My grandmother Ida Nixon Marchant was born in 1879 and was the age I am now when I was born. That’s an example of how we can spread 6 generations over 188 years.
Growing up in a house where she had 6 brothers and sisters with an age range of 16 to 4 years older than her i suspect caused her to maybe mature faster than most kids. By the turn of the century (the 19th) she was apparently politically active , even though like all women she could not vote, and I think that carried on all her life. I know she stayed active in the WCTU and somewhere I saw a diary from the early 50’s where she was writing about the election cycle of 1952.
In what I assume to be for the 1900 election she posed with other supporters of William Jennings Bryant which is who I would have been supporting at the time. (ignore his late in life goofyness with evolution)
One observation. Apparently hats were a thing.
Grandma was married June 9 1907 to Albert Marchant. I know nothing about him, what he did, where he came from, or why he died at age 52 in 1932 when my mom was 9. Until the picture below I had only seen one picture that must have been shortly before he died as it was him in what I think was a wheel chair with Grandma standing behind.
Their children:
Esther Marchant May 13 1908 died probably late 80’s
Russel Marchant April 7 1910 died 1969 or so was a postman
Celia Marchant Feb 9 1912 died probably late 80s early 90’s was a nurse at Methodist Hospital Indianapolis.
Joseph Marchant Sept 12 1914 was a designer at Ford Motor.
Sarah Emiline Marchant June 12, 1923 died Sept 1977
This is a picture of Grandma Grandpa and Esther from 1909
When Grampa Marchant died mom was 9 and her closest sibling was 18 so as far as I know Grandma and Mom lived in a house in the west end of town across the street from the Judge Hayes school that when I was a kid was lived in by what I think is a cousin of mom’s Velma ? and or Aunt Cleo. At some point grandma had moved to an upstairs apartment on East Main and then in the mid 50’s as the stairs got to be a bit much an apartment on Wayne between High and Arch. This was the apartment that she kept a candy bowl on the kitchen table that required stopping in for any time that I rode by on my bike.
Hopefully I can fill in a few blanks in the future.