HALL NIELSON MAY

Florence May Hall

Hall Family

by EUGENE H. HALVERSON

Florence May Hall was born 5 June, 1893 in Higham (near Barnsley) Yorkshire, England.  She came to Winter Quarters when she was only 14 years old.  James, her brother had brought the family over as he earned the passage money for them to come.  He came in 1904 and the rest in 1906 and 1908.

Winter Quarters was where Joseph Henry Nielson and Florence met, fell in love.  They married, on 18 October, 1911.  They rented a house here in Winter Quarters where six children were born to them; Veda May, born 1 June, 1912, Ellen Vernetta (Helen) my wife’s mother was born the 25 June, 1913, Joseph Henry, 4 October, 1916, Ethel, 15 June, 1920, Jack, 5 July, 1921 and John James, 5 July, 1924.  She died of uremic poisoning shortly after giving birth to this last child, on the 20 July 1924.  She was only 18 years old when she married and 31 when she died.  The children were to small to remember her.  Friends and relatives are our only source of information.  They all called her "Florie" and everyone loved and respected her.  Harry, her brother used to tell us things about her; how sweet and beautiful she was and how loving and kind she was.  Norma Jones Carter said,  "She was such a sweet person, everyone just loved her. We have only a few stories and about three pictures to remember her by.

 After her death, Jim was taken to his Grandmother, Mary Ellen Pearson Hall who also lived in Winter Quarters.  These must have been very trying times for the family because it was only six months later that Grandfather, John Hall died, 23 November 1924, 63 years old. 

Jim lived with Grandma Hall until she began having health problems, she had suffered from rumitoid arthritis and now from what they called dropsy.  This was near the time she would leave Winter Quarters to go to Castle Gate to live near or with her daughter, Eva.  Jim was about six years old when his father, Joe came to take him home.  He had grown to love his Grandma very much and wasn't about to leave her.  Joe picked up his clothes in one arm and Jim in the other and went out the door, Jim went kicking and screaming to his new home. 

Grandma, Mary Ellen died in Castle Gate, 30 August 1930.  The Houghton's and the Nielson's can remember little of the Hall family but they all remember the trying times that the funeral procession had to endure.  She wanted to be buried by her husband in the Scofield Cemetery 30 miles away on a dirt road.  It had been raining for days and the road was almost impassable, everyone was stuck, it took several long miserable hours to get to the Cemetery.  They got there finally, all were muddy, tired and out of sorts only to find that no one had dug the grave.  They then dug the grave and had the grave side services.