Frances Ann "Fannie" Burkhart was the 1st born daughter of Leander and Melissa Burkhart who had crossed the Oregon Trail, arriving in Albany, Oregon Territory in 1847, where Fannie was born nine years later on Aug 6, 1856. She was one of six children who lived with her parents on their donation land claim and attended school, as Leander and Melissa felt a good education was important to both boys and girls. Following completion of high school, Fannie was sent to attend school in Portland, Oregon at St.Helen's Hall, which is now Oregon Episcopal School. Prior to that it appears her parents took her on a trip to San Francisco, probably as a graduation present, as I found in her photo album a picture that was taken in San Francisco where her hair is beautifully coiffured, she has nice earrings and she looks so grown up, but not ill. She began attending St.Helen's Hall on Monday, Oct 30th, 1876. She would board the train which would stop not far from her house and take the two hour ride past the open fields up to the thriving town of Portland. She enjoyed school, although she missed her family, but, by Sept 1878 she had become ill, because she mentions her illness in a diary she kept (which was originally supposed to be a journal for her to use to keep track of all expenses). Instead she used it to express her thoughts and it quickly became the diary of a young girl growing up away from home in the late 1800's. She said she had been taking some medicine for three months "and it does so little good."
By late March, 1879, she was quite sick, writing "I was so tired all day." On March 26th, 1879 she wrote, "Am very sick. I believe I was never so sick in my life." She had come back home to stay by this time as she no longer had the strength to attend classes.
Her last entry was written on April 16th, 1879, and reads "I am so discouraged have felt so sick so long. I almost think I will never get well."
She died of "Consumption", what is now called TB, on July 28th, 1879. She was only eight days away from her 23rd birthday. She is buried at Riverside Cemetery, Albany, Linn County, Oregon with other members of her family.
I have her original leather bound diary (and many pictures) which I transcribed in 1990. It is funny in many places, about daily life at St.Helen's Hall and how she tried to act like an adult but often was just a school girl. She even had a suitor at one point. She was a sweet girl who died too soon.
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A Special Thank You to Sue for framing all of Fannie's photos! Another sweet, gentle soul.