Tag Archives: Edward Earl Stufflebean

Stufflebean

12 for ’26: School Days – Cursive Penmanship

3 Comments

This 12 for ’26 month is dedicated to school-related mementos since this week is Back to School for many districts around the country.

While browsing through one of my Stufflebean family archival albums, I came across a document that I likely thought “Oh, that’s cute,” and then promptly forgot about it when I first discovered it.

Since it’s handwriting-related and “Cursive” is somewhat of a current today, I thought I’d share it and my thoughts about cursive.

Creamers Certificate of Award

This is to [Great Seal of the State of Oklahoma 1907] Certify the

Edward Stufflebean
Has reached the required degree of efficiency
in the prescribed work and is entitled to
this Credit Certificate in penmanship

Given at Norman, Okla
under our hand and seal this 11 day of Jan. 1926.

Grade 3

Nora Jackson, Teacher J. Don Garrison, Supt. or Principal

I can’t find any information on the Creamers organization, but I am assuming with the Oklahoma State Seal on it that it was connected to the Oklahoma dairy business. I wonder since it was a “Credit” certificate if it might have included some free milk or butter?

This award was given at least through 1945 as someone online found a certificate presented in that year.

Edward Stufflebean was eight years old when he earned this certificate for mastering cursive handwriting. Notice that the certificate itself is created using cursive, too.

Checking out the FAN club – Ed’s teacher and principal, I learned that J[oseph] Don Garrison, born 1899 in Oklahoma, was married with three children. He was the principal of the elementary school in 1926, but, by 1930, he had moved up to principal of the junior high and, in 1940, was the school superintendent. He died in 1969 and is buried at the IOOF Cemetery in Norman, where some of my husband’s extended family are also laid to rest.

Nora Jackson is more of a mystery, as she isn’t found in the 1920 or the 1930 census. The Norman Transcript has several mentions of her in the 1920s, including that she was a third grade teacher and is identified as Mrs. Nora B. Jackson, married, which is still a bit unusual for the time. Most female teachers were required to be single. Other than the newspaper snippets, nothing further has been found and it seems that Nora moved on after a few years.

Suggestion: Since so many schools no longer teach cursive handwriting, if you have children or grandchildren who are in Grade 3 or older, teach them yourselves. It’s not difficult – just demonstrate a letter or two at a time and show them how to connect the letters.

It’s such a shame to think that future generations won’t be able to even read names of ancestors on the backs of photographs nor will they be able to read family letters. And, no, it’s not okay that they’ll get AI to do it for them.

Cursive is an easy skill to learn and easy to read. It shouldn’t become obsolete!

Stufflebean

Throwback Thursday: Christmas 1956, Norman, Oklahoma

Leave a comment

Christmas1956StufflebeanWithPearlAndClaude
Christmas 1956, Norman, Oklahoma

For the most part, the Stufflebean relatives took turns each summer, visiting in California and Oklahoma. One year, the California contingent headed east and the opposite year, the Oklahoma family went west. Rarely did they get together at Christmas, so 1956 was an exception.

Dave’s Uncle Jess must have been the photographer since he is the only family member not in the picture. Sadly, only the four youngest children are still here today.

From left to right – Mother Ruby, my husband Dave, his brother, Phillip, father Ed, sister Pat, cousin Ronnie, cousin Mark (being held), Aunt Wanda, step-grandfather Claude and grandmother Pearl.

One exciting moment along the way on the trip for the family was checking out the snow –

EdRubyPhilAndDaveInSnowAbt1956
In the Snow, 1956

Southern Californians don’t experience much of the white stuff!

Stufflebean

Last Mystery Photo of 2016

Leave a comment

Here is the last mystery photo for this year, although it’s only half a mystery because I know the two little boys.

UnknownChildrenFourByFence
Who Are They?

Half the puzzle is solved and it helps narrowing down where the picture was taken and who the girls might be, although I don’t have the answer to that question right now.

The boy on the left is Alton Horne, half brother of Pearl Lillian Brasher Stufflebean. The little boy being held in the center of the photo is Edward Stufflebean, my husband’s father. Ed was born in June 1917, so this picture was probably taken in the summer of 1918.

Knowing that the first boy is Alton Horne and that Pearl is Ed’s mother, I tend to think that this setting is in Dike, Hopkins County, Texas and that they were visiting Pearl’s family.

Although Pearl’s grandfather, John C. Williams, married twice and had two sets of children, his daughters by his second marriage would be well into their 20s by 1918. Pearl herself was 20 and the young lady holding Ed doesn’t look like Pearl and she definitely looks a lot younger than 20.

Minnie Williams Brasher Horne, Pearl’s mom, had only two children – Pearl and Alton.

The girls could possibly be cousins of the boys or they might just be neighbor girls helping to care for the little ones. They don’t look like each other, so I don’t think they are sisters, but it’s not impossible.

This is a mystery that might never be solved.