This is my favorite picture
of my paternal great-grandparents, taken on Christmas day, 1942. My great-grandfather,
Charles Ballenger, looks happy and relaxed, and my great-grandmother, Irene
(Clark) Ballenger, is beaming. I love the tinsel-draped tree, with its big
electric bulbs and what appear to be Christmas greeting cards stuffed into the
branches.
Charles Cleveland Ballenger
was born July 15, 1882 in Delaware County, Ohio, and Irene Pearl Clark was born
November 28, 1887 in Delaware County. They were married in Delaware County on
December 12, 1906. I never knew Charles, who died January 7, 1953, in Columbus,
Ohio, but I’m told I did occasionally visit my Great-Grandma Ballenger when I
was very little. Irene (Clark) Ballenger died October 21, 1965, in Columbus.
It’s strange—I have no memory of her, yet I can recognize her face in pictures.
My sole memory is that the house she lived in had a little cast-iron wagon
pulled by a horse, and when you rolled it along the little wheels moved. I
think they used it as a doorstop. There was also a miniature cast iron stove
with tiny pots and an oven door that opened and shut. I inherited that piece,
probably because I was their only great-granddaughter at the time, and have it
packed away in my basement. That’s a kid for you—to remember the toys better
than the people!
This picture was taken the
same Christmas day in 1942. That happy little guy in the center of all the
activity is my father, who had recently turned three years old. Looks like he
had a railroad cap on and had just received a wonderful gift—a child-size
workbench with a tool belt and hammer. He must have gotten a tricycle, too. No
wonder he was so happy! Charles is sitting by him, and I believe the man in the
foreground with his back to the camera is my grandfather, Lloyd Ballenger. The
woman in this picture is Charles’ sister, Cecil (Ballenger) Parker, my
great-grand-aunt (1896-1993). My grandmother, Nora (Eberhard) Ballenger, must
have been the one taking the picture. I bet she was delighted to see her little
son enjoying his presents so much.
Isn’t it fun peeking into
Christmas past with pictures like these?
--Shelley
Related Post:
Surname Saturday: Ballenger Family
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