Biographical Insights about
Louise Anna (Kielley) BOOTH
(22 Nov 1881 - 14 Feb 1960)

Louise Anna Kielley was born in Steuben, Marietta Twp., Crawford Co., WI to Samuel M. Kielley and Ellen Jerusha Posey. Her father, born in Zanesville, Muskingum Co., OH and her mother, born in Jo Daviess Co., IL, came from many generations of god-fearing families by those and other surnames that first appeared in the New England and mid-Atlantic states early in 1700 or before. Mainly farmers, they also counted amongst their numbers cordwainers (i.e. leather workers who made rather than repaired shoes), government officials, construction workers, and an occasional full- or part-time preacher.

Louise's own father was a carpenter who worked for the railroad both in the Duluth area, as well as out west in Helena, MT and Tacoma, WA. Later he returned to Duluth where he became a building inspector as well as helped write the city's building code. His obituary notes (from Henry S. Conroy's Kielley family files) :

Pioneer Suddenly called in 80th Year (Picture) BUILDING CODE AUTHOR DEAD. S. M. Kielley suddenly called; active to the end Samuel M. Kielley, age 80, Civil war veteran, pioneer Duluthian and author in a large part, of the city's building code, died suddenly at his home, 1128 Chester Park drive, shortly before midnight. The end came while he was talking with his wife and a nephew, Forrest Williams, about baseball, of which he was an ardent fan, and the visit of Babe Ruth to Duluth. He had been slightly ill during the week, but continued about his duties as deputy building inspector at the city hall as usual. Born in 1846 at Zanesville, Ohio, Mr. Kielley spent his early life there. At the age of 16 in 1862, he enlisted in the Eighth Wisconsin volunteers, the old Eagle regiment, and fought throughout the Civil war. He was in many historical battles and was wounded several times, recovered and continued with his regiment. After the war he settled at Steuben, Wis., where he resided for a number of years. He became prominent in civic life of Crawford Co., Wis. In the early '80s he was engaged in construction work by the Northern pacific railroad and helped build the Norther Pacific line to the Pacific coast. When he returned he lived in north Dakota for several years, coming to Duluth in 1887. Prominent in Labor Circles. For many years here he was prominent in labor work, and interest he kept to the end. He became city building inspector in 1903 and held the position for eighteen years, until succeeded by Adolph Anderson. He was then appointed deputy building inspector and continued at that post ever since. During his term as building inspector, Mr. Kielley drafted practically the entire code for the city of Duluth. He was a member of the G.A.R. Culver-Gorman post, of which he was quartermaster, the Elks, and the Lakeshore Masonic lodge. Surviving, besides his widow are his step-mother, Mrs. Katherine Kielley, Steuben, Wis.; two daughters, Mrs. S.H. Booth, Grand Forks, N.D., and Mrs. H.S. Conroy, Superior; two sons, Charles E., Superior, and W.W. Kielley, Duluth; four brothers, William W., Earl and Benjamin, Steuben, Wis.; and Archibald, Havana, Cuba, and two sisters, Mrs. E.W. Posey, Melville, N.D., and Mrs. Frank Scott, Steuben, Wis., and twenty grandchildren.

Louise's mother - like Louise - was a homemaker, and is described in her obituary (from Henry S. Conroy's Kielley family files) :

Mrs. [Ellen Jerusha Posey] Kielley had lived here with her husband for twenty-three years, having come to this city to live from Tacoma, Washington, in 1893. She was 70 years of age and was one of the best known of the older residents of the city, while there is hardly a Duluthian who doesn't know her husband, Duluth's building inspector. Mrs. Kielley was born at Council Hill, Davis Co., IL, though most of her childhood was spent as a resident of Crawford Co., Wis. She moved with her husband, soon after their marriage, to a small town in North Dakota. They came to Duluth in 1887 and lived here one year. In 1888 they moved to Tacoma, Wash., but five years later, in 1893, they returned to this city to make their home. An unusual observance of Mrs. Kielley's seventieth birthday was held only a week ago yesterday, Wednesday, Oct. 25. It had been arranged to have postals sent to her from every one of her living relatives. A flood of loving cards was received, indicating the reverence and respect with which she was held by the relatives.

Some appreciation for her early life is found in the following note she wrote about herself (from Henry S. Conroy's Kielley family files) :

"You wondered why grampa Kielley ever went to Helena Montana. Well, papa was a carpenter and a good one, and he helped build the railroad out that far. The family was still in Duluth and at that time there was a building boom on in Helena and at some small town in Washington (Everett was the town) - so he quit the railroad and started carpenter work there and then sent for the family. Hazel wasn't with us then, but we weren't in Helena long until my mother was making baby clothes for her. I had been the baby for 8 years, and hadn't even been given a name, they called me Babe, but when Hazel showed up they finally named me. Then when Hazel was about a year old, papa got this job at this small town in Washington as a contractor, so we moved again, to Tacoma. Then from there we came back to Duluth where my father was working for an elevator company and there we stayed put."

While no marriage record has been found to date, the birth date for her first son (Richard Kielley Booth, his middle name obviously coming from Louise's family) suggests she married Samuel Herbert Booth (who was born and raised near St. Cloud, MN) about 1902, perhaps in the home of her parents in Duluth. Samuel was her only husband, and the two shared a long and happy life together, their marriage approaching 60 years when Louise passed away in 1960. For most of her married life she lived in Grand Forks, ND, where her husband Sam worked for a variety of employers including Curtis Candy Co. and later, as a manager in a Grand Forks grocery store.

Louise and Sam had 2 sons, the aforementioned Richard Kielley, born 23 June 1904 in Fergus Falls, MN, and Harold Edward Booth, born 21 Apr 1908 in Grand Forks, ND. Both sons would leave Grand Forks soon after high school to seek their fortunes elsewhere, but each kept in frequent contact with Louise and Sam. After Louise died in 1960, Sam moved to Pinellas Park, FL to live with his younger son Harry for several years until Sam's death in 1963.

Her grandson Terry, by first son Richard, has added the following note about Louise :

Grandma Booth was a delightful white-haired person that I unfortunately never got to see very much, as they lived in Grand Forks ND and we were several states away in the middle of Wisconsin. We would drive to North Dakota every couple years, usually driving by way of Superior to see her sister Hazel and her extended family in the area. One of the things I most remember, is that my first year in college I had come home at Christmas time and learned that Louise was in the hospital in Grand Forks. She had had an operation for cancer although we didn't really know the nature of the operation at the time. Anyway, I had a couple good friends from high school who were also home, and I got the idea that the three of us could drive to Grand Forks to see my grandmother. We were all responsible guys, and our parents let us do it. With three of us driving we could take turns, and didn't have to stop at night. I think we were only there to visit her one time as the hospital wouldn't let us stay long, and then we had to go back, and I don't think we really spent much time with her. But she sure enjoyed it, and I can remember she kept asking me to sing something for her because I had sung in some choirs at the time. She could never really coax me to do it, but then kids can be pretty stubborn some times. So we chatted about other things. One of the memories from that trip was that we came home through northern Wisconsin late at night and then early the next morning, and there was a big snow storm that amounted to 20 inches of snow by the time it was over. But there was noone else on the road, the Wisconsin snowplows were out working that night, and we had no problem getting through the seemingly endless amount of snow that just kept falling. It would be different today as there would be interstates and a lot of trucks, but back then a lot of freight still went by train, and the interstate wasn't in place in northern Wisconsin. That trip was one of the best I ever took, because Louise passed on a short two months later - a very happy memory of a special person.

Louise was affectionately known as 'Mother', 'Grandma Booth', and 'Aunt Lou' by a wide range of relatives, and always seemed to have a smile on her face.

REFERENCES : 1. Conroy, Henry S.; Kielley Family Records in the Possession of Henry S. Conroy; A valuable variety of documents, statements and other materials gathered from family members, as posted on his ancestry.com website tree, db=conroyh (full URL = http://awt.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=conroyh). Site shows address as 2330 Cristina Ave, Sierra Vista, AZ, USA, 85635, email conroyh@earthlink.net.