Hayes, Nellie M.

Birth Name Hayes, Nellie M.
Gramps ID I6256
Gender female
Age at Death 75 years, 5 months, 22 days

Events

Event Date Place Description
Sources Notes
Birth 1884-07-10 Whitley Cty, Indiana, USA  
1a 2a
Census 1900 Cleveland Twp, Whitley Cty, Indiana, USA  
3a
Census 1910 Fort Wayne, Allen Cty, Indiana, USA  
4a
Census 1920 Fort Wayne, Allen Cty, Indiana, USA  
5a
Census 1930 Fort Wayne, Allen Cty, Indiana, USA  
6a
Census 1940 Fort Wayne, Allen Cty, Indiana, USA  
7a
Death 1960    
 
Burial   Prairie Grove Cemetery, Fort Wayne, Allen Cty, Indiana, USA  
 

Parents

Relation to main person Name Birth date Death date Relation within this family (if not by birth)
Father Hayes, Max [I6254]18571899-05-15
Mother Miller, Mary Alice [I6171]1864-02-261939
    Sister     Hayes, Nina Bell [I6255] 1883-01-06 1963
         Hayes, Nellie M. [I6256] 1884-07-10 1960
    Brother     Hayes, Guy M. [I6257] 1887-07-24 1963
    Brother     Hayes, Joseph G. [I6258] 1889-09-24 1967

Families

    Family of Pritchard, Merl M. and Hayes, Nellie M. [F2046]
Married Husband Pritchard, Merl M. [I6266] ( * 1884-01-25 + 1949 )
   
Event Date Place Description
Sources Notes
Marriage 1903-09-16 Whitley Cty, Indiana, USA  
1b
Divorce 1910    
1a 1c
  Children
Name Birth Date Death Date
Pritchard, Helen Mary [I6268]1904-06-162000-10-12
Pritchard, Nina L. [I6269]1905-09-181990-01-03
    Family of Bobay, August J. and Hayes, Nellie M. [F2047]
Married Husband Bobay, August J. [I6267] ( * 1871-12-07 + 1945 )
   
Event Date Place Description
Sources Notes
Marriage 1911-08-30 Allen Cty, Indiana, USA  
1a 2a

Narrative

Note: Marital and residence histories of Nellie Hayes and Merl Pritchard

Recording the family life of Nellie Hayes was a somewhat more complicated process than expected, even with a divorce and remarriage, owing mostly to the difficulty I had tracking the residence history of her first husband, Merl Pritchard.

The earliest record I can find for Merl is in the 1900 US Census listing for his parents' household, where he was living as a sixteen-year-old laborer in Payne, Paulding Cty, Ohio (along with his three brothers). Likewise, for Nellie the earlier record I can find is listing in that same year's census, putting her in her widowed mother's household in Cleveland Twp, Whitley Cty, Indiana. Nellie's father, Max Hayes, had died just months prior to the census taking.

The next record for each of them is their Whitley Cty marriage record, where they were wed on 16 Sep 1903. The birth of their first child, daughter Helen Mary, followed exactly nine months later, with their second child, daughter Nina, coming two days after their second wedding anniversary (September 1905).

I can't guess as to what their marital life was like, but by the time of the 1910 US Census, Nellie and her daughters were living with her mother Alice again (along with her younger brothers Guy and Joe, and her older sister Nina and her husband and children) in Fort Wayne, Allen Cty, Indiana; her marital status was given as "divorced." Nellie and her daughters also appear to be counted in the same year as roomers in the household of Sidney and Rusha Smith in South Whitley, Whitley Cty, Indiana, with her marital status here also given as "divorced."

Merl's residence at that time is unknown, but it does appear that he enlisted in the Army in Ohio in late 1910. The original record on microfilm is difficult to read, as his entry is the last on the page, but he appears to have been dishonorably discharged on 8 Apr 1912 at Fort Bliss, Texas; the remainder of the details on the record are illegible.

On 30 Aug 1911 in Allen Cty, Indiana, Nellie married August Bobay, a man more than twelve years her senior who had been married and divorced twice prior. Nellie and her daughters are counted living with August in the 1920 US Census, and she and August remained married and living in Fort Wayne until his death in 1945.

After his dishonorable discharge, the next record I have found for Merl is his marriage on 22 Dec 1917 in Whitley Cty, Indiana to seventeen-year-old Sarah (or Sara) Elizabeth Brown, when he was nearly thirty-four years old. Sarah's life seemed to be somewhat complicated before she met Merl, as it appears she was an unwed mother of a one-year-old girl, Velma Burris, at the time of her marriage to Merl. Nine months later, when Merl registered for the draft in Noble Cty, Indiana, he gave his closest relative as "Sarah E. Pritchard."

The following years show quite a bit of complitcation for Merl and Sarah, according to the records I have found thus far.

- In the 1920 US Census, just a few years later, Merl is listed as living with his parents in Cleveland Twp, Whitley Cty, Indiana; Sarah is counted with her daughter Velma and infant son Harrison Pritchard in her parents' household over thirty miles away in Noble Twp, Noble Cty, Indiana. Sarah gives her marital status as "single," while Merl reports his as "married."

- In the 1930 US Census, Sarah is counted as living with her parents but now in Richland Twp, Whitley Cty, Indiana; with her are her children (by Merl) Harrison, Viola, and Willodean Pritchard, while Velma, now thirteen years old, is living in nearby Columbia City, Whitley Cty, with Sarah's younger sister Eva Pratt, a newlywed just four years older than Velma. Merl, though, is listed that same year as an inmate on the Indiana State Penal Farm in Warren Township, Putnam Cty, Indiana (a prison now known as the Putnamville Correctional Facility). How long he served there and for what offense is unknown to me at this time, though the birthdates of his youngest two children (Willodean, 23 Aug 1922 and Jack Eugene, 22 Feb 1934) suggest to me that he couldn't have been imprisoned any earlier than late 1921 and released no later than mid-1933.

I have not found either Sarah or Merl in the 1940 US Census, but her children are found somewhat scattered despite the young ages of some of them:

- Jack, the youngest, was living with his half-sister Velma and her first husband, Otto Boschet, in Columbia City.

- Harrison, now called Harry, was living with his paternal grandmother (Merl's mother Catherine) in Cleveland Twp.

- Willodean had lied about her age on her marriage license, and was wed to Maurice Bennett only a few weeks after her fifteenth birthday. In the 1940 US Census, the two of them are counted living in Columbia City with their two young daughters.

- Viola had also married before 1940, and was living with her husband Harley in Columbia City with their two young children at the time of the census.

The last confirmed record I can find for either Sarah or Merl is the 1942 WWII draft registration card for Merl. On it, he listed his residence South Whitley and his closest contact as his mother, Catherine Pritchard. I have not found confirmed death records for either Sarah or Merl.

I have, though, found what I believe are their burial listings with details lining up to suggest these are the correct graves. Each of them appears to be buried in the same cemetery as their parents - "Merl M. Pritchard" in South Whitley Cemetery, and "Sara E. Pritchard" in Thorn Cemetery in Wolf Lake, Noble Cty, Indiana - with each listing giving the correct birth years (1884 and 1900, respectively). Additionally, the two stones match, suggesting one or more of their children picked out the markers - both stones have the same artwork and memorial line, and use the same font for the lettering. Merl died in 1949, and Sara in 1950.

The last of the family to pass was Jack Eugene Pritchard, who died in 2010; his obituary mentions family that preceded him as his parents, his brother Harry, and his three sisters Velma, Viola, and Willodean. No mention is made of his paternal half-sisters Helen or Nina, which suggests to me that Merl's children from his second marriage likely had little or no contact with their older half-sisters. I can imagine any number of reasons why Helen and Nina may have had little to do with their father: his dishonorable discharge, his marriage to a teen mother young enough to have been a classmate of theirs, and his time in prison would all have been counted as reason enough in that day and age for the two to disown their father. What the real situation and reasons might have been, though, is something at which I can only guess for now.

Pedigree

  1. Hayes, Max [I6254]
    1. Miller, Mary Alice [I6171]
      1. Hayes, Nina Bell [I6255]
      2. Hayes, Nellie M.
        1. Pritchard, Merl M. [I6266]
          1. Pritchard, Helen Mary [I6268]
          2. Pritchard, Nina L. [I6269]
        2. Bobay, August J. [I6267]
      3. Hayes, Guy M. [I6257]
      4. Hayes, Joseph G. [I6258]

Ancestors

Source References

  1. Indiana, Marriages, 1811-2007 [S0302]
      • Confidence: High
      • Citation:

        "Indiana Marriages, 1811-2007," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XX2R-379 : 21 January 2016), Alice Miller in entry for August J Bobay and Nellie M Pritchard, 30 Aug 1911; citing Allen, Indiana, United States, various county clerk offices, Indiana; FHL microfilm 2,111,591.

      • Date: 1903-09-18
      • Confidence: High
      • Citation:

        "Indiana Marriages, 1811-2007," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:27VL-D6Y : 21 January 2016), Merle M Pritchard and Nellie M Hayes, 16 Sep 1903; citing Whitley, Indiana, United States, various county clerk offices, Indiana; FHL microfilm 1,710,725.

      • Confidence: High
      • Citation:

        "Indiana Marriages, 1811-2007," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:27VK-LXG : 21 January 2016), Merl M Pritchard and Sarah E Brown, ; citing Whitley, Indiana, United States, various county clerk offices, Indiana; FHL microfilm 1,710,718.

  2. Indiana, Marriages, 1780-1992 [S0118]
      • Confidence: High
      • Citation:

        "Indiana Marriages, 1780-1992," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XFWF-MXH : 3 December 2014), Alice Miller in entry for August J. Bobay and Nellie M. Pritchard, 30 Aug 1911; citing reference fn462; FHL microfilm 2,111,591.

  3. US Census of 1900 [S0039]
      • Date: 1900-06-06
      • Citation:

        "United States Census, 1900," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M99P-DMN : accessed 17 November 2016), Alice Hayes, Cleveland Township (north half) South Whitley town, Whitley, Indiana, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 110, sheet 6B, family 146, NARA microfilm publication T623 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1972.); FHL microfilm 1,240,414.

        Event Year 1900
        Event Place Cleveland Township (north half) South Whitley town, Whitley, Indiana, United States
        Alice Hayes Head F 36 Indiana
        Nina Hayes Daughter F 17 Indiana
        Nellie Hayes Daughter F 16 Indiana
        Guy Hayes Son M 13 Indiana
        Joseph Hayes Son M 11 Indiana
        Sidney Smith Boarder M 34 Indiana

  4. US Census of 1910 [S0040]
      • Date: 1910-04-28
      • Citation:

        "United States Census, 1910," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MKLY-H7N : accessed 17 November 2016), Alice Hayes, Fort Wayne Ward 3, Allen, Indiana, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 39, sheet 12A, family 228, NARA microfilm publication T624 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1982), roll 339; FHL microfilm 1,374,352.

        Event Date 1910
        Event Place Fort Wayne Ward 3, Allen, Indiana, United States
        Alice Hayes Head F 46 Indiana
        Guy Hayes Son M 22 Indiana
        Joe Hayes Son M 20 Indiana
        J C Zierath Son-in-law M 40 Minnesota
        Mina Zierath Daughter F 27 Indiana
        Mary Zierath Granddaughter F 6 Indiana
        Alice Zierath Granddaughter F 2 Indiana
        Nellie Pritchard Daughter F 25 Indiana
        Helen Pritchard Granddaughter F 5 Indiana
        Nina Pritchard Granddaughter F 4 Indiana

  5. US Census of 1920 [S0041]
      • Date: 1920-01-17
      • Citation:

        "United States Census, 1920," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MFQF-JP3 : accessed 19 November 2016), August Bobay, Fort Wayne Ward 9, Allen, Indiana, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 79, sheet 11A, line 19, family 271, NARA microfilm publication T625 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1992), roll 422; FHL microfilm 1,820,422.

        Event Date 1920
        Event Place Fort Wayne Ward 9, Allen, Indiana, United States
        August Bobay Head M 48 Indiana
        Nellie Bobay Wife F 35 Indiana
        Helen Pritchard Stepdaughter F 15 Indiana
        Nina Pritchard Stepdaughter F 14 Indiana

  6. US Census of 1930 [S0042]
      • Date: 1930-04-09
      • Citation:

        "United States Census, 1930," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X41K-N83 : accessed 19 November 2016), August Bobay, Fort Wayne, Allen, Indiana, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 35, sheet 9B, line 76, family 228, NARA microfilm publication T626 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2002), roll 576; FHL microfilm 2,340,311.

        Event Date 1930
        Event Place Fort Wayne, Allen, Indiana, United States
        August Bobay Head M 58 Indiana
        Nellie M Bobay Wife F 45 Indiana

  7. US Census of 1940 [S0043]
      • Date: 1940-04-09
      • Citation:

        "United States Census, 1940," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:V11M-G12 : accessed 19 November 2016), August Bobay, Ward 9, Fort Wayne, Wayne Township, Allen, Indiana, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 94-77, sheet 9A, line 12, family 198, Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940, NARA digital publication T627. Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790 - 2007, RG 29. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2012, roll 1117.

        Event Date 1940
        Event Place Ward 9, Fort Wayne, Wayne Township, Allen, Indiana, United States
        August Bobay Head M 68 Indiana
        Nellie Bobay Wife F 55 Indiana