52 Ancestors: #2 Virginia PREJEAN

Amy Johnson Crow at No Story Too Small has challenged the genea-blogging community to blog about one ancestor per week in a series called 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks.This week I will blog about my great-great-grandmother, Virginia PREJEAN. She was my paternal grandfather's paternal grandmother.

For the first ten years or so of my research, I did not know what happened to Virginia after she and my great-great-grandfather, Oscar TRAHAN, divorced. I found her on the 1920 census living with her parents and she seemed to disappear after that. I had gotten all of my information on her from my paternal grandmother, and I had no death date/place. She said that after the divorce, my great-grandfather was raised in several different homes, including those of his grandparents, so I guess I just assumed that Virginia abandoned the family.

One day while looking through the SSDI for all Virginia's born on her birth date, I found one named Virginia SCHENKEL. Her last benefit address was in the same part of Louisiana as my Virginia. I asked for some help on a local message board for Acadia Parish, and someone transcribed her obit for me. Sure enough, my great-grandfather, Bienvenue TRAHAN, was listed as a surviving son. To my surprise, there were other children listed as well. I even found a former neighbor of her's on the message board who told me some stories about her. She said that she never wore a bra and lived in a little old shack in Crowley. She said that they called her T-Mom and she only spoke Cajun French.

These are the facts that I know about Virginia:

• According to transcriptions of baptismal records, she was baptized at St. Peter's Catholic Church in Carencro, Lafayette, Louisiana, and she was born 12 Jul 1889 to Lucien (aka Paul Lucius) PREJEAN and Alicia BERNARD. She was the third of twelve known children. I need to order a copy of the actual baptismal record from the Diocesan Archives. 
• At the age of 18, she married Oscar TRAHAN on 18 Jan 1908 at Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Scott, Lafayette, Louisiana. I need to order a copy of the civil marriage record.
• She gave birth to my great-grandfather 9 months later on 26 Oct 1908.
• In 1910, she and Oscar and Bienvenue are found on the census in Police Jury Ward 2 of St. Landry Parish. They lived just two doors down from her parents. She was listed as a field hand.
• According to Oscar's WWI draft registration in 1917, he was supporting a wife and child and lived in Vatican, Lafayette, Louisiana.
• In 1920, Virginia is found alone with her parents in Police Jury Ward 2 of St. Landry Parish. The family story is that Oscar and Virginia divorced, so I assume they must have divorced between 1917 and 1920. I need to find a copy of their divorce record, if there really was a divorce.
• According to an online index for marriages in Acadia Parish, Virginia Prejean Trahan married Louis SCHENKEL on 04 Nov 1932. I need to order a copy of the actual record. I have not found Louis or Virginia in the 1930 census. 
• In 1940, Louis and Virginia are found living in Gray Addition in Crowley, Acadia, Louisiana. Louis was a construction worker. They had three children in the household: daughter, Dorley Schenkel, age 16; son, Claude Schenkel, age 13; and son, Louis Schenkel, age 7. Interestingly, Louis (Sr) was 10 years younger than Virginia.
• Louis SCHENKEL (Sr.) died in Feb 1973, according to the SSDI. I need to order a copy of his obit.
• Virginia died 3 Mar 1977 at the age of 87 from a heart attack at her home in Crowley. She was buried in Old Crowley Cemetery.  

The missing piece of the puzzle for me is the period between 1920 and 1932. What was Virginia up to in those years? She obviously was having children. I found out from the former neighbor that her son Claude's name was actually Claude DOMINGUE. According to the SSDI and a WWII draft card, he was born 11 May 1926 in Scott, Lafayette, Louisiana, and died 17 Aug 1994. I'm not sure who Claude's father, Mr. Domingue, was. I doubt Virginia was ever married to him because she still had the last name Trahan when she married Louis SCHENKEL.

I also found out that her youngest son, Louis SCHENKEL, had a skin disease and died in Mar 1993. According to the SSDI, he was born 06 Nov 1932, just two days after her marriage to his father.

I found out the daughter's married name and contact info, though I have not tried to contact her recently. My grandmother contacted her once, but she was not feeling well, and I was short on time during a break from college, so I did not get to meet her. I know I should look into contacting her again if she is still living.

And that, folks, is all I know about Virginia. Some other things on my to-do list are to order her succession papers from the Acadia Parish Clerk of Court, search Acadia Parish land records for her and Louis SCHENKEL, and search St. Landry/Lafayette Parish land records for her and Oscar TRAHAN. 

Census Sunday: PREJEAN in 1920

Before I got married and moved across the country, I had started posting census records of my direct line ancestors each Sunday. I began with the 1930 census and posted about my great-great-great-grandparents, great-great-grandparents, and great-grandparents. I promised to post about the 1920 census after the wedding, and I am finally getting around to it. I've decided to only post on one family in each post because it was getting to be a bit much to put together one post with several families.

I am starting with my great-great-grandparents, but I'm skipping my great-great-grandfather, Oscar TRAHAN, because I haven't yet found him in 1920. I've found his wife, my great-great-grandmother, Virginia PREJEAN, in 1920, living with her parents in Police Jury Ward 2 in St. Landry Parish, Louisiana. At some point, Oscar and Virginia divorced, but I haven't set out to find their divorce record yet. Virginia was listed as married in this census. I don't see my great-grandfather, Bienvenue, living with Virginia in 1920. He would have been 11 years old. I wonder if he was with Oscar, his paternal grandparents (whom I can't seem to find either), or if the census enumerator simply forgot him.

1920 U.S. census, St. Landry Parish, Louisiana, population schedule, Police Jury Ward 2, enumeration district (ED) 92, sheet 6A, dwelling 94, family 94, Luseus Prejean household; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 30 

October 2011); citing NARA microfilm publication T625, roll 630.

Luseus Prejean Head M W 55 M LA LA LA Farmer

Alicie Prejean Wife F W 57 M LA LA LA

Virgina Prejean Daughter F W 32 M LA LA LA

Ferdinon Prejean Son M W 17 S LA LA LA Farm Labor

Rene Prejean Son M W 15 S LA LA LA Farm Labor

Census Sunday: My Great-Great-Great Grandparents in 1930

This week I will discuss my 3rd great-grandparents who were alive in 1930. Most of them had passed away by this time, but I did have six of them living in 1930. This is my last generation that had any members alive in 1930, so I will be moving on to the 1920 census next week. (Well, actually, it will probably be in two weeks since I am getting married next weekend)!

Anna (Wise) TRAHAN

1930 U.S. census, St. Landry Parish, Louisiana, population schedule, Police Jury Ward 2, enumeration district (ED) 14, sheet 22B, dwelling 391, family 391, Pierre Richard household; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 17 July 2011); citing NARA microfilm publication T626, roll 820.

Anna WISE was the mother of my great-great-grandfather, Oscar TRAHAN. She is one of the few Germans on my paternal grandfather's side of the family. She was born 04 Oct 1866 to Andrew WISE and Anna GREY and was baptized at Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Church Point, Acadia, Louisiana. She married Theoville TRAHAN 05 Nov 1883 at St. John's Cathedral in Lafayette, Lafayette, Louisiana. She was Theoville's second wife, and they had twelve children. Anna was 14 years younger than Theoville and outlived him by quite some years. She died 01 Mar 1952 in Carencro, Lafayette, Louisiana, at the age of 85.

I'm not 100% certain the Anna in this census record is my Anna, though. She is living in the household of a young couple named Pierre and Amy RICHARD and is listed as a cousin. Her age is given as 70 years old, which assumes a birth date of 1859-1860. This is off of her known birth date from church records by 6-7 years. However, it was not unusual for an elderly person's age, particularly an illiterate elderly person's age, to be off by a few years in census records. Her relationship to Pierre is listed as cousin, and I haven't had time to research a link between my Anna and Pierre Richard. Both of this Anna's parents are listed as being born in Louisiana, but my Anna's parents were supposedly born in Germany and Ireland. Once again, though, it wasn't unusual for an elderly's person's parents' birthplaces to be incorrect in census records.

Paul Lucius PREJEAN & Marie Alicia BERNARD

1930 U.S. census, Lafayette Parish, Louisiana, population schedule, Police Jury Ward 6, enumeration district (ED) 19, sheet 18A, dwelling 335, family 338, Lecuise Prejean household; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 17 July 2011); citing NARA microfilm publication T626, roll 798.

Lucius and Alicia were the parents of my great-great-grandmother, Virginia (Prejean) Trahan SCHENKEL. Paul Lucius PREJEAN was born 11 Feb 1866 to Ursin Theomile PREJEAN and Adenysa LEGER and baptized at St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church in Grand Coteau, St. Landry, Louisiana. He married Marie Alicia BERNARD 22 Jan 1885 at St. Peter's Catholic Church in Carencro, Lafayette, Louisiana. He died 10 Mar 1938 in Carencro, Lafayette, Louisiana. Marie Alicia BERNARD was born 30 Dec 1863 to Honore BERNARD and Virginie LEBERT and baptized at St. John's Cathedral in Lafayette, Lafayette, Louisiana. She died 26 Mar 1949 in Lawtell, St. Landry, Louisiana. 

In 1930, Lucius and Alicia (aka Alice) were living in Police Jury Ward 6 of Lafayette Parish, Louisiana. Present-day Ward 6 is 3.5 miles south of I-10 along Ambassador Caffery Parkway in Lafayette and just east of the town of Scott. Lucius was a retired grocer. Neither Lucius nor Alicia were listed as literate or able to speak English.

Susan Rilla (Woods) BAKER

 1930 U.S. census, Las Animas County, Colorado, population schedule, Precinct 55, enumeration district (ED) 63, sheet 2B, dwelling 34, family 34, William C. Baker household; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 17 July 2011); citing NARA microfilm publication T626, roll 245.

Rilla was the mother of my great-great-grandmother, Emmer Link (Baker) PROFFITT. She was born 06 Mar 1853 in Caldwell County, North Carolina, to John D. WOODS and Adaline Rilla JORDAN. She married James Gilbert BAKER 17 Dec 1874, possibly in North Carolina. She died 17 Nov 1938 in Wilmore, Comanche, Kansas. 

In 1930, she was living with her oldest son (and Emmer's younger brother), William Clay BAKER, and his wife, Mary (Shrader) BAKER, in Las Animas County, Colorado. Las Animas County is in southwest Colorado on the border of New Mexico. Her age is given as 73, which is off by about 3-4 years from the birth date given in her obituary (06 Mar 1853).

Mary Ellen (Molesworth) CRYSLER

1930 U.S. census, Sanilac County, Michigan, population schedule, Fremont Township, enumeration district (ED) 17, sheets 5B-6A, dwelling 114, family 116, Mary Crysler household; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 21 June 2011); citing NARA microfilm publication T626, roll 1028.

Mary Ellen MOLESWORTH was the mother of my great-great-grandfather, Ernest CRYSLER. She was born 04 May 1858 in Dorchester, Middlesex, Ontario, Canada, to William Edward MOLESWORTH and Priscilla DEMARAY. She married George Calvin CRYSLER 30 Jun 1875 in Arkona, Lambton, Ontario, Canada. Mary died 26 May 1935 in Melvin, Sanilac, Michigan.

In 1930, she was living as a widow in Fremont Township, Sanilac, Michigan, with her son, Ernest, and two grandsons, George and Harold.

Cora Millicent (King) WEDGE

1930 U.S. census, Oakland County, Michigan, population schedule, village of Oxford, enumeration district (ED) 41, sheet 17A, dwelling 450, family 463, Joshua Wedge household; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 17 July 2011); citing NARA microfilm publication T626, roll 1017.

Cora was the mother of my great-great-grandmother, Nellie May REYNOLDS. Cora was born 05 Nov 1874 in St. Clair County, Michigan, to Suel Alfred KING and Ardelia STRATTON. She gave birth to Nellie illegitimately 21 Oct 1890 in Elk, Sanilac, Michigan, at the age of 15. Nellie's father was listed as Douglas REYNOLDS on the birth certificate. The only Douglas REYNOLDS I have found in the area was a man who died just two months before Nellie was born on 16 Aug 1890 from consumption. It doesn't appear that he and Cora ever married. Cora eventually married Joshua WEDGE 06 Oct 1897 in Lynn, Sanilac, Michigan. Cora was the last of my great-great-great grandparents to die on 27 Feb 1964 in Pontiac, Oakland, Michigan.

In 1930, Cora and Joshua were living at 27 Stanton Road in the village of Oxford in Oakland County, Michigan. Joshua was a railroad laborer. Their youngest daughter, Thelma, was age 20 and working as a saleslady for a variety store. They had two boarder, Earl Teal and George Bice, living with them. George was a laborer of some type (it's hard to read) and Earl was an inspector for an automobile factory. 

Census Sunday: My Great-Great-Grandparents in 1930

Three weeks ago, I started a Census Sunday series, in which I featured the census records showing my great-grandparents in 1930. I skipped the next two weeks because my mom was visiting from Louisiana two weeks ago, and last week I was in Louisiana visiting. Now that I am back on track, this post will feature my great-great-grandparents in 1930.

Oscar TRAHAN and Bertha DUHON

1930 U.S. census, Harris County, Texas, population schedule, Justice Precinct 3, enumeration district (ED) 178, sheet 32A, dwelling 587, family 649, Oscar Trahan household; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 21 June 2011); citing NARA microfilm publication T626, roll 2352.

This is my great-great-grandfather, Oscar, and his second wife, Bertha. He ran off to Texas to work for the oil refineries after he left his first wife. I cannot seem to find his first wife, Virginia PREJEAN, in 1930. They divorced around 1920. She had a child with a man named DOMINGUE in 1926, and then she married a SCHENKEL in 1932. I looked for Virginia and her son, Claude DOMINGUE, but I have not been able to find them in 1930. I also looked for her future husband, Louis SCHENKEL, but she was not with him either in 1930. I'm just going to have to order Claude's SS-5 application to see who his father was. Perhaps they were with his father in 1930. DOMINGUE is a very hard name to find in the census. It is pronounced like the word "domain," so you can imagine how it gets spelled. Oscar and Virginia's only chld, Bienvenue, was featured in my last Census Sunday post in the home of his father-in-law (see below).

Maurice BONEAUX and Marie Alice SONNIER

Maurice and Marie were the parents of my great-grandmother, Beatrice Marie BONEAUX. They were featured in the last Census Sunday post, since my great-grandparents, Beatrice and Bienvenue, were living with them.

John Henry MERTENA and Blanche WELDEN
John and Blanche were the parents of my great-grandfather, Merlen Paris MERTENA. They were featured in the last Census Sunday post, since my great-grandfather was still single and living at home with them.

William Harmon PROFFITT and Emmer Link BAKER

1930 U.S. census, Creek County, Oklahoma, population schedule, Mannford, enumeration district (ED) 24, sheet 3A, dwelling 49, family 51, William H. Proffitt household; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 21 June 2011); citing NARA microfilm publication T626, roll 1900.

William and Emmer were the parents of my great-grandmother, Hassie Cora PROFFITT. They were living in Mannford, Creek, Oklahoma, where William was a Methodist minister. Creek is just one county west of Tulsa County. They moved around Oklahoma a lot since William was a minister. I really need to dig into church history and find out where all his appointments were located. My great-grandmother, Hassie, was not living with them. Her younger sister, Bessie, was the only child living at home in 1930. Hassie was probably boarding with a family near where she was teaching, but I haven't been able to find her yet in the 1930 census. I'm not precisely sure where she was teaching. I know that at one time between 1925 and 1930, she was teaching in Pawnee County, just one county north of Creek County.

Lovell Hugh PEMBERTON and Alvina Mary LESPERANCE

1930 U.S. census, St. Clair County, Michigan, population schedule, Kimball Township, enumeration district (ED) 20, sheets 17A-B, dwelling 391, family 394, Lovell H. Pemberton household; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 25 December 2005); citing NARA microfilm publication T626, roll 1024

Lovell and Alvina were the parents of my great-grandfather, John Vital "Jack" Pemberton, who was already married and living with his wife and two children in Port Huron, St. Clair, Michigan, in 1930. Lovell and Alvina were living on Ditty Road in Kimball Township, not too far from Port Huron. Every census year, they seem to migrate further north. Their youngest four children were still living at home in 1930. Lovell was a blacksmith, and the oldest of the four children at home, Madeline, was a laborer in the salt plant. Morton Salt Company had large operations in Marysville, Michigan, just a few miles from Kimball Township, so I presume she worked for them.

Ernest George CRYSLER

1930 U.S. census, Sanilac County, Michigan, population schedule, Fremont Township, enumeration district (ED) 17, sheets 5B-6A, dwelling 114, family 116, Mary Crysler household; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 21 June 2011); citing NARA microfilm publication T626, roll 1028.

Ernest was the father of my great-grandmother, Mabel CRYSLER. Mabel was already married in 1930 and living with her husband, John Vital "Jack" Pemberton, and two children in Port Huron. Ernest was a farmer living with his mother, Mary (Molesworth) CRYSLER, in Fremont Township, Sanilac, Michigan, in 1930. Ernest's first wife and Mabel's mother, Nellie REYNOLDS, died in 1917. He remarried Minnie SIBLEY in 1919. I'm a little confused because this lists Ernest as a widower, and Minnie is also listed as a widower, living with her mother, Pauline CAMPBELL, in Port Huron in 1930. It seems Ernest and Minnie must have had an unhappy union. Interestingly, Minnie was 10 years older than Ernest. Ernest's sons, George and Harold, were living with him in 1930. George was working as a farm laborer.

Alexander CURRIE and Mary RAYMOND
Alexander and Mary are not found in the 1930 census because they both died prior to 1930. They were the parents of my great-grandfather, Archie CURRIE. Alexander died in 1909, and Mary died in 1920.

Robert PLAINE and Florence Minnie HILLMAN
Robert and Flora are not found in the 1930 census because they were living in Ontario, Canada in 1930. They never immigrated to the U.S. They were the parents of my great-grandmother, Jennie Grace Christina PLAINE, who immigrated in the 1920s.

Surname Saturday: PREJEAN

PREJEAN is the surname of my great-great-grandmother, Virginia (Prejean) TRAHAN. This is one of my many Acadian/Cajun lines. Virginia and my great-great-grandfather, Oscar TRAHAN, divorced sometime around 1920, so I lost her whereabouts for awhile. From what I understand, my great-grandfather, Bienvenue, only had sporadic contact with his mother after his parents divorced. When I first started doing genealogy research, I could have sworn that my paternal grandmother, Bienvenue's daughter-in-law, did not have any info on Virginia's death because Bienvenue had lost contact with his mother. Several years later, I found a Virginia SCHENKEL with the same birth date in the SSDI with a last residence in the right area of Louisiana. After a little asking around on Acadia Parish message boards, I found a person who actually remembered growing up as a child next door to Virginia SCHENKEL, and someone else even offered to find her obituary for me. Sure enough, it was my Virginia. It actually mentioned Bienvenue as a surviving child. I brought it to my grandmother, and she was like, "Oh, I thought I had given you all of that info. I remember going to her funeral. They did reconnect later in life before Virginia died."

Virginia PREJEAN
Born 12 Jul 1889 in Carencro, Lafayette, Louisiana
Married Oscar TRAHAN 18 Jan 1908 at St. Peter & Paul Catholic Church in Scott, Lafayette, Louisiana
Married Louis SCHENKEL 4 Nov 1932 in Acadia Parish, Louisiana
Died 3 Mar 1977 in Crowley, Acadia, Louisiana
Buried in Crowley Cemetery

Paul Lucius PREJEAN
Born 11 Feb 1866
Baptized at St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church in Grand Coteau, St. Landry, Louisiana
Married Marie Alicia BERNARD 22 Jan 1885 at St. Peter Catholic Church in Carencro, Lafayette, Louisiana
Died 10 Mar 1938 in Carencro, Lafayette, Louisiana
Buried 11 Mar 1938 in Carencro, Lafayette, Louisiana (probably St. Peter Catholic Church cemetery)

Ursin Theomile PREJEAN
Born 26 Nov 1831
Baptized at St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church in Grand Coteau, St. Landry, Louisiana
Married Adenysa LEGER 20 Nov 1854 at St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church in Grand Coteau, St. Landry, Louisiana
Died 22 Feb 1888
Buried at St. Peter Catholic Church Cemetery in Carencro, Lafayette, Louisiana

Maximilien PREJEAN
Born 11 Jan 1797
Baptized 26 Jan 1797 at St. Martin de Tours Catholic Church in St. Martinville, St. Martin, Louisiana
Married Marie Tarsille BREAUX 10 Jul 1816 at St. Martin de Tours Catholic Church in St. Martinville, St. Martin, Louisiana
Married Marie Phelonise THIBODEAUX 25 Nov 1822 at St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church, in Grand Coteau, St. Landry, Louisiana
Died 13 Jan 1834
Buried at St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church Cemetery in Grand Coteau, St. Landry, Louisiana

Dominique PREJEAN
Born 20 Oct 1774
Baptized 2 Nov 1774 at Ascension Catholic Church in Donaldsonville, Ascension, Louisiana
Married Marie Madeleine SAVOIE 25 Oct 1793 at St. Martin de Tours Catholic Church in St. Martinville, St. Martin, Louisiana
Died 6 Feb 1846
Buried at St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church Cemetery in Grand Coteau, St. Landry, Louisiana

Amand PREJEAN
Born abt 1724 in Chipoudy, Acadia
Married Marie Madeleine MARTIN 21 Jul 1749 in Port Royal, Acadia
Married Marie THERIOT 07 Nov 1773 at Ascension Catholic Church in Donaldsonville, Ascension, Louisiana
Buried 4 Dec 1787 at St. Martin de Tours Catholic Cemetery in St. Martinville, St. Martin, Louisiana
Read more about Amand and his journey from Acadia to Louisiana here.

Joseph Cristome PREJEAN
Born about 1700 in Port Royal, Acadia
Married Marie Louise COMEAUX 28 Sep 1723 in Port Royal, Acadia
Died 1756 in Acadia

Jean PREJEAN dit Le Breton
Born about 1651, probably in Brittany, France
Married Andree Marie SAVOIE abt 1683 in Port Royal, Acadia
Died 06 Jun 1733 in Port Royal, Acadia

Saturday Night Fun: Where Were They in 1909? Part I (My Paternal Side)

Randy's Saturday Night Fun this weekend asks us where our ancestors were in 1909 and if we've found them in the 1910 census.

Well, none of my grandparents were born until 1928, 1930, 1932, and 1935, so I'll have to start with my great-grandparents. I know, I'm a baby in the genealogy world!

My paternal grandfather's father, Bienvenue TRAHAN, was born 26 Oct 1908 in Vatican, Lafayette, Louisiana. So he was a baby living in the home of his parents, Oscar TRAHAN and Virginia PREJEAN. I have found them in the 1910 census in Police Jury Ward 2, St. Landry Parish, Louisiana. Oscar was a farmer. They had a farmhand, Joseph Babin, age 14, living with them. Bienvenue was their only child, age 1. Oscar's parents, Theoville TRAHAN and Anna WISE, were living next door, as was Oscar's brother, Honore TRAHAN, and his wife, Azema CHIASSON, with their eight children. On the other side of Oscar and Virginia were Virginia's parents, Paul Lucius PREJEAN and Alicia BERNARD, with several of Virginia's younger siblings living at home. In addition, between Oscar and Virginia and Virginia's parents were Virginia's paternal aunt, Marie Zulime PREJEAN and her husband, Ferdinand ISERINGHAUSER, with their daughter. Sounds like a crazy episode of Everybody Loves Raymond! And not to mention that Anna WISE's brother, Adam WISE, was living with Honore and Azema as their hired farmhand.

My paternal grandfather's mother, Beatrice Marie BONEAUX, was not born until 26 Aug 1910, but her parents, Maurice BONEAUX and Marie Alice SONNIER, were married 10 Sep 1908 in Carencro, Lafayette, Louisiana. I know from compilations of church records that they had a daughter, Marie Florine BONEAUX, on 7 Aug 1909, but she died on 18 Sep 1909. In 1910, Maurice and Marie Alice were living in Police Jury Ward 1, Lafayette, Louisiana. Maurice was age 27 and working as a salesman, barber, and farmer, which is confirmed by family stories that he always had his hands in everything. Marie was age 19. The census confirms that there was a child who was born and died before the census. Next door to Maurice and Marie were Maurice's parents, Dominique BONEAUX, age 70, and Alida MOUTON, also age 70. Dominique does not have an occupation, but "own income" is written next to "none" for occupation. Next door to Dominique and Alida were Maurice's older brother, Joseph BONEAUX, and his wife, Edmee RICHARD, and their four children. Joseph was a miller in a grist mill working on his own account, so I'm assuming this means that Joseph owned the grist mill. Our family still owns this land and the one remaining house still on it.

My paternal grandmother's father, Merlen Paris MERTENA, was not born until 9 Sep 1910. His parents were John Henry MERTENA and Blanche WELDEN. They married on 25 Dec 1907 in Mulhall, Logan, Oklahoma. J. Henry and Blanche MERTENA, both age 26, are found in Oak View, Logan, Oklahoma, in 1910. They had not yet had any children. John Henry was working as a farmer.

My paternal grandmother's mother, Hassie Cora PROFFITT, was born 26 Feb 1908 in Crescent, Logan, Oklahoma. Her parents were William Harmon PROFFITT and Emmer Link BAKER. Her father was a circuit-riding Methodist Episcopal preacher, so no telling where they were in 1909. They seem to have moved every year or so. In 1910, they were in Harrison, Kingfisher, Oklahoma, with six of their seven children, including Hassie, age 2. Their seventh child was not born until 1912. William was 38 and Emmer was 34, and it does say that he was a minister.

As it is very late, and I still have not mentioned my great-grandparents on my mom's side, I think I will have to save part II for Sunday morning fun. Stay tuned!