Third Generation

11. Floyd Horace THOMPSON was born on 29 June 1878 in La Grange Township, Monroe County, WI.^1,8,33,36 He appeared in the census in 1880 in La Grange Township, Monroe County, WI.¹ He appeared in the census in 1900 in La Grange Township, Monroe County, WI.⁸ He was living with his father and his occupation was "Farm Laborer." About 1906 Floyd was a rural mailman in La Grange Township, Monroe County, WI.¹² He appeared in the census in 1910 in Tomah, Tomah Township, Monroe County, WI.⁹ His household on Glendale Avenue consisted of Floyd; his wife, Myrtle; their son, Lyle; Floyd's father, Lucien; and his sister, Myrtle.
He registered for the Military Draft on 9 September 1918 in Sparta, Sparta Township, Monroe County, WI. ³³ His World War I draft card listed his residence as 600 Superior Avenue and his occupation as "Machinist, Fairbanks Morse Co., Beloit, Wisconsin." He was described as "Medium" height, "Slender" build, "Blue" eyes, and "Dark Brown" hair, that was "Thin on Top." The card listed his nearest relative as "Miss Ida Myrtle Thompson," his sister. He appeared in the census in 1920 in Tomah, Tomah Township, Monroe County, WI.³⁴ He was listed as a "Widower" and lived with his sister, Myrtle, and his son, Lyle. Floyd appeared in the census in 1930 in La Grange Township, Monroe County, WI.^20,29,35 He was a "Boarder" at the home of Roll and Mattie Vandervort and was listed as a Widower. (There was no mention of his divorce from Mabel Koopman in 1925.)

(It is not known where he was living at the time of the 1940 Census. He is not listed in Monroe County or anywhere else in Wisconsin.)

(His gravestone cannot be located in any of the Monroe County cemeteries, or in Milwaukee County, where his son lived.) He registered for the Military Draft on 25 April 1942 in Tomah, Tomah Township, Monroe County, WI. ³⁷ He was listed as age 63 on the draft card, Race: "White;" Height: "5 - 9;" Weight: "150;" Eyes: "Blue;" Hair: "Grey;" Complexion: "Ruddy;" with a "Crippled Right Hand."

His nearest relative was listed as his sister, Myrtle Thompson. No occupation or employer were listed, so he may have been retired.

(No record of his death is listed in the Social Security Death Index.) He died before 20 December 1949 at the age of 71.³⁸ A "Life Claim" was filed in Milwaukee by an unknown person with the U.S. Social Security Applications and Claims Department. The claim reference number is 66196894430. It may have been filed by his son, Lyle, who was a teacher and coach at West Milwaukee High School at the time. He has Ancestral File Number GMJ6-R4N.

Floyd Horace THOMPSON and May Isabell "Mabel" GRIGGS (~) were married on 25 August 1923 in Winona, Winona County, MN.^{39,40,41,42,43} Blanche Griggs wrote an autobiography when she was a student in high school, in which she referred to her "Uncle Floyd." It was written in about 1927, so Mabel and Floyd may have married before then.

Gary Griggs has a picture of Blanche Griggs, Lucille Koopman, and Helen and Freda Vandervort that was taken in about June 1928 in front of Mabel's restaurant--The Daisy Eat Shop--in Adams, WI. The front window of the restaurant has the lettering, "Mrs. Thompson, Prop.", indicating that she was married to Floyd Thompson. No official record of Mabel's marriage to Floyd or of their divorce, if any, can be located. But she was listed as "Mabel Thompson" in the obituaries of both of her parents, so she acknowledged that they had been married at one time. They^{39,40,41,42,43} were separated in September 1925 in Monroe County, WI.⁴³ They⁴³ were divorced on 9 June 1948 in Sparta, Sparta Township, Monroe County, WI.⁴³ May Isabell "Mabel" GRIGGS (~), daughter of Clarence Lucius GRIGGS and Carrie Permelia GRISWOLD, was born on 1 May 1889 in La Grange Township, Monroe County, WI.^13,44,45 (In a letter to his cousin, Elton Griggs, on 31 December 1918, her father, Clarence, states: "Her name is May Isabell and we called her Maybell for short." Other sources spell her name as "Mae Isabelle." She apparently shortened it to "Mabel." She appeared in the census in 1895 in La Grange Township, Monroe County, WI.⁴⁶ She appeared in the census in 1900 in La Grange Township, Monroe County, WI.⁸ Mabel appeared in the census in 1905 in La Grange Township, Monroe County, WI.⁴⁷ Her occupation was "Student." She appeared in the census in 1910 in La Grange Township, Monroe County, WI.⁹ She was living with her parents. She appeared in the census in 1920 in Tomah, Tomah Township, Monroe County, WI.³⁴ She and her children were living in the household of her parents at 1308 Stoughton Avenue. Between 1925 and 1929 Mabel was a restaurant and boarding house operator in Adams, Adams Township, Adams County, WI.^39,48 Her restaurant was named "The Daisy Eat Shop." She appeared in the census in April 1930 in New Lisbon, Juneau County, WI.⁴⁰ Her household consisted of her children, Merle, Mildred, Milo and Lucille Koopman. She was listed as Mabel Thompson, a "Widow," with an occupation of "Housekeeper." They lived on Pearl Street. She lived at her home in New Lisbon, Juneau County, WI in July 1931.²² Her father's obituary listed her as "Mrs. Mabel Thompson, New Lisbon." Mabel lived at her home in Tomah, Tomah Township, Monroe County, WI in November 1936.²² Her mother's obituary listed as her as "Mrs. Mabel Thompson," living in Tomah. She lived in Milwaukee, Milwaukee Township, Milwaukee County, WI in April 1938.⁴⁹ A letter dated 21 April 1938 that she wrote to her cousin Elton Griggs listed her return address as "2903 W. Mich St., Aprt 1, Milwaukee, Wis." She listed her name as "Mrs. Mabel Koopman." She lived at her home in Milwaukee, Milwaukee Township, Milwaukee County, WI in November 1939.^50,51 Gary Griggs has a copy of a letter that she wrote to her cousin Blanche Griggs in October 1939, as well as a letter that she wrote to her cousin Elton Griggs in Missouri in November 1939. The return address on the envelopes was 737 South 34th Street.

(She cannot be located in the 1940 Census.) Mabel died of cancer of the lymph glands on 15 February 1949 at the age of 59 in West Allis, Milwaukee County, WI.^13,44,52,53 Obituary Notes: "Mrs. Mabel Griggs Koopman was born in the Town of LaGrange, Monroe County, Wis., May 1, 1889, daughter of Clarence and Carrie Griggs. She passed away at the home of her eldest daughter, Mrs. Ignis Mack, in Milwaukee, Wis., on Feb. 15, 1949, at the age of 59 years.

She was united in marriage to Edward Henry Koopman in April 1912. To this union four children were born: Merle E. of Tomah, Mrs. Ignis (Mildred) Mack of Milwaukee, Milo R. of Eagle, and Mrs. Gordon (Lucille) Reisenauer of Milwaukee. (Note: Her marriage to Floyd Thompson was not mentioned.)

She was preceded in death by her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Clarence Griggs, four brothers, Ben, Carrol, Sam and Claire Griggs, and her husband, Edward Koopman.

She is survived by her four children, seven grandchildren and her only sister, Mrs. Rollie Vandervort.

She lived in and around Tomah until 1937 when she went to Milwaukee, where she resided until the time of her death.

Funeral services were held at the Methodist Church at 3 P.M. on Friday, February 18, the Rev. C. Kilde officiating. Burial was in the Oak Grove Cemetery beside her husband, who preceded her in death on Dec. 2, 1918."

Note: She was also survived by a fifth child, Marge Rettammel Crawford, whose birth father is believed to have been Floyd Thompson, although they did not marry until two years after the birth of Marge. Marge was adopted and raised by Edward and Eva Rettammel. She was buried on 18 February 1949 in Tomah, Tomah Township, Monroe County, WI.^13,54 in the Oak Grove Cemetery.
She has Ancestral File Number LVL7-RHW.

Floyd Horace THOMPSON and May Isabell "Mabel" GRIGGS (~) had the following children:

Floyd Horace THOMPSON and Myrtle SHUTTER were married on 8 January 1902 in Monroe County, WI.^9,32 Myrtle SHUTTER³³, daughter of Eli SHUTTER and Eliza Katherine GERLINGER, was born on 14 August 1881 in La Grange Township, Monroe County, WI.^7,9 She appeared in the census in 1900 in La Grange Township, Monroe County, WI.⁸ She appeared in the census in 1910 in Tomah, Tomah Township, Monroe County, WI.⁹ Myrtle died on 31 October 1917 at the age of 36 in Monroe County, WI.^7,12,34 She had tuberculosis of the lungs and had been an invalid since approximately 1908. She was buried in November 1917 in Tomah, Tomah Township, Monroe County, WI.⁷ in the Oak Grove Cemetery.

Floyd Horace THOMPSON and Myrtle SHUTTER had the following children: