Jollett Etc.

Wednesday, June 23, 2021

On This Day - Eliza Jane Knight Gibson

I have no photo of Eliza Jane Knight Gibson, daughter of Leanna Jollett and James Mitchell Knight, but I was so sad to find her death certificate on Ancestry.

On 23 June 1928, she died from convulsions following childbirth. Her baby boy Aubrey Willard Gibson lived only 2 months.

What caused her seizures? I had to Google. Postpartum seizures typically occur within 48 hours after delivery as result of a condition called Eclampsia or Preeclampsia. It is a multi-system disorder involving high blood pressure, large amounts of protein in the urine, and organ dysfunction, typically the liver and kidneys.

Seizures are horrific causing the body to jerk, the body to arch and straighten. If you were a fan of "Downton Abbey," you certainly couldn’t forget the scene in which Lady Sybil died from convulsions following the birth of her baby girl. That is probably what it was like for Eliza Jane.

While the symptoms were described as early as the 5^th century, they were not given a classification and name until 1897 in France, and then in 1903 in the United States. Likely prevention and treatment of Preeclampsia were still being studied in 1928 when Eliza Jane’s cause of death was simply “convulsions following childbirth.”

Eliza Jane's tombstone
Evergreen Cemetery
Greene County, Virginia

Wendy

Tuesday, June 22, 2021

52 Ancestors - GROUPS: Cheerleaders and Bridesmaids

1946 Cradock High School Cheerleaders

Long before human pyramids and high-flying basket tosses changed the face of cheerleading, peppy high school girls in lettered sweaters and saddle oxfords were chanting “Push ‘em back, push ‘em back, WAAAAY back!” When my mother was a cheerleader at Cradock High School in the mid-1940s, the most amazing stunt the squad performed was a jump in which the girls threw their arms over their head and their feet behind them, then arched their backs to make the letter “C” for Cradock. It required a lot of practice.

Christine Westbrook, Betsy Ward,
Cookie Spencer, Marree Hogan,
Unknown girl in front

It was probably all that practice as well as all the dances and parties following the games that fostered a lifetime of friendship. After graduation, the girls went in different directions, but the box of letters found in my grandparents’ attic shows that their friendship endured despite the miles. On fancy pink or blue stationery, yellowed onion skin, and even notebook paper they shared the gossip of who was dating whom, who was on the outs, who wrecked a car, who found a job, who drank too much, and even who had a 7-month baby! GASP

Christine Westbrook, Betsy Ward,
and my mother Mary E "Duny" Davis

The most interesting letters, to me at least, are about the weddings. Not surprisingly, several of the cheerleaders served as each other’s bridesmaids.

CHRISTINE LOUISE WESTBROOK

While Lucille “Cookie” Spencer was among the first in the gang to marry, Christine Westbrook had the first BIG wedding in which Momma was a bridesmaid. Momma was still away at Shenandoah College, so letters from Cookie, Betsy, and Christine were filled with news of the plans.

In those days, the parents of the bride usually paid for the bridesmaids’ gowns. Christine had a large number of attendants including family members and BFFs from both high school and college. To save money, Mrs. Westbrook purchased fabric so the girls could have dresses made.

A humorous letter from Christine (aka “Teeny-wabbit”) described the gown Momma would be wearing:

from a letter from Christine
27 Feb 1948

The Westbrooks were cutting it close with that fabric order (no pun intended). The wedding was scheduled for March 28, but just 10 days before, Christine wrote THIS letter to Momma:

from a letter from Christine
18 Mar, 1948

Duny Baby, [Momma’s nickname was Duny]

We were holding our breath – but at last the material he ordered has arrived. I was afraid it wasn’t going to get here. I just love the color. Really think it’s the prettiest of all . . . altho’ the green, pink & blue are pretty, too.

About the pattern - several changes: Allow extra fullness in waist in front. (This was done for Cook. Also makes gowns fit cuter.) Two darts at the shoulder blade make neck fit better. Notice change in Neck - . We’re sending a finished gown, too. Bring the scraps of material home. Mother will make gloves after you get here.

Cookie Muter needed that extra fullness as she was expecting her first child. A letter from Betsy described the brocade taffeta gowns with drop shoulder as “darling,” but she also had this to say about Cookie:

from a letter from Betsy
5 Mar 1948

Cook is so large that I think she’s going to look terrible in Chris’s wedding. She has just jumped out in the last couple weeks & she still has 3 more weeks to grow before the wedding. Maybe the nosegay will hide it. That’s what she says anyway.

Now, Betsy - was that nice to say??

The Westbrook-Wisehart wedding was written up in the newspaper presenting all the big and small details that are missing in today’s wedding announcements.

ELIZABETH ANN “BETSY” WARD

While Christine’s wedding plans were winding down, Betsy’s were just gearing up. In one letter she described shopping for her engagement ring in Richmond with her fiancé John Lumsden, a dental student. The ring was a full carat and cost $450. She agonized over how to pay for his wedding band costing $100.

Betsy’s vision for her bridesmaids was something different from what Christine had her attendants wear. Betsy wrote to Momma:

from a letter from Betsy
14 Jan 1948

I’m thinking about that real pretty organdy that is rather stiff. You’ll have to let me know what color you want. I’m going to the Famous and get some pointers first.

The Famous for many years was THE place to shop in Portsmouth, the only place, really, for higher quality women’s finery.

Betsy and her mother had planned an extravagant wedding until Betsy’s father lost his job unexpectedly. In one letter, she swore Momma to secrecy about the untimely job loss. As Betsy said, at her father’s age, he was not likely to find another job paying $500 a month. Wedding plans had to be scaled back:

from a letter from Betsy
22 Apr 1948

The wedding is June 12^th at 4:00. The bridesmaids are: Jo, MJV [Mary Jane Via], Chris & Joanne. Mother and I are going to look at wedding dresses & attendants gowns so I don’t have any idea how yours will be made or the color. We’ll have to get some tips & then order the material for your dresses. Mother will have to make mine since we can’t afford to buy it now. The ushers are: Billy, Tommy, George, Milton, Grease & Pete is to be master of ceremonies. There might be a change in this so also keep this to yourself.

It was probably a bitter pill to swallow when the Wards asked the girls to pay $20 for their own material. To offset that expense, Mrs. Ward offered to make the girls’ hats.

Betsy also had to cut back on shopping for her honeymoon:

from a letter from Betsy
22 Apr 1948

I got a real pretty blue nightgown last Wed. It’s drop shoulder with 2 rows of white lace & lace around the bottom. It’s real cute & looks sexy as hell on. Poor Johnny! Now that Daddy has lost his job I won’t be able to get the clothes I had planned to buy so I’m not going to show my trousseau.

Apparently, that was THE THING to do – show off your trousseau, maybe at a shower or bridal tea. Does anyone even SAY “trousseau” these days?

Betsy was not lacking in bridal showers though. Her cousin hosted one in Cape Charles across the bay on the Eastern Shore.

from a letter from Betsy
22 Apr 1948

Edie is giving me a shower in Cape Charles. We haven’t decided on the date but I want you to go over with me to help me back on the ferry with my presents. We wouldn’t spend the night – okay? It will probably be better for you to have your dress made here as I know I won’t be able to find a pattern just right & we’ll have to make some changes.

Other shower invitations were sent from Mary Jane Via and Christine Westbrook Wisehart.

Betsy’s wedding appeared in the social column.

from Richmond Times Dispatch
19 Jun 1948

I have seen the requisite Ward-Lumsden bridal party photo. Unfortunately, neither my sister nor I can find it. And OF COURSE, it is one photo in which we could probably identify every person, unlike the myriad nameless faces in other photos we inherited. Oh the irony!

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

Sunday, June 20, 2021

Happy Father's Day

My favorite dads:

My daddy

My granddaddies

My daughters' daddy

My granddaughter's daddy

My grandson's daddy

Wendy

Good-bye Feedburner - Hello Follow.It

Several months ago, Google announced that in July it will discontinue the Feedburner service which emails blogs to subscribers. Like other bloggers, I looked for another service and have decided on Follow.it. Look for the new subscribe button in the sidebar.

If you already follow Jollett Etc through email, your address has been entered automatically, so you’re already taken care of. Please note there are 3 differences:

My blog will arrive in your email from Follow.it instead of from Jollett Etc.
The email arrives the day after the blog is posted. (At least that is my experience in following others.)
Ads appear at the bottom of the email.

Many of my blogging friends don’t like the ads, but I did not find them offensive or intrusive. To be honest, I don’t read blogs in the email anyway. I always click on the title which takes me to the blog itself. If you find Follow.it annoying, you can unsubscribe at any time. This is a judgment-free zone.

Another option is to follow my blog through a reader such as Feedly or Bloglovin. They are free and even offer an app.

As always, thanks for reading!

Wendy

Friday, June 18, 2021

Photo Friday - Swimmers

Unidentified friends of Violetta Davis Ryan
around 1920 probably at Blue Hole in Naked Creek
Rockingham County, Virginia

The best antidote to the summer heat!

Wendy

Tuesday, June 15, 2021

52 Ancestors - FATHER'S DAY: Walter Rucker and Son

With Father’s Day approaching, we reflect on the importance of our fathers. A good father is the best gift a child can receive. A father’s affection and support of our activities and our dreams help build our confidence and independence. We want to make Dad proud. Social media floods us with nostalgic images of father and son fishing or enjoying a game of catch. However, that image quickly fades after reading the numerous news stories about my grandmother’s cousin Frank and his father Walter Newman Rucker.

It was 1916. Frank was just a teenager about 15 or 16. He was one of ten children born to Walter Newman Rucker and his wife Ada Eppard. That year, Frank’s bachelor uncle Charley Eppard was living with them in Shenandoah, Virginia. Living with various relatives over the years, Charley managed to save a lot of money which he kept in a trunk. That money must have been just too tempting for young Frank Rucker.

He stole it.

STOLEN GOODS

from Harrisonburg
Daily News Record 28 Mar 1916

According to news reports – and there were lots of them – Frank took around $600 which included 7 twenty-dollar gold coins. He was caught when A. A. Moore, a 23-year old brakeman for the railroad, was arrested on a charge of receiving money that he knew had been stolen.

The prosecution argued that Moore helped Frank and his friends Jacob Rothgeb and Martin Luther Kite spend much of the money on a trip to Harrisonburg. Moore made purchases with the gold pieces at both Toppin’s Saloon and at Frazier & Slater’s store.

ads in the Daily News Record

The defense responded by saying Frank told Moore that he FOUND the money and there was “more where that came from.” Moore emphasized that he gained nothing from the money since the purchases of a suitcase and two suits of clothing were for Frank and that he gave all the change back to Frank as well. The prosecution maintained that any prudent man could look at the circumstances and just KNOW that the money had been stolen.

AND THE JURY SAYS …

The trial ended in a hung jury, so the judge set another court date.

from Daily News Record
7 Apr 1916

News reporters covered the case like it was the trial of the century. Spectators filled the court room.

Daily News Record 6 Jun 1916

Among the material witnesses to be called were Frank’s buddies Jacob Rothgeb and Martin Luther Kite. Both failed to show up. Kite was soon arrested in Maryland where supposedly he had gone to obtain work. As for Rothgeb, the counsel for the defense claimed Frank’s father Walter Rucker had threatened him and that is why he failed to appear.

Walter’s behavior was key to the defense counsel’s strategy. He brought in witness after witness who testified that both Walter and Frank had bad reputations when it came to truthfulness.

Impeaching the prosecution’s witnesses must have worked because the second trial ended in acquittal for A. A. Moore.

headlines - Daily News Record
10 Jun 1916

Walter must not have been too happy about the verdict. He was quoted in the newspaper saying he wanted “to put the stripes on Moore.”

REFORM SCHOOL

For the theft, Frank was sent to the Laural Industrial School, a juvenile correctional center north of Richmond, instead of prison. Surely Walter was glad of that.

photo by Calder Loth 2021 at DHR.virginia.gov

The Laurel Industrial School was a privately owned and administered institution established in 1892 as a model boys’ reformatory. With its mission to reform the treatment of juvenile offenders, the school housed about 300 boys. They attended classes and worked either in the shops or on the farm. Today the main building is on the National Register of Historic Places and the Virginia Landmarks Register.

A SAD END

Harrisonburg Daily News Record
26 Nov 1935

The next time Frank’s name appeared in the newspaper, it was in the social columns of 1929 when he and his bride, the former Myrtle Higgs, attended dinners and parties at the homes of Myrtle’s relatives.

In 1935 they moved to Sparrows Point in Baltimore County, Maryland, where Frank had obtained a job with Bethlehem Steel Corporation. Having grown up in a railroad town, having been raised by a father and uncles who worked for the railroad, and having earned his own living as a brakeman for the railroad, it seems unthinkable that Frank would have stepped between rails and been hit by a railroad car.

NATURE OR NURTURE

I can’t help wondering what forces were at work when Frank took his uncle’s money. Was it just an act of a teenager lacking good sense? Did he think his uncle would not notice? Or was he just a bad seed? Was Walter just as culpable for wishing harm to the others? Or was he merely a dad standing by his boy? Unfortunately, Frank Rucker died too soon leaving no children behind to tell a different tale or to wish him Happy Father's Day.