Viola May (Mack) Turner (1856 - 1925)

Born May 1856 in Viola, Richland, Wisconsin, United States

Ancestors

Died 4 Jan 1925 at age 68 in Spooner, Washburn, Wisconsin, United States

Biography

Birth

Viola was born in 1856. She was the daughter of William Mack. She passed away in 1925. She was the first person born in the village of Viola, Wisconsin.

Name

Since she was the first person born in the village of Viola, "Cyrus D. Turner gave the child a village lot for the privilege of naming her, and bestowed the name of Viola May, in honor of the village and month in which the birth occurred." (Butterfield, 1044-45)

Family

"Viola May Mack ... was united in marriage to L. C. Turner at Pine Glen, Wisconsin, in 1872. Eight children were born to them, all of whom are living [in 1925], Arthur of Portland, Oregon; Wiliam and Charles of Ladysmith; Bertram of Morris; Mrs. Myldred Crye of Yarnell; Mrs. Effie Crandall of Wayne, Michigan; and Mrs. Lizzie Van Dusen and Mrs. Myrtle Rockwell of Spooner." (Spooner Advocate)

"Mrs. Turner was an ardent Christian and faithful worker in the Christian church which she joined when sixteen years of age, and her many deeds of kindness among her friends and acquaintances will long be remembered, both in Spooner and in Ladysmith where they lived for many years." (Spooner Advocate)

From her obituary: "Besides her husband and eight children, Mrs. Turner is survived by a sister, Mrs. Katherine Annis of Biwabik, Minnesota, a brother, Charles Hathaway, of Hersey, Wisconsin, forty-five grandchildren and seventeen great-grandchildren, and other relatives, who with the many friends mourn her sudden death. All the children excepting the son at Portland coming for the funeral." (Spooner Advocate)

Church

"Mrs. Turner was an ardent Christian and faithful worker in the Christian church which she joined when sixteen years of age, and her many deeds of kindness among her friends and acquaintances will long be remembered, both in Spooner and in Ladysmith where they lived for many years." (Spooner Advocate)

Death

She died on 4 Jan 1925 (aged 68–69) at Spooner, Washburn County, Wisconsin. "Mrs. L. C. Turner passed away at the home of her daughter, Mrs. Jerry Vandusen, early Sunday morning [4 Jan. 1925], death being caused by heart failure. Grandma Turner had been just as well as usual when retiring the night before, had walked up town during the evening, and no one was aware that she was not well until about twenty minutes before the end came. A doctor was called but it was too late when he arrived. Death had already entered the chamber." (Spooner Advocate) She is buried at Spooner Cemetery, Spooner, Washburn County, Wisconsin, USA. (Find a Grave)

Sources

• Consul Willshire Butterfield, History of Crawford and Richland Counties, Wisconsin: Together with Sketches of Their Towns and Villages, Educational, Civil, Military, and Political History, Portraits of Prominent Persons, and Biographies of Representative Citizens ... (Springfield, Ill.: Union Publishing Company, 1884).
• Find A Grave, database and images (accessed 26 November 2019), memorial page for Viola May Mack Turner (1856–4 Jan 1925), Find A Grave Memorial no. 197079101, citing Spooner Cemetery, Spooner, Washburn County, Wisconsin, USA ; Maintained by Purly (contributor 49240026) .
• "Spooner Advocate," Spooner, Wisconsin (9 Jan. 1925): page 1.