Posted on by Michelle Anderson

Our Neighbors

I love Cousin Jean’s scrapbook. To me, Cousin Jean was a mysterious figure who was always discussed with great reverence and awe. And her scrapbook has been just as awe-inspiring. Frank and Dora Bourscheidt built a home at 100 Fredonia Avenue in 1892, when Jean was just 17 years old. Set at Fredonia and University Avenues in Peoria, it was located at the top of a T-intersection.

Jean shows us three different times the neighbors came together to share a meal. They appear to be from the early 1900s based on the photos, fashion, writing, and Jean herself. Here, she notes the Wead, Todd, and Worthington families as their neighbors. Even with outdoor settings, the meals appear somewhat formal, with dishes, tablecloths, and more formal attire. These areas were extensions of the home, creating spaces where hospitality could flourish. Through regular contact with their neighbors, the Bourscheidt family was able to share traditions and develop a sense of belonging. The fact that Jean chose to preserve these meals in her scrapbook shows how meaningful these neighbors were to her.

Do you know your neighbors? My next-door neighbors speak Spanish and make everyday conversation a little harder to bridge. But it’s fun to hear their music, which seems to bring the street alive, and to catch the warm smells of the food they’re cooking as it fills the air. Even though Jean’s gatherings took place more than a century ago, it’s a reminder that sharing food, space, and simple moments with the people around us is still one of the most meaningful ways we build community.

Posted on by Michelle Anderson

Tableaux Times

Tableaux were all the rage at the turn of the century. They were called Tableaux vivants, or living pictures, in which staged scenes were performed to recreate motionless works of art. They were common in pageants, women’s colleges, and civic festivals from the 1900s through the 1920s. Many tableaux were often Grecian-themed and used a draped style for the dancers’ costumes. This symbolized purity, beauty, and artistic freedom. Outdoor scenes like the one below were chosen to evoke pastoral ideals and connect performers to the natural world.

Here we have a photo from Cousin Jean Bourscheidt’s photo album. A group of women who gathered at Sunnyside, the Gauss’ farm. Standing we have Lucy B Way, Edith P Stone, Julia Proctor White, Elizabeth Way, Florence Raymond. Kneeling is an unknown woman, Mrs Gauss, and our cousin Jean Bourscheidt.

I gather that Julia Proctor White is the leader, as her dress is a different color than the others and she is prominently featured in several of the photos. So I did some research on who Julia Proctor White is. She was born in 1875 and lived until 1968. She was a civic and cultural leader in Peoria whose work influenced Peoria’s arts and women’s movements. She began her professional career as a kindergarten teacher and became vice president of the Peoria Free Kindergarten Association. She helped establish public kindergartens in Peoria in 1907. I am sure that is where her path crossed with cousin Jean.

Julia also had many civic and cultural contributions in addition to her work to establish kindergartens in schools. She worked with the Florence Crittenton Home, supporting women and children in need. She helped found the Peoria Women’s Civic Federation and in 1955 wrote its 50-year history manuscript. She was the first president of the League of Women Voters following the passing of the 19th Amendment. Prior to this, she had been a member of the Equal Suffrage Association. She also served as Director of the Peoria Players Theater and was an advocate for community performances.

Cousin Jean didn’t add any words that included what she thought of these photos or how it had all come together. But I hope she enjoyed her time with this dance group and has many fond memories of a time when Tableaux vivants were all the rage, and this form of dance was new and exciting.

I think Cousin Jean is the 2nd individual on the left

Posted on by Michelle Anderson

Cousin Jean, Indian Maiden

If i had to say what my favorite holiday was, I’d choose Thanksgiving. As a kid, it always seemed to take FOREVER for Thanksgiving to arrive and the holiday from school to occur. Thanksgiving is all about giving without expecting anything in return. In 1621, the Native American Wampanoag tribe helped the colonists with agriculture and hunting, celebrating with a harvest feast. They dined on wild turkeys, ducks, geese, fish, corn, green vegetables, and dried fruits.

Here we have a beautiful Indian Maiden, Cousin Jean Bourscheidt. I wondered why she might have dressed up, so I did my favorite thing and started some research. I believe she belonged to a drama and dance group that performed tableau’s. A tableau is a “living picture” or a static scene. Actors are usually silent, dressed in costume with props or scenery. Tableau’s began in the medieval period and was revived in the 19th century. This art form was very suitable for photography and later movies. Many groups would dance into a scene, hold a pose and then dance into another scene and holded pose until the performance was completed. It’s the perfect combination of theater and visual arts.

Cousin Jean did not date these photos, so I am unsure when they were taken. But I would estimate them to have been taken during the 1920s based on where the images were in her scrapbook. And how she looks in the photos.

There are so many things I am thankful for this year, but at the very top of the list are all of you. Thank you for taking the time to engage with my blog posts on this website or social media. Your support and feedback are what inspire and motivate me to keep writing. Wishing you all a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday filled with the warmth and happiness of the season.

Posted on by Michelle Anderson

The Last Full Measure of Devotion

I have a note sitting on my desk. It has quotes about why stepping out of my comfort zone is good. This is one of those days when I read it more and more and push myself to complete the blog pages. Today’s pages are so hard because they all deal with Veterans. One is a story that was ended too soon. One story told of bravery and service only to deal with a sacrifice years later. And one story seems incomplete. And I find myself struggling through these stories of men who rose to answer a nation’s call. When I scheduled these posts a year ago, I thought it would be a great topic. And yes, I could just change what I have planned, but I want to bring these stories to you. So, I will take a break and then return to trying to do honor to these individuals I salute today.

Please take the time today to thank the Veterans in your life or who you may see. Their duty and service to our nation make our freedoms possible. Thank you to all the Veterans in my life. May you have a day full of happiness and good health.

Posted on by Michelle Anderson · 1 Comment

Died in war…

What does an Elephant have to do with a Veteran? I certainliy didn’t think the answer to this question was anything at all. I was scanning the photos out of Cousin Jean Bourscheidt’s scrapbook. It’s slow work and i needed to be careful. I had to remove the delicate photographs carefully, scan them and then return them carefully. Cousin Jean did a wonderful job documenting the photograps. She wrote in the scrapbook and also on the backs of the photos. Since i was scanning them to review later, I wasn’t really prepared for what popped up next.

As the photo uploaded to my computer, I read Lucas Chelikas, Died in the Last War. I don’t even think I saved the photo, I just got up and told Cris I was going to take a break and we were going to get some ice cream.

I haven’t been able to find any records for Lucas but I did find one for Victor. A newspaper article from 1933 in which, he and his brother Robert, had gone fishing and died in floodwaters. Three men tried to rescue them, but where unscuccessful.

Tomorrow, as we remember Veterans of today and yesterday, may you think of these two boys, elephants in their Kindergarten Circus and later as a fisherman and a solider. May they continue to be remembered not just by us but by their families. Gone but remembered.

Here’s some more circus performers in Cousin Jean’s Kindergarten Circus 1928

Posted on by Michelle Anderson

March 6, 1925

Wilbert Wilkins & Aaron Porch March 6, 1925 Douglas Kindergarten

I just love this photo.  Such precious faces captured forever by our cousin Jean Bourscheidt.  It reminds me of a photo that Kansas native might have taken in his early years.  I found this gem in the scrapbook Jean took along with many other photographs of her students.  On the back she wrote, Aaron Porch, Wilbert Wilkins, March 6, 1925 Douglas Kindergarten.  I’m thinking that Aaron is on the left and Wilbert is on the right.  

I think he boys are sitting on the steps, in front of an entrance to the school.   The expression on their faces, Wilbert looks so happy to have his photo taken.  I just love their clothing.  Aaron, so dapper in a sailor suit.  Both boys have stockings and “short pants” And while Wilbert’s shirt has some tears to it, he is there at school ready to learn.  And his hands!  I just love how he has them positioned between his legs, like he was nervous to have his picture taken and just didn’t know what to do with them.  

Since Cousin Jean put their names on the photo, I thought I’d see what I could learn about the boys.  

Aaron Porch, was born March 7, 1920 in Birmingham, Alabama and died March 5 1985 in Peoria, Illinois.  I found that when he registered for the draft in 1941 that he worked for the Peoria Malleable Casting Company.  He was 5’10” and weighed 180 pounds.  He along with his wife, Fannie B are buried at Lutheran Cemetery in Peoria.  

Wilbert Wilkins was born February 11, 1921 in Peoria.  He too registered for the draft in February 1942 at the age of 21.  When he registered he was 5’9” and weighed 169 pounds.  At the time he worked for Walgreens Drug Store.  Wilbert died June 21, 1976 at the age of 55.  His obituary stated that he was an Army veteran of World War II and had last been employed by the Jefferson Hotel.  He was survived by one daughter, Miss Margaret Ann of Chicago and one brother James Collins of Peoria.  He is buried in an unmarked grave in Springdale Cemetery, in Peoria.  

An educator can touch your life in ways that you remember forever.  I hope that these two thought fondly of their time with our Cousin Jean and all that she taught them.