Birdie's sisters were Iva Mae Wamsley Workman, Levia Jane Wamsley Hawn, Sarah Wamsley Osborne and Mary Wamsley Rudd. Another sibling, thought to be a brother, died at birth and was buried on the family property.
The Wamsley family was one of the pioneer families of Ohio, and Birdie is a direct descendant of Isaac Wamsley, the German-American Revolutionary War patriot. The town of Wamsley, aka Wamsleyville, in southeastern Ohio, is named for this family. Birdie was born and raised on the Wamsley homestead on Turkey Creek in Adams County, outside of Wamsleyville and near Peebles, Ohio.
Birdie married William Foster "Bill" Riley, of Otway, Ohio, on 13 Feb. 1943 in Urbana, Champaign County, Ohio. Birdie had four children: Jerry Eugene Dunn (son of Bert Dunn), Georgie Foster "George" Riley, Goldie Ann Riley (later Williams) and Thomas Willis "Tom" Riley. Birdie and Bill divorced in 1966. Birdie was preceded in death by her son George, and she suffered one miscarriage.
Birdie loved gardening and raising animals, including chickens, ducks, geese, rabbits, dogs and cats. She canned much of her own food and made wonderful jellies. In addition, she enjoyed flea markets and she was an avid quilter and a journal writer. In her journals she always made note of the weather, visits she had made, and notes on who had come to visit her. Birdie was raised as a Methodist and attended Methodist churches in addition to churches of other Christian denominations. Although her tombstone reads that she died on Aug. 5, she actually died 4 August 1998. She passed away at her #14030 Pinhook Road home outside of Sinking Spring, Ohio, in a house built by her former husband. Birdie had suffered heart disease for many years and passed away after a heart attack. She is buried in Evergreen Cemetery outside of Peebles, Ohio, along with her mother and father, son Jerry, sisters Iva Mae and Sara, her Aunt Mae Wamsley VanZant, her grandparents, her great-grandson Bradley Eugene Dunn and many other friends and relatives. She was a wonderful grandma who is very much missed.
Genealogy:
Mother: Goldie Gertrude Tomblin
Father: William Bland Wamsley
Maternal Grandfather: James Tomblin (married to Cora Hunt, his mother was Liza Jane Adkins)
Maternal Grandmother: Cora Hunt Tomblin (married to "Jim" Tomblin)
Paternal Grandfather: William Trimble Wamsley (married to Levia Jane Jones)
Paternal Grandmother:Olevia "Levia" Jane Jones Wamsley (married to "Trimble" Wamsley)
Maternal Great Grandmother 1: Liza Jane Adkins Tomblin (mother of James Tomblin)
Maternal Great Grandmother 2: Louisa Daulton
Maternal Great Grandfather: Alexander "X" Tomblin
Maternal Great Grandmother: Cernia (may be Serena) Evans Hunt
Maternal Great Grandfather: Christopher Hunt
Paternal Great Grandmother:Mary Wikoff Wamsley
Paternal Great Grandfather: Christopher Wamsley
Birdie's sisters were Iva Mae Wamsley Workman, Levia Jane Wamsley Hawn, Sarah Wamsley Osborne and Mary Wamsley Rudd. Another sibling, thought to be a brother, died at birth and was buried on the family property.
The Wamsley family was one of the pioneer families of Ohio, and Birdie is a direct descendant of Isaac Wamsley, the German-American Revolutionary War patriot. The town of Wamsley, aka Wamsleyville, in southeastern Ohio, is named for this family. Birdie was born and raised on the Wamsley homestead on Turkey Creek in Adams County, outside of Wamsleyville and near Peebles, Ohio.
Birdie married William Foster "Bill" Riley, of Otway, Ohio, on 13 Feb. 1943 in Urbana, Champaign County, Ohio. Birdie had four children: Jerry Eugene Dunn (son of Bert Dunn), Georgie Foster "George" Riley, Goldie Ann Riley (later Williams) and Thomas Willis "Tom" Riley. Birdie and Bill divorced in 1966. Birdie was preceded in death by her son George, and she suffered one miscarriage.
Birdie loved gardening and raising animals, including chickens, ducks, geese, rabbits, dogs and cats. She canned much of her own food and made wonderful jellies. In addition, she enjoyed flea markets and she was an avid quilter and a journal writer. In her journals she always made note of the weather, visits she had made, and notes on who had come to visit her. Birdie was raised as a Methodist and attended Methodist churches in addition to churches of other Christian denominations. Although her tombstone reads that she died on Aug. 5, she actually died 4 August 1998. She passed away at her #14030 Pinhook Road home outside of Sinking Spring, Ohio, in a house built by her former husband. Birdie had suffered heart disease for many years and passed away after a heart attack. She is buried in Evergreen Cemetery outside of Peebles, Ohio, along with her mother and father, son Jerry, sisters Iva Mae and Sara, her Aunt Mae Wamsley VanZant, her grandparents, her great-grandson Bradley Eugene Dunn and many other friends and relatives. She was a wonderful grandma who is very much missed.
Genealogy:
Mother: Goldie Gertrude Tomblin
Father: William Bland Wamsley
Maternal Grandfather: James Tomblin (married to Cora Hunt, his mother was Liza Jane Adkins)
Maternal Grandmother: Cora Hunt Tomblin (married to "Jim" Tomblin)
Paternal Grandfather: William Trimble Wamsley (married to Levia Jane Jones)
Paternal Grandmother:Olevia "Levia" Jane Jones Wamsley (married to "Trimble" Wamsley)
Maternal Great Grandmother 1: Liza Jane Adkins Tomblin (mother of James Tomblin)
Maternal Great Grandmother 2: Louisa Daulton
Maternal Great Grandfather: Alexander "X" Tomblin
Maternal Great Grandmother: Cernia (may be Serena) Evans Hunt
Maternal Great Grandfather: Christopher Hunt
Paternal Great Grandmother:Mary Wikoff Wamsley
Paternal Great Grandfather: Christopher Wamsley
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