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Title: Grandpa's Life in West Virginia
Author: Yvonne Haines of Granger, Indiana
Date: September 26, 2007
I am not a Spiker, but I am a
ZINN. My great grandfather was Granville Preston Zinn and my grandpa
was Felix Brigham Wood Zinn. Felix was born July 5, 1878 in Ritchie
County, West Virginia When he was 29, he married Cora Alice Husk, who
was born February 28, 1882, in Doddridge Co., West Virginia. They had
six sons and one daughter, losing one of the sons at birth. All of the
children were raised in Ritchie County. When the daughter, Peg was 25,
she married T. K. Richter, of Indiana. That was in November of 1932.
On January 1 of 1933, they moved to Hammond, Indiana, where T. K. worked
at a service station he owned.
Life was hard for Felix, Cora,
and the boys, back in West Virginia. Grandpa earned a living working in
the oil fields and grandma took in boarders and others laundry to
supplement their income.
In early 1939. T. K. went back
to West Virginia to get grandpa and bring him to Indiana to see the farm
T. K. wanted to buy. It had 165 acres, a two-story house, a large barn
and was located in Plymouth, Indiana. Grandpa liked it, so in March or
April of 1939, the entire family moved North to Marshall County,
Indiana.
In the Fall of 1940, T. K. had
the house wired for electricity. On February 3, 1941. a fire started in
the walls of the second floor. Being daylight, they were able to get
some of their belongings out of the house, bit it was a total loss. The
family lived with neighbors, until two rooms could be added to the
two-room well house. Felix, Cora, Ted, Rex, and Bob lived there until
the new house was completed in November. It was a ranch house with
two large bedrooms, a kitchen, dining room, living room, bathroom, back
porch, and full basement.
I was told by my Mom that Felix
had wanted to make enough money in Indiana to go back to West Virginia
and buy a farm and live there again. Grandma Cora didn't miss the hard
work and life she had in West Virginia and didn't want to go back. As
it turned out, they went back, but only to visit their families. They
and all but two sons and their wives are buried at New Oak Hill Cemetery
in Plymouth. Glenn is buried at Oxford Baptist Cemetery, Doddridge
County and Rex is in a Florida cemetery.
Their life in West Virginia was
never forgotten and grandpa made sure to tell the stories of the hills
of West Virginia and his love for it.
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