Sunday, April 8, 2012

Letters from Grandpa 14 March 1916

The Brown Hotel
Daniel Morrison, Prop.
Eureka, Nevada

Miss Allene S. Kelley,
Modesto,
California

Allene Dearest:~After a long six hours ride in the dinky old narrow guage [sic] from Palisade on the main line we arrived safely, but much the worse for wear. Eureka, as it stands now--and little of it is standing,--is hardly a toombstone [sic] for what it used to be. For at least ten years during it's [sic] best days it had a population of as many thousands and was one of the liveliest camps in the state,--(that was in the "early days" from about 1880 to 1890)--but it has dwindled down to almost nothing.

It's a mystery to me how the remaining inhabitants live and it's a fact that a big percentage are wards of the county. There are five well filled cemeterys [sic] here that speak in sombre silence of the better days. Now not even the dogs come out to bark at strangers. As the old fashioned bus that meets the twice a week train carries you slowly up the hill thru' the town one can see on either side an occasional pair of sleepy eyes that seem to brighten up with excitement at your arrival and in an hour or two the entire community knows there's a stranger in town.

And we've got to stay here about two weeks!! Somehow or other I've always made money here. They seem to have plenty of tooth troubles and the money to pay for the fixing--thank God.

Well dearest it seems like a century since I got a letter from you--and it has been. Havent [sic] had one since Friday and here it is Tuesday--and the next mail won't arrive till Thursday! It takes two days for mail to go and come from the main line. In 1910 this R.R. was washed out and the mail contract was let to a stage line and they've been carrying it ever since. So at the best you won't get this before Friday dear and by that time I'll be in receipt of a whole raft of yours--I hope.

With all my love dearest I'll say good night.

Yours always,
Frank

Eureka, Nevada,
March 14th, 1916

2 comments:

  1. Are these real letters? Cause this is amazing.....that all these years later your grandpa's voice is speaking. Wow

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  2. Yes, these are real letters. From my grandfather to my grandmother in the year before they were married. It is amazing that the letters survived, and I am very grateful!

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