◦If you are a descendant of this person, please contact me, Marcia Shears.
Excerpts from daughter, Ethel (Hand) Armstrong's Story "A Family Named Hand" (She was his daughter.)
... "There really was a family named Hand. A father, John, and a mother, Frances, and the nine children born to them."...
... "My parents were very hard working people. My father was a very clever man. He could learn and apply himself to anything that he wanted to. He had an ear for music and could play any instrument my ear. He had a beautiful tenor voice and sometimes sang. He was fantastic with numbers. He had never known his father and had been "farmed out" since he was two and had been on his own since he was twelve, he had very little education and he could barely read and write his name. He was stern, stubborn, superstitious, and disagreeable and had a terrible temper. He was very jealous of mother but I am sure he had no reason to be. I guess that I haven't painted a very attractive picture of him but this is a true story. He could be very nice and he was very nice looking man with his black curly hair and his blue eyes. He always wore a mustache. He was not a large man. I think that he was five feet eight inches. ...
... "Just about the turn of the century our parents left the Indiana farm where my father had been born and where their three oldest children had also been born and came to Michigan." ... "They came to a homestead in Austin Township of Mecosta County. It was the rolling sand hills south west of tiny Burden Lake." ... "The house was made of logs. The downstairs was one room and there was a room above. There was a lean-to in the back that served as a kitchen and it had a dirt floor. The front yard had a well there. I don't know if father built the house but I think that he put the well down. Everyone had a well in the front yard. ...
... "It was probably the next winter (Marcia's note: about 1906) that father went to work at a Creosote factory in Cadillac. Cadillac was about sixty miles from home so he boarded there and only came home once in a while. Uncle Bill got a job there too so they roomed together. When they came home they took the train from Cadillac to Big Rapids and either took another train to Rodney and walked from there or walked from Big Rapids. It must have been rough for mother too, with animals to take care of, the kids to get to school and wood to cut. Somehow we made it and the money father made must have come in handy.
Father had somehow gotten an advertisement from a real estate dealer in Missouri. Of course, it painted a rosy picture of life in the Ozarks. Father decided that it sounded good to him. The seasons were longer, the winters milder and it was bound to make for easier living. I am sure mother must have done her very best to talk him out of it but he had made up his mind there was no changing it. I am sure that a trip across five states in a covered wagon with five kids and expecting another could not have had much appeal for her. She surely could not have wanted to give up all that they had worked so hard for to go to some unknown place and start all over again. She would also have to leave behind her darling baby's grave." ...
... "Father began to plan, however. He made an arrangement with a neighbor to take over the homestead. He sold all the animals except the horses and everything else that he could. He bought a heavy wagon and put canvas on it. The barest of clothes and other things were packed. The day before they were to leave, mother made him take her to the little cemetery and she placed a little glass or ceramic lamb beside the stone and said her goodbyes to the tiny grave. I am sure that the grass was watered by her tears that day. Poor mother, it might be the last time she would ever visit it."
"One very chilly April morning we said goodbye to the log house that had been home to us and to our neighbors and started out for the long trip to the unknown state of Missouri." ...
..."We lived on the homestead about three years that time." (Marcia's Notes: Abt 1909-1912). "It seems longer but I guess that you live a lot in three years. My father's feet began to be itchy again and he started to talk of Kansas. Mother tried her best to talk him out of it. He had paid up the homestead at it was free and clear. They were just getting a good start. They had horses, three or four cows, pigs and chickens. The trees father had planted were starting to bear fruit. The children were getting bigger and were able to help more and everything was looking good."
"Father had mother write to the man who was the foreman at the quarry in Kansas and ask about the conditions there and if there was any jobs to be had. A letter arrived saying that the owner had lost his sight when a blast had gone off prematurely and his son was now running the quarry. He said that father could have a job anytime that he wanted one. I guess that did it."
"Early in nineteen and twelve father sold the team, the cows, the furniture, tools and everything he could. What couldn't be sold was given away. He even sold the homestead. It would never be ours again. We said goodbyes to all our friends and neighbors and left. There must have been a lot of tears because we had been happy there and it was home. I can go back to the old place but I can never go back to my childhood years there. The sand hills of Mecosta county are still there but the Hand family left them." ...
The entire story can be found at http://www.migenweb.org/mecosta/handfamily.html
DEATH: He died at his daughter, Sylvia home.
Death record recorded in Vol 7, Page 111 C.L. Ingham Co., MI
Excerpts from daughter, Ethel (Hand) Armstrong's Story "A Family Named Hand" (She was his daughter.)
... "There really was a family named Hand. A father, John, and a mother, Frances, and the nine children born to them."...
... "My parents were very hard working people. My father was a very clever man. He could learn and apply himself to anything that he wanted to. He had an ear for music and could play any instrument my ear. He had a beautiful tenor voice and sometimes sang. He was fantastic with numbers. He had never known his father and had been "farmed out" since he was two and had been on his own since he was twelve, he had very little education and he could barely read and write his name. He was stern, stubborn, superstitious, and disagreeable and had a terrible temper. He was very jealous of mother but I am sure he had no reason to be. I guess that I haven't painted a very attractive picture of him but this is a true story. He could be very nice and he was very nice looking man with his black curly hair and his blue eyes. He always wore a mustache. He was not a large man. I think that he was five feet eight inches. ...
... "Just about the turn of the century our parents left the Indiana farm where my father had been born and where their three oldest children had also been born and came to Michigan." ... "They came to a homestead in Austin Township of Mecosta County. It was the rolling sand hills south west of tiny Burden Lake." ... "The house was made of logs. The downstairs was one room and there was a room above. There was a lean-to in the back that served as a kitchen and it had a dirt floor. The front yard had a well there. I don't know if father built the house but I think that he put the well down. Everyone had a well in the front yard. ...
... "It was probably the next winter (Marcia's note: about 1906) that father went to work at a Creosote factory in Cadillac. Cadillac was about sixty miles from home so he boarded there and only came home once in a while. Uncle Bill got a job there too so they roomed together. When they came home they took the train from Cadillac to Big Rapids and either took another train to Rodney and walked from there or walked from Big Rapids. It must have been rough for mother too, with animals to take care of, the kids to get to school and wood to cut. Somehow we made it and the money father made must have come in handy.
Father had somehow gotten an advertisement from a real estate dealer in Missouri. Of course, it painted a rosy picture of life in the Ozarks. Father decided that it sounded good to him. The seasons were longer, the winters milder and it was bound to make for easier living. I am sure mother must have done her very best to talk him out of it but he had made up his mind there was no changing it. I am sure that a trip across five states in a covered wagon with five kids and expecting another could not have had much appeal for her. She surely could not have wanted to give up all that they had worked so hard for to go to some unknown place and start all over again. She would also have to leave behind her darling baby's grave." ...
... "Father began to plan, however. He made an arrangement with a neighbor to take over the homestead. He sold all the animals except the horses and everything else that he could. He bought a heavy wagon and put canvas on it. The barest of clothes and other things were packed. The day before they were to leave, mother made him take her to the little cemetery and she placed a little glass or ceramic lamb beside the stone and said her goodbyes to the tiny grave. I am sure that the grass was watered by her tears that day. Poor mother, it might be the last time she would ever visit it."
"One very chilly April morning we said goodbye to the log house that had been home to us and to our neighbors and started out for the long trip to the unknown state of Missouri." ...
..."We lived on the homestead about three years that time." (Marcia's Notes: Abt 1909-1912). "It seems longer but I guess that you live a lot in three years. My father's feet began to be itchy again and he started to talk of Kansas. Mother tried her best to talk him out of it. He had paid up the homestead at it was free and clear. They were just getting a good start. They had horses, three or four cows, pigs and chickens. The trees father had planted were starting to bear fruit. The children were getting bigger and were able to help more and everything was looking good."
"Father had mother write to the man who was the foreman at the quarry in Kansas and ask about the conditions there and if there was any jobs to be had. A letter arrived saying that the owner had lost his sight when a blast had gone off prematurely and his son was now running the quarry. He said that father could have a job anytime that he wanted one. I guess that did it."
"Early in nineteen and twelve father sold the team, the cows, the furniture, tools and everything he could. What couldn't be sold was given away. He even sold the homestead. It would never be ours again. We said goodbyes to all our friends and neighbors and left. There must have been a lot of tears because we had been happy there and it was home. I can go back to the old place but I can never go back to my childhood years there. The sand hills of Mecosta county are still there but the Hand family left them." ...
The entire story can be found at http://www.migenweb.org/mecosta/handfamily.html
DEATH: He died at his daughter, Sylvia home.
Death record recorded in Vol 7, Page 111 C.L. Ingham Co., MI
◦If you are a descendant of this person, please contact me, Marcia Shears.
Excerpts from daughter, Ethel (Hand) Armstrong's Story "A Family Named Hand" (She was his daughter.)
... "There really was a family named Hand. A father, John, and a mother, Frances, and the nine children born to them."...
... "My parents were very hard working people. My father was a very clever man. He could learn and apply himself to anything that he wanted to. He had an ear for music and could play any instrument my ear. He had a beautiful tenor voice and sometimes sang. He was fantastic with numbers. He had never known his father and had been "farmed out" since he was two and had been on his own since he was twelve, he had very little education and he could barely read and write his name. He was stern, stubborn, superstitious, and disagreeable and had a terrible temper. He was very jealous of mother but I am sure he had no reason to be. I guess that I haven't painted a very attractive picture of him but this is a true story. He could be very nice and he was very nice looking man with his black curly hair and his blue eyes. He always wore a mustache. He was not a large man. I think that he was five feet eight inches. ...
... "Just about the turn of the century our parents left the Indiana farm where my father had been born and where their three oldest children had also been born and came to Michigan." ... "They came to a homestead in Austin Township of Mecosta County. It was the rolling sand hills south west of tiny Burden Lake." ... "The house was made of logs. The downstairs was one room and there was a room above. There was a lean-to in the back that served as a kitchen and it had a dirt floor. The front yard had a well there. I don't know if father built the house but I think that he put the well down. Everyone had a well in the front yard. ...
... "It was probably the next winter (Marcia's note: about 1906) that father went to work at a Creosote factory in Cadillac. Cadillac was about sixty miles from home so he boarded there and only came home once in a while. Uncle Bill got a job there too so they roomed together. When they came home they took the train from Cadillac to Big Rapids and either took another train to Rodney and walked from there or walked from Big Rapids. It must have been rough for mother too, with animals to take care of, the kids to get to school and wood to cut. Somehow we made it and the money father made must have come in handy.
Father had somehow gotten an advertisement from a real estate dealer in Missouri. Of course, it painted a rosy picture of life in the Ozarks. Father decided that it sounded good to him. The seasons were longer, the winters milder and it was bound to make for easier living. I am sure mother must have done her very best to talk him out of it but he had made up his mind there was no changing it. I am sure that a trip across five states in a covered wagon with five kids and expecting another could not have had much appeal for her. She surely could not have wanted to give up all that they had worked so hard for to go to some unknown place and start all over again. She would also have to leave behind her darling baby's grave." ...
... "Father began to plan, however. He made an arrangement with a neighbor to take over the homestead. He sold all the animals except the horses and everything else that he could. He bought a heavy wagon and put canvas on it. The barest of clothes and other things were packed. The day before they were to leave, mother made him take her to the little cemetery and she placed a little glass or ceramic lamb beside the stone and said her goodbyes to the tiny grave. I am sure that the grass was watered by her tears that day. Poor mother, it might be the last time she would ever visit it."
"One very chilly April morning we said goodbye to the log house that had been home to us and to our neighbors and started out for the long trip to the unknown state of Missouri." ...
..."We lived on the homestead about three years that time." (Marcia's Notes: Abt 1909-1912). "It seems longer but I guess that you live a lot in three years. My father's feet began to be itchy again and he started to talk of Kansas. Mother tried her best to talk him out of it. He had paid up the homestead at it was free and clear. They were just getting a good start. They had horses, three or four cows, pigs and chickens. The trees father had planted were starting to bear fruit. The children were getting bigger and were able to help more and everything was looking good."
"Father had mother write to the man who was the foreman at the quarry in Kansas and ask about the conditions there and if there was any jobs to be had. A letter arrived saying that the owner had lost his sight when a blast had gone off prematurely and his son was now running the quarry. He said that father could have a job anytime that he wanted one. I guess that did it."
"Early in nineteen and twelve father sold the team, the cows, the furniture, tools and everything he could. What couldn't be sold was given away. He even sold the homestead. It would never be ours again. We said goodbyes to all our friends and neighbors and left. There must have been a lot of tears because we had been happy there and it was home. I can go back to the old place but I can never go back to my childhood years there. The sand hills of Mecosta county are still there but the Hand family left them." ...
The entire story can be found at http://www.migenweb.org/mecosta/handfamily.html
DEATH: He died at his daughter, Sylvia home.
Death record recorded in Vol 7, Page 111 C.L. Ingham Co., MI
Excerpts from daughter, Ethel (Hand) Armstrong's Story "A Family Named Hand" (She was his daughter.)
... "There really was a family named Hand. A father, John, and a mother, Frances, and the nine children born to them."...
... "My parents were very hard working people. My father was a very clever man. He could learn and apply himself to anything that he wanted to. He had an ear for music and could play any instrument my ear. He had a beautiful tenor voice and sometimes sang. He was fantastic with numbers. He had never known his father and had been "farmed out" since he was two and had been on his own since he was twelve, he had very little education and he could barely read and write his name. He was stern, stubborn, superstitious, and disagreeable and had a terrible temper. He was very jealous of mother but I am sure he had no reason to be. I guess that I haven't painted a very attractive picture of him but this is a true story. He could be very nice and he was very nice looking man with his black curly hair and his blue eyes. He always wore a mustache. He was not a large man. I think that he was five feet eight inches. ...
... "Just about the turn of the century our parents left the Indiana farm where my father had been born and where their three oldest children had also been born and came to Michigan." ... "They came to a homestead in Austin Township of Mecosta County. It was the rolling sand hills south west of tiny Burden Lake." ... "The house was made of logs. The downstairs was one room and there was a room above. There was a lean-to in the back that served as a kitchen and it had a dirt floor. The front yard had a well there. I don't know if father built the house but I think that he put the well down. Everyone had a well in the front yard. ...
... "It was probably the next winter (Marcia's note: about 1906) that father went to work at a Creosote factory in Cadillac. Cadillac was about sixty miles from home so he boarded there and only came home once in a while. Uncle Bill got a job there too so they roomed together. When they came home they took the train from Cadillac to Big Rapids and either took another train to Rodney and walked from there or walked from Big Rapids. It must have been rough for mother too, with animals to take care of, the kids to get to school and wood to cut. Somehow we made it and the money father made must have come in handy.
Father had somehow gotten an advertisement from a real estate dealer in Missouri. Of course, it painted a rosy picture of life in the Ozarks. Father decided that it sounded good to him. The seasons were longer, the winters milder and it was bound to make for easier living. I am sure mother must have done her very best to talk him out of it but he had made up his mind there was no changing it. I am sure that a trip across five states in a covered wagon with five kids and expecting another could not have had much appeal for her. She surely could not have wanted to give up all that they had worked so hard for to go to some unknown place and start all over again. She would also have to leave behind her darling baby's grave." ...
... "Father began to plan, however. He made an arrangement with a neighbor to take over the homestead. He sold all the animals except the horses and everything else that he could. He bought a heavy wagon and put canvas on it. The barest of clothes and other things were packed. The day before they were to leave, mother made him take her to the little cemetery and she placed a little glass or ceramic lamb beside the stone and said her goodbyes to the tiny grave. I am sure that the grass was watered by her tears that day. Poor mother, it might be the last time she would ever visit it."
"One very chilly April morning we said goodbye to the log house that had been home to us and to our neighbors and started out for the long trip to the unknown state of Missouri." ...
..."We lived on the homestead about three years that time." (Marcia's Notes: Abt 1909-1912). "It seems longer but I guess that you live a lot in three years. My father's feet began to be itchy again and he started to talk of Kansas. Mother tried her best to talk him out of it. He had paid up the homestead at it was free and clear. They were just getting a good start. They had horses, three or four cows, pigs and chickens. The trees father had planted were starting to bear fruit. The children were getting bigger and were able to help more and everything was looking good."
"Father had mother write to the man who was the foreman at the quarry in Kansas and ask about the conditions there and if there was any jobs to be had. A letter arrived saying that the owner had lost his sight when a blast had gone off prematurely and his son was now running the quarry. He said that father could have a job anytime that he wanted one. I guess that did it."
"Early in nineteen and twelve father sold the team, the cows, the furniture, tools and everything he could. What couldn't be sold was given away. He even sold the homestead. It would never be ours again. We said goodbyes to all our friends and neighbors and left. There must have been a lot of tears because we had been happy there and it was home. I can go back to the old place but I can never go back to my childhood years there. The sand hills of Mecosta county are still there but the Hand family left them." ...
The entire story can be found at http://www.migenweb.org/mecosta/handfamily.html
DEATH: He died at his daughter, Sylvia home.
Death record recorded in Vol 7, Page 111 C.L. Ingham Co., MI
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