Alice's father was a miner, as was her brother, Henry, and, eventually, her husband, Thomas William Davis. Henry came to America to mine for copper in Bisbee, AZ. A couple years later, Alice followed him to marry his co-worker, Thomas Davis. This was about 1905.
What we've heard about her death is that she started to hemorrhage after delivery, and Thomas couldn't get his car started in time to get the doctor. The death certificate states that she was dying when the doctor finally did arrive.
This left her baby, Roderick, an orphan, and he died a month later and was buried with her. It also left her three remaining children orphaned, one of which was my wonderful grandfather, Thomas.
All three of the kids went to the church orphanage and are listed in the census taken in 1920. My grandfather is listed as 3 1/2 years old then--two years after her death. So, he must have been only about a year old when she died.
Alice loved to read and had beautiful handwriting. She also took great care of her family photos, jewelry, and her wedding dress. Unfortunately, some of her step-children did not do the same. They took her jewelry and it was never seen again. They took her wedding dress to cut into material for clothes for their children. And, eventually, they took her inheritance after her father died.
One of her stepchildren, however, was very kind. Her daughter made it a point to return the wedding dress (which was never cut apart) and all the family pictures and history she could, to our family. The wedding dress was returned to my great-aunt 80 years after Alice died.
Alice's life makes me think how important it is to preserve the stories of our ancestors. They are stories that tell us a great deal about ourselves, too. I hope to pass on as much information as I can to my children and grandchildren, nephew and nieces.
Alice's father was a miner, as was her brother, Henry, and, eventually, her husband, Thomas William Davis. Henry came to America to mine for copper in Bisbee, AZ. A couple years later, Alice followed him to marry his co-worker, Thomas Davis. This was about 1905.
What we've heard about her death is that she started to hemorrhage after delivery, and Thomas couldn't get his car started in time to get the doctor. The death certificate states that she was dying when the doctor finally did arrive.
This left her baby, Roderick, an orphan, and he died a month later and was buried with her. It also left her three remaining children orphaned, one of which was my wonderful grandfather, Thomas.
All three of the kids went to the church orphanage and are listed in the census taken in 1920. My grandfather is listed as 3 1/2 years old then--two years after her death. So, he must have been only about a year old when she died.
Alice loved to read and had beautiful handwriting. She also took great care of her family photos, jewelry, and her wedding dress. Unfortunately, some of her step-children did not do the same. They took her jewelry and it was never seen again. They took her wedding dress to cut into material for clothes for their children. And, eventually, they took her inheritance after her father died.
One of her stepchildren, however, was very kind. Her daughter made it a point to return the wedding dress (which was never cut apart) and all the family pictures and history she could, to our family. The wedding dress was returned to my great-aunt 80 years after Alice died.
Alice's life makes me think how important it is to preserve the stories of our ancestors. They are stories that tell us a great deal about ourselves, too. I hope to pass on as much information as I can to my children and grandchildren, nephew and nieces.
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