Gone Too Soon, #7- Anderson Children

On 16 Nov 1848 Thomas Maxey Anderson married Mary Jane Stanfield. 

Thomas Maxey Anderson                    Mary Jane Stanfield

b. 14 Jun 1824, Ohio                        b. 10 Dec 1829, Ohio

d. 15 Nov 1896, Ohio, age 72                d. 26 Mar 1896, Ohio, age 66

Son of Daniel Anderson &                    Daughter of John Stanfield & 

        Jane Dinsmore                                    Ruth Mendenhall

Thomas and Mary had 11 children- 4 died as children: 

#1. Charles S. Anderson 

     b. 25 Apr 1850, Ohio

     d. 19 Jan 1853, Ohio, age 2

#2. Clara A. Anderson

    b. 07 Dec 1851, Ohio

    d. 23 Jan 1853, Ohio, age 1

Charles and Clara died within 4 days of each other, I can only assume of a disease or illness they shared. 

The siblings are buried together in Woodland Cemetery in Xenia, Ohio- J-70, Grave 7.

      

 

#3. Anna Ruth "Annie" Anderson

    b. 27 Feb 1868, Ohio

    d. 27 Sep 1879, Ohio, age 11

#4. Eugenia Pearl Anderson

    b. 06 Oct 1870, Ohio

    d. 15 Jul 1884, Ohio, age 13

I'm not sure how the sisters died being 5 years apart but they are buried together in Woodland Cemetery in Xenia, Ohio- J-70, Grave 5. 

Thomas & Mary's 7 other children all lived into adulthood and had families of their own. 

(Note: These children are my 3rd cousins, 5x removed)

Gone too Soon, #6- Jerry Max Fenters (1931-1944)

Jerry Max Fenters

born: 05 Jun 1931, Indianapolis, Indiaina

died: 08 Aug 1944, Muncie, Indiana, age 13

cause of death: Intestinal Injuries due to  truck accident (passenger), driver was Danny Fetters (17)

Jerry was the son of Robert Jack Fenters (1908-1978) & Helen Davita Williams (1908-2003). He had 2 siblings- Williaim Robert (b. 1928) & Danita (b. 1938).

Jerry's Birth Certificate 

Jerry's Death Certificate 

Obituary 

 

The driver of the truck- Danny Fetters (age 17) lived.

Jerry is buried in the Pennville IOOF Cemetery in Pennville, Indiana. He shares a bench-like gravestone with his mother and father.

Jerry is my 8th, 3x removed

Gone too Soon, #5- Charles Robert Mendenhall (1924-1935)

Charles Robert Mendenhall "Robert"

born: 09 Nov 1924 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

died: 10 Apr 1935 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, age 10

Cause of death: Pneumonia 

Death Certificate 

Charles was the son of Edward Joseph Mendenhall (1896-1999) & Eileen Augusta O'Connor (1902-1969). He had 2 younger sisters: Dorothy (1927-1928) & Teresa (1942-2014).

Charles is buried in Holy Cross Cemetery in Yeadon, Pennsylvania, sharing a gravestone with his mother:

Charles Robert is number 1415 in my family Mendenhall Family tree. He's my 8th Cousin, 4x Removed.

Killed, Part 6- Deadly Fire Takes 14 Lives

Date: 04 Sep 1904

Place: 164 Attorney Street, Manhattan, New York

I came upon this news article while searching for something awhile back. It actually comes from a newspaper in Scranton, Pennsylvania. 

A five-story tenement house caught fire at 2:40 in the morning from a candle that was left burning in the hallway on the third floor- worship for the Jewish New Year celebration the next day. The lower floors were torn out to make room for an arcade while the upper levels housed 13 Hebrew families crowded into three upper rooms. Apparently, when the fire broke out, many of the adults were at the synagogue while the children slept, hence why so many children died. The fire escapes were removed from the East side of the house pending all of the lower renovations. 

(I highly suggest reading the whole article- there are more details about more details on escaping & heroic acts- I will post the article towards the end of the post)

Obviously the building is no longer there because it burned down, but this is the current location of where the building was in New York.

The Victims: 

(I was going to research each person/family, like I usually do in these types of posts, but the information available is just so little. The number one thing I could find on most of the victims- Their name, death date and "about" birth year on the "New York, New York, Extracted Death Index". These families were probably fresh immigrants and hadn't really been documented in census records (my assumption)).

Full Article- The Tribune (Scranton, Pennsylvania)

05 Sep 1904, Mon

Killed, Part 5- A Tragic Accident Dayton, Ohio Never Forgot

Date: 04 April 1969

Place: Near New Carlisle, Clark County, Ohio

05 Apr 1969
Dayton Daily News- Dayton, Ohio

My dad is the one who told me about this story. He grew up in Dayton and remembers when this happened- he was a senior in high school and knew some of the kids involved. 

So, four teens from Dayton, Ohio were driving either to or from the lake and at 10 pm, ran off the road and hit a tree. The car was a convertible with no seat belts (1969) and all passengers were ejected from the car and hit trees (the image in my mind is terrifying). Three of the four boys died.

One other thing my dad told me was that his cousin had been asked to go on the trip with these boys but because he didn't have money to chip in for beer, he didn't go! Can you imagine knowing you COULD have been in an accident that killed friends?! How devastating! 

05 Apr 1969
The Journal Herald- Dayton, Ohio

The Victims: 

~Driver- 

Terry A. Wallace 

born: abt 1953

died: 04 April 1969, age 16

Terry was buried in Willowview Cemetery, no picture available

~Passenger-

Paul Stephen Franz

born: 02 Feb 1951, Dayton, Ohio

died: 04 Apr 1969, age 18

Calvary Cemetery- Section 3, Lot 185
Dayton, Ohio

~Passenger- 

Michael Stephan Pietrzak

born: 09 Nov 1951, Ohio

died: 04 Apr 1969, age 17

Calvary Cemetery- Sec 18, Blk X, Lot 196, Space 9
Dayton, Ohio

Passenger- 

Ralph Paul Allen- Only survivor of the accident

born: 01 Nov 1953, Dayton, Ohio

died: 07 Jan 1983, Dayton, Ohio, age 29

Paul was buried in Calvary Cemetery, plot 19x92x4 in Dayton, Ohio

The very sad story with Paul Allen, the only survivor, is that Paul died at the age of 29 by suicide. My dad told me Paul had severe "survivors guilt" and shot himself in the head. 

Truly, a tragic story all-around! 

Gone Too Soon, #4- Frank Roy Mendenhall Jr.

Frank Roy "Corky" Mendenhall Jr.

Born: 19 Sep 1945 in Oakland, California

Died: 16 Apr 1961 in Lovelock, Nevada, age 15

Burial: Lone Mountain Cemetery in Lovelock, Nevada

Cause of Death: Brain Injury received during a baseball game April 1.

Frank was the son of Frank Roy Mendenhall Sr. (1910-2000) & Marion Faye Helmers (1916-2011). He had one sister- Susan.

Obituary:
Last Rites Set Thursday for Lovelock Youth
Funeral services will be held for Frank Ray [sic] [Roy] Mendenhall Jr. Thursday [Apr 20, 1961] at 2 p.m. in the Methodist Church in Lovelock. The Belanger Funeral Home will direct the service. Ross-Burke Co. is in charge of local arrangements.
Frank, the son of Mr. and Mrs. Frank R. Mendenhall of Lovelock, died Sunday in Reno of a brain injury received in a baseball game with Lyon County High School April 1. An outfielder for the Pershing County High School baseball team, he was 15 years old.
In addition [sic] to his parents he is survived by a sister, Susan Mendenhall. Lovelock; his grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Dick Holmes, Los Angeles, Calif.; and several aunts and uncles.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that contributions be sent to the Memorial Fund for Frank R. Mendenhall Jr., in care of George Myers of Lovelock.
Reno Gazette-Journal (Reno, Nevada) • Tue, Apr 18, 1961 • Page 11

Nevada State Journal
April 18, 1961
Reno, Nevada 

Frank was my 8th cousin, 4x removed.

Gone Too Soon, #3- Dixie Lee Kirkpatrick

Dixie Lee Kirkpatrick

Born: 25 Feb 1937 in Ventura County, California

Died: 20 Mar 1940 in Live Oak, California, age 3

Burial: Live Oak Cemetery in Live Oak, California

Cause of Death: Unknown, could be an illness. Was in the hospital when she passed away.

She was the fourth child of Truman Kirkpatrick (1902-1963) & Jessie Margarette Mendenhall (1909-1999). She had 3 older siblings: 

1. Merna Mae (1927-1995)

2. Frances Boyd (b. 1930)

3. Leona (b. 1934)

21 Mar 1940, Appeal-Democrat
Marysville, California

Dixie's grave at Live Oak Cemetery
Live Oak, California

Dixie Lee Kirkpatrick is my 4th cousin, 2x removed.

Gone Too Soon, #2- Bushnell, Goldie & Mamie Mendenhall

#2: Siblings: 

Bushnell J. Mendenhall

Born: 25 Nov 1896 in Preble County, Ohio

Died: 12 Oct 1898 in Preble County, Ohio, age 1

Cause of death: Diptheria

Goldie May Mendenhall

Born: 28 Dec 1897 in Preble County, Ohio

Died: 10 Dec 1898 in Preble County, Ohio, age 11 months

Cause of death: Diptheria

Mamie Mendenhall

Born: 14 May 1905 in Somers, Ohio

Died: 21 May 1905 in Somers, Ohio, age 1 Week

Cause of death: Convulsions 

Bushnell, Goldie & Mamie were the children of Charles Franklin Mendenhall (1873-1945) & Laura Jenkins (1870-1922). 

They had 6 siblings: 

1. Roy (1893-1914)

2. Luther H. (1894-1974)

3. Raymond Earl (1899-1962)

4. Ralph Kenneth (1902-1935)

5. Jesse L. (b. 1908)

6. Cecil C. (1910-1971)

Gone Too Soon, #1- Sally D. Beals

#1: Sally D. Beals

    Born: 19 Aug 1937 in Lincoln, Nebraska

    Died: 25 Jul 1949 in Tillamong County, Oregon, age 11

Sally was the daughter of Lester Beals (1910-1989) & 

                    Margaret Louise Coals (1908-1990)

Cause of death- heart attack! 

26 Jul 1949, The Eugene Guard
Eugene, Oregon

27 Jul 1949, The News-Review
Roseburg, Oregon

31 Jul 1949, The Eugene Guard
Eugene, Oregon

28 Aug 1949, The Eugene Guard 
Eugene, Oregon
(Sally is third from left)

Sally is buried at Rest-Haven Memorial Park in Eugene, Oregon.