Introduction: Previously, the Seeser story marked the Emma’s struggles during the 1903 Flood and Kansas City urban renewal in Valentine Seeser – A Legacy Left in Kansas City & The 1903 Flood. This is the seventh installment of the genealogical saga of Valentine Seeser and his family. This begins the story of Valentine and Emma Seeser’s three sons. When Valentine moved to New York City in 1899 to start a new life and new family, Emma remained in Kansas City living a precarious existence near the West Bottoms in Kansas City. The great flood of 1903 and the demolition of her home in 1904, left Emma in a near hopeless situation. What became of her is a mystery, only that she was still living in Kansas City in 1918 and 1920, but, thereafter her paper trial vanishes.
For at least twenty-two years Emma clung to the West Bluffs no doubt taking a tremendous amount of grit, tenacity, and will power to hold on, and raise three children, in spite of the poor conditions she lived thru. I could not help asking, “Were her efforts worth it?”
Hoping that Emma’s efforts were not in vain, I went searching for her three sons in an attempt to reveal their sagas. I discovered all three of Emma’s sons managed to make it on their own, lead fairly successful lives, and moved Emma’s legacy forward. Emma’s efforts were worthy, and her character certainly influenced her children, infusing them with a measure of her courage, strength, and will. Their stories provide the testimony.
George Albert Seeser
When George Bedell was enumerated in the 1900 census in Kansas City, he is shown to have been born in February of 1875, in Illinois. Evidence suggests this may well be George Albert Seeser, the eldest son of Valentine and Emma.
An analysis of various records determine George was born in February between 1874 – 1879 in Cincinnati, Ohio, where the Seeser family originated.
George Alber Seeser
The only record linking Valentine and Emma Seeser directly to George is a marriage license where George, acting as the informant, claimed his parents were Valentine and Emma Seeser. The marriage took place on 16 January 1901 in Davenport, Iowa between G. A. Seeser and Florence Watkins. On the marriage return, which George A Seeser signed, he testified to be 23 years of age, born in Cincinnati, Ohio [1878], living in Chicago, Illinois, and employed as a cook. His mother’s maiden name was mysteriously noted as “cannot tell.” This was George’s first marriage. [1]
At first this seems rather unlikely to be the same George Seeser of Kansas City, but, clues to George’s occupation help to support his testimony on his marriage return.
Two records validate George residing and working as a cook in Chicago in 1901. George can be found in the Chicago directory living at 610 Root and employed as a cook. Additionally, at the time of his marriage, a newspaper article reported George working “in the culinary department of the Transit house” in Chicago, Illinois. Before he lived in Chicago, George had gained experience as a food preparer in Kansas City. [2]
In 1899, G.A. Seeser is found in the Kansas City directory employed as a cook at the Blossom House, a luxury hotel, located opposite of Union Station in the West Bottoms of Kansas City, Missouri. The hotel would have been a prime place of employment to gain experience in the culinary arts. [3]
An 1899 advertisement boasted The Blossom House as “absolutely first class” with a “European plan, steam heat, excellent table,” and featured a “fine cafe and restaurant” offering “every inducement to the traveler.”
Blossom House – 1900
Missouri Valley Special Collections
Kansas City Public Library, Kansas City, Missouri
Street cars connected the hotel to all parts of Kansas City and was noted as a well-known gathering place for celebrities and politicians. So many political intrigues and meetings were conducted at the hotel, it was heralded as the second capital of Kansas. [4]
Before leaving Kansas City for Chicago, George had initially traveled to Davenport Iowa, where we find him enumerated in 1900 as George Siler, engaged as a cook at the Kimball House. George Siler’s personal information in the census fits closely with George Seeser’s biographical data, namely his age is recorded as 26 and born in February of 1874 in Ohio. In 1902, a Davenport newspaper mentioned George Seeser had been a chef at the Kimball House. [5]
The Kimball House was a luxury hotel and considered the jewel of Davenport, featuring gas lighting, running water, telegraph service, and elevators. The main line of the Chicago Rock Island and Pacific Railroad stopped on a platform at the hotel entrance offering a convenience for weary travelers. Next door was found one of the premier entertainment offerings of the West, the Burtis Opera House, which featured a number of famous entertainers and attractions of the times. [6]
But, for George, the Kimball House offered much more than employment. A young servant, Florence Watkins caught his eye, a nineteen year old coworker who was enumerated a few lines down from Geo. Siler, and the same woman named in George’s Davenport marriage records of 1901. [7]
Burtis Opera House & Kimball House
Florence Watkins
Florence was the daughter of Elisha Watkins and Nancy Jennie Griffith who had been raising their family in Davenport Iowa as early as 1888. George and Florence were quietly married at the Watkins home at 14th & Ripley with only the witnesses and immediate family present. The ceremony took place at 9:00 at night, officiated by the pastor of the St. Pauls English Evangelist Lutheran Church. The couples marriage license indicated this was Florence’s first marriage, but a newspaper article noted this was a “second wedding” for Florence, and indeed it was. Further, Florence’s first marriage came with more than one scandal. [8]
Florence Watkins’ First Marriage
Back in 1896, Florence Augusta Caroline Edna Watkins married Nelson Munger on August 25. The ceremony was officiated by the justice of the peace, and for good reason. Florence, who was only fifteen at the time, was pregnant. Six months later, on 16 January of 1897, she would give birth to a daughter.
Her groom, Nelson Munger, was a twenty-two year old young man who lied about his real name on the couple’s marriage return. He also claimed this was his first marriage, but in reality, he was still married to another woman.
Clues to Nelson Munger’s true identity come from a number of sources. [9]
E. Nelson Browder of Des Moines, Iowa married Susie Oxberger on 17 Aug. 1894. The marriage record shows Nelson’s parents as S. J. Browder and Jane Evans. When Nelson married Florence Watkins, he recorded his father’s name as Stephen J. Munger and his mother as Jane Evans. Two later marriages of Nelson, one in 1900 and another in 1904, records Nelson Browder’s parents to have been Stephen Browder and Jane Evans. [10]
Stephen J. Browder, in his probate settlement, lists four minor children in guardianship papers under the direction of his wife Delila J. [Evans] Browder. The minors listed, Nelson M., Unice A, Jacob S., and Stephen H. Browder and their ages, correspond with the personal details of the same children of Stephen J. Browder and Delila J. Browder in the 1880 enumeration of Jones township, Union County, Iowa. The marriage record for Nelson Munger and Florence Watkins, Nelson recorded his birth location as Union County, Iowa. [11]
It is reasonable to think Nelson used a different surname when he married Florence in an effort to escape his past in Des Moines, Iowa where his first marriage with Susie Oxberger fell apart. Nelson filed for divorce from Susie in late August of 1896 alleging adultery and desertion by his wife. Not until 19 September 1896 was Nelson granted a divorce in the District Court in Des Moines. At the time he married Florence, Nelson was still married to Susie in Des Moines. [12]
Clearly Nelson Munger and Nelson Browder are the same person.
Nelson moved to Davenport, boarding at the home of Elisha Watkins at 1423 Ripley where he is listed as a horse trainer in the 1896 Davenport directory. While living at the Watkins home, Nelson met Florence. [13]
On 19 January 1897, Nelson and Florence registered the birth of their daughter, Marina E. Browder who was born on the 16th at the Watkins home of 1423 Ripley in Davenport. On the birth record, Marina’s father was recorded as Nelson Browder, age 22, born in Union County, Iowa, and employed as a “moulder.” Florence Browder’s maiden name was recorded as Watkins and she residing at the home of her parents on Ripley Street. [14]
A Scandalous Marriage
Things did not bode well for the couple. Scandal broke out in the local newspaper which reported on 23 March 1897 Nelson Browder had been sent to jail for five days after police received a call from his “father-in law” over Nelson “beating his wife and his mother-in-law” who had interfered with Nelson giving her “a taste of the same.” [15]
By 1900 Florence had enough. She filed for divorce alleging Nelson Munger was “faithless to his vows together with cruel and inhuman treatment and desertion.” Claiming Nelson had been gone from the home since 10 September 1898, Florence petitioned the court to gain back her maiden name and retain custody of the couple’s three year old daughter Marina. On 12 April 1900, Florence was granted her divorce. [16]
When George and Florence were enumerated in the 1900 census at the Kimball House, Florence’s daughter, Marina Munger was enumerated in the household of Florence’s parents, Elisha and Nancy J. Watkins at 1423 Ripley in Davenport, age three, born in January of 1897. [17]
Florence Starts a New Life With George Seeser
George and Florence move to Chicago after the wedding ceremony and a few months later they impressed a local Davenport newspaper in August of 1902, when they arrived in town riding bicycles. The article titled “Great Seesers,” described the couple riding from Streator, Illinois to Davenport, Iowa, a journey of just over one hundred miles, on their way to Chicago, stopping for several days to visit Florence’s parents. [18]
The Seeser household grew with the addition of a daughter, Georgia Vivian Seeser born on 12 May 1903, in Davenport, Iowa, and a son, Edward Virgil Seeser, born on 27 May 1906. [19]
George & Florence in Oregon
Sometime in 1906, the Seesers moved to Portland Oregon where George was listed in the Portland directories from 1906 to 1912 at 747 E. 14th St. In the 1910 federal census, George and Florence were enumerated at the same address along with Florence’s daughter Ethel Marina Seeser, George’s thirteen year old stepdaughter, their daughter, Georgia Vivian, age six, and son, Edward V., age three. Both were working as cooks in a hotel.
George and Florence remained close to Florence’s parents who can also be found living in Portland Oregon in 1910 at 1430 Saratoga St. The Watkins families are found in the Portland Oregon directories starting in 1906 thru 1917 at 1450 E. 19th North. [20]
While living in Portland, Marina had adopted George’s surname. For example, a 1907 Davenport Iowa newspaper article described Marina Seeser acting as a flower girl at the wedding of her aunt, Eva Isabell Watkins. Marina’s own daughter Eden Elsie Kautz recorded her mother’s maiden name as Marina Sceezer on her 1938 Washington State marriage certificate. [21]
Elisha Watkins, Florence’s father, died in Portland, Oregon on 20 Aug. 1915 at his residence of 1450 East Eighteen Street North. He was 67 years of age. Unfortunately, Elisha did not witness the marriage of his granddaughter, Marian Browder [Seeser], who was living with her grand parents on Eighteenth Street at the time of her marriage. On 8 September 1916, Marina Ethel Browder married Walter C. Kautz at the courthouse in Multnomah County, with her step grandmother, Nancy J. Watkins acting as one of the witnesses. [22]
Marina’s mother, Florence Seeser, may not have been at her daughter’s marriage ceremony, as George and Florence had moved to Los Angeles, California as detailed in Elisha’s obituary of 1915. [23]
The Seesers in Venice Beach, California
In 1918, the Seesers were living in the Venice Beach area at 2302 Trolleyway. George was a cook at the Ocean Inn Cafe, a well known entertainment spot along the amusements on the Venice Pier, a place “few Bohemian-loving individuals who are connoisseurs of excellently-prepared food can resist.” The proprietor of the cafe, E. C. Dunnavant, offered both excellent cuisine and “the most exclusive vintages” available. In addition, the restaurant featured some of the “best entertainers on the coast,” an orchestra, as well as a spacious area for dancing. The cafe was described as a rendezvous “for nice people.” [24]
Ocean Inn Cafe – Venice Beach California
The cafe ran into trouble in late August of 1918 when the Chief of Police, assisting federal food inspectors, raided the cafe after a tip was made by an employee accusing the proprietor of “hoarding sugar.” In October of 1917, the Federal Government, via the new Food Administration, placed limitations on the amount of sugar held by a business. Officials seized several hundred pounds of cane and loaf sugar in addition to several barrels and demijohns filled with sugar melted down to a thick syrup. Apparently the syrup was used in serving mixed drinks. At the time of the raid, all the waiters walked out, declaring they were “patriotic and would not work in the place any longer” refusing to be associated with such an “unpatriotic” establishment. [25]
This was not the first time such patriotism was exhibited at the Ocean Inn Cafe. In the spring of 1917, at the end of the evening, the cafe orchestra began playing “America” whereupon a member of the Santa Monica National Guard grabbed an American flag, stood on a table waving it in the air while the patrons rose, took off hats, and saluted the flag. Off in a corner table, one man refused to stand. Another man, who sat nearby, attempted to encourage the protestor asking him to be “a sport” and stand up and salute the flag.
Still refusing, the man asked, “What have I to cheer for? What has it done for me?” Several men heard the remark, went over and jerked the malcontent from his seat and forced him to run a gauntlet of people mauling him from “one side to the other” pushing him toward the front door.
Outside of the cafe, a woman suggested the troublemaker should be impelled to salute the flag where he was then forced to his knees , made to bow down and kiss the flag. Just as the police arrived, the man sprinted up Windward Avenue where a police detective caught him. He explained to the detective he meant no disrespect toward the flag and was just as patriotic as anyone else, he just did not like the “public demonstration.” [26]
After the sugar raid, with the proprietor held without bond, too sick to appear in court and with the wait staff leaving, the cafe must have been left in limbo forcing George to find employment elsewhere. George took a job as a shearing helper at the Southwestern Ship Building Company in San Pedro, California which built cargo ships for the U.S. Shipping Board during WWI. According to information George provided on his WWI Draft Registration on 12 Sept. 1918, he was living at 1498 Palos Verdes, in San Pedro while working at the ship yard. [27]
On his registration form, George listed his nearest relative as Mrs. Florence Seeser, but, by 1920, George and Florence were living apart in separate counties in Oregon.
Back to Porland, Oregon
George was living in Bay City, Tillamook County, Oregon with his son, Edward. Florence was living in Portland, Mulnomah County, with her daughter Georgia Vivian. George was working as a laborer in railroad construction, and Florence as a waitress in a restaurant. By 1920 the couple were divorced. [28]
Bay City Oregon – 1913
Two years later, according to a Portland, Oregon newspaper, on 2 Oct. 1922, Florence Seeser married Russell Moxley, in a“pretty home wedding” attended by Florence’s mother Jennie Moxley, and the groom’s father, Frank Moxely. The couple’s marriage certificate confirms the couple married in Vancouver, Washington, on the date supplied in the newspaper article and solemnized by the justice of the peace of Clark County. Vancouver lay just across the Columbia River from Portland. Florence registered as a 40 year old divorcee and her marriage was to be her second one. Analysis of the marriage certificate helps to establish the witnesses to the marriage were the couple’s parents. Florence met her groom as a result of her mother’s marriage the previous year. [29]
Sorting Out the Moxleys
Florence named her parents as Elisha Watkins and Nancy Griffith with her age and birth place corresponding with other records. Russell Moxley, testified he was a widower, this was his second marriage, age 37 [1885], born in Knox County, Ohio, and named his parents as V. J. Moxley and Minnie Porter. [30]
Ohio birth records confirm Russell E. Moxley was born in Milford Township, in Knox County, Ohio, to Frank Moxley and Minnie Porter on 7 January 1886. Benjamin F. Moxley and Amelia [Minnie] Porter were married in Knox County, Ohio on 3 April 1877. [31]
The two witness signatures on the 1922 marriage certificate belonged to Benjamin F. Moxley and Mrs. N. J. Moxley of Portland, Oregon with Benjamin’s residence noted as Portland, while Mrs. N. J. [Jennie] Moxley listed her residence at Columbia Blvd. and Wilbur St. in Portland. This residence corresponds with the 1923 Portland Oregon directory listing of Benjamin F. and Jennie Moxley whose home was on Wilbur near Columbia Blvd. [32]
After Elisha Watkin’s died, Nancy Watkins married Benjamin F. Moxley in Vancouver, Clark County, Washington. They were married on 1 June 1921, by the justice of the peace. Nancy, age 62, a widow, noted her residence as Portland, Oregon. Benjamin placed his address in Portland at Columbia Boulevard. The 1921 Portland directory places “Benj. F.” and “Nancy” Moxley living at Richmond and Columbia Blvd. [33]
The two witnesses to Benjamin and Florence’s wedding were their children, Russell Moxley and Florence Seeser, both providing their residence at 170 1/2 Second Street in Portland, Oregon. The listing for Florence Seeser in the 1921 Portland directory has her listed at the same address, employed as a waiter. Russell’s address is 107 1/2 Second Street, 2 D. Clearly Florence and Russell where living at the same address prior to the wedding in 1922.
On the couple’s marriage certificate, Russell and Florence recorded their residence in the small community of Camas Valley in Douglas County, Oregon and may have been living there for quite sometime. Between 1922 – 1937, neither Russell nor Florence can be found in the Portland directories, with one exception, Florence was listed in the 1927 directory rooming at 1702 SE Salmon. However, the couple can be found in Portland in 1934, when Florence’s marriage to Russell would end in tragedy. [34]
Florence Faces A Tragedy
Russell was found lying along railroad tracks where he had fallen while attempting to cross. He struck his head along one of the rails and suffered a severe fracture of the skull. Despite being taken to the Good Samaritan hospital for treatment, Russell died four days later on 18 February 1934.
The accident occurred along the railroad tracks near North Wilbur Avenue and Columbia Boulevard. Two newspaper articles describing the incident place Russell’s home near the location of the accident, one at North Denver and Wilbur Streets, the other, in “a shack” at North Denver and Columbia Avenue, suggesting he and Florence may have been nearly destitute. Another possibility, Russell and Florence were living with Russell’s father, Benjamin Moxley. The 1934 Portland directory lists Benjamin at 9040 N. Columbia at the intersection of North Wilbur Ave which lies close to the railroad tracks where Russell fell. [35]
After Russell’s death, Florence remained in Portland keeping close to her mother and father-in-law, renting a room at a house on 1702 S. E. Salmon Street in 1937 and 1938. Florence was enumerated in the 1940 census at the Shriner’s Orthopedic Hospital, employed as a cook. The Portland directory listing for Florence suggests she was rooming at Benjamin and Nancy Moxley’s home at 9040 North Wilbur Avenue.
In the fall of 1942, Florence would suffer the loss of her mother and stepfather. In the middle of September, Benjamin became sick, struggling for a couple of weeks, and early in the morning of Friday the 25th, he unexpectedly passed at the age of 86. Just three days earlier, Nancy suffered a stroke, paralyzing one side of her body, and was not expected to live very long. Finally on 25 October, Nancy passed at 83 years of age . [36]
The couple were buried at the Historic Columbian Cemetery in Portland, with Benjamin buried next to his first wife Minnie who had died in 1916. On 22 Feb. 1956, Florence passed, in Multnomah, County Oregon. [37]
George Albert Seeser In Oregon
After the divorce from Florence Watkins, George remained in Tillamook County Oregon were he was enumerated in the 1920 U.S. census living with his son Edward while working in railroad construction. Oregon motor vehicle registrations establish George’s whereabouts in the same county from 1920 – 1921.
By 1926, George could be found returning to Portland, where he could be seen driving a 1921 Chevy touring car and living in the Brentwood-Darlington community in the southern part of the city. [38]
George must have fallen on bad times during the 1930’s. He is found in the 1940 U.S. census of Portland as an indigent, living at Grandma’s Kitchen, a shelter run by a local Portland woman. Mrs. Ida Maus, ran a “hotel” for destitute men, first opening in 1919, offering free of charge, food and shelter to “unfortunates who came her way.” Her charitable institution, at the time of her death in October of 1939, was feeding about 500 men daily and providing beds for 150, one of which George occupied. The census places George at Ida’s refuge as far back as 1935. [39]
At the time of his death on 30 December 1948, George enjoyed better living conditions in a small home in the Smallwood area of Portland at 1143 S.E. Umatilla. According to his death notice in the Oregonian newspaper, George’s children, Edward V. Seeser, Marina [Seeser] Kautz, and Mrs. L. P. Jensen [Georgia Vivian Seeser], held a small ceremony at the Portland crematorium. [40]
The next installment explores the lives of the two other Seeser children, Valentine Jr., and James. Valentine Seeser – What Happened to His Children Part II
End Notes
1. Scott County, Iowa, Clerk of the District Court, marriage return, G.A. Seeser – Florence Watkins, 16 Jan. 1901; Marriage Records, 1830-1956, ”Marriage Certificates and Returns Seese, Homer R. – Spiess, C. 1830-1930, microfilm publication, FHL #001,831,677 digital image, 8/3278, Familysearch.com ( https://www.familysearch.org : accessed on 14 July 2018). See “George Albert Seeser Data” and “Seeser Family in Cincinnati Ohio.”
2. Ruben H. Donnelley, complier, The Lakeside Annual Direcgtory of the City of Chicago 1901, (The Chicago Directory Company, Chicago, Illinois : 1901), pg. 1779, digital images, fold3.com > city directories > Illinois > City Directories – Chicago > 1901, ( https://www.fold3.com :accessed on 27 Jun. 2018). Note George Seeser does not appear in Chicago directories prior to 1901. “A Second Wedding,” The Daily Times (Davenport, Iowa), 17 Jan. 1901, pg. 4, col. 4.
3. Hoye’s, compiler, Hoye’s Kansas City Directory (Hoye City Directory Company, Kansas City: 1899), entry for G.A. Seeser, pg. 752, entry for Blossom House, pg. 116, digital images, “U.S. City Directories, 1822 – 1995,” Ancestry.com ( accessed on 27 Jun. 2018).
4. Hoye’s Kansas City Directory, G.A. Sesser, 1899, pg. 752 [no residential address was given]. Blossom House advertisement, Kansas City Journal, 12 Jan. 1899, pg. 5. “Union Avenue – Postcard of Union Avenue in the West Bottoms,” Blossom House, KC History Missouri Valley Special Collections, Kansas City Public Library, digital image, KChistory.org (http://kchistory.org/content/union-avenue-4 : accessed on 11 Jul. 2018).
5. 1900 U.S. census, Scott County, Iowa, population schedule, Davenport, 5th Ward, E.D. 133, pg. 39 [stamped], line 7, George Siler, digital image, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/interactive : accessed on 24 Jun. 2018); citing NARA microfilm publication T623. “Great Seeser,” Quad-City Times (Davenport, Iowa), 11 Aug. 1901, pg. 7, col. 2.
6. Doug Smith, Postcard History Series Davenport, (Arcadia Publishing, Charleston, S.C, : 2007) 28. David Collins, Images of America Davenport Jewel of the Mississippi, (Arcadia Publishing, Chicago, Illinois : 2000) 26.
7. 1900 U.S. census, Scott County, Iowa, population schedule, Davenport, 5th Ward, E.D. 133, pg. 39 [stamped], line 11, Florence Watkins, digital image, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/interactive : accessed on 24 Jun. 2018); citing NARA microfilm publication T623.
8. Stone’s Davenport, Iowa City Directory, (H.N. Stone & Co., Publishers, Davenport, Iowa : 188), entry for Elisha Watkins, pg. 685, digital images, “U.S. City Directories, 1822 – 1995,” Ancestry.com ( accessed on 27 Jun. 2018). “A Second Wedding,” The Daily Times (Davenport, Iowa), 17 Jan. 1901, pg. 4, col. 4.
9. “Iowa, Marriage Records, 1880-1940,” digital image, Ancestry.com ( https://www.ancestry.com/interactive : accessed on 20 Jun. 2018), Vol. 385, counties (O’Brien – Story), 1896, marriage record & return, Nelson Munger – Florence Agusta Caroline Edna Watkins, 25 Aug. 1896, Davenport, Scott County, Iowa, # 11861, pg. 82-1342 [stamped]; citing, Iowa Department of Public Health, Iowa Marriage Records, 1880-1922, State Historical Society of Iowa, Des Moines, Iowa, microfilm publication, record group 048. 1900 U.S. census, Scott County, Iowa, population schedule, Davenport, 4th Ward, E.D. 132, pg. 7 [stamped], household 126, family 129, Morina Munger, digital image, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/interactive : accessed on 24 Jun. 2018); citing NARA microfilm publication T623.
10. “Iowa, Marriage Records, 1880-1940,” digital image, Ancestry.com ( https://www.ancestry.com/interactive : accessed on 08 Jul. 2018), “Return of Marriages 1894 Madison-Powesheik, BHVi V. 79, vol. 3756, pg. 77-1058 [stamped], marriage license & return, E. Nelson Browder – Susie Oxberger, Polk County, Iowa, license #6575, 17 Aug. 1894, Des Moines; “Return of Marriages 1900 Page-Bright, BHVi V. 106, vol. 402, pg. 77-1235 [stamped], marriage license & return, Nelson Browder – Goldie Neal, Polk County, Iowa, Des Moines, license #6575, 5 Jun. 1900; “Return of Marriages 1904 Montgomery-Poweshiek, BHVi V 121, vol. 417, pg. 77-1122 [stamped], marriage license & return, Nelson Browder – Sylvia Collins, Polk County, Iowa, Des Moines, license #15689, 5 Feb. 1904; citing Iowa Marriage Records, 1923-37, Iowa Department of Public Health, State Historical Society of Iowa, Des. Moines Iowa, microfilm publication, RG 048.
11. 1880 U.S. Census, Union County, Iowa, population schedule, Jones Township, pg. 284 [stamped], dwelling 25, family 127, Stephen J. Browder household, digital image, ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/interactive : accessed on 9 July 2018); citing NARA microfilm publication T9, roll 366. “Probate Case Files, ca. 1847-1915,” Probate case files, Polk County, Iowa, nos. 1798 to 1820, Coombs, Irving-Lowrig, Willie 1889-1907, digital images, FHL 002,109,708, probate no. 1804, Stephen J. Browders heirs, petition for letters of guardianship, filed 20 Sept. 1887 [stamped], digital images, 1063-1094; citing Probate Case Files, Polk County, Iowa, State Historical Society, Des Moines, Iowa.
12. The Des Moines Register (Des Moines, Iowa),“Minor Claims,” 29 Aug. 1896, pg. 6, col. 2, “District Court Busy,” 19 Sept. 1896, pg. 6, col. .
13. Stone’s Davenport, Iowa City Directory 1896-97, (H.N. Stone & Co., Publishers, Davenport, Iowa : 1896), listing for Nelson Browder, pg. 92, listing for Elisha & Florence Watkins, pg. 483, digital images, “U.S. City Directories, 1822 – 1995,” Ancestry.com ( accessed on 27 Jun. 2018).
14. Birth Returns, Scott County Court House, Davenport Iowa, Clerk, return of birth, Marena E. Browder, 16 Jan. 1897, Davenport, Iowa, #14709; “Return of Births 1880-1926 Braehmer, Louius M, – Dehn,” microfilm publication FHL 001,682,875, item 1, digital image, 448/3105, Familysearch.com ( https://www.familysearch.org : accessed on 14 July, 12018), Digital image by Brandon M. Cooper, Famsaga.com, on 16 July 2018. Scott County Iowa, Clerk of the District Court, “Register of Births,” vol. 4, 1893-1897, pg. 260, #14709, Marena E. Browder, 16 Jan. 1897, Davenport, Iowa; “Birth Records, 1880-1945,” Scott County, Iowa, microfilm publication, FHL 004,309,867, item 1, digital image, 267/763, Familysearch.com ( https://www.familysearch.org : accessed on 14 July, 12018),
15. “A Bad Man,” Quad-City Times (Davenport, Iowa), 23 Mar. 1897, pg. 1, col. 2.
16. “A Bad Man,” Quad-City Times (Davenport, Iowa), 23 Mar. 1897, pg. 1, col. 2. The Daily Times, (Davenport, Iowa), “Asks A Divorce Florence Munger Wants to be Given Her Maiden Name,” 27 Jan. 1900, pg. 1, col. 3, “A Bunch of Divorce Decrees,” 12 April 1900, pg. 5, col. 4.
17. 1900 U.S. census, Scott County, Iowa, population schedule, Davenport, 4th Ward, E.D. 132, pg. 7 [stamped], household 126, family 129, Elisha Watkins household, digital image, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/interactive : accessed on 24 Jun. 2018); citing NARA microfilm publication T623.
18. “Great Seesers,” Quad-City Times (Davenport, Iowa), 11 Aug. 1902, pg.7 col. 2.
19. Delayed Certificate of Birth, Georgia Vivian Seeser, 12 May 1903, Scott County, Iowa, Davenport, Iowa, Delayed Birth Records, 1856-1940, #302216, digital image, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/interactive : accessed on 22 Nov. 2018); citing, “Iowa Delayed Birth Records, 1856-1940, State Historical Society of Iowa, Des Moines.
20. 1910 U.S. Census, Multnomah County, Oregon, population schedule, Portland, pg. 120 [stamped], family 349, line 59, George Seeser household; Portland, Ward 10, ED 237, pg. 179 [stamped], dwelling 272, family 275, Elisha Watkins household, digital image, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/interactive : accessed on 4 Jun. 2018); citing NARA microfilm publication T624, roll 1288 & 1287. Portland City Directory 1906 (R.L. Polk & Co. Publishers, Portland, Oregon) 978, entry for George A. Seeser; also subsequent years by the same title: (1907) 1147, (1908) 1147, (1909) 1220, (1910) 1003, (1911) 1294, (1912) 1333, (1915) 1080; entries for Elisha Watkins, (1906) 1117, (1907) 1301, (1908) 1301, (1909) 1387, (1910) 1153, (1911) 1488, (1912) 1529, (1913) 1253, (1915) 1237, (1917) 1192 digital images, “U.S. City Directories, 1822 – 1995,” Ancestry.com ( accessed on 8 July. 2018).
21. 1910 U.S. census, Multnomah County, Oregon, population schedule, Portland, Ward 10, ED 237, pg. 179 [stamped], dwelling 271, family 275, Elisha Watkins household, digital image, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/interactive : accessed on 4 Jun. 2018); citing NARA microfilm publication T624, roll 1287. “Washington, Marriage Records, 1854-2013,” digital image, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com : accessed on 12 July 2018), marriage certificate, Clark County, Washington, Marriage Certificates 1938 – May-Aug, Joseph Adolph Johnson – Eden Elsie Kautz, certificate B25897 [stamped], 6 June 1938; citing Washington State Archives, Olympia, Washington. “Daily City Statistics,” Oregonian (Portland, Oregon), 9 Sep. 1916, pg. 17, col. 5.
22. Multnomah County, Oregon, Marriage Licenses, Vol. 37, marriage license & return, Walter C. Kautz- Marina Ethel Browder, 8 Sep. 1916,; Oregon, Multnomah County, Marriage Records, 1855-1984 ”Marriage Licenses, 2007-000661-0011, 8 Aug 1915-17 Feb 1917, microfilm publication, FHL #103,157,707 digital image, 3879/5662, Familysearch.com ( https://www.familysearch.org : accessed on 18 July 2018).
23. “Died,” Elisha Watkins, The Oregonian (Portland, Oregon), 21 Aug. 1915, pg. 11, col. 1. “Death And Funerals,” Elisha Watkins, The Oregon Journal (Portland, Oregon, 27 Aug. 1915, pg. 13, col. 6.
24. Santa Monica, Ocean Park, Venice, Sawtelle, & Westgate Directory, (Los Angeles Directory Company, Los Angeles, CA: 1918) 279, entry for Geo. A. Seeser, digital images, “U.S. City Directories, 1822 – 1995,” Ancestry.com ( accessed on 8 July. 2018). “Ocean Inn Cafe,” The Los Angeles Times, 1 Jan. 1914, pg. 93. George H. Nash, The Life of Herbert Hoover: Master of Emergencies, 1917-1918, (W. W. Norton & Company, New York: 1996) 110.
25. The Los Angeles Times, “Syrup Seized in Venice Raid,” 25 Aug. 1918, pg. 10; “Dunnavent In Jail; Raymond Gets Order,” 26 Aug. 1918, pg. 5; “Release Japanese in Sugar Hoarding Case,” 28 Aug. 1918, pg. 18; “Raid Venice Cafe for a Violation of the Sugar Order,” The San Bernandino County Sun, 25 Aug. 1918, pg. 1; George H. Nash, The Life of Herbert Hoover: Master of Emergencies, 1917-1918, (W. W. Norton & Company, New York: 1996) 110.
26. “He Changes His Mind and Salutes the Flag,” The Los Angeles Times, 2 Apr. 1917, pg. 9
27. “U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918,” digital image, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/interactive : accessed on 20 May 2018), card for George Albert Seeser, serial no. 2797, Local Draft Board, Los Angeles, California, Branch City Hall San Pedro, CA; citing “World War I Selective Service System Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918,” NARA microfilm publication M1509, roll 1530800.
28. 1920 U.S. census, Tillamook County, Oregon, population schedule, Bay City, pg. 60 [stamped], line #21, George A. Seeser household; Multnomah County, Oregon, population schedule, Portland, precinct 63, ED 27, pg. 228 [stamped], line #36-37, Florence & Georgia Seeser, household, digital images, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/interactive : accessed on 24 Jun. 2018); citing NARA microfilm publication T625, roll 1504 & 1499.
20. “Washington, Marriage Records, 1854-2013,” images, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com : accessed on 17 Jul. 2018), marriage certificate, Clark County, Washington, Vancouver, Russell Moxley & Florence Seeser, 2 Oct. 1922, no. 9663; citing Washington State Archives, Olympia, Washington.
30. Marriage certificate, Clark County, Washington, Vancouver, Russell Moxley & Florence Seeser, 2 Oct. 1922.
31. Knox County, Ohio Probate Court, Birth Record 1879-87, Milford township, pg. 129, line 8, entry for Russell B. Moxley, 7 Jan. 1886; “Ohio, County Births, 1841-2003, microfilm publication FHL #001,299,056, digital image 172/200, Familysearch.com ( https://www.familysearch.org : accessed on 18 July, 12018), Knox County, Ohio, Marriage Record 1875-1884, vol. 3, pg. 151, #540, marriage record & return, Benj. F. Moxley – Amelia Porter, 3 Apr. 1877; “Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-2013,” microfilm publication FHL #002,243,680, digital image 2886/5885, Familysearch.com ( https://www.familysearch.org : accessed on 18 July, 12018).
32. Polk’s Portland City Directory, (R.L. Polk & Co., Inc. Publishers, Portland, Oregon : 1924) pg. 1200, entry for Florence Moxley, digital images, “U.S. City Directories, 1822 – 1995,” Ancestry.com ( accessed on 8 July. 2018).
33. “Injured Man Found,” Oregonian (Portland, Oregon), 14 Feb. 1934, pg. 4, col. 8; “Fall Causes Death,” Oregonian (Portland, Oregon), 19 Feb. 1934, pg. 12, col. 7; “Died,” Russell Moxley, Oregonian (Portland, Oregon), 20 Feb. 1934, pg. 10, col. 7. Oregon, Death Index, 1898-2008, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/interactive : accessed on 24 Jul. 2018), entry for Russell Moxley, 18 Feb. 1934; citing “Oregon Death Index 1903-1998, reel Oregon Death Index A-L 1931-1941, Oregon State Archives and Records Center, Salem Oregon. Polk’s Portland City Directory, (R.L. Polk & Co., Inc. Publishers, Portland, Oregon : 1934) pg.936, digital images, “U.S. City Directories, 1822 – 1995,” Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/interactive : accessed on 24 Jul. 2018)
34. Polk’s Portland City Directory, (R.L. Polk & Co., Inc. Publishers, Portland, Oregon : 1927) pg.1109, entry for Fdigital images, “U.S. City Directories, 1822 – 1995,” Ancestry.com ( accessed on 8 July. 2018).
35. “Injured Man Found,” Oregonian (Portland, Oregon), 14 Feb. 1934, pg. 4, col. 8; “Fall Causes Death,” Oregonian (Portland, Oregon), 19 Feb. 1934, pg. 12, col. 7; “Died,” Russell Moxley, Oregonian (Portland, Oregon), 20 Feb. 1934, pg. 10, col. 7. Oregon, Death Index, 1898-2008, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/interactive : accessed on 24 Jul. 2018), entry for Russell Moxley, 18 Feb. 1934; citing “Oregon Death Index.
1903-1998, reel Oregon Death Index A-L 1931-1941, Oregon State Archives and Records Center, Salem Oregon. Polk’s Portland City Directory, (R.L. Polk & Co., Inc. Publishers, Portland, Oregon : 1934) entry for Ben. F. Moxley, pg.936 & 1702, digital images, “U.S. City Directories, 1822 – 1995,” Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/interactive : accessed on 24 Jul. 2018)
36. Polk’s Portland City Directory, (R.L. Polk & Co., Inc. Publishers, Portland, Oregon : 1937) pg. 913; 1938, pg. 983, 1940, pg. 1048, digital images, “U.S. City Directories, 1822 – 1995,” Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/interactive : accessed on 24 Jul. 2018). “Called to Portland,” Corvallis Gazette-Times (Corvallis, Oregon), 26 Sep. 1942, pg. 3, col. 2. “Funeral Notices,” Benjamin Moxley, Oregonian (Portland,Oregon), 26 Sep. 1942, pg.9 , col. 3. “Funeral Notices,” The Oregonian (Portland, Oregon), 3 Oct. 1942, pg. 9, col. 2. Findagrave, database & image, memorial # 41286895, Nancy J. Watkins Moxley, Columbian Cemetery, Portland, Multnomah County, Oregon, creator Martha 29 Aug. 2009.
37. Find A Grave, database & images (https://www.findagrave.com : accessed 25 July 2018), memorial for Benjamin F Moxley (Nov 1855–25 Sep 1942), no. 41275671, memorial for Nancy Jane “Nannie” Griffith Moxley (15 Apr. 1859-1 Oct. 1942), no. 41286895; citing Historic Columbian Cemetery, Portland, Multnomah County, Oregon, USA ; Maintained by Martha (contributor 47144896). Oregon Death Index, 1903-1998, database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VZ4Q-JFS, accessed on 22 Nov. 2018), entry for Florence A. Moxley, 22 Feb. 1956, Multnomah County, Oregon; citing, Multnomah, Oregon, certificate no. 2138, Oregon State Archives and Records Center, Salem.
38. “State of Oregon Automobile, Motorcycle, Dealer & Chauffeur Registrations…” Month of February 1920, entry for Geo. A. Seeser, #34670, pg. 37; Month of January Vol. 1, #34670, pg. 440; Month of March 1926, #3134264, addenda page, Oregon State Library, Salem; digital image, Oregon, Motor Vehicle Registration, 1911-1946, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/interactive : accessed on 24 Jun. 2018)
39. 1940 U.S. census, Multnomah County, Oregon, population schedule, Portland, ED 37-83, pg. 752A [stamped], family 349, line 59, George Seeser household, digital image, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/interactive : accessed on 4 Jun. 2018); citing NARA microfilm publication T624, roll 1288. “Grandma Kitchen Founder Dies at 68 in Portland,” Statesman Journal (Salem Oregon), 14 Oct. 1939, pg. 2.
40. “Funeral Notices,” George Seeser, The Oregonian (Portland, Oregon), 1 Jan. 1949, pg. 5, col. 8.
