The Hyphen Family Lineage

[Obituary for Lucretia Welsh, postedo online to the FindaGrave.com website by Becky Jacobs.]

Lucretia C. "Lu" Welsh, 76, passed away at 4 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 9, in Marion General Hospital, following a serious illness of the past six months. She resided at Rt. 3, Richwood.

A retired employee of Sieg's Drug Store where she worked for 21 years, Mrs. Welsh was a member of the Central United Methodist Church. She was a Past President of the American Legion Auxiliary, a member of the Plus Ultra Class of her church, Daughters of the Union Veterans, Rebekah Lodge, Claibourne Grange and a Board Member of the Union County and Tri-County Boards for Community Action Organization.

Born April 14, 1902 in Richwood, she was a daughter of David and Phoebe Hill Beckley. June 26, 1962 she married Wattie L. Welsh, who survives.

Also surviving are step-children: Paden "Gene" Welsh of Richwood, Harold "Ted" Welsh, Delaware, George "Bob" Welsh, also of Richwood, Mrs. Mary Ann Pershing of Marion; 11 step-grandchildren; 7 step-great-grandchildren; a brother, George of Richwood and a sister, Mrs. Lena Harris of Marion. One son is deceased.

Rev. Thomas Anderson officiated services held Sunday in Ballinger Funeral Home. Burial was in Claibourne Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests contributions to the Union County Cancer Society.

That I can find, Lucretia married twice - first in 1923, at the age of twenty-one, to Lloyd S. Phillips, which ended in divorce sometime prior to 1939 (when Lloyd remarried to Rose Johnson Kryder). Lucretia's second marriage wasn't until 1962, when she was sixty years old, to Wattie L. Welsh.

Her obituary mentions no biological children amongst her survivors, only step-children (born to Wattie with his first wife, Roxie Evans) and their families. One unnamed son is listed with those preceding her in death; this it the only mention I've found of such a child, so I assume he was either born to her during her marriage to Lloyd, or possibly during another relationship or marriage I haven't yet uncovered. I have not yet discovered a 1930 US Census listing that includes Lucretia, but Lloyd can be found living with his parents in Auburn, DeKalb Cty, Indiana in 1930, listed as married but without Lucretia in the listing (suggesting they may have divorced by 1930). There's also no child in that listing, suggesting that either any son born to the pair had stayed with Lucretia or had already died by 1930.

(It should be noted that Lloyd had at least two children from his first marriage in 1912 in Indiana to Bessie Gordon. In the 1940 US Census listing for his household with his third wife, the only child that appears there is step-daughter Rosemary, Rose's daughter from her previous marriage.)

One interesting find is that Wattie's previous wife and mother of his children, Roxie Evans, didn't die until 1966, four years after Wattie had re-married. Her obituary notes that she died in Sawyer Sanatorium in Marion, Marion Cty, Ohio, after being ill "several years." What the nature of her illnes was is not specified, nor is Wattie mentioned at all in her obituary. It's presumed she and Wattie divorced, though at what point in time (before or after the onset of her illness) is unknown at this time.