Zelma's Brothers and Sisters, Part 2

....as told by Zelma in 1993....


Zelma's Brothers and Sisters from her Step-Mother, Dora Durbin Doyle

James Jr. remarried after Mantha Jane died to Dora Durbin. They had six children. Dora proceeded James in death and James died at the age of 81 at his daughter Olga's home in Zenia, Ohio.

Marie was born January 28, 1923. She married Phillip Bouse.
They had 6 children.

Phillip James, Donna Jean, Dwight David, Emily Jane, Erick, Randy Phillip James

• Nothing is given about Phillip James.
• Donna Jean resides in Dayton and her son, Charlie, resides in Broughton.
• Dwight David was born October 31 (no year given) and married twice to
1) Doris, 2) Sonya. David and Sonya live in Las Vegas and have 3 children.

David, Karl, Suzanne Marie

• Emily Jane Married Junior Collette, they have three children.
Jamie, Angela, Derek 
Her second husband is Rod Stewart. They reside in Anderson, SC.
• Erick resides in Dayton, OH.
• Randy resides in Dayton, OH.

Dorene was born November 29th, 1924. She never married.

Zella Mae was born August 21, 1926. She married Sam Denton (born March 28, 1924) on September 6, 1947. They reside inn Louisville, KY and have 2 children.

Doyle Anthony and Constance Susan

• Doyle Anthony (Tony) was born March 15, 1948 and died January 3, 1955 from Rheumatic Heart.
• Constance Susan (Susie) was born January 25, 1950. She married Danny Thompson on May 3, 1967. They had one child and then they divorced in 1984. Susie remarried on November 3, 1984 to Don Ball and they divorced April 4, 1990. They had no children.

Troy Anthony Thompson

Troy was born November 23, 1967. He married Rhonda Marie Miller (born January 28, 1971) on May 28, 1989. They adopted a son.

James Anthony Thompson

James Anthony Thompson was born on January 23, 1996.

James Conrad was born January 4, 1928. He married Gladys Clark. 

They had 2 children.

Teresa Ann and Darrell Conrad

• Teresa Ann was born August 1, 1952 and she died February 1992 from diabetes, kidney failure. Sadly, she had lost both her feet to diabetes.
• Darrell married Lori.

Pauline was born on January 24, 1931. She never married and died December 1994.

Annabelle was born on December 23, 1935. She married Jim Durkat. They had 5 children.

Toni, Todd, Tuffy, Keith and one name unknown

Zelma's Brothers and Sisters, Part 1

....as told by Zelma in 1993....

Zelma's Brothers and Sisters from her Mother, Mantha Jane

Zelma was the oldest of the 7 children and she was 15 years old when her mother died. She married Gourmand Dreyfus McAdams in November 12, 1921.
They had 3 children:

Avery Cecil, Gourmand Jr. and Mantha Jayne

Gene was born in 1900. He married Mabel. She had a daughter, Mildred, from a previous marriage. Mabel died of leukemia in 1972 and Gene died of creeping paralysis in 1979.
No children are listed for Gene and Mabel.

Herman was born November 9, 1906. He married Jessee October 9, 1928.
They had 3 children:

Barbara, Dick and Linda.

• Barbara lives in Texas and she married Chuck Carney. They have 4 children:

Vickey, Mickey, Chuck Jr. and Cindy.

• Dick was a Navy career man, a frogman, and he died under mysterious circumstances. He was run off the road into the ocean in California. The family thinks it was foul play and the Navy refused to give out any information. Dick was married and had 5 children which have all disappeared. His sister has tried to find them but ran into a dead end.

• Linda lives somewhere in California, I think.

Nervie was born in 1907. She married Leonard Davis. Nervie and her family lived in Kentucky.
They had 6 children:

Juanita, Merline, Zelma, Letha, Leo and Geraldine.

She died of TB at the age of 31 in 1938. Leonard moved the family to Bedford, Indiana to work in the limestone quarry pits. He committed suicide by hanging himself. The children was put in foster homes and the family tried to find then but could not.

Grace was born May 15, 1908. She married Virgil Browning on December 26, 1925.
They had one child:

Ted

• Ted was born July 13, 1931. Ted married Barb on May 4th (year not given). They had 3 children, 2 girls and a boy. Ted and his family still live in Fairborn, Ohio as of January 1999.

Tereva, Jerry and 1 name unknown.

Grace was a successful business woman. She owned a grocery store, furniture store and still owns a bar in Fairborn, Ohio as of January 1999. Virgil was always called Brownie. He died of cancer.

Gradie was married to Fred McClellan on July 13, 1914. They had one daughter. Gradie and Fred separated. Gradie went to  stay with Grace. The baby girl was smothered and died while sleeping between Grace and Gradie. Gradie divorced Fred and later remarried Pinky Herr. Gradie had a tonsillectomy at home by a doctor who cut a vein in her throat and she bled to death. She was in her twenties. Her husband, Pinky, never remarried and mourned her death until he died.
(Note from Pamela: I estimate that Gradie was born about 1909 and that she died about 1930 or so. No dates are given by Zelma.)

Olga was born July 7, 1916. She married Hassie Johnson on Aug 19, 1932. They reside in Xenia, Ohio.
They have 3 children:

Richard, Nellie Frances (Sissey) and Johnny

• Sissy (born October 6, 1935) had 5 children and she died from a stroke.
• Richard (born December 13, 1933) and Johnny (born March 5, 1944) still live in Xenia.

James Monroe Jr. is said to have lived with Olga till his death at 81, which would have been about 1853.

Zelma's Grandparents and Parents

As told by Zelma January 11, 1993....

Mother's Side of the family...
Zelma's Grandmother on her Mother's side was Marietta Heath. Marietta had a daughter out of wedlock, Mantha Jane Heath, who is Zelma's mother. Marietta later married a man named Golse Weekly.

Note about the Family Tree Charts here:: 

I have added the spouses of the children when known for convenience.

Father's Side of the family...
Zelma's Grandfather was James Monroe Doyle Sr. He married Rachel Ravmer.
They had 3 children:

Sherman, Charity Belle and James Monroe Jr.  

Rachel was kidnapped by Indians and was never seen again.

Also, on the Raymer Family Tree site, they have Lucretia Doyle (b:1858) and Calvera Doyle (b:1868) listed as Rachel's children.

Rachel was later pronounced dead, thus allowing James Monroe Sr to marry Susanne Sandifer.
They had 4 children:

Janie Lee, Bett, Albert and Oscar.

Parents
When James Monroe Jr. (Zelma's father) was a boy, he was sent to live with a family named Haines. That is how he came to be called Haines Doyle. He married Mantha Jane Heath. He and Mantha had 7 children:

Zelma, Gene, Herman, Nervie, Grace, Gradie and Olga.

Mantha Jane died on her kitchen table where she had been operated on for an appendicitis in 1914. Zelma would have been 15 at the time.

James (Haines) Doyle Jr. remarried to Dora Durbin and they had 6 children:

Marie, Dorene, Zella Mae, James, Pauline and Annabelle.

Note:

Dora proceeded James in death and James died at the age of 81 at his daughter Olga's home in Zenia, Ohio. The Raymer Family Tree site lists James Monroe Doyle Jr.'s birth at 1872 and his death as 1953.

The Raymer Family Tree also gives the full name of Mantha Jane Heath as Samantha Jane. Her birth as Dec. 15, 1879 and her death is given by Zelma as 1914, but I have found it elsewhere as April 28, 1920. Also another problem with the 1914 death date is that Olga, Mantha Jane's last child was born in 1916.
Zelma says that Olga was born July 30, 1916...
-either her mother did not die in 1914, but died in 1916 after giving birth to Olga or in 1920...,
-or Olga was born in 1914....
                                              This will have to be verified.

to be continued.....

Zelma Doyle's Family

Zelma is the mother of my Aunt Jayne, Mantha Jayne (Doyle) Sylvester. She was originally from Segal, Kentucky and later moved to Muncie Indiana.

I can remember as a little girl going with Zelma and her husband out to their farm. I would "play" with the baby pigs, laughing as they squealed.  I kept well away from the fenced in mommy pigs who were not happy with me at all. And then later having a wonderful lunch of cooked greens and a wonderful meat dish of some sort. All of it tasted wonderful - good country cuisine. Tomatoes with a bit of salt. Fresh milk. Zelma was always kind to me.

Mantha Jayne and Paul John's Wedding Day, 1950

Dreak McAdams, Zelma McAdams, Bride, Mantha Jayne, Groom Paul John, Nellie Sylvester, Paul C Sylvester

James Monroe Doyle Jr. was Zelma's father. He married Mantha Jane Heath - not to be confused with my aunt, who is Mantha Jayne Sylvester.


Zelma was born January 18, 1899. There were 7 children in her family. She was the oldest.

Zelma, Gene, Herman, Nervie, Grace, Gradie and Olga.

In 1914, when Zelma was just about 15 years old, her mother Mantha Jane was operated on for an appendicitis on her kitchen table and died from the operation.

Later, James Monroe Jr. remarried Dora Durbin and they had 6 children.

Marie, Dorene, Zella Mae, James, Pauline and Annabelle.

Zelma married Gourmand Dreyfus McAdams on November 12, 1921. She would have been just 22 years old. She worked hard all of her life. She had 3 children:

Avery Cecil, Gourmand Jr. and Mantha Jayne.

to be continued.....

Cousins by the Dozens

I guess these photos were taken in the late 90s. My Uncle Paul is wearing the red baseball cap in the back.

Help me with some of the names of our cousins. What are their names??