My Life in the Little Brown House, part 4: Sun Room

The sun room, as its name implies, was a light airy room. It had one or two windows on the east and west ends of the room and the side facing south was lined virtually its entire length with windows. Along the bottom of the windows on the east and south sides was a ledge for potted plants. Here my mother had her geraniums — I suppose there were other flowers also but I only recall the geraniums. My mother was quite protective of her geraniums, from the hands and fingers of her offspring. Once or twice when there was an unusually cold night in the offing I seem to recall their being removed to a less exposed part of the house.





















Geranium

To the right as one entered the room from the kitchen there was a large closet (actually there was a west window in it) which was used for outdoor wraps etc. In addition to the hooks for wraps there were low drawers at the west end with a shelf above them. Beyond the closet there was sort of an ell, in which for a time my father had his roll-top desk. At a later time the desk was moved to a place in the boys’ bedroom where it stood the rest of the time we were in the little brown house. I think the desk was acquired by my father before his marriage. Alongside the desk was a stand in which he kept his file of National Geographic magazines. These extended back to the middle 1910s and most issues were included. This collection was moved up to the boys’ bedroom when the desk was moved. As children we were allowed to look at the magazines, and I at least spent numerous times leafing through them. My favorite issues were several that were sort of compendiums of fauna in various parts of the world. The collection went along with the family moved to the Peterson farm in the Depression; all during the Depression years my father continued his subscription, one of the few “luxuries” that he allowed himself during that period. The last time I saw them was on one of my vacation visits after I was working in California. At that time, they were in a cupboard in the southeast corner of the girls’ bedroom and were in a state of jumbled disarray. After my dad’s death they were disposed of by being donated to the high school library — a fitting end for them in light of his years of service as a school board member. Some of the earlier issues were fairly valuable. I think it was in Powell’s bookstore in Portland [Oregon] I saw their stock of these old National Geographics for upwards of $5 per copy. Most of the stock at Powell’s was on open shelves but I seem to recall that some of the older copies they had were under lock and key.
























National Geographic, January 1915