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Rightmire
Family Web Site
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Section
8. Vernon Elmer Rightmire and Evangeline Christiansen (Vernon Elmer4, William3, Benjamin2, James1, Sr.) (4) Vernon Elmer Rightmire was born on December 26, 1883. He is the youngest of the William Rightmire family. Vernon married Evangeline Christiansen on August 8, 1908 in Wayne, Nebraska.. Vernon Vinzant's account about the life of Vernon Elmer Rightmire is very interesting. Vernon Vinzant's wife, Barbara (Rightmire) Vinzant, is the granddaughter of Vernon Elmer Rightmire. We have much information on Vernon, thanks to his granddaughter Barbara and especially to her husband, Vernon Vinzant. Vernon Elmer's mother, Margaret, died when he was six months old. Vernon was probably raised by Ada Rightmire Stradley, his sister who was 17 years older than he. . Vernon Elmer and Evangeline had three children:
The following is Vernon Vinzant's account about the life of Vernon Elmer Rightmire: "Evangeline Christiansen Rightmire's Bible gives Vernon Elmer Rightmire's date of birth as December 26, 1883 and this year agrees with the year on his tombstone. Vernon's children, Milton and Ruth, believed that the state of birth for Vernon Elmer Rightmire is Nebraska. However, Vernon's marriage license and a family tree entered in Barbara Rightmire's baby book in about 1938 show Iowa as state of birth." "Vernon Elmer Rightmire worked as an 'advance man' for Chatauqua. The World Book Encyclopedia states: 'Chatauqua is a system of summer school and correspondence school education founded at Chatauqua Lake, NY, in 1874. The term also refers to traveling groups, called Tent Chataquas, which had no connection with the original education movement....'" "Tent Chataquas were traveling groups that operated in the United States from 1903 to 1930. They moved from town to town giving a program of lectures, concerts, and recitals in a large tent. These traveling groups brought shows of mixed quality to the people of rural areas. Their popularity decreased with the invention of the radio and the development of other forms of entertainment." "Vernon and his family moved to Colorado; probably not too long after Ruth was born in 1914 in Shannon City, Iowa. In about 1998, Milton Rightmire indicated to Rosanne that Vernon was working Chatauquas in the area of Lincoln, Nebraska, but Eva and the two children went to stay with Vernon's father in Shannon City, Iowa, where Ruth was born. In Colorado, Vernon worked on Benjamin's farm that was about 3 miles northwest of Kersey, Colorado (this was before Milton was in school at age 3 or 4) until he and Benjamin had words. Then they moved to another farm that was owned by the Sears family. When Milton (Bud) was in grade school, Benjamin had a lumber yard in Kersey and a farm about 6 miles south of Kersey." "Linn Grove Cemetery, Greeley, Colorado, maintains records on those buried. For Vernon E. Rightmire, it gives date of death as April 24, 1934; internment April 26, 1934. There was no indication of age at death nor date of birth. Greeley is listed as the place of death. Cause of death was Pemphigus, a skin disease characterized by large water blisters. Milton B. Rightmire states that his father had a reaction to a smallpox immunization and this caused the Pemphigus." Wayne State College Alumni Office lists Eva Christiansen is listed as a 1906 "Teacher." Vernon E. Rightmire is listed as a 1906 "State Certificate Class" and later listed as V. E. Rightmire, a 1908 "Teachers." Also noted: Eva Christiansen "taught four years near her home and in Meadow Grove, Nebr. Married Vernon Rightmire, Nebraska Normal College student in 1908. Vernon Rightmire.....taught two years. Worked with Chautauqua company for six years. The following gives some background into the children of Vernon and Eva:
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