Sunday, May 9, 1920

MOTHER'S DAY
Beautiful warm day. Few sprinkles at nite. Arose 9 A.M. Took bath etc. To Broadway M. E. Church in A.M. To S.S. at First M.E.  Dinner. Did dishes. Took walk to Aqueduct with H.H. and Russell. To Epworth League. Rode with D.S.R. to Aunts. At church with gang. To bed 11:30 P.X.

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Mother's Day, but Stanford didn't spend it with his mother, apparently. In fact, there are not many occasions when Stanford spent time with his mother, at least none he mentions in his diaries. Maybe boys didn't do that back then. At least he did the dishes!

Saturday, May 8, 1920

Overcast cool spring day. Arose 7:15 A.M. To library 8-9 and college 9-11 A.M. Lost aff. of debate on 7 yr. Pres. term. Played tennis with H.H. Took nap. Greased car. H.H. and I on 6:30 P.M. to Albany. Took Stella & Agnes Sanborn to Proctors. Talked etc. Walked around town. Took 1:15 A.M. car. To bed 2:30 A.M.

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Twins and twins again! I did see a family tree that had the Sanborn girls and their mother in it. Their mother's name was Susan Eaton and father was Jonathan Sanborn. He died the year they were born, unfortunately. He was born in Vermont in 1853, one of 11 children. So apparently I was wrong about Susan Sanborn having been unmarried when she had her twins.

Friday, May 7, 1920

Intermittent cloudiness and sunshine. Arose 7 A.M. To college 8-9 A.M. and 1:30 to 2:30 P.M. Wrote formal rhetoric essay. Union-Wesleyan Baseball game. Score 1-2. To Reynolds' farm in Kingsbury's Kissel Kar with Dorothea, Mrs. Kingsbury and Chas in evening. Fine time. To bed 1:45 A.M.

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I'd never heard of a Kissel before this, but apparently there were such automobiles in the early part of the 20th century. Read about them in the Wikipedia article: Kissel Motor Car Company.

And here's an ad for one from 1917:

Thursday, May 6, 1920

Most beautiful bright hot day. Arose 7:15 A.M. To college 7:45 A.M. to 12:15 M. Home. Played tennis with H.H. and others. Good burn on. To Phi Nu Theta frat meeting at 7:30 P.M. Initiation of 6 men. Eats. Fine time. To bed 11:30 P.X.

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I didn't know the term "burn on" was around in 1920! Interesting.

Wednesday, May 5, 1920



Most beautiful warm sunny day. Arose 7:15 A.M. to college 7:45 to 9 A.M. Home. Chored around. Played tennis for first time at college with H.H. Bible class 11-12 M. Home. Dinner. Studied. Campus meeting at 7:30 P.M. Good gang out. Lots of pep. Home. Ice cream to eat. Talked. To bed 11 P.X.

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Curiously, Stanford has taken to rendering P.M. as P.X. I've never seen that before so don't know if it was common.

The drawing Stanford made for this day is kind of cute--a girl feeding a . . . dog? horse? A couple of trees and the bright sun. The person in bed (Stanford, presumably) seems to go with the day before.

I don't know what the Greek is; I tried transliterating and then translating and the best I could come up with is "simpleton," although I'm not sure why Stanford would be using that word to go with his picture or if they even are together. Any Grecophones out there?

Tuesday, May 4, 1920

Intermittent rain, cloudiness & sunshine. Arose 7:15 A.M. To college 7:45 A.M. to 12 M. Took nap in p.m. Studied, played piano, talked etc. Helped H.H. and father wash Super Six.  To Classical Club meeting at gym. Refreshments and pool at Union. To bed 12 P.M.

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Since we don't know what year the Super Six was, we'll have to guess it was at least a year old. Here's a picture of a 1917 model of the Hudson Super Six:

Monday, May 3, 1920

Beautiful bright mild spring day. Arose 7:30 A.M. To college 8-9 A.M. Wrote in diary. Studied. Wrote letter. On errands etc. To college 11-12:45 M. No bible class. To Chem. lab. To public library. Shot pool at Morse [with] Chamberlaye [and] Witherhead. Wrote letter to Stella. Studied. To bed 10 P.M.

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I have no idea what Chamberlaye Witherhead means. Maybe it will come clear later. I see Stanford wrote to Stella. That's kind of interesting.

Update: Further research shows Chamberlain and Witherhead were two of Stanford's friends.

Sunday, May 2, 1920

Sun and rain alternating all day. Arose 9 A.M. To church & S.S. Dinner. Gert Anthony, Lew Larkin, Merlin here in P.M. Rained so did not go after may-flowers. Read etc. Supper. To Epworth League. Good meeting. Marian Benedict led. "How to Show Sympathy" Russell Norris and I walked around and talked. To bed 11:45 P.M.

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Is Marian ever going to get together with Hanford?

Gathering mayflowers was apparently a pastime in those days. A song that was published in 1920, titled "April Showers Bring May Flowers," expressed the familiar sentiment that sunshine follows rain and so people should be grateful for showers because they bring flowers. But apparently one must wait until the rain stops before gathering the flowers that are produced.

Here is the link to a website that gives the lyrics, shows the sheet music, and plays the song for you: April Showers Bring May Flowers.

Saturday, May 1, 1920

Fair mild bright spring day. Arose 7:35 A.M. To college 7:45 to 9 A.M. Home. Studied, played, helped father etc. To college 10-12 A.M. Union-Williams track meet 40-76. D.S.R. and I from farm to Scotia H.S. to play, "Midsummer Nights Dream." Fine time. To bed 1 A.M.

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I wonder what Shakespeare was like back in 1920? And I wonder if Dorothea knew about the Sanborn twins?

Friday, April 30, 1920

Beautiful bright mild day. Arose 7:15 A.M. To college 7:45 to 9 and 11-12 M. Helped father etc. in A.M. Helped sort eggs. Union-Brooklyn Poly baseball game at 4:30 P.M. Score 16-3. To library. Bowled at Morse. To bed 11 BELLS.

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Well, if the scores are respective, then Union won the baseball game, I'm thinking. Brooklyn Poly was apparently Brooklyn Polytechnical College. Here is a New York Times article on the school from 1986: Storybook Success.

This entry was followed by a little drawing that has the caption: "Some rain - rainbow." I'm not sure he means it to describe Friday or Saturday, the following day.




Thursday, April 29, 1920

Cloudy wet rainy cool damp day. Arose 7 A.M. To college 7:45 A.M. to 12 M. Got hair cut. Studied. Read, played piano etc. supper. Took 6:34 car for Troy. H.H. & I took Agnes and Stella Sanborn to Russell Sage Glee Club Concert. Refreshments. Fine time. Took 11:15 P.M. car home. To bed 12:30 P.M.

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This time I was able to find out who Stella and Agnes Sanborn were. They were apparently twin daughters of a widowed mother, Susan. But though Susan is listed as widowed, her last name is the same as her sister's, Myra, with whom Susan and her two girls lived in 1900 in Michigan, and Sanborn is listed as Myra's maiden name in her marriage record. Could it be that Susan's husband died years before she gave birth to the twins? Or that she and the twins' father were never married? If so, the girls were probably born out of wedlock, as they used to say. I wonder if the Clossons knew that? [Later correction: mother's maiden name was Eaton.]

In 1920, according to the census, the Sanborns lived in Albany. In 1915, according to the New York State census, they lived in Herkimer, a little town between Albany and Syracuse. That must have been interesting to see the Closson twins with the Sanborn twins, all around the same age. I wonder if the Sanborn twins were identical?

Wednesday, April 28, 1920

Cloudy wet cool April day. Arose 7:15 A.M. To college 7:45 to 8:30 A.M. Helped father, studied etc. To college 11-12:30 A.M. Father, Nellie, Ruth, H.H. and I to Albany and Troy with Hudson. Hanford saw Kidder about chauffer's job. Dad bot two cars eggs. 47 1/4. To bed 10:30 P.M.


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I thought I'd add the drawing Stanford made for this entry since it was so cute. The stick figure with the oval shape must be his father receiving an egg and the other figure must be a woman who sold the egg and received money in exchange.

I guess Hanford is trying to get a chauffer's job from someone named Kidder. Interesting . . . 

Tuesday, April 27, 1920

Rain at nite. Overcast cool day. Arose 7:15 A.M. to college 7:45 -12 M. Shot pool from 8-9 A.M. Home. Wrote in diary etc. Studied. Downstreet. Bowled 5 games of ducks at Morse. Average 100. Sorted eggs etc. To Dr. Palmar's lecture. Stopped at Church. Saw D.S.R. To be 11:30 P.M.

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Monday, April 26, 1920

Beautiful bright mild day. Arose 7:20 A.M. To college 8-9 A.M. Studied. Helped father etc. To college 11-12:30 M also 1:30 to 2:30 P.M. John Myers and Anna here in P.M. Took nap. Studied. Sorted eggs etc. Delivered eggs and rode around. To library to study. To bed 10 bells. Thankful for all blessings.

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Sunday, April 25, 1920

Most beautiful bright mild day. Arose 9:30 A.M. To First Baptist Church with Finch. Prof. McKean preached. To S.S. at F.M.E. Chicken dinner. Walked around in P.M. with Larkin, Finch, Norris & H.H. To Epworth League. Albany St. gospel team lead. To Hardins [kiss] with D.S.R. To bed 1 A.M.

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Sounds like a good day!

Saturday, April 24, 1920

Fair cool day after alternate cloudy & bright. Arose 7:10 A.M. To college 9-11 A.M. Lost debate on socialist question. Played etc. Delivered eggs. Wrote essay. Down town on errands. Out with H.H. & Merlin Finch in evening. Walked around. Bowled at Morse. Talked on corner. To bed 12 bells.

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I wonder what the "socialist question" was? And which side Stanford argued?

It strikes me that most of my day-to-day activities would not be worthy of recording, but here are Stanford's, dutifully set down for posterity. I wonder how Merlin would have felt to know his friendship with Stanford had been recorded in such simple but telling detail?

Sunday, April 18, 1920


Fair warm day. Cloudy by spells. Arose 9:30 A.M. Took bath, shaved etc. To church & S.S. Home in P.M. Read, played piano, helped Ruth write letter to "Ma Ham" etc. Out after Dot Gallup with D.S.R. To Epworth League. Out to Hardins with D.S.R. in dodge. [L]unch etc. Walked home. To bed 12 P.M.

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Stanford drew another enigmatic picture at the beginning of this entry. Any guesses?

He took Dorothea for a ride but ended up walking home? Interesting . . .  I'm not sure who "Ma Ham" is, but she must be the mother of Frances Ham, with whom Stanford, and presumably Ruth, are friends. Was this a thank you letter?

Friday, April 23, 1920

Cloudy dark cool damp Spring day. Arose 7 A.M. To college 7:45 to 9 A.M. Studied, talked, read, played etc. No Bible class at 11 A.M. To college 1:30 to 3 P.M. Down town on errands. Uncle Charlie here to supper. Studied. Out with D.S. Reynolds. To Palace Theatre. Out 7:30; in 8:06; out 10:10. Walked to Ballston Ave Car. Studied. To bed 1 A.M.

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Thursday, April 22, 1920

Cool overcast spring day. Arose 7 A.M. To college 7:45 to 12 M. To college library to work on debate. Took nap, supper. Studied. To Phi Nu Theta fraternity meeting. To Public Library to work on debate. Home. Talked with Ruth etc. To bed 11 P.M.

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Here's a Wikipedia article about Phi Nu Theta: Eclectic Fraternity.

Wednesday, April 21, 1920

Overcast cool damp day. RAIN. Arose 7:15 A.M. To college 7:45 to 9 A.M. Shot pool. No English. Wrote in diary. Helped father, studied etc. To college 11-12 M. To Troy with Nellie to take unruly kid to Orphan Asylum. Studied. Wrote letters etc. Talked. To P.O. To bed 11:15 P.M.

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If the "unruly kid" was a boy, then he likely went to the Troy Catholic Boys Orphanage, established in 1850. There was a separate school for the girls and infants founded around the same time and run by the Sisters of Charity. The Troy Orphan Asylum is still in operation and still serving the needs of children, though it is now called Vanderheyden Hall.
I wonder if one of the ways of dealing with unruly children at the time was to put them in an orphan asylum, whether true orphans or not.

Tuesday, April 20, 1920

Most beautiful warm Spring day. Arose 7 A.M. To college 7:45 to 12 M. From 8-9 A.M. rode around with Bentley and shot pool. Studied in P.M. Family & Uncle Charlie out to see Reynolds' new home and John and Anna Myers. Sorted eggs. Kappa Sigma Pi meeting, 9 out. Gang bowled at Morse big & duck. R.E.N. , M.J. F., H.H. and I talked on street. To bed 12:30 P.M.

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What Bentley is he referring to, I wonder? Is it a car or a man? And I wonder who the Reynolds' are that he went to see? Perhaps Dorothea's parents?

Monday, April 19,1920

Beautiful mild clear Spring day. Arose 7:15 A.M. To College 8-9 A.M. Home. Studied, talked, played etc. To chapel 12 to 12:30 M. To Chem lab. 1:30 to 3:30 P.M. Took nap. Supper. Home in evening. Studied, talked etc. Thankful for all blessings.

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