My Mom was born 15 April 1907 as Velvia Mae James. Today is the anniversary of that birth in Eldorado, Jackson County, Oklahoma. As it happens, today I am in Oklahoma and a few days ago I was in Jackson County.
To look at her history, it seems she had a rough life. She was raised in Indian territory, yet to become a state. When she was 2 her Dad, Frank Matthew James died at 33. While here I looked for his death certificate to try to answer why such a young man died. The family history librarian laughed. In '09 Oklahoma was barely a state. Death certificates didn't become mandatory for many years after.
So Annie Lou Gore James, a young widow of 26 was left to raise two children, Andy Frank James and Velvia. In 1912 Annie Lou married David Hallmark and raised a second family with him. Velvia lived with them, and because her last name was James, she was affectionately called "Jimmie" by her Hallmark brothers and sisters. I can remember when I was a boy growing up in California, my Uncles and Aunts calling my Mom "Jimmie".
I imagine Jimmie was close to her older and only full blood brother, Andy Frank. It must have been a tragedy when he died of Typhoid Fever at 22, on 19 Nov 1925.
Velvia married Beryl Baker. Pictured below in B&W is Velvia with her two children with Beryl, James Houston Baker and Patricia Ann Baker.
A few days ago I stood beside the gravesite of James Houston, my brother, where he was buried after dying at 2 and half years old from "Encephalitis". Can you imagine the heartbreak of losing such a beautiful young child?
The marriage of Velvia and Beryl ended in divorce. She and Pat continued to live in the Altus, OK area until she married my Dad, John Connelly. In 1943 I, John James Connelly, was born in Ardmore and in 1947 my sister, Anita Catherine was born. Below, also in b&w, are the three surviving children of Velvia Mae James "Jimmie" Baker Connelly
I suppose it was when Pat began having her children that Velvia became "Nana". That continued to be her loving nickname throughout the rest of her life.
There is obviously much more to this story, but for today, these are my memories
3 comments:
Thanks, Big Brother, for documenting some of mom's history. I think of her all the time, but especially on her birthday. We keep our loved ones alive in our hearts and minds!
I continue to be awed and inspired by the strong women in my lineage.
oh you know my little Lily Mae is named after velveeta.. thats what i would have gave her as a nickname after Nana. you know me and nicknames. can't help it. i would be heart broken if i lost my little 2 yr old Macy at her little age. but really any age a child dies i think would be hard for a while.
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