Nesmith Family Reunion

From Indianapolis we traveled another day to Iowa City arriving about 3:00.  We started out in rain and lots of traffic at 8:15 AM

Indianapolis traffic and rain

Soon the sun came out and we enjoyed a pleasant drive through more corn and soy bean farmland. We passed into Illinois with little change in scenery.  One thing we noticed different from our trip a couple years ago was the roads in Indiana were no longer the worst in the country.

 

Farmland in corn - green but turning brown and ready for harvest.

After a stop for lunch we crossed the Mississippi River into Iowa near Davenport and headed on west towards Iowa City.

Jane had made group reservations at a Country Inns and Suites in Coralville for any family members who needed a hotel for the reunion. It turned out to be a great location.

Our reunion that started out as a visit to the small Kellogg Iowa Museum for 4 cousins who spent summer vacations in Kellogg in the 1940’s and 1950’s ; had grown to a gathering of 25+ relatives most of them living much closer than the 4 cousins who now lived in Montana, Tennessee, South Carolina and Iowa. This was the first time these 4 cousins had all been in the same location in over 50 years!

After a nap we met up with two cousins who arrived from Minnesota and headed to the Iowa University Club for the gathering of cousins. What fun we had renewing old acquaintances and meeting new relatives.

Ranging from cousins in their 80’s to a 5 year old – much conversation, great food and drink, and memories were enjoyed by all.

 

As a surprise after a delicious dinner was a red velvet birthday cake to be shared by all celebrating birthdays today were Jane and Samantha.

Jane and Samantha

Friday Morning we got up and headed to Kellogg – about an hour west on I – 80.

Kellogg is a small town that is now a bedroom community for the larger towns of Grinnell and Newton about 10 miles east and west.  Most of the main street is now the Kellogg Museum. We enjoyed seeing their great collections of items donated by families in the area. Of particular interest were the Locker where  meat stored there in the freezer was retrieved by residents and where we all remembered Grandad taking us for the best ice cream cones !

Most of our Nesmith Family Group outside the “Locker” in Kellogg

We were also able to visit the one room school house that had been moved from another location to the main street.  Jane was particularly interested in this since her mother had taught in a similar school house that was located 3 miles south of Kellogg. Buena Vista #1. 

Typical One Room School

Can you see the wood burning stove in the front corner?  Teacher started the fire before the students arrived each day.

We showed one of the younger generation where Grandmother and Grandad Nesmith had lived. The children of the MN cousins really enjoyed learning of the place they had never seen and meeting their “southern relatives”.  “Do we have a northern accent?” they kept asking.

Grandad’s House – so different now!

Our visit to Kellogg ended with a visit to the cemetery where graves of Grandmother and Grandad Nesmith as well as parents of two of the cousins were located. Note the name of the cemetery – Our Silent City.

On the way back to Iowa City we stopped for trip back in time – A Maid-Rite sandwich.  A loose hamburger meat sandwich popular in the 30’s and 40’s across the mid-west. The chain still exists today.

A great time was had by all at our reunion.  We made plans to eat dinner tonight with a cousin who lives in Iowa City so were looking forward to making more memories.