Sampsons and Klines-my maternal line

I wanted to share some photos that I was so graciously sent by a new-found cousin who is also a descendant of the Kline's and Sampson's. I know that my Osgood family will probably enjoy them. Consider it a New Year's gift! I hope you all are as thrilled with them as I am!

This is a photo of Amelia Wendel Kline. She is with her son in law, George Cutler. Amelia lived several years after her husband, Karl, died in 1907. The 1910 census lists her living with another daughter and son-in-law, the Linn's. Her occupation is listed as a "washerwoman." Apparently, Amelia spoke mostly German, and very little English. She died in 1923. Her

daughter, Caroline Juliann, married Miles Ellsworth Sampson.

Miles Sampson's mother was Mahala Fordyce Sampson.

Here is a fantastic photo of her. She was born in 1835 and died in 1931. She looks like a very strong

lady, doesn't she? It was her husband, TJ, who died after saving his team of horses from a dust storm in 1879.

Mahala's son, Miles Ellsworth, was the father of Lillie Pearl Sampson. As mentioned above, he married Caroline Kline. Here are two photos of them, one early on and another at their 60th wedding anniversary.

The children in this picture are their four eldest: Lillie Pearl (born in 1894), Effie (born in 1899), Albert (born in 1898), and Mabel (born in 1901). Since she looks the oldest, I'm assuming the girl on the left is my great-grandma Lillie Pearl. I just love the curly hair and ribbons!

A Sampson Story...with a picture!

I'm thrilled to get some new photos of some of my Sampson ancestors. A recently found cousin (2 times removed) has shared them with me on Facebook. I'm loving seeing these pictures-its like a holiday gift! This photo is of Miles Ellsworth Sampson and his wife, Caroline Kline Sampson, with their three eldest children. The picture was probably taken around the turn of the century. The oldest daughter, Lillie Pearl, is my great-grandmother. Since I don't want to just throw up a picture without a story, here is one that happened a few years before this photo was taken.

Lillie Pearl Sampson was born near what was Elk, Kansas, on the Stowers place on Middle Creek in December 1894. The next year she and her parents Miles Ellsworth and Caroline Julianne Kline Sampson traveled by covered wagon to homestead newly opened land in Arkansas. Baby Lillie rode for 5 weeks on the dusty trails to her new home. Her father built a cabin and cleared new land. The future looked promising for this young couple who homesteaded in this new state. But they soon found out "Yankees" weren't welcome in Arkansas. So after approximately four years of hard work Lillie awoke one morning to the sounds of angry "neighbors" cross plowing her parents beautiful crops and abundant garden. The civil war had left hostile feelings and they were told to get out. So the family with five year old Lillie and her baby brother Albert William who was born in Arkansas in 1898 returned to Kansas.

Back in Kansas, Miles and Caroline went on to have six more children.

Stay tuned for more on the Sampsons!

Billy Fox

Among the stacks of papers my mom gave me that she had collected on her family's history was this note. It was written in my grandmother Lucile's handwriting. It reads like an obituary--I don't know if grandma copied it to have for herself. I haven't found the obit in any Kansas newspapers yet. Grandma was one of William's older sisters. Recall from my "Turning 40" post that William was the third son to pass away as an infant. I remember my mom telling me that her mom told her that some neighbor kids had whooping cough and that they thought he caught it from them.

William Wesley Fox, infant son of Mr. and Mrs. W.H. Fox was born April 22, 1934 and departed this life March 17, 1935 at the age of 10 months and 26 days. He leaves to mourn his departure his parents, Mr. and Mrs. W.H. Fox and seven sisters, Elnora, Myrtle, Lucile, Roselma, Minnie, Lillie and Mildred. His Grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. M.E. Sampson of Lincolnville and a host of other relatives and friends. Two brothers, John and Walter preceded him in death.

Billy was a loving baby and during his short stay had won a place in the hearts of all who knew him.

"A precious one from us is gone, a voice we loved is stilled;

a place is vacant in our home which never can be filled.

God in His wisdom has recalled the boom his love had given and through the body slumbers here the soul is safe in heaven."

Card of Thanks

We wish to thank those who were so kind to us during the illness and loss of our dear one.

-Mr. and Mrs. William H. Fox and family

40 years old

On this day forty years ago, I was born. The year I turn forty is 2009. The President is Barack Obama, and the country is at war with terrorists around the world. (Or at least we used to be). We also are in a global economic recession, some commentators say its the worst it has been since the great depression. I'm married to a chemist by training, executive by life's happenstance. He works for a French company as the Vice President of U.S. Operations out of our home. We have 3 kids aged 10, 8 and 15 months. We are getting ready to move into a bigger house. Overall, I feel blessed.

Turning 40 can be traumatic for some. On this day, it has put me into a contemplative mood and made me think about my female ancestors. What were their lives like when they turned the big 4-0? I decided to look at my four great-grandmothers and see what life looked like for them at my age.

Florence Martha Partridge Osgood

Florence turned 40 in the year 1915. The President was Woodrow Wilson. The world was at war, but the United States was not yet engaged. The Lusitania had been sunk in May of that year by Germany. Model T Fords were popular...the 1,000,000th was manufactured that year.

In Marion County, Kansas, Florence Osgood was busy. She was the wife of a hard working farmer Clark Osgood. This is a photo of the Osgood's, although I am not sure of the year.

At the age of 40, Florence was the mother of nine children. Her kids ranged in ages from 19 to 2. She was not done having babies--a year later she would give birth to my grandfather, Everett Harlan Osgood. She would go on to have an eleventh baby, a daughter, who would die at the age of five months. But at the age of 40, she would not know of this heartache. She was probably too busy!

Jennie Olivia Shipp Graham

Jennie turned 40 in 1921. Warren Harding began his short Presidency that year. Charlie Chaplin's famous silent move, "The Kid" opened in theatres. Babe Ruth was wowing crowds with home runs in baseball parks nationwide-he would set a record of 137 career home runs shortly after Jennie celebrated her 40th birthday.

Jennie was the wife of Guy Graham, a fruit farmer who had become an expert in horticultural affairs in the state of Idaho. During his career, he was the state horticultural inspector, the

commissioner of agriculture for the state, as well as a legislator in the state house in Boise. In 1921, Guy was also on the Board of the Idaho State Fair Association.

When Jennie turned 40, she had borne 8 children. One, a daughter, Dorothy, had died as a five year old. Like me, she had a one year old baby. This was Jennie's youngest child. Her oldest

surviving child was nearly 14. The family lived in Fruitland, Idaho.

The Idaho Statesman reported that at the end of July, 1921 (which was just a couple weeks after her 40th birthday), the family went on a short vacation to Payette Lakes with the Bossen and Bishop families.

It seems that life was full for the Graham family when Jennie was my age.

Alice Nerissa Dutton Shelton

My great grandmother Alice turned 40 in the year 1935. Bob Hope made his radio debut that year. Amelia Earhart was making records in aviation. The board game Monopoly hit the market for the first time. The country was in the midst of the Great Depression. Franklin D. Roosevelt was early into his first of three terms as

President. Life was hard, especially for farmers.

Alice was the wife of farmer Ira Shelton. Ira was employed as a farm manager. He managed a 200 acre farm for $1 a day and a place for his family to live.

Alice had her children when she was young. By the time she turned 40, her two children were nearly adults. Her son Richard had married the year before, and her daughter June was 15.

Alice was an extremely hard working woman. According to her daughter, she would pick apples in local orchards each morning. She could pick more apples than anyone, and then come back home at 11 a.m. to cook lunch for all the hired help.

The family's income did not allow for any extras--just money for basic needs, which the one dollar a day hardly covered. Her daughter June writes, "Mother never felt we were poor and did everything so we wouldn't feel it."

One entry in a journal that my Grandma June wrote is interesting to me, given my background: "If Dr. Reynolds came by and ask if she'd go to help deliver a baby, she'd grab a clean apron and go. Dr. wanted her to start a maternity home in Emmett but she didn't do it." It seems that my great-grandmother had some natural talent for midwifery, even if she did not have the formal training. (Actually, family lore says that Alice's own grandmother was known to be a midwife in the 1800's) Given June's perception of the midwife as someone who did not have any formal training and would just go with nothing but a clean apron, its no wonder she was a little concerned at my decision to have two of my three babies at home with a midwife!

I never knew Alice, but I think I would have liked her a lot. She died in 1959.

Lillie Pearl Sampson Fox

Like Alice, Lillie Pearl turned 40 in 1935. While Alice was in Idaho, the Fox family lived in Kansas. This photo of her was from her teenage years--I only have pictures of her at this age, or much older in group shots.

Lillie was the wife of farmer William Harrison Fox. The family raised hogs, chickens and sold graded eggs. She loved to bake angel food cakes, tend garden, and raise houseplants. She braided her waist length hair and wound it on the back of her head every morning. She baked bread and had wonderful Christmas celebrations at her house.

The year Lillie turned 40 was a year of heartbreak for her. She had to bury her youngest child, a son. William Wesley Fox died at the age of 10 months on March 17, 1935. She had buried her two other boys as well: John Delbert in 1915 (3 months old) and James Walter in 1929 (1 week old). I have a heart rendering note written by Lillie's daughter, Lucile, about William Wesley. Space does not permit in this post, but I'll share it soon. All in all, Lillie Pearl birthed 10 babies and raised 7 daughters to adulthood.

In thinking about the lives my great-grandmother's led, I cannot help but feel that I have it easy. While the world was different for each of them in 1915, 1921 and 1935, I can still identify with life's struggles, heartaches and joys. They all had to work physically so much harder than I do--they had to be extremely strong an resilient women. Knowing this, I feel fortunate to know that I hold a piece of each of them in me. On days when I think I have it rough, I can reflect on that and draw strength from it.