A Sack of Flour and a Saturday Visit

“Ma if you have any small hams could you Spare us one we have no ham meat and I suppose we will have company Sunday”

Now, pull up a chair and let me tell you about a little treasure I found tucked away in our archives. It is a simple letter, dated February 16, 1873, written by a young couple named Sallie and Jake Johnson to their Ma and Pa. You can almost smell the woodsmoke and the fresh-baked bread just reading it. They were sending along eighty-four pounds of flour to the folks, though Jake sent word that he just couldn’t manage a whole barrel this month. It is a sweet reminder of how family used to look out for one another’s pantries.

If you were to hold this letter today, you would feel the history in your fingertips. The paper has turned a warm, aged yellow over the last century and a half, with deep creases where it was folded and tucked into a pocket or an envelope. There are worn edges and a big brown stain right at the bottom center—maybe a drop of coffee from a long-ago breakfast table? The brown ink has seeped through the paper so much you can see the writing from the other side, making it feel like the words are truly part of the fibers.

Back in the winter of 1873, things weren’t always easy, and folks had to rely on what they could grow or trade. Sallie was worrying about having company over on Sunday and realized she didn’t have a lick of ham in the house. She wasn’t afraid to ask her Ma for help, promising to come down for a visit on Saturday morning if she could. It shows us a world where life moved at the speed of a horse and buggy, and the most important things were having enough to eat and making sure you spent time with the people you loved.

It is funny how a scrap of paper about flour and ham can make the past feel so close. Today, we might send a quick text to see what’s for dinner, but the heart of it is the same. Sallie and Jake were building a life, one sack of flour and one family visit at a time. It reminds us that no matter how much the world changes, that fond and dutiful connection to our roots is what keeps us grounded.

Original Transcription

Febuary 16th 73
Dear Ma and Pa
I send Eighty four lbs
of Flour Jake said to tell you he could not
Spare as much as a barrel in this month
Ma if you have any small hams could you
Spare us one we have no ham meat and I suppose
we will have company Sunday I will come
down Saturday Morning if I can can you
come up this week or not . come as
Soon as you can From your
fond and Dutiful Children
Sallie & Jake Johnson