Growing Up In Williamsport, Ohio

Daddy
 
My Dad, Bert Francis, was born on November 24, 1905 to Amos and Suzannah “Elizabeth” (Schooley) Francis in Hocking County, Ohio. Elizabeth was of German descent. Amos’ father was Nelson Francis, his father John Francis and his father was Jonathon Hall Francis who is buried in Pike Run Cemetery near Tar Hollow in Vinton County. 
 
Genealogist Don Meenach lives in Circleville. His wife was also named Marilyn Francis and was related to me. Don researched the Francis genealogy which came to a halt with Jonathan Hall in Virginia. It appears that Jonathan Hall Francis may have been the son of Jonathan Hall but was raised by the William Francis family. It looks like Jonathan Hall married Francina Berry Francis and later took the Francis name as his own. When I told my sister Jean over the phone about this finding several years ago, she became silent. I asked, “Are you ok?” She said “Yes, but I don’t like it.” I didn’t like it either but any way you look at it we have Francis blood in us from Francina. I don’t know anything more about the Halls because that was the end of the road genealogically. As far as I know, my Dad was unaware of this.
 
Before my Dad died, he wanted to go, one last time, to the Hocking hills of his childhood. I think he wanted to see and show us the places that were important to him. There was a house roof lying on the forest floor with a big rock in front of it. He said he sat on that rock the day his mother died. She died when he was nine of Bright’s Disease. He was the only son and the youngest of four children. After she died, he went to the 5thgrade in school. I suppose he worked after leaving school. His father married again to a lady named Rosella Hoy. They didn’t have more children but many of my Dad’s relatives still live in Hocking County.
 
After my Dad married, he worked for the Works Projects Administration (WPA) as a heavy equipment operator. He stayed with a group of men and learned to make pancakes and vegetable soup (which he made for us on occasion). He later worked at Anchor Hocking Glass Company in Lancaster. It is likely that he left there for a job at the Dunlap Company in Williamsport where he worked until he retired.
 
My Dad was a big strong, quiet man somewhat like John Walton on the ‘Waltons” TV program. However, my family was a family of jokesters. They were always laughing about something. In my mother’s later years. we realized that she was attracted to mischievous people. In times past, people didn’t have computers or TVs to entertain themselves, so they had to make their own entertainment. Though I have a dry sense of humor, I think I was the most serious of the bunch.
 
My Dad was also a laid-back person, but he had quite a bit of a choleric personality about him. Consequently, he was always “doing” or getting people to do things. 
 
My Dad worked hard to support his family and often came home all scraped up from wrestling with a stray bull. He didn’t go to the doctor but seemed proud of his war wounds from the bull. He was very seldom sick but when he was sick, he was really sick.
 
He chewed Mail Pouch tobacco most of his life. He was not perfect (like none of us are) but he was well respected in the Williamsport community….and more importantly, he was a good father.

©Marilyn Francis Ferguson 2019
Photography/graphics by Michele Ferguson Schuck