Minot
Memories that Bless and Burn
Joseph Arthur holding baby Lyman, 1915.
On December 4th, 1911, just over a year after they lost Leah Berdella, Pluma and Arthur (as Pluma called Joseph Arthur) were living in Minot, North Dakota, when they were overjoyed with the birth of Ruth Elizabeth. Ruth was husky and healthy, with the same dark hair and dark eyes as Berdella.
Edna Fern Gladys was born in Minot a year and a half later, on July 27th, 1913. “Like Ruth, I was born with a two-inch shock of black hair and dark eyes. My birth weight was ten pounds! I was named after Papa’s only sister, Harriet Edna, and Mother added Fern Gladys. Mother always called me Edna Fern, and the way she said it was endearing.”
Lyman Arthur was born in Minot on January 2nd, 1915, and had the same black hair and dark eyes as his sisters before him; he was named Lyman after the maiden name of Pluma’s mother Lura and Arthur after his father.
Edna Fern Gladys was born in Minot a year and a half later, on July 27th, 1913. “Like Ruth, I was born with a two-inch shock of black hair and dark eyes. My birth weight was ten pounds! I was named after Papa’s only sister, Harriet Edna, and Mother added Fern Gladys. Mother always called me Edna Fern, and the way she said it was endearing.”
Lyman Arthur was born in Minot on January 2nd, 1915, and had the same black hair and dark eyes as his sisters before him; he was named Lyman after the maiden name of Pluma’s mother Lura and Arthur after his father.
Street scene in Minot, North Dakota, circa 1900.
The family was living in Leeds, south of Dunseith, when Robert Allen, their only fair-haired and blue-eyed baby, was born on September 16th, 1916. (He might have been named after Lura’s father, Robert N. Lyman.) Lela remembered that her mother proudly told her that Bob came in second place in a baby contest; he was a hearty toddler when the family moved back to Minot where Ruth and Edna Fern would start school.
Though the children felt loved by both parents, Pluma told Edna Fern and Lela when they were adults that she and Joseph had difficulties because he did not treat her as an equal partner. This wouldn’t have been easy for Pluma, as she had by necessity learned to be independent at a very young age, and even in her marriage she was left alone to fend for herself and their children while Joseph was away from home on his Great Northern Railway mail run. One night Pluma got home after ten to find the door locked, so she had to ask relatives to take her in for the night. Edna Fern wrote: “They must have wondered about what kind of man she had married.”
Another story Pluma told her daughters was about how one evening, as she and Arthur were preparing to go to a neighbor’s for the birth of their second child, visitors unexpectedly dropped in. Rather than explain the situation to these visitors, Arthur postponed taking her to the neighbor’s for help with the birth and had her wait in the bedroom while he visited. Lela remembered her mother telling her that she had shut herself up in the bedroom closet to drown out her moans. Edna wrote, “I don’t know what excuse he gave for mother’s absence, or how long the visitors stayed, but I am sure it seemed long to her since she was in labor.”
This kind of treatment was probably the reason for Pluma leaving Arthur with their four children for a time. She took the train alone to Portland, Oregon, and worked in a nursing home for some weeks, leaving her husband to experience caring for four youngsters under the age of seven. Edna Fern wrote, “Mother said that she couldn’t stay away from her children. We enjoyed her stories, and even though she had gone away from us we never doubted her love or that she would come back because Papa always came back.”
Though the children felt loved by both parents, Pluma told Edna Fern and Lela when they were adults that she and Joseph had difficulties because he did not treat her as an equal partner. This wouldn’t have been easy for Pluma, as she had by necessity learned to be independent at a very young age, and even in her marriage she was left alone to fend for herself and their children while Joseph was away from home on his Great Northern Railway mail run. One night Pluma got home after ten to find the door locked, so she had to ask relatives to take her in for the night. Edna Fern wrote: “They must have wondered about what kind of man she had married.”
Another story Pluma told her daughters was about how one evening, as she and Arthur were preparing to go to a neighbor’s for the birth of their second child, visitors unexpectedly dropped in. Rather than explain the situation to these visitors, Arthur postponed taking her to the neighbor’s for help with the birth and had her wait in the bedroom while he visited. Lela remembered her mother telling her that she had shut herself up in the bedroom closet to drown out her moans. Edna wrote, “I don’t know what excuse he gave for mother’s absence, or how long the visitors stayed, but I am sure it seemed long to her since she was in labor.”
This kind of treatment was probably the reason for Pluma leaving Arthur with their four children for a time. She took the train alone to Portland, Oregon, and worked in a nursing home for some weeks, leaving her husband to experience caring for four youngsters under the age of seven. Edna Fern wrote, “Mother said that she couldn’t stay away from her children. We enjoyed her stories, and even though she had gone away from us we never doubted her love or that she would come back because Papa always came back.”
Edna Fern and Lyman playing with their dog.
Fred Anderson, at right, with unidentified companion, Arkansas, circa 1940.
Pluma’s father, Fred Anderson, had moved away from North Dakota by the time her children were born. Edna Fern recalled her impression of him: “Ruth and Lyman and I only saw Grandpa Fred once as young children when he came for a brief visit—I was only three years old but his playful pinches made an impression. Family stories about Fred tell that he went to Arkansas and married a woman who smoked a pipe—that was her only distinguishing trait apparently.”
Lela remembered her mother telling her that she had written to Fred to get verification of her and Roy’s birthdates so that they could apply for social security after Franklin Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act of 1935. Lela recalled that Fred wrote back to give Pluma this information and he also wrote about his Arkansas family. The children from Fred’s two families never met, but they knew about each other, and Lela remembered that after Fred passed away an Arkansas daughter wrote to tell Pluma the news.
Lela remembered her mother telling her that she had written to Fred to get verification of her and Roy’s birthdates so that they could apply for social security after Franklin Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act of 1935. Lela recalled that Fred wrote back to give Pluma this information and he also wrote about his Arkansas family. The children from Fred’s two families never met, but they knew about each other, and Lela remembered that after Fred passed away an Arkansas daughter wrote to tell Pluma the news.
Ruth, Lyman, and Edna Fern (l. to r.) at their home in Minot, 186 Nedrud Avenue (Nedrud was later renamed, possibly to 4th Street NW.)