When I started on the scrapbook, I remembered a stack of postcards Mom had given me years before. They were tucked away in a box with other special treasures, some old comic books that belonged to my brothers, among other things. Surprisingly, I found them without too much searching. I started digging for information, reading between the lines, trying to put a timeline together in my head. More than anything, I just wanted to know Ernest and Harriet. Who they were to others, to their best friends, to family... all the parts of them I never knew. We really know so little about our parents. Most of us mistakenly think we are all the life they ever had. That couldn't be further from the truth. It's just that when we are young, our parents are our entire life. Something like that.
In that stack of postcards I found another telegraph. I knew about the one Dad sent Mom telling her to come to Midland, TX, but this one in the middle of all of the postcards was from Mom to Dad telling him she missed a bus connection on her way to Texas to meet him. Sixty-eight years later, I feel like I can hear her crying.
As usual, I am rambling off the subject. In that stack of postcards were some to and from dad while he was in Pullman, Washington and Lewiston, Idaho, postmarked 1938. Dad was twenty years old then. I couldn't figure out why on earth Dad would be out West! He didn't go into the military until 1942, after he and Mom were married. What in the heck was the CCC? The more I look for answers to one question, the more questions I found! It was so exciting to have my parents life unfold before my eyes!!!
Google has been my best friend for awhile now, and Google didn't let me down this time either. A couple of clicks brought up all kinds of information on the Civilian Conservation Corp (CCC). I spent so much time, probably months, researching exactly where Dad was and for how long. What kind of work he did, trying to find actual articles of what his troop accomplished when he was with them. I was confused for awhile, because the pictures in his old photo album had 1936 as the year, but I think it was just a typo. I haven't been able to find any proof that Dad was in the CCC except for 6 months in 1938. Finally, I had answer to why there were pictures of the Oregon countryside. Dad worked for the Soil Conservation Service. He planted trees to help stop the erosion on the hill sides. The pictures that looked like they were taken at military barracks, were actually the barracks at the CCC camp Dad was stationed at. Unfortunately, from what I was able to learn from my research, the camps Dad was at are no longer there. I wish there was a place I could go and visit, and see what he saw. I will make a trip out there someday.
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| Picture was marked Oregon 1936, in Dad's album. |
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| Picture was marked Oregon 1936, in Dad's album. |
When I mentioned the postcards to Ernie, he began to tell me that Dad was in the Civilian Conservation Corp, and what little he could remember. I never knew!!! I don't understand why Mom and Dad didn't talk about it. I suppose Dad didn't realize he was living history at the time. It was just part of his life. Craig says he remembers dad telling him he helped pave the Oregon Trail. I can't find any evidence to that, but that doesn't mean it's not true. There are so many stories I wish I had heard, and so many I heard that I wish I could remember!!! Dad may have said something when I asked about the pictures, but I wouldn't have understood what he was talking about. I'm sure I was very young. I was only eighteen when he passed away.
I remember Mom telling me that Grandma and Grandpa were upset when Dad married her, because he helped to support them financially up until then. I remember her talking about dad working a long way off at one point and sending them most of the money. That was how the CCC was set up. The young men made $30.00 a month, $25.00 of which was sent home to their parents. Dad's CCC days were before he and Mom met. More detail is in the second blog post, called "Let's Get Started" in the Introduction to the scrapbook.
Another interesting find was that Dad used Gordon's (his brother) social security number when he joined. When I initially sent for Dad's CCC records, the archives told me they had no record of an Ernest C. Ely with the social security number I sent. Obviously, I had overwhelming evidence that he there. I started to wonder if he might have used Uncle Brud's information. I found Uncle Brud's social security number through Ancestry.com, and sure enough, that is what happened. Dad used his name, but his brother's social. I now have Dad's papers from the CCC.
Below are a couple of the postcards. I love the message in the second one that mentions seeing all of the Indians. That must have been cool.
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| The message on this card is the one about that mentions the Indians. |
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| This goes with the 1st one, Mt. Rainier. |
Below are a couple of pictures of boxing matches that took place at Dads CCC camp. I found some articles online telling of boxing championships in Pullman, Washington, in 1936, but none dated 1938. The pictures are from Dad's album.
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| Boxing Championships, Pullman, Washington, CCC Camp |
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| Pullman, Washington CCC Camp 1938 |
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| More CCC Postcards |
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The top postcard is to Dad (nick named Fagan) from his best friend Bill Bolin. The bottom one was written to Dad by Aunt Marg and Uncle Brud... dad's brother, Gordon.
Next are some pictures of the CCC Camps. You can see Dad enjoyed hunting while he was there... and he worked out! All these young men put in a lot of hard work!
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| Dad and three of his CCC buddies. Dad is third from the left. |
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| Some newspaper articles I found about the camps Dad was at. |
Dad was in Company 554 with the Soil Conservation Service (SCS), but not at the time this article was written that I know of. The company replaced 2914, which was disbanded. There were several camps that were relatively close to one another. Genesee was one of them. They are all mentioned in one of the above articles.
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| I'd say Dad did some boxing while in the CCC |
