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Wells Hale Wescott Genealogical Information |
| Wells Hale married twice. His first wife, Jane Cockbain, died in child birth at the age of 24. Their son Frank H. lived about 4 weeks and is buried beside his mother. The epitaph on her tombstone is quite tragic and we wonder who selected it. Before her marriage, she had taught at the district school on the land donated by Wells L., her father-in-law.
Wells Hale's second marriage, 18 months later, was to Jane's sister, Mary Ann. Mary Ann had also taught at the District 42 School. Starting with the 160 acres he inherited from his father, Wells Hale added to the farm by purchasing land in the area. Eighty acres of the original 160 acres was pasture land, it was "swampy" and couldn't be cultivated. A map of the area shows the land he bought: first the Norton place, then the Mielke place --- the school piece, for Wells J. and Ora. We're not sure when the school piece was sold, it was owned by Wells L. in 1865 or 1866, but was re-purchased by his son. He also purchased the Thomas place (his Aunt Clara's farm), and the Smith place. He increased the farm to over 600 acres, and during threshing and harvesting seasons many farm hands were needed to work the fields. There were 15 - 20 horses, a tractor, 10 hired men. It was a very active farm. He lived on the farm all his life, loved it, wanted it for his sons and grandsons. Mary Ann Wescott Youngkrantz told us about her parents. "There were seven of us kids five sons --- my mother lost five sons: Wells at 20, Walter, three boys at birth ---and Flora and I. They had convulsions. They say they gave them milk, fresh, and they couldn't handle it. I can't either and nearly died too. They gave me oatmeal gruel. She couldn't nurse them. Wells was wet-nursed by Mrs. Mielke, on the farm across the road, she had a baby about the same time, and she nursed him and Walter, but there was no one to nurse the rest of them..." In probate court on May 22, 1931 Mary A. Wescott stated that Wells Hale left personal estate more that $5,000 and real property (the farm) valued at more that $5,000. She asked that her son, Walter be named administrator. Mary Ann adds: "When father died in May, 1931, I went to the city for a job. Walter was to get everything, she was to have the home farm, Walter across the road, the house my father fixed up for Wells(9) and Ora. Mother called and asked me to come home. She had a hired man living on the farm, Tollie --- Old Tollie ---Bugs remembers him, he'd run away and stay with him. Tollie got groceries in town and took the kids to school. She was worried how it looked with her out there with Tollie, she was afraid people would talk, she was so proud, so I came home to stay. Arvid and I were married December 31, 1931. In 1932, she gave the home place to Walter, she couldn't handle it, and moved to Minneapolis and lived with my sister, Flora, who was working at Donaldson's. (She and Flora also lived on Bloomington Avenue for a while.) In '33 I was pregnant with the second baby, and Arvid had lost his job in Minneapolis, so he went to work for my brother Walter, and I stayed with mother. Then she came back to Farmington and stayed in a house by the old Methodist Church. After a while she decided she wanted a house of her own so she bought the little house on Oak Street (509). She rented out one side for an income --- she only got $30 a month from insurance and father left a little bit more, Walter took all the rest. In a bit more than two years Walter lost the farm." Walter inherited a difficult task. The farm was heavily mortgaged and it was the depression. Wells Hale counted on good crops and a well run farm to pay off the mortgage. However, Walter was not a good manager or a farmer and he drank heavily. Mary Ann continues: "--- $100,000 thrown away. After the farm was sold, Walter moved in with mother and took 1/2 the house for his family to live in. He lived there about five years and never paid any rent. I got myself named Mother's executor (Mother was beginning to show signs of hardening of the arteries) and kicked him out so it could be rented out and give her an income. I'd fix lunch for company for her, she couldn't manage it herself. She didn't have anything. Then I found out she wasn't eating. She wandered outside at night in her nightgown (a neighbor called in January when it was 30 below zero) and we found her trying to climb a fence. She almost froze to death. We had her come live with us, she stayed for 4 years, but I couldn't trust what she would do and eventually she had to be put into a home." I have also included the obituary of Jane Elizabeth Cockbain Wescott his first wife the, obituary of Mary Ann Cockbain Wescott his second wife and the obituary of Wells Hale Wescott as they appeared in the Dakota County Tribune. |
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This Page was last updated on August 10, 1996 |