I just heard this evening that my dad's first cousin (thus my first cousin once removed) Anna Lounsbury passed away today. She was 87. Anna spent pretty much her whole life in Bovina, much of it as a farmer's wife (my mom used to always buy her eggs from Anna). Though Anna's eyes and ears were failing in later life, her memory kept on ticking - she was a great source of information about Bovina. Just this past Monday, the new pastor in Bovina visited her and Anna gave her an album of pictures from the church's 175 birthday celebrations (the church's bi-centennial is this year).
Anna was the daughter of Jim Boggs and Edith Barnhart (my great-aunt). Anna was only 8 when her mother died in childbirth. She and her two younger sisters were raised in part by their aunt (and my grandmother), Anna Bell LaFever. Anna married Glenn Hobbie and, after his death in 1970, she married Harold Lounsbury, who died in 1982.
I'm grateful for the time Anna gave in telling me about some of the Bovina schools. She worked hard to preserve the Bovina District #1 School (known as the Maynard School). And she wasn't shy about letting me know when I had made a mistake. One awful one was when I mislabeled her father on the 2008 calendar. She wasn't upset or angry about it, but did want me to know that I had switched two names. I appreciated having the correct information.
Anna also was instrumental in launching the Barnhart Family Reunions, held every July in Bovina. I'm hoping we can keep the tradition going. It seems it's what she would have wanted.
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In the late 1960'my family and I use to spend a week at the Loundsbury farm. I was in my glory. I rememember the Loundsbury family very well. I loved that week every summer being on that farm. We went back for a weekend in 1975. Is the farm still there. Is it possible to visit it?
ReplyDeleteThe farm is now owned by Michael and Heidi Gogins - they don't run it as a guest farm, so I don't know about visiting, but they were happy to show me the house when I expressed interest (my grandfather was born there). Their phone number is(607) 832-4664
ReplyDeleteMy family and I spent many happy weeks in the summer and fall at the Crescent Valley Farm where Anna and Harold Lounsbury had a dairy farm and took in guests. I remember Anna with great fondness. She was a warm and lovely lady, a super great cook, full of energy and laughs, very kind and a wonderful quilter. I spent several months at the farm recuperating from an illness as I needed a lot of rest and Anna & Harold were simply delightful and very welcoming. To this day I have deep affection for them and for the wonderful days I had living with them. I wish I could visit the farm again. Maybe I will give the Gogins a call and ask if I could just visit one of my favorite places ever.
ReplyDeleteAre there any farms in Bovina Center that take guests? I recall that the Trumbull's also took guests at one time. I am the same person who posted the comment about Anna and Harold Lounsbury and spending time at their farm. Thank you Mr. LaFever
ReplyDeleteOops! Just remembered that Anna and Harold Lounsbury's farm was called the Burn-Lou Century Farm and was ON Crescent Valley Rd. - I left the two last comments on Sept. 23, 2010. Such fond memories...
ReplyDeleteThank you for the update on the Burn-Lou Century Farm. Our family also spent a week or two every summer with the Lounsburys for most of my childhood. The 6 of us children looked forward to 'helping' with the milking, the hayrides in the evening with "Uncle Harold", hunting for frogs in the ponds, hiking to Honeymoon Rock, picking blackberries, going horseback riding at the nearby stable, and attending the auctions in town. Those are definitely some of my best childhood memories. Usually we would stay upstairs in the main house, and sometimes we would stay in the little cottage down the hill.
ReplyDeleteAnna was also an excellent seamstress and made beautiful quilts. She made one for us as a wedding gift when I got married in 1982. If anyone would like some photos of the farm or a copy of the old brochure, I could probably uncover them around here. My siblings and I are in one of the pictures with a newborn calf.
Would love to see pictures of that old farmhouse...spent many a 2 week summer vacation there as a kid in the 1960's-early 70's...
DeleteSend me your e-mail to bovinahistorian@gmail.com and I'll share what I have. The pictures I have mainly date from early 20th century. I only have a couple of pictures from the 1960s/70s.
DeleteI would love copies of any pictures and the brochure. Send to bovinahistorian@gmail.com. I have some that someone let me scan at Bovina farm day a few years ago. That wasn't you, was it?
ReplyDelete