Happy 2023! I’ve officially been blogging for 15 years now. Crazy to think it’s been that long! There aren’t a lot of things I stick with for that long but here we are!
The first theme for this year is “I’d like to meet”. We recently lost my uncle, Max. We lost him shortly before Christmas. Today I was reflecting about him seeing and talking to my grandparents (his parents) a couple of days before his passing. I think about this a lot because it’s happened to so many people I know right before they passed away. In regard to my ancestry, there are a lot of people I’d like to meet. I know I won’t get to meet them all since we won’t all be going to the same place after death. Hopefully, I will meet the majority of them though.
I asked my husband today if he ever thought about this part of death – like, who would visit him and escort him out of this world when he died. He said no. Me? I think about it a lot. I think about the people I hope to see again after my death. I’m the opposite of my husband. In fact, I have a running list and have made requests for who escorts me from this life to the next. Never hurts to ask, right?
So, in addition to Jesus and a few prominent Biblical figures (I’m looking at you, Queen Esther!), I’d like to meet the two angel grandbabies that I never got to meet. I’d like to see my son again and my grandparents (Audrey, Gene, Jessie, and Troy) and great grandparents (Mark DRAKE, Edith HUBBARD DRAKE, Ralph LARKIN, Bessie WILLIAMS LARKIN, Albert BATES, Dettie GIBSON BATES, William RITER, and Laura BULLOCK RITER), but most of those are people I’ve already met and the theme was who would you like to meet. So, in addition to my angel grandbabies, I think I would like to meet Emily HENNIG or Lavina PILGRIM DRAKE. I’d like to know what they’re stories are and why I can’t find any information about them. Add in Lucinda DOW GIBSON. She had a crazy life. And maybe the great-grandmothers I didn’t meet – Laura BULLOCK RITER and Dettie GIBSON BATES (see links above). (I’d even settle for meeting the great-grandpas I never met: Ralph LARKIN, Albert BATES, and William RITER – see links above.) We could all sit down and have tea together and discuss the lives they led. I wouldn’t even mind if we discussed what I got right and what I got wrong about them on my blog. I could own up to mistakes in my research for this particular tea time.
Alas, I’ll have to wait. Hopefully they’re waiting for me in the place I intend to be after my death. I’m dying to find out…ha ha. Couldn’t resist that one. In the meantime, I’ll just have to keep researching and keep updating my death bed request list.
I apologize for the morbid start to 2023. Despite the morbid start (or maybe because of it), I recommend clicking the names above to read my blog posts about the people mentioned in this blog. I hope you have a wonderful year – meet all your goals, see all your dreams come true, and find all the love you ever wanted in your life.
I was recently reviewing old posts for a 2023 project I’m planning and I came across the blog posts about my paternal 3rd great grandfather, Quincy Adam “Q.A.” BELL and the time he was “tarred and feathered” in the local newspapers for his involvement with the Radical Republican party. To review, you can view part 1 of those posts here, and part 2 here. Part 2 does include some significant updates to the original post, just FYI. I periodically do new searches for information about this event in hopes I’ll find more, but it’s difficult to find anything. I recently landed on some different search terms that I hadn’t tried before and noticed some things that I had previously missed. Just for reference, my line of descent goes from Quincy to his daughter Eliza to her daughter Bess WILLIAMS who is my great grandmother (no relation to my husband’s WILLIAMS).
Radical Repbulicanism & the Party Platform
I came across a newspaper article with the Radical Republican party platform written out and I began to wonder what exactly Radical Republicanism was and what was included in their party platform. Republicans have been vilified in the press for a couple of decades now and the current definition of “radical”…well…things didn’t sound good so I did some research. Radical Republicanism is defined by Britannica as a political party active during and after the Civil War that believed in emancipation of slaves. Later they would advocate for the “equal treatment and enfranchisement of the freed blacks”.1 Pretty radical. (I say that sarcastically.) Missouri was deeply divided politically both during and after the Civil War – much like political parties are today. Living through these last few years, I clearly see how a radicalized press would be able to vilify their opponents. As in the 1870’s, there is prolific and constant name-calling and libelous statements from all parties toward each other. Tensions are high as are emotions, and everything thinks their opinion is correct – just like in 1870.
Let’s see exactly what this party’s platform was in 1870. They espoused:
devotion to the Union;
endorsement of President GRANT’s administration;
reduction of taxes at the state and national government levels to a more appropriate price point;
the immediate offering of “Railroad Lands” for sale so as to make the Land Grant fair to everyone;
opposition to any additional Congressional Land Grants in territories west of Missouri in the aid of railroad companies or other monopolies unless the land was offered in the public market at the “customary government price”;
denounciation all forms of repudiation and a demand for faith and integrity from the government;
favoring the government to liberally take care of former Civil War soldiers as well as widows and orphans of deceased soldiers in exchange for the service these men (and women) gave to the country during war;
a pledge to act in accordance with the state platform of the Radical Republican party;
the granting of suffrage to the nation’s people of color as something necessary and just and never to be revoked;
support for a reduction in tariff to an amount that would still provide government revenue but also be fair to the agriculture and manufacturing industries;
and, that no one should be told or required to vote a certain way in regard to enfranchising “the rebels” (i.e. Confederates) and that party fidelity should not be based on how one votes on the issue but rather each person has the right to vote their conscience.
Below is the newspaper article listing the platform. I noticed that numbering went from 10th to 12th so I don’t know if an item was removed or if it was just an error.
Newspapers.com. Article dated 30 July 1870 in the Buffalo Review (Buffalo, MO).2
For these views, they were deemed radical. The Republicans (not the Radical Republicans but the more mainstream faction of the party) held the majority in both the House and Senate in 1870. The Radical Republicans could never quite get organized and eventually ceased as a political party. Although third parties existed in 1870, America had not had a third-party president since 1850-1853 when President Millard Fillmore was in office. Here is a visual representation of political parties in the U.S. from 1870-1900 (although it doesn’t show many of the smaller, more fringe political parties):
I think this quote sums it up best along with the hashtag #EstablishmentElite:
In the election of 1872 the conflict between President U. S. Grant and Horace Greeley has been typically understood as a battle for the soul of the ruling Republican Party.
The Doom of Reconstruction: The Liberal Republicans in the Civil War Era by Andrew Slap.4
A battle for the soul of the ruling Republican Party. Much like 2016 was within the Republican Party, the mainstream Republican Party of 1870 wanted something completely different than the newer, smaller, and less-mainstream Republican factions. It seriously amazes me how much our current political climate mirrors that of my 3rd great grandfather Quincy’s. Will we ever learn from history? Welcome to one more reason why I do this blog. We are doomed to repeat what we do not know or understand.
One journal article described the Marshfield Convention as “[t]he first convention of significance…in the Fourth Congressional District.”5 This was exactly the convention that Quincy BELL attended. The very convention where he was selected to be a permanent officer for the Radical Republican Party Convention in the Fourth Congressional District of Missouri. Tensions were high, and arguments were frequent and emotional. It was a mess to say the least.
“Marshfield Convention”, Buffalo Reflex, 30 July 1870.2
Final Thoughts
I know this isn’t much new information but this information combined with the updated information in the part 2 post linked above at least gives us some more insight about the situation that Quincy walked into in Marshfield in July of 1870. I feel like, in a roundabout way, it also gives us more insight into why a left-leaning newspaper would post an article about him being involved in legal troubles when there is no other information I can find to back that up. To be clear, I did look for me. I was able to schedule a research trip to Columbia, Missouri, to the State Historical Society of Missouri. I looked through the older newspapers that aren’t online and I looked through some books showing court records of Texas County, Missouri, and still haven’t found anything that corroborates that Quincy was in legal trouble of any kind. For now, I’m leaning toward saying Quincy never got into a “scrape” in Texas County and did not flee that county to avoid arrest. These unsupported accusations from a left-leaning newspaper opinion piece leveled against a right-leaning citizen, well…sounds like a pretty standard political hit piece to me. So, until supporting evidence is found regarding Quincy’s alleged criminal activities I’m going to withhold my judgment of him.
I hope you’ve enjoyed learning a little more about our Union Quartermaster Sergeant, Quincy Adam BELL. He’s still a work in progress for me.
Slap, Andrew L., The Doom of Reconstruction: The Liberal Republicans in the Civil War Era, Reconstructing America (New York, NY, 2007; online edn, Fordham Scholarship Online, 10 Mar. 2011), https://doi.org/10.5422/fso/9780823227099.001.0001, accessed 1 Aug 2022.
Barclay, Thomas S. “The Liberal Republican Movement in Missouri”. Missouri Historical Review; Vol. 20, p. 515-564; 1926. Accessed on 1 August 2022 at Google Books.
It’s been a long summer trying to get my business off the ground. I’ve missed writing these blog posts. Aside from starting a business, there have been so many other changes in the last few months. From mid-August to present we’ve laid to rest two cousins – Robert EVANS and David WETZEL – and an uncle, Alvin BENNETT, Jr.. They will all be missed.
Alvin Bennett Jr., Vietnam veteran.
Family Is Everything
When I was a child, I saw almost all of my cousins almost every weekend of my childhood. These days, it seems we only see each other at funerals and weddings. Today was one of those days. Before leaving the graveside services for my uncle Junior, my cousin Chris told me he had a box for me. He gifted me a box of records from the church we grew up in. It’s been quite a trip down memory lane looking through old business meeting notes, membership rolls, etc. Over the coming weeks I hope to share some of those records with you. For tonight, I want to share the baptismal records for my parents, grandparents, great grandparents, and even a great-great grandparent.
Poynor Baptist Church
The Poynor Baptist Church Membership Roll book as it looks today.
This Poynor Baptist Membership Roll book was in the box Chris gave me. This book is as good as gold to me. It’s like a mini-family history for me. In this book, I found my own record of salvation and baptism (the dates aren’t there but I can tell you it was Autumn of 1976 for salvation and Summer of 1978 for baptism):
My salvation/baptism entry in the Poynor Baptisit Church Membership Roll book.
I also found both of my parents in the book:
My dad’s entry – he was baptized on June 13, 1954.My mom’s entry – she was baptized on 16 February 1964.
I also found many of my ancestors in the book:
My paternal grandparents, great-grandparents, and even my great-great-grandfather!Plus one more great-grandmother.
I love the story my dad tells about my great-great-grandfather, Poppy Lonzo. He remembers Poppy standing at the back of the Poynor Baptist Church with tears streaming down his face professing his belief in Christ and his regret that he waited so long to accept Christ as his savior. What a beautiful story! It brings tears to my eyes.
Losses, But Also Gains
In this summer of losses for my family, it was refreshing to see the eternal gains we’ve made. Refreshing to know that I will see my people again one day in a better place. Comforting to know that my people are already in that better place waiting for my arrival.
As we move into fall and winter, I’m wishing you more days of rejoicing than grief and I’m wishing you comfort in your days of loss.
This blog post is about my paternal great grandfather, Ralph LARKIN. If you’d like to read past blog posts about him to refresh your memory before moving on, you can find information about him in these blog posts: Week 4- Weekend Wrap-Up (has a couple of newspaper articles) Weekend Wrap-Up for Week 2 (includes a document) Ralph Larkin and the Mystery of His Missing Sibling (includes photographs of Ralph and Bessie) Savory Saturday- The Kitchen is the Heart of the Home (includes a section about Bessie and Ralph plus a photograph) Medical Monday- Know Your Health History! (includes a document) Black Blizzards- The Second Dust Bowl, Abilene, Texas, 1954-1957 (includes photographs) Close to Home, Close to the Heart- Part 2
This past week I traveled down to Texas to spend some time. Bart and I enjoyed the beach in Galveston and I researched in a couple of different places. If you are ever in the Houston, Texas area I highly recommend the Clayton Library Center for Genealogical Research at 5300 Caroline Street. I barely scratched the surface of all they have there. I didn’t come away with anything I feel like I can share here on the blog yet but it was worth the trip. I had hoped to make it to the Sterling Municipal Library in Baytown, Texas but didn’t quite get there. On Thursday and Friday, in addition to visiting family, I got to go to the National Archives in Fort Worth, Texas. I had called ahead and let them know what I wanted to look at and to make an appointment so they were ready for me when I got there. I definitely recommend doing that if you get to go to the Archives. It will make your trip go much more smoothly. When you get there, you can expect to spend a few minutes getting a researcher card. You’ll have to provide state or federal photo identification and go through a short tutorial before getting your card and being allowed to research so plan your trip accordingly. Also, their last document pull is at 2:00 p.m. Anything you request after that time will have to wait for the following day. You should call ahead to confirm they will be open. While I was there they were talking about a potential shutdown as of midnight tonight due to the federal government not being able (or willing??) to finalize a budget for this country. So those types of things do affect the National Archives and you need to be aware of that. One last thing to be aware of- they do have restricted documents. Most times these documents will be removed before you get to see the files. From what I understand though, sometimes the documents are simply placed in an envelope and marked restricted but left inside the file and you are not allowed to photograph those documents. If the envelope is sealed you cannot unseal it to take a look.
Researching in the National Archives requires a different strategy than researching in a genealogical library. In the National Archives, you’re looking for records created by a government agency so you have to think in terms of how your family interacted with that agency. It takes a bit to become accustomed to the different way of thinking but it’s worth it. In this case, I went in knowing that I was looking for records created by the Bureau of Mines. Both mine and Bart’s families, as well as our daughter-in-law’s family, had miners who worked in the tri-state mining district of Oklahoma, Kansas, and Missouri. Specifically, I had seen photo identification/health records that another researcher had obtained and I believed these records were held by the National Archives. The Bureau of Mines operated a health clinic in Picher, Ottawa County, Oklahoma. The clinic had two sides. The side where they did examinations of miners for employment in the mines and for other issues (especially Tuberculosis and mining-related lung diseases) called the Picher Clinic as well as a second side of the clinic that treated venereal diseases. Apparently in the heyday of mining, Picher had a massive outbreak of syphilis and gonorrhea and the government felt it needed to bring the situation under control so they set up both a health clinic and a sexually transmitted disease (STD) clinic. The STD clinic was called the Picher Cooperative Clinic. It was called this because it was a cooperative effort between the Tri-State Zinc and Lead Ore Producers Association, the U. S. Public Health Service (office of the Surgeon General), and the U. S. Bureau of Mines, along with the help of various medical researchers. So, you’ve got medical researchers, the U. S. government, and an association that was led and governed by mine owners. What could go wrong?? Seriously though, they did a lot of good but they were also doing some experimental work on the miners. Having said that, we didn’t get where we are today in the medical field without experimental drug trials and studies, etc. Overall, I think there was a lot of good done by the Clinic and the head doctor, Frank V. MERIWETHER, whose official title was Acting Assistant Surgeon and who was appointed by the then-U. S. Surgeon General, Hugh S. CUMMING. Both Dr. MERIWETHER and Surgeon General Hugh CUMMING served under President Woodrow WILSON.
It really was so interesting to read all the letters and reports and studies talking about the work that Dr. MERIWETHER did. (I’ll admit I reminisced a little about my time as a paralegal at Hawley, Troxell, Ennis & Hawley law firm in Boise, Idaho where I worked on Superfund cases with reports similar to these.) Dr. MERIWETHER was constantly conducting medical research studies and trials on various health issues, traveling around the country to conferences, observing other doctors and allowing other doctors to come in and observe his work. He was even involved in a First Aid and Mine Rescue Contest. He was one of the lead researchers on Psuedo-Military Tuberculosis which you can read about on Wikipedia. The exact photo that’s on Wikipedia is in his files at the National Archives. I held it in my hands just yesterday! He led an interesting life. But I’m not here to talk about Dr. MERIWETHER today. I’m here to tell you what I found about my family!
It was more than 3/4 of the way through the second day and I was a little discouraged. Then I opened up a hand-tabulated chart for one of the studies that Dr. MERIWETHER was working on and there it was- ‘LARKIN, RALPH’!! I was so glad to find something!
(I apologize for the photos. When I pulled out my camera to take pictures it wasn’t working so I had to resort to cell phone photos. Also, names of other persons have been marked over in case any of them are still living.) There is no title to this chart nor any letter that I could find to explain it’s existence. So, going off the general work that Dr. MERIWETHER did and including the column titles on this chart, it looks like my great grandfather (Ralph LARKIN) went to see Dr. MERIWETHER about his teeth. Or at least, on the day Ralph went that’s what Dr. MERIWETHER was concerned about. The chart tracks the following information for the patients listed: Name, Occupation (at the mines), Eye health, Ear health, whether the miner had artificial teeth, whether the teeth were dirty, whether the miner had pyorrhea (another term for periodontitis, or an inflammation of the tissue around the teeth – Dorland’s Illustrated Medical Dictionary, 25th Edition), whether the miner had any teeth missing, whether the miner needed or wanted his teeth clean (I’m guessing on this one based on the fact that he already covered whether the teeth were clean and this column basically is yes or blank; the actual column title is ‘Clean’), whether the miner’s teeth are decayed, and a column each for Silicosis and Tuberculosis diagnoses both of which were a major reason for the Picher Clinic in the first place (and both were major areas of clinical research performed by Dr. MERIWETHER). Silicosis (also called Pneumoconiosis or Miner’s Lung or Black Lung Disease for coal miners) is a lung fibrosis caused by the inhalation of dust from stone, sand, or flint which contains silicon dioxide. (Dorland’s Illustrated Medical Dictionary, 25th Edition). The study of silicosis was a major, and apparently career-long, undertaking of Dr. MERIWETHER so I would not be surprised at all if the whole reason for checking patients’ teeth was because he had learned or suspected that silicosis caused certain dental conditions.
Miners with silicosis would eventually develop a cough that would progress into difficulty breathing and sometimes sharp chest pain when breathing. It could cause death if contact was continual and long term and the condition wasn’t treated. The disease would present very much like Bronchitis and when the doctor listened to your lungs he would hear them wheezing and crackling when you breathed. Miners with silicosis had an increased risk of other problems such as Tuberculosis, lung cancer, and chronic bronchitis. (Lung.org) Chronic silicosis might eventually lead to your legs swelling, an increased breathing rate, and a bluish discoloration of your lips. Chronic silicosis created an angel wing pattern on x-rays that was called “Angel of Death”. The disease ultimately led to respiratory failure and death if left untreated and/or with continued, prolonged exposure. Remember, in the late 1920’s and early 1930’s there was no OSHA to force your employer to provide you with health protections like breathing masks. They were also still trying to make advances on controlling and healing Tuberculosis and other diseases. (Also, just a little side note that surprised me: I say “him” when referring to miners but there were female miners as well. I was surprised by this. When you see photographs it’s always men but I did see at least one woman identified as a miner in Dr. MERIWETHER’s records.)
Photo is an example of the wing formation called “Angel of Death” that is caused by silicosis. Photo was found at Learning Radiology.
But, back to Ralph LARKIN. Ralph’s exam gave the following information about his health. He was a machinist. Ralph’s eyes and ears were “ok”. Ralph didn’t have any artificial teeth. His teeth were dirty (as were the majority of miners’ teeth according to this chart). He had pyorrhea. According to how I’m interpreting the chart, he was missing one upper tooth and 3 lower teeth. His teeth were not marked to be cleaned. There is no notation why they weren’t cleaned. He had several decayed teeth including 2 upper and 2 lower teeth. He had Late Stage 1 Silicosis. He was Class C for Tuberculosis. I’m not sure what Class C means. In regard to the silicosis diagnosis though, this is what I learned. Silicosis.com is a lawyer’s website for both Silicosis and Mesothelioma. Even though this is a legal and not medical website and their goal is to make money, it really put it into perspective for me when a site coupled Silicosis with Mesothelioma. I hadn’t realized that Silicosis was in the same class of disease as Mesothelioma. Although I haven’t been able to find stages of Silicosis, the Silicosis/Mesothelioma site did list stages of Mesothelioma and that website makes it seem as though the two diseases are extremely similar- enough so to be able to compare stages of the two diseases. Stage 1 of Mesothelioma means the disease is still “localized” or confined to the area of origin. Ralph was late stage 1. I’m guessing it was still localized to one small area of his lungs but he was on the verge of the first advanced stage of the disease. He would have experienced shortness of breath with physical activity. Possibly a fever and possibly some chest pain when breathing. Ralph had to have already had large amounts of silica dust in his lungs just for the disease to even be detectable. If Ralph smoked, the effects of the disease would have been worse. My dad always told me that Ralph had a lung disease. I really didn’t realize the extent of the lung disease until I found him on this chart this week and started researching silicosis.
The work that Dr. MERIWETHER did was so important to miners. He not only was expert enough to be appointed by the U. S. Surgeon General to a clinic specializing in diagnosing and treating miners, he was educating his peers all across the country and doing specialized trips to other mines across the country to help diagnose other miners. Even so, it wasn’t until the 1960’s that miners started demanding protections for their health. In 1973 (some 55 or so years after Ralph was diagnosed and 10 years after his death), coal miners received their protections via the Black Lung Benefits Act of 1973. Those who mined something other than coal were apparently not covered under these protections. (Black Lung Benefits Act of 1973)
Here are a few short YouTube videos on the subject.
If you’d like to learn more, I’ve read that you can look for a 2006 documentary by Shane Roberts that features interviews with miners suffering from silicosis as well as footage shot in the mines. I haven’t been able to find that documentary myself. NPR did an episode on this topic. If you prefer lighter entertainment, you might try watching the 1939 movie Four Wives in which actor Eddie Albert plays a doctor studying pneumoconiosis- much like Dr. MERIWETHER. I’ve tried to locate some of Dr. MERIWETHER’s studies and journal articles that were published but I’ve been unsuccessful. Quite a few recent researchers cite his work in their papers but I haven’t been able to find any of his actual published studies for you to look at.
Ralph’s family always believed it was the lung disease that killed him even though his death certificate does not bear that out. I’m sure the lung disease was never treated and did give him trouble since he was on the verge of the disease moving from Stage 1 to the initial advanced stages of the disease. Ralph was diagnosed with late stage 1 silicosis around October of 1927 as best I can tell. He had been working in the lead and zinc mines of Ottawa County, Oklahoma since at least 1918. My guess is he was probably already working there earlier than 1917. In 1918 he was working for Black Hawk Mining Company in Picher, Ottawa County, Oklahoma.
The screenshots below were found at Schehrer at homestead.com. This is a great website for learning about old Picher mining history. You could spend hours here just looking at photos.
On the same website I took a screenshot of the photo below of Quapaw, Oklahoma. The photo was taken about 1920 when Ralph and Bessie LARKIN would have been living there.
I believe the section of a Superfund government report below gives a better description of where Black Hawk Mine was located based on a more recent geographical description of Picher. Unfortunately, you won’t be able to find the business ‘Picher Express’ without the help of someone who knew what the town looked like before it was demolished. The last time I was there, there was practically nothing left of Picher Express except the shell of a building and an old pay phone. However, for those who remember Picher, it’s a good description of the location of Black Hawk Mine.
You can get your own copy of this report at the DEQ Superfund website.
Ralph left mining work sometime around late 1929 to early 1930. I’m sure 10-15 years in the mines without any kind of health precautions or proper medical care took a toll on his health. I’m going to leave you with a couple of photographs of some minerals found at Black Hawk Mine.
These photos were found on Minerals.net. Enjoy your weekend.
Peace and health,
Lisa @ Days of Our Lives blog
Eliza Emoline BELL was my paternal 2nd great grandmother. The lineage goes from Eliza and her first husband, Samuel WILLIAMS, to their daughter, Bessie. Bessie is my paternal great grandmother. Every time I start to write a post about Eliza, I get derailed…badly. Every time. I’m pretty sure she hates me. But, I’m going to “try, try again”. I have written about her several times and you can find those posts here: We all have secrets Prosperity- Different Strokes for Different Folks Eliza Emoline Bell, Independence Girl
Mentioned in Luchadors, Lawmen, and the Lost
Eliza’s death date anniversary is 25 February 1934. As I’ve said before, every time I research her I feel like I’m on the verge of a huge breakthrough. Unfortunately, my research always falls short and I never quite make that breakthrough. So today, in the interest of keeping this blog moving along, I’m going to post her death certificate which is something I haven’t given you before. Additionally, I’ll go into some detail about her cause of death. You can have a copy of her death certificate for yourself by going to this link: https://www.sos.mo.gov/images/archives/deathcerts/1934/1934_00008036.PDF
A supplement to the original death certificate was also issued:
The best I can tell, the supplemental document was issued in order to add Eliza’s birthdate.
As you can see, Eliza’s cause of death was listed as Nephritis. Nephritis is an inflammation of the kidneys and can lead to kidney failure and, ultimately, death. Each different type of Nephritis has its own causes and since the doctor did not give any other detail, we will never know what type of Nephritis Eliza had. Thanks to the internet, we can review the different kinds and causes of acute nephritis though.
Interstitial Nephritis causes the spaces between the kidney tubules to be inflamed, thus causing the kidneys to swell. This type of nephritis is often caused by taking medications for long periods of time. This type can also be caused by low potassium or an allergic reaction to a medication.
Pyelonephritis is another type of Nephritis. It’s caused by a bacterial infection which often begins in the bladder and travels up the ureters into the kidneys. The bacterial infection starts from a type of E. Coli found in the large intestine. Other possible causes include the formation of kidney stones, surgery on the bladder/kidneys/ureters, or urinary exams using a tool called a cytoscope.
The last type of Nephritis listed at Healthline.com is Glomerulonephritis (historically known as Bright’s Disease). This type of acute Nephritis is an inflammation of the capillaries in the kidneys. The capillaries help filter the blood within the kidneys. The exact cause of this type of Nephritis is unknown but believed to be caused by immune deficiencies, cancer, and/or broken abscesses within your body.
People with increased risk of Nephritis include those with a family history of kidney disease/infection (that would be YOU, Drake family!), those with immune system diseases such as Lupus, those who overuse antibiotics or pain medications, and/or anyone having had recent surgery on the urinary tract.
How would your body tell you that you might have Nephritis? I’m glad you asked! Depending on the type of acute Nephritis you have, you might feel pain in your pelvic area or abdomen or kidney areas and pain or burning when you urinate. You may need to urinate frequently and your urine may be cloudy or contain blood or pus. You may experience swelling in body parts (frequently in the face, feet, and legs). You also may experience vomiting, fever, and/or high blood pressure. Nephritis is often accompanied by blood pressure and heart problems.
If you feel you may be having these symptoms be sure to make an appointment with your doctor right away. When you go, be sure to let the doctor know that there is a family history of kidney problems. This may be important for the doctor to know in order to run the right tests on you. Nephritis can be treated if you catch it early. On the flip side, if you let it go it can kill you or leave you on dialysis for the rest of your life.
Take care of you! There are people in this world who need you to be around for them.
Peace and health,
Lisa @ Days of Our Lives
** Information for this post came from Healthline.com (see link above) and Missouri Digital Heritage (see link above).
Seems like I’m running late an awful lot lately. It’s been a month – MONTH – of people behaving like it’s a full moon! Exhausting!
Today I’m posting a link to a previous blog about my great grandmother, Bessie WILLIAMS LARKIN. Bess was born 17 February 1901.
I’ve included Bess in a number of different posts with little tidbits about her life. You can follow these links to learn more about her. Ralph Larkin and the Mystery of His Missing Sibling Antiques Savory Saturday- The Kitchen is the Heart of the Home Prosperity- Different Strokes for Different Folks Something About Apples and How Far They Fall From the Tree (in which I mention my strongest memories of Bess) Week 4- Weekend Wrap Up Luchadors, Lawmen, and the Lost
I don’t really remember when Bess died. In that time, kids weren’t really told much about deaths and were not brought to funerals. So my perspective at 10 years old was, she was just there at my Mam’s (Audrey’s) house one visit and not there the next. I’m sure I was told she died at some point but it wasn’t something I remember discussing or asking questions about.
Enjoy reading. If you have memories of Bess you’d like to share, I’d love to hear them.
Until next time,
Lisa @ Days of Our Lives
Today’s theme is ‘sky’. Think about that for a minute…because I’ve thought about it for 2 days! This is a tough one. It required some creativity. I’m going to present several stories, not a lot of proof, possibly some photos, and a little bit of “this is what I’ve been told”. I think you will enjoy it though. IT’S JUST A BUNCH OF BAD ACTING! – Eugene DRAKE and Bessie WILLIAMS LARKIN Eugene (“Gene”) and Audrey DRAKE were my grandparents and Bess was my great-grandmother. In the latter years of her life, Bessie lived with Gene and Audrey. Bess loved luchador-style wrestling- masks, theatrics, stage names- the whole nine yards. She loved it. And Gene? He loved antagonizing his mother-in-law! (It’s the DRAKE sense of humor- we kind of can’t help it!) Gene would let Bess turn on wrestling and then he’d start in on her about how it was all fake. She would retort that it was real and the fight was on. I don’t know how Gene really felt about the wrestling but I know he loved picking on Bess. The more he’d antagonize her the more riled up she’d get. My mom remembers times that she would be sitting on the couch next to Gene and he’d nudge mom with his elbow and very softly say, “Watch this.” Then he would start rooting for the wrestler that was opposing the one Bess was rooting for and he’d start smack-talking Bess’s wrestler. Mom said it would really get her going and Gene would be on the couch laughing the whole time.
My grandma Audrey (Larkin) Drake, her brother Ray Larkin, and her mom Bess (Williams) Larkin.
Photo of a photo of Bess LARKIN, Audrey DRAKE, and I think the guy is Ray LARKIN.
Portrait of Eugene and Audrey (Larkin) Drake.
Gene and Audrey DRAKE.
Blue Sky luchador mask.
Blue Sky luchador mask REACH FOR THE SKY, PILGRIM! – William DRAKE and John Beason DRAKE Remember Willard Drake who went to Leavenworth? William was his dad and my 3rd great-grandfather. William is said to have been a law enforcement officer at Oak Grove, Oklahoma. (Information supplied by Kerry Langstaff.) I haven’t been able to verify that. I do know that I’m not aware of William living near Oak Grove, Oklahoma but he did live close to Oak Grove, Missouri in 1870. I’m still trying to find some kind of proof for his work as a Constable or Deputy. John Beason DRAKE was William DRAKE’s grandson (son of Poppy Lon- my 2nd great-grandfather). John was an officer in Southwest City, Missouri.
Thin Blue Line flag.
DISAPPEARED INTO THIN AIR! – Bessie WILLIAMS LARKIN’s Family is Gone Like Yesterday! My final short short story is about Bess’s family. I’m hoping that someone will find some information about them. Bess’s family has been so hard to trace. Her maiden name is WILLIAMS. Add that to the fact that she was married multiple times and then add to that commonplace first names and you’ve got a recipe for going nowhere fast! Over the past three decades I’ve been able to identify Bess’s dad and paternal grandfather but it’s been tough going and it’s only been recently that I’ve been able to find information about them beyond names. The WILLIAMS’ are still very much a mystery to me. Bess’s mom’s last name is BELL. It’s still a fairly common name and the problem with a last name like BELL is that it was also a common first and middle name as well as a noun (as in “ring the bell”). All of those things add up to another very difficult family to research. I have identified Bess’s mom, maternal grandparents, and one set of maternal great-grandparents but have not been able to identify anyone in her line beyond that. So just in case y’all feel like doing a little research, Bess’s parents are Samuel Morris WILLIAMS born April, 1864 in Illinois. Up until this year I believed he had died in 1905. That’s what Mam (Audrey) told me and that was the accepted family history among older family members. However, this year I discovered information indicating he did not, in fact, die but rather ran off and left his wife and kids. Samuel’s dad was John WILLIAMS (1840-1904). Bess’s mom was Eliza Emoline BELL (born July, 1871 in Roubidoux, Texas, Missouri and died in 25 February 1934 in Upton, Texas, Missouri). Eliza’s parents were Quincy Adam BELL (1825-1902) and Emily MOODY BELL (born in Missouri) OR Elizabeth Emoline STEPHENSON (1844-1897) (I’m not sure which one or they might even be the same person). Quincy’s parents were John BELL (1795-1848) and Sarah HARDIN (1806-1896). I would love for you all to join in the search. One additional thing. I’d love for you all to consider taking a DNA test to contribute to advancing the family genealogy. If you’re interested but have questions, message me and I’ll be glad to help if I can. I just ordered my test a few days ago and I’m looking forward to getting my results.
This week I’m going back to the last April blog theme that I missed. The theme was ‘prosper’. This one was hard. I didn’t have rich ancestors so I had to think a long time about what it can mean to prosper. I thought about telling you a couple of stories about my 2nd great grandfather, William Larkin, who owned a mine in Aurora, Missouri, in 1900 but I didn’t feel like I had enough information and facts to do him justice yet so instead I started to think about what the Bible considers prosperous.
Deuteronomy 30:9-10 says, “The Lord your God will make you abundantly prosperous in all the work of your hand, in the fruit of your womb and in the fruit of your cattle and in the fruit of your ground. For the Lord will again take delight in prospering you, as he took delight in your fathers, when you obey the voice of the Lord your God, to keep his commandments and his statutes that are written in this Book of the Law, when you turn to the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.”
So that got me thinking about children and how the Bible says they are a blessing from God- a “heritage from the Lord”, “a reward”, they are “like arrows in the hand of a warrior”, and “blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them”. (Psalm 127:3-5) Also, grandchildren “are the crown of the aged”. (Proverbs 17:6) There are many verses but these are the first couple that really hit me and helped get me started down this path. So I looked at my father’s family and narrowed the list down to the 6 couples who had the most children. Out of those 6 couples, I decided to tell you about Samuel Morris and Emeline Eliza (BELL) WILLIAMS. I hope I can do them justice.
I don’t have a lot of information about Samuel’s early life. There is some confusion about who his mother really is. In trying to figure it out, I decided finally to look only at men named John Williams who were married in Illinois between the years of 1853 and 1869 because I felt like that narrowed it down pretty well. Well, let me tell you- I “narrowed” it down to 178 (!!!) John Williams’ who were married in Illinois between 1853 and 1869. (Are you beginning to understand why it’s June and I’m not done with an April blog post??) So rather than make you wait any longer…I’m just presenting you with what I have. They are one of my “brick walls” so I don’t have a lot of information but maybe I can tell a little of their story.
SAMUEL MORRIS WILLIAMS
Samuel was born in April, 1864 in Illinois. His dad was John W. WILLIAMS. Prior to writing this blog I believed his mother was Nancy (WALLS) WILLIAMS. However during the course of preparing for this blog, I located another researcher who has information that suggests John was married to someone before he married Nancy. I am still trying to sort it out, as is the other researcher- Annie Blanchard. (As a researcher I try to always prove everything I’m told rather than accept what I’m told without question. If you want to do your own research you are welcome to review Annie Blanchard’s post about John Williams at her blog at https://digginggenealogy.wordpress.com/2015/06/02/unpuzzling-the-ancestors-part-ii/.) The link takes you to part 2 of a 3-part blog series about John and his last wife, Armazinda.
By the time Samuel was six years old his family had moved to Licking, Texas County, Missouri, where his brother Charles was born in February, 1870. By 1872, Nancy had passed away and John married Armazinda Frances WALLACE. In 1880, the family was still living in Texas County, Missouri, and included Samuel, his dad John and stepmother Armazinda, his brother Charles, and half-siblings Walter, Alice and Edgar. Other siblings born later included Mabel, Frank, Martin, Elizabeth, and Bertie Frances. Throughout his life, Samuel was a farmer.
ELIZA EMELINE BELL
Eliza was born in July of 1871 in Roubidoux, Texas County, Missouri. Her parents were Quincy and Elizabeth (STEPHENSON) BELL. Eliza had 6 known siblings- two half-sisters named Mary and Cordova, and four siblings named John, Surrena, Josephus, and Samuel. Like Samuel’s dad, Eliza’s dad was married more than once. Eliza’s mother was Quincy’s last known wife. Whereas Samuel was (as far as I know) the first child, Eliza was the fifth child of her father and the third child of her mother.
SOMETIMES LIFE IS A SERIES OF PLUSES AND MINUSES – GAINS AND LOSSES
Marriage License for Samuel Williams and Emma Bell.
On 18 March 1888, Samuel married Eliza Emeline BELL in Roubidoux, Texas County, Missouri. Samuel was 23 years old and Eliza was 16. (NOTE: In the 1930 census, Eliza stated she first married at age 17. However based on date of birth and date of marriage, she had not yet turned 17 when she married Samuel. Memory is a tricky thing sometimes.)
I’m going to present Samuel’s and Eliza’s life together as a series of gains and losses. Plus signs for the positives (or gains, marked in green) and minus signs for the negatives (or losses, marked in red). I think this is a good way of showing what their life was like up to the crescendo-point in 1905.
++++ Between 1889 and 1896, they had their first four children- Sarah Ann (Aunt Sadie), Jahu, Hosea (or Hose as Mam always called him), and Ida.
– Then the first in a series of tragedies struck the family. Eliza’s mom died in January of 1897.
++ In 1898 and 1899, Samuel and Eliza had Quincy (who sometimes went by Bennie) and Ivy (Aunt Tack).
+/– In 1900, Eliza had another set of twin boys neither of whom survived. This was the second in the series of tragedies for the family.
+ In 1901 my great-grandmother Bessie was born.
– In 1902, Eliza’s dad (her last living parent) passed away.
+ In 1903 Eula (Aunt Ule) was born.
– Also in 1903 Samuel’s stepmother, Armazinda, passed away. Armazinda was Samuel’s stepmother from the time he was 8 years old so surely he felt some loss (if not significant loss) when she passed.
– Then in 1904 Samuel’s dad (his last living parent) passed away.
After all of these losses, 1905 was an excruciating year for the already hard-hit family.
+ In February, 1905 Martin (Uncle Mart) was born.
– That same year Samuel was killed by a train somewhere near either Cabool, Texas County, Missouri or Mountain Grove, Texas County, Missouri. Sources conflict about the location of his death and no official records or newspaper articles have ever been found to verify this. There was speculation that it was suicide. Some family members believe perhaps it was suicide and others believe that it definitely was not.
I know that Uncle Mart must surely have kept Eliza going on many days when she didn’t want to live anymore. In the space of a decade she had lost both parents, her father-in-law and stepmother, and two children. (Averaging it out, that would be almost one lost loved one PER 1 ½ YEARS!!) I can’t even imagine what it would be like to have that many close personal losses in that period of time. Knowing about all of these losses, it makes me think perhaps Samuel might really have committed suicide. Maybe while walking home he had time to think about all of these losses and simply couldn’t see a reason for living and in one brief moment while he was feeling hopeless, a train appeared and he saw that as a way out. I don’t know. It just makes me wonder.
LIFE KEEPS ROLLING ON
Sometimes we survive even when we don’t want to. I’m glad that Eliza made it through this difficult period of her life. In 1908 Eliza married John Charles SNEARY. Everyone I’ve talked to said he was a good man. He was good to Eliza and good to her children and grandchildren. I love him simply because of this. She needed someone good in her life. After marrying, Eliza and John (who sometimes went by Charles) moved to Enid, Garfield County, Oklahoma. In the 1915 Kansas Territorial Census, John and Eliza show up in Iola, Allen County, Kansas. In the household is a 2 year old male child named Rural WILLIAMS. In 1920 the family is living in Commerce, Ottawa County, Oklahoma and Rural is gone. I don’t know Rural’s relationship to the family- nor do I know anything else about him. If he belonged to Eliza and John, why wasn’t his last name SNEARY? I never heard anyone talk of Eliza and John having any children together and Rural came along too late to belong to Samuel. I have not yet found any answers about Rural. I vaguely remember my grandma mentioning a Rural but sadly, I can’t remember what she said. When she said his name it sounded more like ‘Ruel’.
Eliza would see several of her sons go into the military and be sent into battle during World War I but it appears from records that they all came back home. I hope that she enjoyed many wonderful years with her children and grandchildren.
By 1930, Eliza and John were back in Upton Township, Texas County, Missouri living out their final years together. Eliza passed away there in February of 1934. She was buried in Oakland Cemetery in Success, Texas County, Missouri. John passed away two years later in August of 1936. John and Eliza were buried next to each other.
Every time I tell you a story about one of our ancestors, I’m always amazed at how much they lived through and yet still were able to make a decent life for themselves. These are the stories I want our children and grandchildren to see. I want them to know that they come from a long line of strong people and good-hearted people. I want them to know that they have it within themselves to overcome whatever struggles they are facing and whatever trouble they find themselves in. I hope this is what they get from the stories about our people. Pass these stories on to them! Don’t forget to check out Becky’s blog at http://downintherootcellar.blogspot.com, Theresa’s blog at https://recipesfromlena.wordpress.com/, and Rochelle’s blog at https://theologyformom.wordpress.com/ for more great reading. 🙂 “Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house, that you have brought me thus far?” ~ King David
