Family of Ray D. Cuddeback

The Raymond Cuddeback family moved to Park Falls, Wisconsin from Rugby, North Dakota in 1924. Charles Bray, Nora’s uncle, was the saw filer for the Hines Lumber Company in Park Falls and he wrote to them about the work available at the mill.

Ray D. Cuddeback was born in Kingsley, Michigan on October 8, 1888, the son of Charles F. Cuddeback (right) and Agnes Brown. Ray had one brother, Charles. When a young man of 19, Ray and his father went west to the Montana prairies. Under the Homestead Act, Ray claimed 160 acres of land at Spring Lake in eastern Montana. Ray and his father built a sod house (later adding a timber addition), worked the land and seeded the grain. For money to live on, Ray worked for a threshing crew that followed the crops, heading north. He met Nora Maggie Meyer, born July 31, 1888, while threshing on her father’s large farm at Rugby, North Dakota.

After the threshing was over, Ray had to return to his own homestead. He and Nora courted by mail, using the Morse Code he had learned from his brother, a telegrapher in Michigan. Ray and Nora were married on February 15, 1914 at Culbertson, Montana and lived on his homestead. Thirteen children were born to them, but they lost three of them. Their first child, Agnes, was born on March 8, 1915, and she died the following year on January 17th. Six of the other children were born in Montana – Lorance and Lora, twins, born on April 30, 1916; Ralph on October 8, 1917; Nicholas on December 18, 1918; Ernest on May 15, 1920 and Clement on March 22, 1922.

Ray had poor crops due to extremely dry weather, and grasshoppers demolished the grain. There were terrible dust storms that blew with such force into piles in the cabin, even through the smallest of cracks under the doors and around windows. Nora retained the habit of plugging up the tiniest cracks and the keyholes even after they moved to Wisconsin. She told of the dreaded prairie fires, but their home was, thankfully, never in the path of one.

In 1922 they gave up their Montana homestead and moved to Rugby, N.D. near Nora’s folks. Eileen was born there in the spring, on May 9, 1923. The homestead is still called the Cuddeback place, when referring to its location. However, they were still plagued by the grasshoppers. When they moved to Park Falls in 1924, Ray got a job at the Hines Mill and the family moved into a company home in North White City (now North 1^st Avenue), Park Falls. Marie was born there on May 15, 1925. She had a twin sister, Mary, who died at birth. The children attended St. Anthony’s School.

Ray got work as a fireman at the Flambeau Paper Company, then also bought a Model T truck and hauled rubbish for local businesses. By 1927, they had rented a larger house in the south end of town on the street directly west of the now Southside Shopping Center. Fern was born that year on July 4th. The last girl, Rita, was born on December 26, 1929, and she died on April 15, 1931, just 13 days after Lloyd was born on April 2nd of that year. Lloyd was the last child of Nora and Ray.

A family with ten children needed a big yard to play and room for a large garden. They moved to Eisenstein that summer and rented a home on the Frank Wallner property near the edge of town. These were times of childhood well remembered, like playing in the sawdust pile behind Wallner’s Mill, and father Cuddeback whistling or singing Irish songs while at his tool bench in the woodshed; Mom at the old pump organ by the candle lit tree, all singing, and papa’s bass voice loudest of all. He didn’t sing when his hammer or screwdriver got legs and walked off and nobody did it. This “Nobody” got the blame every day for different things in a large family. When the boy’s shack in the back yard burned down, it was his fault I’m sure. It was soon forgotten, as they built another right away. Those black potatoes tasted good, whether cooked in or on the old barrel stove. (Black potatoes were made by slicing potatoes and laying them on top of the barrel stove or by putting the potatoes inside the stove.) That was the origin of the Cuddeback cookouts and it happened in the 30s. There wasn’t too much company out in the country. One time Fern’s classmate, Caroline Yendrzeski, and several others from near the Jefferson School came to visit and play. The dog, Rex, nipped Caroline’s leg so that was her last visit. Doris Resch came once in a while to see Eileen and Marie. The boys, being older, went more and more and had more friends drop by. John (Bugs) Engelbert got to be a regular visitor and became a family friend. He even stayed some times for a dinner of fried eggs and fried potatoes around the large table after Ray gave him a haircut. That called for the girls to make an extra stop by the “looking glass” and give the hair a quick flip of the comb. “Company” for dinner was very special in this household and quite rare.

In 1937, with the three oldest out of school and working, Ray found a large home in Lymantown, in need of improvements but affordable. There was an extra lot for a big garden too, so the family made their last move into the first home they owned since Montana. It was the very first home with electric lights, and they got an electric washing machine. Then they didn’t have to take turns pulling the lever back and forth to make it go.

This was really city living, and with kids across the alley and the street.

Ralph joined the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1937 and Lora worked at the courthouse in Phillips, Wisconsin. Lorance left home in 1939 and joined the Society of the Divine Saviour (The Salvatorians) religious community at their Seminary at St. Nazianz, Wisconsin. He made his profession, choosing the name Brother Adrian, and was general office director there. He later worked at the Jordan Stamp Mart in Menominee, Michigan. During World War II, Ralph joined the United States Naval Air Force, Clem joined the Marines and Lora enlisted in the Waves when her husband, George Jakoubek, went into the Army. When Lora and George returned from the service, they settled in Janesville, Wisconsin where he was in the construction business. They had six children, losing one in infancy and one at birth. George died June 4, 1998, and Lora is living in a retirement complex in Janesville.

Eileen worked as a welder in the war years at a Sturgeon Bay shipyard. She married James Riley – her welding instructor. They have ten children and ran their own Dry Cleaning business in Green Bay. They are semi-retired.

Marie left Park Falls also, working in Milwaukee after high school graduation. She married Joseph Takacs. They live at West Bend, Wisconsin, and have five children.

Fern remained here and is married to Charles Meyer. They live on a farm in the Town of Lake and have two children.

The oldest five boys have passed away. Brother Adrian died on April 18, 1967, at Menominee, Michigan. Ralph never returned here to live, remaining in the Navy many years and retiring in Florida. He married several times and had one child. He passed away on July 25, 1985 at Jacksonville Beach, Florida, and was buried at sea off the U.S.S. Saratoga on which he had served. After working in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Nick returned to Park Falls in 1972. Nick never married. He passed away on June 15, 1983.

Ernie had worked many years in Cedar Rapids, Iowa and Beloit, Wisconsin, servicing vending machines. He never married. He returned to Park Falls on retirement in 1982, residing on 9^th Avenue.

When Clem returned from the service, he worked as a mechanic at the Standard Service Station in Park Falls. He married Mary Lou Miller on October 18,1951 and they have nine children, Susan, Faith, Perry, Lee, Cindy, Mark, Brian, Kevin, and Amy. One child, Paul, died in infancy. They bought the family home in Lymantown, remodeling and enlarging it. Clem retired in 1986 and Mary Lou works at Holiday Village. Clem died on May 31, 2000.

Lloyd, the youngest, served in the Army during the Korean War. He was a high school band teacher many years and at present works for Schmitt Music Company In Minneapolis. He married Frances Jezorski and they adopted one child, Christopher. They live in Lexington Minnesota.

Ray Cuddeback passed away on August 9, 1951 and Nora on March 10, 1974.