My grandmothers

 I'm always looking for a subject to write about and this week I decided to talk about my three grandmothers. Sadly, they all died before I was born.

have been interested in genealogy for quite a few years now and have researched several of my relatives on my father’s and mother’s side of the family. I still have more to do but today I decided I would start writing about my grandmothers. My mother was adopted so I have three grandmas.  None of which I ever got to meet. So sorry about that but it is what it is. The women I’m writing about in this project are Viola Mae Holt Blankenship, my father’s mother; Lillian Blanchard Nisbet, my mother’s adoptive mother, and Doris Stevens Forslund, my mother’s biological mother.

Since I’ve met none of them I’ll have to depend on what records I’ve found on them and what other people have shared with me. Some of my notes may be speculative but with that said, I shall begin.

Viola Mae Holt Blankenship

I think Viola Mae was called Mae by most folks. She was the 5^th child of George Washington Vernon Holt  born in Missouri and Mary Ellen Weatherly born in Tennessee..G.W.V. Holt, her dad, worked as a blacksmith. Her siblings included Alva Smith Holt, Willian Aldred Holt, Arlie Vernon Holt, Mary Maude Holt, George Albert Holt, and James Robert Holt.

Her father’s father was James R. Holt and his mother was Martha Stark. Her mother’s father was Washington Yancey Weatherly and her mother was Emily Jane Brannock.

Mae was born Sept. 26, 1883 in Auburn, Nebraska and died Jan. 24, 1938 in Port Townsend, WA

In 1900 the census listed her as a cook living with her brother, Alva

On Christmas eve 1903 she married Lew Gene Blankenship in Winlock WA

On July 16, 1905 she gave birth to her first child, Velna in Salem, Oregon

On Dec.5, 1908 she gave birth to her second child, Arthur in Oak Harbor, WA

On Sept. 6, 1910 she gave birth to her third child Elva in Eugene, Ore

On Feb 18. 1914 she gave birth to her fourth child George in Albany, Ore

On Jan. 3, 1923 she gave birth to twin sons in Galvin Wa (John and Jim)

The census record of 1910 listed her living in Eola, Polk County 3 miles west of Salem

The census record of 1920 listed her living in Greenwood Lewis Co (Galvin)

The census record of 1930 listed her living in Port Townsend, Wa

 I don’t remember my father or aunts and uncles discussing their mother, at least not to me but then I was only a child. I know she was loved and her unexpected death was heartbreaking. The only kids left at home when she died was John and Jim. They had just turned 15. John would marry five years later at age 20 and Jim would marry at age 21.

I lived with my dad and grandfather in the same house dad grew up in and I knew my grandmother’s presence was still there. The kitchen sink was lower than usual because she was apparently a short person and there was an antique kitchen queen cupboard in the kitchen that was used for several years.I had been told that Grandpa bought the cupboard as a gift for his wife after she gave birth to twins when she was 40. My daughter now has it in her home. Grandpa would continue on as a widower for 22 years. He retired from the local paper mill and raised chickens in his retirement.

My aunt Velna once said she felt her mother would have lived longer if they hadn’t taken her to the hospital. She felt hospitals were not as clean as they should be and people often passed on once they were admitted. I so wish I had asked my dads and aunts and uncles about grandma Mae but it just never occurred to me to do so.  There are several relatives I wish I knew more about. Genealogy does that to you.

Lillian Snyder sang two songs at my grandmother’s funeral and the pall bearers were William Clay, W.C. Meyers A. Nebert, Jimmie Bright, Jess Harrison, and Guy Whiteman. There must have been a lot of flowers there as her memorial book shows four pages listed.

Most of her siblings didn’t live to be very old. Her sister died at 79 but the rest were younger:

Alva died at 58

William died at 59  (heart attack)

Arlie died at 63 (extended illness)

George Albert died at 36  (TB)

James died at 19 (drowned in the Chehalis River)

Mae died at 55  (pneumonia)

 

                                                      Mae with my dad and his twin in 1923

Mae with my aunts and uncles Elva, George, and Arthur

                                                  Mae with a friend. Mae is on the right

Mae with my dad and his brother outside their bedroom window on Kuhn St that would later be my room

     

                                             Mae's dad and mom at their farm in Oak Harbor

                                              Uncle Arthur, Aunt Elva, Mae, and Aunt Velna

some of her siblings at the rombstone of a brother

Mae on right holding Uncle George, Velna standing in front, Elva on right and Arthur standing in front. My grandpa Gene standing behind Mae

                                                                  Mae Holt Blankenship

Cora Lillian Blanchard Nisbet

Cora Lillian (Lilly) was born December 8, 1879 in Port Townsend territory. She died of cancer on February 9, 1942 in Port Townsend. Her father was Henry Blanchard who was born in NY. He was a lawyer in Seattle before moving to Port Townsend. He operated an experimental farm in Chimacum and worked with farmers in the state regarding poultry and dairy farming. He was also a county commissioner and involved in the construction of the county courthouse. He died in 1928.  He married Mary Ida Foster and she died in 1940.

Their children included:

Henry Foster Blanchard

Cora Lillian

Edna Mary

Jennie Gwendolyn

George Prescott

Vernon Kent

 

On Sept. 6, 1914 Lilly married John L. Nisbet. John was born in Scotland and came to Chimacum, in 1906. He was active in various farm organizations and community groups.

Lillian helped build up the Chimacum Church and was a Sunday School teacher. She was the Chimacum country correspondent for The Leader and she taught in the public schools for four years. Then she was appointed as a poultry instructor. Along with her father she spent many years introducing the poultry industry in the eastern and western parts of the state.

Pall bearers at her funeral included T. R. Yarr, H.F. Purnell, Robert Jackson, Si Lockhart, Gurden Bill, William Ballou, Mr. Phillips, Arthur Cays, W.S. Porter Howard Eldridge, W.J. Martin and William Bishop.

 Lillian and John adopted three children. James Nisbet, Robert B. Nisbet and Alice Gray Nisbet.

                                                     Lillian sitting in front im middle

                                                Nisbet farm on Center Road in Chimacum

Doris Marguerite Stevens Forslund

Doris was the biological mother of my mother. She was born April 18, 1907 in Ortonville, MN and she died June 25, 1942 in  Elma, WA.

Doris gave birth to my mother on Feb. 22, 1926 in Tacoma WA. She named her Harriet Yvonne Caufman. The father was Harry Coffman Haskell but he declined to marry her.

When I first started researching my mother’s biological family, clues I received sent me on a trip to McCleary WA.  The museum there had quite a display of Harry and his war history. From there we drove to Montesano where I met a cousin of my mother, Harry Denny. Harry and his wife were very helpful to me and allowed me to take several pictures they had of Doris’ mother for copying. Harry’s mother was Erma, sister of Doris.

Doris father was Adelbert (Bert) Stevens born in Downing, Wisconsin 1875.  He died June 6 1959. He married Ava Peterson in 1903 and they had two girls. They divorced 7 months after Doris had put her baby up for adoption. She never had any more children. 

In 1910 Doris lived in Prior, Big Stone County, MN. Doris’ father was listed as a farmer but her birth certificate   three years earlier lists him as a stonecutter.

In 1920 Doris lived in Idun, Aitkin County, MN

In 1930 Doris lived in Hoquiam, WA

In 1940 Doris lived in Aberdeen, WA

Doris married Fred Forslund Feb. 11. 1931 in Vancouver, WA

Poor Doris. I found an article in the Bellingham Herald that said Fred was arrested

Because the neighbors called he was beating his wife. When they got there, Doris was missing but Fred was intoxicated. The officers located a large moonshine still when they attempted to arrest Fred who then gave them battle until he was handcuffed.

Doris was in Oakhurst Sanatorium in Elma when she died of TB on June 25, 1942

Note: my mother once told me that she tried unsuccessfully to find out who her biological mother was. This was in the 1940’s. Sadly, both her adoptive and biological mother died within 4 months of each other in 1942.

         

                                                                       Doris and Fred

                                               Doris with her mother and sister, Erma