[Mary Louisa Michel Journal, June 23-June 25, 1849, near Weverton, Maryland. Age: eleven. Additional paragraph breaks inserted for easier reading.
Many thanks to William Myers, Mary Davy, Sally Young and Sue Davis for their ongoing research collaboration; specifically to William for providing scans of the original document, and in turn many thanks to Peter Johnston Binckley and Patricia D'Arcy "Trish" Binckley (1951-2007), at the source.]
Many thanks to William Myers, Mary Davy, Sally Young and Sue Davis for their ongoing research collaboration; specifically to William for providing scans of the original document, and in turn many thanks to Peter Johnston Binckley and Patricia D'Arcy "Trish" Binckley (1951-2007), at the source.]
47
June 23. Oh me! Another
hot day; I felt so badly that I did not eat any breakfast, but while the others
were eating I went upstairs and made up my bed. While doing so, I thought that
I would put a mattress on Willie’s straw bed as he then would sleep better.
Accordingly I did so and found it so nice that I concluded to sleep on it
myself and give Willie my large bed.
After breakfast was over
I sat down to my sewing but between playing with the children, and keeping
myself cool, I did not sew much. After eating a little dinner I read to mother
some of Hood’s* poems that uncle Edward had left for us to read. In about an
hour I took up my needle again but had not sewed long before father came home
telling us that Mrs. Wever was coming up to see Mother after a little while
accompanied by Mrs. Stuart (the wife of the gentleman who keeps the Weverton
hotel). So we began to clean up the house
48
after which I dressed
myself, not without the silent wish, however, that they would come when clothes
were not so oppressive. Well, we were all dressed, and every thing ready, when
we saw a large black cloud coming from the west, and we thought that it would
certainly rain; however, in the course of half an hour, the cloud went over
entirely on the Virginia side, showing as mother said “good taste.”
At last, after waiting a
long time, we gave them out, and had supper: we had just finished, when we saw
them coming. Was not that provoking? But they had been to tea, and after
sitting a little while they went out to look at the flowers. They were charmed
with the flowers, especially the arbutilon [abutilon (flowering maple) – or
arboretum]. There was on lady whom we did not know was coming, a Mrs. Lockridge
who seemed to be very fond of flowers. She almost went into fits over the
arbutilon [abutilon (flowering maple) – or arboretum]. After looking at the
flowers they went in the house and mother showed them uncle[‘]s pretty end
min[i]ature: soon after they took their departure for home, I for bed.
49
June 24. [Sunday –
blank.]
June 25 It having rained the preceding day, the air
was quite cool. I did not get up very early, and consequently, did not enjoy
the morning air very much, but still, from breakfast time to about ten, it was
very pleasant. Soon after breakfast, father went up to the (Salines I was going
to say) Ferry promising that if he could find any that he would get me some.
Soon after Mrs. Cushion
came, and she and another went down to see Mrs. Alexander, They did not stay
very long and Mrs. Cushion would not stay here any time. She invited us all
to come and spend the evening of the next day not a Charleston evening
though.
[J]ust before dinner
Mrs. Norris came in and took some peas and rice with us. After dinner I got
some sand and ashes made up the fire and put some on some willow to burn for
charcoal for father. Lucy told us before dinner (she had been down to Knoxville
during the morning) that she would have to go out to harvest as she had
promised to go last year and though she now did not want to go that the
gentleman
50
would not let her off.
She went down to Knoxville in the evening to get a little girl to stay here
while she was gone. I sewed until father came home; I then fixed the supper
things and made the tea while Lucy got supper as father was very hungry; we
children ate our supper on the grass; soon after we went to bed.
[Mary Louisa Michel (1838-1930).
Mother = Jane Mary Johnston Mitchell/Michel (1811-1892).
Father = Harvey Mitchell/Michel (1799-1866).
Willie = William Manning Mitchel/Michel (1839-1908).
Sue = Sue Henry Mitchell/Michel (1845-1940).
Lucy = enslaved servant.
Mr. and Mrs. Wever = either Caspar Willis Wever (1786-1861) and his wife, Jane Catherine Dunlop Wever (?-1859), or closely related family members.
Uncle Edward = Edward William Johnston (1799-1867).Mother = Jane Mary Johnston Mitchell/Michel (1811-1892).
Father = Harvey Mitchell/Michel (1799-1866).
Willie = William Manning Mitchel/Michel (1839-1908).
Sue = Sue Henry Mitchell/Michel (1845-1940).
Lucy = enslaved servant.
Mr. and Mrs. Wever = either Caspar Willis Wever (1786-1861) and his wife, Jane Catherine Dunlop Wever (?-1859), or closely related family members.
*Thomas Hood (1799-1845).
Weverton and Knoxville were located on the Baltimore & Ohio rail and Chesapeake & Ohio canal lines, just north of the Potomac River and the Virginia boundary line.
Sketch map: Maryland Historical Trust, "Knoxville Historic District" (1991).]
