A few years ago I wrote a length family biography for the descendants of
my husband’s third great uncle. The
entire history was written using documents, studying the geographical location,
and history of the time period.
Newspaper clippings were a major source used to write several of the
biographies. Following is an excerpt
from the history showing how I used newspaper clippings, beginning in the
second paragraph and continuing to the end, to write the story of one of these
descendants.
Jeanette
N. Goodale
Jeanette N. Goodale,
first child of Joe and Robina Goodale, was born in December 1878 in Panama, Shelby,
Iowa. In about 1887, when she was about
nine years old, she and her family moved to Laramie, Wyoming where she spent
the remainder of her life. Her parents
divorced in about 1891 when she was a young teenager. She may never have seen her father Joseph
after that time, although she received an inheritance of $135 when he passed
away in 1920. Gus Johnson became
Jennie’s stepfather in 1895 when her mother remarried. By then she was approaching adulthood.
Jennie’s name first
appears in the Wyoming newspapers in 1892, when she fourteen years old. In that article, Jennie was on the East Side
School’s Thanksgiving Program for her recitation of “Pomegranates” as a member
of the sixth grade, with Miss Effie Jackson as her teacher. After
that time her name frequently appears in newspapers articles describing her
activities as a member of the Laramie community. Jennie was very involved in Laramie’s social
religious, educational, and cultural circles and was a very talented vocalist,
musician, and dancer.
An annual tradition was participating in the celebration
of the Scottish poet Robert Burns’ birthday celebration each year because of
her Scottish heritage. Her first
involvement was in February 1894. She
not only sang a solo “Robin Adair” but also participated in a duet, was a piano
accompanist, and performed the Highland fling for the occasion. In 1896 she performed a solo and sang in a
duet, in 1903 and 1904, she performed a solo, and in 1906 she again danced the
Highland fling and sang “The Crooked Baubee.”
After all, Jennie was one-half Scottish, her mother having emigrated
from Scotland as an infant.
In the spring of 1894, she participated in two plays,
one was “The Crowning of the Queen of Fame” and the other “Story of Moses” in
which she played one of Miriam’s maids. These were the first of many musicals and
plays that she was a part of over the next decade.
Because of her excellent singing talent, Jennie became a
pupil under the tutelage of Mrs. Leroy Grant of the music department at the
University and performed at many events, including musical recitals, where she
entertained many audiences. One of her
first performances was participation in the musical “The Meeting of the
Nations” for the Women’s Relief Corps where she demonstrated music from
Scotland. Two years later she performed
in the musical “Messengers of Spring.” At the Opera House she was in a program
sponsored by Mrs. Oliver and performed a vocal solo with the orchestra singing
a gypsy love song. Her singing talent
led her to become a member of the University Glee Club.
Not only did she sing for various functions but she also
played the piano, performed recitations, and danced at various programs. Her interest in dancing led her to membership
in the University dancing club. In
January of 1900, she attended a “hop” at which her Grandma Gray was a chaperone,
just a week before her Grandma Gray passed away.
Although Jennie was involved at the university level in
their singing and dancing programs, it is unclear whether she ever attended the
University of Laramie as a student or whether she ever earned a degree.
A social butterfly, Jennie attended birthday parties,
surprise parties, holiday parties, farewell parties, and other fun social
events during her high school and young adult years. In addition to the parties, were the festive
balls that she attended, one of her first being the military ball where she
wore a white china silk and satin dress, most likely a creation made by her
mother. In January 1903, she went to the
Inaugural Reception and Ball in Cheyenne and the following year attended
another ball in Cheyenne given by the Knights of Columbus.
Community and social organizations she was involved in
included the Rebekah Degree Lodge No. 1 where she was elected as the treasurer
at the age of sixteen. In 1906, she
became a member of the Royal Highlanders and American Order Protection Lodge
and was elected to the office of herald in 1912. She was also involved in the Bryant
Literary Club in 1895 and in 1896 and was a member of the Lowell Club, another
reading club. “The Jolly Bums” was a social club with twelve members that
Jennie became a member of.
At the age of twenty-two, she started a courtship with
John K. Muckley, known as “Kenneth.” He was the guest at a party in the fall of
1900 held at Jennie’s home. Kenneth was
the same age and had recently moved from Omaha to Laramie. During the summer months they enjoyed a day
spent at Woods Landing and a picnic at Sodergreen Ranch together. At the end of 1901, Jennie held a surprise
party for Kenneth. The courtship
continued into the year 1902 when they attended an elegant social function
together. Both she and Kenneth shared
the talent of singing and were involved in many programs together singing in
choirs or small musical groups, which may very well have been how they had become acquainted with
one another. After a courtship of about
two years or so, it seems to have ended because no more mention is made in the
newspaper of the young couple. (In 1906,
Kenneth married Grace Davis, whom he divorced a short time later.)
In the spring of
1906, Jennie travelled to California, to the Oakland and Los Angeles areas, with
her mother who needed to attend health resorts due to ill health. They were gone several weeks and were
involved in the California earthquake while there.
On January 31, 1907, Jennie attended an inaugural ball
with Mr. Will Beacham. A few years’ previous,
Will had worked on a farm in Mandel, Wyoming, but perhaps through relatives
living in Laramie or possible change of employment, he met up with Jennie
during the early 1900’s. By the time of
the ball, Jennie was almost twenty-nine years old. A year later she married William J. Beacham
in Laramie on New Year’s Day in 1908 at her parent’s home. Aunt Delia came up from Fort Collins to
attend the wedding.
The
one New Year wedding in this city was that of Mr. Will Beacham and Miss Jean
Goodale, celebrated at the home of the bride’s parents, Mr. and Mrs. Gus
Johnson, on Wednesday, in the presence only of the family and close
friends. The out-of-town guest was Miss
Delia Goodale, the aunt of the bride, from Fort Collins. Dean Bode officiated at the marriage
service. Mr. and Mrs. Beacham are
residing at 111 South Fourth Street.[1]
In 1909, they moved to the Buirge house on 4th
Street; and, by 1910, the newlyweds had moved to 611 Second Street. Three years later, in March of 1913, they
moved into a house on Custer Street, No. 416, not far from Jean’s parent’s home
at 403 Custer Street, where she spent many of her growing up years. After Jean’s stepfather passed away in 1915,
she and William moved in with her mother. Will was the owner of the home at 403 Custer
Street from 1929 through 1937. Jean was
still living in the family home in 1939, the year following Will’s
passing. During the 1940s a cinder block addition was
built onto the east side of the house creating two upstairs apartments and
closing in the east porch. (The house is
no longer standing and in 2003 a State Farm Insurance office is located on the
property where the house once stood.) [2]
As an adult, Jean
was involved in numerous organizations.
She was a member of La Tarde de Noche from at least 1908 to 1917. During this time she also became involved in
the court and elections system, starting out as a clerk in 1914, then as a
registry agent, and finally, in 1922, she was elected as Laramie District 5
judge, Precinct 1, at North Star Hall.
Jean was a member of the Senior Christian Endeavor of
the Presbyterian church, was a member of the Presbyterian church music
committee, and was a member of the Presbyterian Guild serving as their
treasurer in 1918.
Besides her civic and religious involvement, she and
Will also attended many social functions and dinners throughout their married
life together. Once her name appeared on
the society pages of the newspapers, it never left!
Will and Jean never had children although they were
married for thirty years before Will passed away in 1938. After his death she moved to 411 ½ East 4th
Street, perhaps a smaller home with less upkeep.[3] Jean probably lived there until her death on
September 27, 1951, at the age of seventy-three years.[4]
[1]Online,
<www.wyonewspapers.org> Laramie
Republic, No. 122, 4 Jan 1908, p. 3
[2] Laramie Wyoming City Directories, Laramie
Plains Museum, Laramie, Wyoming.
[4] 1941-1957 Index of Obituaries, Albany
County, Wyoming, LRB, p. 11, col. 5, 09-28-1951.
