John William ("Jack") Davies
1901-1989
Submitted by Ron Wallin
My Grandfather Jack was born in El Dorado Springs, Cedar County, Missouri (4-13-1901). His father was James Henry Davies, and his mother was Susan Rosena (Goodman) Davies. Jack had a sister we believed named May, who died when she was about 10. There was another sister who was still-born and never named.
Jack's grandfather was William M. Davies, who was a land owner and farmer in Osage County, Missouri. He also was a blacksmith and had a Smithing business at one point. According to records, he was a judge serving in various positions and became Presiding Judge of Osage County at the maturity of his career. William Davies had the nickname of "Uncle Tough" because of his strict demeanor with the local kids.
We know very little about Jack’s father James Henry Davies. James Henry it seems may have acted as a traveling preacher in his later years. One thing we are sure of is that they were dirt poor, unlike some of the Davies clan that were successful in land and occupations. Jack left home at an early age out of necessity of making a living and fueling the need for some adventure. We believe he stumbled around El Dorado Springs, Linn, Joplin, St Joe, and Kansas City in his early adult years. Jack would hunt and fish and do odd jobs to sustain himself. He worked in an auto factory, flour mill and did traveling survey/mapping work.
Jack Davies quote: "I had people tell me that if my parents had been rich that I would have made a good Doctor or Lawyer. Well I could never say that and to tell the truth, I hated school and at night I would lay in bed and pray that the school would burn down, and don’t you know about a year later it did! I was a poor student and played hooky at every opportunity. I would play hooky and hunt for squirrel, cottontails or fish in or along the creeks where we lived. We were so damn hard up that as long as I brought home fish or game; my folks never had much to say about schooling". (Taken from a collection of 100 typewritten letters written to me from 1975 to 1989)
Jack married a Norwegian gal from Minnesota in Kansas City, Missouri on October 22, 1926. My Grandmother's name was Alice Cornelia Gresley. We believe she was in teachers' college in Kansas City when they met. They had one daughter, Shirley Marie Davies, born 8-2-1927, in Kansas City. Shortly thereafter, they moved back to Minnesota and lived in Middle River, Marshall County. They took up residence in the Gresley family home owned by Alice’s parents (Bernt O. and Mary Nelson Gresley), where they resided until their passing in 1988 and 1989.
Jack drove truck in the lumber and fuel trades before starting work at Bergs Drug Store in Middle River, where he spent close to 40 years before his retirement in 1978. He is known still as the soft spoken southern gentlemen who had a helping hand for neighbors, a piece of candy for the kids, and given a chance, willing to tell a heck of a story. Jack's true passion was trying to keep in communication with the Davies relations in Missouri, making a couple of trips trying to find relatives in the 50’s and 60’s.
His addiction was firearms, bullets and ballistics. He hand loaded his own bullets for himself and for others in town. He was always tinkering with powder and shells and constantly reading and fooling with his rifles and handguns. Jack shot in local shooting clubs and loved to hunt grouse, geese and varmints. He hunted deer but did not much care for the meat, as he gave most of it away. He was interested in the sport of boxing and did some fighting in his younger years. He followed the sport throughout his life.
His daughter Shirley Marie, my mother, married Roger E. Wallin in Minneapolis in 1952. They had 3 children, Suzanne, Ronald and Melanie. Shirley passed away in January of 2009 in Bloomington, Minnesota. All of Jack's guns transferred to me as of this date and at the date of this writing, I am in the process of preparing them to head to the woods to carry on Jack's passion of chasing deer, rabbits, squirrels and such down in Northern Georgia. My fondest memories of my grandfather are the hours spent as a child learning about pistols and rifles, hunting and fishing, in that small town in Northern Minnesota. Because of that and him, Middle River, Minnesota will be my final resting place when the "Digger O Dell" comes calling for me.
John William "Jack" Davies was by far the most influential figure in my life. From him came my interest in genealogy, photography, hunting, fishing and outrageous storytelling, some call it lying, but it is truly a fine line! Our family has been blessed to have his letters and the thousands of photos he took and saved throughout the years. I think I speak for both my sisters when I say that Jack was certainly a person to be missed dearly.
Ron Wallin, Grandson of John William "Jack" Davies. 8-24-2009, Acworth, Georgia.