John Francis Nunan and Anita Juliet Reedy

John did not have an extensive education but his letters, written in a beautiful script, showed him to be a perceptive, intelligent and philosophical man. (A few of his letters have been saved by his granddaughter, Susan Mushkin Hamaker.) He was an avid reader and enjoyed "debating" the issues of the day. No matter the subject he could take the opposite side for the sake of a good discussion.

He was an avid baseball fan, attending as well as playing the game whenever he could. One of my fondest memories is a Seattle Rainiers baseball game he took me to at the old Sick's Seattle Stadium. He was familiar with every player, knew their weaknesses and strengths and what play they were likely to try in any given situation. He called the pitches and predicted the direction of the hits. I was very impressed that he knew what the player was going to do next, or what they should have done!

He loved music. He played the drums and sang whenever he got the chance. We don't know whether music was important in his parent's home but it definitely was in the home he made with his wife Anita. Both interests stayed with him for his entire life.

John was a proud of being a "South of the Slot" boy. The Nunan family lived in the area described as the Mission District, south of Market Street. It is characterized in The San Francisco Irish 1848-1880 as a working class district with a high percent of the population being born in Ireland or second generation Irish; the 1880 Census counted 45.2% Irish in the 11th ward of the city which included the Mission District.

The earliest address found for the Nunans is the 1502 Mission Street flat in the 1900 U.S. Census. We know John's parents, John Joseph Nunan and Mary Donovan were married in 1881 but the addresses of their earlier residences are unknown. (The 1890 U.S. Census was destroyed by a fire in Washington D.C.) This predominately Irish Catholic neighborhood was the environment in which young John Francis grew up.

There is no doubt that he was an active young man full of energy. When he was a teenager he was fooling around on the cable cars with his friends and had an accident in which he lost the toes on one foot. As a result he walked with a limp for the rest of his life. We know he left high school without graduating and went to work. We also know he enjoyed "tipping a few with the boys". The way a Nunan could "hold" his liquor was a matter of pride then as it is now.

The family lived in various apartments and flats in San Francisco. For the most part the family rented flats or lived with Ellen Murray, John Joseph's sister. Their addresses have been documented through the city directories. In 1903 they were still living at 1502 Mission and John J.'s occupation was marble-cutter while 15 year old Joseph (at the same address) was a shade maker. There were over 30 Nunans listed in that directory, none related as far as we know.

His mother, Mary Elizabeth, died 29 August 1905 when John Francis was 16 years old.

In the year of the earthquake, 1906, John still lived with his father and brother on Mission Street. He recalled being awakened by the earthquake and thinking at first that his brother had come home in the early morning hours from a night on the town and pushed him out of bed. Across the street the earthquake and fire destroyed the houses, but those on their side of the street were untouched. John recalled that his father had recently injured his leg and they had some difficulty getting "the old man" out of the house. There was no way anyone could tell how far the fire would spread so they were evacuated from the area like everyone else. John told his children that he was sent down the peninsula with other refugees from the fire but came back and camped out until the fire burned out.

The 1907 city directory lists the family living at 75 Brady. His father John Joseph, was shown as a marble worker, and his brother Joseph, a salesman. The 17 year old John Francis' occupation was listed as a driver. He was working for the San Francisco Transit company.

In his lifetime John Francis watched the city of San Francisco grow from a population of 299,000 people to over a three-quarters of a million in 1950. When he was only nine years old the Spanish-American war broke out and troops from San Francisco sailed to the Philippines. As a young man he watched Shag Rock and Arch Rock being blown up in the Bay; he watched the development of the Presidio and Golden Gate Park; he escaped the bubonic plague that reappeared in the city in 1907 and 1908 and certainly must have attended the 1915 Exposition. John was 28 years old with a wife and four children in 1917 when the United States entered the Great War, World War I. It must have been hard to see his brother go off to war and then to lose him to pneumonia without a shot being fired.

Anita Juliet Reedy was born 3 February 1890 in Modesto, California. She was the first child of John Reedy and Anna Marie Horn. While we do not have a birth certificate for Anita, a Certificate of Baptism from

the St. Stanislaus Catholic Church which we obtained in August 1984 gives her date of birth and shows that she was baptized on 3 March 1890 by Rev. P. McGuire. Her godparents were shown as Jacob Dunn and Agnes Dunn. A picture of Anita taken when she was about two year old shows her dressed in a lace trimmed long dress wearing a cross and resting her hand on a cut plush bench or footstool.

We do not know very much about Anita's childhood. The family lived in Modesto until sometime after 1896 when the they moved to San Francisco. Anita and her brothers must have attended school in San Francisco. Her mother, Anna Horn Reedy, died in San Francisco in 1900 when Anita was ten years old. Anita and her baby sister, Irene, went to live with their Aunt Maggie Dunn in Modesto. John Dunn, Maggie's husband, was a prominent citizen being an early rancher in the area. The girls were listed living with the Dunns in the 1900 census, but there is no mention the boys in the San Francisco census where John Reedy is listed as a widower living in a boarding house. Anita and Irene were with their father in San Francisco at the time of the earthquake. They were sent by ferry to Alameda where they stayed with their Aunt Mary Eliza (Mrs. Philip) Kiernan and then back to Modesto.

John Francis and Anita Juliet Reedy married on 24 December 1908. Where they met and how long they knew each other is unknown. Anita had a job before marriage but in the tradition of the time did not work outside the home after the wedding. Anita's full time job was the maintenance of their home and raising the children. They eloped and were married at City Hall because Anita's father would not give his consent to the marriage. It has been said the Nunans were not "lace-curtain" enough for John Reedy. Perhaps he felt they were too young and John too wild. Anita used to claim that John Francis originally took her to the dog license counter when they went to City Hall for the marriage license. While they didn't marry in the Catholic church (and were "ex-communicated" for their sin) all their children were baptized and raised in the Catholic religion.

In the 1910 and 1911 San Francisco Directory John's father was living at 204 Noe; his brother Joseph lived at 824 Union. John Francis was not listed in the city directory. The 1910 census, however, shows he was living with his wife and baby son, Raymond, at the home of his aunt, Ellen Murray, at the Noe street address. "Aunty" Murray was listed as "Head of the Household", and her household contained her three children and brother, John Joseph Nunan, along with her nephew.

On September 30, 1916 an Agreement for Sale of Real Estate was made between Jessie Robertson , wife of W. J. Robertson of Piedmont California and Anita R. Nunan, wife of J. F. Nunan. The house was on 45th Avenue; the price was $1,600. The terms required $100 down and payments of $20 per month at 6% per annum. The Nunan's daughter Shirley believed the down payment was loaned to Anita by her brother, Albert. For whatever the reason, the purchase of property and ownership by the wife of a family was very unusual in that time. On October 1, 1920 the deed to that property was registered in Book 237 of the Official Records of San Francisco on page 22. William J. Robertson (apparently the husband of Jessie) signed the Deed.

John Francis' life was not centered in his work. Except for a short time he always had a job and supported his family, even in the Big Depression of 1929. At one point he was out of work because of an injury sustained playing baseball. He broke his jaw and spent time in the hospital and recuperating at home. With John out of work for an extended time, the parish priest tried to help. Anita was outraged at being offered "charity". The good pastor finally resorted to bringing a bundle of food and clothing to the Nunan home. Welfare was a dirty word in the Nunan home! After recovery John obtained a job as a warehouseman through his brother-in-law, Albert Reedy. He previously had worked for many years for the San Francisco Transit first as a driver then a conductor; he worked for other companies as a salesman and then as a shipping clerk. When he retired in 1959 he had been with Bethlehem Supply Company for 28 years.

John and Anita were married for 51 years and had eleven children, ten surviving to adulthood. Of the ten, nine married and eight of those marriages produced children. Their surviving children and their birth dates

are:

Raymond Francis	12 October 1909
John Joseph (Jack)	10 December 1910
Albert Stanley	1 September 1912
Helen Irene	8 May 1915
Shirley Anita	13 July 1917
Dorothy Jean	10 December 1919
Robert Henry	4 May 1921
Marianne Patricia	14 March 1923
Donald William	30 March 1924
Barbara Joyce	2 July 1925

In 1938 John was honored as Champion Father by the Sunrise Breakfast Club. His picture appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle story of 20 June on page 15: City Observes Father's Day

Women were given the vote with the passage of the 19th Amendment to the constitution in 1920. Anita became the first woman in the family to vote and she received much "advice" from her husband and sons over the years about how to cast her ballot. There is some belief she became a Republican to counteract her husband's Democratic vote.

During World War II Anita and John had four sons in the middle of the action. Jack and Bob were in the Army in France and Belgium; Al served as an officer on a merchant marine ship and Donald as a gunner in a Navy plane, both serving in the South Pacific. Like all families with sons in the war they displayed a banner in their window with a star for each son in the service. Thank heaven those stars never were replaced with gold stars indicating loss of life.

My memories of my grandmother are from the privileged perspective of the first grandchild. She had strong standards about the way a young lady should dress and behave. Grandma impressed on me that a girl should be dainty and ladylike. I felt I never quite lived up to her standards but never felt rejected. As a child I was brown and freckled and chubby. I could never be considered dainty. My sister, Susie, was blond, blue-eyed and petite. My preoccupation with my fingernails and cuticles I trace to Grandma's interest in their condition. She often would take my hand and massage the fingers and push back the cuticle. A lady must have long fingers with well kept nails!

Both Anita and John loved to read, a trait many of their descendants share. While I do not recall them having a large collection of books, Anita always had to have her magazine especially the weekly issue of "Life". John read the newspaper from front page to the last ad.

Music was an important part of the Nunan family life. John loved to sing and sought every opportunity to do so. Whenever the family came together he would begin the singing always starting with songs with the names of family members in the title. Grandma would always be serenaded with "Juanita", my song was "Diane", Susan's was "If You Knew Susie", and Carolyne had "Nothing Could Be Finer Than to Be in Carolina in the Morning". I recall being taken as a child to Pete's, a bar on Highway 99 where he got up and sang with the band. It is still true that whenever two Nunans get together there is singing. The old songs are cherished and enjoyed the most. I've found a contemporary recording of old songs played in the manner of the era in which they were written. It includes "I Got Rings on My Fingers" written by Maurice Scott and "I Don't Want to Play in Your Yard" by H.W. Petrie. Sometimes I play the record singing along and remembering my Grandfather. One of my favorites is a song he used to sing:

While John grew up "south of the slot", he and Anita lived in the area north of Market Street including Clement Street in the Richmond District where Helen Irene was born, Fillmore Street, and Scott Street. Some of my strongest memories are of the San Francisco flat my grandparents lived in; the dark halls and stairways, the nearness of the houses, Grandmother's yellow canary and the smells of her baked beans. I remember Grandmother giving me stewed prunes to eat. I remember Aunts Patsy and Barbara teasing me about my "boyfriend" Bobby; they taught me to sing "You Made Me Love You" and had me perform in a show put on by neighborhood kids in a garage. (Or was that in a movie?)

Anita was very conscious of the fact that John Francis' father was born in Ireland. She always claimed that her family was not Irish, probably meaning that they were not recent immigrants. She was proud of her mother being a teacher and talked about her grandfather building the first dam on the Merced river. She had a strong sense of family importance using the influence of her god-mother Agnes Dunn to obtain entrance of her daughter Helen to Notre Dame High School. Close contact was maintained with cousins from the Donovan, Murray, Reedy, Dunn and Horn branches of the family.

Whenever he visited Seattle, John would take the bus down-town. He often brought back salt-water taffy. An astute observer of the city, he never failed to notice and comment about every change. Whenever I see the sky-line of Seattle or San Francisco I think how he would have been interested in the growth and would have had something to say about the development of our cities. In 1954 John retired at age 65. Anita, born and raised in a small town, had always wanted to move to the country so with the help of their son Jack's G.I. benefits they bought a home in Cupertino at 19200 Tilson Avenue. The "South of the Slot" boy mowed the grass and planted a garden. They enjoyed their new home living not too far from the city or their children and grandchildren.

I was the first grandchild in the Nunan family and my son, Eric, was their first great-grandchild. John and Anita traveled to Seattle to be on hand for Eric's birth. As the result of a doctor's miscalculation, the baby was scheduled to arrive in May. The expectant Great-grandparents arrived but Eric didn't until 11 July 1958. They stayed at Helen's home, waiting out the delay by visiting local scenic sites. When I came home from the hospital Grandma was there to help, feeding me tea and soup. She gave Eric a silver napkin ring that had been given to her by her Aunt Maggie and Uncle John Dunn when she was born. It is engraved M. & J. D. to A. R. 1890. It is a cherished heirloom.

At the end of July 1958 Helen and her husband, Ralph Pipkin drove her parents back to California. In August John and Anita lost two of their children. Raymond Francis, their first born, died on 14 August 1958 and Dorothy Jean died on August 23rd. Dorothy's death was particularly sad as she had given birth to her son Franky (Francis Jerome Fontana) on August 11th. She died from an infection contacted in the hospital. Helen traveled back to San Francisco for both funerals. When she returned she decided to sell her house and move to California. Helen and Ralph left Seattle in November.

John and Anita celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in December 1958at a party given by their children. It was the last time they were together as a family.

A birthday celebration for John in March 1959 ended with a serious automobile accident. Ralph had a broken leg. Helen's jaw was broken and she suffered a severe skull fracture. Anita's ribs were fractured. John was hospitalized with head injuries. Susan and I took the bus to Palo Alto, staying with Aunt Shirley. We visited Mother and Ralph in one hospital and our Grandparents in another. Being assured they were not in danger of dying, and not able to be of any help, we returned to Seattle.

Three months later, after being released from the hospital John Nunan suffered a heart attack and returned to Santa Clara Hospital where he died on 22 June 1959. Susan and I returned for the funeral bringing Eric, his first great-grandchild. We stayed at Grandmother's home in Cupertino. John Francis was laid to rest in the Nunan family plot in St. Mary's Cemetery in Oakland.

After her husband died Anita lived with her daughter Shirley Bacchini. She had numerous health problems including cancer. One of the last times I saw her was in 1970 when she came to Seattle with Uncles Bob and Donald to attend the funeral of Susan's oldest boy, Charlie. My daughter Randi took particular care of her great-grandmother. We were concerned that Randi's comforting pats on the hand might be too strenuous and injure the frail, 80 year old lady.

Anita's brother Albert Stanley married Mabel Tadich late in life. They had no children. According to information on his death certificate he served in the armed services in World War I. As a manager with Bethlehem Supply Company he helped John F. Nunan obtain a job after his baseball injury. Albert died of tuberculosis 19 August 1940. He is buried in Holy Cross Cemetery.

Irene, Anita's sister, married John Nunan's cousin Warren Cain, the son of Catherine Donovan and Jacob Cain. They had two children, Claire and Warren. Claire married a man named Wilson and had two daughters, Christine and Susan. Christine married Jesse Orozco and has children whose names are unknown. Irene died in San Francisco in August 1983.

Anita's other brother, John Henry Reedy married Francis. Their two children were Lois and John (Jack). Research is incomplete on this branch of the Reedy family.

Anita Juliet Reedy Nunan died of a stroke 30 June 1972. She is buried in St. Mary's Cemetery in Oakland in the Nunan family plot.