Day 10 - Life

Life went on. John farmed the land and Jane was busy with new babies. Washington Floyd Rhea (called Floyd) came along in 1873, followed by Luvena in 1875. Fidello Florence (called Della) was born in 1877, Victor Edwin in 1880, and William Ogden (my grandfather) in 1882. The last child, Lillie Bower, was born in 1884. They were not always easy years and several events helped form the person Jane would become.

The family was comfortable. They had enough food and the house was full of noisy children. Jane would often sit on the balcony and feel her heart fill with joy at the sound of the kids. They were a happy family.

She missed her father who had not come back home from California. He would not return until 1886. It is said that the only thing he came home with was a piece of gold.

In 1875, Carolyn married Robert Tyler and moved to Virginia so Polly didn’t get to spend a lot of time with the 10 grandchildren but they did spend some of their summers in Sneedville. The older child, Ida, wrote letters to Victor and talked about the fun they had as kids. Sarah married Henry Eli Depew in 1871 and added an additional 9 grand-kids. With Jane’s 9 kids, there was always someone underfoot when they got together.