Clay Family Tragedy

Henry Clay's son William Henry Clay and his wife Agnes Tucker Clay lost four of their seven children all in the month of November, 1907. The newspapers from Salt Lake City, Utah tell the sad story of the family's tragedy.

Elizabeth, 9 years old, was taken ill. The next day, her brother, Martin, age 12, was stricken. At that time Dr. Gibson believed it to be Scarlet Fever. The home was quarantined by the Board of Health. In the next few days, William F, age 14, became ill followed by the other four children -  Lola, age 16; Josephine, age 13; Rose Ellen, age 10; and John H, age 5.

On November 13, Elizabeth passed away followed by Martin the next day. Both were buried in  Mount Calvary Cemetery on Thursday, November 14. William's illness progressed rapidly and he was totally blind soon afterward and John was losing his eyesight. William died on November 17 and was buried on November 20 in the same cemetery.

The doctors didn't agree on the nature of the illness that the four children succumbed to. Dr. T. C. Gibson brought in three other doctors to consult. It was either Scarlet Fever of a combination of Scarlet Fever and Diphtheria.

The other children were all dangerously ill. "With remarkable heroism the father and mother, almost crazed with grief, are endeavoring to save the lives of the other four children by their tender care."
Death visited the house one last time on November 29th when Lola expired.

The family's situation was compounded by the lack of financial resources. William Henry was a carpenter day laborer. "It has taken all that he could earn to support the large family of small children when all went well. Now that sickness has come, there is none left to provide food and medical assistance. As soon as the place was quarantined, the father, too, was kept at home, and the only revenue of the family was cut off, leaving them dependent on charity." Once the situation was brought to the attention of charitable organizations, they brought relief including nourishment and nursing care.

Fortunately, death didn't visit the remaining children for a long time, Josephine, Rose Ellen and John H all lived to adulthood. William, Agnes and their family suffered terribly during the month of November, 1907. The family remained in the Salt Lake City area for a number of years and eventually relocated to California. 

Sources

1. The Inter-Mountain Republican, "Visited by Death For Fourth Time," Salt Lake City, UT, 30 November 1907, page 8. Newspapers.com.
2. The Salt Lake Herald, "Scarlet Fever Desolates Home," Salt Lake City, UT, 21 November 1907, page 9. Newspapers.com.
3. The Salt Lake City Tribune, "Three Deaths in the Family of W. H. Clay," Salt Lake City, UT, 22 November 1907, page 9. Newspapers.com.
4. Salt Lake Telegram,  "Death Makes 3 Visits to Home," Salt Lake City, UT, 21 November 1907, page 3. Newspapers.com.
5. The Salt Lake Herald-Republican, "Physicians Differ on Deadly Malady," Salt Lake City, UT, 23 November 1907, page 8. Newspapers.com
6. Salt Lake Telegram, "All Around Town," Salt Lake City, UT, 12 November 1907, page 6. Newspapers.com. 
7. The Salt Lake Herald, "Two In One Day," Salt Lake City, UT, 21 November, 1907. Transcribed on memorial of Elizabeth Clay on Find A Grave, 182866590. 
8. Utah Death Registers, 1847-1966, State Files 1907003917, 1907003765, 1907003708, and 1907003690. Ancestry.com. 

William Clay and Elizabeth Mallon Clay Celebrate Golden Wedding Anniversary

Relatives of William Clay and Elizabeth Mallon Clay gathered in Quincy, Adams County, Illinois to help the couple celebrate their Golden Wedding Anniversary.

Clay Golden Wedding

William and Elizabeth were married 9 April 1864 at Cumberland, Allegany County, MD at St. Patrick's catholic church by Fr. Brennan. Fifty years later another Fr. Brennan officiated at the mass celebrating their Golden Anniversary at St. Rose of Lima parish in Quincy. 

The couple celebrated on Sunday and Monday, April 12-13th, 1914 surrounded by friends and relatives. Among the relatives that attended were six of the couple's eleven children. John Clay of Chicago, Mrs. Steven Struck (Susan) of Quincy, Mrs. John G Kroner (Mary) of Kansas City, Kansas, Frank Clay of Kansas City, Missouri, and Misses Margaret and Anna Clay of Quincy. Their son Joseph of Chicago was unable to attend. The other four children, John, William, Martin and Annory passed away before they reached adulthood. 

The couple had seven grandchildren who all attended - Helen Elizabeth Struck; W. Lloyd Kroner; John W. Clay (son of John G Clay); Lilian, Margaret, Joseph and Mary Clay (children of Joseph Clay).    

Other relatives that attended were Henry Clay, William's brother from Baring, Missouri; Mr. and Mrs. William Smith and Mollie Smith of St. Louis; Mrs. Kate Foster; and Mary Binsbacher of St. Louis. 

The celebrations were covered in the Quincy newspapers of the day. There was a dinner at 4 o'clock on Sunday followed by mass on Monday morning.  William was 75 and Elizabeth was 73. The couple traveled west from Cumberland, Maryland over forty-five years before and settled in Quincy, which was the end of the railroad at the time. 

Sources

1. Quincy Daily Journal, "Marital Happiness Is Lasting." 11 April 1914 page 8; "Mass Celebrated in Honor of Their Golden Wedding", 13 April, 1914; . Digitized on Newspaper Archive of the Quincy Public Library <http://quincylibrary.org/newspaper-archive/>

2.  The Quincy Whig, "To Celebrate Golden Wedding Anniversary," 12 April 1914, page 2. Digitized on Newspaper Archive of the Quincy Public Library <http://quincylibrary.org/newspaper-archive/>

3. Invitation to Fiftieth Anniversary Celebration, copy of original given to the author by James Coakley, great-grandson of William and Elizabeth Mallon Clay.

4. Quincy Daily Herald, "Golden Wedding Mr. and Mrs. Clay." 11 April 1914, page 10.  

5. Clerk of Circuit Court, Allegany County, Maryland; Marriage Register Vol 2, page 22 line 8, Marriage of Willliam Clay and Elizabeth Mallon. Visit to courthouse, September 1991. 

Ruthanna

This blog was created to capture stories about the Sennott and Coakley families. This time I'd like to share the story of one of the family pets, a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel named Ruthanna.

Ruthanna crossed over the Rainbow Bridge on Wednesday, March 7, 2018. She would have been 16 on April 15th.

In 2008, two good friends, Lesa and Tim worked with Lucky Star Rescue. They were fostering a rescue named Karmen. I had been thinking about getting a dog since I no longer had to travel for work and they introduced us. Karmen was precious and she came to live with me. I started fostering for Lucky Star. A few Cavalier's stayed with Karmen and I and then moved on to their furever homes.

In March, 2009 I got a call asking if I could foster a rescue. Lucky Star had raised money and were going to an auction where hundreds of dogs were being sold. That weekend when I went to pick up my foster, I met Ruthanna.

She had spent the first  almost 7 years of her life as breeding stock in a puppy mill and had been treated very badly.  I don't think she had been out of a cage for any period of time and had health problems including a knee that required surgery. When we got home, Ruthanna stood in a submissive position and didn't move. I would pick her up periodically and carry her outside. Then we'd come back in the house and she would be still again.

After a few days, she started to come out of her shell. Ruthanna was a joy to have around. It didn't take long before I knew she would be a failed foster and was going to stay as part of our family.  I was told that I'd be lucky if she lived a couple of years, she was in such bad shape.

It is amazing what a little love can do, she soaked it up like a sponge. Soon she was exploring the house. She would sit in the chair with me in the evenings while we watched TV or read.

It took her months before she barked the first time. She only barked when she wanted to go out or was hungry. She had an internal clock that was amazing. It went off at 6:30 am and 5:00 pm. She could be very persistent when she was hungry. She relished her food, I think she must have gone hungry many times while she was in the puppy mill.

Neither of the girls knew what to do with toys, but Ruthanna found a little stuffed animal that she used to carry around. She didn't play with it, but carried it around like she would a puppy. It was her constant companion until Bentley came to live with us in 2011. Then her maternal instinct switched to him and I don't think she ever picked up the stuffed toy again. She loved him and mothered him until the day she died. Part of her daily morning ritual was washing his face. 

Bentley taught Ruthanna how to play. He would throw his toys up in the air and carry them around. He was a bundle of energy and she would sit and watch him play. One day after she had been watching him, she went over to a toy he had tired of and started pushing it with her nose and barked at it. It was such fun to watch her blossom into the dog she became.

When we would go for walks, Karmen would take off after a squirrel or a lizard, Ruthanna just sat and watched her. The look on Ruthanna's face said, "Karmen you are never going to catch that squirrel, why do you expend so much energy trying?"

I went home for lunch every day and the three of us would go for a walk. About half way to the corner, Ruthanna would sit down and wait for Karmen and I to walk to the corner and back. Then she would re-join us and we would head home. Later when Rick moved into the neighborhood, she would stop at his house when we walked. After a walk, the girls each got a carrot. Ruthanna would stand with her bottom in the air and munch on her carrot.

Thanks to Dr. Krug at Campbell Village Vet, Ruthanna had her knee surgery. Her health problems persisted through the years but Dr. Krug found a way to overcome them.

Ruthanna found a special place in my Dad's heart. She would get up in the chair with him and sit for hours. She could look so pitiful at times. When I was a little girl I had a doll named Pitiful Pearl, that soon became Ruthanna's nickname.

Ruthanna brought so much love into our house. Both of our world's changed the day she came to live with us. I'm not sure who was rescued, Ruthanna or me. She was so full of unconditional love. Every day when I came home, she was at the door to greet me. When I worked at home she was at my feet under my desk. I love all three of the dogs, each has a different personality and brings so much to our lives. Ruthanna will always have a special place in my heart, she was so gentle and sweet.