I have been asked to write down what I remember about my husband Chester Colburn's father, William Colburn. Well, I'll try. But I'm not really the one who should, because I didn't know him that well. While he lived in the same general community area, our families didn't visit back and forth at all, and I very rarely saw any of his family. None of them attended the school I did. During the time I and Chet were going out together I saw him sometimes.

Physically he was a short man, probably only a few inches over five feet tall and somewhat chunky in build. After Chet and I were married, we lived with him because he and Chet had lived together prior to that, but he was a very quiet man and talked little. Also, he liked to walk and would go and visit neighbors a lot and spend time visiting with Albert and Joyce, another son and daughter.

He had farmed the family place south of White Creek, Wis., and later the family moved to Grand Marsh where he worked for the railroad. Later, after the death of his wife Libbie Amanda (Douglas), he again went to live on the farm. I don't know just when Chester came there to live with him after working at many jobs as a young man, but he did!

The one thing I remember most about my father-in-law was his amazing ability with gardening. He had very good garden land there, and he devoted his efforts to producing. Such vegetables and strawberries and melons he grew! Chet helped him market it by taking it to Adams for sale, although much of it was sold right at the home. Seems strange, but the people who live there now also raise garden produce to sell.

He liked to dance at the local lodge dances, and often did. A quick side story, I was used to doing a lot of washboard scrubbing long before I was married, and I would scrupulously pick up everybody's dirty laundry and washed it all. So, when I washed, I also washed Grandpa Colburn's dirty clothes too, and he was amazed that I picked up and washed his as well. Also, each week I kept all mending done up, including his. I wasn't sure how he felt about all this until my sister-in-law Rachel told me that when he visited there, he would brag about how clean I kept his clothes and how good I was at mending.

He only lived about fourteen months after Chet and I were married. He had gone to spend some time with the neighbors, the Nels Peterson family because my daughter Carol had been born at his home, and the nurse was staying there and there wasn't any room. And it was much too cold there in January for him to sleep upstairs. But he did see my daughter Carol before he became ill. He and his son Chester always seemed to have a good relationship. This story is so incomplete but hopefully he will seem a bit more real to you and everyone because of it.

                                                                                                                                                  by Maude Colburn, 1987