Today’s Friday Find is another newspaper clipping from my MENTZER family files—unfortunately, it lacks a source.
Mr. and Mrs. E. E. Mentzer of the West Owl Creek Community will observe their Golden Wedding Anniversary, Sunday, June 5th with Open House at the 4-H Community Building. Their friends are invited to call between the hours of 2:00 and 4:00 o’clock.
Edith Dumond, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Edward J. Dumond, and Ernest E. Mentzer were united in marriage, June 1, 1910, by the Rev.
E. W. Spencer of the Yates Center Methodist Church, at the home of the bride’s parents at Rose, Kas.
Eleven children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Mentzer, nine sons and two daughters. One son, Laddie, died in infancy and Lovell lost his life in service of his country in World War II. The remaining seven sons and two daughters and their families will help these good parents celebrate the happy occasion.
Unfortunately, I don’t have the original newspaper source. Since I couldn’t find a digitized copy of this article, I assume it was published in the Yates Center News (Yates Center, Kansas). However, while searching Newspapers.com, I came across a similar article in The Wichita Eagle (Wichita, Kansas). Below is a transcription of that article, generated by ChatGPT.
Children of Mr. and Mrs. E. E. Mentzer, rural Yates Center, will honor their parents at a golden wedding anniversary ob-
..servance. Following a family dinner June 5, an open house will be held from 2:30 until 4:30 p.m. in the 4-H Building at Yates Center.
Mr. and Mrs. Mentzer were married June 1, 1910, in Yates Center. They have lived on the same farm for 50 years.
Children are George Edward, Kansas City, Mo.; E. Tie, Newton, Iowa; Mrs. R. L. (Fleta) Van Valkenburg, Los Angeles; Austin M., Ensign, Kan.; Keith, Los Angeles; M. Burdette, rural Yates Center; Norryce, Wichita; Mrs. C. F. (Juanita) Baldwin, Odessa, Tex.; and Donald D., Salt Lake City. Another son, Lovell J., was killed in action during World War II.
There are 19 grandchildren and 2 great-grandchildren.
Conclusion
This discovery highlights both the value and the challenges of working with historical newspaper clippings. While I may never be able to verify the exact source of my original article, finding a similar piece in The Wichita Eagle provides valuable confirmation of the event. It also serves as a reminder of how local and regional newspapers often covered the same stories, sometimes with slight variations.
Preserving and documenting family history is an ongoing process. Each new find—whether fully sourced or not—adds another layer to the story of those who came before us. If you have family newspaper clippings in your collection, I encourage you to take the time to record their sources whenever possible. You never know when that information might prove useful in the future!
Have you come across multiple versions of an article for an ancestor? I’d love to hear about your experiences in the comments!
This post was written with assistance from ChatGPT, an AI tool that helps refine and organize my research findings.