THE RESTLESS ONE Born in Solon, Maine, on November 4, 1870, to Peter and Margaret McCollor, Alfred Peter, just like his siblings before him, learned to farm at an early age. He was only a child when his family moved
to Minnesota, a trip that must have been scary, and, at the same time, exciting for him.
All of this account of Alfred's life comes from the essay by Margueritte Dunn, Alfred's grand-daughter, as recorded in the
Stigman/Nelson book*, and other information in that same publication. When he was a young man, "A.P." as he was known by family, ventured out on his own, and worked as a ranch
hand, bartender, and mine worker in Northern Minnesota. The 1885 census of the Minnesota Territory and State, lists Alfred
as living alone - at 15 years old. In his lifetime, he would also work as a wheat and flax rancher, threshing machine operator,
cook, construction worker, carpenter and Oldsmobile factory worker. He would travel and live in many areas, including Grant
County, MN, Cavalier County, ND, and Elsie, St. Johns, and Lansing, all in MI. He "traveled until he met Ethyl Williams in Northern Wisconsin where she was visiting her brother at the time".
Ethyl was born in Elsie, Michigan in 1875, and both her father and brother were Methodist ministers in Shiawassee County.
They married in 1900 or 1901, probably in Spring Valley, WI, where the groom was working as a bartender at the time. After
their marriage, they share-cropped in South Dakota.
ETHYL Ethyl was born in Laingsburg, Shaiwassee County, MI. In addition to helping her husband, and raising a large family,
she was a seamstress and a practical nurse. She was the daughter of Samuel and Anna (or Annie - maiden name may have been
Runyon) Williams. (note: an Anna Runyon appears as a descendant of "Charity Hegeman" in a google search, which also includes, ironically, a Mary McCollor!). Ethyl came
from a Methodist family, in fact, her brother and father were both Methodist ministers. Their son, Alfred Patrick writes
that Alfred (his father) "was tending bar at a Hotel in Spring Valley, WI, when he met my mother. I am pretty sure they
married there, because my mother was a minister's daughter and I don't think she would travel single with a wild Irishman.
Then, too, look at the pack of kids! I don't think they lost any time on a lingering courtship. My mother's family, all Protestants,
sure gave her heck for marrying a Catholic...". Ethyl finally converted to Catholicism
about 1933 or 1934, and the couple renewed their vows in the Catholic church
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the photo above has three names written on the reverse, it is not known
who is who, nor is the identity of the others: Allen McCollor ( this would be Babe's first husband)
Chet McCollor
( this would be Chester, Allen's brother)
AP McCollor ( their cousin and Babes
brother) To the right:
An early photo of the children of Alfred Peter and Ethel (Williams) McCollor Another wonderful photo submitted by Ted Allen, great-grandson
of Alfred & Ethel, and grandson of Ethel Pearl. Ted has clarified the names. Top row: Margaret, Ethel. Bottom row: Gladys, Jennie, Molly, Eileen, Ivan, and Alfred. TRAVELING
THRESHERS - A FAMILY BUSINESS
The couple
owned a steam-powered, horse-drawn threshing machine, which was a rare and valuable item in the mid-west at the time. The
enterprising McCollors traveled from farm to farm with it, along with a "cook-wagon" managed by Ethyl, who her granddaughter
would refer to as "Grandma Mac". Margaret Opel
McCollor, mother to Margueritte was born to the couple on March 12, 1903. The child rode along on the family "business
trips" in the cook-wagon with only a dog named "Rags" as a playmate. Rags was apparently a one-girl dog, as
Margueritte tells of an occasion when Alfred attempted to spank his daughter and in turn received a bite on his arm from Rags. Ethyl's father had found a home for the young family to live in in Elsie, MI, and
the family made the move. Alfred took on odd jobs, farmed and often returned to mining country, where he worked for relatives
who owned the mines. Below:
Family ca. 19 -?- Pictured clockwise left to right are: Alfred Patrick, Gladys Elizabeth, Alfred Peter Sr.,
Ethel Pearl (Ted's Grandmother), Ethel Elizabeth, Ivan Archie "Nibbs", Eileen Elizabeth, Margaret Opal "Peg",
and Jennie Doris.
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THE HARDER YEARS
By 1912, the couple had nine (?) children. Tragically they lost one of them, Molly, who died at just two years old.
In total there would be seven girls and three boys, and together, the family eventually moved to Lansing, MI about the time
the oldest of them was in high school. Here, Alfred worked as a carpenter. The years prior to WWI were tough ones for many mid-westerners, and after school, Opal went to work. Too poor to
own but one blouse and one skirt, she worked for the telephone company. Each night she washed them and the next morning ironed
them so she would have a professional appearance at work each day. As each child became old enough to work, even in some small
job, they did, helping to support the family. Ethyl took in washings and, even worked in the evenings, tatting lace
for clothing and slips by lamplight. The children often wore shoe and coat hand-me-downs from area church people. Opal later
told her daughter of the church giving them high heeled, high buttoned shoes, and how her mother, Ethyl, sawed off the heels
so that the girls walked with their toes pointed up. "The girls, as they got older, used to tell the story that they
didn't recognize their sisters and brothers on the street until they looked down at their feet". Even with so much
hard work, there was never enough clothes, and sometimes not much food. Opal told her daughter the family ate "fried
mush" and that Alfred carried "left-over pancakes for his lunch".
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(to left) AP helping to build Babe and Jim's house, photos courtesy Kevin McCollor (below)
Posing in front of the house they built for AP, these are AP's sons and sons in law, left to right: Jaris Truly (not sure
who this is - perhaps a friend or neighbor), Allen "Buster" McCollor, Alfred Patrick McCollor, Ivan "Nibbs"
McCollor, Bill McBrooms (Ethyl's husband), Bill Fuller (Margaret's husband), James Harvey (Glady's husband).
Margeuritte ends her essay saying "it is not surprising that my parents were always helping others
in the future years as they became more affluent". In the 1930 census of Lansing, MI, Alfred's profession is listed as
a carpenter-builder. Son Ivan, still unmarried and living at home, is listed as a truck driver. Alfred
died March 8, 1948, in Lansing, and was buried at Elsie, MI. He was 77 years old. Ethyl followed him on October 13, 1951,
also dying at Lansing. Their lives spanned a long and important era for the United States, and they must have seen many changes
and history. For that, we can envy them, and wish we could sit down and talk with them just one time, to talk about all they
may have witnessed. SEE CEMETERY PROJECT FOR GRAVE
MARKERS FOR ALFRED AND ETHEL.
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