52 Ancestors - SISTER: Such Devoted Sisters

Hearing the word “Sisters” immediately sets me to singing the like-titled song performed by “the Haynes Sisters” in White Christmas.

Sisters, sisters
There were never such devoted sisters
Never had to have a chaperon, no sir
I'm here to keep my eye on her
Caring, sharing
Every little thing that we are wearing
When a certain gentleman arrives from Rome
She wore the dress and i stayed home
All kinds of weather
We stick together
The same in the rain or sun
Two different faces
But in tight places
We think and we act as one... uh-huh
Those who've seen us
Know that not a thing could come between us
Many men have tried to split us up but no one can
Lord help the mister
Who comes between me and my sister
And lord help the sister who comes between me and my man
~ by Irving Berlin

The line “There were never such devoted sisters” could easily apply to probably every set of sisters that I have ever written about. Lots of families have their squabbles, and some of them never recover. I have not seen that in my family. The sister bond seems to be very strong.

Violetta and Velma

Violetta was the older one.

My grandfather's sisters were always "Violetta and Velma," never "Velma and Violetta." We said it like it was one word.

Velma and Violetta some time in the 1940s, I guess.
I don't know why they were dressed alike. They didn't usually.

Mary Frances and sisters Emma, Laura, Leanna, Sallie, and Vic

My great-grandmother and her sisters 

My favorite picture of the sisters - complete with watermelon!
Lined up from youngest to oldest:
Vic, Sallie, Mary Frances, Leanna, Laura, Emma

Julia with Lillie, Mae, Margaret, Helen, Cat, and Tate

My granny Julia and her sisters Catherine (Cat) and Teresa (Tate) were HALF sisters with Lillie, Mae, Margaret, and Helen. No one ever made a distinction about that "half" business.

 

Walsh girls - Cat, Tate, and Julia

The Killeen girls 

Lillie Killeen, Helen K. Parker,
Mae K. Holland, Julia W. Slade

Lucille and Rosalind

My grandmother Lucille Rucker Davis
and older sister Rosalind Basham

Oops - maybe there was a squabble here. That last line tells it all:

And lord help the sister who comes between me and my man!

Wendy and Mary Jollette

Wendy and Mary Jollette
1962 maybe?

Wendy and Mary Jollette
We did not intend to dress alike. It just happened. Seriously.

Hmm, now let's see. What line fits us?

I'm here to keep my eye on her

OR

Know that not a thing could come between us

Amy Johnson Crow continues to challenge genealogy bloggers and non-bloggers alike to think about our ancestors and share a story or photo about them. The challenge is “52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks.”

Wendy

© 2019, Wendy Mathias. All rights reserved.