When I first decided to dig into my paternal grandpa's family history, I knew a great deal about the rest of my family lines, but almost nothing about his. As I believe I've mentioned previously, Grandpa and Grandma lived far from their families of origin in Sioux City, Iowa, and the only family photos on display were of myself and my cousins. One afternoon about 25-30 years ago I sat down with Grandpa to interview him. He gave me the names of everyone in his mother's family, and a scrapbook album put together and kept by his mother. Sadly, I set out to replace pages and secure some of the items in his mother's album, and not knowing about archival methods, likely did more harm than good. Also, not thinking more into the long term and not having access then to digital processes, I didn't keep copies of anything. I know, I know.
What I did discover after putting all of the info from Grandpa into the late-90s version of Ancestry, was that his youngest great-aunt was actually born 5 years AFTER the death of her purported father. I tried to find where this might be an error, and the dates stayed where they were. Back to Grandpa. Why, yes - Fern (the youngest) was in fact the daughter of Aunt Minnie, and per Grandpa "left with Grandma to raise."
Minnie McClain was born in 1881 in Cherokee County, Iowa. Nothing is known about her upbringing, and two photos of my great grandmother with her sisters are unlabeled, so I don't know what she looked like. She was just turning 18 when her father died after a battle with influenza and the only mention of Minnie personally is a single sentence in the social column of the local paper (March 1904) regarding her returning home from Marcus, Iowa where she had been helping to manage a hotel. Marcus was a distance of only 10 miles from home, but a full day's journey by wagon or carriage. She was 3 months pregnant and unmarried.
When the family next appears, they are enumerated in the 1905 Iowa State Census in Sioux City. Mary Jane McClain is living with her 5 minor children and "adopted granddaughter" as stated in the record, far from family in Cherokee County. On Fern's delayed birth register, filed in Iowa in 1938, Charles and Mary Jane McClain are listed as her natural parents, both aged 50 at her birth and signed by Mary Jane! So very glad to have asked grandpa before he passed away!
Just before Fern turned 6, Minnie married an Englishman in Bonesteel, South Dakota. Fern continued to live with her grandmother, but later a later marriage record near where Minnie was living in Arkansas indicates that if she never lived with her mother, she certainly traveled to visit her.
I have a newspaper clipping wishing 8-year old schoolgirl Fern a happy birthday (complete with photo), and one family photo where Fern is presumed to be the 12-year old standing next to her aunt (my great grandmother). Fern was employed at a young age, while it was still typical to finish school after an 8th grade education. At 16 she was working as a messenger, and at 18 and 20 as an operator, both for Western Telephone Company, while living at home on Geneva St.
Fern married for the first time in Iowa, to Harry Grimmett, who was the nephew of Minnie's husband George Stevens! When I was initially finding these records, I didn't have all of the pieces and had thought that George could have been Fern's father, but I now have additional details and don't think that this is or could be the case. Fern and Harry had one daughter, Phyllis Corrine, and divorced after 2 years of marriage. In 1930, Fern and Corinne are living with Mary Jane, and in 1932 Fern married Ernest Anderson, and they had one son, Richard. In 1940, Phyllis Corinne is listed as "Anderson" and while I have not found documentation, I believe Ernest may have adopted her. The family was also living with 86 year old Mary Jane in this record.
I am unsure what, if anything, happened between Fern and Ernest during WWII, but Ernest's middle name was Wilbur, and in 1946, the aforementioned marriage record in Arkansas enumerates the marriage of Fern Anderson and Wilbur Anderson. Mary Jane had passed away about 6 weeks prior, but that is the only event I know of that may have affected Fern's life at the time. Someday perhaps I'll find an explanation. Four years later Fern is listed as "separated" in the 1950 Federal Census, still living in Sioux City and with Richard, then age 15.
Based on Phyllis being missing from Iowa Census and other records by 1950, it appears that she preceded her mother to California. A railroad employment card lists Fern as a telegrapher living in Chicago in 1952, Fern's mother and another aunt passed away in 1957, and her aunt's obit lists Fern Christianson of San Diego From 1960 - 1970 (San Diego city directories), Mrs. Fern E. Christianson (widow of James M.) is listed at a waitress at Mercy Hospital (now Scripps Mercy), living near what is now San Diego International Airport. I feel confident that this is her.
Fern died in 1978 in San Diego, with both of her children living there as well. Efforts to locate or contact descendants of Phyllis (d. 2018) or Richard (d. 2009) have failed. Writing this has been a good exercise, I know a bit more about her than I thought. At least I can identify where she fits in this family.
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