Soldiers and Scoundrels - A Family Memoir

By Rich Bailey

This book describes the discovery of an unknown family history. He had only heard some stories of his heritage as a child. An internet site revealed the amazing history of his people stretching from a Revolutionary War deserter to the Battle of the Bulge horrors of a favorite uncle. Why had his parents failed to mention the family past? The American Dream, as seen in our family histories, happens each day as we face our obstacles and opportunities.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Nov 8, 2018
• ISBN: 9780359213283

Book preview

Soldiers and Scoundrels - A Family Memoir

Soldiers and Scoundrels, a Family Memoir

Chapter 1       Cleaning Up

It had been nearly a month since the funeral as the two drove up to Grandma’s farm.

It’s not like they wanted to be there nor had anything better to do.  No, Dad wasn’t feeling so well right now and it fell to them to take care of business today.  It was too hot for them also.  With the hazy Indiana skies overhead, they could feel the heat and humidity of late June cause their shirts to cling almost immediately as they left their well air conditioned car.  Dad’s fibromyalgia had been flaring and it was about the only thing that could have kept him away. He had long waited for this day, the day that his mother’s vault could be opened. After all the years of tension and outright fighting, now the time for the big reveal was here.  What family secrets would see the light of day now?

Bryn clasped the knob and pushed on the door to the shed, the door did not give way. She didn’t notice the padlock at the top.  The hasp was old and rusty; the white paint was peeling from the long low building.

The once dark green trim was faded and cracking as the hot days of the Hoosier sun can do to paint over time.  The metal roof showed the slightest bit of rust along the seams but over all appeared to have held up pretty well even accounting for the past decade or so of neglect.  Grandma had always maintained the farmstead immaculately until the job just got too big for one of such advanced age. 

Nobody told them they needed a key to get into the shed.  Nobody had been in that shed for the longest time.  No one in the family even knew what was in this ancient looking building.  Only Grandma had been inside for the past 15 years.  After all, it was just an old shed, right?

But Abra being a problem-solver like her father looked around for some way to get inside.  The windows had been painted shut, maybe four of five times now.  She really didn’t want to break any glass today so she looked some more.  She went back to the car and got the tire tool from the back under the seat.  The two women decided not to pry the lock off the door, so instead Bryn remembered something their dad had taught them. Sure enough the hinges on the door had been mounted on the outside and they used their one tool and an old brick to knock the three hinge pins loose, opening the door while doing no damage at all. It’s funny how things the old man had taught them actually came in handy from time to time.

They squeaked open the very heavy door pushing it to the side and peered in. Abra used her cell phone to search and found a light in the middle of the room.  It had a pull string hanging down and with it the room flooded with much brighter than expected light. What they saw then shocked them.

It looked as if they were in a very well appointed museum.  There were glass cases and pictures on the wall.  The cases looked they had come from an old 5 and dimes store .There were wooden cases stacked upon long tables.  It was not ornate, but well organized.  Under the tables were a variety of chests and lockers. It’s very clear that much time and detailed care were required to achieve this display. This set up really contrasted with what was expected when they first approached the shed.

Now, what had grandma been up to all of these years?  This must have been her big secret project that no one could know about. She had been very private and some that knew her a long time knew her to be a wee bit cantankerous. No one dared to question her.

This was going to prove to be a lot more work than exploring and filling a few boxes with keepsake items.  The four empty boxes Bryn had in the back of her vehicle just wouldn’t do.

Abra said we need to take pictures of everything before we touch anything. She pulled out her phone and shot a panorama shot first of all. Then they moved around the room taking shots of each item on display.  They took a break and jumped in the car after a while, soaking in the car’s air conditioning and sipping the cold drink they had brought.  They looked at each other at the same time and said aloud, let’s call dad He answered the phone on the first ring as he had been anticipating the call since first thing this morning.  Today, of all days he couldn’t really get his body moving.  Everything just hurt. He lacked the get up and go he had always displayed earlier in life. He often joked that his get up and go finally got up and left. 

He listened as his daughters together explained this secret Grandma setup.

He laughed and said it sounded just like his mom. She kept secrets and told little stories even when there was no reason for either. She always said that she just had a few stacks of family items in her shed.  Perhaps to call this a lie would be kind of harsh. Little did he know that the content of her shed may prove to be the greatest gift of all.  His father had refused to talk about family history at all during his lifetime and all his mother would ever say is, You don’t need to worry about it. I will tell you when its time 

He had been thinking she had waited too long, now that she had passed at age 92. He wondered what she had been waiting for.  His dad had said nearly the same thing 10 years ago when he told Rich and his brother Marty that he had hidden upwards of $60,000 somewhere in the old farmhouse itself.  They had looked for a year before they finally gave up after looking for loosened floorboards and trim.  In the attic, in heat vents, and everywhere else in