Notes
Note N3887 Index
THE HISTORY OF THE SCRIBNER FAMILIES [op. cit.], page 81, gives Thornton's birthdate as being 19 December 1877. In the 1900 Census of Maine Twp., he gives his birthdate as September 1876.
In 1996, Thornton and Grace's son, Raymond, wrote a personal and unpublished history of his parents, siblings and himself, titled "The Family of Thornton Allen and Grace Julia SCRIBNER as told by their third youngest child, Raymond Lee Scribner, December 1996." This document gives us a first-hand look at the life of this family, the hardships they endured while growing up in Canada during the Depression Years, and the joys they shared through the years. We are grateful to Raymond for sharing these special memories. Portions of that history are included in the family members' Notes.
In that history, we learn that Thornton served in the U.S. Army from 1898 to about 1901 (Thornton is named on page 341of Franklin F. Holbrook's book, "Minnesota in the Spanish American War and the Philippine Insurrection" [St. Paul, MN: Minnesota War Records Commission, Riverside Press, 1923], which indicates that he had served as a Private in Company I of the 14th Infantry).
As a result of having to spend much time in damp trenches while in the Army, he contracted pleurisy, which was to plague him for the rest of his days. During the early 1920's, he was in and out of a Sanatorium (known locally as the 'San') in Ninette, Manitoba, "for near to three years. At first it was thought he had T.B., however, it turned out to be pleurisy." Eventually, Thornton had to have a lung removed. The lung had been infected and rotted by the pleurisy. "The operation took place in the earlier 1920's, before my day. There was no chloroform as all stocks were down and supplies scarce. Dad sat backwards on a chair and the operation was done, just like that, and it turned out well. The lung was removed, a tube left in to drain, and he was sent home to heal." No wonder Raymond refers to Thornton as being "very sturdy."
After his discharge from the Army, Thornton "somehow got to Washington State, near to ten years later....he found our Mother in 'Snohomish' County...It seems he arrived in Snohomish County and swept our Mother 'off her feet' Our Mother's parents, the 'Wel overs', were not happy with this and, as a result, our parents eloped-Mother being just 16 years old. They evidently headed north into Canada to British Columbia. Dad found a job in a sawmill in Vancouver. He was excellent with an axe, saw, and draw-knife, as well as other tools of the day. It is odd that our parents never talked much of the wild adventures they had through life. All we have is bits and pieces of their horrendous travels "
"Dad was handy to cut, peel, and 'dovetail' logs, and he built a number of log cabins in his day. He built a wagon box while at Hope that was lined with tin and was nearly watertight. Some people used it to paddle across a river, and in the end it was never seen again Dad left his mark all along their journey...even to Manitoba where they stayed...end of journey....Mother was absolutely occupied with a child nearly every year, on the road ...Somewhere along the road, my parents were taken up with religion even though they were always believers, namely, Plymouth Brethren, and as a result came the names: Rachel, Daniel, and James. Interest in this died out before they got to Manitoba "
"Dad was a homemade 'blacksmith,' and all his work was from his own resources. Times were real hard during the 1920's, and then the 1930's were even worse....I had thought, as I grew up in the 1930's, that life was full of hazards and poverty, and so it was...I remember most of all during the 1930's, as a young lad, no money, barefoot every summer, and gum rubbers for severe cold (our feet were always cold), and just being so awfully poor. Of course, no electricity, no plumbing, nor running water....During those years it was very dry and crops 'rusted.' We asked Dad, How can grain rust? Well, it can. We saw this rust all over the binders, an inch thick in places. The grain never filled and the stalk stood straight up and no grain. We, as kids, wondered why the farmers were burning their whiole fields, and there was no threshing. They had to get rid of the straw. Thus, it was in the Dirty Thirties "
"We were the only family of Scribners in or around the district. They used to ask what 'nationality' we were. We were instructed by our parents to say we were 'Pennsylvanian Dutch', but never had an explanation who or what that meant; so it was more or less a joke Our Mother told us a little of 'her' home country in Washington State and that she came from 'Snohomish ' We told that at school and did they laugh and make fun of it, and said their mother came from Homsnomish We soon learned to 'avoid more of it "
"Dad sometimes talked about his brothers and sisters: Uncle Bill, Uncle Silas, Uncle Anson, Aunt Ella and Aunt Rose. Aunt Ella came to visit us one time from Edmonton, Alberta, and that was a big day for us to see what an 'Aunt' was like We had no idea where our aunts and uncles were, but we knew we had quite a few. We never saw any grandparents as all were in the U.S.A., and there was no money to travel in those days. Mother received a letter from a 'sister' in California and were we excited We had no idea where California was, but we were so excited because our Mother had a sister They spoke very little about their younger years, being totally preoccupied with survival. We had a team of horses, two cows, chickens, a few hogs, four acres of good soil, and a big garden (to weed ). Dad worked as a blacksmith (all hard work), and was nearly always 'paid by barter.' Money was hard come by."
"One year, in about 1936 or 1937, we had a plague of lizards (or salamanders) and everywhere one stepped there they were The window boxes at ground level were full every morning. They crossed the road so thick on the south hill out of town that the old cars spun out on lizards and had to back down and take a run at it Another time, it was moths, or 'mi liars' as we called them, that were so thick they got down the 'coal oil lamp chimneys' and put the light out. There was 'millar dust' everywhere It was hot in the summer, and freezing cold in the winter, and 'always the wind.' If we had heard of the 'wind chill factor' back then, we never would have survived "
"There was the 'wood pile'-everyone had to have a stock pile; it was a must. Everyone searched for wood for heat, and then it had to be cut, hauled, and cut again into stove length, and then carried into the house, and 'what a chore' it all was, day after day. We got so tired of 'chores,' wood, water and barn chores, etc. There were lots of 'scraps' (fights) about who did what, and 'whose turn' it was to go 'dig wood' out of the snow, or go for water. Mother used to say, 'The wood box' is empty and the 'stop pail is full,' and tell us to get going "
"My Dad was an ardent reader-reading every newsprint he could find, and a great politician; we heard lots about our Prime Minister 'Mackenzie King' Dad kept saying, 'There's going to be war.' As it turned out, he was right. We kids wondered who this Hitler was that Dad read about in the newspaper. We sure found out by and by as there were six of our family in active service before it was all over. Every mother was watching 'the casualty list' (in the newspaper) in terror. At least a dozen from 'our' village never returned. I knew them all."
"Dad lived another eight years after Mother, and was quite lonely. He moved to a little house at the foot of 'Cemetery Hill', on a street that he himself had opened up, and which should have his name, but it does not....In 1950, Dad took a massive heart attack and died suddenly."
"When was broke out in 1939, Daniel was first in our family to enlist (Calgary Highlander's Regiment); then Leslie (Navy); then Patrick (Armoured Car Division); then Joseph (Medical Corps); then Bessie (C.W.A.C. in Ottawa); and then Raymond (Infantry. Winnipeg and Shito). Dan, Les, Pat and Joe all went overseas, Les, Pat and Joe for duration. Dan, a Dispatch Rider (motorcycle), was blinded by a flash for a time and was sent back home in 1942. Les was nearly blasted out of the water many times by the dreaded German 'U' boats. Pat lost an eardrum when a shell exploded in their armoured vehicle. His ear ran liquid the rest of his days. They gave him a Seven Dollar a Month pension for a lost eardrum. Joe was more or less a nervous wreck, having seen so much at the front. Sister Bessie was sent to Ottawa to do office work. I just did basic and advance training as the war ended just as our 'Company' was next to go. By that time, we were well trained. There was lots of ammunition to use as they wanted to get rid of it. We got to be able to handle the .303 like a knife and fork I ended up at Camp Shito for nearly a year and then got out. Stan did a few years in the army after the war."