(Written by Hattie Tolman Stinger about the only grandparent she remembers, Grandma Mary Jane)
Grandma Mary Jane Gorringe (Tolman), my father’s mother was the only grandparent that I remember. We lived about 1 1/2 miles from her. Grandma had a parlor that was always neat and tidy because it was just for special guests and occasions. She had a beautiful Axminster rug in that room. As I remember, it had blue tones and fringe around it. There was about 1 or 2 feet of hard wood floor around the rug that she kept polished all the time. She had beautiful lace curtains at the 2 windows that were in the room. The window in front was 8-feet square, and there was a small 6-foot high by 4-foot wide window at the south end of the room. Grandma would have a quilt on in the parlor at times. I remember playing under the quilt that my mother would go help grandma with. Grandma had an early American style horse-hair sofa in there also. We thought it was so beautiful and that it was so special if we got to go in the parlor and sit on it. We didn’t dare put our feet on it, if we did we never would’ve gotten to sit on it again. Grandma had a big black pot-bellied stove in her front room (family room).
We would stop there on our way to school and get warm around it. Grandma would give us some hot water with sugar and milk in it (Mormon tea). She would say, “Now my girls, you drink this and it will warm you up inside.” Grandma had indoor plumbing. We thought it was so neat to be able to go in and use the toilet and flush it, and to be able to take a bath in her big white bath tub. This tub stood on white crows legs and feet and had hot and cold running water. This was a luxury hard to imagine to us kids. Grandma had a feather bed. My cousin Louise and I used to stay with grandma a lot and once in a while she would let us sleep in her feather bed. We would sink down in it, boy, it was so soft, warm, and cuddly. There was a big feather tick on the bottom and one on top. Every day, after a nights sleep in it, you would have to fluff both ticks up.
Every morning when we would leave for school, my mother would say, “Now don’t stop and bother grandma tonight.” But we would stop quite often anyway because we knew that grandma would have some cookies and milk for us. Now that I look back, I know that grandma looked forward to us stopping by. One time I remember when I was there that there was a slight earthquake. It shook the windows and made the dishes rattle. Grandma told us to run outside, which we did, but I don’t remember the ground shaking. Grandma used to quilt a lot. She would piece the quilts together by hand. She used to help Louise and I piece quilt blocks. I had some blocks that I had made as a girl at grandmas and I was going to put some more blocks with them to make a quilt but they got burned in the fire that we had when Steven was a baby.
When grandma would receive a pretty handkerchief, slip, or nightgown, she would put them away in a drawer. Then when people came she would show them the pretty thing that was given to her. She knew who had given her each article too. I always said that when people gave me pretty things that I was going to wear them or use them and not leave them for my children to fight over, but she got much joy out of receiving them and showing them to others.
One time when I had stopped by grandmas to get warm, I was sitting by the pot-bellied stove getting warm. Someone came in to put some wood in the stove (the lid was on top), and there was a tea kettle of hot water on the stove. It got accidentally knocked off and hot water went in my lap. I was wearing a wool skirt so it held the heat right in. My legs were scalded. Mother had gone to Salt Lake City, and grandma didn’t know just what to do, so she had me administered to, then she felt impressed to use what they called a Caren Oil salve. I healed without even much of a scar.
I am so grateful for the privilege I had of knowing my grandmother Mary Jane. She died right after Steven was born, so I was not able to go to her funeral. I was so very sad.
Visit FamilySearch to learn more about Mary Jane Gorringe. Also visit the Thomas Tolman Family Organization to find out how you can get more involved in family history.