Dear Mary, Some little time ago Harriette [Harriette Hogan Eveleth] -- my sister -- gave me a clipping from your town you sent to her, with your picture and Helen's [Mary's sister] on it and the write-up about your dad being elected to the Oil Men's Hall of Fame. I was surely glad to get this and see such good looking and distinguished appearing girls featured and made me proud of being their cousin. I also thought the write up about your father was fine and a well-deserved honor. I have always thought that he was one of the finest and most remarkable men I ever knew and it was a great shock to me when he passed away [Sep. 1957]. I used to hear quite often and see him occasionally and the time I spent with him and his family, in Billings, will always be fondly remembered.
As you will see from the clipping that I am enclosing, Harriette passed away and was buried last week. She had been ailing and suffereing for a long time but about two weeks ago she became worse and could not eat or drink anything and seemed to be in intense pain. We got her to the hospital and x-rays indicated some closure in the intestines. They operated and she seemed to be making a good recovery and when I visited her about two that afternoon she was quite rational in her conversation with me and said she didn't have any pain and was able to eat and keep her food down so I felt real good about it. Then I was called at six and notified that she had passed away. I guess her heart just went back on her as she was very weak and I don't think she weighed over eighty pounds. We are all getting quite old and so many of my friends have gone during the last year or so it makes one wonder who will be next. My wife Veta, who perhaps you might remember, died about ten years ago. My son (private) is an attorney and lives in Seattle and is Vice President in the largest title insurance company in the state. He has a lovely wife and two children, a boy and a girl, and they are pretty well-grown. The boy, (private), is a senior in high school and daughter (private) is getting her masters degree on a scholarship at Syracuse University in New York state after graduating with top honors from the University of Washington in Seattle. My daughter (private) is married and lives in Port Townsend, WA with her daughter in high school and the boy in his second year in college. Kids sure do grow up fast and it seems a short time ago when they were babies. I suppose your family is all scattered around also and you have your problems in keeping track of them like we do. Your dad used to tell me about you all and your activities and he was surely mighty proud of all of you. Where does Fred [Mary's brother] live now? I suppose by this time he has retired with a fortune. He always was a capable and competent young man and I am sure he went far.
Sorry to hear in your letter to Harriette that most of the Sheehy family have passed away. That is surely too bad as they were a fine bunch and I sure liked all of them that I ever met. Their Mother, Aunt Mary [John and Bridget's daughter], was a wonderful woman and I think she was your father's favorite relative.
We are getting a little oil activity around here once again. They have been drilling off and on around here for many years but have never been able to bring in a commercial field. However, every hole they put down showed good indications of high grade oil and gas but not enough. During the last year or so the Shell Co. had a large force of geologists and latest equipment going over the area and are now starting a series of fourteen test wells. The first of these was spudded in two days ago on our property near the Ocean, where we have leased them two thousand acres. They have leased an awful lot of the tidelands and shorelands from the county, state, and federal governments at very big prices, so they must think they have a chance. Hope so, as I would like to see a little money coming in before I pass out of the picture. Otherwise things around here are very quiet as quite a few of the big sawmills, papermills and plywood mills are down. Guess the market for construction material is very quiet. Hope we are not on the verge of another depression.
Guess I have written quite a volume for which I just intended to be a short note. Would like awful well if you would write me some time and tell me all about yourself and the rest of the family and I will pass the information on to the folks here. Think it would be nice if you could come up here on one of your vacation trips as it is kind of nice here in the summer and it doesn't rain all the time but plenty in the winter. Remember me to all the folks and with love and best wishes to yourself and hoping to hear from you soon. Sincerely,
Gerald E. Hogan 37 North K. St., Aberdeen, WA 98520 HOME LETTERS