An inventory of the contents of an early 20th Century American farmhouse: a document analysis.
by Barry Gray, April 2018
After my sister Becky died in October 2016, my brother-in-law gave me a few items that she had. Among them was an old, ruled notepad. The pages were brown and brittle, obviously quite old. The first twenty pages had handwriting in pencil. They held no narrative, only a listing of items. Occasionally an item had a number after it, apparently an amount in dollars and cents. At first I set the notepad aside, only really examining it over a year later.
I wondered what this document represented. Clearly it was something my sister had taken from our parents’ house, probably after our father, Robert B. Gray, died almost twenty years earlier. It must have had significance at one time, enough for my parents and my sister to have retained it.
But this fact raised several questions. Who created the list? What do the contents represent? When was it written, and why? I consulted my brother Bob, who is the family genealogist. We started on the assumption that the document came down from our father’s side of the family. We quickly ruled out our father as the creator, and a comparison of the handwriting to that of his father, Edward Gray, failed to match. Fortunately, Bob also had examples of Edward’s father William’s handwriting. My comparison of this to the list showed many similarities. I believe our great grandfather William Gray made the list. See the illustrations for an example.
The first page from the farmhouse list (left) and a letter written by William Gray. Click on each figure to expand. Comparison of the handwriting indicates William is the author of the farmhouse list.
Based on this assumption, we then concluded that the list represents the contents of William’s farmhouse in Oswego, New York. We believe it must have been made around 1920. This is based on the reference to Pyrex and other things. This fact allowed us to rule out other homes owned by William’s parents or other relatives, which would no longer have been in the family by that time.
My brothers and I have only vague memories of what the farmhouse looked like. The organization of the list by rooms gives some idea of the layout. It was probably one story, with part of the attic finished for extra sleeping quarters. The only known photos of the house, which were taken by our father in the 1930s, after his grandparents had died, show parts of the interior and exterior, with his father and aunts. The interior photographs show two rooms, and many of the items seem to match those on the list. The photo of Florence Gray reading the Saturday Evening Post was probably taken in the parlor, and the one of Thyrza Gray was probably taken in the back room.
William Gray’s children, Edward (E.T.), Florence, Margaret, and Thyrza, sitting outside the Gray farmhouse in Oswego, New York, c 1937.
Florence Gray outside the Gray farmhouse in Oswego, New York, c 1937.
Margaret Gray and unknown dog outside the Gray farmhouse in Oswego, New York, c 1937.
Thyrza Gray outside the Gray farmhouse in Oswego, New York, c 1937.
Florence Gray in the parlor of the Gray farmhouse based on items listed by William Gray c. 1920. The magazine Florence is reading is the June 20, 1937 edition of The Saturday Evening Post.
Thyrza Gray, probably taken in the back room of the Gray farmhouse, based on the items listed by William Gray c. 1920.
As for the reason why William created the list, we can only speculate. One likely theory, proposed by my sister in law, is that he made it for insurance purposes. This is supported by William’s age at the time, since he may have wanted to ensure that his daughters could stay in the house after he passed away. He probably built the house around 1870, as he married Rosanna Stevenson in 1871. Rosanna died in 1922, and William in 1924.
This document also has larger significance as a record of early 20th Century family farm life. At that time, farm life was in decline. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the 1920 census marked the first time in which over 50 percent of the U.S. population was defined as urban. Total farm population also dropped for the first time in the 1920 census, a decline that has continued ever since.
Farm life in the 1920s was precarious, as prices collapsed after World War I. The list reflects this. There is little of any monetary value. The values assigned to a few items are all five dollars or less.
Notably absent from the list are any electrical devices. Rural electrification was not profitable for power companies. Most farms did not have access to electric service until after the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 provided federal loans for the purpose of installing electrical distribution grids in the rural United States The following story from a local newspaper of the time indicates that the Gray farm did not even have a radio in 1921.
The Palladium-Times, Oswego, New York
Saturday, Oct 3, 1921:
“William Gray, Gray Rd., Oswego Town was a little disappointed today because the Giants and Yanks didn't play. Mr. Gray, who will be 84 in June, hiked three miles to hear result of today's game. When he learned the game was rained out, he started for home and to get some mushrooms for supper.”
Note also that although the list includes “Kodak photos,” it does not mention a camera. If the list is an inventory of the farmhouse in Oswego, it is also interesting that there is no mention of any farm tools or machinery. Perhaps William listed these on a separate notepad.
I have read other documents where the authors’ spelling was haphazard. One thing that struck me as I read the list is the spelling is immaculate. I have not had to correct any of it in the transcription. Note the large number of books mentioned. There is a tradition of educational achievement in the Gray family, despite its relatively modest means. This document indicates that William probably had more than a rudimentary education for the time.
Our grandfather Edward, William’s only son, attended Cornell University. He moved to Johnstown, Pennsylvania before World War One, to find work and raise a family. His three sisters continued to live in the house after their parents died, and never married. Thyrza died in 1951 and Edward died in 1956. In his will, Edward left his share of the farm in Oswego to his sister Florence. In settling Edward’s estate, an appraisal of the farm was performed by a licensed New York State Real Estate Broker. The appraisal included a detailed description of the farm house. When the last surviving aunt was moved to a nursing home in the 1960s, our parents visited the farm with my brother Brien and I. This was just before the house and farm were sold. The farm was abandoned, and the house burned down in 1972. When my brothers and I visited the site in 2012, there was no trace of it. The location of the farmhouse is provided at Historical Maps of Oswego County, New York.
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Possible items from the Gray farmhouse in Oswego, New York
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