BLOGGING MY WAY THROUGH WEDGWOOD HISTORY

Heritage, a grand old word with many implications, many of which are unknown to us.

Doris in swing~Betty standing

The only known facts handed down from mother to daughter

On my mother's side (my mother, Betty recalling what was passed down to her) that her mother was the oldest of three daughters born to my grandmother, who had each daughter by different men.  My mother was raised by her grandmother and grandfather who was a saloon keeper.  I never knew either of them.  My mother's name was Ethel Robinson and my maternal grandmother's name was Bertha Robinson.
They were native Washingtonians from near Everett and a little town called Oso.

Emily Elizabeth Wedgwood & Edwin Chatfield Wedgwood
Edwin Francis Wedgwood Jr., my grandpa (left) Charles George Wedgwood (right) and Bertha May Wedgwood(back middle) The boys were twins.
Photo taken in East Chicago, Indiana 1907

On my father's side, his mother was of English ancestry, but born in the U.S.  My grandfather Edwin Chatfield Wedgwood was born in England and brought to the U.S. when he was twelve years old.

Edwin Chatfield (1863–1937). 18 Feb 1937 • Hessville, Indiana, USA
Public Census records state that Edwin Chatfield W. immigration from England was in 1886. That would make him 23 yrs. old not 12.

If my research is correct: 

Black Oak Road Chicken Farm, Hammond, Indiana, E.C.W. Home

Records appear to indicate that Edwin Chatfield W. father Edwin W. was 3rd cousin of Charles Darwin. The Wedgwood/Darwin family is actually two interrelated English families, descendants from the Josiah Wedgwood, founder of the pottery firm and the prominent 18th century doctor, 

Erasmus Darwin. Josiah & Erasmus Darwin were very good friends and One of Josiah's daughters married Erasmus's son Robert. One of the children of that marriage, Charles Darwin, also married a Wedgwood, Emma, Josiah's granddaughter.

My grandmother was a teacher and my grandfather a boilermaker by trade.

Emily E. W.

  I only saw my grandfather once when I was twelve years old.  The next year he died.  My father had one sister, Bertha who died of cancer soon after her father's death (no children) and a twin brother.  He had married after he was 60 yrs. of age (no children).  My grandmother lived into her 80's.  My uncle who was Dad's twin passed away in his 70's.

My father volunteered for the army when he was 17.  My family was very uncommunicative so I do not know the details, but my grandmother took us to the grave of a brother of mine, Edwin who died at birth.

Page from Grandpa Edwin F. Wedgwood's Bible  Records the death of Edwin J. Wedgwood, May 1,1921, death at 23 days (Debbie has Bible)

After several years of army service my father returned, having been gassed in the war and shot in the leg.

Edwin F. W.

  He was a veteran, having served in France in WW I.  After this he attended Valparaiso University in Indiana.

In the 1920's, he took the advice of the times "Go West, young man, go west"  He left home and came to Seattle and Everett, Washington, where he met and married my mother at the age of 27,

( however, it appears,

FAMILY RECORD IN THE BIBLE

that a little known fact that Edwin F. had been previously married to a Ruth Thompson as recorded in his Bible. (Becky)
  My father worked in the Seattle area at various jobs. 

Betty with her mother,  Ethel

I was born at Virginia Mason Hospital in Seattle, and by the time my sister Doris was born 18 months later in Bremerton, we had settled in Bremerton, where my father worked in the Naval Shipyards.  My father passed away at the age of 62 of cancer.  My mother was 75 when she passed away.  

Betty with parents

Both had remarkable conversion experiences in the Olympia C & M A church several years before they went to be with the Lord.

"Your Grandfather Wedgwood was a kind loving man. He was sick and at times grumpy, but, he controlled his hurt and pain, especially after he came to the Lord. He served in the church in any way he could. He ushered and became a friend of many who attended that church." (Dad)
  "Yes, he smoked when I first knew him. The cancer in his lungs resulted in extreme bleeding and I believe that is when he quit. Doris's family would know more about this. They lived near each other there in Olympia for many years." (Dad)

Of my early years, I remember fruitful gardens, the constant remodeling of our house and the upkeep of the variety of cars we owned,

Doris & Betty

including Model T's and a Hupmobile.

Betty left & Doris right

From Mother's journal: "...When he (father) finally found permanent work in the Naval Shipyard in Bremerton, Wash., they moved to Bremerton.

Bremerton City Directory, 1936

He borrowed $50 for a down payment on 2 little shacks on 4 lots. He continued to pay the owner for the next 20 yrs. $20 a month on the property at 1213 Ohio Ave. Doris was born at Harrison Memorial Oct. 29,1925. This was the only home I remember. He (father) put the 2 shacks together and moved them on the 2 lots facing Ohio Ave.

The front of that house on Ohio Ave

He was continually fixing and improving the property with Mother and us girls as his helpers.

Betty & Doris on Ohio Ave. house

As soon as we finished one project, we began planning and saving for the next project."

"He did the plumbing, built kitchen cabinets, laid hardwood floors and painted, put on siding, roofing & shingles, etc. Between times we went fishing, camping,short travel trips, etc., did yard work and he always had a fabulous time and a sweet disposition." 

Betty & Loren at house in Tracyton

 This was still in Bremerton. Betty's parents had sold their place on Ohio and bought this 2 acre farm on the east side of town along the water. I don't remember the name of this little The Bremerton suburb of Tracyton on the Sound.  It was a 2-story house with bedroom upstairs, if I remember right.(Dad, Loren)

 "We had our little church in rural Snohomish." (Dad, Loren)

Ethel & Edwin F. W.

 "After living at Tracyton a short time, as I recall they decided to sell everything and move to your Grandma's place in Indiana. After a short time there, they were homesick for the West. Doris and Bill's parents lived in Olympia. The parents were old timers in the Alliance Church there. Bill and Doris had moved there also, so to be near Doris and Bill they bought that property and house that you came to know as Grandpa and Grandma's place." (Dad, Loren)

Edwin F. W.

 They lived there until their passing, your Grandma in the summer of '62. (Dad)

My paternal grandmother perhaps had more influence on her children and grand daughters than we realized.  Somehow she implanted in my father, Christian standards and values of honesty, perseverance, and other spiritual values.

Mr. Harry Flesher, a friend of my father invited us to Sunday School at First Baptist.  My sister (Doris) and I enrolled in the beginners class.

CAMPING

  Mr. Flesher and family went camping with us, experiences we did not forget.  Shortly after this Mr. Flesher passed away and we had no more contact with the family.

CAMPING

 Mary Kaness was an outstanding teacher at First Baptist. 

Doris left & Betty right

Through her teaching and encouragement, I gave my heart to the Lord and was baptized.  I was twelve years old.  We kept up correspondence with her during our years in Mexico and spoke in her church during furlough.

With the Harry Flesher Family

Two blocks from our home evangelistic meeting were held one summer in a large tent.
A Rev. Cooper from South Africa (Charlotte, his wife was Bob Landis's Aunt) was conducting the campaign.
We girls wanted to attend but for some reason my father did not want us to go.  However, Ken Nelson came by to pick us up.  Ken, later married Loren's sister, Miriam and worked as an apprentice under my Dad, was given permission to take us. On that occasion we recommitted our lives to God.

Camping with the Fleshers

After that both of us determined to make a career of working in the Lord's service.   About this time we met Peggy Peterson and the Kresterson sisters, who went to the C & M A church.  Peggy lived near us and becoming friends, we went to their church where we became members.

Church and special meetings became a large part of our lives.  The meetings with Florence McDonald (later Mrs. Paul Turnidge) greatly encouraged us to go to Bible School.

Betty, teen years

Canby Camp which I attended two different summers was an influence to a total commitment to the Lord's work. During high school years, I felt I would like to go into the teaching profession.

  Perhaps this was encouraged by our next-door neighbor who was a teacher.  Or maybe it was because I had enjoyed teaching a Sunday School class since I was sixteen.  My father and mother encouraged me to go into the teaching profession and promised to help with finances.  They wanted me to go to teachers college.

Betty

Working after high school in the Navy Yard for two years, I felt more and more that God was leading me to Bible School.  One of my friends was going to "Three Hills" in Alberta, Canada, but that seemed so far way and too cold.

Betty L, Doris R

My father and mother were ignorant of the importance I felt was a call of God to Christian service.  Whereas they had promised to help me financially if I were to go into a secular profession, they indicated their unwillingness to help me with finances to go to Bible School. 

Thus, I used my savings and trusted the Lord for the rest.  When I graduated I owed only $25, which Loren and I paid from a wedding gift.

The dress code for women was strict: no pants,ankle socks, make-up or ear rings; stockings had to be worn, and skirts had to be below the knee.
Sundays were honored as the Sabbath. Students traveled by bus to church and dressed up for Sunday meals. They were assigned to different tables each month. Faculty and staff ate with them.
All students had a work assignment, whether landscaping, housekeeping, kitchen or office duty.
Missions was a vital part of community life-there were mission bands every Friday night and numerous mission groups. Many of the instructors were former missionaries.

Loren & Betty

Jamie Ediger, Loren's brother, worked in the Bremerton Navy Yard and also attended the C& MA  (Christian & Missionary Alliance)

Jaimie

  Jamie took a group of young people to visit the family farm at Dallas, Ore.
  
From Mother's notes, The visit to the farm in Dallas was in summer of 1942, just after she had graduated from high school. "We spent most of the day driving, were there for a few hours, attended the early evening service and drove back all night. I did not see Loren again until the next summer,1943 at Canby Camp. After that he started writing me and visiting me in Bremerton."

Just Married at the Wedgwood rural home,Trayton

There I met Loren, though it wasn't until several years later, and several dates at Canby Camp and Bremerton that we were engaged.

Betrothal, Oct.5, 1946

  We were married on Friday, June 13, 1947 in the C & MA in my home church.

(Mother,) "We lived on Callow Ave. in a room and shared bath while Loren worked with Rev. Lester Meltzer at the C & M A church. Then in October we moved to Clearview, Wa. (North of Seattle) at Clearview Chapel." (Callow Ave. Bremerton?)

Dad had little to offer his bride in a material way, but he had a great spiritual heritage, a very strong faith in God, and a personal commitment to Christian service. He presented Mother with that accordion as an engagement gift. Mother, having just graduated from Simpson, accepted the offer and wholeheartedly agreed to working together on a foreign field. Her Christian education at Simpson and music talents would later prove to be an asset.

June 1947
Peggy Peterson, Doris Edgbert, Ken Nelson, Bill Emery.
Flower girl, Beverly Ediger Buhtz.

Just me an Grandpa W.

"Laborers Together With Him." Loren and Betty Ediger's journey as "Laborers together with Him" began June 13,1947 in Bremerton, Washington. After a brief time assisting in the C&MA church there and then ministering at Clearview Chapel near Snohomish, Washington, they set their eyes on a notice in the Sunday School Times by The Mexican Indian Mission concerning Mexico's spiritual needs.

With an adventurous spirit, correspondence with Dr. James G.Dale began and a lengthy visit with Eugenia Baron, who spoke at Seattle Pacific College further touched their hearts. As a result Dr. Dale wrote back, "Come to Mexico as soon as possible. We will trust with you for your support." "The life of faith" was soon to begin bringing about its blessings and challenges in the most primitive and dangerous are as of the State of Puebla and Veracruz.

A Visit To Mexico

Due to dangerous incidents the previous missionaries, traumatized by harassment and death threats left the location and Mexico.(Becky)
They were stepping into the unknown.

BUSTED AT THE BORDER  CLICK HERE

Seasons

 I have titled this blog "SEASONS".  As my life propels forward it somehow keeps adding events to my life that have forced me to view life from a different perspective.

I have been asked often, "How are your doing?  How are you holding up?"

Well, because, I am human and live in a sinful world, I am not holding up as well as I would like.

There have been seasons of depression and anxiety.
There have been seasons of discouragement.
There have been seasons of not being able to concentrate on the task at hand and difficulty focusing.
There are some seasons that remain in a perpetual state of Ground Hog Day yet days are a constant change, an oxymoron.

If this is the Golden Age, then there is nothing about it that appears to be golden except for God's Word that remains the same. I hold on to His gold nuggets.
And that my friends is my motivation, the goal, the eternal perspective.

 I have had to turn to the Psalms for comfort and strength just to make it another day.
"I cry out to God most high,to God who fulfills his purpose for me."ps.57:2

SEASONS OF PRAYER

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"I CALL upon you,for you will answer me,Oh God; incline your ear to me,hear my words." Ps.17:6

"In my distress I called upon the Lord; to my God I cried for help..." Ps.18:6

"For who is God, but the Lord? And who equipped me with strength."  Ps. 18:31,32"The Lord is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped." Ps.28:7

"As for me, I am poor and needy, but the Lord takes thought for me.You are my help and my deliverer..."  Ps.4017

"The Lord sustains him on his sick bed; in his illness you restore him to full health." Ps.41:3

"He chose our heritage for us."  Ps. 47:4

I chose to use the above pictures as a tool for focusing on certain areas of prayer as I was having a hard time focusing and was so disorganized that I needed something to help me.  I will probably be visiting this blog often.