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Farmington News
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From Doc Alders 'Farmington's Lone Eagle,' A Reminiscence:

The Colossal Cataclysm of WWI ravaged the countries of Europe for five long years. The devastation started in 1914 when Charles Averel (Doc) Alders was one year old. In 1917 when Averel was four, the British and French learned that "The Yanks are coming." America entered the war and started singing "Over There" and "You're in the Army Now, You're Not Behind the Plow." Averel (Doc) was born in Farmington in the hotel owned first by his grandparents then by his parents. Averel's granddad had left New York alone as a lad and traveled via Panama to Stockton. Years later, in 1884, he purchased the Central Hotel in Farmington. C.M. Alders' hotel was handy to the railway station and to coach traffic going through on the Sonora Road. Granddad, C.M. died in 1906 leaving the hotel to his wife and eventually to Averel's father Edward Alders. Edward was reared in Farmington and as a young man became a commercial hunter, hunting ducks and geese in the marshes east of Ingormar on Henry Miller property. Edward's record for a day's shoot was one hundred ninety two ducks. They were sold to the meat markets in San Francisco. Edward was more than a duck hunter. He graduated from business school in Santa Cruz. He subsequently purchased forty-five acres on the edge of Farmington on the road to Bellota and took up farming fruit and grapes. He married Berde Dodge in 1909 and became proprietor of the family hotel in 1911. The Central Hotel had ten bedrooms, a saloon, a parlor, offices, and a dining room. Associated with it was a livery stable. The automobiles ended the livery business. By the time Averel's father passed away, the livery stable and the old buggies stored in it had fallen into disuse. Many years later, Averel brought those buggies back to life. During the war Kaiser Wilhelm was the villain. Averel remembered children chanting: Kaiser Bill went up the hill to take a look at France. Kaiser Bill came down the hill with bullets in his pants. Averel was six years old when the treaty of Versailles was signed in November 1918 to end the WWI. The soldiers, marines and Army Air Corps flyers, all resplendent in their uniforms, came home to the farms and small towns. Not all returned. Many lie under white crosses row on row in Flanders Field where poppies blow. In that year Averel's dad Edward Alders, closed the hotel for business and it became simply the Alders home. Up the road he had a farm to tend.

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The ladies for the Prayer Shawl Ministry are very busy. They meet on Wednesdays at 9:30 a.m. at the Farmington United Methodist Church located on Elm Street. If you know where their comforting shawls are needed, please contact them. They would welcome yarn, needles and/or donations in order to purchase supplies and of course you, if you care to join them.

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BEWARE! If you leave your windows down or your car unlocked, you may find a bag of zucchini. Zucchini is very bountiful in Farmington this year.

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I would still like to hear from you. Have you taken a trip? Have you had out of town visitors? Let me know of family birthdays, anniversaries and new arrivals to your family. Whatever you want to add to the Farmington News is welcome.

Please contact me if you have items for the Farmington News column. E-Mail me at farmingtonnews@gmail.com or phone 896-6697.