Plummer-Burgess Family of Linn Co., IA
Photos and family information
submitted by Louis Zadnichek II
|
![](MayPlummerEngParty.jpg) |
To see the
photo Larger and in more detail, click on the thumbnail below ...
|
![](MayPlummerEngParty2_small.jpg)
click to see larger |
Plummer-Stoneking Family Reunion
"This very
interesting old photograph was passed down to me through my
grandmother Bessie Emily Burgess Zadnichek (January 11, 1892
- September 28, 1961) who was born and raised in Bertram. My
late uncle Albert Edward Zadnichek (November 29, 1923 -
February 26, 1998), who spent his summers as a child at the
Bertram home of his grandmother May Plummer Burgess (July
14, 1867 - December 29, 1960), identified this image as
having been a Plummer-Stoneking Family Reunion somewhere in
Linn County prior to 1900."
"The only
person I can identify in the reunion group is my
great-grandmother May Plummer Burgess seated in front at far
right. Sitting closely alongside may be her husband Dr.
William A. Burgess (August 6, 1855 - July 26, 1918) who was
a Bertram veterinarian. Standing behind may be her parents,
Civil War veteran and Bertram postmaster Milton B. Plummer
(January 15, 1843 - December 18, 1914) and Charlotte
Stoneking Plummer (November 23, 1846 - April 27, 1925). They
were the parents of 12 children, Lizzie May; Sarah Ellen,
born October 23, 1868 who married Frank Marks of Bertram;
Edward, born September 29, 1870 who married Minnie Masingale;
James H., born November 17, 1872; Celia B., born February 5,
1875, who married Edmund Thompson, a farmer of Linn Grove;
William F., born January 20, 1877; Fannie, born January 6,
1879, who married Fred Lake of Springville, Linn County;
Hattie, born February 15, 1881; Alice, born June 6, 1883,
Statie, born July 19, 1885, Myrtie, born February 19, 1887;
and Laura, born February 22, 1890."
"Since my
great-grandmother May Plummer Burgess was married prior
to 1883 when her first child Alta Grace Burgess (November 1,
1883 - October 27, 1967) was born, this image might date
from the 1880s which would be consistent with the clothing
style worn by the family members. You can spot many of the
Plummer family by their flat noses, a trait that continued
into later generations. From all the smiling faces and young
ladies being "squeezed" by their boyfriends or husbands, it
looks like everyone was really enjoying themselves on a warm
summer day. The exact Linn County location is unknown, but
there appears to be a river or other body of water in back
of the large timber structure. If you look very closely at
the enlarged image, there is even a "ghost" imprint at
extreme far right of a dog that moved while the picture was
being taken."
Submitted by:
Louis Zadnichek
|
|
![](MayBurgess_small.jpg)
click to see larger |
"May
Plummer is shown here (on left) as a young woman in a Cedar
Rapids studio photograph. She was born July 14, 1867 in Linn
County, IA, the daughter of Milton B. Plummer and Charlotte
Stoneking Plummer. Her father was a Civil War veteran and
served in Company I, 20th Regiment, Iowa Infantry as a
private. Milton B. Plummer was age 19 and a resident of
Cedar Rapids, IA, when he enlisted on August 11, 1862. He
later became postmaster at Bertram, IA."
"May
Plummer married William A. Burgess, born in 1865 in
Memphis, TN, who was to become a Linn County veterinarian.
After his untimely death in 1918 at age 62 due to
infection, May Burgess remained a housewife and raised
their four daughters Alta, Bessie, Edna and Clara, and one
son, Earl. May Burgess passed away on December 29, 1960 at
age 93 due to complications of old age at the Cedar
Rapids' home of her daughter Alta Scott."
Submitted by:
Louis Zadnichek
|
|
"Life long
Linn County resident May Plummer Burgess, seated, is shown
here sometime during the late 1940s with four generations of
family members. At left is her daughter Alta Grace Burgess
Scott and at right is Alta's daughter Edith Scott
Williamson. She is holding her brother Harold Scott's
grand daughter Patricia Mae Scott."
Submitted by:
Louis Zadnichek
|
![](MayBurgessFamily_small.jpg)
click to see larger |
|
![](MayBurgessFamily1_small.jpg)
click to see larger |
"On a warm
Linn County summer day sometime in the mid-to-late 1940s,
May Plummer Burgess (fourth from left) poses with her
daughters (left to right) Edna May Burgess Todd (May 11,
1894 - July 30, 1979), Bessie Emily Burgess Zadnichek
(January 11, 1892 - September 25, 1961), Clara Burgess
Lundquist (? - ?), and Alta Grace Burgess Scott (November 1,
1883 - October 27, 1967). Standing next to Alta Scott at far
right is her daughter-in-law Hazel G. Scott (August 31, 1909
- May 27, 1972) who was married to and later divorced
from Harold Lewis Scott (1904-1969). The child at left front
is remembered as "Francis" and was being babysat at the
time by Edna Todd. Bessie Zadnichek was my
grandmother. I'm deeply indebted to my cousin Patricia Mae
Scott McInroy, great-granddaughter of Alta Scott, of Cedar
Rapids for helping to identify Plummer and Burgess family
members in this series of old photographs." Submitted by:
Louis Zadnichek
|
|
"This
pre-1900 photo-postcard was pasted into my grandmother
Bessie Emily Burgess Zadnichek's album. It shows the
imposing J.N. Schley General Store in Bertram. Bessie
Zadnichek's grandfather Milton B. Plummer was postmaster in
Bertram. The post office and public telephone were
both located in this general store. If you look
closely, there's a young woman standing on the covered
porch. Also, the IOOF sign above "General
Merchandise" announced that the International Order of Odd
Fellows' hall occupied the second story of the large frame
structure. This was yesterday's "Wal-Mart" to the citizens
of the Bertram area where they went to get their mail, use
the telephone and purchase canned goods, general hardware,
clothing and just about anything else of the era. Those are
full spools of fencing and/or barbed wire laid alongside
the building." Submitted by:
Louis Zadnichek
|
![](JNSchleyGenStore_small.jpg)
click to see larger |
|
Front
![](StonekingGreetingCard_small.jpg)
click to see larger |
"I found this very nice lady's
Victorian era folding calling card within May Plummer Burgess'
album. The name Bertha B. Stoneking is engraved within.
Possibly, the card belonged to a sister of her mother,
Charlotte Stoneking Plummer. This is an expensive woman's
vanity card for the era and her husband would've been a
properous person to afford such a luxury for his wife."
Submitted by:
Louis Zadnichek
|
Inside
![](StonekingGreetingCard2_small.jpg)
click to see larger |
|
"This
studio photograph shows my grandmother Bessie Emily Burgess
Zadnichek (right) with her sister Edna May Burgess Todd (May
11, 1894 - July 30, 1979) as young girls growing up in
Bertram. Bessie was the oldest by two years and both sisters
remained very close throughout their lives. I would imagine
that their mother May Plummer Burgess hand sewed each of her
daughters' dresses. I would date this image to the early
1900s."
Submitted
by Louis Zadnichek
|
![](BessieEdna2_small.jpg)
click to see larger |
|
![](LouisBessieWedding_small.jpg)
click to see larger |
My grandparents, Bessie Emily
Burgess and Louis Frank Zadnichek (March 12, 1892 - August
10, 1954) were married on Wednesday evening, October 30,
1912 in Bertram at the home of my great-grandparents, May
Plummer Burgess and William A. Burgess. Both were age 20 and
had been childhood sweethearts. The following Cedar Rapids
newspaper article from the social pages describes the
wedding:
Burgess-Zadnichek
The home of Dr. and Mrs. Wm.
A. Burgess, of Bertram, was the scene of a pretty home
wedding last Wednesday evening, October 30th, at five
o'clock when they gave their daughter, Miss Bessie, in
marriage to Mr. Louis Zadnichek, Jr., of Dundee, Ill. Rev.
O.B. Chassell, pastor of the Methodist Episcopal church at
Walker, officiated.
The ceremony was performed in
the presence of relatives only. The rooms were tastily
decorated with autumn leaves and pink and white ribbons and
roses. And there was a canopy of the former over the dining
table.
After the ceremony and
congratulations the bridal party repaired to the dining room
where a sumptuous wedding supper was served. The table was
presided over by the venerable grandfather of the bride, M.B.
Plummer, and the waiters were Miss Laura Plummer and Miss
Edna Burgess, both dressed in white.
The bride was beautifully
attired in a princess gown of fillet and carried a bouquet
of bride's roses and lillies of the valley. The groom wore
the conventional black.
The bride has been reared from
childhood in Bertram and is a charming young woman, well
equipped to preside over a home.
The groom is the second son of
Mr. Louis Zadnichek, of Dundee, Ill., and holds a
responsible position with the C. & N. W. R. R. as operator
at DeKalb, Ill., where the happy young couple will begin
house keeping in a short time.
The out of town guests at the
wedding were Mrs. Louis Zadnichek, Sr., of Dundee, Ill., and
Miss Bessie Zadnichek, sister of the groom. Also the sister
of the bride, Mrs. A.M. Safely, husband and two daughters,
of Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
- - - -
My grandparents were married
42 years at the time of my grandfathers death in 1954 of a
heart attack. Louis Frank Zadnichek was agent in Racine,
WI, for the C&NW Railroad and had 46 years of service at the
time of his passing.
|
![Join Our
Team](../../images/logos/JoinOurTeam.gif)
|