Nearly forgotten, lifelong writings by Oregon pioneer Lucinda Ann Woodward-Horning passed in a sugar sack from one family to another. They were nearly forgotten when they found a home recently with great granddaughter Jan Barba Horn of Myrtle Creek, Ore.
Lucinda Woodward, who married Charles Henry Horning in 1865, grew up in Nebraska. At 16 she began writing poignant journal entries, poetry and music in a blank book her father had given her. During the Civil War, she wrote poems to soldiers and the families of those killed.
Woodward-Horning and her husband traveled by covered wagon to California and from there to a logging camp near Mount St. Helens in Washington State.
Her husband died in 1887 and Woodward-Horning devoted herself to raising the children, teaching, composing music, crafting musical instruments, and writing until her death in 1931.
Great Granddaughter Jan Barba Horn and a friend, Mary Lee Hope, selected poems, songs and journal entries written by Woodward-Horning for their 2010 book titled “Leaves from the Past.” Horn provided illustrations and Hope transcribed the hand-written journal entries, sometimes using a magnifying glass to read the faded script.
Sources: Horn, Jan B. Personal interview with the author. 5 Dec. 2014; Horn, Jan B., and Mary Lee Hope. Leaves from the Past. self, 2010. 1-77. Print.
