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Family History

Introduction

This family history is based on interviews with Roger's father, Louis Edmund Meyer, on December 31, 2003 by Roger at Pop & Marlys's home in Blue Earth, Minnesota. (He is known to his family as "Pop".) Later, Roger and Pop addressed open questions on Saturday, March 6, 2004. Mike's eldest son, Christopher, also interviewed/video taped Pop. Information from that session is also being incorporated.

Pop reports that his middle name at birth was Edmund, but for the last many years, he has been going by Louis Edwin Meyer - doesn't know why.

Eventually other sources will be sought. For example, Roger & Margaret will contact "Aunt Chump", their mother's sister for information about the Coulter and Collier families and their history.

Reportedly, Mike's eldest son, Christopher, also interviewed/video taped Pop. Roger & Chris have talked and Chris is most willing to contribute to this project. In fact, Chris has send the video to Roger. Both are cogitating about how to incorporate it into this family history.

Few dates & places in this report have been corroborated, but based on Pop's memory.

Pop & Margaret & Roger on 12/31/03

Another informative source of information was an interview that Theresa & Roger had with Vivian (Coulter) Laue (Aunt "Chumpie") at St. Lukes Nursing Home in Blue Earth on September 16, 2005. Both Chump & Cord have moved to St Lukes, after Chumpie fell and Cord became ill.

Henry Meyer & Lula Miller Ancestors

Pop's grandfather was Henry Meyer (as was Pop's father). Henry, Sr. came to the US from Germany in about 1887 with his wife, Bernadine (Englin) Meyer, and 2 children, Ben, the eldest, and Henry, Jr. They had been married in about 1882. (Henry, Jr. had just been born about 1886.) Henry, Jr. died in February 1961 from arterial sclerosis - hardening of the arteries. All spoke fluent German. Henry, Sr. died about 1920 after Pop's family had moved to California. He is buried in Randolph, Nebraska. Pop says, "They were nice looking people".

The German Kaiser had insisted that every young German man must serve in the German Army. Henry, Sr. didn't want to do that, so he packed up his family and moved to the United States by way of Holland. He initially settled in Iowa where he had reportedly know somebody. They homesteaded land on the prairie. There, they had 5 more children: Peter, John, Ferdinand, Mary, & Margaret.

Henry, Sr. was called "Henry" while Pop's dad, also named Henry, was called "H. W." Henry, Sr. homesteaded a quarter, 160 acres, near Randolph when it became available.

Pop's mother, Louise, nicknamed Lula, Miller was the eldest child of Joe Miller & Elizabeth (Wingert) Miller. Elizabeth was from Templeton, Iowa. Lula was born in 1888 and died in 1968 from strokes.

Pop reports on mother's death

Joe & Elizabeth (Wingert) Miller ran a grocery store in Iowa. Reportedly, he also ran a grocery store in Wisconsin for a while. But old Joe liked his liquor which was his downfall. 

The family grocery store in Randolph at various times was run by Joe, Sr., Bob, John, & Joe, Jr. In fact, the story goes that the grocery store is where Bob met his wife, Marie. According to the story, each day Bob had to go to the depot to meet the train which is how most groceries arrived for the store. And guess who the depot agent was - Marie. This meeting would have been in the 30's.

Lula came from a family of 11 children: Lula, Joe (Jr.), Tracy (Dominisee), Cora, Dorothy (Fencl), Bob, John, Carl, Walt, Steve, & Paul.

On several occasions, when traveling through Randolph, Nebraska, Theresa and I met several of these relatives: Joe Miller, Cora Miller, Bob (& Marie) Miller. And I met Tracy Dominisee when I was very young, in California.

Henry & Lula Meyer
(14:45)
Pop's parents were married in Randolph in 1912. They had 2 children. Robert (Bob) Meyer was born in 1914 and died in 2002. Pop was the second child born in 1916. The boys were born and raised on a farm near Randolph, Nebraska. 

Since the 2 boys were only 2 years apart and to ease transportation, both started country school when Pop was 4. They rode a horse to school about 2 miles. So for grades 1 to 4, Pop went to this country school. The country school had about 15 students in 8 grades in one room.

However, for the 5th grade, his parents wanted him to go to Catholic school in town. Pop's parents being good Catholics wanted their sons to become priests. To do that they needed to be studying Latin which they didn't learn at country school. So beginning with his 5th grade, Pop lived in Randolph with his Grandmother Miller for about one year.

The next year, in 1926, his family moved to a farm 4 miles north of Randolph where again he and his brother were able to ride a horse & cart to Catholic school in town. But in 1929, his father bought a Model T roadster which the boys drove to school until they graduated in 1932. 

The first T's came out in 1926, so they were in a elite group - early users of the then new transportation tool, the automobile. 

In 1928, on the way to school, Bob hit a pheasant and then hit the line of gravel down the middle of the road, losing control and rolling over into the ditch, all 4 wheels straight up. Fortunately, no one was hurt. The top of the car was of course smashed.

The second farm where Pop grew up was 160 acres where they grew corn, oats, hay and raised cows, pigs, & chickens... typical family farm. After Pop's father quit farming, he was a handyman around Randolph doing painting, carpentry, and the like.

"Pop's dad could do everything"

Louis Meyer & Evelyn Coulter
(21:40)
After graduation in 1932, Pop tried to get a job, but none were to be had. He did receive a job offer to work in a gas station in Randolph for $25/week. He declined and stayed at home helping his dad on the farm.

In 1935, while cruising with his dad's new car in town, he picked up 3 girls: Helen Bergle, Evelyn Teaman, and Evelyn Coulter. Guess which one was next to Pop. Well, they fell in love. Mom was a teacher at a country school earning $55/month.

Farming went from bad to worse. So in 1936, Pop's family sold everything and moved to California. There all 3 men got jobs in gas stations. During this 2 year period, Pop made several trips back to Randolph to see his sweetheart.

Finally, in July 1938, Mom took the (Union Pacific) train to Los Angeles where they were married in a very small ceremony on July 28th.

Oscar Coulter & Bessie Collier

Roger's mother was Evelyn Lavonne Coulter from Randolph, Nebraska. She was born on January 22, 1919. Her only sibling, Vivian, was born on September 9, 1920.

Her parents were Oscar Coulter & Bessie Eva Collier, both of Randolph. Bessie's father was Daniel Orin Collier. "Dan O." homesteaded several quarter sections of land near Randolph, Nebraska. It was one of those farms that Grandma & Grandpa Coulter later received for a wedding present from her dad. Grandma's only sibling, her brother, Clayton, ended up managing those farms. During his life, the farms were recognized as "Century Farms", meaning that they were in the family for over 100 years. Bessie was born on November 27, 1895.

Roger's mother's father was Oscar Coulter. Oscar's father, whose name was John Coulter, came from Ireland. His parents put him on a boat in Ireland and sent him to North America where he landed somewhere in Canada (probably Halifax) when he was about 8 years old. This was a fairly common practice in Ireland when parents couldn't take care of their offspring. John Coulter lived in eastern Iowa having many offspring. Some of Grandpa Oscar Coulter's siblings were: John (Jr) (who lived in South Dakota), George, Jim, Rob, twins: Fred & Ed, and included 3 girls. Ed was reportedly a bootlegger, so the family didn't have much to do with him. Fred Coulter had a son Virgil who married a Russell girl from Blue Earth. Virgil's family use to visit Oscar & Bessie and we've met them on several occasions. Oscar was one of the younger children in the family. He was born on October 23, 1897.

Oscar & Bessie grew up together in Randolph. Bessie had red hair. They were sweethearts from a young age. Grandpa Oscar Coulter learned to be a pharmicist in Randolph at Obert & Walls, where he served Grandma Bessie at the soda counter. Bessie's father, Dan-O, took the family to California after Bessie's graduation. Grandma Bessie's only sibling was Clayton who was married to "Aunt Mary" who we used to visit when we visited Randolph quite regularly. La Verne & Ruth Ellen Truby is Clayton & Mary's only child. Ruth Ellen was one of Evelyn's "best friends." After Clayton died in around 1925, Aunt Mary was later married to a nice man, Alfred Nelson.

When Bessie Collier and Oscar Coulter were married New Year's Day in 1917 (date?), their wedding present from her dad was a half section of land, 320 acres, near Randolph.

They farmed that land until 1936 at which time they found themselves in debt about $5000 due to drought, poor land, and poor prices. They had heard about better land and weather in Minnesota. So, they went up to southern Minnesota, going into the bank in each county seat. They began in Worthington and worked their way east.

When they got to Blue Earth, the banker told them that the Kohlmeyer farm out west of town was for rent. They rented it, went back to Nebraska, got their John Deere Model A tractor (on steel wheels) and machinery and moved to Blue Earth. They farmed west of Blue Earth (across the field from the Bleess farm - Theresa's paternal grandparents) until 1944 when they moved to the "Paschke" farm south of Delavan. It was this farm that Roger's family lived in from 1945 to 1948 in what was called a tenant house.

In 1952 (approx.), Coulters semi-retired and bought 80 acres northeast of Blue Earth with money from selling their half section in Nebraska. Thus the 80 cost about 4 times much as the Nebraska land. They later sold that and lived in their own home in Blue Earth until they passed away.

Louis & Evelyn (Coulter) Meyer

From 1938 until 1944, Louis & Evelyn lived at 4 different locations in Los Angeles: first on Shatto Street, than at 1727 ¹/₂ Catalina, then in a Court on  Cloverdale, and finally a house at 2656 Cloverdale. Roger was born at the Catalina address.

Decorating Cloverdale house

In 1944 at the height of World War II, Pop was told that he would probably be drafted, even though by now he had a wife and 2 kids.

Blackouts

Anti-aircraft Guns

At the time he managed a nice gas station on the corner of Santa Monica Blvd. and La Brea in Los Angeles. His alternative to being drafted was to go to work in a defense plant making war supplies. He didn't cater to inside work, so he asked his draft person if he could get a farm deferment. They said yes.

So in 1944, he moved back to Minnesota to work for Grandpa Coulter on the Paschke farm. We lived in Blue Earth (across the street from Theresa's Aunt Dorothea and Uncle Marvin) for a year while a tenant house was being built on the farm and then move there for 3 years. Jim, Tom, & Mike were born while we lived there. Next we moved to the Weber farm (just down the road from Theresa's Uncle Leo & Aunt Genevieve - where we occasionally went to play because they had lots of kids - 17 at last count) on the other end of the section where Pop could be his own boss. We were there only 1 year and then moved to Frost in 1948.

In those first few years at Frost, Roger was not big enough to do farm work. But some jobs required 2 people. So Pop would hire an older kid from Frost or Blue Earth during the summer. I remember Gene Wangen, Darrel Tesch, Jim Wesner, Don Malcolm, & Don Folven. Finally in 1952 when Roger was 13, we didn't have to hire outside help and Roger became the farm hand, followed by Gary, then Jim, Tom, Mike, & Pat.

During those years, we had a large family. And, of course, large families with little money found recreational activities difficult. They could always go visit other large families. So, guess what. Francis & Maurine Bleess would come to visit Pop & Mom and all us kids would play games out in the yard while our folks played Canasta in the house. Theresa & I figure we met during the first of those visits, probably in 1949.

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