Barbara Hoover - 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks 2025, Week 2 Favorite Photo

 

Barbara Hoover/Edwards/Payton (c.1834-1890)

My grandmother was not born until several  years after the death of her paternal grandmother Barbara Hoover and, as far as we can determine, never even knew her name let alone anything about her. Grandma would not have known that she may well have inherited her interest in the hospitality industry from this unknown grandmother. Both women were business women at a time when this was not common. 

My grandmother, not content with life as a homestead farm wife, bought a house in Swift Current, Saskatchewan that she ran as a popular boarding house for many years. When Grandpa was set to turn over the farm to their oldest son, they planned to move to California to buy a motel. Grandma carried on with that plan even after Grandpa's unexpected passing. She ran the El Rancho Motel in Watsonville, CA for several years. 

Grandma might have found it interesting to know that her grandmother Barbara (now using her married name of Payton) had opened a string of restaurants and hotels in Kanas in the 1880s. Newspaper clippings give us a sample of what Barbara was up to.

The Citizen 23 February 1883

Like my grandmother at her boarding house, Barbara would have been an excellent cook. She also had a knack for setting up and operating hotels. 

The Grenola Hornet 5 September 1885

The Howard Courant 16 September 1887

This is just a smattering of the advertisements relating to Barbara's numerous business endeavors. A full account of her life can be found through this link to another story .

(It occurs to me that I also followed their familiar path by operating a bed & breakfast in Victoria, BC, for a number of years with my husband.)

For the longest time, I assumed that no picture of Barbara existed. Thanks to the collaboration afforded through the familysearch.org family tree, another descendant of Barbara's mailed me a large stack of photographs including the one above. This is definitely a treasured photo.