"More of a Love Affair", May 24, 2013

Let your religion

be less of a theory

and more of a love affair.

~G.K. Chesterton

Hello Family and Friends! 

Let me begin with a message I received this week from my cousin Dane Shepard who lives with his family in Newcastle, OK, near the destruction of this past week's horrific tornado: "We are doing well and with God's blessing we escaped the tornado as it went by 5 miles to the north... I'm grateful for all your prayers for us here and for those who lost so much."

A Fellow Blogger. I have recently come in contact with a member of our extended family who is a fellow blogger, second cousin Brent Taylor of Bartlesville, Oklahoma. Brent's grandfather Jesse Davis and my grandmother Bura Davis Shepard were siblings. They were part of that wonderful family of seven kids of James and Callie Davis, two brave parents who migrated to Oklahoma from Indiana with all their children in tow, exactly 100 years ago. (That is a memorable story in itself and needs to be celebrated and remembered this spring! Stay tuned.)

The first picture, which includes Brent's grandfather and my grandmother, is one I have not shared in this blog for several years. It shows the 7 children of James and Callie Davis and was taken around 1920 in Oklahoma. From left to right are Winona, Lawrence, Esther, Marjorie, Myra, Jesse (Brent's grandfather), and Bura (my grandmother).

Brent Taylor's blog is titled "Bespoke" and I recommend it to you. Even though the byline is a wonderful Chesterton quote -- "Let your religion be less of a theory and more of a love affair" -- his blog is an appealing collection of musings on everything from family to sports to spirituality. He is "a home builder by trade and an occasional writer when the passion stirs in me." And he does write well. I found his post about the passing of his aunt Becky Davis a few months ago not only well written, but particularly touching.

Brent has only been blogging, at least in this incarnation, since December, and my hope is that the passion to write "stirs in him" for quite sometime. I find him a positive addition to the blogosphere, and am especially interested in what he has to say since he is a part of our extended family. Kudos to his uncle Bud Davis for recommending Brent's blog to me.

A link to "Bespoke" is one more that you can find on the front page of The Shepard's Crook in the column on the left under the heading "Other Favorite Sites and Blogs".

I have never met Brent in person, even though we share a set of great grandparents, and even though our own parents (his mom, my dad) were first cousins. But my guess is that most second cousins don't know each other these days. A few years ago, fellow family researcher Nancy Bushong counted 91 great grandchildren of James and Callie Davis, Nancy's husband Jim being one of them. (As far as I know the only place in the world where they are all listed is in Nancy's 2010 book, "Davis and Beck Family History"). Of those 91, 11 are either my siblings or my first cousins, all well known to me, of course. Beyond that I cannot say that I personally know any of the others, although I have corresponded by email with a few.

Part of the reason for that is my grandparents Will and Bura Davis Shepard's move to San Diego in 1940, and the distance that put between those of us in California and the genealogical "holy land" of Oklahoma, where many, maybe most, of James and Callie's descendants live today. It is therefore particularly gratifying that Brent and I have corresponded, and hopefully will share even more by virtue of our respective online presence. The Davis heritage we share is a rich one indeed.

Some Family Happenings. Happy 20th birthday this Sunday to Brandyn Boyd of Coronado, California, the son of my cousin Darren Boyd, and one of the Great Grandchildren of Will and Bura Davis Shepard.

This coming Tuesday is the birthday of Ruthie Russell who lives in Red Rock, Nevada with husband Eric Russell. Eric is another Great Grandchild of Will and Bura Davis Shepard. Happy (special) Birthday, Ruthie!

On This Day 68 years ago my parents, Navyman Eugene Shepard and Maida Gower (see picture from 1945), were married at the El Cajon Blvd Church of Christ in San Diego, as WWII was grinding to its conclusion. Today is one more opportunity to celebrate the lives of both my parents, but in particular my father, who passed away 10 years ago this summer.  

- - -
Steve Shepard

"Thanks To All Willing To Share", December 12, 2011

OUR history begins before we are born.

We represent the hereditary influences of our race,

and our ancestors virtually live in us.

James Nasmyth

Hello Family and Friends,

Greetings to all of you wherever you may be, and however you may be surviving the December rush through Advent and Christmas.  Cindy and I find ourselves in Carlsbad, California vacationing this week with friends George and Diane. We are all of 30 miles from home!

I have written before about a family project to replace the headstones for two ancestors of ours, my GGGgrandfather Alexander Davis (1819-66) and his daughter Elizabeth (1843-67). They both reside beneath weathered and broken headstones in Spencer, Indiana. My second cousin Jerry Davis was the instigator of this project this past summer. He now tells me that we have raised the total amount needed from descendants of theirs. The headstone has been ordered and its creation is underway!

Jerry: I am getting anxious to get the stone in place and completed. I certainly appreciate all your assistance in helping to bring this to completion and that Alexander and Elizabeth will have a permanent grave marker. A BIG Thanks to all those who were willing to share with their contributions to see this completed.  We are blessed with such a loving and caring family.

Following is a list of relatives who were willing and able to contribute. Their names are in bold. Pictured are five of the donors: Jerry Davis, Stan Guy, Becky Davis, Gary Millikan and Thelma Boyd.

Descendants of Alexander Davis/ Charles Edward Davis/ John E. Davis:

• Stanley Guy (Dallas, Texas) - grandson of John Davis  
• Jon D. Guy (Arnett, Ok.) - grandson of John Davis
• Milfred W. Davis (Amarillo, Texas) - son of John Davis
• William P. "Bill' Davis (Alamogordo, N.M.) - grandson of John Davis   
  
• Jerry D. Davis (Grand Prairie, Texas) - grandson of John Davis  

Descendants of Alexander Davis/Charles Edward Davis/James Brooks Davis:  

• Jim and Nancy Bushong (Oologah, Ok.) - great grandson of J.B. Davis
• Becky Davis (Bartlesville, Ok.) - granddaughter of J.B. Davis
• Gary Millikan (Tulsa, Ok.)- grandson of J.B. Davis
• Steve and Cindy Shepard (San Diego, Ca.) - great grandson of J.B. Davis  
• Thelma Shepard Boyd (Gallup, N.M.) - granddaughter of J.B. Davis
• Norma Lou Allen (Bolivar, Mo.) - granddaughter of J.B. Davis
• Shirley Borgstadt (Springfield, Mo.) - granddaughter of J.B. Davis 
  
• Carolyn Roberts (Bolivar, Mo.) - granddaughter of J.B. Davis
  Note: Norma Lou, Shirley and Carolyn's contribution is in memory of their mother Nona Davis Kilpatrick and sister Venita Kilpatrick Bridger.

Descendant of Alexander Davis/Charles Edward Davis/Thomas Davis:

• Julie Coble Vandagriff (Bedford, Indiana) - great granddaughter of Tom Davis

Descendants of Alexander Davis/Samilda Dorcas Davis Medaris/Ada Medaris Johnson:  

• Kellene Hardy (Richardson, Texas) - granddaughter of Ada Johnson
• Jaydene Morrison (Nederland, Colorado) - granddaughter of Ada Johnson

Descendant of Alexander Davis/Salathiel George Davis/Harry Davis:  

• Scott G. Davis (Oklahoma City) - grandson of Harry Davis

The donors above represent a unique cross section of descendants of Alexander and Jane Davis. Not a single person in this list knows every other person on the list, but we are all related nonetheless. And we are now united as family in a common cause. The bottom line though is that this project is a wonderful tribute to our Davis ancestors who lived through some great hardships and left a wonderful legacy for which we can be very grateful. Replacing their headstones not only witnesses to the impact they made, it also shows the high esteem in which we hold them.

And maybe it indicates, as James Nasmyth says in the quote above, that "our ancestors virtually live in us".

- - -

Steve

A New Year, A New Book, January 13

History is the big myth we live,
and in our living, constantly remake.
~Robert Penn Warren

Hello Family and Friends,

Greetings to all of you wherever you may be, from Dorrington, California, where Cindy and I find ourselves on this beautiful winter's day. A couple of feet of snow blankets the ground around our house, but the storms have passed for now and the weather is as pleasant as one could hope for at this time of the year.

First of all a reminder: a Shepard Family Reunion is being planned this coming summer on August 13, 2011 in Anacortes, Washington. You are invited to make your plans and join us. Secondly a concern: Our prayers and best wishes continue to be with the family of Mildred Beck Davis of Bartlesville, Oklahoma who suffered a severe stroke last Saturday and is in Jane Phillips Hospital.

Happy Birthday, Mary Shepard! Monday of this week (Jan 10) was the birthday of Mary (Medina) Shepard, the wife of my brother Darrell Shepard. They live in Normandy Park, Washington, south of Seattle, where they are managers of a retirement facility. Mary is originally from Chicago but attended Abilene Christian University where she met and then married Darrell. They have lived in Western Washington now for over 25 years. Their three children, Christopher, Rachel and Patrick, live not far from them in the Seattle area. Best wishes to Mary on this milestone birthday.

Happy Birthday Eric Russell! Tomorrow is the birthday of Eric Russell who lives with his wife Ruth and next door to his father Rex in Red Rock, Nevada. Eric's lineage is Rex Russell/ Pauline Shepard Russell/ Bura Davis Shepard/ James and Caroline Davis. Happy Birthday to Eric.

A New Year, A New Book. I mentioned a couple of weeks ago that a new history of the Davis family has been written by Nancy Bushong, titled "Davis and Beck Family History". Nancy is the wife of James Bushong, one of the Ggrandchildren of James Brooks and Caroline Davis. Her work is one more in a line of compilations of the descendants of James Brooks and Caroline Davis. (See the first picture from the 1960s, showing the 7 Davis children: Nona, Myra, Bura, Margie, Esther, Lawrence and Jesse.)

The first one to do some careful chronicling of our Davis family in recent decades was Ronald Davis (1931-1998), a grandchild of James and Caroline. In the 1980s, when personal computers first became popular, Ronald gathered as much Davis information as he could on computer. In 1989 he was kind enough to send me print outs of the family data he compiled, which I still find helpful.

Previous Davis Family Histories. In the 1990s, at least two Davis family history booklets were put together. The first one, in 1993, was done by the family of Jesse Davis, and was primarily about Jesse and Mildred and their offspring, but included some information and photos of other family members of James and Caroline Davis.

In 1995 a more complete family history of James and Caroline Davis was put together, titled "Our Heritage Generations Past and Present." It states that it is the research of Ronald Davis, Jerry Davis, Mildred (Beck) Davis and Marjorie (Davis) Williams.

To set along side these efforts is Nancy Bushong's new book. It is more about the Beck side of the Jesse and Mildred (Beck) Davis family, but it still gives a good summary of the Davises, with 3 of the book's 10 chapters devoted to them.

Descendants of Marmaduke Davis. A unique contribution of this new family history is the Descendant Chart in the back of the book. It is titled "Descendants of Marmaduke Davis", and lists nearly 350 descendants of James Brooks and Caroline Davis. Not every section of the chart is complete, as you might imagine, but it is the most comprehensive listing on paper that I have seen of these Davis descendants. I am most familiar with the family of James and Caroline's oldest daughter Bura Davis Shepard, my grandmother. That particular section is remarkably complete and as near to being correct as one could hope for.

Copies of the book can be obtained from Nancy, although she has told me that the number of printed copies is limited. She is to be thanked for her great efforts! As other family members step forward in years to come to compile information on this big wonderful family of ours, Nancy's book will be one more valuable resource.
- - -

Steve

Happy New Year! Jan 1, 2011

Be always at war with your vices, 

at peace with your family,

and let each new year find you a better person.
~Benjamin Franklin

Hello Family and Friends,

Happy New Year to all of you on this first day of 2011!

We are enjoying New Year's Day here in San Diego where sunshine has replaced the very rainy weather we have been having, and the flooding seems to be over for now. It was the wettest December this area has seen in many years.  

Happy Anniversary! Yesterday was the 28th wedding anniversary of my brother Darrell and his wife Mary (Medina) Shepard. The first picture shows the two of them in 1990.

They presently live in Kirkland, Washington, but a new job for both of them will soon relocate them in the area near SeaTac. They were married on New Year's Eve, 1982 in Abilene, Texas where they were attending Abilene Christian University. Happy Anniversary to Darrell and Mary!

The second picture shows Darrell and Mary just last week on Christmas day at the home of Maida Shepard in Anacortes, Washington. Darrell and Mary are in the front on the left sitting next to their oldest son Christopher. In the back is their daughter Rachel on the left with her friend Brian, and their son Patrick on the right with his girl friend Nicole. (Thanks to Barbara Shepard who took this picture.)

Happy Birthday, Chenda! Today is the birthday of our daughter-in-law Chenda Shepard. She and husband Nathan and 9 month old Preslea now live in Alameda, California, just across the bay from San Francisco, where Nathan works.

The second picture was taken on Christmas Day as we celebrated the holiday at the home of Paula Harris here in San Diego. It shows Chenda and Nathan and their first baby Preslea. Their second baby is expected this coming June.

In the words of Ben Franklin, may this "new year find you a better person." May 2011 be a wonderful year for you and your family!
- - -
Steve

Family Is Everything, Dec 5

Family is not an important thing.

It is everything. 

~Michael J. Fox

Hello Family and Friends,

Happy Birthday Patrick! Today is the birthday of my nephew Patrick Shepard, who is the youngest child of Darrell and Mary Shepard of Kirkland, Washington. He is also one of the Ggrandchildren of William and Bura Shepard, and Leroy and Nola Gower.

I received this message from Pat earlier today: "It's hard to believe I am 20 today! It seems like just yesterday Grandpa was picking me up from kindergarten! We recently moved into our first house in Bothell, WA, and by "we" I mean my girl friend Nicole, our 2 cats and our dog. It is a houseful! :) We live right down the street from my parents and right up the hill from Chris and Rachel. I work in downtown Seattle as a Community Relations Director in a senior living community, following in my mom's footsteps. Life is very good these days and I feel very blessed to be where I am! Today my birthday will be spent with my friends and family, and great food!" 

The Rest of the Story. In my last post I mentioned my Ggrandmother Caroline (Callie) Spear Davis, on the anniversary of her birth in 1865. I mentioned that she died in 1951 and was buried in Enid, Oklahoma. Jerry Davis and Becky Davis were quick to email me and report that she had indeed DIED in Enid but not buried there.

Jerry: "Callie was traveling with her son Jesse from Bartlesville back to Beaver County where she resided with (her son) Lawrence. They were just east of Enid,  when Jesse could not get a response from her so he rushed on into Enid to a hospital where she was pronounced deceased. This of course caused the hospital to call the police. Jess was a bit upset and called my father Bennie in Helena who rushed over to help. Jess was finally allowed to travel on to Beaver County but if I remember correctly Callie was transferred to a local funeral home and then on to Beaver County.  She is buried beside her husband James in Sophia Cemetery near the old South Flat church of Christ."  Thanks to Jerry and Becky for helping me get the story straight. (See James and Callie's headstone above.)

The picture on the right was recently received from my cousin Dane Shepard. He says it was taken in the mid 1930s and shows Lawrence Davis in the middle and Elmer Shepard on the right. On the left is Robert Jackson. The children are Ronald Davis and Jessie Davis.

A New Davis History Book. Nancy Bushong of Oolagah, Oklahoma has written a new "Davis and Beck Family History", which is now available. Nancy: "The cost will be $20 per book, which includes shipping cost. As soon as I receive your check I will mail your book. I wish to thank all of you for your interest. Aunt Becky Davis and I are overwhelmed at the number of you who want copies." 

If you are interested in buying a copy, contact Nancy. If you don't have her contact information, let me know and I will put her in touch with you. Thanks to Nancy for all the work she put into this book.
- - -
Steve

Confessions of a Nitpicker, Oct 4

The bond that links

your true family

is not one of blood,

but of respect and joy

in each other's life.

~Richard Bach

Hello Shepard Family and Friends,

I sometimes find myself being a nitpicker. Is that a trait commonly found in our family? Is there something in our genes that I can blame it on?

In my small part of our larger family (see picture of our son Nathan and his wife Chenda), we have a tendency to relish those times when one of us misspeaks, which is a form of nitpicking. We point out the mistake with a certain glee. For example: "Aha! You just said 'soot', when you meant to say 'shoot'!" 

Truth be told, however, with a daughter-in-law whose first language is not English, we have toned down the gleefulness a bit, thereby showing a little compassion. But the proclivity to nitpick is clearly still there and rears its ugly head on occasion.

That explains why a particular blog caught my attention one morning not long ago. It has the catchy name "Throw Grammar From the Train - Notes From a Recovering Nitpicker." (You can find the link to that blog on the front page of this blog, down the right hand column a ways where several links are listed.) The nitpicker who wittily writes that blog is focused on minor grammatical errors that she finds irksome. If you too are a nitpicker, you will enjoy reading it.

The nitpicker's life is not easy for someone who does family research. Annoying misspellings of family names are very common, even by those who should know better.

The first time I came across this problem (at least for a nitpicker it's a problem) was when I researched my GGgrandfather William Shepard (1835-1862) (see the picture on the left of his grandson and namesake, in about 1935). In the county history book of Wabash, Indiana the elder William is listed among the Civil War Veterans with his name misspelled William "Sheppard". In Evansville, Indiana where he is buried, the cemetery office has his name as William "Shephard". If you go to his headstone in that very same cemetery, you will find his name spelled William "Shepard" (correct at last!). Misspellings like that are among my pet peeves.

The other day I got an email from cousin Becky Davis of Bartlesville, OK. She asked me about the spelling of one of our Davis ancestors, born about 1755. Becky: "Steve, do you know the correct spelling of 'Maramaduke' Davis? [with 3 a's] Or is it 'Marmaduke' Davis?" [with 2 a's]  

The middle man in the 1925 picture on the right is Marmaduke's Ggrandson Charles E. Davis, next to his sons James Brooks and John.

Becky's email continued: My niece is progressing nicely on the history book of our family and we need to be sure the names are spelled correctly. The first spelling is what I have in my notes, but it doesn't sound right."

Becky is a nitpicker after my own heart. I don't know about Nancy Bushong, the niece Becky referred to. But if she has asked for help in spell checking her book, there must be some nitpickiness in her.

Like any good nitpicker, after reading Becky's email, I felt the need to find the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth so help me God. So I went immediately to ancestry.com and searched for GGGGGG grandpappy Davis. I found 18 different historical references to him. 15 of those references have his name spelled "Marmaduke" (just like the cartoon dog). But there were 3 misspellings, none of which matched Becky's misspelling:

-Marmiduke Davis (in the 1830 U.S. Census)
-Mrmeduke Davies (in the 1840 U.S. Census; last name also misspelled!)
-Marmaduk Davis (in the 1850 U.S. Census)

How is one suppose to do credible family research when Census takers make mistakes like that!? It's enough to make a grown nitpicker cry.

Okay, okay, maybe I am taking this thing a little too far. Even I must confess that, when all is said and done, there is more to family life than getting the details exactly right. The greatest meaning lies not in right spelling, pronunciation or grammar, but in the right spirit. The quote at the top of this post suggests as much.

But surely spelling counts for something, doesn't it?
- - 
Steve

Shepard Family Update, March 5, 2010

.
"Cousin to cousin we'll always be,
Special friends from the same family tree."
~unknown

Hello Shepard Family and Friends,

Greetings from our home in San Diego where the sun is shining and the living is great in these latter days of winter 2010.

Texas Emails. Jerry Clark of Lubbock, Texas emailed me this past week to confirm that he was indeed the photographer of the picture that I included last week of 5 Shepard siblings, taken in 1983 in Anacortes, Washington. How in the world he got that motley crew to pose so well for him I do not know. But I am glad that he did!

I also received an email this past week from Larry Davis of Dallas, Texas with updated information on his particular part of our family. Larry has been a reader of this blog for some time. He is one of the nephews of my grandparents Will and Bura (Davis) Shepard, and a first cousin of my father Eugene Shepard, who died back in 2003.

Cousins Galore. Larry and my dad were 2 of 31 first cousins who were grandchildren of James and Callie Davis. (See the first picture of James Davis, taken in the 1890s.) I have mentioned before in this blog that James and Callie had 7 children, including Larry's father Lawrence Davis and my grandmother Bura (Davis) Shepard. See a picture of all 7 children with their parents.

For those 7 children to have a total of 31 offspring is not an extraordinary number for the early to mid 20th century, but it still makes for a very large extended family. I am one of 12 first cousins on my dad's side of my family and that seems large. But 31? Those 31 cousins -- born between 1916 and 1949 - account for an extended family of several hundred people today.

Of those 31 cousins...
4 were born with the last name Shepard;
9 were born with the last name Davis;
8 were born with the last name Kilpatrick;
6 were born with the last name Jenkins;
4 were born with the last name Millikan;
and all 31 (and most of their descendants) can be found on our family tree on ancestry.com.

The second picture I am including shows 9 (of the 31) cousins who were gathered at the Shepard/ Davis Family reunion last summer. (Click the pic for a larger view.) Beginning upper left are: Virginia Jenkins Niles (with husband Harold), Arthur Jenkins (with wife Grace), Gary Millikan (with wife Barbara), Charlotte Davis Taylor (with husband Terrel), Arlen Millikan, Jessie Davis Bushong, and Kathy Davis Villanueva. Seated is Elmer Shepard (the oldest surviving cousin) and his sister Thelma Shepard Boyd. The two children are Kaylan and Nathan Shepard, Elmer's grandchildren and among the younger descendants of James and Callie Davis.

In the email from Larry Davis this past week, he referred to his older brother Ronald Davis, who died in 1998. When I first began research into our family back in the late 1980s, Ronald was a great source of information. He had done a tremendous amount of family research at that time, copies of which he graciously sent to me, and which I still find very helpful today. We can all be grateful for Ronald and the family work he did. He was undoubtedly the first compiler of our family tree to gather his information on a computer.

Who Do You Think You Are? I have received announcements about a new TV series that begins on Fridays starting this evening on NBC titled "Who Do You Think You Are?" It is about different celebrities and their search for their family roots. This evening's program concerns "Sarah Jessica Parker on her journey through family history as she discovers an ancestor involved in the Salem Witch Trials."  For anyone interested in family history it might be worth watching. If you happen to view it, I'd be interested in your reaction.
- - -
Steve

Shepard Family Update, May 1, 2009

No matter what you've done

for yourself or for humanity,
if you can't look back
on having given love and attention
to your own family,
what have you really accomplished?
-- Elbert Hubbard

Hello Shepard Family and Friends,

A friend of mine recently shared the following story with me that I want to pass on to you.

At a restaurant a while back, I overheard a conversation between a mother and her children. They were getting ready to drive over the Sierra Nevada mountains to Tahoe for the first time.

“After lunch, we’ll have to stop and buy some chains,” the mother said, making conversation as they waited for their food.
“Why do we need chains?” her young son Andrew asked.
“We’ll have to put them on when we get into the snow.”
“Snow!” the little boy said, filled with excitement.
“Probably a lot of snow,” the mom reassured her delighted child.
But then the boy became curious. “But, why do we have to put on chains?”
“It’s the law, and it will make us safer.”
“Chains?" The young child was getting concerned. “Will it hurt?”
“No, of course not. We’ll have someone put them on for us.”
That still didn’t satisfy the young boy. He was struggling. There was silence.
Mom was starting to realize what was going on. “Andrew, do you understand that the chains will go on the tires of the car?”
“On the CAR?” A huge sense of relief came over the child.
“Yes, on the car.”

And with that, mom gave her child a big hug. The family had a laugh over it. All was okay. The trip could continue in a most delightful way. Without the youngster and the rest of his family having to wear chains.

Have you ever noticed that families are places where misunderstandings arise? Of course you have. I have too. And because of that, families -- at their best -- are also places where love and attention are given.

Speaking of misunderstandings, I received an email this past week which let me know how badly I misunderstood a family celebration that was held recently. The email was from Becky Davis, daughter of Mildred (Beck) Davis of Bartlesville, Oklahoma. Mildred (see a picture of her) is the sister-in-law of my grandmother Bura Davis Shepard, and the last surviving member of her generation within our family. Happy Birthday to Mildred, whose 98th (NOT 99th) birthday is today. Here's what Becky said in her email to me:

Good to hear from you, Steve. We enjoy reading your updates on family that we have lost touch with over the years. I remember when Beverly and her family and Will and Bura came to the farm when we lived in the Boise City, OK area and later Beverly and I corresponded for awhile. When we moved to Calif in '58 she came to see us in Tracy.
We had Mom's birthday celebration [last Saturday] on the 25th because we had conflicting plans for the next Saturday. She will only be 98 instead of 99 on May 1. I think she held up having 45 people around better than her daughters did. She was still ready to play chicken-foot that evening. Sunday morning she seemed to have as much energy as usual and attended services.
Daughters Jessie Bushong and I live here and care for Mom. Nordeen Cochran lives in Spearman, Texas and is here for a week. Charlotte Taylor lives about 2 miles from us, and Kathy Villanueva lives about 5 miles away. Her son Bud will be in and out for 2 weeks. Mom has enjoyed having all 6 of her children here.

Besides 6 children, Mom has 22 grandchildren, 50 great grands, and 25 great, great grands. Most live in Oklahoma, Texas and Arkansas. We are all looking forward to the visit from Dane and Elmer on the 5th of May. Thanks, Steve for keeping memories alive. ...Becky Davis

The first picture I am including (above) is a picture of Dane Shepard with 4 of Mildred and Jesse Davis' children, taken recently when Dane was in Bartlesville for a visit. Standing, left to right are Jessie Bushong, Becky Davis, and Kathy Villanueva. Seated is Charlotte Taylor.

The second picture I am including was taken in 1968 and shows Bura Davis Shepard with her 6 siblings in front of the South Flat Church of Christ in Beaver County, Oklahoma. Upper left in the white hat is Bura Davis Shepard, and upper right is Mildred Davis' husband Jesse Robinson Davis, who died the following spring. Partially hidden in the back is Lawrence Davis. The other sisters are Winona, Myra, Margie and Esther.

These 7 children of James Brooks and Caroline Davis (see a picture of them) represent quite an impressive legacy today. Bura herself accounts for 44 direct descendants (of which I am one) with at least one more on the way. Brother Jesse, according to the numbers above, accounts for 103 descendants! If you add up the descendants of the other 5 children, God only knows what the total would be! 500 or more, I am guessing. (I've lived in towns smaller than that!) Actually, making a list of all the descendants of James and Callie would be a great project for someone. Who'd like to take it on? I wonder if it could be done by the time of our family reunion this July?

Speaking of the family reunion, it will take place Saturday, July 18 in Newcastle, Oklahoma, a few miles south of the OKC Airport. In next week's post Dane Shepard will give a detailed update on the planning so far. As I have mentioned before, I am putting together a Photo Presentation for the reunion and would like to have pictures of each family unit, including as many descendants of James and Caroline Davis as possible. Please email digital images to me, or, if you have photographs, send me an email and we can talk about what we might do.

In the meantime, have a wonderful May Day!
--
Steve