Gwendolyn Margaret Davies, 1920-1990, Alabama, Mississippi, California

One of the primary things you can find while doing newspaper research is information about marriages. Here's an example.

The San Bernardino County Sun, San Bernardino, California, 15 Sep 1943, Page 14
photograph
WEDDING CHAPEL at the First Presbyterian church in Santa Barbara was chosen by Miss Gwendolyn Margaret Davies and Pvt. Elmer Wayne Woodside, both of San Bernardino, as the scene of their marriage, which occurred Thursday, Sept. 2. Private Woodside is stationed at the Army Air base in Santa Maria.

The San Bernardino County Sun, San Bernardino, California, 15 Sep 1943, Page 14
Miss Gwendolyn Davies Is Now Mrs. Woodside
Miss Gwendolyn Margaret Davies, daughter of Mrs. Rhoda Willis Davies, 1133 Sepulveda avenue, and Pvt. Elmer Wayne Woodside, also of San Bernardino, were married in a quiet ceremony, performed the Rev. Dean F. Babbit Thursday, Sept. 2, in the chapel of the Santa Barbara First Presbyterian church. The chapel was decorated with gladioli.
The bride wore a blue-gray suit with black accessories. She was attended by her mother.
The former Miss Davies, who has made her home in San Bernardino for three years, attended school in Needles, while Private Woodside attended schools in San Bernardino, Los Angeles and Long Beach.
The bridegroom, son of H. A. Woodside of Rialto avenue, is stationed at the Army Air base at Santa Maria. Mrs. Woodside will remain in San Bernardino, where she is employed in the diet kitchen at the county hospital.

Lots of times wedding articles can give you all sorts of hints about where people lived and worked and can give you a better date for the actual wedding.

Edward Everett Jones Update

Newspaper research is just plain frustrating. Just when you think you've done every search possible and you decide to try one last time, you hit pay dirt. Here's the additional info I've found on Edward Everett Jones and Mabel Estella Woodside.

El Paso Herald, El Paso, Texas, 19 Jan 1911, Page 11
41st DISTRICT.
Judge A. M. Waithall, Presiding.
...
Ed E. Janes vs. Mabel Jones, suit for divorce filed.
…

El Paso Herald, El Paso, Texas, 28 Oct 1911, Page 2
FORMER EL PASOAN ATTEMPTS OWN LIFE
Edward Jones Had Divorced Wife Living in El Paso
Edward E. Jones, a former resident of El Paso, who attempted to commit suicide Friday Morning at the Antler's hotel, at Clovis, N. M., is the divorced husband of Mrs. Mabel Jones, living at 718 North Santa Fe Street.
Mrs. Jones states that on Friday she received advice from Tom Davenport that her husband was in a critical condition from an attempt to take his life; in answer she telegraphed that she be advised from time to time of Jones's condition, but up to the present she has heard nothing further concerning his condition.
She says she can assign no reason for Jones's action and that, as far as she knows, theer could have been no reason except weariness of life.
Jones at one time lived in El Paso, having been a representative of the La Salle extension university of law at Chicago. Mr. and Mrs. Jones were divorced last January, she remaining here and he going to Utah and New Mexico in the interest of his busines. He is about 51 years old, and has a son about 7 years of age, who lives with his mother.

(Misspelled words are as they appear in the articles.)

So just when I think I've exhausted everything where Ed is concerned, I'm now going to be in pursuit of death info in New Mexico.

Edward Everett Jones b. 1861 Tennessee d. After 1911 Where?

I'm still buried in newspaper research.

One of the hardest people in my tree to trace--Edward Everett Jones--is beginning to be a bit easier. My interest in him is his marriage to Mabel Estella Woodside. Here's the family group.

Edward Everett Jones
b. 1861 Tennessee
d. After 1911 Where?
m. 1 Mar 1902 in Crete, Saline, Nebraska
Mabel Estella Woodside
b. 16 Jan 1878 Coulterville, Randolph, Illinois
d. 15 Feb 1944 Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California (as Mrs. Charles Frank Shindler)

Children:
Perry Quincy Jones
b. 29 Apr 1904 Stillwater, Webster, Nebraska
d. 10 Aug 1995 South Pasadena, Los Angeles, California

Edward's Full Name

Edward's name is confirmed in a school record.
Ancestry.com. U.S., School Catalogs, 1765-1935 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.
Name: Edward Everett Jones
Publication Year: 1884
Publication Place: Nebraska
School Name: Doane College
Residence Place: Crete

Marriage Information

Library and Archives of the Nebraska State Historical Society; Lincoln, Nebraska
Source Information
Ancestry.com. Nebraska, Marriage Records, 1855-1908 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2017.

Name: Mabel Woodside
Gender: Female
Marriage Age: 24
Record Type: Marriage
Birth Date: abt 1878
Marriage Date: 1 Mar 1902
Marriage Place: Crete, Nebraska, USA
Marriage County Office: Saline
Spouse: E. Everett Jones

Name: E . Everett Jones
Gender: Male
Marriage Age: 41
Record Type: Marriage
Birth Date: abt 1861
Marriage Date: 1 Mar 1902
Marriage Place: Crete, Nebraska, USA
Marriage County Office: Saline

When you begin to search for Mabel, you find her in the 1910 federal census in El Paso, El Paso, Texas. So on the off chance that something was available in El Paso newspapers, I began to poke around in them. Here's what I found.

Sister-In-Law Sues Edward and Mabel over a Real Estate Deal

El Paso Herald, El Paso, Texas, 10 Jan 1910, Page 11
Suit on Notes.
Agnes E. Woodside has filed suit against Ed. E. Jones in the 41st district court to recover $400 on notes and for foreclosure on a vendor's lien on lots 11 and 12 in block 36, Highland Park.

El Paso Times, El Paso, Texas, 11 Jan 1910, Page 2
Suit on Notes.
Agnes E. Woodside vs. Mabel Jones et al, suit on note, was filed in the district clerk's office yesterday.

A Company Disavows Edward

El Paso Herald-Post, El Paso, Texas, 15 Mar 1911, Page 15
NOTICE
Notice is hereby given that Mr. Ed. E. Jones is in no way connected with the Business Men's Protective Association, nor are we responsible for any statements or obligations he may make. J. G. Ingals, manager.
March 2, 1911.

Conclusion

So I'm no closer to tracking down Edward's vitals. I have at best the sketchy info shown in this post. I can't even "happen" upon him in a census. But at least I have more concrete information than I've had in the past.

If you've got info on Edward, I'd love to trade info with you. I've got loads of Woodside info. Comment on this post and I'll be happy to respond.

Edna Irene (Woodside) Monia, 1876-1956, Illinois to Nebraska to California to Oregon

Medford Mail Tribune, 23 May 1956, Page 15

MRS. EDNA MONIA

Funeral services for Mrs. Edna Monia, 80, who died Monday in Jacksonville, will be held in Conger-Morris chapel at 1 p.m. Thursday. The Rev. William Piper of the First Christion church will officiate. Committal will be in Brownsboro cemetery.

Mrs. Monia was born Feb 4, 1876, in Coulterville, Ill. In 1898 at Guide Rock, Neb., she was married to Jacob Monia, who preceded her in death in 1926. She was a member of the First Christian church.

Survivors include two sons, Clarence Monia, Medford, and Bill Monia, Central Point; three daughters, Mrs. Mary Charley, Central Point, Mrs. Velda Dahlke, Medford, and Mrs. Donna Charley, Crescent City, Calif.; one brother, Albert Woodside, San Bernardino, Calif.; 17 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren. Another son, Ivan Monia, preceded her in death.

The details that get included in an obituary vary based on the time, location, and newspaper. They can also vary based on who provides the information. Here are the vitals on Edna and her family.

Edna Irene Woodside d/o James Martin Woodside and Mary Agnes Campbell
b. 4 Feb 1876 Coulterville, Randolph County, Illinois
d. 21 May 1956 Medford, Jackson County, Oregon
m. 27 Apr 1899 Red Cloud, Webster County, Nebraska
Jacob Monia Jr.
b. 1 May 1857 Berne, Switzerland
d. 6 Apr 1926 Medford, Jackson County, Oregon

Child 1:
Mary Estella Monia
b. 3 Mar 1900 Guide Rock, Webster County, Nebraska
d. 6 Aug 1982 Central Point, Jackson County, Oregon
m. 23 Oct 1917 Roseburg, Douglas County, Oregon
Floyd Sharpe Charley
b. 30 Apr 1892 Brownsboro, Jackson County, Oregon
d. 10 Oct 1965 Central Point, Jackson County, Oregon

Child 2:
Clarence Vernon Monia
b. 5 Nov 1901 Beaver Creek, Webster County, Nebraska
d. 5 Sep 1967 Medford, Jackson County, Oregon
m. 22 Jun 1930 probably in Oregon but have no proof
Dorothy Eleanor Wilhite
b. 1912 Oregon...need complete info
d. Don't know where or when...Can you help?

Child 3:
Ivan Russell Monia
b. 18 Jan 1904 Beaver Creek, Webster County, Nebraska
d. 20 Jan 1919 Brownsboro, Jackson County, Oregon

Child 4:
Velda Evelyn Monia
b. 17 Aug 1906 Guide Rock, Webster County, Nebraska
d. 29 apr 1992 Medford, Jackson County, Oregon
m. 1926...need complete info
Henry Frank Dahlke
b. 2 Aug 1899 Hokkah, Houston county, Minnesota
d. 31 Dec 1962 Medford, Jackson County, Oregon

Child 5:
Eldred Eugene Monia
b. 28 Feb 1910 Long Beach, Los Angeles County, California
d. 8 Sep 1982 Central Point, Jackson County, Oregon
m. 9 Dec 1936 Medford, Jackson County, Oregon
Opal Adell Charley
b. 17 Feb 1919 Climax, Jackson County, Oregon
d. Don't know where or when. Can you help?

Child 6:
Donna Lucille Monia
b. 2 Dec 1914 Eagle Point, Jackson County, Oregon
d. 15 Dec 2007 Central Point, Jackson County, Oregon
m. 27 Dec 1935 Medford, Jackson County, Oregon
Lincoln Stanford Charley
b. 27 Dec 1914 Climax, Jackson County, Oregon
d. 27 Dec 2008 Medford, Jackson County, Oregon

I'll write more about this family...there's lots to write about...they are an interesting ranching family with deep roots in Jackson County, Oregon.

Albert Alexander Woodside, 1880-1961, Illinois, Nebraska, California

Albert was the son of James Martin Woodside and Mary Agnes Campbell. Here are his vitals:

Albert Alexander Woodside
b. 14 Apr 1880 Coulterville, Randolph County, Illinois
d. 19 Nov 1961 Redlands, San Bernardino County, California (Find A Grave = 514000625)
m. California
Lillian Ladonna Bartlett
b. 8 Jul 1886 Hinsdale, Cheshire County, New Hampshire
d. 13 Feb 1925 San Bernardino County, California

Albert and Lillian has the following children:
Elmer Wayne b. 22 Jun 1911
Leonard Leo b. 7 Nov 1913
Harold Edgar b. 13 Dec 1915

The Woodside family has deep roots in Southern Illinois, particularly Randolph County, which is where Albert spends his early childhood. Between 1887 and 1888, the Woodside family moves to Webster County, Nebraska. Mary Agnes' sister, Jane Minerva (Mrs. William H. James), had been living in Webster County for several years when her sister's family moves there too. Both the Woodside and James families are farming.

Albert is 11 years old when his mother dies in Nebraska. For the most part, Albert and his many siblings grow up on the farm in Nebraska.

Between the 1900 and 1910 censuses, most of the Woodside family moves to Long Beach, Los Angeles County, California. Lillian, Albert's future wife, also moves to Long Beach between the 1900 and 1910 censuses. Albert and Lillian meet and marry probably in Long Beach and begin to have their three sons.

At the start of World War I, Albert and his family can be found in Long Beach. Albert's registration shows their address as 435 Cerritos Avenue, Long Beach, California. I haven't sent for military records for Albert so I don't know if he served.

In 1925, Lillian dies. Albert becomes the head of an all male household. Albert seems to never marry again.

Through the 1930's, 1940's, and 1950's, Albert can be found in California voter registration records. The family is living in San Bernardino, California and Albert is working as a painter. In retirement, Albert moves to Redlands, California, where he dies at age 81. He is survived by all three of his sons and they all live out their lives in California too. All three of Albert's sons have Find A Grave memorials.

If another researcher finds this post, I'm missing info. I would appreciate a pointer to a marriage record for Albert and Lillian. I'm also looking for an obit for Lillian...they seem to be hard to find in California. In addition, I would like to find a burial location for Lillian. She's the only one missing from the group on Find A Grave and it would be nice to complete the family.


Pin It

Mary Kerr Campbell

One of my brick walls has been Robert Harvey Campbell, the son of Harvey Campbell and Jane McKee. However, I've made progress thanks to some notes sent to me by a member of the Burck/James line of the family.

Robert Harvey Campbell b. 10 Sep 1856 in Coulterville, Randolph County, IL and d. 1 Oct 1884 Coulterville, Randolph County, IL (Find A Grave 62231549).

Robert appears on the 1880 census still living with his parents. Between 1880 and 1883, Robert marries Mary Ann Kerr.

Mary Ann Kerr, the daughter of John A. and Mary Kerr, was born 9 Oct 1860 in IL and died 16 Nov 1880 Coulterville, Randolph County, IL (Find A Grave 62231587).

Robert and Mary Ann had one child: Mary Kerr Campbell b. 19 Sep 1883 Coulterville, Randolph County, IL.

With the death of her mother, Mary Kerr Campbell becomes an orphan. Members of the Campbell family--aunts Mary Agnes (Campbell) Woodside and Jane Minerva (Campbell) James--seem to have been unable to take in their orphaned niece.

In 1900, Mary can be found with her uncle, Robert H. Kerr (b. Feb 1856 in IL) and his wife Belle, in Birmingham, Ward 3, Jefferson County, AL. Robert was an attorney. He and his wife, Belle, had no children of their own. In addition to taking in their seven and 1/2 year old niece, Robert and Belle had already take in an 11-year-old nephew, Robert K. Marsh.

In 1909, Mary's uncle Robert dies in Birmingham.

In 1920, Mary can be found living with her Aunt Belle Kerr in Birmingham. She is working as a librarian.

In 1930, Mary can be found living with her Aunt Belle Kerr in Birmingham. She is working as a clerk at the power company.

In 1937, Belle Kerr dies in Birmingham.

According to the obituary index at the Birmingham Library website, Mary Kerr Campbell's obituary appears on 24 February 1955. The Alabama Death Index shows Mary as dying 22 Feb 1955 in Tuscaloosa County, Alabama. I've sent for the obituary to see if it includes a list of survivors and a burial location.