The C. A. McAdams Family

The C. A. McAdams Family

Our American Roots

by Charles G. Petersen
McAdams Children

James Arthur
Family Group

First Family

James Arthur was also married twice. He married Segrid Thersa Hokanson on 19 May 1909 in Swea City. She was born there on 8 Jun 1889 in Swea City. Her parents had both come from Sweden. They had three children: Maxine ELaine born 19 Oct 1910, Irwin Fred born 1 Jun 1914, Beryl James born 22 Jul 1917. Segrid died just 5 months later on November 11, 1918.

Famous Buttermaker

They lived for many years in Fairmont, Minnesota where James was a prize winning buttermaker. A little background, in the first half of the 20th century, most small towns had a creamery where farmers with dairy cows sold their cream. Many of those small town creameries also made butter for local consumption. In 1925 while working at the creamery in Northrop, Minnesota, just north of Fairmont, James won the national buttermaker prize at the National Dairy show. He was then hired by the Co-operative Creamery in Fairmont in 1926 where he continued to win awards. For instance, in October of 1926 he won second prize with a score of 95.75 (the winner's score was 96) from the Minnesota Creamery Operators' and Managers' Association. In October of 1927 he won two Gold Medal Awwards at the National Dairy Show in Memphis, Tennessee.

Second Family

Three years after the death of his first wife James married Gladys Bernice Rutherford on 8 Mar 1922 in Stillwater, Minnesota. Gladys was born 18 Aug 1892 in Washington County, Minnesota. James and Gladys also had three children, all born in Fairmont: Marcella Ruth Jane on 6 Mar 1923, Velma Fae on 14 Mar 1927, and Glendon Rutherford McAdams on 8 Mar 1935. I remember Glendon quite well as we were children about the same age and saw one another at family affairs. James died in Fairmont on 4 Jan 1957. Six years later Gladys died on 5 Apr 1963.

Children

Maxine Elaine went to Mankato Teachers College and taught in rural school around Fairmont for 12 years. When she was 23 years old she married William August Hagen on June 21, 1934 in Fairmont. In 1940 the U.S. Census shows them still living in Fairmont, but with no children. Sometime in the early 40's they must have divorced for on February 1st 1947 Maxine married George Henry Thiede in Fairmont. He was a World War II veteran from Austin, Minnesota, which is where they lived the rest of their lives. They had two children, Marlys and Mavis. Maxine died on April 14, 1999 age 88 and George died on May 27, 2006 at 91. from Austin,

Irwin Fred married Elda Mae Kilpatrick on May 11, 1957 in Hennepin County (Minneapolis), Minnesota. She was from Clear Lake, South Dakota born there in 1933. They had two children: Dawn Joy born in 1958 and Debra Jo born in 1959, both in Ramsey County (St. Paul), Minnesota. Irwin's Social Security Death Index list his last residence as Phoenix, Arizona when he died in March of 1986. It is believed that he and Elda Mae were divorce before 1965 because birth records in Minnesota show her as having children in 1965 with a different husband.

Beryl James was born in Dumont, Iowa on July 22, 1917. Some time after 1914, his father moved to Dumont and was in the restaurant business according to James' World War I draft registration.. When Beryl was only a year and a half old his mother died and by 1920 they were living with Beryl's grandparents back in Swea City. Sometime in the early 1920's the family had moved to Fairmont, Minnesota. When Beryl registered for the World War II draft he was living in Denver, Colorado and working for the General Iron Works Company. This same draft registration states that he was 5 foot 6 inches tall and weigh 148 pound with blue eyes and brown hair. Exactly when he moved to California in not known nor do I know the name of his first wife, however it is known that he had a son named Michael James born on June 9th in 1942. Michael died in California in 2013. Sometime in the early 1950's Beryl married Bonnie Jean Kennedy. They lived in Folsom, California and together had two children: Molly Lee born in 1956 and Dennis. Beryl died on April 22, 1985 in El Dorado, California according the the California Death Index. However, his obituary in the Folsom Telegraph states that he died while visiting in South Lake Tahoa. The obituary also says that he had been a computer programer for Aerojet General. He and his wife owned and operated the Olde Towne Antiques in Folsom. Beryl is buried in the Lakeside Memorial Lawn Cemetery in Folsom.

Marcella Ruth Jane, born in Fairmont in 1923, married Dale Victor Carlson their in 1945. Together they had 5 children: Craig Bradley (1949), Wayne Jeffery (1951-2011), Scott Warren (1952), Lynn Adele (1956), and Alan Richard (1959). Her husband died in 1980 and in 1986 she married Raymond E. Johnson (1927-1997). At this writing Marcella is still alive and living in the Minneapolis area.

Velma Fae was born in Fairmont, Minnesota and was married their in 1949 to Donald Gust Lehman. They moved to Minneapolis where they had 3 children: Nanette Marie born 1953, Colleen Sue born 1954, and Peter Brian in 1956. Velma and Donald were divorced in 1983 and later that year she married Carl Joseph Augustin Fox. They lived in the twin cities (Minnespolia-St. Paul) area the reat of their lives. He died in 2011 and she died in 2016.

Glendon Rutherford was in the U. S. Navy and stationed in Norfolk, Virginia where he married Regina Parrot in Norfolk on May 3, 1957. He recieved two medal for his service in the Navy. In 1959 he moved to Pikering, Ontario, Canada and worked in the sheet metal fabrication industry. He and Regina had 3 children: Glenda, James A., and John R., all born in Canada. He and Regina divored in 1981. In 1991, Glendon moved to Punta Gorda, Florida and lived there until his death on February 8, 2003. His daughter, Glenda, married Brian Harris and they lived Punta Gordo along with their son, Glendon's grandson, Glen William Harris at the time of Glendon's death.