The blog posts below are taken from my grandmother's diaries. Althea Green Smith Crook was lovingly referred to as Nanny to her immediate family ~ thus her diaries are called Nanny's Diaries.

Nanny wrote in her diaries when she remembered to - mostly in the evening. There will be some years in which she didn't keep diaries and there will also be some days/weeks in her yearly diaries in which she skipped or forgot to write in them. For the most part, these are her words - written as she wrote them. There will be typos, forgotten punctuation, and other grammatical errors - but I am rewriting these as my Nanny originally wrote them.

As with all old handwriting, there are some entries that I can't quite make out - and these entries will be followed with a (?) to signify that this may or may not be correct or I can't figure out what she is trying to write.

Thank you Nanny for leaving us 50 years worth of memories! We miss you!

Wednesday, November 23, 2016

August 23 - 26, 1961



Wednesday, August 23, 1961

Fair in a.m. Clouded up during day. Billie and I picked shell beans, squash, tomatoes, cukes and corn and Swiss chard. We canned corn. Betty got a letter from Mike today, are going to make plans to get married. Mama over to Bob’s for supper. They had Mary Lorraine Wolff baptized. I did big ironing tonight. Bill and I here alone for supper. How strange. He and I down to Jean’s and over to get Uncle Lewis. I wrote to Susan.



Thursday, August 24, 1961

A cloudy day. It began to rain tonight, had a good rain. We picked corn, tomatoes and cukes. Mama helped to can Uncle Lewis’ corn and get my shell beans ready to freeze. Betty didn’t come home till late. Kay and her mother here in evening. Kay rode on Phantom. Blanche and Joy and Debbie here in evening also.



Friday, August 25, 1961

Foggy early this a.m., cleared. I shelled corn and canned and froze it. Got a call from hospital, Aunt Ava can come home. I cleaned up my house and then hustled over to Aunt Ava’s and cleaned their place with Fern and Betty also. Came home, got ready to go to town.



Saturday, August 26, 1961 Aunt Ava Home

Nice in a.m., showers in p.m. I cooked in a.m. In p.m. Bill and I went to Portland and got Aunt Ava. Rained HARD all the way down and back. I came home, got supper, cleaned Billie’s room and moved him in. I finished getting my beans in the deep freeze.


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