Strong

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An Appalling Tragedy Occurred on the Morning of July Fourth

The Rupert Democrat 4 July 1917

Several months ago I took my Dad and Step-Mother out to the Minidoka-Acequia-Rupert Cemetery north of Rupert Idaho. I had inherited 11 graves in the cemetery from the Phibbs family. 7 are together in one location, four in another. We were there on that occasion to pick out their final resting place. A somber experience if you think about it.

We walked around both sets of graves and picked out their preferred location. They picked out two graves that they wanted and we visited for a little while. While there, we looked at some of their future neighbors.

There were three graves that caught our attention. Older graves from 1917 in which it appeared all three had died the same year. Two male names and a female, we thought it looked like a father and mother and son. That raised enough questions that I researched them. Here is what is on the grave stones:

George E Davies 1908 – 1917

Hyrum E Davies 1879 – 1917

Mercy M Davis 1881 – 1917

The investigation began. It was not that hard to find their connections on FindaGrave as husband and wife and son. They had all died the same date, 4 July 1917, over 105 years ago.

I started researching the online newspapers for Rupert, Idaho. I found the Rupert Democrat from 4 July 1917 above. Here is the text of that article:

AN APPALLING TRAGEDY OCCURED ON THE MORNING OF JULY FOURTH

MR. AND MRS. HYRUM E. DAVIES AND NINE YEAR OLD SON GEORGE, WERE DROWNED IN MAIN CANAL NEAR ACEQUIA ON MORNING OF FOURTH.

BODIES HAVEN’T BEEN RECOVERED

Victims Were Enroute to the Minidoka Dam to Spend the Day Fishing When Auto Plunged Over the Embankment.

Mr. and Mrs. Hyrum E Davies and their son George, of this city met an untimely and deplorable death on the morning of July Fourth, when the auto in which they were riding skidded and plunged into the canal at a point in the canal road seven miles east of this city and one and one-half miles east of Acequia. Mr. and Mrs. Davies in company with Mr. and Mrs. R. S. Houghton and two small children were on their way to the Dam in Mr. Davies’ big Case auto, whey they had planned to spend the day fishing when the dreadful accident occured. Mr. Davies was driving and Mr. Houghton occupied the front seat with him and was holding his four year old son, the two ladies and Mr. Houghton’s two year old boy and the nine year old son of Mr. Davies occuping the rear seat; the car was running along at about twenty miles an hour, the rear wheel coming in contact with a rut caused the car to skid and the driver evidently lost control of the machine and before it was brought to a stop had plunged down the embankment and was submerged in eight foot of water in the middle of the canal. Mr. Houghton floundered out of the car and holding onto it with one hand succeeded in placing his little four year old son safely on top of the car. He then drug his wife from the car and assisted her to safety on the auto top also, the little eighteen months old son came to surface about twenty feet down stream from the auto a few seconds later and he (Houghton) quickly rescued it, after a strenuous tussle with the swift current in his efforts to return to the car.

Houghton kept close watch expecting to render aid to the other three when they appeared on the surface, but he watched in vain, the swift under current evidently took them down stream, at any rate Mr. Houghton is positive that none of the bodies appeared on the surface after he had gotten his wife to safety.

Mr. Houghton relates that before the car was completely submerged that Mrs. Davies collapsed and was firmly holding her son, George, in her arms, that the husband was attempting to get from under the steering gear and was reaching for his wife and it is the opinion of Mr. Houghton that the three were taken down the stream clinging to one another. Mr. Davies could swim but the weight of his wife and boy was too much for him to master.

Mr. Davies was an inexperienced driver, having purchased his car about one month ago. The emergency brake was set firmly when hauled out of the canal.

The Packham brothers, who were driving a buggy closely behind the car were witnesses to the tragedy, one of the young med hurriedly secured a rope at the home of L. A. Darr and succeeded in bringing the Houghtons to shore with the assistance of his brother and guard on the canal who had been attracted to the scene by the other young man.

A rescue party was soon organized after word had reached this city by ‘phone, and hastened to the place where the accident took place and a diligent search was kept up all during the day until a late hour at night for the bodies but at this writing none of the unfortunate victims have been recovered.

Mr. and Mrs. Davies had been residents of Rupert for the past three months, moving here from Salt Lake City in the early part of April. Mr. Davies was a carpenter by occupation.

As a result of the horrible disaster four little children will never again perceive the pleasures of a doting and solicitious father and mother. The surviving children, who were to spend their Fourth in Rupert at the request of their parents, include three girls and a boy, namely Virginia, aged fifteen; Gladys, aged twelve; Nelva, aged five and Erwin aged two. They will be cared for by their aunt, Mrs. A. G. Morris of this city, Mr. Morris being a brother of Mrs. Davies. Another brother, S. N. Morris resides at Salt Lake City. Mrs. Mollie Wheeler of this city is also related to the Davies family.

While the Davies family was not very well known in this city, their tragic and sudden death cast a shadow of sadness and gloom over our city which detracted from the enjoyment of the celebration to a noticeable extent.

The Houghtons are also recent new comers to Rupert, having moved here from LaGrande, Oregon, less than a month ago. Mrs. Houghton is a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. J. L. Workman of this city. The Davies family was in no way related to the Houghtons.

Mr. Davies was thirty-six years of age and his wife thirty-five. They were married sixteen years ago in Utah. They were members of the L. D. S. church.

I also found this article.

Article from Salt Lake

HYRUM E. DAVIES, formerly of Salt Lake, who with his wife and child, was drowned near Rupert, Idaho, yesterday.

AUTOMOBILE PLUNGE DROWNS 3 PERSONS

Former Salt Lake Residents Die When Machine Falls Into Canal Dam.

Two former Salt Lakers, ,Mr. and Mrs. Hyrum E. Davies, and their 4-year-old son were drowned in the Minidoka project canal near Rupert, Idaho, yesterday afternoon when their automobile plunged over an embankment. The bodies have not been recovered.

First word of the drowning was received in this city by Mr. and Mrs. E. J. Strong, 360 Ninth East street, Mrs. Strong being a sister of Mr. Davies.

Communication by wire with Sheriff Hiram Thompson of Lincoln County, Idaho, established the fact that early in the afternoon Mr. & Ms. Davies started for the Snake river dam, which diverts the water into the Minidoka project canal. They had with them their 4-year-old son, leaving the four elder children at home.

When a short distance out of Rupert Mr. Davies, who was driving the automobile, appears to have lost control of the car as it struck a deep chuck hole in the road. The vehicle went over the embankment into the canal, which at that point is about eight feet deep and 120 feet wide.

Persons driving along the road later saw the automobile in the canal and notified the officers. A searching party was immediately formed and the work of attempting to find the three bodies was begun. Up to the last reports received late last night no success had been realized in the effort. The search was continued and a screen was stretched across the canal at a point some distance below the point of drowning to catch the bodies in case efforts made by men on a rapidly-constructed raft should fail.

Mr. Davies had lived in Salt Lake City about thirty-five years and until six weeks ago, when he moved his family to Rupert, Idaho, was employed as a motorman for the Utah Light & Traction company. The family lived at 650 Ely avenue which is between Seventh and Eighth East and Seventh and Eighth South streets.

Surviving Mr. Davies are four sisters, Mrs. E. J. Strong and Mrs. David McCleery of this city, Mrs. A. Freeman of Ogden and Mrs. E. T. Knotts of Shawnee, Okla.

Mr. and Mrs. E. J. Strong left here for Rupert on the midnight O. S. L. train last night. Upon recover of the bodies they will probably be brought to Salt Lake for burial.

I was unable at this time to find any updates to the story for when the bodies were found or obituaries. I will update if I find that information.

Hyrum Edward Davies, born 12 August 1879 in Cottonwood, Salt Lake, Utah.

Mercy Mathews Morris, born 28 January 1881 in Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah.

Hyrum and Mercy were married 16 October 1901 in Mercur, Tooele, Utah.

Hyrum and Mercy had five children, Virginia, Gladys, George, Afton, Erwin.

Mercy Virginia Davies, born 19 July 1902 in Salt Lake City, Utah, died 24 Ocober 1977 in Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California.

Gladys Orlean Davies, born 19 March 1905 in Salt Lake City, Utah, died 10 December 1964 in Las Vegas, Clark, Nevada.

George Edward Davies, born 8 March 1908 in Salt Lake City, Utah, died 4 July 1917 in Minidoka County, Idaho.

Afton Elva Davies, born 13 August 1911 in Albion, Cassia, Idaho, died 26 October 2001 in Orange County, California.

Hyrum Erwin Davies, born 8 March 1915 in Salt Lake City, Utah, died 15 September 1996 in Barstow, San Bernardino, California.

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Ole Loren Christiansen

Which Christiansen?

I have this photo sitting on my desk at work.  It is a little 2×3 inch picture inside a soldered silver metallic frame.  It belonged to my Great Grandmother, Lillian Coley Jonas (1898 – 1987).  It came from the collection of photos left to her by her mother, Martha Christiansen Coley (1879 – 1961).

My first impressions of the picture remind me of Lillian’s brother, Arthur Christiansen Coley (1921 – 2004).  But for his age, the clothing are the wrong time frame.  But because of the family resemblance I can see in Uncle Art, I know this man is related to me.

Since the picture belonged to Martha, I have often wondered if this is a picture of her father, Olle Christiansen (1853 – 1900).  But the hat, tie, shirt, and suspenders don’t match for a person who passed away in 1900.

Since he looks like Uncle Art, but the person in the photo has to be greying and older by the 1930’s, then I believe this is one of Marth’a brothers.  I know very little about the brothers.  Martha had three brothers: Henry Owen Christiansen (1887 – 1932), Roy Christin Christiansen (1892 – 1892), and Ole Loren Christiansen (1898 – 1977).  Since Roy died as a baby, I know it isn’t him.

That leaves me to Henry Owen and Ole Loren.  Henry Owen and Martha seem to have done very little to keep in contact.  Not a single letter, post card, or photograph that we can tell document anything in communication.  Plus he died in 1932, so the photo above had to predate that date.  I am not a great teller of fashion styles and changes, but I believe the above photo’s clothing would date during the 1930s into the 1940s.  As such, I believe this photo is of Ole Loren.

I have one photo of Ole Loren.  Don’t you think they are close enough in features that they could be the same.  However, I do not know if Henry Owen looked like him.

Sister, Ole Loren, Florence?

I don’t even know which sister of Loren’s is on the left.  From other photos and correspondence I very much believe this is Rhoda.  With the letters and cards between the two, it is very likely this photo was provided to Martha by her.  The photo only says “Sister, Loren, and wife” on the back.  Ole Loren, who I believe went by Loren, probably to differentiate him from his father, only had two wives that I am aware.  Sara Strong (1900 – ?) who he married in 1918 and Florence Knapp (1898 – ?) who he married in 1926.  I don’t know what happened to Sara, there appears to have been a divorce.  For the time of this photo, Florence is likely his wife.  I can tell the sister on the left is a sibling to Martha and Loren, I just don’t know which one.

Henry Owen Christiansen appears to have died in Tillamook County, Oregon.  On his service registration in 1918 he is living in Northport, Stevens, Washington with a wife of Anna Wilda Christiansen.  I believe she is Anna Wilda Hooser from Texas.  They appear to have had children named Mary, Madison, Gerald, Henry Jr, and John.  Quite a bit more research to properly piece the family together.

Ole Loren Christiansen appears to have died in Oakland, Alameda, California.  I believe two children were born to Sara, Ruth and Robert, and two to Florence, Lorraine, and Lucille.  Lorraine and Lucille may have been twins, both born the same year.

Without more photos to compare, I don’t believe I will pin point these individuals while in mortality.  But at least I have narrowed down the family relationships.  If anyone has more information on Ole Loren Christiansen or Henry Owen Christiansen, I am very much interested in any clues or leads you can provide.

At any rate, people often ask me about the little frame on my desk.  All I usually say is it is my Great Great Grandmother’s brother, I don’t know which one.  Most don’t say anything about that, but a number of commented on how intriguing the picture is.  I agree, some day I will learn more on Loren and Henry and hopefully can provide an update.

 

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Christiansen Family Photos

I just uploaded all the pictures I have of the Christiansen family relatives.  Here is my tie to the Christiansen family.
There is me.
Sandy is my mother.
Norwood is her father.
Lillian is his mother.
Martha Christiansen was her mother.  The same one I referred to in the past that Lillian gives no emotional record in her journal concerning her death.  She was born in 1879 in Fredrickstad, Norway.  She and her parents immigrated to the United States arriving in New York on the 2 Oct 1889.  It was a long route getting here as in the early 1880’s they moved to Melbourne, Australia.  After about 5 years there, they moved back to Norway.  It was then that they joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and then moved to the United States.  They found their way across the United States by rail and were sent from Salt Lake to Cache Valley.  They settled and homesteaded near Richmond, Utah.  Martha’s parents had 10 children.  Surprisingly, all of them lived through the move (the one’s who were born) to Australia, back to Norway, to the United States, and across the country.  They would only have one child die and that was the last child born near Richmond.  If anyone has more information on this family, I would certainly be interested.  I am especially interested since some of the children married husbands with common names which makes it hard to chase down, or they fall off the map and apparently out of the records of the church so they probably were not active.
Here is the family in full.
Olle Christiansen 1853 – 1900.  He was born in Trygstad, Norway, died in Richmond, Utah.
His wife from 1874 is Constance Josephine Eliza Jorgensen 1857 – 1932.  She was born in Drammen, Norway and died on a sightseeing tour in Portland, Oregon.  She is buried there.  Her parents Olavus Jorgensen and Hanna Mathea Christensen also came to Utah.  They died and are buried in Richmond, Utah.
Walborg Christiansen 1875 – 1951 Born in Fredrickstag, Norway; died in Salt Lake City, Utah.  She married to Charles Christian Anderson and lived in Salt Lake all her days.
Martha Christiansen 1879 – 1961 Born in Fredrickstag, Norway; died in Logan, Utah.  She married Herbert Coley.
Eivelda Christiansen 1881 – 1892 Born in Melbourne, Australia; died in Richmond, Utah.
Constance Christiansen 1883 -1953 Born in Melbourne, Australia; died in Pocatello, Idaho.  She was married to John Rocky Clawson and Charles Roy Huff.
Henry Owen Christiansen 1887 – 1932 Born in Fredrickstag, Norway; we don’t know where he died.  Church records have his exact death date but no location.  I believe he moved to Washington State and was married to Anna Wilder Hooser, but am not sure.
Rhoda Christiansen 1890 – 1965 Born in Richmond, Utah; death location is also unknown.  I believe she was living in either Vancouver, Washington or Nyssa, Oregon at the time of her death.  My Great Grandmother was writing to her in 1962 in Nyssa and in 1963 to Vancouver.  We have three marriages, none of which I am sure; George R Davenport, Edward Holman, and Peter Pappas.
Roy C Christiansen 1892 – 1892 Born and died in Richmond, Utah.
Jennie Christiansen 1894 – 1949 Born in Richmond, Utah; we don’t know where she died.  We assume her husbands were as follows; Peter Dee June, a Mr. Ewing, Orval Charles Sherwood, and Junior Albert Shirley.
Myra Christiansen 1896 – 1897 Born and died in Richmond, Utah.  There is another Myra Christiansen in church records born 2 years later, but I have no confirmation it is this girl.  Plus this girl is missing in the 1900 Census so she is either dead as the records and family tradition says, or who knows what.
Ole Loren Christiansen 1898 – 1977 Born in Richmond, Utah; died we assume in Oakland, California.  The dates and everything match, but I would like to have some contact with a family member or something to confirm it.  His spouses we believe are Sara May Strong and a Florence.
Anyhow, this line is a hard one to chase.  It is often misspelled as Christensen, Christinsen, Christianson, and so forth.  Plus there are so many of these other names it makes it tedious work to sort them out.  So I hope for some communication with a family member to open the door on these.  (If you are reading this and are related, please contact me!  Leave a comment with your e-mail or contact me directly, please)  This family has too many holes in it for how I like to do things.  But it seems to be so difficult to do.