Alfred and Bessie Morris

The 1861 English Census shows that in Warwickshire, the Parish of Aston, in Erdington's District 28, at 124 Upper Saltley, Timothy Morris (age 41, born 1819) and Ann Slater Morris (age 37, born 1823) Morris were raising their family: William A. (age 12), Timothy (age 9), Henry (age 6), and Charles (age 4).

The dad, Timothy's occupation is recorded as Philosophical Instrumentmaker. Seriously? What in the world? Timothy Senior was my grandmother (Dora Morris Hall)'s great grandfather. I think that makes it great, great, great grandfather for me. 

[I found Stratford on Avon in Warwickshire! That's where Shakespeare was born!]

The 2nd son, Timothy Morris, was my great grandfather's father, or grandma Dora's grandfather, and he was an "electrical operator" (an electrician). This Timothy (born 1852) married Annie Elizabeth Lane (born 1854). The 1881 England Census shows that Timothy And Annie settled in Worcestershire, in the Civil Parish or Township of Kings Norton District 24. Their address was 7 Belgrase Street. Alfred (grandma Dora's father), age 2, was their first born. Their 2nd, Walter P., was 8 months. Worcestershire is one shire west of Warwickshire where they both were born.

Meanwhile, another couple, John and Maria Mitchell, were raising a family in Cornwall (far to the South). One of their children would eventually be Alfred's wife.

This is where the family tree goes way back. Not only do we know that John Mitchell was born in Cornwall and lived from 1844-1902, we also know his father, John Mitchell lived 1797-1886 and his mother, Matilda Stephens Mitchell lived from 1806-1905. The 1851 Census says the senior John Mitchell was a "Cordwainer". I was sure I was stumped, but I Googled it and learned:

"A cordwainer (/ˈkɔːrdˌweɪnər/) is a shoemaker who makes new shoes from new leather. The cordwainer's trade can be contrasted with the cobbler's trade, according to a tradition in Britain that restricted cobblers to repairing shoes." (Wikipedia)
 

John Junior (1844-1902), a carpenter, and Maria (1846-1923) had Jessie Keturah L Mitchell (1868-1950), Ada Elvina Mitchell (1871-1888), Amelia A. Mitchell (1874-1951), Charles Thomas Mitchell (1878 - ?), Percy J. Mitchell (1880-1927), Bessie Helena Augusta Mitchell, my great grandmother (1881-?), Lilly G. (1885- ? ), Beatrice M. (1887), Ada (1891 - ) and Millie ( ? - ? ). They lived at 41 Old Town, Croydon, in Surry, England in 1871.

Ancestry.com told me about

The Great Blizzard of 1891

During the Great Blizzard of 1891, Bessie Helena Augusta Mitchell experienced incredible amounts of snow, which crippled travel for almost a week. Bessie was ten when this blizzard occurred.

Bessie Mitchell 

was a servant in 1901 when the census was taken in England. She was living at 39 Gas Works, Devon, Plymouth (as in where the Pilgrims left from!). 

Bessie Helena Augusta Mitchell married Alfred Morris on June 8, 1903, in Hereford, Herefordshire, when she was 21 years old. Alfred Morris enlisted in the military in 1897 when he was 19 years old and learned the trade of an electrician.

Alfred and Bessie's first daughter Vera May was born on May 29, 1904, in Plymouth, Devon. Their second daughter, my grandmother Dora Elaine was born on January 1, 1906 in Templemore, County Tipperaray, Ireland. I have Gram's birth certificats. It's in bad shape. "I have this 1st day of January 1906 registered the Birth of Dora Elaine, a female child..."

They were in Ireland because Alfred was stationed at the British Military Base there. Gram always told me it was a Royal Air Force base, but the RAF didn't begin until 1917. Gram was born in 1906 - Wilbur and Orville Wright had their first successful flight in 1903! Not enough time to establish an RAF base. Can't figure out what base she was born on at this point - was probably a Royal Army Base

Two years later Alfred and Bessie were back in UK, in Upton on Severn in Worcestershire, when their next daughter, Phyllis was born November 10, 1907. Their first son, Alfred, Jr., was born in Worcestershire in 1909. They moved from Upton on Severn to Kempsey 4/2/1911 (still Worcestershire). Son, Percy James, was born May 16th, 1911 at their new location. At this time Alfred had been in the Army 13 years, and Bessie's sister Beatrice was living with them as a servant.

Alfred was still serving in the military in 1912 at the age of 37. This was apparently when he retired and transitioned to the Army Reserve. He committed to serve for six years. Think about your world history now -- any global events you can think of that occurred between 1912 and 1918? Any Great Wars?



The UK often offered land grants in Canada to its veterans. In 1914 Alfred and Bessie relocated from the UK to Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Sound familiar? This is the same city my other great grandparents relocated to from the UK.

Who knew that Ontario touches four of the five great lakes? I didn't! Can you see Hamilton? It is right across the US/Canada border at Niagara Falls! I had no idea it was so close!

He served in World War I, which ran from 1914 to 1918. He received a letter of commendation (posthumously) and a medal, which I have in my metal box of family historical artifacts. No children were born to the family during this time (what a shock, right?).

Ancestry.com loses Albert and Bessie after that. Ancestry says they had five children; Grandma Dora said there were 11 or 12 (she couldn't remember). She gave me names, but not always dates. Clearly I will have to find my notes and enter more information into Ancestry and see if it can then provide more information.

There are not many photos of the Morris family. Gram said they left the farm on holiday one summer. It was so remote that at that time it was customary to leave your property unlocked when you left so that if any traveler arrived in need of shelter he could find a roof for the night. When they returned from holiday they found the house burned down, photos lost. They never knew whether someone had been sheltering and was careless with fire, or if the house had been struck by lightning.

Photos that survive were probably in the hands of relatives at the time of the fire. I will post ones I have in a future post. If you enjoyed, I'd love to receive a comment!   

A Little House in Hull, England

On February 6, 1881 a little boy was born in Hull, England and his parents named him Herbert. My great grandfather, Herbert, was born in 1881 in Hull, England, but I don't know for sure if the family I have found is for sure my great grandfather, but it is the only Herbert Hall I have found that was born in Hull in 1881. I don't know my great grandfather's birth date, only his birth year. If I can trust what I am piecing together from Census searches, his father was named William L. and his mother’s name was Elizabeth. He was the firstborn child, and he had a sister named Edith, who was born three years after he was.

The address of their residence was 13 Hanover Square, and the father worked on a barge. Information on Herbert’s obituary indicates he had one brother and two sisters. I have no way to tell if those were surviving siblings, or if that was all the siblings there ever were. While I cannot find record of birth or know with certainty this information is the correct match, this appears to be my great-grandfather’s birth and parents. I can find no other Herbert Hall living in Hull, England at that time, so I am claiming these to be my relatives.

Also supporting my theory, at least circumstantially is the census information that reveals the Jickells family living across the street at #12 Hanover Square. My great-grandmother was always known as “Carrie”, and even named her daughter “Carrie”. The census does not list a Carrie Jickells at 12 Hanover Square, but there is a daughter listed in the Jickells family with the same birth year named Clara E. Jickells, and it is easy enough for me to believe that she took Carrie as a permanent nickname. The information I have pieced together from 1901 on I know is accurate.

Carrie was a year older than Herbert. When they grew up, they got married. Herbert served in the military for Great Britain. At the time of the 1901 Census, Herbert, aged 19 and Carrie, aged 20 were married. Their first son, Herbert Hall, Jr., was born March 3, 1904. Their daughter Carrie was born in 1907, and Robert William was born in 1908.  England had a tradition, at that time, of giving land grants in Canada to their veterans, and when Herbert, a bricklayer, returned to civilian life he traveled to Hamilton, Ontario Canada to set up the homestead and find work.

The 1911 England census shows Herbert, Sr. is still a resident of England, but he was physically in Canada. If I search long enough I think I will find him on a 1911 Census for Canada as well. The rest of the family relocated in 1912, as documented by the 1921 Census for Hamilton City, Ontario, Canada.

The Great War  began in 1914, and Herbert, Sr. went back into active duty serving for England. I have a stack of amazing, embroidered postcards sent from Herbert, Sr. to his son Herbert, Jr. while he was away serving during the war. No other written record can be found.

Herb Sr.

 

The Hall family was living, in 1921, at 245 Balmoral Avenue, Hamilton, City, Ontario, Canada. Herbert and Carrie raised their three children in Canada: Herbert, Jr., Carrie and Robert. When Herbert, Jr. got married in 1924, jobs were scarce for bricklayers, and Herb and Dora decided to move to the United States where there were available jobs in Washington, DC. Herb, Sr. and Carrie decided to make the same transition, so they all moved to Greenbelt, Maryland. Herb, St. and Carrie still had Carrie and Robert at home with them.

Front row is Herb Jr. and his brother Bob. Behind Herb, Jr. is his mother Carrie, and I believe Carrie's mother, whose name I am unsure of. 

Top left is Herbie; in front of Herbie is June. Eddie is the baby in the center front.
 
Dora with Eddie on her lap; Bob in the center, little Herb on the right.

Carrie (the daughter) reached adulthood and married Ray Tomlinson. The two were married shortly after Herb and Dora. They also settled in Greenbelt. The two couples both had children, and the cousins grew up very close friends. Carrie and Ray's children, June and John were especially good friends with Herb and Dora's oldest two boys, Herb and Bob. Herb and Dora's youngest son was born a bit later, and the gap in their ages made it such that Eddie didn't usually hang out with the other four kids.

Herb, Sr. and Carrie were still living in Greenbelt when World War 2 started. Their son, Robert, went and fought in the war. Their son, Herbert Jr., was too old to enlist.

Robert, in uniform, with his mom Carrie:

 Robert never recovered from fighting in the war. When he returned to civilian life, he was an alcoholic, and did not live long. I don't know more about this. No one talked about him and my dad did not tell me much more than this. 

When Herbert, Jr.'s son Herbert William (my dad) was old enough to enlist, he was working in a machine shop on the waterfront in DC. His job was too important to the war effort, so they would not let him enlist. His enlistment started, instead, in April of 1945 to 1947, and he re-enlisted 1947-1949.

Herb (my dad)'s brother Bob also enlisted, in the Navy. When they enlisted, their brother Eddie was still a schoolboy. When Herbert got out of the Army Air Corp, he bought a new car (below). In the photo below, left to right: My grandma Dora, my great grandma Carrie, my uncle Eddie, my dad Herbert, my uncle Bob, I'm guessing my great grandfather's sister Edith, then my great grandfather Herbert Sr.

Herbert Hall, Sr. was my great grandfather and his wife Carrie, my great grandmother. Herbert Hall, Jr. was my grandfather, my father’s father. 

 My great grandfather passed away in 1965. I was only six or seven, but I remember him well. He will appear more as I tell the story of my own life in later installments of Family Stories.

Little House in the Dakotas

It all started around 1900. Alfred was a very young man, oldest in his family in Lake Norden, Hamlin, South Dakota. Twelve children had been born in 19 years to his parents, John and Liisa.

Liisa John

Alfred was born in 1880; John was born in 1882. In 1884 twins Anton and Andrew were born. In 1886 Hilda was born; in 1887 Emelia was born. Hilma was born in 1890, and in December of 1892 twins Carl and Arvid were born. In September of 1892 Arvid died. In 1894 Willie was born, and in 1896 Sophia was born. In 1899 Esther was born.

John and Lissa Palvalehto had come from Finland to make a new life here. When John filed for his homestead in South Dakota, the land office did not like his last name. So they asked him his father’s name. He said, “Efraim”. So they said, from now on, your last name will be Efraimson. At the same time his father was filing for land, so they asked Efraim what his father’s name was and he said, John. They changed dad Efraim’s last name to Johnson. The kids in John’s family who were adults became Efraimsons, and the kids still in the household became Johnsons. So John Efraimson’s younger brother was named Efraim Johnson!

Like their kinsmen, John and Liisa spoke Finnish. Their children learned English when they attended school. Farming the prairie was brutal, but many hands make light work. Nevertheless, cash was scarce. The house was full of able helpers, and Alfred heard there were jobs to be had in Minnesota, so he kissed his loved ones good bye and headed to Chisholm.

Alfred worked in the iron mines for many years. In 1902  a cute young lady arrived from Finland and began working at the boarding house where Alfred roomed, cooking and cleaning. Alfred fell in love, and the feeling was mutual. They were married 11/13/1904 and moved into a little sod house in Chisholm.

That is where their first baby, my grandmother, Eina (pronounced “Aye-na”) Esther was born on 10/16/1905. And Esther’s lifetime best friend (and sister) Jennie was born there 3/20/1907.

Emma was expecting again, and with each new child the sod house seemed smaller. Alfred also disliked mining and did not feel like he was getting ahead – he was barely holding his own financially. All groceries had to be purchased at the “Company Store” – the only available store in Chisholm, and the prices were so high that all one’s income went right back to the mining company. Alfred wanted out.

Alfred found a farm in North Dakota that was willing to hire him and house his growing family, so he sent for Emma. Emma, Esther and Jenny joined him in his forever home. I’ll never know how it happened that the farm owner loved Alfred and his family so extremely, but childless himself he one day left the farm to Alfred and Emma. In 1908 Emma gave birth to Eino (“Aye-no”) at the new farm at Armourdale, (Towner County) North Dakota. Emma was born in 1910, and Josaphine (Jo) in 1911. Hilda was born in 1913, and Arne in 1915. William (Bill) was born in 1916, and Viola (Vi) was born in 1918. Carl was born in 1921, when Esther was 15. Tragically, in the summer of 1921 Arne suffered a ruptured appendix. He spent months recuperating, much of the time in a hospital in Minnesota (with Esther by his bedside). He was released, but sadly the infection was still present and he died before he could be returned to the hospital.

Esther’s high school graduation photo.

Alfred and Emma mourned Arne's death, but with a busy household life had to go on. And God did not forget them; Emma’s womb was again blessed, and in 1922 Rudolph (Rudy) was born, and in 1925 his brother Rupert also came along.

The thing about this timeline that long confused me was this: My grandmother’s youngest brother was born the same year as my dad. True story. 

Here is a family photo of most of the siblings. Esther is in the light blue shirt; Jennie is to her right. Hilda is slightly behind Jennie. Bill is in the middle front with Rupert in the front right and Rudy in the front left. Jo is the dark shirt between Bill and Rudy. I don’t have the rest down in my mind, so I’ll try to come back and edit later.

.

So next time we will talk a little about Esther’s life. I’m building a story here leading to my own diary, at the request of my oldest.

A Close Call -- Esther Remembers

This narrative was written by my maternal grandmother, Esther, in 1997, when she was 91 and living in Tarpon Springs, Florida.

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I was eleven years old, the oldest of eight of us children. It was the summer of 1917, the seeding was done, school was out, and Mom and Dad decided it was time for a vacation. We had an Oakland Touring Car, the first car for our family.

 An Oakland Touring Car

My dad's family lived in Lake Norden, South Dakota, about 300 miles away. The roads were really nothing more than wagon ruts, but there were some signs on rocks or fence posts telling whether to turn or go straight ahead. We made our way to Jamestown where we bought some food, including some purple grapes, and proceeded to Edgely, ND, where we found a hotel. After settling in, Mom and Dad took Jennie, Eino and Emma to go shopping.

Being the oldest, I stayed home to see to the youngest, William (7 or 8 months), Josie, Hilda and Arne. Josie got sick (grapes!!!) and I didn't get her to the bathroom in time. We were a purple mess by the time the folks got back!

We left at the crack of dawn, causing some commotion getting ready to roll, so the hotel people weren't too happy with us. We made the rest of the trip uneventfully, arriving in the afternoon. We had a nice visit with the relatives. I can't remember how long we stayed.

The trip home went well until we reached New Rockford on the second day. It began to rain.  We stopped to put up the side curtains. They had isinglass (sort of like plastic portholes), but they weren't easy to see through, especially as it was getting dark.

These windows may have looked something like this:

The kids were edgy and I'm sure Dad must have had nerves of steel. There was a fast train that went through Rockford, but the crossing had not stop lights, barriers, etc.

 If there was a train coming, we didn't hear the whistle. Just as we were about to cross the tracks, Dad hit the brakes! A train, coming from the East went "whoosh" in front of us. In another second or so we would have been exactly on the tracks.

I'm sure we had a guardian angel in the car because to this day I can't understand how Dad was able to bring the car to such a sudden stop. It was a long train and when it finally went by, silence reigned in the car. We were all struck dumb.

So now, as you think about the size of the Efraimson family (I have 37 direct descendants and some of you are not far behind, especially Emma), consider how close we came to not having an Alfred Efraimson family at all!

Emma Severina Savilahti - Think Back Thursday

Last month, when I went to our family reunion, I learned of some more family documents that I want to add to my information on the Efraimson family.

First, some family tree information:

Diana - me
IdaMae - my mom
Esther - my gram, mom's mom
Emma (and Alfred) - my great gram (and grandfather), mom's mom's mom
Maria (and Antii) - my great, great grandmother (and grandfather) - Emma's mom
Anna (and Matti) - my great, great, great grandmother (and grandfather) - Antii's mother

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In 1750, Kalle Happajarvi was born. Kalle is Finnish for Charles. We do not know the names of Kalle's parents or wife.

Kalle had a son, Antti Happajarvi, born March 28, 1773 at Virrot, Finland (when Kalle was 23). Antti married Regina, and together they had a son, Matti (born in 1804, when Antti was 31). Antti died in 1843 at the age of approximately 70, when his son was about 39.

Matti (born 1804) married Anna (born 3/6/1813), and they had a son in 1847. They named him Antti, after Matti's father, who had recently died (in 1843). Matti was about 43 when his son, Anttii, was born. Matti was born in Vaskivisi, Finland 10/26/1804 and died 11/2/1868 (about aged 64). Matti's wife, Anna (Antti's mom) died 9/9/1863, at the age of 50, as a result of the famine in Finland.

The 2nd Antti Happajarvi (born, remember, in 1847) lived from 1847-1938. Antti's dad, Matti, died when Antti was about 25. So sad! Antti Happajarvi (#2) married Maria Pirttimaki, and Antti and Maria had my great grandmother, Emma Severina Savilahti, on January 19, 1881. Emma was born in Virrat, Lansi-Soumen Laani, Finland. I find it interesting to look at things like the fact that Emma never got to meet her grandmother, Anna -- she died before Emma was born. I have no idea why Emma's name is Savilahti and not Happajarvi.

Emma was not the only child born to Antti and Maria. Other siblings were Alexsi (1878), Miina (1880), [Emma, 1881,] Ida (1882), Steve (Seeve, in Finnish) (1883), and Aina (1884). Almost a child a year for six years! Antti knew how to read and write, and he taught all his children to read and write as well. Maria only knew how to read, but could not write.

Emma's younger sister, Ida, died at the age of 20. She had been working at the neighbor's, and in the evening walked home. She took a path across a frozen lake. The river flowed into the lake, and there was an area that wasn't frozen, and in the dark, Ida missed the path and walked into the area of thin ice and was drowned. People heard her cries for help, but couldn't find her in the dark.

Aina, Emma's sister, never married. She worked at a factory in Turku for several years, and made periodic visits to Emma and her family in North Dakota.

Emma's brother, Alexsi, worked for the railroad in Finland for many years. Aleksi married Siiri. They had a girl, but she didn't live very long. Aleksi's folks lived with him for many years, until they died. Siiri's folks had a little farm on an island.

Emma had been born to a humble home. Money was tight. When Emma was nine, she had to leave home to earn her keep. Emma grew to adulthood in servitude, but did not lose hope. From America, her brother, Steve (who was working in the mines in Wyoming) sent money for Emma's passage to America. 

Because Emma had moved to America, her mom, Maria, taught herself how to write so that she could correspond with Emma (and I assume Steve, as well) once Emma had moved. Maria went blind, though, and was blind for 40 years before she died. She had cataracts, and there was no known cure at that time.

Emma traveled to America in 1901. She celebrated her 20th birthday on board the ship on the Atlantic Ocean. She went to where her brother, Steve, was living in Wyoming. Emma stayed there only briefly, finding the rocky, barren hills of Wyoming unbearable. She left the cold mountains, the coal mines of Wyoming, and traveled to Minnesota, state of pine trees like her homeland, and she found a place to earn her living, serving miners where they came for their food and lodging.

Alfred had traveled from his home in Hamilton, South Dakota, to the iron mines in Minnesota to work where he could earn money. Alfred won Emma's heart, and they were married 11/13/1904.

They made a sod home among the pine trees in Chisholm, Minnesota. Eleven months married and baby Esther was born to the couple. Eighteen months more, and brown eyed baby Jennie was in the arms of brown eyed mother, Emma. 

But Alfred's heart was longing for the treeless prairies of his childhood. The miners of Chisholm threw down their tools, demanding higher wages, and Alfred felt the time was right to find a place for his family in the Dakotas. He left Emma and the girls and went back to the plains. Though he was from South Dakota, North Dakota was no longer Indian Territory, and he followed some friends to these northern plains.

To the west of Rock Lake Alfred went, and found work on the farm of Frank and Clara Shanley. There he found a house for his wife and children, and he sent for them to come join him. Emma hurried to join her husband. She traveled to the treeless prairie, to the house on the hilltop where Alfred waited. She doubted she would ever be able to tolerate the barren Dakota prairies. She missed her pine trees.

Emma held her vows to Alfred sacred, though, so she stayed in the deserted prairies until she came to love them. And God blessed Alfred and Emma with more children: Baby Eino, strong boy to help his proud father; baby Emma, brown eyes and brown hair, like her mother; Ruth Josephine and Hilda; Arne Rudolph and baby William; and blue-eyed Viola.

Tragedy struck, when Arne's appendix ruptured. Rushed to a hospital in Minnesota, 16 year old Esther stayed with him, since mother had many others to care for at home. Seemingly recovered, home they traveled. But Arne played too rough and split his stitches, revealing infection still raging. To the hospital he was rushed, but he did not make it. In a coffin rested his six-year-old body.

They could not mourn forever, though, for they knew their God in heaven had called Arne home, and that he would be there waiting for them. And God again blessed Alfred and Emma, and they welcomed Carl, and Elmer Rudolf, and finally baby Rupert.

Alfred and Emma raised their children where the wind blows and the snow lies deep. They taught their children to do abhor all evil and to do what is right, and to love and fear the Father in heaven who gave His Son for us all.  

This clutch of children they raised through the Great War and the Depression, times of trial when life was bitter, clothing was meager, food scarce. With hope they trusted their heavenly Father, stood the trials, bore the burdens. Then He blessed them with good years, when the rains fell and the crops grew full measure.

The children grew to adulthood, one by one they left the home they had known. And they came back with their families to the home they still remembered, to the father and mother who had served them.

Emma's heart was joyful, and Alfred's proud heart content. The children they had nurtured were adults, and still returned to visit. They thought about their past, and made plans for their future. World War II was in its final year, the fields ripe and golden, and God showed it was his timing to call Emma home. After a bout with pneumonia from which she just could not recover, Emma closed her eyes and breathed her last.

Round her grave her children stood, remembering all the years of toil she gave them, serving on the prairie as faithful wife and mother.

And now her future generations remember her, my great grandmother I never got to meet. May I be as faithful to my Lord to my very end.

Esther Holien - "A Letter to my Family" Part 2

The first half of this post, A Letter to my Family, Part 1, was published in July. I am overlapping four paragraphs to make today's entry start more smoothly. I have inserted some notes in brackets [ ] to assist in understanding some things.

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The kids got settled in school and, since Larry was still too young to go to school, we had a maid who took care of him. She was black, and one of the things Larry said about her was that he didn’t think she knew it! None of us had hardly seen a black person before we came to Washington and had no idea of bigotry towards them.

After we had been at Newton Street for a year or so, we decided to go out and take a look at Greenbelt, which advertised cheaper rents for people whose income was below a certain amount. I can’t remember what it was, but we qualified for it, and so we decided to move there. So that’s how we happen to be Marylanders now.

At first it seemed like the end of the world, because it took over an hour to get there from downtown by street car, but once we got used to it, it wasn’t so bad.

And it did seem like an ideal place for kids, with “underpasses” – paths cut out under the roads, so children didn’t have to cross streets to walk to school. There were a lot of activities planned for children, and a swimming pool too.

It worked out fine. Carole and Ida were in the Majorettes, learned to swim, worked at the theater, and occasionally as baby sitters. Wayne worked at the gas station. Since Jennie and I both worked down town, they didn't have much supervision, but seemed to manage all right. If we told them to have some vegetables prepared before we got home, we would finish the evening meal when we got there. Carole and Ida were both acrobatic and upside down half the time.

Saturdays and Sundays were busy days. At first we didn't have a washing and had to wash by hand in the tub in the kitchen [wash tub, think half of a wooden barrel]. That was really a chore when it came to sheets because when we first moved to Greenbelt the front yard was nothing but mounds of red clay. Consequently, everything white turned a ghastly clay color [I presume this was from hanging the laundry outside and clay dust blowing onto the wet laundry]. Polyester had not been invented, and it apparently had not occurred to the makers of nylon to use it for anything but stockings, so naturally, the ironing board got a lot of use. At first we attended church in Mount Rainier, Md., but as soon as Pastor Pieplow started Church services at the Greenbelt Elementary School, we went there instead. Carole and I also joined the choir, and we had rehearsals at our house, since we had acquired a piano by then.

While we were still at the Newton Street house in Washington, we received word that Ted [her husband] had died. There was no question of being able to go to his funeral, but some of my family did attend. He died of pneumonia and other complications.

In the summer of 1945, Jennie went to North Dakota on vacation. She found Mother to be very tired and didn't want to leave her alone with the work that still went on at the farm. Mother was 64 at the time. That fall, she got one of her sinus attacks; it turned into double pneumonia and she died. I flew home for the funeral -- in fact, I got there before she died, but I I don't think she was conscious anymore. [Letter 1]

So Jennie never came back. She continued to keep house for Dad. Dad lived till the age of 91 and since then, Rudy and Jennie have run the farm. [It has since been purchased by D. Odegaard, another family member.] Neither of them ever married. They have a town house in Rock Lake where they spend the winters, and Rudy often comes down to visit me in Florida. Jennie has worked in Janke's store in Rock Lake from time to time.

Yesterday, August 10, we received sad news from North Dakota; Eino died. He had suffered from Parkinson's for many years and was in a rest home in Rolla. We had visited him just a few weeks ago.

Every time I've seen him the last few years, he has been more and more frustrated because he could no longer do the things he had done before. He used to love to play golf and often, when I was up there, we would play together out in the pasture on the golf course that Rudy had fixed up. If there is a golf course in heaven, I hope he has found it and that he and Bill can play together. Eino would have been 80 next month.

Speaking of Bill, he died in 1975. He got bone cancer shortly after his youngest son was drowned off the coast of Oregon where he had been rock climbing with his cousins.

While I'm on the subject of my sisters and brothers, I may as well give you an update of what they are up to these days.

I've already mentioned that Rudy and Jennie live on the farm during the summer and in Rock Lake in the winter. They rent the farm out to Emma's grandson, Darren Odegaard, but they still help him out as he is a new farmer.

Eino and Martha had only one child, a daughter, Jane. She lives in Grafton with her husband, Paul Glander. [They have since divorced, and Jane lives in Grand Fork.] They have no children. [They later adopted Andrew.] Eino was a farmer and owned the land East of the original Efraimson farm.

Emma's husband, Ivan O'Brien, died a few years ago, and Emma still lives in Rock Lake. She has five children, all of them married and with families mostly in the area. The youngest son, Pat, is a Lutheran Minister and is in southern North Dakota.

Ivan and Emma started out as farmers but later bought the grocery store in Rock Lake and ran it for several years. Now their grandson, Darren, and his wife, Connie, run the store. Emma's oldest daughter is Wynne, and she is married to Don Odegaard. Don is a builder and has built many houses and other buildings in Towner County.

They have four children: Mike, Lee, Darren and Darla. All are married and have children.

My sister Jo is married to Vern Larson and they live in Clearbrook, Minnesota. They had four children. The oldest son, Bill, was killed while digging a ditch -- the earth caved in on him. Lois is married to Ken Bjerke and lives near Minneapolis. Joan is married too, and so is Tom, and both have three children. Vern has a farm and he also worked on the Oil Pipeline that went through Minnesota.

Hilda was married to Roy Gregor, who was an officer in the Veteran's organization, and also a photographer. Roy died when his son, Rod, was only 8 years old. Hilda still lives in Elgin, Illinois and Rod lives nearby in Chicago.

Bill was married to Helen Moore and they had three children -- two sons live in Oregon, and their daughter, Judy, is married and living in Canada. After Bill and Helen were divorced, he married Jeri. It was Bill and Jeri's son, Bill, who drowned when he was 17. Bill [the dad, Esther's brother] had his own firm. He and his crew painted some of the tallest bridges in the Portland, Oregon area.

Viola was married to Eugene Lampela and they had eight children. Gene died of Leukemia several years ago. All but the three youngest are married. Jim is her only son, a scientist, and lives in St. Louis, I believe. Kathy, who is slightly retarded, is at home with Vi in Moorhead, Minnesota. Susan is also at home, and working as a secretary. Vi's husband was a Lutheran Minister, and her eldest daughter is married to a Minister.

Carl is married to Ellen. Their home is in Fergus Falls, Minnesota, where he is also a Lutheran Minister. They adopted three children: Carla, a Navy Lieutenant [Carla was actually in the Air Force, not the Navy], is married. Danielle lives in Fargo, and Jonathan is somewhere in that area, too. He graduated from college this spring.

Rupert, the youngest, is also a Lutheran Minister and lives in the Bronx, New York. He spent several years in Finland. His congregation in New York is composed of people who came from Finland so the services are in Finnish. He has also served in Toronto, Canada, and in Montana, Minnesota and Michigan.

Rupert is also an accomplished musician. He has an excellent tenor voice, and was a member of a quartet while in college. He plays the piano and organ and has had a choir in every church that he has served, except for the one he now has. The median age of his parishioners must be about the same as mine. Over the years he has composed several songs, some of them about the farm.

He wrote one recently, "The Bible in the Attic", and he really should have published it. We've been having some mini-family reunions almost every summer over the past few years. Sometimes when I go to North Dakota, I'll stop and see some of the family en route. This year we were all there at the same time. That is, my brothers and sisters, but not their families.

Now, as to my own family. Wayne is married to Mary Ann Walton. They have two sons. The oldest, Eric [died in 2005], is married to Lynda and they have three children: a daughter, Adriane, from Lynda's first marriage, and two sons, Joshua and Matthew. They live in Beltsville [MD] [Wayne, Mary Ann, and Mark], except for Eric, who lives in Greenbelt. Mark is not married at this time, but I understand he is engaged.

Carole and I live together here in Olney [MD], since her divorce from Bob Hall. Carole has an excellent position at IBM and has been with the firm for close to 25 years. She is now looking forward to early retirement. She has four sons: Robert, who is not married [died 2013], works as a building engineer in a high-rise apartment complex not far from here. Brian, married to Kathy, has a son, Madison, 1 year old. Ricky, married to Jane, has a son, Jake, about 6 months. David, the youngest, married to Janice [but since, divorced], has the oldest son, Jesse, who is three [died in 2011].

Ida Mae was married to Bob [Hall]'s brother, Herbie, and they had three children, Lois, Bruce and Diana. Lois is married to Paul Anderson and lives in Oakland, California. They have two children, Crystal and Joshua. Bruce is not married, and I'm not sure what he's doing these days. Diana is married to Rick Malament and they have a young daughter, Kristin. They have moved to Denver.

Ida Mae married Emmert Walker after her divorce, and they have on son, Scott, who is 17 and beginning collage at Maryland University. Scott plans to be an architect. Ida's husband, Emmert, has his own firm, Turf Management. He installs underground sprinkling systems for commercial customers. He installed the system at the Tampa International Airport, and has done many government buildings, as well as golf courses in the area. Emmert's daughter, Debbie, has worked with her Dad for many years, and Scott joined them this summer.

Larry, my youngest son, is married to Darleen, and they have four children. Julie just graduated from a college of nursing in Kansas City, Mo., where the family has lived for about ten years. Amy was married in May. Cheryl has completed one year of college and is working as well. Michael, the youngest, has one year of high school left.

Larry was in the Navy for eleven years, where he studied meteorology, which has served him well, since he's worked for the Weather Bureau ever since. Their daughter, Amy, was born in the Philippines during an earthquake.

So there you have a very sketchy family tree. And here I am on page 18 already, never dreaming this would be so long. So you'd better get some refreshments and rest your eyes before you continue.

The following will be a resume of my working career. As I told you earlier, I started in the State Department on March 17, 1942, in the Visa Division. I was in the stenographic pool, which consisted of about 50 of us.

Our job was to take notes of hearings that were held by the Visa Review Committee, composed of representatives from the State Department, Navy, Army, FBI and Immigration. People from Germany and other European countries, especially Jewish people, were trying to bring their relatives to the United States either on Visitor or Immigration visas, and this committee would question the relatives or their lawyers to see if they could be admitted to the U.S. without becoming a burden on the public.

Sometimes the applicants themselves would appear, as they were already in this country on Visitors visas, and wanted to change that to an Immigration visa instead. Two of us stenographers would go in to take notes at the same time because we were not, after all, court reporters. We would then transcribe our notes for the files, comparing with each other to see that we got the whole story. Our shorthand speed really increased while doing this. The most important part of the operation, of course, was the committee's decision, which we took down in dictation. I had started with the salary of $1,440,00 per year, but my efficiency ratings were excellent and I got periodic increases. When the war was drawing to a close, the services of that section were coming to an end too, so I applied for a transfer to the President's War Relief Board. I got the job, which included a nice raise. My new title was "Secretary to the Board". Arthur Ringland and Charles Brunot were the Executive Directors of the Board. Charles Brunot is the inventor of the game, "Scrabble". [WHAT!!!! GRAM WORKED FOR THE INVENTOR OF SCRABBLE!!! No wonder we have played the game our entire lives!] The members of the Board were well-known and rich. Two names I remember are Charles P. Taft and Charles Davis. Charles Davis had been Ambassador to Russia.

They coordinated the work of many private agencies that were helping European countries with funds, clothing, etc. One of the ones I remember most was the Jewish Relief Committee. It was This Board that brought CARE into being. I took minutes of the meetings in which the CARE Program was formed. When it looked like that Board had just about finished its purpose, I went back to State and was assigned to work as secretary to Mr. Jones, who was Special Assistant to the Under Secretary for Public Affairs.

Mr. Jones was, among other things, a speech writer for the Secretary of State, and sometimes for the President.

It was while I was working for him that the MARSHALL PLAN and President Truman's speech promoting the Foreign Aid Program were begun. Mr. Jones would go to the meetings where these things were discussed and then would draft speeches that he dictated to me. He would then present them to the Secretary of State or others to see if they wanted to make them.

Before the Marshall Plan speech, which President Truman made on June 5, 1947, we had also drafted the President's speech of March 12 to the Joint Session of Congress. These speeches are reprinted in a book that is on the shelf of the room divider in the hall at the Olney house. This is the book that Mr. Jones wrote afterward, and in which there is a dedication to me on the front fly-leaf. The name of the book is "The Fifteen Weeks".

We also drafted several speeches for Dean Anderson. It was a real thrill to listen to Mr. Truman's speeches on the radio that I had first taken down in shorthand.

I left Washington about July 1st, 1958, on my first overseas assignment, stopping briefly at Vi and Gene's who were living in the Cleveland area. My brother Carl was ordained into the ministry at that time.

Dad, Jennie and Rudy took me to the airport in Grand Forks where I got the Northwest Orient plane for Tokyo, with a fueling stop in Anchorage, Alaska--the day Alaska became a state--July 4, 1958. [HOLY SMOKES!] [Well, I had to research this because I recalled Alaska becoming a state in 1959. From the Eisenhower archives: "After the annual introduction of various statehood bills H.R. 7999 passed in the House on May 28, 1958, passed in the Senate on June 30, 1958 and was signed into law by the President on July 7, 1958. On January 3, 1959 he signed the official proclamation admitting Alaska as the 49th state." So they were celebrating something, but not the actual day of becoming a state.] I arrived in Tokyo on schedule and took the plane for Saigon. There is a one-day difference in time, so I was arriving in Saigon on the 4th of July. [She left Alaska on the 4th of July and arrived in Saigon the next day, she went forwards before the rotation of the earth. Clockwise it was the next day, but calendar-wise it was still July 4th!] 

It is customary that all new employees to a Mission be met by the Travel Officer and someone from the section to which you have been assigned to help you through customs and to take you to the quarters that have been arranged for you. This was not the case on my arrival though. I did not see a single American anywhere! The Customs official did speak English, so I was able to get through that.

I waited around for awhile to see if anyone would show up late, but as it was late afternoon and I thought I might be stranded at the airport if I did not catch one of the cabs, I finally hailed one. As I got in I said I would like to go to the Majestic Hotel.

The driver did not comprehend, so I tried my rusty French and said, "Majesteke 'otel sil vous plait", and he immediately answered, "Oui, oui, Madam", and off we went. I tried to remember how to say, "wait, I have to change some money", and finally figured out that it should be" attenday -- je vais chanjay de l'argent".

That worked too, and he waited till I changed some money at the desk and went back and paid him the piasters he wanted. I thought that the Melody's might still be at the Majestic, because that is where they were, the last I heard, but found out that they had just moved. I got their telephone number and tried to call, but there was no answer, so I figured everyone was out celebrating the 4th and just got a room and settled in for the night.

The next morning there was a group joining a tour of Saigon,, so I went too, since it was Sunday, and I knew no one would be at the office, thinking I'd just go in Monday morning.

When I returned from the tour in the afternoon, there were several frantic calls, and questions. Wires had been crossed. They thought I was arriving on the 5th. Well anyway, they did have an apartment for me. I did not stay in that long before I moved into a larger, nicer one on Flower Street near the Majestic.

The work was different all right, but with the assistance of some of the girls that I met I did catch on. One who was most helpful and is still a good friend of mine is Cappy, who is also retired now, and lives in Chevy Chase, Md.

There were requisition forms that had to be filled out for supples and technicians that were needed to accomplish the work we were doing. Communications media - things like radio, TV, newspapers, telephones, etc. were all necessary to perform the job.

The technicians actually went out in the field to help with these, but it was my job to keep track of the money we were allotted, the orders, etc., and to get reports from the technicians to include in overall reports to Washington. At first it seemed so strange to be concerned with just one little country after working in Washington and being concerned with programs the world over.

I made many good friends in Saigon and we had many good times. Cappy lived in the same building as I, as did Romy Gross, who lived on the floor above us. Al Leverson was also on our floor. One funny incident comes to mind in remembering Al. One day he was going to be late at the office, so he called his maid and told her to have dinner ready at 8. There was always that language barrier and she thought he meant dinner for 8. She must have rushed to the market to get supplies and had borrowed dishes and silver, and even a tablecloth, from my maid.

I didn't know this until later. Around 8:00, Al called and asked if I had had dinner yet. I hadn't, so I accepted his invitation. He had already tried to call Cappy and several others, but they had already eaten, so we ate together in style. And of course, it became a good topic to laugh at for a long time.

Cappy had an accordion and I found it fascinating, so the next time I had a chance to go to Hong Kong, I bought one for myself. I learned to play it quite well and Carole, Ida and I still play. Ida has that first one, and I later bought a larger one. Carole and I used to do a lot of singing together and harmonizing. While I was in Saigon she had a little record made of some of the songs we sang together. I had gotten a record player and tape recorder too, so I played the record, sang the harmony to the pieces on tape, and returned it to her.

Cappy and I did a lot of singing together too. I think she also had a guitar -- or somebody did. Another friend of ours in Saigon was Ruth Holmes. She lived on Catinat Street and liked to play bridge. I played some, but Cappy didn't. Once we decided to have a Sadie Hawkin's Day party at out building -- in Cappy's apartment -- and all of us dressed in gunny sack outfits. I have a picture of Ruth (as Mammy Yokum) with a pipe in her mouth. Ruth died a few years ago.

While I was in Saigon, I bought a used Buick from a guy who was leaving to go back to the States, and after that, we used to go to the beach quite often, mostly to Cap St. Jacque. We always stayed overnight, and sometimes till Monday morning, leaving early enough to get to work. We had a two hour lunch period in Saigon, and that is when I learned how to swim. I bought a little book by Esther Williams on how she teaches children to swim. It worked too, and I still love to swim, especially in the Gulf of Mexico in Florida. That is where I spend the winters now -- in Palm Harbor, which is about five miles from the Gulf.

Twice while I was in Saigon, I was requested by Washington to go to Hong Kong to take minutes of the meetings of all the Missions Chiefs in the area. These were usually one week, but I could take a few extra days for shopping, sight-seeing, etc.

Also, while in Saigon, Romy and I went to the Cau-dai Temple, which is close to the Cambodian border. I have pictures of it. I also went to Cambodia twice by car, taking some other ladies with me. We went through the ruins of Angkor Wat that has been closed to the public now for many years, and I also have pictures from there.

[Esther on top of mountain in Saigon]

I enjoyed my time in Saigon very much -- got to know some locals and taught English to some boys who were of high school age.

That also helped improve my French, but I did also go to French classes at the Mission. The two years went fast,. but I did miss my family so I opted to return to Washington instead of taking another post.

On my way home from Saigon, I did not come directly across the Pacific, but went around by way of India, etc., and stopped in Paris, where I met Jennie and Ellen Kaleva.

We went to Finland together to visit our mother's brother, Uncle Alexi and his wife Siiri, and Aunt Aina, her sister. We went by ship from Stockholm to Torku, where Aina was living at that time. Uncle Alexi lived on a little island and met us by boat.

We really enjoyed our visit there. I gave Siiri and Alexi a hand embroidered tablecloth from Hong Kong, and after Siiri died, Uncle Alexi sent it back to me and I still have it. We stayed in London a few days and then flew back to the United States via Pan American Airways.

It did not take me long to realize that I had made a big mistake in coming back to work in Washington, and I again requested an overseas assignment. I was in Washington the year that Kennedy was inaugurated and was in that big snow storm the night before the event.

I had a red Ford Fairlane at that time and had one passenger riding with me as she worked close to my office. We made it home, but it took hours, and every once in awhile I had to get out and clean the snow off the windshield as the wipers couldn't keep up with it. The next day, the Parkway was full of abandoned cars.

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Watch for Part 3 next Thursday.

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