Letter from Besty Walker - December 17, 1925

         The following is a letter from Betsy written in, my best estimate, 1925. It's tricky to read because Betsy is not a good speller nor does she use periods. It's really a guess as to where sentences end and begin. I'm assuming that growing up in rural 19th century England her formal education would have been minimal. This could have been one of the reasons she pushed her children to get an education.

     I've added photographs to help you visualize the people she's writing about, although the photos are not necessarily from the year of the letter. Maud is her youngest sister and lived in Vacaville, California. As many of you may know her brother Percy had a drugstore in Topeka and I assume that's the reference to his wife, Jenny, and her mother bringing a meal to the store every day. As I've mentioned some of the letter is hard to read so I'm not sure how many times Bud had broken his arm. Bud had turned 14 in October so he would have probably have had time to break his arm that many times. Another word in the letter stumped many of us until Lee looked at it yesterday and said it was extravagant. So it becomes Christmas won't be extravagant.

Thursday, Dec 17

Dear Lilly and Jack

        I sent you a package of prunes by parcel post yesterday. I hope you receive them all right. Aunt Maud sent me 90 lb so just divided them up equal guess this is spelled wrong.

Fred, Laura, Lilly and Dorothy in 1917.

      I am getting better from my fall but sure have been a nervous wreck and have the hardest time to eat anything. Drink milk as much as possible but get so tired of it. When I realized I was falling thought well this will be the finishing of me. but here I am. But still feel shakey. Don’t do much of anything only sit around.

    

      Walker is studying his spelling. Don is as fat as butter but still has three double teeth to get. The weather is quite chilly. I feel the cold so badly. Have not been out for several days. One real warm day awhile ago Percy is walking along Bud broke his arm again – the 4^th time. Jenny and Mrs. Thayer still cook a luncheonette for the store. Keeps them busy every day planning something new. Eula was up awhile today. she had dyed her winter coat. It looks real well. Keeps her busy trying to keep her family decent and covered. They are so large of their age. Our yard still looks nice. The leaves are about gone but grass is green and edge.

Frank and Eula Faust with their daughters, Mildred and Marguerite 1917.

      Did you get your bulbs. Got Edna to send them. Aunt Maud sent me quite a few. They are Chinese Lilly. Will grow in water, sand and rocks or dish only. But must be set in a dark cool place before bringing to light.

On the left, the Fausts, Frank, Marguerite, Mildred, then Edna, Bud, Allan, Jenny, Marcie, Bill Smith, EA and Ethel, a photograph from a 1919 picnic.

     

      Ada is putting the boys to bed. I usually go about 9:30. We are trying to plan for Xmas but it won’t be extravagant by any means. But it will be the spirit of Xmas. Ada made little mince meat.

      

At the left, Jim and Candace Sharpe with William Sharpe in front of their Hudson Super Six circa 1926.

     Uncle Jim and Can was here a short time the other. He was seeing about apples he has here in cold storage. Homer took his family and a maid for a three months trip in Texas, Arizona and California. He was driving Jim’s Hudson Super Six. He has not done much toward the making of the orchard but is getting the benefit. Well I will not envy him.

     Now do hope you are all well and getting all right.

     Lots of love, Mother

    Let me know if the prunes get there all right.

     I apologize for inconsistent formatting. Unlike Betsy Sharpe Walker I don't have the excuse of a lack of education. But I do have a lack of web page building knowledge.

Morgans Shoot Pool - 1946

    As I remember Helen and Roy and Ray and Mary shared a two-story apartment building on 6th Street in Topeka shortly after Ray and Mary's July 1946 wedding. They also shared ownership or use at least of a movie camera. This snippet of film is of Ray's parents, Ray and Vala, shooting pool with Vala's sister, Helen and her husband, Wert. Ray, Jr., also appears so I'm guessing that Mary filmed this exhibition. It's hard to tell where they are playing. Steve, being older, may remember where there was a pool table, but I don't. The only pool table I remember was at the Burkhardts, but this doesn't appear to be their pool table.

     Below are photographs from the Jensen's apartments. The Morgan apartment was in the same building. The photos are marked as having been taken in April 1951. On the wall in the middle one, you can see a portrait of Chris who was born in March 1947.

To repeat the obvious, Helen taking in the latest news.5

A good time was had by Helen, Mary Jane & Lyle Vernon, Roy and Bill And Willie Furlong.

Once again, Roy and Ray relax.

Betsy Sharpe Walker, Intrepid Traveler

     When Betsy Sharpe Walker was 16 she traveled more than 4000 miles from the eastern fens of England to Parkerville, Kansas by various modes of transportation - i.e. ocean steamships, trains, ferries, horse drawn wagons.
     
    The Sharpes and their nine children settled in Parkerville. For the first 15 years, when  the children grew and married, they remained in Morris or Clay Counties. From the records that I have found it's hard to tell for sure, but it seems George, the sixth child, was the first to leave the state. Some time between 1885 and 1892 he moved to Vacaville, California. Betsy and Edward moved to Topeka shortly after Edna was born in 1888. Maud, who was the youngest, married a Californian in 1893 and moved with him to Vacaville to join George. Ada the next to youngest moved to Pueblo Colorado some time between 1895 and 1900. Roseanne Sharpe's husband, Hugh Miller Fraizer, died in 1900. By 1910 she and her family had moved to Oakland, California.

      But back to Betsy and her travels. In Edna's collection of artifacts and photographs there's clear evidence she continued to do so. We know that in 1898, and perhaps more times than that, she and Edward returned to visit England. In 1915 she and Ada boarded a train and made their way to San Francisco, a journey that would have covered more than 3000 in total. Here is a sampling of the photographs from that journey. In San Francisco they watched Betsy's nephew and Ada's cousin, Stanley Blake, graduate from the Navy training school on an island in the San Francisco Bay. They also visited the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition. Panama Pacific International Exposition

      They toured Berkley and eventually visited Maud at her home near Vacaville. Maud and her husband, Henry Clay Blake, had orchards.
   

Betsy Walker - Ogden Canyon, Utah, 1915

Betsy Walker, center, with her sister, Roseanne and Roseanne's daughter, Ada at the beach 1915.

The two Adas, Ada Walker and Ada Somner nee Fraizer at the ocean 1915.

Ada Walker with her cousin Stanley Blake in his naval uniform, 1915.

Betsy Walker and Ada Walker before the one building that was retained from the exposition.

George Sharpe and Betsy Walker at the ocean 1915.

Betsy Walker and Maud Blake nee Sharpe at her Vacaville home in 1915.

     Clearly the camera needed a sunny or at least a bright day to get good pictures. As everyone knows the weather in San Francisco is not always that sunny. What I noticed in these photographs that Betsy was seemingly much shorter than her siblings.

Debbie & Erin's Arrival

First came Debbie in April 1975, born in Washington DC.

Here's the link to the longer video taken by Ray and Mary. Mary came out a few days before Ray to help us all adjust to our new family. Debbie finally took refuge of falling asleep on Mary.  Debbie's first days at home.

Then two years later in April of 1977 Erin joined us in Wichita. Once again Mary came to help us and then Ray joined her. This is a link to the longer video Erin comes along.

Happy Birthday, you two. You've made life much better for all of us.

Mount Vernon 1929

Helen mentioned in her weekly letter that she remembered visiting Mount Vernon as a child. Here is a brief clip from the black and white movies of that trip in 1929. Helen is the girl posing for the camera while Mary Grace runs up and jumps in the movie. A blase EA and Allan walk past, clearly engrossed in the history of the place. Nearly at the end of this clip, Ethel coquettishly poses. Here's a link to a longer version.

Mount Vernon 1929

A Couple of Photographs

Occasionally I come across some photographs that catch my attention.Throughout the last year I've worked to scan three notebooks identified as Edna's by Mary Grace. Today are four that I liked.

New Year's Eve 1913

 The first is of New Year's Eve 1913 featuring many of the Walkers, from left to right on the back row are Bud Walker, Edna, Bill Smith, Ada Walker and an unknown. The front row is Eula Walker Faust, Jennie Thayer Walker, Marcie Walker, (Percy and Jennie's month old daughter), Betsy Sharpe Walker and Frank Faust. I don't know who's house it is, but there are some interesting poinsettia decorations that I can't quite figure out. Edna had been married in June of 1913 and Ada would marry Bill in a couple of years after this. The hairstyles of the women are starting to change as are the dresses.


 The other two are of Edna and Allan. The first was taken when he was about 3months old and she was 25. Edna and EA were married in June of 1913 and Allan was born in November 1914.

Edna and Allan, spring 1915

Edna and Allan, summer 1915

The second one is of Allan at 8 months and I wonder if it isn't his Christening day. The photograph isn't marked that way, but it's clearly a gown of some sort. Just my thought.

The fourth is of Percy Walker and his two children, Bud and Marcie. (There's also an unidentified man.) To me the backgrounds are fascinating and today we have signs, even more fun. This photograph is from 1915. The car reminded me of 1965's The Great Race starring Natalie Wood and Tony Curtis, but apparently that was a Thomas Flyer winner of the 1908 race. The Great Race

As to the last my post, Helen identified the third sister as Grace Walker Bale. So thank you, Helen.

Percy, Bud and Marcie enjoy a miniature Stutz Bearcat.