My grandfather was a Civil War veteran. He took measles and slept in the snow while he was sick, and this caused him to have lung hemorrhages. The doctors told him that the only hope he could have for recovering his health was to go to Colorado and perhaps the mountain air would heal his lungs.
With his young wife and baby daughter, he joined a wagon train for the long and dangerous journey. My grandmother was the only woman, but 21 men made the trip. They drove teams of oxen. Three times during the trip, they circled their wagons to form a barricade, put the cattle inside and prepared to shoot it out with the Indians. Fortunately, there were no battles. My grandfather recovered his health and was able to work. The jostle of the wagons during the day would churn butter for them.
Mrs. Anna Rising
Guthrie, Oklahoma
Back in 1955 a call went out from the editors of the then CAPPER’s WEEKLY asking for readers to send in articles on true pioneers. Hundreds of letters came pouring in from early settlers and their children, many now in their 80s and 90s, and from grandchildren of settlers, all with tales to tell. So many articles were received that a decision was made to create a book, and in 1956, the first My Folks title – My Folks Came in a Covered Wagon – hit the shelves. Nine other books have since been published in the My Folks series, all filled to the brim with true tales from CAPPER’s readers, and we are proud to make those stories available to our growing online community.
