ELLEN ELIZABETH WILLIAMS WAGNER CLARK FIELDS
Ellen Elizabeth Williams was born November 13, 1876, in Tooele City, Tooele County, Utah.
Her parents were John Williams and Harriet Parry Williams. They were married probably between 1870 and 1874.
John Williams' first wife died. From his first marriage there were three girls and a son named Johnny Williams. [From a note written by Ellen in 1968.]
Harriet Parry was previously married (24 Nov 1866) to John Tate. From that marriage there were two daughters, Rhoda and Mary Ann. They were divorced about 1870. Ellen's 1968 note indicates that the divorce was related in some way to the death of their infant Mary Ann.
The 1870 census for Tooele City, Utah, (6 June 1870) lists Harriet Parry (age 23) and her two daughters - Rhoda Parry (age 2) and Mary Ann Parry (7 months) - as living with her mother, Rhoda (Wynn) Parry and her brother Daniel Parry (age 13). [Note: Harriet was really 25 years old. She was born 7 April 1845.]
Per the 1870 census for Toole City, Utah, Rhoda Wynn Parry (mother of Harriet) was born in England, owned the home they lived in, could not read or write, and declared herself to be 54 years of age. Other records show that Rhoda and her husband Thomas had 12 children from 1831 to 1855 in Aberystruth, Monmouth, England. They were John, Thomas, William, Mary Ann, Benjamin, Rhoda Wynn, Harriet, Elizabeth, Ellen, John, Sarah Jane, And Dan Josiah. I don't know what happened to Rhoda's husband (Thomas) or how many of her children came with her to Utah.
John and Harriet Williams had two children: Thomas was born 20 Nov 1874 at Tooele, Utah, and died 12 Mar 1920. He is buried at American Fork, Utah; Ellen Elizabeth was born 13 Nov 1876 at Tooele, Utah, and died 9 Nov 197l in Wenatchee, Washington.
Harriet died 1 Mar 1926 in Tooele, Utah. I don't know when John died.
The 1880 census for Tooele City, Utah, (4 June 1880) lists the following as living on Main Street: John Williams (age 51), born in England, no occupation listed; Harriet Williams (age 33), born in Wales [Note: Monmouth, where she was born, is now in England, but it has at times been considered to have been part of Wales]; Rhoda Williams (age 12). She is Harriet's daughter by John Tate; Thomas Williams (age 5); Ellen Williams (age 3); Rhoda Parry (age 68) [Note: Her age is 14 years older than was shown on the 1870 census]
I remember Grandma's telling me about a time when she and her half-sister Rhoda were dancing around the room, and she landed in the fire place and "I really burned my butt."
Ellen Elizabeth Williams was 19 years old when she married Fred E. Wagner in Tooele City, Utah, on 20 May 1896. Fred, who was 7 years older than Ellen, was born and raised on a farm in Wisconsin. Family tradition is that he left Wisconsin at a young age to mine for gold in Alaska. He probably was working in the mines in Utah when he and Ellen were married.
Their first son Winfred was born in Tooele, Utah on 25 March 1897.
The 1900 census (15 June 1900) for Grant County, Oregon lists the family as living in Granite Precinct, where Fred was working as a gold miner. The census shows that they lived in a house they owned free and clear.
Their second son Elmer was born in Grant County, Oregon, on December 16, 1900.
Before 1907 the family had acquired 160 acres on the east side of the Columbia River and south of the bridge to Wenatchee. SE quarter of section 18 in Township 22 North of Range 21 East of Willamette Meridian. [Note: I don't know if this land was homesteaded or from whom it was acquired.]
Apparently they acquired some property on the east side of the railroad tracks in Wenatchee to provide a place for their horses when they were in town. [Note: This information is from a conversation with Fred Wagner in 1990.]
The 1910 census (18 April 1910) for Valley Precinct, Douglas County, Washington, lists the family as follows: Fred (age 40) Farmer of wheat. Owned the farm free of mortgage;
Ellen (age 30) [Note: She really was 33];
Winfred (age 13);
Elmer (age 9).
During some of this time Fred was spending part of each year working away from home as a miner in order to support the family and the farm.
The boys attended Liberty School, located near what is now Pangborn Field.
In the year 1910 Ellen and Fred were separated, and in August he took the two boys to Dade County, Florida, where they remained until 1917. The land in Douglas County was divided equally in the divorce settlement.
Ellen married James J. Clark in Chelan County on 26 October 1912. [Note: It is my understanding that they were married amd divorced twice, but I don't know.]
Ellen W. Clark became a homesteader near Riverside in Okanogan County, Washington in 1916. I don't know if she "proved up" the patent. In the winter time she came to Wenatchee and worked as a pastry chef at the Elman Hotel and lived in a small abode by the railroad tracks near the depot. [Note: The above is per Fred Wagner and the 1916-17 Polk Directory for Wenatchee.]
Ellen Clark married William Fields on 5 July 1917 in Chelan County, and they lived in Omak until about 1921. William was a meat cutter.
When the two boys returned from Florida in 1917 they lived temporarily with their father on the farm in Douglas County and then with Ellen and William in Omak. They were provided the opportunity to return to school; but there had been too many interruptions, and neither one graduated from high school.
About 1921-22 Ellen and William Fields moved to Wenatchee. William worked as a meat cutter for Schrock-Nelson Co, and they bought the 2-story apartment house at 111 N. Chelan St., which they operated while building the 2-story brick apartment house at 109 N. Chelan. The latter building included a large 3-room apartment, which became their home in about 1923. About the same time William opened the Wenatchee Meat Market on Orondo St.
Ellen and William were later divorced, and Ellen converted their apartment into three 1-room apartments. She created a kitchen for herself on the landing at the top of a stairway, with the cupboards lining one wall down the stairs. During the times when she was living in just the one room her bathroom was at the foot of the stairs and was shared with the renters who occupied the "sleeping rooms".
I remember that room very well because when we went to visit Grandma it was expected that my brother and I should sit still, keep quiet, and not touch anything - so we did a lot of looking around. The entrance was near the southwest corner of the room. The doorbell was a brass chime that was activated by turning a knob. At the right of the door was a tall, dark piece of furniture that served as a closet. Only two items from the closet remain in my memory -- a black sealskin coat and a mink thing with glass eyes whose mouth concealed the spring fastener. I thought it was scary. Also on the south wall, under the windows, was a brown leather sofa that opened out into a bed. It was high and very slippery -- especially for small people who had to sit on the edge in order to avoid putting their feet on the furniture. Around the corner on the east side was the door to what had been the bedroom, and next to that was a large console Pathe phonograph. The only record I can recall hearing played on it was "Bye Bye Blackbird," plus some Christmas songs. Next to that was a dropleaf table and chairs and the door to what had been the kitchen. Around the corner on the north side was the door to the down stairway cum kitchen and then a large, mirrored buffet decorated with attractive objects, including an ornate rectangular mantle clock and a pair of silver salt and pepper shakers shaped like dogs, which Harold admired. Next to that was another door leading to the up stairway. On the west side of the room, facing the windows at the front of the house, was a large library table that served as a desk. During the heating season it had to be placed quite a distance from the wall because of the steam radiator. On the table were bookends representing a stout man that I used to think was Santa Claus, but it was probably Patrick Henry. The lower shelf of the table contained some large seashells, which I assume had been brought from Florida by Fred and Elmer. Next to the table was a brown leather rocking chair. The curtains were lace, and there were three large pictures on the walls. She later gave me the one I'd always admired -- the oil painting of the German-style castle in the ornate frame.
Our Christmas Eve visits at Grandma's house were always lively. She'd have music and cookies and fruitcake, and she'd get us excited listening to Santa's bells as he dashed away.
Prepared by LaVere Peters
August, 1994
LaVere Peters update -- May 13, 1997
I looked at the directories again for 1922-23 & 1923-24. Both the Schrock-Nelson Co. & Wenatchee Meat Co. were shown as being at 118 Orondo St.
Ellen & Wm. Fields were married in July, 1917.
Polk's Directories:
1916-17 -- Ellen W. Clark -- GN tracks near depot -- Wenatchee
1918-19 -- Directory missing
1920-21 -- Wm. & Ella Fields -- McKee & Fields -- Omak
1922-23 -- Wm. & Ellen Fields -- Meat Cutter, Schrock-Nelson Co. --
111 N. Chelan St. -- Wenatchee
1923-24 -- Wm. & Ellen Fields -- Wenatchee Meat Market --
109 N. Chelan St -- Wenatchee
1925-26 -- Wm. & Ellen W. Fields -- Service Auction Co. --
109 N. Chelan St. -- Wenatchee
1927-28 -- Mrs. Ellen W. Fields -- 109 N. Chelan St. -- Wenatchee
LaVere Peters comment when she saw this on the Internet:
Ye gods, you'll put in anything -- including the kid's eye tour of her
one-room-plus-stairway apartment. Yes, the ANYTHINGS are most interesting. -- Becky Peters