Unsolved: The Mystery of Irene

Sometimes you wonder how to sift through the tangled maze of memories, divining what is real, what is family lore, what remains hidden.  I don't know what happened to Ruth's close friend, Irene Hertel, in 1925, but I've speculated on illness, depression or maybe being jilted by some unknown man.  Or perhaps Ruth and Irene had had a spat.

Irene was a year or two older than Ruth and a strong Catholic, quite a contrast to my mother's Baptist upbringing.  Yet religion never seemed to be an issue for them.  The picture shows Ruth Meredith (left) and Irene in 1926, probably in the Austin neighborhood.  Looks like a license plate is behind Irene's feet.

Most of the quotes from Ruth's 1925 diary were not in Pieces of a Life, nor was the picture.

Friday, July 3, 1925 - "Not until I started to go to bed did I notice a big envelope and recognize the handwriting.  It is a birthday card and a long letter from Irene.  I read it real slowly; and was very glad and happy about it.  I do love Irene, and I hope that we will renew our friendship with twice as much love and energy.  I pray that we may remain so, if not more, the rest of our lives."

Friday, July 10, 1925 - "Not a word from Irene yet.  I am still waiting, hopefully."  Ruth had written to Irene, mailing the long letter on July 5, her 19th birthday.

Wednesday, July 29, 1925 - "Mrs. Smith, Margarite and James came to lunch today.  (James, often called "Smitty" is brother Jimmie's close friend along with his mother and sister.)  Just as we sat down, the phone rang and I could hardly believe my ears, for it was Irene.   She didn't say anything very important.  We just exchanged words back and forth a few minutes, and then we said Good-bye till two weeks or more from now."  

Birthday Dolls in 1973

In 1973, Kate was 3, Cindy 6 and Lynn 7.  You see them sitting in the living room of the Palatine house in front of a hooked rug Dan and I made.

On Kate's first birthday in April, 1971, Grandma Ruth Kellogg, who was visiting, said that they took movies of  Katie "celebrating with a twinkie cake and a match candle in her high chair."  On May 12 Lynn opened her gifts from Mom and Dad, who were still away at a business-related golf tournament in Las Vegas. One was a doll with hair that "grows", only it didn't!

On Cindy's birthday (which happens to be today,
July 13) back in 1971 Diane and Dan were home and the Kelloggs back in Florida.  Ruth decided to knit a coat for Lynn - and another for Cindy if Lynn's worked out well.  There is a mention in August of starting a pink knit coat for Cindy. Ruth also mentions that she had gifts for the girls - skirts and a dress - "bagged for the trip north"  later in the year.

Ruth Celebrates Turning 73 in Clearwater FL

The picture (1978) shows us about to leave Clearwater FL after a visit with Grandpa (John) and Grandma (Ruth) Kellogg.  Dan, Lynn, Cindy, Kate are shown with Diane as the photographer. This isn't in Pieces of a Life, nor are Ruth's diary entries.

Thursday, July 5, 1979  - "A year older - 73.  Busy!  Hair done while Mom baked chicken thys while Jim & I shopped.  We got Pepperidge Farm pineapple cake and Mom put 5 candles on it.  Later John phoned to get flowers - none at our store!  I did and hurried home for the Kelloggs - 3 of whom came.  

Philip phoned to say 'Happy Birthday' and how old are you?  He had to work from 4:30 to 1:30 A.M.!

Ken brought cake they ordered & got as requested by John.  Gave me a silver bracelet.  All went well.  Took pictures."

My mother meant "thighs" rather than "thys" in the second line of her diary entry.  She was a good speller most of her life, but later on dementia gradually impaired her language skills.  Evidentally they ate with Lottie Meredith, Ruth's mother, and Jimmie, her brother, at lunch in their small home in Largo FL to celebrate Ruth's 73rd - and then dinner with son Ken Kellogg, wife Nellie and younger son Roger (15) to light the candles again.  Ruth and John lived on the 7th floor of Horizon House in Clearwater FL for many years after leaving Illinois.

I looked for the pictures Ruth mentions, but haven't found any.  I'm not sure if copies were sent to me.

Ruth Job-Hunts in 1930 During the Depression

Ruth is shown in 1929.  Life changed dramatically between that photo and the summer of 1930.  By then Ruth had lost her job at Ward's during a severe cut-back that would only deepen as time went on and customers disappeared, fearful of running out of money for food and rent.

September 2, 1930 - "Arrived at Underwood Employment 9:05.  In line until 10:15.  Inter-viewed in Law Office at Ward's (Mr. Jayne)."   

September 3, 1930 - "Very, very exhausted, but managed to place application with Chicago Motor Club this afternoon (thru Mrs. Foote)."

September 5, 1930 - "Spent from 10:15 to 3:15 waiting downtown until could have interview at Chicago Motor Club.  Wasn't very favorable."

September 15, 1930 - "Have hopes of securing Royal B.P. position."  (I don't know what that is.)

September 16, 1930 - "No work yet.  The Royal B.P. hired a 35 yr. old woman!  My luck should change now after 3 failures.  Here's hoping."  (Ruth was only 24 with 4 years of work experience.  She must have viewed the 35-yr-old as ancient.)

September 17, 1930 - "I'm disgusted with job hunting...John thinks he can get me back to work at Ward's."  (Ward's sank deeper and deeper into debt as its customers left.  Not only did Ruth get no job, but John was to lose his position as well. Kenny was born a year later.)

The Steady Hand of the Jim Meredith Falters

The picture was taken in 1939 at Lake Geneva where the Merediths planned to retire...It reminded Jim of southwest Michigan where he grew up.  Diane (age 3), Grandpa Jim, Grandma Lottie and Ken (age 7) are on a bench near the lake.  Lottie is posing with Ken's bow and arrow, which is why Ken is downcast.

Grandpa Jim Meredith had a steady hand on the family, calm, kind and focused with a strong work ethic that sometimes had him at Western Electric 7 days a week. (That happened when the apartment above them was not rented or when someone skipped out without paying them the rent.)

In the summer of 1940, Jim's health faltered, a harbinger of what would come a later.  He was 59.  

These entries come from a tiny diary that I thought was a date or address book  I did not read it until after Pieces of a Life was published.

Thursday, Aug. 1-2, 1940   "Doctor told Papa he has an infected leg...Papa sits in chair with hot towels on leg."

Monday, Aug. 5, 1940   "Papa came home from Doctor's  and went to bed with case of pleurisy.  Very painful."  Two days later, Ruth said, "No relief for Papa yet."

Thursday, Aug. 8, 1940   "Had Doctor over for Papa today.  He bound him up some more and helped a lot."  The following day Papa was up for a few hours, so on the road to recovery."

The medical picture sketched in these lines seems murky.  Was the leg really infected?  How?  Was the pleurisy related to the leg infection?  Ruth skipped many days in the little 1940 diary, so the questions about her father's illness remain a mystery  Also, on Aug. 16 she, Ken and Diane (me) went to Ann Arbor by train to visit John's mother, Esther Wood, and his stepfather, Guy Wood Sr.  Others they saw were Guy Wood Jr., John's stepbrother, as well as Sara Jane Wood and her new husband, Ellis Tobey.  They were married a few weeks earlier.   John drove to Ann Arbor to join Ruth and the kids on Aug. 21.  


 

"My Horse Won - Gallant Fox!"

Ruth Kellogg, pictured in flapper garb, was not a gambler.  Neither was husband John, unless he was buying a business, a factory building or apartments to rent.  He always believed he could swing whatever it was by hard work.  He and Ruth had been married almost a year - June 1, 1929 - and were weathering the Great Depression..

However, 85 years ago Ruth did bet on the Kentucky Derby at work, which was the offices of retailer Montgomery Ward..  I wonder if it was her first bet ever.

Saturday, May 17, 1930
"Sixteen of office secretaries, (me too), bet a quarter a piece on Kentucky Derby horses ($4.00).  My horse won - Gallant Fox.  It's hard to believe.  Monday I'll get the money."

When I skimmed through this on the first reading, I thought she had bet $4.00!  Then I realized that it would have been a huge amount of money in 1930 with everyone losing jobs and cutting spending.  The 25 cents Ruth did bet made a lot more sense.

As kids in the 1940s, my brother and I had a horse race board game with a spinner that pointed to a number, determining  how many spaces your horse could travel on your turn.  There were 6 or 8 horses, all Kentucky Derby winners.  One of them was none other than Gallant Fox.

Ruth's First Granddaughter is Born in 1966

Lynn is in her crib at 4 months old in Mt. Prospect IL at the right.  In the picture below, she is just 4 days old, with new mom Diane in the living room of our apartment in NYC (Riverdale).  It was May 16, 1966, a sunny, cold day for late Spring and we had just driven home from Beth Israel Hospital in Manhattan.

Ruth's diary on May 12 says, "No word yet (3 PM) from N.Y.  Am taking pills to ward off a cold and not doing much - just pot roasting beef for supper and knitting & watching TV.
     Dan phoned about 10:20 PM.  Diane had a little girl, about 6 lbs - name Lynn Meredith.  All O.K.  She went in at 9 AM.  Up at 2 AM and birth about 9:45 PM (Central time).  I phoned Beth & Ken the news."

The following day Beth (brother Ken's wife) sent flowers from both families.  On the 16th Ruth flew in to help with the cooking, washing, baby care until May 25 when she flew home again.  During the time Ruth  was with us, Dan flew into Chicago Fri night through Sun night and bought a house in Mt. Prospect.  We had made a list of what we wanted and he followed it.  The house was 3 or 4 blocks east of the 4-year-old Randhurst mall.