Original scan of Aida’s 1881 diary.
In the summer of 2005, I raided my mom’s treasure chest of old photos and family memorabilia. In it was a small, about 2.75 inches wide and 4 inches long, diary that belonged to my great aunt Aida Austin. Great Aunt Aida was 19 years old when she started writing the diary in January.
In 2006, I published Aida Austin’s 1881 Diary. It included scans of each entry, and I typed up what I could read. My husband Gary, laid out the book and got it ready to print.
After working on The Mill on Halfway Brook, I now have a better understanding of who many of the people in Aida’s diary were. I recently met (via email) an Austin descendant that shared some photos of the people mentioned.
A second edition of Aida Austin’s 1881 Diary, complete with corrected info, old and new ‘old’ photos will soon be available.
Much of the Diary will be in book 2, Echo Hill and Mountain Grove, but Aida Austin’s 1881 Diary is also a stand alone book of daily life in Eldred and New York City, New York, in 1881.
The original scan of the outside of Aida’s diary opened up.
