While I understand that family history research is often a frustrating activity, I am currently stymied by the several dead-ends that I seem to have encountered in my last few forays into the databases and records. And I fear that I am now looping—that is, following the same trails repeatedly.
For example, my father and his siblings all recall an Aunt Mabel, sister to Leta, who lived in Vancouver. In Leta’s Bible, there is even a bookmark from Mabel. However, this is all I have been able to uncover about this sibling. The 1890 census was destroyed, and she is not listed in the 1900 census with the rest of the family. Actually, this census shows Julia Scott as divorced and head of household with four children still at home (Aaron, Nellie, Louise and Leta). The 1920 census has David and Julia as being married with two children at home: Louise and Leta. No Mabel.
Using this information, I supposed that Mabel could likely be a half-sister, born to David and a different mother. This would make her younger than Leta (although if he had an affair with this woman while married to Julia, then she could be older). As she lived part of her adult life in Canada, I went into Canadian birth and marriage records, finding a Mabel Scott with a father named David and a mother named Margaret/Maggie. This seemed to be quite a good lead; however, after some cross-checking, this Mabel Scott (and another I located) were both children in larger families with long-term married parents. These families ran historically parallel to my own, making them unrelated.
And that leaves me with a mysterious Aunt Mabel, most likely born to David Scott, who lived as an adult in Vancouver. I don’t know if she was older or younger than Leta (who was born in 1894), if her surname was Scott, whether she married or not, or how she got to Canada (born there or moved there). Quite a puzzle.
I have also run into several other puzzles, which I have not been able to solve:
Leta married her third husband Ora Freeman in 1927; he was born on October 10, 1885 and divorced. However, I have been unable to learn when and how their marriage concluded—were they divorced or did he die? What I do know is that something happened in around 1929/1930, because Leta sent her children to live with their father and grandmother at that time. I also wonder about his prior marriage and family (if he had one).
Although I know when and how her fourth husband, Robert Fields died in 1946 and that he was born in Butte, Montana in 1893, I cannot find their marriage record or any other information about him. I do know that they were not married in Toledo/Lucas County, because I searched those records.
As for husband number five, Claud Bassett, I know a bit more. He was born in 1886 in Kalamazoo, Michigan, married Leta in 1948 in Angola, Indiana. They divorced in 1952, I would like to know when he died, and about any previous or subsequent marriages.
I know her last husband, Richard Eckman, was married previously, but I am curious about his prior family. Was he divorced or widowed? Although there were children, I do not know how many. One of the points of confusion is that his name is Richard Adrian Eckman, and that I continue to run across Adrian Richard Eckman who may or may not be the same person.
As for the mysterious one-week husband, I am not even sure where in the timeline he falls. I’ve been basically in this information state for over a month.
On the other hand, while reviewing the 1900 census document that listed Julia Scott in Millbury, Ohio, the last name of the first listing on the page caught my curiosity. It is Simon and Nettie Metzker with their four children—Louzetta, Ethel, Willie and Simon. Willie—or William—was my grandfather Edward’s father. Basically, when they were children, my paternal grandparents’ (Vivian and Edward) parents (Leta and William, respectively) were neighbors for a time. As no one in my family has EVER mentioned that, I doubt if they even remembered.
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