"Wednesday, January 1, 1873  
A very nice day cutting and hauling wood to CS Hogan. Mr. Baily and Mather of Epworth called at our house to tell us there would be meeting that night."
This is how Thomas Jefferson Russell began his day book for 1873 when he turned twenty-five. The day book would describe his days corralling
horses, cutting and delivering wood, and some of his social life.
It also describes his journey across Iowa to Jackson County and the beginning of a life running his farm and courting soon-to-be wife, Emma.