20.18.17

Letter

1876

Letter to the Family, Father, Mother and All the Rest from R. A. Conner of Montevideo, Chippewa, Minn. Material: paper. Size: 8" x 10" folded. Description: white lined paper, black ink handwriting on both sides; addressed to Dear Father and Mother and all the rest of the family and signed your neglectful daughter and sister, R. A. Conner; references made to having a Merry Christmas, children Dianthy (Diantha), Emery, Otto, Ulysses and the baby; moving to a house between the Chippewa and Minnesota Rivers on a railroad claim a mile and a half from town, a house fire that destroyed the house roof, wanting to go to a Thanksgiving, poor crops, a few livestock, husband James wanting to go to the Black Hills and speculating that Amanda Conner might be teaching school back at home in Waseca County.

Rebecca Ann Denman, (R. A. Conner) sister in law of Amanda Conner, was married to James Conner. Some of their children: Emery, Ulysses, Diantha, Homer, George, Alva, Ralph, Sarah. Miss Amanda C. Conner of Blooming Grove and James Wilson (J.W.) Cleland were married October 3, 1877. Amanda was born September 11, 1852, in Indiana, and came to Waseca County with her parents in 1856. Sadie Lilly was a cousin of Amanda Conner on her mother's side. Mother Sarah Lilly Conner moved with her husband and family to South Dakota in 1883. She died there in 1900. Amanda's husband, J. W. Cleland was born September 27, 1847 in Delaware County, NY., and was one of nine children born to Rev. and Mrs. W. J. Cleland. He came West with his family in 1863. He carried on the homestead farm until 1885, when the place was sold and he purchased a small farm on the west shore of Clear Lake, near Waseca. J. W. was stricken by paralysis while working about a threshing machine. He never recovered from the stroke and died after a very prolonged illness, July 15, 1903.