Peter Herbert Gauslin, Lydia Jane Moore, and their children

Peter Gauslin and Lydia (Moore) Gauslin were my great-grandparents. Their daughter June (Gauslin) Daft was my grandmother.

Peter Herbert Gauslin was born on July 28, 1878 in either Stephenson, Menominee County, Michigan or Green Bay, Brown County, Wisconsin. His parents were John Henry Gauslin and Mary Jane (Montgomery) Gauslin.

On December 3, 1904, Peter married Mabel Edith Wood. Mabel was born March 18, 1888 in Peshtigo, Marinette County, Wisconsin. She was a friend of Peter's sister Edith Anora (Gauslin) Nault Moore.

Peter and Mabel had at least seven children. Three were either stillborn or died in infancy, and I don't know their names. The other four were:

1. Arvella C. (Gauslin) Riedel Guse (1906-1970)
2. Florence Gauslin (1910-1918)
3. Gertrude Alice (Riley) Fredericksen Cook (1912-1990)
4. Herbert Eugene "Herbie" Gauslin (1913-after 1940)

Peter and Mabel got divorced in 1916 or 1917 and in February 1917, their four living children were taken to the state orphanage in Sparta, Monroe County, Wisconsin. Gertrude was adopted almost immediately by Robert and Doris (Seeney) Riley, who she had been living with before the divorce. The remaining three children were placed with various families, but not adopted. Florence died of influenza at the orphanage, while Arvella and Herbie aged out and reunited with their mother. Because Gertrude had been adopted, the orphanage would not tell her biological family where she was, and they never found or spoke to her again.

In 1916 or 1917, Peter married Lydia Jane "Jennie" Moore. Jennie was the stepdaughter of Peter's sister Edith, and was about 17 years younger than him. Jennie was born September 10, 1895 in Birnamwood, Shawano County, Wisconsin to Ferdel S. "Fred" Moore and Augusta Frederika (Thiede) Moore.

Peter and Jennie had seven children together. Their children were:

1. Pelagia Olive "Peg"/"Peggy" (Gauslin) Christopherson (1917-2004)
2. Henry Herbert Gauslin (1918-1919)
3. Fermal Ida "Fern" (Gauslin) Krahn Elmore (1921-1994)
4. Howard Alto "Alto" Gauslin (1923-1931)
5. June Eunice (Gauslin) Daft (1926-2017)
6. John Ivan "Jack" Gauslin (1928-2003)
7. Marlyn Evelyn Pellow (1930-2002)

Peter was injured in a car accident on July 4, 1931, and had "a series of convulsions" in January 1932. Peter suffered a stroke in January 1933, and as a result, he was committed to the Northern Hospital for the Insane in Oshkosh, Winnebago County, Wisconsin. In May of the same year, he was transferred to the Outagamie County Asylum for the Chronic Insane in Grand Chute, Outagamie County, Wisconsin, where he died on February 18, 1934.

Jennie had one child after Peter's commitment:

1. Carol Lee (Parks) Grimsley Hartshorn (1934-1962)

Carol Lee's biological father was one of two men, William Daniel Champeau (1897-1964) or Leo J. Champeau (1911-1935). The brother of these two men lived in the house next door to Jennie, and one of them must have been living with or visiting their brother at the time of Carol Lee's conception.

Jennie died of tuberculosis at her father's home in Rhinelander, Oneida County, Wisconsin during a statewide heat wave on June 3, 1934.

The surviving six children were sent to live with various relatives, friends, and others. Peg worked for a dentist's family in Minocqua, Oneida County, Wisconsin. Fern briefly lived with the Dewey and Edna (Achtner) Strong family of the town of Maine, Outagamie County, Wisconsin. The Strongs were Jennie's paternal cousins. June was raised by her maternal grandparents in Rhinelander. Jack lived with Henry and Louise (Dufresne) Sly for several years before he also went to live with his maternal grandparents. Henry Sly was a sheriff's deputy and likely learned about the Gauslin family at the time of Peter's commitment.

The two youngest children, Marlyn and Carol Lee, were adopted by other couples, Archie and Lena (Ziglinski) Pellow of Rhinelander, and Harrell and Elizabeth (Copeland) Parks. The Pellows were friends of the Sly family, while the Parks family were neighbors of the Strongs in the town of Maine.