Today, I’m going to tell you one of the stories about my mother’s grandmother. At 16, she married a Great Lakes captain, Matthew Baker. He was twice her age and something of a playboy. Her parents disowned her for disgracing the family. (Not too much of that now-days, but a lot before “reality and tell-all talk shows.)

She bore him 4 children: 3 sons and a daughter. He piloted primarily the pleasure crafts of the rich on Lake Michigan and he kept moving his family from the WI, IL shore to the western MI shore over and over.

Finally, when my grandfather was around 4th grade, Matthew decided once again that he would move his family from Kenosha WI to Michigan again. Sadie said, “No.” But invited him to stop by whenever he was in town. (Not much divorce in those days, but people did separate.) It was in late summer that this took place. This was before child support and welfare of any kind so she and her children were on their own to prepare for the coming winter.

She began sewing for the ladies of the town and her boys scrounged around and picked berries and nuts. The walnuts they picked proved to be the staple of their diet through that first long winter. And my grandfather never went back to school. He went to work to help support the family.

This all happened over 100 years ago and it’s painful to recall how hard life could be. And still, this harshness didn’t blunt Sadie’s sense of humor or zest for life. More about that another time!

Do you have any memorable stories about women in your family? If you’d like to share them, email me on my website http://www.LynCote.net Click the Meet Lyn page for contact info.
I’d love to tell your family’s stories!