4 children; 5 grandchildren (one adopted); 8 great-grandchildren (one by adopted grandchild)
1. William Perry Hay (12/8/1871 IL-1/26/1947 FL) and Annie Aletha McKnew (6/27/1869 DC-3/23/1938 FL)
-----1a. John "Jack" Oliver Hay (2/25/1906 DC-3/23/1991 OH) and Willa "Billie" Mae Bowers (8/11/1902 GA-4/5/1967 OH)
----------1b. (Shirley) Jean Hay (3/14/1932 MD-12/7/2000 OH) and Len Bills (12/13/1922 MN-3/14/1994 OH)
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---------------1c. James "Jamie" L. Bills (11/11/1965-7/10/2010 OH)
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-----1a. Constance "Connie" Hay (5/29/1908 DC-4/20/1973 France) married John Lewis "Lou" Atkins (~1907 WV->1973) -- no children
2. Mary "Mamie" Hay (8/28/1873 IL-3/13/1955 NY) and John Minnick (~1869 IN-2/15/1957 DC) -- 1 child
-----2a. (adopted) Mary Frances Minnick (~1921 NY-<1956 OH?) and Unknown Benjamin (married 1943)
----------2b. Patricia Benjamin*
3. Frances Steele Hay (1/21/1876 IA-5/21/1962 DC) -- never married
4. Robert Howsmon Hay (11/16/1882 IN-5/9/1952 DC) and Alma Elizabeth Bischoff (3/23/1886 DC-5/6/1956 DC) -- 2 children
-----4a. Donald Albert Hay (1912 DC-1978 DC) and Eleanor Dankenbring (1913 IA-1974 MD) -- 4 children
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--------------------4d. child -- died as infant
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-----4a. Perry Irving Hay (1915-1976) and (1) Jane Ballard (?-?) and (2) Kathryn "Kitty" Pultz (12/17/1914 VA-12/20/1996 FL) -- 2 children
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----------4b. (stepson) Living Thompson
----------4b. (stepson) Living Thompson
----------4b. Christine "Christy" Hay (2/5/1954 MD-11/1999 GA)
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*John Minnick's will written June 12, 1956 mentions granddaughter Patricia Benjamin in Cincinnati, OH, but neither of her parents. This is particularly odd as Patricia was probably 12 or younger at the time (Mary Frances married in 1943 according to Frances S. Hay's diary -- spouse not named). Since Mary Frances is not listed in the will, it is assumed she was deceased as of 1956, and John may not have wanted to leave money to her husband, as he might remarry. Probably also, the will was not written with an anticipation of death, so the hope was that when the day came, Patricia would be older and fiscally-responsible. No family stories were handed down about Patricia, who is not even mentioned in John Minnick's D.C. obituary; none of Mary Frances' cousins were even aware of the existence of her daughter.
Mary Frances was adopted 1921-1924; she is on the 1930 census, age 9, but she is shown in the Hay Family photo circa 1924. Given that Mamie and John were 47 and 52 and married 22 years when Mary Frances was born, it is assumed that there were special circumstances surrounding the adoption. Donna Hay recollects vaguely that Mary Frances was a child of acquaintences of Mamie and John.
The recollections of stories of Mary Frances are that she was a diabetic and didn't take her medicine (Aunt Fran's diary does mention in 1938 that "Mary Frances was very ill in the Spring, but pulled through, like Alma" -- age 17), was a "difficult" teen (running away from home, according to Jack Hay's family), was not afterwards close to her adoptive parents, and died at a young age.
Jack Hay (1906-1991, a contemporary of Mary Frances' and actually about 15 years her senior), recalled in a 1985 letter to Donna Hay that "They [Mamie and John Minnick] adopted this girl in New York when she was still quite young. After Uncle John retired, John, Mamie and the adopted girl moved to Florida. I don't know much about them except I think they had trouble with the adopted girl. Perhaps it was that she ran away." Since the Minnicks moved to Florida after 1947 (William Perry Hay's obituary states they still live in New York), and Mary Frances had married in 1943, her moving to Florida is probably incorrect. At least as of 1956 the Benjamin family was in Cincinnati. Jack Hay wrote this letter at an advanced age, and may not have remembered the sequence of events accurately. At the time of the events, in the 1930s, he was busy with his own young family, far away from both New York and Washington, DC.
Attempts to try to locate more information on the Benjamin family have not met with success. 1950 census data (available 2022) might yield a better approximation of birthdate and place of birth for Patricia. The Cincinnati city directories for 1955 and 1956 yield some possibilities of names; but it is not clear that Patricia's father would even be included -- he may have been living with relatives, he may not have had a phone, he may not have paid to be included in the listing. Perhaps when more records are computerized, an obituary for Mary Frances Benjamin could be found, which would then yield more leads.
Two Patricia Benjamins were found in the 1943 Cincinnati directory:
Name: Patricia Benjamin
Birth Date: Aug 1943
Address: 3640 Laclede, Cincinnati, Ohio 45205-0601 (1993)
Name: Patricia A Benjamin
Birth Date: Feb 1943
Address: 2922 Gilligan Av, Cincinnati, Ohio 45233-0401 (1993)
[2704 El Camino Dr, Middletown, Ohio 45044-0301 (1993)]
These are of interest, but it is thought that neither is a match, as the daughter of Mary Frances Minnick should have been born in 1944 or later. It is curious that there are two different Patricia Benjamins born in 1943 in Cincinnati. It is not known where Mary Frances Minnick Benjamin lived in 1943 at the time of her marriage.
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