When James Dinsmore died in 1872, his farm in Burlington was left to his daughter, Julia.  She ran Dinsmore Homestead until her death in 1926 at the age of 93.  A published poet, she kept a detailed journal of her life on the farm where they raised sheep, grapes, and willows for basket-making.  They also buried Dinsmore relatives in the family cemetery, which sits atop a hill not far from the house.

  Work on the farm was rough and she was often discouraged in those early years all alone.  Her journal revealed her various moods:
January 4, 1875
(14 below zero @ 8 a.m.) Tom tried to haul wood but broke an iron on the sled.  River is frozen over.
February 24
Found two new lambs and one old ewe down to die apparently…tried to count the lambs – made out 85 in all…
February 27
Found one dead lamb in the pen and one we had n the kitchen.  Charlie and Tom both worked, put rings in the hogs and pigs noses.  Hauled a load of barrels to the wine house…
May 23
…I put fire in 2 stumps…Killed copperhead on my way home to dinner…
December 28
One of 7 little pigs dead.  Went to church in evening.

Julia Dinsmore maintained the farm as a home not only for herself, but as a  haven for rest, for childbirth, and for sickness and dying for the extended Dinsmore family.  Throughout her life she recorded her daily life and kept up a lively correspondence.  In her leisure at age fifty, she began to write poetry, and her poems were published in 1910.  She is buried in the family graveyard.

The 1842 Homestead is now open to the public, much the way that it was when Julia died. 

The Dinsmore papers are located at the Tucson Branch of the Arizona Historical Society.  These diary excerpts were obtained through microfilm copies located at the Dinsmore Homestead.  

Although Julia Dinsmore never married, legend has it that she was once engaged to a Confederate soldier who was killed during the Civil War.  Several of her poems hint about the existence of this mysterious fiancée, particularly “Louisiana Buttons.”  After the Dinsmore Homestead was taken over by the Foundation, all items had to be inventoried.  At that time, these buttons, made by the company Hyde & Goodrich of New Orleans, Louisiana, were found.

--Hannah H. Baird,  Co-founder, Dinsmore Foundation