TWO LETTERS FROM SISTER GREGORIANA/GREGORY ANN

Gallup, New Mexico, March 2, 1954
My Dear Brother and Sister,

Your very newsy and enjoyable letter was received and it certainly does give us something to meditate on. I intended to take it to the hospital Sunday to see what information Sister Antonella could give you, but is was too windy and dusty. So I went up after school yesterday afternoon and the wind was much worse - - so it doesn't pay to procrastinate. Sister Antonella has asked me to answer all our correspondence because, as she says, her head isn't working right any more. She had another one of her terrific headaches yesterday. I am very much afraid she will have a stroke one day, and the doctor says so too. But if she isn't prepared for death, the rest of us haven't much chance, because I think she spends half of the day praying.
To try to answer some of your questions - - Sister A. thinks Barbara Kleis was born in Germany (I was always under the impression that both of Mother's parents were born in this county.) She also thinks they were living in Geneseo during the Civil War (1861-1864) if you have forgotten some of your dates. I was always told, I thought, that Mother was born in Bethlehem, Ohio, or am I wrong? Then they must have moved to Geneseo shortly after her birth. I often heard Mother say that she did not remember when Grandfather left for the Civil War but she remembered well when he returned. As she was born in 1859, she was 5 when the war ended. Sister A. told me an interesting story yesterday, which I had never heard before. At one time Grandfather's regiment was stationed very near their home, and as he was much worried about the family he asked for leave to go home, but was refused. So one dark night he just slipped away. The next day Grandmother saw the officers coming toward the house and she hid him. He was not discovered, and after dark he slipped back to his regiment and did not get into any trouble. (I am wondering if perhaps those officers were family men themselves, and knew just how he felt.) Wasn't Uncle Peter born after Grandfather went to War? It seems so to me. Grandfather and Uncle Peter (before the latter was married) were living in Fremont when Grandfather took sick. He was taken to the Columbus Hospital where he died, as you said. When I was a novice in Lafayette, an old Sister Fridolin told me that she took care of him in his last illness. But this Sister died not too long after she told me this. All I know about the dates is that all of my grandparents died before my birth - - in other words, I never had any grandparents. Didn't you know there was something wrong with me? Grandfather died at our home with a stroke exactly the same as Mother's. Sister Antonella is sure this happened in 1879, the same year she (Sister A.) was born. She remembers Mother saying that Barbara was 4 years old when Grandmother died. The Friday before Mother's death, she went to Webster for groceries and when she returned, she told me she had what she was sure was a slight stroke. Then she said she knew she would have two more soon, and that she would die just as her mother did, and that she was when the exact age of her mother when she died. As you know this is what happened.
Wouldn't it be easy to get all these dates from Nick Reis, I am sure he would do you the favor and go up to Ridgeley cemetery and he would also find the dates of birth and death of Uncle Daniel. I believe Sister A. said he was 20 when he died. Do you remember his story? Mother said he had frequent fits of epilepsy, and it seemed he had nine lives, he had so many serious accidents but never suffered any harm. One time he fell off a loaded wagon, and the driver didn't notice it. The wheels went right over his body and did not hurt him. But one time when he took the cow to a pond for water and didn't come back for such a long time, they looked for him and found him drowned. They concluded that he had one of the fits and fell into the water. That happened just north of their old homestead, what we remember as the Pete Lennemann home. If Nick Reis doesn't know where those three Eckroate graves are, you know they are near the south fence.
I wonder if you have the information about Sister Constantia, our aunt. Sister A. doesn't know when she entered the convent, but she was Sister's godmother at baptism before entering. We have a book that gives the death dates of all our sisters, hers is on February 6, 1905. And it is interesting to note that her name is given as Sister Constantia Eckroate, with an e, I would like to know just who first dropped the e and when.
I think all of this information is quite jumbled, but maybe you can get something out of it. Not so many years ago, Father Cyprian was giving a retreat, or something, in some place in Ohio. He noticed a Louis Eckroat in the telephone book, and called on him. He discovered that he was a cousin of Mother's. Also, our Sister Victorine, who was attending the St. Francis Academy at Columbus, at the same time as the present Sister Constantia, became a Catholic while there and Sister Constantia was her godmother. Some years ago she told me that she went to Massillon, Ohio, to visit the aunt who brought her up, and some of this aunt's best friends were Eckroats. Knowing that was Sister Constantia's family name, she spoke to them about her and found that they were related. If you want to go to the trouble, the Chamber of Commerce at Massillon would send you the names and addresses of any Eckroats that are still living. They could probably supply some of the "missing links".
This letter looks rather messy for a typing teacher, but I am in a big hurry to finish this before school time.
Best wishes to all of you, including Albert B. when you see him.

Your loving sister,

Sister Gregory Ann
Mount St. Francis
P.O. Box 1060
Colorado Springs, CO 80901 October 27, 1974

My dear Cousin, (to Fern Eckroat, Chico, CA)

First I must introduce myself. But you probably know I am Albert Emanuel's sister.
I have just returned from a two-week visit at his home. Margaret gave me your letter in which you asked for information about Sister Constantia. I waited until I could get to our files here in the convent, as there were some things I was not sure of.
Sister Constantia, (Caroline Eckroat) born at North Bend, Nebraska March 5, 1867. Entered the convent of the Sisters of St. Francis in Lafayette, Indiana June 19, 1883. Died in St. Bernard, Nebraska Feb. 6, 1905. Buried in the Catholic cemetery, Columbus, Nebr.
That is what is in our files. But I remember my mother (Mary Ellen Eckroat) telling more about her. I was 11 years old when Sister died, and my parents went to her funeral. We lived 40 miles from Columbus. My younger sister, Frances and I went several times to visit Sister, with mother as you know she was mother's only sister. I remember her as being a very pleasant person, always smiling, and she always had a small gift for us two little ones. She was a gifted musician and organist in the church wherever she was located, also a teacher.
She had tuberculosis for some years and a lung hemorrhage was the cause of her death. So young to die!
I lived with two Sisters who were with her when she died. (Both are dead now.) One of them ran about half a block to get the Franciscan priest, and in her excitement didn't even realize she was in her bare feet in the deep snow. It was one o'clock at night.
Mother always spoke of Sister and Peter (Carl's father) as the two little ones, and she usually said Baby Peter. I know I saw him when I was too young to remember, but I wish I had known him.
In April 1963, I accompanied one of our Sisters to her home in Orange. While there I met Leona, Virginia and Florence, also Leona's daughter Mary Jiles. I had been corresponding with Aunt Mary (Carl's mother) and after her death Virginia began writing to me. Then Virginia became ill, and Florence now writes to me once or twice a year. She told me that she had been to Carl's funeral.

Last summer, I spent several weeks with my widowed sister Gertrude in Lincoln, Nebraska. While there a cousin took us to the cemetery in Ridgeley where my parents are resting, also our Eckroat grandparents and Uncle Daniel. Perhaps you do not have all this information which I copied from the tombstones: Jacob D. Eckroate Died Dec. 9, 1890, Born 1838. (No mo. or day) Barbara Eckroate, died Jan. 9, 1880. Born 1829. Daniel E. Eckroate, died Apr. 19, 1874, born 1856.
According to those dates Uncle Daniel was only 18. Mother's story was that, because they had no well as yet in the new country, he used to take their cow off a short way to a pond for water. One day he failed to return & when they found him he was dead in the pond. He was subject to fits of epilepsy, and they could only guess he had an attack and fell in & was drowned.
I don't know how much of this information is new to you. It is just 60 years since mother died, I was 20 at the time. If I could talk to her now there are many things I would like to know about. If I can be of any use to you in your history I will be glad to help you if I can.
I have another sister living here, Sister Walburgis. She is 86 and getting quite helpless, her legs and feet are so bad. She is very hard of hearing and cannot see to well, she has deterioration of the retinas in both eyes. But we still have great times talking about the good old days.
If you wish to know more about our family - the Peter Emanuels, let me know.
It would be nice meeting you, but I suppose that is out.
With best wishes and prayers, I am
Your cousin, Sister Gregory Ann

Notice that our grandparent's names were spelled Eckroate on the tombstones. I don't know when the "e" was dropped.