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The ranch at Tie SidingEmma and John had six children; Lida 1871, Hulda 1873, John Oscar 1874, Amanda 1876, John Oscar George 1877, Ed 1884 and Ethel 1887. John Oscar died after a long illness when he was just 18 months old. Ethel died when she was 17. she had female troubles and had never had a period. Her obiturary says she died in Fort Colins where she was being treated for consumption and that she was 18. Hulda, John Oscar, Amanda, and George were born in Lookout, Wyoming. John had been transferred there as section boss. Lookout was about thirty miles from Laramie and was near Dale City. Dale City was a railroad town with about 45 cabins, a dancehall, court room, three hotels and a cemetery. When the bridge over Dale Creek was completed, the town disappeared. A few years later, John homesteaded 160 acres a few miles from Tie Siding, Wyoming. Tie Siding was established in 1868. It was a center for supplying ties for the railroad. John and his family lived a few miles from the town, to the north. He stayed there until a few years before his death. Georgia´s comment: My Grandpa George Lindstrom grew up on the Tie Siding Ranch. He spoke and wrote Swedish, and English. His mother would write to him in Swedish, which drove my Grandmother Martha Ann Butts crazy, since she couldn't read the letters. (A few years ago we had some of the letters translated, and my Grandmother was right, her Mother in law did not like her and was bad mouthing the way she kept house, raised the kids, cooked, et al). My Grandpa and my Grandmother joined the Mormon church, which discourages drinking coffee or tea. My Grandpa always went to church, but could not get away from his coffee. He made his own pot first thing in the morning, and had it at lunch and supper. While they were in Tie Siding, John was mainly a rancher. From his house he could hear the train whistles. As an old section boss he liked to hear the trains. Their house was in a valley and the tracks made a large curve right below their pasture. If the coal cars were full, some times coal would fall off as the trains made the curve. John would send the children down to pick up coal that fell off the coal cars. They could usually get enough to keep them all winter. Tie Siding doesn't have much wood close by and this was a help with the winters fuel.
Emma was the midwife for all the ranches around Tie Siding. She would stay with the family for a few weeks. She´d cook, bake bread and clean, as well as take care of the mother. She usually got paid not in cash but in food and trade items. One winter, Emma decided they needed a new house. John was busy ranching and didn´t have time. When spring came, she and Manda built one. It turned out nice but small. The family lived in it for a few years but Emma was never quite satisfied. Eventually, they moved back to their old house, and George and his wife lived in the new house. When they were children, Amanda and George often played together. One day when they were chasing each other around a galvanized tub, Amanda fell and hit her head and was badly hurt. After that, whenever company came, Amanda would be sent to a back room where no one could see her. She learned to read and write, but was always treated differently. In school she was a little slow to learn. The teacher would punish her for a wrong answer by tapping her head with the sharp end of a pencil. One time she tapped so hard and long she made a cut in Amanda´s scalp. The next day, Emma went to school and took care of the teacher. The Lindstrom children never got tapped on the head after Emma told the teacher off. When John died, Lida looked after Emma and Amanda for a while, but eventually Manda was put in a rest home. John had milk cows and would ship milk to Cheyenne by train. One Year he used some milk money to get Emma an anniversary present. He bought 6 sterling silver spoons and had them engraved for her. Every spring and fall, John would go into Laramie for supplies. He'd drive a team and wagon and take one of his boys. When he'd get to town, the supplies were loaded, then he'd send them home with his boy. He'd stay in town and go on a binge. After a couple of weeks, or when his money ran out, he'd ride the train home. He couldn't remember or wouldn't say where he'd been or what he'd done. At different times, both his sons went into town with him, but his drinking affected them differently. Ed, the youngest loved to drink and had a problem with alcohol. George, was just the opposite, he never drank and wouldn't have it in his house. After one trip to town with his Father, George took the wagon bed off the springs and left it on top of a hill. John couldn't climb up to get it, so he couldn't go to town when he wanted. John could be a strict father. One time Lida and Hulda were digging potatoes. They were complaining and saying their fingers were going to start bleeding. He gave them both a beating so "they would have something to complain about". When Lida and Hulda came of age, the decision was made that they should go into Laramie to find work. One day, John hooked up the team, drove them into town and let them off on a corner. Their Mother had a sister who lived there and they stayed with her until they found jobs. Their Grandmother Burke lived in Laramie too. Lida graduated from the University of Wyoming, and had a teachers certificate. She paid her way, by doing housework for people. Hulda married and had a baby. Three years later she was pregnant again and deceided to have an abortion. Infection set in and she died when she was 22. One fall, John butchered a steer with some help from Emma, Manda and Martha, his daughter in law. He took the meat to town and sold it. With the money he went on a spree. He was a mean drunk and this time he got in a fight and had his jaw broken. He had to wear a rag around his head for a long while to keep the jaw in place. Later he asked his daughter Lida for some money to get it fixed. She paid the bill, but the jaw could never be properly repaired. For the rest of his life, he could only eat soft food. John was a practical man. He worked hard and expected everyone to do the same. He didn't pay George wages for working on the ranch but gave him some cattle of his own. George went to the agricultural college at Ft. Collins, Colorado. He paid his way by working in a green house. John didn't get along very well with his son Ed. When the boy was 13, he left home because his Dad was always on him for being lazy. Ed never did ranchwork on the ranch. He went to Laramie and his sister Lida got him a job in her husbands butcher shop. Ed didn't stay long in town, he went back to the ranch for awhile before going to Ft. Collins to stay with George. When George returned to the ranch, Ed came too. Before he married Emma, John had a son in Sweden. Axel came to Wyoming from Sweden when he was a young man. He was a hard worker and did more than his share. His Father treated him well, but Emma was not happy to have him around. She had not known about him until he knocked on their door one day. Axel got a job in Laramie as a salesman. He had some money when he came, that he loaned to his Dad. John borrowed quite often from Axel and never quite managed to pay back the loans.  Last updated 03-12-21, 13.29 |
