52 Ancestors: Mary Ellen Hayes 1931-1993
Mary Ellen Hayes was born on September 11, 1931, in Hominy, Oklahoma, during the height of the Great Depression. The 1940 census provides a detailed glimpse into her early life, showing her family living in a multigenerational household headed by her grandmother Ellen. Her father Martin, age 33, worked as a laborer in the Oklahoma oil fields, a significant detail that helps explain both their location in Osage County (known for its oil industry) and their means of survival during the Depression. Her mother Lillie was 27, and Mary Ellen, then age 8, lived alongside her younger brothers James T. (6) and David M. (4). Also living in the home was Celestia Hayes more affectionately known as Aunt Perky. Like many families during the Great Depression, the Hayes family adapted to economic hardship by sharing a home with extended family. Not only was Mary and her family living with her grandmother, but her Aunt Perky (as we knew her. Her name was Celestia in documents) and her cousin Jay were a
