I don't think anyone goes through life without facing adversity of one kind or another. I have already written a fair number of blog posts about ancestors who have suffered significant misfortunes. Horace overcame the greatest adversity when he had to adjust to a life without legs. Obviously, there is no need to write about him again, but perhaps we can take a look at Horace's sister, Cora. She hasn't seen any time on my blog yet.
Cora was born September 28, 1887, in Pulaski County, Illinois. She married Bailey Harrell Arter in September 1908, and they moved up near Chicago not long after. Cora's first child, Nellie Ruth, was born in 1909, and two sons, Charles Pearson and Bailey Harrell, followed in 1911 and 1913. Up to this point, any adversity Cora had faced was likely fairly typical. Even the death of her mother on March 13, 1917, is something she would have expected to encounter. Based on newspaper clippings, Cora made the trip downstate to attend her mother's funeral which occurred on March 14th.
By May of 1917, though, an unforeseen adversity arrived in the form of scarlet fever, a bacterial childhood illness most common in those 5-15 years old. Both Charles and Bailey were diagnosed with it on May 19th. Neither the vaccine nor antibiotics would be available until the mid-1920s. As a result, the boys likely suffered from fever, chills, headaches, and vomiting, and there was little that Cora would have been able to do to help. Charles lost his battle on May 21st, and two days later on May 23rd, Bailey also succumbed to the disease.
Cora was left with only her oldest child, Nellie. Even though Cora was young at 29, she didn't have any more children. I can only imagine the hole left in her life after the deaths, in rapid succession, of her mother and her two sons, Charles and Bailey. I have little additional information on Cora beyond her death in 1945, so it's unknown how she handled this adversity, but it's certainly one no parent expects to face.
No comments:
Post a Comment