Saturday, August 8, 2009

Mrs. Cordelia "Corky" Johnson























Morris and Cordelia Johnson are pictured in 1952, with the daughter of family friends. Cordelia Johnson was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. George Lerch. During the 1940's and 1950's, Cordelia, known fondly as "Corky," was a supervisor at Periodical Publishers, located on the west side of Sandusky, near Lions Park. Corky mentored the many young women who worked as typists at Periodical, listening to their problems, and offering counsel in a gentle manner. She was active in the Catawba Union Chapel, the Chapel Mother's Club, the VFW auxiliary, and the Rebekah Lodge. Cordelia's husband was Morris Johnson, who worked as a Sohio distributor of fuel oil for many years in the Port Clinton area. Morris also worked for twenty years at the Erie Army Depot in Port Clinton, Ohio.

Cordelia Johnson passed away on August 8, 1970, at the age of 60. She was survived by her husband Morris, a son from a former marriage, two grandchildren, a brother and a sister. Her funeral was held at the Catawba Union Chapel, located near the Miller Boat Dock in Ottawa County. There were so many people at Mrs. Johnson's funeral that some people had to sit in the back room, where they could hear the minister, but could not see him. "Corky" was a beloved person, missed by her family, neighbors, friends, co-workers, and church family.

Morris Johnson later remarried, but he always stayed in touch with Cordelia's brother and sister. Morris Johnson died on May 25, 1982. He was buried with Cordelia Lerch Johnson in the Catawba Island Township Cemetery.

7 comments:

Jennifer Sepulvado said...

Wow, Dorene! To think I actually subscribe to your blog and had no idea about this post! Cordelia is my 2nd cousin 3x removed. Her mother, Cordelia May (Fink) Lerch, was the first cousin of my great-great-grandfather, Lovell Hugh Pemberton. I am so excited about this post! I can totally relate to the part about her being a supervisor who counseled her employees in a gentle manner. I am a relatively new supervisor (about a year now) and I have quite a bit of counseling that I do. She has a Pemberton resemblance. Did she have red hair? I couldn't tell her hair color from the picture, but it reminded me of pics of my great-aunts and such when they were younger. I have been searching/browsing for her marriage record to Morris Johnson online at FamilySearch, but I haven't found it yet. I found her two previous marriage records to Arnold Anteau in 1929 and John Gordon Claire in 1936. I always wondered what happened with the previous two marriages because I've found Arnold and their son, Arnold Jr, living together in 1940 with his parents, and I've found John Gordon Claire living with his mother and sister in New York in 1940 with no Cordelia. If you prefer to communicate further by email, my email address is jtrahan81 at gmail.com.

Unknown said...

i am cordelias grandson. was surprised to find her on this sight. most of the family has passed away now, and i have lost contact with any of her remaining relatives

Dorene from Ohio said...

I too have lost touch with all the relatives. I used to play with Joey and Susie when they were young!

Unknown said...

i am joe anteau dorene. cordelia was my grandmother. i remember playing with you out on catawba back in the 50s. my sister susie died last year. mom and dad died in 91. i am the last one still kicking.

Dorene from Ohio said...

Hi Joe!

I am so sad to learn of Susie's death! Aunt Corky was so, so special! She really touched a lot of lives! How are you doing?

Dorene

Unknown said...

sorry it took so long to get back to you. my wife was sick and then the holidays, i had forgotten to check back on this blog. were doing good on this end. i live in maumee now. been here 29 years.

Dorene from Ohio said...

Joe, Good to hear you are doing well! I think of your grandma so often. She really influenced my life in a positive way! We have two grown daughters, and two young grandsons.
They keep us busy!