July 13, 1986
More about the Piper Bakery. Most of our bread that was shipped, went south and southwest. The Rock Island was new in 1913. We shipped to Millerton, Corydon and Allerton on this line. On the St. Joe branch of the C.B. & Q. we shipped to Derby, Humeston, Kellerton. At Humeston we shipped on the old T.P. & W. clear down to Coin, Iowa. Coin was the headquarters of Dr. Bown. Dean and Keith, his sons, were dealers in fine horses. Some of the towns in this line were Van Wert, Tingley and others. Bread was shipped by railway express in wooden boxes holding forty-eight one-pound loaves not wrapped. Bread was wrapped at the store in plain white paper, not wax. Once a month we had to go to these stores to collect and round up our bread boxes. Stores seldom returned them with any regularity. We might find them anywhere in town. With our name printed on the box they were easy to claim. State food inspectors notified us the boxes had to have ventilation. We drilled eight one-inch holes in each side of the boxes. Imagine unwrapped bread and coal-burning engines and having to drill holes in the otherwise quite tight boxes.
The only person I can remember in a town was a minister at Tingley, Iowa. By wagon he took bread to several other small towns for us. At Chariton we were selling six one-pound loaves for twenty-five cents wrapped in one package in white paper. What bread wholesaled for I do not know. Had to be cheap. The first lady in our retail bread department was Zora Holmes. She was there for years.
Going back to Dr. Bown. Father came by way of Chariton from Clio, Iowa, to look over the town of Oakley business-wise and of course located there later. He had to stay in Chariton overnight and wanted to stay at the new C.B. & Q. passenger station hotel. It was full. They sent him over to the Mullen Hotel just across the street. They had room for one. He paid his fifty cents and went upstairs. He came back down and reported the room was occupied by another man. They said the other half of the bed was his. He got his money back and sat in the railroad waiting room until the train next a.m. While waiting he met Dr. Thomas Bown who was waiting for a train. It was the beginning of a lifelong friendship.
Father’s brother, Robert, had gone to New York to live. Dr. Bown asked Father if he would like to ride with a car of horses to Buffalo. It cost nothing and he could see his brother and his fare back to Chariton was paid. He did this several times. The horse cars were like Pullmans with quarters for the caretaker. These horse Pullmans were carried on the fastest and best trains. Even on mail trains. I am always amazed when I think of how fast trains ran in those days. Much faster than now. Between seventy and ninety miles an hour was common, especially on mail trains.
George, my daughter Jan and myself went for a ride. Went south and east of Chariton to Colyn area. Saw Canada geese and their young. Saw more cardinals and brown thrashers than usual. Picked quite a bouquet of flowers; butterfly weed, bergamot, swamp milkweed, whorled milkweed, and partridge pea. Toured the town of Russell. Took all the old roads south of where Gwen Crozier was born and raised.
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