If
you have been reading this series about Rosa's Cousins, you may have
noticed all those I have already done have been female. So for the
next two, which are 1/2 1st cousins to Rosa, I plan to write about
some males.
According
to the Social Security Death Index, Wendel Spaulding was born 29 May
1903 and died Dec 1965. So he would have died at age 62. He was the
son of John and Mary Jane (Shipman) Spaulding. Mary Jane was a
half-sister to Rosa's father, Joshua Rodney Shipman. They shared the
same father, but different mothers.
Wendel
first appeared on a U.S. census in 1910 as a 6 year old with his
parents and an uncle (Henry F. Spaulding) in Indianfields Township,
Tuscola County, Michigan. Wendel seems to have been a late in life
baby as his two older sisters, Nellie and Jennie, were over 20 years
older than he was. When Wendel was 16 the 1920 census taken in
January showed the family living at 243 East Grant Street in Caro in
Tuscola County. Then Caro had a population of about 2700. I find it
interesting that I was able to visit the Tuscola County Courthouse
which was located in Caro. Wendel's father was working as a driver
for a creamery and Wendal's occupation was listed as manager for a
creamery station.
Apparently
it was the same year, 20 Oct 1920, when Wendel was married for the
1st time to a woman named Ethel. This was shown on a divorce record
which was granted 25 Oct 1928 in
Saginaw Michigan where Wendel was living then. Saginaw was about 30
miles west of Caro in the next county. There had been no children
from this marriage. It was a little over a month later, 1 Dec 1928
when Wendel married Lula E. Miers. The 1930 census showed them living
in Saginaw at 2411 Deindorfer Street with one child, Donna M. age
4/12. Here Wendel's occupation was projectionist for the movies. It
appears there were more children born to Wendel and Lulu, but it
seems that this marriage didn't last because Wendel married again in
Steuben County, Indiana 8 Jun 1937 to Irene Bush. Wendel and Irene
were on the 1940 census in Saginaw at 1815 State Street, with 2
children in the household, Donna age 10 and Shirley age 7. Then
Wendel was working on his own account as an operator of a gas station
[and] parking lot. In the 1939 Saginaw city directory he was listed
as an auto mechanic and in 1941 it showed filling station. But Wendel
and Irene did not stay together either as their divorce was granted 9
Nov 1945.
It
was just a little over 20 years later when Wendel died in Dec 1965.
He was buried in Pleasanton Township Cemetery in Manistee County,
Michigan.
