Eleanor Howard (Gray) Knutson (1923 - 1994)

Born 1 Sep 1923 in Rockland, Knox Co., ME

Ancestors

Wife of Robert Charles Knutson — married 15 Sep 1945 in Hennepin Co., MN

Died 10 Feb 1994 at age 70 in Bloomington, Hennepin Co., MN

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Lillie Lane [send private message]

Biography

w/o Dr Robert Charles Knutson.

Mayflower descendant of six or more passengers via her father's paternal grandmother, Virginia LaFayette (Davis) Gray (1834ME-1886AR) whose husband was a Confederate officer with maternal grandfather in Union army during civil war, and at least two ancestors, Revolutionary war veterans Heinrich Joseph Staring and Rev Robert Gray (1761-1822).

Birth: in Rockland Hospital, Knox, formerly Lincoln county, Maine where her grandmother, Harriette (Flora) Gray passed away nearly 33 years later.

Lived at 25 Hyler street Thomaston, Knox county, Maine for seven years, home where her grandmother Gray spent remaining years, going to the same Baptist church. She attended Dana Hall School in Wellesly, Massachusetts and obtained her RN degree from the University of Minnesota.

Husband, Bob, also revealed to me; he thought she was favored by her paternal grandmother, my grand-aunt, ~ ~ and that once, they with son, bare-boated a 41-foot Hinkley, and when sailing up the George's in Knox county, Maine past her paternal grandparents 34 acre summer home, "Gray Rocks", which she didn't recognize until later while on land when they visited it again. I was invited, a few years back, by the new owner to visit, but did not, ~ ~ then a couple years later, 2008/9, it, with only 3-acres, was on the market at $2,450,000. Ann Cravens and Peter Hailey, both artist and Yale professors, had purchased it by 2011 and allowed "Suzi" (Gray) Johnson, a 2nd g,granddaughter to visit finding it remodeled with its beautiful portico removed which had been erected around 1922, similar to one they had at their 1909 built Saint Louis, Missouri home, and mentioned in a letter of his mother of the Hotel they lived in at Fayetteville, Arkansas between 1874 & 1877.

Following a Civil War Board Meeting in Minnesota around 1981, or so, Eleanor was approached by Dr Carl H. Moneyhon of University of Arkansas, Little Rock, concerning the diary written by her great, great, grandmother Virginia (Davis) Gray in 1863 to 1865, which was started about time Col Solon Borland, M D, and daughters returned to Princeton, Arkansas from soon to be taken by Union forces, Little Rock, Arkansas, during the remainder of the Civil War years, around the major cross roads used by both sides at Princeton, Dallas county, Arkansas with county court house and churches used for hospitals, while hubby served the CSA's 3rd Ark Cav as a captain. Dr Moneyhon took the diary, edited, annotated and published it in the 1983 spring and summer issues of Arkansas Historical Quarterly for all to read, and furnished me a copy of Virginia's picture which led to finding a much younger Virginia in my New Hampshire cohort's Davis family files.

Her cousin Wint (Gray) Bones once wrote me that after her demise her husband Bob wrote a book about her in which some of her genealogical work was exposed such as, to wit: "She writes that it's very possible that we go back to Lady Jane Gray/Grey,the "unwilling queen" who was married briefly to King Henry VIII (?) and was beheaded in 1554. Also "The Grays unquestionably came over to England with William the Conqueror in 1066." There are a couple of pages of info with most of it coming out of "Gray Genealogy" 1887 by M,.D. Raymond; "Three Centuries of the Gray Family in America" Palmer; "The Gray Family" - O.G. Palmer; " Nesbit's Heraldry.

Fall of 2005, Eleanor's daughter, Nancy, turned over to Special Collections of the University of Arkansas all papers, diaries and art work of Virginia Lafayette (Davis) Gray for preservation, study, and viewing, now MC-1618. Virginia had been 1st chair of what now is the Art Department at this university, 1874-1881, first to be assigned 2nd floor, Clock Tower of September 1875 new Administration Building, (now "Old Main") with husband Colonel Oliver Crosby Gray, among many his other activities, its 1st chair of civil engineering 1874-1879 and, his true love, existing chair of mathematics department, 1874-1885 served as Fayetteville's first public school, Washington, then mayor before returning 1888-1895. University built GRAY HALL to his memory in 1906, replacing it in 1966 with their new library building.

Death: in Bloomington, Hennepin county, Minnesota

Father: Russell Davis Gray b: 2 NOV 1899 in Wichita, Sedgwick county, Kansas (parents where living in Carthage but census has Monett, Barry county, Missouri, 1900, Springfield by 1903) . Mother: Eleanor Gordon Pitt b: 1 AUG 1899 in Baltimore, Independent city, Maryland.

Marriage: Robert Charles Knutson b: 7 FEB 1922 Rolfe, Pocahontas county, Iowa. Married: 15 SEP 1945 Minneapolis, Hennepin county, Minnesota.

Known Children

Living son Knutson

Living daughter (Knutson) Jandric

Living daughter (Knutson) Stendahl

John Russell Knutson (1955-2007).

Prepared in part by Bill Boggess.

Sources

• https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/181383307/eleanor-howard-knutson