Dedicated to the Memory of

                                                            HAZEL

                                             She was there with moral

                                           support and encouragement

Acknowledgements

I want to thank all contributors of materials for this book I give my deep appreciation to my daughter Lorraine, who spent many long hours typing this material through the years and my niece, Sharon Bearce, (Charlotte's daughter) who used her work processor to put this into final print. I also want to thank my daughter, Louise and her husband, Konrad; my son, Harley, and his wife, Tern; my brothers, sisters, the rest of my wonderful family for their moral support encouragement.

THE GEORGE AND IDA (KALER) HELLE FAMILY

Having reached the great age of sixty five on November 25, 1978, and with the cold winter of '79 keeping me home more, I have had a lot of time to reminisce about my family. I may be prejudiced, but I think it is a great family.

A family of thirteen children will have a large number of descendants, who will want to know what we did, how we lived, and that it was like in the 20th century.

Today, there are few families as large as ours. We are an unusual family from the "Great Midwest" with a story to tell. At this time there are about 180 descendants. If we live a normal life span, we will have lived the "100" years of the 20th century.

My generation has lived through the "horse-and-buggy" era, the "automobile age" and the "Great Industrial Revolution." It's difficult to comprehend the many changes in this century. We have seen the air power, the space age and all of man's conveniences change our lifestyles. This has been a remarkable era in history, with greater advances than has ever been known or perhaps ever will be known.

I hope this book will acquaint future generations with the way we lived from 1900 to 1982 and to let them know a little about their ancestors. When I decided to write the family history I asked my brothers and sisters for their stories. My wife, Hazel and our children, Louise, Harley and Lorraine also joined in and contributed.

It seems important to tell the story of Dad and Mother first. Dad was born and raised on a farm, one of a large family. Mother was a farm girl. My father, George Helle, had nine sisters and three brothers. His parents were born in Germany.

My mother, Ida Kaler Helle, had three brothers and three sisters. Her ancestors date back to the Mayflower, to John and Pricilla Alden.

There are other books published about their ancestors so I will stick to the family that I know. George Helle and Ida Kaler were married Sep. 1, 1901 in Fulton County, Illinois. To this union were born thirteen children. I was the eighth child, but seventh son.

The children were:

Lloyd Charles                January 10, 1903

Royle George              February 23, 1904

Joseph Arlie                   January 8, 1906

Delbert Vernon                March 24, 1907

Donald Lee              September 30, 1908

Bertha "Ethel"            February 24, 1910

Walter                                 June 20, 1912

Sheldon Lyle            November 25, 1913

Verle Burdett                       May 26, 1917

Harley "Eugene"                 July 18, 1918

Gail                                      June 23, 1920

Charlotte                    December 20, 1921

Nellie "June"                        June 4, 1924

Mom and Dad lived in Smithfield, where Dad operated a steam powered sawmill. HE was a successful operator. Dad's mill was portable as were most sawmills in the Midwest at this time in history.

He bought a farm near Cuba, Illinois, mostly because his family was growing and he wanted to get back out on the farm again. Dad always kept the sawmill, sawing railroad ties and lumber during the winter months.

Dad had two large threshing machines that he used during the grain threshing season. The large threshing machines were popular about the turn of the century. When the small threshing machine, and later the combines, became popular, the large machines became obsolete. Thousands of dollars were lost on the large threshers.

We were on a 200 acre farm that only had about 80 acres tillable. Dad had a chance to rent a 480 acre farm at Mineral, Illinois. The acreage was tillable and would make work for the kids. So in March 1929, we moved from Mother and Dad's "Spoon River Country" and all of their life long friends. I know this must have been heart-breaking for them.

I was fourteen years old, too young to realize what they must have gone through. Back then, 130 miles was like 1000 miles is today. The first spring on this farm over half of the land was under water. It was during the "Great Depression" of the 1930's and farming as a business failed to make money. Dad moved the family to a smaller farm at Geneseo, IL, while he ran the sawmill at Mineral. Walter and I did the work at the farm under the management of Dad while he operated the sawmill full time.

Walt and I were only about 17 and 15-years-old. As I look back today I realize that these were hard long days for us at that age, but we didn't think of it that way. It was just the way we lived and worked then. When it came to corn picking time, I would work like a slave and get out about 50 bushels a day. Walt was taller and a year and a half older, and he could easily pick 75 bushels a day. I had a lot harder time and named a lot of the ears of corn; and they weren't names I can repeat here. When we still couldn't keep up with the corn picking, Dad hired a neighbor man, who was older and more experienced. He could pick 100 a day faster than I could pick 50.

The plowing and planting was easy. It was done with horse power and a small steel wheeled Fordson tractor. We had bought the tractor used in the 20's just before it was taken out of production. About ten years later Ford Motor Company came out with the Ford Tractor, which was a modern, rubber tired tractor with hydraulic lifts.

Dad continued to run the sawmill at Mineral for one year before he relocated it to Bradford, IL. We moved to a farm outside of Bradford, but the farming days were over for us. These were lean years and Dad had some sad dark days.

We were at Bradford only six months when Dad decided to move to Wyoming, IL with the mill. We moved on June 8, 1931. Here business was better. Dad continued to operate the portable mill until 1932. Stationary sawmills were just becoming known. When Dad was fifty nine, He set up one of the first stationary mills, which was the first in this area.

We had a new truck to haul the logs. Modern trucks were small but did a good job on short hauls. We sawed lumber for farm buildings and repair. This was a very successful business for many years. It was a new era.

For sentimental reasons, I have one of these trucks restored today, (1979). We also have two old sawmills waiting to be restored.

Dad and Mother were very proud of their family. They dedicated their lives to our welfare. Mother always seemed to have the family under control as Dad was so busy making a living for our big family. He needed and appreciated her help.

Mom was always there, morning, noon and night. She taught us what to do and how to do it. She also taught us what not to do. She drove a horse and buggy to town for supplies. In later years automobiles came along but she never did learn to drive them.

I remember our homelife as a happy and busy one. We each had our work set out ahead of time and we enjoyed working as a family together even though it was hard labor most of the time.

Mother and Dad were a very important part of the community that they lived in. Even in later years when they moved to a new community they soon became involved in local affairs. Needless to say, I am very proud of my parents and the way they lived.

Mom always enjoyed her family coming home for visits. We had great weekends with lots of company. The married children and their families would come home a lot for weekends, holidays and visits. Time marches on. I was sad to leave my happy home, but a small freckle faced farm girl with both charm and beauty had become a part of my life. It was the end of one era and the beginning of another.

Hazel Hendrick and Sheldon Helle were

married on May 11, 1935 at a Presbyterian

Parsonage at Palmyra, MO. We celebrated our

44th wedding anniversary this year, (1979).

It seems like such a short time.

         At the age of 68, Dad's health failed and three sons; Verle, Gene and Gail entered the Armed Services for World War II.  The other help went also or left for war related industries. In 1942, during the war, the sawmill closed.

         On November 20, 1943, Dad died at the age of seventy in Freeport, IL. He is buried at Sennett Chapel, three miles from Spoon River and two miles from our home where we grew up, six miles northwest of Cuba, IL. We are glad he is back home in "Spoon River Country." We go each year to the cemetery.

         Mom had several major surgeries, starting in 1918, then in 1929, 1936, 1941 and again in 1948. From 1943 to her death in 1971, Mom made her home with Charlotte and Harrison. The last five years she was in a wheel chair. She had broken her ankle and the hospital misread the x-rays. By the time the break was discovered it had mended in the broken position. Mom was a gracious lady who seldom complained and always enjoyed her family.

Mom died December 17, 1971, at the age of ninety-three. She is buried with Dad and their eight year old daughter, our sister, June. She also has a brother, sister, and Lloyd and Opal's son, Richard, buried there.

continued

Note from Lee Helle

Haveing known the folks in this book of Sheldon's surely brings back a overwhelming rush of memories. If I had one wish, it would be to pass my memories on to those not as lucky.

Sheldon wrote two more books that have been published on the Helle Clan Site.

Book One

Book Two