Jessie Christene Field Dibbens - Amanuensis Monday

My great-grandmother, Jessie, was born 137 years ago on January 16, 1874 in York, Carroll, Illinois. At that time Jesse James was robbing banks and trains in the next state over and child labor took a hit as 12 year-olds were taken out of the work force.

I love this picture of her, my great grandpa, Arthur Robert Jarman Dibbens and their children taking a lunch break on their farm between Kingman and Cheney, Kansas. The little boy on the left is my grandpa, Forrest. Jessie was truely a pioneer woman.

I had the opportunity to know her for a portion of my early life. She died before I was nine. What I do remember is that I called her "Grape Grandma" when I was very young. I remember finally realizing that she was "Great Grandma". For some reason it fit her and calling her that was a hard habit to break!

I have a letter that she wrote me in 1962 when I was in 2nd grade. It says:

 Good morning dear Shari Hope you are well and enjoying school a lot. Is your teacher nice and kind? Do you sing songs in the morning and write on the black board to we use to. Is there lots of visitors come to your school. One time a man lost his pig. and he came to our school. just stuck his head in the door and said, "did any of you see a runt pig? it was funny.
lots of love.greatMa D.

She wrote many letters, several of them in my collection, but this one is very special to me. Her letters were typical in many ways. They told of everyday happenings; It is sprinkling now a good rain would be welcome - I have been with Anna & Chas 3 wks will go with Fern's when they come over- oats planting is the order of the day now that is what the deer like lots of nice feeding.

Sometimes it was other news that was on her heart; One of the schoolboys drowned here. it was sad funeral. he lived with his grandparents. It pays to be ready when the call comes.
Always, there was love of family and friends, a few pictures when she was trying to describe something, and a peek into her heart with expressions of happiness, sorrow, concern or disappointment but no sign of giving up.
She spent quite a bit of her time in her garden and those of her children as she got older and started traveling back and forth between their homes. She also wrote many songs in her 90 years and loved to

sing; especially with her husband, Arthur.

I am fortunate that I knew her for a few years of my life.

Pictures: 1) Arthur Robert Jarman Dibbens, JR family about 1911

2) Letter from Great "Grape" Grandma Dibbens to me (Shari) 1962

3) "Grape Grandma" holding my sister, Kristi, while I sit close by. 1957



Simeon's Cave; Stepping Out in Faith - Past and Present Part 2

Helen and Harry Edwards with grandson, Brandon Edwards

Four days into 2005, Harry and Helen sat in their living room watching through the window as an ice storm cover the world outside their house. Harry maneuvered his wheelchair to get a closer look into the darkness while Helen stood near him. They talked about whether or not the storm would cause them any problems. Harry had been in a wheelchair for more than a year, ever since a stroke had left one side of his body paralyzed while sparing his speech and mind. Helen cared for him by herself for much of the last year. They were getting close to their sixty-fifth wedding anniversary and were thankful that God had allowed them to continue to stay in their home. Reluctant to leave the house that Harry designed and built when their family was young, they had decided to make this situation work. Anything else would signal the end of one chapter of their lives and the beginning of one they weren’t ready for.
~~~
The cave was finished in September, 1874 and, between rainstorms, Simeon and his neighbors built the Swartz family a sod house. The settlers prepared the soil, once more, for a crop of wheat. In October, the men set off to hunt buffalo down in Oklahoma, hoping to replace the food the grasshoppers had devoured. They returned four weeks later, in time to celebrate the holidays with their families, bringing buffalo meat, one man with his arm in a sling from an accidental shooting but minus two horses, poisoned by bad water.

... to be continued ...



Simeon's Cave; Stepping Out in Faith

Several years ago, I sat in the living room of my in-laws, Harry and Helen Edwards and read from an old book of family history that my sister-in-law had handed me. A portion of the book told the story of Helen’s great grandfather, Rev. Simeon Swartz. Because of my interest in genealogy, I was immediately engrossed in his story. Helen’s ancestors had their strength, courage and faith tested and proven many times.


The story that Simeon told was about a time soon after he and his wife, Sarah brought their family to Kansas, in 1874. Simeon was a minister and trusted God to guide and protect them in their homesteading venture as they were headed into an area that had a reputation for being dangerous. Many times they prayed and then relied on God; asking Him to guide their journey and give them direction in their lives. A few months after settling in Rice County, they had already experienced the ups and downs of life on the prairie. A good corn crop had disappeared in three days, eaten by a huge cloud of grasshoppers. In the weeks that followed this life-threatening and hunger-producing disaster, Simeon placed his focus on God, scripture and prayer. After an entire week of seeking God, a mysterious thought came and settled in his mind. He felt that God was telling him to dig a cave on their land. The idea wouldn’t go away but instead grew stronger. He and his family dug the ten by twenty foot cave, amid questions from neighbors and friends. “What do you expect to do with a cave?” they asked. The only reply Simeon had for them was, “I might need it sometime.” The act of obeying what they believed God had asked of them relieved the feeling of despair and renewed their faith and courage to face what they thought might be a bleak future.

The cave was finished in September, 1874 and, between rainstorms, Simeon and his neighbors built the Swartz family a sod house. The settlers prepared the soil, once more, for a crop of wheat. In October, the men set off to hunt buffalo down in Oklahoma, hoping to replace the food the grasshoppers had devoured. They returned home four weeks later, in time to celebrate the holidays with their families, bringing buffalo meat, one man with his arm in a sling from an accidental shooting but minus two horses, poisoned by bad water.

Eight days into 1875, the weather turned cold. At twenty degrees below zero, it was colder than any other time Simeon ever experienced in the many years since. Along with the frigid air came snow in blizzard amounts. Sometime, during that cold night, the raging wind carried the roof of the sod house up and away, leaving the family exposed to the blinding snow. It was their fourteen year-old son, Charles, who snapped them out of the shock and dismay of their situation by yelling for everyone to run for the cave.

For the next three weeks of that cold January in 1875, the cave was their home. They waited for the snow to clear and thanked God for His providential care. Simeon didn’t give much of a clue in his story about what those three weeks were like. We don’t get to know what they ate, how they stayed warm or how they spent their days but I can imagine that God took care of that, too.

It was nearly February, that winter of 1875, before the weather cleared enough for neighbors to help Simeon repair the roof on their soddy. They thanked God that they had the cave when it was needed and that they had listened to and obeyed God despite their doubts and the questions of their neighbors.