Grandpa Robert Boardman 1944
It was 1945 and my grandfather passed on 27 Nov 1945. He died in Steilacoom, Pierce Co., Washington where he had been residing at the hospital there. In those days people with conditions associated with aging would be placed in the state hospital for care. Today, there are more options and we understand some of the conditions better.
As far as I can figure out, grandfather had no estate. I have checked in both Pierce and King Counties at the Washington State Archives. The only thing I have not done is look at deeds or court documents to see if he sold his business to his son.
A curious thing happened when I looked at the Seattle newspapers for grandfather’s obituary notice. The newspapers in Seattle had gone on strike and the issues stopped. They did try to catch up but I never did find an article in the Seattle papers. So I went to a neighborhood newspaper the West Seattle Herald and found this piece.
Robert Boardman’s obituary 1945
Obituary for Grandfather in the West Seattle Herald, Thursday Nov. 29, 1945 front page middle area.
Robt Boardman Funeral Friday – Robert Boardman, 5013 50th Ave. SW, well know for 29 years in West Seattle, in the Boardman Plumbing Service, passed away at 6 a.m. Tuesday, Nov. 27, following a heart attack. He had been ill for several weeks. Funeral services will be held at the St. John Episcopal Church, California and Hanford Streets, at 2 p.m. Friday, Nov. 30. Cremation will follow. Surviving are his wife, Ethel; a son, Robert; two daughters, Aileen and Marjorie; and a brother John H., all of Seattle.
Here is one of his many ads in the newspaper. It is the ad in the middle.
Grandfather’s plumbing business 1940
A city directory ad in 1922 at the bottom:
Grandfather’s death certificate for Washington State Reads:
This death certificate indicates that Grandfather died at the Western State Mental Hospital at Ft. Steilacoom, WA on November 27, 1945. He was living at 5013 50th Ave. SW prior to his admittance. He had been in the USA about 28 years. He was born on September 8, 1881 in Shediac, New Brunswick. His father was Edmund Boardman whose birthplace was England. His mother was Charlotte MacMurray, born in New Brunswick. The death certificate states he did not serve in the military. He was 64 years, 2 months and 19 days old when he died. His occupation was “plumber.” There is a correction record done by Aileen Boardman Cahan, his daughter, that states he was buried in Forest Lawn Cemetery in Seattle not at Washelli.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_State_Hospital_(Washington)
https://www.dshs.wa.gov/bha/division-state-hospitals/history-western-state-hospital
With the passing of my grandfather Robert, whom I never knew, we come to probably the end of the migration of the Boardman family. I named this blog the Boardmans & Browns of Winnipeg A Canadian Story because they were the kind of people who built Canada creating the great nation it is today. He was born in Shediac, New Brunswick and migrated with this family to Winnipeg where he met up with the Browns and married Ethel Adella Brown. Both families worked for the Canadian Pacific Railroad. The Browns had come from Ontario migrating to Winnipeg. Of course, from Winnipeg these families have dispersed to other parts of Canada and the United States. My family left Winnipeg around 1908 and headed to Vancouver, British Columbia and from there to Seattle, Washington in 1917. I don’t think grandfather ever did complete his naturalization process, perhaps his heart was still in Canada.
The Boardmans and Browns of Winnipeg, A Canadian Story... 