Rebecca Anne Bower - 243

 Becky Mann

Most of these ancestors/relatives I'm writing about, I've grown up with and have had years of memories to dissect and distil into a choice anecdote which I feel reflects their character the best way possible.  Cousin Becky is not like that, although in the seven years I've known her, keeping in touch with out common love of genealogy, I genuinely wish that she was someone who I'd grown up with.

I first contacted her niece, Linda Vasquez Everman, when I was looking to find all descendants of William Doniphan Frazee and I suspect because of her, Cousin Becky reached out to find me.  I was so fresh into the search at that point that I was afraid she wasn't that closely related.  I mean, how many 91-year-old cousins should I expect to find? She was the last surviving of five siblings.  She was among the last three surviving granddaughters of W.D. however.  Now that she's died, there are just two with as far as I've found seven remaining third generation spouses.

So, I soon learned what a resource she was and she regularly encouraged me to keep after the Frazee research, hoping that I'd find some new info or a new photo or telephone listing for her to enjoy.  I certainly have added lots more information thanks to her requests.  I'm sure that she's happy that I added her information to familysearch and been able to link her records to that of Dr. Mann finally. Although, she would have preferred reading about it.  As I'm not sure who will inspire me towards more work on the subject, I will genuinely say that ladies like her don't come around very often and that she will be missed by a great many people, including myself.

August 26, 1925 Escondido— March 30, 2024   Louisville

Becky Mann of Louisville, daughter of the late William Bower and Helen Frazee Bower, was born August 26, 1925, in Escondido, California.

She went to be with the Lord in the early hours of the morning on Saturday, March 30, 2024, in Louisville.  She was 98 years, 7 months, and 4 days old.  She would have been 99 in August.

She professed faith in Christ and served him faithfully all the years of her life.  She was a member of Pleasant Hill Baptist Church.

Paraphrased from God’s description of a virtuous and capable woman in Proverbs 31:10-31:

Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above emeralds.  Her husband can trust her, she will greatly enrich his life.  She brings him good, not harm all the days of her life.  She brings food from the garden to feed her family.  She is energetic and strong.  She makes her dealings profitable.  Her lamps burn late into the night.  Her hands are always busy.  She extends her hand to the poor and needy.  She is clothed with strength and dignity.  She labors without fear of the future.  When she speaks, her words are wise.  She gives instruction with kindness.  She carefully watches over her household and is not lazy.  Her children stand and bless her.  Her husband praises her always.  There are many virtuous and capable women in the world, but you surpass them all.  Charm is deceptive and beauty does not last.  But a woman who fears the Lord will be greatly praised.  Reward her for all she has done.  Let her deeds publicly declare her praise.

Becky united in marriage with Dr. W.R. “Doc” Mann on April 12, 1946.   “Doc” preceded her in death on May 4, 1992.

She is survived by two daughters and one son: Dr. Barbara Freeman of Parrish, Florida, Bill Mann and wife, Genez of Taylors, South Carolina, and Beth Reynolds and husband, Tim of Campbellsville; eight grandchildren: Jeff Mobley and wife, Joanna of Greenville, South Carolina, Billy Mann and wife, Lisa of Campobello, South Carolina, Dr. Becky Antle and husband, Paul Bliss of Louisville, Lori Mann of Taylors, South Carolina, Jeff Reynolds and wife, Tonya of Campbellsville, Ryan Reynolds and wife, Kristin of Tampa, Florida, Josh Mann of Campbellsville, Caleb Mann of Campbellsville; six great-grandchildren: Mackenzie Antle, Trevor Antle, Hunter Mobley, Braden Antle, Christian Reynolds, and Noah Reynolds; many extended family members: nieces, nephews, cousins, chosen children and grandchildren she considered her own, and many close friends dear to her heart. 

She was a true prayer warrior and she prayed for her family, her friends, and those in need of God’s mercy and healing every day.  She even left behind her current prayer list as she passed the torch on to the next generation.

In addition to “Doc,” welcoming her into the kingdom of Heaven was a fellowship of those family and friends preceding her in death, including:   a son, Patrick Douglas Mann, a granddaughter, Bethany “Boo” Anne Mann, and two brothers and two sisters:  Richard Bower, David Bower, Lois Rollins, and Ruth Vasquez.

William McMicken Bower - 24S

ESCONDIDO — Services were held in Campbellsville, Ky., and Norwalk for William M. Bower, 89, a former Escondido resident. He died Sept. 19 at Taylor County Hospital in Campbellsville.

He was born May 14, 1890, in Letcher, S.D., and served in the U.S. Army in World War I. He was a division civil engineer for the Richfield Oil Co. for 27 years before his retirement.

Mr. Bower had been a member of the Los Angeles Symphony and the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra. He composed the march that won a contest and was featured at the World's Fair in San Francisco in 1915. He was a chief musician-arranger for Hollywood film maker D.W. Griffith and his compositions have been played by the Chicago Symphony.

In addition to conducting several orchestras and choirs, Mr. Bower was author of the book "Modern Concepts of Music." He and his wife, the former Helen Frazee, produced numerous articles, five books and 38 religious songs.

His wife died June 25, 1960.

During his later years, he made his home at Campbellsville and was a member of the Campbellsville Baptist Church.

Surviving are three daughters, Becky Mann of Campbellsville, Ruth Vasquez of West Covina, and Lois Rollins of Massillon, Ohio; tow sons, Richard L. Bower of Campbellsville and David Bower of Norwalk; 15 grandchildren; 22 great-grandchildren; and a cousin, Bulah Zimmer of Escondido.

Burial was in the Inglewood Cemetery in Los Angeles County.

 Times-Advocate (Escondido, California) - Thursday, October 4, 1979

Remaining Obituaries Needed for the first Three Generations of Frazee Descendants

 

57 obits still needed

1S Margaret Tucker Frazee b. 3/3/1857 in Fresno, California d. 5/20/1934 in Phoenix, Arizona

11 Wilmonte Doniphan Frazee 2nd.  b. 1/10/1883 d. 10/?/1971 in Dade County GA

11S1. Jeannie “Creola” W. Stockwell b. 1/5/1881 in Shreveport, Louisiana d. 7/29/1950 in Dade County GA

11S#2. Willetta Maxson Rickabaugh b. 2/28/1893 d. 9/23/1983 in Dade County GA

112. Titus Alexander Frazee b. 10/30/1907 in Arizona died 1/10/1984 in Georgetown, Quitman County, Georgia.

112S1 Eva Lydia (Donahue) Hulbert b. 6/29/1900 in Healdsburg, CA. She dies as Eva Lydia Sturges on May 15, 1968

11A1 Homer Maxson Rickabaugh, b. 8/20/1919 in San Fernando, Calif. d. 5/21/1994 in Big Spring, Howard County, Texas

11A2 Albert Rickabaugh, b. 3/27/1921 in Alhambra, Calif. d. 12/2/1994 in Orange, Calif.

11A3 Donald Edward Rickabaugh b. 10/24/1922 in Los Angeles County d. 10/23/2010 Eugene?

11A4 Harriett Elizabeth “Betty” Rickabaugh b. 3/9/1924 in Los Angeles d. 4/30/2013 in Witt Springs, Arkansas

12. Louise Pauline Frazee Alexander b. 12/9/1884 d. 7/16/1957 in Phoenix

12S1  Joseph I. Ross b.?/1880  d. ? filed for divorce 12/29/1906 Los Angeles barber.

132S. Jeannette Ellen Maret Collins b. 1(7)/12/1909 d. 8/26/1996 in San Francisco 

14. Mary Cameron Frazee Hugg b. 1/27/1891 d. 1/30/1944 in Phoenix

21. William Addison Cooper Frazee b. 5/1/1886 d. 3/11/1956

21S  Doris or Dorothy Marian White (or Waite) Frazee b. 10/27/1894 d. 1/14/1978

211. Wilton Jenkinson Frazee b. 11/14/1914 d. 12/17/2006 in Bend, Deschutes, Oregon

211S1 Elizabeth May Burmahln Frazee b. 3/14/1917 d. 4/6/1991 in San Diego, Calif.

212S. Victor Van Ness b. 10/24/1894 d. 5/31/1968 in Hollywood, California

214S. Martin Cyrus Rice b. 4/26/1920 d. 6/17/1996 in Los Angeles County

216. Kathryn Patricia “Kitty Pat” Frazee b. 3/9/1929 in San Diego d. 8/22/2015 No info.  Five words

222. Shirley “Susan” Worsley Ramsey b. 4/28/1919 in Fullerton, Calif.d.5/14/2002 died in Glendale, CA

23S Meta Gertrude Rettig Frazee b. 8/7/1898 in New York d. 5/2/1984 in the U-District, Seattle, WA.

242. David Frazee Bower b. 6/30/1924 d. 12/11/1997 in Orange County, Calif.

244S. John William Vasquez b. 1/20/1927 in Los Angeles, Calif. D. 1/20/2009

25. Nahda Rebecca Frazee Wheeler  b. 3/8/1898 d. 10/15/1952 death announcement only LA Times

25S Samuel Morse Wheeler b. 4/27/1888 d. 6/17/1972

251. Margaret Joyce Wheeler Derrick b. 7/22/1920 in California d. 6/11/1998 in Bakersfield

251S. John Wine Derrick b. 2/14/1910 in Texas d. 1/22/1985 in San Acacia, New Mexico

252. Virginia Jane? Morse Wheeler Howard b. 4/9/1922 in California d. 6/21/1988 in Kern County, Calif.

252S. James Wilbert Howard b. 3/16/1910 in Oklahoma d 12/31/1972 in Los Angeles.

253. Alison Ruth Wheeler Sexton  b. 10/6/1926 in San Diego County, CA d. 8/2/1994 in West Covina

253S. Daniel George Sexton b. 8/16/1903 in Pennsylvania d. 8/4/1996 in Covina

254. Samuel Isaac Wheeler b. 9/16/1928 in California d. 5/16/1930. In Downey, CA

256. James David Wheeler b. 9/21/1937 Los Angeles County, Calif. d. 6/1/2005 in La Puente, Los Angeles  County

257. Joel Dickinson Wheeler b. 1/30/1939 d. 12/19/2000 in Pomona

26. Bettie Dickinson Frazee Moses b. 9/23/1901  d. 9/22/1978

262. Richard Lyman “Dick” Moses b. 5/19/1933 in Sonoma d. 3/8/2002 in Upland, CA

27. Edith Louise Frazee Eckart b. 3/25/1904 d. 2/19/1968 in Pasadena

41A1S1. Mary Townsend Moseley  b. 10/25/1915 in New Jersey. D.11/9/1962 in hospital in Philadelphia.

41A2. Margaret G. Moseley b. 1/7/ 1911 in Fresno, California d. 6/8/2007 in Santa Cruz, Calif.

411. Betty Harriette Frazee (also Beatrice) David b 3/28/1918 Berkeley, Alameda Co., California d. 3/20/1980 in Lower Lake, Lake County, CA

411S Harry Footit David b. 10/18/1910 in Mitchell, SD d. 7/26/1070 in Shasta, California.

412. Howard Harry Frazee b 9/9/1919 in Berkeley, Alameda Co., California d. 11/20/1994 in Los Altos, Santa Clara, CA

412S. Helen Delores Bowman b. 12/12/1926 d. 2/28/2018 in Redmond, Washington

431. Marjorie Mae Frazee Meikle b. 7/23/1915 Oceanside, San Diego County, California d. 9/10/1987 Novato, Marin County, California

431S. David Meikle b. 12/4/1915 Russian River, Calif. d. 5/10/2001 Petaluma, Sonoma County, California

433s3. Eleanor Pearl Rose (Schubert) Frazee b. 6/24/1922 in Sonoma, California  d. 12/17/2011 in Las Vegas  death announcement only

443S. James F. Bressi b. 4/25/1925 in San Fernando, California d. 3/10/1968 in Oceanside, California

444. Earl Vernon Junie Frazee b. 11/9/1927 d. 6/11/2017 in Carlsbad, California

445. Alma Mae Beebs Frazee Tyler  b. 4/4/1929 d. 11/4/2020 in Oceanside, California

45. Alma Mae Frazee Bonds b 8/24/1896 d 8/14/1992 in Culver City

45S  Vaughn J Bonds b. 9/29/1894 d. 3/18/1982 in Culver City

451. Vaughn J Bonds Jr. 2/3/1924 d. 12/14/2007 in Culver City, Los Angeles, CA

6. Francis Samuel Frazee b. 6/20/1868 in Ꙫ Indianapolis, Indiana d. 1878 in San Bernardino County, California

Harry M. Hugg - 14S

Harry M Hugg

Harry M. Hugg, 92, former parts manager for Packard Motor Co. in Phoenix, died (Wednesday) July 25, 1979, in Doctors Hospital. Private services will be held. Mr. Hugg, 2630 N. 15th St., came here from his native (Wellsboro) Pennsylvania (born December 20, 1886 to Joseph and Franziska Hugg - nee Goetz) in 1908. (He married Mary C. Frazee in 1917, but they had no children and she predeceased Harry by 35 years.) A nephew survives. (He is survived by nieces Anna Bittenbender, Mary Hugg, Anna Selwell, Rita Bumgarner, and Doris Siebold, as well as nephews Vincent and Joseph Hugg.)

Arizona Republic, July 27, 1979

James William O’Brien - 452S

 October 4, 1927 – August 12, 2022 James W. O’Brien, beloved husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather, died peacefully at home in Corona del Mar on August 12, 2022, at the age of 94. Wife of 68 years, Mavis, daughter Margie, son Jim, grandsons Porter, Cooper and Ellis, granddaughter Isabel and great-granddaughter Ada.

Jim grew up in Los Angeles, attended Los Angeles High School, Menlo School, and graduated from USC, where he was a member of the Kappa Alpha fraternity. He graduated from Hastings College of Law, where he served as editor of the Law Review. Before starting his career in law, he served in both World War II and the Korean War, later as a naval aviation intelligence officer, circumnavigating the world on aircraft carriers.

Jim had a keen intellect, possessed compassion, an enduring sense of fairness, and a strong desire to give back to the community. He involved himself in various organizations. He served as president of the West Orange County YMCA, the Bowers Museum Foundation, and the president of the Orange County Bar Association. He was the recipient of the Orange County Bar Franklin G. West Award in 1991 for his lifetime achievements in advancing justice and the law.

He believed that because the practice of law had made a lavish life for his family, he had to give something to his profession in return. After the family moved from Los Angeles to Orange County in 1967, he began serving on the Orange County Bar Association’s board of directors. In 1987, he was elected to the Board of Governors of the State Bar of California. He also served on the California Commission on Judicial Performance and was appointed a presiding judge for the State Bar Court. Colleagues valued his ability to cut out outsiders and uncover the heart of the matter, while treating everyone with the utmost respect.

In 1980, he joined a small group of judges and lawyers to help raise free legal services for low-income residents in Orange County, and Amicus Publico was born. It later became the Public Law Center, working to address systemic injustices that plagued the poor. He firmly believed that justice should serve all equally, and worked to remove the barrier of poverty on the path of equal justice.

While his professional achievements were significant, they pale in comparison to his commitment to his family. He was a passionate skier, first skiing at Mammoth in the 1940s, when Dave McCoy was driving a moveable rope tow with a car engine. He made sure his children developed a love for the sport, and the family took the Countess of Mammoth trips and resorts across the Rocky Mountains.
Throughout his life he found new things to spark his interest; He and Mavis developed a keen interest in contemporary art, and traveled extensively. He became a master chef who enjoyed cooking for family and friends (Mavis ensured a beautiful presentation), and after his retirement he surprised us all by becoming a skilled woodworker.

He leaves a better world for his years of service and a family forever grateful for his guidance and exceptional example. His final years were transformed by Alzheimer’s disease, but even as he slowly (and sometimes painfully) left us, his cordial essence always shone. He faced the hardships of this terrible disease with grace, discovering a new wonder at the simple beauties and kindness of life.
He was the best gentleman and the best man of the greatest generation. Our heart is full of love and gratitude.

There will be a private ceremony.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in his name:
Publiclawcenter.org

Published by the Los Angeles Times on August 21, 2022.

James Seeley Fuller - 261S

 

James Fuller

Father, artist, teacher

James Seeley Fuller died peacefully in his home on November 28, 2017, with his loving family and the warm regard of many friends surrounding him. He was 90 years old.

He was born October 2, 1927, to Howard and Anne Billinghurst Fuller in Pierre, South Dakota. His childhood home was in Fargo. He was one of four beloved siblings, Lucille Fuller Moses, Hiram Fuller and Thaddeus Fuller, all of whom have died.

Mr. Fuller was blessed with a long and productive life in art. He came to California in 1947, attending Chaffey College in Ontario, and studying with Henry McFee. He went to UC Berkeley, where he earned a bachelor's and then a master's degree in fine art. He was a painter in oils, watercolor and acrylics and a master printmaker and sculptor. He was always working, his family shared.

The greatest blessing in his life was to find and marry Elizabeth Moses, his family said. She preceded him in death in May 2014. "Liz and Jim were true mates and they both followed the 'Beauty Way,'" Mr. Fuller's daughter, Mary, related. "Each day, in their later years together, they would alternate with a kind of invocation: 'Well, today you do the beauty part.' Liz was a wonderful artist as well, and together they gave their gifts to the world and as praise and thanksgiving."

Mr. Fuller was a modest man for all of his gifts, yet he had a wry wit and twinkle in his eye, his family shared. He was, among other things, a beloved teacher. He taught art at UC Berkeley, Cal State University Los Angeles, UC Davis and Claremont's Scripps College, as well as numerous workshops and classes including at the Laguna Beach School of Art. He encouraged many students and colleagues over the years, his family added, "best of all in his teaching, he was open to share and listen. He was curious and graceful and masterfully skilled. He was generous."

He believed that "drawing is seeing." He always began with drawing what he sought to convey in painting, so that he could get close to the essence or presence of what was before him. He was inspired by nature: running water, stones, mountains and growing things. He thrived being outside, standing in a river, fly fishing, walking in the hills or standing on the Pacific shore. Mr. Fuller described the act of making art as "empathy," and said he sometimes felt that he "almost got there to feel the embrace of nature," as he worked. Making art was a joy he immersed himself in, his family shared.

Jim leaves behind three daughters, Mary Francesca Fuller Roberts (Griff Roberts) of Claremont, Phoebe Margaret Fuller Graham (Richard Graham) of Irvine, and Suzanne Beth Fuller Braswell (James Braswell) of Lompoc. He once said he was "a man rich in daughters."

He was the very proud grandfather of Martin James Roberts (Elizabeth Stampe) of San Francisco, Paul Griffith Roberts of Victorville, and a precious great-grandson, Aylen Stampe Roberts of San Francisco.

"Kindred Natures," a new show of Mr. Fuller's work, is on display at the Claremont Museum of Art through March 25. The museum is at 200 W. First St., in the Claremont Depot. More info is at claremontmuseum.org or (909) 621-3200.

January 12, 2018 | Claremont Courier (CA)

 

Elmo Collins 13S2

 "In this city (San Francisco), December 5, 1953, Elmo, dearly beloved father of Mrs. John (Bud) (John Cecil) Smith, loving grandfather of Jane Ann, Robert, Michael and John Smith, loving brother of Witney and Arthur Collins; a native of Kansas City, Missouri.

"Funeral Wednesday, December 9, at 9:15 a. m. from Earl J. Currivan's Chapel of the Sunset, Irving at 26th Ave. (Sunset District), thence to St. Cecilia's Church, 17th Ave. and Ulloa St., where a Requiem High Mass will be offered at 9:45 a. m.  Internment will be at Holy Cross Cemetery. Rosary Tuesday evening at 8:30 o'clock."

San Francisco Examiner December 7, 1953

Elmo lived a full and interesting life.  He was born on March 13, 1880 to Richard Collins and Elmira Norris Collins. At one time or another he claimed to have been born in Caldwell, Kansas, Kansas City, MO, Kansas City, Kansas, Mexico, and California. Because of the odd specificity of it, I assume the true location was Caldwell.  His confusion is understandable, however, as his brothers are born 16 months and five hundred miles apart from each as the family heads slowly, but reliably west.

As a young man in Phoenix, he meets a well traveled and experienced woman, 51 year-old Lucy Abell, with two husbands and four children under her belt, and despite his being merely 22, he marries her. Lucy had been the dutiful wife of a county accessor in California who'd dumped her over for an older woman; Lucy had been 17 years his junior, and Susanna was merely 8 years.  Lucy had traveled through multiple states and at least one marriage in the previous 14 years, but now she would move to Glitzy San Francisco with a husband younger than all four of her children.

A decade later, the couple decided to adopt a girl they named Virginia and Elmo worked steadily as a planer in a saw mill.  In 1923, Lucy died, and eventually, his sickly parents move in with them.  Considering that Elmira Collins dies in 1929 and Richard Collins in 1931 and Helen Frazee Collins begins divorce proceedings from Elmo's brother Arthur just after Richard's death and she and Elmo then marry March 31, 1932.  It isn't too great a stretch to imagine that they would have wanted to be together sooner had not his parents objected, perhaps as early as 1923 when Lucy had died.

Whether true or not, the couple endured until her death in 1944.  After that, like any old man wanting to move out to pasture, Elmo found a way, moving from San Francisco to the Straus dairy ranch on Tomales Bay, in Marin County.  In a romantic story, that's where his life would have ended, but in 1951 his first granddaughter, Jane Ann is born, and perhaps that pulled him back into his family's life because it was in busy San Francisco, rather than dusty Tomales Bay where Elmo died on December 5, 1953.