Music in the Family Series Part VII – Bob Landry’s Life of Music

One comment

Surely you couldn’t think that I had finished my series of Music in the Family without shining the spotlight on my dad?  His whole life was practically about music.  His career, his hobbies, and interests were mostly centered around music.  It was the only “other woman” that my mom had to worry about!  It took more time away from her than she liked at times.

My dad was involved in choral music, band music, and barbershop singing.  If anybody was interested in music and had a question or needed help, Bob Landry was willing to help.  It didn’t matter about your heritage, race, sex, or social status, he gave his time freely, which sometimes bothered my mom.  At times she struggled to makes ends meet on the salary of a band teacher and some of those people he was helping could afford to be paying for private lessons!  But my dad couldn’t be bothered.  Music was the important thing!

Newspaper article circa Aug. 1963

I just came across this article from around August of 1963 when I was looking for photos for this post.  I didn’t even know it existed, but it has a lot of information in it that I was wanting to know.  It tells about the history of my dad’s musical experiences just prior to beginning work in the band and choral programs in Jefferson Davis Parish.  He taught for two years in Elton and then moved on to Jennings at Northside Junior High School where he would make his mark on so many people in Jennings through the years.

The article indicates that Daddy began learning band instruments his freshman year at Landry Memorial High School in Lake Charles under the direction of Eddie See.  This was around 1942 and the two of them would have a long history together.  (Such as creating the McNeese fight song “Jolie Blon”)  During high school my dad learned many various instruments and even taught other students during his senior year.

McNeese band circa 1947

After high school he went to McNeese and was in the band there.  This is a photo of the McNeese band in 1947.  Bob – or Pluto as he was known by many back then – can be seen on the far right of the photo with a baritone.

I know that about this same time is when my dad began to get involved with barbershop singing.  He was a member of the Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barber Shop Quartet Singing in America or SPEBSQSA for short.  Growing up in the Landry household meant that you knew these letters and what they stood for!

Bob and Betty Landry played baritone for McNeese. They can be seen in the upper left of the photo. Bob on the left, Betty in the middle, and third baritone on the right.

Daddy’s college career included stints at Lafayette and Baton Rouge.  It was in Baton Rouge that he met my mom when she visited the campus for a solo and ensemble festival in 1950.  He returned to McNeese when it became a four year school and my mom started college that same year.  My dad was the first student at McNeese to play a senior recital in 1951.  This photo is a photo I scanned from the McNeese yearbook that shows the band performing in the auditorium.  You can see mom and dad in the upper left part of the photo.  Who would have guessed that they’d be making music together for 65 more years after that?

Daddy was in the first graduating class from McNeese in 1952 and then went on to join the Air Force. While there, he was in the Air Force band. Shortly after that he and my mom were married and started a family. Jodie was born in California and Rob was born in Albuquerque while he was in the Air Force. They moved back to Lake Charles where Karen, Al, Van (me), and Jamie were born. Daddy continued his educational pursuits and earned his Master’s Degree from LSU in 1962

1966 summer band program at Northside

As I said earlier, he began teaching at Northside in 1965. I have so many memories from those early years of the band program.  He had the summer band program in the old Northside gym.  It was before there was air conditioning in the building, so it could get rather warm in there with all those little bodies running around and singing with their warm little breaths!  They had classrooms on the side of the gym and we would meet in there to sing and play as the big fan in front of the classroom would swing back and forth.  We young kids would play the ukulele and the older ones would graduate to guitar and bass.  And oh the songs we’d sing:  This Land is Your Land, Five Foot Two, Down in the Valley, Red Sails in the Sunset, The Ballad of the Green Beret, Cuando Calienta el Sol, Mobile, and many many more. (One of those songs was Swinging Shepherd Blues with my sister Jodie and her friend Stella Duvall playing a flute duet.)

Barbershop quartet The Crawdads – Bob Landry, Oran Richard, Steve Coco, and Nathan Avant circa 1968

During this time Daddy was also continuing his involvement with barbershop.  He would always have a barbershop quartet, plus he would work with the chorus in Lafayette or Jennings.  This photo is from around 1968 and includes Bob Landry, Oran Richard, Steve Coco, and Nathan Avant.  This group was called the Crawdads, and there were the BoBobAlNicks, the Pride of the Marsh, and many other quartets.  I should remember more and will recognize many of them that people mention to me from time to time.  And some of the people in the quartets should be mentioned: Al Cassidy, Rusty Cassidy, John McBurney, Bobby Henry, Nick Pizzolatto, Steven Comeaux, George Smith, Doc McGregor, and again many more that I should remember!

Pam Jones, Bob Landry, and John McZeal at the band drive at Northside.

One of the big events at Northside over the years was the instrument drive in the new band room (with air conditioning!) with the help of Swicegood’s Music and Orville Kelly.  Bright, young students with an interest in band would show up to see where they might fit into this celebrated band program in Jennings.  Daddy would assess the interest of the kids and see what instrument might be the best fit for the individual.  Some people just didn’t have the right embouchure for certain instruments.  I remember that he also gave a music aptitude test to the students at some point.  I will now admit that I was always jealous of the fact that Damon Cormier made a 100 on that test and I didn’t.  Let’s not speak of this ever again.

1967 Northside band party – siblings Karen in foreground in front of Jodie, behind them is Rob in blue shirt, me (Van) with elbow covering my forehead, and Al in red block shirt next to me.

The other yearly event for the Northside band was the band party that was held at our house on Lucy Street. All the kids would come over to our house and wreak havoc. Thank goodness there was a large empty lot across the street for playing games like horseshoes and such in addition to the basketball goal we had in our driveway. My mom would always provide the refreshments for the party. My absolute favorite memory of those refreshments was when we made some special sugar cookies. We shaped them like snakes, put cross hatches on the bodies to look like scales, and gave them eyes made out of red hots! They were a big hit. I especially enjoyed the parties when I was younger because I got to hang out with the big kids likes Celia Joe Black.

1970s – Bob Landry playing upright bass with the MoodMasters

Then the mid 70s came around and there was lots of playing music for dances and such.  Not any of that “rock and roll trash” that was saturating the airways, but good music.  Needless to say, my dad was not a fan of rock and roll.  I remember even earlier when the Beatles were on the Ed Sullivan show and my dad had me turn down the volume on the TV so we would not have to listen to them.  (Yes, I was the remote for the TV at the time.  I’m that old!)

Landry Family Band circa 1977

Daddy played many different instruments and with many different people (Such as the Moodmasters shown in the above photo.  Bob Landry on bass.)  But then there came a great thought – let’s have a family band.  And with that the Landry Family Band came into being.  And of course our most recognizable gig was the five years we played at Shakey’s Pizza Parlor in Lake Charles.  Yes, you may remember us from the Food Fest at the Contraband Days or at the many receptions that we played, but we will be forever linked to pizzas (like the Bill’s special or Hawaiian Delight) and those famous spuds.  The glory never fades!  This photo is from Shakey’s.  Some of you may remember the infamous “Dueling Jugs” played by Bob and Jamie Landry.  Different instruments for sure!

1996 at the train station in Hammond, LA. The Landry family is always ready to sing a song or two.

Daddy retired from teaching in the mid 80s but continued to incorporate music in all aspects of his life.  He and mom sang at church, at ‘old folks homes’, and for many years they danced ’round dances’ to their favorite styles of music.  They also passed some of that musical knowledge on to their grandchildren.  When the family took a train to Chicago in 1996 for my brother Al’s wedding, we had a little time to wait at the station for the train to arrive.  We didn’t waste time doing nothing while we waited, we took out our song books and instruments and sang a few tunes!  Isn’t that what everyone does?  The picture is proof!

2015 – Bob and Betty introduced themselves to their new community at Brookdale by way of playing and singing a song or two.

Even into their golden years they were singing and playing everywhere they went.  During their last years in Jennings, they had a ukulele group that played at churches and nursing homes.  For many years they played at the War Vets home the first Wednesday of the month.  When they moved into Brookdale in August of 2015, one of the first things they did was go to the piano and play a few songs for their new neighbors.  As you can see, their love for music was a bright spot in people’s lives.  They continued sharing this as long as they could.

When my parents died in January of this year, my siblings and I decided to put together a fund that would help people to act on their interest in music.  It’s called the Bob Landry Life of Music Award and it will purchase band instruments for the school in Jennings where he taught.  The first purchase will be a flute, a trumpet, a clarinet, another trumpet, a trombone, and another flute – the instruments that the Landry kids played.  If you would like to contribute to this memorial fund, monies can be sent to the Jeff Davis Bank, P. O. Box 820, Jennings, LA  70546.

Or you could just think of him from time to time when you are enjoying your favorite song.

Music in the Family Series Part VI – Fiddling With the Keys

2 comments

As I have said previously, there have been a lot of musical members of our family/families.  My family was known as a musical family since before I was born.  If you have been reading my Music in the Family Series, you would also know that there were musical family members before my parents were born as well.  So this week I’ll take you back even further.  Further than all of my other postings in this series.  Let’s go back to the 1840s.

The musical information comes from the 1840s, but the individual I’m talking about was born in 1822.  That’s right!  Almost 200 years ago, my great great grandfather Henry Keys was born in Chipping Ongar, Essex, England, to George and Elizabeth Crouchman Keys.  The date was April 12th and he was not alone.  He had an identical twin brother named James.

April 11, 1840 – Apprenticeship contract for Henry Keys to tinman John Wright

The day before Henry became 18 years old (in 1840) he entered into a contract of apprenticeship with a tin plate worker (aka a tinman) named John Wright.  The contract was for a period of three years and was signed by Henry Keys, George Keys, and John Wright.  (Pretty cool to see the signature of my great, great, great grandfather.)

The day before Henry became 21 years old (1843) he completed his apprenticeship and became a Tinman.  (He did not have a friend named Oz.  At least there is no record of anyone by that name giving him anything!)  But the most relevant part of the completion of his apprenticeship is that he rewarded himself for the accomplishment.  He had saved up money during these three years and the cherished reward that he bought himself was a violin.  It shows you what was important to him.

As a bachelor for twenty-six years, he worked as a tin plate worker making gas meters.  I’m sure he was also playing his violin during this time, but there really isn’t much else written about this period in his life.  It was on November 8, 1869, that he married Martha Ann Cook on her 33rd birthday.  She herself was an independent person who had a business of her own making clothes and accessories for children.  She must have been a musical person as well, because the only portrait of her shows her standing next to a piano with her hands fiddling with the keys.

Henry Keys

I believe this is a photo of a portrait of Henry Keys. I estimated it to be from 1880, but it could be earlier.

By 1881 Henry and Martha had five children together.  Another sign that they were a musical family is the fact that the two boys Henry and Alfred sang in a boys choir in London.  On at least one occasion they sang with the choir for Queen Victoria.  Their daughter Daisy (my great grandmother) was known to play the piano, but I’m not sure when she learned.  From the portrait mentioned earlier it looks like there was a piano in the home, so she could have learned as a child in England.

Henry and Martha had family members who moved to America.  They decided that they would move the family to America also and began to save money for this new chapter in their life.  So again, this must have been something important to them.  But sadly, Henry suffered with bronchitis for four months and died at the age of 64 in 1886.  He never made it to America where his wife and children would eventually go.  But his violin did.

I’ve read accounts of the move to America and they always say “They sold everything they had.”  But they didn’t.  They held on to a few prized possessions.  One of those cherished items was the violin that Henry bought in 1843.  When they made it to Louisiana, at some point Martha gave the violin to her son Leonard with the proviso that he would learn to play it, as long as he practiced in the barn!  This makes me laugh.  It reminds me of my mom.  When I was in junior high, I learned how to play many different instruments.  My dad was the band director so I could taken them home with me.  The only thing my mom discouraged me from playing was the violin.  When a person is learning the violin, the notes can be rather screechy in a way that would give mom a headache.  I acquiesced.

Leonard James Keys with the violin his father bought in 1843.

And learned the violin Leonard did.  But he also learned to play the trombone and flute.  His older brother Henry played the violin, clarinet, and flute.  I’ve told you that Daisy played the piano.  Her husband Harry Phenice played the violin as well.  So did the husbands of Daisy’s sisters Ruth and Mabel.

When I was researching this information, I notice there are a lot of descendants who are musicians.  It could be that every family has a musician here and there, but it does seem like quite a few in my family.  The researching also made me wonder about that old violin from 1843.  Is it still around?  Does a family member have it?  I know that musical instruments can last a long time if taken care of properly.

So I asked my cousin Carolyn (daughter of Edith who provided me with the improved version of the photo/portrait of Henry Keys) if she knew of the whereabouts of that violin.  Her grandfather was Leonard Keys, so it is likely to be with her family group somewhere if at all.  She let me know that “Yes, indeed!” that violin is still in existence.  It is in the possession of her cousin Johnny and he still enjoys playing it!  How cool is that!?  She sent me this photo of her grandfather Leonard with the cherished violin.  A family keepsake that one day I’d like to see in person and photograph.

Here is a transcription of the apprenticeship contract of 1840 that came from Edith Keys Segraves’ book.

 

Music in the Family Part V – Jacko and Papi

One comment

Every week that I post something about music, my sock monkeys Jacko and Papi have been begging to include them in a post.  “After all,” Papi said, “I am the one that taught you how to sing.”  I always thought it was my mom and dad.  They did do a lot of singing when I was growing up.  But I also remember spending time with Papi when I was a kid.

Here is a photo of me with Papi when I was three years old.  It sure does look like he may have been singing in my ear!  He assured me that he was singing the “Yo! Ho!” song to me.  “What?” I asked, “That song wasn’t written until our Reunions Adventure.  This picture was taken way before that.”

“I know,” Papi said, “I started the song years ago when I taught Buddiloo to sing.”  So now he’s trying to take credit for teaching my mom to sing!  I know he was around back then, but I never really know when to trust what he is saying.

“Yes,” he explained, “It was around the time I was coaching Murder to sing for those old recordings you shared with everyone a few weeks ago.  I told you that!  You never listen to me.  Some sock monkey whisperer you are!  Hmmph!”

“You weren’t even there back then,” I started, but then I realized that he had been there.  I have a picture of him with Mama back in 1938.  Jacko shared it with y’all in the Sock Monkeys in the Past post.  And the recordings of Grandma (Myrtle Phenice Bucklin, not Murder as Papi incorrectly calls her) were done around 1944 “when those German Nasties were around,” as Papi likes to put it.  I’m sure he’s going to take credit for teaching her to play the baritone now.  “No,” he said, “She learned that at school.  I just sang along with her when we called the cows.”  That’s good to know.

So today I’m going to share with you “Papi and Jacko’s Traveling Song.”  According to Papi he started it in the 1940s, then he and Jacko added some more verses in 2007, and finally Jacko and I added the last part in that same year.  I’m sure some of you will recognize the melody from “The Lonely Goatherd” song from “The Sound of Music.”  It’s a rather catchy little song.  I hope you enjoy it.

Yo! Ho! Going on Adventures –
Jacko and Papi’s Traveling Song

 

Long, long ago lived a monkey sock

And a little girl that everyone called Betty Lou.

She played him a song on her baritone

Til the cows all came a-runnin’ with a moo.

​

They went to church with her Ma and Pa

And sang and gave their Glory Be’s to You Know Who.

She took along little Cyrus sock

Cuz he promised that he wouldn’t throw his poo!

​

After the service he told them tales

Of many of the places that he’d traveled to.

He made sure that they knew his skills

So they wouldn’t want to put him in a zoo.

​

Yo, ho! Going on adventures.

Yo, ho! Always on the move.

Yo, ho! Going on adventures.

That’s what I like to do.

​

Much later on in a different state,

He befriended a sock monkey who was very new.

His little friend took the name Jacko

And Cyrus then became his Papiloo.

 

Most of the time they stayed at home

With a family of several kids who grew and grew.

They looked forward to summertime

Cuz the fam’ly always went to somewhere new.

​

Yo, ho! Going on adventures.

Yo, ho! Always on the move.

Yo, ho! Going on adventures.

That’s what we like to do!

​

All of the kids grew up and left

and the house that they had lived in was too big for two.

The ma and pa got a smaller place

And they decided just one sock would do.

 

Poor little Jacko was sent away

and Jacko and his Papi had a big boo hoo!

They gave him a tag with an asking price.

At least they didn’t put him in a zoo.

​

He sat on a shelf with some other socks

as people walked right by with not much else to do.

Kids always grabbed them and pulled their tails

and some of them were taken home in twos.

 

A man by the name of Van came in,

And he journeyed from the same state as Papi Lou.

With help from above Van and Jacko met

And they became a trav’ling team of two.

​

Yo, Ho! Going on Adventures.

Yo, Ho! Always on the move.

Yo, Ho! Going on Adventures.

That’s what we like to do!

 

Not long ago Papi surfed the web

and came upon a story too good to be true.

Though he was old he still liked to see

the adventures of sock monkeys on the move.

 

There on the screen was his friend Jacko

and he traveled with a man that Papi thought he knew.

When he heard that his name was Van,

he knew it was the son of Buddiloo!

 

He sent off a note to his friend Jacko

to see about returning to the place he knew.

Jacko and Van came to pick him up

and their reunion was a big todo.

 

They met up with friends on their way back home,

and Papi hugged and kissed the girls of Rue Cou Cou.

Though Jacko and Van begged to take him home,

Papi went to live with Betty Lou.

​

 

Yo, Ho! Going on Adventures.

Yo, Ho! Always on the move.

Yo, Ho! Going on Adventures.

That’s what we like to do!

Music in the Family Part IV – Patureau Keepsake

Leave a comment

I thought I should have a Keepsake version of Music in the Family.  Especially since I was wanting to showcase this instrument for a while.  I tried to find photos or audio files of it in action, but no such luck.  I do have a few photos of it though.  So here you go.

1928 Vega tenor banjo

This was my dad’s banjo for many years.  He played it at Shakey’s sometimes with the family band in the 1970s, but it has a longer history than that.   Daddy left me a document about the banjo that he wrote on January 15, 2005.

Besides playing it with the family band, he also stated that he played it with some Dixieland bands in Lake Charles.  He also played it in the orchestra pit with a ‘pit band’ for Lake Charles Little Theater productions.  But he wasn’t the first owner of this Vega Four string Tenor banjo.

Vincent Maximilian Patureau, Jr. circa 1922

Daddy inherited it in 1956 when his uncle Vincent Maximilian Patureau, Jr. passed away.  Daddy was 27 years old at the time and Uncle Vincent died at the age of 54.  He was my Mee Maw’s youngest brother.  Uncle Vincent had it for many years and played it with a band in Baton Rouge.  That’s about all I know.  I’m not sure when he lived in Baton Rouge.  Probably in the 1920s and 30s when he was in his twenties and thirties.

Maybe at the age he is in this photo.  I got this photo recently from my dad’s cousin.  (Thanks again, Sis!)  He may have honed his craft for a few years, then decided to buy himself a nice Vega banjo.  That would fit with the timeline of when this banjo was produced.  According to Daddy the serial number places it as being put together in 1928.

I got the banjo in August of 2015 when we moved my mom and dad into Assisted Living in Lake Charles.  I encouraged him to keep it because there was room for it in the apartment that he had, but he wanted me to take it.  So I did.  I’ve always thought it was a beautiful instrument.  And now it’s back in Baton Rouge, where it first came into our family.

1928 Vega tenor banjo

1928 Vega tenor banjo

Music in the Family Part III – Listen to Myrtle Sing

Leave a comment

The more I look into my family history for references to music, the more I realize how much it plays a part of the family.  I had thought at first that the series would be a month long, but now I’m thinking it will probably be close to two months long.  And since last week we looked at my dad’s side of the family, this week will be looking at my mom’s side.  In particular, the focus will be on my mom’s mom Myrtle Phenice Bucklin.  My Grandma.

Myrtle Phenice Bucklin

Myrtle Phenice Bucklin circa 1949

When I was a kid I never really cared for Grandma’s singing.  She sang kinda loud with a vibrato that seemed operatic to me.  I’ve never been a fan of the opera.  Different strokes for different folks.  But music was always very important to her.  She was singing til the day she died.  I mean that literally.  When she was 79 years old she was still singing at nursing homes for the “old folks.”  On May 6, 1986, she was singing and playing the piano for her peeps when she had a stroke and fell off the piano bench.  She ended up dying the following morning at 6:01 am.

Not only was she singing at the end of her own life, she sang at the end of her husband’s life too.  (You know this already if you’ve read all of my other posts.)  She sang his favorite song to him – “Amazing Grace” – and as she wrote in a letter to her childhood friend, “I’d finished singing, he looked up at me, smiled and died.”  Music was definitely an important part of her life.  But music wasn’t just a part of the end of her life, it was part of her early life, too.

Her father was Harry Clifton Phenice and her mother was Daisy Keys Phenice.  Both of them were musical people.  HC played the fiddle and he like to play by ear.  According to writings of Grandma’s sister Marguerite, he played a “homey” style that everyone liked.  He would play at community dances along with other extended family members.  He entered a fiddle contest in Jennings once and lost because he played a slow tune.  Daisy was beside herself because he didn’t play a showstopper like his usual upbeat songs like “Turkey in the Straw” or “Irish Washerwoman.” (or even “Soldier’s Joy”)  This allowed Daisy’s brother Leonard to win the contest when clearly HC was the better fiddler. (No bias there.)

The family also would have other families come over for a ‘sing-a-long.’  Daisy would bake peanuts or popcorn, and sometimes she would go all out and make popcorn balls with caramel and nuts.  (A treat that my mom would make for us from time to time.)  HC would play the fiddle, Myrtle (Grandma) or Daisy would play the piano, her brother Henry would play the violin, and Warren and the others would all sing along.  So Grandma grew up around music and was used to playing and singing in front of people.

That is a good thing, because otherwise she wouldn’t have been a willing participant when her older brother Sylvan suggested that he would record her singing some of her favorite songs in 1944.  Sylvan was into radio and sound systems from a young age.  This led to the Bucklin family being one of the early adopters for radio in the early days.  It also led to Sylvan making recordings of his family conversations and singing.  I am particularly thankful to him for that.

When I ‘rediscovered’ these recordings last year, I wasn’t sure who it was singing on them.  I thought it sounded like Grandma, but they were in a style that I liked.  I checked with mom and she assured me that they were Grandma.  The recordings were from around 1944.  It was after that time that she started taking singing lessons and adopted the more operatic style that I heard when growing up.  She even sings the old Irish song “Mother McCree” with a brogue and rolls her Rs.  I love it. (The titles of the songs are linked to the recordings.)

The recordings are in really good shape.  I did edit them to make it easier to listen to them.  When she sang “Smiles” she went straight into “Perfect Day” and I wasn’t sure it was a new song. I separated them into two separate files. Then on “There’s an Old Spinning Wheel in the Parlor” the song was cut off before the ending.  Fortunately for us, she had perfect pitch which made the editing easy.  Otherwise the beginning of the song would be out of tune with the end.

So enjoy listening to Grandma sing these old songs from bygone days.  I always find that listening to them in my car has the best effect.  If you have a smart phone that is linked to your sound system, that is.  And do it when you’re not driving!  I’m sure that thought never crossed her mind when those songs were recorded.  Mercy me!

After Grandma and Grandpa moved to Jennings in the 1970s, Grandma sang many solos at the Trinity United Methodist Church.

International Harvester 123-SP Combine

Leave a comment

Herbert, Roy Bucklin, and their mom split the cost of a new International Harvester 123-SP Combine in 1945 for $3319.24. The statement from Jennings Tractor & Implement Co., Inc. is below.  Mom says they bought the first one in the area.

I found a webpage with this info about that model: “In 1942 International Harvester offered its first self-propelled combine designated the No. 123-SP. The 123-SP featured a 6 cylinder IH engine, 12 foot grain head and hydraulic platform control. Options included a straw spreader and seed bagging attachment.”

On Facebook I wondered how long they would have used the 1945 combine and if it could be in this 1965 photo.

Jon Lawson wrote:

I remember my grandfather, Roy, telling me about this combine that they bought. He said they spent more time fixing it than cutting in the beginning. They were not very reliable in the beginning. He also told me that they were the fist to own one in the area also.

I really don’t know how long they used it but I kinda doubt it would have lasted that long. However we both know that our grandfathers would stretch the life out of equipment to it’s absolute maximum before discarding it therefore I wouldn’t rule it out.

Ray Bucklin told me:

Seward LeJuene and Herbert Bucklin cut rice together back when Seward LeJuene and Addie Bucklin [and her sons] owned the only two combines in the area.  Seward LeJuene was the owner of one of the big grain driers in Elton.

The combines lasted beyond 1965.  Remember the 1952 Ford truck that was still being driven in the 1970s. Daddy and Uncle Roy bought two of the same model IH Combines. So, you may find the receipt for the second combine somewhere.

They replaced the IH combines with Case combines sometime around the time I was in high school. I am not sure when I started driving the combines, but it was sometime in High school (1964-1968, probably Fall 66) and at that time we were using one of the IH combines and one of the new Cases. I am pretty sure that I drove the IH for more than one year. The IH was fun to drive. It had lots of levers to keep adjusting. So both hands were often off the steering wheel and you steered with the brakes. The Case had a lot of levers too, but it had hydraulic systems which made things a bit easier. I am not sure if we bought the second Case when I was in High School or if I had started College.

So, Daddy and Uncle Roy used the IH combines until the late sixties, but 20 year old stuff for our family is just getting broken in, so of course Daddy and Uncle Roy sold the IH combines to Harley Bruchhaus. I don’t know how long Harley kept using them. They are almost certainly scrap by now, but there is a remote chance that they are still sitting somewhere on the Bruchhaus farm. Charles may remember how long Harley used them. There is a good chance that Charles drove them too.

Roy Bucklin Home

Leave a comment

Ronnie Collins asked if I had some old photos of his house which was built in 1886. Before it was Roy Bucklin’s house, it was a Hine home so there should be plenty of photos in the family. I found these two I sent him a while back. I have probably scanned more, just have to find them, my scans aren’t very well organized and labeled. If you have any, I am sure Ronnie would appreciate seeing them and so would I.

The first photo is Doris, Roy, and Jeannette Bucklin. The second is Jeannette.

Mama at Bro Krumnow’s, making sandwiches for Christmas Eve 1958

Leave a comment

“Mama at Bro Krumneau’s, making sandwiches for Christmas Eve 1958” was the label on this film. Shirley and Lauren helped me ID some of the people. We thought the first half looked like it was taken at Ruth’s house. Lawrence is in red.

In the second half, Brother Clarence B. Krumnow is in a suit. Addie Hine Bucklin sitting in a rocking chair. William Charles “Budda” Bruchhaus points at the Christmas tree with kid in front. And Charles Bruchhaus is the kid in the diaper.

Uvonne said she saw Uncle Rudolph and Aunt Laura in there.

 

Dear Brother June 14, 1893

Leave a comment

Joe Bucklin was keeping his brother Louis Charles Bucklin up to date on the farm and family news while at school in Ada Ohio.  Their sister Jennie is not doing well and we believe died later in the month.  We found a copy of part of this letter.  If I can find the original and missing pages, I will update the post.

Lake Arthur   La.   June 14
L. C. Bucklin Esq.
Ada Ohio.

Dear Brother:  I thought would write to you every few days to Keep you posted with regards to matters down here.  Have nothing new to write you with regard to the rice question though it is looking quite nice.  Our hired man took Lillie Tupper home Sat.  And he said he did not see any on his trip as nice as ours   He said that Eds was very nice but had no water.

I got a letter from Austin yesterday and he is having the ………es.  He invested his money in City property expecting a boom and was going to sell out and make something but the boom did not put in an appearance and now he can’t get his money out of them.

Well, Lou, am very sorry I can’t send you good news.  the Dr. was here yesterday and did not seem to have much hope of Jennie’s recovery but he said something might turn up yet.  Her heart is quite badly effected.  Mother told me to send you the money that you might be ready for any summons.  Now Lou you must use your own judgement whether ……..

Music in the Family Part II – Patureau

Leave a comment

When I was young I thought I knew everything.  Understood everything.  What is it about the innocence of youth that makes people think this?  Is it innocence?  Yes, I guess it is.  Maybe a little bit of ignorance thrown in with it, though.  The older I get, the more I realize that I don’t know everything.  Not even close.  When you are young, you know your immediate family and you kinda know your place in it.  When you start looking into family history, you realize that your family is much bigger and spread out.

This is particularly true for the idea of music in my family.  When my family had the Landry Family Band in the 70s and 80s, we (maybe I should say I) thought we were so innovative and different.  People would even say that it was “special” or “extraordinary.”  We weren’t famous or anything, but we did play together every week at Shakey’s Pizza Parlor in Lake Charles.  We’d also play for events or parties.  It was pretty special, but it wasn’t the first time that family members performed music together.

Kelly's String Band

Kelly’s String Band circa 1900 performed in the Plaquemine, Louisiana, area.

Just look at this photo from 1900.  The name of the band was Kelly’s String Band and there were some family members in it from my Patureau family line.  In the front with the funny looking trumpet (not a string) is my great great uncle Alcide Patureau (my father was Bob Landry, his mother was Erie Patureau, her father was Max Patureau, and Max & Alcides’s father was Ferdinand Patureau who was originally from France).  Alcide’s (& Max’s) brother Omer is the one in the middle with the banjo.  The guy on the right with the mandolin is Alcide and Omer’s (& Max’s) nephew Ferdinand Hebert (son of Aline Patureau Hebert).  The two guys standing up are Nick Manola and Wade Landry.  I don’t know of any relation to them.

So at least 70 years before our Shakey’s day, there were family members performing for other people’s entertainment.  And I’m sure there were probably more before that in the unknown history of the family.  This is the earliest photographic record of a band in my family.  I’d love to know what they sounded like and what kinds of music they played.

Plaquemine, Louisiana, in 1894 - Patureau family

Omer Patureau and Ferdinand Hebert

I have this other photo of two of these members who must have performed on their own with their dueling banjos.  This is Omer Patureau and Ferdinand Hebert in a photo dated 1894.  Both photos show that they were taken in Plaquemine.

As I’ve said before, people in the past did not have as readily available access to entertainment and information as we do now.  Maybe when people came from their homes and listened to them entertain, they heard things like people saying they were “special” or “extraordinary.”  And maybe they were.

As I get older and particularly with the passing of both of my parents, I do look back at those times playing music with my family and they are special to me.  And they will become more special as time goes by.  This I do know.

Feb. 17, 2022 – Update

I received a better version of the Kelly’s String Band photo.  I also figured out how I am related to Wade Landry.  In addition to that, I’ve learned more about his life.  So check out my new post to see it all – Patureau and Landry Musicians Circa 1900.

1 … 46 47 48 49 50 … 65