Arvilla Zua (Miller) Viemann (1911 - 1991)

Born 21 Feb 1911 in Rio Dell, Humboldt, California, United States

Ancestors

Daughter of Sherman Andrew Miller and Zua Mae (Guider) Miller

Wife of Daniel Joseph Viemann — married 21 Mar 1930 in Eureka, Humboldt, California, United States

Descendants

Died 11 Nov 1991 at age 80 in Santa Rosa, Sonoma, California, United States

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Lance Martin [send private message]

Biography

Zua Arvilla Miller was born to Sherman Andrew Miller and Zua May Guider in 1911 Rio Dell in Humboldt. She was the third of five girls.

When she was six years old, the family was living in Oakland when her mother died.

By 1920, her father had remarried, this time to her mother's sister Arvilla Fenters. Arvilla had two boys from a previous marraige, Charles and George. In 1920 Charles was living in Chicago, but George and his mother were now part of the Miller family. They were at 271 East Ninth Street, Pittsburg, Contra Costa, California. All of the girls were enrolled in school. Her father, Sherman, was working as a Jeweler probably in a store that he owned.

Zua Arvilla married Daniel Viemann in March of 1930. On the 1930 Census they are renting a home in Crescent City, California next door to Daniel's brother Con and his wife Leona and across the street from another brother, William and his wife Gertrude, at 36 B. Street. Daniel at this time was working as a lumber grader at the local saw mill.

In 1940 Arvilla and Daniel and their two girls Diana Joan, 3, and Janet Louise, 1, were living at 2723 A Street in Eureka, California. Here we learn that Daniel had gotten an 8th grade education and was still working at the sawmill. He reported that he made $550 in 1939. Arvilla on the other had had attended 3 years of high school, but with two young girls was not working outside of the home.

At some point later, Arvilla got a job for California Division of Highways as a Secretary. This job was very well paying for the time and she was very proud she was able to work and afford a nice lifestyle.

She was eager to help her husband's relatives in Germany that were struggling after WWII. She did her best to correspond with them and send them foodstuffs and clothing to help make ends meet.

Care package sent to Germany to Constantin Viemann from Imogene Platt per a letter to my grandmother Arvilla Miller in 1947.

On Jan 24, 1948, Arvilla and Daniel were baptized at St. Bernard's Catholic Church. She loved attending church in her finery, and had a beautiful singing voice.

She also was a member of a few different women's clubs, doing service for the community.

She kept close tabs on the social happenings around town and had the ear of an eager reporter for the Humboldt Times. It pleased her greatly when she was able to see the results of her phone calls end up in the news paper.

Jeanne Mendes says that Arvilla and Danny were part of a fast and fashionable crowd enjoying parties and cocktails around town. However, by the time her grandkids came around, things had slowed way down.

Instead of cocktail parties and racy jokes, evenings were spent watching the Lawrence Welk show on T.V.

Arvilla loved to bake cookies and pies, and treat the children in her home to hot cocoa which she turned into a tradition, always in the same plastic cups.

She was always very happy to have her hair done and would go to great lengths to keep it stacked high and neat on her head, wrapping it in a foam cushion and hairnet to protect it in bed.

She was a knitter, and made many pairs of slippers for her relatives.

She was a small woman, probably 5'8" at the tallest point in her life.

On the 50th wedding anniversary she and Daniel took a cruise to the Panama Canal and the Bahamas, a vacation they enjoyed immensely.

She was to lose her husband and her youngest daughter Janet before she developed ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease). Her final weeks were spent in the care of her granddaughter Lezlie and she passed away in 1991.

DNA Confirmation

• Paternal Relationship is confirmed with an AncestryDNA test match between Lance Martin and Jeanne Goldsmith, half first cousins once removed. Predicted relationship reported by AncestryDNA: Predicted relationship: 3rd Cousins. Possible range: 3rd - 4th cousins Confidence: Extremely High

• Maternal relationship is confirmed by a triangulated group consisting of Jeanne Mendes GEDmatch A790729, Vicki Donovan GEDmatch A775595 and Lance Martin GEDmatch A125616 and Jeff Bertolissi GEDmatch A143098 sharing a 7.6 cM segment on chromosome 15 From 66,422,829 to 72,396,431

• Maternal relationship is confirmed by a triangulated group on GEDmatch who share a 7.6 cM segment on chromosome 15, consisting of Lance Martin, GEDmatch kit # MU8098002, and Jeff Bertolissi, his 3rd cousin, GEDmatch kit # A143098, and Vicki (Donovan) Willis, his 2nd cousin 1x removed, GEDmatch kit # A775595. (Jeff and Vicki are 2nd cousins 1x removed.) Their most-recent common ancestor is Mary Robinson, the 2x great grandmother of both Lance Martin and Jeff Bertolissi and great grandmother of Vicki (Donovan) Willis. DNA test taker Lance Martin is the grandson of Arvilla Miller, the daughter of Zua Guider, the daughter of the common ancestor Mary Robinson.

Sources

Birth

1911

"California Birth Index, 1905-1995," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/VLDT-SH2 : 27 November 2014), Zua A Miller, 21 Feb 1911; citing Humboldt, California, United States, Department of Health Services, Vital Statistics Department, Sacramento.

Census

1920

"United States Census, 1920," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/MH3K-8NM : 14 December 2015), Arvilla Z Miller in household of Sherman A Miller, Pittsburg, Contra Costa, California, United States; citing sheet 7B, NARA microfilm publication T625 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.); FHL microfilm 1,820,095.

1930

"United States Census, 1930," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/XCXR-28P : accessed 21 February 2017), Arvilla Viemann in household of Daniel J Viemann, Crescent City, Del Norte, California, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 1, sheet 2A, line 32, family 36, NARA microfilm publication T626 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2002), roll 115; FHL microfilm 2,339,850.

1940

"United States Census, 1940," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/K9QR-H7W : accessed 7 September 2016), Janet L Viemann in household of Daniel J Viemann, Ward 5, Eureka, Eureka Judicial Township, Humboldt, California, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 12-15, sheet 4A, family 72, Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940, NARA digital publication T627. Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790 - 2007, RG 29. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2012, roll 207.

Death

1991

"California Death Index, 1940-1997," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/VPV8-FRP : 26 November 2014), Arvilla Zua Viemann, 11 Nov 1991; Department of Public Health Services, Sacramento.

Find A Grave: Memorial #119339563