Elsie Arabella Arvilla Evans

Born 8 April 1898 Springfield Greene Missouri

Died 15 April 1980 Grande Prairie Alberta Canada

Migrated May 1917 From Montana to Canada.

Headstones can be seen at CanadaGenWeb Cemetery Project.

Cemetery Grande Prairie shows Elsie A Evans is buried with the first husband Richard John Evans ID numbers 106066947 RICHARD JOHN 10666929

1881-1953

ELSIE A

1898- 1980

 EVANS 

Marriage Licence Certificate of Richard John Evans and Elsie A Mcleland Record Book 2 page 97
Silver State Deer Lodge Montana
Richard J Evans and Elsie A Mcleland Filed on the 9th day of July 1915 at 9 o'clock am by Robt Midslyning STATE OF MONTANA County Of Powell These present are to authorize any Judge of a Court of Record, Any Justice of Peace within said county , Mayor of any city,any regularly ordained minister who is within good standing in a religious demonization to which he belongs or any religioous society according to usage of said society, to solemnize within said marriage of Richard J Evans a white man age 32 years born in Wales in the county of........... in the state of ....now residing in Ovando in the county of Powell in the State of Montana and son of Richard C Evans and Margaret Evans who maiden name was Margaret Jones and who has not been previously married with Elsie A Mcleland , a white woman age 17 years born in Springfield in the County Of Greene in the State of Missouri , now residing at Lincoln in the County of Lewis and Clark and State of Montana and the daughter of J A Evans and whose maiden name left blank CONSENT of Mrs J A Mcleland attached to marriage licence book. Certificate of marriage State of Montana Powell County I Hereby certify that on the 10th day of February in the year of our Lord One thousand and nine hundred and fifteen at Ovando , in the said county , I the undersigned Justice of Peace did join in bonds of Holy Matrimony , with their mutual consent Richard J Evans of Powell County State of Montana and Elsie A Mcleland of County of Lewis and clark Of Montana In the precense of Alfred C Evans witnesses A D Goodfellow Justice of Peace

                             Helena Evans  This certificate filed for record 12 February 1915

Elsie Evans married again about 1956. He was Sydney D Moller born 1916 died 25 March 1972. Tombstone says

Sydney  D Moller

L A C
R C A F
25 Mar 1972
AGE 56 [This Syd Moller owned and operated Syd's Cabinet Shop 1939 red deer Evelyn t gray
1900 Census @Walnut Grove Neosko Kansas she is two living with her mother Alice J Mcleland 26 Kansas and father Oliver M Mcleland 36 Indiana well as half-brother Albert Mcleland 15 Kansas It shows she was born April 1898 Missouri.

1910 Census @ Lincoln School District Lewis and Clark Montana Morton Mcleland 45 Indiana Jospehene Mcleland 36 Kansas , Elsie Mcleland 12 Missouri,Merwin Mcleland 8 Kansas ,Leola 7 Kansas and Morris 3 years Kansas

10 February 1915 Ovando Powell Montana Marriage Certificate for Elsie Mcleland and Richard John Evans Name Richard J Evans Event : Marriage Date 10 February 1915 Event Place Ovando Powell Montana Age 32 [34] Martial Status single Race white Birthplace Wales Estimated year of birth 1883 [1881] Father Richard C Evans Mother Margaret Jones Evans Spouse Elsie A Mcleland Spouse age 17 [16] Spouse's marital Status single Spouse's race white Spouse's birthplace Springfield Greene Missouri Spouse's estimated year of birth 1898 Spouse's father J A Evans [who is J A Evans in relationship to Richard Charles Evans family.I only found one A J Evans not J A Evans graves in dodson philip montana 1855-1916. Letter of permission attached in Marriage Book Certificates by Mrs. J. A Mcleland.

Find a grave Grande Prairie Alberta has a James Andrew Evans born 16 April 1887 died 19 may 1947 he probaaly was married to Marian Jessie Evans born 6 jun 1892-21 jun 1971 and had daughter Shirley I Evans born 1928-1987 [he may be a step-son of leon i evans mother mary d evans of alabama. NOTE J A EVANS death certificate MONTANA born 19 May 1893 social security 708-18-3330 state railway board event death 16 may 1977 age 94.yet another one shows James Albert Evans born 22 July 1897 missouri sin 517-16-6272 last place of residence Chester Liberty Montana died july 1 1966

 It turns out this J A Evans  was married to Icy Belle Evans 21 oct 1920 hill[hall montana[ and had children Alivin Carl born 1930 Chester Liberty Montana;son Jospeh O born 1928 great falls,Arvis Dalmaine born cir 1941..must trace his history to see if Richard Charles Evans and his fathers  cousins of he comes through another line

NOTE; Grandma is the reason I became so intigued into the mystery of the roots of our family. She was very closed mouthed about her own; each time I tried to find out more. I grew up aware Grandma was a byproduct of an unhappy childhood home and that she had two siblings Lola and Marvin. It was not until I did the Mcleland tree I found 'why' Grandma would close off when my questions got to sensitive for her to bear. She would not say her father or mother's name so I had no idea who they were. she shared her middle name different than what records later show as well .
It turns out that her parents divorced and she grew up with a step- 1/2 sibling much older than her and another brother that was probably too painful to talk about to her curious little granddaughter that I was then. Grandma left such an air of mystery to the last night she saw her dad that I was curious what happened after the big fight.

.Grandma ran away from her Mother's home in search of her father. It was not until I did the research that I found her father raised the boys while her mother was raising the girls before Grandma ran away. That had to be hard on Grandma and her siblings to be toren apart from one family into two separate ones.

And it was not until I found her marriage certificate did I understand Grandma either rejected her parents or she had lost all contact with them. I wonder if that J A Evans in Ovando Area is in relationship to Richard Charles Evans

In Helena at 15 she began working as a chambermaid in a local hotel. It was on the street her eyes meet a handsome tall, erect handsome man 16 years her senior...and they fell in love. Richard owned a ranch at Hall Montana he purcased about 1910 when they got married.

Mom's sisters  told of a tale of his batchelor days being into drinking and gambling. He went to Helena one day without his bride and fell in with the wrong family/friends who influenced him to go into bar for drink. One thing lead to the other and soon he was sitting at the gambling table. Having what he believed was a winning hand he put the deed to that ranch on the table; and he lost. He went home, broken spirited ,broken hearted and afraid to tell Elsie and beg her forgiveness. She forgave him, yet put upon that forgiveness several conditions. He had to quit drinking and gambling. He also had to move out and away from his family and friends to Canada she felt were such a bad influence. By May 1917, they had enough funds to come to Five Mile District Grande Prairie and begin anew.

Mom may have known this story because she worked outside closely with her daddy and in her eyes he could do no wrong..

Researching both sides of the Mother family I found every line had been afflicted with asthma. On her mother's side [the Dunagan line ]I found one Joseph Rowden who was so afflicted by bad breathing he could not lay down for over 40 years. He had an instrument that held his head and he sat up to sleep. he died 23 June 1776.He was a hunter and trapper . And grandpa Richard John Evans dad died of asthma. Guess we were lucky I was the only one with it.

Elsie found out how little education Richard Evans had and she taught him his 3 R's.

From Smoky River to Grande Prairie. The Richard John Evans story as shared by Mom.

Funeral was arranged by mom.abd auntie Elva cane cri..Ontario for service which was