Story told by Clem Swagerty
I remember her as a rather small woman. She was maybe 5’1’ or 5’2’’ and had long hair that she wore all wrapped in a bun at the back of her head. She wore her dresses fairly long between her calves and ankles and also wore a full apron. She never wore make-up and had pleasant, friendly, open face. She had a quiet voice and was a soft spoken person. I never heard her raise her voice. She let the men dominate the conversation.
She was always busy doing something, cooking, baking. She always baked her own bread. She was a good seamstress and made most of her own clothes. The only time she would sit down was after dinner and everything had been cleaned up. Then she couldn’t remain idle. Her hands would be mending or darning socks. If there was no need for mending, she would get out her crochet hook and work on something. Her work ethic was such that she would not allow herself to be idle. She had a compulsive work habit. It was said that in her dying days her reflex kept her hands moving.
I will never forget seeing her just before her death. She was at Lucy Morris’s house and she was lying in a crib like bed curled up in a fetal position. She was definitely in a coma yet her hands were busy as if still crochetting . She ended up at Lucy’s house at the end. When Grandpa Swagerty died, she was shuttled from house to house among her children. She had nine children. They were married for 50 years.
I remember when we had her for awhile down at the ranch in Milpitas. She was easy to be around and was grateful for anything she received. She had no money and each family supported her while she was in their care.
I remember as a young child growing up that she was kind and pleasant even as she was correcting us which she didn’t hesitate to do if we didn’t meet her expectations.
I always liked my Grandma Swagerty. She was in ways the typical Western farm wife that was depicted in old western movies. They don’t make them like that anymore.
Swagerty-Aldrich Family Web Site 