MEMORIES FROM PATRICIA*

EMAIL from Patricia, 2007:

As a child, I was the one to always put fresh roses into the slots of the carved rose on the top of the tombstone of Gertrude Pearl Dixon. I have the large picture of her hanging on my bedroom wall, Lydia Dixon Shelton (Gerdie's sister) died when she thought that she was pregnant but in fact it was a large tumor and death came because a nurse gave her water to drink. My Grandmother had made a baby dress for the expected child that was not. The long baby dress has been used for chistenings in my family and will soon be used again for my newest granddaughter--a dress almost a hundred years old.
My mother has the original family book by Ben F. Dixon.
Patricia McWhortor Mullenix

EMAIL from Patricia, later in 2007:

The Dixons and Kinkades moved from Ross Co. Ohio to IL and then here to Clark Co. MO. My mother's mother died of the 1918 influenza when my mother was 4 days old. Her grandmother brought her here and raised her. We have stayed put in this county and thus I have much knowledge of the families being bred into me growing up.
And then Uncle Ben Dixon came back every other summer to visit and do research and I was his shadow. Mother just got a Christmas card and letter from his son John with info that John's daughter Joyce is getting into genealogy and found that "Our Book" is now available on a disc. She was upset about that at first. But i think her genealogy instincts set in and now thinks that at least her Grandfather's work will continue. Mother has Grandmother Dixon's copy of the book--#1 and it is the unedited version with things he did not want others to read. The photos in it are glossy prints pasted in. I reprinted the book about 15 years ago and included many of the family letters and addendum to it.
There is another Kinkade still left here. Elenor Kinkade Nichols is about 94 and now in the Clark Co. nursing home. When she needed to come to Kahoka to attend high school, she stayed at Grandma Dixon's house and slept in the same bed with my mother. They were like sisters all be it a six year span in age and thus she has always been Aunt Elenor to me. She taught school for many many years.
If you ever get to come this way, I would be glad to take you to Waterloo and tell you the stories of the now deserted town and the funeral parade of Ebenezer.

*Submitter's Note: Patricia shared some of her family history with me in 2007. I hope these warm feelings can be remembered by future generations.

Last modified March 30, 2017 by BK.

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