Just recently I had the privilege of telling my teenage grandnephew, Joshua, that his great-great-great-great-grandfather was also named Joshua. His ancestor was a Methodist “circuit-rider” in this land of opportunity.
The older Joshua’s wife had parents of Scottish descent, who sailed from Ireland to America in 1805. As these young parents traveled toward the United States, their baby daughter was born – aboard ship on the Atlantic Ocean! For these brave immigrants, maternity was no obstacle to their opportunity. I hope there was a fellow passenger capable of singing a lullaby while they were in motion on the ocean.
Hope Robinson
Yale, Iowa
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.
