Dorothy Clark Holmgren and her daughter, Marion Holmgren, 22 February 1989.

Interview with Dorothy Clark Holmgren and her daughter, Marion on 22 February 1989.

Regarding the Old Chubbuck School photo: Comments Dorothy made are:

Art Holmgren is middle of the door and:

Nelson Holmgren is to the right.

Lou Holmgren is to the left.

Left to right, front row:

Minnie Holmgren is in the white dress and a ribbon in her hair on right.

Left side of photo with a big bow on the left side is Martha Mattson. She was Don Mattson’s mother and is dead now. Her married name was Mattson.

Henry Nelson is about three down middle of the door. He is just above a girl.

Some others Dorothy feels should be in here would be Vic Freeland and Rosetta Austin. But Dorothy does not know which ones they are.

Mary Bjork who is Don Bjork’s wife, she is from the Vic Freeland family. Mary would be someone to talk to.

Dorothy graduated in 1919 from Grant High School.

Dorothy attended the Pleasant Valley School for the elementary years.

Dorothy’s mother taught school for 29 years. She was exceptionally good at discipline. Dorothy feels she learned a lot from her.

Dorothy taught 1923-24 at Clark School.

1924-1927 Dorothy taught at Chubbuck School.

Then I went to Longcore School where I taught into 1929 and that is when I ended my teaching career. Dorothy had taught 6 years in Kent County and 1 year in Newaygo.

Dorothy taught for 6 years after she got married.

Art Holmgren, (Dorothy's husband) was a “huckster”. Some of the things he raised were strawberries, raspberries, potatoes and had chickens to be able to sell eggs. He had a route plus he would take product to the markets.

Hemingsen’s owned where Art and Dorothy Holmgren lived before them. Hemingsen relatives are Ann Anderson, Antone Nielson, Tony, they are all cousins to the Hemingsen’s.

Mrs. Hemingsen was called “Andy.”

Some other people who may have Chubbuck School photos would be; Zella Clute, Ruth Hammerstrom, Charlotte Hall. My son, Dick had her. A lady by the last name of Swem, she lived with Hildur Holmgren after Lou Holmgren died. She lived in the big room upstairs at 16652 Fruit RIdge Road. She had it set up as a sitting room.

There was no electricity in the schools until after I was done teaching. We had kerosene lamps.

The Clark School door was always flying open. So, teachers locked it. All the former teachers had trouble with if blowing open. Especially if there was an east wind. So, Dorothy was told when it was a particular bother to lock it. So, on her first day of teaching at Clark School she locked it. An hour or so later there was a commotion at the door. She wondered what it was and checked and there was the School Commissioner; Lynn Clark coming to check things out. Whenever he saw her after that he would kid with her about the first time they had met.

Dorothy remembers doing a box social at Chubbuck School when she worked there to raise some money, but she does not remember specifically what the money was used for.

Art and Dorothy had the stone milk house built. We had Elgee Hallman build it. He was a mason who lived ½ way between Half Moon Lake and Bailey. He also did stonework on Gary Holmgren’s.

Bob and Barth Freeland and the Callen’s are other old students from Chubbuck School.

Comments on another photo Dorothy had are:

Left to right front:

Charlie Holmgren.

Lou Holmgren.

Albert Holmgren.

Nels Holmgren. He has a son at Mainstee and a daughter in Grand Rapids.

Art Holmgren.

Dorothy never had a problem with discipline. She only remembers having to take the strap to a big kid once. She had a lot of good kids.

The house Brennan's live in was built by a son of Hemingsen’s. Dorothy could not remember his name. But, she thinks the wife got some money from Denmark and they used it to build the house. Dorothy feels the house was not built good. It was very drafty. She and Art had to do a lot of insulating and filling of cracks.

Irv Nyblad was born in 1910.

Dorothy always lived at home when she taught. While she taught at Longcore School she hired Mrs. Heath who lived next door to the school to the south, to open the school and build the fire.