Fifth Generation

98. Leonhard Harry "Leonard" WILDE was born on 12 April 1903 in Ridgeville Township, Monroe County, WI.^84,222,347 (This is a picture of Leonard and his siblings: back row--Meta and Leonard; front row--LaVerne, Albe, Eva and Wally.) He was baptized on 10 May 1903 in Ridgeville Township, Monroe County, WI.³⁴⁷ He appeared in the census in 1910 in Ridgeville Township, Monroe County, WI.⁶² Leonard appeared in the census in 1920 in Ridgeville Township, Monroe County, WI.¹⁰⁹ He appeared in the census in 1930 in Ridgeville Township, Monroe County, WI.¹⁴³ He died on 30 March 1961 at the age of 57 in Tomah, Tomah Township, Monroe County, WI.^90,222 Leonard was buried on 3 April 1961 in Tomah, Tomah Township, Monroe County, WI.^184,222,348 in the Oak Grove Cemetery.

Leonhard Harry "Leonard" WILDE and Vera Elizabeth PURDY (~) were married on 6 March 1943 in Tomah, Tomah Township, Monroe County, WI.^54,349 Vera Elizabeth PURDY (~), daughter of Fredrick Elmer PURDY and Ada Alma GREENO, was born on 30 December 1907 in Grant Township, Monroe County, WI.^{54,152,222,350,351,352}

(She had done a lot of genealogical research on the Vandervort family and constructed a hand-written family tree. Copies are in the possession of her son Norman, Richard Noonan and Gary Griggs.)

From the hand-written notes of Eva Purdy Densmore: "Vera was born on Dec 30, 1907, in the brick farm-house in the township of Grant, Section 36 where all 4 of us kids were raised and attended (& graduated from 8th grade) school in Union Valley. Elizabeth (Lizzie) Greeno (ma’s cousin) was nurse and housekeeper and Mrs. Emery (Myra) Sweet was helper or mid-wife.

Vera was so much younger than the other 3 of us and we thought she was just right and were very happy with our little baby sister. We were so glad when she learned to walk and talk and that she was learning extra fast. Vera was the only one of us four who was left-handed, but Mother didn’t like that idea at all, and made her learn to eat with her right hand. She learned to write with her right hand also but to this day is quite ambidextrous. Now a days, pediatricians, Drs., etc believe that if a child is naturally left-handed he should be allowed to stay that way. In a way I could go along with this belief to a certain extent if the child is absolutely left-handed. But, I have seen so many so-called “left-handers” who have to get into such awkward positions in order to write and sometimes seem to cramp around and write nearly upside down that I wonder if they shouldn’t have been trained, while very young, to use their right hand.

While Vera was young (2 years old) she had measles and never seemed to regain her strength entirely. So the winter she was 3 years in late December, she became very ill with an awful fever. Dr. Geo. Murray of Tomah was called and couldn’t decide whether it was scarlet or typhoid fever or neither. Sometimes Vera was unconscious and was very ill so either Ma or Pa was with her every minute through the long winter.

We other children were allowed to attend school, but tip-toed around the house very carefully and in the evenings, many times. Arthur Greeno, who stayed there that winter attending school part-time, helping with chores, would spend the evenings, after dishes were done, with us in the big room upstairs, showing us card tricks, reading to us, playing checkers, or anything to keep us quiet until bed time. There had been a large crowd at a birthday party for Pa on December 17th just before Vera became ill and tables made from boards on saw horses were set up in the big room upstairs and were left there, so we had a good place to work or read. And, of course, we made Valentines for everyone in school, with scraps of pretty paper, wall paper, pictures of flowers cut from magazines, etc. that we always saved thru the year. We usually tried to have a Valentine, bought in town, for the teacher and perhaps for the school-mate whose name we had drawn for the valentine box. Arthur also showed us how to cut stars and snow flakes, by folding and cutting paper. Maybe we studied lessons sometimes, but not too often.

Lola Dickinson, Pa’s cousin, was our teacher that year and came down from Lamb’s, where she boarded, and did the ironing for us. Mrs. W. R. (Eve) Griffin was very kind, good and helpful that winter and would do our washing and ironing when she could. The M.W.A. of which Pa was a member had a wood-cutting bee in our woods and cut and hauled and probably sawed enough wood for us for the winter.

Because of the doubtful nature of Vera’s fever, many people thought it might be contagious and we didn’t go any place to stay over-nite or weekends unless we were invited. We could spend weekends at Grandpa Greeno’s and Grandpa Purdy’s and Aunt Dora and Uncle Bill Goff’s at East Kirby. Once, when we were at Aunt Dora’s, she phoned La Vira & Geo.., to ask if they would mind if they brought us kids to their house for Sat. eve. They said to bring us and we visited and played games with Vera Mae Goff and grown-ups visited and maybe played cards and all had a little lunch. Nobody ever caught the fever but it was just as well to be cautious as Dr. wasn’t sure just what it was. We decided that the infection from measles never entirely left her system and she became feverish.
In late spring, Vera began to improve, and to realize what was going on around her and I’ll never forget how I felt when she said she wanted Eva to come in and tell her a story! I nearly cried, but, as I had always been able to make up some kind of story that pleased her, I controlled myself and told her a nice story, but not too long as she tired very easily.

Some weeks before that, Violet Griffin had stopped in with us, on the way home from school and waited outside while we went in to ask, then came outside and told her, so she could tell her mother. Violet then told us that most folks had thought Vera would die. Of course, we had really known that, deep in our hearts, but, as long as Pa and Ma kept up their hopes, we did too and we never mentioned it to each other. Vera lost her hair and teeth and I suppose, her skin, by flakes, during that winter, but by some miracle, she grew new hair slowly and new teeth and skin!

Later, but while Vera spent a great deal of time in bed to regain her strength, Uncle Roy Vandervort stopped in to visit and stay overnight. He had a loud voice and talked most of the time. V was used to quiet times. At last she told one of us, in her room, “I wish that man didn’t talk so much.”

For a long time, Vera wore a little bonnet that Ma made for her, as with her hair gone her head was cold and looked quite bare and tender. But, gradually, the hair all grew back except a very small spot on top of her scalp. Later, when she had her hair “bobbed”, there was a natural wave in it and very pretty.

We were all so very thankful to think that she had recovered and pulled through that awful sickness that seemed to last all of the winter that we were inclined to baby her a little, as she seemed so frail and weak for some time. But she recovered and attended school, when the time came, as we others did. She says now that I used to fix little “tea parties” for her and her girl friends, and also make doll clothes for her dolls.

When Vera was recovering, after her long winter’s illness, Arthur Greeno, who at home was called “Tink” because he liked to tinker in their blacksmith shop and make things, took an iron punch and a dime and made a nice smooth ring for Vera by hammering the dime on a piece of R.R. iron on which we hammered everything – nuts, etc. We other kids wished we could have a ring made from a dime too but dimes were very scarce then."

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She appeared in the census in 1910 in Grant Township, Monroe County, WI.⁶² She appeared in the census in 1920 in Grant Township, Monroe County, WI.¹⁰⁹ Vera graduated in 1926 in Tomah, Tomah Township, Monroe County, WI.³⁵³ from Tomah High School. She appeared in the census in 1930 in Tomah, Tomah Township, Monroe County, WI.¹⁴³ She and her sons Dale and Dean were living with her parents. She died on 29 October 1994 at the age of 86 in Beloit, Beloit Township, Rock County, WI.^54,222,351 Vera was buried on 3 November 1994 in Tomah, Tomah Township, Monroe County, WI.^184,222 in the Oak Grove Cemetery.

Leonhard Harry "Leonard" WILDE and Vera Elizabeth PURDY (~) had the following children: