Wordless Wednesday: Lovell Hugh Pemberton

"Lovell H. Pemberton , Seaman sailed the great lakes April 17, 1878"

This is my great-great-grandfather, Lovell Hugh Pemberton. I got this picture from my cousin, Stacy, who got it from our great-aunt, Barbara (Pemberton) Post. Lovell was Aunt Barb's grandfather. April 17, 1878 or 1879 is supposedly his birthday, according to his death record, his dad's pension file, his obit, and his WWI draft card, and family sources. However, his birth record states 14 Jan 1878. Strange. And I can't seem to find when he sailed the Great Lakes. Possibly before he married in 1902. I can't seem to find him in the 1900 census. Maybe he was off sailing.

RAOGK Musings

I've recently become a volunteer for RAOGK (Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness) over at www.raogk.org. For those of you who don't know, RAOGK is a lookup service for which you can volunteer or from which you can find volunteers who will do one or two lookups for you if you live far away from your ancestal homelands. RAOGK suggests that you only ask for a lookup of one or two names in one or two records per month, considering that these people are volunteers and are not being paid for their time. As a volunteer, however, you can request reimbursement for copy fees, parking, mileage, and postage, and you are only obligated to do one lookup per month. In addition to becoming a volunteer, I also used RAOGK for the first time this month to request a lookup from other volunteers.

I helped Joyce in Texas find the death record of her ancestor, Stella Cuccia, at the Louisiana State Archives where I live in Baton Rouge. I also helped Clarence find three death records for his Jones ancestors at the archives. I tried to find an obituary for Stella in the special collections at Hill Memorial Library at LSU but was unsuccessful.

Joe in Muskegon, Michigan, helped me find the obituary and death record for my third great-grandaunt, Hannah Winters. Hannah's husband, William Thomas Pemberton, was the younger brother of my third great-grandfather, John Pemberton. Hannah died 9 Feb 1925 in Muskegon, Muskegon, Michigan, at age 72y, 10m, 15d. Her age suggests a birth date of 25 Mar 1852, and her birthplace was given as Canada in both the death record and obit. The death record provided the names of her parents, Isaac H. Winters and Mary Crisner, both born in Canada. This was very exciting news, as I did not have the names of her parents or their birthplaces. Below is her obituary and with a transcription.

Mrs. Hannah Jane Pemberton, aged 72 years, died at 11:59 a.m., Monday, at her home, 1??8 Washington avenue, after a lingering illness. She was born in Canada, March 25, 1852. She formerly resided at Sault Ste. Marie for fifteen years, coming from there to Muskegon three years ago. Her husband, William Thomas Pemberton, died about ten years ago.

Mrs. Pemberton is survived by seven sons, Walter S., Martin R., and William T. Pemberton, all of Sault Ste. Marie; Henry I., Leslie, and Albert W. Pemberton, of Muskegon; Brott Pemberton, of South Branch, Mich.; two daughters, Mrs. Irves Johnson, of Muskegon, and Mrs. David Barrus, of Sheldrich, Mich., one sister, Mrs. J.M. Robertson, Algonac, Mich., and a brother, Hiram Winters, of Algonac.

The funeral will be held at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Clock funeral home. Rev. J.R. Estes, pastor of the First Baptist church, will officiate. The body will be taken to South Branch, Mich., for interment.

Here is her transcribed death record from the Muskegon County Clerk's office in Muskegon:

Death Record, Liber 5, Page 116, Record 2775

PEMBERTON, Hannah Jane

Date of Death: 9 February 1925

Place of Death: Muskegon, Michigan

Female

White

Widowed

Age: 72 years, 10 months, 15 days

Cause: Carcinoma of the Stomach

Birthplace: Canada

Occupation: Housewife

Father: Isaac H. Winters, birthplace is Canada

Mother: Mary Crisner, birthplace is Canada

Recorded in the Liber on 14 March 1925

Mark in Worthington, Ohio, found the obituary of my 2nd great-grandaunt, Elva M. (Pemberton) Harriman Lerch, at the Ohio Historical Society's archives in Columbus. Elva died 19 Feb 1941 in Toledo, Lucas, Ohio. I'm anxiously awaiting it in the mail.

Judy in Lansing, Michigan, found the obituary of my great-grandmother, Jennie Grace Christina (Plaine) Currie, wife of Archie Currie. Jennie died on 24 Dec 1937 in Marlette, Sanilac, Michigan. It was located in the Brown City Banner on 6 Jan 1938, p. 6, col. 2, "Neighborhood News - Omard." She found this at the Library of Michigan. Here is a transcription below:

Funeral services for Mrs. Archie Currie were held Tuesday at 2:00 p.m. at the Elk Presbyterian Church with burial in the Omard Cemetery.

Jean Plane was born at Newberry, Ontario, May 9, 1902, the youngest daughter of the late Mr. and Mrs. Robert Plane. She spent her young life at Newbury. In August 1924 she was united in marriage to Archie Currie of Flynn township where she resided afterwards.

She was stricken with appendicitis on December 20th and taken to the Marlette hospital and operated on, and she was improving nicely when she suddenly passed away at 11:30 p.m. December 24th.

She leaves to mourn their loss: her husband, a daughter, Violet, 8 years old, a sister, Mrs. Russell Curtis of Windsor, Ont., two brothers: Wm. Plane of Mt. Brydges, Ontario, Howard Plane of Dresden, Ont. A son Howard and daughter Helena preceded her in death.

Rev. A.G. Howat, pastor of Presbyterian Church of which she was a member officiated. The floral offerings were beautiful and the family have the sympathy of the community.

I never knew about the appendicitis. I always thought she died of an aneurysm, though her death record, on second examination, says she died of a heart attack (coronary thrombosis).

I'm also eagerly awaiting the lookup of the death record of my 1st cousin 4 times removed, Martha (Pemberton) Day, by Alanna in Grand Traverse County, Michigan. Martha was enumerated as a patient in the Traverse City State Hospital in the 1920 and 1930 census records, so I'm curious what her death record will reveal about her mental state.

Lesa in San Bernardino County, California has said she would look up the obit of my first cousin once removed, Walter Frederick Arnold. Walter died tragically at the age of 14 in 1964 in Fontana, San Bernardino, California, when his motorbike that he had had received for his birthday collided with a car.

That is all I have to report on RAOGK at the moment. I encourage all to use RAOGK as both a volunteer and as a resource for your research.

A Tribute to My Great-Grandmother, Hassie Cora (Proffitt) Mertena

I've decided at the last minute to get in a posting for the 68th Edition of the Carnival of Genealogy, "A Tribute to Women." My tribute is to my paternal grandmother's mother, Hassie Cora (Proffitt) Mertena. I've previously blogged about Hassie and my great-grandfather, Merlen Paris Mertena here. I've always admired my great-grandmother because she is the only one of my great-grandmothers who had a career before she was married and who has a college degree. I had the pleasure of getting to know her a little before she died when I was 5 years old. I think her death is actually the first time I had ever experienced anyone I knew dying. I remember playing with paper dolls at her house with my sister, and begging my mom to take me down to the little creek at the end of her dead end street.

Hassie was born on 26 Feb 1908 in Crescent, Logan, Oklahoma, to William Harmon Proffitt and Emmer Link Baker. She was the sixth of seven children. William was a minister with the Methodist Episcopal Church, so the family moved around quite often. In fact, William and Emmer had moved to Oklahoma around 1898-1899 from Tennessee in order to minister to the Native American population in Oklahoma.

Hassie is found with her parents at age 2 in 1910 in Harrison, Kingfisher, Oklahoma, in the U.S. census. Kingfisher County is just one county west of Logan County where Hassie was born and where she later married, in north central Oklahoma.

Below is a picture of Hassie with her parents and siblings taken at Fort Supply, Woodward, Oklahoma, in the northwest part of the state. Hassie is the second child standing on the left. This picture appears to have been taken about 1915-1916.



She is next found in 1920 at age 11 with her parents in Rock, Ellis, Oklahoma. Ellis County is in northwest Oklahoma on the border with northwest Texas.

By 1922, the family had moved to Buffalo, Harper, Oklahoma, near the border with Kansas. Hassie graduated from the 8th grade at Buffalo High School in May 1922.



In 1925, Hassie graduated from Ingersoll High School in Ingersoll, Alfalfa, Oklahoma. Alfalfa is two counties east of Harper County, also on the Kansas border.





Below are pictures of Hassie and her friend Ramona Madison, Hassie and the Ingersoll High girls' basketball team, and the graduating class of 1925 from Ingersoll.

UPDATE: I posted this pic on a message board for Alfalfa County and received a message from Marty Myers who said she would love to pass on the pictures to a lady named Ila Wessells, who had written a book on Ingersoll. This is what Ila had to say about the pic:

The basketball team was coached by my father Elbert Marlatt. He was also princpal. Reading left to right-Ethel, Edna or Elnora Appleton, Lillie Gerrels, Fannie Gerrels, Helen Haas, Pearl Wheeler, Hassie Proffitt, Viola Easterling, Lucille Tullis and Hazel Easterling. Lillie and Fannie was my husband's aunts. Viola was my aunt.

UPDATE: After poking around in census records, it looks like this pic was likely taken after the family moved to Logan County in the late 1920s. I've found Ramona Madison in Mulhall for several census years. This photo appears to have been taken on the same day as some other photos I have with names actually written on the back (yay!), which are not posted here. Those names have also been found in Logan County for several census years.


The guy in the Ingersoll class picture must be Carl Weigand, the only guy mentioned in the graduation program. Hassie is the one on the far left. It's funny that the program only mentions 5 graduates, but there are 6 people here.

In 1925, Hassie started college at the Northwestern State Teacher's College in Alva, Woods, Oklahoma, the county between Harper and Alfalfa Counties. This was a 4-year teacher's college founded in 1919 that is now Northwestern Oklahoma State University. She transferred around 1928 to Central State Teacher's College in Edmond, Oklahoma, Oklahoma. Central State Teacher's College was founded in 1890 as the Territorial Normal School. It became a 4-year college in 1919 and is now the University of Central Oklahoma. I have a suspicion the transfer was due to her father being transferred from northwest Oklahoma to Crescent in Logan County, returning to where Hassie was born. Logan is just one county north of Oklahoma County. Below are some of Hassie's report cards from college, as well as a picture that we think is her with her classmates at one of the colleges, perhaps her graduating class at Central. Hassie is the third one from the left in the front row.



After only attending school one year, it appears that Hassie received a teaching position in Pawnee County, Oklahoma, from 1926-1927. Pawnee County is two counties northeast of Logan County. Her teaching contract stated that she held a "certificate of the 2 year state grade." She made only $85 per month!! It appears from her report cards that she returned to college after teaching here. Perhaps this was something like a student teaching experience??

Below are pictures of Hassie with the family she boarded with in Pawnee County and her class.



In July 1928, Hassie was issued her teaching certificate from Oklahoma Department of Education.

Hassie taught at Lone Star School in Crescent, Logan, Oklahoma, from 1928 to 1930. Her parents were living in Crescent at the time. This is also where Hassie was born. Below are her teaching contract for the 1930-31 school year and one of her classes.



While she was teaching here, she met my great-grandfather, Merlen, who lived in nearby Mulhall. I believe Hassie's younger sister, Bessie, went to high school with Merlen. Merlen was two years younger than Hassie. They married on 14 Feb 1931, the topic of my previous post on them. They married at the Methodist church in Mulhall. My great-uncle, their oldest child, William John "Bill" Mertena, was born on 20 Aug 1931 in Frederick, Tillman, Oklahoma, where Hassie's parents were living. Tillman County is in southwest Oklahoma on the border with Texas. Below is a picture of Hassie with Bill at the house of her in-laws', John Henry Mertena and Blanche Welden, in Mulhall.

Like many women of her time, Hassie quit her teaching job once she married and had children, though the newspaper announcement of her marriage states that she finished out her school term. She and Merlen had three other children: Merlene Golda (my grandmother) in 1935, Joseph Henry "Tony" in 1941, and Jill Darlene in 1946.

Below are pictures of Hassie in later years. The one of her at the table with the Life magazine was taken by Bill around 1955-1960. The other was taken at daughter Merlene's house at Christmas time in 1981, the year I was born.