Fearless Women: March 13th

Thanks to the Accidental Genealogist for the Fearless Women prompts for March!

March 13 — Moment of Strength: share a story where a female ancestor showed courage or strength in a difficult situation.


The story is told that once my maternal parents caught on fire. Only my grandmother and my young aunt, who was 12 at the time, were home.

Fearing they would lose everything, my grandmother and my aunt began carrying the furniture out of the living room. This included a rather large upright piano. When they got everything out of the living room, the proceeded to remove the contents of the kitchen, which included a chest-type deep freeze, that was full.

By that time, my grandfather returned home, and determined the fire was only smoldering in the wall, and he tore out a wall panel and promptly got it put out.

Grandmother told me it took four men to carry the piano back into the house, and they had to empty the deep freeze before bringing it back in. Empty, it required four men to bring back in.

My grandmother stood only 5’2” tall and weighed only 110 pounds. My aunt 5’5” and weighed 125 pounds.