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died Oakland , California 1934 |
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| born Minnesota 1877 |
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| Annie St. Martin (Anna Louise St. Martin) was born May 10, 1877, the third child of 9. She was the granddaughter of Sauverre St. Martin, who, with his brother Pascal had come down the St. Lawrence River and settled the St. Paul, Minneapolis, Bloomington area of Minnesota. They were the first white settlers in the area.
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| The St. Martins were farmers, and Annie was required to do her share of the work and then some. Looking to get out on her own and away from the drudgery of farmwork and housekeeping she decided to go and work as a maid at the Yellowstone Hotel in Yellowstone Park, Montana as a "Harvey Girl."
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| There she met Samuel Clay Montague who was in charge of the horses and wagons. They spent their spare time together. After two summers at Yellowstone, they married on August 2, 1906 in Missoula Montana. They lived in Montana for several years where three children were born: Helen in June 1907, Evelyn in 1909 and Marian in 1910.
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Annie St. Martin at home in
Minnesota, 1898. |
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| The family moved to Oakland, California where George was born in 1914 and Richard in 1919. They experienced some very lean years, but the children said there was always food on the table. All through their lives the children spoke proudly and lovingly of both of their parents. |
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| Annie was very resourceful and strict with her family. She supported and encouraged Sam to learn to write. During the fruit seasons and school holidays she took the children to Santa Rosa where they could earn money picking fruit. They canned their own fruit, and Sam made elderberry wine in their basement in Oakland. |
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| Annie died in 1934 at age 57 after she took a pill from the medicine cabinet which she thought was aspirin. It turned out to be mercuric cyanide, a medicine used to rid their foster child of lice. Annie didn't tell anyone until it was too late because she didn't want to bother them in the night. She is buried at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Hayward, California. |
| Photos of Sam and Annie Montague and their family |
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