Conner-LeVander Family History

HISTORY OF THE CONNER-LEVANDER FAMILIES

NARRATED BY: PEARL LEVANDER – JANUARY 25, 1976

Our parents, G. S. and Maga Conner, moved from Tule, Nebraska in 1906. Due to mother’s poor health, the doctor advised a change of climate. Since her parents, the A. M. White family, had already homesteaded in this area, I suppose that is why the folks came out here. They were on Highline road which is about a mile south of Mesquite and Highway 30 on what is now known as the Goodfellow place.

They homesteaded 160 acres. The first homestead house was built about a mile east of the corner of Kimball & Juniper. In June, 1914, they moved to the next house located about one-half mile east on Juniper, and is now the Darrell and Joan Hart residence; they have built a new home. Our old house was moved to North Sixth Street in Payette.

The family consisted of five boys and five girls, all born in Nebraska except Cecil, Jack, and myself, who were born and raised on Dead Ox Flat. It was called Dead Ox Flat because the early pioneers, in coming through with their oxen and teams, had crossed the Snake River just north of what is the Snow Moody Pumping Plant and it was such a hard winter the oxen died, and that is why it was named Dead Ox Flat. Now, it has been renamed as the Oregon Slope.

At that time, our neighbors were the Hills, Josephs, Graces, Klinefelters, Gribbins, Thomas, and John Green. The John Green place is now known as the Turner Homestead.

For recreation, we used to have barn dances which were held at my Grandad’s place. These people had taken the hay loft and put a dance floor in it and we used to go for miles, everybody did, go there and have their dances. We went by sled as the roads were not passable for cars. They also went up Moore’s Hollow to the Pruitt’s place, and the Adams’ place in the summer, and they would go by car. The whole family went and the youngsters would go to sleep on the bed covered with coats to keep warm.

I also remember going to the Jefferson School House to the Ice Cream Social. It was the Club’s money-making project and they would charge a penny for a serving. If you wanted mashed potatoes, that was a penny; gravy was a penny. If you wanted ice cream, that was a penny. In those days all the food and ice cream was all home-made, instead of bought at the store, and there was really some good food.”

The roads used to go by trails through the farmland. Then, later, it was built by the section line which made our place on the Highway from Weiser to Payette. Then, about the 1920s, they put in U.S. 30 which went along the back of the place. Now, it is called Alternate 30, or 201.

Cecil said he could remember the first car that he rode in. It was a Model T Ford owned by Mr. Blakesley. He lived in Payette but had the ranch on Snake River Slope and would go back and forth. As Cecil was coming home from school, Mr. Blakesley would pick him up and give him a ride in the car.

When they were taking the pigs to market, which was at Weiser, if they didn’t have enough wagons to take them, Dad would gather up all the neighboring kids, and they would drive them to Weiser which would make it a fun thing for the youngsters as well as Dad getting his hogs to the market. I suppose the reason they took them to Weiser is that the bridge was at Nelsen Bridge, Payette still had the ferry, and that is why Weiser was more or less the shipping point for all the produce.

The older youngsters went to school at Jefferson until we moved into the new house. We were in the Park District instead of the Jefferson District so we went to the Park Schoolhouse. Myself and Ethyl Carrico went through the twelve grades, going to Ontario to High school for four years by bus. We used to think it was a lot of fun to catch the bus and go to school by bus anymore; there isn’t the thrill in that as the youngsters would rather have their own cars and drive themselves. As far as I know, Ethyl and I were the only two that went at that time, through the twelve grades together.

Park School was built around 1914, Dr. George Davis at New Plymouth said as near as he could remember it was built in 1914, and he was up there at that time going to school.

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From Pearl LeVander