Charlotte (Tefft) Allen (1913 - 1984)

Born 16 Aug 1913 in Phoenix, Maricopa, Arizona, United States

Ancestors

Wife of William Daniel Abbett — married 10 Nov 1931 (to about 1939) in Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California, United States

Wife of Paul Terrence Allen — married 11 Sep 1952 in St. Louis, Missouri

Died 4 Nov 1984 at age 71 in Encinitas, San Diego, California, United States

Problems/Questions Profile managers: Julie Mangano [send private message] and JD Venable [send private message]

Biography

Charlotte (Tefft) Allen has English ancestors.

Birth Date and Place

• 16 August 1913
• Cochise, Cochise County, Arizona

Parents

• John Quincy Tefft
• Mary Maria (Jones) Tefft

Marriages

• William Daniel Abbett, first husband
• 10 November 1931
• Los Angeles, California, United States

• Paul Terrence Allen, second husband
• 11 September 1952
• St. Louis, Missouri, United States

Death Date and Place

• 04 November 1984
• Encinitas, San Diego, California, United States

Charlotte Tefft was born on 16 August 1913 in Cochise, Arizona, although other documents state her birth place was in Phoenix. That is likely because Phoenix was the nearest city in which her parents could register her birth. Cochise, never a booming town, now qualifies as a near-ghost town. According to Wikipedia, the town was created as a Southern Pacific railroad stop in the 1880s so the train could restock coal and water. ^[1] Her grandfather James Milo Tefft worked for Southern Pacific in Kansas and was perhaps responsible, in part, for getting the young family train tickets for their trip west. The family had already been out to California, where daughter Anita Tefft was born, and back to Kansas, when they decided to head west once more.

Her parents were John Quincy Tefft, known as J.Q., and Marie Jones. Charlotte was the last of what would be four daughters for the couple:

• Margaree (Tefft) Downs
• Portia Lorraine (Tefft) Miller
• Anita Pauline Tefft
• Charlotte Tefft Allen

Charlotte is a descendant of Levi Preston Preston-2868, an American Patriot and soldier in the American Revolution. As her sister's granddaughter, I was able to use this connection to become a member of the D.A.R.

Charlotte was born at the tail end of the rush to settle the western frontier of America. Her father had grown up in Garnett, Kansas, but was anxious to see the world. He served in the Spanish American War, and that seemed to put an end to his desire to travel overseas. Still he longed to make his way from Kansas to California. The family spent a few years in Kansas before heading west. Her two oldest sisters, Margaree and Portia, were born in Kinsley, Kansas in 1904 and 1905. Her sister Anita was born in Los Angeles in 1912, but somehow the family headed east and then west again.

By that time, her mother Marie was pregnant with Charlotte and could no longer travel. Margaree and Portia, who were about six and seven, did what they could to help care for baby Anita and their mother. It was finally decided that J.Q, would travel back to California, find a place for the family to live, and then return to Cochise to retrieve his family.

It had to be in the spring, because Charlotte wasn't born until August. The women lived in a tent in the heart of the desert, along with scorpions and snakes and any outlaws who were still floating around the Tombstone area, only 60 miles away. Summers were brutal, but somehow the women survived, and baby Charlotte was born on 16 August 1913. The family lived in that tent through the end of 1913 before moving into a small, two-room stone structure in Cochise.

The land patent for the 160 acres in Cochise is dated 14 February 1917, and I haven't confirmed if the family continued to reside in Arizona until that date or beyond.

By 1920, however, the family was finally settled in Pasadena, California. Their new home was in the hills on Linda Vista Drive, above the Rose Bowl stadium and surrounded by lush vegetation, the antithesis of home in Cochise. Her father had purchased a property that had a country store in front, and living quarters in the back. Marie operated the store while J.Q. taught at a local high school. The girls no doubt helped out around the store when needed.

Charlotte was a member of the first graduating class of the Women's Army Corps and was the first women to hold the American flag. There are photographs of her in miscellaneous WAC promotional materials encouraging women to join the Army. She served during World War II as an executive assistant to high ranking military officials in London and was privy to sensitive information regarding Operation Overlord. Her military papers and memorabilia are in the possession of her nephew Clay Tefft Miller's family.

Charlotte married two times, first to William Abbett and second to Paul Allen. While she never had any children, she was particularly close to her nephew Clay, the son of her sister Portia Tefft Miller.

She and her husband Paul Allen lived in La Habra, Orange County, California for many years. After his death and her cancer diagnosis, she moved to Encinitas, California where she was closer to her health care providers at Scripp's Memorial Hospital.

Charlotte Tefft Allen passed away 04 November 1984 in Encinitas, California.

1920 United States Federal Census ^[2]

Name: Charlotte Tefft

Age: 6

Birth Year: abt 1914

Birthplace: Arizona

Home in 1920: Los Angeles Assembly District 61, Los Angeles, California

Street: Moss Avenue

Race: White

Gender: Female

Relation to Head of House: Daughter

Marital Status: Single

Father's name: John Q Tefft

Father's Birthplace: Kansas

Mother's name: Marie Tefft

Mother's Birthplace: Illinois

Occupation: None

Attended School: Yes

Neighbors: View others on page

Household Members: Name Age

John Q Tefft 47

Marie Tefft 45

Magaree Tefft 15

Portia L Tefft 14

Annita P Tefft 7

Charlotte Tefft 6

U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995 ^[3]

Name: William D Abbett

Gender: Male

Residence Year: 1934

Street address: 51 Glen Summer rd

Residence Place: Pasadena, California, USA

Occupation: Embalmer

Spouse: Charlotte Abbett

Publication Title: Pasadena, California, City Directory, 1934

U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995 ^[4]

Name: William D Abbett

Gender: Male

Residence Year: 1936

Street address: 204a W Chestnut

Residence Place: Glendale, Los Angeles, California, USA

Occupation: Clerk

Spouse: Charlotte Abbett

Publication Title: Glendale, California, City Directory, 1936

U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995 ^[5]

Name: William D Abbett

Gender: Male

Residence Year: 1937

Street address: 571 S Coronado

Residence Place: Los Angeles, California, USA

Spouse: Charlotte Abbett

Publication Title: Los Angeles A-L, California, City Directory, 1937

U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995 ^[6]

Name: William D Abbett

Gender: Male

Residence Year: 1938

Street address: 757 S Mariposa av

Residence Place: Los Angeles, California, USA

Spouse: Charlotte Abbett

Publication Title: Los Angeles A-L, California, City Directory, 1938

Military Active Duty Record ^[7]

Person: Charlotte T Abbett

Level of Education: 2 years of college

Marital Status: Divorced, without dependents

Birth: 1913, Arizona

Residence: Place: Los Angeles County, California

World War II Branch: Army

Enlistment Date: 10 Jul 1942

Army Branch: Women's Army Corps

Army Component: Women's Army Corps

Army Serial Number: A-900016

Enlistment Place: Los Angeles California

Enlistment Term: Enlistment for the duration of the War or other emergency, plus six months, subject to the discretion of the President or otherwise according to law

Source of Army Personnel: Civil Life

Occupation: Physicians and dentists assistants and attendants

Race or Ethnicity: White

Source Information: Box Number: 0018 , Film Reel Number: 1.18

United States Social Security Death Index ^[8]

Age 71

Given Name Charlotte

Surname Allen

Birth Date 16 Aug 1913

State California [sic] should be Arizona

Last Place of Residence La Jolla, San Diego, California

Previous Residence Postal Code 92037

Event Date Nov 1984

California Death Index ^[9]

Name Charlotte Tefft Allen

Event Type Death

Event Date 04 Nov 1984

Event Place San Diego, California, United States

Birth Date 16 Aug 1913

Birthplace Arizona

Gender Female

Father's Name Tefft

Mother's Name Jones

Sources

1. ↑ Wikipedia.com, entry for Cochise, Arizona, see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cochise,_Arizona.
2. ↑ 1920 United States Federal Census, Year: 1920; Census Place: Los Angeles Assembly District 61, Los Angeles, California; Roll: T625_105; Page: 1B; Enumeration District: 124; Image: 702. Source Information: Ancestry.com. 1920 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Images reproduced by FamilySearch. Original data: Fourteenth Census of the United States, 1920. (NARA microfilm publication T625, 2076 rolls). Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29. National Archives, Washington, D.C. See:vhttp://ancstry.me/2r8tQEK.
3. ↑ 1934 Pasadena City Directory, Ancestry.com. U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. Original data: Original sources vary according to directory. William D. Abbett, 1934, wife Charlotte Abbett, Pasadena, California City Directory. See: http://ancstry.me/2rgKS7Z.
4. ↑ 1936 Glendale City Directory, Ancestry.com. U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. Original data: Original sources vary according to directory. William D. Abbett, 1936, wife Charlotte Abbett, Glendale, California City Directory. See: http://ancstry.me/2r9ndSF.
5. ↑ 1937 Los Angeles City Directory, Ancestry.com. U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. Original data: Original sources vary according to directory. William D. Abbett, 1937, wife Charlotte Abbett, Los Angeles, California City Directory. See: http://ancstry.me/2rlJ1cZ.
6. ↑ 1938 Los Angeles City Directory, Ancestry.com. U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. Original data: Original sources vary according to directory. Will/iam D. Abbett, 1938, wife Charlotte Abbett. See: http://ancstry.me/2sSUSBE.
7. ↑ Fold 3 Military Records, www.fold3.com, Charlotte T. Abbett, divorcee, born 1913 in Arizona, enlisted 10 July 1942 in Los Angeles, California, Women's Air Corps, see: http://bit.ly/2s1anY5.
8. ↑ "United States Social Security Death Index," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:V9R5-322 : 20 May 2014), Charlotte Allen, Nov 1984; citing U.S. Social Security Administration, Death Master File, database (Alexandria, Virginia: National Technical Information Service, ongoing).
9. ↑ "California Death Index, 1940-1997," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VPJ8-PLC : 26 November 2014), Charlotte Tefft Allen, 04 Nov 1984; Department of Public Health Services, Sacramento.