Mrs. Thayer discusses her memories of Spring Valley, Wisconsin, in the early 20th century, including the operations of the iron smelter and her father's foundry-machine shop located in that city. Her father emigrated from Germany at the age of 19, settling in Menomonie, Wisconsin. He moved to Spring Valley in 1903, the smelter located there being the drawing card for his building of a foundry-machine shop . Mrs. Thayer reminisces about the mines at Cady Creek am in Gilman township that fed the smelter, and the smelting process as she remembers it. She discusses Spring Valley as it was at the turn of the century, remembering businesses located there, including lumber mills, the local opera house, retail establishments, and the thriving saloon business. She goes into sane detail concerning her father's foundry business.

Mrs. Thayer also speaks briefly about her two years of Teacher Training at the River Falls Normal School, in River Falls, Wisconsin.