(1864-1942)
by Donna Swagerty Shreve
I never met my great grandfather as he died before I was born. He was known only through the many stories told by several generations of descendants. First there were the family stories originated by him and then, after some genealogy research, the facts. The story of most fame was his naming. He was born in January of 1864 during the Civil War which had been ongoing for three years. The story goes that his father knew his wife was expecting again but he was off to fight in the war. He told his wife to wait to name the child until after the November election. If the child was a boy, he would be named after the president. The tale does not mention what to do if that child was a girl. The father then went off to war never to be heard from again. The wife waited until November and then named the child Abraham Lincoln Aldrich. He was never known to me other than Great Grandfather Aldrich. Various documents list him as A.L. Aldrich. Abe was the fourth child born to Harris and Lucy Aldrich. He had a half brother Myron that was his father’s from a first wife who died.
I mention Myron because he served in the Civil War and did return to lead a successful life. Harris, his father, never served as he was too old. Harris stayed with the family and two more children were born after Abe. Abe’s youngest daughter Lucy told several stories about her father’s reluctance to discuss his immediate family. Lucy would ask if she had any cousins. She claims her father’s response was, “several but you don’t want to meet them.” Lucy never met any of his relatives as they were all back in Iowa and Abe had moved the family to California in 1907. Later at the age of 74, Abe and his wife would travel back to Iowa to visit relatives. They took their fourth child Ethel and a grandson Web to help with the driving. There are wonderful pictures of Abe with one of his brothers and Ida with her two sisters.
When Abe was 15, his father died. Abe is listed in 1880 as 16 and occupation is a farmer. I wonder if Abe was being a bit rebellious at that young age and never resolved father/son issues. A year later his mother was remarried to a neighbor, William Shove. Abe stayed in the area working the farm until 1892 when he married Ida Laura Palmer. She was still 17 and he was 29. The family story goes that he heard coughing down a stairwell as he was passing by a building. He went down the stairs to investigate and discovered a beautiful young girl sewing. Ida had been sent by her father at age 2 to live with another family after her mother died. Ida wanted an escape and Abe was there to the rescue.
By 1893 the 29th of December the first child was born and named Ray Aldrich. He only lived 15 days and was buried in the local cemetery in Humboldt county in Iowa. Lucy told the story of how her mother Ida was quite religious and became convinced she was being punished with the death of her first born because she could not get her husband to go to church. After Ray’s death, Abe started going regularly to the Methodist church with his wife.
In October of 1894 their second child, Lulu Mae Aldrich, was born. She was quickly followed by Pearl Elizabeth Aldrich in 1896 and Clarence Harris Aldrich in 1898. The family was residing in Grove in the Lake Township of Humboldt county in Iowa. By 1901 the family was listed as residing in Arnold which is in the same county. Ethel Aldrich was born during this year of 1901 and followed by Lucy Mary Aldrich in 1903. Lucy told me she was named after her father’s mother who lived on the farm next door. When Ida was pregnant with this next child, Grandma Shove said she would be so pleased if the child could be named after her. Ida claimed later to her daughter that Lucy was never a favorite name of hers but she did name her Lucy to please her mother-in-law. Lucy Mary Reynolds Aldrich Shove died before Lucy turned two months old.
Another son was born in November of 1906. Roy lasted longer than 15 days but he only made it to two months before he died. Ida developed some type of lung problem and the family doctor convinced Abe to move the family to a better climate in California. Their Methodist minister had a brother who was a real estate agent who live in Stanislaus county in California. At the age of 42, Abe bought a farm in the small community of Hughson from this agent. So in October of 1907, the family traveled by train from Iowa to California. During the trip the ticket agent was coming through the cars checking tickets. Ethel had been listed as under the age of 5 and could ride for free. The railroad employee doubted Ethel’s age and commented to Ethel that she looked like such a big girl. Ethel replied that she was a big girl as she had just turned 5 years old. The agent then demanded that Abe pay the full fare and the family was convinced that money was pocketed by that agent. The house on the property was being rented by another family. Abe did not want to kick them out. So, according to Lucy, their first summer in Hughson was spent in a large tent while their house was being built. Abe had been a successful farmer in Iowa and he continued his good fortune in Hughson.
One of Abe’s brothers lost his wife and farmed out his children. Abe took in Joe Aldrich who was closest in age to Lulu, the oldest. Joe came west with the family and was old enough to help Abe with the box car full of animals that they brought along to California. Lucy would convince Joe to bring in kindling for her. Lucy disliked her chore and it was easier to get Joe to do it for her. This worked well for Lucy until her mother caught on to her scheme. Later in Hughson, Joe got into trouble with some friends during a fourth of July town celebration. While the towns folks were gathered for celebrations, the small group of boys burgled some homes. They were caught and sent to Preston School of Industry in Ione. After Joe had served his sentence, Abe put him on a train and sent him back to Joe’s father. Lucy never heard any more about him. I did research later and found him. He had lived a long and successful life. When Lucy wanted so much for me to find him, I had to remind her that he would be about 110 years old if he were still alive. Ruth Aldrich, wife of Clarence, wrote down some more stories of the family which give more insight into Abe and Ida.
Two of Abe’s daughters married two Swagerty brothers. Elmer Swagerty married Pearl Aldrich in 1914 and Wilbur Swagerty married Lulu Aldrich in 1916. The Swagerty boys were good men and hard working but were not successful business men and both of their families were struggling. By 1922 both families were living temporarily with Sampson and Emma Swagerty in a small home in Dent in San Joaquin county. My father Floyd remembers sleeping on the living room floor along with his siblings and cousins. Wilbur went to Abe asking for money to help his family. Abe decided a better solution was to have Wilbur manage his Hughson ranch and Abe and Ida would move into the town of Hughson. During this period Ethel was hoping to attend College of the Pacific in San Jose and sister Lucy wanted to attend nursing school in San Jose. To make sure his daughters were chaperoned, Abe and Ida moved to San Jose for their daughters’ schooling. Out of boredom Abe looked for things to do in the local paper. One of the job opportunities that caught his eye was managing a ranch for a Mr. Standish in Milpitas. Abe interviewed and got the job. He was thrilled as it gave him a challenge and kept him busy. It was a reasonable commute and all was well. Then Elmer, the second Swagerty brother, came for help. His family was also in dire straights. Abe solved Elmer’s problem by giving Elmer the Standish Ranch job. Elmer, Pearl and family would now move into the manager’s home situated on the property. Both sons-in-law were now provided for. When his daughters finished their education, Abe and Ida moved back to the house in Hughson. Another family story involves the youngest Swagerty brother John. He started showing interest in the youngest Aldrich daughter Lucy. Abe stated he had enough Swagerty boys in his family and put a stop to any dating before it could happen.
Abe now busied himself with other projects in town. One of his favorite activities was supporting his grandson Everett Aldrich, son of Clarence. Everett attended Hughson high school and was on the baseball team. Abe with two of his friends would sit in the stands in their suits and hats and cheer on the home team. Everett’s senior year was quite a great year to be a fan. That team went all the way to the championships and beat the neighboring big town of Turlock in the finals.Toward the end of the season some of the teammates noticed that their favorite fan was not in the stands. Everett had to tell the team that his grandfather had had an operation and they found cancer. When the team won the championship, they all signed a baseball and presented it to him.
Lucy recalled how she had to tell her father he had cancer as his wife could not muster up the courage and the doctor avoided it as he was a good friend. Lucy said it was one of the hardest things she ever had to do. Abe died of stomach cancer September 18, 1942. He was buried in nearby Turlock because Ida did not approve of the level of maintenance at the cemetery in Hughson at the time. Many relatives described Abe as having quite a twinkle in his eye and a ready smile. His eyes were a dominant feature that can be seen passed on down to the present descendants four generations later. Abe also had one ear that was pointed. I noticed this physical trait in my brother Grant and then my son Brad. Most importantly Abe left a generous spirit with much patience. His daughter Pearl had it and she passed it on down to her children and grandchildren.
1841 words
6/9/2020
Swagerty-Aldrich Family Web Site 