My grandmother Elmendorf was born on this day in 1885, in South Africa, where she lived with her grandparents. Her father had been killed in a horseback riding accident, so she was left with her grands while her mother went to New York City to stay with a cousin and start a new life.
At age five, grandma was sent for. Her mother had remarried and had a nice home for her. Grandma told me about that trip — alone!! on a ship from South Africa to England. She remembered the White Cliffs of Dover. From there, she sailed to New York.
What an adventurous beginning to her life of almost 93 years.
Her new father was a physician and provided her with quite a luxurious life, private school, and all the trimmings. It was while she was vacationing in the Catskills that she met my grandfather. They married and settled upstate.
Her youngest child was my mother.
Here is a picture of those three children: Bob, Mary, and little Katie:
Barb's Blog 