| 4. | Harry Edward RITTER, Jr. was born on 1 Jan 1914 in Dayton, Montgomery, OH, USA (son of Harry Edward RITTER and Keturah Ann STEVENS); died on 23 Jun 1989 in Dayton, Montgomery, OH, USA; was buried on 28 Jun 1989 in Abbotsville Cemetery, Arcanum, OH, USA. Notes:
This is a letter that son Dale sent to his cousin Richard Coate about Dale's parents. Dated June 2003 "The address of the farm at the time we lived there was R. R. 1 Arcanum, Ohio. I am not sure of the address now, since those county address have all been changed to road names and box numbers. The farm was forty-three acres of soybeans. In the early years we raised three or four dairy cows to have milk and butter. We had pigs to sell and for meat. We chickens for meat and eggs. We always had cars around the barn to keep the mice away. When I got older and joined 4H I raised pigs for my project for a couple of years and then for the rest of the years, I raised rabbits. At one point I had over forty rabbits at a time and sold them as pets and to a butcher for meat. Mother always had a big bed of flowers along the drive that was 130 feet long and 10 feet wide. She loved flowers and always had lots of arrangements in the house and gave flowers to friends and neighbors. She president of the local Garden Club for a couple of years. The thing that most of the relatives remember, was our huge garden. It was 200 feet long and thirty feet wide. Mother always had three plantings of sweet corn, so we would have it for the whole season. She had five plantings of lettuce. There were always twenty to forty tomato plants with three to as many as six different varieties. She always rows of green beans, pleas, red beats, potatoes, cabbages, and a whole variety of other vegetables, that changed as she found new things to try. To this day, I have never met anyone who worked as hard as my mother did. She got up at four o'clock in the morning and when to bed after the eleven o'clock news. Not only did she take care of her home and yard and garden, but she worked four days a week in Arcanum for The John Smith Company, in their grocery department from 1952 to 1968.Mother was also known all over the county for her baking ability. She made hundreds of pies and cakes and thousands of cookies for bakes sales, carry-in dinners, reunions, birthdays, and even a few weddings. Several local businessmen offered to set her up in a bakery, but that would have been too much for her. The Coate Family Reunions were always a high point of our year. My Dad built long tables to use for these events that were set up in our side yard under those big old maple trees. There was always a ton of food and a wonderful big crowd. We would play games and Mom's bake goods and produce would be the prizes. I think everyone had a great time. I know we did."
Harry married Helen M. NICHOLS. Helen was born on 8 Apr 1917; died on 7 Dec 1994 in Dayton, Montgomery, OH, USA; was buried on 10 Dec 1994 in Weaver Funeral Home, Dayton, Montgomery, OH, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]
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Keturah Ann STEVENS was born on 6 Jun 1894 in Dayton, Montgomery, OH, USA (daughter of John STEVENS, * and Keturah (Kitty) DIMMACK); died on 20 Apr 1977 in Greenville, Darke, OH, USA. 