County Seat Newspaper
of Clare County

Digging Memories

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By JULIE BERRY TRAYNOR

Cleaver Guest Writer

    A big part of Christmas is memories; both making new ones and recalling old ones. For many those warm thoughts are triggered when they trim the tree or pull-out Christmas treasures or photos from days and people gone-by. For me, it can be both, and often the memories are unexpected.

This year I gave some much-needed attention to a strap of old sleigh bells. They belonged to my great-grandparents Ward, who farmed 120 acres in Isabella County’s Deerfield Twp., before the turn of the 19th century. My grandpa and his four brothers had a deep attachment to those bells and ownership was passed along to each, in turn. I suspect this was largely because of the wonderful memories they brought each of them and collectively. The bells, strapped around a favorite horse, brought their youth again and the days when behind a horse was the only way to travel for work or pleasure.

The memory these bells hold for me is the look on my grand Uncle Charlie’s wrinkled face when he passed the bells to me on a hot August day in the 1980s. I could see the childhood glee in his eyes as he recounted the wonderful sound of the bells on a crisp winter day. That sound meant Christmas to him.

Along with the Ward sleigh bells were four other sleigh bells, with a different story to tell and acquired in an unusual way. These sleigh bells also carry special memories, these days just for me. My dad literally dug them up near the site of the long defunct Redding Township settlement of Pennock, sometime in the early 1960s. I will explain.

We spent a lot of time traveling the two-track roads of northwestern Clare County when I was a kid. Sometimes we indulged in our favorite pass-time of “dump digging”, which is not quite what the name implies. I still define it technically as the act of seeking, locating and digging through the remnants of long forgotten farm dumps, outhouse sites, roadside bottle dumps and of course, old home sites. I always thought of it as being both historical and archeological. I still love to dig into the past, one way or another.

The bare-knuckle dump digging we did in the old days is done by those with metal detectors today, making it easier to find things once a place is located. It’s the ease of finding these places that has changed. With the passing of time and people, first-hand knowledge is fading from local memory. Mom Nature and man alike, work every day to erase any traces of previous settlement. All across the Jackpine plains the memories and stories are fading. And so it is for Pennock.

My grandma and dad were both raised roaming Winterfield, Summerfield and Redding Townships. They knew the places where people had tried to farm the newly cleared, gently rolling acres of the plains, and where hopeful settlements grew and faded. Most importantly, they knew the names and stories of many of these people and places. And they loved to share the stories.

It was on one such roaming ride that we happened to stop at the site of Pennock, near the railroad tracks, along Kirby Ave. northwest of Temple. There was little left, even in the 1960s. Dad parked along the dirt road, and we investigated an old barn site. Rusted cans and glass jars indicated a dump. A small amount of digging brought up a brass sleigh bell and then another and another. There were four in all, numbers 2, 4, 7, and 9, each stamped. My parents were delighted with the find. The lateness of the hour sent us on our way, vowing to return soon. Sadly, we did not. I still know the place and often wonder if there were more bells.

My mom cleaned the bells once we arrived home and tied them on a red string. They had stood the test of time well. Mom loved the bells and was known to give them a ring any time the mood struck, having sentimental sleigh bells in her past. These bells played an important part in announcing Santa’s arrival to her grandchildren on Christmas Eve, and made them wonder, “Just maybe…?”

This year when I took these sleigh bells out, I was saddened to see that the red string from so long ago, had finally given up the ghost and fallen to pieces. I see this as a sign for the bells to ring again and to give warn memories to the next generations. I’ll use leather to tie them together and I’ll wrap them in their story, which is the best kind of tie.

Stay tuned for more on the ghosts of northwest Clare County.

Merry Christmas from the Pines of Winterfield.

© Clare County Cleaver

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