Of the many family values that make up the legacy of William Odell and Opal Adams Tolman, work is one of the bedrock principles that has been handed down the generations or more precisely work, work, work.
(From the foreward of William Odell Tolman: Patriarch, Genealogist, Teacher written by John Odell Tolman). My father taught and lived the principle that with hard work we would succeed in accomplishing any task we put our mind to. Twelve hour working days were a norm for him. He often said: “Son, the three words to success are Work! Work! Work!” And work we did. My father, in partnership with his five younger brothers and a brother-in-law, owned a 500 acre farm with a large dairy, where the families all lived and worked. He also owned the Palace Meat Market in Pocatello and the first Kaiser-Frazer dealership in Idaho. As a result, I learned from my father to do many things. At the age of seven, he had me stand on a stool and feed meat into a huge grinder to make hamburger. It caused my mother to have nightmares of her little boy being sucked into the awful meat grinder. When I was in my early teens, father often entrusted me with the bank deposit of hundreds of dollars which I carried for two blocks down a back alley to the local bank. At age fourteen, having an Idaho drivers license, I drove new and used cars from Salt Lake City to Pocatello and later to the dealership in Idaho Falls. These are a few examples of the trust and confidence Dad had in me at a young age.
My ancestors were also religious pioneers. All four of my great grandfathers (Cyrus Tolman 1820, William Osborne Gorringe 1824, Judson Tolman 1826, and Thomas Briggs 1832) joined the Mormon Church and came west with the early pioneer groups. They were industrious, honest, hard-working individuals and passed this heritage on to their descendants.
1916: By the time I was six years old I was known as “Little Willie.” As early as 6 years old I worked as a derrick boy for my grandfather, Joshua Alvin Tolman, my own dad and uncles Parley and Dan as they helped each other harvest the crops. I continued working as a farm hand as I grew in years and size, until at the age of fifteen I was stacking hay for a big crew.
1924: Naomi taught me how to dance. In fact, she spent more time dancing with me than she did with her date. When I went to high school as a freshman, I knew that I could dance well enough to dance with the girls. But our family was a large family and we were very poor. In fact, we were so poor that when I asked my mother if I could have fifty cents to go to the first Friday night dance, my mother started to cry. She said, “Son, I know how much you want to go, and I would like you to go, but I don’t have any money to give you.” Then she said, “But if you will get the chickens to lay five additional dozen eggs each week, you can take the eggs to the store and tell Gerald Cranney that you want money for them, and he will give you the fifty cents you need for your dance ticket.” I don’t know whether it was because of my faith, and I doubt that it was. It was probably because of the faith of my mother, but I had undying confidence in her faith. When mother prayed, she prayed like so many of the pioneers did that you could almost feel that the Savior was standing right by her side, that kind of faith. So I went out to the chicken coop and I sat down. I was fifteen years old. There were all the old hens upon the roost. I said, “Now I want to talk to old sisters. If you will just produce a little more, I can get enough each week to go to the dance.” I gave them quite a sermon. This sounds fantastic, but it actually happened. I think mother kind of fudged on the eggs we used in the house a little bit too, but I got enough additional eggs to get my five dozen that first week and every week after that until I started working for the neighbors and getting enough money for my dance tickets. Those old hens produced those additional eggs for me every week. It was miraculous.
1925: It didn’t take me long to notice in high school that the popular boys were the ones who had lettered in athletics, football, and basketball, so I went to my Dad and said: “Dad, can I go out for football?” I was only a 9th grader, but it was a small school so they had to take almost everybody who went out on the team. Of course, I was a farm boy so I was as hard as nails. I was used to working. I wasn’t big but I was hard. My dad said: “Son, you know that you are needed at home after school and you have work to do. But if you want to go out for football and can still handle your chores when you get home and still do your school work, you can do it. I don ‘t have a horse I can spare for you to ride to school.” We lived seven miles from the high school and rode the bus. The bus was an old Model T truck that had been remodeled into a bus. If I had a picture of it, you would just die laughing. It was the funniest looking thing you can imagine, but it got us to and from school. Well, I was so determined to become popular in high school and my older sister had put so much fire and enthusiasm in me, that I was willing to do anything. So after football practice I walked the seven miles home. Being the oldest of the boys, I had to do some of the heavy work. Uncle Alma was just two years younger and Uncle Marvin four years younger than I. Then I got so I could jog home and that put me home a little earlier so I could get my chores done a little sooner. Then I got so I could run part of the way. Finally, I got so I could run the seven miles. As a result of that practice, as a freshman and sophomore, in the spring of my sophomore year I took the long distance race for our school for the State of Idaho. That year I was a tackle on the first string of the football team. Trafford Woodhouse, who went out with me, was a guard on the same team. He took his place in the line right next to me. We were a small team but we were fast because we were small. On the days when we played big schools like Twin Falls and Burley, if the field was dry, we could lick the daylights out of them. If it was wet those big bruisers would just push us all over the field. Back in those days we played whether there was six inches of snow on the ground or two inches of mud from a rainstorm. I enjoyed it and I made the team. I lettered every year for four years in high school as a member of the football team. There was no school bus at first, then it cost a dollar to ride. When the girls found out I had made the team, the first string in the football team as a freshman, then they would gather around and at the dances I never had any trouble dancing with the most popular girls in school.
1928: Following graduation from high school, I had my first real job at the Artesian swimming resort at Murtaugh. Murtaugh was between Marion and Twin Falls, Idaho. There were hot springs there and the owners developed it and made a swimming pool. I was hired to do all the clean up at this swimming pool. People came from hundreds of miles around and swam there because the water was warm. We had two pools and it was a delightful place to come. Young fellows brought their girls there and had a great time. I was the one to wash the pools down and to wash the swimming suits that were rented out. At night I would supervise and do odd jobs around the pools or wherever I was needed. I received a salary of$150.00 a month plus board and room. The days were long and the work was rather tedious, but this did not bother me because I had been raised to work hard.
21 Aug 1931: With the barley money, my brother Alma and I told mother we were going to Pocatello, Idaho, to attend the Southern Branch of the University ofIdaho. She felt that it was ridiculous but we went nonetheless. We hitched a ride to Pocatello and there, because of our apparent ignorant determination, the administration loaned us the money to register. My brother and I did almost every kind of work that you can imagine to keep in school. Finally, we started buying meat, chickens, and eggs and sold them from door to door. We became so well-known in this occupation that in the University 1932 “Wickiup” yearbook we were known as the “Ham and Egg Men.” They even published a picture with my brother holding a case of eggs, as I held a quarter of beef.
Friday, 2 Oct 1931: Quiz in math and one in English to see if we could pass into English I. Started watering lawns this afternoon and watered until 6:00 p.m. Dashed home and ate a bite of supper and hurried back to school for 6:30 p.m. to report as policeman for football game tonight. I didn’t get to see the game (between U.of l. and freshmen B.Y.U.) But I made $1.60. In all I worked eight and a half hours today. I am thankful and grateful that I have got work. I only pray that I can go through school. I am willing to sacrifice and work.
Friday, 22 Jan 1932: In addition to the “egg and bacon” business Alma and I worked other jobs. On one occasion we shoveled an entire railroad car of coal for the University. It was very hard work, didn’t pay much, and we only tried it once, I believe. Alma also worked for Dr. Meadows and Dr. Davis for $.40 per hour. I taught Algebra for 50 cents per hour – tutoring. Math and science classes were among my best subjects from the time I was in high school. However, the “egg and bacon” business became our major source of income.
1934: Times were really tough because we were going into the roughest years of the depression and jobs were scarce. It became necessary for me to withdraw from school and work 76-80 hours a week for the total sum of $7.00. We had a wonderful time together as sweethearts even though it was a financial struggle.
1942: (Memories from John Tolman). I have many memories growing up and working on the Tolman Ranch south of Pocatello, Idaho, and in Dad’s Palace Meat Market and Automobile Dealership. Dad taught me very early that the three words to success are: Work! Work! Work! It was a motto he lived by and he could do anything he put his mind to do! Whether it was carpentry, cement finishing, plumbing, electrical work, farming, meat cutting, dairying, auto repair, accounting, salesmanship, business executive, teaching, etc. He mastered all of them. Although I was taught different aspects of some of the above, I was never as proficient in accomplishing what he was able to do. Nevertheless, at an early age I was taught the value of work and soon learned how to weed and hoe a large garden by our home, to feed and care for chickens and farm animals. I think when I was only 8 or 9 years old, Dad had at the meat market a huge meat grinder with a large tray connected full of boned out meat that I would push into the grinder to make ground beef while standing on a high stool to do it. Mother said she had bad dreams of her little boy falling in and being ground into hamburger. Later in my early teens I worked in the market boning out meat and grinding multiple pounds of ground beef and sausage. In those days everything was sold out of the counter and Dad had seven large meat counters full of every cut of beef, veal, pork and lamb along with fish and fowl of every kind. On a Saturday special you could buy six pounds of ground beef for a quarter or T-bone steak for 29 cents a pound. I remember times when people would be lined up along those counters to buy such quality meat products. All the restaurants and fast food places bought their meat from our market and I spent many hours making ground beef to fill the orders that came in as well as the products sold out of the counter. Dad gave me a lot of responsibility. Often I would make deliveries and collect he money or he would have me take the bank deposit to the bank about two blocks away. Sometimes I would be carrying a great sum of money and I would go out the back door and down the alley to the bank something you wouldn’t do in our society today. Out on the farm I learned to drive the tractor and spent many summers hauling and stacking hay as we had a large herd of dairy cows and other live stock. Before working all day hauling hay, I helped with milking the cows morning and evening seven days a week. Dad would get me up about 4:30 or 5:00 a.m. and as I remember his general awakening call was, “Arise and shine my son! Put on your beautiful garments! It’s time to go to work!” Of course I would groan at the thought of having to get up so early. I was about 12 years old when I learned to drive a jeep that the corporation had purchased from the surplus of World War II and I did a lot of chasing for parts, equipment, etc. for Uncles Alma and Marvin who pretty much ran the farm and dairy as well as the slaughter house where animals were killed and skinned and prepared for market. So I spent time working there by skinning the hides off the animals. In 1947, Dad, along with his brothers and in-laws, went into the car business. They became the first Kaiser-Frazer Dealer in Idaho and this opened up a whole new learning experience for me as a grease monkey, changing and fixing tires, cleaning and washing cars, etc. In Idaho, at age 14, you could get a drivers license so I would go for parts and pick up and deliver cars. Often Dad and Mother and others would go to Salt Lake City to buy cars at the auto auction or pick up new cars. I would always go to drive one of the cars back to Pocatello, and later to Idaho Falls when Dad moved the dealership there. Almost always, while in Salt Lake City, we went to Snelgrove’s on 21st south for ice cream or a favorite Chinese restaurant on 2nd West. I learned to do many things from and for my father because of the varied occupations he was involved in, and growing up as the oldest son and grandson of his parents, William and Hattie Tolman and among Dad’s brothers and sister’s families that lived there on the ranch. In many ways I became Dad’s right hand man and whenever I went with him he would introduce me as the “block off the old chip.” You can imagine how that made me feel and even more reason to not let him down in any way. My father was the greatest, most loving and Christ-like man I have ever known. I am most blessed to be his son and love him more than I can express in words!
6 Jan 1955: (Excerpt from a letter of recommendation). During the two and a half years that we did business with Mr. Tolman our experience was quite satisfactory, particularly in view of the special difficulties inherent in handling the Kaiser franchise. We enjoyed a good volume and built up a substantial reserve which is still held to a large extent by us. It is my understanding that Bill Tolman may engage in the used car business in Provo and if he should we believe that he would make you a good dealer and be the source of considerable satisfactory volume. We have found Bill to be a man of his word, a hard worker, and a resourceful operator. George Derby and I both send our very best regards to you. Sincerely, V. E. Mullin, Manager
11 Jul 1961: (A card from Janice and Jon Taylor). Dear Father, We both love you very much and we wish you many years of happiness. You are a good and kind father and you have worked long and hard to provide for your family. You even manage to take care ofyour children when they are in need after they get married. Thank you for being such a wonderful father. Love, Janice and Jon.
8 Dec 1975: I worked thirty-five hours this week at the family center. (Note: one of many entries related to volunteering hours of work on the Thomas Tolman Family Genealogy Center ranging from wiring, framing, sheet rock, landscaping, concrete, finish work, cabinetry, plumbing, roofing, etc.).
5 Apr 1976: I am down with the flu. I worked at my office as much as I could today. (Note: William never seemed comfortable if he was not working. Getting sick was a big inconvenience).
13 Apr 1976: I worked on the wiring at family center. I met Charles Shirley at the center to get figures on materials needed for the stairway from the utility room to the attic rooms. I am gradually getting my strength back.
9 Apr 1979: Genevieve Hofhine, Sherry Hofhine Davis and I worked on family records all day. 1 Oct 1979: Genevieve Hofhine, Loa Don Glade, and I worked in the family center today. (Note: These two entries are examples of many in William’s history of cousins working on family records with him at the family home under his direction).
11 Mar 1980: Opal and I worked at Welfare Square from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. and purchased 4 cases of the canned turkey. Our Val Verda 3rd Ward was assigned this night.
(John Odell Tolman at William’s funeral service). He was a goer. He was a doer. My father could squeeze more into twenty-four hours than anyone I have ever known. When I was young living on the ranch about 4:30 he would say: “Rise and shine, my son; put on your beautiful garments. It is time to go to work.” At 4:30 in the morning, I said: “My goodness, Dad, can’t you wait another couple of hours.” “Rise and shine!” How many times we have heard that. He said: “Son, let me give you the three words of success. They are Work, Work, Work.” And how he applied that in his life.
(Contributed by the Thomas Tolman Family Organization. Picture and excerpts from William Odell Tolman: Patriarch, Genealogist, Teacher compiled by Loraine Tolman Pace, First Edition, 2009, pages ix, 1, 4, 15-16, 19, 68, 71, 76-77, 81, 87-88, 121, 272, 423-424, 490, 501, 508, 528).
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