The previous post contained some of the Mulkey family stories as told by Maude Cauthorn Keady in a manuscript in the Benton County Historical Museum's collection. This post will continue with more stories from this manuscript.
Maude's grandparents, Johnson and Susanna Mulkey emigrated to Oregon from Missouri in 1846 along with their 8 children. Martha Madeline Mulkey, Maude's mother, was just one year old at the time. Maude notes that her grandmother had fourteen children in all, twelve of which lived to adulthood. She writes, “Grandfather named his two eldest daughters America and Missouri. After that Grandmother rebelled and named the girls herself. Aunt America hated her name and demanded that we children call her 'Auntie', as she was the oldest aunt. She did not like 'Aaric', as the family and friends called her any better. I am fully convinced that she hated to visit Corvallis in later years because people knew her name. I have always been glad that Grandmother would not allow Grandfather to name my mother 'Oregon', as he wanted to do.”
“Aunt America was a true Victorian type. She spent all her life, some seventy odd years, being shocked at things people did and had to see and hear. At one time Aunt and two of the others had gone for wild berries to a distant part of the farm. They had gathered their berries when they noticed cattle coming from every direction—wild cattle that they did not know were in that part of the range. The girls knew enough not to run but walked as fast as they could toward a deserted cabin. They managed to reach it and get inside but the cattle surrounded the place, pawing the ground and making a great disturbance.
At last, after a long time, a man came by on horseback with a dog following along. Some of the others wanted to call to him for help but Auntie would not allow it. She said they did not know him and nice girls did not call on strangers for help. The man saw the cattle acting strangely and drew near, riding slowly, but for some reason did not enter the cabin. The cattle took after the dog and when they were out of sight over the hill, the girls came out and went home....
“At some time, all the fathers of the early family must have had a meeting and decided on certain rules of conduct, because it became the rule that no young girl could go walking, riding, or driving with a young man without being in the company of others or take a little sister along. As there were always little sisters, they received many a ride but what a nuisance they must have been, stuck behind on the horse, or crowded in between on the narrow buggy seat, or tagging at ones heels when they walked. Small brothers either would not go, or, if they were made to do so, they made everyone so uncomfortable and behaved so badly that they were not allowed to go anymore....
“Auntie was such a good housekeeper and loved new and pretty things” Maude notes that someone told her of spending time at the Mulkey house as a child and that they “...always knew when Bent Odeneal and John Porter were coming because 'Aaric' made them scour the old pewter-ware with brick dust until it shown. After Auntie married [to Bent Odeneal], she worked very hard keeping her house immaculate; that she nearly worked herself to death, so whenever possible, they boarded.”
By Martha Fraundorf, Volunteer for Benton County Historical Society, Philomath, Oregon
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