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Copyright January 2000, by Jodi Steele Catano
All rights reserved- used here by special permission
America 'Lizzie' Lykins, my Grandmother, was perhaps the most influential woman in the life of my Father, James Wilbur Steele. Her lineage can be traced back to the progenitor of this family, Nils/son Laicons (Lycans, Nilsson) Sr. Nils was born after 1610 in Sweden or Finland. His passage to America was made in 1648. For a time his family settled in Delaware near Fort Christiana. The Lycans family migrated from Delaware to Pennsylvania through Virginia dispersing in the late 1700's to the Carolinas and to the Kentucky frontier.
America descends through Isaac "IKE" Lykins who was the 3rd child of Marquis Lykins and Margaret Howin. He was born ca.1770 on Bent Mountain in the Little River section of Botetourt Co. VA and died sometime after 1830. In 1797 he married Nancy Lacy in Bourbon Co. KY and eventually removed to Morgan Co. KY where Isaac served as the Justice of the Peace. He continued to sign his name as Lycans until about 1827.
America's line descends through William Stuart Lykins to her Grand father the Reverend Milton Lykins who was born 1818 and is buried in the Lykins Cemetery on Buford Lykins's farm in Morgan County Kentucky. Milton was married twice. His first marriage was to Elizabeth Lykins the daughter of David Lykins and Nancy Williams; they had five children together. His second marriage was to Elizabeth (Kash) Ferguson born 8 July 1817, Elk Fork, Morgan Co., Kentucky. Together they had four more children. The first of which, James Franklin Lykins born 24 August 1856 in Caney, Morgan Co. KY, was the father of America 'Lizzie' Lykins. He married Phoebe Ellen Prater on September 1880 in Morgan County Kentucky. According to the family Bible America was born on November 8, 1882 in Caney, Kentucky. She died on August 12, 1943 in Cincinnati, Ohio. She is buried together with her husband Sterling Price Steele in Maineville, Ohio.
America was a short woman with beautiful black wavy hair and bright blue eyes with a hint of turquoise in them. From all that knew America she was said to have been a devoted wife, mother and homemaker, and also a devout Baptist. Eventhough she raised 11 of her 13 children she always had time for others. She cared for many and seemed to have many qualities of the old fashioned country doctor in her. She would walk miles to care for members of her family and congregation who were ill. She never minded the walk or the hours and her caring nature was always ministered with a smile and love! It was only when she didn't know the nature of the illness to be treated that she would call on her family doctor. He willingly gave her advice, which she used to help others. Only rarely was the doctor called to her home and then only in times of severe illness.
James Wilbur Steele was born almost exactly a year after his brother James Curtis Steele who was stillborn. Even though America and Sterling named him James he rarely used this name until he married his wife Grace Schollard. His sisters knew him as 'Jack' and his daughter Loretta remembers him as 'Robert'. It has been said that this Steele family rarely used their first names but rather their middle names and in the case of my Dad he simply made up his name!
He was very devoted to and perhaps very spoiled by his mother, Lizzie. One of his sisters commented in a letter that the family doctor was worried about his apparent shyness, which he attributed to all the sisters around him all the time. From time to time when life seemed to take a wrong turn for this son of America, one could find him at home again with mom supporting and loving him. I have included some excerpts from letters, which were written by Dad and America. You could feel the love in these letters.
The following letter is from Dad to Irene his first wife. I think if things would have worked out for him....He would still be married to Irene. I believe she was the love of his life. The following text of this letter shows a very sweet man. A man I never knew before I read this love letter to Irene. "My Dearest Sweetheart" Will write you a few lines as I am very lonesome thinking of you and the way things was pulled today....I have a good home for you and assure you will be treated like a baby as long as I live. My cousin told me he thought I would go to work the 15th where he works. I want you to let me know at once (if you will marry me) so I can come and get you for I can't live much longer without you...for you are the sweetest thing I ever saw. Don't make it any longer than this week for I am tore up so bad I can't do anything but sit and cry like a darn fool....Let me know when you want me to come and I will be there...Bob (James W. signs his name Bob)"
The address on the letter above was Foster Ohio R.R. 1...America's address where Dad was living at the time. This was his proposal letter to his first wife Irene the mother of my Sister. Loretta told me that Dad was so shy that he saw Irene at a party and went home, wrote her a letter and asked her for their first date. I thought this was so cute and yet he seemed so vulnerable. I only wished I could have touched a part of the man he was when he was younger before he insulated himself from these tender emotions. At least I know now that there was much more to this man who was my 'Dad'.
The following excerpts are from a letter that America wrote to Loretta and Irene quite a
while after the divorce. It was
dated Dec. 17th, 1942 about 8 months before she died. The love that this woman felt extends
itself through this letter to anyone
that reads it.
"Dear Irine and Loretta,
Rec.d your letters and cards. Sure was glad to hear from you and to know you was well. I havnt
been well for
2 months. I was helping Price haul hay and got hurt 2 months ago and am just geting to where I
can set up part time. Loretta
your picture is so sweet. Can't you come and stay with Grandma and go to school. The bus runs
by my door and there is 4
little girls lives by me. They would take good care of you at school. Irine, bring her up at Xmas. I
sure would love to have you
all any time. Loretta, your dad come home the evening your cards and pictures come. He will get
you some things for Xmas
and will get you more things along honey. He sure loves you. He is about out of debt now and
will be more able to help you
through school. So I will close as I am nervis since I've been sick. Now come up soon from
Grandmother and mother Steele.
Ps. I am sending you a card. I didn't like it but I just got it at a grocry store and they didn't have
any good ones so
by..by...(Signed) America Steele"
This letter was written several years after the James Wilbur and Irene divorced, yet one can hardly deny the effort to maintain the relationship with Irene and Loretta. One can see clearly from the text of the letter that America was truly a loving person...she sounds so frail almost frightened and lonely. I wanted to know this beautiful, gentle woman.
The story that was shared with me by my Dad, James Wilbur Steele, who I think, was perhaps mostly true, defined for me the reason why he never went home again. America's health began to fail as she approached middle age and she developed Diabetes, a disease she didn't know she had. She seriously hurt her back helping Sterling to load hay and was in bed most of 1942. The diagnosis was that she had had a severe Gall Bladder attack and she needed surgery in 1943 for gallstones. She asked her youngest son (my Dad) if she should have this surgery. The doctor had told her that she would die without it, so James or Jack as she referred to him gave his approval. Her husband Sterling didn't want her to have the surgery and she wasn't sure exactly, which course to take. It was at this time that she, knowing who loved her most in the world, asked her last son what he thought she should do. James Wilbur knowing that the doctor thought she could die without surgery encouraged her to have the gall batter operation. One of my cousins shared with me that America was over anesthesized, complicated by the diabetes, and never regained consciousness. She died while in surgery on August 12, 1943. She was dearly loved and missed by all that knew her.
After this surgery there was a very heated argument between Sterling, her husband, and James Wilbur. Sterling was furious that Dad had given permission for the surgery and a bitter battle ensued. James Wilbur took his car, the clothes on his back, to his sister Uva's home and spent the night. He told her in the morning he would be leaving. At sunrise he headed West and didn't stop until he found the great Pacific. It was here that James Wilbur Steele would begin a new book in his life and close the old one for good. Twenty two years later I opened the old book once again and discovered three more families and my ½ sister, Loretta. When Dad died on the corner of our street, in the Bay of a Standard Service Station, with his boots on, he carried one picture in his wallet. I have asked Dodie to put this picture up as it shows his mother as I know he remembered her.... You can feel the love through this picture. In the original copy you can see Dad's shadow and his little square brownie camera with the sun behind him. I remember this camera, as it was the only one we had for the longest time and of course that old Packard Car that his mother bought him. I know why he kept it so beautiful and hesitated to ever sell it. It was the last thing that his Mom had given him. It was a present after he finished High School. She had used it to entice him to complete his education because he had taken 2 years off to help his Dad on the farm.
