Bernice (Faivre) WILLIAMSON (1892-1965)

BELOVED MOM

BERNICE WILLIAMSON

1892 - 1965

Bernice (Faivre) Williamson died on 14 March 1965, and is buried in Ivy Lawn Memorial Park in Ventura, Ventura County, California. She was 73 years old.

Born on 26 January 1892 in Mount Sterling, Brown County, Illinois, she was the daughter of Andrew and Louise (Rudity) Faivre. She became a resident of Ventura County in 1927.

My daughter at the grave of her 2nd great grandaunt.

At the time of her death, Bernice was married to Alen Elmo Williamson. He is not buried at Ivy Lawn Memorial Park, according to cemetery office records. At the time of her mother's death in 1942, she was married to a gentleman with the last name of Tripp. It is possible that she also had a marriage prior to Mr. Tripp. I do not know for certain if she had any children.

Bernice was my great grandaunt. I was not quite 2 years old when she died, and until recently, was unaware that a branch of this family made it out to California. I would love to connect with other members of this family; please contact me if you are a cousin!

Read more about Bernice and family on Little Bytes of Life.

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Headstone of Bernice (Faivre) Williamson photographed by Elizabeth O'Neal on  9 December 2010, Ivy Lawn Memorial Park, Ventura, Ventura County, California.

Copyright © by Elizabeth O'Neal

Susan (Records) WALKER

SUSAN E.

Wife of

Rev. W. A. Walker,

and daughter of

T. B. & M. Records,

Died

Feb. 10, 1880

Aged

19 years and 2 mos.

Susan WALKER is buried in the Arroyo Grande Cemetery in Arroyo Grande, San Luis Obispo County, California.

Susan is found in the 1880 U.S. Federal Census Mortality Schedule for Arroyo Grande, and is listed as having died from typhoid fever.

Click to enlarge

She had been married to Rev. Walker for just a little over a year before she died. According to a transcription taken from the San Luis Obispo Tribune, they married on 21 October 1878.

Click to enlarge

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Headstone of Susan E. Walker photographed by Elizabeth O'Neal on 13 September 2008, Arroyo Grande Cemetery, San Luis Obispo County, California.

1880 U. S. Census, San Luis Obispo County, California, mortality schedule, ED 78, page 1, line 5, Susan Walker; digital image, Ancestry.com, from National Archives microfilm publication T655.

Extract from the San Luis Obispo Tribune from the "Stereopticon," provided by the San Luis Obispo County Genealogical Society.

Copyright © by Elizabeth O'Neal

John Leslie ZEYEN (1899-1968)

JOHN LESLIE ZEYEN

MISSOURI

CPL 305 FIELD RMT SQ QMC

WORLD WAR I

APRIL 15 1899   NOV 12 1968

John Leslie ZEYEN was born 15 April 1899 in Oklahoma and died 12 November 1968 in Ventura, California. He is buried in the Ivy Lawn Cemetery in Ventura.

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Headstone of John Leslie Zeyen photographed by Elizabeth O'Neal, December 9, 2010, Ivy Lawn Cemetery, Ventura, Ventura County, California.

Copyright © by Elizabeth O'Neal

Killed in Service to His Country: Clarence H. Ballagh, WWII

CLARENCE H BALLAGH

CALIFORNIA

1 LIEUT 813 AAF BOMB SQ

WORLD WAR II

MAY 16 1921          SEPT 14 1945

On September 14, 1943, after being reassigned to the 813th Bombardment Squadron of the 482nd Bombardment Group USAAF, B17E 41-9051 crashed nose-first into Skiddaw Mountain, near Keswick, in Northern UK, while on a flight from Alconbury in Huntingdonshire to Turnhouse, Edinburgh.

All 10 men on board were killed instantly.

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Clarence Henry Ballagh, son of Leland E. Ballagh and Bernice (Keeler) Ballagh, was born in Santa Maria on May 16, 1921. He graduated from Arroyo Grande Union High School in 1938, and from the University of California, Berkeley in May 1942. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Army Air Force, and left for service on May 23, 1942.

Following his death, 1st Lieut Ballagh was buried in the Brookwood American National Cemetery until his body could be returned home for burial. He was finally laid to rest in his home town of Arroyo Grande on January 15, 1948. He was survived by his wife Frances and baby daughter Enid.

1st Lieut Ballagh's name is listed on the Faces of Freedom Veterans Memorial in Atascadero.

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Headstone of Clarence H. Ballagh photographed by Elizabeth O'Neal, October 11, 2008, Arroyo Grande Cemetery, Arroyo Grande, San Luis Obispo County, California.

Copyright © by Elizabeth O'Neal

Guadalupe Cemetery displays beauty, peace

The beatific stone guardians stand in the tidy, historic Guadalupe Cemetery at the corner of Highway 1 (Guadalupe Street) and Highway 166 (Main Street).

They’re a landmark, even a tourist attraction.

Nearby, Amtrak trains zip by regularly. Yet the cemetery, which celebrates its 136th birthday this year, is a peaceful oasis in the busy industrial-agricultural community.

Here, loved ones aren't forgotten. On a recent day, the extraordinarily well-tended graveyard was filled with bouquets in reds, pinks, whites, even yellow daffodils and purple iris, plus an occasional American flag, giving the cemetery a park-like look.

Read more: Guadalupe Cemetery displays beauty, peace  >  Lompoc Record

Copyright © by Elizabeth O'Neal