Sarah Tamsett

 This photo was cropped in half, for some reason. That's why half of the writing on the back has been scratched out. I don't have the original photo.

The woman in the picture here is Sarah Tamsett. She was the midwife who delivered my grandmother, Cleffie Hicks.

"Minerva Arnold on the right, mother of Annie Hicks - Mrs. [Sarah] Tamsett on the left (midwife) Delivered Cleffie Hicks" 

PHOTO: Minerva Adaline Arnold - the other woman in the original photo - my great-great-grandmother.

I tried to create a semblance of the original photo of both women together...

Here is what my grandmother (Cleffie) wrote about the night she was born --

The Night I Was Born

 

    I have heard my mother tell about the incidents surrounding my birth on August 8th, 1917.  I was born about two o’clock that morning.    It was during “World War One” and my father had been notified that he must come to Heber Springs and take his examination for the military service, along with a lot of other men, of course.  We lived at Banner, and it was twenty-five miles to Heber Springs.  Papa walked every step of the way there and back.  He was gone three or four days at least. ?He was really dreading the examination and was hoping he wouldn’t pass it.  In fact, he was hoping so much that he wouldn’t pass that he drank several cups of coffee, “strong coffee”, just before time for it.  I guess that did the trick because he didn’t pass the exam.  He said his heart was really pounding and acting up from the coffee.  He had a weak heart anyway and that just made it show up. ?He arrived home around midnight on the aforementioned night, so tired he was almost dead on his feet.  Mama knew I was going to arrive that night, too, but she didn’t have the heart to tell him right at that time.  She wanted him to get a little sleep and rest first.  He did go to sleep for maybe a couple of hours.  But it wasn’t very long till she had to get him up to go tell the mid-wife to come, and then go for the doctor.  He rode a horse this time because he knew he was coming back.  It was fifteen miles to the doctor, who lived at Jamestown.  He was the nearest doctor there was in that part of the country.  Sometimes after a big rain the creek would rise so much it would be impossible to get across but I guess it wasn’t up this time because they made it.  However, it took them a little too long and I beat them there.  The midwife had delivered me and I was there to greet them when they came in. ?My mother had waited too long to send for the doctor and, really, as it turned out, she didn’t need him.  But I’m sure she felt better that he came anyway. Mrs. Tamsett was the mid-wife.  She was Aunt Jessie Arnold’s mother.  Also Aunt Amy Carter’s mother.

PHOTO: I'm sure this is the earliest picture of Cleffie. She was 11 days old.

PHOTO L-R: Irene, Annie holding Cleffie, Ruby