Our Community

Beside Boise River on the Old Oregon Trail, our community is 5-6 miles east of Old Fort Boise, a fur trading post established by Hudson Bay Company at the confluence of the Boise and Snake Rivers in 1834.

A mere 10 years later, my great-great-grandfather traveled this emigrant trail to Oregon, where he took up a donation land claim and operated the first grist and saw mills on Grand Ronde Indian Reservation. With the 1845 wagon train captained by her grandpa, my great-great-grandmother (then age three) traveled the same route west.

It's sobering, nevertheless comforting, to know my footprints often cross the path each of them trod centuries ago. I wonder when crossing Boise River Bridge, could they have spent the night near this river bank, have planted their bedrolls in my own front yard, or did they continue to Fort Boise and never look back?

North of the bridge on U.S. Highway 20-26, is the town of Notus, which boasts (according to a posted sign) 411 residents.

At the edge of town is Historical Marker 361 that tells about the Confederate refugees who in 1863 became the first farmers and ranchers to permanently settle in this locale. Hence, this sleepy southwest Idaho community was shortly thereafter dubbed "Dixie."

In honor of those who cleared this land, we, who love her, call her Dixie, still.

A special thanks to Bob Prinselaar for consent to use the above "charging troops" photograph. Mr. Prinselaar explicitly stated it was okay to mention that this is an original photograph, and that he is the oldest surviving Civil War veteran.
Yeah, Bob...right. (Ya gotta love this guy's sense of humor.)

Our home in Dixie

If there are still Rebels here, they stay well hidden, perhaps keeping to the willows along the riverbank. But on a winter's night, when the dog barks for no apparent reason as a fine mist from the nearby river frosts barren trees, it makes one wonder just who, or what, is lingering in the damp, cool breeze.

This photo was taken January 1, 2000, our first New Year's Day here.

The left hand border of this page's background shows the antique treadle sewing machine in front of the window in our den on the west end of the house. Far right and faintly seen is a kerosine lamp that once belonged to my Great-grandmother Eads. The original photo was taken by our youngest daughter just before sunset.

To see more pictures of our little acreage, continue

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