Ferguson

Yesterday, Mason and I took my dad to Ferguson, MO, where he grew up. It's a pleasant place, not too far from where we live now. It was really fun to see where my dad used to live, where my mom used to live, and the trail that he took from his house to my mom's house, and all the other houses and schools from his boyhood. We talked about memory, and how it's not always the most accurate picture of what happened. I saw my mom's parents' old house, and it looked so much smaller than I remember it being.

We had lunch at the Whistle Stop, which is a sandwich shop/frozen custard shop/museum in Ferguson's old train depot. While we were deciding what to order, a super nice guy came up to us and asked which one of us was N6QXA. Evidently, he had seen my license plate in the parking lot. I told him that was me, and he introduced himself as being from a local radio club that operates CW (Morse code) out of the museum using the original railroad equipment. I couldn't make heads or tails of what they were sending, because instead of the International Morse Code that I know, they were using the much rarer "railroad Morse" or American Morse Code. They were very excited about it, and so happy to tell people about it, and it was nice to see some people doing that. My dad informed them that when he was a kid he used to go to the depot and watch the telegrapher sending. Evidently, that telegrapher died only recently at the age of 106.

We ended the tour at the Fee Fee Cemetery near Creve Coeur. If you follow the link and zoom in as far as you can, you might see a big sugar maple just northeast of the sourthernmost loop of the cemetery road. That maple tree is just about right in the middle of the perpetual Slater plot, where my dad's parents are buried, and their parents, and some other Slaters as well as some members of the Long family who are also our relatives. A couple of these Longs were Confederate soldiers, as indicated by the prominent "CSA" on their grave markers. One of the Slaters interred there, Herbert T. Slater (1895-1918), died in an interesting way. He and his girlfriend went out on a last boat ride on the river before he shipped out to fight in World War I, and they never saw either of them alive again.



As always, a really great time with my dad. He is so fun to have around. Photo credit goes to Mason Slater, who is also fun to have around.