A Charming Bride

Richardson-Talbott Wedding Announcement

With her marriage to Boss Talbott on 21 Nov 1915, Esther's courtship came to a happy end.  The marriage announcement above was printed in the Halifax Gazette.  She and Boss married in the the parlor of the The Manse of South Boston.  It is possible the Manse referred to in the announcement above was the colonial house known as Green's Folly located about 2 miles from Halifax, VA.  (Among its various ownerships and functions over many years, Green's Folly was a country club during this time period. It was sold in 1918 to again become a private residence.)

Otey Talbott and Myrtle Talbott were siblings of Boss and served as wedding attendants.  Myrtle was also a friend of Esther's as evidenced by their correspondence through letters and postcards in Esther's collection.  Edward and Annie Steube were brother and sister.  Their stepmother was Geneva Talbott Steube, Boss's aunt. Though not related by blood, they were likely considered cousins.

Did you spot the mistake in Esther's mother's name?  The marriage announcement listed Esther's mother as Addie Richardson instead of Hattie Richardson.  It appears the announcement  may have been written by someone who did not know the family well.  Another possibility for the error was simply a typographical error.

Esther and Boss began their married life on his farm in Jeffress, VA.  Throughout her marriage, Esther continued to correspond with her family and friends, though a little less frequently.  Her busy life as a young farm wife and then mother would have made it difficult to write often.

The story of Esther's courtship has ended, but I still have the letters she wrote and that she received after her marriage.  Her correspondence continues to tell her story and I look forward to learning about Esther's life in her new role.

Could This Be Will?

Could This Be William Elliott?

The Courtship of Esther series showed that my great grandmother was popular with the young men.  The large number of postcards and letters exchanged proved that fact.  So, the large number of unidentified photos that were also hers?  Could these be photos of her suitors?   Perhaps the photographs are not of family as I first thought. Likely I will never know for sure, but this photo?

One of the young men who corresponded with Esther the longest was Will Elliott. The photo above might be Will.  In a letter dated 11 Mar 1913, Will makes reference to being in Washington, D.C. and having his photo taken.  Examining this photo shows that it was taken in Washingotn, D. C. by Johnson Bros photographer on Penna Ave, Washington, DC.  From his military papers, I learned that Will had blue eyes, medium brown hair and a fair complexion.  It could be him.  Maybe?

Maybe not? As I write this I can think of several reasons the photo would not be Will Elliott.  Oh dear! (I mean, Oh Yeah!)  I now have the opportunity to embark on some photographer research. Wish me luck!

The Courtship of Esther, Part 6

Boss (Bossy) Henry Talbott



Boss Henry "Bossy" Talbott



Today you will meet Esther's final suitor and my great grandfather, Boss Henry Talbott.  (Bossy to his family and friends.) I find his story the hardest to write, perhaps because I know it the best.  His letters and postcards seem to show a man who was different than the rest.  His words were not flowery or eloquent. He did not proclaim his love on the front of a postcard for all to see.  I suppose he was more quiet in his declarations, less "out there" in today's terminology. His letters and postcards proved to be the most difficult of all to read.  He spelled his words phonetically and his handwriting was not the best.  Bossy also tended to write in pencil (a dull pencil!), and the passage of 90+ years has not been kind to the writing.  Regardless, his feelings came through the grammatical mistakes and poor penmanship.  He wrote more letters than postcards.  Perhaps he had more to share with Esther than could fit on a postcard.  Perhaps it was the privacy of the sealed envelope he preferred.



Dear.......Yours rec just a few days ago and was very glad to heare frome you and to heare that you were enjoying your self just fine.........




Boss Talbott's signature

 Above is the first page of a six page letter Boss sent to Esther in May of 1914.  I believe this may have been one of the earliest letters of this type he sent to her.  It was not unusual in his letters for Boss to address Esther as simply "Dear".  I find that rather, well, endearing. 

Unlike many of her other suitors, Bossy was not a "city boy".  He grew up in Mecklenburg and Halifax Counties,Va.  He was the son of a farmer Joseph M. Talbott and his wife Rosa Bowen. (His real name was Johnnie Hodies Talbott.  No one is quite sure why he changed his name or when. He was using the name Boss as of 1914.) Bossy was their second child born 15 Dec 1886.  He was a farmer and worked on the family farm until he was able to have his own. Even then he lived next door to his parents.

How did Bossy and Esther meet?

I have no direct evidence of their first meeting.  I can only put together the clues taken the letters of Esther, her mother Hattie, her cousins and the federal census records to come up with possibilities.  In Nov 1912, Esther's father Daniel T Richardson died.  In the January of 1913, letters between Esther and her friend Nannie Lee Farson indicate that Esther's mother Harriet moved the family to News Ferry, Halifax, VA.  Census records for 1910 and 1920 show Harriet's brothers (and Esther's uncles) C. R. Elliott and John Elliott were in the same vacinity of Halifax County. (C. R. died in 1915.)  It appears that Harriet moved her children and herself to be closer to her family. 

If one backs up in the census records to 1900, C. R. Elliott and his family including his son William F Elliott was living next door to the family of Joseph M Talbott including his son Bossy (Johnnie).  It can also be noted that C. R.'s wife Bettie was Bossy's sister Sarah Elizabeth "Bettie" Talbott.   Obviously the Talbotts and Elliotts had close family ties from the time Boss and Esther were very small children. Possibly Esther and Boss met as children or as young teens while visiting relatives or attending a community event.  It is impossible to know for sure.

How they met is perhaps not as important as the fact they did meet and a courtship took place.  A letter to Esther from her sister Katie alluded to the fact that Esther and Boss initially kept their engagement a secret!  No reason was given and the wedding was itself not a suprise.  I do think the Esther and Boss's wedding broke a few young men's hearts!

The story of Esther's courtship is complete, but her story is not.  A new chapter is starting, and I hope you will continue to follow Esther's story in coming posts.

The Courtship of Esther, Part 5

William F. Elliott

William F. Elliott was perhaps Esther's suitor who endured the longest.  The earliest postcard from William, known as Will,  is dated 1912 and he continued to correspond with her until late1914. Will's story is a little different from the other suitors' stories.  Most of his correspondence came while he was stationed around the country serving in the military. Will generally sent Esther two types of cards.  The first type being the view card which depicted a scene or building from the location he was in.  (This is the type of card often sent today of a place visited such as the Empire State building in New York or the Grand Canyon in Arizona.)  The second type of card Will sent to Esther expressed his thoughts and intentions as a suitor.  It's hard to mistake Will's intention when he sent the cards below.



Postcard from WFE postmarked Ft. McPherson, Atlanta, GA



Postcard from WFE postmarked San Antonio, TX


Now here's where the story gets interesting.

Will Elliott was the son of C. R. Elliott and Eudore Ware.  He was the stepson of Sarah "Bettie" (Talbott). Elliott.  C. R. and Esther's mother Harriett were brother and sister.  That made Will and Esther first cousins.  That gave me pause as I considered the fact.  While this would not occur in today's society, marrying a cousin this close was still a possibility a hundred years ago. 

Will was born 1 in October 1883 and was 13 years Esther's senior. Enlistment records show he enlisted in the military in 1904.  A re-enlistment document was also found for 1910 to include a service period of 3 years. From his military enlistment documents, Will can be described as having had medium brown hair, blue eyes and a fair complexion.  He was 5'7" in height.  Esther received postcards from Fort McPherson in Atlanta, GA, Fort Slocum in New York, and Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, TX. His military discharge records indicated Will's service record was "very good".

Will's personality comes out in his postcards and letters to Esther. He appeared proud of his military career, often signing his postcards W.F. Elliott  Sergeant Co.A 17th Inf. Family also appeared important to him.  Will frequently asks about other cousins or Esther's father D. T. Richardson and mother Harriett. [D. T. Richardson died in Nov 1913.]  He also frequently referred to having received Esther's own letters indicating this likely was not a one sided courtship. How often Esther and Will saw each other is not known. He was obviously away from home for a number of years while serving in the military.  Perhaps their courtship was mostly by the written word.  Regardless of the nature of their courtship, Will and Esther's courtship came to an end sometime in 1914. Will went on to marry Florence Satterfield and continued to serve in the military through WWI.  He passed away in Durham, NC and is buried in the Elliott Family Cemetery in Keeling, VA.

Like the other suitors, Will proved not to be the ONE.  You'll meet him in the next post.....

The Courtship of Esther, Part 4

Going to the mailbox must have been an adventure for Esther. Did she look forward to it? Anticipate whose letter she might receive? Did she go with some trepidation? Anxious over whose card she might (or might not) receive?  Did she worry that her younger siblings would read her postcards?  Postcards put thoughts and messages out to the public.  The answers to these questions will never be known.  One can only speculate as to the real answers.

In 1913 and 1914 the postcards from Esther's suitors just kept coming.  Esther was 17-18 years old.  In all, Esther had over a dozen suitors writing to her.  The ones highlighted here sent 2-3 postcards each to Esther.  Not a lot is known about these young men.  In some cases, not even their real identity is known.

WJH sent this card to Esther in January 1913, lamenting about not being able to see her at Christmas time.  He hoped to see her soon and told her to be "good as ever".  From the picture on the card, there is no doubt in his intention to woe Esther.  I do not know the identity of WJH.  He only signed with his initials.  On none of his postcards does he sign his full name; however his postcards are postmarked South Boston, VA.

This card was sent from Willie Meadows of the Ringgold, VA area.  Willie is another suitor lamenting a missed opporutnity to see Esther.  In this case, Willie missed taking Esther to a picnic.  Perhaps he sent the card to make sure she knew he was still interested.

There was no question about the message this suitor was sending in February 1914.  NWC was yet another suitor who missed an opportunity to see Esther at a local fair.  "Let's Get Married" was a bold sentiment to send.  Was he really proposing or just making reassuring Esther of his intentions as a suitor?  Esther only saved a few cards from NWC indicating he may have been more interested in her than she in him.  I wonder what she wrote back to him.

None of these young men proved to the ONE for Esther.  He was quietly in the background.....

The Courtship of Esther, Part 3

Howard Roberts

Howard Roberts proved to be one of Esther’s most ardent admirers. He wrote her frequently, sending her postcards and letters. He felt slighted when she didn’t write back. He lost sleep when she asked him not to write anymore. It would appear he lost out on Esther’s affections to Boss Talbott…but I am getting ahead of the story.

Can you make out the writing on the bottom right hand side? It says: Gee! I wish I had a girl.

Howard’s first card in Esther’s collection is postmarked March 1912. His last letter to her is dated Feb 1914. For two years he corresponded with Esther. As Esther’s suitor Ira Satterfield did, Howard also signed his cards in code. His code was 8 12 18. Once I “cracked the code”, I discovered that Howard wrote more frequently than initially thought. How often they actually saw each other, I do not know. Mostly Howard wrote about the weather and who of their mutual friends he had seen. He seemed to let the picture on the postcard speak to his true feelings.

By the spring of 1913, Howard was writing longer letters. His letters often started with the line: I take the gratest of pleasur in writeing you a fue lines to let you here from me.

How sweet! You won’t find lines like that on Facebook and Twitter! On March 16, 1913 Howard wrote “I ben looking at your picture wishing I could see you.” and “I ben staying at home every Sunday since you ben gone.” Finally he declares in feelings, “Esther you is the only girl I ever cred [cared] any thing for.” Unfortunately, he is not sure she feels the same way.

Just who is Howard Roberts? Howard Lee Roberts was born 27 Sep 1894 and was the son of Jacob and Elizabeth Roberts of Dan River, Pittsylvania, VA. He likely lived in the Kentuck area as several of his postcards feature Kentuck, VA. Kentuck is also the area where some of Esther’s Richardson family resided. As with previous suitors, I used his WWI and WWII draft cards to learn that he had blue eyes, brown hair and a ruddy complexion. He was 5’6” tall. By the 1920 census, Howard is married to Mattie, a woman ten years his senior.

Howard's last letter to Esther is in February 1914.  He laments not being able to see her since she is now seeing that Mr. Tolbert [Talbott].  Obviously, Howard was not THE ONE either.

The Courtship of Esther, Part 2

In 1913 Ira Satterfield took a fancy to 17 year old Esther Richardson. He wrote a number of postcards to Esther and one of the interesting things that came to light is that he signed the cards in code. By comparing the handwriting on his signed card with the cards signed in his signature code, I was able to determine which of the postcards Esther saved were sent from Ira.

The code turns out to be a simple substitution pattern where each letter of the alphabet is given a number. For example: A=1, B=2, C=3…… Ira signed his cards 9 3 19. I = 9, C = 3. S= S. 9 3 19 = Ira C Satterfield. Ira even had a code for Esther: 5 12 18 (ELR).

On the front of the postcard below, Ira has written : (It is a little difficult to see in this photo.)

9.13.19          (I.C. S)

+                  +

5.12.18           (E.L.R)

Bye, Bye                    

Amore                        

It would also appear Ira may have been student of Latin. He signed one of the cards Vale which translates “farewell”. On the opposite side of the card he added Vale me amori (Farewell my love). I cannot be certain of his Latin skills, but Ira’s sentiment comes through clearly.

I turned to the records at Ancestry.com to learn more about this young man who appeared so infatuated with my great grandmother. Just who was Ira Satterfield? According to the 1900 U. S. census, Ira was the son of Ed and Mary E Satterfield of Birch Creek, Halifax, VA. He was born on 6 Oct 1893 and at the time he was writing to Esther he was about 19 years old. He lived in Vernon Hill, Halifax County, VA not far from News Ferry where Esther lived. According to his WWI draft card, Ira claimed a physical disability of “one weak eye”. His WWII draft card provided his physical description. He was 5’5” with brown eyes and hair and a dark complexion. Dark and handsome, maybe. But tall, not really.

I was unable to determine how Ira and Esther met. Perhaps they met through a mutual acquaintance or through one of Esther’s cousins. Ira’s cousin Florence Satterfield eventually became the wife of Esther’s cousin William F Elliott. (Esther and Will were first cousins and very close over the years.) Ira also knew Esther’s brother Rueben who he mentions in one of his letters. I will never know what caused Ira to drop from Esther’s favor as a suitor. Perhaps she dropped from his favor. The postcards only cover a few months time. Regardless, Ira Satterfield proved not to be THE ONE.

The Courtship of Esther

Esther L Richardson

My great grandmother had her choice of suitors. Would it be Howard, Luther, or Willie? Would it be William, or Roddie or Ira? Would it be the mysterious NWC or the ever popular “Guess Who”. The answer is “none of the above.” Though declaring their intentions and sometimes love in letters and postcards, Esther chose another. She chose Boss.

I set out recently to get to know my great grandmother Esther Lee Richardson (21 Nov 1896 – 5 Jan 1923). Her parents were Daniel T Richardson and Harriet Elliott. She grew up in Pittsylvania and Halifax Counties, Virginia. I have always known her name and vital statistics. I grew up hearing the story of her death from influenza at the age of 27. But my study of her this time was different. I wanted to know her. I wanted to know her beyond the basic vital statistics.

There is no one left that remembers Esther. My source of information about her came from the large collection of postcards and letters she received and sent. The earliest postcard is postmarked 1901 and the series continued up until her death in 1923. The collection passed through several family members before coming to me. I spent a weekend organizing and reading each postcard and letter.

Reading each postcard, I stepped further into Esther’s world. I entered the world of an early 1900’s teenager. In a time before cell phones, facebook and twitter, Esther managed to stay every bit as connected as her great-great grandchildren do with their friends today. I kept a list of every sender and of each person mentioned in the postcards and letter. As expected I found cousins, aunts, and uncles mentioned. I also discovered that Esther was very popular with the boys. She had about a dozen suitors declaring their intentions between 1911 and 1915 until her engagement. I am not sure what surprised me more: the fact that she had that many suitors or the fact that she kept all their letters after she was married! (Of course, that means that her husband kept them with her things after she died. Hmmmm……I wonder if he read them.)

Who were these suitors?

Willie W.

Willie W sent Esther several cards between 1911 and 1912. I have not been able to fully identify Willie, but I do have a few clues. Willie’s cards were postmarked from News Ferry, VA. News Ferry is located in Halifax County and the area where Esther’s Elliott relatives resided. Perhaps Willie was someone she met while on a visit. Mostly Willie asks about the weather. He does write in one card about having the “hoping cought” [whooping cough] and that he is looking forward to seeing her when he is well again. I love what he wrote to her in Oct 1911:

When you are sitting all alone and thinking of the past,

Remember that you have a friend as long as life shall last.

Willie W



1911 Postcard from Willie W

 Follow the story of Esther’s suitors in upcoming posts.