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Miriam Mason Swain - Recollections on My Grandmother
Presentation by Andy Beck
March 18, 2003
Batesville Memorial Public Library to the Batesville Area
Historical Society
The Batesville Area Historical Society was treated to an entertaining
presentation by Andy Beck on recollections of his grandmother, local
children’s writer Miriam Mason Swain, after the March meeting.
Miriam Mason Swain began life in Goshen, Indiana in the year 1900. During
her early life, the family also resided in Bloomington, Elletsville, and
Martinsville, Indiana.
She decided to become a writer after working as a school teacher and
assistant editor for a magazine, among other jobs. Her first published book
was Little Story House, which appeared in 1935. During her prolific career,
she wrote over fifty books, and during her later years she also served as a
consultant for primers produced for elementary school students.
She moved to Batesville during the late 1940’s. She had been researching a
book at Madison, and came to Batesville for a visit. She liked the town,
and purchased the home at 510 Western Avenue. This became known as the
‘spooky house’ because of its unkempt appearance.
Andy’s family lived in Silver Springs, Maryland, and his recollections of
his grandmother stem from his summer visits to her home beginning when he
was nine years old, in the summer of 1960. His parents put him on the train
in Silver Springs and he traveled alone on the B & O Railroad to Cincinnati,
Ohio where he had to switch to the New York Central. His grandmother met him
here, and they traveled together to her home in Batesville. He would repeat
this trip every year until he was fourteen. The train ride was quite an
adventure for a nine year old.
Her home, he remembers, was filled with books, cats, and "stuff".
Bookshelves lined with books filled virtually every room in the house. Old
magazines, like Life, were also abundant. And the cats were everywhere! Her
trips downtown to run errands weren’t complete without a stop at Benz’s Meat
Market to buy chicken livers. She would take them home, stand on the back
step of her house and fling the livers into the yard. Pandemonium would
reign as the cats emerged to feed on the livers.
The yard, he remembers, was as unkempt as the inside of the house. Weeds,
vines, and other growth made a wonderful place for a nine year old to
explore.
The three important things in her life were - church, culture, and reading.
The last she instilled in her visiting grandson. He was required to read one
book a week during his stay. He would visit the cavernous library on the
second floor of the Memorial Building, make his weekly selection, read it,
and return the next week every week of his stay.
Culture came from summer visits to the Opera at the Zoo events. The trip to
Cincinnati was by train - the highway trip was too long and arduous for an
auto journey. His visits also included day trips by car to Metamora and
French Lick, Indiana. Andy even persuaded his grandmother to take him to
go-cart races in Harrison, Ohio.
Included in her works were books based on her grandchildren. The book about
Andy was entitled A Small Farm for Andy, appearing in 1958 when he was seven
years old. The book about his sister, Kathleen Miriam Beck (Hurwitz) was
entitled Katie Kittenheart.
Miriam Mason Swain would reside in Batesville until her death in 1971. Her
life adds a colorful and interesting chapter to our town’s saga.
Written by Paul R. Wonningl
