Eva Baker was born 8 July 1881 in Belcher, New York. She graduated from high school in Brandon, Vermont in 1900. Like her younger brother Clarence, she had a beautiful (contralto) voice and was much in demand as a church soloist. She taught music in local schools and later in life was a librarian in Brandon. She married Joseph Shepard in a double wedding with her brother Arthur (who married Anna Offensend); the wedding taking place on 8 July 1910, her 29th birthday.
The story as I had it from my grandmother is that Joseph Shepard had syphilis. Their son Dennison Shepard was born 5 May 1911 and died on 17 July, his death attributed to his father's illness. Their second son Edward, was born was healthy on 11 March 1916. Joseph Shepard died 27 January 1920. On 20 June 1930 when Edward was fourteen he died very tragically in a boating accident. The scene was a church picnic on Lake Dunmore. Edward and his mother along with two other children were in a boat which tipped, according to my grandfather, because of a sudden squall. Edward, who was an excellent swimmer, carried his mother to shore and went back out to help the two others, both girls, I believe. In a horrible chain of events, which I remember being cautioned about many times in my early swimming career, the panicked girls dragged Edward under and they all three died. Eva, who had already lost her husband and her first child, never recovered from this blow. I remember visiting Eva several times and I inherited all of her photo albums.
Arthur Baker was born 8 April 1884 in South Hartford, New York. As mentioned above he married in a double wedding with his sister Eva. He lived in Fair Haven and had two sons, George born in 1911 and John born in 1914. John died in 1925 at the age of eleven. I never heard anything about him. George, my mother's cousin, was often mentioned by my mother. I remember two stories. My mother went to Brandon for her brother's high school graduation in June of 1947. She was pregnant with me but not married. She worried about whether people would notice. Her friend advised her to wear a big hat to draw attention away from her shape. Her cousin George took her aside and asked whether she was pregnant. She asked him why he thought so and he replied, "because you are wearing a big hat". George also went down in history because at the collation after his mother's funeral he said "This is a day I have been looking forward to for years". When people laughed he became flustered and explained that he was happy to see friends and relatives that he seldom saw.
George had two sons, another George and Sheldon. These men were my second cousins. When I lived in West Hartford in the 1980's I learned that Sheldon was the well known "Phantom Diner", a Connecticut restaurant critic. I went to a book signing and told him who I was. He seemed completely uninterested and that was the only contact I had with him.
Horatio Baker was born 2 July 1893 and died 14 October 1966. He and Clarence remained close throughout their lives. Horatio graduated from Brandon High School in 1911. He then went to the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis. In 1916 he entered RPI in Troy and earned a degree in electrical engineering. In 1918 when she was still 17 years old, he married Madeline Bennett the daughter of his landlady. Her birthday was 27 August, the same day as his brother's wife Madge. They had no children. Lois lived with them in Troy for a year after she graduated from high school. She wished to become a nurse but was considered too young because she was barely sixteen when she graduated. In Troy she worked as a nurse's aide at Samaritan Hospital; an experience that cured her completely of her dream of nursing. She was fond of her aunt and uncle but was indignant at the fact that they made daily inquiries about her bowel movements. She felt that at sixteen she had outgrown the need for such attention. Moving one's bowels daily was considered a benchmark for good health and medicinal doses were administered if they did not operate on schedule.
My parents often went from Jamaica to Troy for Thanksgiving dinner and I remember both Horatio and Madeline well. When I lived in Troy in the late 1970's I sometimes drove by the large house on Pawling Avenue where they had lived in an apartment for many years.
The story as I had it from my grandmother is that Joseph Shepard had syphilis. Their son Dennison Shepard was born 5 May 1911 and died on 17 July, his death attributed to his father's illness. Their second son Edward, was born was healthy on 11 March 1916. Joseph Shepard died 27 January 1920. On 20 June 1930 when Edward was fourteen he died very tragically in a boating accident. The scene was a church picnic on Lake Dunmore. Edward and his mother along with two other children were in a boat which tipped, according to my grandfather, because of a sudden squall. Edward, who was an excellent swimmer, carried his mother to shore and went back out to help the two others, both girls, I believe. In a horrible chain of events, which I remember being cautioned about many times in my early swimming career, the panicked girls dragged Edward under and they all three died. Eva, who had already lost her husband and her first child, never recovered from this blow. I remember visiting Eva several times and I inherited all of her photo albums.
Arthur Baker was born 8 April 1884 in South Hartford, New York. As mentioned above he married in a double wedding with his sister Eva. He lived in Fair Haven and had two sons, George born in 1911 and John born in 1914. John died in 1925 at the age of eleven. I never heard anything about him. George, my mother's cousin, was often mentioned by my mother. I remember two stories. My mother went to Brandon for her brother's high school graduation in June of 1947. She was pregnant with me but not married. She worried about whether people would notice. Her friend advised her to wear a big hat to draw attention away from her shape. Her cousin George took her aside and asked whether she was pregnant. She asked him why he thought so and he replied, "because you are wearing a big hat". George also went down in history because at the collation after his mother's funeral he said "This is a day I have been looking forward to for years". When people laughed he became flustered and explained that he was happy to see friends and relatives that he seldom saw.
George had two sons, another George and Sheldon. These men were my second cousins. When I lived in West Hartford in the 1980's I learned that Sheldon was the well known "Phantom Diner", a Connecticut restaurant critic. I went to a book signing and told him who I was. He seemed completely uninterested and that was the only contact I had with him.
Horatio Baker was born 2 July 1893 and died 14 October 1966. He and Clarence remained close throughout their lives. Horatio graduated from Brandon High School in 1911. He then went to the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis. In 1916 he entered RPI in Troy and earned a degree in electrical engineering. In 1918 when she was still 17 years old, he married Madeline Bennett the daughter of his landlady. Her birthday was 27 August, the same day as his brother's wife Madge. They had no children. Lois lived with them in Troy for a year after she graduated from high school. She wished to become a nurse but was considered too young because she was barely sixteen when she graduated. In Troy she worked as a nurse's aide at Samaritan Hospital; an experience that cured her completely of her dream of nursing. She was fond of her aunt and uncle but was indignant at the fact that they made daily inquiries about her bowel movements. She felt that at sixteen she had outgrown the need for such attention. Moving one's bowels daily was considered a benchmark for good health and medicinal doses were administered if they did not operate on schedule.
My parents often went from Jamaica to Troy for Thanksgiving dinner and I remember both Horatio and Madeline well. When I lived in Troy in the late 1970's I sometimes drove by the large house on Pawling Avenue where they had lived in an apartment for many years.
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