Both entered the first grade at the old Maple Hill Grade School in September 1927 and both graduated from Maple Hill High School in May 1939. I have several photographs of them taken during those years.
The old, two-story frame Maple Hill Grade School was built in 1904 as both an elementary and high school. The elementary students held class on the first floor and the high school students on the second floor. Both ate lunch and played in the large basement rooms of the old grade school.
Maple Hill grew in population and built a new, brick high school building in 1921. The old frame elementary school continued to serve the community until it was razed in 1952 to make way for a new, brick, one-story elementary school and gymnasium. The brick high school building continued to serve the community until it was consolidated with Alma, Kansas schools in 1968. So Tim Clark and Lucille Corbin went to elementary school in the old, two-story frame school building and attended high school in the new, two-story brick building.
This is a photograph of the old, two-story, frame school building in Maple Hill, Kansas. It was built in 1904 on land donated by George A. Fowler, who was one of Maple Hill's founders, and at one time owned the Fowler Ranch, which later became the Tod Ranch, then the Glunt Ranch, and finally the Brethour Ranch. This photo was taken by Emma Jeanne (Flattre) Adams (Mrs. Warner) and was used for their Christmas Card. This was the south entrance. There was a large center hallway with four rooms on the first floor and four on the second floor. I believe that my cousins, Charles M. and Bonnie (Thomas) Mitchell were the last custodians before it was razed in 1953. The author attended school there from 1951 to 1953. I still remember the peculiar "smell" of the building, which I assume was caused by putting linseed oil on the floors.
This is a photograph of Warner and Emma Jeanne (Flattre) Adams taken by the author in 1968. The photograph is taken in the sitting room of the Franklin and Elizabeth (Parsons) Adams home. They were the parents of Warner Adams. The house was built in 1900 and Warner was born in 1901. When Warner and Emma Jeanne Adams were married on May 21, 1944, they remodeled the upstairs of the home into a residence where they lived all their married lives. Warner's maiden sister, Emily Adams, lived downstairs until her death in 1965. After that time, the downstairs was used mostly for entertaining and Warner and Emma Jeanne continued to live upstairs. Emma Jeanne (Flattre) was teaching English at Maple Hill High School when she married Warner Adams. She was the teacher of both my mother and father, Lucille (Corbin) Clark and John L. "Tim" Clark. I worked with Emma Jeanne Adams and Jack and Bill Warren in writing and preparing the Centennial History of the Maple Hill Community Congregational Church in 1975 (better known as the red book) and I well remember Emma Jeanne's wonderful writing and editing skills.
This is a photograph taken on the south side of the Maple Hill Grade School in the spring of 1951, just as the author, Nicholas L. Clark, was completing the first grade. I am sitting sixth from the left end in the second row. I am able to identify about 75% of those in the photograph.
This is a photograph of the 1939 Maple Hill High School graduating class. The entire top row of pictures are of faculty members. James Varvel taught social studies and science. Wanda Harpster was from Hiawatha, Kansas and after teaching several years at MHHS, married Arthur A. Adams, Sr. Muriel Corrigan was from Denison, Kansas and had already taught many years in Native American Reservation Schools before coming to Maple Hill. She later married Mr. Roy Will, a Denison Rancher. Emma Jeanne Flattre taught several years at MHHS and then married Warner Adams. Jerry Barker coached football, basketball, track and baseball at MHHS and later was the football coach at Washburn University, Topeka, Kansas. The principal of the school was Eugene Luse, who is picture is in the fifth row, just underneath the school initials and date. For at least a portion of their teaching careers, Wanda Harpster, Muriel Corrigan and Emma Jeanne Flattre all took room and board at the home of Estelle Holdenhousen and her son and daughter-in-law, May and Glenn Crayton on Maple Hill's Main Street. They owned the former home of Dr. J. M. Kemper.
I'm going to write a little about each of the classmates of my mother and father, if I have information. If I have specific dates from genealogical records, I will include that.
Jack Heim - I don't believe that I ever met Jack Heim. I don't believe that his family stayed long-term in Maple Hill, Kansas, but they had lived in St. Marys and Pottawatomie County for at least three generations. Jack Heim's paternal grandparents were Anton and Elizabeth Heim, who immigrated from Pfeifer, Saratov, Volga, Russia to Topeka, Kansas in 1878 when they were 22 years old. They were married in Russia in 1875. They were Catholic and may have had relatives and friends in or near St. Marys, Kansas, but they came there directly and are listed as living in St. Marys, Kansas on the 1880 U. S. Census. Anton's occupation is listed as a stone mason. Their children were Joseph (born November 1882); Lena (born August 1884) John P. (born August 1886); Charles (born July 1887); Teresa or Theresa (born Feb. 1889) and Aloysius (born Sept. 1891.)
Joseph S. Heim, the son of Anton and Elizabeth Heim, was the father of Jack Heim. He married Agnes McEnroe on February 5, 1905. Joseph Heim was born on November 24, 1881 at St. Marys, Kansas and died August 29, 1964 at St. Marys, Kansas. Agnes Hannah McEnroe was born January 18, 1882 at Lenora, Kansas and died May 24, 1968 at St. Marys, Kansas. They had the following children: Vincent P. (1908); Francis J. (1910); Cleo (1913); Joseph (1915); Harold (1917); Bertha (1919); Jack (1921); and Agnes S. (1924.) The Joseph Heim family is shown living on a farm near Dover in Shawnee County, Kansas on the 1930 Census. The 1940 US Census has a wealth of information. It records the Joseph S. and Agnes Heim family as moving to rural Maple Hill, Maple Hill Township, Wabaunsee County, Kansas in 1935. They are living in the stone tenant house on the William Warren Farm west of Maple Hill. Their neighbors are the Francis Deiter family, the Romig families and the Warrens. Although the house is no longer standing, I remember it well. I believe the last family living there was the Bronaugh family. The house had two large rooms downstairs and two rooms upstairs. It was built about 1900 and was not used after the mid-1950s. At this time, I don't have any further information about Jack Heim.
Robert Hicks - I'm ashamed to say that I don't have much information about Robert Hicks. I say that because he is my cousin. Robert was the son of James Hicks and Vera Hattie (Phillips) Hicks. I am related to Vera Hicks through the Phillips and Jones families, both families lived the Vera, Newbury Township, and Maple Hill, Wabaunsee County, Kansas communities. I know Robert Hicks was born in Denver, Denver County, Colorado in 1921, but I do not know his birth date or much else about him. I knew his mother Vera (Phillips) Hicks very well. She used to visit her sister, Mable (Phillips) Herron and her cousin (my grandmother) Mabel R. (Jones) Clark often. I don't know much about James Hicks. I believe I may have met Robert Hicks once or twice as a child but I don't recall anything about him.
Louine Wilson - was the daughter of Hattie M. (McClelland) Wilson and Willis Ance "Dick" Wilson. Hattie was the daughter of Frank and Mattie (Dailey) McClelland and was born March 29, 1893. Hattie's McClelland family came to Maple Hill Township very early and built a stone house overlooking Mill Creek two miles east of Maple Hill. That house burned. Frank and Mattie (Dailey) McClelland bought the former Beaubien Farm, about 1.1 miles south of Maple Hill on Mill Creek. They lived there all their lives and the farm was passed on to their son Donald McClelland, who was for many years principal of Maple Hill Grade School. After the death of Dick Wilson in 1934, Hattie (McClelland) Wilson and some of her seven children eventually moved back into her former home and lived the remainder of her life with her brother, Donald McClelland.
Here is a clipping from Maple Hill News Items in the Alma Signal Enterprise of 1934: May 25 – Mr. Willis Ance “Dick” Wilson was buried here on
Wednesday. Mr. Wilson was born in Brown
County, Texas on May 21, 1882 and spent his early life in Texas. He was a cowboy. He was married to Miss Hattie McClelland in
May 1917 and moved to this community in 1922.
He has been foreman at the H. G. Adams Ranch for 11 years. He is survived by the widow and seven
children, all at home.
The 1930 US Census shows the Wilson family living in a tenant house on the Horace and Mable (Warren) Adams ranch north of Maple Hill. The information is as follows:
Willis A Wilson, born 1878; Hattie M. Wilson, born 1893; Louise Wilson, born 1919; Frank A. Wilson, born 1920; Louine Wilson, born 1923; Mack Wilson, born 1925; Leona M. Wilson, born 1928; Willis A. Wilson, Jr., born 1930. The census shows that Louise and Frank Wilson were both born in New Mexico.
The actual birth and death dates for Willice Ance Wilson are May 21, 1878 in Texas and May 21, 1934, Maple Hill, Wabaunsee County, Kansas. Hattie Wilson was born on March 29, 1893 at Maple Hill, Wabaunsee County, Kansas and died in June, 1979 at Maple Hill, Wabaunsee County, Kansas. Both are buried in the Old Stone Church Cemetery, Maple Hill, Kansas
Louine Wilson was born January 9, 1923 at Maple Hill, Wabaunsee County, Kansas and graduated from Maple Hill High School in 1939. She was married to Gilbert W. Glover. Gilbert Glover was born at Topeka, Kansas on February 1, 1921. They were the parents of two children. I remember their daughter, Donna Glover, very well. She used to spend a lot of time with her Grandmother Hattie Wilson during the summer. She would often attend the dances and ice cream socials and was a very attractive young lady. I met "Lou" Wilson Glover on many occasions. She would often attend the annual Memorial Day Services at the Old Stone Church and would call on my mother, Lucille (Corbin) Clark during the afternoon. They were very good friends. Louine (Wilson) Glover died December 22, 2003 at Pittsburg, Crawford County, Kansas. Gilbert Glover died March 5, 2004 at Pittsburg, Crawford County, Kansas.
Ruth Lemon - I knew Ruth Lemon very well. She was my cousin through the Lemon Family. Her father and my maternal grandmother, Mildred Mae (McCauley) Corbin-Clark were first cousins. When Ruth was in her 50s, she used to car pool with me when we both lived in Maple Hill, Kansas.
Ruth was the daughter of William Earl Lemon and Alice (LePage) Lemon. Earl Lemon was born April 14, 1890 at Steele City, Nebraska and died in September 1983 at Maple Hill, Kansas. He was the son of Charles Montgomery and Sarah Jane (Rich) Lemon. Charles was a well-known farmer and businessman in Maple Hill. Earl and Alice were the parents of five children: Ward, (born and died in 1915); Lawrence Earl, born in 1917; Reva Corrrine (Lemon) Boaz, born 1920; Ruth Leota born May 12, 1921; and Arnold Dorr "Kayo" Lemon born in 1929. Ruth was born when the family lived in Hollenberg, Washington County, Kansas.
Ruth was first married to Ulan Leeper. The Leepers were an old Maple Hill family. He was born on December 16, 1939. He and Ruth had the following children: Deborah, Karen, Leslie, Michael, Mick, Patrick, Rita and Thomas. Ulan Leeper died on January 16, 1978 at Larned, Pawnee County, Kansas. Ruth married a second time to Leroy F. Kitt, also from a long time Wabaunsee County and Maple Hill, Kansas family. Leroy was born on September 29, 1922 and died in September 1987 at Maple Hill, Kansas.
Irene Flannary I knew Irene's father, Barney Flannary, and I met Irene Flannary several times. Before I was aborn, Irene worked for my paternal grandmother, Mabel R. (Jones) Clark, as a relief operator in the Maple Hill Central Office.
Barney Milford Flannary was born on March 9, 1891 at Jonesville, West Virginia the son of Emery C. and Julia E. Flannary. His siblings were Maggie Flannary born in 1886 and Kate E. Flannary born in 1888. The 1900 US Census records the family living in Soldier, Jackson County, Kansas.
Barney Milford Flannary was married to Elva M. Perry at Onago, Kansas in 1917. They were the parents of six children: Zona M., born 1919; Harold M., born 1920; Irene F., born 1922; Barney M. Jr., born 1924; Freda F., born 1926 and Lois C., born 1927. Elva M. Flannary died in 1950 and Barney Flannary, Sr. was married a second time to Sarah "Sadie" Nancy Gideon on November 8, 1951. Sadie (Gideon) Flannary was born April 14, 1884 at Adrian, Jackson County, Kansas and died December 24, 1962 at St. Marys, Pottawatomie County, Kansas.
The Flannarys lived in a rental house in the north end of Maple Hill, Kansas when the 1930 and 1940 US Census was taken. They had moved to St. Marys, Kansas by 1950.
Lucille Corbin and John L. "Tim" Clark - The next two photographs are of my parents, Lucille Corbin and John L. "Tim" Clark. There history and genealogical information has been covered extensively elsewhere in this blog. Both remained life-long residents of Maple Hill, Kansas.
John Dura "Jack" Warren - Jack Warren was the son of William Dura Warren and Edna (Reynolds) Warren. Jack never married and was a life-long resident of Maple Hill, Kansas. His grandparents moved to Kansas in 1874 and purchased land that was a part of the former Pottawatomie Indian Reservation along Mill Creek in Wabaunsee County, Kansas. The family built three large, stone residences along what is today known as "Warren Road." Jack and his brother, William Sprague "Bill" Warren managed the family farm and pastures throughout their life. After the death of their family, the Warren brothers worked in Topeka, Kansas. Jack worked for the Fleming Company. I knew Jack Warren all my life. He and Bill were active members of the Maple Hill Community Congregational Church, where his grandparents were founding members. Jack and Bill were the Pilgrim Fellowship Youth Group sponsors all the while I was in grade and high school. They were the sponsors of the group during the early 1960s when the Old Stone Church was restored following a 1955 fire. Jack was later a member of the Maple Hill Kiwanis Club and was on the board of directors of the Wabaunsee County Historical Society, Alma, Kansas. Jack and Bill Warren befriended Horace and Norris Hoobler during the 1960s. The Warrens and Hooblers traveled frequently until the Hoobler twins married. At the deaths of the Warren brothers, they left their property to Horace and Norris, who built new homes there. The original Warren stone house and 10 acres is now owned by Bud Hund, who along with his wife Catherine, has restored the home and added a garage and other improvements. Jack and Bill Warren are fondly remembered by many who lived in Maple Hill. Jack Warren was born March 10, 1922 and died Sunday, July 9, 2006.
Maxine Hartman - Maxine Hartman was the oldest child of Louis Sylvester Hartman and Alta F. (Singer) Hartman. The Hartmans and my maternal grandparents, Robert and Mildred Mae (McCauley) Corbin were very good friends. Grandmother Corbin and their daughter, Flora (Hartman) Barsch, were about the same age and life-long friends.
The first generation to live in Maple Hill Township was Jesse A. Hartman and his wife Elizabeth Amanda (Essman) Hartman. They moved south of Maple Hill, Kansas in 1906 on what is today known as Windy Hill Road. There is a huge cell/transmitter tower at the top of the first hill south of I-70. The Singer and Hartman families lived on that hill. Jesse Hartman was born in 1859 in Iowa and "Lizzie" Essman was born in 1869 in Missouri. They were married on February 16, 1888. They farmed in Missouri before moving to Maple Hill. Their children were Louis S. and Flora Hartman. Flora married John Barsch and they farmed 3 miles south of Maple Hill, Kansas. Elizabeth Hartman died in August 1944.
Louis Sylvester Hartman and Alta F. (Singer) Hartman were the parents of four children: Maxine L., born in 1922, Jesse M., born in 1924, William L., born in 1925 and Kenneth E., born in 1928. Alta F. (Singer) Hartman was the daughter of Milton B. Singer and Fannie (Henry) Singer. The Singers moved to Maple Hill, Kansas in 1902.
From 1978 until 1983, I was director of Heritage Hill State Park in Green Bay, Wisconsin. My mother, Lucille (Corbin) Clark and my grandmother, Mildred Mae (McCauley) Corbin-Clark came to visit while I was there and we all traveled to Milwaukee, Wisconsin and visited the Jess M. Hartman family there. I don't know when they moved to Milwaukee or why.
Flora Barsch sold her farm and moved to Maple Hill, where she lived in the house built by Charles Montgomery Lemon on Prairie Avenue.
Jessie Oliver - Jessie Oliver was the daughter of James Simon and Mary (Glogau) Oliver and lived on the Oliver family farm south of Maple Hill, Kansas. The farm was formerly the William A Pierce Ranch and was owned by the Oliver family until recently being sold to the Lanny W. Ellis Family.
James Simon Oliver was born April 21, 1897 at Maple Hill, Kansas, the son of Simon Oliver and Jessie Hamilton, both Scotch immigrants. Jim was married to Mary Ellen Glogau on June 15, 1917 at Kansas City, Jackson County, Missouri. They were the parents of six children: John William, born 1917; Doris Mae, born 1919; Jessie E., born 1922; Fredrick G., born 1923; James Walter, born 1926; and Gene, born 1933.
Herman Schwanke - Herman John Schwanke was the youngest child of Henry Alfred and Amanda (Schlief) Schwanke and was born on the family farm south of Maple Hill, Kansas on November 3, 1921.
Both the Schwanke and Schlief Families came to Wabaunsee County from Germany during the 1870s. Henry Alfred Schwanke was the son of Johann and Wilhelmina (Hankammer) Schwankee whose farm was in rural Alma, Kansas. They came from Pommern, Cochem-Zell, Rhineland-Pfatz, Germany. Amanda Schlief was the daughter of August William Christian and Elizabeth Maria Dothea (Hasenbank) Schlief and was born on her parents farm in the Wells Creek Community, north of Maple Hill in Wabaunsee County.
There were seven children born to Henry and Amanda Schwanke: Alfred A., 1907-1991; Edwin C., 1909-2000; Harry Henrich, 1912-1970; Orville Arthur, 1912-1995; Lora I., born 1916; Lakin Earl, 1918-1999; and Herman John, born November 3, 1921 and died in September 1985 at Scott City, Kansas.
Kenneth Gooden - Kenneth was a Clark family cousin of mine. Kenneth B. Gooden was the son of John Nelson and Rosa Mae (Butefish) Gooden and was born April 12, 1920 in Newbury Township, Wabaunsee County, Kansas.
Kenneth's paternal grandparents were Daniel Jefferson and Julia (Watkins) Gooden and were from Indiana. They moved to Kansas before 1900 and John N. Gooden settled in the Newbury and Maple Hill Township areas of Wabaunsee County where he was a tenant farmer. Later in his life, he and Rosa bought a small farm adjacent to the west side of the Old Stone Church Cemetery at Maple Hill, Kansas.
Rosa Mae Butefish was born on the farm of Henry and Matilda (Clark) Butefish about three miles south of Maple Hill. Rosa was the sister of Frank Butefish who with his wife Carrie lived in Maple Hill. Rosa's father immigrated to Maple Hill Township from Hanover, Germany in the 1860s. He was a stone mason and one of his first jobs was working on the Kansas Capital building in Topeka. His family tells the story of Henry Butefish walking to Topeka pushing a wheelbarrow and returning home with the wheelbarrow full of supplies. Matilda (Clark) Butefish was the daughter of John Clark (1806-1883) and his second wife, Sophia (Rice) Clark (1822-1884) and was born in Indiana. She moved with her parents and other family members to the Dog Creek Community in Newbury Township, Wabaunsee County, in 1878.
John Nelson and Rosa Mae (Butefish) Gooden had seven children: Charles H., 1901-1986; John W., 1903; Edna M. 1906; Ethel F., 1908; Esther Rae, 1910-1928; Kenneth B. - 1920 - 1987.
Virginia (Gooden) Lett, wife of Omar Lett of rural Maple Hill, is the daughter of John and Rosa Gooden's oldest son, Charles H. Gooden and his wife Janette A. Gooden.
Kenneth B. Gooden married Helen J. Yocum from St. Marys, Kansas. Her parents were George and Gertrude (Heston) Yocum. Kenneth and Helen lived in Topeka, Shawnee County, Kansas most of their married lives. Kenneth Gooden was a mechanic for Moorman Buick in Topeka. He passed away March 26, 1987 in Topeka.
George Rutschmann - George Charles Rutschmann was born February 17, 1921 on the family farm in Kaw Township, Wabaunsee County, Kansas. The mailing address was Maple Hill. He was the son of Karl August and Mary Ellen (Curtis) Rutschmann.
Karl August Rutschmann was the son of Xaver and Katharine Marie (Krier) Rutschmann, who came from Baden, Germany and settled first in Illinois in 1866. They had moved to Kaw Township, Wabaunsee County, Kansas in 1872. Karl and Mary Ellen Rutschmann were married on October 19, 1909. Karl and Mary Ellen Rutschmann are buried in Greenwood Cemetery, Kaw Township, Wabaunsee County, Kansas.
Mary Ellen Curtis was born August 6, 1889 at Maple Hill, the daughter of George and Sarah A. (McGovern) Curtis. The Curtis family was from New York State and had settled on a large farm north of Maple Hill, Kansas in the 1870s. George Curtis was a stockman and raised fine cattle. In an 1896 Maple Hill News clipping, I found the following information: "George Curtis is the catcher on Maple Hill's fine baseball team."
Karl and Mary Ellen Rutschmann were the parent of: Jessie Marie, 1910-1977; Floyd Carl, 1912-1991; Lorene Ann, 1914-1972; and George Charles, 27 Feb. 1921 to 2 Nov. 1981.
Raymond Hoobler - Raymond Delbert Hoobler was born September 12, 1919 at Madison, Greenwood County, Kansas the son of Vernon Perry and Mary "Myrtle" (Rake) Hoobler. The Hoobler family is quite large and goes back several generations in Wabaunsee County.
Jacob Hoobler III, seems to be the first to settle in Wabaunsee County. One of his descendants, Lewis Hoobler, of Wichita, Kansas wrote the followging: "Jacob Hoobler III, born in Van Buren Township, Fountain County, Indiana, moved with his family south of Streator in Livingston County, Illinois, shortly after 1850. There on beautiful farmland along the Vermilion River, he grew to manhood. There was a huge colony of Hooblers and related families near the prosperous little town of Manville, as witnessed by the tombstones in area cemeteries. In 1867; he married Margaret Elmira Smith. In 1877, they joined the westward movement, buying $5 an acre railroad land along the Kansas River in Kaw Township, Wabaunsee Co. They lived in St. Marys while they built their home. An April 1878 St. Marys Twp. record shows he bought 15 bridge tickets, allowing him to cross the iron bridge for 15 cents, with two horses and one wagon. On the 1885 Kansas census, his parents, Jacob II and Mary Dice Hoobler were living with the family, Jacob had 300 acres valued at $9000, and he raised corn, wheat, cattle, and swine. By 1895, the value of the farm had grown to $12,000; all was under fence, 200 acres were corn, 20 acres timothy, and 2 acres were Irish potatoes. He had 27 horses, 5 mules, 30 swine, 1 dog, 26 cattle and 100 bearing apple trees. One of his Sons remembered “Jake” as a white shirt—bow tie farmer, strictly a boss and never a laborer. “I never saw my father dirty,” he said. Elmira was a frail woman, but she drove her own team and buggy to town, while he loved to race his spirited team. When the Kansas River flooded the Hooblers joined in the Nebraska movement. In the Sand Hills of Loup County, he built a huge barn and ranch house. After her death, he moved to Texas about 1918. Jake must have made a break with the Illinois relatives; (he is not mentioned with the Kansas brother William and sister Mary Anderson in his parent’s obituaries). Still, he loved his family, and began the reunions in 1929, which were revived by Texas cousins in 1970. We hope it's a tradition that will continue for many more generations."
Jacob Hoobler III was born in 1847 in Indiana and traveled west to Livingston County, Illinois with his family. He married Margaret Elmira Smith there and there were the parents of twelve children. Jacob Hoobler lived owned a fine farm in Kaw Township, Wabaunsee County, Kansas but lived in St. Marys, Pottawatomie County, Kansas. His farm was just four miles south of St. Marys, on the south bank of the Kansas River.
Jacob's son, William Amos Hoobler was born October 31, 1869 in Newton Township, Livingston County, Illinois. He was married to Anna Martha Evans on October 1, 1891 at Lecompton, Douglas County, Kansas. Anna (Evans) Hoobler was born January 20, 1871 at Ottawa, Franklin County, Kansas. She and her husband William Hoobler settled on a farm in Kaw Township, Wabaunsee County, Kansas and lived there many years. She and William were the parents of five children. They sold their farm in later years and moved to Topeka, Shawnee County, Kansas where William A. Hoobler died on December 4, 1941 and Anna M. (Evans) Hoobler died on January 4, 1943.
Vernon Perry Hoobler was the oldest child of William Amos and Anna M. (Evans) Hoobler and was born January 10, 1893 in Kaw Township, Wabaunsee County, Kansas. He was married to Mary Myrtle Rake on June 4, 1913 at Topeka, Shawnee County, Kansas. "Vern" Hoobler had moved from Kaw Township to Madison, Greenwood County, Kansas in 1910 while still a bachelor. He farmed in Madison, where he and "Myrtle" Hoobler lived until 1925, when they moved to a farm in Kaw Township, Wabaunsee County, Kansas. Their farm was located about seven miles northwest of Maple Hill, Kansas and at one time had a Bellvue address and later was on the Maple Hill Rural Free Delivery route.
Vern and Myrtle (Rake) Hoobler were the parents of ten children: Harold Vernon born March 26, 1914 at Greenwood, Madison, Kansas; Mildred Nadine born November 12, 1915 at Madison, Greenwood, Kansas; Lloyd Alvin born 1917; Greenwood, Madison, Kansas; Raymond Delbert born 1919, Madison, Greenwood, Kansas; Dwight Rolland, born 1921 Madison, Greenwood, Kansas; William Albert, born 1924 Madison, Greenwood, Kansas; Forrest, born 1927; Kaw, Wabaunsee, Kansas; Everett, born 1929, Kaw, Wabaunsee, Kansas; and Lester Arlen born 1931, Kaw, Wabaunsee, Kansas.
Raymond Delbert Hoobler married Marie Hasse and they had two children. Raymond Hoobler died on March 23, 1981 at Fort Wayne, Allen County, Indiana.
Many of the Hooblers were well-known to the Maple Hill Community. Growing up, I remember Vern and Myrtle Hoobler taking part in many community activities. Vern and his son Harold Hoobler were both excellent square dance callers and were often at area dances. Harold and his wife, Velma Irene (Leeper) Hoobler were the parents of my good friends and classmates, Horace and Norris Hoobler, both presently living in rural Maple Hill. Vern and Myrtle's daughter Mildred Nadine Hoobler, married Leo Ronsee and the lived in St. Marys, Kansas all of their married lives. Mildred (Hoobler) Ronsee was the unofficial St. Marys town historian and for many years wrote a local history column for the St. Marys Star. I knew Mildred well and we exchanged many letters and emails as we worked on area history projects.
Dorothy Allis Thompson - Dorothy Thompson was the daughter of Edwin C. and Mae Thompson and was born in 1921 on her family's farm about 1.5 miles southwest of Maple Hill, Wabaunsee County, Kansas.
Dorothy Allis Thompson was the great granddaughter of Walter and Emma Griswold, who came were from Guilford, Connecticut and came to Kansas in 1857 with the Beecher Bible and Rifle Company to found the Beecher Bible and Rifle Church at Wabaunsee County, Kansas. Walter Griswold came because of his strong beliefs in Kansas entering the Union as a Free State. The Griswold Family had five children: Fanny, Effie, Nellie, Julia and Milford.
Katie Allis Griswold and James W. Thompson were the paternal grandparents of Dorothy Allis Thompson. They lived on a farm along the banks of Mill Creek about 1.5 miles southwest of Maple Hill, Kansas. James W. Thompson and Katie A. Griswold were married on October 29, 1886 at Wamego, Pottawataomie County, Kansas and settled on the farm at Maple Hill in 1893. Their only child was Edwin Callaway Thompson, who was born on August 17, 1894 at Maple Hill, Kansas.
Jim and Katie Thompson were well-known and active citizens of their community. For many years, Katie Thompson was the Maple Hill reporter for the Alma Signal Enterprise. I found several other mentions of their activities in the Maple Hill News Items. On March 8, 1912, James W. Thompson was elected vice president of the newly formed Maple Hill Mutual Telephone Company. On March 23, 1917, James was a pall bearer for the funeral of Mrs. Mary Jane (Porter) Adams, wife of Alexander Adams. On December 16, 1921, Mae Thompson, wife of Edwin C. Thompson, was elected to the Charter Executive Committee of the newly founded James Elmer Romick Chapter of the American Legion Auxiliary. Edwin C. Thompson was a veteran of World War I.
Katie Allis (Griswold) Thompson died on February 3, 1933. Her obituary said that she was a long-time member of the Maple Hill Community Congregation Church and had served as the Worthy Matron of the Maple Hill Chapter of the Order of the Eastern Star. When James W. Thompson died on September 25, 1936, his obituary said that he was born October 25, 1854 in Montpelier, Vermont and that he came to Kansas with his family in 1878. James W. Thompson was a member of the Maple Hill Masonic Lodge and served as Worshipful Master in 1907.
I found an article from the October 14, 1938 Alma Signal Enterprise stating: "Maple Hill High School has a new newspaper. Lucille Corbin is editor, Ruth Lemon, Beatrice Oliver, and Ruby Smith are reporters, George Rutschmann is sports writer, Jack Warren is responsible for art work, and Dorothy Thompson is the feature writer. Mrs. John (Fannie) Turnbull is advisor."
Beatrice Viola Officer - I haven't been able to learn much about Beatrice Officer. I wish my mother were still living. I'm sure she could tell me all about Beatrice. During the early 1900s, there was a large influx of black people to Wabaunsee County, Kansas. One time I was visiting with Annie Miller, who was well-known in Maple Hill. She told me that many came from Tennessee after learning about the Exodusters who came to Kansas after hearing about Wabaunsee and the Beecher Bible Rifle Church. There was a stop at Wabaunsee, Kansas on the Underground Railway, which carried former slaves from the South to freedom in the North and Canada. She also told me that several families had come North after the great Galveston Hurricane of 1903. This hurricane devastated Galveston, Texas killing thousands and making many more thousands homeless.
I know that Beatrice was born December 6, 1921 the daughter of Wesley Officer and Minnie L. Oliver. I haven't been able to find anything out about Wesley Officer, but I do know that Minnie L. Oliver was the daughter of George and Neppie S. Oliver. According to the 1930 Census, George W. Oliver was born on May 9, 1874 in Tennessee and died July 29, 1953 at Maple Hill, Kansas. Neppie Oliver was born in Tennessee in 1878 and died at the home of her son in Saginaw, Michigan on July 9, 1955. Both are buried in the Old Stone Church Cemetery at Maple Hill, Kansas. The were the parents of the following:
George W. Oliver, Jr. born in 1913 at Maple Hill, Kansas
Alfred S. Oliver - born in 1917 at Maple Hill, Kansas
Minnie L. Officer - Born on May 25, 1900 in Tennessee. Minnie Officer died in April of 1976 at
Maple Hill, Kansas.
On the 1930 U. S. Census of Maple Hill, Kansas, Minnie L. Officer is shown as 29 years old and living with her parents. In addition, her daughters Inex C. Officer, age 10 and Beatrice V. Officer age 8, are also living in the Oliver home.
George and Neppie Oliver farmed the David Stewart farm 1.5 miles southwest of Maple Hill for many years. This farm was located on the north bank of Mill Creek next to the farm of Edwin C. and Mae Thompson.
In 1940, just one year after graduating from Maple Hill High School, Minnie L. Officer is shown as being 18 years old, and living with Ben Taylor and Birdie Taylor, another well-known black family in Maple Hill, Kansas. I'm sorry I haven't been able to find anything further.
Ruby Smith - Ruby Lorraine Smith was born July 11, 1920 at Maple Hill, Wabaunsee County, Kansas and died January 7, 2006 at Topeka, Shawnee County, Kansas. Ruby was the daughter of Samuel and Sophia Smith, who were married in 1894 in Halifax, Wabaunsee County, Kansas and moved to Maple Hill about 1910. They were the parents of eleven children:
Allyne Bennard - 1896
Glen Wilbur - 1898-1995
Olin Van - 1902 - 1988
Cecelia - 1904
Charles W. - 1906
Ora M. - 1909
Jessie Mae - 1910 2006
Warren Woodrow - 1913 - 1952
Ollie Aldrene - 1916 -1936
Ruby Lorraine - 1920-2006
A photograph of Ruby Smith Pettis taken in 2006.
Ruby Smith was married twice. Her first marriage was to Irville Chester Harrison (1916-1975) and her second marriage was to George Pettis (1924-1988.) I remember meeting Ruby Smith many times when she would come to visit my mother (her classmate) Lucille (Corbin) Clark. They were great and fast friends over the years.
Richard Clark - The last of the 1939 classmates pictured is my cousin Richard Clark. Richard was born February 10, 1921 on the family farm in Snokomo, Newbury Township, Wabaunsee County, Kansas. He was the son of Clarence and Elizabeth J. (Wood) Clark. Elizabeth J. Wood was born at Norfolk, Nebraska. They were married at Topeka, Kansas on May 28, 1918.
Clarence McKinley and Elizabeth J. (Wood) Clark were the parents of the following:
Floyd E. Clark born December 13, 1919; Elizabeth J. Clark; Richard E. Clark born 1921; Margarite Clark born 1924; and Donald Clark, born 1931. Clarence M. Clark died at Topeka, Kansas on April 11, 1984 and Elizabeth J. (Wood) Clark died at Topeka, Kansas on November 26, 1982.
Clarence was the son of Lewis and Janie (Lawson) Clark. Lewis came to Wabaunsee County, Kansas with his parents, John and Sophia (Rice) Clark in 1878. Sixteen members of the extended Clark family moved from Putnam County, Indiana in three covered wagons. The staid with the Beach Family, who they had known in Indiana, until their log cabin was finished.
Lewis and Janie (Lawson) Clark lived on a farm in the Snokomo Community most of their lives. They retired and moved into the town of Maple Hill, Kansas where Janie Clark lived until her death in 1943. There children were: Etta Mae (Mix) 1883-1912; William John "Bill" Clark 1888-1969; Roy Clark, 1891; Clarence Clark Oct. 1896 to 1984; and Oney Cecil Clark, 1905-1987.
A photograph of Lewis and Janie (Lawson) Clark taken on the porch of their farm home in the Snokomo Community, Newbury Township, Wabaunsee County, Kansas in 1926.
Richard Clark was married to Lois Flannary and they lived in Topeka, Shawnee County, Kansas most of their lives. Richard died at Topeka on November 22, 1999 and Lois is still living.
This completes what I know about the classmates of my mother, Lucille (Corbin) Clark and my father, John Leander (Tim) Clark in the Maple Hill High School Class of 1938.
Happy Trails!
