Godfrey and Nettie Crider - Edna's parents

Godfrey (Fred) Leo Crider was the son of Godfrey and Mary Crider and Edna's father.  He grew up on his parents farm and attended the rural schools of Lincoln Township and attended the Moravian Church which was located adjacent to his parents farm.  He assisted his father with general farming and was the only child that farmed his whole life.  

He married Nettie Grace Nussbaum who had come to this county from Clarke County, IA.  Daughter of Danial Nussbaum and Alta Mae Williams.  They had 10 children together.

What a beauty! Due to the poor health of her father Daniel Nussbaum, Nettie and her brothers and sisters were forced at an early age to leave home and make their own way in the world.  After completing country school, Nettie came to Poweshiek County and assisted with housework in homes of people who needed extra help.  During this time she was taught to be a very proficient dressmaker and later, with an Aunt, spent some time in Chicago, Illinois working in that profession.  She later returned to Brooklyn and was married

Shortly after their marriage, they packed their few belongings and with some livestock, boarded a freight train leaving for Kansas.  They settle on a ranch near Zenda in Kingman County. They engaged in wheat farming and cattle.  It was much different there than in Iowa.  They had to battle sandstorms, rattlesnakes and loneliness.  During the wheat harvest, Fred would be gone for weeks as the threshing crew went from ranch to ranch until the harvest was done.  This covered a great many miles which made it impossible for the ranchers to return home each evening.  Nettie would stay alone during that time with only their watchdog for company and protection.  Any neighbor would be miles away.  

After living there for three years they decided to come back to Iowa.  They disposed of their extra livestock and loaded their other belongings into a covered wagon.  They, along with a friend John Spears, started the long trip home.  The traveled by day and camped at night.  It was necessary to preserve the strength of their horses.  They had many exciting and frightening experiences along the way in their six week journey back to Iowa including rustlers trying to steal their horses.   

After returning to Iowa, they lived on a farm and in 1907, their first daughter Anna was born.  They moved to a farm four miles northwest of Brooklyn in Bearcreek Township.  There their second daughter Edna was born in 1910.  Their other daughter Lois was also born there in 1913. 

After 11 years, they purchased a farm in in Scott Township, southeast of Brooklyn, IA.  He engaged in general farming and, as the farm was quite hilly and much could not be cultivated, he went into sheep raising and wool production which was profitable at that time because man made fibers had not yet come into existence.  They built a new home there which had inside plumbing, a bathroom, a wood or coal furnace and waxed floors, all of which were practically non existent in country homes at that time.  

After his wife's death in 1945 (heart disease), Fred left the farm and spent much of his time staying in homes of people who were away on vacation or living as a companion to older people who could not stay along.  He passed in 1962 at the age of 83

He looks like he was an awesome grandpa

Cousins - 1957

Last row: Jean, Susan, Jim Reitzler, Joyce & Dick King, Dale Reitzler & Judy King. Front row: Bob King, Mike Smith, Don King..These are the youngest grandchildren of Fred & Nettie Crider & their oldest great grandchild

Miscellaneous Cousin Pictures

These are all pictures I have of Edna's and her sister's children.  Corrections? Stories? Send them!

I love these two, they look like they were peas in a pod

High tea at the Reitzler farm. Susan & Jean Reitzler and cousins Judy & Joyce King

Edna and Lester

Attended rural school Scott No. 1 aka the Patten School.  She then attended Brooklyn High School graduating with the class of 1928.  Edna and her sister Anna traveled by horse and buggy for the first two years of high school.  During the winter months when traveling was impossible, they stayed in various homes in town where they could work for their room and board by assisting a mother with housework, cooking and caring for small children.  When not in school, Edna assisted her parents with their work in the home and the farm as there were no boys in the family.  The farm had no electricity so there were always daily chores preparing the kerosene lamps for the night, carrying out the ashes from the wood and coal burning stoves, carrying gin the fuel and water for use in the kitchen, turning the barrel churn to make butter, miking the cows, feeding the chickens, and many other chores which had to be done by hand in those days. Edna love reading, crocheting, piano lessons, going to country dances and ice skating. During high school Edna made all her own clothes.  When she graduated she had a Normal Training Teachers Certificate which allowed her to teach in the rural schools with only a high school education.  At the time because of this, teachers were beginning to be more plentiful and there seemed to be no school available for Edna.  She planned to go to business school in Des Moines, but shortly before it was time to start, the superintendent located her in a school 7 miles southeast of of Deep River.  She made $80 a month, $20 of which she used to pay her room and board at the school director's home which was 1/2 mile from the school house.  She walked this distance to and from school, always going early enough to build a fire in the stove so that the school would be warm when the pupils arrived,.  The country teachers were their own janitors. 

She joined the Four H Club which then was a newly formed organization for country girls.  Their two main projects were sewing and home furnishing.  Later these clubs came to include boys with farm projects and later to include town boys and girls. 

Lester was born on May 27, 1910 to William and Frances King.  He attended rural school in Scott Township.  He also attended Brooklyn High School and graduated in 1928.  Lester and a neighbor boy, who was also in his class, traveled on horseback to and from school the first years, later, they shard and old Model T Ford car.  It was also during his first year of high school that boys graduated from short to long trousers.  When not in school he helped his father with the farming.  At the time there were few tractors or other power machinery in use on farms.  All the field work was done with horses.  Very few farm homes had electricity, running water, bathrooms, furnaces or radios.  

During high school Lester and Edna were friends and neighbors.  They had occasional dates but later after graduation became engaged and were married.  The wedding was at St Patricks Catholic Church in Brooklyn at which time Edna became a member of the church.  After a short honeymoon, they returned to Lester's family home where they lived until the following March when they moved to a farm 1/2 mile south of there.  They lived on this farm which they rented from a land company for three years.  These first years of their marriage were years directly following the 1929 depression.  Prices were low, hogs sold for 2 cents a pound and eggs were 10 cents a dozen or less.  Many farmers lost their farms because of low prices and high taxes.  This included both Edna and Lester's parents.  The summer or 1930 was the summer of the 'dust bowl' which made for dusty days and scarce rain. At the peak of these storms, the day was dark as the night and everyone was forced to stay inside.  Needless to say, the corn harvest for this year was almost nothing.  {personal note, I always remember hearing Grandpa blamed Hoover for it all}

On this farm Pat and Bill were born in 1933 and 36 respectively

In 1940 they were finally able to buy back Lester father's farm. They grew crops and supplemented by raising livestock and small scale dairying.  They did very well during WWII and they were able to finish paying for their farm in a short time.  Lester had to sign for the draft, but was never called as they were exempting farmers.

On this farm 5 more children were born, Richard 1944, Judith and Joyce 1946, Don 1948 and Bob 1951

Lois Reitzler- Edna's younger sister and family

Gorgeous