The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1892-12-10
The Champion stepmother.

The Champion stepmother.
BY her sixth marriage, which oc-
CURED on Wednesday in this place,
the widow of Gaddes, as she has
been known for five years past, be-
comes the step-mother of forty
seven children, the ,step-grand-
mother of fifty-two, and the step
great-grandmother of eleven, and
the step-great-grea great-grandmother Of
four.
/ The widow Gaddes was born Eliza
Barnes. Her first husband was
George Walker, q widower with five
children, all of whom she continued
to care for after her husband died,
and she, in time, became the wife Of
George Offender, who was also al
widdower. He had six children to
whom she became q mother. When
she became the widow Offender,
which she did in less than year,
the five Walker children and the
six young Offenders continued liv-
ing with her in peace and harmony,
which was not disturbed when the
widdow Offender became the wife
of Charles Gregg, and a mother to
his nine motherless children.
A good many of the children OF
these different families had grown
to be men and women by this
time, and when, four years after she
became the wife of Charles Gregg,
she became his widow, several of
them had marrid and started fami-
lies of their own-some OF the
Walkers marrying Ottenders-so
that when the Widow Gregg be-
came the Mrs. Jehiel Fitch her hus-
bands seven children found only
one of the Walker offspring, three
Offenders and five Greggs, claiming
share of the attention Of their
new mother.
In course of time the Fitch con-
tingent of stepchildren was reduced
by marriage until there were only
three Of them left as charge in
the family, and by these marriages
the number of unclaimed Greggs
was reduced to two, the Offenders
to one, and the Walker stock was
entirely wiped out. Thus was Mrs
Jehiel Fitch's family cares made so
light that she felt unbearably lone
some when she at last became the
widow Fitch-so lonesome, indeed
that in less than year she ceased
being the widow Fitch and became
Mrs. Solomon Gaddes, and the will
ing stepmother ofSolomon Gaddes
! seven children. The oldest of these
children vas Is, and the younges. =
J and as Mrs. Gaddes was now fifty
and her latest husband ten years
; her junior, she Individually started
in to raise another family. This
e became literal fat, for in less
\ than a year she WIS. the widow
I Gaddes, with the whole seven Of
the new stepchildren, the oldest moi
old enough to support herself, Oh
: her hands.
i She kept them together, but two
;, of them have married and gon'
! away recently-nearly six year,
having passed since there becam'
a widow Gaddes-and the last on
of the Greggs, the Offenders AM
the Pitches having also set VI
!, homes of their own, the widov
y Gaddes felt so lonesome again tina
y she took it as providential inter
8 yention when John G. Callan aske'
e her to take charge of him and be
/ come stepmother to his thirteel
/ children, although she regrette'
J that only three of these We're t
{; come under her maternal protee
q ton, and each one was older tina
'" herself.
/ Her new husband is twenty-fiv
n wears her senior. Although b
q brings her no young children, 9
n all Of her other husbands did, 81
IS consoles herself with the refiectlo
/ that he has thirty grandchlldref
n many of them small, eleven grea
Is grandchildren, and four great-grea
n grandchildren, some of whom cll
., cumstances may throw upon II
- personal care.
p Mrs. Callan, with her husband
i has never had a child Of her owl
IS but thirty of her stepchildren gre,
le up under her care. Only one CHI
"a among died all the FIVE families 81
St reared. The first time she marie
u she lived on farm she owned, .,
ne moved from it to her husband
'g The next marriage took her fro
OF that to her second husbands al
m 40 on, each marriage removing d
m to a new farm, the whole i've
" which she now owns.-Norwlc
ne Penn, letter in N. Y. Sun.
ly
Would Not Break the Set.
Ina certain village not TWEEN
miles from Boston it appears the
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