Oran Hubert Linder (1904-1998) was born in Adair County, Missouri to a long line of Linders, where he spent his life farming in rural Missouri. Oran' s great-grandfather, Andrew Linder, was the first to relocate the Linders to Adair County, moving from Illinois in 1836. Oran Linder' s father was O. R (Bob) Linder, who also kept diaries and farm ledgers. Only one of O. R. Linder' s diaries and two farm ledgers remain in this collection; Oran Linder wrote all others included. In 1932, Oran married Merle Schillie (1909-2006), who was also from a pioneer farming family in rural Adair County. The two raised four sons together: Harold, Gene, Dean, and Oran Jr. Oran recorded his daily farm work and weather in these diaries, and later in life, he recorded his travels and town activities after he was retired from the farm.

Along with farming, Oran was employed at Missouri Farmers Association for 15 years and at a Kirksville lumberyard for 21 years. His diaries include mention of all such jobs. After retirement, Oran and Merle spent time traveling to all 50 states, keeping up with baseball and visiting relatives. The bulk of this part of Oran' s life can be found in the diaries from 1971-1992. Any diaries from 1932 through 1970 are not included because they do not exist to Harold Linder' s knowledge. The letters written to Harold from 1968-1981 also give good insight into life in Kirksville and the life of the Linders. It is most certain that letters were written to Harold' s three other siblings, but they have not been preserved to be included in this collection.

Christa (Ude) Linder (1939--1981) was born in Hamburg Germany and resided in Germany until the age of 29, when she immigrated to Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 1969, she moved to Vancouver, British Columbia, where she met Harold Linder. Harold and Christa married in March 1971, and had two children together, Tina (1972) and Mark (1974). After moving the family to Tempe, Arizona in 1978, Christa was unfortunately diagnosed with breast cancer. After a tough fight, Christa passed at the age of 41 in May of 1981. Harold has worked to preserve Christa' s life by publishing her letters she wrote to her parents in Germany.

Harold Linder, Oran' s oldest son, is the donor of this collection. Harold Linder is an exploration geologist who currently resides in Arizona. Besides traveling and prospecting, Harold enjoys learning about his family history and reflecting on his cherished time spent growing up in Kirksville, Missouri. Harold Linder transcribed Oran and O.R.' s diaries, as well as his late wife Christa' s letters and his parents Merle and Oran' s letters, into publications which are beneficial to the Linder family and Adair County. These transcription publications can be found in Special Collections, Pickler Memorial Library, Truman State University.