Aunt Edie’s Commonplace Book, 1917-1947

“It is very helpful to read with a commonplace book or reading-diary,
in which to put down any striking thought in your author,
or your own impression of the work, or of any part of it; but not summaries of facts.
Such a diary, carefully kept through life, should be exceedingly interesting as containing the intellectual history of the writer;
besides, we never forget the book that we have made extracts from,
and of which we have taken the trouble to write a short review.”

Charlotte Mason, Formation of Character (Volume 5), p. 260
Aunt Edie made a commonplace book for quotes, poems, and paper memorabilia.

I was poking around in my mother’s bookshelf this past summer, and I found a treasure — our Aunt Edie’s handmade commonplace book. It’s not a very big book, and after many years of love, is a bit faded and shabby, but it was full of all manner of things, written and pasted in between 1917 and 1947. The selections reflect Aunt Edie’s life and values, and I thought you might enjoy seeing her book and a few of the things she recorded.

Aunt Edie: A Rural Schoolteacher

Aunt Edie and one of her classes at Grapevine School. Edith Armstrong Hanes taught at the one-room Grapevine School in northern California — I think it was in what is now Stony Creek School District. This little school drew students from nearby communities and Indian reservations. It was so rural that during the years my mother and her little brother attended school here, they lived with Aunt Edie all through the school year, so they would be able to get there in spite of snow or bad roads. Needless to say, Aunt Edie was one of the most influential people in my mother’s life.

Like many commonplace books of the time, Aunt Edie’s book is a bit like a scrapbook, containing both written notes and longer items pasted in. This is a change from the very early commonplace books I’ve seen, perhaps because in the early days of the printing press, people were more likely to copy by hand, rather than damage a printed item by cutting an article from it. My own commonplace books have only hand-written excerpts because copying slows me down enough to absorb and meditate on a meaningful passage. I keep clippings in a folder, which isn’t ideal — they would be easier to enjoy in a scrapbook.

Pages from Aunt Edie’s commonplace book

In the photos below, you can see several poems from various sources, plus the program for Grapevine School’s 1940 graduation. The poems include “Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow,” “Opportunity,” “Keep Sweet,” “Gossip Town,” A Morning Prayer,” and “Keep Me From Turning Back.” Normally, all entries would be handwritten in a commonplace book, but Aunt Edie clearly felt that the book could also be used for good things she clipped and saved.

Poems and a 1940 graduation program for Grapevine School from Aunt Edie's scrapbook.

 

Here is an invitation to the 1941 graduation exercises of Grapevine School, the “Monday’s child is fair of face” rhyme, plus three stanzas of a poem, “Why the Twisting Way.” A bit of research for the source of the poem led me to the old Springs in the Valley devotional by a Mrs. Cowman.

If you are as curious as I was to know what might be included in a 1940 graduation, here is a peek at the music and recitations listed in the program.

Handwritten graduation program for Grapevine School, 1940.

For 1941, there is a copy of the handwritten invitation to graduation exercises. There is a crayon-drawn flower on the front of the invitation that looks as if it may have been drawn and colored by a student.

Handwritten graduation invitation for Grapevine School 1941.

Practical things go into a commonplace book, too. Here are the students who graduated from Grapevine School during the years Aunt Edie taught there. The first page shows graduates from 1919-1930, and the second page shows 1930-1947. In the second photo, you can see the construction threads of the book. Signatures are sewn in small groups, then linked and attached to a binding made of cloth over stiff cardboard covers. Bookbinding is another good thing for students to learn — creating a commonplace book can be part of educating head, heart, and hand together.

Aunt Edie's Grapevine School graduates from 1918-1930.

Graduates of Grapevine School, 1930-1947

The poem “Self-Respect” (also known as “Myself”) is carefully printed. The poetic voice in this one sounded familiar, and I was able to identify the author as Edgar A. Guest. It is interesting to notice that the penmanship style is very simple — almost child-like. My grandmother told me that when she was in school, printing was not taught as a subject — students began to write by learning cursive. If students wanted to learn printing, they did so by copying letterforms from books. Since Aunt Edie belongs to the same generation and was educated in the same geographic area, I would guess that is the reason for the very simple printing.

Self-Respect by Edgar A. Guest

 

Here is a reading of the poem “Myself” by Edgar A. Guest in this nicely produced video by Young Director’s Productions. Oral recitations were part of most student’s education for centuries, even in one-room schoolhouses like Aunt Edie’s and larger schools such as Charlotte Mason’s school in Ambleside. If you have read the Little House series by Laura Ingalls Wilder, you probably read how students would prepare recitations and the community would gather to hear them. Note that doing a video reading of a poem is a wonderful school project for any young person interested in film, or as an alternative to a live poetry recitation.

Finally, here is a look at the structure of the book, looking down from the top. From the even marks at the top of the pages, I am guessing that the paper was originally part of a perforated notepad.

Handmade clothbound book by Edith Hanes, top view.

Takeaway Thoughts

The Living Page by Laurie Bestvater

The Living Page is the best resource I’ve found for keeping Charlotte Mason’s suggested notebooks.

I found this old book so inspiring — not just the content, but also the simple creativity of making a book from materials at hand, then adding to it year after year. I loved the way the selected poems reflected what Aunt Edie valued and thought about. Here are a few ways you might use these ideas for yourself or for a homeschooling teacher or student.

  1. After you copy a poem into your commonplace book, record a recitation, and make a blog post with a photo of the handwritten poem and an audio or video of the recording.
  2. Create a hardbound book to use as a commonplace book or to hold a year’s worth of compositions.
  3. If you don’t have time to write things out by hand (please try it!), you can still keep a commonplace book by pasting in the things you find meaningful. Mixing it up is just fine, too. It’s your book!

14 Responses

  1. Oh, this just buoys my spirit! I have seven commonplace books (and a new one about to begin). My husband teases me and asks, “What do you think will happen to these books when you die?”

    I freely admit, they are mostly for my benefit. By reading my commonplace books, I mine the nuggets of my past reading.

    But. I cherish fond hopes that each of my eight grandkids will inherit a book and know their Nana a little better when I’m gone.

    Thank you for this post. So rich.

    • I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Carol! I was so excited to find the book, and like you, I hope that my commonplace books will be an equally pleasant find for my grandchildren. Thank you for writing!

  2. Dianne Lucas says:

    Dear Janice: Oh, I loved this so much! I don’t know if you knew I was named for Aunt Edie–Edith Dianne Butler. And I loved seeing my mother’s name–Betty Jean Hanes Butler–and my aunt and uncles. Aunt Edie was an inspirational presence in my life. I always knew on my birthday, she would arrive with a special book for me, my very favorite being “Heidi.”

    I have so many memories of her and my grandmother; they were like sisters. I loved the stories my mom told me about Aunt Edie’s teaching at Stony Creek. On some occasions, she would take the class (actually, that would be the whole school) on a wildflower walk. They would take some of them back to the schoolhouse, identify the parts (the botany lessons), draw or paint them for art, write poems or a description of their walk! How cool was that!

    • Good morning, Dianne—
      What fun to hear more about Aunt Edie! I didn’t know you were named for her, but I can see why. She sounds like an amazing person. The wildflower walks — that sounds like such fun, and it’s something that so many homeschool moms try to do with their children. Thinking of Aunt Edie and a gaggle of schoolchildren venturing out on a pretty day is so inspiring. It makes me want to pull out my own nature notebook and take a walk.
      Thank you for those memories!

  3. Anna Brosius says:

    This book reminds me so much of my Grandma’s collections. Edgar Guest was one of her favorite poets. Simple, straightforward guidelines for a life well-lived. What an inspiration! I am so enjoying exploring your website. Thank you for sharing your hard work and knowledge!

    • I hope our children and grandchildren will enjoy the notebooks we leave behind, too. Every time I get to read one of these old ones, I’m encouraged to persevere. I’m so glad you’re enjoying the site!

  1. November 2, 2015

    […] posted a few pages from Aunt Edie’s commonplace book (previous post), one of my cousins added a comment mentioning Aunt Edie taking the students on wildflower walks […]

  2. March 27, 2017

    […] A commonplace books is one place to begin practicing penmanship. Here’s a look at a commonplace kept from 1917-1947. […]

  3. March 30, 2017

    […] knowing anything about classical education, commonplace books, or the concept of living books, I began following threads of thought and trying to read more about […]

  4. July 5, 2017

    […] notes) is one of my favorite ways to remember portions of a book, along with annotating and a commonplace book. These notes were written on a spare page of my planner, so they are cramped and scribbly, but I […]

  5. August 30, 2019

    […] Aunt Edie’s Commonplace Book, 1917-1947 […]

  6. February 2, 2021

    […] began to changes as the situation and the times changed. A generation later, my mother was attending a small one-room schoolhouse along with Native American children. Her story, along with my grandmother’s stories, are woven into the fabric of our family, and […]

  7. January 9, 2023

    […] little book Franklin mentions seems to be his commonplace book, in which he records things things he is working on; things to remember; and so forth. Here is an […]

  8. April 19, 2023

    […] of ways. The traditional way would be to copy particularly meaningful or interesting quotes in a commonplace book. You can do so as straight text, or as visual notes written in a way that helps you remember them […]

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.