Following is one of the Biographies and Stories which where gathered by Charles Sumner McKamy in the 1950s for publication in a Crawford County History Book. Unfortunately he passed away before the book was published.
John W. McKamy, son of William McKamy and Mary Maxwell McKamy, born May 8, 1880, in the village of Duncanville, Illinois, at that time with a population of about 75 people. My Father was a Civil War Veteran, severely wounded in the Battle at Chickamauga Battlefield when he was discharged after a time spent in the Hospital and after more than a year he again engaged in the saw mill business, which he had abandoned when he was inducted in the Army, which business he continued for several years, until such time as he was no longer able to continue an account of his health when he worked at the Insurance, Old Soldiers Pension and as Township Treasurer of Honey Creek Township for several years, in the meantime acquiring a small farm west of Duncanville adjoining the Luck Duncan farm which adjoined Duncanville. He later acquired that farm exchanging the nice Duncanville Home, making a farm of 110 acres where we resided, myself and my brother, Charles did most of the farm work; we had two churches in Duncanville, the United Presbyterian and the Old Cecedar church. I remember the preacher of the U.P. Church, Rev. Hugh MacHatton, who had a long white beard extending down to his waist line, whose voice was very weak, so as a result many of the congregation fell asleep during his two hour sermon. Father was a very religious and strict as well with his boys. One night I thought I would put one over on him by placing a long ladder up to my second story bedroom window on which I descended later after I decided everyone was in bed and asleep but I made a mistake for there seemed to be one person who had heard me leave the home and he arrived at the dance in a short time after I got there when he walked quietly over to me and tapped me on the shoulder and invited me to go with him, and I never attempted to do that again. We had permission to go out one night a week provided we attended prayer meeting or a church social. We went to these meetings in our one horse buggy and my brother always managed to have a date to take some girl friend home so I had to walk home and wait for him to come home before we went in, but after a time I decided to stay home instead of spending so much time out in the cold waiting for him to come. We attended the Brown School, two miles from our home and had to walk when it was muddy through the muddy clay roads over a long hill, but we didn't seem to mind it too much hen. I recall two teachers, Miss Jennie Wattleworth (Sherrell) and Price Nuttall now living in Denver, Colo. Every morning the teacher would select two boys to walk a mile to get a bucket of water through the woods and of course we were always willing and glad to go in order to get out of school. In those days we did not know about germs and we all drank out of the same dipper at school, it had a long handle and held easily a quart of water.
I recollect some of those who attended school there with me at that time, being John, Emery, May and Pearl Goodlink; Clara Sponsler and her younger sister, Mildred, and her two cousins John and Palmer; Anna Maxwell and her sister Maggie, brothers Ross and Bert; John, Hugh, Earnest and Anna Harper; Charley, Nobia, Blanche, Byrl and Brode Duncan; Blanche, Grace, Laura and two smaller children whose names I do not remember, the Boyles family; May, Anna, Vance and Minnie Caywood; Cora, Pearl and Laura Hope; Mable Huffman, our next door neighbor, and one unforgettable character, Denny Seany, born a cripple but always happy and often bringing sunshine in our lives, a happy-go-lucky regardless of his great handicap. There were others who I can not now recall, after all we had 55 to 60 students in our school and that was 55 or 60 years ago.
After I became of high school age our father built a home in Robinson where we went to school until after his death, when we returned to the farm, which we afterwards sold and Mother purchased a home in Duncanville and my brother was living in Robinson working as stenographer for Judge William C. Jones and I took over a Restaurant on the East side of the public square, known as the "Blue Front", formerly owned by my brother. Later on my brother became Assistant Postmaster under Samuel Lindsay as postmaster and he talked me in the notion of making application for a Rural Mail Carrier. Since a new route was being laid out as Route #5 I took the examination and passed, carrying the mail for some three years. Really the only nice thing about that job was the fact that during the summer months Ed. Ault, another Carrier, and myself somehow managed to draft girls as often as possible to accompany us around the route for a days outing and that helped easing up the thoughts of going through another long cold muddy winter, that took all the joy out of life. There was no good roads, all dirt and usually muddy.
After three years Ed. And I decided to resign and take a homestead in the Shoshone Reservation near Riverton, Wyoming. We built our cabins on each 160 acres and rode horseback 74 miles in one day to the Circle "O" Cattle Ranch and some times to the Fouble Diamond Ranch which was owned by Landis and Ward DuBois, Wyo., 100 miles from a Railroad, a three day trip by Stage Coach from Lander. We worked on our ranches for about two years and I decided to go back to Robinson and take the Clerk-Carrier examination where I worked seven months when I resigned and accepted a job in Tulsa, Okla. With the Hill Oil and Gas company and was doing fine until they decided to close down for six months when I was reinstated in the Government work as Clerk on City Distribution and Money Order Clerk. After five years there I decided to transfer to Denver, Colo. Where I worked in the main office, which was one of the twelve model offices in the United States, everything electrically equipped, special Delivery, Air Mail and ordinary mail being constantly picked up as it is dropped in and carried in baskets across the building to their respective tables, sorted and dispatched without delay, even the Carriers placed their forwarded mail on top of case and they are caught up by the baskets and carried over for distribution.
After five years in the Denver Post Office I decided to transfer to a vacancy in the Manitou Springs Post Office as a Clerk where I worked for eight years. Manitou is a great health resort especially beneficial for T.B.'s. Have seen during my eight years of service there people who were brought in on stretchers and inside of two years were up and around and some able to go to work again. The last four years in that office I was Assistant Postmaster. After a year's time I finally was transferred to Pasadena. I had to accept the position as City Carrier. I could have later transferred to a Clerk but the weather was so grand the year round that I decided to continue as letter Carrier so continued on until I retired on July 1, 1949 and expect to spend the remainder of my days in Pasadena. My service for the Post Office Department was about 37 years.
I have never entirely quit work as I have a trade, Sign and show Card work and have a good hobby, Archery and make quite a few bows and arrow on the side when not busy with my other work. I believe and advise every one who contemplates retiring to keep on working at least half a day if you want to live longer.
While living in Robinson I joined the National Military Guard, Company "D" 4th Regiment Illinois, serving from 1900 to 1905.
Archery has been my main hobby for over twenty years, having shot in hundreds Tournaments in southern California and still like the sport. A few years ago I was engaged as Archery Instructor by the 20th Century Fox Movie Corporation; one of the pictures starred Tyrone Powers and Ann Baxter, the Crash Drive and I noticed that Ty, as they called him was a very brilliant fellow, he could read the script over once and repeat it word for word without a mistake.
When out taking a picture it reminds one of a Traveling Circus on the road ranging from around one hundred to several hundred according to the picture they are making. They live well, all you can eat and the best of everything all the time, every one is happy and they all get along well together and mix fun with their work.
I make archery bows of the latest design called the laminated Oriental Bow with recurved ends and backed with fortisen, the same as silk backing.
I go deer hunting in the fall and use that type of Bow with broadhead shafts instead of the gun. Archery is fast becoming popular all over the country and we have here in Pasadena about 500 members in our Pasadena Club.
My Mother's parents, Grandpa and Grandma Archibald Maxwell and the rest of his family lived in Jasper County, Illinois on the north edge of Everman Road, just 21 miles from Duncanville and we would visit them every summer; we began planning the trip months in advance and when the day arrived to go we would have a big lunch packed and our extra clothes and some horse feed in the back, which made it rather crowded but we never let that worry us. It would take most of the day with the one horse buggy and I am sure we were happier in that day with no accidents than we are today with the automobile. I liked to ride horseback and to prove it I would actually walk a mile to the far corner of a field to get to ride the horse back to the barn, and I would always ride a horse to the post office for the mail which was only a quarter of a mile to walk across the field but a mile when I rode the horse on the highway.
My time as a Government employee began in Robinson on Jan. 15, 1904, as Mail Carrier on Route #5 until Nov. 16, 1906. I took competitive examination on July 1, 1908 as Clerk-Carrier in City, resigned Jan. 31, 1909, reinstated as Senior substitute in Tulsa, Okla. Post Office Oct. 1, 1909 as Clerk of City Distribution, later promoted to Money Order window where I worked until my transfer to the Denver Post Office Sept. 16, 1913 as Clerk in the Mailing Division. Transferred to Manitou springs on Jan. 9, 1919, as Clerk and the last four years was appointed Assistant Postmaster. My last transfer was to Pasadena, Calif. on Oct. 1, 1926 where I worked as postman until I retired on July 1, 1949.
I think Pasadena is the most beautiful city in southern California. A new bridge extending over the Arrors Seco will be completed in a few months at a cost of six millions and the old bridge will be used in connection with the new one, conditions necessitate the additional bridge account of the increased amount of traffic. It will help take care of our New Years Parade which brings a million to a million and one-half more people here every year. It is impossible to get tickets for the Rose bowl Game unless you want to camp at the gate for two days before the are placed on sale, so those who are unable to secure tickets can go to the races at Santa Anita, which joins Pasadena on the east. This race track and the grounds are the largest in the world, the grounds or rather the parking space covers a section of land and the fastest horses in the United States and some foreign countries as well come here to win the various handicaps ranging from $25,000, $50,000 and $100,000. The race track itself is located on the "Old Lucky Baldwin Ranch" which consisted of some 2500 acres.
Pasadena has the California Institute of Technology, known the world over, which covers 40 acres not including the Tournament Park. It is mainly supported by donations from millionaires throughout the country. This Institution erected a building dust proof lined with cork to grind the optical lenses for the Mt. Wilson 100 inch telescope, also the 200 inch for Mt. Palomar. Also, there is the Huntington Library which covers about 300 acres and has the largest collection of plants in the world, it also contains many priceless paintings, including the "Blue Boy".
Before leaving Robinson I was married to Miss Zella Newlin and we had two very fine children, a daughter, Freda and a son, Byran, born before going to Tulsa, Okla., both attended grade school and high school and became talented musicians, the daughter was one of the finest pianists and the son could play well any instrument in the orchestra and they both received large salaries playing in the largest Play Houses in Los Angeles, Freda married a very successful oil operator south of Pasadena and Byran lost his health and had to give up his musical career.
John W. McKamy, 1440 Whitefield Road, Pasadena, Calif.