Matthews / Conner / Covey / Salts [Solt] Family History - Person Sheet
Matthews / Conner / Covey / Salts [Solt] Family History - Person Sheet
NameMelva Marion CAMPBELL1076, F
Birth Date24 Feb 1905
Birth PlaceSharon, Johnson County, Iowa
FatherEdgar Roy "Edward" CAMPBELL , M (1876-1945)
MotherOra Florence KIRWIN , F (1879-1927)
Spouses
Marr Date3 Jun 19341076
Marr PlaceDes Moines, Polk County, Iowa
ChildrenMargaret A. (Living)
Notes for Melva Marion CAMPBELL
Melva M. Campbell was born on February 24, 1905 at the 'Brick House', a tenant house on the Roberts' Farm in rural Johnson County, Sharon Twsp., near Sharon, Iowa.
She was the third child & daughter of Edgar and Florence (Kirwin) Campbell. She grew up on the Hughes Farm (which was next door to the Robert's Farm) and to which the Campbell Family moved in 1908 or so and was known as the 'family home'. She was one of nine children and had 3 sisters and 5 brothers. It was a close and very loving family & these were happy years with many adventures as children. Her maternal grandmother "Grandma Kirwin" lived with them and helped to raise the children & do what work she could. Melva had many cousins, aunts and uncles, many of whom also lived in the Iowa City area & which she spent time with. The family enjoyed many gatherings, picnics, etc. Melva also attended the Welsh Congrational Church and joined on Sept. 1, 1918. The family had relatives from Tennessee and Arkansas who came to visit or even stayed for extended times when she was young.
Melva attended rural Willow Grove Grade School and Iowa City High School. In high school she completed & received upon graduation the 'Normal Training' Course Diploma' which qualified one to teach in the rural Johnson County schools. Melva did her practice teaching at the Kirkwood School on Kirkwood Ave. in Iowa City during her senior year. Melva finished her high school courses by mid year and then stayed home to help her family. Melva was the class Valedictorian and gave the senior class speech when she graduated from Iowa City High School in 1922.
It was about this time that Melva joined the Sharon Corona Chapter ( # 297) of O.E.S.
After graduation Melva taught at several rural Johnson County Schools. She first taught as a substitute for her ill sister Muriel (who was also a teacher) at "Dumb Hundred." The next year she lived with the Colony family in North Libery & taught at a school 2 miles SE of North Liberty to which she walked. {Her sister Muriel also stayed with the Colony's then and rode the Interurban trolley to her school 2 miles north of NL.] She & sister Muriel then entered SUI for a year. Later Melva taught at Liberty # 8 (a rural grade school) for a year, went back to SUI for awhile and returned to the Liberty School for another year. She then taught away from Iowa City at the towns of Brooklyn & Manilla, IA returning to SUl off & on. Finally she taught three years in the second grade at Harlan, lA grade school.
At the end of the third year at Harlan, she and long time grade-school acquaintance, friend & neighbor, W. 'Harvey' Thomas ( (after having dated for a few years), were married in Des Moines, Iowa in Polk Co. on June 3, 1934. A good friend from Harlan, Olive Thompson, was her attendant. As Melva had finally completed her work at SUI , she graduated from SUI with a B.S. in Education on June 5, 1934 with high distinction.
Melva & Harvery lived at the Thomas Family Farm with his mother Margaret, and his brother John for a couple years. A daughter, Margaret Ann, was born to them on Apri124, 1935. After John married and his wife Maye came to live at the farm Harvey & Melva and 'Peggy' moved to Iowa City.
They lived in a house in NE Iowa City for a year or so while Harvey worked at the Conoco Gas Station on Burlington St. and Melva's brother Cloyce roomed with them while he attended SUl.
Next they moved to live (briefly) with Melva's father Edgar at the 'Hughes Farm'. Harvey returned to help his brother John with work on the family farm. Then they moved to Sharon Center near by. They lived in two different houses while in Sharon for 2+ years. While here a son, Wm. Harvey Thomas, Jr or 'Bill' was born on Nov. 8, 1937.
Their next move was to about 2 miles closer to the Thomas Farm, to a rental house on the Robert's farm. [ Peggy called this place the 'Dirty Barn House'. The barn on the farm had once been a cheese factory, but was now a barn and housed the sheep which Harvey raised.] Peggy attended Willow Grove Grade School (Sharon # 2) for just her kindergarten year.
In the spring of 1941 Melva & Harvey & family moved to the 160 acre 'Chipman Farm' (about 2 miles SE of the Roberts' & 2 miles east of Sharon) which they bought and farmed then for many years. Husband Harvey farmed this farm and also helped his brother John with his farming(and visa versa).
Melva enjoyed her gardening, canning & freezing, & making jams & jellies; she also enjoyed baking, sewing, flowers and birds and organ music. Melva returned to teaching in 1944 . [The formerly closed local Maple Grove School (Sharon # 1) now had enough pupils to reopen & needed a teacher]. She taught there two years and then continued teaching at other local Johnson County rural grade schools such as Bayertown (Sharon # 8) and Willow Grove (Sharon #2) as well as substituting for other ill or incapacitated teachers around the county in Union Twsp, & east, west, north & south of Iowa City. She also did remedial work with many children over the years, either on week ends, but especially during the summertime.
In 1969 Harvey retired from farming and rented out the farm acreage 'on shares' with Bayertown neighbors, the Meyers family. Several years later he rented to close neighbors, the Russell Lackender family or now the Lackender Farms, Inc. , who have continued to rent it til the present time.
In 1972 Melva was diagnosed with lymphoma. She was treated for cancer for several years until she went into remission. This remission lasted until shortly before her death.
In 1978 Harvey & Melva moved from the farm to Iowa City to the Oaknoll Retirement Residence where they had an aprtment. They continued to drive to the country where Harvey mowed the lawn and 'puttered at the farm and Melva raised some garden and attended to her huge asparagus bed. Sometimes they stayed there for overnight. Neighbors also pastured their riding horses there.
After a serious car accident and their car was 'totaled (but they luckily received only minor injuries) Harvey did not get another car or drive. They rode the city bus or took the Oaknoll bus to get groceries, run errands, for Dr. appointments, etc. They enjoyed TV, reading,sports on TV (especially of the U of Iowa football, basketball games & wrestling meets ), the programs sponsored at Oaknoll, friends and family at Oaknoll and in the area. Melva continued to bake, make jams, do a bit of sewing, correspondence, was very interested in politics, health & education. In later years her special interest was genealogy .
Melva first worked on her husband's genealogy (Owens, Jones, Thomas) and then got into her own (Campbell, Meeker, Kirwin) families. She collected information from families, then wrote it up in small hand written booklets. { See booklets written by Melva which Peggy & Bill and other family members possess.] Family members including, Florence Campbell (who has traveled to Salt Lake City and Washington, D.C.) and a growing number all around the country are "into these family genealogies" and are searching for information. Some now have computer programs and e-mail & they have all worked together to compile many pages of facts & information on the families! Sister-in-Iaw Florence Campbell and daughter Peggy Thomas Hall, as well as several cousins, continue with the Campbell family genealogy to the present day.
Melva's health declined in about 1994 and she was admitted to the Oaknoll Health Care Center (HCC). Later she fell and required hip-replacement surgery & recovered quite well, using a walker, but continued to live in the HCC. Harvey continued to live in their apt. and spent much time with Melva in the HCC. In 1990 son Bill returned to the Iowa City area to live [He moved there from Oceanside, Oregon where he
had worked with the Oregon State Park System for several years). He then took over management of the farm, as well as overlooking their health care, personal needs, etc. In June 1996 Harvey fell in his apt. He went to Mercy Hospital for evaluation and treatment where he stayed for three days. Here he suffered a coma type condition and a heart attack and passed away on June 21, 1996. Melva continued on in the Oaknoll HCC. Her health continued a gradual decline and she a passed away on September 21, 1998.
Melva and Harvey are both buried at the Welsh Pioneer Cemetery in rural Johnson County, Sharon Twsp., near Sharon, Iowa.1076
She was the third child & daughter of Edgar and Florence (Kirwin) Campbell. She grew up on the Hughes Farm (which was next door to the Robert's Farm) and to which the Campbell Family moved in 1908 or so and was known as the 'family home'. She was one of nine children and had 3 sisters and 5 brothers. It was a close and very loving family & these were happy years with many adventures as children. Her maternal grandmother "Grandma Kirwin" lived with them and helped to raise the children & do what work she could. Melva had many cousins, aunts and uncles, many of whom also lived in the Iowa City area & which she spent time with. The family enjoyed many gatherings, picnics, etc. Melva also attended the Welsh Congrational Church and joined on Sept. 1, 1918. The family had relatives from Tennessee and Arkansas who came to visit or even stayed for extended times when she was young.
Melva attended rural Willow Grove Grade School and Iowa City High School. In high school she completed & received upon graduation the 'Normal Training' Course Diploma' which qualified one to teach in the rural Johnson County schools. Melva did her practice teaching at the Kirkwood School on Kirkwood Ave. in Iowa City during her senior year. Melva finished her high school courses by mid year and then stayed home to help her family. Melva was the class Valedictorian and gave the senior class speech when she graduated from Iowa City High School in 1922.
It was about this time that Melva joined the Sharon Corona Chapter ( # 297) of O.E.S.
After graduation Melva taught at several rural Johnson County Schools. She first taught as a substitute for her ill sister Muriel (who was also a teacher) at "Dumb Hundred." The next year she lived with the Colony family in North Libery & taught at a school 2 miles SE of North Liberty to which she walked. {Her sister Muriel also stayed with the Colony's then and rode the Interurban trolley to her school 2 miles north of NL.] She & sister Muriel then entered SUI for a year. Later Melva taught at Liberty # 8 (a rural grade school) for a year, went back to SUI for awhile and returned to the Liberty School for another year. She then taught away from Iowa City at the towns of Brooklyn & Manilla, IA returning to SUl off & on. Finally she taught three years in the second grade at Harlan, lA grade school.
At the end of the third year at Harlan, she and long time grade-school acquaintance, friend & neighbor, W. 'Harvey' Thomas ( (after having dated for a few years), were married in Des Moines, Iowa in Polk Co. on June 3, 1934. A good friend from Harlan, Olive Thompson, was her attendant. As Melva had finally completed her work at SUI , she graduated from SUI with a B.S. in Education on June 5, 1934 with high distinction.
Melva & Harvery lived at the Thomas Family Farm with his mother Margaret, and his brother John for a couple years. A daughter, Margaret Ann, was born to them on Apri124, 1935. After John married and his wife Maye came to live at the farm Harvey & Melva and 'Peggy' moved to Iowa City.
They lived in a house in NE Iowa City for a year or so while Harvey worked at the Conoco Gas Station on Burlington St. and Melva's brother Cloyce roomed with them while he attended SUl.
Next they moved to live (briefly) with Melva's father Edgar at the 'Hughes Farm'. Harvey returned to help his brother John with work on the family farm. Then they moved to Sharon Center near by. They lived in two different houses while in Sharon for 2+ years. While here a son, Wm. Harvey Thomas, Jr or 'Bill' was born on Nov. 8, 1937.
Their next move was to about 2 miles closer to the Thomas Farm, to a rental house on the Robert's farm. [ Peggy called this place the 'Dirty Barn House'. The barn on the farm had once been a cheese factory, but was now a barn and housed the sheep which Harvey raised.] Peggy attended Willow Grove Grade School (Sharon # 2) for just her kindergarten year.
In the spring of 1941 Melva & Harvey & family moved to the 160 acre 'Chipman Farm' (about 2 miles SE of the Roberts' & 2 miles east of Sharon) which they bought and farmed then for many years. Husband Harvey farmed this farm and also helped his brother John with his farming(and visa versa).
Melva enjoyed her gardening, canning & freezing, & making jams & jellies; she also enjoyed baking, sewing, flowers and birds and organ music. Melva returned to teaching in 1944 . [The formerly closed local Maple Grove School (Sharon # 1) now had enough pupils to reopen & needed a teacher]. She taught there two years and then continued teaching at other local Johnson County rural grade schools such as Bayertown (Sharon # 8) and Willow Grove (Sharon #2) as well as substituting for other ill or incapacitated teachers around the county in Union Twsp, & east, west, north & south of Iowa City. She also did remedial work with many children over the years, either on week ends, but especially during the summertime.
In 1969 Harvey retired from farming and rented out the farm acreage 'on shares' with Bayertown neighbors, the Meyers family. Several years later he rented to close neighbors, the Russell Lackender family or now the Lackender Farms, Inc. , who have continued to rent it til the present time.
In 1972 Melva was diagnosed with lymphoma. She was treated for cancer for several years until she went into remission. This remission lasted until shortly before her death.
In 1978 Harvey & Melva moved from the farm to Iowa City to the Oaknoll Retirement Residence where they had an aprtment. They continued to drive to the country where Harvey mowed the lawn and 'puttered at the farm and Melva raised some garden and attended to her huge asparagus bed. Sometimes they stayed there for overnight. Neighbors also pastured their riding horses there.
After a serious car accident and their car was 'totaled (but they luckily received only minor injuries) Harvey did not get another car or drive. They rode the city bus or took the Oaknoll bus to get groceries, run errands, for Dr. appointments, etc. They enjoyed TV, reading,sports on TV (especially of the U of Iowa football, basketball games & wrestling meets ), the programs sponsored at Oaknoll, friends and family at Oaknoll and in the area. Melva continued to bake, make jams, do a bit of sewing, correspondence, was very interested in politics, health & education. In later years her special interest was genealogy .
Melva first worked on her husband's genealogy (Owens, Jones, Thomas) and then got into her own (Campbell, Meeker, Kirwin) families. She collected information from families, then wrote it up in small hand written booklets. { See booklets written by Melva which Peggy & Bill and other family members possess.] Family members including, Florence Campbell (who has traveled to Salt Lake City and Washington, D.C.) and a growing number all around the country are "into these family genealogies" and are searching for information. Some now have computer programs and e-mail & they have all worked together to compile many pages of facts & information on the families! Sister-in-Iaw Florence Campbell and daughter Peggy Thomas Hall, as well as several cousins, continue with the Campbell family genealogy to the present day.
Melva's health declined in about 1994 and she was admitted to the Oaknoll Health Care Center (HCC). Later she fell and required hip-replacement surgery & recovered quite well, using a walker, but continued to live in the HCC. Harvey continued to live in their apt. and spent much time with Melva in the HCC. In 1990 son Bill returned to the Iowa City area to live [He moved there from Oceanside, Oregon where he
had worked with the Oregon State Park System for several years). He then took over management of the farm, as well as overlooking their health care, personal needs, etc. In June 1996 Harvey fell in his apt. He went to Mercy Hospital for evaluation and treatment where he stayed for three days. Here he suffered a coma type condition and a heart attack and passed away on June 21, 1996. Melva continued on in the Oaknoll HCC. Her health continued a gradual decline and she a passed away on September 21, 1998.
Melva and Harvey are both buried at the Welsh Pioneer Cemetery in rural Johnson County, Sharon Twsp., near Sharon, Iowa.1076