PBSCV1599
Gen. James Patton Anderson Camp 1599
Celebrating 32 Years 1992 - 2024
The Children Of George & Maggie Drane Tichenor
1. Alonza Tichenor
2. Rolla Absolum Tichenor Sr.
3. Sallie Eola Tichenor
4. Walter LaRue Tichenor
5. George Humphrey Tichenor Jr
6. Mabel Edna Tichenor
7. Dr. Elmore Drane Tichenor
1. Alonza Tichenor: Mentioned in Drane Family Bible as infant that died very young. No records found at this time.
Text From Above
OBITUARY
THREE GLITTERING PRIZES CLAIMED.
The King of the Arctic sky has visited us now and destroyed the Fiend that has been ravaging our land, and we feel free at present. We have for a time seemed to forget some of our own troubles in ministering to the wants and assisting those in distress, but now we revert our minds upon the past, and surely memory holds nothing within her orbit more sacred than the remembrance of the home of Dr. G.H. Tichenor.
Despite the combined efforts of a kind and doting parents, admiring friends, and medical skill, on September 8th, 1878, Sallie Eola Tichenor, aged 10 years, died; as sweet as a babe falls to sleep, she departed. She was sick only a few days, during which time she was tortured with pain; yet it was thought she would recover, but God' is too good to err, and He saw the sufferer was too pure for earth, so he transported this lovely bud to bloom and thrive in the Paradise above.
She was followed, on the 17th, by her brother, Waller LaRue, aged 7 years. The bright, winsome child now sleeps near his sister, where he requested them to place him. An angel hand was waiting, so they wafted him home on their snowy wings, and he is now, doubtless, an angel sitting on the battlement of Heaven, simply as a beacon light to allure loved ones on earth to follow him
On the 18th, Mabel Edna, Aged 1 tear, 28 days, was smiled to her home before a thorn had marred a limb or a taint of earth soiled her rosy head.
We cannot blame the Master of the Garden for plucking his most choice flowers to decorate and adorn His mansion above, for He tells us, of such, it is composed. Weep not, dear mother and father, but rather rejoice. for we know that they have left this world of sorrow for one of eternal joy; sorrow, sorrow, care, sickness nor death know no entrance there, and that great and good being who knows best all things--
"He gave, He took, He will restore;
He doeth all things well."
They have gone forth simply as an angel precursors of those whom they have left in stricken agony, to prepare for them the reality of the higher hope in those mansions where the day is everlasting and the endurance unmeasured bliss; where there is safety in assurance and assurance of joy that baffles the unsteady promises of this earth. We will trust in our Lord Jesus Christ, and when we cross the river Death, we hope to be welcomed by your little darlings--
Yes, we all live to God,
Father thy chastening rod
So help us thine afflicted ones to bear,
That in the spirit land,
Meeting at thy right hand,
T'will be our heaven to find what they are there.
2. Rolla Absolum Tichenor Sr.
Rolla Absolum Tichenor was named after his Grandfather and was born in Canton, Mississippi in 1864 and died July 26, 1951 at Slidell, Louisiana. He married Bessie Johnson Pope, she being the daughter of Judge Charles William Pope and Leonora Holmes.
Judge Pope married Leonora Holmes of a wealthy and aristocratic Natchez family. He became a lawyer, was elected judge, served in the Mississippi legislature and was a captain in the Confederate Army. For many years Judge Pope, his wife and children lived on the Benjamin Holmes plantation near Natchez but after the death of his wife he moved to West Baton Rouge parish. Bessie Died January 21, 1941 at New Orleans and is buried at Roselawn Cemetery, Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Rolla was an attorney and a graduate of Tulane University. He Married late in life a second time to Louise (Booth) Groescher of Bridgeport, Connecticut. She was born in 1884 and died February 20, 1952 , buried in Arcola Cemetery .
1930 United States Federal Census
Name Rolla A Tichenor
Age in 1930 65
Birth Year abt 1865
Gender Male
Race White
Birthplace Mississippi
Marital Status Married
Relation to Head of House Head
Home in 1930 New Orleans, Orleans, Louisiana
Street Address Freret Street
Ward of City 14 Pt of
Block 287
Institution x
House Number in Cities or Towns 6325
Dwelling Number 1
Family Number 1
Home Owned or Rented Owned
Home Value 18, 000
Radio Set Yes
Lives on Farm No
Age at First Marriage 32
Attended School No
Able to Read and Write Yes
Father's Birthplace Kentucky
Mother's Birthplace Kentucky
Able to Speak English Yes
Occupation Lawyer
Industry General Praclica Civil
Class of Worker Working on own account
Employment Yes
Household Members
Name Age
Rolla A Tichenor 65
Bessie P Tichenor 56
Harry T Tichenor 13
Robert L Drane 73
Emma Smitte 31
Former Home Of Rolla A Tichenor Sr
TULANE UNIV, LAW ANNEX
The Law Annex originally was a faculty residence. It has been converted for academic use to support the Law program. The Law School Annex is located at 6325 Freret Street.
Rolla A. is the young man sitting on a rock, next to his father, Dr. G.H. Tichenor.
His mother, Maggie, and younger brother, Emore Drane Tichenoe are below.
About 1885
Drane family Bible
Children
1. Margaret Ann "BeBe" Bessie Tichenor
2. Rolla Absolum Tichenor Jr.
1. Margaret Ann "BeBe" Tichenor
Source:
Tichenor Families In America, page 305
Margaret Ann, known as "BeBe" - Her name is in both the 1900 and 1910 censuses. She was born (Octotober 3) 1894. She married Henry Fradley, divorced. She married 2nd Hubert L. Putnam. She had one child, Harry, by her first husband. Harry married Mary ______ and had one son, Harry.
..............................................................................................................................................
BeBe and Henry (Joseph Harry Fradley Sr.) were married on 04 Dec 1915 in New Orleans, Orleans. He was know as Henry. On Oct 7 1916 they had a son - their only child, Harry
Joseph Fradley Jr. Henry was born on September 29 1889 in Bristol St George, Gloucestershire, England, the son of Joseph Henry Fradley and Alice Haskins. By 1920, BeBe and Heney appeared to have already separated. BeBe and young son (age 3) were living with her parents. Per census records, Tthe young son, Harry Jr. would live with his grand parents and uncle (Robert Larue Drane) in the Rolla Tichenor household. Harry's name is recorded as Tichenor, not Fradley on the 1930 -1940 census records.
BeBe married secondly Mr. Hubert L. Putnam of which little is known except that they had moved to Los Angeles, California where she died on August, 9, 1977 and was listed as a widow in the Whittier, California diectory in 1976. Harry Fradley Jr. would join his mother in California as he is listed as a resident of Whittier by 1952. Margaret Tichenor Heyl, a cousin, went out to California to help settle the estate.
BeBe and Henry Fradley had one son:
Source:
Find A Grave
Harry Joseph Fradley Jr
Birth Date: 7 Oct 1916
Birth Place: New Orleans, Orleans Parish, Louisiana, United States of America
Death Date: 6 Nov 1976
Death Place: Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California, United States of America
Cemetery: Willamette National Cemetery
Burial or Cremation Place: Portland, Multnomah County, Oregon, United States of America
2. Rolla A. Tichenor Jr.
Source:
Tichenor Families of America, page 305
Rolla Absolum Tichenor, known as "Bub", was born in New Orleans , (March 9) 1896 and died October 19, 1036 on the day he was leaving the hospital after surgery. He was buried in Roselan Cemetery, Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He married Dorothy Pomarade. She was born February 9, 1899. . (Married about 1929 in New Orleans - she was the only daughter of William Oscar Paul Leon Pomarede and his second wife, Martha "Monnie" Jones Buford.
..............................................................................................................................................
U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014
Name: Dorothy Tichenor
SSN: 439-24-4327
Last Residence:
70124 New Orleans, Orleans, Louisiana, USA
BORN: 9 Feb 1899
Last Benefit: 70005, Metairie, Jefferson, Louisiana, United States of America
Died: Apr 1977
State (Year) SSN issued: Louisiana (Before 1951)
1940 United States Federal Census
Name Dorothy P Tichenor
Respondent Yes
Age 41
Estimated Birth Year abt 1899
Gender Female
Race White
Birthplace Louisiana
Marital Status Widowed
Relation to Head of House Head
Home in 1940 New Orleans, Orleans, Louisiana
Street Panala
House Number 8123
Farm No
Inferred Residence in 1935 New Orleans, Orleans, Louisiana
Residence in 1935 Same Place
Resident on farm in 1935 No
Sheet Number 15A
Number of Household in Order of Visitation 304
House Owned or Rented Rented
Value of Home or Monthly Rental if Rented 35
Attended School or College No
Highest Grade Completed Elementary school, 8th grade
Weeks Worked in 1939 0
Income 0
Income Other Sources No
Household Members
Name Age
Dorothy P Tichenor 41
Rolla A Tichenor 9
1930 United States Federal Census
Name Dorothy Tichenor
Age in 1930 31
Birth Year abt 1899
Gender Female
Race White
Birthplace Louisiana
Marital Status Married
Relation to Head of House Wife
Homemaker? Yes
Home in 1930 New Orleans, Orleans, Louisiana
Street Address Freret St
Ward of City 14 Pt of
Block 298
Institution x
House Number in Cities or Towns 2nd Fam
Dwelling Number 109
Family Number 128
Age at First Marriage 26
Attended School No
Able to Read and Write Yes
Father's Birthplace Louisiana
Mother's Birthplace Kentucky
Able to Speak English Yes
Household Members
Name Age
Ralla A Tichenor 33
Dorothy Tichenor 31
Children:
1. Rolla Absolum Tichenor III
1. Rolla A Tichenor III
Rolla Absolum Tichenor III
1930–2013
BIRTH 9 DEC 1930 • New Orleans, Orleans, Louisiana, USA
DEATH 13 APR 2013 • Metairie, Jefferson, Louisiana, USA
Married: 30 Jun 1956 • Orleans, Louisiana, USA
Alice Mary Gomila
1932–
BIRTH 4 OCT 1932 • Louisiana, USA
Daughter of Wilfred James Gomila and Alice Mary Taggart
Obituary for Mr. Rolla Absolam Tichenor III
Rolla A. Tichenor III of Metairie, LA passed away peacefully at Canon Hospice on Monday, April 15, 2013 surrounded by his loving family and dearest friends. Rolla was born December 9, 1930, attended Fortier High School and Tulane University and proudly served his country in the U.S. Army during the Korean War. Great grandson of Dr. G.H. Tichenor, son of the late Rolla A. Tichenor Jr. and Dorothy Pomerade Tichenor, Rolla married the love of his life Alice Gomila on June 30, 1956 and spent the next 57 years enjoying life together traveling, boating, raising their family and cherishing their friends.
The Jefferson chapter of the Jaycees and the Louisiana Lions club benefited from his tireless efforts as did the Cruisin' Cajuns R.V. Club where he made many lasting friendships and memories.
Rolla is survived by his adoring wife Alice, his daughter Alice Ericksen (Virgil), and his sons Rolla IV (Susan), Lance- deceased, Chris (Nancy). His grandchildren: Melissa, Christina, Christopher (Angela), Rolla V (Lisa), Johnathan, Jacob and Luke; great-grandchildren: Colyn, Gianna and Gabriel; his sister-in-law Rose G. Smith and numerous nieces and nephews.
Famous for making friends wherever he went, Rolla was known for "Tooni Time" and lasting friendships some for over 70 years; he will be missed by all who knew him! In lieu of flowers donations to The Alzheimer's Association 225 N. Michigan Ave 17th Floor, Chicago, IL 60601 would be preferred.
To send flowers or a memorial gift to the family of Mr. Rolla Absolam Tichenor III please visit our Sympathy Store.
Children:
1. Alice Mary Tichenor (Living)
2. Rolla Absolum Tichenor IV (Living)
3. Lance Gerald (Died as infant)
BIRTH 6 NOV 1962 • Louisiana, USA
DEATH 23 MAR 1963 • Jefferson, Louisiana, USA
4. Christopher Daryll (Living)
3. Sallie Eola Tichenor
3. Sallie Eola Tichenor
BIRTH 30 JAN 1868 • Canton, Madison, Mississippi, USA
DEATH 9 SEP 1878 • Red River Landing, Pointe Coupee Parish Louisiana, USA
NAMED AFTER ONE OF THE RIVERBOATS THAT HER GRANDFATHER, ROLLA TICHENOR, HAD IN kENTUCKY
4. Waller LaRue Tichenor
4. Waller LaRue Tichenor
BIRTH 4 MAR 1870 • Liberty, Amite, Mississippi
DEATH 17 SEP 1878 • Red River Landing, Pointe Coupee Parish Louisiana, USA
NAMED AFTER TWO OF HIS GRANDFATHER DRANES'S MINISTER COLLEAGUES - REV. WALLER AND REV. LARUE OF KENTUCKY
5. Dr. George Humphrey Tichenor Jr.
George Humphrey Tichenor II
Source:
Tichenor Families of America, pages 305-306
He was born January 31, 1876, in Adams County, Mississippi, and died on September 29, 1964, in New Orleans, Louisiana; buried in Roselawn Memorial Cemetery in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He married Gertrude Belknap on June 27, 1905. She was born November 10, 1897and died December 21, 1909, also buried in Roselawn.
George graduated from the New Orleans Boys High School in 1894 and received an A.B. degree from Tulane University in 1898 and his M.D. degree in 1901. He received certification of proficiency in bacteriology and surgery from the same department and from the Chiefs of Clinic of the New Orleans Charity Hospital. He also received the certificate of the Chicago, Eye, Ear, Nose and Throat College and Hospital and New York Polyclinic in Anesthesia. He has served as assistant to J.C. Mims, New Orleans City chemist, and chemist for the Mexican Central R.R. and other large corporations; medical inspector of the Louisiana State Board of Health to Tropical Fruit Ports in Central and South America; yellow fever expert in charge of the Louisiana State Board of Health; visiting physician, Owensboro City Hospital and assistant superintendent of the Woodcroft Hospital, Pueblo, Colorado.
The Writings George Humphrey Tichenor II include “Early Beginnings Of Western Medicine”, ”Louisiana Physicians Who Have Made History”, “Louisiana Physicians’ Part In Developing The Idea of Transmission of disease by the Mosquito”, “Creole Medical Tradition”, ”The Louisiana Medical Folklore “, and “Medicine During RE-Construction Days.”
Probably his best-known medical publications are “Treatment of Tuberculosis” and “Tichenor Treatment for Yellow Fever.” He did editorial work on the “Tulane Collegia”, “Dixieland Magazine”, and Collaborator of Utah and Nevada Medical Journals which later merged with the “Western Medical Times”, of which he was associate editor. He was affiliated with numerous medical societies.
George and Gertrude had two children:
1. George Humphrey Tichenor III
2. Edwin Belknap Tichenor
George married the second time to Betty Belknap Smith, the daughter of Marshall Joseph Smith II and Bettie Belknap on January 4, 1911. She died February 3, 1971, and is also buried at Roselawn Cemetery in Baton Rouge. Her mother was from Louisville, Kentucky, and her father was from Norfolk, Virginia. The Smiths were descendants of Mary Ann Adkins said to be the niece of Lady Washington, George Washington’s mother.
George and Betty had five Children:
1. Margaret Elizabeth Tichenor
2. Bettie Smith Tichenor
3. Allen Thurman Tichenor
4. Morris Belknap Tichenor
5. Mary Adkins Tichenor
Marriage #1
Gertrude Laura Belknap
Marriage
28 Jun 1905 • New 0rleans, LA
Source: Louisiana Archives 3851 Essen Lane P.O. Box 94125 Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9125 Date: February 2003 Tichenor George Humphrey, Jr., M.D. 29 M - Gertrude Belk-nap 25
Marriage #2
Elizabeth Belknap Smith
New Orleans, Louisiana, Marriage Records Index, 1831-1920
Name Bettie Belknap Smith
Birth Date abt 1888
Age 23
Gender F
Spouse George Humphrey Tichenor
Spouse Age 34
Spouse Gender M
Marriage Date 4 Jan 1911
4007 Magnolia St. New Orleans
Children:
by Gertrude Laura Belknap 1879-1909
1. George Humphrey Tichenor III 1906-1959
Thelma Alicia Pence 1901-1999
2. Edwin Belknap Tichenor 1908-2000
Imogene W. ______ 1904-1987
by Bettie Belknap Smith 1887-1971
3. Margaret E. Tichenor 1912-1933
4. Betty Smith Tichenor 1913-2003
David Kristal 1908-1971
5. Allen Thurman Tichenor 1915-1971
Ruth Marion Dismukes 1918-1987
6. Morris Belknap Tichenor 1918-1989
7. Mary A. Tichenor 1926-1986
Anton Charles Kucera 1922-1978
1930 United States Federal Census
Name George H Tichenor
Age in 1930 54
Birth Year abt 1876
Gender Male
Race White
Birthplace Mississippi
Marital Status Married
Relation to Head of House Head
Home in 1930 New Orleans, Orleans, Louisiana
Street Address Burdette Street
Ward of City Sixteenth Pt of
Block 178
House Number in Cities or Towns 520
Dwelling Number 25
Family Number 44
Home Owned or Rented Rented
Home Value 55
Radio Set No
Lives on Farm No
Age at First Marriage 35
Attended School No
Able to Read and Write Yes
Father's Birthplace Kentucky
Mother's Birthplace Kentucky
Able to Speak English Yes
Occupation Physician
Industry Internest
Class of Worker Wage or salary worker
Employment Yes
Household Members
Name Age
George H Tichenor 54
Betty Tichenor 43
Margaret E Tichenor 18
Betty S Tichenor 17
Allen T Tichenor 14
Morris B Tichenor 12
Mary A Tichenor 4
1920 United States Federal Census
Name George H Tichenor Jr.
Age 43
Birth Year abt 1877
Birthplace Mississippi
Home in 1920 New Orleans Ward 12, Orleans, Louisiana
Street Magnolia
House Number 4007
Race White
Gender Male
Relation to Head of House Head
Marital Status Married
Spouse's Name Bettie Tichenor
Father's Birthplace Kentucky
Mother's Birthplace Kentucky
Able to Speak English Yes
Occupation Doctor
Employment Field Own Account
Home Owned or Rented Own
Home Free or Mortgaged Free
Attended School No
Able to read Yes
Able to Write Yes
Household Members
Name Age
George H Tichenor Jr. 43
Bettie Tichenor 32
George Tichenor 13
Edwin Tichenor 11
Margaret Tichenor 8
Bettie Tichenor 6
Allen Tichenor 4
Marine Tichenor 1
Source: The Times-Democrat (New Orleans) Thu. Aug 19, 1909 page 13
WANTS MORTGAGE CANCELED
Dr. George H. Tichenor, Jr., yesterday brought a suit against Robert L. Drane in which he avers that in 1907 he purchased a lot of ground from the defendant for $125, the defendant agreeing to have canceled a mortgage which then existed upon the lot. Tichenor avers that the lot has enhanced in value until it is now worth $450, and he asks that Drane be compelled to pay him this sum or that Drane be ordered to cancel the mortgage and pay him $50 attorney's fee.
CHILDREN
By Gertrude Laura Belknap
1. Dr. George Humphrey Tichenor III
G. H. TICHEMOR III THELMA PANCE
I'm a paragraph. Click here to add your own text and edit me. It's easy.
George Humphry Tichenor III
He was born on December 18, 1906,
in New Orleans, Louisiana, and died
November 23, 1959, in New York City.
He married first Ruth Virtue. They
were divorced having no children.
He married secondly Thelma Pence
in 1933. She was born October 30,
1903, in Sterling, Kansas, and died
July 30, 1999and was buried in Ster-
ling, Rice County, Kansas at Sterling
Cemetery.
He was an author and journalist.
He was the author of “Gibson” and
“Manhattan Prodigal.” He and his
brother, Edwin Belknap Tichenor,
lived with their paternal grand-
parents until Maggie (Margaret
Drane Tichenor) died in 1924.
..................................................................................................................................
Obituary
Source:
The New York Times, 1959,
GEORGE TICHENOR, UNION EDITOR, 52
Head of Electrical Worker and Teamsters Publication Dies--Wrote Two Novels
George Tichenor, the editor of Union Spotlight, died on Monday in Montefiore Hospital, the Bronx, at the age of 52. He lived at 231 Garfield Place in Brooklyn.
The Spotlight is the monthly publication of the United Wire Metal and Machine Health and Welfare Fund and participating unions, Local 1614 of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. He was also associate editor of Co-op Highlights, a publication if Mid-Eastern Cooperatives.
Mr. Tichenor received two citations last spring from the Labor Press Association for editorials and articles in Union Spotlight.
In 1951-52, he was editor of the Hatworker, publication of the United Hatters, Cap, and Millinery Workers International Union. Earlier he had been editor of the Cooperative, a publication of Mid-Eastern Cooperatives.
Mr. Tichenor, who was born in New Orleans and graduated from Tulane University, began his career as a reporter for the New Orleans Times-Picayune. He was the author of two novels, "Gibson" and "Manhattan Prodigal," and was a freelance writer and photographer.
He was a former member of the executive committee of the Liberal party in New York.
Surviving are his widow, Mrs. Mara Sanders Tichenor; a son, George 4th of Sterling, Kan.; his parents, Dr. and Mrs. George Tichenor of New Orleans; three brother and two sisters.
.................................................................................................................................
The following is entitled “A Short Memorial to My Mother, MRS. THELMA PENCE
TICHENOR” October, 1901-July 30, 1999.
By George Humphrey Tichenor IV
My mother had been in declining health in the spring and summer of this year and died as a sequel to a fall she suffered in the early hours of July 28th. Her wishes had been for a traditional and very simple service here at the house. Fr. Tom Keith of St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, Lyons, Kansas, was kind enough to conduct it.
The closed casket was at the north end of the living room, beneath a floral arrangement and in front of a large Chinese table upon which more flowers and an old photograph of her were placed. At the other end of the room were seated about thirty friends and relatives. It was much the same as it had been when her own parents died. I was fortunate to have the support of Max Moxley and Gordon Kling in helping to arrange matters.
The service started with a recording of Ave Maria. Part of the way through the service I was called upon to present a short eulogy. I managed that with some difficulty, then read Crossing the Bar. Gordon Kling sang the Welsh hymn All Through the Night, a cappella, and Fr. Keith concluded the service. A recording of Verdi’s Va Pensiero was played when it was time to rise and go. With the customary prayer at the graveside, all was concluded.
Several of those at the funeral asked me later if they could read the notes I had written about my mother. The difficulty there is that I had not spoken exactly to text and that my handwriting is hard to read.
I recalled that my cousin, Suzie Pierce Coxhead, prepared a nice memorial, with photographs, after her own mother died. I thought it would be well for me to do the same especially since there are some relatives in California, as well as many friends and business associates of my mother who will miss her.
**************************************************************************
Remarks delivered at the funeral, Wednesday, August 4, 1999
My mother left the world on Friday, with almost as little trouble as on her arrival into it. She was born on the family farm two miles north of here (1 1/2 miles east on cemetery road from Sterling College corner and 1/2 mile north – house no longer there) on the afternoon of October 31, 1901. At the time, my grandmother was completely alone in the house, so that there was no one about to assist. My mother’s last two days were easy, and she was unconscious much of the time.
In her last three years, my mother suffered a number of small strokes and eventually became senile. Yet, she was always in good spirits and able to enjoy a rather restricted life in her own house, surrounded by her own things. Had she lived, she would have been wretched indeed, frightened and among strangers, confined to a bed in an institution.
At the end, her body was, as is said, no more than a cold, frail, husk, an image, made more telling by the sight of her physician’s little boy romping about in his father’s office, full of new life and energy, that same morning.
Yet that tired remnant had once given me life, love, and companionship and had returned much love and admiration to her own parents, for my mother was an attentive daughter and happy to be so. She could also show energy and resolution when required. Following a divorce at age fifty, she undertook a successful new career and carried on another forty years.
How my mother became a decorator is not much concern here, other than to say that Sterling College gave her a start. She taught Art and English in various Kansas schools and in Arizona. That, in turn, enabled her to study in New York and in Paris, where she specialized in Interior Decoration. She was domestic by nature and had a good eye and an instinct for harmonious colors and compositions.
She first worked at Gump’s in San Francisco, then for a regular firm of decorators, Armstrong, Carter, and Kenyon, until I was born in 1935. Later, after seventeen years of marriage, she left me here in the care of my aunt and returned to San Francisco, where Miss Kenyon of the old firm was good enough to get her established.
My mother’s passing leaves a wake of good, kind, friends of all backgrounds. She often said that he job enabled her to meet many interesting people who became friends and who have been friends with me also.
In temperament, my mother was much like her own father: independent-minded, quiet and sincere, whose character was like a newly minted gold piece, full weight, ringing true, with a soul that was pure and shining. A saying I shall always remember her by goes:
“Be Good, my son, and let who will be clever.”
I shall now read Crossing the Bar. It used to be found in many school texts, and my mother liked it.
*********************************************************
I will begin my additional remarks with an example that bears on her admonition. It illustrates how her conscience worked and guided her.
Sometime in the late, the late ’70s my mother got a call at home from Mrs. Kenyon’s old cook/housekeeper, Velma,” who lived with her own mother, sister, and brother far out ‘on the avenues’ — southwest portion of the city. My mother had kept in touch with her, and at this time she was the lone survivor of her family. She told my mother that she needed half a pound of ground sirloin. Mr mother must have been concerned, for she asked me to buy some and take it out to her. That seemed a fool’s errand to me, and I was irked with my mother for promising it. Once I got there, though, I suspected something might be wrong. Velma was sitting at the top of the steps, which had partially fallen in. The front door was wide open, and I could see all the way to the windows at the back. Poor Velma’s face was greyish, and she seemed slow. I left her the steak and a quart of milk.
When I told my mother about it, she called the police who, as it turned out, had her taken to the hospital. A few days later, my mother got a call from a social worker to say that Velma had died.
Had I followed my reason, I would never have gone out there, but my mother was the Good Samaritan and save me a large black mark on my page in the Lamb’s Book of Life.
Many of her friends have made the same points about her character when they have called me to send their condolences. She impressed them as being very forthright, without cuteness, affectation, or sentimentality; that she was interesting and the type of friend who lasts. She did not approve of yearning after frills or trying to satisfy appetites that were not important in “the grand scheme of things.” She hated brainless, Gadarene fashions in thought and behavior and she made a distinction between ‘fashion’ and ‘style’ about which she used to say, “never goes out of style.”
She was not religious, except in the most general sense, and did not cant about things. The title of William Allen White’s biography of (Calvin) Coolidge, A Puritan in Babylon, describes her well. They shared the values of a society from which both came.
My mother did have a sharp temper, not too easily raised but sometimes misdirected. He pet sin was probably wrath, though she did mellow as she became older and had other discomforts to occupy her. Her anger was generally triggered by behavior she found truly offensive: cruelty, cheating, predatory deception, or great selfishness. She was skeptical of moral arguments from intellectuals who can often think of good reasons to behave badly.
My mother had a strong sense of duty which may account for her fondness for veterans and military men she knew, particularly those that had been wounded or had been exposed to danger–people who also had an uncomplicated sense of duty and who did it.
She read occasional military biographies and memoirs of those who were able, colorful, or those she admired, such as Lord Nelson. I once took her to the Greenwich Naval Museum, where his uniform is displayed — almost the size of a boy’s. When she saw the hole in the shoulder from the musket ball that killed him at the moment of his great victory, she was quite overcome.
Probably my first memory of my mother is of a round, smiling face, framed in a copper-colored halo, looking down at me, talking, then turning and waving back at me from the door. I suppose that imprinted me or started me on my Oedipus complex –take your choice. I recall being seated at her side of a sofa, looking at a pack of Lucky Strikes in the old green wrapper. (My love for tobacco goes back a while.) I remember being seated on her lap in the car and I being fascinated by the bright, nickel emergency brake and the characteristic instrument panel of the Model A Ford. My grandfather, noting my attachment to my mother, joked to her that she would get to be extremely strong in a few years, carrying that calf around until he was grown.
I recall watching my mother writing letters and my trying to imitate the process with scribbles, or of being hypnotized as she made a sketch. They were always lifelike in a way I could never duplicate. Any drawing I make is too much thought-out and will, therefore, lack art school, she had been taught to do a “croquis” (sketch) of a face or figured in a very short length of time. This required an ability to see the essence of the subject in the mind’s eye and to make some quick, economical sweeps to get it down.
My mother put an artistic touch to the working space in her office. On the wall at the back of her desk, she affixed a few oddities, along with leaves and feathers that she had picked up from an interest in their shape, color, and markings and also as mementos of the places where she’d found them. Any paper lying by her telephone was very quickly covered with doodles of geometric shapes, curlicues, abstract people, household items, etc. She produced this art graffiti automatically, without much thought or effort.
My father had the same faculty with words as a result of his newspaper training. Having written to deadlines, he could tell a story clearly, concisely, and in an attractive manner. I remember that he would sit at a typewriter, stare at the paper, then rattle off several paragraphs at full speed. Unlike my mother, however, he thought more in abstractions and logical relationships. He always had an interest in literature, history, and science, and habitually carried a book about with him to fill in any idle time.
I inherited my mother’s ability to visualize things as well as her skill at handwork, which she expressed in embroidery and sewing. Some members of my father’s family are skilled also. His brother used to make violins. It was from my father that I came to have an analytical turn of mind and an interest in the reasons for things being as they are and why. It’s the source of an appetite for science.
My parents both sought to develop and encourage my nascent interests and abilities. My mother tended to buy me tools of different kinds. She once got me a little drawing board, T-square, triangles, French curve, compass, and ruler, all unbidden, in the course of a trip to an old art supply house on the edge of Union Square in New York. where she sometimes went to look at prints or to buy art supplies.
She may have imagined that I would become an architect, which was not far from the mark. I became a mechanical engineer. That made good use of the traits I inherited from both sides.
Although they had many differences and preferences that ultimately led to their parting, my parents saw to it that I enjoyed an excellent and rounded education. My father, in particular, supplied me with good books, scientific gadgets, radio supplies, etc. He bought me the microscope that I still use.
My mother used to take me back to Kansas each summer to visit her family and, once or twice, she went on to San Francisco to do some work with her old firm. New York had cultural and business advantages of a high order, but that did not compensate for having to live a cramped life in a dirty, noisy, anthill. I will always recall how happy I was to be getting off the train at Newton to take the local up to Sterling. The evening breeze had a fresh, grassy smell of home. Correspondingly, when we left in the Fall, it was to return to the belly of the beast.
I saw my mother a number of times in high school, college, and after I went out in the world. Each time she was more prosperous, always happy, and much given to various enthusiasms, some of which I confess I found hard to share.
When she was starting her business in the ’50s and ’60s, San Francisco was still a pleasant, interesting place, without much crime or crowding, where one could easily live and work. She shared a downtown office with another decorator friend and was able to run her errands, visit the antique shops, fabric houses, and workshops easily on foot or by bus.
Though my aunt learned to drive, my mother never did. It wasn’t in her nature. To get around that problem, my mother enlisted a number of companionable friends as assistants. Ben Liebert, Gertrude Colomb, Jeanette Hoover, Jane Wallace, and Sharon Daugherty, and probably others I’ve forgotten, all afforded my mother mobility and hours of good company and so deserve gold stars and a special mention.
Another pleasant aspect of San Francisco around Union Square at that time was, as she would say, “This is like a town, not a city. You’re always running into people you know.” That was true. The better stores, restaurants, hotels, professional offices, banks, and corporate headquarters were all in a rather confined area. And, if you walked to Market Street and looked south you would see the green hills of Twin Peaks. My mother circulated easily and quietly in that milieu in tailored tweeds, a conventional hat, and a shopping bag of fabrics and samples, as inconspicuous as a mallard hen.
Also, in those early years, her uncle and aunt, Jack and Myrtle Gash were alive and kept a nice, hospitable home in Berkley, close by their two children, Betty Pierce and Bob Gash, with their own pleasant households. Most of that happy clan is gone or scattered, but while they were all there my mother had the feeling that she was not too far from her family. She also had her brother, Arden, in Davis; as well as another aunt, Mable, and her daughter, Kathleen, in the East Bay.
In the ’60s my mother moved into a very nice little apartment with a separate entrance, located in a sunny place that overlooked the Marina, the Bay, a bit of the bridge, and the Marin headlands. It was a building owned by friends in what was then still a family neighborhood. The bus downtown stopped at the end of the block. Over the years she made a very pretty and harmonious place for herself that she enjoyed for more than thirty years.
From this point, my mother began to live a little more freely. She took trips to the British Isles, then later to France, Russia, and even China, all without much trepidation.
Her politics also changed. She had been a New Deal Democrat, but she was offended by the war, the lying, the vulgarity, and the sentimentality of Johnson, and by what followed. Finally, having put some together, she found herself being robbed through taxes and inflation.
In 1972, I reappeared on her doorstep with some ideas — a computer program for simulating a neutral network among them — but without a clear idea of whether or how to pursue them. At any rate, the cowbird check was welcomed back into the nest. It did not turn out to be such a bad thing. I made myself useful for the moment by typing her bills and estimates and running errands. Through one of her clients, Frank Williams, I also got a job teaching math and statistics at San Francisco State College(as it was then). It paid well (on an hourly basis). and provided nice perquisites: access to their computer system, office space, a swimming pool, and a good library. Cousin Suzie Coxhead, ever obliging, sold me her Ford Mustang. This gave me more mobility and also meant that I could do some of my mother’s driving and more pickup and delivery chores for her. I saved rent living with her, and she could use her time to more advantage.
Things went well until, in the fall of ’76, my mother got a call from a friend in Sterling relating that my aunt seemed to have suffered a stroke that left her ambulatory, but alone in the house and perhaps confused.
My mother put her projects on hold and flew back to Kansas. She straightened out the situation, got a girl from the college to stay in the house as a roomer in case anything happened, and returned after a few weeks.
I stayed with my aunt over the Christmas vacation. She had another stroke but recovered, I think, by the time I left. However, there was another incident in the spring, and my mother had to leave once again until my classes were over.
My poor mother was facing a nasty situation. Her business had been humming along, she was enjoying life and able to turn out a good quantity of valuable work. But here she was, called away from all that to nurse my aunt and at a great disadvantage. She could not drive, could not lift my aunt, could not deal with many of the things required to keep a strange house running. Add to that the fact that my aunt was often uncooperative or hostile toward her sister and not grateful for her attention.
The frustration and worry of the situation should have driven my mother to tears, had she been the type. But she kept at it until she could get back to the work she found so rewarding.
I returned at the start of the summer. My aunt had always been very kind to me, and I got along well with her. I was also able to take care of some urgent house repairs. This started a pattern that continued for years and turned out well in a number of ways, though it kept me nailed to a teaching job I was then considering leaving. I was able to keep Auntie functioning most of the time and in her own home with the help of Mrs. Clydia Renollet and Mrs. Dora Blue to look after her. Dora finally had to live with her full time while I was away.
My aunt was due this attention. She had looked after me and after her own invalid mother. But, in 1987, when Mrs. Blue’s husband died and she moved to another town, there was no choice but to put Auntie in the local nursing home. I was planning on carrying on in the old way in my vacations, but she broke a hip and died of complications.
My mother and I came out at Thanksgiving to attend the funeral. From that time until she moved here, she would return with me every summer and liked it.
My mother had also fallen and broken a hip in San Francisco. Later, she fell here in sterling and broke both wrists. In all of this, there was never a complaint. She was stoic and took things in stride.
Life in San Francisco became more and more difficult and irritating by degrees, even for a younger person. She could no longer manage the busses as she had done, and the trip downtown took twice as long. Street people slept in the entrance of her office building. Her office was twice robbed, and she had two friends who were murdered in the time she lived there.
In the early ’90s, my mother gave up her little office, with some sadness I suspect. She did conduct a little business with her old clients from her desk at home. Her regular associates and I drove her around as required.
There were other unnerving incidents in San Francisco. The earthquake flattened several buildings down the hill from us and was frightening while it was taking place. Then, in 1992, after the Rodney King verdict, I found myself locked in the middle of a traffic jam in front of City Hall, surrounded by a sea of rabble (to use the accurate term) that was flowing down toward Market Street. It was alarming to feel so helpless there without a cop in sight. The police were pursuing some ‘non-provocation’ policy of keeping hidden which was maintained that evening.
I went to a luncheon the next day at the St. Francis Hotel. I saw a number of stores downtown that had windows broken and had been looted of merchandise. Broken glass was everywhere, even from some of the shops facing the street on the ground floor of the hotel itself, right on Union Square.
I was glad to retire from teaching at that time. An interesting thing was that I succeeded in getting my network program to work on my own little PC. It was descended from the one I had tried to develop on the college mainframe twenty years before and which then was a black hole for gobbling up machine time. Coincidentally, I had been given a little engineering design project to execute. It turned out to be the only piece of work I ever did to go into production.
It made no sense to stay bottled up in San Francisco, given this place in Sterling. So without fuss, she sold some things, gave away others, and arranged to ship the remaining ones. After 44 years she had no regrets, only great satisfaction, repeating a remark attributed to Clark Gable, she often said, “I was lucky and I know it.”
She had a better life here in many ways. It was quiet, safe, and without strife. She had a comfortable chair by the large window in the den where she could enjoy the birds and squirrels, flowers for the picking, and various vegetables in season.
She also got more exercise here in a large house with stairs to climb and more space to move around in. Often I would also walk her around town or to the college and back. She had no trouble meeting people; there were so many that had known my aunt and some whom I knew. She got much pleasure from the company of Marjorie Miller, Max Moxley, and Dr. Dysart, with occasional visits from Polly Collins, the daughter of a lifelong friend with whom she had taught school in Lindsborg.
There were also visits from good friends from San Francisco, and even one from Bob Gash’s daughter, Mary Lynn Franzia, and her daughter, Carol. Her brother, Arden stopped here, as did Betty Pierce’s son, Allen, at the beginning of this summer. And, along with the telephone, there were no feelings of being cut off or lonely.
In the spring of ’96, my mother had to undergo major surgery. She appeared to recover fairly well but had a couple of small strokes, one of which put her in the hospital overnight and impaired her memory.
These steps downward would be followed by partial recovery. Then there would be another sudden loss, and so on. She came to lose her sense of equilibrium, her ability to write, and her short-term memory. It even became difficult to get her to take solid food, But fortunately, through all her trials her disposition did not change, nor did she become depressed in any way. She accepted everything that happened to her, and her attitude to death seemed to be one of indifference, but that is probably the way it is with the very old. However, if she were in a situation where I was concerned for her, as when she had her surgery, she could read my long face and would give me a wink and a smile.
Even on the Wednesday evening before she died, while she was still partially conscious, I bent across the bed to give her a kiss and a squeeze of the hand. She returned the squeeze weakly and made an attempt at a wink. As it turned out, that was goodbye.
It was when I started making funeral arrangements and looked back that I realized I had spent 27 years with my mother. And yet, it seemed no time at all. It was odd but companionable and interesting. Our roles reversed, especially towards the end, when I became the parent and she the affectionate, good-natured child she had once been. There is no rational basis for it, yet when she died it was as if the gold rivet had fallen out of my life. It will be some time before the pieces come together again in another way.
This memorial may read too much like hagiography. I don’t think that my mother would have approved of that herself, yet she led a good life and was “an original.” I owe it to her as a token of gratitude, and I do know also that her memory and example will afford some pleasure and interest to her friends.
George and Thelma had one son:
George Humphrey Tichenor IV
George Humphrey Tichenor IV
Sterling H.S., Sterling KS 1953
George Humphrey Tichenor IV
He was born on February 2, 1935 in San Francisco, Cali-fornia and died on August 14, 2002 in Sterling, Rice County, Kansas, USA. He was a mech-anical engineer. He had a B.S. degree from M.L.T and an M.S. from Cal. Tech, 1958. He took some courses in opera-tional research at the Imperial College in London and lived and worked in England and Ireland for about nine years. He had patents on four inventions and taught statistics and computer courses at San Francisco University.
Patents by Inventor George Humphrey Tichenor
George Humphrey Tichenor has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
-
Patent number: 3973413
Abstract: A knitting device has a needle bed consisting of a plurality of equidistantly spaced parallel needles and a sinker the needles being held between two depressor plates which form location points for a locking bar which in use closes the barbs of the needles when the sinker has picked up a row of stitches by movement along the needle bed so that said row of stitches can be moved to the bottom of the needles to form a row of stitches in a knitted article.
Type: Grant
Filed: September 19, 1974
Date of Patent: August 10, 1976
Inventor: George Humphrey Tichenor
2. Edwin Belknap Tichenor
Edwin Belknap Tichenor
Source:
Tichenor Families in America page 306
Edwin Belknap Tichenor was born Nov 16 1908 in New Orleans, Orleans, Louisiana, USA, and died Mar 05, 2000, in Brandon, Rankin, Mississippi, USA. He married Imogene Mayberry Wolfe on 15 April 1036 in Chicago, Cook, Illinois, USA. She was born Jun 16 1904 in Chicago, Cook, Illinois, USA, and died Nov 01, 1987, in Pelahatchie, Rankin, Mississippi, USA. She was the daughter of Albert August Wolfe and Imogene Alice Miller.
Sourcs:
Clarion Ledger (Jackson, Mississippi) 8 Mar 2999, Thu page 15
Edwin B. Tichenor
Retired Newspaper Reporter
Florence – Edwin B. Tichenor, 91, a retired newspaper reporter, died of respiratory failure Sunday in Rankin Medical Center in Brandon.
Services a2 p.m. today in Morton Memorial Gardens. Ott & Lee Funeral Home in Brandon is handling arrangements.
He was a native of Louisiana and a long-time resident of Rankin County. He was a devoted Christian who loved music, made violins, and dedicated his life to helping others according to his family. He was a Baptist.
Survivors include; nephew, George Tichenor of Kansas.
6. Mabel Edna Tichenor
DIED OF YELLOW FEVER
Inscription:
Infant Daughter of G.H. & M.A. Tichenor. Aged 1 month & 23 days.
Like her older sister, Mabel was also named after one of her grandfather's Kentucky riverboats.
Burial:
Saint Stephens Episcopal Church Cemetery
Innis
Pointe Coupee Parish
Louisiana, USA
7. Dr. Elmore Drane Tichenor
Elmore Drane Tichenor at Tulane
Blanche Marie Jerome 1898
(Original photos in possession of Heyl family)
Elmore Drane Tichenor was born Nov 26 1883 in Red River Landing, Pointe Coupee Parish, Louisiana, USA and died Oct 30 1964 in Birmingham, Oakland, Michigan, USA. He married Blanche Marie Jerome Apr 24 1915 in Detroit, Wayne, Michigan, USA. She was born 1885 in Detroit, Wayne Co. Michigan, and died in 1960 in Detroit, Wayne County Michigan, the daughter of Franklin Harrison Jerome and Honora `Nora` Daly.
Dr. Elmore Tichenor was a very educated man. Graduated from Tulane University in New Orleans, where he majored in chemical engineering and was the assistant manager of the Tulane orchestra. He then studied medicine at Wayne State University in Detroit. He also had an engineering degree from Cornell and from there went and got his medical degree from the University of Michigan.
Instead of going back to New Orleans, he made his home in Detroit. (It was stated that did not want to go back because of the yellow fever outbreaks). He married at the age of 31 Blanche Marie Jerome. She was from the social elite of the city, her family has been in Detroit since the 1820s. Her grandfather was an immigrant from New York and started an engineering and Surveying Company in Detroit’s early days, helping to lay out the streets of the booming city. The company, now George Jerome & Co. was established in 1828 and holds the honor of being the longest-running, ongoing concern in the state of Michigan. Among her well-connected relatives are three former governors.
Elmore and Blanche moved into the mansion that Elmore had built, a year after their marriage, in 1916. The home is located on Longfellow Avenue in the elite Boston-Edison neighborhood in downtown Detroit – once, one of the premier addresses in the city. He had offices in the basement with a separate entrance and servant quarters in the attic. It was said that Blanche did not cook, (that was what the servants were for), and never learned to drive. After the death, of Blanche in 1958, Elmore sold the house and moved to Birmingham to be nearer to his married daughters. The Tichenor house is luckily still standing – having been subdivided into apartments.
During the early years of his marriage, Elmore and Blanche built a “cottage” retreat up in Northern Michigan. That was about 1928. They were among the first to establish themselves up on Torch Lake in the little town of Alden, near Traverse City. It must have been quite an ordeal, traveling by train, back in the day. with enough luggage and steamer trunks for a summer-long stay The cottage is a large four-bedroom quasi-Victorian, no-nonsense type of structure with a huge fireplace at the end of the large vaulted-ceilinged gathering room. The “cottage” still remains in the Heyl family.
Elmore, like his relatives, was an inventor, holding several patents
Source:
Detroit Free Press 25 Apr 1915, Sun page 71
Easter lilies, their pure whiteness accentuated by a background of palms and foliage, made an effective setting, and a very bridelike one for the marriage of Miss Blanche Marie Jerome and Dr. Elmore Drane Tichenor, Saturday evening.
Promptly at 7 o’clock, Miss Jerome and Dr. Tichenor entered thr drawing room and knelt on the flower-decked prie-dieu. Dr. Joseph A. Vance performed the wedding rites.
Heavy white satin and real lace fashioned the bride’s gown, the long court train falling from the shoulders. Banding her coiffure was a string of pearls from which fell her tulle veil. She carried a shower of orchids and lilies of the valley.
Miss Jerome was attended by Mrs. P.E. Biddlescomb, who wore her own wedding gown, a lovely creation of satin and Cluny lace. Her flowers were Aaron Ward roses and valley lilies.
Dr. Tichenor was assisted by Mr. Alfred Penner as the best man.
A reception was held at 8 o’clock in the dining room, the table held for its centerpiece, a mound of Ladt Hillington roses and lilies of the valley. Dr. and Mrs. Tichenor left for a trip to California, and on their return will reside at 55 Rowena Street.
(Original photo in possession of Heyl family)
.......................................................................................................................................................
Source:
Detroit Free Press 26 Apr 1915, Sun page 60
Mr. Harold Jerome was the host at a delightful dinner Friday evening at the Woman’s Exchange, complimenting Miss Blanche Jerome and Dr. Elmore Drane Tichenor, whose wedding took place Saturday. Pink roses and lilies of the valley decked the table. Dancing followed the dinner.
……………………………………………………….....................……………………………………………………………….
Source:
The Detroit Free Press, Nov 7, 1964
Obituary
TICHENOR, Elmore D. M.D., October 30, 1964. Husband of the late Blanche Marie Jerome Tichenor, father of Mrs. Russell G. Heyl and Mrs. Daniel J. Boucher. Also survived by 5 grandchildren and 1 great-grandson. Funeral services at Bell Chapel of the Wm. R. Hamilton Co. 820 E. Maple Ave., Birmingham, Monday at 1 p.m.
…………………………………………..................………………………………………………...…………………………….
Source:
Detroit Free Press 13 Apr 1958 Sun page 11
Obituary
BLANCHE J. TICHENOR-- Mrs. Tichenor, 75 of 1248 Longfellow Ave., a lifelong resident of Detroit, died Saturday in Ford Hospital. She was a member of First Presbyterian Church and of the Detroit Athletic Club. Surviving are her husband, Dr. Elmore Tichenor; two daughters, Mrs. Russell Heyl and Mrs. Blanche M. Daane; two brothers and a sister.
Services will be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday in the chapel of William H. Hamilton Co., 3975 Cass. Burial will be in Woodlawn Cemetery.
1248 Longfellow St. Boston Edison Neighborhood, Detroit, Michigan
Children of Dr. Elmore D. Tichenor & Blanche Jerome Tichenor
1. Margaret Jerome Tichenor
2. Blanche Marie Tichenor
1. Margaret Jerome Tichenor
Margaret Jerome Tichenor Married Russel George Heyl Jr. 1944
1.
Margaret Jerome Tichenor was born Jan. 24 1917 in Detroit, Wayne, Michigan, USA, and died in 1988 in Borrego Springs, San Diego, California, USA. She married Russell George Heyl Jr. on Sep 16 1944 in Detroit, Wayne, Michigan, USA. He was born Mar. 09, 1916, in Baltimore, Maryland, USA, and died Mar 10, 2000, in Borrego Springs California, USA, the son of Russell George Heyl Sr. .and Virginia Alice Wilson.
Margaret, the firstborn of Elmore and Blanche grew up on Longfellow Avenue in Detroit. She was two years older than her sister Blanche. Margret attended the University of Michigan where she attained a bachelor's degree, going on to get her Master's degree in languages - French being her specialty. She was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma Sorority and lived at the Sorority House. While at the university, she met Russell G. Heyl, a young Aeronautical engineering student. He was a member of Beta Theta Pi Fraternity. Russell and some comrades rented a large mansion on the River Rouge where they lived a very fine life well after college days. The days were full of football games and parties. Margaret graduated in 1940, two years after Russell had graduated. Russell was born in Tyrone, Pennsylvania, the son of Russell George Heyl Sr. and Virginia Alice Wilson. Russell Sr. was the grandson of German immigrants while Virginia was from an old Maryland family - the Bradshaws. Her family were from the islands in the Chesapeake Bay and were known as watermen - being there from the 1600s.
The war intervened and Russell went to work in Baltimore helping in the designing of aircraft, staying with an uncle. Russell made his way back to Michigan and on September 26, 1944 he married Margaret. He went to work in the automotive industry as n engineer. Margaret and Russell lived in Birmingham, Michigan, and bought a house on Latham Avenue where they lived most of their lives. The house has since been demolished and replaced by a "McMansion." Margaret and Russell lived a typical upper-middle-class life, with Margaret and their children spending the summers up at the lake. Upon the death of her father, Margaret would inherit the "cottage". Russell had his own airplane and would fly up on the weekends. He would fly over the lake towards their home and waggle his wings. This was the sign that Margaret would need to go to the Traverse City airport to pick him up. Margaret and Russell would have three children, Patricia "Patty", Creighton "Craig", and Beverly "Andrea", all being born 4 years apart.
In the 1980s, Margaret developed a lung condition that was aggravated by the cold Michigan winters. At this time, they started looking for a better climate for the winter and had gone to Borrego Springs, about halfway between San Diego and Palm Springs in the desert. The first couple of years they rented a place but eventually bought a home. They sold the Birmingham house and now split their time between the cottage and Borrego Springs.
Margaret passed awy on April 18, 1988, at their California house from complications of the lung condition she had.
On December 26, 1992, Russell remarried to the widow, Helen Unkefer Bush in Venice, Florida, Helen was also from Michigan, being from Birmingham. She and her first husband also had a lake house up in Northern Michigan. Russell and Helen split their time between the two lake houses, the California house and her Florida home down near Sarasota, Florida. Russel passed away on March 10, 2000 at his California home.
Both Russell and Margaret are buried up in Alden, Michigan.
.....................................................................................................................................................................
Source:
Detroit Free Press Sep 17 1944
Pair Speaks Nuptial Vows on Saturday
Principals in the marriage solemnized Saturday evening at the First Baptist Church were Margaret Jerome Tichenor and Russell George Heyl Jr. The bride is the daughter of Dr. and Mrs. Elmore Drane Tichenor of Longfellow Ave., and the bridegroom is the son of Russell George Heyl of Tyrone, Pa. and the late Mrs. Heyl.
Mrs. J. Dewey Daane of Richmond, Va., sister of the bride, was matron of honor and the bridesmaids were Patsy and Shirley Lou Jerome, cousins of the bride; Mary Heyl, sister of the bridegroom; Mrs. Harry G. Salsinger, Jr., and Phyllis Kennedy and Joyce Beyster.
Henry Bradshaw Heyl of Atlanta, Ga., brother of the bridegroom was the best manand the ushers were J. Phillip Kurtz, Sidney Terry, Richard V. Anderson, Frederick Crosby, Arthur Bodean and Samuel Crawford.
Following the ceremony, there wwas a reception at the Detroit Athletic Club, after which the young couple left on their wedding trip to Hot Springs, Va. Upon their return they will make their home on Monroe Road.
.......................................................................................................................................
Source:
Detroit Free Press 16 Jul 2000 Sun page 28
HEYL
RUSSELL G. wsa born March 0, 1916 and passed away March 10, 2000. A graduate of the University of Michigan with a degree in aeronautical engineering - 1938, member of Beta Theta Pi fraternity, and long-time resident of Birmingham, MI. During WWII, he worked for Glenn L. Martin engineering war planes. Later, he was hired by American Metal Products. One of which was a springless hospital bed for the University of Michigan Hospital. Survived by his wife, Helen Bush Heyl; three children (by the deceased Margaret Tichenor Heyl) Patricia H. Jones, Dr. Creighton G. Heyl, and Beverly A. Johnston; four grandchildren, Kelly E. Prichard. Thomas Keith Prichard, Matthew G. Heyl and Megan M. Heyl. A memorial service will be held this summer in Alden, MI ant 10384 Notyh Lake Street on August 5th at 3:00 p.m..
Following in the Tichenor tradition,
Russell had 18 patents
Patents:
Russell G Heyl Jr - Inventor
1. Russell G Heyl Jr: Seat track. American Metal Products June 1966: CA 737270 (6 worldwide citation)
2. Stewart E Norwood, Russell G Heyl Jr: Adjustable back for seat. American Metal Products October 1961: CA 629551 (2 worldwide citation)
3 Russell G Heyl Jr: Seat track. American Metal Products November 1965: CA 722446 (1 worldwide citation)
4. Russell G Heyl Jr: Snubbing load applying spring. American Metal Products November 1965: CA 721162 (1 worldwide citation)
5. Richard J Williams, William T Downs, Russell G Heyl Jr: Safety-side for bed. Simmons September 1964: CA 693397 (1 worldwide citation)
6. Russell G Heyl Jr, Richard J Williams: Adjusting means for the front seat of an automotive vehicle. American Metal Products January 1960: CA 591289
7. Hyland C Flint, John F Hern, Russell G Heyl Jr: Supporting means for sinuous springs. American Metal Products January 1960: CA 591288
8. Russell G Heyl Jr: Unitary body-frame construction. / Structure de corps unitaire. General Motors December 1953: CA 498826
9. Russell G Heyl Jr: Positioning mechanism for a reclining seat. Lear Siegler March 1969: CA 808429
11 Russell G Heyl Jr: Mobile unit. American Metal Products April 1966: CA 732986
12. Robert K Mclean, Russell G Heyl Jr: High load capacity seat construction. American Metal Products July 1966: CA 739354
13. Russell G Heyl Jr, Richard J Williams: Vertically and horizontally adjusted seat frame. American Metal Products June 1960: CA 600596
14. Russell G Heyl Jr, Robert G Logie, Raymond C Posh: Invalid chair. American Metal Products May 1965: CA 709662
15. Russell G Heyl Jr: Longitudinally adjustable seat track. American Metal Products April 1963: CA 661301
16. Russell G Heyl Jr: Horizontally adjustable seat track. American Metal Products February 1963: CA 657533
17. Richard J Williams, Russell G Heyl Jr, William T Downs: Motor operated hospital bed. Simmons September 1964: CA 693396
18. Russell G Heyl Jr: Power seat track having horizontal and vertical movement. American Metal Products April 1964: CA 683670
Russell & Helen
1992
1. Patricia Kay Heyl
Patricia Kay Heyl was born Feb 18 1946 in Detroit,
Wayne County, Michigan and died Nov 06 2017 in
Irving, Dallas County, Texas. She married Thomas
Benjamin Prichard Aug 16 1969 in Alden, Antrim
County, Michigan. He was born Sep 23 1942 in
Pittsburgh, Allaghany County, Pennsylvania and
died Jan 29 1976 in Kingston, Jamaica, son of
John Benjamin Prichard and Margaret Elizabeth
Pritchard. After the death of Tom, she married
secondly Andrew T. Jones. They were later divorced.
Source:
The Marion Star (Marion, Ohio) 12 Sep 1969,
Fri page 9
MICHIGAN GIRL IS WED TO THOMAS B. PRICHARD
Miss Patricia Kay Heyl and Thomas Benjamin Prichard spoke their nuptial vows Aug. 16 in the United Methodist Church at Alden, Michigan.
The formal double-ring service took place at 4:30 p.m. with Rev. Leonard Yarlett officiating. Palms and an arrangement of yellow gladioli and chrysanthemums
with orchid pompoms decorated the church. Mrs. Ellen Addington was the organist. The bride is a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Russell G. Heyl Jr., of Birming-ham, Mich. Mr. and Mrs. John Benjamin Prichard of Cam-bridge Ave. are the bridegroom’s parents.
Mr. Heyl gave his daughter in Marriage. Carrying a crescent-shaped arrangement of yellow sweetheart roses and ivy, the bride wore an off-white peau de soir gown with a bodice of alencon lace. The three-quarter length sleeves ended in a wide band of the same lace.
Her three-tie veil was held in place by a small peau de soir pillbox cap trimmed with lace and seed pearls. The bridal attendants wore moss green gowns with empire bodices of cream-colored lace. Mrs. Ronald Mallek of Birmingham was her cousin’s matron of honor. The bridesmaids were Miss Beverly Heyl, the bride’s sister, Miss Pamela Pokorny of Birmingham and Miss Jean Larkby of Cleveland.
Geoge Mans of Ann Arbor, Mich., was the best man. Guests were seated by the bride’s brother, Creig Heyl of Birmingham, and Larry Pierce of Buffalo, N.Y., and James Sheridan of Evanston, Ill.
When the couple left for a honeymoon, Mrs. Prichard wore a pale green silk jacket dress with white trim and white accessories. The bride, a graduate of Seaholm High School in Birmingham, was graduated in June from the University of Colorado.
Mr. Prichrd holds a bachelor of Business Administration degree from the University of Michigan where he became a member of Phi Delta Theta fraternity and the “M” Club. He is a 1960graduate of Harding High School. Mr. and Mrs. Prichard are residing in Boulder, Colorado, where he is employed as a teacher and assistant football coach at Boulder High School. A rehearsal dinner was given by the bridegroom’s parents at Shanty Creek Lodge, Bellaire.
..........................................................................................................................................................
Source:
The Marion Star (Marion Ohio) 3 Feb 1978 Fri page 8
FORMER HARDING PLAYER, OWNER OF AGENCY
Thomas B. Prichard, 36, of 500 Forest St.., died Sunday
evening in Kingston, Jamaica, of natural causes. Mr.
Prichard was the co-owner of John B. Prichard Insurance
Agency in Marion. He was the quarterback for the Har-
ding High School football team in 1958 when the team
became state champions and later played defensive back
for the University of Michigan football team. He also
taught and was a coach at the former Eber Baker Junior
High School.
Mr. Prichard was a member of the University of Michigan
Alumni Association and "M" Club, Phi Delta Theta frater-
nity, the Kiwanis Club, the Marion Board of Realtors, and
the Marion Insurance Agents Association.
He is survived by his widow, Patricia; a son, Thomas Keith; a daughter, Kelly Elise, and his mother, Mrs. Margaret Prichard of Marion. Funeral services will be held Monday at 2 p.m. at the First Presbyterian Church, with the Rev. James M. Urquhart presiding. Burial will be in Marion Cemetery, Friends may call at the Snyder Funeral Home Sunday from 2 to 5 p.m.
Pallbearers at the funeral will be Dr. Robert M. Finney, Jerry Bechtle, David R. Campbell, Edwin Schoonmaker, Michael c . Placentino, and Russell Heyl. The family asks that, in lieu of flowers, memorial contributions be made to the Harding High School or the University of Michigan athletic department.
...........................................................................................................................................................
Source:
Published by Marion Star on Dec. 10, 2017.
Patricia Heyl Jones
ALDEN, MI: Patricia Heyl Jones, 71, a summer resident at her beloved cottage on Torch Lake in Alden, Michigan, passed away unexpectedly on November 5, 2017 at Las Colinas Medical Center in Irving, Texas following a brief illness. She spent her winters in Irving, Texas and at her desert home at Borrego Springs, California.
Patricia (Patty) was born on February 18, 1946 in Detroit, Michigan the daughter of Russell and Margaret Tichenor Heyl. She grew up in Birmingham, Michigan where Patty graduated from Birmingham's Seaholm High School in 1964. She went on to the University of Colorado, was a member of Chi Omega sorority, and graduated with a Bachelor's Degree in Education. In 1969 she married Thomas B. Prichard, of Marion, Ohio, a former football athlete and graduate of the University of Michigan. Both were ardent fans and supporters of the University for the balance of their lives. Patty was a selfless person with a bright spirit and uplifting attitude that impacted everyone with whom she came in contact. Patty thoroughly enjoyed taking her grandchildren to the park, and she has left quite a legacy with her many friends and loving family. Patty is survived by her son Keith (Hannah) Prichard of Raleigh, North Carolina and daughter Kelly (Paul) Judge of Spartanburg, South Carolina, her sister Beverly Johnston of West Palm Beach, Florida, brother Dr. Creighton Heyl of Will-oughby, Ohio, nine grandchildren, a niece and nephew, and former husband Andrew T. Jones. .
Patty was committed to her family and friends and fervent in the advancement of literacy. She generously gave time to the tutoring and mentoring of students in language, reading, and writing in the Borrego Springs school system and public library. She was also adjunct faculty in the Communications/English department at Northwestern Michigan College in Traverse City. In addition, she was active in her community and committed in her support of the Torch (Lake) Conservation Center with the goal of protecting the Lake and all the waters and land within it's watershed. Patty liked the outdoors, was an environmentalist, and was an avid tennis player and runner. .
Patty was a member of the St. Barnabas Episcopal Church in Borrego Springs, CA. A memorial service will be held this winter in Marion, Ohio and in the spring of 2018 in Alden, Michigan, both at a place and time to be announced. The family respectfully requests that Patty be remembered through memorial contributions to the Torch Conservation Center, P. O. Box 178, Alden, Michigan 49612 or the Borrego Springs Library, P.O. Box 685, Borrego Springs, California.
Published by Marion Star on Dec. 10, 2017.
2. Creighton Gregory Heyl (living)
3. Beverly Ann Heyl (Living)
Children:
1. Patricia Kay Heyl
2. Creighton Gregory Heyl
2. Beverly Ann Heyl
2. Blanche Marie Tichenor
Blanche Marie Tichenor was born Jan 07, 1919, in Detroit, Wayne, Michigan, USA, and died on Oct 16 1968 in Bloomfield Hills, Oakland, Michigan, USA. She married James Dewey Daane on Apr 28 1941 in Richmond, Wise, Virginia, USA. He was born Jul 06 1918. They were divorced BEFORE 1053. She married second, Daniel John Boucher Sr. on Oct 30 1959 in Michigan, USA. He was born Aug 07 1924 in Cheboygan, Cheboygan, Michigan, USA and died May 03 2002 in Jackson, Jackson, Michigan, USA, son of Kenneth Gladstone Boucher and Nellie K Monaghan.
James Dewey Daane
Nashville, TN
James Dewey Daane, born on July 6, 1918, in Grand Rapids, Michigan to Gilbert Leonard Daane and Mamie Blocksma Daane passed away on January 3, 2017, in Nashville, Tennessee. Dewey is also preceded in death by siblings, Gilbert Warren Daane and Elizabeth Marie Davidson; and nephew, G. Warren Daane, Jr.
Dewey is survived by his wife of 54 years, Barbara Daane, children; Elizabeth Marie Daane Mallek, Elizabeth Whitney Daane, and Olivia Quartel Daane, grandchildren; Brent James Mallek (Kelly), Gregory Scott Mallek (Bethany), Ki-Lin Daane Black, and Daane Williamson Reische, great-grandchildren; Daane Wesley Mallek and Emily Rose Mallek, nieces and nephews; Mary Davidson Twist, Dorothy Davidson Sellers, Ellen Elizabeth Ashley, Robert Berry Daane (Holly) and Charles Daane (Elizabeth), and numerous great-nieces and great-nephews.
Dewey was a graduate of Duke University (BA, 1939) and went on to receive his Master's and Doctorate in Public Administration from Harvard University's Littauer School, now The Kennedy School of Government. He holds the unique distinction of being Harvard's first Doctor in Public Administration. Monetary and fiscal policy and the Federal Reserve System were his first loves, beginning in 1938 at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, Virginia where he spent twenty years until moving to Washington, D.C. to serve as Deputy Under Secretary of the Treasury for Monetary Affairs. While at the Treasury Department, he caught the eye of President John F. Kennedy who ultimately appointed him as a Governor of the Federal Reserve Board in 1963. His proudest moment was the hour he spent with President Kennedy before his appointment in November 1963, shortly before the President's death, making him the last of his major appointees. Dewey ultimately served under four U.S. presidents, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon, and went on to advise on economic policy during the Reagan administration as an advisor to the Congressional Budget Office.
.
In 1974 Dewey and their family moved to Nashville, Tennessee where he was Vice Chairman of the Board of Commerce Union Bank and a professor for 42 years at the Owen Graduate School of Management. He loved advising and guiding the careers of his students, especially those from overseas (OWIBA) as well as those in the Executive MBA program…students from Greece, Taiwan, India, Colombia (to name a few!) became regular fixtures at holiday celebrations in the Daane home. He also served as a public director to both the Chicago Board of Trade and the National Futures Association and as a director of the Whittaker Corporation, a multi-national company based in Los Angeles, from 1974-1989. Until his death, Dewey was a regular contributor to both the Wall Street Journal's monthly and USA TODAY's quarterly economic forecast surveys. He would sit at the breakfast room table with newspapers strewn far and wide with his mechanical pencil scribbling indecipherable figures for Barbara to interpret, type and fax!
There are so many stories about Dewey…unbelievable, inspirational, and humorous all at once. In spite of his remarkable career, his total devotion to the Federal Reserve System and the world economy, he never took himself too seriously. He described himself as "affable and artless". A man with a wry sense of humor and sweet humanity, Dewey was liked by everyone. He had a way with people and collected them from every walk of life. Everyone was interesting to him, and he collected new friends everywhere he went…on airplanes, in airports, on street corners, basically, anyone that sat down next to him! His great love was tennis, anywhere …anytime. Winter or summer he carried his racquet on all of his international trips and would find a game in the most unlikely of places. He loved swimming in his beloved Elk Lake in Elk Rapids, Michigan where, even after a traumatic drowning experience a few years ago, he continued to swim! Singing hymns and Broadway show tunes were a daily occurrence, one never knew when he and Barbara would burst into song! One of the few things that he could not do well was dance, but he was an enthusiastic aficionado of the "Michigan Shuffle" and gets an "A" for effort! He was tenacious, brave, and a stubborn Dutchman. He loved his family beyond words and was mostly concerned with their well-being, especially when he became ill. A connoisseur of beautiful things: art, music, china, crystal, delicious food, and men's suits (all gray). He loved to travel and shop in all of his destinations and for many years was in charge of Barbara, Whitney, and Olivia's wardrobes! Dewey had very specific ideas about interior design in that the longer he had owned it, the better it became. The only change that slipped by him in 54 years was the repainting of his den's ceiling in red…he was not pleased!
He was a member of Phi Beta Kappa, Delta Tau Delta fraternity, The Bretton Woods Committee, The Exchange Club of Nashville, The Round Table, The Matt Wigginton High-Level Economic Conference, and The Belle Meade Country Club. When asked at a party whom he would like to come back as in his next life, his response was, "I'd like to be me all over again!" It was an extraordinary life well-lived. Ninety-eight years is not enough. He will be missed forever.
Ronald J. Mallek, Brent J. Mallek, Gregory S. Mallek, Daane W. Mallek, William F.
Forrester and George Doupsas will serve as pallbearers. Weaver C. Barksdale, Dennis C. Bottorff, James W. Bradford, William G. Christie, Douglas Cruickshanks, Jr., Brownlee O. Currey, Jr., T. Aldrich Finegan, Luke M. Froeb, William L. Harbison, M. Eric Johnson, The Honorable Donald Kohn, Edward J. DeMarco, Vince Melamed, James L. McGregor, William E. J. McMann, Jr., Charles Nelson III, David C. Parsley, Billy J. Rigsby, R. Bruce Shack, John F. Stein, Hans R. Stoll, The Honorable Paul A. Volcker, and John Walsh will serve as honorary pallbearers.
Visitation will be held on Friday, January 13th, 2017 from 1:00 p.m.-3:00 p.m. at St. George's Episcopal Church. The funeral service will be held at 3:00 p.m. on Friday at the church.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to Dewey Daane Scholarship at Owen Graduate School of Management: Vanderbilt University, Park Center Recovery from Mental Illness, St. George's Episcopal Church in Nashville, Duke University, Harvard Kennedy School of Government, First Presbyterian Church in Elk Rapids, MI, Alive Hospice Nashville.
...........................................................................................................................................................
Source:
Detroit Free Press 18 Oct 1968, Fri page 3
By Ladd Neuman
DENTIST HELD IN SLAYINGS
Dr. Daniel J. Boucher, 44, an orthodontist, had all the best and worst consequences of wealth – a $70,000 home, a $500,000 country estate and a bitter divorce. He began to talk increasingly to friends, family and police, reportedly threatening at times to hurt his ex-wife. Nevertheless, his stepdaughter, for one, always believed that Boucher was just “a big blabbermouth, an insufferable talker who would never really do anything, someone whose bark was bigger than his bite.”
Boucher’s ex-wife, Blanche, 52, former fashion model, and son, Daniel Jr., 7, were killed by a series of close-range shotgun blasts Wednesday night at the family’s West Bloomfield Township home.
Dr. Boucher was charged in the slaying Thursday. He waived examination before Justice of the Peace Christian F. Powell and was taken to the Oakland County Jail, where he is being held on an open charge of murder.
Boucher was arrested by Birmingham police after he engaged in a gun fight with his stepdaughter’s husband. The shootout occurred at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Ronald Mallek, 1524 Fairway, Birmingham.
According to Mrs. Mallek, 25, her husband Ronald has received a warning call that Boucher was looking for him and Mrs. Boucher. Mrs. Mallek said the call came from James Hudnut , the attorney who handled her mother’s divorce case. She explained that Boucher had told a business friend, George Thomas, his intentions, who in turn, called Hudnut .
When Hudnut phone his warning to Mallek shortly after 9 p.m., Hudnut was hoping to save Mrs. Boucher. Evidence indicates she was probably already dead. Neverthe less, the call may have saved the lives of Mallek, 30, and his family.
Mallek turned out the lights in his house and went for a .22 revolver. He called an operator to ask for police aid and was on the phone when Boucher arrived, rang the doorbell, and then shot out a front picture window. Boucher was crawling through the window when Mallek began firing. Mallek emptied his revolver and then fled to a bedroom to get more ammunition.
Mrs. Mallek said her stepfather then crawled through the the front window and went from room to room, leaving bloody fingerprints on each of the light switches. Although he was, at times, in two separate rooms where her two children were sleeping, he did not harm them. As Mallek attempted to reload his gun, Boucher walked outside where he was met by arresting officers, Patrolman Gordon Baker and Sgt. Millard Squire. They said he gave up without a struggle.
During his rampage through the house, Boucher fired many rounds from his shotgun (at least six shells were found) and Mallek said the damage to their home was extensive. Mallek was not injured. The doctor was hurt only by cut glass and was treated at William Beaumont Hospital.
West Bloomfield Township detectives are questioning neighbors to see if anyone witnessed the shootings at the Boucher home on Pine Lake. They have not indicated if any witnesses have been found.
Mrs. Boucher’s body was found outside, several feet from a side doorway. Daniel J. was discovered lying beside a couch in a combination bedroom-sitting room, They were both clad in nightclothes.
…………………………………………………………………………………....………………………......................……………
Source:
Petoskey News-Review 17 Oct 1968 page 4
…..”I’m a real estate agent, “ Mallek explained later, “and I’ve been authorized by the Oakland County Probate Court to sell some of the property in the divorce settlement of my wife’s mother.”
Boucher has been quite upset about it and I suppose that’s why he came here,” Mallek said.
Boucher’s property included a $500,000 estate in Oxford which was formerly owned by millionaire Clair Buhl. A neighbor said Boucher was an avid gun collector who “owned at least 200 Guns.”
……………………………………………………………………………...………………......................………………………….
Source:
Detroit Free Press 2 Nov 1975, Sun page 3
By Kirk Cheyfitz
Slayer Sparks Mental Code Tug-of-War
Dr. Daniel J. Boucher carried the 16-gauge shotgun down a gentle slope to the L-shaped ranch house in the rich suburbs of West Bloomfield Township. The house was very familiar to the wealthy dentist. Until his divorce, five months before, it had been his home. Now, his ex-wife, Blanche, 52, and their seven-year-old son, Daniel Jr., lived there alone.
Boucher knocked on the door and went inside. Within the next few minutes, he fired his shotgun at least five times, killing his wife and son. The first blast from the $1,000 shotgun blew apart his wife’s mid-section. Boucher later told a psychiatrist that he had shot first at his wife’s stomach because it was the most evil part of her body.
He shot her a total of four times and then walked to a spare room where his son had hidden under the bed. He leaned down and killed the boy with a single shot. Although Boucher freely admits that he hated and feared his wife, he still does not understand why he killed his son.
But Boucher’s obscurity ended abruptly last month when he became, for the moment, the center of one of the most complex and important legal controversies in Michigan – the controversy over how society should deal with an insane individual who has committed a violent crime.
The psychiatrists of Northville State Hospital where Boucher is now a patient, believe that limited leaves from the hospital are the best form of treatment right now for Boucher’s mental illness. Last month, as part of a continuing program of leaves, they granted him a 30-day furlough to visit his elderly parents at their home on Lake Huron, near Cheboygan………..
……………………………………………………………………........................…………………………………………………..
Detroit Free Press Tue, Apr 7, 1981 Page 3
By Mary Trueman
DENTIST GUILTY IN MURDER OF EX-WIFE
A jury convicted Dr. Daniel J. Boucher, a former Birmingham
orthodontist, of first-degree murder Monday in October 1968
death of his ex-wife in her West Bloomfield Township home.
The jury, made up of nine men and three women, delivered the
verdict after about two hours of deliberation, finding Boucher, 57,
guilty in the death of Blanche Boucher. Boucher, who police said
admitted he had killed his ex-wife with a shotgun, pleaded innocent
by reason of insanity. He was convicted in a non-jury trial in 1970,
but that conviction was overturned on a technicality in 1973 and 1976,
he was found mentally incompetent to stand trial.
Boucher has not been tried in the death of his seven-year-old son, who was killed by a shotgun blast the same night as Blanche Boucher. In 1976, after Boucher had spent eight years in mental health hospitals, state mental health officials decided he was no longer a danger to himself or his community, and released him to the custody of his parents in Cheboygan.
When Oakland County Prosecutor, L. Brooks Patterson learned Boucher had been released, he petitioned the court to reinstate charges against him. After being ordered to undergo a psychiatric exam, Boucher shot himself in an apparent suicide attempt. (He had shot himself with a shotgun, in the face, blowing away half of his jaw.) He recovered, underwent the examination, and was judged competent to stand trial in December 1978.
Boucher’s defense of insanity was built on a psychiatrist’s testimony that he believed his ex-wife was part of an international lesbian conspiracy, and that he would get a Congressional Medal of Honor for killing her….
….Boucher, scheduled to be sentenced April 28, faces mandatory life imprisonment. He listened to the jury’s verdict with no apparent emotion and on the advice of his attorney’s advice refused to talk with reporters.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….....................
…………………………………………………………………........................……………………………………………………..
In 1927, Lawrence D. and Cora Peck Buhl bought land in northern Oakland County and hired Robert O. Derrick to design their summer home. The finest materials, including hardwood floors, marble fireplaces, pewter sconces, and imported stones were used in its construction. Dr. D.J. Boucher bought the land in 1965, first using the home as his residence and later establishing the Tudor Hills Gun Club and Game Preserve. When Dr. Boucher fell on hard times in 1969, the Oakland Parks and Recreation Commission acquired the property, now known as Addison County Park.
Source:
Detroit Free Press Fri Oct 18 1968 page 20
BOUCHER
Blanche Marie, Oct 16, 1968. Mother of Mrs. Ronald J. Mallek and the late Daniel John Boucher Jr., sister of Mrs. Russell Heyl; also survived by two grand-children. Funeral services at Bell Chapel of the Wm. R. Hamilton Co. 820 E. Maple Ave., Birmingham, Saturday at 11 a.m.
BOUCHER
Daniel John Jr., Oct 16, 1968. Age 7 years. Son of Dr. Daniel J. Boucher Sr. and the late Blanche Marie Boucher; brother of Mrs. Ronald J. Mallek; grandson of Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth Boucher of Cheboygan, Mich. Funeral service at Bell Chapel of the Wm. R. Hamilton Co., 629 E Maple Ave., Birmingham, Saturday at 11 a.m.
(Getting ready for Church (About 1965) Daniel John Boucher Jr. Beverly A. Heyl, Dr. Elmore D. Tichenor, Blanche T Boucher, Margaret T. Heyl)
Children:
Blanche and Dewey had one daughter
1. Elizabeth Marie Daane (Living)
Blanche and Daniel had one son
2. Daniel John Boucher Jr.
BLANCHE MARIE TICHENOR