The Blue Boat, Grindstone Island, NY, Circa 1930’s – 1950’s The Blue Boat had an important job for many years – to deliver milk, ice, and vegetables to my grandfather’s customers in the nearby summer island cottages . . . Manley L. Rusho
The Steam Roller: Grindstone Island circa early 1940’s The abandoned steam roller sat beneath the oak tree by our farm gate, a once proud machine. A metal roof covered the entire frame . . . The front roller was a massive, solid, round steel drum. Light rust now covered the roller with its bottom now slowly settling into the ground. Manley L. Rusho
The Grindstone Island Cheese Factory, (Circa 1940-1954) The Cheese Factory was open late April until about the end of October each year. Every morning when the factory was open, on the road there was a parade of horses and wagons, mostly a wagon with a single horse. Manley L. Rusho
Every Barn Has One Every barn has one, some have two. What I am describing is a barn gutter, a place for cows to dispose of their digested hay or grain. Manley L. Rusho
The 410! My first look at the 410 was as it sat on the seat of the 20-foot wooden Cupernall boat that my father drove to and from work on Round Island. The gun was loosely wrapped with brown paper . . . Manley L. Rusho
The Cow Path Worn smooth into the meadow was the cow path leading to the barn. Our farm had about 20 milk cows and the path was the route our cattle followed to the barn from the meadow and back again. Manley L. Rusho
Air Boat Trip to The Gananoque Shooting Club Date: January 1966: From Clayton, NY, to Grindstone Island on the ice was about a 15 minute drive under good conditions. Manley L. Rusho
Sledding Adventures on Grindstone in the 40s This packed-down snow path would become a slick, solid sheet of ice when slightly melted by the sun. This path then became an Olympic Sled Run for us kids . . . Manley L. Rusho
The One That Got Away Cruising along, I am still lost in thoughts of tomorrow, afraid of failure, and of letting my family down. Suddenly, a fish hits the Pikie lure as I was right opposite Sugar Island. Manley L. Rusho
My First Day of School, Grindstone Island Lower Schoolhouse, 1936 Almost halfway across the width of Grindstone Island was the Lower Schoolhouse. Manley L. Rusho
The Rope Swing Manley wrote this poem about the rope swing that hung for many years on the Rusho property on Grindstone Island. The rope hung high . . . Manley L. Rusho
The Old Farmhouse In the old farmhouse where I lived as a child, my bedroom was at the top of the stairs. A quick turn left and you entered a small bedroom with a window facing north – due north. Manley L. Rusho
Memories of my Grandmother Dano My Grandmother Ordelia Graham Dano was my maternal grandmother and the mother of 12 children. Her home was a small, two-story wooden home, complete with two stoves . . . Manley L. Rusho
