The Prairie Girls

 The Conductors

Daniel was the runaway’s name.

His life filled with misery and pain.

Maddie and Owen, their families, too,

Knew what they needed to do,

Help Daniel travel that “underground train.”

The two became part of the plan.

Together they spied on the mean old man.

Kansas, bleeding at the time,

Saw good men fight across the line.

Could slavery be stopped with a ban?

Dressed as a girl, Daniel sought to be free.

He was hid in an old, cottonwood tree.

They could not know how effective the train became.

         Each worked in secret, with only conductor as a name.

Risking all so free others might be.

PLEASE NOTE THIS BLOG CHANGES THE FIRST AND THIRD WEEKS OF EACH MONTH.

Be sure to check out The Storyteller’s Corner and Up the Family Tree.

Maddie

                  

  

I’m Maddie and came to Kansas Territory with other members of my family. The New England Emigrant Aid Society assisted us as we planned our journey west. It was hard for me to leave my home and my pet cat. Grandpapa promised to take good care of my cat though. Mama and I cried when we kissed Grandmother good-by at the train station in New York. I was afraid I would not see her again. Grandmother said I was a courageous young girl.

After my family arrived in Kansas, my cousin, Owen, and I saw a young boy mistreated by a bounty hunter. I didn’t know who the boy was or what he had done. I did know it was wrong he had wounds and scars on his back from beatings, and I was determined to help him escape. When our writing project is completed, you can learn more about me.

May Baskets

One of my favorite activities in the spring was making May baskets with my little sister. We didn’t have many kids where we lived, but there were some within walking distance. We looked forward to the event each year.

Since my mother didn’t plant many flowers, we used an old spirea bush which had to be ancient. The fun part was putting food coloring in a glass of water and letting the flowers drink the color. We made them every shade we could imagine. Next, were the baskets. We usually had some construction paper around and would fold a small piece into a cone and tape it shut. The stems of the flowers were wrapped in a tissue so they wouldn’t ruin the paper. Sometimes we used old wallpaper left from a project.

After adding some penny candy, we were on our way to the neighbors. You had to be very quick to do this. Usually we’d hang the basket on the door handle, ring the doorbell, and then run really fast to hide so no one would see us. It seemed the bushes we chose to hide in usually had thorns or stickers. Then it was on to the next house to leave another.

It was also fun to return home and see what we had gotten as well. Lilacs and daffodils were favorites, but the candy was always good too.