Charles E. Burchfield (1893-1967)

Oct 21, 1923Trip to Cattaraugus –On train down –The panorama of bright colored woods yellow & red trees patterned with dark pines –On the way into Cattaraugus the immensely valley with the hills spotted with infinitely varied colored trees–Cattaraugus – town built on hillside –The funny little engine that brought us down –Walking out down the street a sense of exhilaration went thu (sic) me–Apple orchards – cold (n.d)Farmer & his boy mending fences –The chestnut grove – I wandered around picking up small chestnuts – they were little but of a fine flavor – it came over me that today I didn’t want to work today percisly (sic) that I needed a companion and I thot (sic) of Bertha, the best companion I have. I thot (sic) bitterly that she could not come with me, that now that I had found my true mate, she must stay at home or else I thot (sic) we could not rove the fields together –; From here I wandered on over the hills, till I came to the entrance of “Skinner” he hollow – two valleys came together here as I inquired of a young farmer picking apples which was the Cattaraugus creek (for I had even on my map that this creek was a branch of the main Cattaraugus. When he said neither, I thot (sic) I was lost, but it turned out he knew it by another name. He pointed on my way & I was off.