| Notes |
- Fragments of an article about Nelle and Ernest's wedding from The Spectator [?] or, more likely, from a local Tennessee, Ill. newspaper.
"The altar was decorated with a simple arrangement [of] ferns and large sprays of pink and white roses. The decorating had been done by the clover leaf club of which the bride is a member and to them she gave her bouquet as she passed from the church.
"The bridal party and the relatives were entertained at an informal reception at the Battson home after the wedding. Mr. and Mrs. Walker went that evening to their own home which they had furnished on the Walker farm two miles west of Tennessee, [Ill.] where they are now at home to their many friends.
"The wedding remembrances were numerous and beautiful consisting of silver, china, linen, cut glass, pictures and other gifts.
"Mr. and Mrs. Walker are popular young people wherever they are known, and are both active in the church work on this charge. The groom is the son of Mr. and Mrs. H.M. Walker. He graduated from the Agricultural department of the University of Illinois in 1910, and is now making a practical application of his knowledge. The bride is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. J.S. Batson of Tennessee and is a graduate of St Mary's Academy at Quincy. She has taught school for a number of years and is an accomplished young woman.
"The ceremony was witnessed by about one hundred and fifty relatives and friends. Those in attendance form a distance were: Mr and Mrs. J.B. Taylor and children, Mrs L.V. White, and Miss Winifred Howell, of Palmyra, Mo.; Miss Mary Rooker from Hale, Mo.; Miss Bessie Post of Quincy; Gladstone Clark of Carthage, Mr. and Mrs. M.H. Irish and son, Frederick of Williamsfield; Mr. and Mrs. Fred Foltz of Good Hope, Mr. and Mrs. R.G. Breeden of Crystal Lake, Ill., Mr. and Mrs Frank McClellan and Miss Julie[?] Bonham of Macomb.
"The wedding day, June 12th is one with man associations in the Walker .... ter's wedding besides several minor events which have occurred on that day. It was also the thirteenth wedding anniversary of the officiating minister, Dr. Baker, who was the groom's pastor during the time he spent at the University of Illinois.
"A number of pre-nuptial showers were given for the bride and these were given and[?] will conclude with a reception to be given in honor of Mrs E.W. Walker by Mrs. M. H. Walker Tues. afternoon when one company of ladies will be entertained from 2 to 4 and another from 4 to 6."
[Note: The above article seems to be incomplete as there is no mention of attendants, clothing, etc. I do know that the flower girl was Kathryn Taylor. -- LKL]
Battson -- Another badly fragmented or copied article from an unknown source.
"The recently dedicated Methodist Episcopal church at Tennessee was the scene of a beautiful church wedding at 9 o'clock Friday evening June [12] which united the lives of Mr. Ernest DeWitt Walker and Miss Nellie Battson, both of Tennessee, Illinois, [ ? ] Jame C. Baker, pastor of the Tri[nity] Methodist church at Urabna [sic.] officiated assisted by Rev. Paul Garvin of [?]chester.
"When the hour for the ceremony [?]...river, a short musical program was given by Miss Bessie Post, violin[ist?] of Quincy and Miss Bess Battson, pianist, sister of the bride. The bridal party entered the church to a str[?] of Mendelssohn's[sic] Wedding March played by these young ladies. The ushers were Charles Webb, Kenneth Waddill, and Henry Lawrence of Tennessee, and Gladstone Clark of Carthage, all friends of the groom, the latter being also an Alpha Zeta fraternity brother. Next came the bride's maids, Miss Mary Rooker, a cousin of the bride of Hale, Mo. and Miss Winifred Howell, a friend from Palmyra., Mo. followed by the flower girls, Miss Gladys Battson, the bride's sister and a cousin, Miss Kathryn Taylor, of Palmyra, Mo. who preceded the bride. They were met at the altar by the officiating clergymen and the groom, and his best man, Richard G. Breeden of Chicago, who entered from the side. The impressive ring[?] ceremony of the Methodist church was read and the scene as they repeated the vows was one that will long be remembered by all present.
"Another strain of Mendelsshon's[sic] Wedding march was played as a recessional.
"The bride made a charming appearance in a white satin messaline gown with an over-dress of shadow lace. She wore a bridal veil fastened with sprays of asparagus plumosa and carried a showed bouquet of bride[?] roses. The brides maids dresses were of pink satin messaline trimmed li[?] shadow lace and the flower girls wore white dresses and carried baskets...." [again the article is cut off.]
[Obituary of] Nellie Walker -- from the Champaign News Gazette]
Nellie B. Walker, 97, of 101 W. Windsor Road, U[rbana,Ill.] died at 6:45 p.m. Sunday (Nov. 6, 1983) at her home.
Funeral services will be 1:30 p.m. Thursday at Renner-Wykoff Chapel, Urbana, the Rev. Richard L. McGuire officiating.
Burial will be in Woodlawn Cemetery, Urbana.
Visitation will be one hour before the services at the funeral home.
Mrs Walker was born Oct. 23, 1886, at Marion County, Mo. a daughter of John S. and Etha McLeod Battson. She married Ernest D. Walker on June 12, 1914 at Tennessee. He died March 30, 1968.
Survivors include two sons, Ernest W. Walker of Urbana and Richard B. Walker of Seattle, Wash.; seven grandchildren; and a brother Paul Battson of El Passo Texas.
She was preceded in death by a son, a brother and two sisters.
Ms Walker attended St. Mary's Academy at Quincy, Centenary College at Palmyra, Mo., and Western Illinois University at Macomb. She was a member of the First Methodist Church, Urbana, the United Methodist Women, the University of Illinois Agronomy Wives, the Soil Conservation Society of America, and the Monday Club. She served on the board of directors of the Cunningham Children's Home.
Memorials may be made to the First United Methodist Church, Urbana, or to the Cunningham Children's Home.--Champaign News Gazette, Nov. 7(?), 1983.
Remebrances of Nelle Walker by Kay Taylor Long
Nelle Walker was a very close relative and had a lot of influence in my life. Because she and her husband were the only "family" we had in the Champaign-Urbana community, we saw a lot of them. In fact it became a tradition to spend New Year's Day with them to listen to (later view) the Rose Bowl Game. The relationship was not, for many years, known in the local community. In 1937 when my father, Jack Taylor, came to the U of I to teach, the University had a rule that no two members of the same family could be on the staff. Since Nelle's husband, Ernest, was on the Agricultural Extension faculty, my father was technically in violation of the rule by accepting the job. Either of the two men or both could have lost their jobs in those perilous depression times! Consequently whenever they met at University functions, they ignored each other.
Nelle was a very jolly person with an infectious laugh-- probably McLeod traits. She was very out-going and socialized a great deal. She was also very community-minded, serving on the board of the Cunningham Home orphanage and being active in the Urbana Methodist Church. My father was always trying to get my mother to involve herself in a similar pattern, but this was not satisfying to Mom. Nelle believed that married women should not work, but my mother had no such inhibitions. Eventually, in the early 1960's my mother did join and enjoy a "sewing group" of which Nelle had been a member for many years.
Nelle and Ernest were avid travelers in the years after the War until the early 1960's. They journeyed all over the western United States and Mexico. Many of these trips were based on family visits as two of their sons and all of her brothers and sisters lived in the West. They saw far more than just family, visiting all the major and many minor tourist attractions and stopping to chat with farmers and to note their progressive use of new agricultural techniques. Ernest had a Leica camera which one of his sons had acquired during the War in Germany in trade for some cigarettes. He was expert in using it with all its complex f-stops and focal distances. Their post-travel slide shows were my first exposure to the beauties of the U.S. and probably contributed to my enjoyment of travel.
Nelle was very kind to me and was always interested in my development. I can remember her teaching me about manicures when I was about 4 or 5 years old. Later, when I was in high school, she asked me to help her hostess a Christmas Tea which she annually had for the neighbors. I think she felt that I needed exposure to this type of gracious entertaining!
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Taylor Family Genealogy
1886 - 1983 (97 years)