“Camp Grove” near Graettinger, Emmet County, Iowa on May 29, 1883.
He was grandfather Aamund Christopher’s last child. His mother was
Kjestina Ingeborg Davis Christopher.
Kjestina Ingeborg Davis Christopher.
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| Camp Grove |
Oscar was her 8th
child. Oscar’s
family, at the time of his birth, was a mix of “His, Hers, and Ours.” Amund’s
first four children were: Martin,
Lewis, Edward and Ammon. Their mother, Betsy Johnson Christopher,
died in 1871.
died in 1871.
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| Martin |
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| Lewis |
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| Edward |
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| Ammon |
Inga’s children were Julia, Mary Ann, John Davis and Caroline.
Their father
Charles Charleson died in 1972.
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| Julia |
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| Mary Ann Charleson |
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| Caroline |
eight children became half siblings. Four more children then
joined the
family: Carl, Bessie, George, and
Oscar. Carl and Bessie were previously
featured on this blog. George died young and we have no photo and little history about him.
featured on this blog. George died young and we have no photo and little history about him.
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| Carl |
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| Oscar |
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| Bessie |
Oscar
attended Elementary school in Graettinger then completed 4 years of education from Humboldt College in 1904. Humboldt is about 1 and 1/2 hours from Graettinger
by today's mileage.He began teaching in
1905 at age 21.
He taught business classes in various schools during the next few years in Minnesota and Montana. He met his wife while visiting various school programs in Minnesota.
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| Oscar's Baseball team at Humboldt |
He married
Freeda Giles June 24, 1913 in Fergus Falls, Minnesota.
She was born in South
Dakota on April 2, 1888, but grew up in Minnesota with three sisters, Edna,
Marion, and Jean and one brother, John Hunter.
Her mother, Jean Hunter was born
in Scotland and came with her family
to America in 1868 and settled in Hancock, Minnesota.
Freeda completed 2 years of college….. and began
teaching at the to America in 1868 and settled in Hancock, Minnesota.
Madison School in Fergus Falls, Minnesota about 1909. She was
a boarder with the Bell family there. Her father, Albert Giles was
a principal at a public school in Two Harbors Village, Minnesota
from 1893 to 1900 and he was teacher at North Branch Village
from 1900-..... Oscar taught many years in Miles City, Montana.
Their first child, Mary Agnes Christopher was born on
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| Oscar with Edna Lou |
December 28, 1914.
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| Freeda and Mary Agnes |
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| Archie Inglis |
Their second child, Edna Lou Christopher was born
December 19, 1921.
Their third child,
Archie Inglis Christopher was born
June 17, 1926.
June 17, 1926.
All three were born in Baker Montana where
Oscar at that time was a manager at a Public Gas Utility Company. By 1940 the
family had moved to the Conrad area in Montana and Oscar was a sales
representative for a Montana/Dakota Utilities company.
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| Edna Lou and Mary Agnes |
Oscar and
Freeda were very supportive of their extended family members. They often visited family
members in Graettinger, Iowa. They also attended the family reunions in 1932, and
1941 and funerals of their loved ones as time went on.
Oscar had the same wry and teasing sense of humor as Carl and our uncle Lauren. Uncle Ken spoke highly of him and retold some of his jokes and comments. More about Oscar and Freeda's personality in the next blogpost.
Oscar had the same wry and teasing sense of humor as Carl and our uncle Lauren. Uncle Ken spoke highly of him and retold some of his jokes and comments. More about Oscar and Freeda's personality in the next blogpost.
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| Christopher Reunion in Graettinger 1932 |
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| Christopher reunion Caldwell Idaho 1941 |
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| Ammon, Oscar and Carl |
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| Carl and Oscar |
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| Oscar and Freeda in Hardin Montana |
"After my grandmother Freeda's death, Oscar came to live with my parents Mary and Walt in San Bernardino while he was awaiting space at what I believe was a Lutheran senior residence in Billings, Montana. This would have been around 1965-66. This was a good time for me as I was able to develop a day-to-day relationship with him when I was in the fifth and sixth grades.
Oscar seemed to enjoy the presence of my friends when they would come over to play with me, gently teasing and joking with them. He shared his love of baseball with me, and would play catch with me in the back yard. He once took me to the Ringling Bros. circus when it came to town.
I do remember him telling me that on a trip to Washington D.C.--I believe it was his honeymoon--he and my grandmother went to a Washington Senators baseball game where he saw the hall of fame pitcher Walter Johnson pitch. He also told me he had been a fan of Bob Feller, the Cleveland Indians fireball pitcher in the '40s who was also an Iowa boy, I believe.
He grieved for his late wife while he lived with us. My mother later recalled finding him in tears one time, missing his life-long companion. I remember him as a gentle, kindly man with a wry sense of humor.
At some point, probably in mid-1966 his space at the Lutheran home became available. We all went to the airport to see him off to Billings. As he climbed the steps to the plan (in those days at Ontario airport passengers boarded from the tarmac outdoors), my Dad said "Take a good look because this might be the last time you see your Grandpa." So I did, and it was.
I'm grateful to have had the time that he lived with us." quoted from grandson Lee Gaston
Freeda lived
to be 75 years old and lived in Hardin, Montana during her golden years until
her death on June 3, 1963….
Oscar lived
to be 83 years of age and lived in Hardin, Montana for years, then San Bernardino, then Billings, Montana until his death on May
5, 1967.
Next blogpost: Oscar's family.. children and grandchildren..Thanks to grandchildren Carol and Lee Gaston for much of the details and photos on this blog and the next!
