My Great Grandfather, Oscar

A livery stable on Green Street in Worcester, Massachusetts--maybe it's the one where Oscar worked as a stable keeper.
Worcester Historical Museum image
http://worcesterhistory.pastperfectonline.com/media/72ABFD71-30B7-4447-88CE-582890716490

My great grandfather, Oscar Ellis, was born in 1852 in Smithfield, Somerset County, Maine to Eleanor Ruth Rankins and Robert Winslow Ellis. Oscar was the fifth of ten children. Two of his siblings, Isaac and Anna, died young. 

When his parents, Eleanor and Robert, moved to Iowa along with other relatives and neighbors, five of Oscar's brothers and sisters--Helen, Henry, Cora Bell, Clarence, and Robert-- went with them. Thomas stayed behind in Maine.

By 1875, both Oscar and his older brother, Edward, had married women from Maine and had moved to Woonsocket, Rhode Island.

Oscar married Julia Tupper in 1875. She died in 1883. I can't find a record for the cause of Julia's death at age 28, but although she was living in Woonsocket as late as 1880, she was buried back in the Woodside Cemetery in Belgrade, Maine along with her parents and siblings. I find no record of any children born to this marriage.

Massachusetts Marriage Record, 26 Oct 1887

In 1887, Oscar married Ellen Maria Healy of Worcester, Massachusetts. Ellen, widow of Thomas Lynch, had been born in England, the daughter of Elizabeth Reardon and Daniel Healy. Oscar and Ellen lived in Worcester after their marriage.

According to Massachusetts vital records, Oscar and Ellen appear to have had one child before this marriage. Oscar James Ellis was born 11 Mar 1886 and died at age 4 months and 12 days of "cholera infantum."

Oscar and Ellen lost another unnamed son, in December of 1887. This little boy lived only 13 days and died of "heart disease."

In 1888, a healthy girl was born to Oscar, then age 36, and Ellen, age 27: Eva Josephine, my paternal grandmother. She was followed by Edward Francis in 1891, Oscar Joshua in 1893, and Ellen Mabel "Nellie" in 1898.

Although Oscar came from a family of farmers, he chose other career paths. In 1874 in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, he lists himself as a carpenter in the Rhode Island state census. In the 1880 federal census, he is a teamster; on his 1887 marriage record he is listed as a horse car driver; by the 1900 federal census he "works in a livery stable;" and his occupation at the time of his death in 1907 is stable keeper.

Oscar died of endocarditis and nephritis in November of 1907, just a couple of months after the birth of his grandson, Eva's boy, Danny, who was my father. I am sure that they met each other during those few months. My dad had a lot in common with his grandfather--he was first a carpenter and later drove tow trucks (a more modern version of driving a horse car, I suppose), and he also suffered from heart disease.

Oscar is buried in the Union Cemetery in Providence, Rhode Island, along with his brother Edward, Edward's wife Profenda Nickerson, and their daughter, Addie.

Ellen, with three children still at home--Edward, age 16; Oscar, age 14; and Nellie, age 10--soon remarried in 1909 to a much younger bachelor. Ellen was 48 and George Farrington was only 24, but he provided a home for Ellen and her children.

Ellen died in 1935, when she was 74 and George was 50. George lived until he was 66, dying in 1951. He is buried next to Ellen in the Pine Grove Cemetery, Fitzwilliam, New Hampshire--the same cemetery where Oscar's sisters, Eva and Nellie and their husbands, Albert Harris and John Hayes, are all buried.

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Relationship between Oscar J Ellis & Clair Marie Harris.

Oscar J Ellis (1852 - 1907)
great-grandfather

Eva Josephine Ellis (1888 - 1943)
daughter of Oscar J Ellis

Daniel Lawrence Harris (1907 - 1972)
son of Eva Josephine Ellis

Clair Marie Harris
You are the daughter of Daniel Lawrence Harris

My Grandmother Eva, "Mimi"

Eva "Mimi" Josephine Ellis Harris, 1888-1943
Old Orchard Beach, Maine. Late 1930s?

I never met my father's mother, who died the year before I was born. I don't remember my father talking much about his family, but I really wish that I had asked more questions. I've heard a couple of stories from relatives, and the rest I've pieced together from historical records. 

My father's cousin, John Hayes, told me that Eva was warm and welcoming, and would meet guests with the song: If I Knew You Were Coming, I'd've Baked a Cake!"

My half-sister, Joan, has these memories of our grandmother, Eva, or "Mimi:" Joan remembers Mimi's house being lit by kerosene lamps. Mimi was a marvelous seamstress, she made quilts, braided rugs, and tatted edging for handkerchiefs. She always had some project in her hands, and carried small sewing projects in her pocketbook, so she wouldn't be without some work at hand. That habit has continued into my own generation.

Joan remembers our father, Dan Harris, at his mother's funeral, saying "this is the first time I've ever seen her hands still."

Mimi's handwork: Edging on a handkerchief
A treasured gift from Joan Harris Foynes

Piecing together Mimi's story

Oscar Ellis of Smithfield, Maine, and Ellen Healey Lynch, who had been born in England, were married in 1887 in Blackstone, Massachusetts. It was the second marriage for both of them. 

Oscar and Ellen had two sons who died young. The first was Oscar James, who was born in March of 1886 and died of cholera infantum in July that same year. The next year, another little boy (unnamed) was born to them on Dec. 13. He only lived two weeks, dying on Dec. 26, 1887 of heart disease. 

After all that heartbreak, their third child was my grandmother, Eva Josephine Ellis, who was born Sept. 14, 1888 in Worcester. Oscar, Eva's father, was 36, and her mother, Ellen, was 19.

Eva was listed in the 1900 Census in Worcester, Massachusetts. She was living with her parents and siblings and was 11 years old. According to the census taker Eva had attended nine months of school during the previous year; and could read, write, and speak English. Her father worked in a livery stable, and her mother kept house. By this time, Eva had two little brothers, Oscar Joshua and Eddie, ages 9 and 7 at the time of the census, and one little sister (who grew up to be my Great Aunt Nellie, and who scared me a little when I was a child), age 2 at the time of the census.

We don't know when or where Eva met her husband, Albert Harris, who was born in New York City in 1884. They married around 1906-07, but I haven't found a record of the marriage yet (Note: I now have their marriage certificate from New Jersey, showing they married in Newark, New Jersty 9 October 1906). In the 1910 U.S. Census they told the census taker that they had been married for three years, which gives us the estimated date for the marriage. 

Albert Harris (1884-1939)
 in later years

Albert and Eva's only child, Daniel Lawrence Harris (my father), was born Aug. 2, 1907. 

At the time of the 1910 census, Eva, her husband Albert and son Daniel Lawrence Harris were shown as residing in Boston, Massachusetts. Dan was 2 years old. Albert was a waiter. 

The family lived at 56 South Huntington Ave., Roxbury, Massachusetts when Albert signed his World War I draft registration card on Sept. 12, 1918. He gave the name of his wife, Eva of the same address, as his closest relative. He was 34 years old, and working as a head waiter at the Brunswick Hotel, Boylston Street, Boston, Massachusetts. The physical description on the card describes him as short, stout, with gray eyes, and auburn hair.

Eva, Albert, and Dan were shown as residing in Boston, Massachusetts in the 1920 U.S. Census. Dan was 12 years old. Eva was listed as being 31 and Albert was 35.  Albert gave his occupation as waiter. 

Around 1930, Albert and Eva, together with Eva's sister Nellie and brother-in-law Jack Hayes bought a piece of property labeled parcel 8-A, formerly the Nims Homestead, in the town of Antrim, New Hampshire. They fixed up the building and The Harris Tavern appeared for the first time on the tax rolls for Antrim in 1931. They planned to run it as a hotel, with an attached golf course. Albert ran the hotel, Eva did the cooking, and Jack and Nellie worked there as well. 

In 1931, the property was valued at $5000 and the annual property tax was $199.50. The Harris Tavern was in existence for only a couple of years, then it disappeared from the town report property tax rolls. Our family stories recount that Albert had sunk all his money into the venture, went bankrupt, and that he never recovered from the failure of the tavern. 

Albert died in 1939, in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts. He is buried in the Pine Grove Cemetery, Fitzwilliam, New Hampshire.

In the 1940 Census, Eva, a widow, was living alone in a rented house at 68 Wold Hill Street in Boston, Massachusetts. According to census information the rent on the house was $35 a month. She had lived at the same address in 1935. Her highest grade completed in school was 8th grade. She did not work, nor was she seeking employment. She was 51 years old.

Eva died in 1943 in Winchendon, Massachusetts. She is buried with Albert in the Pine Grove Cemetery, Fitzwilliam, New Hampshire, U.S.

embeddable family tree updated live from WikiTree

Sources

Telephone interviews by Clair Harris Zarges with John Michael Hayes, Jr. and Joan Harris Foynes. 1989.

"Massachusetts, Births and Christenings, 1639-1915," index, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/FCT5-GXX : accessed 04 Dec 2013), Eva Josephine Ellis, 14 Sep 1888. (Note: "Corrected;" presumably speaking of the father's name, which was given as "Austin J." instead of Oscar J. Ellis).

Ancestry.com. Massachusetts, Birth Index, 1901-1960 and 1967-1970 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013. Original data: Department of Public Health, Registry of Vital Records and Statistics. Massachusetts Vital Records Index to Births [1916–1970]. Volumes 92–160, 162, 168, 175, 212– 213. Facsimile edition. Boston, MA: New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, Massachusetts.

"United States Census, 1900," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/M9B6-TTQ : accessed 04 Dec 2013), Eva J Ellis in household of Oscar J Ellis, Precinct 4 Worcester city Ward 8, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States; citing sheet , family 175, NARA microfilm publication T623, FHL microfilm 1240697.

"Massachusetts, Births, 1841-1915," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/FXJ9-P8W : accessed 04 Dec 2013), Eva Ellis in entry for Daniel Harris, 1907.

Birth Certificate for Daniel Lawrence Harris: True copy of record of birth, C82253, issued Apr. 30, 1999, from the Registry of Vital Records and Statistics, Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Reg. no. 1622, Vol. 568, Page 497.

"United States Census, 1910," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/M22S-ZHH : accessed 30 Nov 2013), Daniel L Harris in household of Albert Harris, Boston Ward 19, Suffolk, Massachusetts, United States; citing sheet , family 48, NARA microfilm publication T624, FHL microfilm 1374634013), Daniel L Harris in household of Albert Harris, Boston Ward 14, Suffolk, Massachusetts, United States; citing sheet , family 162, NARA microfilm publication T625, FHL microfilm 1820736.

Albert's World War I Draft Registration Card: "United States World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/KZNR-933 : accessed 03 Dec 2013), Albert Harris, 1917-1918; citing Roxbury City no 14, Massachusetts, United States, NARA microfilm publication M1509, (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d); FHL microfilm 1685006.

"United States Census, 1920," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/MFMT-GRR : accessed 30 Nov 2013.

Year: 1920; Census Place: Boston Ward 14, Suffolk, Massachusetts; Roll: T625_736; Page: 8B; Enumeration District: 381; Image: 472. Ancestry.com. 1920 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2010. Images reproduced by FamilySearch.

 Annual Reports of the Town Officers of Antrim, New Hampshire, 1930.https://archive.org/details/schoolfinancialr1930antr. Accessed 7 Mar 2014.

Year: 1940; Census Place: Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts; Roll: T627_1669; Page: 61B; Enumeration District: 15-420A. Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.

Eva's death date is from her headstone at the Pine Grove Cemetery, Fitzwilliam, New Hampshire, U.S. Clair Zarges: Personal visits to the Pine Grove Cemetery, Fitzwilliam, New Hampshire in the 1990s.

Ancestry.com. Massachusetts, Death Index, 1901-1980 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013. Original data: Department of Public Health, Registry of Vital Records and Statistics. Massachusetts Vital Records Index to Deaths [1916–1970]. Volumes 66–145. Facsimile edition. Boston, MA: New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, Massachusetts.

Buddy as a Young Man

Here are a couple of early photos of my dad's first cousin, John Michael Hayes, Jr., who was always known to us as Buddy. He was born in Worcester, Massachusetts, as was my dad, Daniel Lawrence Harris (1907-1972). 

John Michael Hayes, Jr.
1919-2008

After college and serving in the Army, Buddy moved out to California from Massachusetts and wrote radio stories and then film screenplays. Steven DeRosa wrote a book about Buddy's work with Alfred Hitchcock on four films, Rear Window, To Catch a Thief, The Man Who Knew Too Much, and The Trouble with Harry. 

What I remember best about Buddy was his wonderful laugh, and the good fried summer squash he made for us when my parents, sister and I visited his home in southern California (which had once belonged to one of The Beach Boys! We got to shower in the Beach Boys' shower!). We also visited one summer when the Hayes family was living at a spectacular estate in Winter Harbor, Maine. He and his very gracious wife, Mel, had some very funny little kids (our third cousins, if I'm figuring correctly). My sister and I have some great lobster memories from Winter Harbor.

You can read more about Buddy's career in the Wikipedia article under his name. 

The DeRosa book is reviewed on Amazon. 

Here is an interview with Buddy about script writing: How They Write the Script: John Michael Hayes.

Buddy's obituary appeared in the New York Times in November, 2008.

Road Trip; Old School Style

This post first appeared on The Zees Go West in December 2008.

Family vacations were a big deal when I was a kid. My father often used his two weeks off all at once and we traveled in the family car that whole time. We bought new clothes before hitting the road; we called them our vacation outfits. For some reason they always included a hat, although we rarely wore casual hats in the other parts of our lives.

Here are my Aunt Nellie, little me, my mother, and littler Bucksnort, while on a visit to Jerry and Jimmy's Grandpa, who also appears elsewhere on this blog. He's the guy with the boots and jeans and for-real cowboy hat; the one who is grinning and no doubt cooking up another trick to make his San Francisco visitors remember their trip to his Arizona ranch forever. He isn't wearing his vacation clothes, but the rest of us are. My dad and Uncle Jack were off branding cattle, much to their dismay, so they didn't appear in this photo.

You can tell that these are vacation clothes that we are wearing because they are matching outfits, and because we kids are wearing hats with our names stitched on them.

And here we are, much later, back in civilization. That's our neighbor's house and car in the background; and Bucksnort, my dad, and me in the foreground. We are not wearing vacation clothes, although they might have been road trip outfits at some time in the past. You can tell that we are no longer on vacation because we are not wearing hats. In spite of the fact that we have no labels stitched anywhere, revealing our names, my dad seems pretty certain that he has hold of the right girls.

We Are Family--Not Many Crooks and Not Many Crazy

This post first appeared on The Zees Go West in February 2009.

In the past week [remember, this was in February of 2009, when we still lived in eastern New Mexico] I have had several pieces of news from our far-flung family. During the Academy Awards ceremony my father’s cousin, screenwriter John Michael Hayes (known to our family as Buddy), was honored in the memorial video. It was the first that I had heard of his death. Next, I found out that my first cousin on my mother’s side of the family, the Reverend Charles Crabtree, had been named President of Zion College, a Pentecostal Bible school that had recently thumped itself down right in the midst of liberal New England.

Two cousins, two men, so different. The first had worked with Alfred Hitchcock to make the movies Rear Window, To Catch a Thief, The Trouble with Harry, and The Man Who Knew Too Much. He adapted and toned down big-budget melodramas like The Carpetbaggers and Peyton Place so that the movie scripts could pass by the censors. The second was a man of God whose college students are winning over their adopted town by doing the good works that they feel are their calling, working at the local homeless shelter and helping out in the soup kitchens of northern New England.

During the same week, the oldest member of Beez’s family, an Italian immigrant, single lady, and devoted auntie who is now 96 years old, was taken to the hospital in an ambulance and was later returned to her home to continue bossing around her caretaker through another spring cleaning. We are rooting for her, and hope to yet attend her 100th birthday celebration.*

Beez and Bucksnort and I find ourselves out here on the High Plains, a tiny little family. Though our parents are gone and our children all far away, we were reminded this week that we are still part of a huge and diverse family. In honor of that extended family, I’d like to share this nice old fashioned poem, written about our relatives by Fern Gallup Kinney (click to enlarge it a bit). It appears in her hand-typed and self-published book, Kith and Kin of the Kinneys, which is the genealogical history of the descendants of Israel Kinney (1738-1791) and his wife Susannah Hood (1745-?), who together had 14 children. It is a remarkable piece of pre-Internet research. If you are a relative (and we are legion--Kinneys, Kenneys, Blakelys, Belyeas, Crabbs, Crabtrees, Gibersons, Kimballs, McGees, Gallups, etc.) you will be interested to know that the entire book is available in pdf format and may be downloaded from http://home.comcast.net/~kinneyed/KithAndKin_image.pdf. If you are interested in this document, I would recommend that you download it, as it seems to disappear from online every once in a while.

'

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*Later update: Auntie Mary died at the age of 97