Do You Remember? – Ancestry Of The Kauffman Family

Nancy Remembers

SECRET GARDENS OF THE HEART

Do you remember the beauty of the house in the spring…
the apple tree and crabtree in blossom…
the wild garden with lilies of the valley and thousands of daffodils…
the iris along the side of the garage …
the crocus…do you recall that the way the garden was planted allowed for it to bloom all spring and all fall..
all the planning and time it took Mom and Dad to do that…
and I recall the stone steps going down to the garden which were awfully bumpy when the toboggan went down…t
he quince bushes…the pear tree and blueberries…
the rhubarb…
and the jelly cupboard which seemed to always be full even though I can’t recall helping or seeing Mother make the jelly…that is someone else’s memory…
the Narducci’s swings…
doing the dishes…
escaping the dishes…
Lady trying to get the rake out of the flooded drain in the driveway without getting her nose wet…
the apartment roof…
the trap door…
the eaves and Daddy’s old Army uniform…
Mrs. Sweet in the attic…
dumping pennies in the koolaid on the corner…
kissing Jimmy Miller..
and being the scapegoat for all of the antics of three older siblings who figured I wouldn’t get yelled at…
also the jokes in the lavatory…
who was peeling them off?…
the monogramed towels in Dad and Mom’s bathroom…
the hearts in the bathroom…
the soaps along top ledge in the bathroom…

Mary Remembers

Mary remembers:
CHRISTMAS TRADITIONS The Yule Log, “T’Was a Night before Christmas”, listening to the record, Dicken’s Christmas Carol.
Uncle Bart’s expensive gifts, always wrapped in blue tissue paper.
Grandma’s practical presents, usually par :ee into a wteer basket for everyone, except WLK. The slippers for each of us that always appeared where our stockings were hung on the upstairs fireplace.
Our turkey decorated with cranberries and toothpicks, lec&le_ somewhat like a huge antenna that became more elaborate each year as we children were allowed to participate. WLK finally getting everyone served and sitting down to eat, only to find we all were ready for seconds!

SCARY TIMES

The eerie sound when the windows in the sleeping porch rattled–Was it really Jack Frost?
Ether being administered in the master bedroom by Dr. Russell for our numerous. earaches and always feeling nauseous afterwards–
the Dr. Gage pills. and Paregoric, ugh, sweet tasting cough medicines, Cosonal and SitroSeras–did I really drink most of a bottle?
Not liking to Have my teeth drilled at Dr. Krider’s. Sometimes, though, if he was in a good mood he’d give us some “quicksilver.”
Timidly walking down the stone steps least the Garter snakes would awaken and creep out of the Myrtle for a sunbath–Scary– also the snake skins in the holes (dens) in the play yard.
Punchy and Judy pushing me down in the snow and running off with my mittens.
Punchy and Judy killing Mr. Hite’s sheep.
Panchy getting punished for Judy’s mischief.
The Not so Good:
smell of curried shrimp!! It has taken years to appreciate the taste of both curry and shrimp.
Having to eat everything on our plate and quickly learning the tricks of the trade—how to stuff food into the crevices under the table, Or as a last resort, into our cheeks to be disposed of later.
Tongue, which I used to love (it tasted like corned beef, I think) until Lee’s hard lesson in reality. It REALLY is a cow’s tongue, as he aptly demonstrated by licking my face with it.
HAPPY TIMES:
The Father’s Day, we all decided to make WLK “king for a Day” complete with a golden, paper crown. He was in his glory! His numerous pipes and sitting down for a smoke with Uncle Bart. How distinguished they looked!
Uncle Spike coming in unannounced at meal times saying “Eat your spinach!” when there was none, trailed by his huge Newfoundland, Nicholas who would usually knock down at least one vase with a sweep of his tail.
Floyd Eileen dropping over and sitting on the couch for hours only to be completely ignored by WLK, sitting to his chair, neither of them uttering a single word.
Speaking of chairs–do you remember what would happen if someone Just happened to sit in WLK’s chair by mistake?
Slipping into Uncle Bart’s pew and sitting with him at church. He was always so happy to see us and sometimes as a special treat he’d let us tour the Erie Club afterwards.
Remember when he took us to the Cigar Store for a paper and parked illegally. How shocked I was to hear my mild mannered Uncle tell the officer exactly what he thought.
Going fishing on the boat on Edinboro Lake and being followed be Lady who didn’t want to be left behind,
Lady always chasing the car till we let her come with us, our crape vine which had no fruit because of Lady’s chomping,
going out for ice cream with Lady at a place on State Street where she was given the royal treatment with her very on bowl.
Lee’s various clubhouses–always an ongoing project in our backyard–
The wagon wheels he put around the I:ttle pond. I wonder if they’re still there?
His elaborate Christmas lights and candles at the edge of the walkway, and
his fancy carved pumpkins complete with ears, put up over the front door.
THE DAY SCHOOL
Mrs. Clifford, telling me to slap Woolen Griswald’s face is nursery school when he tried to kiss me. and feeling terrible because I didn’t want to. Kindergarten, and
our co-ed bathroom with Chuclie Palmer standing at the door saying “Tinkle, Tinkle, Tinkle” every time a girl went in.
The hour + long bus ride and Mr. Hannigan, our old bus driver.
The trip home, starting out at 6th street, numerous stops through the center of town to Sammy Hilliard’s house, and Bobby Gonzales, remember him?, up to Greengarden, over to Glenwood Hills and to let off the ill-behaved Braggin’s boys to their messy yard, then onto Arlington Road on the other side of Cherry Street–At last, 431 Hilltop,–End of the line. How could one little bus manage to cover so much territory–no wonder 1 always got sick!.
Playing “Spin the Bottle” in Mr. Garloff’s 6th grade class–Progressive Education!
FOODS
Good:
Special Sunday treats, made by EWV while we were all at church: Creamed chicken on waffles, hard boiled eggs sliced and prepared in a white sauce served on toast, chocolate waffles, and sometimes for dessert, floating island.
Aztec Beans: . Kidney beans with deviled ham, molasses, a bit of ketchup for tang, topped with slices of bacon and places under the broiler. Yummy.
Deviled ham sandwiches cut into perfect triangles with the Li•,t cut off.
Black bean soup with hard boiled eggs and lemon slices. Lee’s cooking expertise, particularly his waffles, made With o rich mixture, folded into egg whites and cooled in our recent!: purchased larger waffle iron. My snickerdoodles which Lee and Peter would oat as fa•0: .es I could make them.
Uncle Bart often taking the family to “A Little bit of Sweden smorgasbord, where most of us four would end up eating just two things, baked beans and spaghetti.
Aunty Sis and Uncle Jack taking us to the Peninsula–Uncle Jack’s white nose from all the sun tan lotion. They seemed so young–like a couple of honeymooners’
The Hess’s house with its black bathroom and dragon rug that no one was allowed to walk on.
Bunny Lou’s life sized doll with 3I enormous 50 dress wardrobe, the time she got in real trouble when their dog, Ugy left a pile on the black and white tile floor, (and feeling quite surprised since that sort of thing wasn’t a big deal at our house.)
Visiting Grandma, her beautiful gardens with exotic flowers
Tile the black Tulips imported from Holland,
the two tin Mexican trees she had on her mantle at Christmas. instead of a real tree.
Remember Danny, her Springer, who was getting quite old and often would make these strange noises which Grandma could never hear. and Lee and I would giggle as the odor drifted into the air.
She was always sharp as tacks and I think that was the only thing that ever escaped her’
SOME OF OUR HELP
James Boyd with a stocking on his head so we wouldn’t get “bugs in our hair.” His wife, Mary.
Mrs. Walters delicious plain yogurt with orange slices and wheat germ.
Katie sitting proudly in the back of Pete’s Jag, when he’d ride her home down State Street.
Our butler. who used to work for the Baumbach’s and lived in the apartment.
Remember how he put those bolt locks on the door aid later we discovered he was wanted by the FBI.
Mr. Hook, our gardener and his crazy old brown CAC with the dashboard.
Do you remember what model it was’
Hazel, truly from the Saturday Evening Post cartoon “Hazel” giving Peter a lecture on the evils of smoking when he was delivering papers at the Harris’s, where she also worked.
Do you remember who took Peter for Nancy for a three hour wall. down past Glenwood School, and EWK nearly called the police?
Lastly. this is for you Lee, remember “Marie used to be our maid!” and the ice cream cones?

Lee Remembers

Nancy, you jumped the gun – the Jack-in-pulpits,
May apples and White trillium belonged to me! I remember in 1947 when Dad replaced old wooden step on the side porch and had all of us place our left foot in the cement.
All summer long we enjoyed charred steak on the small grill in the driveway –
Many chipmunks living in the stone steps –
Elsie the cow that supplied us with so much meat during the war –
Christmas Eve – roaring fire in the fireplace, Nativity scene carefully set on the mantle with the gold star.
Remember the Rat Room, The Furnace Room – the old well house-off the Laundry Room – the Refrigerator Room with 10,000 empty bottles.
Maps of the World – Oil Routes – Lumber Routes – maps of the sides of beef – all pasted together in a marvelous small room called the Telephone Room.
Our world was surrounded on three sides by a 6ft. high private fence – Our Own World!
Remember licking a pea and putting it back in the serving dish so that Mary and Nancy wouldn’t eat any – M.I.K. – F.H.B.
Dad’ cutting the meat like a surgeon-paper thin.
Dad’s corn beef hash – a perfect circle – golden brown on one side -carefully flipped over on a serving dish garnished with parsley.
“There are more minerals in one sprig of parsley than a gallon of mashed potatoes.” Our white Easter bunnies – in the playpen – So Much Snow-1944 Rain dripping on the tin roof –
Old refrigerator box filled with Christmas treasures – champagne corks, Swans, bubble lights, Mickey mouse bulbs.
Old humidifier next to the radio across from the telephone room – remember the musty smell?
Red brick sidewalk in herringbone pattern –
asparagus garden succulent shoots seemed to appear overnight.
Apple trees with their bounty – one year 25-30 bushels -later to be replaced by THE POOL:!
How about the tiny carrots nestled snug next to the roast – Gravy Grumps – Popovers – Yorkshire pudding & Roast beef.

Mom’s best pot roast –
Dad’s carefully made real egg omelet, very fluffy, 3″ thick full of tiny air holes.
on a lighter note – riding the dumb waiter from tne basement to the second floor
On a windy stormy night the squeak of the weather stripping in the sun porch,
first floor, sleeping porch on the second floor and Peter’s room
The smell of cedar in Mom’s closet –
the view of the country-side from the trap door on the attic roof
Sliding down the bannister when Mom and Dad were in the other rooms
Willie Mae Horton from Erie,PA, kicked up her heels and ran away “When you pour the catsup bottle, first none comes then a lottle”
“The trouble with a kitten is that it eventually becomes a cat
Dad’s coat with it’s endless change pocket hanging on the front post
Old Scott radio with the speaker in the hall
Sitting naked on the white stool getting our hair cut in Mom’s bathtub – Mary & Lee:
Ecoma milk with the cream in the neck of the bottle –
The Bungalow Grocery – delivered groceries to us Weds/Thurs.
Edinboro – Top-o-Morning – Howdy – Laddie – Edgewater –
Lee Reynolds Canoe Club –
Lady pulling us in the innertube –
Sunset Camp – Pat Crawford –
Sox Harrison – Here we sit like birds in the wilderness, waiting for our food
Very bad thunder storms over Edinboro Lake – the stores -2 stall outhouse next door to Laddie.
Schools of jet black baby catfish swimming in Edinboro Lake – Yellow oil slickers -Coal and slab wood under Laddie –
Mr.Pederoff hauled ice on Thursday with his 2 horse wagon and he hauled garbage in the same wagon on Saturday

Dad riding in my old Jag!

Pete Remembers

Dad playing tennis at Kahawa Club with Mort Urschner and Spike Spencer.

Swimming with Dad in the new pool in March under the frame and plastic cover. I took a snow ball into the water. Stayed a few seconds. Dad swam for ten minutes.

Dad getting his last swim in the pool in November.

Dad stopping on the PA Turnpike on the trip to Florida so he could call in a new idea.

Dad and Bart talking to me about the birds and bees.

Lee sticking a knife into the door from the front hall to the basement stairs after I ran thru it.

Lee putting a pitch fork thru my snickers narrowly splitting my big toe and the next toe.

Carrying Lee’s 45 records on a broom stick.

Lee charging capacitors and leaving them out to shock me.

Mary refusing to play checkers with me ever again after I finally beat her.

Putting books in our pants to protect our behinds when Mother had us queued up for spankings when Dad got home.

The door in the pantry that opened to the chute to the incinerator. We would put a lit piece of paper in to start it on fire.

Going up on the roof of the house.

Going up on the roof of the apartment.

Friends sneaking into the apartment for the night.

Fixing the cars up in the garage.

Honey Flint coming over to work on cars in our garage after her business went under.

Beer parties and the keg down in the play yard. Bill Braggins carrying the partly full keg over to Patty’s Kuzacks house in the middle of the night.

Driving over Bill’s bare foot with the Ford

Falling out the passengers door of the Ford when Lee was doing a circle around the circle in front of the Durst’s House.

Covering the Renault engine to keep it warm in the frigid cold one winter. Telling Mom to remove it before she went to the store. She could not find it because the engine was in the rear, not the front and the car caught on fire.

Mother’s new 1967 Mustang Convertible that I would drive only when she sat next to me. She later was teeboned pulling out of a restaurant on rt 97 when the car was barely two months old.

Dad wrecking his Lincoln Convertible when he was hit by a dump truck.

Wrecking Dad’s Jaguar 3.8 sedan and his asking how his car was rather then how are you?

Sneaking out in the Jaguar 3.8 and driving to New Hampshire when Dad told me I could not go.

Throwing Mother’s silver ashtrays.

Learning how to weed Mother’s garden.

Eating grapes from the grape arbor.

Finding wild flowers in the wild garden. Collecting flowers with Mother from the woods.

Nancy and Gary running thru the hedge and hiding from the Cops after a beer party.

The swings next door.

Dinner’s

The day Lady (our Airdale) took the Cow Tongue destine for the dinner table off the kitchen table. Mother took it out of Lady’s mouth, rinsed it in the sink and put it back on the plate for dinner.

Giving Lady our uneatable’s under the table.

The doggie door for the Bedlington terriers.

The Bedlington bringing in a chip mouse to play with in the house.

Our parakeet opening up her cage and flying around the house.

The parakeet harassing the dogs.

The cat stalking the bird.

Dropping the cat upside down to see if she would land on her feet.

Nancy’s Sweet 16 party when someone spiked the punch.

Wild party at the house when our parents were out of town.

Cutting down the elm tree with Lee. We had a long rope tied to the bumper of the Ford.

Lee’s tree house in the Apple tree with electricity and running water.

The Lily pond.

Singing “get the worst, get the worst, get Chester Durst”

My paper route.

Our Easter Duck, Donald who turned out to be Donna.

Lady stealing an apple pie cooling outside the Durst’s kitchen.

Tapping the maple tree to get maple syrup.

Climbing out the bathroom window.

Touching the live connection in an opened Electrical box on the side of the house.

Mary’s Wedding in the yard when it rained and we had to put sheets of plywood down to ford the driveway.

My train set up in the attic.

Sneaking up the back stairs and walking on the corners to keep them from creaking.

The Ice box.

Deliveries of Milk to the back door.

Mary getting caught for buying liquor for my friends.

Mother’ Jelly Room

The Rat Room, the Paint room.

The Hydrangea Bushes

The evergreen trees on the side of the house decorated for Christmas and spelling out Merry Christmas one winter.

Getting yelled out when I said “is this all” at Christmas! (It had worked for a while and I just thought……)

Walking to Glenwood School with Lady.

Lady bringing back huge bones from the Zoo.

Playing tag in the yard

· Don’t forget the little green house in the garage with the windows where we kept our gardening supplies too.

· Pulling Japanese beetles off the grapevines and putting them into jars with olive oil to save the vines

· The cement steps Lee and I built down to the pool.

· Mrs. Sweet up in the sewing room in the attic.

· When we hid Pete’s white mice up in the attic when he was away and I’d feed them each day- til Mom found them by mistake

· Climbing thru the attic eaves (asbestos anyone?)

· Our footprints in the cement off the side porch

· All the barbecues we had on the side porch

· Swinging from the tree down the steps from the side porch- was it a crabapple?

· Finding a nest of bunnies under the sidewalk by those same steps

· Playing in the hydrangea bushes that were covered with snow in the winter

· Sticking a firecracker into the wasps nest off Pete’s room (above the kitchen door)

· Dad reading the OZ books to us and always so many children’s books on the shelves in Pete’s room

· The three windows overlooking the stairs and front hallway in Pete’s room

· The Dickens pictures up the front stair case

· The old kitchen

· So many secret hiding spots

· Dad bringing our first TV up the basement steps by himself

· The pipe rack

· Amazing plants in the sunroom

· Our turtle dish which I have never seen anything like it since

· The many games in the cupboards in the living room

· The old brown folding card table

· Celebrating King for a Day on Fathers Day

· Dads dictionary races where he’d give us about a minute to look up words

· Mom sending Toni and I out to pick fresh daffodils from the wild garden for her luncheon guests and we picked about 100!

· Mom always singing even though she was tone deaf

· It might be fun to consolidate our remembrances of 431 Hilltop and send them to the Agresti’s. I started another list. Please add to it.

· The doggie door

· The brass knocker (is it still there?)

· Sitting on the roof!

· Sitting on the apartment.

· Sneaking up the squeaky back stairs

· The jack in the pulpits and bell flowers in the wild garden

· The orchard, with apple trees, grapes, cherry trees, quience trees, currents, blueberries, pears and ?? Grapes were slip skin purple, purple green. Throwing slip skins at each other.

· Climbing the crab apple tree.

· Awning on the kitchen porch

· Riding in the dumb waiter

· The chute for clothes

· The pump room

· The Paint room

· The Rat room.

· The train room,

· The funny windows in the attic.

· Staying in the apartment.

· People staying over after a wild Saturday night

· The parties in the yard.

· Mary’s wedding party

· Nora Meads Sweet 16 party

· Nancy’s big sister party (was that your 16^th birthday)

· A couple of more. Joe our mailman reading our postcards and telling our mother what they said like “Peter is homesick at Camp!”

· Lady following the bus to Glenwood school and the principal calling our mom and saying she had to come pick up Lady, she’s in my office again!

· A birds nest in the sleeping porch window!! We scared them and worried they wouldn’t survive!

· Uncle Spike driving his huge Newfoundland down the Hilltop in his sports car!!

· Never locking the door and leaving keys in the car.

· The cement slab dad made off the side porch with each of our footprints embedded in it!

· Mom getting locked

· in the half bathroom off the sunporch and climbing out the window.

Swimming in the lily pond with the fountain on before we put in the pool!

· Keeping two rabbits Lee and I got for Easter in a play pen in the play yard!

· The icebox room with cabinets loaded with jars of jelly or mom mean including cherry, grape, quince , apple, current, and even mint!

· Having friends park on Gore Road sneak into the house without our parents knowing!

· Raking leaves into a pile and burning them in the street in the fall!

· Our big brother setting off fireworks from the roof one year on the Fourth of July!

· Playing lawn tennis and croquet in the center yard!

· Our big brothers clubhouse in the backyard complete with running water and lights!

· Telling the postman not to deliver the mail in the mailbox because there was a Wren’s nest in there and he actually listened to us!!

· Memories