O. B. Foster's Eastern Trip

[As printed in the Ansley Nebraska] Chronicle-Citizen

On the 7th of September I started for Indiana, to the 27th reunion of the 48th Indiana Volunteers, my old regiment. I stopped two days at the [Nebraska] state fair [in Lincoln]. ...

I went from Lincoln to Omaha and stayed on day looking over the city, then to Burlington [IA] where I stopped two days with my cousins, Will and T. G. Foster, the former being the oldest banker in the state, for 39 years chashier of the First National Bank of Iowa.

From Burlington I went to Winona, Lake Casicosea County; a summer resort, where we held our reunion on the 15th of September.

There were 72 of us old boys of the 48th Indiana. Although old in years, we were young in mind and body. It was my first meeting since 1863, when I left for another regiment at Vicksburg [MS]. On, what a time he had! Words can not express or tell it.

Our reunion over, I went to Goshen, Elkhart, South Bend and to Laporte Indiana, my old home where I enlisted in '61. There I saw several of my old school mates and friends whom I had not seen for years.

The cities have grown very fast, but the country has not made much improvement. ...

Thence I went to Chicago where I stopped a day or two. I saw Oscar Berger, who is employed in the government post office. He has a good position. The post office is one of the finest in the west. While standing on the steps of the building I noticed the emmense loads of mail going to the department stores of Sears, Roebuck & Co, Montgomery Ward & Co, showing how people will patronize those catalogue houses in place of our home merchants, all to their detriment.

I left Chicago for Madison Wisconsin, where I went through the state house. It is a very fine building. It is now nearly completed after the fire two years ago when it lost a wing. ...

I left Madison for Evansville and Janesville, both large manufacturing cities. On my return home from there I stopped off at New London [IA] to see a sister and her husband. I also attended an old soldiers' and citizens' reunion at Mt Pleasant, Iowa.

Next in order was my return home to Nebraska where we have more sunshine and fair weather than in any other state in the union.

[signed] O. B. Foster

[There is no date on this newspaper clipping, but judging from the comment made about cousin Will Foster, I would surmise the trip was made after Adelaide died in 1909 and before the move to Broken Bow about 1920. Theo Foster died in 1911. The fire at the Wisconsin state house was February 27, 1904. Rebuilding did not begin until 1906 and was complete in 1917. The sister mentioned at New London was Aurilla who had stayed with their parents until their passing. Aurilla was living with her husband in New London according to the 1915 Iowa census, but he died the next year, so it would have to be before 1916. O. B. and Ida travelled to Silver Springs NY to see the Waxham and Blanding families in 1915. One source has reunion records for the 48th Indiana from 1889 to 1913. It looks like 1910 or 1911 is the best estimate.]