Daniel Boone Childers' Obituary

-- The Wagoner Tribune, page 1, published 19 March 1946 in Wagoner, Oklahoma.


Not my Childers, but a fascinating family I've long researched. This man's father was shot/killed one hot August day a few blocks from where I now live. On the Perryman ranch. 

Obituaries are great founts of data. Whether accurate or embellished, they say so much about the survivor(s) who write them. 

More later... 

Alberty Cemetery in Mayes County

My paternal ancestors moved from Pennsylvania to Indian Territory in the 1870s and lived--by permission from the Cherokee Nation, in rural Mayes County. A few are buried near where they once lived. The town called Bethel is no more. But its cemetery remains.

When I first searched for the grave of my father's great-grandfather, burial records were scant online. Findagrave had a mere four million memorials. I was new to genealogy. Where to begin?

My Great-Aunt Lois Childers told me her husband Sam's grandpa was buried in the Alberty Cemetery between Pryor and Chouteau. But warned me his tombstone had not been there when they last visited in 1989. The cemetery was knee-high with weeds that hot day they climbed the hill. Sam's first cousin, Adolphus "Bob" Ackley and wife Annie, had asked to see Bob's grandfather's grave.

Bob Ackley filmed their hike into the brush. The Alberty graveyard search begins one minute 55 seconds into this video:




I first visited the Alberty Cemetery in February 2005 after locating a copy of an article from The Daily Times newspaper in Pryor Creek. Writer Kathy Parker detailed the extensive cleanup performed that Spring by Florene Gass, her son Charles Gass, his wife Barbara Gass, and Florene's sister Della Mae Deason. 

Just in time for Memorial Day. Stilwell family's search for the past finds forgotten cemetery -- Kathy Parker, May 23, 2004.

It had been years since Florene Gass and Della Mae Deason visited their grandmother's grave. 

"I only remember being here one time (as a child)," Florene said. 

So finding their way back to what had become a forgotten place proved to be a challenge.

The two women now live in Stilwell and were surprised to find old familiar landmarks such as Cry Baby Bridge were gone. 

"We only knew how to get here across the bridge (Cry Baby Bridge)," Florene's sister Della Mae said. 

But eventually they found Alberty Cemetery, a place once called Bethel. When they got there, they could hardly find the grave. 

The cemetery had gone back to woods.There were big trees, small trees, briars, brambles, weeds and varmints.Trees had grown up through some graves. A once well-tended graveyard was impassable. 

Buck Franklin who leases the land from the Corps of Engineers provided access for the sisters through a gate he had built off Highway 412A near the Chouteau power plant. 

"I just thought somebody ought to see what they (Florene and Della Mae) have done in there," Franklin said. 

What they've "done in there" is no small feat since there were only three and sometimes four to do the cleaning, all women save one. Making several trips from Stilwell, they brought their own equipment and bought the gas to run it. 

Florene said it's what they had to do once they found the place. 

"Mom thought a grave ought to look like a grave," she said, "so we pulled all the grass off." 

The grave was Florene's grandmother Sarah Jane Shephard, whose headstone bears the years 1866 to 1934. They also have another ancestor buried in the cemetery, Katherine (Bond) Clinton.

Franklin and his father, who leased the land before him, put up the gate because the cemetery was being so badly defaced. Franklin's father also put a fence around the cemetery, which had people buried in it as recently as the 1970s. 

Since that time the woods have reclaimed the burial plots. In fact, about 10 years ago several of the gravestones were removed and thrown off Cry Baby Bridge. GRDA came in with their equipment to salvage the stones.  

Deason and Gass started with their grandmother's grave but the whole cemetery was such a mess, cleaning one grave was "like spitting in the ocean." So, along with Florene's son Charles and his wife Barbara, they have been cleaning and clearing the cemetery.

A map at Pryor's library calls the place Bethel Cemetery.  Bethel Church once stood nearby along with a community including New Canaan School according to Franklin. The map suggests the area was at one time known as the McNair School District before World War II.

The road is now cleared to the cemetery, and I called the MidAmerica Industrial Plant to set up a time for someone to let me through the locked gate. Once through, it was about a mile into the woods.

The cemetery is T-shaped, divided into an older part running north and south and a newer part running east and west.  

Buried in the older part are 19 people who were born before 1850. Over half the people buried in the old section died before 1890. It seems there are more children and infants than adults in the cemetery. One plot holds an entire family which died within a week of each other in 1932."

Grand River Dam Authority (GRDA)'s right-of-way crew, Bruce Willis, Jerry Harris, Nathan Willis and Todd Hayes, mowed the approach to the cemetery and Steve Stough of the excavating crew graded the road.

____________

If you had family who once lived near Bethel in Mayes County, you may be interested in what occurred there during World War II. 

In 1941 DuPont Company began building a munitions plant near the Alberty Cemetery in Bethel. TNT and Tetryl (a detonator) were produced at this powder plant. It created thousands of jobs for workers during this Depression era. Much-needed jobs. Read this from the Oklahoma Historical Society. The numbers are amazing:
https://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry.php?entry=OK069 

German prisoners of war also lived and worked nearby. Imagine that!
https://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry.php?entry=PR016 

Today that area is the property of MidAmerica Industrial Park. Those interested in visiting the Alberty Cemetery should first contact MidAmerica to request permission.   https://maip.com/ 


From The Tulsa Tribune In April 23, 1922

This "blast from the past" article contains news from 1906--not 1908. It really looks like 1908, but Google tells me that McKinley was president in 1908. One event mentions Teddy Roosevelt met with a group of Tulsans demanding removal of restrictions "from the sale of Indian Land." So that "8" you think you see must be a "6" instead.

Also, a piece about cows in hymns. Cocaine smuggled from Germany. #20thCenturyProblems 



And




And



Daughters of Matilda Anna Lee


          No. I do not know when this photo was taken. You?

FROM LEFT TO RIGHT:  Birth/death years along with birth names and married names of the women pictured above. Birth surnames are in parentheses.

1.  Fannie Elizabeth (Ward) Skinner Burkett, b. 1896 Daviess County, Missouri - 1967 Denver, Colorado; 

2.  Ora Evaline "Evie" (Baker) Childers, b. 1888 Daviess, County, Missouri - 1984 Tulsa, Oklahoma; 

3.  MOTHER:  Matilda Anna (Lee) Baker Ward Price, b. 1864 Carroll County, Missouri - 1933 Sand Springs, Oklahoma; 

4.  Zelma Pearl (Price) Fox Brown, b. 1909 Keystone, Pawnee County, Oklahoma - 1978 Tulsa, Oklahoma; 

5.  Gladys Naomi (Price) Bivens, b. 1905 Cherryvale, Kansas - 1989 Sand Springs, Oklahoma; and 

6.  Zeala Violet (Price) Skinner, b. 1902 Gallatin, Daviess County, Missouri - 1993 Inglis, Levy County, Florida.

          I was so happy to see this photo on Ancestry as shared by my 2nd cousin, Margaret (Bivens) Breeden. Like many of my cousins, this is the only photo I've seen of my paternal 2xGGrandmother Anna and her daughters. 

          Margie was an active family researcher and shared considerable data on Rootsweb, and Ancestry. Her grandmother was born Gladys Price. I miss "seeing" her online. She passed in January of 2017, but her family tree remains public on Ancestry. 

          Years ago, she wrote this "memory" on a Findagrave memorial regarding my paternal Great-Grandfather:

"Sam Childers was my Great Uncle. Evaline (Eva) Baker was my Grandmother's sister. I spent many times with Aunt Eva and Uncle Sam, either at their house or my Grandmother's. They also lived down the road from my Uncle Harry Baker and his family. Uncle Sam was a great guy and I loved his many stories. I was not aware that Pat Anderson had passed. I'm sorry to hear that she did."

          Are you also related to these women?  

News From 1917 Pawhuska

Director Martin Scorsese has been in Oklahoma preparing for his film Killers of the Flower Moon. It will be filmed in Osage Nation. In Osage County. Oklahoma's largest county. Hence the renewed interest in a sad part of Osage history when Pawhuska was labeled America's foremost "murder capitol." Perhaps you're unfamiliar with the book on which Scorsese's film is based? Well, meet Nola Childers in two articles below.

My dad had uncles and cousins in nearby Keystone and Cleveland 100 years ago. Forever grateful for archived newspapers, I searched tonight for articles about my ancestors. I got sidetracked by the news of the day.

The following are items cropped from the front page of the January 18, 1917 Pawhuska Capital.


Colonel W. F. Cody's estate caught my eye. Could it be THE Cody? Yes, Buffalo Bill had just died in Denver.


80 year old Admiral Dewey also died that same week. THE popular hero Admiral Dewey.The paper reported he was "hale and hearty" at work one day. The next day?  He collapsed. Some might call it a "good death." Not prolonged. A neat demise. He was a Navy man after all.



I wonder what became of Nola Childers and her popular allotment? My esteemed employer's office is located on land downtown that was initially called the "Childers Addition." Was it Nola's headright? If so, who was it who decided (on her behalf, of course *snort*) to divide her land into parcels?  Is this article dripping with greed, or what?



Oil, and more oil talk.Then news of Miss Panther spending a tidy sum of money on an eight room house. But does she live there? No. It will be the home of S. M. Clark and wife. What's up with that? Was Mr. Clark the administrator of Louise Panther's Osage allotment? Do you smell a rat? Perhaps Miss Panther had an eye for homes to lease?

I'll leave you to ponder Mr. Tuman's horrific Saturday night on your own.


Next up, Dr. Sam Kennedy. I'm a fan of this Tulsa pioneer. His Kennedy Building in downtown Tulsa is beautiful inside. Did you know it was built on Kennedy's original homestead at 4th and Boston? He was instrumental in the young city of Tulsa growing to the south--rather than developing northwest of town. He had married Agnes Lombard, an Osage Nation allotee, and used her allotment to buy land. A LOT of land. Oil was later found on some of their land in 1913.

[me waving here]  I KNOW, I know what Dr. Sam did with his money. 

Much has been written about Sam Kennedy. But I've seen little about his wife. Yes, his wife. An Osage woman whose allotment helped make them rich(er). She could have been the "little woman" who helped make it possible for him to shine as an astute businessman. But I'd like to see some recognition of her, too. Just who were these pioneer women along side these men who get credit for building a community?

Sam married Miss Agnes Lombard in September 1896. They had seven children before her untimely death in 1912.


Remember. The Osage once lived up north and held vast amounts of land. Americans moved west and pushed them out. Many of them were killed or died from hardships imposed just to get them out of the way of, wait. What's that term some believe makes us more entitled than others? Yeah, Western expansion. We sent the proud and mighty Osage packing. Sent them to an area no one else wanted. Until oil was found. Then the population doubled.Tripled. Boomed. But guess who owned the mineral rights?

Couldn't resist. I looked for earlier articles about Nola Childers. This is from 1910. Seven years earlier:


Four years ago I first wrote about Nola after finding Tulsa news articles on how her allotment was being fought in the courts. I had forgotten her father, William Childers, had been murdered. Check it out:

https://treepig.posthaven.com/childers-in-indian-territory-newspapers

The Duchess of Lemon

My pretty cousin Mavis made the papers back in 1954:



Source:  The Valley Morning Star newspaper, Harlingen, Texas, published Friday, January 15, 1954, p. 14, and The Brownsville Herald, Brownsville, Texas, published 14 Jan 1954, Thu, p.16.

Another article referencing young Mavis:




Esther, Pearl, and Mabel

In poring over my collection of marriage records, I am reminded not to accept someone's age without question.

Elton married Esther and they both lied about their ages on their marriage license. In reality he was 30. She was 16 years old. Her 17th birthday was six+ weeks away.

Why? Was it because her parents would not have approved? Two pages below show what they told the court clerk:

And no, I know not why a second page covers the top portion. 

The witnesses to their marriage were Wesley Raymond Fox and his bride of one year, Zelma Pearl (Price) Fox. Pearl was Esther's aunt. And Pearl was half-sister to Esther's mom, Evie. Yet Pearl and Esther were both born in 1909. I remember Grandma talking about a "Pearl." If so, perhaps they were close friends then and remained so. Do you know?

Guess who also lied about their ages on their March 12, 1925 marriage license?  Wes is actually 19, but indicates he's 22 years old. Pearl is 16, but says she's 18 years old. 


Pearl's mom, "Anna Price," is named as a witness on the certificate. I don't know why it was necessary to lie about your age, Miss Zelma Pearl. I mean, really!  I've seen plenty of Oklahoma marriage licenses for teenagers who had a parent write their "consent" on the license. Zelma Pearl's mom is a witness and they still "fudged" their ages. Maybe Mom didn't know how young her son-in-law actually was? 

NOT TO BE OUTDONE:   in July of 1929 we have my G-Uncle Ernest and G-Aunt Mabel applying for a license in Creek County, Oklahoma. Young Mable was born on Halloween in 1914. This according to her grave marker (not considered "primary" source-worthy) AND the Oklahoma State Vital Records Index (a better secondary source). 

Ernest was born in 1908. This made the couple 14 and 21, respectively. So WHAT ages did they put on their marriage license? 

Source:  "Oklahoma, County Marriages, 1890-1995." Database with images via FamilySearch. 
NOTE:  Ernest signed it "Earnest" just to confuse future family researchers.


Kids, today. They'll say anything. 


Maria Dora Jalifi Guerra Childers

The following is for Laura, a researcher who contacted me regarding Dora Jalifi, who married my Great Uncle Ernest in 1961. 
The Social Security Death Index indicates:
  • Dora Jalifi Childers
  • Born 1 Jan 1927
  • Died 14 Jan 2006
  • State (Year) SSN issued Texas - Before 1951
    The 1940 Federal Census finds Dora in Mercedes, Hidalgo County, Texas, with her family, and she is 13 years old.

    Ancestry.com's database, Border Crossings: From Mexico to U.S., 1895-1964, shows that Dora visited Mexico and returned through Brownsville, Texas. I've copied the transcription (with its misspellings) from Ancestry.com, and below is a copy of the card from which the transcription came:

    1. Name: Maria Dora Jalie De Guerra
    2. Arrival Date: 9 Nov 1951
    3. Port of Arrival: Brownsville, Texas, United States
    4. Arrival Contact: Father Enrique Jalife
    5. Age: 24
    6. Birth Date: abt 1927
    7. Birth Location: Mercedes
    8. Gender: Female
    9. Race/Nationality: Spanish
    10. Record has photo?: No
    11. Record Type: Card
    This is the actual card. Difficult to read, I know. Two pages, please click on both:


    I've no proof of Dora's marriage to Ernest Childers, but family tells me that they were married in Reynosa, Tamaulipas, Mexico on November 7, 1961. 

    Ernest was born January 6, 1908, in Keystone, Pawnee County, Oklahoma Territory, and he died in Weslaco, Hidalgo County, Texas on Feb. 8, 1987. Family tells me he had no children with Dora (just his five children from a previous marriage). 

    And this news article from 1966. What a heartbreaking time for Dora's family. She lost a son!


    I found a brief death notice for Dora, but do not know where she is buried. I would appreciate any leads as to her final resting place. I know that her husband Ernest is buried in Highland Park Cemetery in Weslaco. This is from The Monitor newspaper in Hidalgo County, Texas: 


    UPDATE of June 2018:  I was happy to locate an obituary for Dora Childers, as published in the Valley Morning Star newspaper in Harlingen, Texas on January 16, 2006:

              Dora Jalifi Childers

              HARLINGEN - Dora Jalifi Childers, 79, passed away on Saturday, January 14, 2006 at Retama Manor Nursing Facility in Harlingen, Texas.

              She is survived by her loving family: Two sisters: Emma (Robert) Hinojosa of San Antonio, Texas, Eva Castillo of Harlingen, Texas, Two Brothers: Oscar (Amita) Jalifi of Houston, Texas, Herman (Maria) Jalifi of Huntsville, Texas, Numerous Nieces and Nephews. She is preceded in death by her husband; Ernest Childers, Son; Federico Guerra and parents; Enrique and Enriqueta Jalifi.

              Visitation will be today, Monday, January 16, 2006 from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. with a service held at 7 p.m. Funeral services will be conducted on Tuesday, January 17, 2006. At 1 p.m. Chapel Service will be held at Rudy Garza Chapel of Peace.
    Interment will then follow at Highland Memorial Park Cemetery in Weslaco, Texas.

              Dora Jalifi Childers was a loving and dedicated daughter, sister and wife. She is dearly loved and missed by all those who knew her.