In 1850, how long did it take to travel from Pittsburgh to San Francisco, and would you go by land or by water? How much did it cost to be “bled and cupped,” and what was this procedure supposed to cure? At the turn of the century, what was daily life like on the American frontier?
“Write, If You Live to Get There” is a remarkable compilation of photographs and personal letters written by the ancestors of co-authors Mary Jo Sonntag and mother Mary K. Sonntag.
“As my mother and I sorted through letters chronicling the family’s history from 1842 to 1962 and their migration from Vermont to California’s gold fields, we discovered a rich and detailed portrait of pioneer life,” says Mary Jo. “Compiling them was a fourteen-year labor of love.”
“Across thousands of miles and multiple generations, our family stayed connected through these letters. As gold prospector Alden Church Phillips wrote to his sister in Pennsylvania in 1868: ‘… it has been some time since I have heard from Mother or Mary … have they gone west yet? … Charles and Daniel got sick of Kansas very soon … the last account I had of them they was [sic] in Illinois … it looks as if we ware [sic] bound to be scattered all over creation’.”
“Write, If You Live to Get There” is available in paperback for $19.95. Go to
www.writeifyoulivetogetthere.com
