52 Ancestors: #20 - Jesse Harlan Severs (1901-1968)

Jesse Harlan Severs was born on 14 Jul 1901 in Sumner County, Kansas.  This parents were Jacob Henry Severs and Eliza Teague.  Eliza died in 1906 after the birth of Mary Severs, the daughter born after Jesse. 

Jess was married to Katherine Trice in 1925 in Pittsburgh, Kansas.  They had two daughters, born in 1927 and 1930.  About 1933 the entire family drove from Kansas to California.  They had taken out the back seat of their car.  They then stacked household goods in there and the two girls sat on them. They averaged 400 miles each day and made the trip in 6 days.  I even have a page out of my Grandmother's notebook that recorded the daily mileage and all expenses for this trip.  From that time own they lived in Los Angeles County, in Southern California. 

Jess died in 1968 in El Monte, California, after working in many jobs, including farmer, truck driver, plumber, and school custodian. 

If you are interested in researching this family, I would love to collaborate with you.

These weekly stories were inspired by a blog by Amy Johnson Crow.  As she noted in her introduction,

"In January 2014, I issued the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge. The premise: write once a week about a specific ancestor. It could be a story, a biography, a photograph, a research problem — any that focuses on that one ancestor. The next week, write about a different ancestor. In 52 weeks, you’ll have taken a closer look at 52 people in your family tree… and maybe learned a little bit more about them in the process. (Oh, yeah, and hopefully develop a regular writing habit in the process!)" 

No Story Too Small

Please also note that every Wednesday Amy posts a recap of all of the blogs that posted for the week.  You can search for a surname and see if someone has been writing about one of your ancestors.  Thank you, Amy. 

California: Here I Come (3 Weeks until Jamboree 2014)

Yes - Three weeks until my husband and I drive to California.  (We live in Arizona, so the drive isn't too far.)  We'll be driving about 330 miles to a town in Riverside County called Anza.  That's where our son, daughter-in-law and grandchildren live:  rural, smaller community, high-desert.

We'll spend one day there and then Walt will drive me to Burbank to Jamboree.  We'll stop on the way at a cemetery in Los Angeles where his parents are interred and we'll take photos of their grave markers.  The last time we were there his Dad's marker wasn't completed.  This is the beautiful Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills Cemetery. And some of the markers are incredible works of art.

Then, we'll drive the rest of the way to Burbank and check into the hotel.  Walt and I will drive around Burbank.  He graduated from Burbank High School, back when.  We'll walk San Fernando Boulevard and enjoy the beautiful trees that line the streets.  We'll visit a couple of used bookstores and look up at the residences that are above the stores.  What a great place to live!  Then, dinner, back to the hotel, and an evening of rest.

Walt spends the night with me and then drives back to Anza on Thursday morning.  He usually sleeps in while I get up to go the the special day at Jamboree before the actual conference begins.  This year the topic is DNA, just as it was last year.

I'll have one DNA day, 2 1/2 conference days, and then Walt will pick me up Sunday afternoon.  We'll stop and have brunch, and then be back on the road to Anza, arriving in time for dinner with family.