Twenty seven year old Adlore and twenty eight year old Ellen celebrated their 7th wedding anniversary the same year their daughter Florence Eugenia, my aunt, was born. Florence, the 5th of twelve children, was born on June 8, 1917 at the family home on 4th Street in White Bear Lake. The first of the daughters, Florence joined her 7 year old brother George, 5 year old brother Charles and 2 year old brother Henry; her brother Lawrence had passed away in 1914.1
Father Kelly baptized Florence on June 17, 1917 at the first St. Mary of the Lake Church in White Bear Lake, which was then located on Bald Eagle Avenue near the head of Birch Lake Avenue.
Florence had just had her second birthday when her brother Henry died on June 19, 1919.4 She is enumerated with the rest of her family in the 1920 U. S. census: Adlore J. is 30 years old, Ellen L. is 31 years old, George A. is 9 years old, Charles A. is 8 years old, Florence E. is 2 years 7 months old and the newest member of the family Richard A. is 6 months old. Adlore’s occupation is yard clerk for the railroad (Northern Pacific).5
(the other 2 girls are unknown)
Between 1921 and 1930 Florence would welcome 6 more siblings into the family: Mona Celestine born on April 5, 1921, Leona Rose born on April 4, 1923, John Russell born on February 19, 1925, Marguerite Marie born on October 17, 1926, Gordon Francis born on November 20, 1928 and Anna Mae Ruth born on March 27, 1930.6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 Florence was 12 years old when the last of her siblings was born.
Florence was in the first group of children to celebrate their First Communion at the newly built St. Mary of the Lake Church at 4th Street and Bald Eagle Avenue. The church was dedicated in November 1926 and her First Communion was probably in 1927 when she was 9 years old.
(I think it is Dick looking out through the porch screen)
Florence, along with her other siblings, attended the 8-room St. Mary’s School where classes were taught through the 8th grade. The original church (shown below and where Florence was baptized) was torn down and the convent was built in 1925. It was in the convent that Florence took piano lessons from Sister Bibiana and helped with meals for the teaching sisters.12 Florence would graduate from St. Mary’s in 1931.
The flight of concrete stairs seen at the edge of the road directly in front of the doors to the school were used to help access a wagon or a buggy.
Back row: Florence (about 13 years old), Mona (about 9 years old), Richard “Dick” (about 11 years old), front row: Leona (about 7 years old), Gordon “Gordy” (about 2 years old), Marguerite (about 4 years old) and John “Jack” about 5 years old
The 1930 U. S. census records show all 10 children living at home. Anna Mae, the last child born was only months old when the census was taken. Florence’s brothers George and Charles must have been at work when the above picture was taken.
Father Fahey is shown in the back row. Florence would have been about 13 or 14 years old.
It was at age 13 that Florence went to work as a clerk at Kohler’s Romance Parlors in White Bear Lake. Over the following years she was a housekeeper in a number of White Bear Lake area homes, a cook at Aldin’s Coffee House in Mahtomedi, a cashier and a hardware store assistant.14
Courtesy of White Bear Lake Area Historical Society
Florence would meet her future husband, John Jule O’Neil, during WWII when they both worked at the Ammunition Arsenal in Arden Hills. He worked in the art room and she screen printed ammunition boxes.
To be continued…
Thanks for visiting, come back soon,
Cindy
© 2023 Copyright by Cynthia Vadnais, All Rights Reserved
THANK YOU! What a wonderful job you’ve done with mom’s information. oxoox
Really enjoyed learning about Aunt Florence and pictures of her with brothers and sisters. Seeing the school and church we attended at a different time was interesting. Thanks for giving us this insight.