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Autobiography by Rose Hefty Rice

This autobiography written by Rose Rice, is typed. Did she do the actual typing or was this copied from a handwritten manuscript, this I do not know. We do know that Francis, her husband, was a minister and a man of many words, both spoken and written. In addition to his sermons, he wrote numerous articles and stories which he often submitted to newspapers for publication.  I have not researched this further to know if some were actually published. The point here is that in his later years he used almost entirely the typewriter in his work. This would mean that a typewriter was in frequent use at the house and thus available and not foreign to Rose.  The two typewritten pages in my possession are originals, that is, not photo copies. I have not been able to find any handwritten manuscripts of this same autobiography. Therefore, by conjecture we can probably assume that Rose herself typed this autobiography as you see it on this blog.  The two pages were found among the possessions of her son, Leslie, upon his death in 1965.  If in fact Rose did type her autobiography, one cannot help but to be impressed by her writing abilities. There are very few errors of any kind and no corrections were made on the typed document.

Francis was obviously an enthusiastic writer and collector of written documents. He encouraged both his mother and his wife to write their own life histories of which both did. He himself wrote at least two different autobiographies which will in time and sunder all appear on this blog.

Rose wrote her autobiography nearly a year to the date after Francis’ death on March 27 of 1936 and five years before her own death on March 6, 1942.  

Comments regarding Aunt Marcy

I posted pictures and text about Aunt Marcy on June 11, and since then I have received several comments which might be of interest to The Rice Kids. The following have come from my sister.

I am so sorry she missed seeing Mom as Mom would very much have liked to have seen her.   I know Marcy and Mom and Wayne exchanged Christmas cards for a number of years, then somehow lost contact.  Mom spoke well of her and often wondered how the kids were doing.

Oh my, and the rocking chair (in the picture) is the one from Granddad that we had in our house. In fact, it is now in my son John's house in Minneapolis. He is saving it for us for when (if?) we decide to stop traveling in the fifth wheel. So I expect this photo was taken in Mott? Is that right, Norm?

(My comment: yes, the photo was taken in our backyard in Mott at Granddad’s house (the driveway went all the way through from the front street to the alley in back).  Dorian is sitting in his mother’s lap. His dad Larry is apparently packing the car.  The curious sweet six year old is Noreen.)

Aunt Marcy's passing

Yesterday June 8, through a surprise and sad email, Dorian informed me of Aunt Marcy’s passing. The years have passed quickly since I last saw Aunt Marcy, but in September of 2011 we briefly exchanged some very pleasant emails.  Following are some excerpts which might be of interest:

Sept 12, 2011

Norman—it was a total surprise to hear from you and I would like to say that I remember you very well when you were living in Mott with your Mom Virginia and your Grandfather Rice.  I came to stay there when Dorian was born for about a week while your Mom helped me take care of Dorian.  I am anxious to hear more about you and Noreen and the rest of the Rice kids.

--Marcy

Sept 16, 2011

So nice to hear from you again.  I would love to hear more about your life in Norway and your career. I went to Elgin ND in 2000 for a class reunion and had a rental car so decided it would be good to go to Mott and look up your Mom but found out that she had died the year before.  We visited your Aunt Dorothy and family in Seattle when Kandi was just four. I remember living in a basement apartment of your Aunt Millie’s in Jamestown with your uncle Larry and our three oldest kids for a whole summer while Larry tended bar at the golf course. That would have been when Kerry was about two years old.  The only time I met your Uncle Franklin was sometime around 1958 or 59 when we met with his family at a resort in Minn.

As for me—I worked as a secretary most of my life and retired from Modesto High School after working there for 23 years. I am 81 now and walk with a cane. I don’t travel at all anymore, but occasionally go to a movie and meet friends for dinner.  I remarried 38 years ago and my husband’s name is Jerry Matson. I still drive a car but my husband does most of the driving.
--Marcy

It was our intention to continue this exchange, something to which I was truly looking forward to. But alas, one more link to our parental generation is now but memories. I remember Aunt Marcy very well, especially her smile and how pretty she was the last time I saw her, which was, goodness, in 1959 I think.  I would truly have enjoyed spending an afternoon or day with her again.

 

I am attaching to this blog the only picture I have of her and even though it is old and quite unclear, her smile truly is seen.  

Kandi has sent us a more recent picture of Aunt Marcy for which I greatly appreciate.

Kandi writes:

Here’s a picture of my mom two years ago when she was 80.   We are having her memorial on Tuesday June 12^th at her home in Ceres.  

Thanks for your memories,

Kandi…

Why Logansport, Indiana?

You might be thinking….. why the picture of Logansport 1890s on the Rice Kids blog?  Has Norm become confused in his old age and started throwing around old pictures that are of little interest to anyone?  Doesn’t Norm have something better to do than to feed us with unnecessary information?  I suppose one could easily think that way, especially those who know me.  But, alas, this time there is system in my madness!

Logansport, Indiana. About 20 000 residents living in northern Indiana, 130 miles south of Chicago, 80 miles north of Indianapolis. 1161 miles or twenty hours from Cousin Connie. 2190 miles east of Cousin Lori.  One day and eleven hours from Cousin Josette in sunny California.

Logansport is one of the towns, probably the only town, where the different ancestral branches of the Leslie F. Rice family come together and join into one, albeit some 50 years before Leslie’s birth in Arkansas. Between 1835 and 1855 the families of Rice, Howe, Turner, and Potter joined together in Logansport, lived for a while as one, and then moved on as family Rice, although in different directions. Our Great-great grandfather Gilbert Rice moved to St. Paul, Minnesota and our Great-great grandmother Julia [Potter] Rice moved to Oskaloosa, Kansas.

Today, graves of members from each of these four families can be found in Logansport, and very likely, also living relatives unknown to us, and us unknown to them… probably.

Buried in the Ninth Street Cemetery is Lucretia [Howe] Rice, our Great-great-great grandmother (3x-great). Beside her lies her son Gilbert Jay Rice, our 2x-Great grandfather. In a lot close by, same cemetery, can be found the gravestone for another 3x-Great grandfather Anselm Potter.

In the Mt. Hope Cemetery, same town, can be found the graves of Elihu Rice and his family of several generations.  And further on is Minerva Hart [Rice] Stuart and her family. Elihu was Gilbert’s brother.  Minerva was a sister to our 2x-Great grandmother Julia [Potter] Rice, and thus sister-in-law to Gilbert. 

Who are these persons? How did they get to Logansport and to their respective graves?  Gilbert died in poverty, Elihu gained riches and fame. Lucretia died as her family went to pieces. Anselm was insane. Minerva Hart shared close ties with Julia, but died a young women. Benjamin Spencer, Gilbert’s half-brother, remains missing.

Maybe these few paragraphs will help to explain the picture placed in a place of honor on the blog, or at least may arouse the appetite to learn more.  But don’t fret. This serial will continue and the mystery will be solved before your very eyes, but first I want to continue on my investigative work as concerns Rose Rice.


(The picture of Logansport was from http://galery.me.com/kevinwburkett. Accessed 5 June 2012)

Our Great-grandparents Rose and Francis

Our Great-grandparents Rose [Hefty] Rice (1857 – 1942) and Francis Jay Rice (1853 – 1936)

Mother and father to Leslie Francis Rice

It appears that both of these pictures were taken sometime after 1877 (since I have another picture of Francis from that date in which he is portrayed as much younger). It would be in our right to assume that these pictures might have been taken on the occasion of their wedding in 1880. 

Rose Hefty Rice - a brief biographical scetch

Anna Maria Heiz, an immigrant from Switzerland, gave birth to her youngest child on October 7, 1857 in the small thriving community of New Glarus, Wisconsin. The little dark haired infant girl, Rosalina, was born into a family of five. Along with her mother were Pappa Schneider Balthasar Heiz, brother Balthasar, and sisters Katharine and Maria. 

Schneider Balthasar Heiz and his first wife, Katharina Vogeli, were both born in 1826 in Ruti in the Canton of Glarus, Switzerland. Their one child, a son Balthasar, was born in 1847 however, Katharina Vogeli died one year later.  Schneider Balthasar married his second wife, Anna Maria Vogeli, two years later in 1849.  Anna Maria also born in Ruti, was a year younger than her husband, born in 1827. Judging from shared last names, the two wives,  Anna Maria and Katharina might have been sisters, however, the name Vogeli is quite common in Switzerland. 

Before immigrating to the USA in May of 1852, Schneider Balthasar and Anna Maria’s oldest child, Katharina, was born in 1850. Another child died as an infant, Mathias 1851 – 1852.

A year after their arrival in New Glarus, Wisconsin, a daughter Rosina was born on May 12, 1853. The infant lived but a few months, dying on August 22, 1853.  On July 15, 1855 Maria was born, and, as mentioned previously, the youngest child, Rosalina was born in 1857.

The Hefty family
When Rose was two years old her mother died and the young girl was taken in by the family Marcus and Magdalena Hefty. Balthasar, Katharina, and Maria remained with their father. The Heftys were devout followers of the Zwinglian form of Reformed Lutheran believers as were all of the Swiss Wisconsin immigrants.  Through the years the Heftys demonstrated numerous examples of charity and generosity, and as such, Rose was well cared for by her foster family.

Marcus Hefty and Magdalena [Legler] Hefty were born in Glarus, Switzerland, he on March 25, 1829 and she on November 26, 1837.  Magdalena Legler and the Legler family emigrated to New Glarus in 1845 with the first emigration group. Marcus Hefty came to America with his father, mother, and other family members in 1847 which was the second emigrant group.

This small family of three, moved in 1866 to Valley Falls, Kansas together with Magdalena’s brother Meli Legler. There they purchased a mill.

Due to poor health on the part of Marcus, the couple moved to San Diego County, California in 1888 (86?) after selling his interest in the mill to his brother-in-law. There Marcus died in November 24, 1902 at the age of 73 and Magdalena on June 26, 1907, age 69.  Both are buried at Mount Hope Cemetery in San Diego, Ca.

The federal census of 1880, the year of her marriage, shows Rose as living with her foster parents in the Delaware township, Jefferson county, Kansas. Her foster father, Marcus Hefty, was then 51 years old and a farmer, and her foster mother, Magdalene, was 41 years old, wife, and keeping house. Rose, 22 years old, is listed as an adopted daughter, although in actual fact she was never formally adopted. However, here as well as in other documents she uses the name of Hefty as opposed to Heiz, her birth surname.

Rose in the census is registered as school teacher.  Being registered as living in Delaware Township, as opposed to living in the community of Valley Falls, confirms that the actual home was a rural home as opposed to living within the community of Valley Falls, which was the name of the post office.  In the census of 1875 she is registered as Rosie, and in 1880 as Rose.  The census also confirms that the adults were born in Switzerland and Rose in Wisconsin.

Much in opposition to their parents due to reasons of religion, Rose and Francis Jay Rice were married on December 28, 1880 at Valley Falls. Francis was a Baptist minister and Rose once was a member of the Swiss Reformed congregation. Rose taught school before marriage at Valley Falls, Kansas. 

Francis and Rose had three children: Edna Julia, born  June 3, 1883 at Augusta, Kansas. Zelda Magdalina, born June 7, 1885 at August, Kansas.  Leslie Francis, born March 7, 1889 at Salem, Kansas.  In 1902 Francis retired from the ministry and in 1903 or 1904 he and Rose bought a small farm and moved the family to Gentry, Arkansas. It was while living in Gentry, that Leslie Rice met Grace Rich, his future wife and mother to the first generation Rice Kids.

Francis died on March 27, 1936. Rose died on March 6, 1942 at her home in Gentry several miles north of Siloam Springs, Arkansas and is buried at Oak Hill Cemetery at Siloam Springs, beside her husband of 55 years. 

Who was Rose Hefty Rice?

My first entries on The Rice Kids webpage will be items concerning Rose Hefty Rice. These contributions are my first and, therefore, the language might not flow, the orthographics and grammar might not always be correct, but the intention is to excite the readers with tidbits of information as they become available to me. These articles are preparations for future books on the same subjects, in this case, Rose Rice. Goodness, Rose Rice.... sounds like a movie star! She could have signed documents using RR.  But, I have not as of yet found any evidence of her doing so. (If it had been me, I would have engraved RR in large letters - very large letters - on my tombstone!)

I also need time and experience in managing this webpage.  Maybe I’ll add more color. And pictures.  I will absolutely need to learn to add pictures. And again, contributions in the form of words, ideas, photographs, are always welcomed.

Rose Hefty Rice and Francis Jay Rice were my great-grandparents, that is, their son, Leslie Francis Rice, better known to us as Leslie F. Rice, was Granddad. 

Who are the Rice Kids?

THE RICE KIDS

The “Rice Kids” are an exclusive assemblage of individuals who consider themselves related to Leslie Francis Rice and Grace Lora (Rich) Rice, albeit legal or emotive bonding, or through just plain interest. The following is a list is of the five children of Leslie and Grace. The other proud members of the Rice family are their grandchildren, and, of course, this group of unique individuals expands to both twofold and threefold when including the third and future generations, as well as spouses, which would be the only right and proper thing to eventually do.

Dorothy Frances Rice                      1915 – 1992
            Lora Merle                             1948    Kent, Washington
            Richard Gorden                      1953    Seattle, Washington

Franklin Jay Rice                            1918 – 1979
            Constance Adell                    1944    Ft. Pierce, Florida
            Jason Alan                             1960    Champaign, Illinois

Virginia Elizabeth Rice                   1920 – 1999
            Norman Warren                     1942    Fjerdingby, Norway
            Noreen Francis                      1944    On the road

Mildred Rose Rice                          1923 – 2011
            Mary Anne                             1951    Jamestown, North Dakota
            Jane Marie                             1953    Minneapolis, Minnesota
            Joseph Mark                          1955    Mandan, North Dakota
            Steven Thomas                       1958    St. Paul, Minnesota

Lawrence Merle Rice                      1927 – 1975
            Dorian Lee                             1950    Boise, Idaho
            Josette Leslie                          1953    San Diego, California
            Kerry Martin                          1954    Bellingham, Washington
            David Trent                            1957
            Kandi Lynell                           1960    Minden, Nevada

Other dear members of the Rice Kids by close relationships

Joe Ebertz (1923), married to Mildred. Current residence is Jamestown, North Dakota
             

One can very likely find errors on this list. Maybe names are misspelled, locations wrong, or dates incomplete. However, I will in all solidarity make whatever corrections you as readers make me aware of. Undoubtedly some of you might already be thinking: Dosn’t he ever get this right?”

Why this website?

Numerous hours each day are spent at my computer researching and writing about the Leslie F. Rice family, reaching back to 1630, through the years, and into this century. However, and unfortunately, I spend more time on the research side of things, and less on the writing. The result is the discovery of capsules of info which are informative, and often quite fascinating, but which remain with me and are not passed on to The Rice Kids. Some of whom might find these interesting, maybe even exciting.   

The intention of this website is thus to release these bits of info as I discover them so as to allow others to participate in my encounters.

Another intention with this website is to allow for, and even create, a communicative process in which interested individuals can interact with me. Criticizing, idea thinking, questioning, and contributing in such a way that this website can be a source of information for enlightenment all of The Rice Kids….. whether they need it or not. J