(EDITOR’S NOTE: This is part two of a story that was printed in the previous edition. Part two is a continuation of a letter from Jay Myer’s Great Uncle Ben to his younger sister, Elizabeth. Ben was 10 and Elizabeth 4 when the trip took place. Ben wrote the letter at age 70. The final installment of this series will run next week.)

“Then we stoped at the City of Rochester and we all went down (and I think you was with Mother) and saw the Genesee Falls where Sam Patch had jumped off a short time before and I think killed himself. It was a pretty sight at that time but now I believe they all (haul) the water for manufacturing purposes and have spoiled the falls.

And then we went on and after 7 long days of fun for us children (but I guess not so much for Father and Mother) we arrived at Buffalo on Lake Erie. There were a number of boats in harbor and the Old Illinois Side wheel Steamer was going to start for Chicago the next day.

Buffalo was not a very large place at that time so Father took G.L. and B.F. and took in the town. We went up one street, the principle street I think, went by a Fish Market and saw a big 40 or 50 lb. catfish, and we thought that was the largest Port we ever saw. We went on farther by a music store. We saw a fiddle or viola (I should say) and marked $1.00 and G.L. and I put our heads together and teased Father boy fashon until he bot it for us and so we were in our glory the rest of way thinking of the fine music we would make in days to come.

Along in the afternoon we had got our luggage and very soon on board the steamer and started again on our journey. As we came out of the harbor, it was still and beautiful as we stood on the deck looking back at the village, the boat leaving a straight line of sparkling waves to mark the line to the western shore.

As night came on we all went below into the steerage cabin as they called it and had a good nights rest after the fatigue of the day.

In the morn we were up bright and early and they said we were sailing near where Perry won his great victory in 1812 just thirty years before. The Battle our Grandfather Bailey was in and from which he never returned, leaving Grandmother almost without anything, and six small children to care for. And she had to put them in the factory at work as fast as they were large enough. Our mother being six years old at that time, she was put in Cotton factory and tended to a little machine for winding Bobins, putting them on and takeing off as they were wound (what would they say to that nowadays)

Our next place to stop was at Detroit, a small Indian village, a short stop, did not see much. Went on through Lake St. Clare and river and nearly got aground, the water was so shallow.

We went on through Lake Huron to the Streights of Mackinau to a small Indian village and a Government fort. As we stoped at the wharf, they fired a salute from the fort on the hill. We supposed it was in honor of our arrival. But come to find out, there was General Brady on our boat and the fort was named after him. The boat stoped long enough so a lot of us climbed up the hill and saw the Soldiers on Dress Parade.

Sunday, June 9th Father bot a lake or Mackanau Trout and took out the entrails and throughed them in the water and the squaws fished them out and made soup of them, a fancy dish for the Indians. The water about the boat was very clear and you could see 25 or 30 feet below. Some of the passengers would take a shiny five or ten ct piece and through it in and the young Indian lads would dive to the bottom and find them and see which would get it first.

Finally we went on through the streights and came into great Lake Michigan and we all thought this the last Lake and we would soon be on land again. But a short time after a wind struck us from the north right from the Artic Ocean. The waves were running mountains, high and washing everything off of the deck and the sickest lot of folks you ever saw. We went as fast as they ever went before, there were some were going to get off at Milwaukee. They tried to land them but had to take them to Chicago. The same at Southport, now Kenosha, we came by Little Fort, now Waukeegan aflying with a snow squall every little while.” Final installment next week.