General Notes

Following her marriage to Nathaniel Berry Porter, there is no further records found of Lula Sibley until she made out her will in 1950.

Lula, known an "Mo[n]~" to the grandchildren, had very fine, thin, hair, which she combed with a fine-toothed comb, almost like a lice comb, and pulled back tight into a bun.

Her obituary staes that she was a lifelong resident of Bankhead.


In it she reveals much about her love for her husband and his lingering illness as well as her own. She states:

"I give devise and bequeath unto my two daughters, Lillian Porter and Anita Baldwin, the old home place, consisting of 58 acres, described as 40 acres, the northeast quarter of the section of Section 31 in Township 9, South of Range 4 East, except on heretofore conveyed to my son, Jack Porter, Jr. also two acres, the north half of the east half of the west half of the northwest quarter of Section 31, in Township 9 South of Range 4 East, except one acre heretofore conveyed to my son Jack Porter, Jr., I do this because my to above named daughters faithfully and loyally nursed their father throughout his long illness and are now taking care and nursing me in my failing health, and the other of my children are self sustaining and provided for." Her obituary states that she died of an illness of one month.

"The Old Home Place" referred to above is, in 2001, still in the possession of Anita Bladwin and her husband Theron. Amon the furnishings are two prized rockers which belonged to Lula and her mother before her. Anita states that her baby picture was taken in one of the rockers and even at that time Lula was fearful that it would come apart while Anita sat in it. "The Old Home" is more than "home" to Nita and Theron; it is HOME. It is where Nita, her siblings and all of her own children were born. The children of the next generation, during its working days, regarded it as a truly wonderful place, full of barnyard animals (much like a petting zoo), woods and springs.

I need to scan in the photo of her tombstone.