251 & 259 2nd Street
251 & 259 2nd Street
Augustus (1855-1936) & Alice Harrop (1854-1929) Anderson
259 2nd Street
There are two homes connected between the current day care center. The larger home at 259 2nd Street was tThe 1881 home of Augustus and Alice Anderson.
Augustus was born in Sweden in 1855 and “sailed on a boat to America” in 1864 settling in Huntsville and then Slaterville, Utah. His first job as a teenager was herding cows. The men he worked for were also mining gold, and they sometimes hid the gold dust in the yoke of some of the cattle so it would not be stolen. No one suspected a teenage boy of being left to guard such a treasure.
Alice Harrop was born in England in 1854 and immigrated with her family to Ogden when she was three years old. Augustus and Alice married in 1880 and built this brick home in 1881. It started as a two-room adobe structure and, as the family grew, they added three more rooms and a brick exterior.
When Native Americans knocked on the Anderson door, Alice always fed them. The Natives left a mark on the fence in front of the house as a signal to others that the residents here were kind.
Augustus farmed and worked as a supervisor of roads and streets in the county; he served the community as Lynne Irrigation president and a volunteer fireman. See Appendix.
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251 2nd Street
Joseph (1884-1966) & Viola Purdy (1889-1978) Anderson
Augusts and Alice’s son, Joseph Augustus Anderson, was born in 1884 and married Viola Purdy in 1906. In 1907 they built their two-room home next door to Joe’s parents. In time Joe added on four more rooms. Joe helped many persons build their homes on 2nd Street and built several to sell like the one at 215 2nd Street. In time he made carpentry and home building his vocation. He also served as a volunteer fireman.
While their five children were growing up, the spur of the Oregon Short Line was in operation and the train passed in front of their house. The passing engineers were friendly and sometimes blew steam to scare the children off the tracks or fence. They threw live savers to the children who threw back pears or apples in season. [1]
Viola was a wonderful mother and an entertainer. She invited neighbors over for quilting bees and held parties for neighbors and family. Even the advent of World War 1 did not stop her gatherings for life must go on with small happiness in spite of world politics.
Card tables were set up for card games; High Five was a popular game of choice. Guests pinned on cards and the children who acted as the servants, punched the winner’s card and served refreshments. The card with the most punches won a prize and the booby card won a prize also. Viola’s gatherings helped to lift spirits during the war.
In about 1980, the house was remodeled into a child care center that eventually connected to Augustus Anderson’s house next door. Daughter Hazel Anderson Greenwood thought that the day care center would make her mother and grandmother very happy because they both had a great love for children. [2]
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APPENDIX
[1] - Anna Keogh interview with Hazel Anderson Greenwood, 1998.
[2] - Ibid.