Leaves & Branches

80 years ago today, June 19, 1932, my dad, Russell Lee Davis, was born to Quincy and Esther Davis in Williamsburg, Ohio.  As I was leaving work today, I pondered what I could write about him in honor of his birthday.  One thought led to another and I decided upon his love (or hatred, I'm not sure which) of politics. My dad was not an educated man.  He wasn't exactly a devoted student and didn't graduate from high school.  However, he read the newspaper from cover to cover, watched the evening news and news programs, and read news magazines.  He understood the news of the day and the news makers. When describing prominent citizens in old county histories, the subject's political affiliation was typically noted.  Being fiercely pro-union, my dad would have likely identified himself as a Democrat, though he wasn't really a big fan of either party.  Sometimes he voted, sometimes he didn't, though he would never hesitate to try to influence his family m...

In addition to being Father's Day, today would have been my dad's 79th birthday.  Russell Lee Davis was born June 19, 1932 and died August 18, 2003.  This is an abridged version of the eulogy I delivered at my dad's funeral on August 20, 2003: Many of you who knew my dad probably remember him as a quiet, shy man.  That was only his public persona.  I would like to share some of my family's memories of the real Lee Davis. When we started talking about our memories of my dad, we discovered a common theme - fishing.  My dad loved to fish.  He would always get his fishing equipment together the night before a fishing trip.  He told us kids to keep our distance from him for fear that we would tangle his line or be stabbed by a fish hook.  How many times did we hear him say, "Don't step on any fish hooks!" He also had his bait routines.  To make doughballs, he would spread newspaper on the kitchen floor and sit down with some Velvee...

It's the time of the year when we celebrate our Irish heritage and I have plenty of it.  My mom claimed Irish heritage through the Donaldsons.  My dad always made fun of her.  I think he bought into the stereotype that the Irish are drunks.  The rest of us didn't care, though.  We were proud to have Irish heritage.  My dad said that his father, James Quincy Davis, always told him the Davises were Welsh. Very early in my research, I learned of Robert Hamilton, my fifth great-grandfather through my paternal grandmother, Jennie Esther Ballein.  Robert Hamilton was born in Ireland in 1760.  He came to America shortly before the Revolutionary War and served in that war.   I told my dad he had Irish blood and he promptly told me that only the male line (i.e., the Davises) counted when determining one's cultural heritage. I will always remember the day that changed my dad's life.  I was sitting at a microfilm viewer looking for ...

My paternal grandfather, James Quincy Davis, was born July 11, 1906 in Brown County, Ohio to James Ulysses and Rosa Ogden Davis. Grandpa was married more than anyone else I have personally known - five times. He was first married at 20 years of age. The family story is that he divorced his first wife because she liked to play cards too much. I later learned that the young lady was only a teenager when they were married. So, I guess grandpa was married to a teenage card sharp. Grandpa next married my grandmother, Jennie Esther Ballein . The story goes th at they met at a store in Eastwood in Brown County, Ohio. There was a story in the Cincinnati Post several years ago about Freeman's store in Eastwood which, back in the day, was a popular spot for socializing. It is possible they met at Freeman's. My grandmother was visiting the store with her sister Freda and brother Oscar. My grandparents were married on grandpa's 25 th birthday, July 11, 1931. They had two children, my...