Ida Anna Katherine Spoering - "Grandma Elling"

Ida Anna Katherine Spoering Elling

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Ida Anna Katharine Spoering was born on February 5, 1890 in Monroe Township, Henry County, Ohio, to Herman Heinrich and Katherine (Floke) Spoering.    She married Albert Louis Johann Elling at the Spoering home near Deshler on March 13, 1913.  English was her second language, and it was told by the family that she learned English by reading the Toledo Blade. She spoke Low German (Plattdeutsch), but she helped her children learn formal German so they could do well in German school.

Albert and Ida Elling on their wedding day

 By June of 1914, the first of her nine children was born - Paul Herman.  Of the nine children, two died as infants.  Arthur, who was born in October, 1916, died of pneumonia when he was eight months old.  Later, the ninth child, a daughter, would be stillborn in September, 1932. She was a housewife all her life, caring for her big family, even as they moved from place to place in Henry County.


Her love for her children was shown in a letter I have from her that was saved by my parents, Rudolph and Donna Elling, and received when they lived in Toledo, Ohio.  The letter is postmarked Napoleon, May 21, 1945, and from the content, it must have been sent right before Eleonore's high school graduation and Alfred's release from the Army following World War II.  

I have transcribed it as written -
"Dear children
It is 12 oclock Sunday night and Alma and Allyn just left.  we had a little party here tonight but they didn't come all.  we thought about it Saterday morning and so it was to late to let you know so we just let the sponsors know, but non of them came, only Loudons, Ted Lange, Alma Allyn were here.  Paul Hildagard were up to her folks  they have baptising over there.  Arthur Bolkman Baby was Baptised this afternon and Hildagard was one of the sponsors.  it was sure nice here tonight in the chool house.  I wish you could benn here.  hope that you can come wednesday night for granation.  it starts 8:15 slow time.

what was you dooing today  did you see Alfred  they went back in the Brisa(?) again at 4.10  Alfred feels pretty sure that he gets out now.  Fryday or else nex week some time.  boy are we glad and i bet you arn't you

Eldor and Maria Loudon Plassman came home today for a week or so.

well doun't work to hard and hope to see you soon.  I am tiyed and ready to go to sleep and so write when ever you can and will close now.

your dearest Mother

Come whenever you can

Eleonora sure would like to have you come for her grnation.  try your best.  good night." 

Ida died on August 31, 1951, at the age of 60 from stomach cancer. She had raised all her children to adulthood when she was called to rest.

Ida was buried in Forest Hill Cemetery, Napoleon. 

Grandma Elling

Who is This?

It's time to dig into the box of photos again...and look what I found. Can you identify this mystery boy...girl...boy? The line across the forehead is actually a crease in the photo, not a scar!

This photo is on a postcard given to me by Minnie Elling, Grandpa Elling's sister, on our first, last and only meeting. The postcard is unused and says Minna E. on the back and then the name of the child.

The photo was taken about 1915 - 1916, I would guess, and that should be a huge hint for you. Write your guesses in the comments and let's see who gets this one right!

*Click on the photo to enlarge for a better look.

Ok...the requested hints -

Hint #1 This person died in the 1960's.

Hint #2 This person could play the accordion.

Hint #3 There are at least three cousins with the

same first name.

The winning guess was Dana; this is Paul Elling, son of Albert and Ida. 

This post originally appeared on the Elling Family News blog on September 27, 2009.

Automobile Photos from Aunt Alma Hicksted

While cleaning through some boxes this week, I came across some other photos Aunt Alma had sent, along with a newsy letter.  The quality of the first photo is poor, but the auto is identifiable.

Aunt Alma wrote, "Now this was many years ago, too, at Paul and Hildegarde's house and it was our 1938 Ford convertible, and it's your Dad "Rudy" standing beside it.  It think it was in summer of 1942 or 1943."

The year of the vehicle below was in question for awhile until another photo of the same car was found with information on the back.

Aunt Alma wrote, " This was your Dad and Mom's car and they lived in an apt. in this house in Toledo, Ohio after they were married."

Rudy Elling and Donna Ordway were married in October, 1943, and began jobs at Willys Jeep in Toledo.  It was the war years and they had good jobs there; however, not good enough to buy a brand new car.  This was a 1934 Chevrolet with the suicide door, as one reader commented on Facebook.  It's easy to see how it was given that name.

Another Photo From Threshing Day

Aunt Alma Elling Hicksted wrote in her memoirs, " Then came the threshing days.  They were fun for us kids, and I think the women enjoyed themselves, too.  It gave them a chance to get together and bake and cook bountiful meals for their men and families.

There were about twenty families that had the threshing machine and all helped each other.  There were like two groups that lived close together - some ran the threshing machine and separator and lots of the others brought their teams and wagons and did the field work and brought the shocked wheat bundles loaded on wagons to the machine.
 


There were lots of children and the older ones had to watch the younger ones.  Sometimes they were at one place for dinner and another one for supper.  And what good, big meals they cooked.  And the desserts - especially the pies and cakes.

About 9:30 a.m. was Frustuch or what is now called break time.  Sandwiches and cold water were taken to the men as they had worked long and hard already - usually bologna, summer sausage, and cheese sandwiches.  Then sometimes we had to walk from one place to the next and always several little ones in buggies.  On occasion we were lucky and a farmer would be going with a team of horses and wagon and would help the mothers put the buggies and little ones on his wagon and we would ride to the next place where threshing was to be done.  Even at that, those were such fun days. 

The photo below came from Alma and it is marked as a threshing day photo taken at a farm not far from the Seeman farm.  My father is in the buggy and he was born in September 1923.

Her identifications: "From the left is Paul Elling, Alfred Elling, From the other end is Rudy in buggy.
Next to buggy in front row is Arnold Sunderman (I was confirmed with him) and next smaller one is his brother Raymond Sunderman and next to him is Alma Elling Hicksted, a towhead and the one behind me is Laura Sunderman Grobrogge.  
The others I'm not sure of.  It's been too long, long ago.  I know there were some Meyers, Ludemans and the elderly lady is Minnie Seeman."

Letters and Photos from Aunt Alma Elling Hicksted

I've started to spring clean some of the genealogy boxes - a task that is long overdue!  Starting with the Elling box, the first family that really started me on this hobby.  One day, after Dad Rudy had his terminal cancer diagnosis, he and I were at their kitchen table and he started on some family stories.  That led to family talk and who was related. Eventually a notebook and pen had to come out for some notes and there it was...the beginning of creating the family tree.

The aunts and uncles helped, too, in building the trail back to Germany, but Aunt Alma was the consumate letter writer and family historian. Her memory was excellent, and I think I've saved every carefully handwritten note from her. Today I came across one I had forgotten about from 2006.  Included in the bright, yellow envelope was a two page (both sides filled!) letter and several photos that will be shared on the blog.  How could I forget that she had sent these? 

"This was taken on St. Rt. 65 south of West Hope at the Seeman farm.  We were visiting there on a Sunday night many, many years ago.
Front row L to R: Alma Elling, Dorothy Seeman Lange, Rudy Elling, Alfred Elling and Alvin Spoering.
Back row L to R: Elda Benien Arps, Emma Benien Rettig, Alma Seeman Rettig holding Wilma Seeman Lange in her right arm and Lorna Elling in her left arm (as it is facing us) Henry Seeman and Paul Elling"

My tow headed dad with the funny hat!  Al and Paul are looking so grown up with their ties and "big boy" hats.   I'm guessing this might be around 1926 or 1927?  What do you think?  The boys had their knickers on.

Because I'm a Bookworm...

Some of you may remember the time when Grandpa Elling would stay with some of his children and families for a month or so and then move on to the next. It was after Aunt Kate had died and his house was sold. One summer he stayed with our family for awhile when I was home from college and working a second shift job at a factory in Napoleon. I would get up late and eat lunch with him almost daily.

One morning I came into the living room after getting up and he said to me something like, "Since you're the bookworm, I've got something for you." Beside his chair was a small box of books. Inside was a book on World War I that I still have and a couple of McGuffey's school books. Both school books had belonged to Grandma Elling and had her signature inside.

In the photo above, one can see that she practiced writing her name over and over in the spelling book. The second book was McGuffey's Second Reader and this flyleaf also sports the names of Paul Elling, Malinta, Ohio and Louise Elling, Napoleon, Ohio. Ida Anna Katharine Spoering Elling was born on 5 February 1890, so these books were probably used before 1900. I wonder if a little girl who probably spoke German exclusively at home found these books challenging.

As a very young adult, I probably didn't appreciate these books as much as I should have, but now I surely do.

 

*This is a reposting from my previous Elling Family News blog on November 20, 2008.

A War-Time Wedding

Marriage Licenses

Rudolph A. Elling, 21, machinist, Napoleon, and

Donna Ordway, 19, defense worker, Malinta.





Back: Lorna Elling, Eldor Elling
Donna Ordway, Rudolph Elling

"Ordway - Elling Nuptials

On Sunday afternoon, October 29 (1943), Miss Donna Ordway, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Fred Ordway, became the bride of Mr. Rudolph Elling.  The ceremony was performed in the home of the bride at Malinta by the Rev. Martin Zschoche, pastor of St. Paul's Lutheran Church of Napoleon.  Attendants were Mr. Eldor Elling and Miss Lorna Elling.  The young couple will make their home in Toledo, Ohio

Those attending the wedding were: Mr. and Mrs. Albert Elling, parents of the groom, Mr. and Mrs. Paul Elling, Misses Elinor and Louise Elling, Lt. Kenneth Musshel of the U.S. Air Corps, Mr. and Mrs. Henning**, grandparents of the bride, Rev. and Mrs. Martin Zschoche and Myra Berno of Toledo.

A tasty buffet supper was served by the parents of the bride.  The living room in which the ceremony was performed was decorated with beautiful bouquets of chrysanthemums.  The bride and the maid of honor wore beautiful corsages of American Beauty roses, while the groom and best man wore a buttonier of carnations."

**Newspaper error - should have been Mr. and Mrs. Ordway, grandparents of the bride.  There were no Henning grandparents and Donna Ordway's grandparents lived right next door and were very close to her, so it is most likely that they attended.

Both Donna and Rudy worked at the Willys Jeep plant in Toledo during the war.