On This Day - Velma

My grandaunt Velma Hilda Davis Woodring passed away from cancer on 5 July 1968.

Sweet 16 1924

My last visit with her was difficult. As a teenager, I just didn’t know how to sit and visit with someone I knew was dying. Weeks later when we got the call with the sad news, my mother burst into tears. She always said that of her aunts and uncles, Velma and her husband Woody were the “fun ones.”

Woody and Velma 1949

Wendy

© 2021, Wendy Mathias. All rights reserved.

Sepia Saturday: Letters from Peggy

Sepia Saturday challenges bloggers to share family history through old photographs.

This week’s Sepia Saturday prompt features a group standing on the steps of Oxford. Immediately the grand steps of Wilson Hall at Madison College (now James Madison University GO DUKES!) came to mind. For years Wilson Hall was the main administrative building and the centerpiece of all ceremonies, most notably graduation.

Moi graduating June 1973
Madison College

In June 1973, I walked up those steps, crossed the portico to receive my diploma and shake President Ron Carrier’s hand, and then descended the steps to return to my seat.

Twenty-three years before then, my mother walked those same steps to receive her diploma. Getting there was not that easy though.

I am still reading through letters found after 70 years in my grandparents’ attic. My mother and her college roommates kept in touch during summer breaks. Momma started out at Shenandoah College which at that time was located in Dayton, Virginia. Shenandoah was a junior college then, so many of her friends returned home after graduation. However, Momma and her best pal Peggy Compher from Arlington, Virginia, planned to become teachers, so they set their sights on Madison College.

Peggy Compher

In the summer of 1948, Peggy wrote often about her struggle to find a job. One of her letters was typed, probably to demonstrate her poor typing skills which were to blame for failure to land a secretarial position. Peggy’s typos and attempts at correction were amusing ornaments to the reports of beer parties, sunburn, and brief reunions with friends. As she said, none of her summer activities were as fun as the times at Shenandoah:

7 Jun 1948

This is not Peggy with Momma (on the left)
but there's the fire escape ~

Every letter from Peggy included a reminder to Momma to “Hurry up and write to Madison!” Why was Momma dragging her feet? Why did she need reminding? Peggy was so confident that she requested “Mary Eleanor Davis” as a roommate. Still, every letter included that desperate reminder to find $10 for that application and furthermore to request Peggy as her roommate.

With school starting in September, Peggy was getting antsy:

2 Aug 1948 

Good God, gal, you’ve gotta get in at Madison! I don’t want to room with some ole snob – ‘twould be no fun at all if I didn’t have you for ma roommate – can’t your aunt pull a few strings? [she was referring to my grandaunt Violetta Davis Ryan, a member of the faculty] Or is that impossible for anyone to do? You know what? I know you don’t – I received a little card from Madison, to order gymn suits. Now, isn’t that farty? I’ve already had 2 yrs of that course – or do they require 4 yrs? I can’t understand that catalog.

 

Peggy’s next letter revealed a clue to Momma’s hesitation about applying to Madison:

I am so thrilled about Madison, and I do hope you can go. I can understand about your being poor, cause building now is terrifically high. Hope your aunt stands by. I’m surely she will, your devoted aunt! Lucky you. We will really have a right rare ole time next year. I can’t wait for Sept 20. (That’s when we register)

 

So that must have been when Granddaddy was starting to build their house. Money must have been tight.

 

Peggy finally got good news and replied:

Oh happy day! So you’re going to Madison – and even have a room, goodly goodly. I certainly hope that we have a room together. Did you request me for your roommate, I do hope? After all, we must stick together. O.K? I’ll try to be extra good this year. You do want me for a roommate, don’t you?

 With registration less than a month away, the roomies started planning their move into Junior Hall:

My radio is also on the blink. Can you bring your light? How about rugs, curtains, bedspreads, dresser scarfs? Should we wait till we get there to figure that out. I have several dresser scarfs, what color? Any novelties? I don’t know exactly what to bring. Of course, I have my faithful alarm clock! 

Hmm, there must be a good story for that alarm clock to merit an exclamation point.

I never met Peggy, but I think I would have liked her. Here are the cute things I love about her:

• Her funny little use of “-ly” even though not grammatically correct – did you notice “goodly”? She typically signed her letters with “write soonly.”
• The sprinkling of Spanish in her letters, for example “I miss you mucho”; the clothes she wanted to buy were “expensivo” ; she called Paul, her boyfriend, “Pablo.”

It would be muy bueno if you would step on over to Sepia Saturday soonly to read what others made of this week’s theme. Goodly! Goodly!

Wendy

© 2021, Wendy Mathias. All rights reserved.

Photo Friday: Dick Ryan

 This is Virgil "Dick" Ryan, husband of my grandaunt Violetta Davis Ryan.

20 Aug 1898 - 2 Jul 1941

Wendy

© 2021, Wendy Mathias. All rights reserved.

52 Ancestors - CONFLICT: Jolly and Jeanne

My grandaunt Violetta Davis Ryan often mentioned that my mother and her second cousin Andrew Jollette “Jolly” Steppe were great friends. I was puzzled by that. They lived so far from one another that a close friendship did not seem likely. After reading many of the letters found in my grandparents’ attic, I now see the connection.

"Jolly" with his parents 
Vessie and Gilbert Steppe
photo courtesy Gil Steppe

Jolly enlisted in the Navy in 1944 after high school. He was discharged two years later, the same year Momma graduated from Cradock High School. In the fall of 1946, the two enrolled at Shenandoah College and Conservatory in Dayton, Rockingham County, Virginia.

Coincidence? Probably not. Jolly’s mother Vessie Jollette Steppe and Momma’s father Orvin Davis were cousins as well as cousins of some of the most influential leaders of the college: their cousin Leota Sullivan Racy was the college treasurer and husband Forrest Racy was the college business manager before becoming president in 1956. Likely Jolly and Mary Eleanor (aka “Duny”) were strongly encouraged by family to apply.

Jeanne Eleanor Bailey

Shenandoah was a junior college, so in 1948, everyone either returned home or moved on to a four-year school. Duny made a lot of friends at Shenandoah. One faithful “pen pal” was Jeanne Eleanor Bailey of Orange, New Haven, Connecticut.
Eleven letters dated between June 1948 and April 1949 reveal not only their friendship but also the romance between Jeanne and Jolly from almost the beginning to definitely the end.

 

DISCLOSURE: I checked with Jolly’s children – my third cousins – to make sure they would be OK with my sharing this story.

These are snips from Jeanne’s letters to her pal, my mother.

 

WARMING UP

8 June 1948

What do you hear from George? When is he coming down to see you? Maybe I could hitch a ride with him as far as Jolly’s or wouldn’t he go through Washington? Of course I’d have to take a few days off from work to do that but I’m not going to start working in earnest until fall. I wish the four of us could have a little party sometime this summer.

 

28 June 1948

Jolly is coming up the fourth to stay a week. I’m looking forward to his visit. He says he has lost [15 pounds.] 

– I couldn’t see scanning the page for those 2 words.

 

HEATING UP

14 July 1948

Your kissin’ cousin was up over the fourth and stayed for a week. I took time off from work and we really had a wonderful time together. Jolly wants me to go to the Jollette reunion the Sunday before Labor Day. Are you going?

Jolly drove up this time but if he comes up again I guess he’ll travel by train as he would make better time.

Just to clarify, Jolly lived in Dahlgren, Virginia. Even on today’s efficient interstate highways, the trip would be nearly 6 hours by car not counting the potential for traffic jams in Washington DC and Baltimore. 

28 July 1948

Jolly was up over the week-end. I guess I won’t see him again until Labor Day. It was his birthday today. I sent him a wallet. I hope he likes it.

 

22 October 1948

I hope Jolly can get up here early Wednesday evening before Thanksgiving. A gang of kids want us to go to a dance with them. It would be a lot of fun and I’d like Jolly to meet them. What are your plans for Thanksgiving?

4 January 1949

[I] suppose you know what your kissin’ cousin gave me -- a lovely watch.

 

COOLING DOWN

10 January 1949

If Jolly looked beat it wasn’t from being in Connecticut – unless too much sleep disagrees with him, because he did more sleeping than anything else while he was here. I worked every day and so I had to get to bed at a half way decent hour and then he slept late every morning while I slaved at work.

26 January 1949

Jolly wants to see me some week-end soon to talk over things between us so I’ll probably be in Washington (Dahlgren) for a week-end soon. I’m not going down to school then though. Things are too confused between Jolly and me for it to be any fun.

He is probably dating too. I was a little surprised to learn Jolly dated occasionally but I guess all men are alike. (tears)

14 February 1949

Have you seen Jolly lately? I’ve been wondering whether to write him. I guess he would rather just break off completely though.

 

THE BIG FREEZE

17 March 1949

No, I haven’t heard a word from Jolly. Just as well I guess altho I would like to hear from him now and then.

21 April 1949

Dear Duny,

I’ve been thinking ever since I wrote you to take a room for me for May Day if maybe it wouldn’t be better to postpone my visit until school is over. Maybe we could have a week at Va beach or such. I haven’t heard from Nancy as to whether she is planning to go and I can always visit her some week-end and you say Peg will be tied up with her Mother and of course there is Jolly whom I think it would be better all around if I didn’t see.

June Carolyn Ashton

 

The old saying “Absence makes the heart grow fonder” just did not hold true for Jolly and Jeanne. Maybe it was “Out of sight – out of mind.” At any rate, it seems Jolly was not ready to get serious. He might have broken many more hearts before settling down with June Ashton, a graduate of Mary Washington College in Fredericksburg, Virginia.

As for Jeanne, her death certificate indicates that she became a hair dresser, a career she began during summer breaks while in college.

I like the Jeanne that showed through in those letters. She was funny. I can see why she and Momma got along. I met June, too, so lovely, so kind, so attentive to Jolly’s mother. Jolly made a good choice.

 

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

© 2021, Wendy Mathias. All rights reserved.

On This Day - Jack Sprott

Jack Sprott and sons
Billy and Berry

Otto James “Jack” Sprott, my grandaunt Margaret Killeen Sprott’s husband, died on this day, 29 June 1965.

Findagrave Mem #80398750

Wendy

© 2021, Wendy Mathias. All rights reserved.

Sentimental Sunday: Wedding Bells

My mother’s second cousin Andrew Jollette Steppe and June Carolyn Ashton were married 27 June 1953.

1923-1973

 

1927-2016

Harrisonburg Daily News Record
18 July 1953

 

 

 

Wendy

© 2021, Wendy Mathias. All rights reserved.

Sepia Saturday: Where in the World?

Sepia Saturday challenges bloggers to share family history through old photographs.

The street view in this week’s Sepia Saturday prompt brought to mind a couple photos of my grandaunt Lillie Killeen. Whatever the story was behind the photos is lost to time. I was just going to share the photos and move on.

Lillie Killeen 
place and date unknown

Then I noticed a log tower. That’s interesting!

Lillie Killeen with her niece Ebbie
(revised: UNKNOWN)

I googled “log tower” images but found nothing that looks like this one. I will guess it is in Florida, only because her niece Ebbie lived in Florida.

So, Folks, what do you think? Where were Lillie and Ebbie (revised: NOT EBBIE) on that fine day? 

Hit the Sepia Saturday streets for more old photos and stories.

UPDATE: Lillie’s shoes and glasses are the same as in another photo that she dated 1944. With that in mind, the other woman is not likely to be her niece Ebbie who would have been only about 25. And now that means the log tower could have been anywhere.

UPDATE #2: Thanks to a comment by Mr. Mike, I now know that Lillie and her friend were at the outdoor theater of the Lost Colony, an outdoor drama located in Manteo, North Carolina. Big tourist attraction! Here are some photos I found online. The log towers house the sound system and other theatrical controls like lights. They have since been covered in some kind of clapboard.

an old postcard

from lostcolony.org

Wendy

© 2021, Wendy Mathias. All rights reserved.