Last year’s declutter project was haphazard at best. I didn’t count how many things I tossed, gave away, recycled or donated, but I know it was a lot. If you count everything that I wanted to take from my mom’s house that was sold, given away, recycled or donated — that’s even more.
This year I hope to be more organized and keep track of what leaves the house. ((I am also trying to not buy things that I don’t plan on eating or using. I admit to having a small addiction to the website Woot.com and have bought items that seemed to be exactly what I needed, but were exactly what I didn’t need.)) Thanks to Kate/Indigo Bunting, I now have a chart on my refrigerator that will track how many things leave the house in 2018. The goal is 2018. Because I am still going through my mom’s stuff, I am pretty sure I can meet that goal.
My rules are simple:
Nearly anything other than food or meaningless scraps of paper counts. Letters, photographs, old Christmas cards in addition to more substantial items such as furniture, clothes and other objects count.
A faux alligator skin briefcase sat unopened in Mom’s attic for several years. I brought the briefcase home after one trip to Elgin. Its contents were a jumble of receipts for a Harriet G. Switzer of 270 Watch St. Elgin, Illinois; a newspaper clipping about a meeting featuring Seaborn Wright ((which has been published in a book called Atlanta Beer: A Heady History of Brewing In the Hub of the South)), a well-preserved Switzer family tree ; and tatting thread, needles and some unfinished bits of lace. I’ve carefully untangled the thread, stored it and the needles with my grandmother’s tatting supplies, I blogged about the newspaper clipping and now I want to discover who Harriet was.
According to Ancestry dot com, Harriet was born Harriet G. Van Volkenburg to Nancy Plummer and John Van Velkenburg in Hampshire, Illinois, September 1871. She married Howard Switzer on January 1, 1889. By the turn of the century Harriet and Howard, still living in Hampshire, Illinois, had two sons, Albert (9) and Elmer (1). Howard made a living at farming. Tragically, Howard died in 1904 at the age of 48.
The 1910 census lists Harriet as living with her 19 and 11 year old sons at 366 Yarwood Street in Elgin, Illinois. She is listed as being employed by the nearby Elgin Watch Factory as a polisher. Albert is listed as being a carpenter. Another tragedy befell the family when, in 1918, Albert, by then a farmer, died in Hampshire.
In 1920 Harriet and her son, Elmer were living at 332 St. Charles Street. Harriet still worked for the Watch Factory, but was now a “piece worker.” Elmer worked as a truck driver for a thread factory ((which was likely Collingbourne Mills, the same factory my Grandpa Green sold thread for and where Hyman Herron worked in the shipping department.)). In August of 1920 Elmer married Emma Sommerfeldt.
By July of 1921 Harriet had moved again, this time to 270 Watch Street. According to the 1930 census she owned this home. Harriet began furnishing her home with flooring, rugs and furniture from the Wait and Ross Furniture Company and A. Leith & Company ((I cannot find any mention of this company on the Internet)).
It looks like Harriet paid $18.75 for linoleum to be installed at her new houseHarriet paid $52.00 for a rug and $61.00 for something else — I cannot make out the handwriting.
Harriet not only furnished her home, but she hired O (?). W. Bayliss (Bayless?) to do some work around her house on 3 separate occasions beginning July 1, 1921.
She bought something from H. B. Cornwall in November 1921 for $40.
In March of 1923 she bought insurance from Ellis and Western for $12.
In March of 1924 she bought 3 years worth of tornado insurance worth $1250 from Edward F. Prideaux for $5.00.
In 1930, Harriet, now 59 years old worked in the spring department of the Watch Factory. Her home was worth $5000 according to the census.
Harriet continued to live on Watch Street until her death in 1943. She is buried in a small cemetery outside Hampshire called “Old Starks Cemetery.”
It’s been fun spending a morning and part of an afternoon learning about Harriet’s life. I’m glad she spent her last 20 or so years in her own house.
Here’s a list from 1973. My mom would have been 33. I especially like my dad’s addition near the bottom. And the back is priceless ((to save space I only scanned the text and drawing)). I think Mom was simply creative and she really just wanted to draw. Draw and make lists — even for other people. I was not given a list, I guess. I wonder what my jobs were.
Clutch Cargo Lips 