John Murray Ramsey
1885 - 1944
by
Charlotte Carl-Mitchell
"John Murray Frank Sinclair Ramsey Age 11 months" was written on the back of a copy of this photo. This is the only place I've seen his name with the Frank Sinclair added in the middle. Since he was born on Oct 31, 1885, this photo would have been taken in Sept 1886. The photographer in Lampasas is the same one who took the photos of Belle and Frank that I described as their wedding portraits.
The photo above shows JM Ramsey in Aug 1889 at the age
of 3 years, 10 months. On the back of the photo is FT Ramsey. That means
it belonged to him not that the photo was of him. From the dates, it has
to be JM.
The same photograph of JM Ramsey in Aug 1889 but printed
on a large medal badge or button.
A hand-tinted photograph of JM, Euphie (left) and Jessie
Ramsey. From Euphie's age, the photo was probably taken around 1896 when
JM was 11. Belle Ramsey lost two children between JM and Jessie.
A photograph of John Murray Ramsey around 1900 when he would have
turned 15.
From the fact that Murray is holding a diploma, this is probably a photo taken in honor of his high school graduation. According to a later proclamation from the City of Austin, Murray won the Austin High School scholarship to the University of Texas.
Murray's diploma from May 1903. The original is so large, (16"x20")
it took four scans to get only the text part. He graduated in 1903, but
was a freshman at UT in 1904-05. I wonder what he did from May 1903 to Sep
1904? Perhaps he worked with his father, but if he'd won a scholarship you'd
think he would have gone directly to school. I doubt he would have been
a freshman for two years.
This photograph was probably taken in 1905, when Murray was a freshman
at UT. His hairstyle looks like the one he had in the photos that ran in
that year's Cactus, the UT annual. He would have been 19 in the 1904-05 school
year, older than most freshman. Notice he signed his name Murray J. Ramsey,
not John or J. Murray Ramsey. Mercy always called him Murray, but later
his official signature was JM Ramsey, perhaps to emulate his father and
grandfather who also used their initials, AM and FT.
In the fall of 1905 at a conference in Nashville,
TN, Murray met Mercy Briggs Perkins. She was originally from Ottawa, Illinois,
but was living in Waco and attending TCU when it was in that city. They
began a correspondence and were soon courting. He would go up to Waco to
visit her. I think the photo below is from one of those visits. In a letter
he said it took five hours on the train to get from Austin to Waco, not
a quick trip.
Murray did two years of academic work at UT then studied law for two years, took the bar exam, passed and received his license to practice. Instead of going into law, he joined his father, FT Ramsey in the nursery business. In a letter Mercy wrote Murray on 5 Jul 1908, she congratulated him on becoming an attorney at law. He must have mentioned to her that he probably wouldn't go on for a degree, which he seemingly didn't. While at UT he pledged and started a lifelong association with Sigma Chi fraternity.
Murray was very active in his teens and early 20s in
Christian organizations, such as the Student Volunteer Movement for Foreign
Missions and the YMCA, when it really was a Young Men's Christian Association
and not a campy song! He was also very active in his Christian Church,
both Central Christian and Hyde Park Christian. He was the Superintendent
of the Austin District of Christian Endeavor in 1904 when he was only18 going
on 19. He also actively supported the Prohibition Amendment and worked for
its passage. In a letter he wrote Mercy on 29 Jul 1908, he said he intended
to become a Mason, but he assured her he wouldn't go to every meeting or
stay out late (or worse, smoke, drink or gamble!). In the same letter, he
mentioned his plan to go to the Capitol and get
the Charter for the new Hyde Park Christian Church.
The photograph above was probably taken in early 1908. It looks like
the UT annual photos for that year. Notice he now signs his name J. M. Ramsey.
In 1908, he joined his father at the nursery and the company name was changed
to FT Ramsey and Son.
On Thursday, Sept 24, 1908, Murray and Mercy were married in Covington,
Kentucky, where Mercy's sister Mary lived at the time. The photo above
was taken in Austin, but Mother always said it was to commemorate their
wedding. She also commented on noticing Murray's Sigma Chi pin on Mercy's
dress. I don't know if that were the dress she actually wore at the wedding.
It looks pretty enough to be.
A close-up showing Murray's Sigma Chi pin on Mercy's dress in their wedding photo.
Murray and Mercy's wedding book. It notes the wedding took place at
the First Christian Church in Covington, Kentucky. The minister was Milo
Atkinson. The witnesses were T. Meyerhoefer and Mrs. E. J. Brewer. T.
Meyerhoefer was either a friend or in-law of Mary Perkins (Mrs. E. J.)
Brewer, Mercy's sister. It is sad that no guests are listed. I assume Ernest
Brewer and others among his family or friends attended, but there isn't
any indication of that nor do we have any photographs of the wedding party
or reception. After the wedding Murray and Mercy took a trip to St. Louis
before going back to Austin. They stayed at the Southern Hotel in St. Louis.
Mercy's scrapbook includes the bill, dated 9/28/08, for $27.50 which in
2003 dollars would be $545. It must have been a nice place!
The image of the Southern Hotel letterhead was
from http:/home.Comcast.net/~m.chitty/Midwest.htm
The Ramseys were not pleased that the wedding was held outside Austin. Since Murray was FT and Belle's only son, had the wedding been held in Austin, it would probably have been one of the social events of the season. I have a list of all the people who were to receive announcements of the wedding. It is 14 typed and handwritten pages long.
Murray and Mercy's wedding announcement.
An article on the wedding ran in the Sunday Morning Advertiser on Sept 26, 1908. It said the couple would be going back to Austin "to immediately go to housekeeping at Mrs. Pendleton's cozy little home in Hyde Park, which is handsomely furnished, ready and waiting." In a letter Murray wrote Mercy on 7 Aug 1908, he mentioned the cost of the Pendleton house they were thinking of buying had dropped to $2,150 (that's $42,625 in 2003 dollars). They were thinking of renting to buy, with rent at $15 ($294) a month. Mercy very much wanted their own place after they married, but they ended up living with the Ramsey's until after Murray P. was born in 1909 and Mercy was pregnant with Mercy A. in 1911. Perhaps they stayed at the cottage for a short time then moved into Murray's childhood room at FT and Belle's.
Murray Perkins Ramsey was born on Dec 18, 1909. His name came from Murray's first name and Mercy's last name. He was FT and Belle's first grandchild and they must have been thrilled to have a boy to continue the family name and business. (They had 5 granddaughters before their next grandson, Carl Ramsey Taylor was born to Euphie and Carl Taylor in 1918.)
On Nov 22, 1911, Mercy Annabella Ramsey was born. Her name came from her mother's first name and her Grandmother Ramsey's name.
This is the house on 38th Street, just east of Lamar, in which JM and his family lived until their house on Speedway was built. Almost every time we drove by the house, Mother would point it out as an early childhood home. She may have even been born in that house.
This photograph of Murray was used in the 1911-12 nursery catalog and was probably taken around that time He looks very much like he does in the snapshot above with his family taken probably in 1912, from Mother's age.
An ad for the nursery talking about the four generations of Ramseys.
The Spanish version of the 1911-12 nursery catalog showing
the same ad. The Ramseys were smart and far-sighted to market to Hispanics.
Over the next couple of years, two important things happened.
The first was a new addition to the family. Jessie Mary Ramsey was born on
16 Sep 1913. Her name came from Murray's sister, Jessie and Mercy's sister,
Mary. The photo above was probably taken in the winter of 1913-14.
The Ramseys liked to camp, fish, swim and picnic together. Notes on the back of this photo say Mercy is holding Mother as a baby, but I don't think that's correct. Murray P. is too old and the dark-haired girl in Jessie's lap is probably Annabel, born 28 Aug 1912. It's hard to see, but next to her is another girl, with blonde hair who looks to be close to her age. I think that is Mother and Mercy is holding Jessie Mary as a baby. That would mean this photo would have been taken in late 1913 or early 1914. From left going around the circle are Robert Vincent "Doc," Jessie and Annabel Murray, Mother, Winnie Ramsey and possibly Hilliare Nitschke. Winnie and Hilliare didn't marry until 22 Mar 1918. I don't recognize the two obscured people.
Next I think are Carl Taylor and Euphie Ramsey. As early
as 8 Apr 1913, Murray mentioned to Mercy in a letter that Euphie planned
to be married. But in a letter Mercy wrote Murray on 20 Feb 1914, she asked
if Euphie and Mr. Taylor had married. Carl C. Taylor received a Masters
in sociology from the University of Texas in 1914. He and Euphie might have
met at UT. He was 11 years older than she. The next two people I don't know,
but the older lady on the far right is Belle Ramsey, then Mercy P. holding
Jessie Mary with Murray P. Ramsey next to her. He would have been 4 years
old, Mother would have been around two. In the middle of the circle, with
the hat, is FT Ramsey, the patriarch of the group. JM probably took the photo.
It looks like they took the cushions out of their Model T to use on the
ground, a very practical idea.
Murray with his three kids and 'machine' or car. From Jessie Marys age, the photo was probably taken in 1914.
The next major event was the building of the JM Ramsey
family's new home at 4312 Speedway. They moved in sometime in 1914. This
shows the house before all the vegetation grew up.
This postcard is from the 1915 season at Salt Air Beach at the Great Salt Lake in Utah. Murray P. is at the bottom left; JM is in the third row back on the left. If that is Mercy on the far right, second row from back, she sure does look like Mother. It probably isn't. Who would have been looking after Mercy A. and Jessie Mary? Unless the beach had babysitting facilities.
I found this image on the Internet of a postcard showing
the lakefront at Salt Air Beach in 1915.
This is another postcard. On the back it says "Seeing
Salt Lake' so is probably from the same trip west in 1915.
This is an enlargement of the car photo showing JM holding
Jessie Mary with Murray next to him. In the back seat are Mercy P. and
Mercy A. Ramsey. None of them looks very happy. It must have been a long
day or maybe they were car sick!
From the kids' ages, the photo above must have been during
this same trip out west in 1915 that the family visited Yellowstone.
The next big event was the birth on 15 Sep 1917 of Helen Georgia Ramsey. Mercy had gone to the ranch in Cisco thinking the baby would be a boy whom she would name Charles in honor of her brother who had bought the property. But instead she had another girl. I don't know where the Helen came from, but the Georgia was in honor of Mercy's mother, Georgianna Beckwith Perkins. The family was now complete. In the photo above, it looks like Belle Ramsey is holding Helen. I hadn't realized she'd ever gone to the ranch.
This is a photo of Helen in 1918 in the front parlor of 4312. This is the earliest photo I have of the inside of Grandma's house. The arrangement of the furniture looks interesting. A bench seat in front of the fireplace. Is the overstuffed chair barely visible in the right back, the same one she had in our day? There is a clock on the mantle and a smaller mirror than the later one on the wall. I assume the upright piano is in the 'living room' as was their later piano.
This is a close-up of a photo of a class party in 1918 at 4312. It shows Grandma, second from left, holding Helen (who has the same tuft of hair sticking out on the left side of her head as she does in the photo above. Both photos might have been taken the same day.) The fourth woman from the left is Mary Dauler, Mercy's sister, holding Elizabeth 'Liz' Dauler, now Risacher. The woman with the hat is Jessie Ramsey Murray holding Margaret Murray now Bailey. All three babies were born in 1917.
Above is the full size photo of the class party. On the
back, Mother had written, "A party at the home of the Murray Ramseys. This
included the class of Baker School of Murray Ramsey, Jr, Mercy Ramsey &
Mary Dauler - visiting from Cleveland, Ohio. About 1918. 4312 Speedway."
This is another close-up from the class photo showing other family members. I think Jessie Mary is on the far right, second row from front. Murray is the third from the right on the front row. Mother, Mercy A. Ramsey, is on the third row from the top in the middle. And I think "Little Mary" Dauler is on the left, by the woman holding the baby. She is frowning which is very unlike her. She was almost always smiling in photos, unlike Mother who was told not to smile. Mary appears to have pigtails.
This is a close-up of a photo of the kids that was used
in the nursery catalog to show how beautiful a yard could be. This was
taken in the side-back yard at 4312 in 1918. Murray was 9, Mother was 7,
Jessie Mary was 5 and Helen was 1.
The photo above was undated, but I'm guessing it's from the 1920s. JM Ramsey was very proud of his Scotch-Irish heritage and, from the photo above, must have been part of a group of like-minded men. His mother, Belle Sinclair Ramsey had been born in Canada, but her parents and ancestors were from Scotland. Three of her Sinclair ancestors, all named John, were at the Battle of Culloden in 1746. The grandfather and father fought in the battle against Bonnie Prince Charles. The grandson, who was only 12 years old, was a messenger, bringing news of the battle to the family anxiously waiting at home. On JM's father's side, FT's mother's ancestor, William Taylor, had to leave Ireland just ahead of either the law or a mob that was after him, depending on which family story you believe.
The descriptor 'Scotch-Irish' is an American term referring to Lowland Scots who left Scotland for Ulster, Northern Ireland, and then to America. According to one source, they were not Irish or kilt-clad Highlanders. In most respects, they were like contemporary Englishmen. I'm not sure the people in the Ramsey Association would have appreciated hearing that. FT Ramsey was very active in that group, but I don't know if JM was.
The Ramsey family around 1921 in front of Belle
and FT's house on Ave. B. Back row: Hilliare Nitschke holding Alice
Ann Nitschke, Winnie Ramsey Nitschke, Mercy Perkins Ramsey, John Murray
Ramsey, Jessie Ramsey Murray, Dr. Robert V. Murray, Euphie Ramsey Taylor,
Carl C. Taylor. Middle row: Murray Perkins
Ramsey, Jessie Mary Ramsey, Mercy Annabella Ramsey, Frank Taylor Ramsey
and Annabelle Sinclair Ramsey (seated), Annabel Murray.
Front row: Helen Georgia Ramsey, Margaret Murray, Carl Ramsey Taylor.
Another camping and fishing trip, with their
trailer attached to their Model T.
The family standing in the snow outside 4312
in 1923. Grandma is hidden behind Murray P.
Another family portrait in front of the house
on Ave B. The identification on the back said: "Frank Taylor Ramsey and
Annabelle Sinclair Ramsey Family August 1925. Murray and Mercy Ramsey,
Murray P, Jessie Mary, Mercy, Helen; Jessie and R.V. Murray, M.D., Annabel,
Vincent, Margaret, Frances; Euphie and Carl Taylor, Carl Ramsey and Jean
Ann; Winnie and Hilliare Nitschke, Alice Ann."
The front and back of a shares certificate for the nursery
The photo above of JM Ramsey was used in the 1930 Ramsey's
Austin Nursery catalog, below, in the introduction talking about the four
generations of Ramseys in the business.
The catalog showed a more mature JM Ramsey and an adult Murray P. Ramsey. Murray didn't graduate from UT until 1933 so he probably wasnt involved full time with the nursery, but he worked there part time. We have a 1927 catalog that has written on it, "Marked for Murray P.'
Belle Ramsey died in 1927; FT Ramsey died in 1932. The catalog closest to that date that we have is 1936. On the inside front cover, the letter to their customers was signed JM Ramsey, President and MP Ramsey, Vice President of Ramsey's Austin Nursery.
In 1931, Murray and Mercy's children started to get married.
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Above, Murray and Mercy, probably in the 1930s. After
their children married, grandchildren started coming long.
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The first was Jimmy, James Murray Cate, born on 27 Aug 1935. The photo above was from Jimmy's first birthday in 1936.
In the summer of 1937, JM and family took a trip up
east. They visited the Taylors in Washington, DC. Above, from left to right,
Helen, JM, Mercy P, Mercy A., Jean Ann and Euphie Ramsey Taylor.
They also visited Mary Perkins Dauler and her family.
Murray and Mercy during their trip east. This is one of the few photos I have of JM laughing.
During the summer 1937 trip they visited Plymouth, MA and also Ottawa, IL. I don't know in which city this photo was taken.
The second grandchild to come along was Charlie, Charles Cushman Cate, born on 14 Jan 1938. The development date for the photo above was July 1939. Charlie is in front of JM and would have been a year and a half old. Charlie and Jimmy are on the table. Around the table from the left are JM, Julian, Helen Ramsey Hudlow, Jessie Mary and Mercy.
The next was Pat, Patrick O'Hair Cate, born on 14 Oct
1940. The photo above was taken at 5409 Aurora in 1943 making Pat, on
the right, going on three. I think the animal Jimmy is holding is the
lamb Mother said they had in the early years.
The sweet photo above is a still taken from the movie
of Mercy and Ed's wedding reception on 12 Jun 1940. You can see JM's red
mustache.
On 12 Jun 1941, Mercy and Ed's 1st anniversary,
JM and Mercy gave them trees to plant in the yard of their new home. They
had also given them the two lots on which their house was built. In the
photo above, Ed was planting a pecan tree and Mercy was pregnant with the
first baby which she sadly lost.
Earlier in 1941, in April, Helen and JM joined Mercy at an Eastern Star event.
Here is another photo of JM with his mustache, probably also from the early 1940s.
Murray and Mercy were blessed with two grandchildren in 1944. Billie, William Murray Rugeley was born on 10 May 1944.
Madeline Mercy Carl was born on 11 Jul 1944. The photos above were taken during the Christmas holidays 1944, only a few days before JM died. The surrealistic one on the right was made from a very deteriorated color negative. I thought the strange colors made an interesting effect, and the happy look on JM's face as compared to the 'who are you?' look on Madeline's was cute.
JM Ramsey died on Thursday, Dec. 28, 1944 at 3:30 AM. According to his death certificate, he died of Angina Pectoris that was of six days duration. He was only 59 years old. His brother-in-law, RV Murray was the attending physician. According to his drivers license, dated 1-19-45, he was described as being 6 ft tall, having brown hair, gray eyes and weighing 210 pounds. His death notice ran on the front page of the Dec 28, 1944 Austin paper,
I presume the flowers in the photo above are from Murray's funeral. The mirror has been taken down from above the mantelpiece and a photo of him was placed there.
This is the photo that was on the mantelpiece. I remember it being in Grandma's room. It must have been her favorite photo of him.
.
Above is a proclamation from the Planning Commission
of the City of Austin honoring JM Ramsey.
In addition to all the groups listed in the proclamation
and the certificate, JM was a member of good standing in the State Bar,
enrolled as an attorney in the Supreme Court of Texas. He was a member
of the Grand Jury Association of Travis County. He was a member of Austin
Consistory No. 4, Valley of Austin, Orient of Texas in the Ancient and
Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry, Southern Jurisdiction, USA. He
was also a past Patron of Austin Chapter No. 304 of the Order of the Eastern
Star.
Above, the tribute to JM Ramsey after his death was in
the 1947 nursery catalog.
It's easy to list all the groups he was part of, his profession, but
what was he like as a person? FT Ramsey wrote poetry and lots of articles
and essays giving his views on all sorts of things. We don't have the same
record from JM. Was he funny or serious? Introverted or extroverted? Sensitive
or insensitive. In his letters, he professed to love his wife, but he seemed
to often put the wishes of his mother in front of those of Mercy and his
children. That didn't affect my mother's love for him. She adored her father.
At holiday time, she frequently reminisced about her father always being
one of the Three Kings in the church Christmas pageant. The men would sing
'We Three Kings' as they walked down the aisle. I thought Mother said JM
was a tenor, but in the 1924 program, he's listed as a Bass, which makes
sense for his size.
Madeline told these stories: "Mother told me this one...actually two! I
guess JM was a lovey-dovey husband! Mother said he would come home for lunch...and
one day Mother caught them in the "act"! Another one was that when
he would leave the table to go back to the nursery...after lunch...he would
kiss Grandmas good-bye and as he was leaning over her back...give her boobs
a friendly squeeze!!" Barbara, Pat and I also remembered that JM would come
home for lunch. I don't know why that particular little fact was so memorable.
Here is Pat's version of the lunch story and some other interesting memories.
"I do have one memory. Grandpa would come home for lunch, ( I believe walking
down Avenue B?) he would lie down and maybe take a nap in the small
bed room at the end of the hall on the left up stairs. I would take a nap
with him and lying on his back he would put me on his feet which he had
lifted up and then shove me across the bed. It was probably his last year
and I would have been four. I remember mother saying that for Christmas he
would receive Bible commentaries and he got to the point that he didn't want
to keep receiving them. I think he was Sunday school supt. I remember the
funeral. Of course we stayed home and I think Ruby [Grandma's black maid]
stayed with us. As I recall after that when the will was settled it was found
out that he had taken out an uninsured loan from the bank, possibly for $10,000.
It was a large amount in those days [ $104,792 in 2003 dollars] and
Uncle Murray had to work a number of years to pay it off."
I hope to add more great stories like these to this biography.