L. A. Miller Diary of 1918

(Excerpted by Ron Wiley; clarifying comments by Fred Lindley)

Jan. 5: I attended the Stock Co. Meeting & owing to the absence of Pres I was chosen Pres protem. A good meeting.

6: An old citizen of this town died this pm - Fr Smith. I have known him for 35 years. Cause pneumonia & other complications.

ON MOST OF THE DAYS FOR THE REST OF THE MONTH, MR. MILLER COMMENTED ABOUT THE TERRIBLE WEATHER. MANY DAYS THE TEMPERATURE DID NOT GET ABOVE ZERO; HEAVY SNOW VERY FEW PEOPLE ON THE ROADS. HE SPOKE OF SHORTAGES OF COAL AND WOOD.

Feb 2: I went to Collinsville & got a spring wagonload of my coal that had been cached at Mr.Schwart╒s. The ground hog as usual saw his shadow - somewhere ???? - six more weeks of winter-which we always have and then some.

16: I went to Collinsville, O, and got a load of coal (spring wagon), also a sack of bran & a box at Express office.

17: I will have fodder[1] enough to last until fodder comes again next autumn. A good thing for Hay is 32.00 ton & scarce at that.

Mar 1: Sugar & flour are getting scarce. You must buy 1 lb. of corn meal or a similar substitute for each/ lb. of flour.

2: Never in the history of the corn belt [2]was there so much corn out in the fields . If the weather would settle & ground get dry what a blessing it would be.

26: Tom Shears and Ora Teckman were to help thresh today, but a big snow storm raged for a few hours this am.

ALMOST EVERY DAY, THROUGHOUT THIS MONTH, MR. MILLER COMMENTED ON THE WAR.

April 3: Edison invention -a hot ray that can not be diverted & that will blow up any (?) substance 30 miles & better away. No obstacle will hinder it - wait & see if I am dreaming.

14: Our neighbor S. T.(?) Abry left for Texas this am. Arnold took him to Hamilton, O. this pm.

15: Got corn ground for meal, as well as some for chicks at F. S. Bufler's this pm.

18: Mrs. S. T. Abry is getting ready to move to Texas soon.

MR. MILLER STILL COMMENTS ON THE WAR ALMOST EVERY DAY, INCLUDING THIS ONE, "THE EUROPEAN SLAUGHTER GOES ON & MUST GO ON UNTIL THE HUN IS CONQUERED & CONQUERED TO STAY CONQUERED.

22: I commenced to get things in shape to crate Mrs. S. T. Abry's piano this pm.

23: I helped Mrs. S. T. Abry move her goods. Placed in car(train) at Oxford. I finished crating her piano this am. Owing to rain she secured a moving van & took the things that would hurt to get wet. Some five loads were hauled by neighbors.

30: The Old town is getting ready for a big Patriotic meet Sat May 11 next.

May 11: The folks attended the Patriotic parade & speaking. I had to stay at home & work the Damned Old switchboard.

May 21: I stopped in Hamilton & had mortgage for $900 cancelled. I am now out of debt completely after ten years of hard work. I had previously been in debt for a home & got out after about fifteen years and then jumped back in again on acct of Telephone Co in which I was a large stock holder. I took up all stock & now have my home, forty acres in Fla & Darrtown Tel Co free of debt.

28: Working on No 28 [3]near Lanes Mill.

June 8: A partial eclipse of the sun at 5 pm. visible here.

July 1: Sold a fat hen to Jean Junk for $1.62; 6 1/2 lbs at 25c per lb. When a boy, such hens were worth 20 to 30 c each

4: "I went to Cinti Speedway & saw DiPalma win the 100 mile race in a gait of 105 mi per hour. Barney Oldfield had tire trouble & won 4th.

DIPALMA & OLDFIELD WERE BOTH INDIANAPOLIS 500 WINNERS; LOCATION OF THE CINCINNATI SPEEDWAY IS UNKNOWN.

Aug. 3: Went to K of P picnic at fairground. Went down with J. F. Kyger, came home with Geo Manrod.

23rd: Went to Hamilton & had my notary papers made; rode down with Vic Wyckoff & came home with Geo Kolb.

25th: Went to Columbus to discuss new phone rates and attend Ohio State Fair. I called on my old friend James M Cox, Gov. of Ohio & had quite a pleasant chat with him.

Nov. 11: Glowing news. Arthur Stork [4]called me at 4am & stated Germany had surrendered 11pm Sunday Nov. 10. Hurrah for USA & all the Allies. Armistice[5] signed 5:40 am. All fighting ceased 11:00 am Paris time.

Nov. 13: Celebrations of the Victory over autocracy still goes on. I fear the crowds will spread the Flu that has already killed 3X as many people in US than the Huns have. Myself and family are celebrating at home.

Dec. 2: Pres Wilson delivered his address to Congress and is getting ready for his European trip to Peace Conference to be held at Versailles Paris France

"REGARDING THE WORLD WAR I ARMSTICE/TRUCE:AN ARMISTICE (CEASEFIRE) CAME INTO EFFECT AT THE 11TH HOUR OF THE 11TH DAY OF THE 11TH MONTH OF 1918. THE NAME "ARMISTICE DAY" WAS GIVEN TO THE DATE WHEN A TRUCE WAS DECLARED AND FIGHTING CEASED.STRICTLY SPEAKING THE WAR ENDED FOR GERMANY WITH THE SIGNING OF THE TREATY OF VERSAILLES ON 28 JUNE 1919. (THAT WAS EXACTLY FIVE YEARS AFTER AUSTRIA-HUNGARY'S ARCHDUKE FRANZ FERDINAND WAS ASSASSINATED IN SARAJEVO).AT 11 A.M. ON NOVEMBER 11, 1918 A CEASEFIRE CAME INTO EFFECT WITH GERMANY. A FORMAL STATE OF WAR BETWEEN THE TWO SIDES PERSISTED FOR ANOTHER SEVEN MONTHS, UNTIL SIGNING OF THE TREATY OF VERSAILLES ON JUNE 28, 1919.A FINAL PEACE TREATY WAS SIGNED BETWEEN THE ALLIED POWERS AND THE COUNTRY THAT WOULD SHORTLY BECOME THE REPUBLIC OF TURKEY, AT LAUSANNE ON JULY 24, 1923.THE NAME "ARMISTICE DAY" HAS SINCE BEEN CHANGED TO "VETERAN'S DAY" (USA) (NOVEMBER 11).IT WAS ALSO KNOWN AS "REMEMBERANCE DAY" IN CANADA."POPPY DAY" (ORIGINALLY IN SOUTH AFRICA AND NEW ZEALAND) WAS ANOTHER NAME SO CHOSEN BECAUSE THE VETERANS OF FOREIGN WARS (VFW), THE AMERICAN LEGION AND OTHER ORGANIZATIONS ALL OVER THE WORLD LAY POPPY WREATHS UPON THE GRAVES OF MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES WHO WERE KILLED IN WAR. MANY DIED IN THE BEAUTIFUL POPPY FIELDS OF EUROPE, MOST NOTABLY "IN FLANDERS FIELDS THE POPPIES BLOW ... WE SHALL NOT SLEEP, THOUGH POPPIES GROW. ...."(FROM IN FLANDER'S FIELDS BY LIEUTENANT COLONEL JOHN ALEXANDER MCCRAE, MD OF THE CANADIAN ARMY). POPPY FLOWERS ARE ALSO SOLD, AND WORN, TO RAISE FUNDS FOR SOLDIERS KILLED IN WARS."

[1]Fodder is defined as: food given to animals, rather than that which they forage for themselves. In southwest Ohio, it is, typically, harvested from corn.

[2]The corn belt is defined as a region of the Midwestern United States where corn has, since the 1850s, been the predominant crop.

[3]Presumably, this refers to the telephone circuit numbering system.

[4]Arthur Stork was a brother-in-law of John F. Mee, who was one of the owners of the Darrtown Telephone Company.

[5]Armstice is defined as an agreement made by opposing sides in a war to stop fighting for a certain time; a truce. See more info on the WWI armistice at left.