Masthead-3

Excerpts from Wilderness Chronicle

THE VANWAGONERS

Chapter 5

OF FLYNN VALLEY

 

By:  Clement VanWagoner

Image4Dad did raise a lot of strawberries and raspberries.  After a few trips to town with fruit, Dad turned this job over to me.  I used to take the rear seat out of the Chrysler and fill the area with crates of berries.  I would go to Bay City and Saginaw markets, also to Alpena, Mio, West Branch, and Grayling  to sell berries.  I was always able to sell them, I never had to bring any of them home.  We picked and sold a lot of berries, many bushels, Mother also canned some.  Dad would even let me go to market alone.  We never had a flat tire to interfere with the job.  This was a wonderful lesson for me.  One time when my Dad and I took a load of berries to Alpena on a Saturday, we found the stores loaded with berries.  Other fruit growers had picked the same day.  So I asked my Dad what we should do.  He said, we will hurt them.  So we drove into the residential area and he and I went from door to door to sell the berries.  I remember going to one of the homes in Alpena, rapping on the door and when the door opened, I said to the lady we have berries to sell for 8 cents per quart.  She said, “They look nice, but I can’t afford to buy any.”  So I left.  When I was out to the street, she hollered to me and said would I sell three quarts for a quarter.  I said yes and made the sale.  I couldn’t wait until I got back to my dad and told him what had happened.  I thought he would go into orbit, because he laughed so hard!

We always had lots of strawberries and in season we literally lived on strawberry shortcake.  I still like Soda biscuits.


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