Public reading to feature memories of Whitewater
By Heather Ruenz
Editor
Local history will be shared on a level not commonly visited Saturday afternoon when Barbara Birge reads from the 1860s journals of her great-grandfather, Julius Birge, as well as his 1912 published work.
Recently, Barbara provided a behind-the-scenes look at her great-grandfather’s diaries – that include documentation of the people, activities and events that shaped Whitewater – and her favorite parts of his book, “The Awakening of the Desert” – about his adventures on a wagon train trip from Whitewater to Salt Lake City that began in 1866.
Of her great-grandfather’s references to Whitewater in his journal, Birge said her favorite moments “are simple descriptions of going for ice cream with friends, walking to the cemetery, playing euchre, singing with the “Glee Class,” going to different churches on Sunday morning and evening, and staying over at friends’ homes for the night or having them stay with him.”
“At first, I was puzzled by how often the men seem to spend the night at each other’s homes but I’ve come to understand that sleeping in the same bed, even with strangers at the inn, was accepted at that time,” Birge said.
“In addition, it must have been terribly dark without streetlights and probably safer and easier to just stay put,” she added.
In his book, the first two chapters contain Julius’ life in Whitewater. The opening scene, Birge said, “is a charming, vivid description of an evening meeting in a general store where six men discuss the proposed trip.”
“I love how Julius describes the tired clerk who stretches out on the long counter and rests his head on a bolt of blue denim,” she said.
The beginning of Chapter Two, also set in Whitewater, tells about the great crowd that had gathered to watch the wagon train “roll out,” Birge said.
The vivid descriptions about her great-grandfather’s travels also stand out to Birge, though she admitted there are many moments in the book that she loves.
“In general, I treasure his vivid descriptions of the landscape, and there are many of these that depict the virgin, unsettled West. I also love two scenes in particular that both reflect a marvelous sense of decency that runs through the book. In one, the “boys” clean up for a visit with two lovely young women and their parents who are moving west from Kentucky. Julius describes how the men shave and dress up as best they can, but he laments, ‘shoe blacking was a luxury not to be obtained,’” she said.
Another scene in the book, Birge said, always touches her deeply despite reading it countless times.
“Drivers from different wagon trains come together around a campfire one night. A Confederate veteran is razzing a Union veteran until someone points out that one of Julius’ friends, who’s sitting there in silence, fought with the North in the infamous Battle of the Wilderness,” Birge explained.
“Then the whole tone changes, and the Confederate fellow asks to shake his hand and shows absolute respect for him. Something about this scene always brings me to tears. Of course, the 1866 trip was just after the end of the Civil War,” she added.
Birge admitted that Julius’ older style of writing takes some getting used to but is not difficult to follow because he writes in the style of a naturalist, which was popular in the late 1800s and early 1900s, reporting many details in a straightforward, factual way.
“As for his writing style, it’s often humorous with a very light touch. At first, it can be easy to miss the fact that Julius is being tongue-in-cheek, but then the reader catches on, which makes it fun,” Birge said.
She also said it’s obvious that her great-grandfather did a lot of research for the book and at times, relates poignant stories that are deeply moving, such as the glimpse of Pawnees who see their way of life disappearing before them as they stand on the street in Nebraska City or a story of the drowning of some mules along with the loss of everything that a couple of brothers had in crossing the treacherous Platte River.
“Finally, he offers serious social critiques, as when he says the government’s dealings with Native Americans at the Ft. Laramie peace treaty signing were “unworthy of a great nation” or when he talks about ‘the needless slaughter of the buffalo,’” Birge said.
Julius was the first non-Native American child born in Whitewater, Birge said, and when he was 20 his father died, so Julius stepped in to keep things together for the family.
“At that point, he was the only surviving son, responsible for supporting his mother and sisters. For a few years he ran the town flourmill that his father had owned and also retired debt his father had incurred during a serious recession,” Birge said.
In 1863, Julius contracted typhoid fever, given as one reason for his decision to make a trip to the West.
Following the trip, Julius moved to St. Louis, Birge said, first representing a Whitewater company that made buggies and wagons.
“From his humble Whitewater origins, he went on to become very successful in business. He was the second president of the American Hardware Manufacturer’s Association and attended a reception at the White House with his wife, Mary Jane. I think you could say they led a pretty ideal Gilded Age life, though they were touched, as were many, by the loss of several children,” Birge said.
Though he died 30 years before she was born, Birge said she’s come to know him “very well by reading his words aloud, over and over again,” a tribute she takes seriously by trying to imagine and convey his personality when doing so.
“His humor particularly stands out in the book and fits with what I always heard about him from my father, who was one of Julius’ grandsons. Julius was known to have a twinkle in his eye, and he’d roust the grandkids out of bed in the summer to show them the Northern Lights in Michigan or take them on adventures to explore natural phenomena during their summer vacations,” she said.
Julius was often invited to be the after-dinner speaker at men’s “smokers” in St. Louis, Birge has been told, “and I imagine he regaled them with the Western adventures he talks about in the book… and I’ve always heard that if there were a stranger in church, they’d be invited to the Birge home for Sunday dinner.”
While in St. Louis, Julius also instigated the installation of the telephone for residential use, Birge said, “kicking it off through a big event with orchestra members at different households who played in unison when the first connection was made. Among the homes were those of Julius Birge and W.T. Sherman.”
“I like to think of Julius as an early adopter, and I believe he’d be very amused and pleased to know that his book is being re-issued thanks to modern technology since it’s not only printed on-demand, but also available as and e-book and audiobook,” Birge said.
As far as she knows, there are no other published authors in the family though one of Julius’ sons and one granddaughter both wrote narratives on the family’s history.
“I think Julius set a bar that we all still try to live up to,” Birge said.
Adding visual context to Birge’s reading will be a backdrop of 1860s drawings of Whitewater by Henry Rile.
Barbara Birge’s program, “Fountain of Memories: Whitewater Roots and Remembrances,” co-sponsored by the Whitewater Historical Society and the Whitewater Arts Alliance, is slated 1 to 3 p.m., Saturday, July 5 in the Cultural Arts Center, 402 W. Main St.
For more information visit www.theawakeningofthedesert.com.
