Autobiography of artist Millie Carree

Autobiography

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Oshoto general store, a sketch by artist Millie Carrée.

In far northeastern Wyoming there was an old country store, Oshoto. For 80 years
it was the gathering place for settlers of this still sparsely populated area. The name is Indian for "A storm is coming" and Oshoto is pronounced with all long O's. I was raised on an isolated homestead about 10 miles from there. In the real West.
     It was after my childhood memories of this old general store that I named my web site, Oshoto Arts.

     I started life as Mildred Terry and became Millie Carrée when I married a displaced Frenchman named Gilbert. Biography of Gilbert Carrée
     Colorado state beckoned us away from Wyoming. Some 52 years later we are still in Colorado, but also still love Wyoming. Somewhere
in that time I evolved into me; and the Frenchman is all American.
    Three children, seven grandchildren, and ten great grandchildren later I'm still myself and my long-suffering hubby is wondering what happened.
     Throughout my life art has been in the background. By the light of a coal oil lamp (aw come on, would I lie to you?), my mom, Dorothy Terry, would gently show me how the leg of a horse should bend, or the dark eyes gleam. And proud dad Ezra would exclaim over the pictures beauty.
     In later years, when my own children were "bored", they were given a piece of paper and pencil and urged to draw. Diana, our youngest, is an accomplished artist in her own right. David our oldest, and Steve, have both done works their parents are duly proud of.
      Before the joy of painting, I found my creative outlet in handwork such as crewel embroidery, crochet, and designing my own gifts. In the 1990's Gilbert bought a small oil painting set for me as a gift. It was the beginning of a realization of a hidden dream. With no formal training but with a book and determination, I painted my first work! And I wanted to learn more. Classes at the Denver Art Museum (yes, it even calls itself DAM) with artist Chuck Ceraso and the help of an artist friend who has attended the Houston College of Fine Art and had been taught by her mother!
      If my long life has taught me nothing else, it's that it is never too late to learn and to enjoy fulfilling a lifelong yearning. You never know what you can accomplish until you try. Painting and drawing will always by a part of my life, and I hope to express my love of life through it. Thank you for visiting. Millie
      (Continue below for another story of life in the 40's and 50's)

Artist Millie at far right, top, in 1947 with dear friends - still.

At left: in the wilderness of Wyoming, school was FUN!! Well, except for the lone boy in the group, John, being choked by a some day artist, Mildred (Millie). 1947

      I know some of you are quite interested in the stories I've told of how I grew up in Wyoming state in a real log homestead cabin. And I'm also sure some are not as interested! And so I'm removing earlier pages I've had on this site. There are so far a total of 15 stories. To anyone who would like copies - let me know.

     E-Mail Millie Carrée

     Below is Story 15 of the series.

Regarding Millie Carrée

All Things Old and Beautiful

Mildred Terry (AKA Millie Carrée) in 1943

My hair really was that color and that curly until I was about ten. My sisters would send me out in the rain and back to watch it curl more. Old memories. Why I look so grumpy, I have no idea.
I've a few photographs of pieces of every day life from those 1940's and 50's I'll be showing here in the next weeks. Charming bits of this and that - nonsense to some people who don't know or want to hear the story behind something that you can't turn on and off! : ) Millie

A Ball canning jar and a collection of Cracker Jack toys. Millie

A Ball canning jar and a collection of Cracker Jack toys. Millie

Cracker Jack toys - I have a collection of them from the early 1950's. The story of the winter I "batched" with my dad when I was ten is linked to these toys. When dad would return from Gillette after taking my mom and sisters there to stay the week (so they could go to high school), he would stop at Oshoto and buy me a box of Cracker Jacks. I don't know how I managed as an active young lady to keep from breaking this rather fragile animals, people and all sorts of things. The tiny mustard colored figure in the rear center is a "Cracker Jack boy". The real thing! My collection is kept in a Ball/Ideal canning jar, copyright 1906.

     Above is an assortment of items I became all too familiar with when I was still at home. Upper left is the one item I didn't know about until my sister Laura gave it to me a few years ago. It is a belt, hand made by my grandfather Terry. Probably circa about 1939'ish.
     The shoe horn next to the belt is from about 1956. It's inscribed with "Lipman's Shoe Store". It means a great deal to me as that store is where my husband worked and where I met him when I went to purchase - uh, shoes.
     A very old sewing machine bobbin is next. it's of course wooden and also bow shaped. I have no idea how old it is, but likely the 1930's. Inscribed on it is the word "Belding" and the size of the thread. I still have the sewing machine I found the thread in. It's a 1906 Singer.
     Next are two clothes irons. They are quite heavy and were used of course for ironing clothes. There were no permanent press or any materials at that time that didn't wrinkle. But, the old iron cook stove had to be very hot to heat the irons on it. The handle on the upper one is removable and would fit both. The saving factor was that the clothes were always dried outside, even in winter. So the wind took most of the wrinkles out.
     On the bottom next to the iron is a leather billfold. I made it as a project in 4-H. It was a kit, but not with design or put together. In any event, I did get a blue ribbon with it.
     Next left, a tiny thimble. It only says "Germany" on it. I really have to assume it's pre-world Was I. I learned very young to use a thimble around sewing needles.
     And last but not least, on the lower left, are hair curlers. You shampooed your hair, and adorned it with many of these little creatures. They opened up by squeezing the slotted end and you put your hair under the edge, let the curler close and bent down the wire stop to hold your hair. Not good to sleep in I hear. These are circa some time in the 1940's, and very possibly much older.

    At left is an oil painting of New Haven, Wyoming wrought on a very old circular saw blade. This was the other general store besides Oshoto that we were near - ten miles away. There was a loft on the store but note the false front. It also had the obligatory barrels of various goods.
     When last I passed by, the old store was a pile of lumber. The scenery was forest around this old store, in the outskirts of the Black Hills of South Dakota. A quarter mile away was the nondenominational, one room church we went to when we could - and Below the painting is a deuce harp, a mouth played, tiny musical instrument. I once knew how to play it - but not any more! All I can manage now is to injure my lip.
     These two items are attached to a much longer board that came from the barn I played on as a child. The beautiful moss,
and other faded wood grains are as they were when I brought it "home".

      Thank you for stopping by again - I've More "old stuff" for another time! Millie

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Website updated August, 2010