1934 - Merry Christmas from my grandparents and me

Ernest Marvin Yeakley (1886-1943) and Nancy Ellen Jones (1887-1938) were my grandparents. I never met them (they were gone before I was born) but they were and still are a part of my life because they lived on through my mom. I thought I had found all the really interesting stuff my mom left until I started back through it again. That's when I discovered this Christmas greeting my grandparents sent in 1934. What a treasure and what a treat. 

Merry Christmas from Marvin and Ellen Yeakley!

M is for Lola Mae Yeakley - Aunt Lola

"L" was taken for Uncle Lee. We always used her middle name with the first name so technically, I can use the "M" for her.

Lola Mae Yeakley, the youngest child of Ernest Marvin Yeakley and Nancy Ellen Jones.

Wichita Falls High School

Her timeline on Ancestry.com reads like this:

Birth

1926  Wichita Falls, Wichita, Texas United States

11 Apr

1930  Residence

Age 4  Wichita Falls, Wichita, Texas

1940  Residence

1 Apr   Wichita Falls, Wichita, Texas

1942  Residence

Age 16  Wichita Falls, Texas

1993  Residence

Age 67  Renton, WA

2009  Death

16 Dec  Renton, King, Washington

Age 83

This is what we run into when we start tracking our ancestors. Facts are OK but there was a whole life lived between the sources. Aunt Lola was more than just a list of sources for me. She was a very real person who fell in love, married, had children, and lived life on her own terms. 

Lola Mae was 20 years younger than her oldest brother. There were 6 other children between them and Ellen, my grandmother, was 39 when she was born. She was the baby of the family and was treated as such. She was four when my grandparents had their first grandchildren. Because of the age differences, by the time I was born, most of my cousins had children my age. It was no different for Aunt Lola. Her playmates were her cousins and not her brothers and sisters. 

Ellen died in 1938 when Lola Mae was 12. It was difficult for the family but at that point, the only children at home were Lola May, Gene and my mom, Ruby. My mom was 20 at the time and a college student. 

This was a photo taken at the time of Ellen's death. It is all the kids and my grandfather. Back row: Noel, Don, Marvin (my grandfather), Jay Dee, and Lee. In the front, Eugene, Ruby (my mom), Ruth, and Lola Mae. 

It was decided that Lola Mae would accompany my mother to Denton, Texas and live with her. My mom went to college and Lola Mae attended school the local elementary school. I have several letters my mom wrote to her siblings about how hard it was at times but how much fun the two of them had. Any activities my mother attended, so did Lola Mae. Gene stayed home. He was 15 and attended high school, old enough to fend for himself until his dad got home from work. 

I have to stop here and explain why Aunt Lola's name changes from sentence to sentence. Her siblings never called her anything but Lola Mae. The nieces and nephews called her Aunt Lola so in this narrative, I find it hard to write and call her Lola Mae. To me she will always be Aunt Lola. 

Lola Mae and Ruby moved back home when my mom graduated. Lola Mae finished high school in Wichita Falls. When Lola Mae was 17, she met John Gerald Curtindale. She must have met him at the USO, the same church where my mom met my dad. My mother was not fond of John Gerald Curtindale and didn't want Lola Mae to marry him but Aunt Lola always did what she wanted. For the 50 some years Uncle Johnny and Aunt Lola were married, my mother was always there for them. While I think she never got over the fact that Aunt Lola married him, he was accepted as part of the family. 

Uncle Johnny could be charming but he was not always the nicest of persons. However, Aunt Lola was no fool and they had an interesting life together. 

Johnny was an entrepreneur. I remember when he had a gas station in West Seattle. He always had some invention or business that he was working on. I remember the worm farm on the side of the house. I thought it was gross but he did explain how beneficial the worms were. 

They lived in West Seattle for many years. From the balcony off the back door, you could see the Space Needle and downtown Seattle across the Puget Sound. The home also had a basement where we would stay when we visited. It wasn't exactly finished but did have bedrooms and a bathroom. There was a very large (and I do mean large) holly bush in the front yard. We learned early it was prickly and you didn't want to hide in it. Aunt Lola worked a Boeing for more than 30 years and was often the sole support of the family. She liked her job and it kept her busy. She was also a Weight Watcher Lifetime Member and remained trim for most of her life. She attended church on a regular basis.   

Uncle Johnny and Aunt Lola had two children. We spent a lot of time as children together. They would come to California or we would go to Washington. I still am in touch with my cousin Paul and we are grateful for the relationship. His younger brother Jerry passed away recently. 

My mom holding me, Paul standing in front and Lola Mae holding Jerry. 

John Gerald Curtindale passed away on October 4, 1996 at the age of 79. Aunt Lola outlived him 13 years passing away on December 16, 2009. I can still hear her voice and laugh and I miss her. 

52 Ancestors - Week 14 - James Augustus Jones 1841 - 1911

James Augustus Jones was my great grandfather. There is very little information on the Jones side so I am hoping that as I go through the Ancestry DNA matches, I will find someone who is related. 

We do know he married Nancy Elizabeth Findley and they had eight children, including my grandmother Nancy Ellen Jones and her twin, Allen Augustus Jones. This information is documented but beyond the children, there doesn't seem to be a whole lot of clues.

James was born in Texas, verified by census reports. He was a farmer and owned his own farm. He lived his entire life in Texas. That's all the information I have. Sad isn't it?

52 Ancestors - Week 3 - Nancy Ellen (Jones) Yeakley

Nancy Ellen Jones, or Ellen as she was called, was my grandmother. She died in 1938 at the age of 50. That was 11 years before I was born and I feel cheated. She was a loving person who raised eight children who, even as adults, couldn't wait to spend time together. Family gatherings were always fun and there was never any drama.

My mother passed away on May 8, 1998, two days before Mother's Day. It was difficult without her on that Mother's Day as it has been for the past 15 years. However, we celebrate that day because for 60 years my mother missed her mother and I am quite certain that there was a joyous celebration when they were reunited.

Nancy Ellen Jones was born on December 26, 1887. She was a twin and Allen Augustus Jones outlived his sister by 19 years. One of eight children, they lived in Archer City, Texas where many of her sibling remained. On December 29, 1905, she married Ernest Marvin Yeakley, leaving Archer City for Wichita Falls, Texas.

Ellen loved being outside working in her garden. For a family of eight and a husband as a minister, she was frugal. My mom said she never realized they were poor. Later when my grandfather also worked as a printer and photographer, they had a little more money but Ellen always found enough. She didn't make a big mark on the world except to raise the children to be good citizens. All of the children went to school, six of them to college. They were a musical family and all of them played an instrument or the piano. Even as adults, when they were together, singing was a favorite pastime.One of my uncles had a heart attack, at age 80, on his way to sing at the "old folks home". Clearly, he didn't count himself as one.

This was my grandfather's favorite photo of Ellen. It was a picture he took showing that even at rest, she was always busy doing handwork.

Photo was taken by my grandfather. He said that Ellen looked so peaceful and he wanted to keep the image. As a child, I thought the picture was creepy but given the spirit in which it was taken, I understand his need to keep his wife with him.

Ellen passed away on June 28, 1938. She died in my mother's arms in the garden she loved. For 60 years, my mom missed her mother but I believe that Ellen's quiet faith sustained her for those years knowing that they would be together again.

52 Ancestors, Week #1 - Ernest Marvin Yeakley and Nancy Ellen Jones, my grandparents

I have spent years researching my dad's side of the family and while I still have more to learn, it is time to take a different direction and dive into the Yeakley-Jones history. My mom, Ruby Ellen Yeakley, did a lot of the research and it came to me when she passed away. The history goes back to the Mayflower on the Jones side but my grandparents (who were gone long before I was born) have interesting stories to tell.

While I know the Rhea side of my family and the names and faces are familiar, I actually know more about the Yeakley/ Jones family because I grew up knowing my aunts and uncles. However, my grandparents remain in the background waiting to share with me. This is a new adventure.