A Letter From "Uncle Roy" to Mary E (Miars) Best

Recently I started (again) to organize and catalog the many wonderful artifacts that my family has collected over the decades.  Specifically, I've been going through the items left by my maternal grandfather's sister, Mary E (Miars) Best.  She and her husband, Robert J Best had no children so much of her personal items were given to my mother and her two sisters.  Thankfully so many of the family history items she had survive.

Aunt Mary and Uncle Bob spent all of their married life living in Brimfield, IL where my parents and my siblings and I grew up.  Among her papers I found a letter that caught my attention.  It was still in the original envelope with a return address of "508 Hanssler Pl  Peoria, Ill.". it was postmarked "17 May 1976". The address and handwriting were not familiar to me and I was curious about who would be writing to her from Peoria rather than calling her.

Return address on letter to "Mrs. Robt Best" (1)

Here is the letter I found in the envelope:

"Yours sincerely Uncle Roy".  Uncle Roy?  Who is this?  The only "Roy" I know of in the Miars branch of my family tree would have been Aunt Mary's older brother, Roy Saltonstall Miars.  But he passed away 11 June 1947. (2) Also, I doubt whether correspondence from her brother would have been signed as "Uncle".  Uncle Bob had no siblings name Roy so I thought that it was unlikely that the sender was from the Best family.

I read the letter a few times and thought about it for awhile to try to get some context on what prompted the letter to be written in the first place and who the people where that are mentioned.  The writer mentions talking to "Luella".  Aunt Mary and my grandfather have an older sister named Luella (Miars) Maher which is likely who the writer was referring to.  The writer goes on to say that he heard about "Bob's additional trouble."  Hmm....what "trouble" did Uncle Bob have? 

The writer goes on to talk about his own similar situation he  had faced and how he got through it and expressed the belief that Aunt Mary will get through this time as well with the help of her family.  It's not specific at all about the "additional trouble" or his relationship to my family.  All I know is that the writer knows Aunt Mary and Aunt Luella and that he's heard that Uncle Bob has "additional trouble".

The postmark on the envelope was May 17, 1976.  What was going on with Aunt Mary and Uncle Bob in the spring of 1976?  Uncle Bob died on 6 March1980. (3)  He died as a result of complications from a stroke he had experienced some years prior.  Could that be what this letter was about?  I thought about this letter for some time; thinking about when Uncle Bob had taken ill. I remembered that I had graduated from 8th grade in May 1976 and Uncle Bob was unable to attend.  Some further digging in that led me to determine that he had his stroke in March 1976.  I am pretty sure that this letter from "Uncle Roy" was about that event.

Now...who is "Uncle Roy"?!?!

A few years ago, I decided to put together a collection of newspaper articles from the Brimfield News (Illinois) about each of my parents.  This small town newspaper had the usual items about births, marriages and deaths in the community but it also contained "gossipy" items as well like who visited with whom and when and how people spent their leisure time.  As part of that process I came across a small item that named my maternal grandparents and my mom.  It was about a Christmas dinner they attended in 1946.  I was pretty sure in thinking back that I had questioned my mom about it because I did not know all of the attendees that the article listed. Here is that article:

Article from The Brimfield News section "Everybody's Business," 10 Jan 1946 (4).

Bingo!  I found Roy Gray listed with members of my family (including my mom).  But this article still did not identify his relationship to me or my family. (5)  The Christmas dinner, according to this article, was at the home of James P "Jay" Maher.  He was the husband of my great Aunt Luella. How were the Gray's connected to Aunt Luella and Uncle Jay?

It seemed the right time to talk about "Uncle Roy" with somebody who might remember him and who attended this holiday dinner.  Thankfully there are still two people living that are listed in this article.  One of them is my Mom!  I sent her this article clipping and after discussing it on the phone she remembered the Gray's as they attended several family gatherings when she was growing up.  She thought that maybe he was related to Uncle Jay Maher but was not sure how.

I turned then to a source that has proven very useful in my research for family in Peoria County, IL - Find A Grave.  I found the memorial page for Roy Ellis Gray with little trouble. (6)  His memorial page was attached to his wife's page and when I clicked on it I found the answer to my question.

Roy Ellis Gray was married to Kathryn Helena (Maher) Gray.  There were several siblings of hers attached to hers.  Among them was a brother, Thomas Maher, I knew to be the father of James P "Jay" Maher.

The writer of the letter that started all of these questions was Roy Ellis Gray.  He was married to the aunt (Kathryn Helena (Maher) Gray) of my great uncle, Jay Maher (husband of Luella Miars Maher).  He has no biological relationship to me or my family but evidently had a long familial relationship with his wife's extended family.  That would have included my maternal grandfather and his siblings, Mary (Miars) Best and Luella (Miars) Maher.

In May 1976, "Uncle Roy" Gray found out that Bob Best had had a stroke some weeks earlier and wrote a letter of support to Bob's wife, Mary.  Thank goodness for extended families.

Lessons learned -
1.  Talk about the questions that are identified when working on your family tree or history.
2.  Rome wasn't built in a day.  Neither is the uncovering of our family history. Contemplate and think about the issues and questions that we uncover and only then document a research plan to resolve and answer them.
3.  Think about the time and place of the issue or question to get a context of what was going on and not sure the bare bone facts.
4.  Finally.....start with the obvious explanations or sources first to try to resolve the issues or answer the question.  There might be a quick solution available.

Related Blog Posts -

An Abundance of Marriage Records for Frank and Katie (Saltonstall) Miars
Bramble School and the Miars Family of Jubilee Township
A Teacher's Contract - Mary (Miars) Best - 1843-1944
Mary Best Miars (1906-1986) - Happy 113th Birthday!
A Teacher's Teacher - Lulu (Petty) Eicher
20 Years Ago - The Passing of Robert T Miars
Robert Miars and Bessie Purcell - Breaking Down Barriers to Justice
Clara (Miars) Barker - 123rd Birthday - October 12, 1896

Bibliography -
(1) Correspondence from "Uncle Roy" Gray to Mary (Miars) Best, postmarked 17 May 1976, Peoria, IL, personal  papers of Mary E. (Miars) Best; privately held by Diane Minor, Plano, Texas, 2020.  "Uncle Roy" is likely Roy Gray who was the uncle by marriage of James P "Jay" Maher who was Mary's brother-in-law.  Also, for the location of this return address see Goggle Map link.
(2) Peoria County, Illinois, death certificate no. 26213, Roy S. Miars, Peoria County Clerk.
(3) Peoria County, Illinois, death certificate no. 127189, Robert J. Best, Peoria County Clerk.
(4) "Everybody's Business," newspaper article, The Brimfield News (Illinois), 10 Jan 1946, p. 4, col. 3; digital image, Historical Newspapers collection, Brimfield Public Library (http://brimfield.advantage-preservation.com : accessed 30 Apr 2020).
(5) I told you that this paper had gossipy items in it!!!!
(6) Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com : accessed 30 April 2020), memorial page for Roy Ellis Gray (23 Oct 1894–2 Jun 1990), memorial no. 23427076, cemetery marker in Saint Patricks Cemetery, Kickapoo (Oak Hill), Peoria County, Illinois, USA; maintained by "Heather (Angel_Graver)," contributor no. 46809426.

A Teacher's Contract - Mary (Miars) Best - 1943-1944

Here is a wonderful document I found in the papers of my great aunt, Mary (Miars) Best.  She was a career teacher in small, rural schools in Peoria County, Illinois.  She spent most of her teaching years in 3rd-5th grade.  She did not drive so she would have had to get transportation to her school in the days when ride-sharing services could not have been imagined.

She graduated from Brimfield High School in the mid 1920s and then attended Illinois State Teachers College (known today as Illinois State University) in Normal, Illinois.  She likely started her teaching career in the early 1930s.

We know that she taught in Sipp School (Richwoods Township, Peoria County, Illinois) which was located at what is today the corner of Glen and University in Peoria, Illinois (a Chili's restaurant is there last time I was there).  In the 1950's she was at Edwards Grade School in Edwards, Peoria County, Illinois. We have some class photos from that time. She also spent some years at the school that my parents, my siblings and I attended - Brimfield Grade School (Peoria County, Illinois).

But it is not exactly clear what years those were.  It seems to be likely that she was there in the 1930s and/or 1940s.  Here is a photo with her class that we believe was from her time at BGS.

(On my list of to-do's is to figure out who all of the children are in this photo.)

Recently though I came across this document that may help answer the question of when she taught at Brimfield.  It is a teacher's contract from the "School Directors of District No. 15, County of Peoria and State of Illinois, and Mary Best". This is the back side of the legal-sized document.  The front side has no writing on it and is not helpful. (It is included below.)

Teacher's Contract - see citation [1] below.

No where in the contract does it specify the name of the school district or the community that it was in.  It says though that it is for "District No. 15, County of Peoria and State of Illinois".  District 15 appears to be for the Brimfield school district. [2]  It has a different district number today.

Now for the important information - salary.  The contract indicates that it begins on 1 September 1943 and runs for nine months (1943-1944 school year.)  The monthly salary is $105.  That would be $945 total for the duration of the school year.  Image working long and hard hours for nine months and getting less that $1000 for your time.

The contract also has a clause regarding termination which can be invoked for "gross immorality, incompetency, or any violation of this Contract, or shall have h[er] Certificate annulled or revoked by the County or State Superintendent she shall not be entitled to receive any compensation from and after such annulment or dismissal."  This clause seems very favorable to the District with little to no recource by the teacher.

There are three "directors" named at the beginning of the contract and also who's signatures and included at the bottom.  They are "R.D. Savage, Karl Christian, C.F. Dungan."  Mr. Savage appears to be Rudolph D. Savage (1891-1961).  He and his wife, Erma (Catton) Savage, are buried in the Brimfield Cemetery. [3]  There are several "Karl" Christians in the Brimfield/Jubilee/Kickapoo Township areas so I am not sure exactly which of them was a school director in the mid 1940s.  Mr. Dungan is Charles F. "Ted" Dungan.  He and his wife, Elva (Marks) Dungan, are also buried in the Brimfield Cemetery. [4]

At least two of these three men would have been well known to Mary Best as they were long time members of the Brimfield community.  She would have known them or known of them outside her work as a school teacher.

There are only three signatures on this contract.  They are those of the Directors of School District 15.  No where is the signature of the teacher, Mary Best.  The very top of the document has the word "Original".  Did Mary sign this contract and teach at Brimfield for the 1943-1944 school year?  This document alone does not answer that question.  I am also curious as to why she hung on to this contract and not others.  At least no other teaching contracts for her have come down to me.

During the war years, Aunt Mary's husband, Robert J Best was in the Army and landed in Europe in the weeks after D-Day 1944.  She and Uncle Bob made their home in the upstairs apartment of M.R. and Lorena (Reed) Clark about 1-2 blocks from the Brimfield Grade School.  She did not drive so working so close to home would have been very easy.

More research is certainly needed.  To start with, I need to contact the Peoria County Schools to see what if any employment records they have to fill in the blanks of where she taught and when.  Until then I will enjoy this document and the information it does provide and the glimpse into small, rural schools in Peoria County during the 1940s.

Enlarged sections -

Front page of the contract -

Related Blog Posts -
Mary Best Miars (1906-1986) - Happy 113th Birthday!
A Teacher's Teacher - Lulu (Petty) Eicher

Bibliography -
[1] Citation for the document - Teacher's contract for Peoria County (Illinois) District no. 15 between "Mary Best" and school directors "R.D. Savage, Karl Christian and C.F. Dungan" starting 1 Sep 1943 for nine months, from the Mary (Miars) Best collection; privately held by Jana Minor, Aurora, Illinois.  This "original" contract is unsigned by Mary so it is unclear if she accepted it or worked in a different district for year 1943-1944.
[2] "Brimfield School District #15," database, Peoria County One Room Schools (https://web.archive.org/web/20110816052903/http:/www.peoriacountyoneroomschools.com/Brimfieldtownship.html/ : accessed 11 Jan 2019); citing Internet Archive Wayback Machine.  The original website is not longer on the internet.  It was found on Wayback Machine as an archived website.  Thank you to Katherine Wilson for finding this for me!.
[3] Find A Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/19253858/rudolph-d_-savage : accessed 11 January 2020), memorial page for Rudolph D. Savage (13 Aug 1891–1961), memorial no. 19253858, cemetery marker in Brimfield Township Cemetery, Brimfield, Peoria County, Illinois, USA, maintained by "Barb," contributor no. 46903283.
[4] Find A Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/62522787/charles-f-dungan#source : accessed 11 Jan 2020), memorial page for Charles F "Ted" Dungan (13 Jul 1900-25 May 1984), memorial no. 62522787, cemetery marker in Brimfield Township Cemetery, Brimfield, Peoria County, Illinois, USA, maintained by "Stephen Cantrell," contributor 48212706.

Mary (Miars) Best (1906-1886) - Happy 113th Birthday!

My great aunt, Mary (Miars) Best is much loved and missed in our family.  She and her husband, Uncle Bob Best were additional grandparents to my mother and her sisters as well as to me and my siblings.

Her relationship to me is as follows:  me > my mom > Robert T Miars > Frank and Katie (Saltonstall) Miars.  Aunt Mary is the older sister of my grandfather and daughter of my great grandparents.

Mary Eva Miars was born on 23 Oct 1906 in Sugar Grove Township, Tazewell County, Illinois. (1)  She is the seventh child and fifth daughter of her parents, Frank and Katie (Saltonstall) Miars. (1)

There were to be nine children in the home after my grandfather was born in 1915.  No doubt there were many chores to do both inside and outside the home.  She lived until about the age of ten or eleven on the Miars homestead, started by her great grandparents, Martin and Ann (Hodgson) Miars, in Elm Grove Township, Tazewell County, Illinois.  Around 1916 or 1917 the Frank Miars family moved to their new home and farm in Jubilee, Peoria, Illinois.  Here she was to spend the rest of her school days.

She graduated from Brimfield (Illinois) High School in the mid 1920s.  Her wish was to be a school teacher.  She believed that education was the path to opportunities in life.  She graduated from Illinois State Normal University and began a career of teaching elementary students in small, rural public schools and beyond for the rest of her life. 

Aunt Mary is on the first row at the far right.

Aunt Mary married Robert "Bob" J Best on 29 May 1941 at the Union Church in Brimfield, Illinois. (1)  I found this newspaper clipping in her papers with a handwritten year of 1940. (2)  However, I do not think this was correct.  This couple was married the year after my grandparents who were married in 1940.  Uncle Bob's best man at his wedding was my great uncle, Frank Stenger (son of Joseph L and Lucy (Loescher) Stenger of Kickapoo.  The newspaper clipping also notes that Aunt Mary was a teacher "in the local school" which I believe was the Brimfield, Illinois grade school.

See (2) below for citation.

After their wedding Aunt Mary and Uncle Bob lived in the upstairs apartment of M.R. and Lorena (Reed) Clark in Brimfield.  It was a two story white house with a wrap around porch. I always thought this house was one of nicest in town.  They would make their residence there for about 20 years.**  In the early 1960s they bought their own home up the street (Galena Avenue) from the Clark house.  That would be their home for the rest of the married life.

She and Uncle Bob enjoyed spending time with their families, especially that of her youngest brother, Robert T Miars (my grandfather) who was raising his family in Brimfield during the 1940s and 1950s.  When my grandmother, Clementine (Stenger) Miars was in the hospital having babies, Aunt Mary would stay with her nieces during her time away.  When Robert and Clementine had a stillborn baby in May 1954, Aunt Mary and Uncle Bob were at the graveside service in Kickapoo in support of their family's loss.
.

By the time my siblings and I were old enough to interact with Aunt Mary and Uncle Bob they were starting to retire.  From time to time one or two of us at a time would be invited to stay visit and stay overnight at their house or go on some sort of outing with them.  They would take us out to Jubilee for picking hickory nuts and raspberries or a trip to the donut shop in Princeville.  I was spending the night at their house on Labor Day weekend in 1967 when my Grandpa Minor's business (Brimfield Motor Company) burned to the ground.  After hearing the sirens all night they explained to me what was going on.

Aunt Mary always had puzzles and school workbooks at her house. They were much more fun to do at her house than at school! There was always time for a game of cards (Rummy or King's Corner) it seemed.  One time visiting her I remember telling her how irritating my two younger brothers could be.  She said "Oh no.  You don't get to complain about them.  I had four brothers!"  I remember being very surprised about that and could not imagine what that must have been like.  Then she told me about her younger brother, Albert "Dutch" and how he used to "wonder off" on their walk to school sometimes.  That is really the only complaint I ever remember her making about her siblings.

She died on 14 May 1986 (3) and is buried in Brimfield Township Cemetery with Uncle Bob.
To me she was a wonderful aunt and great aunt who taught all of us so much about family and the importance of learning. I am so grateful to have known her and gotten the benefit of her wisdom and examples over the years.

Related Blog Posts -
Clara (Miars) Barker - 123rd Birthday

Bibliography -
(1) Mary (Miars) Best, "Frank Miars Family," handwritten report by Mary (Miars) Best, ca. 1970s; originally in the personal collection of the report's author, currently in the personal collection of the author of this blog post.
(2) Robert Best and Mary Miars wedding announcement, undated and unidentified newspaper clipping; privately held by Jana (Miars) Minor, Aurora, Illinois, 2017.  Newspaper is likely The Brimfield News.
(3) Peoria County, Illinois, death certificate no. 806  (14 May 1986), Mary E. Best, Peoria County Clerk.

**After Aunt Mary and Uncle Bob bought their home on Galena Avenue, my parents lived in the upstairs apartment at the Clark home.  This was my first home as well.