From Hazel’s autobiography, written in 1971
Hazel Mary Winsworth was born July 4th, 1903, about 9:30 Saturday morning, at the home near Cooperton, Oklahoma, in Kiowa County, The youngest of 6 children of Hannah Clementine Gross and William Crubaugh Winsworth.
This was in the horse and buggy days. One of our main things to play with was a donkey named Old Judy. Father put cultivator wheels on an old buggy and cut down an old harness to fit her. All our friends liked to go for a ride when they came to see us. She went real slow going away from home that went faster when going back.
When we went to Gotebo, which was about once a month, we did our main shopping, because Gotebo was a larger town then Cooperton. The prairie dog towns along the way were interesting for us to watch. There were very few cars at this time, the doctor being one of the 1st to get one. Father would have to get out and hold the horses when a car passed, also when the train went through Gotebo. The horses were afraid of the strange noise they made. It took all day to go to Gotebo, shop, and get back home. About once a year we would go to Hobert, the county seat. It was there we saw the Ringling Brothers Circus, which was a great day for us.
I started to school at Union Dale. Some of my first teachers were Mister Fry, Mrs Mason, and Miss Lura Decker. We also attended Sunday school at Union Dale. Father was the song leader. When I was about 11, we moved to Lincoln County where we stayed 2 years. I went to Forest School a short time, while [living] at Aunt Lissie Gerardy’s. Then we moved to the Kickapoo neighborhood. I went to the Kickapoo school. Lettie Ambler was my teacher. We attended church at the Forest Congregational Church. I belonged to the boys and girls farm club (later called 4-H Club) where I won first prize on bread I baked, winning a China bowl as surprise (which I still have).
We moved to Colorado at La Junta. I attended the North La Junta School the 5th, 6th, and 7th grade. I saw my first pictures show there, a silent movie. I had a lot of friends there. I hated to leave, but the folks moved to Grand Junction Colorado, where I attended the 8th and 9th grades.
I worked summers and after school some. The flu was terrible there in 1918. When World War One ended a large parade was held in all the whistles blue early in the morning on November 11th, 1918, the first Armistice Day, in celebration of the end of the war. The flu spread terrible that day.
I saw my first airplane there. It landed and I took a picture of it with Glenn's Kodak. The pilot talked to me and showed me some pictures of Grand Junction he had taken from the air with a camera just like Glenn’s. I had some friends that took me with them in their car to see many sights. I saw Monument Canyon and many other mountain areas.
In the spring of 1920, we started back to Oklahoma. [My brothers] Clyde and Royal both had cars. On a narrow pass, Royals car began to slide, and he had to be pulled back onto the narrow road. The distance down really looked scary. We stopped in Kinsley, Kansas, where the men worked through the harvest. Clyde and his family then went on to Tulsa. We went to Lincoln County. Royal’s [family] stayed at Offerle, Kansas, until after Chester Ray was born, September 7th, 1920. Later they moved to Kiowa County, Oklahoma.
In about 1921 I joined the Forest Church [in Lincoln County], which was a Methodist Church at this time. In 1921-22 I stayed with Grace and Ray Potter at the Potter Hotel [in Sparks, Lincoln County OK], helping them and attending Sparks High School 10th and 11th grade. Sparks only had 3 years of high school there, so in 1923 I worked in Chandler [Lincoln County] for Mrs Lee Dawson (a banker's wife) and graduated from high school. That spring I took the teacher's examination. I taught the Little Rock school the winter of 1923-24. The folks lived south of Stroud in this district. Minnie [the wife of my brother Clyde] passed away the latter part of July, leaving Wilma, a three-day old baby. Mother went to Tulsa to take care of her. I helped father get ready, canned all the fruit jars full of fruit before he moved to Tulsa. I was left there [in Stroud] and boarded at Garry Castleberry’s that winter. Deep Fork Creek would get out of its banks and we couldn't get out any way at times. I did not want to be out there alone so didn't take the school [position] back, District 70.
The summer of 1924 I went home [to my parents in Tulsa]. Ralph [the son of my brother Clyde in Tulsa] took the smallpox. About the time Ralph was about over them, father, mother, and Wilma all took them. Mother had had something the doctor called smallpox. father didn't have then so didn't think he would have them, so the doctor didn't vaccinate any of them; all had light cases. I took care of them, one cow to milk, baby bottle to see to, washing to do by hand, up and down nights etc. Was I busy! Under quarantine 2 months.
All the schools were gone when I got out. I borrowed money and went to Central State Teachers College, Edmond, Oklahoma in 1924-25. In 1925-26 I taught Pleasant Grove School District 106, the school just south of Forest. I had 63 [pupils], several larger than I. I boarded at Ben Miller’s. In 1926-27 Sylvia Conley and I taught Oak Grove School, District 64, south of Stroud. We boarded with Edd Castleberry’s (a bother of Garry). We had lots of ice this winter; hard to get up and down hills on foot.
The summer of 1927, Uncle George Winsworth came to see us; he was not well. I went home with him. His daughter Vivian Ragland came after him, but he would not get out of bed until I packed my suitcase. He only lived about a week after he got home. I helped Vivian take care of him. L stayed in Memphis [TN] 6 weeks with [cousin] Vivian, [her husband] Will, and [their son] Billy. Vivian showed me so many things of interest in this area. We took a boat ride up the Mississippi River on the Harry Lee boat, my first boat ride, through parks, zoo, gardens (where I saw my first banana growing), over the line into Mississippi, and many other things of interest. That was when I made up my mind I wanted to travel and see the United States.
I came home [and] entered school at Central State Teachers College at midterm. I finished my first two years of college, getting my life certificate to teach, given for 2 years at that time. The next year I taught, paying back the money I borrowed. (Thanks to Grace and Ray Potter for helping me.)
I came back with Helen Laird in Pawnee County for the week and got the Laird School District 38 that year, 1928-29. Helen and Vern Hopp were married that summer. The next 2 years Helen and I taught at Watchorn, Diamond School District 37, 1929-30 and 1930-31. I taught the lower grades there too. Ray was working at Watchorn in the oilfield for Magnolia. I met him in 1928 at Watchorn.
Ray and I were married August 17th, 1930 at Tulsa OK. After a week's trip in the Ozarks, Arkansas, and Missouri, I thought one year. We bought a house and moved into it on the Magnolia lease in the Sam's Field, 7 miles west on Fur Ave. The next 17 years I kept house. Ramona Clementine was born September 9th, 1933. On April 2nd, 1934, mother passed away. Father and Wilma lived with us until father's death and until Wilma was married. June stayed 2 winters. The girls went to Cooper school, two miles south and a quarter east of us. Wynona Ila was born June 10th, 1941. Before Karen Sue was born on July 27th, 1943, we had moved into the company house, where we lived a short time. A new boss came, so we moved to Lucien for 3 months. It was snowing when we moved. The little girls had colds, couldn't keep even heat. Ray took the mumps; he was very sick 7 weeks. All three of the girls and Royal took them from him. It was the hardest form of the mumps; all were very ill. While Ray was in the hospital, some of the folk moved our things into our home in Perry, when we got possession of it. 1404 North 7th, where I still live.
In 1946 I had major surgery. 2 months later [my daughter] Ramona took polio and passed away August 25th, 1946. In 1947 Ray had a car wreck; he had back and internal injuries. He was in and out of the hospitals for the next 4 years, passing away May 15th, 1951. Both are buried at Grace Hill Cemetery, Perry. A truck driver went to sleep and ran into his car as he was going to work about a mile west of Perry. Two years before Ray passed away, I started back to teaching, attending school in the evenings, Saturdays, and summers, graduating from Stillwater A&M College, now Oklahoma State University, Bachelor of Science in Education, May 13, 1955.
Wynona and Karen Sue attended Perry Elementary, Junior High, and High School. They both belonged to the band for 7 years, making several trips out of state with them. Wynona played a clarinet and Karen a flute. Wynona went to Girls State in her Junior Year. She was Band Queen Attendant and Cherokee Strip Queen in 1958. Karen was Band Queen and Queen Attendant. Both girls went through all the stations in Rainbow and received other honors.
I taught Lone Star School District 15, ten miles north west of Perry for five years, 1949 to 1954. I did not feel well so took off the winter of 1954-55. The first three weeks of the term I substituted in the 4th grade for Roberta Carpenter at Red Rock; she was ill. I went to Stillwater three days a week the first semester, to finish up the work on my degree. I was feeling better so in the fall of 1955 I went to Red Rock as a second-grade teacher. The next two years I was asked to take the sixth grade. Then went back to the second grade. In 1965 they put me in the first grade the last three years. I taught in Red Rock 13 years. In departmental work I taught science most of the time, also math some.
I retired in 1968. The teaching personnel gave me a silver plate with all their names engraved on the back and a small candy dish. The junior seniors gave me a corsage; the PTA a corsage. My home room, with the help of the home room mothers, had a party with a beautiful cake and ice cream following our dinner. I received some gifts from the children.
Since then I have had a few trips, but my health has not been too good for over two years: cancer surgery in the colon and eye surgery for glaucoma in one eye. I also have cataracts. I feel fair but not too strong.
Our family all joined the First Baptist Church where Ray was a member. The girls went to Falls Creek several summers.
Both girls married right out of High School. I wanted them to attend college. Wynona married Ralph Herman Passow and joined the Lutheran Church. They have two sons, Ralph Herman Jr and Ben Roy, born August 31, 1962, in Perry, Oklahoma. Karen Sue married John Herman Bode. They lived at Del City until about three years ago [1967] when they bought a farm a little over nine miles south of Perry. They have two children, both born while they were at Del City. John Raymond started to school there. Lori Dawn is their daughter.

From a biographical article in July, 1993 Hazel VanBebber To Be Honored On 90th Event
In celebration of her 90th birthday, Mrs. Hazel "Winsworth" VanBebber will be honored on July 4 with a card shower and open house. The come and go event will be held from 2 to 4 p.m. at her home at 1404 North Seventh street [in Perry, OK], and hosted by her daughters, Mrs. Ralph (Wynona) Passow and Mrs. John (Karen) Bode, a niece, Wilma Hasenfratz, and a friend, Carol Roelen. In addition to her two daughters and sons-in-law, Mrs. VanBebber boasts five grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
teaching and education record omitted as redundant
Since 1930, she has attended the First Southern Baptist church in Perry. She worked in the primary and adult Sunday school departments and was the first teacher of the Harmony Sunday school class. She is a past leader of the Women's Missionary union and Girls auxiliary. For a number of years, She also was head of the junior department, and also of the Senior Five department.
Mrs. VanBebber is a member of the Eastern Star. She was formerly active in the Noble County Teachers Association and is currently a member of the Noble County Retired Teachers Association.
She has researched her family genealogy and has traced the VanBebber branch back for 14 generations, to Holland. She also enjoys drawing and oil painting and is a rock collector. She has a rock from all 50 states and from approximately 50 foreign countries, and uses them to create art objects.
Excerpt from another article: Mrs. VanBebber Honored On 90th Birthday, Relates Family History, Genealogy
In the VanBebber genealogy, it has been noted the family married into descendants of the Daniel Boone family on eight occasions.
Drusilla E. Witherspoon Morehead was her mother's grandmother and was a distant cousin of Rev. John Witherspoon, who signed the Declaration of Independence. While living in Pennsylvania, she made a red, white and blue appliqued quilt, which she completed in 1845, and was used on the bed at the recent open house. Mrs. VanBebber's mother was the recipient of the quilt on her wedding day, Dec. 23, 1885, in Clay Center, Kan.
Clementine Gross' husband was William C. Winsworth. He made the Cherokee Strip land run in 1893 from the Kansas border to Grant county, just northeast of Deer Creek. Her father, Theobald Gross, was a soldier in the Civil War. Drusilla’s husband, James Morehead, went to the 1849 Gold Rush in California. Mrs. VanBebber's grandparents were from Scotland, Ireland, England and Germany.