Erma West's Journal - Post 7 - Childhood

I don’t remember anything about my real father, my mother was quite and never spoke about him. She seemed quite bitter after divorcing him.

My mother was very particular, a neat housekeeper. Every week the windows, woodwork, chairs had to be washed, the floors had to be scrubbed. She would do all the baking for Sunday and us kids did the cleaning. I can’t ever remember my mother spanking me –she scolded me if I was naughty.

I was born May 3, 1899, it was a Wednesday, in Junction City, Oregon. I was named Herminia Pohl. I always hated the name, when I was older I shortened it to Erma.

My mother was Catholic and 2 of my brothers and 2 sisters were baptized but my brother Frank and I were not baptized. So when I got older, they used to hold church in the school house, I would go there. It was Methodist.

About 1919 my husband, the children and I were baptized in the Methodist Church in Woonsocket, So Dakota. We had a nice minister Rev Shear.

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(Date: Feb 9, 1976, Page 11)
Some what a repeat of previous history. I will try to write a few things about my life, as I can remember it.

I was born in Junction City Oregon, May 3 1899. Christined by my mother Hermina Pohl. Living with my mother, father and 2 half sisters Mary and Agnes Hlavka, 1 half brother Robert Jelensky, and a full brother Frank Pohl.

While at that time I do not remember too much except a few incidents, like having a little red rocker. When I was rocking one day I fell forward one day and burned the palms of both hands. Also my brother and I and some playmates use to play that we were making medicine – by putting water and milk in bottles and shaking it.

When I was 2 yrs old my mother and father separated. Mother took us children and went back to So Dakota to live with my grandparents Bart and Theresa Ruml, where she lived before going to Oregon. We lived with them about 3 yrs.

My grandmother raised red turkeys, seems when I went out to play the old gobbler would chase me. I would run and climb in the wagon and scream to be rescued. My grandmother passed away Oct 16, 1904. She was 68 yrs and 1 day.

After that my mother with the help of relatives and neighbors, built a house, barn and granery on some land that she owned, left to her by her first husband Hlavka, about 5 miles from where my grandparents lived. Not too long after my sister Agnes (16 yrs) married Henry Newman. They had 3 boys Raymond, Harry and Edward. I often spent a few weeks with them, to help my sister with them, when they were babies, which I loved to do. I was not too much older than they were. They seem more like brothers instead of nephews. I started school one mile from home with my brother Frank. We lived on a farm enjoying it and were happy. I developed inflammatory rheumatism, so they called it then, when I was about 6 yrs old. I was bedfast for weeks. (Page 12) I couldn’t even walk. My mother made a bed on 4 chairs in the dining room, and would carry me out there day time and back to bed at night.