Person:Jessie Breckenridge (1)

She and her sister Nellie were converted and joined the Smithville Baptist Church at Smithville, Mo., by Rev. Martin.

Her early life in her own words:

Since I don’t have any brothers or sisters – close relations left in my family – I thought you children might be interested in knowing some of early days of my life. As a small child, I have some memories. Of course, most are pleasant and humorous.

As to dates and names – I do not remember – as this will deal with me as a child five years and on and what I have been told by my mother. My mother told me she was born in Independence, Mo., on Feb. 14, 1870. Her father died when she was 1 year old (consumption, T.B.). Her mother, Elizabeth Pennington, was left a widow – three children – Nannie, Willie, Ida May. When my mother was 3 years old, her mother took her three children and hired out as a cook at a ladies college, Campen Point, Mo. As to details, I don’t know. My mother and other children got their schooling there or around there. When my mother was old enough, she worked in dining room. No doubt her sister did also. As to brother, he probably had chores to do. My mother’s father – I know nothing of his family. Seems as though I remember her telling someone had a shoe factory – where?

Grandmother Pennington left college when my mother was 15 years old. My mother always said they were there 12 years. Grandmother must have moved in neighborhood of the Breckenridge family. I know my mother said they were neighbors. Grandmother had no car (small place), so my mother must have met the Breckenridge family at school as she and Aunt Kate became close friends – no doubt through her met my father (Will or William). My mother said she and aunt Kate would write notes to each other. They had an old tree where they hid them for each other. Aunt Nannie married some where along this time, and as to Uncle Willie, I don’t know.

My mother and dad were married Nov. 20, 1889. Where they lived afterwards, I don’t know. But I know they lost first child – boy – stillborn and buried in a cemetery in the country – Gosse, out of Smithville, Mo. Grace and Nellie both born in Smithville. When they moved to the small farm in Platte County, Platte City, Mo., I don’t know. I was born there March 4, 1902.

Grace born Aug. 27, 1895; Nellie born Sept, 17, 1899. Grace had diphtheria when she was a small child – weakened her limbs. I remember hearing my mother say she had to lear to walk all over. Nellie had it also. That was before my time. Neither of them were very strong. My family had small pox before I was born – in the winter – So I must have been immune as I have been exposed many times during epidemic and never got them – never vaccinated.

Times on the farm are all pleasant ones for me. We lived close to Ma and Pa Breckenridge. To us children was fun – to my folks, not so at times. My grandmother Breckenridge wasn’t as sweet and kind as grandmother Pennington. She was so sweet and meek – I loved her. I remember when she stayed with us one night. She had asthma – they had a can of something put along side of her bed to keep her breathing. It had a funny smell.

My mother had gander, chickens, geese, turkeys. They were not so tame as today. They kept flying in trees. She gave up on them. Also guineas – little funny-shaped fowl, eggs small, specked – and noisy, they were good watch dogs. When anyone came, they started squawking.

I had a pet gosling. I don’t know if he was a weakling – reason my mother gave it to me or I loved it so much. I named him Buster. We took our nap together one day. He didn’t wake up when I did. My mother said he was sick and died. Nellie, Grace and I had a funeral for him. Nellie was afraid of the old gander when she went near him. Maybe she was near the nest. He would chase her. One day he got hold of her dress tail in his mouth. She was screaming for help. All of this is just a little child’s memories. We had a sheep. I can’t remember name (Tillie). She butted Grace – upset her so they had to get rid of the sheep.

Sundays we were all dressed up in our best outfit. My dad had a team of horses – Tom and Dan – faithful horses. We had what they call a spring wagon – two seats. Mother and dad in front, we three girls in back seat. Afraid to move, afraid we would wrinkle our dresses – white one, summer – sailor hats, mittens lace, fingers net. We didn’t dare get suburned. We would go to church. I can hear my dad singing some of the old hymns yet on the way home. Sometimes after dinner on Sundays, we would take a walk in the woods surrounding us. That was always a treat. We were not allowed to go out of the yard otherwise. Sunbonnets and gloves a must.

My sisters went to a country school (Farmer’s School House). I don’t remember how they got there. I do remember sometimes my dad would take team of horses and farm wagon and go after them and other children in the neighborhood. Just now come to mind – a girl, Opal Amos. There were others – no names. My dad would let me go along and I got to stand up and hold on lines of horses. They wanted a boy. I turned out to be a girl. So I was nicknamed Jack. Someone bought me a pair of overalls, don’t know who. I was so ashamed when they put them on me. One day my dad took me over to his folks. They had company, Jess Amos. I hid behind the well – one who had a frame built around it, a bucket you let down in the water and pulled out with a rope. I wouldn’t go in house. When my mother died, 1933, Jess Amos was at the funeral. He reminded me of this event.

Our well was away from house. I can remember we girls each had a little water pail. We thought it helped if we went along and carried back water. My dad put down a cistern close to kitchen so my mother would have wash water close to house. They had to dynamite to go deeper – lots of rocks around the country. When the man got ready to set off the charge, he told my mother to take dishes out of cupboard and for me to go with her down in pasture. Stood behind a tree. As to any damage, I don’t know.

We had a cellar – or cave – where my mother kept all canned goods, vegetables. An old ice chest in winter – my dad and others would put up ice and put in chest.

My mother would churn down there in summer. I always got cup buttermilk biscuit and butter. To this day, I still love it.

One evening when my folks went up to milk, Nellie and I decided we were going to suck the cow like her calf did. Jessie got on wrong side and I had to pick myself up. Nellie got away in time.

My dad had a sun stroke. His health started to fail. He couldn’t go out in field when it was hot. He had surgery for piles – hemorrhoids now. Doctor came to house – used dining table. My mother took us three girls out in yard. Prayed for dad. As to recovery, he did. Nut never the same. Another light stroke. We had to leave the farm. As to exact date, I don’t know for sure. He would have spells. Grandma Pennington always came to help.

My mother had cream, eggs, butter to sell for her money. One day. My mother hitched Tom, our horse, tp buggy and took me to see an old girlfriend of hers who never married. When her parents died, she kept house for her brother. Mary Sweeney. She wasn’t a good housekeeper. I was trying to clean a lamp shade of hers – one of those big lamps, flowers on bowl and big bowl shade. There was matches laying there. I used them to dig dirt out and I knocked bowl shade off and broke it. I felt terrible. No doubt cried. My mother never spanked me. I wouldn’t have felt worse if she had. She apologized to friend Mary. No doubt replaced it. I never wanted to go there again. I was so scared.

My mother and her family were a good Christian family. My mother said they used to have S.S. in afternoons. She would play the organ and teach S.S. She got her music training from the college where she was raised. She could play organ, piano and accordion. My grandmother Breckenridge, from what Pearle told me, was doubtful if she was a Christian. When we were much older, she told me one time – when I died, I would turn into pigs like the ones they had. I was taught different. That bothered me. Of course my mother didn’t approve. Pearle said she doesn’t ever remember of her going to church. But my grandfather did. My mother told us one time before she was married, both grandma and pa Breckenridge took her to church. When my grandmother died, she didn’t want a preacher, She had an old friend take charge of her funeral. This just came to my mind. As to her faith belief, I have no idea what she believed in. Oh yes, when my father joined the Baptist Church and was baptized, she asked him if he thought it would do him any good or be a better person.

We left the farm and moved to Lathrop, Mo. Why, I have no idea. I know I started to school there. I have a faint memory of my father working on shares with a banker. Seems as though my father planted corn and harvested with my mother’s help. It was on shares. My father had an aunt – his mother’s sister – Aunt Edna who was married to Bill Lutz. He owned a saloon. He offered my mother a job. My mother said if he took it, as poor as they were, she would not use any of the money. He didn’t. They had lovely home – three daughters, Ella, Emma and Mabel – belles of the town. Silks, jewelry – one time one of them showed me where they hid their diamond ring, over door casing. We were invited to their house for dinner. They had their crystal glasses to drink out of. I bit a piece out of glass. My poor mother, embarrassed again. But Aunt Edna was looking in mouth for glass. Seemed more concerned about that than glasses.

While we lived there, Nellie got pneumonia. Aunt Edna came and helped my mother. Always brought us some little trinket. We liked her. Nellie was in bed so long that her hair matted. Being long, they cut it. That hurt me. I wanted mine cut – no. I never did have short hair.

My sister Grace and my father joined the Baptist Church in Lathrop – was baptized there. The minister was Rev. W.M. Little. He spent Sunday night at our house once. Those days they had to stay over – go home the next day as he didn’t live in Lathrop. We had a cat. He told us he could make our cat talk. When he asked it a question, it would meow. We thought he had sme power over the cat. Then he told us he would pinch its tail, it would meow. So we tried it. Cat got tired of that.

When my mother had breakfast next morning, he washed. He told us children that the towel was what they would call crash – not linen, but rougher. Towel would scratch our sins off. We loved him. He was a good preacher.

One time Grace didn’t come straight home from school. My mother was worried so my father and I took horse and buggy to go look for her. I don’t know if we found her or she was home when we got back. My father never punished us. He always said I am going to have your mother do it. They sent her to a room – told her she couldn’t have supper. But they did give her supper. I felt so bad – sorry for her.

I got chicken pox there. My father bought me a set of blocks. I still have some of them. All of this was in Lathrop.

More stuff, dated June 16, 1981:

When we lived in Lathrop, Mo., I was about 6 years old. We three girls had pictures taken there I know (big picture). Never had one before that. (Grace did have a baby picture).

We moved from Lathrop to Plattsburg, Mo. Can’t remember too much – why? When? We did go to school there. My dad was sick. Grandma Penny came as usual. Aunt Kate came. I remember Aunt Kate taking me out walking. I always loved her – she was so jolly.

We moved from Plattsburg to Cameron, Mo. My mother thought she might be able to get work from college students – laundry. She did some. While we lived there, he mother, Grandma Pennington, died Dec., 1909. “Ma Penny” worked for a family, Conrad Aull. When she took sick, they took her in their home. She had pneumonia. They sent for my mother. She left. We girls and my dad stayed home. When she died, we went to Smithville, Mo., where she lived for the funeral. That is still in my mind. They didn’t embalm. Some one lady would go in cold room where she lay in a black casket – put wet cloths on her face. Had funny smell.

Later we moved to Smithville, Mo., where my folks bought a piece of property. Three-room house, several lots, big barn. We had a cow, pigs and chickens. My mother took in laundry. Washing for a living. My father’s health got worse. He wasn’t able to work. Would roam around. Had to cross R.R. crossing – trains coming and going – and a bridge to go to town. Afraid he would get hurt. My mother had to stay home and wash so Grandpa Breckenridge and my mother thought it best to send him to St. Joseph, Mo., Hospital. That was 1911. My mother was broken hearted. I can remember how hard it was for her to get my father ready to leave. My dad’s cousin, Coons, took him. My father thought he was going to St. Joseph to see about work. Makes me shed tears as I recall this. A dear old friend of my mother, Aunt Nannie Blake, came and stayed with us for a day or so. My mother went to see my father alone. Later on she would take us girls and go on train – St. Joseph and Grand Island. That was exciting.

I had never seen a streetcar – a big city. My mother always took a lunch. My father loved salmon salad. She would make a pint fruit jar just for him. He would eat all of it. He never asked her to take him home, but would tell her to have Uncle Wilfred, my other’s uncle, to come get him. She would always be sick after a visit to him.

My mother kept us f girls together. Different ones wanted her to put us in homes. Bless her. She wouldn’t separate us. She worked so hard – washing, gardening, milk cow, canning, sewing. I think back – how hard she worked – a little person. We girls helped. Nellie liked to cook. She could make bread (good). Grace did housework. I had a little wagon. I would go Monday morning before school and get it. And I have pulled Nellie to school in wagon. She had rheumatism. Her legs ached so bad – hurt to walk. I did shores around the house – fed and watered chickens, carried water to cow. When she was staked out to eat one yea we had her n pasture back of our house, R.R. tracks separated us. We had to carry water to her. That was a job. We went to school in Smithville and to Baptist Church. I joined the church when I was 12 years old. Was baptized in river there in spring (cold). The livery stable furnished Hack to take us home. We were me. We had a revival meeting. Brother Marvin was the preacher. Nellie and I joined church. We used to have severe storms. I remember those big black clouds in N.W. All of us afraid of lightning. We would sit in middle of feather bed. Used to say lightning doesn’t strike feathers. Keep asking our mother do you think it will storm?

My mother had some distant relations – lived in country. Dick Maxup – they had five children (two boys, three girls). They would come in to horse show, spend night with us. Boys slept in wagon, girls and us slept crosswise on bed. I don’t know where my mother slept as the couple had a bed. Poor mother – she managed some way. They always brought food. Another cousin and his wife came and took Nellie and I to a horse show, Gave us a dime. When we entered, first thing I saw was a stand. Pretty things – watches and so forth. Right away I spent my dime, but I was sick. That taught me a lesson. I never did go for that stuff.

My mother closed house and we went to St. Joseph. Can’t remember when. No doubt first year my father was in hospital. She worked at a wholesale grocery _ $5 a week, six days. My sisters and I went to school, so it was in fall, winter, spring. I can remember the first house she rented. We had gas lights – had to light them with a match. If you touched mantle, fell in ashes. Cooked on gas. She moved to a cheaper house. Two rooms, had coal oil lamps, well water, outside toilet. Pour soul – she had to get up early and go to work. Grace watched over us. I can remember her sending me to butcher shop to buy scrap meat. 5 cents worth. Butcher asked me if I wanted a smoke. He gave me a wiener, first I ever had. My mother would take meat and make us a meal. Yes, we were poor. I had the croup one night. She didn’t know what to do so she gave me a dime if I would take some coal oil in teaspoon with sugar. I did – it helped.

We had Christmas at this house. Our school teacher gave Grace the Christmas tree from our room. It was pretty – had English walnuts painted gold. I still believed in Santa Claus. I remember telling my mother I heard Santa Claus coming, hear his sleigh bells.

We went back to Smithville when school was out. Stayed there until we went to Lexington, Mo. A friend of my mother’s wanted to help us, so she got a job. At least that’s what my mother thought, as a maid in college (1914). So my mother had a sale. Sold off a lot of her things. Stored rest in one room of house. Her good friend Aunt Nannie Blake kept (cow) and our (cat Labby). We left for Lexington, arrived late after dinner. We were met at depot. The matron gave us something to eat. We were hungry. Nellie and I had to wait tables for our board and room. Next morning we went to dining room. A girl who was a student also waited tables. The cook was a Negro – fat and big. When I saw her, I was scared. We didn’t have Negroes in Smithville. Oh yes, one old man (Perry) – he would come to town in daytime. Sundown he had to be out. I said to this girl (Charon) we don’t have niggers where I come from. Well (Anna—cook) came to me, took my shoulder and said “White child, we aren’t niggers. We are (colored folks). I was so scared and shaking. She turned out to be our best friend. She was clean, good cook. He floor was clean enough to eat on. My mother worked for nothing except for what the girls gave her. She would sew and crochet for them.

Nellie and I took sixth grade in college. My mother crocheted for piano teacher so I could have lessons. I was terrible. Didn’t take advantage of them. There was rooms with just a piano for practice. I would for a while crawl out of window. Makes me sick when I think how I acted. We were there for Christmas. Most of girls went home. We had a nice Christmas. I had a good time. I pretended I was a college student. Went in parlor where baby grand piano was. And I would try to play and imagine I had a boy friend. And I would use the front stairs pretending I was head of college.

My mother had a bad cold. It would be flu today. She was in bed. (Anna cook) took her meals to her. Girls brought her grapefruit. First I ever seen or ate. We left there in spring of 1915. Went back to Smithville. House was rented out. We had to rent a place until house was sold. A lady in town wanted to trade, so they traded. We moved across street from Baptist Church (five room house). First we ever had. Old house three rooms. I had a little room. I was so happy.

We cleaned Baptist Church and Methodist Church which held their services in hotel across street. My mother worked for a couple who run ice cream parlor in afternoon.

1. ↑ Ancestry.com. OneWorldTree. (Name: The Generations Network, Inc.; Location: Provo, UT, USA;)
   Database online.

   Record for Jessie Mae Breckenridge _FOOT: Ancestry.com, OneWorldTree (Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc.), Database online.

2. ↑ Ancestry.com. OneWorldTree. (Name: The Generations Network, Inc.; Location: Provo, UT, USA;)
   Database online.

   Record for Jessie Mae Breckenridge _FOOT: Ancestry.com, OneWorldTree (Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc.), Database online.

3. ↑ Ancestry.com. OneWorldTree. (Name: The Generations Network, Inc.; Location: Provo, UT, USA;)
   Database online.

   Record for Jessie Mae Breckenridge _FOOT: Ancestry.com, OneWorldTree (Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc.), Database online.

4.   Social Security Death Index.

   Social Security Administration. Social Security Death Index, Master File. Provo, Utah: MyFamily.com, Inc., 2006.

5. ↑ Social Security Death Index.

   Social Security Administration. Social Security Death Index, Master File. Provo, Utah: MyFamily.com, Inc., 2006.

6. ↑ Social Security Death Index.

   Social Security Administration. Social Security Death Index, Master File. Provo, Utah: MyFamily.com, Inc., 2006.

7. ↑ Social Security Death Index.

   Social Security Administration. Social Security Death Index, Master File. Provo, Utah: MyFamily.com, Inc., 2006.