The Barkers of Branford: Life in America Through a Local Lens8

Excerpt from Ted Braun’s book “The Barkers of Branford: Life in America Through a Local Lens" available for $30 at the Blackstone Library in Branford. See www.BarkersOfBranford.com )

Llewellyn Barker married Hattie Adella (Dell) Thompson from North Guilford in 1881. For almost a decade we see life from a female perspective for Dell often penned the diaries. The following is her first diary entry in 1885 after they had Venia, their first child.

“In the morning Llew ….. chopped wood across the brook. Went in town in the afternoon to buy seat in church .…I did the housework & mended in the afternoon”

Llewellyn chimed in on the same page…

“Venia & I can endorse the above statement”

…and then initialed his entry “LMB”. Venia was one year old at the time.

The following are a few glimpses provided by Dell into their young family’s life.

“Venia & I did the housework baked & went up stairs in the afternoon... in the evening I mended & Llew read poems”

“in the evening Llew read love stories... I sewed on Venia's petticoat... Venia slept all the evening”

Life got very busy for Dell after giving birth to three additional daughters across the next eight years. Not always was their home filled with domestic bliss. On this occasion, a conflict between Dell and Llewellyn played out on the diary pages perhaps presaging “women’s liberation” by over a century.

"Llew accuses me of writing the same things every day so I think I shall let him write after this"

Llewellyn bolstered his opinion on the same diary page…

“This is Good Friday but Dell didn’t speak of it”

Blank pages followed, perhaps mirroring the household silence. Dell was true to her word. Her voice ceased in the diary pages. If the diary was to continue, it was up to Llewellyn and this he did for the next forty-four years until the day before he died. Across these ears, he chronicles not only domestic life but also that of the Labor Movement, Socialism, Temperance and Prohibition, local politics, the Bicycle Craze of the 1890’s, “Modern” Progress, World War One.

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Photos: Dell, Llew & Dell on Rocks, Daughters, Book Cover

Ted Braun’s book “The Barkers of Branford: Life in America Through a Local Lens” is available for $30 at the Blackstone Library in Branford. Richly illustrated with over 200 photos, maps and illustrations, it traces not only the history of a family but also that of the town and the nation. Details at www.BarkersOfBranford.com