Archie Young was a farmer from Vermont, Illinois. The museum has a collection of diaries he kept that were donated by his family. They record the details of his work in the field, as well as events at home and in the community. These well-used books are an excellent way to delve into the nuances of life in an agricultural community.
Young was born in Mount Vernon, Indiana, on February 6, 1893, to Robert and Ollie Edwards Young. He married Josephine (Josie) McCain in 1915 in Omaha, Illinois. They had four children, with two daughters, Joelean and Violet, that lived to adulthood. Both are mentioned in Archie’s diaries.
Posted here is a selection of entries that chronicle common events like the cost of corn seed, weather conditions, and plant progress, alongside who won local political office, his wife and daughter’s excursions to town, and the building of Camp Ellis. Entries in a diary simply record a day’s events, giving them all the same significance. It is with the eyes of history that they take on a greater meaning.
Following is an excerpt from Archie Young’s Diary. The text is as it appears in the diary.
March 2, 1942: Went to Ipava. Borrowed $200.00 at Bank for 6 month to buy corn and intend to order a cook stove.
Bot 118 bushel and 30 lb corn at Ipava Elevator cost 78 cents per bu also 2 bags tankage cost $4.35 per bag. Total $101.09 trucking was $2.00
March 6, 1942: Sent for a new cook stove to Sears Robuck + Co to day. Cost $47.59 also ordered trailer hitch cost $3.29 total tax and all $51.87.
March 31, 1942: Begin sowing oats in field back of house Tuesday
April 2, 1942: Ted Hickle disc the oat ground charged $5.00
March 25, 1942: Pd Elmer Ogden $1.75 for 1 days work.
April 4, 1942: Went to Astoria+ got telephone box. Ordered 200 cabbage plants, total .69 cents.
April 5, 1942: Went to Bushnell Sun (Easter) eat dinner at Violets.
April 11, 1942: Ordered my driver’s license, total cost .87 cts. Had the car greased. Cost .17 cents. Bought 1 gallon of paint at Ipava for Kitchen cost $3.10 + tax. Took 2 plow shares to Vermont to have sharpened, cost 95 cents.
I doubt if the oats come up too much cold rain and the ground is packed hard.
April 27, 1942: Am plowing Clover sod now had a big wind storm and a nice shower late this afternoon
May 8, 1942: been cold – wet all week not much corn planted yet am not clover plowing yet.
May 21, 1942: Put the telephone line over on the Company poles from Brown Corner into Corporation line to Astoria. Today 10 ct. per pole rental per year. Made an assessment of 70 ct each shareholder to cover expense of buying Brackets + Ets. Bot 87 brackets 30 insulators and 83 cents of nails. Names of helpers. Rueben Wickert, Chas Plate, Fred Byers, Elmer Ogden, Ford Bucy, Frizzy Bricket, Dale Shuman, Alfred Shuman, and myself. Ben Salsbury helped til noon.
May 23, 1942: Planted my first corn this year, the acre near the bridge.
June 2, 1942: Went to Vermont and registered for sugar for fruit canning allowed 77 lbs.
July 5, 1942: Came one awful big rain Sunday nite. have 9 acres of heavy wheat to cut yet. Getting awful ripe.
The creek got out and took all my clover hay in the bottom about 30 loads tore out my fences. Had to hire Elmer Ogden to help me put in fences to day paid him $1.50.
August 12, 1942: Sent Telephone dues to Astoria, was $1.32. sent check.
September 7, 1942: (labor day) Rained last nite + some to day. Have a good corn crop.
October 1, 1942: Have 80 shocks of corn cut
November 18, 1942: Went to Vermont and registered for gasoline.
Lots of traffic and big business at Ipava. Now building an army camp near Ipava and lots of men working about 5000 men working camp to hold 35000 soldiers.
Friday January 8, 1943: Went to Ipava to day. And paid up all my debts. Ipava Lumber yard: $4.49, Zemples Hwd Store: $4.50, Car greasing + tire insput: $1.25, Quart of prestone: .70cts, Bill Caruthes at Vermont: $2.60, Nelsons Hwd Co. $6.75, Blacksmith at Vermont: $1.00, Bader Elevator Co Tankage: $17.00, Krikbride Gro Store: $4.50, Price oil Co at Vermont: $4.96, Bot Bond at Ipava Bank: $18.75, Ordered Car liscense. $6.75, Gave Jolean to buy stamps. $1.00, paid John Burmgardener. $8.00.
February 22, 1943: Sowed clover seed
February 26, 1943: Went to the school house and registered for ration card. Bucy went with us.
March 31,
1943:
Begin sowing oats, ground works nice. Eldy Bucy double disc the oat ground.
April 6, 1943: Joe Burkit was
reelected road commissioner.
April 9, 1943: Came a nice rain. Wheat is half dead. No good, won’t make a thing.
April 20, 1943: Took Josie + Joleen to get permcuts to Vermont.
May 3, 1943: Wheat is nearly all dead I won’t any more than get my seed back, looks bad.
Ipave State Bank is closing.
3000 soldiers in new Camp Ellis now. will hold 50,000.
May 30, 1943: decoration day + no corn planted yet ground is just getting dry heat looks like more rain tonite.
June 19, 1943: Finished sowing beans. Haven’t planted a bit of corn yet. Hope to begin planting tomorrow if it don’t rain to nite.
July 4, 1943: Went to Camp Ellis to the Open House. About 60,000 visitors there and real hot. Came awful rain Sun evening.
October 16, 1943: have 87 shocks of fodder cut now and 10 more to cut getting awful dry bid frost last nite.
April 25, 1944: went to Astoria this morning bot 100 lbs of Ohio potatoes cost $3.60 bot some stuff for the school supper to nite as this is the last day of school.
May 6, 1944: Still wet and muddy, haven’t done a bit of farming yet.
May 21, 1944: planted my first corn today, the ridge back of house. Awful hot horses can’t stand much.
Have not got the bottom plowed yet it is pretty wet, am plowing the 5 acres up along the road for beans it pull pretty hard.
Bot 100 sweet potato plants from Astoria Greenhouse. Cost 75 cents.
July 4, 1944: Finished plowing corn. Corn looks nice but needs a rain awful dry. potatoes no good too dry. oats no good. lots of straw in the wheat.
October 6, 1944: have 116 shocks of fodder cut now. Will quit.
Pd note off at bank today for $60 int 25 cts. $500.00+$200.00 +$15.12 +$6.30= $721.42.
November 16, 1944: Borrowed $200.00 at Bank today to buy corn, run 6 mon.
February 19, 1945: Went to Ipava. And I took the Banker a fat hen dressed.
March 6, 1945: big wet snow all day to day. The worst mud I ever saw. The roads are so bad you can’t get them with a tractor.