John Henry Wasley was born September 12, 1856, in the town of Bodmin, Cornwall County, England. He was the son of John Wasley, a copper miner, and Mary (Polmear) Wasley. By the age of 14, he was working in the copper mines. In 1873, at age 16 or 17, he came over to the United States. He may have been in Colorado as early as 1885, as the Colorado census for that year shows a John Wasley living in Weld County working as a clerk. We know that he was in Platteville as early as 1891, for that is the place and year of his marriage to Missouri-born Minnie Margaret McCarty, who was born in 1866. In 1900, John was a wine merchant, and he, Minnie and their children resided on Goodrich Avenue in Platteville in a home which they owned outright. John and Minnie went on to raise six children, four boys and two girls.
John established the J.H. Wasley mercantile store in Platteville, most likely around 1910. He is the person standing second from right in the picture, to the left of the boy with the dog. I wonder if the woman in the picture is Minnie, and if the children in the picture are she and John’s kids? You’ll note that the sign on the store says “Dry Goods and Notions, Shoes,” and “Groceries” are advertised on Wasley’s wagon parked in front. Dry goods would have included fabrics; ready-to-wear clothes; sundries, such as hand soap, hair oil, and razors; and “dry” grocery items, such as tobacco, sugar, flour and coffee. The term “notions” is a reference to sewing products, such as thread and needles, as well as items which could be attached to clothing, such as buttons and collar stays.
We know that J. H. played the cornet and was a member of the Platteville Cornet Band. He appears in a photo posted on-line on “History of Weld” website at https://history.weldgov.com/County-150/Weld-County-Towns . Click on “County Photo Album” and cursor down to “PLATTEVILLE” –you’ll see John pictured as a member of the Platteville Cornet Band. He’s standing over towards the right with his horn resting on the band’s bass drum.
According to the U.S. Census, by 1920, the entire family had picked up and moved to Los Angeles, where they lived at 1049 West 54th Street. By this time, John would have been about 64 and possibly retired from business. Minnie would have been about 54. Their four boys were of majority age now, and, according to the census, three of them were employed, one as an elevator operator, one as an assistant superintendent of an office building, and one as a meat cutter in a butcher shop. Their two youngest children, both girls, were 16 and 13 years of age, so there was still parenting to be done. To have three income earners in the home may have made for a more comfortable retirement for the parents.
John died in April 1927 at the age of 71. In 1930, Minnie was still residing in L.A. at West 54th Street with three of her sons and both daughters, all five of whom were single and employed. This continued to be her residence until her death in the summer of 1938 at about the age of 72.
REFERENCES:
- “History of Weld, Weld County, Colorado – Weld County Towns,” at https://history.weldgov.com/County-150/Weld-County-Towns
- California Death Index, 1905 to 1939 (www.ancestry.com)
- Colorado State Census, 1885 (www.ancestry.com)
- Los Angeles Times, dated August 16, 1938 (www.newspapers.com)
- Polmear Clan family tree (www.ancestry.com)
- 1851 and 1871 English Censuses (www.ancestry.com)
- 1900, 1910, 1920 and 1930 U.S. Censuses (www.ancestry.com)
