Ralph Wellons Family

Ralph Wellons, my grandfather, grew up in a large family. It’s no wonder they were a little on the poor side. And they went to work early instead of finishing school. This photo of a printout of the 1920 census under the name of Branson Wellons, his older brother, tells most of the tale.

James Wellons was his father. Florence Lane Wellons was his mother. They were 46 and 43 respectively in 1920.

Then look at the list of kids, starting with Branson, who was 21 and was already working as a welder at a toy factory. Note: It was the same factory that his dad worked at and it was a big deal.

The rest in order, were:

Grant 19
Pansy 17
Ralph 15
Carrie 12
Edward 10
Hugh 8
Oscar 4
Sarah 2

And that leaves out their brother Wayne, who would have been 16 if he had lived.

I think that I actually met all of the kids listed here. I met some several times. Especially Pansy, who married my grandmother’s brother Paul Wyant.

So I guess that rhythm method of birth control really didn’t work! It’s amazing to see them all living under one roof. They lived on Locust Street in Anderson. All of these kids lived to middle age and most collected social security. Not bad for growing up without antibiotics and all of the rest of the wonders of our modern medicine.

I don’t have many pictures, but once I publish the blog we may find some from near or distant relatives. That happened when I did my Dixon family history blog. I will give some more details about the parents, their ancestors, and the kids listed here.