“The World War I armistice between the United States Allies and Germany was signed November 11. Bells rang, whistles blew all day long. I was old enough now to go to dances, date, and wait for the boys to ‘come marching home.’ We would go to Logan to the train station and meet the boys as the trains came puffing in. Oh, what a wonderful sound! We knew the boys (maybe) would be getting off. Some, yes.., some no. Many injured, many with a limit of even blindness, but our boys were all welcomed and loved. Bands played, flags were flown, and tears were shed, arms flown around loved ones, dinner parties and dances.

“My sister Fern’s boyfriend came home. A wedding was planned and the happy couple was married at home by our Bishop. She was in a lovely dress and he was in his uniform. A terrible blizzard came up. Guests had to stay all night. Roads were filled with deep snow. We had to hang quilts up to the doors. The wind and snow were so bad, doors had to be braced and blocked. We all started to play games and sing songs, and had a lot of fun. It was at the wedding that I met a prince of a guy. He was really handsome in his uniform. Mother fixed more food, and by lamplight and the warmth of the stove, we all survived. The next morning, father and the men got the shovels and started digging us out. One by one, the buggies and horses with their passengers got down to the main road. Oh, what a wedding night for that dear sister of ours. A big snowball fight took place and everyone had so much fun before they started seeing how far their voices would echo back the goodbyes.

“Two days later, I was called to the phone of our bishop, someone calling me from Mendon. The handsome young man in uniform was calling to invite me to be his guest and partner at the welcome home party for the boys of Mendon. Oh, was I excited, elated and scared. What would I wear? The bishop and his wife all teased me and kissed me, I went back home and told mother and father. Mother went right to work and it wasn’t long until she had made me a lovely dress. It was a pretty blue, not light, but dark blue. The top was velvet, the skirt, a wool material. I was really proud. I caught the Bamburger street car and went to Mendon to my sister’s, and he called for me there. Oh, what a lovely evening. Long tables were all decorated in flags, etc., and the food, fit for the kings. An orchestra played and we danced, danced, danced, all night. I was really treated like a queen. We had one and a half blocks to walk to my sister’s house, snow on the ground, but my feet were so tired, I just had to take off my shoes and finish the walk in stocking feet. He put my shoes in his pocket. It was a night I never forgot. I dated that young fellow, not steady, but quite a lot. We went to dances in Hyrum, Mendon, Logan and Smithfield. He had a nice buggy and a frisky horse for good weather. Once in a while, we went with a group in a sleigh with two horses if there was snow. “

By Ella Mae Walker, Extracted from “The Story of Ella Mae Walker and Walter Tennyas Griffin,” compiled by Dorothy Hardman, 1993. ;#AncestorClips