Colville, Washington
Aug 30, 1971
Dear Kathy:
What a pleasant surprise you gave me. I really enjoyed getting your letter. I think of your folks often but I had
forgotten your folks address and never would think to get it when I was at S.
Idaho, which isn’t very often anymore.
Kathy, I think I was down there when you was a tiny baby. I took your Grandpa and Grandma Green with
me, we spend several days with your family and also your mother’s folks. I really was a nice trip. I think it was in 1950. Ask your mom and Daddy, I could be mistaken.
I guess I went through Bliss and Hagerman when your folks
were having your reunion I didn’t know it at the time I sent your Grandpa Green
a Birthday card and told him I was going to be in Hagerman the 24th
of July I thought some of the folks might be down there. But it’s reasonable after I thought about it
as there’s none of the family living there anymore.
My son, Bob and his wife “Lois” come to visit us in July
they live in Sparks, Nevada (Really a
suburb of Reno) I went back with them, we stopped over night in Joseph Ore with
my ? “Mattie Gibbons” and Bob’s oldest boy was getting married in Boise. He’ll be 21 in Sept and of course we went to
the wedding 23rd of July.
They took off right after the wedding, we met up with them again in
Bliss the next morning.
Lois’s family was having a reunion in Jarbridge, Nevada, her grandparents lived there many
years ago. So we stopped in Hagerman
long enough to see the parade and a few of the oldtimers the 24th.
We get into Jarbridge that evening. We
camped and picnicked for 3 or 4 days on the Jarbridge River no motels just
campers and tents wherever they could find a place to park, or roll out their
sleeping bags and the fishing was great.
We had two big fish fries cooked out on the open fire. It was really wonderful I love the wide open
spaces. It was quite chilly there
evenings and mornings we had some dune buggies and four wheel drive jeeps and
drove to the top of the summit which was near 9000 ft and snow drifts about 4
ft deep, the canyon was quite narrow you almost had to lie on your back to see
the sun. Jarbridge is just a ghost town
now. I understand there was about 16
million dollars worth of gold taken out of there from 1900 to 1912. Well we left those and drove back to Twin
Falls and visited some more of Lois’s relatives who lives there and belong to
the LDS Church. Well we left there (Bob
he’s a camper) at 12 o’clock at night Allen (Bob’s youngest boy) and I went to
did Bob and Lois Drove all night and we got inot Sparks about 10 o’clock. I
layed over there and visited 1 day and then they shipped me by plane back to
Spokane Washington. I really enjoyed
that too. Then was one reason Mae didn’t
go, she says she will not ride on a place and she don’t like picnicking she
wasn’t feeling too good either. She’d
just got back from an Easter Star Convention at Tacoma, Washington.
Well Kathy, I hope I haven’t bored you with my trip I know
your Daddy would have enjoyed being with me and I would have enjoyed having him
along too.
So I’ll proceed to give you some of Dad’s Life History. I
hope I can help you.
My Dad really had a hard life, his mother passed away when
he was 8 years old. He was born in Illnois July 29, 1863. A brother Dow, was born Dec. 24, 1865. HE had a brother and sister born in 1868 and
1871, but died in infancy. Their names
were Henery E Crist and Laura B Crist.
His father’s name was Theodore and was born in Ohio. His mother’s maiden name was Rachel Harbaugh,
born in Illinois 1837 and died in Iowa Aug 2, 1871 after their mother’s death
the boys went to live with their Grandmother Harbaugh and Uncle Henry in Iowa
in 1877 their Grandmother pass away that same year. In 1878, he moved with his Uncle Henry
Harbaugh to Kansas. His brother Dow went
to Missouri to live with an Aunt Mattie
Kittle, their mother’s sister.
I would like to say or add a few lines in regards to my
Grandfather Crist at this time. I
remember Dad mentioning his father when I wasn’t very old. It seems after their grandmother died their
father left that part of the country and wanted to take the boys with him, but
they preferred to stay with their mother’s folks. And that was the last time they ever saw or
heard anything of him.
I have a second Cousin (Etta Rymose) that lives in Boise,
her father and Dad’s mother were brother and sister but she was too young to
remember anything about him. He was a young man and could have married again
and raised another family. So Kathy if you go back far enough you might find
yourself a lot more relatives. This
happened in 1877, the year his grandmother died in Roswill Warionls Iowa.
In 1878 Dad took off on his own he was 15 years old, he
worked for a man by the name of Davis for $7.00 a month. In 1879 he moved with
his uncle Henery Harbough to Kansas. In
82 he left for Colorado and got a job with Killpatric Construction outfit and
drove an ox team on the OSL RR and work so far as American Falls, Idaho. From
there he moved to Marisvale, Utah in July and drove a freight team until Feb
85, he went from there to a mining camp, he worked there until Feb 84. In Feb 22, 75 went to work for Georg Morrison
worked there until March 22 and got married March 22, 1885 wife’s maiden name
Eliza Ann Trescott. She was born in Utah Feb 19, 1864 and was 21 years of age.
Their first child was born at Oak Creek Utah, 1/12-86 In March 1887 he started to Idaho. 1888
arrived at Camas Prairie April 2. There
was 18 inches of snow, he came back to Clover Creek and went to work for Bray,
June 1st. On the 29th
of June, their 2nd child was born Laura Geneva. Moved to Dry Creek Canyon Sep 4, 1888. March 10 1889 his brother Dow came from Mo.
11th he went to Hagerman and went to work for John Carron. On Oct 8, 1889 he filed on his homestead (or
preemption it was called those days) At
“Salmon Falls” there was no Hagerman at that time. Hagerman was named after a man by the name of
Stanley Hagerman. He was a druggist and a quack Dr. Came there some time in the
90’s.
The 26th day of May 1890, Dad moved his family to
his new home and their 3rd child was born that same day Elisabeth
May she died at the age of 8. The
remainder of his family was born in this house, there was 9 children in our
family 6 boys ands 3 girls.
No. 4 Lee Crist Born Feb 19, 1892 pass away Oct 8, 1892
5- August Leroy born Aug 2, 1893
6 -Anna Ellen born June 26, 1895 passed away March 10, 1969
7- Welsey Charles born May 22, 1897 passed away Aug 11, 1899
8-Allen Theodore born April 15, 1901. Passed away
Feb 18, 1965
9- Darwin Kai born June 22, 1903, passed away Jan 31, 1904
10- Laura Geneva born June 29, 1888 passed away Nov 2, 1918
11-Edmond Dow born Jan 12, 1886 passed away Jan 1, 1919. He
is buried at Salmon City Idaho.
The rest of this family is buried in the IOOF Cemetery in
Hagerman, Idaho. I guess that leaves me
at the last (He also has a brother Dow,
buried there too.) survivor. They say an old soldier never dies he just fades
away.
My mother lost her
eyesight when Lee was born Dad even took her to Salt Lake to some of the best
Drs.
Dad’s original farm consisted of 320 acres but at the time
he sold it he had 170 acres. The City
park was about the center of the place which was a lake when us kids learn to
swim, row a boat and skate in the winter time.
In fact people came from miles around in the winter time to skate there.
His main crop was hay, he has some pasture and a few acres of orchard. He sold
his hay to stockmen and they would bring their stock in there and feed it out
in the winter. It was mostly sheep as
they liked that good spring water. In
the fall of 1905 he baled and delivered 100 tons of hay for the Twin Falls
irrigation project before there was any town there and by hose and wagon, there
was no turcks those days.
He also had a band of sheep about 20 head of horses and a
small head of fufcattle and milked a few sows.
His brother Dow lived with us part of the time and then he’d
get a job and work away from homefor awhile in which I think shortened his life
as he worked underground a ton and get a terrible cough that he never {smudged}
to help him.
In 18 {smudged} To the Hospital in Salt Lake but only lived a
short time he died a very young man (39)
He had never married.
Our buildings were built with logs which was hauled from the
mountains the other side of Camas Prairie. Dad would take a load of fruit and
vegetables to different towns and even to the minds about Ketchum (or what is
Sun Valley now) He would always bring back logs or lumber from the mills. That’s the way he got his building material.
In 1909 he sold the ranch to the Orchard Investment Co. Bought the Gustin property from A Montrose.
Then ranch was cut up in town lots which is the town of Hagerman. He bought
some lots and built a livery stable but we lived in the Gustin building. {smudged} limits. In July and Aug of 1910 we went to
Yellowstone Park in a covered wagon was six wks on the road On Nov 4, 1910 our house burned. He bought
another house near the Livery Stable.
On March 19, 1911, he bought back the ranch on Dry Creek
where he had built a cabin and lived there the summer of 1889. July 6, 1912 he sold the livery stable to
John Jenson.
About 1930, he moved back to Hagerman on the Gustin place
where the house burned. He turned the ranch over to Allen soon after moving
back to Hagerman and developed diabetes and gangrene in his toe and want up his
leg, his leg was amputated about the knee, but it wouldn’t heal.
He passed away at the Gooding Hospital Dec 30, 1934 was
buried in the IOOF Cemetery. Mother passed away Dec 29, 1935. Also buried in
the IOOF Cemetery.
We sold the property to William Thompson from Clover
Creek.
Well, Kathy I’ve took most of this from Dad’s diary (as I
call it my ancient history). I hope this
is satisfactory. If you think of anything I might add let me know and I’ll be
glad to look it up.
Give my love to All,
Your Uncle, August L Crist.
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