SUNDAY’S OBITUARY–William V. Gould, 1859-1924

DETROIT NEWS - 25 FEB 1924

Vivaldo William Gould or as he was better known, William "Val" Gould, was my paternal great grandfather.  I never knew him as he died long before I was born.  However, my father, who was William’s grandson, spoke of him throughout my years of growing up.  My Dad called him Beepa and called his grandmother, Mae, Meema.  I have never heard those names referring to grandparents since my Dad passed.  Have you ever heard those names as nicknames for grandparents?

William “Val” Gould was born on 31 Aug 1859 in Armada, Macomb, Michigan to parents John C. Gould and Sarah M. Hart.  The family moved to Detroit, Michigan between 1870 and 1878.  William “Val” married Mary “Mae” Eve Thorp.  I have not been able to locate their marriage record.  Though heaven knows I’ve been hunting for it for many years.  

“Val” & Mae had 7 children according to census records and her death record.  I know the names of 6 of those children: Ford V., Harry W., (my grandfather), Roy V., Gladys L., May A., and Helen C. I am guessing that one child died at birth or very young, as I can find no record.

From all six of those children there was only one grandchild born who grew to adulthood, my father Harry Norman Gould.  

Back to William V.  He worked in a paint store or as a supervisor at a paint company for all of his life.  He worked at S. H. Hart, which was a paint manufacturing company in Detroit.  He also worked at Standard Paint & Varnish in Detroit.

I am very fortunate to have many photos of my great grandfather William “Val” Gould.  In fact, it is one of those photos which you will often see associated with this blog.

The photo on the left is William V. driving the car, with his daughter Helen in the middle and son, Roy.  In the back seat on the far right is his wife Mae.  I cannot be sure of the identities of the other two ladies.  This photo was circa 1910-1915. 
The photo on the right is William (back row far right) with his wife and six children and his grandson (my Dad) circa 1915-1916.
 
  

William died on 24 Feb 1924 in Detroit.  He was only 64 years old.  His cause of death was peritonitis due to a ruptured gall bladder.  He is buried with his wife and his daughter, Helen at Mt. Olivet Cemetery in Detroit, Michigan.  I have been able to visit him twice during trips back to Detroit.

Headstone of William V. Gould - photo taken at Mt. Olivet Cemetery by Diane Gould Hall

Rest in peace great grandfather.  I wish I had known you.  I certainly have unanswered questions about your father, John. 

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2014   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

SIBLING SATURDAY– 16 SIBLINGS - CHILDREN OF JOHN & MARY LUNSFORD

WOW!  That’s a whole lot of children.  Especially for us in more modern times.  

These are the children of my 4th Great Grandparents John Lunsford and Mary “Polly” Hudson.  I descend from their daughter, Nancy.

I still don’t know everything about all the children.  Other than my 3rd great grandmother, Nancy, I probably know the most about her brother, Richard.  He was an interesting character and he also had 16 children.  I also have quite a bit of information about Elijah and Andrew. 

Here are the spouses I have for the 16 children of John & Mary Lunsford.  If you are reading this and find that you are related to any of these names, I’d love to hear from you.

Andrew Lunsford married Jane Gillilan 29 Oct 1835 in Lawrence Co., Ohio

William Lunsford married Nancy Massie in Sep 1836 in Ohio.

Melvina Lunsford married Adam Christian 4 May 1837 in Lawrence Co., Ohio.

Margaret Lunsford – I have no marriage information for her.

Nancy Delilah Lunsford married William Allen Boggs 11 Apr 1839 in Lawrence Co., Ohio (they are my 3rd great grandparents)
Here is a picture of William Boggs and his wife, Nancy Lunsford.

   

Richard Lunsford married first Nancy Peyton about 1846 and then Martha Ann Morrison 25 Mar 1875 in Cabell Co., West Virginia.
Here is a picture of Richard Lunsford and his 2nd wife, Martha Ann Morrison.

   

Susannah Lunsford married Dr. Benjamin F. Cory

Levine Lunsford married a woman who’s first name I don’t know, possible last name Dawson.

Elizabeth Lunsford married James Goff.

Martha Lunsford married a man named Mr. Cramer.

Amanda Lunsford married Jacob Pinkerman 8 Nov 1855 in Lawrence Co., Ohio.

Andrew Jackson Lunsford married Martha Vermillion 24 Jan 1856 in Lawrence Co., Ohio.

Sally Sarah Lunsford married Logan Vermillion 13 Mar 1856 in Lawrence Co., Ohio.

Elijah Lunsford married Marguerite Morris on 14 Mar 1861 in Lawrence Co., Ohio.

Thomas Lunsford – I have no marriage information for him.

Reuben Lunsford married Lucinda Haskins about 1878.

These names of spouses certainly aren’t all I have on this family.  However, in writing this post I have reminded myself that I need to go back to some of these families and fill in the blanks.  

NOTE:  With new information being posted online all the time, it’s important to go back to all your families from time to time and look for what else might be available.  I can tell by my research notes on this family, that it’s been a couple of years since I had a good look.  What new information will I discover now?  Can’t wait to find out.

Again, please contact me if you are descended from any of these families.  

Happy hunting,

HAVE YOU READ THESE POSTS?
SURNAME SATURDAY - MILNE 
ADDING SIBLING LINKS TO FINDAGRAVE 
ADDING SIBLING LINKS TO FINDAGRAVE - AN UPDATE 

Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2014   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

 

FUNERAL CARD FRIDAY– Everett Pierre Roe

 

I have to be honest.  I haven’t written anything for this particular topic because I don’t have many funeral cards.  However, much to my surprise I actually had more than the two or three I thought.  

I’m going to start today and go through the list over the next few Fridays.  I will talk about who this person was to me and about their history and family.





Relationship to me:  Husband of my Grand Aunt
Born 12 Aug 1893 in Cornwall on the Hudson, New York to William & Matilda (Kempton) Roe
Married Irene “Peggy” Marie Milne on 19 Jun 1926 in Detroit, Wayne, Michigan
One child born to this couple, a daughter, who is still living
Died 14 May 1959 in Mt. Carmel Mercy Hospital, Detroit, Wayne, Michigan
Burial at Woodlawn Cemetery, Detroit, Wayne, Michigan

Everett Pierre Roe was married to my maternal grandfather’s sister.  Sadly, I never knew either Everett or his wife, Irene.  We moved away from Detroit, Michigan when I was only 7 years old.  Most of the rest of my family, grandparents, cousins, aunts, uncles etc., all stayed in Detroit.  And many are still there.  

Here is a picture of Everett wearing his Navy hat, I’m told this was about 1919.  And one of his wife, Irene, the year not known.

(Click on any image to enlarge it)
    
The one daughter born to Everett & Irene is a first cousin to my mother.  I do remember meeting her when I was a little girl.  Fortunately, after decades, I was able to locate her in Michigan and got to meet and talk with her on my visits in 2007 and 2010.  I’ve even spent time with her oldest daughter.  It was during one of those visits that I was able to get copies of photos and documents.

NOTE:  I took my digital camera with me during the visit.  I photographed documents and took pictures of photos.  Doing this allowed me to capture these items, without asking Everett’s elderly daughter to part with them while I took them some place to scan them.  This was before the days of wand scanners and Flip Pal.  Always be prepared when you visit with family.  

Everett served in the Navy during World War I.  He enlisted on 21 Apr 1917 and was discharged on 15 Jul 1919.  Here is the military service card, recording his service.



Everett’s obituary states that he was associated with the R. L. Pope Furniture Company at 14751 Seven Mile Rd. West from 1946 to the time of his death.  He lived in Detroit for 36 years.   
 
Everett was 65 years old when he died and he and Irene had been married for 32 years.  I don’t have a cause of death for him or a death certificate.  I do know he is interred at Woodlawn Cemetery in Detroit.  I have personally photographed his headstone.  His wife, Irene, is also buried with him. Here is a link to the findagrave memorial I created for him: 
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=49427451



It seems to me that I could learn more about Everett’s life.  There should be more records I can obtain.  I can also talk to his daughter and granddaughter and learn more about him.  It’s when we begin to write a story about one of our ancestors that we truly have a picture of their lives.  If all we have are names and dates, then we have missed so much.  For many, that is all we will ever have.  But, for Everett, I know I can do better.  It seems I better make a phone call or two.

HAVE YOU READ THESE POSTS?
FAMILY RECIPE FRIDAY - HOW TO KEEP HAIR CURLED BACK IN 1906 

CEMETERY RECORDS - WHAT CAN THEY TELL YOU? HOW DO YOU USE THEM?

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2014   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION