A Favorite Photo: 52 Ancestors

One of my favorite photos is of my grandmother's older sister and her husband. I believe it was taken in celebration of their marriage, possibly on their wedding day.

Esstella "Stella" Margaret Crispen was born on October 28, 1899, near Meno, Oklahoma Territory. She was named for her two grandmothers. Her mother, Daisy Myrtle Maddox, was the daughter of Elizabeth Esstella Lake. Her father, Clark Earl Crispen, was the son of Nerinda Margaret Kerr.

Her father, a blacksmith by trade, was not cut out for farming. About 1907 he leased his Oklahoma farm to his brother-in-law and moved his family to Michigan, living first in Van Buren County. The family later moved to Coloma Township and eventually into the town of Benton Harbor.

Template and elements from Botanicals digital kit, ClubScrap, 2015

Henry L Pitcher was raised on a farm in Watervliet Township. How the couple met is not known to me, but most likely it was while the Crispen family was living in the Coloma area. The couple were married at the home of the pastor of the Watervliet First Methodist Church on November 12, 1918.

Henry first worked with his father on the farm. However, after his father died in 1928, he sold the farm, moved to Coloma Township and became a realtor. They had one child, Opal Kathleen Pitcher, born on November 19, 1919.

The couple had health issues which cut their lives far too short. Stella had scarlet fever as a child, which had weakened her heart. Henry struggled with arthritis. The hometown newspaper printed lovely obituaries at their passing.


The News-Palladium
Benton Harbor, Michigan
Thursday, August 28, 1952
Page 21

H. L. Pitcher, Coloma Realty Agent, Succumbs
     Coloma, Aug. 28 -- Henry L. Pitcher, 57, Coloma real estate man, died Wednesday noon at Mercy hospital, where he was admitted the previous day.
     Although Mr. Pitcher had suffered a serious arthritic condition for many years, he had remained cheerful in his work and had many friends in the community. He was a lifelong resident of the Coloma community, having been born on a farm north of Coloma on May [sic] 5, 1895.
     Mr. Pitcher is survived by his wife, Esstella; his mother, Mrs. Lydia Pitcher, who made her home with him and his wife; one daughter, Mrs. Donald Gearing, and a granddaughter, of Coloma. Also surviving are a brother, Jerome Pitcher, and a sister, Mrs. Clark Shimer both of Watervliet.
     Funeral services will be held Sunday at 2 p.m. at the Davidson funeral home, with the Rev. William Goltz of Hartford, former Coloma minister, officiating. Burial will be in the Watervliet City cemetery.

The News-Palladium
Benton Harbor, Michigan
Tuesday, March 15, 1955
Page 13

Mrs. Esstella Pitcher
     Coloma, March 15 -- Mrs. Esstella M Pitcher, 55, died Monday night at Mercy hospital, Benton Harbor, where she had been a patient 12 days. She had been in ill health many years.
     Born Oct. 28, 1899 in Meno Okla., Mrs. Pitcher had lived in the Coloma vicinity since she was eight years old. She was married to Henry Pitcher Nov. 12 1918, in Coloma. He died in August, 1952.
     Mrs Pitcher is survived by a daughter, Mrs. Donald (Opal) Gearing, and a granddaughter, Joyce Kepil, of Coloma, her mother, Mrs. Daisy O'Neil, of Tucson, Ariz., two sisters, Mrs. Fayette Allee, of Tucson, and Mrs. Leonard Scherrer, of Pasadena, Calif., and two nieces living in the west.
     A nephew, Earl Knapp, lives in Benton Harbor.
     Mrs. Pitcher's body is at the Davidson funeral home. Funeral arrangements are incomplete.

Stella Crispen Pitcher and Henry Pitcher are buried together in the Watervliet Cemetery.