The Maiden Aunt - Joan Magurn (1927-2017)

Joan Marie Magurn @1948

On September 20, 2017, Joan Marie Magurn stepped through the veil, where we have no doubt she was greeted by her parents and brother, Peter, and sister, Margaret. Because she never married in this life, there was no husband here or there, or children for that matter. She never expressed her feelings about that. What we do know is that she spent most of her life serving others.

  Born 2 May 1927 in Kilmacolm, Scotland, to John Magurn and Josephine Decima Canham, she had an older sister, Josephine Teresa (Terry.) Terry says that the two sisters were as different as night and day. Where Terry was loud and active and social, Joan was quiet and still and a homebody.

The two girls went off to 

boarding school together -St. 

Joseph’s Convent in Girvan, 

Scotland, on 19 August 1934, 

Terry age 9, Joan age 7. Joan 

was the better student, and she 

excelled in math. In the photo 

below, Joan is on the bottom 

row, 2nd from left. (Terry is 

in the center, with trophy.)

When she completed her schooling she returned home and found a job in nearby Glasgow working in a government office that oversaw old age pensions. She remained with that employer until she retired in the early 1990’s. When Terry returned from the army she and Joan would travel together to Glasgow each day for their jobs.

  Joan did not attend the dances that Terry lived for each week. She did have some boyfriends over time, but nothing turned serious. Meanwhile her parents aged and Margaret, who had a form of muscular dystrophy, grew worse. After Terry left for the USA in 1951, Joan became the main caretaker at home. She expressed to Terry several times over the years that she felt it was her duty to stay and help at home. Her father passed away in 1956. The informant listed on his death certificate was Joan. She was needed at home more than ever with their husband and father gone.

  By this time, Margaret was in a wheelchair. Joan took care of her mother and sister, drove them here and there as needed. In 1975, her mother passed away. Margaret continued to need care and attention. Their brothers, Philip and Peter, found a home for Margaret where she would be cared for and have all the social activity she loved, but Joan refused. She felt that caring for Margaret was her responsibility alone. A few times over the years, Joan found short-term accommodations for Margaret while she took much-deserved vacation trips to Europe, but she wouldn’t consider making it permanent. 

She even visited Terry in the states in 1976 and had a chance to meet her nieces. Margaret died in 1989. I’ve often wondered how Joan envisioned her life when she no longer had anyone to take care of but herself. She did return to the US to visit Terry and meet all the grand-nieces and nephews in 1995. 

We don’t know very much about Joan. The Forman girls all have fond memories 

of her from childhood because of the wonderful Christmas ‘parcels’ that would 

arrive each year chock full of gifts and British treats. In her later years she

 would call once a year, which was lovely, but challenging because of her 

Scottish accent! Joan moved from Kilmacolm to Edinburgh, to be near her 

brother, Peter and his wife, Anne, but they both passed away in 2009. She 

found activities she enjoyed and made friends. She also stayed involved in her 

Catholic church. Her health began to decline, especially her mental state, and 

she was eventually put into a facility that specialized in her issues. She 

remained there until her death. Her brother, Philip, who lives in England, would 

call her every Sunday evening. Some weeks he would report that she was in 

good spirits and they had a nice chat, but other times she was confused about 

who he was.

During a trip to the UK in 2005, her grand-niece Heidi Van Natter, met up with 

her in Edinburgh. This is the tribute Heidi wrote after Joan’s passing. 

My Great-Aunt Joan passed away today. Because she lived in Scotland, we didn't get to spend much time together, but she was always very loving and kind. Her yearly Christmas parcels introduced us to the superiority of British chocolate and the questionable edibility of Turkish Delight. The last time I saw her was 2005. In big cities, there are often panhandlers and it's easy to stop seeing them. But as we walked to her bus stop after dinner, she stopped to talk to a couple of teenagers begging on the street that I hadn't even noticed. Even though her finances were limited, she gave them what she could and expressed a deep concern for them. She spent a lot of her life caring for family members and was often lonely. I'm glad that today she was able to reunite with loved ones who went on before her!

 Joan rests now in the garden of the church where her brother, Philip Magurn, worships in Darlington, Yorkshire, England.

Ann Elizabeth Ross Kittering ( 1872-1951) - MISFORTUNE

Ann Elizabeth Ross was born 27 Oct 1872 in Newport, Kentucky to John Ross and Ann Elizabeth Spiece, named after her mother. She was the 6th child in the family. And sadly, her mother passed away just 6 days later.

Ann Elizabeth Ross was born on the 27th of October 1872

Ann Elizabeth Ross Sr. died on the 2nd of November 1872. Aged 35 yrs, one month 21 days. 

 

John Ross & Laura Lawrence were married 15 Oct 1873 

John Ross married Laura Morgan Lawrence the next year, so Laura was the only mother Ann Elizabeth ever knew. Sadly, we know nothing about their relationship.




As a child she was known as “Lizzie.” As an adult she was known as Elizabeth, but when she married Jesse W. Kittering of Cincinnati, Ohio in 1901, she was listed as “Anna E. Ross.”

On the back of the photo shown at the left is written, presumably by her niece Annie Elizabeth Baragwanath Forman (also named after Ann Elizabeth Spiece Ross): “Aunt Elizabeth who married Uncle Jesse Kittering, had 2 children, a boy and a girl but their necks were broken at birth.” How horrible that the death of your children is the single thing you’re remembered for! 

 I took this information as truth until I found some burial records. Virginia E. (the "E" could be Elizabeth?) Kittering was born 9 Dec 1905 but didn’t die until the 27th of December. The burial information from Spring Grove Cemetery, Cincinnati, Ohio, indicates the baby dies as the result of a birth injury. As a mother, to me this is almost worse than losing the baby at birth. For nearly 3 weeks, Elizabeth got to love her baby, only to lose her just after Christmas. 

In 1908 another baby was born. According to the information on the back of the picture, this was a boy, but he wasn’t named and was buried the day he was born. The burial card indicated he was stillborn. There were no more babies.

Elizabeth outlived her husband by 10 years. He was an attorney so she was left in a comfortable situation. In her will she left cash settlements to her living sister, Edna Ross Bodley, and brother, B. Frank Ross. She also left her home, clothes, furniture, household goods, linens, jewelry, and other personal belongings to Edna. Her nieces Ann B. Forman and Florence Baragwanath were to receive anything Edna didn’t need or want, as well as a percentage of net income. So she was very generous to her extended family since she had no children to pass things on to.

And once again, a female ancestress’ entire life is summed up in a few paragraphs. I like to believe that the misfortunes she faced in life taught her important lessons that benefited her and those among whom she lived during her life. She died 28 April 1951 in Cincinnati, Ohio.