The Mail-Journal, Volume 26, Number 37, Milford, Kosciusko County, 28 October 1987 — Page 18

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THE MAIL-JOURNAL - Wed., October 28,1987

Round barns and chocolate milk

I By M. LYNN GRAY a youngster growing up in farming community surrounding North Webster, I became aware of certain facts at an earlv age. /White cows give white milk, brown cows give butterscotch milk, black cows give chocolate milk, and.. . round barns shelter round bales of hay and round, fat cows. The years went by and I learned the fallacy of expecting a brown cow to give butterscotch milk. If you want butterscotch milk, you better be prepared to add something to the milk. With the appearance of huge, round bales of hay marching across fields in orderly fashion, the round barn myth still lived on. You have to store round bales of hay somewhere, don’t vou? I stumbled upon an unexpected source of information concerning the old round barn located off SR 13, between North Webster and Pierceton. It seems that Virginia (Orr) Perry is the granddaughter of one of the men who helped raise the bam. Virginia also pointed me in the direction of her cousin, Mrs. Helen Oxenrider. Between the two ladies and their scrapbooks, I found some interesting facts concerning the early settlement of our area. Seven brothers came to America from Ireland in the early 1800 s. The brothers settled in Virginia and worked on a plantation that prospered in the breeding of slaves to be sold. The

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OLD ROUND BARN — This old round barn is located off SR 13, between North Webster and Pierceton. The 12-sided barn, started in 1911, was completed in 1914 at a neighborhood barn raising.

young men didn’t condone the slavery system and soon moved on. Two sons of one of these early immigrants made their way to Indiana, via Logan County, Ohio. One brother went further north, but James Harrison Orr (born in 1824, London County, Va.) Settled in the area around Pierceton. The stock of available young women in the area was scare to non-existent. After building a large, wooden, two-story house, James Harrison Orr traveled back to Ohio, where he met and ...u.. led Elizebeth MtjMißwn. 3 school ioacher Upon returning to the Pierceton area, James and Elizebeth built the large, twostory, brick Victorian-style home that can still be seen on Old Road 30, as you travel south on SR 13, toward Pierceton. Early times in the Hoosier state were not particularly

healthy times, and they didn’t have the antibiotics and vaccines that we have available today. An unknown illness took the lives of two of James’ and Elizebeth’s children in 1866. Two sons, Robert and Joseph, survived. Shortly after the dual tragedy, Elizebeth (McMillian) Orr, also passed on. After a time of mourning, James Harrison Orr met and married Eliza Sears Leedy. Again, tragedy struck in 1885, in the form of a diptheria epidemic. The sickness took the lives of three of James and Eliza’s children and left them with Robert and Josepn, irorn the first marriage, and Hiram Odell, and Grover Cleveland Orr. Virginia Perry is the daughter of Grover Cleveland Orr. Robert Orr grew to a young man and married Dora Wagner. The young couple moved into the original homestead house, built by James Harrison Orr. Helen Oxenrider is the daughter of Earl Orr, the son of Robert and Dora Orr. • At an early age, Earl Orr decided that he wanted to become a teacher. His father, Robert, and grandfather, James Harrison, put the ambitious youth through the teacher’s school in Angola by paying for books and tuition with grain, potatoes, flour and other

farm produce. Earl taught at the Adams school house (still standing) at Ridinger Lake until 1907. In 1909, Earl married Minnie Weaver. Minnie’s father owned and operated a hotel at Ridinger Lake. Earl, Minnie, daughter Helen, and two sons operated a store in Pierceton until 1925. At that time, Earl traveled to Columbia City and worked for Daniel Brothers’ Butcher Shop until 1940. Earl passed away at the age of 99 in 1984. In 1961, Helen and her husband, Bill, moved from Fort Wayne to operate an antique shop in the original wood frame Orr homestead house. Grover Cleveland Orr married Minnie Agnes Hoover of Wabash in 1907. Minnie died when Virginia (Orr) Perry was seven years old. Grover then married Blanche Brown, who recently passed on at the age of 101. Virginia Orr was born in Pierceton under unusual circumstances. Premature babies weren’t expected to live, but Virginia fooled the knowledgeable and survived. The tiny infant was placed in a shoe box, filled with soft, blanket material, and then placed in the open drawer of a bureau in her parents’ room. Through Virginia and Helen, I learned the Makemson family was one of prominence and high in demand in the early settlement of our area. The family produced builders and remodelers. Many of the existing structures in the area were moved into the vicinity or built by the Makemson family. The Makemson family oversaw the construction of the round barn of my childhood legends. I drove back to the old barn, near the On iiumeaUaJ house, with Bill Oxenrider on a cool, overcast day. Would the building hold round bales and round, black cows? Unfortunately, no ... another childhood fantasy shattered. Started in 1911, the barn was completed in 1914 at a neighborhood barn raising. The building is of oak and maple and is not truly round, as it appears from the road. The 12-sided structure is of the peg and beam mode of construction, built into the side of a hill. This use of natural terrain gives easy access to the main barn floor and a lower entrance to the basement level. A round corn crib is located in the center of the lower area, from which cat-

tie stanchions radiate outward, as spokes on a wheel. Old dreams don’t die. They just become more sophisticated. Who knows ... if I find the proverbial black cow in a cold, snowy pasture, I may get my glass of chocolate milk and a chocolate malt! Or is this all “udder” nonsense? Guest feature writer M. Lynn Gray Is a resident of Leesburg Halloween safety program for school children The children of Syracuse schools are being provided with an extra measure of safety this Halloween. Each child will be given a special “Super Safety Trick-or-Treat Bag” which has been provided through Sampling Corporation of America in cooperation with the National Safety Council and sponsored by Kraft Handi Snacks(r); Campbell’s Spaghettios(r); Kachoos(r) Children’s Facial Tissues; Del Monte Fruit Cup(r); Triaminic(r) Cough Syrup; Kool Aid(r) Soft Drink Mix; Karo(r) Corn Syrup; Minute Maid(r) in-the-box; and ACT(r) Fluoride Rinse. These companies are interested in safety for children. The plastic bag includes safety tips and is printed on both sides with a special fluorescent ink. A child carrying this bag would be highly visible to motorists because of the bright reflection of the color. This is especially important at dusk, which is a time of day when visibility is generally poor. Also, each child will get a large, self-adhesive “safety patch” with similar coloring to be worn on the back of their outer garments or costumes for additional visibility to Each child also receives a special parent insert containing additional safety tips and suggestions on creating a successful athome Halloween party, costume and makeup ideas and party recipes. Participating organizations received posters which serve as further reminders of the need to be extra cautious during these few days. The program is being distributed, “not to encourage trick-or-treating,” rather it acknowledges that this practice, for the most part, already exists and children would benefit from an effort to make their celebration experiences safer! The Syracuse Police Department will use the “Super Safety Trick-or-Treat Bag” to identify students from the Syracuse community. Long, cold rainy days are an excellent time to clear out clutter and arrange dresser drawers. The same thing can be done to

kitchen cabinets and drawers. EXTENDED COVERAGE By i DON ARNOLD A cozy worm fireplace is a favored amenity among home buyers, and it adds a great deal to the value of a home. But it can be a fire hazard if it isn't cared for and used properly. A chimney should be cleaned any time there's more than a quarter inch of creosote accumulated anywhere on the chimney walls. Depending on the wood you bum, this can be once a year or more often. Never use coal, kerosene or gasoline to feed or start a fire. Coal burns too hot and can damage your fireplace; flammable liquids can explode. Kindling is a better starter than newspaper. Draperies, curtains and furniture should be at least 36 inches away from the fire. Use the hand test: if the furniture feels warm to your hand, it's too close. A fire screen will protect against sparks, Don't go to bed — or anywhere else ■— with the fire still going. Cover it with ashes, but DON'T use water to put it out; cool water on the firebrick could track the lining. Store ashes in a metal can with a tight lid. You'll get good advice about safety — and insurance — at Milford Insurance Canter Milford, Indiana (219)658-9468

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New wrinkles for an old holiday

GUEST COLUMN By MELODIE DAVIS I Dear Abby” has asked her readers in past years for their opinion on abolishing Halloween trick or treating, in favor of block parties in homes. That may be o.k. in this uncertain age of child snatchings and razor-bladed apples and Tylenol poisonings. It’s a form of black mail, she says, to demand a treat lest a trick be played. And besides, doesn’t Halloween have some rather dubious, unchristian origins? I remember the year 1 took my (then) one and three-year-old daughters trick or treating. At the first home I wasn’t sure whether the youngest would scream in terror and grab for Mommy’s skirt, or whether the three-year-old would be smitten with a sudden streak of babyishness and cling to Mommy too. But one peek of the offered candy was enough to send the littlest one gladly into the lap of the elderly grandma who had come to the neighbor’s house “just to see the trick or treaters. ” I stood amazed. Only months before the baby would no more have climbed into that dear woman’s lap than petted a roaring lion. Perhaps it was the few months maturity she had gained, or maybe it was the derring-do the normally forbidden dabs of rouge and lipstick provided her. Maybe it was her colorful dancing skirt, or the dangling necklace and little bandana that made her more outgoing. But whatever the reason, I’m glad for that elderly woman’s sake I didn’t listen to Dear Abby that night. I thought of the previous Halloween, when I had taken just the oldest girl on her rounds. We traipsedk through an apartment complex for the elderly, and enjoyed the amused pointings and smiles from the grandmas and

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grandpas sitting in the lobby. We tramped long halls until we reached the door of a favorite older couple. I hid and and coaxed the two-year-old to chant “Trick or Treat” all by herself as soon as the door was opened. Slowly we heard shuffles coming to the door, and a wide, almost tearful grin broke as the realization hit that here was Halloween come to the halls of a place too removed from the laughter and shouts of children. Grandmama Sugar, as we called her, urged Michelle to come in so Grandpa could see her too. It turned out to be his last Halloween. There were treats for Michelle, but my treat was remembering their pleased, proud faces. Back at home Michelle displayed her booty for her Daddy: numerous apples, some popcorn, cookies, a few candy bars and hard candy. We put the candy away to ration out carefully. “Better check those apples,” Daddy started to warn, but I waved him aside. I ticked off the names of the people we had visited: all neighbors, relatives or friends. “Do you really think any of those people would razor Michelle’s apples?” It’s probably all the best that the days of bringing home dozens, even hundreds of packs of candy are mostly over. I AM for boycotting the wholesale begging up and down the street we did as kids. But I hope that a remnant of the holiday can be preserved — in spite of its dubious origins, and keep it a time when 18-month-olds can be little gypsies if they want to and spread their charm to eager receivers for a few moments. I hope there remains a special day when three year olds can invent a Batman or Cinderella costume and “treat” aunts and uncles, Grandmas and Grandpas and special neighbors. We follow up the short time of trick or treating by attending the

party given for children AND adults at our church. Trick or treating can serve as a “reason” to do the visiting of neighbors and older people we’re too busy to do at other times. (Just so it doesn’t become the ONLY time we visit a home, like the token caroling for older people at Christmas time.) Maybe we could start a tradition of “repaying” the persons we visited by returning another time with a treat of our own —a half dozen of cookies, a bouquet of flowers. I’m proposing the guidelines many already follow for trick or treating at the homes of acquaintances: if the porch or yard light is on, little visitors are welcome. If it is off, we’ll respect your privacy. And no tricks. For a free leaflet entitled “October Thoughts” write to Margaret Foth, P.O. Box 22, Harrisonburg, Va 22801. Milford PTO to meet Nov. 3 The Milford PTO will meet Tuesday, Nov. 3, in the school cafeteria at 7:30 p.m. Richard Roose, guidance counselor, will be the speaker. He will talk about “Skills for Adolescence,” a program that is being offered in the health curriculum. This program is a sequential program for students in grades six, seven, and eight. Included in this course are topics of discussion on family relationships, peer relationships, developing a positive attitude and other topics addressing the problems and concerns of today’s adolescent. This is the third yeSr this program has been offered at Milford and has proven to be very successful. All parents will find Mr. Roose’s presentation interesting and informative.