Leaves & Branches

I'm getting lazy.  I will be taking the easy way out this week and instead of writing my own post, I will let the September 7, 1905 News Democrat do the writing for me.  To provide a little background (well, maybe I'm not so lazy after all), Santford Ogden was born March 19, 1836 in Clark Township, Brown County, Ohio, the son of Alfred and Hannah Harriet Leonard Ogden.  Sarah Steward was born February 17, 1838 to Francis and Catherine Price Steward.  Santford and Sarah were married in Brown County and had at least ten childen, including my great-grandmother, Rosa Ogden Davis.  The article that follows describes their golden wedding anniversary celebration. The golden wedding of Sanford Ogden and wife of this place was celebrated on Saturday August 26, 1905, with a large dinner and family reunion, their nine living children all being present for the first time in ten years. About the noon hour the ladies began to bring out the baskets and boxes and the...

My dad and his dad James Quincy Davis were storytellers.   We used to kid my dad about the stories he told us over and over again.   One sad story passed from Grandpa Davis to my dad and then to my sister, brother, and me was the story of the tragic death of Ralph Waldo Ogden. Ralph Waldo Ogden was born December 17, 1907 in Pike Township, Brown County, Ohio to Santford Morton and Bessie Ralston Ogden.   Santford was the son of my second great-grandparents Santford and Sarah Steward Ogden and brother of my great-grandmother Rosa Ogden Davis.   On June 4, 1908, Bessie died and Waldo was sent to live with Rosa and her family.   My grandpa was a little over a year older than Waldo. My dad said that grandpa referred to Waldo as his “little half-brother.”     At the time of the 1910 census, Waldo was living with the Davis family, while his older siblings, Ivah, Paul, and Sarah were living with Santford and his second wife, Lucinda.   ...