Christmas at the Farm, 1950

Once upon a Christmas, in 1950 near Buchanan, Michigan, on the farm that belonged to my great-grandparents Ulysses and Annie Hicks...

PHOTO: Ulys and Annie at the farm

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( I'm not sure who wrote on these pictures, but I'm sure glad they did.)

Ulys and Annie had nine children - Ruby, Irene, Cleffie, Elvin, Evalee, Vernell, Olan, Bernice, and Lowell. They raised their family in Judsonia, Arkansas. But in the 1940s they took the three youngest children and moved north, to Michigan, to find jobs. Some of my great-grandparents' married children also ended up moving to Michigan. All but two of the nine Hicks children were living in Michigan by the time I was born. It looks like most of them were at the farm, with spouses and children, for this very cold and snowy Christmas. (I wonder if it made them wish they had stayed in Arkansas.) You can see in the photos above that it was a very small house, to hold such a crowd of people. (If all the adults in these pictures brought all their children, there would have been 14 adults and 15 children present.)

Barbara is Olan's wife. Charles is Evalee's husband. Elaine is Lowell's wife.

Charles, Jack (Ruby's husband), Buck (Evalee's son), Morris (Cleffie's son), Oma Dell (Ruby's daughter), Elaine, Wathada (Cleffie's daughter, my mother)

Jack, Charles, Lester (Cleffie's husband), Ray (Vernell's husband), Jay (Bernice's husband). Olan, Lowell

Ulysses and Annie Hicks

Ulys, Oma Dell, Annie

Ruby, Cleffie, Annie, Evalee, Vernell, Bernice

Lester, Annie, Cleffie, Olan, Ulys, Lowell, Bernice, and Barbara. The children are Ronnie (Lester & Cleffie's son), Clint and Chuck (Olan and Barbara's sons)

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EDIT -- I have it on good authority that the baby on Barbara's lap is her son Clint (born January 1948). So this picture would have been taken in December 1948. That being the case, the baby on Bernice's lap would be her son Shelby (born November 1946).

A great big thanks to Jeanne Hicks Barnett for that information.