1. DAKIN FAMILY Photos From The Estate of Esther Dakin KirkUse down arrow key to advance slide

2. OUR FAMILY TREE 3. GREAT-GREAT GRANDPARENTS Josephine TibbettsLevi Hathaway Webster 4. GREAT GRANDPARENTS Levi Hathaway Webster and Josephine Tibbitts Josephine Estella Tibbitts was born to Ebenezer Tibbitts and Hannah Ellen Sanborn June 22, 1850, in Nekimi, Winnebago, Wisconsin. She married Levi Hathaway Webster, April 18, 1869, also in Nekimi. They had four children, Hannah Ellen, Herbert Winfield, Virginia May, and Cynthia Iva. Josephine died at the young age of 28 from pneumonia, on April 17, 1879. Her youngest child, Cynthia was only a year old. 5. GREAT GRANDPARENTS Levi Hathaway Webster and Josephine Tibbitts Levi Hathaway Webster was born to Levi H. Webster and Mary Peck Smith, June 28, 1843, in De Pere, Brown, Wisconsin. He served in the Civil war in Company F, Wisconsin 20th Infantry Regiment enlisting as a private on August 13, 1862, and Mustered out on July 14, 1865, at Galveston, TX. Levi married Josephine Estella Tibbitts April 18, 1869, in Nekimi, Winnebago, Wisconsin. They had four children, Hannah Ellen, Herbert Winfield, Virginia May, and Cynthia Iva. Josephine died April 17, 1879. Levi married Julia Bertha Burt April 27, 1881. They had six children, Henry Levi, Leon Raymond, Robert Leroy, Grace Mildred, William and Floyd. Sometime between 1900 and 1910, they moved to Goldendale, Washington. In 1912, the Land Office at Vancouver, Washington recorded a land transaction SE quarter of section 32 in township five north of range seventeen east of the Willamette meridian, Washington, containing one hundred sixty acres. This parcel is in Klickitat County 6. GREAT-GREAT GRANDPARENTS Levi H. DakinLevi Dakin was born in Digby Nova Scotia., December 25, 1828, to John Dakin and Abigail Hersey. He moved to and farmed in Clearwater, Minnesota where he married Clara Jane Smith; they had two sons, Orville and Orson. Levi and Orson moved to Oregon in the late 1800s. They purchased land in Echo, Oregon, Orson returned to Minnesota to move his family, Virginia Jenny and their sons, Hursey and Maurice, back to Oregon. Their other four children, Helen, Esther, Vernon and Harold were born in Oregon. They abandoned the property in Echo after their crop of wheat was stolen from the train depot in Arlington, and their team of eight horses were also stolen. 7. GREAT-GREAT GRANDPARENTS Brief Biography of Levi H. Dakin from Wright County HistoryLevi H. Dakin, one of the oldest resident of the town, was born in Nova Scotia on the 25th of December, 1830. Whenhe was but three years old, the family moved to Aristook County, Maine, where he worked on a farm till 1856, when he came to St. Paul, Minnesota and from that place walked to Clearwater, and soon after came to Corinna township and took a claim on section twenty-one, living in a log house with a bark roof for some time. He soon commenced to improve his farm, and continued the effort till he sold it in 1865. During the Indian war the family sought protection in Clearwater, where they remained for two years. After selling his farm, bought another in section twenty, to which he has since added as his circumstances have permitted. He was a member of the first board of Supervisors. Married Miss Clara J. Smith, on the 29 of September, 1861. They have two children. 8. GREAT GRANDPARENTS Orson Dakin & Virginia Jenny Webster 9. GREAT GRANDPARENTS Orson Dakin & Virginia Jenny Webster Orson Henry Dakin was born to Levi Hursey Dakin and Clara Jane Smith on June 24, 1871, near Annondale, Minnesota. He married Virginia May Webster Jenny on February 21, 1894, in Wright County, Minnesota. They had five children, Hursey Alfred, Maurice Webster Morris, Esther Estelle, Helen Marie, Vernon L., and Harold L. The family purchased land in Oregon sometime between 1895-1899, near The Dalles and finally ended up in Milton, Oregon. Orson was a carpenter and architect. He designed and built some of the buildings in Milton. 10. GREAT GRANDPARENTS Orson Dakin & Virginia Jenny Webster Virginia May Webster was born to Levi Hathaway Webster and Josephine Estella Tibbitts on February 18, 1875, in Wisconsin. She married Orson Henry Dakin February 21, 1894, in Wright Co., Minnesota. They had five children, Hursey Alfred, Maurice Webster Morris, Esther Estelle, Helen Marie, Vernon L., and Harold L. Virginia is listed as his nurse on her grandson Roberts (Kirk) birth certificate. According to her grandson Robert, Jenny liked to eat fresh baked bread topped with fresh cream just out of the separator and sugar and Robert said Jenny would use the exclamation "Land of Goshen"! He said she was a very nice lady. She is responsible for the survival of Robert after his premature birth, and therefore the family now refers to Roberts descendants as Virginias Miracles. 11. FA M I LY H I S T O R Y O R S O N DA K I N & V I R G I N I A W E B S T E R (FROM INTERVIEW OF ESTHER)Esther Dakin Kirk was interviewed about her family history, and was secretly recorded by her son,Wendell, and grandson, Stephen. Following is an excerpt from the interview: Year: (estimated to be 1979-1984) 12. FA M I LY H I S T O R Y O R S O N DA K I N & V I R G I N I A W E B S T E R (FROM INTERVIEW OF ESTHER)ESTHER: My grandfather was born in Nova Scotia and he . . . WENDELL: Did he marry there and come . . . ESTHER: No, he came from a very large family and as a boy, a young boy, he was a fisherman on the banks of Nova Scotia and then, he migrated, why I dont know, maybe just got tired of it and moved to Minnesota and that was just a territory at that time. Had Indians in it! And he started farming . . . WENDELL: In Minnesota. ESTHER: . . . and he married a lady, and I think her name was Smith, Ill have to go over that too, and she was a very aristocratic English lady. And my father told the story of how she put the dishpan on the table with a white table cloth and washed the dishes on that white table cloth. And he used to tell Helen and I how we had to be very neat and tidy. 13. FA M I LY H I S T O R Y O R S O N DA K I N & V I R G I N I A W E B S T E R (FROM INTERVIEW OF ESTHER) WENDELL: Well then from Minnesota, how . . . ESTHER: Well, now, from Minnesota, he homesteaded of course, he and my grandmother homesteaded there and Dad was born in . . . WENDELL: In Minnesota? ESTHER: . . . Clearwater, Clearwater Minnesota, and Dad, there was another brother by the name of Orville and Dad was the one who stayed on the farm and helped grandfather with the farm. And from people who came from there told about what a nice place they had and it was a very valuable place at that time. Well, Dad, developed what they called Katar, but we would call it sinus, you know, all of this in here and grandfather developed rheumatism . Well they STEPHEN: Cure; go to a dry place! ESTHER: So . . . STEPHEN: Walla Walla, here we come. (laughing) 14. FA M I LY H I S T O R Y O R S O N DA K I N & V I R G I N I A W E B S T E R (FROM INTERVIEW OF ESTHER)ESTHER: . . . so there was, now listen, at this time, now , there was a big drive all through the East to come West. WENDELL: Well yes, it was fuelled by the gold rush of forty-nine, opening the Western territories ESTHER: So they sold off all of their property and Grandfather and Dad came west. They left Mother back there; her people were in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, and Hursey and Morris were born back there and he left Mother back there and they came west and got mixed up with about a second or third cousin that was selling land in Oregon. He was in Portland. WENDELL: That is why they got into, down in Horse Heaven Hills? ESTHER: No they were never in Horse Heaven Hills; no, they were near, well, The Dalles . . . WENDELL: Well, thats Horse Heaven. ESTHER: . . . down on the Columbia. [Echo, Oregon] WENDELL: Yeah, thats the Horse Heaven. 15. FA M I LY H I S T O R Y O R S O N DA K I N & V I R G I N I A W E B S T E R (FROM INTERVIEW OF ESTHER)ESTHER: And this guy, now Hursey met him, but I never did, but he sold Dad, or sold . . . . They had a . . . WENDELL: Grandpa? ESTHER: . . . deal! They had a deal standing, but it hadnt been consummated, you know. But Dad got a letter from Mother. Now mail was very hard to get transferred around at that time and this man had carried this letter in his pocked for three weeks, hoping to come in contact with Dad. And when Dad got this letter, it told how Mother had gone to the hospital and was operated on for a tumor on her neck and I dont know whether you would have remembered that big scar that she had? WENDELL: I always thought that was goiter. ESTHER: No that wasnt, that was a tumor, and it was here from under her ear, went down on to the breast, shoulder. WENDELL: Wed call it cancer today. . 16. FA M I LY H I S T O R Y O R S O N DA K I N & V I R G I N I A W E B S T E R (FROM INTERVIEW OF ESTHER)ESTHER: Well, we probably would have. WENDELL: Except it was more benign. ESTHER: But anyway, he didnt know whether she was dead or not. Three weeks you know, in a persons life like that. So he told Grandfather not to pay for that land, not to pay a single cent until he got back, and he took off. Well, he took time to bring mother and Hursey and Morris with him down there to Arlington. And when he got back, Grandfather had paid for that land and when Dad asked him why he did it he said, It was mine and I had a right to do what I wanted to do with it. But it wasnt all his. Dad had put his whole life into that! WENDELL: That was up in that dry land, wheat land, that you couldnt have lived on if you had had to. ESTHER: That was right, in the first year that they farmed it, they did pretty good. WENDELL: Oh yeah, like all of that stuff, they used up the water. 17. FA M I LY H I S T O R Y O R S O N DA K I N & V I R G I N I A W E B S T E R (FROM INTERVIEW OF ESTHER)ESTHER: Well, they used up the good top soil. All the humus you see, the top soil. Well, I went through there once, Dillard [Dillard York her sister Helens husband] took me through there once and I dont how on earth Dad ever got it into his head to even think of that awful country. Rocks, volcanic rocks, all rough and holey showed up here and there and over here and over there! Some of them big! Some of them would just be in a flat area probably acres of them. Well anyway, so it seemed like bad luck just began to dog Dad from daylight till dark. He harvested his wheat and they hauled it across the top of that awful dry country down to Arlington to put it into cars to ship it to Portland; now thats where their market was. Dad took his wheat down there and loaded it into flat cars and thats what they did. WENDELL: Now what year would that have been. ESTHER: Well, Helen and I were born in that area so that would be somewhere about 1898. WENDELL: The railroads would still have been quite new. ESTHER: Oh yes. Well anyway, they took the wheat down there and they had it loaded into the cars. I guess it was one car, or two cars, whatever, and it was stolen on the tracks at night. 18. FA M I LY H I S T O R Y O R S O N DA K I N & V I R G I N I A W E B S T E R (FROM INTERVIEW OF ESTHER)STEPHEN: The car was or the wheat? ESTHER: Well, of course Dad lost all of that. Then it wasnt very long until . . . WENDELL: How can you get a box car of wheat stolen? ESTHER: That wouldnt have been hard. It was stolen at night; they probably didnt have any guards and you know, Dad being a trusting soul, it never occurred to him. Would you think that somebody would go to steal your wheat? WENDELL: Well, it would sure be easy to trace, a box car of wheat. ESTHER: I remember those cars could, they had big wheels up there on top. WENDELL: But they had to put that onto a train somewhere and the train had to take it somewhere! ESTHER: They could just roll that right down there! 19. FA M I LY H I S T O R Y O R S O N DA K I N & V I R G I N I A W E B S T E R (FROM INTERVIEW OF ESTHER)WENDELL: Down to where? ESTHER: Well, it would have gone down to a junction and gotten hooked onto a train. WENDELL: Yeah, then they had to go . . . somebody knew where that went. ESTHER: Well but somebody stole it! And they could put their name on it! WENDELL: Yeah ok anyway . . . ESTHER: They never knew, but now listen, Dad had nine horses that were stolen! WENDELL: Thats more accountable than stealing a box car load of wheat. ESTHER: They traced them down to the John Day River and after the horses got into the John Day River, they couldnt find them anymore. Dad lost all those horses, nine of them and they just, they just got up and left as far as I know. Somebody, not long ago, asked me what became of that land and I dont know. 20. FA M I LY H I S T O R Y O R S O N DA K I N & V I R G I N I A W E B S T E R (FROM INTERVIEW OF ESTHER)STEPHEN: Did they keep title to it or sell it? ESTHER: No, as far as I remember the story . . . WENDELL: You know that stuff s valuable now! Yeah who knows? ESTHER: . . .they just got up and left. WENDELL: That wouldnt be down where there putting all that government range down there right now? Out of that Arlington area, you know, is where there putting in that huge big government disposal range. Boy, thats worth something today! 21. CHILDREN OF ORSON DAKIN &VIRGINIA WEBSTERHursey Alfred Dakin Maurice Webster Morris Dakin Esther Estella DakinHelen Marie Dakin Vernon L. Dakin Harold L. Dakin 22. CHILDREN OF ORSON DAKIN & VIRGINIA WEBSTERHursey Alfred Dakin 23. CHILDREN OF ORSON DAKIN & VIRGINIA WEBSTERHursey Alfred Dakin Hursey Alfred Dakin was born on March 21, 1895, in Corinna, Minnesota. He was the first of six children. Hursey served in the Mexican American Border war in 1917, and was discharged in 1918, but waived a disability and reenlisted to serve in WWI. Hursey was awarded many metals including the Distinguished Service Cross and was named Oregons WWI hero. He married Katherine M. Murphy September 20, 1924, in Spokane, Washington. On August 25, 1949, he married his second wife, Averi Dryden Vida in Multnomah, Oregon where they resided for some years. He died on June 1, 1975, in Fresno, California, at the age of 80, and was buried there. 24. CHILDREN OF ORSON DAKIN & VIRGINIA WEBSTERHursey Alfred Dakin Oregons Greatest Hero By L. H. Howell, Adjutant Portland Chapter, D.A.V.W.W. Oregons candidate for the Living Hall of Fame a feature of the second annual convention of the Disabled Veterans of the World War, held in San Francisco last month was Corporal Hursey A. Dakin of Company F, First Gas Regiment. Every state and territorial possession was expected to choose its greatest hero of the late war for this hall of fame. Corporal Dakin is a Freewater, Oregon, boy. He enlisted March 14, 1918, after waiving a disability he had incurred in a previous enlistment. Overseas he covered 147 miles advance work while serving with 11 different divisions as a member of the first Gas Regiment. Corporal Dakin suffered two wounds and never went back until he was unconscious from the effects. At the time Dakin won his Distinguished Service Cross, he was attached to the 79th Division, 279th Inf. His squad of gas and flame men were attached to this outfit for the purpose of reaching a stated objective. Their work consisted of shelling enemy machine gun nests with liquid fire shot from a Stokes Trench mortar. 25. CHILDREN OF ORSON DAKIN & VIRGINIA WEBSTERHursey Alfred Dakin On September 26, 1918, in the Bois Jure, near Gercourt, France, the 279th Inf. had advanced to a depth of about 7 miles, and were emerging from a dense forest in the Argonns when they suddenly encountered intense machine gun fire. As they had experienced no opposition until now this fire resulted in heavy losses to their forces. Falling back to the woods they reorganized their forces, and Dakin was told to fire on the machine gun nests. Not having enough ammunition to lay down a barrage, he insisted that the nests be located. One nest was located and his crew cleaned it out with liquid fire. Starting out again they encountered the same resistance. Falling back again they tried to locate the nests but were unsuccessful. The Major in charge of the battalion called for volunteers to scout out the positions of the nests. Corporal Dakin being only attached to this outfit until it has reached its objective, did not at first volunteer. 26. CHILDREN OF ORSON DAKIN & VIRGINIA WEBSTERHursey Alfred Dakin When it was seen that no one would volunteer from the outfit, Corporal Dakin and his first gun man, Private Guy Nelson, (who likewise won the D.S.C.) offered their services. As Dakin was not wearing his chevrons, the major would not accept their services unless a N.C.O. was in charge. A sergeant was detailed from the outfit to go with the volunteers. They started armed only with their .45 automatics. At the edge of the woods, and about 40 feet from them, the sergeant was killed by the intense fire from the nests. Dakin and Nelson, now leaderless, continued to advance into the woods, scouting around further. Not finding any-thing, they worked their way to a clearing at the edge of the woods where they got behind a log. There they watched the woods. After about an hour they located the machine gun nests, four in number, all cleverly camouflaged, the nearest nest being just over the log. 27. CHILDREN OF ORSON DAKIN & VIRGINIA WEBSTERHursey Alfred Dakin As the German ammunition man was returning to the nests from a particular clump of woods, and was about to enter the nest nearest to the Yanks, Dakin shot him dead. The two Yanks then rushed the nests. Meeting in hand to hand combat, they killed five of the enemy crew, the other Jerry making his escape. The other nests by now had realized that they were discovered, and opened fire on the Yanks, killing their own man who was running to cover. The fire from the enemy caused Dakin and Nelson to fall back again to the woods, where they decided to work their way to the rear where they sighted the ammunition dump and other nests. Opening up with their 45s they cleaned out the remainder of the nests, killing and routing the crews and taking a German major prisoner. They now decided to return to their own lines and as they emerged from the woods a burst of fire was opened upon them, killing the German major and severely wounding Dakin. The two boys finally reached their lines, when Dakin lapsed into unconsciousness and woke up in a first aid station. The men had their packs completely shot from their backs. Corporal Dakin was wounded previously while serving with the 5th Division. 28. CHILDREN OF ORSON DAKIN & VIRGINIA WEBSTERHursey Alfred Dakin Corporal Dakins citation reads: For extraordinary heroism in action in the Bois Jure, near Gercourt, France, Spt. 26, 1918. He volunteered with another soldier to attack machine gun nests which were holding up the advance. They advanced against very heavy machine gun fire and captured the position, killing a number of the enemy and routing the remainder of the gun crews Corporal Dakin is a vocational student of the U.S. Veterans Bureau at the O.A.C., Corvallis, Oregon. He is studying electrical engineering. Dakin is a very modest young man and it was only after persistent persuading of his comrades in the posts of the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars and Disabled Veterans of the World War in Corvallis, that he consented to the trip to Frisco as the Guest of the D.A.V.QW.W. Dakin was born in Stillwater, (Clearwater?) Minnesota, March 21, 1895, moving with his parents to Oregon when a small boy. He attended public school in Freewater . Dakin served on the Mexican border with Oregon troops. 29. CHILDREN OF ORSON DAKIN & VIRGINIA WEBSTERHursey Alfred Dakin Copied from the July, 1922 issue of THE PACIFIC LEGION. I hereby certify that the foregoing is a true copy of an article published in the July, 1922, issue of the Pacific Legion at Portland, Oregon. _SS____ __________________ Jerrold Owen, Editor and Publisher Subscribed and sworn to before me this 15th day of February, 1934. _SS_____ My Commission Expires10/13/36________________ Notary Public for Oregon 30. CORPORAL HURSEY A. DAKIN ARMY For service as set forth in the following: CITATION: The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Corporal Hursey A. Dakin (ASN: 847688), United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in action while serving with Company F, 1st Gas Regiment, A.E.F., in the Bois-de-Jure, near Gercourt, France, 26 September 1918. Corporal Dakin volunteered with another soldier to attack a machine-gun nest which was holding up the advance. They advanced against very heavy machine-gun fire and captured the position, killing 2 Germans and routing the remainder of the gun crew. 31. CORPORAL HURSEY A. DAKIN, ARMY 32. CHILDREN OF ORSON DAKIN &VIRGINIA WEBSTERMaurice Webster Morris Dakin & Wife Mary Louise Fann 33. CHILDREN OF ORSON DAKIN &VIRGINIA WEBSTERMaurice Webster Morris Dakin Maurice Webster "Morris" Dakin was born to Virginia Webster Dakin and Orson Henry Dakin on March 15, 1897, in Stillwater, (Clearwater?) Minnesota. He was the second born of six children. He married Mary Louise Fann True, January 9, 1929. She had a son from her first marriage, Dick True. They moved to Yakima to be near Arthur and Esther, his sister, and then followed Esther and Arthur again when they moved to Linden (Morris Marylou and Dick, settled in Bellingham and eventually moved to Smith Road between Bellingham and Linden). Dick was a captain in Pattons Tank Battalion and later promoted to the rank of Major. He and Robert Kirk, Esther and Arthurs son, met up in Germany during WWII. Marylou passed away in 1960, and on February 10, 1961, Morris married Lillian. The 1940 Census shows that Morris completed two years of college and was a government employee. 34. C H I L D R E N O F O R S O N DA K I N &VIRGINIA WEBSTER Esther Estelle DakinArthur & Esther & sons Wendell & Robert Kirk 35. CHILDREN OF ORSON DAKIN &VIRGINIA WEBSTEREsther Estelle Dakin Esther Estella Dakin was born to Virginia Webster Dakin and Orson Henry Dakin on January 29, 1989. Her delayed birth certificate lists her place of birth near Wasco, in the County of Sherman, Oregon. Esther was a lady who was educated at Normal School and worked as a teacher before marrying and starting her own family. Esther left college for health reasons after contracting the deadly Spanish Flu of 1918 and then suffering appendicitis. Esther was a talented cook and she met Arthur while working for the Kirk family; cooking for their many dinner parties. Besides being a teacher and accomplished cook, Esther also worked as a florist in Yakima and continued to grow her favorite flowers, dahlias and lilies, into her 80s. For her 78th birthday, Esther asked for a tiller. She mentioned that tilling the large flower and vegetable gardens wore her out. When the suggestion was made that she do her tilling over several days, Esther replied that she liked to get it done all at once. Esther always set a beautiful table for meals which included attractive serving dishes. Men coming in from the fields were required to wash up and wear clean shirts to her table. 36. CHILDREN OF ORSON DAKIN &VIRGINIA WEBSTERHelen Marie Dakin Excerpt from obituary: .... York was born the daughter of Orson and Virginia Webster Dakin, Sept. 19, 1902, in Wasco. While still a child she came to Milton-Freewater in a covered wagon from Hood River. She attended Milton-Freewater schools and was a graduate of Lewiston Normal School. For two years she taught at Kameii, Idaho, Indian Reservation schools. On Sept. 22, 1920, she wed Dillard York in Pendleton. The couple first made their home on the hill west of Dry Creek School on a piece of property known as the "Old Walker Place," A son, Martin, was born there. He preceded his parents in death. The couple moved to a farm 1-1/2 miles west of College Place, WA on Oct 31, 1925, and their second child, a daughter, LaNita, was born there. Mr. York died August 20, 1986..... 37. CHILDREN OF ORSON DAKIN &VIRGINIA WEBSTERHelen Marie Dakin .... Walla Walla Union Bulletin (Walla Walla, Washington) > 1965 > December > 5, page 22 Going along on a trip just for the ride may not always be the best thing to do Mrs. Dillard (Helen) York has found in her travels about the country with her rancher husband. The pair have traveled frequently together on business trips connected with their Sunrise Angus Farm on Route 2, W. Whitman Drive, and, says Mrs. York, something exciting or eventful seems to happen almost every time. The Yorks, for instance, have had a couple of close calls traveling the Lolo Pass Highway -- once when they rounded a curve and almost ran into a large mule which was ambling down the roadway, and another when their truck, carrying several head of registered cattle, caught on fire. Friction between the wheel bed and the frame had caused sparks to ignite straw in the truck bed. The couple were fortunate in finding a nearby station where they got water to put the fire out, but not before some of the cattle had been burned severely, 38. CHILDREN OF ORSON DAKIN &VIRGINIA WEBSTERHelen Marie Dakin In contrast to these experiences, Mrs. York's first traveling was done in a covered wagon when the family of Mr.. And Mrs. O.H. Dakin arrived in the valley in 1902 and settled in Milton-Freewater where Dakin established himself as a contractor-builder. While only a baby at that time, Mrs. York can recall later seeing the first automobile here. Having observed many changes in the area over her lifetime, Mrs. York believes that persons revisiting the valley after a period of years would have difficulty recognizing it. Educated in Milton-Freewater schools, the then Helen Dakin attended Lewiston Normal School and taught a year before marrying York in 1919. The couple have always farmed, branching out form original interest in grain and dairy farming to their present business. 39. CHILDREN OF ORSON DAKIN &VIRGINIA WEBSTERHelen Marie Dakin The Yorks built a new home on their ranch 12 years ago which they designed themselves as a duplex. The other half of the home is occupied by their son-in-law and daughter, Mr. and Mrs. Joe (LaNita) Yates. The Yorks' son Martin, was killed in an accident 19 years ago (1946). Both children, however have given the Yorks a grand child. -- Jody Yates, now a college freshman at the University of Idaho, and Mrs. Art (Darlene York) Gravelle, who lives in Portland. Mrs. York's personal interests have tended to fall in line with her role as farm wife and homemaker. She was a 4-H club leader for her own children and, later, for her grandchildren. Although Mrs. York enjoys sewing and makes some of her own clothes, she says she has not had to make anything for her granddaughters for many years now because of their 4-H training. Jody, in fact, was admitted immediately to a sophomore class in home economics in college because of her experience and abilities. 40. CHILDREN OF ORSON DAKIN &VIRGINIA WEBSTERHelen Marie Dakin A charter member of both the Narcissa Whitman Home Economics Club and the Sunset Valley Garden Club, Mrs. York had an unusually long five-year term of office as president of the former. She is currently president of the garden club and is also a member of the Blue Mountain Iris Club. In her own garden Mrs. York grows 200 varieties of iris, 50 of roses and many dahlias -- flowers which are her favorites. In her home she has a Christmas cactus given to her by her husband's family 20 years ago which has grown so immense that it occupies the entire corner of a picture window. Sunset Valley Garden Club members are, today, taking part in the Blue Mountain District Federation "Home for the Holidays" show at the Marcus Whitman Hotel and are looking toward the Dec. 10-11 holiday sale at the Garden Center. Another big project comes at Fair time when members assist with arranging and judging the flower show exhibit. Special project of the Sunset Valley gardeners is the fall dahlia show which this year had to be canceled because of early damage to the flowers. 41. CHILDREN OF ORSON DAKIN &VIRGINIA WEBSTERHelen Marie Dakin Another interest of Mrs. York's is making ceramics and she also does textile painting. One of her most unusual painting jobs was done recently on the draperies in her home, flowers of which she painted to blend in with some new furnishings she had purchased. She is planning two large projects in the near future, the reupholstering of an occasional chair (her first solo attempt although she has assisted others in the work) and the making of a decorative table from resin and rocks. The Yorks attend the College Place Presbyterian Church. She has a sister and four brothers, one of whom, Vernon Dakin, lives in Milton-Freewater. 42. CHILDREN OF ORSON DAKIN &VIRGINIA WEBSTERVernon L. Dakin FamilyVERNON MITCHELL WILBURLILLIAN HURSEY DEANVERNONLYNNLOWELL 43. CHILDREN OF ORSON DAKIN &VIRGINIA WEBSTERVernon L. Dakin Vernon L. Dakin was born to Virginia Webster Dakin and Orson Henry Dakin on January 21, 1904, in Oregon. He was the fifth of six children. Vernon married Lillian Poling, they had six sons, Vernon Mitchell, Hursey Dean, Wilbur, Lynn, Lowell and Gordon. The family appears to have stayed in the Umatilla area. Vernon and Lillian are buried in the cemetery at MiltonFreewater, close to his parents Virginia, Orson and Grandfather Levi. Their Son, Hursey Dean is also buried nearby. Hursey died in a farming accident when he was only 27. A can of diesel exploded while he was burning weeds. Vernon, suffered a brain injury from a fall, in a farm accident, which is said to have changed his personality somewhat. He laughed all of the time. 44. CHILDREN OF ORSON DAKIN &VIRGINIA WEBSTERHarold L. Dakin Harold L. Dakin was born on June 19, 1906, in Oregon, to Orson Dakin, and Virginia Webster. He married Golda Elizabeth Pahlka sometime before 1946. Goldas first husband was William Arno South. He was hit by lightning and died in 1936, the year their daughter Natalie was born. Harold and Golda had three sons, Lawrence, Ralph and Carl. Lawrence died in 2002 at the age of 55. Harold died on May 7, 1998, in San Pablo, California, at the age of 91, and was buried in Arizona. Harold enlisted in the Army April 13, 1942, after meeting Golda. Letters she saved showed that he was already devoted to Golda and Natalie and he and Golda married after his return from war.Golda passed away 8 Oct 2010, in Green Valley Pima, Arizona. She was born in December 4, 1917, in Minco Oklahoma. 45. DAKIN FAMILY Compiled by Gayle Kirk (granddaughter of Esther) Jan. 2014