Earl & Ethel Murphey

MURPHEY COTTINGHAM YERINGTON

Posted By: Connie Swearingen (email)
Date: 9/24/2010 at 22:30:48

History of Woodbury County, Iowa 1984

Earl and Ethel Murphey
By Margaret L Ericson

Earl Anthony Murphey was born March 9, 1886, at Fonda, Iowa, the second son of five children born to Thomas Jefferson and Mary Jane (Cottingham) Murphey. His father, Thomas Jefferson, was born July 6, 1858, at Edinburg, Indiana, son of James Broiles and Eliza S Murphey, who migrated to the Midwest form East, Tennessee and Ohio, respectively. His mother, Mary Jane Cottingham was the first born of Anthony Cottingham and Margaret Harker Cottingham, both born in Yorkshire, England, emigrating to North America in 1854. Mary Jane was born August 26, 1860, at Benton, Lafayette County, Wisconsin. They were married February 20, 1883, at Aurelia, Iowa, by Rev J Trewartha.

Thomas J Murphey was employed on the railroad as an agent and this necessitated many moves. Their first child, Grace Pearl, was born June 7, 1884, at Aurelia, Iowa. She married Charles F Miller and they had one child, Robert. They resided in Dallas, Texas, where he died in April 13, 1942, and she died September 22, 1953. The third child born September 28, 1892 at Aurelia, Iowa was Clair Harker Murphey. He married Margaret Louise Dallgaard, July 18, 1953, at Forest Hills, New York. He was a very successful advertising executive in Chicago and New York and retired to live in Boca Raton, Florida, where he died November 6, 1972, and is buried. He had no children. Another brother, Harold Lawrence, was born March 6, 1900, at Sioux City, Iowa. He married Deloris L Summer on August 31, 1922. He was Secretary of the Sioux City Chamber of Commerce and later joined his brother, Clair’s advertising firm. He died March 21, 1970, and is buried in Sioux City. He is survived by his wife, Deloris, who resides in Sioux City. A brother, Orval Delbert, was born September 26, 1902, in Sioux City. He married Catherine Preston, October 29, 1927, in Sioux City. He was in the advertising field and at the time of his death was also associated with his brother, Clair. He died in Evanston, Illinois, March 31, 1964, and is buried in Sioux City. His widow, Catherine resides in Sioux City and their marriage produced no children. Earl Anthony followed in his father’s foot-steps as a railroader, having gone to work for the Milwaukee Railroad as a call-boy at an early age and retiring from the Milwaukee as a passenger train conductor after having worked for them for over fifty years.

Ethel Alwilda (Yerington) Murphey was born August 3, 1895, at Storm Lake, Iowa, the second child of four children born to Charles Scott and Mary Oliver (Rae) Yerington. Her father, Charles, was born December 16, 1865, at Galena, Illinois. His ancestry is traced back to immigrants on the Mayflower in England and to Beverly, Massachusetts, from Wales. His father migrated from New York State to Michigan and thence to Illinois, where Charles was born. Mary Oliver Rae was born July 6, 1872, in Galashiels, Scotland. She was the first born of five children. Her parents were married in London, England, where they lived for seven years and then returned to Scotland. They came to Storm Lake, Iowa, in 1882 with four children, and the fifth child was born in Storm Lake. Charles died January 4, 1937, and Mary died February 17, 1959; both are buried in Graceland Cemetery, Sioux City.

Charles and Mary Oliver were married in Storm Lake, and their first child, Mabel, was born there May 9, 1891. She married Lou L Steele in Sioux City and they had one daughter, Mary Joyce, born January 20, 1922 in Sioux City. She married Robert Rae and they had five children, all girls. Mabel and Lou Steele both died in Sioux City and are buried in Logan Park Cemetery. Harriet Edith was born to Chales and Mary Yerington in 1893 and lived about six weeks. Rae Benjamin was born November 2, 1902, at Storm Lake. He married Sophie Dorothy Hancock, September 15, 1927, at Sioux City. She came from Dent, Minnesota, where she was born November 3, 1902. They had two children: Jean Rae, born March 15, 1928, at Sioux City. This family moved to Tucson, Arizona, because of Rae’s poor health, and he died there – 31, 1943. Jean married Richard Dreyfuss of Tucson and Charles married Stephanie C Jones of Tucson, where both families still live.

Earl and Ethel Murphey married June 25, 1914, in the Yerington home in Sioux City, and had two children, both daughters, born in Sioux City. Margaret Louise was born July 8, 1918, and Virginia Marie was born August 4, 1922. Margaret married Tom L Ericson, March 8, 1943, at Sioux City, and they had three children, all daughters, born in Sioux City. Jane Marie was born November 19, 1946. She married William A Petersen, August 12, 1967. They had a son, Kirk Thomas, born April 15, 1970, in Omaha, Nebraska. This marriage terminated in divorce. Jane remarried November 21, 1981 to Delwyn Oliver and they make their home in Council Bluffs, Iowa. Suzanne was born March 19, 1949. She married Douglas R Strohbeen, June 26, 1971. Their children, all born in Sioux City, were Michael Douglas, born December 25, 1975; Andrew Thomas, born June 14, 1977; and Kristin Suzanne, born May 2, 1980. Virginia Mae was born August 5, 1952, and teaches in the Sioux City Public School system and makes her home in Sioux City and is single.

Earl and Ethel’s other daughter, Virginia Marie was married to Stephen A Carter, Jr, January 22, 1943, at New Bedford, Connecticut. They had two children, both boys, born in Sioux City; Stephen A III, born May 20, 1946; and Charles D, born February 7, 1950. Stephen married Kathy Severeide; the marriage terminated in divorce. He later married Pamela Jean Sullivan, June 24, 1972. Pamela was born December 27, 1945. They had three children: Kristina Jean, born February 1, 1974; Kari Lynn, born December 22, 1975; and Stephen A IV, born November 21, 1979, and they make their home in Clive, Iowa. Charles D married Renee Sue Martin in Sioux City. Renee was born October 12, 1960. They now make their home in Mission, Texas.

Earl died March 24, 1952, at Sioux City and is buried in Logan Park Cemetery. After his death, Ethel opened a travel agency office in the Security Bank Building in Sioux City in partnership with her daughter and son-in-law, Tom and Margaret Ericson, where she was active until her death, July 5, 1975. She is also buried in Logan Park Cemetery, Sioux City.