Christian was a big man, even in his last years; he was taller
than Mat and wore the biggest boots and shoes in the house. He was known
as “Big Chris” in his ward.
His log house and sod roof stood just across the road,
west from Mat's lease. (Irven’s new adobe house was close, but down a deep
lane, and Mat's one-room frame house was up a lane, east from the road.) The big
spud cellar that you could drive a big Dodge truck into was north, and was a three-way co-op. The barn and corral were also shared
by Mat and Christian. They did much work together, and of course, Irven
taught school in Fort Hall then.
Grandpa would rock the grandchildren and sing before dinner or after chores in the evening. His songs were gentle
and different than anyone else’s, even though his speaking voice was a strong,
deep, businesslike quality.
Another favorite time was when he had early morning water
turns and brought fish in for breakfast that had washed down onto the alfalfa
from the huge irrigation canal.
He ate most weekday meals at Mat's, because the lease
demanded a set number of days’ residence, and the house at the townsite was
several miles away. There, Bena maintained the house and Carrie and Norman stayed there. The log house must have been just minimum to prove
the lease.
Christian sometimes told the “Canal Board”
story. He had housetended a five farm, and was respected as a leader in
the ward and town. One responsibility was the canal board—a most vital
organization in our irrigation-dependent area. Sadly, the
treasurer absconded with all the funds, thus seriously jeopardizing the canal
and the community. Under Christian’s leadership, the board members pledged to
make good every dollar. In many cases, the good intentions were blocked by one
circumstance or another, and Christian had to mortgage his own farm, rather than
let his neighbors suffer.That was typical of his sense of stewardship.
Christian really loved children and was very concerned about
their character developing. It was this great love for Henry that rid him
of smoking. Bena blamed a couple of her brothers for tempting Christian with
tobacco, and while he wanted to be free of it, found himself shackled to the
habit. His efforts had been fruitless, until one day, Henry crawled up in Christian’s lap and asked when he’d be big enough to smoke like Pa. Big tears
came to Christian’s eyes and he said, “I hope you’ll always be too big!”
This was about time to start the planting, and he burned
his tobacco supplies before he left for the far fields to work and plant.
(There he’d be alone and work from before dawn to after dark.) He almost worked himself to death that week, trying not to think
about smoking. He said he’d stop instinctively, and search every pocket for his
tobacco and then remember his resolve. Bena said Christian probably lost 20 lbs.
that week. But he mastered the problem and was the first to advise his grandchildren never to
touch the first smoke!
Bena’s health was really precarious
from Nov. 1932 until her death, Oct. 2, 1941. She had such a bad heart and
dropsy that she could no longer help with farm work, and as Norman
approached college age, she moved to Logan with Carrie to keep house for
him. For a while, they lived with Mat, before their little house was ready
on 3rd East.
Christian never left Idaho, except for visits. He stayed on
the farm and lived for a while with Norman and Opal when they were
first married. It was Henry’s decision that Christian had to give up his
farm, but it was heartbreaking to him—he’d never learned how to “not work.”
Senility advanced, and his 4 a.m. rising patterns of a
lifetime led to early-morning walks where he might get quite lost. One time, he
walked clear to the bus station and came to Mat's family. They were delighted and didn't
even know he was lost until they noticed he’d taken the wrong hat home and called
to make “hat” arrangements.
These things led Henry to decide that Christian needed the
care and supervision of the State Hospital, and he spent his last (perhaps 2
1/2) years there.
****
A little north and west of Firth, Idaho, is a bridge over
the Snake River. The farm operated by Christian Christensen was just west of this
bridge a short distance.
Christian, in the winter, would go down
on Snake River with a wagon and cut blocks of ice to load up the ice house and
sell in town. A big saw was used to cut the ice. He had a good team of horses,
as this was before tractors.
One time, he caught a big sturgeon fish in the river, and
it was as long as his wagon.It
must have been a mighty big fish.
Christian was an active participant in building some big irrigation canals
in Idaho in the early days, before moving to Firth. He lived in Basalt
at the time.
A little later, about 1930, several of the Christensens
moved onto the Indian Reservation at Fort Hall, Idaho. Christian and sons Mat and
Irven each fenced off farms three miles east and 1 ½ miles north of Fort Hall.
Norman and Bena lived in a house about ½ mile north of
Fort Hall, and Henry got a farm at Tyhee. Christian lived in a little log
cabin built on Irven's farm. He lived there year-round, so had a big brush pile for
wood. He prepared the majority of his own meals, which were fairly simple, as
also were his cooking utensils and dishes.
****
Bena had a wooden house in Firth, down by
the river. She had a sewing machine with a wooden cover over the top, a
phonograph with a big megaphone speaker (Victrola). She later had a house
by the railroad tracks in Fort Hall. Norman lived with her, and Carrie had a little house out back. Bena had a big porcelain bathtub in
her bedroom. Christian had a long metal bathtub. Norman and Bena had quite a
few cows, and Norman stood up to eat so he
would grow tall, and he would spread thick cream and sugar on his bread.
Bena used to help with the chores and milk cows. While
living in Fort Hall, she would give the grandkids a dozen eggs to sell at the store
(Cornielson’s) for candy. They got 10 cents per dozen for them. You could never
enter Bena’s home without her wanting to feed you a meal. She was very loving and gentle. She wore her dark hair cut short, and it was streaked with gray. At this
time, Christian lived in his log cabin on Irven’s farm, three or four miles away.
It had a sod roof.
Christian used to tie his horses to the corner of his
cabin, and one time a young horse ate a horse collar he had hanging on the
cabin.
For a time, Bena lived with
Mat and Ida in North Logan. She also lived with Lyma in Logan for a time.
Christian rode to Logan with Irven's family for Norman’s wedding; Bena was living there with Lyma.
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