Sunday's Obituary: Louis Arthur Fox

Here's a tip: If you don't already have access to Newspapers.com, make sure to at least get on their mailing list. About once a year they provide free access to the site for an entire three-day weekend, but you can only take advantage of the offer through the link in the email.

A little over a month ago, for President's Day Weekend, the offer appeared. It was an inconvenient time for me; my laptop had just died. And by died, I mean died. I could not get it to turn on. I bought a new one, but my genealogy program with all its tasks was still on the old one. There was no way I was going to miss out on free newspapers, though! I just couldn't be as strategic as I would have liked. My searches would have to be based on the bits and pieces I have in the cloud, and pure, fitful memory. Inevitably, searching this way resulted in finding some things I have found before, but I still made a considerable number of new discoveries.

In the past couple of years since I first began taking advantage of these Newspaper.com weekends, I have developed a process. I clip and download as many relevant articles as I can in the time available, and when the weekend is over I go through the tedious work of transcribing and creating citations. That is what I have been doing every evening in the intervening days.

So anyway, that was a long-winded way of saying that I have a whole new batch of obituaries, and they may be pretty random as to who they are or to which branch of family they belong.

Let's begin with my 2great-grandfather, Louis Arthur Fox. This was my Grandpa Jack's maternal grandfather, and the only grandparent whose name Grandpa Jack was able to tell me. The reason he knew his name, he explained, was that one day when he was visiting, a package arrived that needed to be signed for. Louis Fox had lost an arm, and was holding something in his other arm, so he had Grandpa Jack sign for it. He told him his name and how to spell it.

Incidentally, I also discovered a number of newspaper articles from the time that Louis Fox lost his arm, but I'll save those for another post.

Services at Elliott For Louis Fox, 87

ELLIOTT -- Services were held Wednesday, Dec. 3, for Louis Fox, 87 of Elliott, who died at his home here Monday, Dec. 1.

He was born July 3, 1871, at Lebanon, Ohio, and came to Iowa when he was quite young. He was married to Cora Jones at Coburg in December, 1896. He lived in the Elliott community a number of years as a farmer, retiring in 1943.

Services were held at the Elliott Methodist Church with the Rev. Clarence Landis, officiating.

Survivors are four children, Mrs. Hazel Hoyt of Council Bluffs, Mrs. Viola Leighton of Griswold, Mrs. Mabel Peck and Clyde Fox of Elliott; seven grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.

 I realize as I paste in the citation that this article did not come directly from Newspapers.com. I discovered it as an indirect effect of the Newspapers.com weekend special. Searching for this family and not finding them on that website, I did a search for newspapers from Red Oak, Iowa, and discovered that there is a free website of newspapers for that area! My finds from there and from Newspapers.com are all jumbled up in my head, and will continue to be all jumbled up in the order I present them.

Source:

"Services at Elliott For Louis Fox, 87," Red Oak Express, 4 Dec 1958, p. 2, col. 5; digital images, Community History Archive (https://redoak.advantage-preservation.com/ : accessed 24 Feb 2023).

Sunday's Obituary: Claude Robinault

Baseball runs in my family, though I thought it was on my dad’s side only. Much to my surprise, I have now learned that one of my Robinaults was also a baseball player. At another time I will have to go into his career, but here I will transcribe how his career was cut short. His name was Claude Robinault, and he was the son of the subject of the last Sunday's Obituary post, Robert Robinault.

I have found a series of three newspaper articles regarding the end of his life, the first telling of his serious illness due to diabetes.

AT THE POINT OF DEATH

As we write Claude Robbinault lies at the very threshold of death and before this reaches our readers his soul will in all probability have passed away. For a year he has been a victim of diabetes although this last acute attack has been of but short duration. He has been in great agony for the past twenty-four hours and death will come as a welcome relief from suffering. Claude has been an industrious helpful young man, a great comfort to his parents and a favorite among his friends. Our hearts are with him and his loved ones as they pass through the Valley of the Shadow.

The second article confirms his demise, and includes a long obituary. Judging by the strange spelling errors in the secondary heading, I whimsically like to think that the typesetter, whoever he or she may have been, was overcome with grief and unable to concentrate on the job at hand.

DIABETES CLAIMS YOUNG VICTIM
STALWART YOUNG ATHTETE [sic] SUCCUMBT [sic] TO INSIDIOUS DISEASE.
ORA CLAUDE ROBINAULT DIES

Denison Home is Stricken and Many Friends Grieve for Prematurely Shortened Career.

On the morning of Thursday, Feb. 18th, the soul of Ora Claude Robinault winged its way from the pain wracked body into the bourne from which not traveller returns. In our last issue we told of the death angel hovering over the stricken home and e’er the Review reached its readers the hopeless agonizing struggle was at an end. Claude, as he was called by all his loved ones was a young man just a little less than twenty-eight years of age. He was born in Goodrich township in this county on February 26th, 1881. His was the life of the country lad, working and helping in the field and with the colors going to school in the winter months and making the best of the opportunities afforded him. In 1890 his parents Robert Gillispie and Mary Lee Robinault moved from the farm to Denison and Claude was then given opportunity to receive better school advantages. He attended the schools of Denison, completing the junior year in the high school but leaving them to take up the burden of life. He was a light hearted cheerful boy, doing his work as a painter well and proving himself to be superior in athletic sports; it was this that lead him finally into the semi-professional base ball ranks and he gained a reputation as one of the best and most dependable pitchers in western Iowa. In the last few years he played with Ida Grove, Lake View, Bassett, Neb., Green River Utah and with Denison. He made the Nebraska trip with the Denison team last year and did excellent work. The nomadic life of the ball player spoils many young men, but it did not spoil Claude, he was temperate in his habits kindly in his relations with others, quiet, trustworthy and altogether like able young man.

At Bassett he won the heart of Miss Gertrude E. Alderman and they were soon to have been married. It was about a year ago that he first learned that he had diabetes. He kept on with his work however and made a brave fight to overcome the disease. All this winter he had not been well but as late as Tuesday, February 16, he was down town bright and cheery as usual. Tuesday night he was taken violently ill and the final struggle lasted but forty-eight hours.

Claude was a good boy, a loving son, a conscientious worker, an honest lover. He had much to live for and many hearts are saddened by his going.

The funeral services were held on Sunday afternoon at the Baptist church, Rev. C. E. La Reau officiating and the large number present well testified the esteem in which he was held. Besides his parents Claude leaves two brothers, Charles and Raymond and his fiancee Miss Alderman, all of whom are heartbroken at his death. Mr. and Mrs. S. P. Alderman and Miss Gertrude Alderman of Bassett, Neb., and Mr. A. J. Robinault of Pritchard, Neb. were among those who came to be present at he [sic] obsequies. Our sincere sympathy goes to all the loved and loving ones.

Finally, his parents published the customary "Card of Thanks" for the sympathy they received.

Card of Thanks.

We wish to thank the friends for their sympathy and helpfulness during the sad hours of our bereavement.

Mr. and Mrs. Robt. Robinault and Family.

Sources:

"At the Point of Death," The Denison Review, 17 Feb 1909, p. 1, col. 4; digital images, Chronicling America (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov : accessed 19 Jun 2022).

"Diabetes Claims Young Victim," The Denison Review, 24 Feb 1909, p. 1, col. 1-2; digital images, Chronicling America (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov : accessed 19 Jun 2022).

"Card of Thanks," The Denison Review, 24 Feb 1909, p. 2, col. 5; digital images, Chronicling America (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov : accessed 19 Jun 2022).