would like any of these photos in their original size please let me know (steven@stevenogardner.com)
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