By Marcia Eaton, wife of Roger Eaton, grandson*
*Relation to Andy or Flora Lehr
For this post, we will accept that Aunt Eunice is everyone’s favorite aunt – for the first and second generations (after Andy and Flora Lehr). What makes Aunt Eunice everyone’s favorite aunt? That’s a question with many different answers. As you learn about Aunt Eunice, you may form your own answers.
Who was Eunice (Rogers) Shade?
Two weeks before Halloween, on Oct 14, 1898, Eunice Carolyn became the fifth child born to James Franklin Rogers and Caroline also known as Carrie (Berkley) Rogers in Beverly, Kansas. Beverly, Lincoln County Kansas was close to Ellsworth Kansas. The Rogers family farmed in Madison, Lincoln County, Kansas until they moved to Ellsworth, Kansas. It enabled Carrie to live close to her family while in Lincoln County – the Berkleys.
Eunice was fourteen when her mother died. A month after delivering her eleventh child, Carrie passed away. Her death certificate lists “Probably Cerebral Hemorrhage” as the cause of death. The Rogers children were left without their mother. Her father depended on Eunice to help with the younger siblings.
As railroad stations were built in Texas, the need for cattle drives became unnecessary. Homesteaders utilized barbed wire to eliminate the open range to any remaining cattle drive holdouts. Kansas ranchers thrived making Kansas the third highest beef producers in the country, by 1890.That transition led to the taming of the wild and wicked cowtowns. Towns like Ellsworth became quieter and more peaceful agricultural communities.
By the turn of the century, Ellsworth had become a nice place to raise a family. The Rogers Hotel in Ellsworth was listed as the family residence on the 1910 census. Her parents managed the hotel. Neita, her oldest sister, worked in the dining room. At eleven years old, it’s likely Eunice assisted her family in the hotel, also. Their father remarried to Mildred (Evans) Smith, when Eunice was 16. Eunice was a good student, rarely absent and an avid basketball player.
Eunice was 17 when she married Frank Shade on July 24, 1916. They traveled to Denver, Colorado to get married. In 1918, the Rogers family moved to Augusta, Kansas. The Shades stayed in Ellsworth, Kansas. Their first son, Kenneth, was born June 9, 1917 and their other son was born September 4, 1919. He was named Robert William Shade. Both of her sons joined the Army. Kenneth married Ida Surface and Robert married her sister, Bess.
Eunice was a Steady Employee
Eunice began working as a store clerk in 1930 at Yeo Variety Store in Ellsworth, Kansas, shortly before Frank’s death. Frank Shade passed away in 1931 from a heart condition. At that time few mothers worked outside the home. She was one of three employees. This started her long career in retail sales. A year later she managed a variety store in Lindsborg, Kansas from 1931 to 1939.
On March 30, 1941, she was the first Sears employee at the new store in Salina, Kansas. At that time, she moved to 549 South College Avenue, Salina, Kansas. She lived the rest of her life in that house.
Following World War II, in 1945, Sears launched an aggressive expansive program. Soon, it became the nation’s largest retailer until it was surpassed by Walmart in 1991.
After a 38-year career in retail sales, she retired as the Division Manager. Twenty-one of those years were spent with Sears. She was one of two original Sears employees left when she retired, in July 1961.
144 N Santa Fe Salina Kansas, Eunice worked 21 years with Sears. She enjoyed her co-workers, often hosting baby showers and events at her home.
As you can see from the photo, women wore dresses and nylon stockings. Eunice was no exception.
Eunice was a Traveler
Her retirement years were spent visiting relatives and traveling. She traveled to Nevada, New Orleans, California, St. Petersburg, FL, Washington D.C., Hawaii, Alaska and even Canada.
Eunice was a Friend
Her sister, Flora (two years younger) was the closest sister to her age. That made them best friends. They enjoyed being together, playing games, and traveling to see relatives. Flora and Eunice were known to teach the game of dominoes to family members. That was Flora’s daughter, Mary (Lehr) Eaton’s, favorite game.
Another past time they shared was the game of Wahoo. It’s a marble game with dice and can accommodate two to four players. On her visits to El Dorado, Flora invited additional friends to join them in an evening of Wahoo.
Eunice died of a heart attach on October 8, 1982, seven months after Flora. She is buried at Roselawn Cemetery, Salina Kansas.
We were fortunate that Eunice’s son, Robert “Bob”, collected photos and mementos in a large binder. It bounced around the family and ended up with Roger Eaton as a final request from Arliene (Berkley) Matthews., second cousin once removed. In researching for this post, I feel that I came to know Eunice and admire her, I hope you will too.
So, what makes her a favorite aunt? Some believe that her love of children made her the favorite aunt of the Lehr extended clan. Eunice never had any grandchildren so she dearly loved all of the Lehr clan. She would bring gifts when she visited and played games! Her contagious positive disposition was always welcome during her El Dorado visits.
I am Marcia (Hurlburt) and joined the family in 1980. That’s the same year my grandmother, Muriel (Hobbs) DeWitt gave me a (blank) family history book as a wedding present. That sparked my interest in researching and recording our ancestor’s stories. Technology has accelerated the rate of my research. I have learned the importance to record our stories for our descendants – leave some tracks!
Please share your memories of Aunt Eunice in the Comment/Reply area below.
By Jim Lehr, Son*
*Relation to Andy and/or Flora Lehr
Eunice and Mom Lehr were very close. I remember we made pleasant visits to her home in Salina.
By Eleanor Lehr, wife of Jim Lehr, son*
*Relation to Andy and/or Flora Lehr
I remember her as the most energetic person I’ve ever met. When she and Mom Lehr visited us, I believe she was in her 80s at the time, she was always the first one up in the morning. She would make the coffee and breakfast then do the dishes. We would spend several days touring Washington, D.C. Then she would stay up late playing the marble game or dominoes.
By Jane (Lehr) McGraph, granddaughter*
*Relation to Andy and/or Flora Lehr
Eunice Shade was Grandma Flora Lehr’s sister. I remember being told she lived in Salinas, KS. In the late 1960s She and Grandma Lehr came to visit us for a week at our home in Wheaton (Silver Spring), MD. They may have taken a bus from Kansas, that being the most common and economical way of travel at the time. My strongest memory is of playing dominoes with Aunt Eunice and Grandma after they taught us the game. I asked my mom (Eleanor Lehr) what she remembered of that visit. She said she was so impressed by the energy and stamina Aunt Eunice had. One day she rose before everyone, made breakfast, cleaned the kitchen, went sightseeing in Washington, DC, then helped prepare and clean up after dinner and played games till bedtime. Apparently, she was quite the dynamo!
By Meg (Badwey) Conger, granddaughter*
*Relation to Andy and/or Flora Lehr
When her [Flora Lehr] sister Aunt Eunice came to visit was always fun and sometimes profitable! She would shake your hand when you saw her (followed by a big hug), but she often had a quarter tucked in her palm that she passed into your palm. We’d always run up to her and offer, “Aunt Eunice! Let’s shake!” She always called Grandma Lehr “Floss” which we never could figure out.
By Roger Eaton, grandson*
*Relation to Andy and/or Flora Lehr
Aunt Eunice was certainly one of my favorite aunts. She was my great aunt. I remember her as being nice to me, during her visits to Grandma Lehr’s house. It was clear that she was happy to be around the family. My mother, Mary (Lehr) Eaton, would enjoy her visits.
On several occasions, my sister, Maggie (Eaton) Gurley, and I would find ourselves at Grandma Lehrs’ when she hosted a few friends to play marbles. We were less than six years old. I later learned that the marbles game was called Wahoo. Strange name, but they enjoyed it and each other’s company. Her friends were probably widows, too. Eunice was accepted as one of the sisterhood. They all wore dresses. They weren’t fancy, just simple “mature lady” dresses. That was normal for their generation. While at the game table, they were removed from the rest of the world. They clearly enjoyed each other’s company.