Caroline's Diary

Caroline is my confirmation name and I think I took it because despite the fact we only met when I was but an infant, I believe we would have been kindred souls. Caroline is my paternal grandmother who was lovingly referred to as Nana Nickerson.

Let me back up a tad...a few years ago my cousin Gail bestowed upon me our grandmother's diary.  You would have thought she gave me a diamond ring as this was a great treasure to me.  There was only one diary which was meant to be used in 1935.

Why do I think my grandmother and I would have been kindred souls?  Because she was crafty and everything she wrote about was also what I was interested in as well!  Family, friends, current events, births, deaths, weather, employment, what time her husband arrived home, travels, visitors, types of crafts she made, hair appointments - you name it, there was a line or two in her diary.

This diary is red, slightly tattered with gold lettering and the pages have aged with time.  Every page is not written on and some pages not only have multiple entries, but from multiple years.  What gives it even more charm is that she has written in it in pen and at other times pencil and a small child, maybe Uncle Joe, Uncle Bill or Uncle Charlie or even my dad who she lovingly referred to as "Dickie".  Her cursive is large and slanted not unlike the way my dad writes!

Caroline O'Meara Nickerson's Diary

Let me highlight some of my favorite entries (comments about each diary entry below photo):

She commented when her father, Richard O'Meara died in 1940. I learned through the diary that he had been in a coma prior to dying. Throughout her entries she mentioned him having to stay home to rest because of a heart attack and that he had a stroke.
She often mentioned who had bought a new coat or that she had been out shopping.
Charlie was her oldest child. She often commented on her children which included their military service, when they got married, and she even mentioned when my dad got his first tooth and birth weight!
Caroline often spoke of the weather. Here she mentions the hurricane of 1938. In other entries she had mentioned a snow storm with snow past her knees and the difficulty my grandfather had making his way home. She also mentioned an earthquake in Boston that rattled the house so hard that it awoke them from sleep and knocked over some items.
Who was the artist in this entry? Uncle Bill? Uncle Joe? It will remain a mystery until the end of time.
Caroline often mentioned getting her hair done referring to it as a permanent wave.
Here is where my dad got his first tooth...just under 6 months old.
This entry is a mystery that I'm hoping my dad might remember.
Nana Nickerson (Caroline) crocheted a bed spread and it took a year to complete. I'm sure she was proud because she used it right away!
Caroline often mentioned that my grandfather, Charles Savol Nickerson, donated blood or talked about collecting tin cans. I believe this was her ways of showing her patriotism during WWII.
Sometimes she just wondered. Maybe she was feeling a little lonely here in this entry?

As you can see my grandmother, without knowing it, left me a gift that will last all her family a lifetime. Thank you Nana Nickerson!