Louis M Williams son of Edd Williams (1902-1977)

LOUIS MILTON WILLIAMS and ANNE RUTH DANFORTH

Louis Milton Williams was born near Carterville in Cass County Texas the 22 October 1902. He was the fourth son of Edgar Lewis and Rosa Lee Williams. Although he was named after his father, he was nicknamed “Boots”, a name by which he was known until his family moved to West Texas.

Louis Williams grew up in a big Missionary Baptist family and he remembered how each Sunday he and his brothers and cousins would ride to church in the back of a wagon, usually sitting on the tail-gate swinging their legs in the dust kicked up by the wagon wheels.

Louis Williams’ paternal grandfather, George Kearse Williams, was a popular Baptist Pastor of the Avinger Missionary Baptist Church as well as several other local Baptist Churches. Louis said that they would usually go wherever his Grandpa Williams was preaching that Sunday.

After Sunday Services they would all eat Sunday dinner at his folks or with one of his many Aunts. He had nearly 20 of them between both sides of the family. These Sunday dinners were large affairs with heaps of fried chicken, sweet potatoes, black-eye peas, corn, gravy and biscuits, finished off with peach cobbler or in the summer, watermelon.

Sundays were spent playing with his cousins, with the kids generally swapped between all the aunts and uncles. At night cousins slept over, packed into one big bed with kids stacked head to toe in big iron rod bedsteads. Louis’ sister Jerrie Smith said he was popular with his cousins and had many boyhood friends in East Texas.

As soon as Louis was old enough to hold a hoe, he was sent out to weed the vegetable garden and feed chickens. Later when his father operated a small cotton gin Louis worked for his father by climbing up on top of the cotton and stomping down the cotton into the gin where it would come out as bales.

Louis said that he was an active boy and had a healthy appetite. His Mama kept him and his brothers and sisters supplied with corn bread, biscuits, milk gravy, snapping beans, black eyes peas, corn, okra, and summer squash of every kind. Louis said he always had a sweet tooth and his mother was good at always having some type of cobbler in the house usually served with thickened cream or on special occasions home made ice cream. About the only type of fruit that was plentiful back then was anything that could be grown locally. Peaches, apricots, plums, watermelons, and muskmelons were always plentiful in the late summer but it was real hard to come by grapes, oranges, apples or bananas. It was a real treat at Christmas time to have an orange or an apple in the stockings, which the kids hung for Santa Claus.

Louis Williams was very partial to his Mama and was closer to her than any of his other brothers and sisters and in turn his Mama favored him over the other kids. This caused some jealousy among the other children and when Louis learned from his mother how to cook, and became a better cook then any of the other children, they in turn teased him about being a sissy.

Louis liked cooking and helping his Mama which was considered women's chores in those days and Louis got into a lot of fights having to prove that he was not a sissy. Eventually this caused him to withdraw and not be as close to his family as some thought he should have been.

One time when Louis was ten years old he was walking through some woods, near his Dad's farm and he heard a panther scream. It scared him so he started to run home taking a short cut through the cane brakes where he was bitten by a water moccasin snake.  He started hollering at that point and some of his brothers heard him and came a running.  They saw that his leg was swollen up so they carried him back to the house where Clarence sucked the poison out of his foot.

Louis' Grandma “Toad” Williams was there and she told Clarence to go kill a chicken and apply the flesh to the wound which Clarence immediately did. When the doctor came he saw that the chicken flesh had drawn the rest of the poison out and reduced the swelling.  The doctor remarked that he could not have done anymore himself, and after making sure it was not infected, said that Louis would recover and have little trouble with that foot. The doctor was right and Louis never had any trouble with his foot.

In 1914 Louis' parents debated over whether they should uproot the family and move to West Texas.  Edd Williams had suffered some serious set backs and he heard that land could be had fairly cheap out West.  However Rosa Lee Williams was immovable about not wanting to leave her kinfolk in Cass County. She rejected the idea of moving West. 

Louis however liked the idea about moving out west. He said that he always wanted to see a Jack-rabbit and said moving to West Texas seemed like a perfect opportunity to get a chance to see one.  He had heard stories all his life about their odd shape and size and wanted see for himself if they really had long mule-shaped ears. 

So Louis kept after his Mama to make the move and credited himself with helping his Mama make the decision to agree to the move.  However Louis never told his Mama that the reason he wanted the family to move west was to see a Jack-rabbit.

Rosa Lee Williams never really came to terms to leave Cass County.  Her people had been in Cass County since 1854 and she was leaving all the people she knew and loved, except for her immediate family. She was resentful and held it against her husband for years and years. 

Louis got his wish to move and the family made the necessary arrangements for the move.  At the age of 13 Louis left Cass County, Texas where he had just finished 8th grade and moved to west Texas where many of his children and grandchildren were to be born.  In January 1915 Edd and Rosa Lee Perser Williams said their goodbyes and gather up other girls and younger children to ride on the train. Louis, and his brothers, Austin, and Joe however, rode in a boxcar with the family furniture across the great spans of North Texas leaving behind the green piney woods of east Texas for the rolling prairies of west Texas. 

As the train rolled west, Louis noticed that the climate became progressively drier and the land began to be more sparsely dotted with trees. West of Fort Worth the land seemed almost barren to Louis after being raised in the piney woods of East Texas.  The land was over grown with shrubbery known as Mesquite Trees, which were about that would grow in the dry arid climate of West Texas. 

Louis finally saw his first Jack-rabbit hopping along the railroad tracks as he and his brothers sat at the open car door watching Texas roll by. He also saw his first mountain when the train pulled through the communities of Aspermont and Peacock based at the foot of the two large mounds known as Double Mountain.

After a trip of three days, Louis and his family arrived in the cow town of Spur in Dickens County where Edd Williams settled his family on a farm near the communities of Midway and Afton.

Dickens County was in stark contrast to the piney wooded lush river bottom county of Cass. Dickens County was dry, dusty, and waterless except for the North Fork of the Washita River. Scrub Mesquite trees were the main form of vegetation along with a few cottonwood shade trees planted around isolated farm and ranch houses, which were watered from windmills.

The economics of Dickens County centered around the cattle industry, principally the Pitchfork, Matador, and Spur Ranches. However since the turn of the century, farming started to make an inroad into the economy of Dickens County as farmers from central Texas brought cotton seeds which were able to mature in the sandy soil of Dickens. 

While Louis’ family were farmers, most of his Dickens County chums were cowboys who worked the dugout line camps below the escarpment of the Cap Rock that would eventually grow into the communities.

The town of Spur had developed around the needs of the Spur Cattle Ranch and in the early 1900's it was the largest community near Williams’ farm. It was to Spur that Louis rode in a wagon from his father's farm to get supplies. He also attended dances held in Spur on Friday and Saturday nights. Louis said also, once a month, a moving picture show would come to town and his Dad would let him and his brothers and sisters go to see the picture.

In 1917 Louis' sister Onie Belle married John Colberg and moved to Spur, Texas to live. Shortly after this, Louis got into an argument with his Dad and left home. Accompanied by a boyhood friend, Louis ran away riding off on a pair of burros to make it on their own. The two teenagers however could not decide where to go so they separated and Louis rode his burro to Spur and landed on his big sister’s doorstep. Onie agreed to take the runaway youth in and Louis made his home with the Colbergs. Louis was 15 years old when he left home and he never went back. 

John Colberg was able to get Louis a job at the town's Buick Garage where he was able to earn money for himself and soon Louis became friends with Raymond Poole. The two became best friends, dating local girls and getting into mischief. When he was a teenager, Louis was considered a dapper young man and he thought he was a real lady killer.

Annie Ruth Danforth was the oldest child of Mabry and Minnie Danforth. She was born on her father's farm near the community of Swenson in Stonewall County, Texas the 31st of March 1902. She was raised, however near Portales, New Mexico until 1920 when her father moved the family to Spur, Texas. 

In 1920 Louis’ pal Ray Poole started dating a girl named Prudence Wilson. Prude wanted Ray to get Louis to double date with her girlfriend, who was new in town. Ray asked, "Well is she pretty? Louis only will go out with a girl if she's pretty."  Prude replied, "Well sure she's pretty, but what's even better she's got pretty ways."

"Well what's her name then?"

"Annie- Annie Danforth!" said Prude.

Ray agreed to try and match Louis and Annie up. He told Prude to get Annie to come downtown and he'd get Louis there also so that they could kind of “accidentally meet.” Prude went and got Annie and as they were walking down the wooden sidewalks of Spur, they walked by Ray and Louis who were sitting on wooden chairs in front of the grocery store.

Louis had a large Stetson over his face, shading his eyes from the sun, his boots propped up on the hitching rail post. Annie said to Prude, "Is that Louis?"  Prude Wilson replied, "That's right." However Annie thought to herself, "He sure looks conceited- just like he owns the town." The girls just walked on by the boys and Louis nonchalantly followed Annie her out of the corner of his eye. He turned and he said to Ray, "Whose that with Prude? "

"Oh she's new in town."

"Well what's her name?" questioned Louis.

"Prude said it was Annie Danforth. She sure is pretty."

"Well Ray, I'll tell you what. She don't know it, but I'm going to take her to the dance this Saturday!"

Louis was disappointed to learn Annie already had a date for the Saturday dance and would not break it, so Louis went with some other girl. At the dance Annie kept looking for Louis, but when she learned that he had already ducked out with his date to go out and “spark” with her, it made Annie mad. She decided then that she was just wasting her time with Louis Williams. However at the end of the dance, Louis came back without his date, and went up to Annie and said, "Hello, my name is Louis Williams."

Annie said, “I know that,” and Louis asked if he could walk her home. "Well I came with this other boy," said Annie, but after seeing that Louis was disappointed told him, "But he's my brother Edgar, so I guess he won' t mind if you take me home."

Louis walked Annie home and he met her folks. After that time, the couple went to all the dances together, until Annie moved away from Spur with her family. In the fall of 1920 the Danforths moved to Wildorado, Texas to work harvestings but returned to Spur in 1921 where Annie's father worked as a carpenter and her mother worked as a housekeeper at the Spur Inn.

The woman who was in charge of housekeeping, “Miz Martin”, was also in charge of all the waitresses in the dining hall and she asked Minnie Danforth if she knew of any girls who needed some work. Minnie Danforth said she had a daughter who was a hard worker so Miz Martin told her to send her down. Annie went to call on Miz Martin and while waiting to see her, she watched the waitresses going in and out of the kitchen carrying these huge trays loaded down with plates of food. When Miz Martin called Annie into her office and told her that she wanted Annie to come and work at the Spur Inn as a waitress, Annie exclaimed, "Oh Miz Martin I don't think I can learn to balance them trays."

But Miz Martin said, "Now Annie your mother said you were a good girl and a hard worker I believe you can do it if you give it a try." "Well if you think I can do it I am willing to give it a try."

Soon Annie was waitressing and carrying the huge food trays just like the rest of the waitresses, with no problem what so ever. Another reason why Annie was willing to give waitressing a try was because Louis had gotten himself a job as a short order cook and bus boy at the Spur Inn also. Ray Poole also worked as a bus boy at the Spur Inn and Anne said they all had such a good time working there, even though it was hard work and they worked very long hours.

After work, Louis would walk Annie home, and they would sit on the front porch in the evening talking and watching people walk by the house. In the summer of 1921 Louis began to court Annie seriously. When asked why he decided to marry Anne, all Louis would say was, "Well we got along good so we decided to get married."

Annie's mother did not like Louis Williams at all and advised her daughter against getting involved with him. Minnie did not like that his family were Baptist and had heard tales that Louis was a wild boy who did not live with his folks. However Mabry Danforth took a liking to Louis and said that if he was her choice then all he wanted from Louis was to take good care of Annie.

In September 1921 Louis and Anne decided to go ahead and get married without telling their families. Because Louis was a Baptist and Anne was Church of Christ, the pair decided against a church wedding and went instead to the county courthouse to get married by a Justice of the Peace. On the 27th of September 1921 Louis and Anne along with their friends, Prude Wilson and Ray Poole drove up to Dickens Court House in a convertible Model A touring car and were married there.

Louis did not want to go inside the courthouse building so Ray had the Judge come outside. Louis and Anne sat up on the back seat of that convertible and were married by the Justice of the Peace standing alongside the car.

After the couple were married, Ray, Prude, Annie and Louis all drove over to Stonewall County where they had a picnic at Double Mountain. Ray Poole took some wedding snapshots of Anne and Louis sitting on a large rock.

When it began to get dark they drove back to Spur, and Louis and Annie went to her folks to tell them they had gotten married. Minnie Danforth was so upset she wouldn't speak to Louis for over a week but kindhearted Mabry Danforth told Louis that he was welcome to stay with them until he could get on his feet financially. Louis and Anne moved into a room of their own in the small two-bedroom house. Her brother Edgar Danforth got shoved out on to a cot in the front room.

Louis and Anne continued working at The Spur Inn where in time Louis became a regular cook and Annie made good money in tips. She said that she would some times bring home two dollars a day just from tips alone.

Shortly after they were married Annie discovered that she was pregnant and she had to quit work when she became quite ill carrying her first baby. Annie delivered her first baby on 2 June 1922 at her mother's home. It was a hard delivery and the baby was ailing himself. Annie was proud of her little son and named him “Oscar Louis Williams” after her father and husband. Anne had barely recovered from the delivery when little Oscar Louis died 12 days after he was born in 13 June. A notice in the Texas Spur dated 16 June 1922, “The two week old baby of Mr. and Mrs. Lewis Williams died Tuesday night at their home in Spur, the remains being interred Wednesday in the Spur cemetery, the infant had been ill since birth.”

Annie was heart broken and she blamed herself for not having a doctor deliver the baby at a hospital. Today the baby's death probably would have been attributed to crib death or Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). Oscar Louis had died in his sleep.  Louis and Anne buried their baby son next to the grave of Anne's aunt, Alice Danforth Mayo, with a little marker in the Spur Cemetery.

Before long Louis and Anne decided to move from Spur to Plainview up on the Cap Rock where her grandfather, Bill Peacock, offered Louis a job as a cook at his cafe. Anne’s Grandpa Peacock was also in the grocery business in Plainview and asked his son-in-law Mabry to come run it for him.

It did not take long for Mabry and Louis Williams to get mad at the ornery Bill Peacock, and they quit him to go out on their own. Mabry and Louis took their families to Lamb County and settled in a new community known as Spring Lake, named after the Spring Lake Cattle Ranch. Here they bought a half section of land and built a two room dwelling Louis and Anne's half of the house measured sixteen feet by sixteen feet and here they lived until January 1924.

While living on this place Louis and Mabry put in maize and cotton but they were unable to make a crop after the grasshoppers and worms ate it all up. In spring 1923 they put in another crop at Spring Lake and finally were able to make some money off it that time.

Anne Williams had a second son born while living at Spring Lake. She insisted that a doctor be called to help with the delivery. The baby boy was born 28 June 1923 and was named Raymond Leonard. He was named for Ray Pool and Dr. Leonard who was the doctor who assisted with the birth.

Ray Poole had continued to remain friends with Louis and Anne even though he did not marry Prude Wilson. Prude Wilson eventually married Otis Green Peacock, who was Anne's uncle. Ray Poole also married and moved to the Hart Camp community in Lamb County where he raised a family. 

In January 1924, Louis and Anne with baby Ray moved to Roosevelt County, New Mexico where Anne's “Uncle Fred” Danforth was a successful farmer near Lingo. Louis managed to rent a farm 13 miles south of Portales from James David Autry of Dora where he raised cotton and maize.  While living on this farm Anne found herself pregnant with her third child, another son who was born at Portales on the 19th of January 1925. Anne Williams named this baby Edgar after her brother Edgar Danforth and Hugh for the doctor who delivered him.  This became a pattern for naming her sons.

Louis and Anne lived on this farm at Dora until December 1925 when Louis got a job offer to move to Brick, Oklahoma where Anne's brother Edgar and sister-in-law Beulah operated a small cafe.  Louis was a much better cook then a farmer, and Anne hated living out in the country, isolated from other people, so consequently they jumped at the opportunity to move.  However this small Cafe was not enough to support both Louis and his brother-in-law’s family so they both gave it up.

In March 1926 the Danforths and Williamses returned to Lamb County, Texas and settled in the community of Earth where Edgar Danforth went to work for his father-in-law, Jerry Washington Kelly. Louis worked as a day laborer for six months.

The following October Louis and Anne returned to New Mexico and rented another farm from Mr. Autry, this time near the community of Rogers which was much closer to Portales.  Louis and Anne worked picking cotton and in January of 1927 Anne had her fourth child, a son born on the 17th.  She named the baby completely after the doctor, Willard Wallace. Louis small but growing family consisted of three sons R.L. age 4, Edgar Hugh age 2, and Wallace an infant.

Louis planted a crop in spring 1927 but Louis Williams was unhappy at farming and in January 1928 he and Anne left New Mexico and moved back to Earth, Texas where his in-laws had settled.  They stayed with the Danforths for only a month before moving to Shamrock in Wheeler, Texas. 

Shamrock was a wild oil boomtown in the late 1920's and Anne’s Uncle Braxton Peacock operated a cafe there for the oil field roughnecks. Louis hired on as a cook and cooked for Anne's Uncle from February 1928 until September 1929 when he quit to move to Muleshoe where he received higher wages as a cook. 

Louis and Anne set up housekeeping at the Muleshoe Hotel and was living here when Anne’s fifth child and first daughter was born.  Anne was near her time and did not want to travel for Christmas so her folks came to Muleshoe for the holiday.  On Christmas Eve, Anne suddenly went into labor and delivered a tiny baby girl.  The little baby girl weighed less than four pounds, and was so small that her head could fit into a coffee cup! If placed on a table plate, from head to toes she did not have reached the edges. If not by the mid-wifery experience of “Grandma Poole”, Raymond Poole’s grandmother, the baby would have died.  The premature baby was placed in a large shoebox and Anne named her little daughter after her mother Minnie and her favorite Peacock uncle, Lee Peacock.

As if having a baby on Christmas Eve was not excitement enough for the family, on Christmas Day the hotel caught fire and family had to flee into the street as the hotel burned to the ground.  Men carried out Anne and her baby Minnie in a folded up mattress. All of Louis and Anne's clothes and the children's toys were burned up but Anne said, "We were all grateful that nobody was hurt and we was still happy about Minnie being born.” 

While Louis remained in Muleshoe to work, Anne and her children went back to Earth to stay with her parents until she could build her strength back up and make sure baby Minnie was out of any danger.

In October 1929 Wall Street collapsed, which threw the country into economic chaos.  The effects of the failure of the financial institutions in the East were slow to spread to the West but by 1930 the effects of bank closure after bank closure even reached the West Plains of Texas.  Louis lost his job in Muleshoe, subsequently in the spring of 1930, he moved his family back to Portales, New Mexico where land was still cheap. 

He rented a small farm from Herbert Bryant just seven miles from Portales. Here Louis and Anne lived for the next four years, not out of choice, but because they did not have the money to move nor were there jobs anywhere else. 

Between 1930 and 1934 Louis just barely managed to feed and clothe his children. He was able to make a crop each year but no one had any money to buy it and so Louis made most of his money peddling produce that he grew on his farm in Portales.                   

During these years he was also able to find work as a mortar mixer for a construction company in Portales that paid him $1 a day. He worked on several buildings in Roosevelt County including the Military Academy at Roswell.  Louis had learned to mix mortar and lay bricks from his father-in-law when he and Mabry built the brick Schoolhouse at Spring Lake back in 1923.

While living on this farm south of Portales, Anne had her sixth child and second daughter.  The little girl was born the 31 October 1931 and was named Bonnie Ruth.  Anne said she was named Ruth for her Aunt Ruth Danforth Bilberry but “Bonnie” was for a beautiful mare that was Anne's favorite horse.  This horse use to follow Anne wherever she would walk around the farm but Louis had to sell her, so Anne named her daughter Bonnie because she thought it was a pretty name.

The Great Depression had reached West Texas and hard times became a way of life for most people.  Louis and Anne were more fortunate than others because in 1934 the family received $200 from the estate of her wealthy great-Uncle, Charles B. Danforth, who died near Memphis, Tennessee. This money helped Louis get started in a Cafe of his own. Mabry Danforth received $800 from his Uncles' estate and he gave $200 of it to Louis and Anne.  Louis used this money to rent a small Cafe in Earth and to get it operating.  Louis cooked and Anne waitressed to begin with and soon Louis got a reputation as a good cook.

Louis and Anne ran several different Cafes in Earth and at different locals during the 1930's.  Some were simply known as Louis' Cafe but one in particular was known as the Blue Front Cafe for which Louis had business cards printed. The Chandler family of Earth were the town's musicians and they would usually play at Louis' place because that's where people would come to socialize while in town.

During the 1930's Louis and Anne's older boys helped in the Cafe by busing tables and washing dishes.  As they grew older they even were taught to cook on the grill and how to prepare other food that was on the menu.

Louis became well known because of the good hamburgers he could make and which he sold for a nickel a piece. On the weekends his Cafe was always filled with hired farm hands and other single men who wanted some good cooking. Louis also had his own Chili recipe that was very popular as well as his hamburgers.  Anne worked in the Cafe with Louis and she made pies that she sold a nickel a slice or 25 cents for the whole pie.  Her specialty was making a chocolate pie that could last without refrigeration.  She said her secret was that she didn't use milk in her cream pies but just water, which made them keep longer, and a lot of people thought even tastier.

 In November of 1934 Anne had her last child, a son born on the 5th of that month.  She named the baby Milton Bradford Williams after Louis and the doctor who delivered him.

Louis and his mother-in-law Minnie Danforth never did see eye to eye but they eventually reached a point where they tolerated each other.  Minnie Danforth was ornery and would on occasion get a dig in at Louis' expense.  One day Louis decided to get even with her by playing a practical joke on his another-in-law.

Minnie Danforth had the habit of dropping in to visit with her daughter at the Cafe nearly every day and since she used tobacco in the form of snuff she kept a snuff can on a certain shelf in the kitchen.  So Louis thought it would be real funny if he took some of his red chili powder and mixed it in with the snuff then put it back on the shelf where Minnie wouldn't notice.  Well it was not very long until Minnie strolled into the Cafe and went to the kitchen and pulled her snuff can off the shelf then went out to a table and sat down for a visit with Anne.  Louis watched from the kitchen as Minnie pinched out a bit of tobacco and placed it in her lip.  Almost immediately Minnie hollered, "Annie get me some water! I'm on fire!" 

Minnie must have drunk a pitcher of water before she could speak and the first thing she said was "Louis you get your cotton picking self out here!" Louis couldn't help but laugh and this put him in the dog house for nearly a month.

Earth in the 1930’s was a rural community serving the needs of local farmers and ranchers and really did not amount to much.  Louis had a Cafe on the north side of Main Street next to the Kelly Grocery which was run by Anne's brother Edgar Danforth.  To the north of Louis was the telephone office and a gas stationed ran by this crippled man. Further down the road was a blacksmith shop operated by the Runyon family.  Across the street from Louis' Cafe were a drug store and a grocery store owned by the Davenport family.  Other early businesses in Earth were a barbershop ran by Corbette Roberts and a man known as Barber Johns.  The Post Office in town was operated by Edgar Danforth's brother-in-law, Marshall Kelly and O.B. Whitford owned a hardware store.

Louis and Anne lived about a mile from town on land owned by Mabry Danforth. Mabry and Minnie Danforth lived near them across from a big vacant lot where Louis' children played.  Some of Louis Williams' other neighbors were the families of Dewy Green and Walt Williams who was the town's bully.

Louis' brother-in-law Edgar Danforth and his family also lived about a half mile east of Earth on a farm owned by Beulah’s father, J.W. Kelly and the Williams and Danforth cousins from these two families used to walk back and forth between Louis' and Edgar's houses to play with each other. 

Louis' daughter Bonnie learned to ride a bicycle for the first time at her cousin's house.  Louis and Anne's niece Marjorie Fern as a little girl, was always playing at beauty shop; fixing up her cousins, Bonnie and Minnie's hair in the latest fashion.  So this one time she talked her cousin Edgar Hugh into fixing his hair and she put Chamberlain's Hand Lotion in it that made his hair stick like glue.  Annie felt sorry for her embarrassed son as she tried to wash the lotion out of his hair but she thought he was so pathetic looking that she couldn't help but laugh.

          Anne Williams recalled that her children were always getting into scrapes but they managed to come out of it okay.  She said they had to because people could not afford to go to the doctors in those days unless it was an extreme emergency like the time Milton caught the measles and came down with pneumonia.  He was the only one of all her children who spent any time in the hospital and that was at Littlefield. 

Next to Milton, she said Bonnie came most to killing herself as a child than the rest of her kids.  One time Edgar Hugh and Wallace came home with a stray dog and asked if they could keep him.  Anne said to them, "You kids can keep the dog if you build a house for him." Both Edgar and Wallace thought they were fine carpenters from helping their Granddad Danforth and they said to their mother that this was not a problem. 

Bonnie was watching her older brothers and said she wanted to help when she discovered that they were building a dog house so Wallace told her hold on to a post he wanted to drive a nail into. He then took a mighty swing and came down Flat Square on Bonnie's finger and split it wide open.  Anne was able to clean the wound and bandaged it. It healed without any infection. 

On another occasion when the family had moved from Earth to Olton, which at the time was the county seat of Lamb County, Bonnie and Minnie were playing tag when she stepped on Milton's teddy bear.  Milton had earlier pulled an arm off his teddy bear exposing a fishhook wire, which Bonnie stepped on while running barefoot.  The wire went down into her foot and Bonnie started screaming bloody murder. 

Minnie ran back to Anne as fast as she could who came out to where they playing and carried Bonnie back to the house. Neighbors who saw what happened came over to help and soon the doctor arrived at the house. Anne had tried pulling the wire out but couldn't and each of her neighbors tried to get the wire out but couldn't.  Mr. McAdams tried and he couldn't, a boy from the drug store tried and couldn't and neither could the doctor.  Finally this little kid across the street said let me try and Anne said to go a head because he couldn't have done any worse than the others.  Everyone was nervous and excited and saying how it should be down but this little kid just patiently wiggle the wire and pulled the wire loose.

Louis and Anne's children while at Earth attended the Spring Lake School where the school was divided into two classrooms for the lower and higher grades.  The real higher grades went to a brick schoolhouse, which Louis and Mabry had built back in 1923.  Minnie Lee Williams recalled that two of the grade school teachers were Miss Johnnie Kelly and Mrs. Wilson. 

She said, "When I was a little girl of seven I started school at Earth and I remember by first teacher was Mrs. Wilson.  She was really mean and from the first day she had every one of us who were in her class afraid of her.  She used to hit us around but we were too afraid to tell our mothers and fathers about her until one day, our Librarian, who was the daughter of Ma and Pa Poole, saw her hitting me around. Miss Poole told our parents what this teacher was doing and they were so mad they took all us kids out of school until after Christmas holiday. I didn't go back to school very much that year anyways because I came down with the measles, mumps, and whooping cough that year."

Anne said there were really only two things she really hated about living on the West Texas Plains and that was the lightning storms and the snakes.  She said that this one time at Earth she had made some cookies and decided to take some over to her mother's.  She took her daughter Minnie with her and found that her mother was not home so Anne walked in and put the cookies on the table. As she started to come out of the house this big snake slithered out of the field and coiled up at the threshold of the house.  Anne told her daughter to stay back while she took a broom and knocked it out of the house.  While it was stunned Anne grabbed a hoe sitting by the porch and chopped the snake to bits. She really hated snakes.

In 1937 Louis rented out his Cafe and moved to Hereford, Texas where his in-laws had moved to work a harvest.  About this time their oldest son Ray, who was fourteen, went to live with his Danforth Grandparents, which caused some jealousy among the other grandkids.  Ray Williams was the Danforth's oldest grandchild and perhaps the only grandchild whom Minnie Danforth cared anything about. 

While at Hereford Louis and his sons picked potatoes and pulled cotton while his youngest son Milton started kindergarten.  Louis and Anne only stayed six months at Hereford but during this time Anne's children played a dirty trick on her that she never forgot.  Anne was deathly afraid of mice and her children knew it so this one day Edgar Hugh discovered a nest of field mice while picking potatoes and he and the other kids decided to put them in the bottom of a basket filled with potatoes to give to their Mother. Anne unsuspectingly pulled the potatoes out of the basket until she saw the mice come running out from under the potatoes.  Anne just about fainted.

While living at Hereford, Ray Williams became acquainted with the Shipley family and he and Elvis Shipley along with Penny Gray became best friends.  They all ran around together until the beginning of World War II when they all joined the service together. 

Penny Gray was later killed in action while overseas. Elvis Shipley was the uncle of the Country Western Singer Waylon Jennings and lived at Littlefield Texas.

From Hereford, Louis moved his family to Olton where Bonnie was to injure her foot.  Here Louis ran another Cafe with the help of Edgar Hugh and Wallace who were now expected to help with the cooking as well as the cleaning of tables.

The family lived in rooms behind the cafe but after six months Louis said he wasn't making any money at that location so in the spring of 1938 he moved his family back to Portales, New Mexico.  They only stayed in Portales for a couple of months before returning to Earth where Louis opened his Cafe again.  Here Louis and Anne lived for the next three years.

Christmas 1938 was spent at Earth Texas and Minnie Williams recalled that it was "the best Christmas I can remember when I was a little girl.  Granddad Danforth built us a little red table and chairs to match and mother got us some dishes and dolls.  Dad and Mom gave Milton a little red wagon and that Christmas meant a lot to us.  We didn't have a lot but we appreciated everything because Mom and Dad worked hard in the Cafe."

Easter of 1939 was spent near Earth in the sand hills where Louis took his kids for an Easter egg hunt.  Anne had the family get all dressed up and there while Milton was trying to light a lamp his little tie caught on fire. This man who was a fry cook for Louis had come out with the family and he acted quickly and. ran his hand over the tie burning his own hand in the process but he did manage to pull Milton's tie off which kept Milton from getting seriously burned.

In 1940 Wallace left home at the age of 13 and went to work for himself at the Spring Lake Ranch.  Louis Williams had a quirk in his personality that believed that the most important thing a body could be doing was working and making a living for himself.  He thought that work was more important than education and he discouraged his sons from getting an education at the expense of working and making a living.  So by the time Louis left Earth in 1941 both Ray and Wallace had already moved away from the family.  Ray Williams stayed with his Granddad Danforth in Portales and Wallace boarded at the Spring Lake Ranch.

In 1941 Louis and Anne left Earth for the last time and sold their Cafe. Louis went to farming a section of land in the community of Spade between the towns of Littlefield and Olton.  Louis' farm was about two miles west of Spade but he attended church at Spade. 

Louis planted his whole place in cotton, which was irrigated, from a big earthen water tank on which he had pumps to water his fields. Minnie, Bonnie, and Milton would play cowboys and Indians around this tank when they were not doing their chores.

Louis had on this place chickens, hogs, a Black Angus bull, and eight cows; four of which were milked.  Anne said the kids never had to milk the cows but they did have to carry water to house from a windmill about ten yards from the house.  Louis also kept bees on this place and had a large garden planted in beans, peas, okra, tomatoes, corn, and melons.  While living at Spade Minnie Williams said her neighbors and girlfriends were from the Prator, Shipley, and Jarnigan families. Mr. Jarnigin was the Hart Camp school bus driver.

When Milton was a little boy at Earth some bigger kids dropped him down a shaft on an old ice plant where he hurt himself when he hit the concrete floor. He could not move his right side of his body without a great deal of pain so Louis and Anne took him to a Chiropractor in Portales.  The doctor made him use his right side of the body until Milton eventually got over it. 

In the summertime’s Minnie and Milton stayed with their Danforth Grandparents while Milton was under going treatment and this one time Anne's Uncle Fred Danforth gave Milton a goat to raise; saying how taking care of it would be good therapy for Milton by giving him an interest and keeping him active.  Milton named his goat “Queenie” and Queenie and Louis Williams were soon to have a serious run in.

Louis had an old wool army surplus overcoat which he wore everywhere out of sentimental reasons.  Louis said that this coat had saved his life when one winter while driving through a thick fog, he hit a parked double trailer cotton truck on the way to open his cafe.  He said that the heavy padding in the overcoat kept him from being seriously hurt when he struck the steering wheel. 

However Anne and his kids tried to get Louis to get rid of that coat because it was getting pretty ragged and it smelled.  Anne said she would get him a better one but Louis said he was not going to part with it.  So in desperation Anne decided to try and wash it to at least keep it from smelling.  After she washed it Anne took it and hung it out in the barn to dry and she did not notice Milton's goat was not tied up.  Before anyone could notice that Queenie was loose that goat discovered that army coat hanging in the barn and he ate everything but the buttons and the collar.  When Louis discovered what had happened he was really upset because he was fond of that old coat.

In 1941 Louis told Edgar Hugh that he had to quit school and go to work at the Spring Lake Ranch where Wallace was already working.  Wallace was bringing his money in and giving it to Louis and he wanted Edgar Hugh to do the same. Edgar Hugh went to his Aunt Beulah Danforth and said he wanted to stay in school and she said to him, "Well hun, I can’t make your daddy let you go to school.  Now you are going to have to work that out with your daddy somehow." 

However Louis just got angry with his son and Edgar Hugh decided to run away.  Beulah Danforth stated when asked about this Incident, "Louis he was a bull headed one and poor Annie couldn't get him to change his mind don’t you know.  Louis, he didn't think kids needed an education.  All they needed was to be making money and a living."

So Edgar Hugh and his second cousin Jake Peacock decided to run away together and join the navy.  Jake Peacock said that Edgar Hugh lifted five dollars from Louis and off they went to Lubbock to the recruiting station.

When Annie discovered Edgar Hugh gone she went over to her sister-in-law's house all upset and crying.  Beulah Danforth said, "You'll never know how she cried over Edgar Hugh and she said to me 'Beulah if there is anyway in the world you can keep Edgar Hugh from joining the navy -please don't let him join the navy.  He's too young.' So I said, "Well Louis wouldn’t let him come to live with me before he ran off - No way- but will Louis let him live with us now?" and both Louis and Anne said "Yes" so Ed and Beulah talked it over and Ed Danforth said, "Edgar Hugh is a good kid and I don't mind to having him.  I just love him to pieces."

Anyway Edgar Hugh and his cousin were at Lubbock just fixing to sign up when Louis and Anne found him.  Edgar Hugh saw his parents with his Aunt and Uncle and started to run when Beulah Danforth hollered, "Edgar Hugh, you come back here!"

But his cousin Jake Peacock said, "C’mon! Don't go! C'mon!" Then Beulah Danforth said, "Edgar Hugh do you hear me!  I said some here!" and Edgar Hugh came back, grabbed his aunt and hugged her neck.  Then he started to cry.  "Edgar Hugh, Hun, you don't want to join the navy," she said, "You'll have to go soon enough. Now your Mama and daddy have promised me that you could come live with me and Uncle Ed and finish this year of school so don't cry.  I'll see some way that you have clothes for school if you'll come live with us."

"All right" said Edgar Hugh but I'm not going back home!"

So Edgar Hugh left home and went to live with his Aunt and Uncle so he could finish his schooling, and now Louis and Anne only had the three youngest children still at home.

Wallace was still working on the Spring Lake Ranch feeding the cows and Ray was living with his Danforth Grandparents and was working at an air base near Clovis, New Mexico where he completed the 11th grade before joining the Army in 1943. Ray was stationed in Louisiana for boot camp before being transferred to Seattle go, overseas to Hawaii. There he served out the remainder of the war as a gunner protecting Diamond Head at Honolulu and in the Military Police.

When Edgar Hugh turned seventeen, Louis and Anne allowed him to join the Navy and he was sent to San Diego for boot camp. After Boot camp he was assigned to a minesweeper named the U.S.S. Gamble and served in the South Pacific theatre of the war fighting the Japanese Imperial Navy.

Before joining the navy, Edgar Hugh began dating a daughter of a farmer from the community of Hart Camp. Her name was Wilma June Johnson and known as June. She and her girlfriend Otis Sullivan one day decided to go over to Spade to visit with the Williams’ and see how Edgar Hugh was doing in the Navy. They were 13 year old girls and Anne said she liked them well enough but really didn't much about them at the time.

Otis had been dating Wallace so she was familiar with the family too at the time and when they stopped by the house seven year old Milton started teasing the girls. They told him they both throw him into the sticker patch if he did not stop being a brat. Well he kept on teasing them so the girls made good on their threats with Otis grabbing his hands, and June carrying his feet and they carried him outside and threw him into the sticker patch.

By the end of 1942, Louis and Anne sold their farm at Spade and moved to Littlefield where Louis ran a little hamburger joint at the end of town. He had two sons in the war at the time and just the three kids, Minnie, Bonnie, and Milton at home. Wallace was still two young to join the service so he continued to work on the Spring Lake Ranch.

In Littlefield Louis and Anne bought a house near the Littlefield High School. Louis' cafe was not very successful just enough to make a living and pay wages to some young girls he had working as waitresses. One of these waitresses was Mattie Lee Jarnigin who was to become Louis and Anna's first daughter-in-law in 1944.

During the years between 1942 and 1944 while living in Littlefield, Anne and Louis' marriage came into serious trouble. Rumors had it that there was some small time gambling going on behind Louis' Cafe and that Louis was drinking beer pretty regularly at the time.

Anyway in April 1944 Anne decided to get away for a while and go to California where her parents and her brother had just recently moved.  Anne took her three children and stayed with her brother Edgar Danforth for three months at Hines (Paramount) in Los Angeles County.  In June of 1944 Louis wrote Anne and told her he wanted her to come back and help him run the hamburger stand in Littlefield so Anne returned to Texas but determined to get her husband to agree to move to California.

However Louis stubbornly refused to even consider leaving Texas even when his son Edgar Hugh came home on furlough and begged his dad to move to California.  Edgar Hugh said, "Dad you could get a job there as a cook and really make some money instead of the fifty dollars a week your making cooking in Texas!" But Louis flatly refused to budge.  He was afraid to leave the security of a familiar place for the uncertainties of making a new beginning in California.  He was 42 years old and was worried about making a living for his family at that age. 

As determined, as Louis was to stay in Texas, Anne was even more determined to move to California.  She wanted to get Louis away from the bad element she considered was hanging around the Cafe in Littlefield and too she wanted to be near her parents and brother in California.  So she gave Louis and ultimatum and was crying as she said, "Louis I am packing up and taking the kids out to California.  I know you don't want to leave Texas but I am moving to California with you or without you!"

Louis knew that Anne was serious and meant business and decided that if that's they only way he could hold his marriage together then he had to move to California. 

In October 1944, Wallace Williams and his girlfriend Mattie Lee Jarnigin ran off to get married on the 21 October. Wallace who was 17 years old and Mattie Lee who was five days shy of being 17 eloped to Muleshoe where they were married.  His 19 year old brother Edgar Hugh, who was home on furlough, went along with his 15 year old girlfriend June Johnson to be witnesses.

When it was decided to move to California, Louis reasoned that if he had to leave everything he built up behind in Texas to move to California so could Anne and he went and sold all of Anne's things to a second hand man except for a few cooking utensils. He sold his wife's 1912 Singer sewing machine that had once belonged to his mother-in-law and an upright phonograph player and all their furniture for $100.

Settling their differences Louis and Anne left Texas the last week in November 1944 in the company of Wallace and his new bride of one month, Mattie Lee, their two daughters, Minnie and Bonnie and their ten year old son Milton. 

Wallace had fixed up an old 1936 Ford and Louis drove it out to Los Angeles. They arrived on the 1st of December 1944 which was a Saturday and by the following Wednesday Louis had a job working at the Consolidated Ship Yards in San Pedro where he worked until the end of the war. Upon arriving in Los Angeles Louis moved his family in with his father-in-law in Downey where they lived for the next six months until their kids were out of school in June.

Louis and. Anne purchased, their first home in California in 1945 at 7102 Dinwiddie Street, Downey near the Rio Hondo River. This home was situated on a huge lot bordering on a railroad easement. In the back by the railroad tracks, Louis kept chickens. Also situated on the lot were two smaller homes, which were eventually occupied by various relatives on different occasions. The main house, which faced the street Anne said, was completely furnished when Louis purchased it, down to the sheets and cooking utensils.

Shortly after Wallace with his new bride arrived in California he went into the service and joined the Army. Wallace had his boot camp training at Fort Hood, Texas before he was sent over to Italy at the end of the European theatre of World War II in May of 1945. He served in Italy transferring prisoners of war from one prison camp to another and was overseas until he was mustered out in 1947.

During the whole period of Wallace's military service, Mattie Lee lived with Louis and Anne except for short periods of time when she went back to Spade, Texas to live with her folks. Mattie Lee was living in Texas when Louis and Anne's first grandchild was born the 12th of September 1945 at Amherst, Lamb County. Mattie Lee had a baby girl whom she named Frances Anne Williams after Anne Williams.

When World War II was completely over in August 1945 Ray Williams was able to return home to California and in March of 1946 Edgar Hugh Williams was also mustered out of the service, when then he promptly went to Hart Camp, Texas where he married June Johnson with the mixed blessings of her parents. She was sixteen years old and Edgar Hugh was twenty-one.

Shortly after their marriage they returned to California and made their home with Louis and Anne on Dinwiddie Street. June Williams grew to love her mother-in-law like a real daughter and it was Anne who taught June how to cook. However it did make June nervous hearing all the quarreling that went on at Louis and Anne's residence, which was inevitable considering the amount of people living on the lot.

Besides Louis and Anne' three younger children, Minnie, Bonnie, and Milton, Ray had returned home before moving to Hemit to live with his grandparents. Mattie Lee was also living at the Dinwiddee home with her baby Frances Anne along with Edgar Hugh and his new bride. Additionally Louis' sister Winnie and her John Walker husband and their two sons had moved in with them.

By the end of August 1945 Louis was laid off from the shipyards and was out of work nearly fourteen months before he was able to find a job as a cook at the Rancho Los Amigos Rest Home. He was able to collect some unemployment during this time but Anne found that she had to go to work to keep the family a float. She went to work at the Faber and Metal Shop in Downey where she, for a couple of years, was employed.

In 1946 Louis left working as a cook and found work at the Conveyor Company of Vernon Huntington Park, California. Louis Williams remained with Conveyors for the rest of his working life until he retired after 21 years with the company.

In 1947 Louis and Anne's second grandchild was born the 9th of June, another little girl named Charline Williams by her mother June Williams. She was born in Los Angeles. Another granddaughter followed in 1948 after Wallace came home from Europe. Marilyn Kay Williams was born on the 8th of May also in Los Angeles. 

Minnie and Bonnie graduated from Downey High School together in June 1948, the only children of Louis and Anne to graduate directly from High School.  Ray Williams did go back to night school to finish his High School education and eventually went to work as a warehouse supervisor over shipping at the El Toro Marine Base in Orange County.

While Milton attended Downey High School he dropped out and began running around with his cousins Gene and Ken Walker whom Anne thought were juvenile delinquents. 

Milton Williams, in the late forties and early fifties,  was considered a wild teenager. He ran around with his Walker cousins, who Anne considered bad influences on Milton. Milton became a rebellious teenager and was known as the terror of Downey as he and his friends would tear up the streets at night drag racing their hot rods. They also rode motorcycles, wore tee shirts with sleeves rolled to hide their cigarette packages, and began drinking beer and smoking marijuana unbeknown to his mother.

His older sister Bonnie was a very pretty teenager and Louis and Anne were too overly protective with her. She was not allowed to go on date like her brothers were allowed too. Minnie Williams stated that while teenagers on Dinwiddie Street Bonnie had as her girlfriends, , Isobel and Eleanor Wheeler,  who were sisters, and Glenda who later married Lloyd Fagen.

In 1949, Edgar Hugh and June Williams returned to Texas to live near his Johnson in laws. He rented a farm and at the end of the 1940's Louis and Anne's fourth granddaughter, Donna Fay Williams was born the 25 June 1949 at Amherst while her parents were residing in Lamb County, Texas.

At the start of the 1950’s Louis and Anne were still living in Downey, California still on Dinwiddee Street. Their eldest son Ray Williams was also unmarried but dating several women while moving back and forth between Southern California and Northern California where many of his Grandma Danforth’s Peacock relatives lived near Auburn.

Edgar Hugh had relocated to Lamb County, Texas where he farmed. While there Louis and Anne's first grandson Edgar Hugh Williams Junior who was born the 10 of April 1951 at the farmer’s co-op hospital in Amherst which was about 3 miles from Earth. Louis bought his first grandson a little white baby sweater trimmed in blue ribbon.

A 1952 city directory for Downey, California listed Louis M Williams, Anne R Williams, , Minnie L. Williams and Bonnie R. Williams all living at 7102 Dinwiddee.  “Willard W.” Williams and Mattie L Williams were living at 7069 Dinwiddee. Both Louis and Wallace were steel workers for the Conveyor Company in Maywood.

Wallace Williams must have left the Conveyor Company shortly afterwards, as another grandson of Louis and Anne, Gary Wallace Williams, was born the 17 August 1952 in Yucaipa, San Bernardino, California where his parents Wallace and Mattie Lee had moved.  Wallace preferred a more rural way of life than living in Los Angeles County. He had a place where he could keep goats and chickens. However he was back in Los Angeles County for the birth of Wallace and Mattie Lee's youngest daughter.

In 1952 Louis and Anne rented out their homes on the Dinwiddie Street parcel and bought another house on Cole Street, still in Downey. Eventually Louis and Anne bought several houses in and around Downey in which they lived or rented out.  

In 1952 Wallace and his young family was still living in a small home on the Dinwiddee lot but were getting ready to move to Yucaipa which was then a rural chicken farming community. By the 1950s post-World War II development pressures in Los Angeles County also brought an increased urbanization to the Yucaipa area.  Agricultural production decreased from the farming and ranching activities of the prior decades but was still prominent when Wallace moved there.   They moved after their youngest daughter Terrie Lynn Williams was born the 22 May 1953 in Lynwood, California

Bonnie fell in love with a man by the name of Lee who was in the Navy in 1953, but her mother Anne disapproved of him and the relationship was broken off.  Bonnie however found herself pregnant in April with Lee’s baby. Her girlfriend Glenda Fagan, had a brother in law  named Billy Wayne Fagan who had two sons from a previous marriage. He agreed to marry Bonnie. He was still in the Navy at the time. They were married the 17 July 1953 in Yuma, Arizona and Larry Paul Fagan was born 21 January 1954 in Lynwood. Bill Fagan raised Larry with whom he had a stormy relationship.

In 1953 their son Edgar Hugh returned from Texas after a joining the Lubbock Police Force with the help of his cousin Mildred’s husband Claude Keaton. However after his partner was shot and killed, June insisted that he quit and go back to farming. When a freak hail storm wiped out his cotton crop, they picked up and moved back to Downey . Edgar Hugh went to work for the Conveyor Company with his father.  Edgar, June and their three children the lived on the Dinwiddie place until buying a home in November of 1954 in west Orange County, which is now the city of Garden Grove.

In 1954 Louis and Anne bought a small chicken ranch in Yucaipa where their son Wallace had located his family and was working as a wood worker in a furniture shop.

On 23 October 1953 Milton enlisted in the Army for a hitch and was stationed in Colorado. He was mustered out in 1955 and when he returned to Downey riding a motorcycle home. When Milton first got out of the service he ran around with some boys his own age named Ronnie and Joe Clark.  Their divorced mother Justine “Jerrie” Bernhardt Clark was raising her children alone. She was a member of a square dancing club, which Milton’s oldest brother Ray Williams had joined.  Jerrie and Ray became acquainted because of Milton running around with her sons and soon they were dating and getting serious.

In the meantime Milton started dating a pretty blond girl named Marie Buehlman and they were married on the 1st of December 1956 in Norwalk.  Milton went to work as a truck driver for the Safeway Supermarkets and had two children, Stephanie Irene Williams born the 29 November 1957 and Louis and Anne’s youngest grandchild, Gregory Lynn Williams, born the 2February 1962, both at the hospital in Lynwood in Los Angeles County.

Ray Williams was the last of Louis and Anne's children to marry when he married Jerrie Clark on the 15 March 1957 in South Gate, California.  Jerrie was of Russian-German ancestry and she was a refined lady with blond hair and striking good looks. Anne had misgivings at first over her son marrying a divorced woman who was 13 years older than Ray, and a Catholic to boot!  But Jerrie through her charming ways won Anne's heart and they were close up to Jerrie’s death in June 1978 when she died of Leukemia. She was buried next to Louis Williams in the Rose Hill Cemetery in Whittier.

In 1958 Louis and Anne moved from Dinwiddie back to Cole Street where they lived until 1962 when they bought a home on 13234 Carfax Avenue in Downey. Here they lived for the next seven years making this home the longest place they ever resided in their entire married life.  I have a memory however that they also lived at a home on Woodruff Street in Downey but I may be mistaken.  

During the 1960’s, Louis and Anne Williams had most of their children living in close proximity to them. Milton and Marie Williams lived in Norwalk and later Walnut, California. Bonnie and Bill lived in a house behind Louis and Anne on Dinwiddie until about 1959 and later moved to Norwalk and then later to Buena Park in Orange County.

Minnie Lee lived much of the time in their household. Minnie Williams never married and lived with her parents off and on for the remainder of their lives.  She worked for several years as a live-in companion for invalid geriatric women including her aunt Beulah Danforth’s mother in Earth Texas.  Minnie was developmentally slow probably due to her premature birth and she was the most petite of all of Louis and Anne’s children. She was loved by all of her nephews and nieces. She developed type 2 diabetes in later life and had to live in a care facility until her death in 1999.

Wallace and Mattie Lee lived in Yucaipa and later Redondo Beach before moving back to Lubbock Texas in about 1968 where they lived the remainder of their lives with Wallace working for his brother in law Walt Jarnigin.

Edgar and June Williams lived in Garden Grove at 11562 Dale Street from 1954 until 1989 where they raised all their children.

Ray and Jerrie Williams lived in Grass Valley and Citrus Heights area of Northern California for much of their lives and raised Colleen a granddaughter of Jerrie’s until moving to Yucaipa about 1973.

Family visits were commonplace on a near weekly basis, and holidays were held in various homes during these times.  A domino game was nearly always set up for Louis and his sons during these frequent visits.  Easters and Christmas Eves were  almost always spent by their children’s families at Louis and Anne’s. 

I know it was not easy living with Grandpa Louis, who could be passive aggressive towards Grandma. They were always bickering with one another and I remember one Easter, Grandma had made this Easter Bunny cake made with coconut flakes. She had spent a lot of time making it and I remember Grandpa placing it in the trunk.  At the park when it was taken out it had been ruined by something falling on it.  It’s the only time I remember Grandma nearly crying and somehow even as young as I was I felt like Grandpa did it on purpose.

While grandma loved all her grandchildren equally I feel she was more partial to Larry Fagan as he lived near her the most and perhaps Grandma felt guilty for not letting Bonnie marry his father.  However I don’t think Grandpa was very fond of children at all or at least that was the impression I got as a little boy. He was always yelling at us to behave and settle down.

My earliest impression on them living on Dinwiddee street I must have been not much more than 3 or 4 years old.  Way in the back of the long lot Grandpa kept Chickens and a rabbit hutch for food. One time I went with him to see the chickens and saw him chop the head off of one of them. Then he handed the bird to me to take to grandma but the headless bird all of a sudden started flapping and I dropped it and it ran around the yard before keeling over. It nearly scared me to death and it has since made me wonder why he would do that to a little boy. May be he thought it was funny.

On Christmas Eve the family tradition was for Louis to make his Texas Chili and a kettle of pinto beans while Anne made all sorts of pies, cherry, chocolate, pecan, and coconut cream.  I remember one memorable Christmas Eve when my mom’s folks came with us over to Grandma and Grandpa Williams. As everyone was unwrapping their presents, my grandma Johnson was sitting enjoying the scene when I noticed that Grandma Williams had disappeared. When she returned, she had a placed a wrapped gift under the tree for Grandma Johnson who was surprised as all get out to have a present. I am sure it was some knickknack that Grandma Williams had but her kindness and thoughtfulness remained in my memory for my entire life.

Louis retired while living on Carfax in 1967 but soon the cost of living began to eat slowly away at their social security checks and they began to sell off their various properties. I also heard that as an Elder in the Paramount Church of Christ he was a cosigner for a loan that the church could not repay and he was obliged to help retire the debt. He began selling off his property about this time. He sold the Dinwiddee property for $70,000 just prior to the time when land values boomed in Southern California. The property which has been subdivided since then is worth more than a million dollars in today's markets.

In 1969 Louis and Anne moved up to Yucaipa California where they bought a home on Nebraska Street. Because of ever-increasing property taxes they finally sold all of their properties in Downey and Louis worked for a short while in an eggplant there in Yucaipa on a part-time bases.  They became members of the Yucaipa Church of Christ.

Eventually Louis' health began to decline and he sold their home on Nebraska Street because he  was no longer able to keep up with the yard work. Louis and Anne then purchased a doublewide mobile home and moved it to 4th Street still in Yucaipa.

On Saturday the 25th of September 1971 their children, to celebrate 50 years of marriage, gave Louis and Anne a Golden Wedding Anniversary reception. An account of that occasion recorded in my journal which went as follows:

September 25 Saturday 1971-I woke up at 9:30 to get ready to go to Yucaipa for Grandparents Williams' 50th Anniversary Reception. I went up with Mom and Dad. The reception was held at the Church of Christ building at 1:00. All of the clan was there, R.L.'s. Dad's, Wallace's, Minnie, Bonnie's, and Milton's families. Aunt Beulah and Uncle Ed were there with most of their descendants and many of Grandpa's relatives including his sister Neil and his Aunt Nora. Our friends, Tom and Jean Horan came too, and Jean made Grandma a money tree. The tree was painted gold and the leaves were made out of crisp dollar bills. All in all there were about 75 persons there including many of Grandma and Grandpa's Church of Christ friends. We had a family portrait taken and afterwards we all went to a park, I think was called the Mill Creek Park there in Yucaipa. We had a huge family Reunion there. It was fun and probably the last time the family, as a whole will, all be at one place again. There was plenty of food, ham, fried chicken, roast beef, potato salad, and all kinds of pies, chocolate, coconut cream, banana, and cakes too. There was so much I took some food back to the dorm at Cal State Fullerton for my roommate and me later. It was 7 o'clock when I left to go home with Charline and Dennis. Charlene is expecting her baby anytime. It sure was a pretty day and Grandma looked really happy. In the late afternoon a wind came up and it turned pretty chilly. 65 degrees. It was a very nice occasion.”

In 1973 Louis really started to fade when he became afflicted with Parkinson’s disease and began to get the palsy like shakes. He went into a type of depressed withdrawal, seldom wanting to leave the house or have company over. Anne and her daughter Minnie had the responsibility to make sure that Louis took his medicine but by the end of 1976 Louis was almost totally bedridden and Anne with heart trouble herself was no longer able to take care of Louis at home. On the 29th of August 1976 he entered the hospital at Redlands for an operation on his prostate and excerpts from his grandson's diary read:

August 29 Sunday 1976: I spent the day up in Yucaipa with Grandma Williams and I was so shocked to see Grandpa Williams. He was all curled up on the bed and he looked physically deteriorated. He weighed according to Grandma less then 112 pounds and he looked so thin with hollow eyes and sunken cheeks. Bonnie and Bill were over and Milton and Marie came up to help get Grandpa into the hospital. He's going to go to the hospital today for an operation on his prostate and it seems to me he has given up his will to live. It is so sad. Grandma is just an edgy nervous wreck over it and its so hot today to boot. 100 degrees. Milton carried Grandpa to the car and I went with him to help Grandma who also came with us down to the hospital in Redlands. R.L. and Jerrie met us at the hospital and I was glad to see them. They came down from Auburn in Northern California. In the hospital we got Grandpa all situated and this Catholic Priest came in to visit with the family. I thought to myself Holy Smoke! do you got the wrong room. Grandma was cordial to him and thanked him for coming but let him know we weren't Catholic. I thought it was funny myself. Then Grandpa said he wanted to tell me something and I went over and sat on the side of the bed and began to tell, "Junior I've done some things I'm a shame of..." That just freaked me out because I was sure Grandpa was about to tell me his sins thinking he would die there in the hospital. I said before he could speak another word, "Oh Grandpa you don't have to tell me anything. That's between you and the Lord. You don't have to tell me anything. I love you as you are." Then Grandpa but his hand on mine and gave me a blessing. I was so freaked. Grandma was so upset because she knows that Grandpa wants to die. I left Yucaipa for Garden Grove about 7:00 p.m. though Grandma wants me to come back up before I leave for Washington D.C.”

Louis recovered from his operation but he continued to resist the efforts of Anne and Minnie to care for him. He would not eat properly nor take his medicine as he was suppose to and so in 1977 over the objections of his daughter Bonnie, Louis was placed in a rest home in Cherry Hills near Beaumont. Anne's failing health no longer permitted her to care properly for her husband.

Of Louis death I wrote while I was living in Fort Worth, Texas: “On the 20th of January I got a phone call from Mom saying that Grandpa Williams had died. He died in a rest home of complications from pneumonia and old age. He was 75 years old but he gave up interest in life almost two years ago. He had been steadily decline, in health primarily from his refusing to eat. He died at 5:59 a.m. with Dad and Aunt Minnie at his side. Mom had been with him and had just stepped out to go to the bathroom and she came back she learned that Grandpa had died. Everyone out there in California is really taking it hard since Grandpa's was the first death in the immediate family. Grandpa was buried in a nice suit at the Rose Hill Cemetery in Whittier. Mom said most of the relatives from Texas showed up and I wish I could go but we are broke. Mom bore the brunt of Grandpa's death because she was the one who had to tell Grandma who had just gotten out of the hospital herself from a mild heart attack. Marie said she couldn't do it because the memory of her own mother's death was still too painful so Mom was elected. Fran and I just could not go home for the funeral because we had no money here in Fort Worth.”

Mom once told me that at Grandpa's viewing, Dad broke down and began sobbing seeing his father in his casket. Mom never saw my dad so grief stricken but  he told her that he had never told his father that he loved him. I doubt if Louis ever told his sons that he loved them either. It was not the Williams' way to be demonstrative to their children. 

Anne's own poor health after the death of her husband was a major concern to her children. In June her daughter-in-law Jerrie Williams died of Leukemia and was buried next to Louis at Rose Hill. She had died on the 7 June 1978.

Anne's son Edgar Hugh Williams decided that his mother needed to get away from California for a little while and during the last half of June, he and his wife took Anne and her daughter Minnie to Salt Lake City to see me. I wrote:

“In the last half of June, Fran and I were delighted when Mom and Dad came up to see us on their way to Texas. They brought with them Grandma Williams and Aunt Minnie. We had plenty of room in Murray's big old house. Grandma slept down stairs because she couldn't climb the stairs but other than that we all fitted in that big house just fine. Although Mom did have a visit from the ghost in Murray's house the first night they were here. It must have wanted to see who was in the house. Mom said she woke up and noticed that Grandma was up with her light on downstairs when she had gotten up to go to the bathroom. Well she said she came on down the stairs to see if grandma was all right since Grandma was on Medication and taking oxygen. It was 4 a.m. and while Mom was keeping Grandma company she heard someone walking down the hall upstairs and she said to Grandma, "Edgar must have gotten up." Soon Mom heard the steps descending down the stair case and she had a funny feeling come over her and she said, "Edgar is that you?" No answer. She called out again, "Edgar! Is that You!" Still no response. She was frightened by now but didn't want to alarm Grandma and said she was just going back to bed. She saw no one on the stairs or in the hallway and she became so frightened by the experience that she wouldn't even get up to go to the bathroom without making Dad get out of bed and go with her. Dad just shrugged it off of course but the next morning we had to tell Mom about the ghost but not to worry because it didn't do anything but walk the hall, turn lights on, and play with the water in the bathroom by turning on faucets and flushing the toilet. Besides this one experience we all had a good time. The Cherry Tree in the back yard was loaded with fruit and Grandma loved to pick the cherries off the tree. One day we even went to Temple Square to visit the LDS Visitor Center and when this Mormon Guide asked whether Grandma was a member of the Church, Grandma, I could hear muttering under her breath, "Yes I am a member of the Church; the true Church, the Church of Christ." When viewing paintings depicting Biblical scenes from the old and New Testaments I also heard her remark, "Well they are nice but they're all man's interpretations!'" The last night they spent with us we sat on the back porch and had barbequed steaks and home made ice cream. The weather could not have been any better the whole time they were here and Fran and I were able to talk Grandma into letting Minnie stay with us instead of going to Texas. So when Mom, Dad and Grandma let Minnie stay with us until the second of July when we flew her home. We all had a good visit and Minnie needed the time away from Grandma and the trauma of the deaths of Grandpa Williams and Aunt Jerrie this year.”

Anne went on back to Texas with her son and daughter-in-law and visited with many of her relations and friends. She took several old pictures back to California from her cousin Boog Peacock of Petersburg, Texas and she had a good time on her vacation. However it was to be her last trip to her native state.

Anne spent the Thanksgiving Holiday 1978 at the home of her son Edgar Hugh. I wrote: “R.L. brought Grandma and Minnie down from Yucaipa for Thanksgiving and Mom went all out and cooked up a big Turkey Dinner which we hadn't expected because we didn't tell Mom we were coming home for Thanksgiving until the Tuesday before we left. Saturday morning we left to go home but we did stop in Yucaipa to see Grandma and Aunt Minnie. R.L. came over too. We got off at around 11:00”

Anne also spent Christmas at the home of her son Edgar Hugh in Garden Grove however she was not feeling well because she had caught a virus.

24th December 1978- Fran and I both got up early so we could be on the road before dawn. I drove from St. George, Utah to Barstow before getting gas then on in to Garden Grove from there. We arrived about 11:00 and Grandma, Minnie, and R.L. were down from Yucaipa and they were all eating dinner when we arrived. Mom fixed a nice ham dinner. Since today was Christmas Eve I wanted to do something special for the kids so Dad and I went to the store and I bought stuff to make a candy cake house. In the evening Milton, Marie, Stephanie and Greg dropped by and it was good to see them. Also Willadene Webb a friend of R.L.'s came by. Donna, Ken, and Kenny came over, as did Charlene Dennis and their brood. We exchanged gifts and Mom gave Fran and I a queen size electric blanket. Really nice. We had cakes, pies, and homemade candy coming out of our ear. Grandma made some of her good fudge too. Tom and Jean Horan dropped over and it was good to see them again. All and all it was a really nice Christmas Eve.”

While visiting with Grandma I decided to tell her how I found some information on her Peacock family. Grandma was the only one to liked my research into our family history especially when it concerned the Danforths.  I told her how I had a dream that Grandma Minnie Danforth came to me to tell me where to find a book that had information about her grandma Martha Anderson Peacock. Instead of being skeptical Grandma then told me that she's had several dreams in a row where she heard her mother calling to her, "Annie, Annie," which woke her from her sleep because she felt so cold. 

Christmas Day 1978- Fran was sick all day and didn't get out of bed almost all day. Betty, Norman and Beulah Danforth came over for Christmas dinner and Aunt Beulah was on a real toot. She made some caustic remark about Fran being in bed and when Grandma said she wasn't feeling well, Buelah said she was just acting up for the attention. I can't believe Aunt Beulah sometimes! She is so sweet but she can be so mean too. About 5:00 Grandma became so sick that Mom and Dad drove her home to Yucaipa so she could go to her doctor. He said that Grandma had a virus that was going around and needed to be home and rest. Before Grandma went home we had a nice turkey dinner with all the trimmings. After Mom and Dad took Grandma home we took the Christmas tree down for Mom and cleaned the house.

29th December 1978-Friday. We left for Utah about 9:30 but drove over to Yucaipa to see Grandma and Aunt Minnie. I know Grandma was still not feeling well because she was in her bathrobe with her hairnet still on. Grandma apologized for her appearance because she usually was fastidiously dressed. We had lunch with Grandma and stayed for about two hours. Bonnie dropped by and it was good to see her before taking off. We left at 1:00 p.m." I didn't know it at the time but this was the last time I would see my Grandma alive in this world.

After the first of the year Anne Williams still not feeling well, and was backing her car out of her driveway when her brakes failed and the car crashed into a brick retaining wall. Although she was unhurt she became so agitated by the accident that her heart began to give her trouble.

On the 4th of January 1979 she was admitted into the hospital at Redlands to have surgery to place a pacemaker on her heart. Her nephew Norman Danforth said he had a premonition that his Aunt would not survive the operation and he and his wife Betty went up to Yucaipa to be with Anne. They were the last people to see her alive on this earth when early Wednesday morning on the 10th of January 1979 she had heart failure and she died at the Hospital in Redlands, California. She died ten days short of the first anniversary of her husband’s death. Anne Williams was now at rest, reunited with a husband, an infant son, a brother, and parents who had preceded her through the veil.

An account of the funeral of Anne Williams is taken from excerpts from my journal.

10 January 1978-Wednesday: Mom called this morning and said Grandma Williams has died! She died in Redlands at a hospital where she was having a new pacemaker placed on her heart. Died of heart failure. So glad we stopped and visited with Grandma at Christmas time. Haven't had much time to think about it yet. Was called in to work this morning before Mom called and decided to go in to work any ways and leave out tonight. Called J.R. and Mary Peacock but they weren't home so talked to their son Dennis. Grandma was 76 years old born 31 March 1902 at Swenson in Stonewall County, Texas. She died 10 January 1979. I wanted to start crying every time I thought of Grandma so I had to keep busy. When we got home in the afternoon Donna called and said that the funeral wasn't till Monday so there was no need to hurry home. However around 7 Mom called to say the funeral was moved up to Friday. It was too late to think about traveling today because of the weather conditions so we went to bed around 8 o'clock so we could leave out early in the morning. Didn't get much sleep however. Just tossed and turned.

11 January 1979 Thursday-Got up about 4:30 a.m. Fran had been up since 1 cleaning the house and packing the car. We didn't get off before 6 O’clock and after a lot of fighting, mainly from tension, frustration, and lack of sleep. We drove straight through to California and were in Yucaipa by 7:30 p.m. California time. A lot of the way I drove 75~80 miles an hour. The weather in Utah was bad almost all through the state but the snow was gone from St. George on in. It really felt weird being at Grandma's trailer home without Grandma there to greet us. Bonnie, Bill, Betty and Norman were all ready there when we arrived. They were waiting for the folks from Texas to come in. We sat around for about two hours eating and visiting, oh yes, Pam Fagen and her little boy Aaron were up too. Pam was looking out for Bonnie. About 8:00 Norman told Fran and I that they were going to the funeral home to see Grandma and to be there when the others started arriving. So we went with them and were the first to the funeral home and first to see Grandma at the viewing. She was reposing in a light blue casket lined in blue silk. She was wearing a dark blue dress, which she had worn years ago for her Golden Wedding Anniversary. She also wore it to Grandpa's funeral last year then had it dried cleaned and put away for her own funeral. She had on a string of pearls and pearl earrings and she looked like she had just laid down for a nap. There were lots of pretty flowers from friends and family and her casket piece was made up of pink and white carnations with dark green feathery fern filler. It was very pretty. But it was still a shock to see Grandma lying there knowing that she won't wake up. Betty and Norman wanted to see Grandma first so they could be prepared to help the family when they came to view the body. A little after we were through, Bonnie, Bill, Pam, and Minnie came. I went with Minnie into the viewing room and both Minnie and Bonnie broke down and cried and lamented. Bill tried to comfort Bonnie while I let Minnie cry on my shoulder. I told Minnie that Grandma was a faithful Christian and that God promised her rest and now she's gone to her reward. That is the test of the Christian Faith. This seemed to comfort her a little because she stopped her hard sobbing from the heart. However Bonnie was inconsolable and they left as Milton and Marie, Dad and Mom came together. R.L. also came about the same time in his truck. Dad did not look well at all. He was thin, pale, and gray. When R.L. saw Grandma he broke down and cried. Poor R.L. He lost his father, mother, and wife all in one year and the burden of Grandma's funeral fell on his shoulders because Wallace was back in Texas, Dad was just recovering from his own heart problem, and Milton was at the time making a delivery to Las Vegas. However it couldn't have been nicer and everything was done wonderfully. Mom held both R.L. and Dad while they cried and expressed their grief. Afterwards we all went back to the trailer for a little bit and shortly thereafter the folks from Texas came in about 9:30. They didn’t get to view the body because the funeral home closed at 9:00. Beulah, Wallace and Mattie Lee came with Marjorie Fern and Bill Damron while Danny and Marilyn brought their own car with their kids, Dena, Danny, and Candace. Minnie went home with Bonnie and Bill and Fran and I went home with R.L. and spent the night over there. We didn't get to bed before 12:00. What a weary, weary day. Good to see Marilyn again. All of her children are growing so big. Its sad that we only get together for funerals.

12 January 1979-Friday-Fran and I spent the night at R.L.'s and we tried to get some rest. We got up at 8:00 had had breakfast of pancakes with R.L. But before we could eat, Wallace and Mattie called and said that they wanted R.L. to take them over to the funeral home to see Grandma before the Church service. He went over to the coach to pick them up and I locked up his place and went over to Grandma's trailer by our selves. Marjorie Fern, Bill, and Beulah were there already with Bonnie, Bill, and Minnie. Milton, Marie, Stephanie, and Greg all came up together and Marie went into the kitchen to get the coffee going. Milton went over to Bonnie and hugged her neck and they both cried, and soon Wallace and Mattie Lee came back with R.L. Mattie Lee was just jabbering away, couldn't stop talking. Nervous I guess. Betty, Norman, Mom and Dad soon came up too with Donna and her Baby. R.L.'s step children, Jackie and Theo and their daughters Terri and Marsha who came with their families. It  was really a full house. The little kids really helped lighten up the morning with their carefree playing. It was hard to be too sad when watching Grandma's great-grandchildren on the floor playing. The funeral was at 11:00 over at the Yucaipa Church of Christ. The children of Grandma rode over in a limousine that the funeral home provided. Fran and I drove over with Donna and little Kenny in Mom's car. The Church was almost completely filled which to me is a testimony on how loved Grandma was. Her casket was on view as you filed into the church and I'll try to list all the people I knew who was there. However I'd say most of the people were friends and Church members who knew grandma. R.L. Williams was there with his step-children, Theo Clark, and his wife Jackie, their two daughters and their husbands and children, Theo's brother Joe and his bunch, and R.L.'s friend Willadene Webb who sat with Fran and I. Our bunch included Dad, Mom, Charline, Dennis, James, Denise, Michael, Dennis' mother Janet Peavy, Donna, Kenny and of course Fran and I. Wallace's bunch included Wallace, Mattie Lee, Frances Ann, Aleesa, Steven, Marilyn, Danny Stevens, Dena, Danny Jr, Candace, and Terrie. Minnie and Bonnie were together with Bill and Bonnie's former daughter-in-law Pam and Bonnie's grandson Aaron. Milton and Marie were there with Stephanie and Gregory and Marie's father Alfred Buelhman and her brother Al Buelhman. Dad's cousins Gene Walker and his wife Carolyn, and Norman and Betty Danforth were in attendance. Aunt Beulah Danforth was with Marjorie Fern and Bill Damron. Norman's daughters Beverley Watrous and Barbara Danforth and their son Alan Danforth all came. Grandpa's sister Nell and her husband Toy Dial were there too. That's about all the people there that I knew but almost twice that many people were there for the funeral. Three Church of Christ Ministers gave short talks about death and the scriptures and a little about Grandma. She was eulogized as a 'Christian Woman’ and a "perfect example on an elder's wife. R.L. 's step-granddaughter sang a beautiful song and a small choir sang some hymns between the talks. The only hymn I knew was "When We Meet On that Beautiful Shore."  Wallace was visibly sobbing thru out the whole service but the rest were as stoic as ever. I wish they all had cried their guts out because it would have been a healthy way for them to express their emotions. After the Service the Church of Christ ladies prepared a dinner for everyone in the recreational hall but I didn't eat because Donna wanted to leave for home and I had to go get our car, which we left at Grandma's. After the dinner we all left to go to Rose Hill Cemetery in Whittier for the burial. Denise and James went with Fran and me.  I got a little lost but managed to find my way over there from Yucaipa. This morning was dreary, overcast, and drizzling a little rain and on the way over to Whittier the smog was so bad it made my eyes sting. However once we reached Rose Hill the sun had come out and a breeze blew all the smoke away. It was a beautiful, beautiful, clear, and sunny day. On the side of the hill when Grandma's graveside service was held you could see clear across the San Gabriel Valley. Gary Williams and Eddy Griess were able to make it to the burial and so Larry Fagen was the only Grandchild that was not able to come. He's back in Norfolk, Virginia in the navy and couldn't get time off., It was a surprised to see Gary. He's a regular goat-roping cowboy with a long blond handlebar mustached wearing boots, blue jeans, and a buckle. He really looked sharp but I guess I'm really a city boy myself. The funeral was completely over at 4 o'clock and we took Denise and James home. Poor little Denise was sobbing so much and said, "I'll never forget Grandma. She'd always let me have all the vanilla ice cream I wanted when I was staying with her." James had been silent and introspective all through the funeral so it was right out of the blue when he said, "And I'll never forget her peanut brittle." He said it with total conviction and seriousness that Fran and I had to laugh. One of the last things Grandma made was an afghan for Denise at Christmas time. After the funeral we went to a McDonald's for some drinks then took the kids home to Charline’s. There Charline said that Mom wanted us to come right over to Mom's so we did. There at Mom's was Milton and Marie, Minnie, Aunt Beulah, Betty and Norman. Norman suggested that we all go over to his house for some chili so about 6 we went over there and stayed till about 10:00. I don't know why but Beulah sure doesn't care a thing about Fran. I guess being a Yankee from Minnesota she reminds her too much of Betty. Anyways they get along just like cats and dogs. Fran was trying to be nice and said to Beulah, "Thanks for the canned squash it was real good." Mom had given us a couple of jars that Beulah had put up and given to Mom, and Beulah said, "I made them for June!"  You had to put a sweater on because she was so cold to Fran. But Beulah was in rare form when she kept calling Beverley's boyfriend by Bev's ex-husband's name. Beulah kept calling him Paul, and finally Bev got mad and said, "Gram his name is Mike! " and Beulah said in a snoot "Well I'm sorry it won't happen again!" And it didn't because Beulah ignored him for the rest of the evening. When they made Aunt Beulah they broke the mold. She sure is one of a kind. But I love her. All in all we had a good time at the Danforths but I almost cried when Dad said to Norman, "Go sit with your mother. I'd give anything to be able to sit with mine." I really love my Danforth relations. I really enjoy their company. After we left about 10:30 we came home with Mom and Bad and Minnie. I think Minnie is holding up extremely well.

14 January 1979 Mom and Dad got up early to go out for breakfast then to Church with Minnie, James, and Denise. R.L. called a little later and said Grandpa's Sister Jerri Smith and her niece Doris Rose Butler had finally gotten in and were over at Gene and Carolyn Walker's house in Fountain Valley. About 11:30 we drove over there to see Aunt Jerrie Smith and Doris Rose. Minnie came with us and over there were also Aunt Nell and Milton and Marie. While there it poured down cats and dogs all the streets were flooded. Aunt Jerry had to come to California to see a specialist for her nerves and Aunt Nell was down in Southern Cal to see a doctor about her foot. Coincidently today was the 6th anniversary of Granny Rose's death in Plainview and her 75th Wedding Anniversary, and here we are- many of her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren and several great-great grandchildren. I like to think that we are in a great relay race passing the torch of life from one runner to another. Granny Rose and Grandma Williams' race is run but they passed the torch on to the next generation and then we to the next. Fran and I really had a nice time at Gene and Carol's and just as we were getting ready to leave Mom called and said she and Dad were coming over so we stayed a little longer and had dinner. Gene's kids Luxie, Randy, and Andy came over too and I hadn't seen them since we were in Junior High. I talked mostly with Aunt Jerry. It was a down pour of rain most of the day, rain, rain, rain.”

Anne had made a will out before she died and it was read to the family on the 15th of January 1979.  Anne left the remainder of her meager estate to Minnie who all agreed needed it the most. Her sons Edgar Hugh and Milton Williams were made executors over the estate.

Anne Williams was a good cook and she was quite skilled in crocheting and knitting. She crocheted doilies and table clothes as well as made several afghan blankets for her grandchildren. Louis Williams also was a good cook and his hobbies were gardening and playing dominoes.

Whenever Louis and Anne would visit their children usually a card table was soon produced and the dominoes brought out. Both Anne and Louis enjoyed playing dominoes and some card games. Anne Williams loved her family and she is sorely missed and her death has left a great vacancy in the lives of all who loved her. One time a daughter-in-law asked Anne which grandchild was her favorite and Anne's reply was, "The one I am with at the time."

Two of Grandma and Grandpa Williams' favorite recipes-

Grandpa Williams West Texas Chili Recipe
1 lb of course ground beef with suet
1 chopped onion
1/8 bottle of Eagle Brand Chili Powder
1 tsp Ground New Mexico Chili
1/4 of a garlic pod
1/8 tsp of ground cumin
1/2 tablespoon of Paprika
Salt to taste
1 quart of water
Boil the ground beef with chili spices and then simmer to consistency desired

Grandma Williams Apple Butter Recipe

Pare three cups of apples
Cook in saucepan until real dry
Add 1-cup sugar and 1/2 tsp of the following;
Cinnamon, Ginger, Allspice
and add 1/4 tsp of ground cloves.
Watch that it doesn't bum after adding sugar
Pour into jars and seal by hot water bath method.

Grandma Williams Chocolate Pie

¾ cup sugar
½ cup flour
¼ cup powder coco
A pinch of salt
1 ½ cup water
3 egg yolks
3 egg whites
¼ cup sugar
Mix all the dry ingredients and then add water and bring to a boil stirring constantly until thickens. Cool to the touch then add the egg yolks 1 at a time while mixture is still warm and beat in well until the mixture is shinny. Return to the stove and cook a few minutes until bubbly. Pour into a baked pie crust.  Beat egg whites and sugar to a meringue, spread over pie and bake until the meringue starts to brown.  

FAMILY of LOUIS and ANNE DANFORTH WILLIAMS

Louis Milton Williams, son of Edgar Lewis Williams and Rosa Lee Perser, was born 22 October 1902 near Carterville, Cass, Texas and died  20 January 1978 age 75 years at Cherry Hills, Riverside, California. He was married 27 September 1921 in the town of Dickens, Dickens County, Texas. His wife was Anne Ruth Williams, daughter of Mabry Oscar Danforth and Minnie Gertrude Peacock. She was born 31 March 1902 in the community of Swenson, Stonewall County, Texas. She died 10 January 1979 age 76 years in Redlands, San Bernardino County, California. They are buried in Rose Hills Memorial Park in Whittier, California.

Children and descendants

Oscar Louis Williams was born 2 June 1922 in Spur, Dickens, Texas and died 13 June 1922 Spur, Dickens, Texas.  He is buried in the Spur Cemetery. “The two week old baby of Mr. and Mrs. Lewis Williams died Tuesday night at their home in Spur, the remains being interred Wednesday in the Spur cemetery, the infant had been ill since birth. The Texas Spur, June 16, 1922

Raymond Leonard Williams was born 28 June 1923 Plainview, Hale, Texas and died 2 July 2015 in Fontana, San Bernardino at the age of 91. He was the last surviving child of Louis and Anne Williams. He married Justine "Jerrie" Bernhardt  Clark on 15 March 1957 in South Gate, Los Angeles, California. She was born 25 Sep 1910 in Catherine, Ellis, Kansas daughter of Michael Bernhardt and Anna Marie Husch natives of Mariental, Russia. She died  7 Jun 1978 in Yucaipa, San Bernardino, California. Ray was the stepfather of Jerrie’s grown children. Ray married 2^nd Eleanor Fritze on 5 April 1980 in Yucaipa, San Bernardino, California. She was born 20 Sep 1924 in Manhattan New York City, New York, and died 18 October 2011 in Redlands, San Bernardino County, California.  She was buried in Redondo Beach while Ray was buried next to his first wife Jerrie in Rose Hills. His niece Frances Anne Griess was executor of his estate with his nephew Edgar Jr. (Ben) to serve as executor if Frances was unable.

Edgar Hugh Williams was born 19 January 1925 Portales, Roosevelt, New Mexico and died at the age of 77 on 26 December 2003 Palmdale, Los Angeles, California of a massive stroke. He married Wilma June Johnson on 20 March 1946 in Olton, Lamb, Texas. She was born 3 June 1929 in Shamrock, Texas and died 13 April 2011 in Mesa, Arizona at the age of 81 years. She was cremated and her remains were buried with her husband’s body in Rose Hill Cemetery, Whittier, California. Edgar Hugh joined the navy at the age of 17 and was the only one of Louis and Anne’s sons to serve in combat in the South Pacific during World War II when the ship he was on was bombed. After he was mustered out of the service he returned to Texas to marry his sweetheart. They moved to California to live with Louis and Anne for a couple of years before returning to Texas where he farmed and had joined the Lubbock Police Force. In 1953 they returned to California and Edgar went to work for the Conveyor Company in Maywood as a steel worker. In 1954 they moved to Orange County and bought a house on Dale Street which eventually became a part of Garden Grove. They lived in this home for 36 years and where they raised their three children. Edgar Hugh changed jobs in the early 1960’s eventually working for H & L Distributors for Coors Beer and later as a foreman for Downey Fabricators supervising steel workers. He retired in 1989 and sold their house in Garden Grove and then moved to Victorville, California where they only lived a few years before moving to Arizona to be near Milton and Marie. They first bought a home in Prescott and later in Cottonwood. After Milton died in 1995 Edgar and June moved to Texas to help take care of her widowed father. However he died shortly afterwards. They had a house built in Lubbock, Texas but was dissatisfied with living in Texas with their grandchildren growing up in California. In 1998 they moved backed to California and bought a house in Palmdale, Los Angeles, California where Edgar Hugh Williams died the day after Christmas. June Williams continued to live in Palmdale when she decided to move to Las Vegas where she bought a mobile home. Her daughter Charline Wachs moved into the same mobile home court until they decided to move to Arizona to be closer to grandchildren there. June Williams bought a home in San Tan Valley cared for by her daughter until her health declined and she died in a convalescent home in Mesa, Arizona.

A. Charline Williams was born 9 June 1947 Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California and married Dennis Lee Wachs on 31 July  1970 in Westminster, Orange, California. Dennis Wachs was born 11 September 1947 in Wabash County, Indiana. He served in Viet Nam. While Charline was engaged to Gary Clark who was in the navy during the Viet Nam, became pregnant in 1968. Gary then broke off the engagement with Charline and she gave birth to James Edgar Clark who wasborn 1 December 1968 Artesia, Los Angeles, California. In 1970 she met Dennis Wachs after they were married they had Denise Elizabeth Wachs born 22 October 1971 Bellflower, Los Angeles, California who married Aaron S Ferguson on 31 March 1989 in Baltimore, Maryland and later divorced and Michael Louis Wachs             born 14 January 1975 in Pomona, Los Angeles, California lives in Newton, Kansas.

B. Donna Fay Williams was born 25 June 1949 in Amherst, Lamb, Texas. She was married twice. Her first husband was Terry John Pierce whom she married 4 February 1968 in Las Vegas, Nevada. They were later divorced. She then married Kenneth Louis Jones on 13 February 1975 in Santa Ana, Orange, California. They were the parents of two sons, Kenneth Thomas Paine Jones born 27 August 1976 in Anaheim, Orange, California and Kevin Louis Oakes Jones born 1 November 1979 also in Anaheim, Orange, California

C. Edgar Hugh "Ben" Williams Jr. was born 10 April 1951 Amherst, Lamb, Texas and married Wilma Frances Fuchs on 7 January 1977 in Salt Lake City, Utah and later divorced in September 1988. They had no issue. Ben Williams was an elementary school teacher for 27 years before retiring in 2015. He is a Gay activist in Salt Lake City and community historian.    
              

Willard Wallace Williams was born 17 January 1927 in Portales, Roosevelt, New Mexico and died 16 December 2012 at the age of 85 years in Lubbock, Texas. At the age of 17 he married Mattie Lee Jarnigan 21 October 1944 in Muleshoe, Bailey, Texas. She was born 26 October 1927 Caney, Atoka County, Oklahoma the daughter of Walter Jarnigan and Blanche Self. I never knew Uncle Wallace or as he was known to others “Wad” very much as he lived always some distance from the rest of the family and did not always attend family get togethers. I remember the house they had in Yucaipa and a huge picture window in the front room where you could see the mountains. They had goats on the property and I know they drank goat milk which seemed strange to me. They had a little cocker spaniel dog as I remember for a very long time.  In the mid 1960’s they moved back to Texas however their daughters were married and stayed in the Redondo Beach area of Los Angeles County. I believe Wallace and Mattie Lee lived there a short time before moving back to Texas. I know they were back in Texas by 1968 because I went with my mom who drove Grandma and Grandpa and Gary Williams back to Texas. I remember Grandpa grousing at mom for how fast she was driving. He also irritated me because he gave some money to Gary to spend but nothing to me. Again  I remember in the summer of 1969 I helped Francis Anne drive back to Texas with her kids and stopping in Prescott Arizona to pick up Marilyn and her kids.  Wallace remained in Texas for a time on a farm while working for his brother in law Walter Jarnigin. The last time I remember seeing Wallace and Mattie Lee was when Mom and Dad had moved back to Lubbock where they had a house built in about 1996. His daughter Terrie Williams commenting on her father's funeral said "On the day we buried my dad, right after the grave side service the wind kicked up , dust blew and giant tumbleweeds blew across the road while on the way to church for fellowship and comfort food the congregation cooked for us. What a memory.....like I never seen."

A. Frances Anne Williams was born 12 September 1945 in Amherst, Lamb, Texas. She graduated from Yucaipa High School in 1963. She married Claude Edward "Ed" Griess on 23 July 1965 in Las Vegas,  Nevada. Eddie Griess as I knew him was born 24 July 1942 in Mt. Carmel, Illinois and died 13 February 2002 at the age of 59. He was divorced with a son named Richard Edward “Ricky” Griess who Frances Anne raised along with her own children. He was born 6 August 1963 in Los Angeles County, California to Eddie’s 1^st wife Carol Orcutt. Frances Anne Griess had two children  Aleesa Anne Griess born 18 February 1966 Orange, Orange, California the wife of Arthur Ogden and Steven Edward Griess born  21 December 1967 Redondo Beach, Los Angeles, California. Alessa Ogden lives in Grants Pass, Oregon and Steven lives now in Odessa, Texas. Frances worked for years as Former Bookkeeper Administrative Assistant at Ace- Main Building Supply before Eddie and Frances Ann moved to Grants Pass, Oregon where she operated a café called the Chuck Wagon for years until she retired. She now lives in Rogue River, Oregon with her 2^nd husband Mr. Marlett.

B. Marilyn Kay Williams was born 8 May 1948 Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California and married Danny Lee Stevens on 13 July 1965 in Redondo Beach, Los Angeles, California. Danny was born 17 Dec 1944 in Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, and died 3 July 2009 in Kingman, Arizona, at the age of 64 years. Marilyn Stevens had three children and raised a granddaughter. Her children are Dina Lee Stevens born 19 August 1970 in Redondo Beach, Los Angeles, California, Danny Lee Stevens Jr. born 3 May 1972 Lubbock, Lubbock, Texas and Candice Lynn Stevens born 16 August 1977 Lubbock, Lubbock, Texas. Marilyn Williams Stevens resides in Lubbock, Texas

C. Gary Wallace Williams was born 17 August 1952 Yucaipa, San Bernardino, California and died 25 May 2013 in Huntington Beach, Orange, California at the age of 60 of liver failure. He was a liver transplant recipient and lived several years after his operation. He operated a motorcycle repair shop in Huntington Beach. He married Lynn Crane 20 July 1972 Lubbock, Texas. They divorced circa 1975. They had one son  Gary Lynn Williams who was born 31 July 1973 in Lubbock, Lubbock, Texas and resides now in Farmington, New Mexico.

D. Terrie Lynn Williams was born 22 May 1953 in Lynwood. Los Angeles, California. She married at the age of 16 years Virgil Steven Lamb 10 March 1971 in Las Vegas, Nevada. They were divorced in October 1975 in Los Angeles County. Steve Lamb was later killed in a motorcycle accident 22 October 1981. Terrie never remarried and made a living working as a fleet manager for the South Bay Ford Lincoln dealer in Hawthorne, California. She has lived most of her life in Redondo Beach. Terrie is a beautiful artist making jewelry and ceramics. She is funny sometimes, likes the outdoors, doesn’t drink or smoke, loves the water...swimming, boating, bathing. She is creative, inquisitive, likes movies, plays, music, dancing....picnicking and watching stars & spinning stories.

Minnie Lee Williams was born 24 December 1929 in Muleshoe, Bailey, Texas and died age 69 years on 7 June 1999 in Riverside, Riverside, California. Minnie Williams never married and lived with her parents off and on for the remainder of their lives.  She worked for several years as a live-in companion for invalid geriatrics including her aunt Beulah Danforth’s mother in Earth Texas.  Minnie was developmentally slow probably due to her premature birth and she was the most petite of all of Louis and Anne’s children. She was loved by all of her nephews and nieces. She developed type 2 diabetes in later life and had to live in a care facility until her death in 1999.  Aunt Minnie’s birthday was Christmas Eve and her birthday was often overlooked which I felt bad as a child but now I realize how lucky she was to have most of her kinfolk gathered for Christmas Eve on her special day.  Minnie would often take us to the movies and I remember he taking me to see the Ten Commandments when it first came out and much later while visiting in Downey she took me to see Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea. They were special occasions for me. Minnie loved her sweets which probably contributed to her diabetes as an adult. Minnie never lived out on her own until after her parents died and then she many lived in retirement homes ran by the Church of Christ in Yucaipa. My dad and Milton were executors of Minnie’s inheritance and made sure she had money to live on until she died. She had medicare and medi-cal to help with her medical issues but she had very little in the way of Social Security as she was never fully employed.  She was a kind sweet aunt.

Bonnie Ruth Williams was born 31 October 1931 in Portales, Roosevelt, New Mexico and died at the age of 64 years  on 31 August 1996 a Loma Linda hospital, Riverside, California. She married Billy “Bill” Wayne Fagen on 17 July 1953 in Yuma, Arizona. Bill was born 10 May 1927 in Kerns County, California to Wilbur Thomas Fagan and Nellie Newberry. He died on 19 Nov 1993 in Yucaipa, San Bernardino, California. Bill joined the Navy on 25 Aug 1944 during World War II. After he was mustered out he joined his folks who had moved to Downey. He was a truck driver by occupation for much of his life. Bonnie was pregnant with another man’s child when they married and Bill raised Bonnie’s son who took Bill’s last name. For much of the 1950’s Bonnie and Bill lived in a house behind Louis and Anne’s main house on Dinwiddie Street. After Louis and Anne left Dinwiddee so did Bonnie and Bill and moved to a house on Golden Avenue about 4 miles south still in Downey. In 1968 Bonnie and Bill moved to Buena Park, California in Orange County. They lived here until Bill Fagen was injured in an industrial accident and later had to go on partial disability and semi-retirement. They moved to Yucaipa in the late 1970’s and lived there where they both were living at the time of their deaths.

I don’t think Bonnie worked but was a stay at home mom. I remember she always brought rice krispie marshmallow treats to most of the family gatherings. She was a good cook and always seemed to be happy.  A special memory I have of Aunt Bonnie was when I was staying overnight with them when they lived in Downey. When she put Larry and I to bed I remember her washing my feet with a warm wash cloth. That gesture was simple but it showed to me that she loved me, or that I had really dirty feet.  She was very sociable and it seems that Grandma and Grandpa favored Bonnie and Bill more than the rest of their kids; maybe because they lived close to them. I heard that grandpa Williams was always helping them out financially.  Sometime in the early 70’s there was a falling out between Milton and Marie and Bonnie and Bill. Evidently Bill Fagan was attracted to young blond girls and had acted inappropriately to their daughter Stephanie. From that time forward, Milton and Marie would not attend family functions where Bill Fagan would attend.  I never liked my Uncle Bill Fagan who always seemed to be cross. He was very thin almost skinny and his eyes would bulge whenever he was mad.  I don’t know if he was ever abusive to Aunt Bonnie but I think she stayed with him out of a sense of duty and perhaps she had no choice. I always felt sorry for Aunt Bonnie even though she behaved very badly after Grandma Williams died. She was upset that Grandma had left everything to Aunt Minnie so she took Grandma’s silver set of flat ware and a secretary writing hutch. After Bonnie passed away I have no idea what ever happened to these items.

A. Larry Paul Fagen was born 21 January 1953 Lynwood, Los Angeles, California and died at the age of 46 years 5 July 1999 in Guam. He died of a heart attack. He married

Pamela Bullington 8 September 1973 in Las Vegas, Nevada and later divorced in 1976. He enlisted in the navy and married as his second wife Betty Bonan 17 January 1979 in Virginia Beach, Virginia. He served in the Persian Gulf during Desert Storm when Iraq invaded Kuwait. He was stationed in Guam where he is buried. Larry I think was the best looking of all the male grandsons of Louis and Anne. He was quite skilled in carpentry work and in high school shop built his mother a grandfather clock. I got to know Larry quite well when I was able to get him hired while he was in high school at a Taco Bell I worked at on Lincoln and Western in Anaheim while I was attending Cypress College. He was a good worker but he had dubious friends with whom he hung around. He told me once how he and his friends would break into cars and steal 8 track players. I was really shocked and told him he needed to get his act together. I think he was mainly influenced by his friends. One of his pals had a sister named Pam Bullington whom Larry began dating in high school.  I lost track of Larry after I went off to Cal State Fullerton and later moved to Utah. I was surprised to learn that he married Pam but she was six months pregnant.  A son, Aaron Paul Fagan was born 2 January 1974 in the Pioneer Hospital in Artesia, Los Angeles, California.  Larry and Pam divorced not long after that however Bonnie and Pam remained close. Larry decided to make a career for himself in the navy and had little to do with the family much after that. At one point Bonnie and Bill thought about moving to Virginia where Larry was stationed because he refused to return to California to live. I heard Larry always denied that Aaron was his son but Bonnie and Pam always said he was and there’s no reason to not to believe them.  Bonnie and Betty Fagan did not get along primarily because she preferred Pam as a daughter in law and the fact that Betty was a Pilipino by ancestry. Pam remarried a Mr. Page and resided in Chino, San Bernardino, California.

Milton Bradford Williams was born 5 November 1934 at Earth, Lamb, Texas and died 28 October 1995 age 60 years in Sedona, Coconino, Arizona. He died of colon cancer. He married Marie Joanne Buehlman 1 December 1956 in Norwalk, Los Angeles, California. Marie was the daughter of Alfred George Buehlman and Myhrties Evelyn Schmidt. Marie was born 13 January 1937 in Los Angeles County, California and died 23 January 2010 age 73 years old in Sedona, Arizona. They are buried in the Sedona Community, Cemetery.  Milton was a truck driver for most of his career and Marie worked as a book keeper. She once told me that she loved working with numbers. Milton was my favorite uncle as that he was only 17 years older than me and I remember as a little boy he would give me piggy back rides and bounce me around.  As a teenager when ever I had a fight with my own father, Milton would calm him down and stand up for me. However with his own children he was a strict disciplinarian almost to be abusive. Milton and Marie lived in Norwalk until the mid sixties when they moved to the community of Walnut. I remember spending my Easter Break my Junior year of high school over at their place in Walnut. An economic downturn had Milton and Marie sell the house in Walnut and move to Anaheim where they bought a smaller house on Radcliffe which was a cul de sac. They lived there for much of the 1970’s until they bought a more spacious house in Anaheim Hills on East Paseo Laredo which had a pool. There they also had two Doberman Pinchers. In 1985, while visiting relatives in Texas, their only son Greg Williams was murdered in a drug deal that went wrong. Greg had become very rebellious being part of the “punk” scene, doing drugs, and fighting with his parents. Eventually they told him to leave and for a while he moved in with his Uncle Edgar Hugh but as he was a bad influence on their grandson James Edgar Clark who was living with them at the time Greg was asked to find another place to live. He told me once that he slept on roof tops of schools and office buildings because they were safer places to be at night.  I always was fond of my little cousin even if he once called me an “over educated dork.” I thought it was funny.  Anyway, his uncle and aunt Edgar Hugh and June were called to identify the body and notified Milton and Marie of their son’s death. The killer was never identified and his murder remains unsolved.  After this time Milton and Marie life was difficult and they became increasingly abusive of alcohol until they eventually completely stopped. When Marie’s father passed away he left her a considerable estate from properties he had owned in Los Angeles County.  They decided to retire and move away from California to Arizona and had a large home built in Sedona located at 225 Deer Trail. Milton bought a jeep and enjoyed the back country.  He especially enjoyed the coyotes and one he feed regularly in the ravine behind their house. Not long after Milton and Marie settled into their new house, Milton was diagnosed with aggressive colon cancer. He was nearly bed ridden for the remainder of his life. He passed away on 28 October 1995 in Sedona, ten years to the day that his son died.  Marie remained a widow for the next 15 years but took several cruises to Alaska with her grandson Steven Hagg. However she became estranged from her daughter Stephanie after Marie converted to the Church of Christ in Sedona. She left her house and estate to the Sedona Church of Christ leaving Stephanie without an inheritance. She is buried next to Milton in the Sedona Community Cemetery.

A. Stephanie “Steph” Irene Williams was born 29 November 1957 in the Lynnwood hospital while her folks lived in Norwalk, Los Angeles, California. Stephanie was in the first graduating class of Esperanza High School, Anaheim, California in 1975. After high school she married Charles “Chuck” Allen Ashburn on 13 September 1975 in Las Vegas, Nevada at the age of 17. The marriage did not work out and they were divorced in 1977.  She graduated in the Class of 1980 in Electronics engineering technology in Anaheim, California. She married a second to Jon P. Haag in 1982 but they later divorced in 1985. They had a son born 12 April 1983 in Anaheim, California they named Steven Jon Haag.  Stephanie went back to using her maiden name and before Milton died she had another son she named David Gregory Williams Havens who was born 19 May 1995 in Fullerton, Orange, California. Stephanie retired from the Boeing Company where she was a Space Simulation Lab Supervisor from October 1983. She was in Senior Engineering R & D Tech, IR Tech for 23.5 years. Steph Williams came out as a Lesbian after her cousin “Ben” Edgar Williams did. She is currently [2017] living in Corona, California in a relationship with Julie Sundeen. Steph struggled with substance addiction for many years as an adult but overcame it. One of her favorite quotes because of it is  “I know that faith in my Higher Power will not calm the storms of life, but it will calm my heart. I will let my faith shelter me in times of trouble.”

B. Gregory Lynn Williams was born 2 February 1962 Lynwood, Los Angeles, California and died at the age of age 24 years on 25 October 1986 in Santa Ana, Orange, California. He is buried in Rose Hill Memorial Cemetery in Whittier near his grandparents .