July 19, 1941 (Saturday)
- Jill Johnson Tewsley
- Jul 19, 2021
- 3 min read
THE NASH FAMILY REUNION
Real cool all day. Had fire
in fireplace all evening.
Nash Reunion.
25th annual reunion of
the Nash family held at
L.A.S. hall.
About 90 present. 10 came
from Ill. [?] Hat, Carrie,
Burdette, Ralph, Eloise, Rob,
Maggie, Mary, Luella, and
Sharleen (Harold's daughter).
A lovely pot - luck dinner
then program at church. Aunt
Rose who is 84 yrs old sang
a song - beautiful. Lena Califf,
Frank's wife, presented Eleanor
with the silver fruit dish
given by the association for her
efficient service as Sec - Treas
for the past 25 yrs. All had good time.
Rob, Maggie + Mary came home
with us. Staying all night.
Kate + Bill here for supper.
Played euchre til 2 o'clock
A.M.
The 25th Annual Nash Reunion has come and gone. Edna worked hard for several days in preparation, enjoyed all of the festivities at the reunion and had guests back to her house for supper. Then, she stayed up until 2 AM playing euchre. She was 61 years old. I would have been ready for bed somewhere around 7 PM.
This journal entry kept me busy digging around on Ancestry.com to try and figure out who all of the reunion attendees from Illinois were; as well as the other people Edna mentioned.
Edna logically grouped husbands and wives and children together when she listed them in her journal. We would probably do the same. That order helped me significantly when attempting to figure out who everyone was.
Now that I am fairly confident I know all of the players, I have to list them here so it is forever documented.
Let's start with Aunt Rose who, at the age of 84, sang a beautiful song.
At the time of this reunion, Francis Rosalia Nash Califf was the only child of Alden and Olive Nash still living.
You may recall from my post a couple of days ago that Alden built the Nash Hotel (between Youngstown and Cleveland, Ohio) in1840, before moving his family to Bowne Center in a covered wagon.
Francis Rosalia was born in 1857, after Alden and Olive arrived in Bowne Center.
Frank Alden Califf and his wife Lena (Pauline) were also at the reunion. Frank is the only child of Francis Rosalia (Aunt Rose). Frank was 66 and Lena was 58 at the time of this reunion.
Frank's wife Lena presented Eleanor with a silver fruit dish in recognition her work on the reunion association over the last 25 years.
There are a couple of possible Eleanors but I think it is most likely Eleanor Porritt Deifenbaker. Eleanor Porritt was born in 1891 to Lydia Johnson and John Porritt. Lydia's mother is Eleanor Nash Johnson (not one of the Eleanors in question as she had passed long before this reunion). Lydia Johnson Porritt is Henry's sister and Edna's sister-in-law. Eleanor Nash Johnson is Henry's and Lydia's mom. Eleanor Nash Johnson, Daniel Lorenzo Nash and Francis Rosalia were siblings, all children of Alden Nash.
Whew ...I hope that wasn't too confusing.
Let's get to the Illinois contingency. They were all part of the Daniel Lorenzo Nash family. Daniel, like Aunt Rose, is one of Alden Nash's children. Unlike Aunt Rose, Daniel did make the journey from Ohio to Bowne Center in a covered wagon.
I have many stories to share about Uncle Dan Nash. Those will have to wait for another post. They will be worth the wait.
Daniel died in 1935 and is buried in cemetery at Bowne Center. He was not living at the time of this reunion but his children made the journey to Bowne Center from Illinois along with several of their family members.
Edna wrote: "10 came from Ill. Hat, Carrie, Burdette, Ralph, Eloise, Rob, Maggie, Mary, Luella, and Sharleen (Harold's daughter).
Hattie (Hat) Elda Nash Sharp was 73 when she made the trip to Bowne Center for the Nash Reunion. Hattie is the daughter of Daniel Lorenzo Nash. Hattie's husband Fred was no longer living at the time of the 1941 Nash Reunion.
Hattie's daughter Carrie and Carrie's husband Burdette Conley (both 47) and their children Ralph (16) and Eloise (18) made the trip.
Carrie, Burdette, Eloise and Ralph Conley
Elda's daughter Mary (46) and Mary's daughter Luella (18) are there, too.
Hattie's granddaughter, Sharleen (14) also came from Illinois. Sharleen (as Edna noted) is Harold's daughter. Harold did not make the trip.
Robert Nash and his wife Maggie also came from Illinois. Robert is Hattie's brother and Daniel's son.
Oh how I wish I could have been at that reunion and met all of these people. I am so glad my great grandmother wrote about it in her journal so that I could have a chance, 80 years later, to get to know all of them just a little.
On one of the walls in my house hangs a photo of the Nash Reunion from 1929, twelve years before the one Edna attended on this day in 1941. I can easily spot my great grandmother (Edna) in the photo and I wonder if she enjoyed that day as much as she did this one.
Comments