Posted on: KIDDER Biographies Reply Here: http://genconnect.rootsweb.com/genbbs.cgi/surnames/k/i/KIDDER/biographies/4 Surname: Kidder, Mitchell, Hamilton, Massie, Carey ------------------------- CLARENCE EDWARD KIDDER He was born Clarence Edward Kidder, March 18,1884, at Brooksville, Bracken County, Kentucky. He was the third child of William Nicolas Kidder and Louisa Rebecca Mitchell. They were poor, but proud people. William Kidder farmed for a living or worked at whatever was available. William, Louisa and their family worked very hard for a living, as did most people of the time. I remember a story that he told one of his brothers intentionally splitting his heel to avoid working in the fields. His mother promptly provided the brother alternative labor, piecing quilts. No one in the family was immune to contributing their fair share. He learned to swim the old fashioned way, his father threw him in the Ohio River. As a method of learning, it was cheap, fast, effective, and there was great incentive. He was married at the age of seventeen to another seventeen year old, Carrie Mae Hamilton. They were married at Pink's Post Office, near Blue Creek, Ohio. They lived many places over the years, mostly southern Ohio, between West Union and the Ohio River. A few of the names that I recall are; Peach Mountain, Upper Twin, Lower Twin, Big Swirl, John Graham's Place, The Brissalo Place, and Duncansville. Some of these may be one and the same, they're just places that I've heard of. His family began in 1903, and they named their first little girl Mabel. Then in 1906 there was William Francis and in 1909 Orville Austin. Carrie became bedfast about this time with rheumatism. Rheumatism, a good name for anything the doctors couldn't diagnose. I believe it was rheumatic fever. At this time he was logging, for fifty cents a day, and glad to be working. In 1911 another son, Ralph Edward, followed by Dora Vell in 1913, Denver Russell in 1915, and Luvada in 1916. Luvada, however, had a bad heart and lived only 21 days. then in 1918 another son, Hartsel Elmo. Then came World War I. He didn't have to go, but they went through some rough times, trying to send kids to school and keep food on the table. I, Betty Mae, was born in 1921, near Serpent Mound in Adams County. From there I can remember pretty well from the stories I've heard. When I was a year old, the famil moved to Highland County, on the old Kirscher Nixon Farm. Then a stillborn baby boy was born, a weak heart. in 1924 another boy, James Noble, followed by yet another stillborn. He lved ther with his family for 11 years, and farmed on the halves. I always said, "He raised the corn to feed the hogs, to sell to buy fertilizer to raise the corn to feed the hogs..." We always had lots of love and plenty to eat. Breakfast included ham, fried potatoes, biscuits, gravy, eggs and jellies. Dinner and supper included even more, beans(white, brown, and green). We always had enough to wear. At that time there was no middle class, just those who owned farms, bankers, and business people who worked for them. And so we had many friends. The farm was large, and included a part of the Fort Hill area. Besides raising kids, he had white faced Hereford cattle, Jersey milk cows, horses, pigs, chickens and ducks,( but the ducks are a different story). He raised corn, wheat and tobacco. Mabel married in 1924 and William Francis shortly after that. His father passed away in 1928 with cancer. That was a hard time for him. His father was such a quiet, gentle man, with a long white beard. His father would ride from Lawshe to the farm, about 30 miles, in a wagon, pulled by a mule team. His mother was very stern. She acted as midwife for all but the last three children. She also delivered Dora's first child, Eddie, on her sventy-seventh birthday. She smoked a clay pipe, which she kept in her apron pocket. She passed away November 3rd, 1937 with cancer. He joined Pisgah Methodist Church, where he went every Wednesday night for prayer meetings. He was a devout Christian, except for his chewing tobacco, and a very strict parent. He allowed no card playing or drinking ay the house, and the girls always had to be in by 10:00. The kids were not allowed to be in any school function, because, "We wnet to school to learn, not to be in plays." He had a third grade education, but could "out figure" the math teacher. He learned more in 3 years than most do in 12. In the 1920's he had an emergency appedicitis operation. He had been carrying a large sack of wheat on his back to put in the wheatdrill, and when the doctors found his appendix, it ahd moved in back near his spine. The doctors made a large incision, which became infected, keeping him in bed so long he had to learn to walk again. He always said his "day started before daylight and ended after dark", so that was a bad time for him. Hartsel and Russell were taking the work horses to pasture in the dark, Hartsel's horse ran into a wire gate. The horse threw Hartsel, injuring his head. Russ carried him home and he lay in a coma for about a week. The doctors said there was nothing they could do but wait. Harsel pulled through, but again it was a trying time. Then Ralph married in 1930. In 1932, he bought a farm west of Hillsboro. He had always raised a lot of tobacco, so he had a new tobacco barn built.That was the year of the drought, and the government limited the amount of tobacco that could be raised. The government took their share, and he lost the farm after 2 years. Moved again, to route 62, south of Hillsboro, Mrs. Robinson's farm, but they couldn't get along. After another 2 years he moved the family east of Hillsboro, on to Frank Robinson's farm. Dora married, Russell married, and Hartsel married. In 1938, I married and Orville married. Next he moved down by Sinking Springs, on the Charlie Davidson farm. He stayed only a short while, and moved again to John Lawthorn's farm, where Carrie had a serious gallstone operation. James Noble married, and joined the Army. He had 4 sons in the service, so he sold out and moved to Urbana, bought another house, sold it, and bought another. He lived there several years, working the paper mill, sometimes the swing shift. He now had major surgery for a double hernia. He decided to retire and return to Hillsboro, where he and Carrie celebrated their 51st wedding anniversary. He received a good offer for the home and sold it, moved to Wall Street in Wilmington, where Carrie suffered a stroke. The stroke paralyzed Carrie and took her ability to speak. He decided to buy a house on the Southeast Street in Hillsboro, so that I could move in to help care for Carrie. Carrie lived 9 months, passing away in 1955; they had been married for 53 years. He stayed there a short time afterward, then moved to Ironton, Near Orville. In Ironton, he met Nettie Massie. A year and a half after he lost Carrie, he married again. Ralph was killed in an auto accident near Urbana, in 1959. He had another major surgery, from which he never fully recovered. He developed heart problems, hardening arteries, and passed away on February 22nd, 1967. He had been married to Nettie for 10 years. He is buried, beside Carrie, in the Hillsboro cemetery. This story tells of the hard times, but we also had good times. Reunions, Sunday Dinners, Christmases, lots of laughter and music. All of this along with the noise, fights, cut fingers and toes, broken bones and more. He had 44 grandchildren and some great grandchildren when he passed away. Some he didn't get to see, but he loved them all anyway. He did many things wrong, and a lot more things right, and my question is, "If you had walked in his shoes, could you have survived?" As written by, Betty Mae Carey March 18, 1991 Submitted by: Sandy Kidder Great Great Granddaughter of Clarence Edward Kidder and Carrie Mae Hamilton Kidder