Stories of a family vacation spot
Location, location, location
After talking with my cousin Miltie, it occurred to me that another way to tell a family story is through memories of a shared vacation spot. From the time I was a little girl, I heard stories about “the cabin,” or “hood canal,” or just “the canal.” Our grandparents owned a cabin on Hood Canal in Washington state, and, while I was there many times, I was too young to remember much about the place. My father loved the area and mom, when asked, recalled with a smile.
My cousin Miltie, five years my junior, doesn’t remember being there either, but he does recall a few details about the cabin. He shared the photos above, and below are some of his memories.
The Cabin on Hood Canal
I don’t remember getting to visit the cabin on Hood Canal because I was too young, but there are many wonderful pictures of the Haggie family spending time there. I am not even sure of its history. But I do have a few clues.
Grandpa was an only child whose mother passed away just before he turned seven. Great-grandpa John sent grandpa to live with one of his sisters for an undetermined amount of time. It was long enough that we have a memento with his name written as “Eddie Shultz” on it. Great-grandpa remarried two years and three months after his first wife, Minnie Vera (Clark) died. His second wife, Agda, was a Swedish immigrant. They were married for over 50 years before his death in May of 1963.
Minnie came from a family that must have had some wealth because they indulged in regular family portraits that date back to the 1870’s. Somewhere along the line, timber property was purchased in Louisiana that was eventually divided among the Clark children. Since Minnie passed away in 1902, grandpa inherited her portion.
In 1940, my mother Dolores, at the age of 11, broke her arm and was taken out of school. Grandpa wasn’t working much, so they took a trip to Louisiana where grandpa sold his inheritance. (His aunt Mercy, only three years older than him, had been selling timber off the land and pocketing the money.) I believe that grandpa used some of his inheritance to purchase the property on Hood Canal.
Sharing the cabin
Uncertain origins
I have yet to find a paper trail of when and by whom the cabin was bought or sold, so my cousin’s memories shed some light. Regardless, it was a wonderful place where the families gathered often, together or separately.
I’ve collected photos for you to enjoy the place our families loved; the photos come from Miltie’s collection and our own. By the way, the Red Hat Society ladies of today have nothing on the ladies of the canal. It appears there was a Red Shoe Society in the 50s.
Grandma and grandpa at their beloved cabin.
Below, more shots of family vacationing at the canal. I can’t see the color of their shoes…
Below are photos of Miltie’s family at the canal.
Profiling through shared memories
Photos tell the story
In our case, most of the people who vacationed there and knew the most about the cabin are gone. There are many photos, however, and with Miltie’s hunch, maybe we have a clue about the cabin’s origins. I had no knowledge of grandpa’s inheritance until I read my cousin’s post.
Without Miltie’s photo sharing, we would never have seen the photos of my parents and sister in 1958, photos we all will forever cherish.
Think about vacations and who the family spent time with in their younger years. What’s in your photo collection?
Happy profiling! ❤
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I had those same red sneakers. My brother and I had either blue or red sneakers depending on the year. I guess my mom wanted to be able to tell them apart. My mother also sold her parents’ summer place to buy what was then a simple cabin on the Oregon Coast. Now that simple cabin is valued at 450,000. Still tiny. Oregon real estate went crazy.
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When I saw Miltie’s photo of grandma, Lynne, mom, and Hazel, the first thing I noticed was their shoes. I laughed out loud; my almost-90-year-old-mother still wears red shoes! 🙂 What a hoot! And, yes, it’s not do-able now for most folks to buy property on the Oregon coast. We looked at residences in Manzanita a few years ago and it wasn’t even worth having the conversation. It’s prime real estate, yes, but…not affordable for most. Bittersweet for me, though. I’m a beach person at heart as was dad, and I’d love to own a cabin at the beach. Does your family still own that cabin?
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My little sister has it.
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That is wonderful. 🙂
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We have been renting the same house on Cape Cod since 1986—first, with my parents, brother, and our kids and us, now with my parents, brother, our kids, our grandsons, and us. I am hoping that all the generations will always cherish those memories.
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That is great, Amy. I just wish that in our case, the cabin was still in our family and that we had spent more time there as older children. As is, 3/5 of us don’t remember it much at all since we were so young. In your case, that’s the best of both worlds: you and your parents but later with your children and grandchildren. Simply the best. ❤
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Well, we don’t own it—we rent it for a week each summer. But yes, the fact that four generations will have stayed there (so far) is really special.
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I love that. I’m sure there are some great stories out of the there and from all generations. Glad your family can continue to enjoy the same place.
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Thanks, Karen!
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🙂
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