Porterville History...35º

I'm not good on the dates in history, but in a nutshell, 1940 America was coming out of the great depression, WWII was not over yet, but Blanche and Joe had a chance to build a new life...A small acreage with a house, barn and other outbuildings was purchased...Machinery and animals were added at some point and Joe worked at making a life as a farmer...Joe was a strong man and a hard worker, dawn to dark on the farm and odd jobs as a janitor to bring in some cash...He was also a gentle, kind, softhearted, loving, generous man...His weaknesses were, a bad back that would plague him for the rest of his life and a love of "Cornfield Corn Whiskey."

When things got bad on the farm, a cow died, when calving,  the wheat crop failed and the time of year, near Christmas when all the memories of a sick baby and subsequent death, all came rushing back...Whiskey dulled the pain, it made the days and nights bearable...This is difficult for me to write, because in the eyes of his children, Joe was our rock, we adored him and his love for us knew no bounds...He like all humans was not perfect.

Blanche and Joe struggled through the next 10 years, working the farm, building a small dairy herd, selling the milk, raising their family, they eeked out a living...I was born in 1942 and hopes of another boy in the family were dashed, when Doctor High, said, "Its a girl."...Three years later Blanche and Joe became grandparents, Loraine and Barbara were both married and moving on with their lives...I could never get a straight answer to why my parents decided to move away from friends and relatives to far away Idaho...Another life, another fresh start....Hugs To All..OWAV:)

Photos... Loraine and her son, George... Barbara and her son, Alan,  George, Mona and last photo, Idella and Alan on the tractor.