Readers Respond

Cathi Weber, Cook, Minnesota: My maternal grandfather, Lee Donaldson, was born in Newton County, Missouri, in 1890 and died in 1933 on the farm that has been in our family since 1887. My sister's family are now the fourth, fifth, and sixth generations of our family to occupy this farm.

Christopher C. Child, Boston, Massachusetts: Both my maternal grandparents lived their entire lives in Kansas, where they were born and died. They grew up on farms and, after marrying, raised their own family on a farm in Sedgwick, Harvey County, Kansas. Two of their seven children left the state—including my mother—but we had fun family gatherings with my many cousins, aunts, and uncles at my grandparents' farmhouse over summers and holidays.  

Rebecca Junod, La Jose, Pennsylvania: All four of my grandparents were born, raised, and died in Clearfield County, Pennsylvania, as were seven of my great-grandparents. My parents were also born and raised in Clearfield County, and they still live there.

Mary Alice Harvey, Duluth, Minnesota: My great-great-grandmother Isabel Davis Keene lived her entire life in the same house on Ridge Road in Appleton, Maine. She was born there April 25, 1809, and died there April 1, 1896. All of her children were born and raised there, too.

Denise Helms Ferraro, Long Island, New York: My paternal grandparents were both born in Boston, Massachusetts, and lived there all their lives. My grandfather Walter Helms was raised in the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston, where he spent his married life and raised his children. My grandmother Dorothy Calhoun was born in "Southie”—South Boston.

Dorothy L. Wright, Green Brook, New Jersey: Not only were all of my grandparents born in New Jersey, they spent their entire lives in Jersey City. Both my parents, my three siblings, and I were born in Jersey City. However, when my youngest brother was born in the 1950s, Jersey City was in the midst of a housing shortage. My parents were forced to move to the suburbs to accommodate their growing family.

Greg Jones, Providence, Utah: All four of my grandparents, six of my great-grandparents, and both of my parents lived their lives in the state of Utah. As an adult, I spent fifteen years wandering. But I returned to Utah and have had my residence here for fifty years.

Linda Robbins, Epworth, Iowa: My maternal grandmother, Bertha Mae Small, was born December 16, 1890, near Tioga, Iowa. She died December 24, 1960, at her home in Barnes City, Iowa. Over the span of twenty years, Grandma gave birth to thirteen children in the same bedroom in a house that straddled the county line between Mahaska and Keokuk Counties.

Mike Bergler, Irvine, California: My grandfather Walter Garmshausen was born in South Pasadena, California, and lived there his entire life (1903-1988). He served as mayor from 1946 to 1948. The city celebrated its centennial in 1988, and the commemorative book recognized Walter as Pasadena’s longest continuous resident.