• General Notes

  Census: 1865 In covered wagon from PA at age 6 mo.
  Note:
  
  From a letter in her own hand:
  My first trip in a covered wagon was the year I was born, Mar.3, 1865 the first of May in the same year. My parents with four small children started for Iowa in a covered wagon.
  Along with them was my Aunt Mary Brown (my father's sister) and her husband and six children. Some of the older children were grown. Their youngest child Lizzy was a couple of years older than I. They also had a spring wagon for their children to ride in. My mother told us on the trip she would take me and sleep in what was called Taverns along the way, while my father and other 3 children would sleep in the wagon. If there were no tavern when we stopped for the night we all slept in the wagon. I don't remember whether they had any cows along in the caravan or not.
  Movers going a long way usually had a cow along for their milk. We crossed the Mississippi River on the Ferry Boat. I dont remember just where they crossed. My uncle William Cart and his family had moved to Iowa a few years before and settled on a Farm near Wheeling, Iowa. That was about 5 mi N. West of Pleasantville, Iowa. So the Folks went there and stayed until they could locate farms to go on. There had been lots of rain that spring and the rivers were out of their banks. So the Folks had a hard time getting around to look for land. They finally located land west of Knoxville - a few miles. They later sold that farm and bought 160 acres of unimproved land where they built a House - and where I grew up. I attended the Lincoln School and from where I was married.
  My second trip in a covered wagon was after our four children were born. My husband - your Grandfather (George) Walker had two brothers living in Creston Iowa- so he decided to make them a visit. The only way we had of going was the wagon. Some one in the neighborhood had a cover and bows for the wagon so we borrowwed and them and started for Creston Iowa. I dont just remember where we stayed the first night or whether we were on the road more than one night. But is was over in your section of the country we stopped along the highway and camped for the night all sleeping in the wagon. Cooked our breakfast over a fire by the side of the road.
  Coming home we stayed all night near Prole, I think was the name of the place - Dessie and I slept in a Farm House while Geo and the boys slept in the wagon. I dont remember how long we were in Creston - I remember Net and I going to the Blue Grass Palace on afternoon, and Geo kept the children. Jess Walker took my boys uptown while we were away and he came back home and left my boys up town. Of course my boys had no idea how to get back. So Geo went up town in a hurry and found them crying..
  John and Carl Walker, Geo's brothers, were both Railroad men. John was a conductor on the Pasinger and Carl was a break man. I remember Carl lost a finger while breaking.
  My father was born in Green Briar County West Virginia of Scoth Irish parents.
  My mother was born in West Morlan Co Pennsylvania of Pennsylvania Dutch parents.... My mother first went from Pennsylvania to Ohio ... and later from Ohio to Indiana where she married my father. He going direct from (West) Virginia to Indiana.
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  Source:  I found this letter at:  Descendents of Thomas Leachman
  http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=leachmandr&id=I1680
  
  I would like to thank David Rae Leachman for sharing this information with us.
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  Children:
  
  Simon Leroy Walker b: 25 APR 1887 in Swan, IA
  Benjamin (Ben) Harrison Walker b: 1 JUL 1888 in Swan, IA
  Harley Walker b: 1 DEC 1889 in Swan, IA
  Dessie Amber Walker b: 5 SEP 1891 in Swan, IA
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Details of Ella Louella 's family with George Irwin  WALKER