My grandmother
Evelyn L. Harper, 94, died Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2005 at the Good Neighbor Home in Manchester, Iowa .
She was born Jan. 12, 1911, in Bremer county, on the family homestead two miles west of Frederika to Ella (Ladd) and James H. McDonald. She attended the Douglas Township country school, later graduating, with honors, from Frederika High School.
She married Bernard Harper and they farmed, near Frederika during the depression years, eventually, moving to Waterloo in 1940. Evelyn had a successful career as department manager for the Waterloo Credit Bureau for 14 years before moving to Fayette where she and Bernie bought a plumbing and heating business. A few years following Bernard's passing in 1986 she moved to Manchester with closer proximity to immediate family members.
Evelyn loved people and took great pride and interest in the families of her many friends in Bremer County, Waterloo, Fayette and Manchester. With her remarkable memory, she was a great resource for relatives returning to the Bremer County area, seeking information about ancestors. She would, not only, give them lineage but, also, delightful anecdotal histories.
Evelyn was preceded in passing by her father, mother, two sisters: Lucille McDonald Wills of Riverside, California and Florence McDonald MacNicoll of Madison, Wisconsin; and, an older brother, John, who died at birth.
Survivors are Marilyn Harper Cleland of Golden Valley, MN. James Harper, Sequim, WA, David Harper, Manchester, Iowa, twelve grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.
posted by Tom Cleland @ 11/02/2005 06:21:00 PM
8 comments
8 Comments:
My condolences, Tom. Sounds like she was into genealogy. Would have gotten along well with my folks. That's their joint hobby.
On Friday night we gathered at a Manchester restaurant, watched a video tape of Evelyn’s 90th birthday party, and looked at photo albums. The service was at 1:00 p.m. Saturday after a visitation and lunch. My brother Scott, the oldest grandchild, delivered a thoughtful eulogy, recalling Evelyn’s life and explaining why we call her Mamie (it was all he could pronounce as a toddler [coincidentally, some of us also felt she bore a resemblance to Mamie Eisenhower]). The interment was at Alcock Cemetery in rural Frederika, Iowa, near the farmlands of her parents and grandparents. She is of the third generation buried there, and by my estimation, occupies one of the last remaining spots. On Saturday night we met at the Manchester Golf Club—first, second, and even third cousins—and shared memories. The mood lightened, my other brother Bruce performed some of his magic tricks, and we ended up all taking turns telling a wide range of jokes.
Mamie had a great sense of humor and was an accomplished storyteller. She told how her mother, Ella Ladd McDonald, as a teacher in a one-room schoolhouse, reacted after one student insulted her profanely with graffiti on the outhouse door. The culprit had failed to capitalize her last name “Ladd”; so she had the students write their teacher’s name on the chalkboard, then dealt swiftly with the boy who repeated the error.
As a child, Mamie filled a suitcase with cabbage, acorns, and other assorted rubbish and left it along a country highway. Passing motorists would stop, pick it up, drive a ways, and then throw it back out.
In her mother’s later years, to take her mind off an annoying health ailment, Mamie anonymously sent Ella some risque pin-up postcards. A truck driver had originally sent them to his wife, Mamie’s friend, as a joke. Mamie would then erase the old address and replace it with Ella’s.
Mamie lived a long life. Several years ago, I drove my mom and my son for a visit when the RAGBRAI (Register’s Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa) was passing through Manchester. We witnessed the throngs of cyclists entering town and camping overnight, and the next morning, attended a breakfast for them at one of the local churches. Mamie had a serving of meat she decided she didn’t want, so she gave it to Mom, who then threw it onto my plate. I turned to Spencer, gave it to him, and said, “Son, this meat has been in the family for four generations.”
Later during that same visit, the four of us were playing cards. Mom stepped away for a while and Mamie suggested we play a prank on Marilyn. After we resumed playing, Mamie threw her cards down and pretended to be upset. Mom didn’t think it was very funny, but Spencer and I sure did.
Mom recalls her parents as energetic and trendy. During the depression years the family lived with the grandparents, so her and her brothers called their parents by their first names, Bernie and Ev. Her friends would sometimes be surprised to learn that they were her parents. Bernie was a talented athlete and worked in sheet metal, plumbing, and heating.
Spencer and I made our last visit in August. The full trip is documented in my August 28 post.
Special thanks to my uncle, Jim Harper, for writing the biography at the top of this post.
I just stumbled upon this memoir, and apologize for the belated sentiments, but please accept my condolences. Your grandmother was a wonderful lady. I'll be forever grateful for her helping me research my McDonald roots. She not only helped me research, but put me in contact with other cousins in my family tree. There are many of us out there who owe your grandmother a debt of gratitude, and think of her, and her selflessness.
V/R,
Scott McDonald
I don't know why it shows me anonymous above. Hopefully this shows my contact information.
I don't know why it shows me anonymous above. Hopefully this shows my contact information.
I just stumbled upon this memoir, and apologize for the belated sentiments, but please accept my condolences. Your grandmother was a wonderful lady. I'll be forever grateful for her helping me research my McDonald roots. She not only helped me research, but put me in contact with other cousins in my family tree. There are many of us out there who owe your grandmother a debt of gratitude, and think of her, and her selflessness.
V/R,
Scott McDonald
Thank you Scott, wow. Are you descended from Jim and Ella McDonald, or Robert and Ann McDonald? I'm on 23&Me and Ancestry DNA, and it would be good to have a cousin from the McDonald branch, to help people who don't know how they're related to me. Also on this blog I have my family history, which includes an interview with Evelyn.
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