White Bear Lake Vadnais Genealogy & Family History Blog

Anna Mae Ruth Vadnais and Robert James Campbell (Part 1 of 3)

1 Comment / Cynthia Vadnais / June 11, 2026

Ellen (Peltier) and Adlore Vadnais welcomed their twelfth, and last child, Anna Mae Ruth on March 27, 1930.¹ Anna Mae, the name she used throughout her life, was born in the family home on Fourth Street in White Bear Lake where Ellen had given birth to all but one of her children, her eldest son George. At the time of Anna Mae’s birth, Ellen was 41 years old and Adlore was 40 years old. Her siblings included 19 year old George, 18 year old Charles, 12 year old Florence, 10 year old Dick, 8 year old Mona, 6 year old Leona, 5 year old Jack, 3 year old Marguerite and 16 month old Gordy. Anna Mae’s brothers, Lawrence and Henry, had both passed away many years before her birth.

**Anna May Vadnais Minnesota Record of Birth, #22584**

**Circa 1930 – Vadnais family home at 1309 (now 1979) Fourth Street, White Bear Lake**

On April 13, 1930, Anna Mae was baptized by Father William Busch at St. Mary of the Lake Church in White Bear Lake.² Her baptismal record lists Anthony Buchal and his wife, Ruth (Halley) Buchal as the godparents. Ruth is Anna Mae’s half second cousin once removed.

**April 13, 1930 – St. Mary of the Lake Church baptismal record for Anna May Ruth Vadnais**

**Circa 1932 – Anna Mae in the front yard at 1309 Fourth Street**
White Bear Oil Company can be seen in the background and the slightly taller building beyond the company station, on the northeast corner of Bald Eagle Avenue and Fourth Street, was Norman Bibeau’s home and small grocery store and eventually the office for White Bear Oil Company.

**Circa 1932 – Anna Mae and her brother Gordy in front of the family home on Fourth Street**

**Circa 1933 – Anna Mae and Jack at White Bear Oil Company with their father, Adlore**

**Circa 1934 – Marguerite, Gordy and their little sister, Anna Mae**
It looks like they are happily enjoying their ice cream cones, or what is left of them.

**Circa 1934 – Studio shot of Anna Mae**
The first thought I had when I saw this picture was “Little Orphan Annie.” The comic strip was syndicated in 1924 and *Little Orphan Annie* ran on radio from 1930 to 1942. The show was successful because it had a child in the leading role. Sponsored by the Ovaltine Company, interest was kept high by offering young fans special premiums. Anna Mae was likely influenced by Little Orphan Annie.

**June 1934 – Anna Mae as the flower girl in her oldest brother George’s wedding**
Anna Mae was 4 years old and her brother George was 24 years old.

**Circa 1936 – (left to right) Anna Mae, Gordy and Marguerite outside the back door of their home at 411 Bald Eagle Avenue**
They look like they are the best of friends!

**Circa 1938 – Ellen Vadnais with her 3 youngest children: (left to right) Gordon Francis (Gordy), Anna Mae and Marguerite**
Gordy and Anna Mae were celebrating their First Communion. Ellen would have been about 49 years old, Gordy about 9 years old, Anna Mae about 8 years old and Marguerite about 11 years old.

Anna Mae’s future husband, Robert (Bob) James Campbell, the seventh of ten children, was born in the Town of Oneka on June 19, 1929 to 33 year old Anna (Sievek) and 43 year old Wilfred Campbell.³

**Robert James Campbell in the Town of Oneka, Washington County, Minnesota Birth Register**

Robert was baptized On July 14, 1929 by Father Laventure at Saint John the Baptist Catholic Church in Hugo, Washington County, Minnesota. Paris and Lillian Campbell, an uncle and aunt of his, are listed as the godparents.⁴

**Joseph Robert James Campbell baptismal record, Saint John the Baptist Church, Hugo, Minnesota**

The 1930 U.S. census shows 10 month old Bob, his parents and 5 other siblings: George, Genevieve, Vern, Doreen and Louis. Bob’s father is a farmer and they live in Oneka Township, Washington County, Minnesota.⁵

**1930 U.S. census record for the Wilfred and Anna Campbell family, Oneka Township, Washington County, Minnesota**

By the time the 1940 U.S. census was taken, Bob had 3 more siblings: twins, Elaine and Ellen, and youngest sister Yvonne. He is 10 years old and has completed the 4^th grade. His mother Anna, now a widow, is listed as head of household.⁶

**1940 U.S. census record for the Anna Campbell family, Oneka Township, Washington County, Minnesota**

Bob, his mother and his sisters moved to White Bear Lake sometime after the census was taken in 1940. They moved into the house (shown below) on Birch Lake Avenue directly behind the then Berg’s Grocery Store (1937-1945).