My Place in the Queue

After the 1874 birth of their first son, Byron Herbert Callin, John H. and Amanda Walker Callin had a baby daughter on 11 August 1875. They named her Leota.

Leota died on 7 April 1876; we don't know what caused her death, but we can imagine how devastating the loss must have been to the young family. They must have remembered this little girl fondly, because Byron named his first child Opal Leota, even though he would have been too little to remember much about his little sister.

They would not have another child for three years after Leota, but when they did, another son was born.

Bowling Green High School

John Quincy Callin was born 11 July 1879 in Bowling Green, Ohio. In comparison to his scholastically precocious elder brother, John was more physical. He played football, a game that wasn't much older than he was; and he enlisted in the Army to support the American effort in the Great War.

That physicality didn't prevent John from following the family vocation, and like his father and elder brother, he became a teacher. Looking at the family and correspondence he left behind, he also seemed to have a wry sense of humor, and the "Callin luck" that my family jokes about to this day.

Bertha May Greenlee was born 5 December 1885 in Arcadia, Hancock county, Ohio to Allen and Ava Alice (Hales) Greenlee. Her father, Allen, died very soon after she was born, in 1887, and her mother remarried in 1889. Alice's new husband, George Cramer, adopted Bertha.

Bertha May Cramer
c. 1900

I wrote about the Greenlee family's origins in The Unknown and the Unknowable. Since writing that piece, I've learned a few new details - such as the date of Allen's death, and where he and his father, Robert, were buried. I've also learned more about Allen's mother's family, the Bollmans; but I'll save that for after the Callin Family History is done!

John and Bertha married in 1906, which may explain why he did not head west to South Dakota and Montana with his brothers. Instead, the young couple had their daughter, Yvonne, the following year, and in 1910, John was teaching in Fostoria. Their son, Norman, was born in 1912, followed by the death of John's father, John Henry Callin, the following year.

John (left) and Prentice Callin
c. 1918

The mid-1910s saw John and Bertha move to Lorain, near Oberlin, where John's widowed mother was living with his sister, Emma Matcham. John worked as an insurance agent for Prudential for several years. That's where they were in 1917 when John and his brother Prentice enlisted in an Ohio army unit.

From the scant documents I found, I don't believe the brothers were in the army for very long before the war ended; I don't think John went away, other than to complete basic training. He returned to insurance in the Fostoria area. John and Bertha had their third child, my grandfather, in Findlay, Ohio in 1920, and little Bobby was about a year old when John's brother, Byron, persuaded him to take a teaching job in Otsego county, New York.

John & Bertha in FL
with their dogs

John and Bertha weren't in New York for more than a couple of years, and they returned to Fostoria around 1925. But, once again, they seem to follow in Byron's footsteps and between 1931 and 1935, they moved to Orlando, Florida, with their two sons.

John & Bertha Callin

Over the course of the late 1930s and 1940s, John built several cottages, which he intended to sell as part of the real estate boom going on around Orlando. We have a number of letters to their son, Bob, during his enlistment in the Army, and almost all of them include an update on the troubles John was having with getting work done by contractors, or problems with tenants and prospective buyers. It's hard to read those letters and not think about how much more successful John might have been in Florida real estate if he had only waited twenty more years for Walt Disney to come along!

Of course, John would not live to see that day. He died in 1956, at 76 years of age; Bertha survived until 1971, though - and she died on September 20th, less than two weeks before Disney World opened. I'm sure by then she was well accustomed to the old "Callin luck."

Yvonne, Ginny, and Ed Weimar

     I. Yvonne W. Callin (1907–1974) was born in Fostoria, Ohio, on 9 May 1907. She was 15 or 16 when her father took the family to New York state, and she was attending Fostoria High School at the time, so she stayed behind, living in the home of her grandparents, George and Alice Cramer. About 1931, when her parents were preparing to move to Florida, Yvonne married Thomas Nathan Wirebaugh (1908–1971).

Yvonne and Thomas had a daughter in 1932, but soon divorced, and Yvonne moved down to the Orlando area so she and little Virginia could be closer to her parents. In 1939, Yvonne remarried Edwin John Weimar (1890–1958), a Purple Heart veteran of the First World War. Ed had survived the war with some lingering health problems, and spent his final days in the Soldier's Home in Brevard, Georgia.

       A. Virginia Ann Wirebaugh (1932–2004) was born in Fostoria, Ohio, but grew up in Winter Park, Florida. After her mother died in 1974, Ginny remained in Florida the rest of her life, occasionally visiting family in Ohio and Arizona. She never married, and never had children, but she loved her cousins.

I remember she always sent birthday and Christmas cards to my sister and me when we were growing up, and in the 1990s, after long distance phone calls became less expensive, she liked to call periodically and chat. After I started researching family history, I asked her about her grandparents, but if she talked about them much, I failed to save any notes. She didn't like to talk about her mother, who she missed, and I never asked about her father. She had a dry, dark sense of humor, and I was sad I never got a chance to take my kids down to Florida to meet her.

Norman Callin

     II. John Norman Callin (1912–1964) was born on 8 September 1912 in Fostoria, and when his family returned from New York, he attended Fostoria High School, as Yvonne had. Norman was the humor editor for the school paper, which doesn't surprise me in the least to discover. After he finished high school, his parents and younger brother moved to Orlando, and it appears Norman went with them.

Norman married in 1933, and by 1940, he and his wife had a son and a daughter. Their family remained in the Orlando area at least until some time after the end of the Second World War, and they had their second son there in 1946. But at some point, Norman moved them to Baltimore. He suffered from congestive heart failure, and died there in 1964, at only 52 years of age. His daughter is still living.

       A. John Richard "Dick" Callin (1933–1993) was born and raised in Florida, and moved with his family to Maryland in the late 1940s or early 1950s. He married Edna Mae Barkley (1938–2013) around 1961, and they had five children - a son and four daughters. One daughter, Barbara Ann, died in infancy in 1971.

       B. Michael Norman Callin (1946–1976) was born in Florida, and would have been very small when the family moved to Maryland. I don't know much about him, other than he appears in the Florida Death Index; my dad remembers his cousin Mike, as they would have been about the same age when the two families visited each other in the 1960s. Dad said after Norman died, the families lost track of each other, and he was sad to hear that Mike had died so young.

Bobby Callin
c. 1921

     III. Robert T Callin (1920–2007) entered the world in Findlay, Ohio, on 16 December 1920. One of my first posts on this blog, You Shoulda Seen the Other Guy, related a few anecdotes about him; he was my Grandpa Bob.

Bobby was the baby of the family, as Yvonne was 13 and Norman was 8 when he joined them. He was very small when John took his teaching job in Schenevus, New York, and he actually very nearly died there:

Schenevus, Nov 21--Little Bobbie Callin, the 23 month old son of Mr. and Mrs. John Q. Callin was severely scalded Sunday evening at his home on Main street.  Mrs. Callin, the contralto soloist at the Baptist church, was attending an evening service, Mr. Callin remaining home with the two children, Norman, a lad of 8 years and little Bobbie.  In some unexplainable manner the little fellow got under his father's feet when the latter was carrying a large basin of hot water, and the child was badly scalded on the right side of his body.  There are  two very severe burns on the torso and while the right side of head and face is also affected, it is hoped there will be no scar or disfigurement on face or head.  Dr. E. C. Winsor was quickly summoned and did everything possible to relieve the little sufferer.
The Callins moved to Schenevus from Ohio about 18 months ago and Mr. Callin is one of the teachers in the high school here.  Sympathy is expressed by a wide circle of friends and sincere wishes for the little one's speedy recovery.

Obviously, Bob survived - and lived a long life. If you read You Shoulda Seen the Other Guy, you will begin to understand what we mean when we talk about the "Callin luck" - but as bad as things may have gotten, he always seemed to bear it and bounce back with a joke.

A World War II romance

In 1939, Bob graduated high school, and enlisted in the U.S. Army. He started out at Camp Blanding, not far from home; but soon, he was assigned training out west, in Yuma, Arizona, where he learned how to be a mechanic on aircraft for the new Army Air Corps. When he transferred to Luke Field, near the little farm town of Glendale, Arizona, he met my grandmother, Nancy Gay Witter (1925–2004). I've written about that, too, in When Things Got Serious.

After the war, Bob decided to leave the military and attended seminary. He completed degrees at Arizona State University and at Grand Canyon College, and began a career teaching math in the Glendale Union High School District. They bought a home on Gardenia Lane, and stayed there for nearly 50 years. Nancy eventually got her degree at Grand Canyon, as well, and taught art in the Glendale schools until she retired.

Bob & Nancy, about 1985
in their house on Gardenia
with Sam (the cat) and Charlie (the dog)

Bob and Nancy raised two children, my dad and my aunt; they left behind five of us grandchildren, and we've managed to produce a crop of of eleven amazing great-grandchildren.

In her last few years, Nancy developed a condition that left her unable to form memories properly. We explained it to the kids by comparing it to Dory, the fish with short-term memory loss played by Ellen Degeneres in Finding Nemo - but the effects were nowhere near as harmless or amusing as simply forgetting things and repeating herself. If Bob left her sight for any length of time - to shower or make coffee, for example - Nancy would quickly panic, and try to leave, not remembering that she was in her own home and thinking that she was in a stranger's house.

They moved into a house two doors down from the house where their daughter ran a bed and breakfast in Peoria, and Bob patiently took care of her for several years until she died in 2004.

After that, Bob seemed determine to enjoy himself while he could. He made some new friends (Hi, Ruby!), found work officiating weddings at the bed and breakfast, and began taking long drives around the state - probably reliving the many camping trips and adventures he and Nancy had enjoyed over the years with their RV and motorcycles. Dad and the family worried about him, an 85 year old man out on the road by himself, but he seemed happy. He always came home safe.

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That's as up-to-date as I can bring this branch of the family without talking about living people - unless you want to read about me, in which case, I have a book for you on Amazon!

I hope you enjoyed it, especially if you're one of my cousins, however distant! Or nearby. I've lived within 10 miles or so of Norman's grandchildren for almost 12 years, now, but haven't managed to make contact with them.

If you're one of them - or if your family is related in any way to James Callin - drop me a note. You can use the comment section below, email my Gmail address (callintad at Gmail.com), or follow the link to the Callin Family History group on Facebook.

Myers Family B - Cooler Than Cool

For several weeks, we've been looking at the significant progeny of Thomas J. and Amanda (Myers) Cool. Today's post will look at their three youngest children - if you missed the two previous Cool posts, feel free to scroll back and take a look!

V. Bessie Leah Cool (1893–1980) 

Bessie married Albert Glen Cramer (1893–1967) on 11 July 1928 in De Kalb County. Albert worked as a railroad conductor. They moved to Albion from Garrett around 1960. They do not appear to have had any children. Albert died of a heart attack in 1967, and Bessie suffered a stroke in 1980.

VI. James Don Cool (1896–1972)

James grew up on his father's farm in Union township, and enlisted in the U.S. Army on 18 February 1918. He was working in the Double Fabric Tire Company when he enlisted; after he returned from war, he went to work as a stoker in a gas plant. He married Elizabeth Susan Roan (1904–1969) on 8 February 1923 in Defiance, Ohio, and they set up their home in Auburn, Indiana. He worked as an inspector, probably in the Auburn Automobile Factory.

Elizabeth died of acute congestive heart failure at age 64. James was working in maintenance at the post office when he died of a stroke at age 76. They were buried in the Woodlawn Cemetery in Auburn.

     A. Robert Roan Cool (1924–1988) grew up in Auburn, and went to Toledo, Ohio, to enlist in the U.S. Army on 12 February 1943. After the end of World War II, he married Erma L McCullough (1925–2003).  Erma was a public school teacher, and Robert worked at the Dana Clutch plant as an engineer. He suffered from diabetes from about 1978 and died of a heart attack at age 64. Erma died at 78 of acute respiratory failure.

VII. Frances "Frankie" L Cool (1902–1977)

Grew up in Auburn, and married Ervin Wesley Pion (1895–1980) on 19 November 1918. He was the son of Florentine Frank Pion (1852–1927) and Lucretia Lou Null (1873–1945). They lived in Union City for a few years, but between 1926 and 1930 they moved back to Ervin's native Michigan, settling in Otsego in Allegan county. He worked as a foreman in the gas plant there.

The couple had eleven children together - seven daughters and four sons. Four of their daughters are still living.

     A. Helen A Pion (1919–2011) was born in Indiana, and moved to Michigan with her family when she was about seven or eight years old. She married Robert Alfred Johnson (1918–1994) on 17 September 1937, and they lived in Allegan county. They raised one son, who is still living. Helen and Robert are buried in the Mountain Home cemetery in Otsego.

     B. Wesley Ervin Pion (1922–1978) married Betty Kathryn Brewster (1926–1991) on 13 July 1942, and he enlisted in the Army two months later on 28 September. Wesley was wounded on 10 July 1945 while serving in the Pacific theater. He was discharged on 18 November 1945.

The couple had two sons, one still living. Their younger son was named for Wesley's younger brother, who died in 1944 while he was away in the war.

     2. Howard Albert Pion (1948–2002) was a Vietnam era  Army veteran and was employed at the Plainwell Paper Company, until his retirement in 1991 due to disability. He was survived by his wife, his son, his daughter, and four grandchildren.

     C. James Thomas Pion (1923–1999) enlisted in the U.S. Army on 23 March 1943, and served out the Second World War. He was discharged as a Private First Class on 21 January 1946, and was married to his first wife that summer. He married again in 1956; both wives survive him.

     D. Alice Jane Pion (1926–1995) married George Edgar Taylor (1916–1991) on 22 April 1946. George was the son of John T. Taylor (1866–1943) and Maude Belle Day (1881–1956) of Allegan county, Michigan, and had served in the Second World War as a Tech 5 in the U.S. Army, enlisting 6 June 1942. They raised one daughter, still living, and were beloved by their grandchildren.


     E. Howard Albert Pion (1931–1944) died after accidentally dousing himself with gasoline and setting himself on fire when he was 13 years old. His older brother, Wesley Ervin, named his younger son "Howard Albert" in 1948 to honor him.

Found on Newspapers.com

     G. Kaye Frances Pion (1935–2004) married Leroy Herman Ramp (1932–2010) on 31 December 1952. Leroy was the son of Herschel Herman Ramp (1889–1976) and Nova V. Nuckles (1912–1994). He proudly served his country in the United States Navy during the Korean War and was employed by Humphrey Products for over 24 years. Kaye worked for the Kalamazoo Regional Psychiatric Hospital for 24 years, retiring in 1989. The couple raised one daughter, who died in 1991.

     1. Laurinda Kaye "Laurie" (Ramp) Riley (1953–1991) died at only 37 years of age, leaving behind her husband and two daughters.

     H. Charles Clifford Pion (1937–1997) graduated from Otsego High School, and enlisted for two years, from 18 December 1956 to 27 November 1958, and he married on 12 March 1960. I was not able to find much more information than that, though I suspect he left behind a family when he died at only 60.

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And there you have it: all the Cool kids! (I think Nova V. Nuckles is my new favorite name, you guys!) As I said, there are still four more sisters in the Pion family who are still living, and each has children and grandchildren of their own! I won't ever knowingly post information about living people here, but if you want to help me tell your family's story, please do reach out.

Next week, we will be done with the Ferguson branch of the family, and I'll take a "bye week" before we get back to people with the surname Callin. 

As always, if you are related to anyone mentioned in this post, please say hello - you can drop a comment below, join our Callin Family History Facebook group, or email my Gmail address: callintad at gmail dot com.

Corrections and editorial comments are not only welcome, but encouraged.

Myers Family B - More Cool Kids

If you're new to this blog, I've been working my way down the family tree from my own 5th-great grandfather, James Callin, as part of an ongoing project to revise the Callin Family History published in 1911 by my 2nd great uncle, George W. Callin. I'm getting excited, because we're getting close to finishing up the Ferguson branch of the family - which means we're almost into MY branch of the family!

We began looking at today's family last week, with Tom and Amanda (Myers) Cool, and their eldest children: daughter, Helen Cool Davis; and son, Charles Lewis Cool. Let's pick up where we left off with their second son:

III. Walter Perry Cool (1887–1979)

Walter was a lifelong Indiana farmer. He grew up on his father's farm in Jackson township, and married Edna Barnhart (1890–1960) on 21 December 1907. They set up their own farm near Wilmington, in De Kalb county, eventually moving to Union City later in life. They raised two daughters, and their grandson

Edna suffered from chronic kidney disease which put her in the Barkley Nursing home for the last month of her life; she suffered a stroke and died of respiratory failure in December of 1960. Walter lived to be 91 years old; he lived with arteriosclerosis for his last 15 years before he, too, suffered a stroke in 1979.

     A. Phyllis Naomi Cool (1909–1927) grew up and married Roy Lee Free (1903–1980) on 18 July 1925. The couple had a son, but it wasn't long before Phyllis fell victim to typhus in 1927. Walter and Edna adopted the baby boy, Leroy. Roy eventually remarried, and had two sons with his second wife in their home in Louisville, Kentucky.

     1. Leroy E Cool (1926–1982) was adopted by his grandparents, and raised as their son; he never used the surname Free. He grew up on their farm, and eventually enlisted in the U.S. Army, serving from 28 March 1945 to 26 November 1946 at the end of World War II. Leroy married Eva Mary Ording (1921–2014) after the war, on 26 November 1947. They were married for 35 years and had four children together before Leroy's death in 1982. Eva survived until 2014, and when she died, she left two surviving children, 8 grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren.

     a. Phyllis Catherine (Cool) Wachter (1951–2000) was married, and died in Lansing, Michigan, at only 49 years of age.

     b. Julie Cool (1962–1962) died in infancy.

     B. Dorothy Opal Cool (1913–2014) lived to be 101 years old, and spent her whole life in De Kalb county, Indiana. She married Trever J "TJ" Mavis (1908–1983) on 12 October 1929. TJ was from Williams county, Ohio, but worked as a pressman in a metal plant in De Kalb county to support his family. Before TJ's death in 1982, they had six children: three sons, and three daughters, one of whom survives.

     1. Donald Eugene Mavis (1930–2004) married Margaret Eileen Carpenter (1925–1996). Donald and Eileen had two daughters, still living. Donald lost Eileen to cervical cancer in 1996. He worked as a tool and die maker in the auto industry, and he died from a stroke.

     2. Dale Elsworth Mavis (1932–1998) graduated Auburn High School in 1951, and according to his senior yearbook, he intended to study to become a veterinarian. He attended college in Michigan, and after 1993, he lived in Morris, Grundy county, Illinois. After his death at 66, he was buried near his parents in the Farmer Cemetery, Defiance county, Ohio.

     3. Elenor Elain Mavis (1934–2004) married Kenneth Howard Mitchell (1913–1992) on 14 November 1975, when she was 41 and he was 62. She worked as a scheduler for a manufacturing company, and died from a coronary event attributed to arteriosclerosis related to obesity, according to her death certificate.

     4. Darell Walter Mavis (1935–2011) married and left behind his wife, daughter, two sons, 8 grandchildren, and 8 great grandchildren.

     6. Ellen Jean (Mavis) Wood (1944–2007) married Danny Duane Wood (1944–2006) on 16 September 1963. They later divorced. Danny died the year before Ellen died from cervical cancer. She left behind a son, two daughters, 7 grandchildren, and one great-granddaughter.

IV. Grace E Cool (1890–1984)

When Grace married Harry Brandon (1892–1965) on 14 April 1917, she became his second wife, and she brought two children into the family. It's hard to tell from 100 years away what their situations were and what motivations and social pressures were driving them, so I will try to spell out what the records tell me in a non-judgmental way. If you are descended from this side of the family, and you have more information about them, please let me know so I can tell their story properly.

The records seem to show that Grace had her first son, Nelson, with a man named George Oberlin in May 1911. There is no indication that Grace married Mr. Oberlin, but his name is on the birth certificate.

At around the same time, Harry was married to Wava Mae Howlett (1893-1960) and they had a daughter. The couple married in April of 1910, and when their daughter was born on 22 February 1911, they named her Ilene Lillian Brandon. Harry and Wava divorced in June 1911, while Harry was serving part of his National Guard duty at Fort Benjamin Harrison, and Wava remarried three or four times in rapid succession, making it hard to tell where she might appear in the 1920 Census. It looks as though after the divorce, Wava kept custody of the baby, and called her "Eileen Hazel."

I have not been able to find a birth record for Grace's second child, but Wanda Lillian was born on 12 June 1914 (according to the Social Security records). I don't have any evidence that Harry is Wanda's biological father, but since the marriage records say he and Grace were married on 14 April 1917, and Harry, Jr. was born 27 February 1917 - they may well have been together unofficially well before 1917. And in August of 1917, Harry was granted an exemption from the draft quota due to having a wife and three dependents.

Harry adopted Nelson, and raised Wanda, Harry, Jr., and the twins, along with Grace. Harry died in 1965 from pulmonary congestion after suffering from Parkinson's disease for the previous 15 years. By the end of his life, he was a resident of Souders Hospital, which was torn down in 2008. Grace survived him by nearly 20 years, and died from a heart attack at the age of 94.

     A. Nelson B. "Nellie" Brandon (1911-1995) married Ruth Geneva Wheeler (1914–2006) who was the daughter of Greenwood and Lola (De Witt) Wheeler. Nellie worked as a factory laborer until his retirement. Later in life, he suffered from Alzheimer's disease, and died three days after he suffered a stroke in 1995. Ruth also suffered from dementia in her later years, and died of a heart attack at 91 years of age. They had at least one daughter, who is still living.

From their Find-a-Grave memorial page

     B. Wanda Lillian Brandon (1914-1991) married Clifford Ethen Farmer (1913–1975) after 1930. Clifford was the son of Andrew Oliver and Lyda Ann (La Fever) Farmer of Noble county, Indiana. Clifford and Lillian had at least one child, still living, before moving to Hillsdale, Michigan, where they lived out their lives. They are buried in the Mountain Home Cemetery in Otsego, Allegan county, Michigan.

     C. Harry Lewis "Bud" Brandon, Jr. (1917–1996) was married around 1939, and his wife survived him. Bud served in the U.S. Navy during World War II.

     D. Cleo Brandon (1919–2005) was one of a set of twins born to Grace and Harry Brandon on 29 December 1919. She married Wilbur Nelson Johnson (1921–1997) on 3 May 1941. Wilbur was the youngest son of Nelson Columbus "Lum" Johnson (1891–1980) and Blanche E Getts (1892–1977).

When they married, both Cleo and Wilbur were employed by the former Auburn Rubber Co. and Cleo was later an employee of the Cooper Jewelry Store in Butler, Indiana. They had two sons, still living, and a daughter, Melanie, who died some time before her mother.

     E. Claude Brandon (1919–1982) was Cleo's twin brother. He enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II, serving from 19 August 1941 until 10 December 1945. After the war he married Martha Jean McNabb (1928–2003) at St. Mark's Lutheran Church on 19 February 1949. (And, no - she is not related to the McNabb families we discussed earlier this year. I checked!)

Jean worked as a bookkeeper for two Auburn drug stores for a combined 25 years: Romeiser Drug Store and Keltsch Pharmacy. She also served as assistant to the controller of Mid American Electronics in Auburn for six years, and she was a receptionist for Dr. Stanley Greenberg in Garrett for six years.

Claude and Jean had two children; a daughter, still living, and a son, Thomas James Brandon (1954–2003), who left behind a widow and two children of his own.

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That's all I have time for this week, but we still have three more Cool siblings to talk about next week. 

As always, if you are related to anyone mentioned in this post, please say hello - you can drop a comment below, join our Callin Family History Facebook group, or email my Gmail address: callintad at gmail dot com.

Corrections and editorial comments are not only welcome, but encouraged.