Greider Clan

Growing Old on the Farm

Frank and Gertrude McClure with three grandchildren and their dog Chinkie — at the farm in western Pennsylvania, c. 1940

Frank Storer McClure (1870-1947) and Gertrude Pierce McClure (1874-1961) were my grandparents. They lived and worked on a farm they owned in western Pennsylvania, in the west bend of the Monongahela River near the hamlet of Bunola.

During the years of the 1930’s and  1940’s, my parents, brothers and I visited them regularly, usually spending two weeks at the farm in the summer. Frank and Gertrude were growing older at that time, but I had little sense of that. All adults were old, and grandparents were especially old.

Now, reading their letters of that period — and having achieved a few  years myself — I understand them better.

To read my blog page, click here.

To view a printable version with more illustrations, click here.

The Secret Marriage

My brothers and I told each other a story about our parents’ engagement and marriage in which the villain of the tale was my grandmother, Gertrude Pierce McClure. My father, Harold Greider, a worthy young chemist at the Mellon Institute in Pittsburgh, met my mother, Gladys McClure, who was a student at the University of Pittsburgh. After her graduation in 1922, she went back to live at the McClure farm while teaching home economics at Monongahela High School. Harold bought a Model T and traveled regularly to the farm to see Gladys. Liking became love and they became engaged, in December 1923. His parents, William Henry Greider and Emily Tichenor Greider, drove all the way from Kansas to meet the prospective bride in the summer of 1924. They approved. Then Gertrude raised holy hell and objected to Gladys marrying anybody. Daunted by this, she signed on to teach for another year, 1924-1925. At that time married female teachers were immediately discharged. Harold and Gladys couldn’t stand to wait any longer, however, so they married secretly in November 1924 and kept it to themselves until 1925, when Gladys finished the school year. Gertrude was furious, Harold’s parents were tolerantly amused, and my grandfather, Frank McClure, was not heard from. The young couple settled in Plymouth Meeting, near Philadelphia, and in 1926 my older brother, David, was born.

Thus begins my account of the marriage between my parents, a matter kept secret for over half a year. Why did two conventional people do this? Is anyone to blame? Fortunately we have letters from the period which help to explain it all.

For an on-line account, click here.

For a printable version, click here.

From Dawn to Now – available in printed form

Over the years I have posted a number of documents and pictures related to the Greider family. Now I have assembled some of them into a book — 101 pages, sprial bound, soft covers — and added many more pictures and captions. This compilation includes:

• From Dawn to Dusk – the complete text with additional pictures and notes.
• Topeka 1912 – the photographs Harold William Greider took in Topeka in 1912.
• My Father’s Model T – the story of a Model T car and a 1920’s courtship.
• Letters from Mother – the letters Emily Tichenor Greider wrote to her son, 1924-1930.
• Cousins and Forebears – a road trip to family sites in Kansas.

Click on this link to see a pdf of the book. I have sent printed copies to relatives for whom I have addresses. If you would like a copy, please contact me by a comment here or by email to greiderclan at gmail.

From Dawn to Now

I have now completed transcribing the final chapters of the life story of my grandfather, William Henry Greider. He entitled his memoir “From Dawn to Dusk” and told how a poor boy from a farm in Indiana acquired an education and a respectable — and respected — life as a teacher in early 20th century Kansas.

In “The Doctor” he relates how he obtained a medical degree and then had the adventure of his life, serving with the army in France during World War I.

He ends with a few general reflections about the world and his times and his own expectations.

Grandfather Greider always speaks of himself in the third person, trying to maintain a detachment from his adventures and from his very real progress toward the good life. His modestly does not completely conceal his pride, however, and I like him for that.

Click here for the end of the story.

W.H.G.

The earnest young man third from the left in the back row is William Henry Greider, my grandfather. As “W.H.G.” he writes about his pursuit of education in late 19th century Kansas and his career as a school teacher. He may be shorter and less polished than the other members of this college debating society, but he makes up for it with concentrated effort and a pugnacious attitude. Click here to read his story.

Willie Sawdust

William Henry Greider

Here you see my very respectable grandfather, William Henry Greider, in his career as a school teacher. In the next chapter of his life story, “From Dawn to Dusk,” he remembers his earlier brief career as Willie Sawdust, a California factory worker. He tells us that he triumphed over violence and ignorance.  Click here to read all about it.