April 30, 2013 - letter from Aunt Delores

I really found my aunt, Delores Daugherty Johnson (Lori) very intriguing.  I always wanted to be her next door neighbor.  A very intelligent woman, with a totally creative soul, not apt to bend to society, yet a real lady.  She and her family lived in New York State and I always felt that was really unfair.  I love my mother...we had a wonderful childhood, yet her sister was someone I know I could learn from and live with.  It didn't hurt that my beloved uncle Al, totally right brained German farmer and stuck in his ways, constantly had something negative to say about her. 

She had one big drawback...smoking!  This habit, I feel took away her health and life far too soon.  She was born in 1928 and died a couple of years ago.  I don't have the exact date on my family tree file for some reason.  Must change that!

Here is a letter that aunt Lori wrote to another very interesting woman, dated Nov. 6, 2000.  Juanita, who is the great grandaughter of my mother's great aunt, Hattie Daugherty Place.  Pretty good roots for an amazing woman, living in Canada.  Juanita and I have had some good phone conversations but have never met. 

"Hi, Juanita!  My niece, Judy Paulson forwarded your letter you'd written her so I know you're looking for info on Hattie Place.  As it happens, she was my great-aunt and one of my very favorite people.  She lived in Wessington, SD for years and I and my many cousins (and other kids) were always welcomed at her little house there.  She always seemed to have fresh cookies or popcorn or some goodie that always-hungry kids loved.  She died at age 96, and had gone blind a few years before that, but boy she was far from senile!!  She made treats for kids at Halloween until the day she lost her sight and it was fascinating to talk to her. 

She was one of 9 children born to my great-grandfather, William Henry Daugherty and his wife, Martha Pepper Daugherty.  He came west, from Illinois (I think) in a covered wagon, with his family to settle in Beadle County, South Dakota.  They broke that virgin soil, with the boys helping their dad.  Aunt Hattie was about 16 and soon started to teach school there - the one-room type - and was still teaching school at 86!

The nine Daugherty children were: John William (b. 1862); Hattie (b. 1863); George Henry (b. 1865) - he was my grandfather); Robert (died in infancy); Edward (b. 1869); Fred (b. 1871); Frank (died in infancy); Emma Jane (b. 1873) and Richard (b. 1878).  Most of them are buried in the Wessington SD Cemetery.

Hattie married William H. Place...don't know when, and I don't remember the years they died.  I was just a child, in 8th grade, when we moved from Wessington and my grandfather died when I was 15.  I think Aunt Hattie died a few years later.

I'd made a rough chart some years back re the Daugherty descendents of my great-grandfather.  There were a lot - he had 18 grandchildren who had sizable families too!  If you'd send me your postal address, I can send you a copy of the chart, and a copy of Martha Pepper Daugherty's obituary.  I also have a small book, 'Early Beadle County', written by Mildred M. Jones, describing the people who first came there.  It includes tidbits about Great-grandpa Daugherty and Aunt Hattie.  I thought I also had a chart of Martha Pepper's ancestry, but I'll be darned if I can find it...probably in some box, for I've moved this year from Rochester, NY down here to Maryland.

Anyway, let me know...I'm working slowly on Daugherty Family Tree and have been foiled a bit by lack of info on my great-grandfather.  Delores (Daugherty) Johnson

P.S. According to my info, your grandfather's name was George Pesicka.  I don't remember meeting Lillian Edna, but I vaguely remember her sis, Audrey Cisco out in DuPree, SD one hot summer.  They were my father's cousins.

The following is an adendum to Aunt Lori's letter.  It was written by Juanita.

Heloo Again..I just wanted to share a piece of history with you.  My father tells me that his grandparents were neighbors to Abe Lincoln and that there was a cradle that he used to put his foot up against to rock the babies at his grandfather's house.  He said that they lived in Illinois at the time.  I believe they were Daugherty's.  My father is Philo Pesicka the oldest of George and Edna's children.  My grandmother was always called Edna and I didn't even know that her name was Edna until I started with this search.  She was born in Ottumwa, Iowa.  So her parents must have been living there at some time.  Do you know of this?  Or have you heard the Lincoln story?  Someone in my dad's family has the cradle.  Always, Juanita.

My beautiful and intelligent aunt, Lori Daugherty Johnson