Chosen Families #11: The Seward Boys: Walter & Albert Anderson’s Story
Welcome to the next episode the Chosen Families Project! I found this photograph from a batch of photographs from one of my local antique stores recently. It for $2, and had identification on the back. I had seen the photograph there before, but on this weeks trip around town, I decided to see if I could find their relatives.
Back of photograph, with names written lightly
On the front of the photograph, pictured is to boys next each other. One of the boys is in a suit jacket, a collared shirt, and bow tie. The other boy is in a heavier white outfit, adorned with frilly lacy on the neckline. It makes me think it was some religious related outfit, because of it’s appearance, although I am not certain.
Although no identifying information is listed on the front, a photographer and location of his studio is listed, with the surname Givens from Seward,Nebraska. A book titled History of Seward County, Nebraska: And Reminiscenses of Territorial History by William Wallace Cox describes W. D. Givens photograph business:
I have seen other articles and historical publications talking about W. D. Givens in 1918 as well. To date the photograph it would be around 1880-aprox. 1920s which is when he had his business. I have seen other photographs from the time period taken by him, and he was one of the main photographers of the time period in that era it seems.
On the back of the photograph listed the names Walter and Albert Anderson in a thin pencil handwriting. Appearing as the two boys are somehow siblings of one another, it was time to look into their background to see who they were, and hopefully find relatives associated with them. The thin pencil handwriting of their names is probably what made me not notice the photograph in my scouting missions for photographs.
The hardest part of searching for those in photographs is confirming that the photograph is the person based on the records that I find. Often time multiple individuals will have similar surnames and names in an area, and especially when tracking down relatives, I want to confirm that I find the correct relative.
When I searched for brothers Walter and Albert Anderson living with one another, I found a family that stood out as strong candidates for the boys in the photograph. The two boys were living with their parents Calvin and Sarah Anderson on the 1900 census at 419 Tenth Street in Seward, Nebraska. With the two brothers looking somewhat far in age from one another, this seemed to be the family within a degree of certainty. This allowed me to identify the boys in the photograph, the older boy being Walter, the younger being Albert. Here is there families story. I have started a family tree on Ancestry with the photograph attached with some records. I also found a formal family tree on FamilySearch that I’ve linked as well.
Walter Vernon Anderson and Albert Stephen Anderson were the children of Calvin Anderson & Sarah Ellen (Ford) Anderson. Calvin Anderson was born January 3, 1854 in Bedford County, Pennsylvania. He moved from Pennsylvania to Seward, Nebraska when he was 13, working on a farm with his father, and was a resident there until his death. Sarah was born August 1, 1860, in Crystal Lake, Illinois. He married Sarah on the August 1, 1882. They lived in Seward at time together in 1885. On the 29 October 1887, they had their first child Walter in Seward. Then they had Albert on Nov 16, 1897, also in Seward. According to census records, Calvin performed Odd Jobs, such as a painter (1900) and plasterer (1910). Him and Sarah would live in Seward until they passed away. Calvin passed on May 9, 1947, and Sarah on December 6, 1954.
Calvin was the son of pioneer parents, during the high time of Western migration. His obituary records give detailed accounts on his upbringing and how he participated in Seward. This is vital to providing insight to the upbringing of Walter and Albert, and why they ended up growing up in Seward. Both of them are buried in Seward Cemetery, in Seward.
Mrs. Sarah Anderson and family, Courtesy Ancestry
Walter Anderson was born and raised in Seward. He married Eva Beatrice Figard on April 12, 1908 in Seward. Eva had just turned 18, getting married on her birthday. Walter early on worked as a Painted, but later worked as a postal carrier for most of his lifetime. With Eva, Walter had 5 daughters, Fern (1908), Lila (1911), Beatrice (1919),Glenna (1922), and Phyllis (1927). Eva would pass away suddenly at the age of 47. I was able to find her obituary published in The Nebraska State Journal.
She died on March 5, 1936. On December 5, 1936, Walter would remarry Leona Pusel in David City, Nebraska. They had a child together named Nancy (1938), and in 1940, he lived with his daughters, and Nancy’s step children from her previous marriage. He would live with his family in the Seward area until his passing on 23 May, 1957, at the age of 69. He is buried in Seward Cemetery alongside his parents. I located his obituary in The Lincoln Star paper in Lincoln, Nebraska. It reads:
His brother Albert was born in Seward on November 16, 1897. He enlisted in the Navy during WWI on July 9, 1917 servings as an Aviation Support Equipment Technician. He was discharged Mar 14,1919. He married Nellie A. Plumer August 23, 1928, living in Omaha,Nebraska and Detroit, Michigan, raising Nellie’s children from her previous marriage. Nellie unfortunately lost her first husband one of her children to Spanish Influenza. Her first husband James “Jamie” R Saunders and son James R Saunders (only 4 years old) both in October 1918 in Omaha. An article from the Fremont Tribune, Fremont, Neberaska on Friday, October 11, 1918, page 7 states
Father and Son Die From Spanish "Flu" Omaha, Oct 11 - Two deaths from Spanish influenza in one family in forty-eight hours occurred in the home of James R Saunders, sr, 2022 Ohio street, who died Thursday morning following an attack of the disease three days ago. His son, James R, jr, died Tuesday morning, and funeral services were held Wednesday. Mrs Saunders, widow of James R, jr [sic], is confined to her bed with the same disease, and her two little girls, who have been seriously ill, are reported to be improving.
These other children lived with Albert. I could imagine how traumatic it was to lose loved ones so close to one another during this time. The global 1918 Spanish Influenza pandemic took around 25–50 million (generally accepted), other estimates range from 17 to 100 million.
To continue with Albert, he would work for Western Electric for a large part of his life (1930 census, 1942 draft card from Detroit). He would pass on Mar 8, 1977. He is buried in Forest Lawn Memorial Park, in Omaha, Nebraska. Nellie would pass away in August of 1977. They appeared to have no biological children with one another. I could not locate an obituary for Albert at this moment.
I hope to find relatives for them soon. To conclude, it is so interesting that the children of pioneers, who started towns where they didn’t exist, who came west, eventually came back to the east coast. I am so happy to tell their stories, especially over a 100 years later. If you are related to Walter or Albert, or any of his family, please reach out to me at thechosenfamiliesproject@gmail.com. I have reached out to relatives, as well as posted the photograph in a public tree on Ancestry, FamilySearch, and on FindAGrave.
