Diary of Alfred E. Potter August, 1941

01.  Friday: [7M] First Friday, we attend 9 Oclock services at St. Vincents.  Donald takes Bobby Llewellyn along as his guest.  Matt Michels passed away this afternoon at 330.  Born April 1 – 1883.  His 3 surviving sisters are Franciscan Nuns, Sisters Leonine – Thomasilla – and Lioba.  Brothers are Joseph – John – Henry – Anthony.

02.  Saturday:[3M] Another hot day.  Picked a few baskets of plums at the cottage grounds.  Then for an hour and a half dip in the water.  In the evening took the family to see the Oshkosh Braves beat the Janesville baseball team.  Loaned Fred Hamann 15 dollars this morning.

03.  Sunday: To 7³⁰ Mass at St. Vincents then to work. Out to Point Comfort this afternoon where the St. Vincents male choir is having an outing at Andrashko's cottage next to our lot. Joe Baier takes his family and Grandma Baier to Holy Hill this afternoon. Grandma sure can take it.          Com. Matt Michels

04.  Monday: [3M  RDXHK] Mrs. Prellwitz laid to rest.  Closed the deal to sell Jungen Home this afternoon to Anton and Mary Paulick.  View the remains of Matt Michels this afternoon.  Ed Weisheipl begins his vacation today.         Mass: Matt Michels, Eugene Kandy

05.  Tuesday: [3 ½ M] Attended Funeral of Matt Michels.  Had a short visit with Sabina Kandy after the burial service.  Lena Baier receives an airmail letter this morning notifying her of the death of Mrs. Joseph (Camilla) Micko at St. Paul.  We’re all sorry to hear of this, and she used a visit here often.  She was buried this morning.  Dolores Kinateder has a birthday, she is 11 years of age.  She has quite a party.          Mass: Mrs. Jos. Micko

06.  Wednesday: [2 M] Picked pattern for Linoleum floor covering for the new West Side Store.  Took Ed Fretchel and Robert along to the cottage.  We did some fishing, caught some very nice sized perch.  The Heips and Thres Fretchel come out at night.  The party broke up at 3 A.M.  The Weisheipl’s run out of gas in town and had to take a taxi home.  Well they made it by 4 A.M.

07.  Thursday: [3 ½ M  RDXDK] George Mertz is out to the cottage tonite to repair our aerial.  He run it along the inside of the cottage instead of the outside.

08.  Friday: : [3 ½ M] Thirty years ago, a young man 20 years of age was married at St. Vincents Church by Father Adolph Wibbert to Theresa Drexler. Theresa was a dressmaker and the young man which happened to be myself was an assistant pharmacist working for F.W. Mueller. How the time does fly. A small surprise party at the cottage tonite by Bill and Emma Siewert - Ed and Thres Fretchel - Joe and Anna Weisheipl. The party went fine until 1 A.M. when Joe Weisheipl suddenly left for home without Annie. She cried he never did that to me in almost 35 years married life.

09.  Saturday: [1 ½ M] View the remains of Earl Pfotenhauer at the Konrad funeral home.  He had many floors at least 75 pieces, mostly large sized and beautiful.  Have the cottage radio repair it works very well know.  Lawrence Kinateder’s birthday yesterday.  He almost had a party, but is not feeling well.  Ears and tonsils bother.

10.  Sunday: [2M] Attended six oclock Mass at St. Vincents. St. Vincents Annual Picnic at South Park. The rain holds off until 6³⁰ P.M. which helps a lot. No Bingo at night, but the Band Concert attracts quite a number of people. I put in eleven hours of work at the store today. Rose Weisheipl and some of her girl friends spend the day at the Poklasny cottage. They were over to our place for a while and helped themselves to apples and plums and are reprimanded by Mrs. Brand (our neighbor).

11.  Monday: [3 ½ M] Attended Red Cross Executive Committee meeting this afternoon.  We now have a lovely new office on the 4^th Floor of the New Court House.

12.  Tuesday: Visited Sister Aquiline at Mercy also Lawrence and Dolores Kinateder who have their adenoids removed. Lawrence tonsils also, he is pretty sick, also visited Henry Durler Pres. of People's Brewing Company met with Ed Durler there also, then also Walter Arndt R#3 Box 64 who was injured in a head on collision near Fishers Filling Station on County K last Thursday. Ringling Bros. Circus is in town. This day will go down in history for Donald. He stays at Fretchel’s for the nite. He and Robert get up at 2 A.M. leave home at 3 A.M. to help while the circus unloads and sets up their tents. He gets a free pass and does not get home until 7³⁰ in the evening. He calls me at the store at 7⁴⁵ says he is very tired and is going right to be. Well he should be tired.

13.  Wednesday:[2M] My afternoon off.  Thres drove to town to Red Cross and I cleaned up around the cottage until it was too dark to work.  We expected Harry Kujawa and family but they did not get here.

14.  Thursday: [2M] Took Sisters Petranda from Canada, and Sister Viatora and her two Sisters who were also nuns to the Notre Dame Mother House at Milwaukee.  Met Sister Ottmer Baier.  Also took Mary Ann and Rosemary Koelbl along.  Visited with Karl and Margaret Radomsky.  Rose and Teddy Gittings are there.  Margaret made up a fine meal for us.  Got back home at 4³⁰ P.M.  Dropped in to see Anna and Leona Drexler this evening.  They have a new combination gas and wood heater kitchen stove, also new kitchen decorations.

15.  Friday: [2½ M] News is received that Karl Fretchel is now a Corporal. He is stationed at the Marine Barracks, Navy Yard, Washington, D.C.

16.  Saturday: [2½ M] Donald and myself do some fishing this afternoon, we caught many small perch.  I threw back 42 Donald 29 we did get a dozen good sized ones also 2 red horse.  We gave the big ones to Fretchel’s

17.  Sunday: To St. Johns 730 Mass.  Father Basel Indian Missionary is there.  He was at St. Vincents last Sunday.  Joe – Emma – Joe Jr. Baier – Bill – Rose – Billy – Joan –Barbara Mauritz – Ray – Ann – Raymond – Jimmie Ostertag Erva Mauritz and 2 Children occupy our cottage for the day.  Our Mary Ann goes along with them this morning.  South Side Merchants have their picnic at Silver Lake.  Roger Allmers forgot to come back to work this morning.  Rose Weisheipl will be on her vacation this week, and Leon Geiger from the north store.

18.  Monday: [2M] Naomi Mueller works for Annie Weisheipl this morning.  Roger Allmers is back from his vacation.  He took an extra day.

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20.  Wednesday: Sisters of St. Vincents have their annual picnic at our cottage. Sisters Bede, Valeria, Viatora, Romano, Jonella, Generose, Marcelia, Erminelda, Isadora. They enjoy themselves very much and hope to be with us again next year. I drive to Mount Calvary to attend Alumni of St. Lawrence College Convention. Met some of the boys I knew at school. Fathers Les Sharp, Dominic Diedrich, John Dapp, Mike Prock, Louis Schorn, Frank Heyman, Ed Boney, Jack Quella, Joe Esdepsby.

21.  Thursday: [4½ M] Rose and Teddy Gittings are here from Chicago. They arrived yesterday at noon. Emma (Drexler) Hurst passed away this afternoon at 3⁵⁰ at Mercy Hospital.

22.  Friday: [4M] Laurence and Dolores Kinateder are house guests at the cottage.

23.  Saturday: Did some fishing this afternoon.  I caught 50 _ 43 small perch 6 Big perch 1 Big Sheephead.

24.  Sunday: To 7³⁰ St. Vincents Hi Mass, then to work.  Left at 10 A.M. for Soldiers Home Waupaca with our family and Ken Lippold.  Arrived in around 11³⁰ had sandwiches and coffee.  Took boatride on Chain O Lakes.  Donald played for Phil Laffey’s Orchestra for the Veterans Reunion.  Met John Bloechl who showed us around, also a number of Oshkosh people among them Major Marden Emil and Mrs. Phillip.  Viewed the remains of Emma Hurst when we came back.  Forgot to mention we stopped at Whispering Pines and Wild Rose on our way back from Waupaca.

25.  Monday: My Plymouth goes in a honeymoon tonite.  Ed Fretchel Jr. and Marion Ilk are married at Sacred Heart Church.  Emma Hurst is laid to rest this morning.  Funeral is from St. Johns Church.

26.  Tuesday: Winnebago County Fair opens.  Our family attend.  I take a few hours off this afternoon to see the acts and they are surely worth while.

27.  Wednesday: Emma and Bill Siewert are with us at the cottage.  We do some fishing and have good luck.

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30.  Saturday: Joe and Anna Weisheipl leave this morning for Cornell to visit with Frank and Anna Weisheipl who have a tavern there. This evening we take a drive to Berlin. Stopped at Harry Kujawa's, found no one home, but did meet them downtown on Huron Street and were they surprised to see us walking down the street. Had a nice chicken lunch at _______ air conditioned tavern. Donald attended ballgame.

31.  Sunday: To 7³⁰ Hi Mass, then to work.  In the afternoon we took the Fretchel’s out to the cottage.  I worked about 8 hours at the store today.  Harold and Eva Mueller surprised us at the cottage tonite.  This is the new first visit this year.  They left at 2 A.M.