The house on Grand

2317 Grand Ave. Everett in 1947

I don't remember much about myself before I was 6 years old and where we lived but in 1947 our family moved to Everett to the house on Grand Street, a big old two-story drafty shell of a thing with windows that all stuck and floors that creaked and walls that groaned.  But in a sense that's when my life began, because before then I had nothing more than flashbulb memories of a turbulent and confusing past; of cows and dogs and bulls, horses and ice cream and open fields, long bus rides and things like that.

The house on Grand Street gave me an anchor and opened up my mind, stimulated my imagination, acted as the bridge to the future, and fired up a whole plethora of memories--so many memories of a happy and carefree youth.

Here are a few examples of that time.

I remember the house well. It had a parlor and living room as you enter, a hallway to the kitchen and one back bedroom.  On the second floor were four large bedrooms but no plumbing.  The house had no foundation, rather it was set up on blocks.  I used to go under the house during hide-and-seek games to find lots of spiders and ants.  When we got a piano for the front room the floor began to sink.  Dad got under the house and jacked it up.

The four of us in front of the 26 steps leading to our front door.  Our dog "Honey"  made it to the 17th step before mama rescued her.  The dog had been ran over by a car and later she died.  I'm at upper left.

Three kids on the side porch, my sister, my brother and me just after us boys got our annual "aborigines" cuts.  I'm bending over. 

Here we are posing in the front yard. One of my brothers had just broken his arm and is not too happy about it.  I'm just behind him.

I had 10 banty chickens.  Here I am with "Jack".  My brother doesn't like the idea too much.