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| John Stanley "Jack" Anderson |
The younger of my mother's two brothers, Uncle Jack was born in Everett, Washington when his family was living there for the winter of 1927-28. His parents Ingwald and Idella (Edwards) Anderson were American-born but had become Canadian citizens when Ingwald claimed a Saskatchewan homestead and Della became a teacher. All 5 of Jack's siblings were born in Canada. The first difference between Jack and his Canadian-born siblings occurred in his education; following from that, the second was in his military service and the third was in his choice of location for establishing his family and living out his life.
His early years were spent on the Canadian farm. Like his older siblings, he attended Arrarat School, a one-room country school similar to the one where his mother had taught. All have fond recollections of walking across the prairie to school with lunch tucked into a lard or Roger's syrup can with handle.
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| Jack's 3 oldest siblings "off to school" with lunch buckets |
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| Music at Arrarat School - Jack standing 3rd from right, older sister Elinor standing second from left |
My understanding is that Jack's allergies made him a very unlikely farmer; the family farm was eventually taken over by his brother Bob.
In June 1942 he went to Moses Lake, Washington. to live with his maternal aunt and uncle, Grace and Floyd McBride, in order to attend high school. This must have been a difficult separation for him and this whole close-knit family. His younger sister recalls not seeing Jack very often and, on one of his visits, running to him and throwing her arms around him - so happy to see him! In later years, the family made a point of getting together for many reunions, anniversaries and birthdays.
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| Jack surrounded by 3 of his sisters at the 1997 Family Reunion |
Jack was just 14 when he crossed the border at Eastport, Idaho, stating his intention to reside permanently in the United States.
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| Eastport, Idaho Border Crossing 30 June 1942 |
Jack worked in the McBride service station for room and board while attending Moses Lake High School where he graduated in June 1946. According to its Wikipedia page, Moses Lake High School was a 4-room public school known as Neppel High School until 1946 when a new building was built. It seems Jack was part of the last graduating class from the old school.
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Three of Jack's older siblings had taken part in the Canadian war effort during the Second World War. Jack, however, entered the U.S. Army in August of 1946 and after basic training was stationed with the 8th Army Headquarters in Yokohama, Japan for the next two years.
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| Jack in American uniform |
After his service, in 1948 he enrolled at Washington State University under the G. I. Bill. He graduated in June 1952 with a B.S. degree in Pharmacy. Leaving the last words to Jack, from his biographical sketch contributed to the Roots and Branches family history book:
"I then went to California, intending to return to Washington, but I was offered a job and stayed. I met Catherine * in the spring of 1961 and we were married November 4, 1961. We have lived in the Sacramento area ever since. We have two children . . . We bought Todd's Pharmacy in Sacramento in 1965, a small neighborhood pharmacy which we operated until 1990. I semi-retired at that time working a day or two a week and fully retired in August of 1999. -- by Jack Anderson, November 1999"
Some Resources:
Anderson, R.W. and Barnard, Joanne, Roots and Branches:The Ingwald Anderson - Idella Edwards Family History, Privately Printed Calgary AB: Chokecherry Press, 2000.
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