Kirk Pearce at the Lebanon Daily Record very kindly gave me permission to post his recent article about Edna Shackley to the list. I thought it might be of interest ot those whose family lived in and around the Conway area. Here it is: Edna Shackley is a walking history book about the early days of Conway. At 90, she is the oldest native-born resident at Conway. She worked in many businesses in Conway through the years, with the longest as a bookkepper at the Conway MFA. All of her life has been spent in Conway, except for six years (NOTE: Not sure if it is six months or six year...see second note later on). Edna's grandfather, Chris Poulson, settled in Conway before the town was established when the railroad came through in l869. The first store at Conway was built by Chris Hanson in l871. Hanson was a native of Denmark, as was Edna's grandfather. Hanson and Poulson were stowaways on a ship and came to the United States in the l860's. They became separated and landed in the States several days apart from each other. Later reunited, they worked their way as far as Conway, where they found work. Edna's grandfather married America Adeline Ragsdale and they had a son, Dan Poulson, who married Rosa May Gann in l900. Dan and Rosa raised a family of four daughters, Gracie Reeves, Delpha (who died at the age of 3), Ruby Shumate, Edna Shackley and a son, Shelly Poulson. Now Edna is the only one of the family living. "I was born in the northeast part of town on Nov. 7, l910," she said. "I am the oldest person born in Conway. I don't believe there is any one else." Her father was a well-known figure at Conway where he worked at the JL Brooks Hardware Store some 24 years. Edna said he was one of the hardest working people she ever knew. Before his employement at JL Brooks Hardware, he also did carpentry work,papered and painted. "He was a jack of all trades," she added. "He was the most wonderful person that ever lived." Brooks Hardware was a busy place in Conway and in his spare time, Mr. Poulson also clerked in the store. He died in l947. Sher remembers that her father set up tractors and showed farmers how to work them. "They were good to him. He said that Mr. Brooks was the best friend he ever had." "I remember when the post office was on Front Street," she said. It was located in the block where city hall is now located. "Charley Montgomery and Louie Griswold had businesses there. I remember still how it looked. I remember the depot. They had a local that came through from Springfield to St. Louis. We used to ride to Phillipsburg to picnic. We would ride down of a morning and come back that night. The picnic area was located close to the Poor Farm at Phillipsburg." Edna attended all her school years at Conway and walked to school. "I never missed a day and we went home for dinner." She loved school and received a good education at Conway. She remembers all of her grade school and high school teachers. Her first teacher was Miss Lola Harris (NOTE TO THE FAMILY: This was the daughter of Andrew Harris and Laura McMenus Harris), who also was her high school teacher. Among others through her elementary and high school years were Miss Davis, Beulah Goss, Cecil Buzan, Pearl Shook, Letha Anderson, Raymond Willard, CW Parker, Harrier Jane Albright Gray, Dorothy Watkins and Zeta Mae Prophet. There were 27 students in her graduating class of l929 and she still keeps in contact with most of the surviving members.. Out of the 27 members, there are still seven left that she knows of, with four of her classmates, Edwina Shields, Dorotha Tribble, Helen Dennis and Viola Massey living in Lebanon. "When I got out of school I started working at a small cafe where the antique shop (in Conway) is now located." Employed l8 months at the cafe, she went to work at Griswold's Grocery in l931. When she began work at the cafe her wages were 50 cents a day and at Griswold's she started out at 75 cents a day, going up to $l. Hours were 7 am to 7 pm with an hour off for lunch. Those were the days before air-conditioning and she recalls the store was very hot during the summer with its flat roof. Those were the Depression years and jobs were scarce. "The Depression hit New York in l929 and didn't reach Conway until l931," she said. "I was in the grocery store then. Louie had a good trade. I worked there 6-l/2 years." Back then the clerks waited on the people at the store. The average income for Conway residents was $3.50 to $6 a week. She said most of the people bought coffee, meal, flour, and sugar, the main staples, and that everyone raised their own vegetables. "We had to sack up everything. We weighed up lard in lard trays." She remembers that it came in pails afterwards. "In my spare time I sacked up candy. We had to write everything down. I was always good in arithmetic." Mr. Griswold gave candy to customers for their children and a cigar for the fathers. The grocery store also had a soda fountain, which was a favorite. She later worked for Jim Harris' grocery. On Nov. l0, 1934, Edna married Joe Looney and they had one daughter, Peggy Jo. Peggy Jo and her husband, Billy Ray Massey, live in the Orla Community. They have one daughter, Joni Massey. Joe Looney died in l942, leaving Edna a widow shortly before her 34th birthday. Joe was sick five years before his death and Edna had to work, walking back and forth from her home to New Town. "I worked 36 years and I never missed a day's work for sickness. I loved every day I went to work." In l940 Edna found employment at the Conway MFA, and worked there until l958. During that time she married Dean Shackley, a native of Springfield, Mass., in l952. They moved to Houston, Texas in l958 and stayed six months (NOTE: earlier it said she was out of Conway for six years), moving back to Conway. After returning, she worked for Junior Turner a year and also was a cashier at Sayers Cafe on Old Highway 66. After working at the Marshfield MFA six months, she again became bookkepper at Conway MFA, until retiring in l964. Twenty-three of her working years were at the Conway MFA, where she made mahy friends. People still remember her from the MFA days. Dean Shackley worked in Wichita, Kan., and six years at Boeing Aircraft. He died in l972. Edna is the oldest member of the Conway First Baptist Church in number of years. She joined the church in l923 and has been active in all phases of church work. She still attends each Sunday morning and evening and also prayer meetings on Wednesdays. For the past l8 years she has been church treasurer. In l984 she moved to the Conway Senior Citizens Apartments. She keeps her mind busy and for the past 25 years has kept books for Jack's Service Station in Conway. Edna is the COnway OATS Bus contact and rides to Lebanon twice a month on the bus, which she really enjoys. Blessed with good health all of her life, she still does all of her cooking and housework. She spends leisure time crocheting, reading and working crossword puzzles. Edna has orders for many of her crochet pieces, including bedspreads. Her mind is a storehouse of much Conway history, which she is always glad to share with others.