Caullay – Ivers Extended Family History

Prepared by James Wade Ivers | December 31, 2025

Introduction

Please follow with the Family Tree while reading this Family History.

This Family History is a self-edited collection of stories and recorded facts about the John Caullay and Margaret (McCrae) Caullay families of Kilmacolm, Scotland from the 18th century to present. This project is not all-inclusive by any means, but it is a record of stories and information that I have heard or found recorded over many years during my lifetime… with a few factoids and musings thrown in. I believe that Caullay history is interesting indeed and is worth sharing and preserving for our current generation and for generations to come. A separate Ivers-centric Family History Project is underway with more family photos and documents… completion date to be determined.

Family Lore And Scottish Clans

According to my Aunt Flora (Logie) Caullay (see page 11) who became the reliable keeper of family information after my mother died in 1968, family lore suggests that the Caullay name has sixteenth century French origins, but lore also suggests family ties to the centuries-old Duke of Argyle and Chief of Clan Campbell. Although nothing could be found to support this folklore, it is noteworthy and provides historical context to know that our great(plus) grandparents and their ancestors were born in Scotland before the American Revolution, and that our great(plus) grandparents were married in Scotland around the time of the American Civil War. These Scottish families remained in Scotland however until their descendants emigrated to Canada and the USA in the twentieth century.

Anglicization

I wondered from time to time if there was any Scottish Clan affiliation for the Caullay family name, but I never took the time to find out until starting to write this family history. For years I had mistakenly assumed—wrongly as it turns out—that all Scottish surnames were affiliated with a clan in one way or another, but that is not the case. I did find convincing information that many Scottish surnames were anglicized by the English government in the 17th to 19th centuries to make Scottish surnames sound more English. Anglicization, however, is the stuff of academic English and Scottish history books and is not within the scope of this Family History. I believe however that with a bit of scholarly reverse engineering the Caullay name is a prime example of these changes. Starting with the original MacAulay (from ancient Gaelic-Norse means literally “Son of Aulay”) being shortened gradually over centuries from MacAulay to Cauley and finally to Caullay.

The MacAulay coat of arms and Badge Crest with a decorative Irish shamrock for good luck was purchased from a street vendor at a Highland Games in Detroit. There is nothing official about it and I cannot vouch for its authenticity, but it serves as a point for reverse engineering Caullay through MacAulay and vice versa. There are no official Scottish government statistics available on Clans or Septs, but I can report that contemporary experts and Clan societies estimate that less than 5–10% of Scotland’s population today identify with a Clan through membership, society participation, or personal genealogy. Scottish Clans today serve as links connecting people to their heritage within Scotland and across the Scottish diaspora including communities in the USA, Canada, England, Ireland, and New Zealand. Information about Clans is available through the non-government Council of Scottish Clans & Associations (COSCA) web – cosca.scot and the Scotland Registry of Tartans web tartanregister.gov.uk. Clan Tartans are unique plaid designs that are registered with the non-government Scotland Registry of Tartans and identify the Clan of the wearer. There is no Caullay Clan—but if you wish to self-identify as Scottish without a Clan affiliation, there are several universal or generic Sept Tartans with no specific Clan affiliation that welcome new members and can be easily found on the internet. Get thee to a library browser for more information.

Scotch No More

“Irish” is widely accepted as properly referring to anyone with ancestry from the Island of Ireland. On the other hand, calling, or referring to someone, or oneself—as “Scotch” is considered outdated or even offensive. “Scotch” can be used when applied to whisky or foods but is viewed as improper or archaic when applied to people. The compound identity “Scotch-Irish”, “Scotch-American”, or increasingly “Scots-Irish” remains in nominal use today in Appalachia-USA reflecting the presence of descendants of Ulster Scots, Scottish Protestants who emigrated to America in the early 1600s and who somehow have managed to maintain a group identity centuries later. That, however, is another story that is beyond the scope of this Family History.

Scottish Surnames

Scottish families did not customarily give middle names to male children – there are seven John Caullays in this family history with no middle names and no surname suffixes (Sr. Jr. II etc.) resulting in minor confusion at times. I have attempted to clarify the relationships between our seven John Caullays by referring to them in italics as John (father), Son John, and John (son). Also, the question remains – is it Mc or Mac? Although “Mac” is more common in Scotland, and “Mc” is more common in Ireland, both appear in our family history reflecting our mixed Scottish-Irish heritage. John Caullay and Margaret McCrae broke with tradition in giving sons Robert McDiarmid Caullay and Malcolm MacDiarmid Caullay middle names and then spelling those middle names differently. Minor confusion?

Earliest Marriages

Dates of birth and death are sometimes available from old records and gravestones in the precolonial era, but marriage dates were less reliably recorded and often not available. The Family Tree should help clarify these relationships.

Alexander McCrae & Margaret McCradie – Alexander was born in Scotland in 1754 and died in Scotland in 1829. Margaret was born in Scotland in 1754 and died in 1847.

Hugh McCrea & Mary Logue – Hugh was born in Scotland in 1780 and died in 1844. Mary was born in Scotland, but dates of her birth and death are not known.

John Caullay & Janet Fulton – John was born in Ireland in 1827 – John emigrated to Scotland in mid-1800s where he met and married Janet Fulton. John died in 1892 in East Kilbride, Scotland.

Malcolm McCrae & Flora MacPhail – Malcolm was born in 1840, in East Kilbride, Scotland but the year of his death is not known. Malcolm married Flora MacPhail who was born in 1845 on Isle of Islay, Scotland. Malcolm and Flora were the parents of Margaret McCrae.

John Caullay & Annie Ward – John was born in 1856 in East Kilbride, Scotland and died there in 1911. Annie was born in 1858, and she also died in 1911 in East Kilbride.

John Caullay & Margaret McCrae – John Caullay was born in 1873 in East Kilbride, Scotland. Margaret was born in Bridge-of-Weir, Scotland in 1872. John and Margaret were married in 1898. John emigrated to Flint, Michigan USA in 1927 and then emigrated with Margaret to Windsor, Ontario, Canada in 1928—See LEAVING SCOTLAND below for more information on Caullay family emigration to Canada and the USA. Margaret died in Windsor, Ontario, Canada, in 1954 and John died in California, USA in 1957. Both are buried in Windsor Grove Cemetery, Windsor Ontario.

The John Caullay – Margaret (McCrae) Caullay Family of Kilmacolm, Scotland in early 1900s…

John Caullay – Father

Margaret Caullay – Mother

James Caullay (born 1906—died at 9 mo. with measles)

Robert McDiarmid Caullay

John Caullay – Son

Malcolm MacDiarmid Caullay

Flora McPhail Caullay

Anne Fulton Caullay

Margaret (Peggy) Caullay

Moira Caullay (born in Canada in 1931)

Low Shells Kilmacolm

The Caullay family lived in Kilmacolm, Renfrewshire, Scotland for many years up to and during WW1, until emigrating to the USA and Canada in the 1920s. Kilmacolm was a village of about 1200 residents according to the Canada census of 1901, located approximately 20 miles from Glasgow, the largest city in Scotland at the time, with a population of 762,000. The Caullay family lived in a multi-unit residential building in a place called Low Shells in Kilmacolm. Low Shells was built as a school in the early 1800s and then became a hotel before being converted into a multi-family residential building in the late 1800s with no street address—before postal street names and addresses came into use in Kilmacolm. Residential telephone service was not widely available for residential use until late 1920s making letters and Postcards the principal form of communication outside of the home.

HALF PENNY AND PENNY POSTCARDS (PCs) were the most popular method of civilian correspondence throughout the United Kingdom (UK) before the start of World War 1 in 1914. Their low cost and ease of use allowed frequent—often daily—use by soldiers and civilians alike. PCs from distant UK locations and the war front addressed simply “Caullay, Low Shells, Kilmacolm” were delivered in one or two days. Traditional letters in envelopes remained the preferred form of communication, but frequent Postcards became an important part of the daily lives of soldiers and their families.

Ww1 1914-1918 – Caullay Men Go To War

John Caullay was a Sergeant Major R.E. (Royal Engineer), the highest enlisted rank below Warrant Officer in the British Army Signal Service in WW1. John maintained his Regular British Army rank and readiness through his years of service in the British Army Reserve—6th Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders-Royal Engineers Signal Service, while also working as a civilian railroad inspector in Scotland and raising his large family. It is not known if John served in any of the rebellions that threatened the British Empire world-wide in the late 1800s, but 41-year-old John was called to active duty in the Royal Engineers Signal Service at the start of WW1 in 1914. The Signal Service was vital to British Army communications, handling everything from telegraphs and telephones to dispatch riders on horseback and motorcycles, and early wireless systems. Their work ensured coordination across battlefields, often under fire and in harsh conditions.

John Caullay’s three sons – Robert—age 18, John age 16, and Malcolm Caullay age 14 served in the British Army during WW1 1914–1918 as well. Robert Caullay served in the Royal Scots Fusiliers, an infantry regiment—John Caullay (son) served in the newly formed RAF-Royal Air Force, and Malcolm Caullay served in the infantry of the 6th Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders. The Caullay boys were a few of approximately 250,000 under aged “Boy Soldiers” who succumbed to the Patriotic Fervor that swept across Great Britain and enlisted in the British Army fearing that they would miss out on the greatest adventure of their generation. Their enlistment and service in battle begs the question of parental judgement in allowing the boys to enlist at that age in the first place.

Few War Stories

Like soldiers in later wars, the Caullay men shared little about their personal experiences in WW1, but one brief story stands out in my memory—I believe that it was my Grandpa John Caullay who told the story while puffing on his meerschaum pipe. “During pauses in the trench warfare fighting, soldiers on both sides were so close that they would occasionally shout offers to swap goods with the other side—with Germans mostly wanting ‘Bully beef’ from British supplies and the British wanting German ‘schokolade’ that they craved. When the last tins of corned beef and the last bars of chocolate were exchanged—thrown like footballs, or soccer balls, across ‘no man’s land’—the fighting resumed.” While recalling this memory and writing about it, I can conjure up the sweet fragrance of Grandpa’s pipe tobacco smoke in my mind as if he was in the room with me.

Leaving Scotland

In the aftermath of WW1 returning British Army soldiers and their families faced tough economic times and high unemployment in Scotland. Many were forced to look elsewhere to improve their lives, and the promise of a fresh start, economic opportunities, and the adventure of crossing the Atlantic by steamship to the USA or Canada that was promoted in British and Scottish advertisements became a reality for the Caullays starting in 1923. That was a pivotal year for John and Margaret Caullay because their youngest son Malcolm Caullay was engaged to marry Marion Jamieson Tuten, who was born in 1899 in Lanarkshire, Scotland. Malcolm and Marion were married April 18, 1923 in Kirkintilloch, Dunbarton, and emigrated to Canada where they settled in Windsor, Ontario. Malcolm took a job in an auto plant.

Ida (Walker) Caullay, wife of John Caullay (son) died from sepsis in 1923. Records of John and Ida’s life and marriage could not be located, but a brief “In Memorium” newspaper Ad in The Kilmacolm Advertiser newspaper was placed by the Caullay Family observing Ida’s death on March 5, 1923. John (son) decided to leave Scotland, but he was headed for the USA, not Canada. John (son) worked his way across the Atlantic in September, 1923 as an Assistant Steward on the ocean liner SS California. The California was the same ship that eleven years earlier on April 14, 1912—with a different captain and crew—infamously ignored the distress signals of the RMS Titanic and failed to respond.

In September, 1923 John (son), with the help of a friendly Scottish immigrant coworker Donald MacKechnie from Campbeltown, Scotland, took a job at Buick-General Motors in Flint, Michigan. As John (son) settled in Flint, he secured the promise of a job for his father at Buick as well. This was the pre-depression “Roaring 20s” economy and factory worker jobs were plentiful despite a struggling economy that foreshadowed the Great Depression.

Difficult Decision

John (father) and Margaret (Granny), while both were still in Scotland, decided to move the family from Scotland to the USA. John (son) and oldest son Robert was approved by USA immigration for entry, but approval for the female family members was held up by quotas and red tape in the USA. With son Malcolm already in Canada, and John (son) already in the USA, the difficult decision was made to go ahead with their planned move to the USA. But John (father) and oldest son Robert would have to go alone at first and bring Mother and Daughters along later.

Settled In Flint

John (Father) departed in May 1927 and Robert in June 1927—and John Caullay (father) and oldest son Robert went ahead with the move to the USA and they settled in Flint, Michigan with John (son) who had arranged a job for his father at Buick-General Motors. While working in Flint, John (father) continued seeking USA immigration approval for the family, but according to my Aunt Flora (Logie) Caullay, Granny decided after a year and one half that they had waited long enough and she took charge. She put her foot down and changed the plan for the family to move to Canada instead of the USA. Granny instructed the Sergeant Major, probably by telegram, “John, meet me in Windsor!” and he did. Go Granny! Canada and Scotland were both part of the British Empire in the 1920s, and Canada was friendly to Scottish emigrants. Approvals were granted by Canada, and the Caullay Family move from Scotland was complete in 1928.

Caullay Family Emigration From Scotland By Date

Caullay Family Events Bracketed Ww2

The Caullay family was directly and indirectly connected to two tragic events that bracketed WW2. In their emigration to Canada in September 1928 the female Caullay family members crossed the Atlantic on the SS Athenia without incident. Eleven years later—on September 3, 1939—the same passenger liner SS Athenia that carried the Caullay women to Canada in 1928 was torpedoed and sunk by a German U-boat, becoming the first British ship sunk in WW2. This sinking marked the start of the war in Europe on the same day that Britain declared war on Germany. Of 1418 passengers and crew on board, only 117 survived—no Caullay family members were on board the SS Athenia in 1939. It is noteworthy that this tragic coincidence bracketed WW2—eleven years before the start of the war and Jackie Caullay’s death in Holland (Netherlands) one month before the end of the war in Europe on April 8, 1945.

A Death In Europe And Life In Canada

As the war in Europe—WW2—was nearing an end, the Caullay family suffered the loss of John (Jackie) Caullay, Malcolm and Marion’s son. Jackie was born in Kirkintilloch, East Dunbartonshire, Scotland but emigrated to Windsor, Ontario Canada with his parents at age three in 1928. Jackie was a Private in the Canadian Army—48th Seaforth Highlanders of Canada when he was killed in action by German fire in Holland (Netherlands) on April 8, 1945—one month before the end of the war in Europe on May 8, 1945—now VE Day. After the family was settled in Canada and USA, John (father) worked at Ford Motor Company in Windsor until his retirement in the late 1930s. During his retirement years in Canada and during WW2 John stayed in touch with his British Army past by working at the HMS Hunter-Canadian Naval Training Center in Windsor. John put his British Army Sergeant Major experience to good use in various capacities including lastly as a bartender in the HMS Hunter’s servicemen’s Pub/Club serving Canadian and British military personnel in Windsor. The extended Caullay family, including the Murphys in Windsor-Canada, and the Ivers in Detroit-USA, exchanged occasional cross border social and Holiday visits via the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel and the Ambassador Bridge.

Savory Gifts

Visitors to Windsor often brought gifts of savory Scottish favorites that were not available in Detroit… Blood Sausage, Scotch Meat Pies, and Forfar Bridies. Memories of occasional overnight visits by young Dave and Wade Ivers to Granny and Grandpa’s house at 1050 Gladstone in Windsor in the 1950s are triggered today by visits to popular restaurants in what is now “Little Italy” on Erie Street (now Via Italia) in Windsor. Veal dishes, pizza, and pasta with red sauce have replaced steak and kidney pie, meat pies, shepherd’s pie and haggis on the menus of Italian restaurants that are just a few blocks from the old house at 1050 Gladstone in Windsor that our grandparents called home. The old house and the neighborhood get a drive-by for old times’ sake when we are in Windsor. The house and the neighborhood are still standing and have aged well.

Caullay Children And Their Families

Robert (Bob) McDiarmid Caullay – Robert was born in Scotland in 1896 and served in the British Army in World War I from 1914-1920. Robert Caullay of the Royal Scots Fusiliers suffered German gas attacks in the trenches of France that extended his Army service by two years for recovery and treatment and left him partially disabled with lifelong lung damage. Despite his partial disability, Robert worked for Post Cereal-General Foods in Windsor for twenty years until his death at age 52. He never married and he lived with his parents, John and Margaret Caullay, until his death in 1949. Robert is buried next to his parents, John and Margaret Caullay in Windsor Grove Cemetery in Windsor, Ontario.

John Caullay (son) – John was born in Renfrewshire County, Scotland in 1899. He enlisted in the British Army at the start of WW1 in 1914 in the newly formed RAF-Royal Air Force, in Britain and France—during the open cockpit biplane era. After the war, John married Ida Walker, who was born in 1897 in East Kilbride, Scotland. Little is known about Ida (Walker) Caullay’s life, but she died of sepsis in 1923. After Ida’s passing, John traveled to the USA working as an Assistant Steward on the ocean liner SS California. Upon arrival in the USA in September 1923, John was assisted by Donald MacKechnie and his wife Isabella (McInnes) MacKechnie in his move to Flint Michigan in 1923, and in being hired at Buick-General Motors. The MacKechnies were Scottish emigrants from Campbeltown, Scotland and Isabella MacKechnie was a sister of Catherine (Kate) McInnes, whom John later married. Through his personal contacts and work at Buick, John was also able to secure the promise of a job for his Father at Buick. While in Flint, John (son) met and married Catherine (Kate) MacInnes who was born in 1897 in Campbeltown, Scotland. Catherine was living with relatives in Detroit in 1930 when she and John were married in Detroit. John and Kate lived and worked in New York City, and Flint, Michigan before settling in Detroit where they worked and lived the rest of their lives. In his younger years, John (son) excelled in athletics, especially soccer, and he was an accomplished golfer in his senior years. John and Kate were both very active in Shrine Masonry for many years and John (son) was a 33rd Degree Mason – the prestigious highest honor bestowed on a Mason in recognition of exceptional service to the fraternity and to society at large.

John (Ian) Caullay was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1931, but Ian was raised in Detroit after his parents John and Kate Caullay moved from New York to Detroit in the 1940s where Ian met Ruth Alice Windsor who was born in Detroit in 1928 and lived in the same Detroit neighborhood as the Caullays. Ian and Ruth were married in 1949. Ruth was an accomplished pianist who shared her love of music and the arts with Ian and their family. Both worked hard at multiple jobs to support their growing family. Ian worked fifteen years for General Motors Financial at Corporate Headquarters in the GM Building in Detroit, but his success cost him his job when he refused a promotion to a GM Financial office in New York City that required moving his family from Detroit to Manhattan. After leaving GM, Ian moved on to a second career as Court Clerk for Chief Judge John O’Brien in Detroit Recorders Court/36th District Court—where he worked until his retirement in 1991. Ruth (Windsor) Caullay worked most of her career for the Wayne County Friend of the Court serving families and assisting the Court in domestic relations for many years while raising her family of seven children until her retirement in 1990. Ian and Ruth are buried in Cadillac Memorial Gardens in Clinton Township, Michigan.

Children and Grandchildren of John (Ian) and Ruth (Windsor) Caullay-

John (Jock) Arthur Montgomery Caullay – devoted partner of Bruce James Boka for 43 years – Bruce died in 2018.

Catherine (Cathy) (Lewis) Caullay – married Gary Lewis. Cathy and Gary are the parents of Gary, Ryan and Maria Lewis. Cathy died in 2024. Gary Lewis is a Detroit Born Scot of the Clan MacLeod of the Lewes—historically centered on the Isle of Lewis, Scotland. Gary is a retired self-employed Wayne State University Graduate Electrical Engineer.

Ruth (Barrie) Caullay – Ruth married David Barrie – they have one son – David.

Susan (Susie) Caullay – married Ron Velthyusen – Susie died in 2007.

Kevin Caullay – married Bernadette Lamerise – Kevin and Bernadette are the parents of Hannah and Brigette.

Julie Caullay – Julie married and divorced William Beatty – they had three children – Cassie, Alexandra (Alex), and Donald Beatty – Julie married Scott Trump and they had two children – Hunter and Haley Trump – Scott and Julie were married when Julie died in 2013.

Ian Caullay – married Danielle Aiello – they have no children.

Malcolm MacDiarmid Caullay – Malcolm was born in 1901 in East Kilbride, Scotland. He served in the British Army in World War I as a member of the 6th Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, the same Line Infantry Regiment that his father Sergeant Major R.E. (Royal Engineers) John Caullay (father) served in, but not in combat. Family lore holds that Malcolm at the age of 14 was the youngest soldier in WW1, but history shows that due to a shortage of conscripts during the war the age for service was lowered from age 18 to age 15, and that was not strictly enforced. After the war, numerous 12-year-old soldiers were discovered to have been improperly enlisted. Malcolm’s bravery and extraordinary service remain distinguished, nonetheless. Malcolm married Marion Jamieson Tuten, of Kirkintilloch, Scotland, in 1923 in Scotland before emigrating to Canada in the same year. Newlyweds Malcolm and Marion emigrated to Windsor, Ontario Canada in 1923. The 1931 Canada census shows Malcolm working in Windsor as a machinist for an automobile company, but little is known about Malcolm and Marion in the 1930s until they moved to Altadena, California in 1945 where Malcolm filed a Petition for Naturalization, and Marion filed a Declaration of Intention, both seeking US citizenship in 1946. Immigration and passenger lists for a visit to England and Scotland in October 1949 lists Malcolm’s trade as “Butler”. Malcolm and Marion moved from Windsor to Detroit and then to California where they lived until Malcolm was killed in an automobile accident in 1954. Marion died in California in 1986.

Malcolm and Marion Caullay had two children – John (Jackie) Caullay and William (Billy) Tuten Caullay.

John (Jackie) Caullay was born in Scotland in 1923 and served in the Canadian Army – 48th Seaforth Highlanders of Canada in World War II. Private John Caullay was killed in action by German fire on April 8, 1945, during the liberation of Holland (Netherlands) one month before the end of WW2 war in Europe on May 8, 1945. May 8th is now celebrated as VE Day.

William (Billy) Tuten Caullay was born in 1928 in Walkerville, Canada and married Ruby Johnston in 1951. Billy and Ruby had three children – Nancy, Virginia, and Llwynne. Billy died in Oregon in 2015.

Flora (McPhail – Young – Logie) Caullay – Flora was born in East Kilbride, Scotland in 1908 – Flora emigrated to Canada with her family in 1928. Sisters Flora and Anne Caullay both worked as servants in different Grosse Pointe homes in the 1930s but their residences and immigration status while working in USA during that time was not determined. Anne remained in the Detroit area and Flora returned to Scotland in the late 1930s and married Hugh Brown Young. No information was available on Flora’s marriage or life with Hugh in Scotland – Hugh died in 1941. Flora returned to the USA and married John (Jack) Logie a Scottish immigrant in California in 1945. Flora and Jack operated a bakeshop in Pasadena, California. Flora had no children. Flora changed her middle name from McPhail to Caullay on her citizenship petition. Flora died in California in 1998.

Anne Fulton (Ivers) Caullay – Anne was born in Kilmacolm, Scotland in 1910, emigrated to Windsor, Ontario, Canada 1928, and to Detroit in the 1930s. Anne married James (Jim) William Ivers in 1939. As a child growing up in Kilmacolm, Anne enjoyed field hockey and soccer for fun and recreation. She also was an active Girl Guide in her teenage years earning badges for camping and life skills and advocating for women’s rights. Her daily responsibilities included delivering milk on foot from the nearby Crawford Dairy to neighborhood customers. Anne Caullay and Jim Ivers had four children – John David Ivers, James Wade Ivers, Florence Elizabeth Ivers, and Brian William Ivers.

ANNE FULTON (IVERS) CAULLAY – KILMACOLM TO GROSSE POINTE

In the 1930s in the USA, Anne worked as a maid and cook in posh Grosse Pointe homes when Scottish help was fashionable with wealthy Grosse Pointers, despite the great depression. Anne’s service and kitchen skills were polished while in service to a well-known family in Grosse Pointe. While working in Grosse Pointe, Anne found a better use for expense money that was budgeted for her to feed people-food to a houseful of spoiled pet cats during the family’s frequent lengthy travel vacations. The money was used instead to supplement “rent parties” among her informal social network of Scottish friends who were similarly employed by other Grosse Pointe families. Money and food collected from working friends at these parties was shared with the neediest among them. The cats ate cat-food and scraps, but they never complained. Experience gained through service to her well-known employer helped prepare Anne for greater cooking responsibilities as the resident full-time Cook and House Mother at the Cottage Hospital Nurses’ Quarters, feeding dozens of resident Nurses daily. The Nurses’ quarters were located on the same Cottage Hospital grounds in Grosse Pointe where James (Jim) William Ivers worked in the boiler room, bringing them closer together. In time, but lacking funds and not wanting a formal wedding, Anne and Jim eloped in 1939 to the then popular wedding capital of the USA – Angola, Indiana. Anne was always aware of her health problem with “sugar” but in the days before health insurance was commonly available, there was never enough money for niceties like doctor visits. That, and a mother’s stoic self-sacrifice prevented Anne from being properly diagnosed and treated for the diabetes that took her life on January 22, 1968.

John David (Dave) Ivers was born in 1942 in Detroit – Dave enlisted and served in the United States Navy-Submarine Service 1961-1963 – Dave married Nancy Krassow, born 1944 in Bowling Green, Ohio in Detroit in 1963 – Early in his career, Dave worked as an Operating Engineer in Detroit, but most of his career was spent in service to members of the Operating Engineers Union as Business Agent, and in officer positions of Operating Engineers Local 547. Dave also served twenty years on the executive board of AFL-CIO and he was an officer of the Detroit AFL-CIO. Dave is committed to his AA program, and he has remained active for over forty years. Dave is an activist in politics and social movements. Nancy worked as a bookkeeper in business early in her career, and later in the office of Trinity Lutheran Church until retirement. Dave and Nancy had two children – Amy Jo Ivers and James Scott Ivers.

Amy Jo (Meier) Ivers was born in 1963 in Fostoria, Ohio. Amy married Timothy (Tim) James Meier in 1985, and they are the parents of Erica and Alison. Amy earned a BA Degree at University of Michigan in 1985 and an MBA from Central Michigan University in 2019. Tim received a BS degree from Wayne State University in 1985 and an MBA in 1989. Tim works for Corewell Health, formerly Beaumont Hospital, in Administration. Amy works for DFCU Financial in Dearborn, Michigan. Amy and Tim have two Daughters Erica and Alison.

Erica Rachel Meier was born in 1988 – Graduated with a BA-Bachelor’s from Albion College, and a Master’s MA in psychology from Central Michigan University. Erica works for a non-profit substance recovery center in Saint Clair Shores, Michigan. Erica is unmarried.

Alison Sarah (Bower) Meier was born 1990 – Alison earned a BSN degree from Ferris State University in 2019, married James (Jimmy) Bower, born 1990. Allison is a Registered Nurse and a Plastic Surgery Operating Room Nurse at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit. James is a Central Michigan Graduate and is a sales engineer for Bosch Automotive.

James Scott Ivers was born in Detroit in 1965. Scott married Tammy Bennett 1994. Scott was an Operating Engineer for the Detroit Water Board and Tammy works for the Grosse Pointe Library. Scott and Tammy had a shared interest in all sports, and they encouraged their two children Axel and Erin to participate in school athletic programs. Scott died in 2012.

Axel David Ivers was born in Port Huron in 1994. Axel is a Michigan State University Graduate Engineer working for General Motors in the Auto industry – Axel is a skier who likes to travel. He lives in Detroit and is unmarried.

Erin Elizabeth Ivers was born in Grosse Pointe in 1996. Erin is unmarried and lives in Saint Clair Shores. She is a student at Wayne State University studying Geology and works as a server in an upscale restaurant in Grosse Pointe.

Jerome (Jerry) Vincent Scola – was born January 25, 1965, in Detroit to Anne (Moore) Scola, of Algonac, Michigan, and Gaspard (Gap) Scola of Detroit. Jerry’s Mother Anne (Moore) Scola, born July 6, 1929, suffered with terminal cancer from the time of Jerry’s birth until she died on June 25, 1967. Jerry’s Father (Gap) Scola was not able to raise Jerry, so Jerry lived with Grandparents Jerome (Pa) and Grace (Ma) Scola and other family members on an erratic schedule for about one year. Marie and Wade Ivers assumed responsibility for Jerry, and with agreement from Scola and Moore family members, they arranged Legal Guardianship. Jerome Vincent Scola (Jerry) became a permanent member of the Ivers family in 1968. Jerry became a big brother to Daniel Ivers when he was born in 1969, and to Timothy Ivers in 1973. Jerry, Danny, and Timmy were raised as Brothers, and they remain so today. Jerry married Gina Marie Oliver of Michigan in 1984. Jerry and Gina are the parents of Amanda Anne Scola born 1988 in Detroit, Michigan. The family moved from Michigan to Chattanooga, Tennessee in 1991 where son Jacob Wade Scola was born in 1998. Jerry and Gina were divorced in 2007. Jerry married Alison Kruszewski of Michigan in 2008 and together they have five adult children – Amanda Scola, Jacob Wade Scola, Alexa Mary Grace Kruszewski, Kristi Ann Anderson and Ashley Nicole Levanzie.

Amanda Anne Scola – married Christopher Coleman in Tennessee in 2013 and they had one child – Aria Grace Coleman, born 2021. They divorced in 2023. Amanda received a BS-Bachelor’s Degree from Southern Adventist University in Collegedale, Tennessee and received her MSN-Master of Science degree in Nursing from Regis College, Weston, Massachusetts. Amanda received her DNP-Doctor of Nursing Practice from Regis College as well. Doctor Scola is a clinical psychologist in McDonald, Tennessee. Amanda Scola married Anthony Hess in 2024. Anthony has two daughters Delaney Hess, born 2012, and Zaylee Hess, born 2018. Doctor Amanda Scola Hess and Anthony Hess are the parents of son Ethan Hess born in 2024 in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Jacob Wade Scola was born in 1998 in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Jacob worked in the construction industry for several years while studying Civil Engineering at Chattanooga State Community College. Jacob graduated in 2025 and is continuing his post-graduate studies toward a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering. Jacob is engaged to marry Daizie Dean, of Russellville, Kentucky in 2026.

Alison Kruszewski is a Medical Assistant in an orthopedic medical practice in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Daniel Wade Ivers was born in 1969 in Grosse Pointe Park, Michigan. Dan graduated from Saginaw Valley State University in 1991 with a BA degree in criminal justice. Dan spent two summers of his college years working in fisheries in Valdez, Alaska, after which he lived and worked in Los Angeles for nine months before returning to Detroit to work for Video Design Co. as an industrial film maker in Troy, Michigan. After Video Design, Dan worked for DC Automation Inc in Sterling Heights as an industrial robot programming contractor working in auto plants in Europe and North America. Dan was working in Toronto, Ontario when he met Moni Kate, who was visiting Canada from Hungary. Dan and Moni were married in 2004 in Kunhegyes, Hungary, and lived two years in St. Louis, Missouri before divorcing in 2007. Dan then formed a boutique media/advertising company, Maiden Detroit, serving small businesses in Metro Detroit. After cannabis became legal in Michigan, Dan co-owned a dispensary in Detroit, until changes in the law made the business unprofitable. Dan returned to his work as a freelance video marketing consultant.

Timothy David Ivers – Tim was born in 1973 in Detroit. Tim married Doena Dawn Henschel in 2008. Doena was born in Warren, Michigan in 1980. Doena has worked as a Veterinary Technician since 1996 and today is the Hospital Director of Gasow Veterinary Hospital, Birmingham, Michigan. Doena received a BAS degree in Veterinary Technology from St Petersburg College in 2013. Doena completed her studies and graduated from Central Michigan University in 2025 with a Master MAS degree. Tim and Doena are the parents of James Vincenzo Ivers who was born in 2009 in Warren, and Vincenzo Ronald Ivers who was born in 2011 in Warren.

Tim followed in his Grandfather Jerome (Pa) Scola’s footsteps and has worked as a painter-contractor much of his life, while also pursuing other entrepreneurial endeavors. In the 1990s Tim started, owned, and operated Michigan Painting Pros, an independent commercial painting contractor that Tim still operates today, while also remaining active in internet marketing and web design. Tim moved to Las Vegas for two years in the early 2000s to start up and operate First Class Valet-Las Vegas. First Class Valet provided valet and limousine services to non-gaming businesses in the Las Vegas area. Tim sold First Class Valet and returned to Detroit to successfully develop Parking Links.com as an internet-based reservation system for airport parking and shuttle services. Tim sold Parking Links to a competitor and has returned to painting and internet marketing – web design.

Florence Elizabeth (George) Ivers was born July 16, 1946, in Detroit. Florence was the kindest, funniest, most giving member of our family and she was her mother Anne’s companion and best friend after her father Jim Ivers died in 1963. Florence had nicknames for her three brothers that cannot be printed here. Despite chronic health, financial, and disability problems, Florence never lost her sense of humor. Florence usually worked as a beautician, but she met her future husband Richard George when they both worked at a meat packing house in Eastern Market-Detroit. Florence and Richard were married in 1973 and, according to George family relatives, Florence became an accomplished Lebanese cook. Richard was born in 1925 in Detroit and was a WW2 Navy veteran (1944-1946) who served on a mine sweeper in the South Pacific in 1945. Richard enjoyed fishing and doting over his baby daughter during his disability retirement years. He died in 1988 of heart failure after several months of illness. Florence died suddenly on Christmas Day 1989 of heart complications from Systemic Lupus, leaving 15-year-old Colleen in the care of her Uncle Wade and Aunt Marie Ivers. Florence and Richard had one child – Colleen Michele George.

Colleen Michele George was born in 1974 in Detroit. After the deaths of her Father, Richard George in 1988, and her Mother Florence (Ivers) George in 1989, Colleen lived under the care of her Uncle Wade and Aunt Marie as guardians while she finished high school and graduated from Troy Athens High School in 1992. Colleen visited her Uncle Brian Ivers and Aunt Barbara in Monrovia, California for several months before moving to Florida at age twenty in 1994. In Florida, Colleen met and married Mark Hardial. Mark and Colleen had one child, Sara Elizabeth Hardial. Colleen and Sara moved to McDonald, Tennessee in 2016 before Mark and Colleen divorced in 2017. Colleen met and married Robert Scarbrough in 2021. Colleen, Robert and Sara live in Cleveland, Tennessee. After working as employees of several different businesses for many years, Colleen and Robert have taken the bold step of opening and running their own business in Cleveland, Tennessee. THE CHURCH STREET DELI serving “To Go” Breakfasts, Light lunches, and Specialty Sandwiches to students and office workers in nearby College and Court buildings.

Brian William Ivers – Brian was born on December 10, 1948, in Detroit. After losing both his father, Jim Ivers in 1963, and Mother, Anne Ivers in 1968, Brian was living on his own at age nineteen, and he voluntarily enlisted and served in the U.S. Army. After basic training at Fort Knox Kentucky, Brian was assigned to Fort Eustis Virginia where he trained as a Huey Helicopter Crew Chief, responsible for maintaining the aircraft and serving as a door gunner during combat operations. He was sent to Vietnam in 1969 and was stationed at Tay Ninh, 12 km from the Cambodian border, where he flew 1325 flight hours in combat before he was seriously wounded by enemy fire. Brian received the Purple Heart Medal for his wounds, and he was awarded the Air Medal with V53 numeral – V for Valor and 53 for his 1325 hours in combat. After his return from Vietnam, but still not fully recovered from his wounds, Brian was assigned to the 1st Infantry Division at Fort Riley Kansas. During his time with “the Big Red One”, Brian participated in NATO Operation “Reforger” in Germany and was honorably discharged at the end of his enlistment. Lingering complications from his wounds remain a part of Brian’s daily life today. After completing his military service, Brian moved from Michigan to California with Barbara Burns of East Detroit, Michigan in 1972. Barbara was born in Detroit in 1951 and grew up in East Detroit (now Eastpointe) Michigan. Brian and Barbara married in 1973 and were divorced in 1999. Barbara worked as a Respiratory Therapist at Huntington Memorial Hospital in Pasadena for thirty years before moving to West Virginia in 2019.

Brian worked for Huntington Memorial Hospital in Pasadena, California in administration for ten years before starting a successful career at Lawry Foods/Restaurants in Los Angeles in 1980 working directly for Richard Frank, CEO-Chairman. After retirement, Brian maintained contract relationships for personal services with Richard Frank directly, and with other retired Lawry’s executives and their families. Brian and Barbara divorced in 1999 and have two adult children – Benjamin James Ivers and Bradley Joseph Ivers.

Benjamin James Ivers was born in 1978 in Pasadena, California. Ben followed his father Brian Ivers in working for Lawry Foods/Restaurants and for Richard Frank, CEO-Chairman in various capacities during his college years. Ben earned a bachelor’s degree in engineering from Cal Poly Tech-Pomona. After graduation from Cal Poly, Ben moved to Everett, Washington for his post-grad education and a career at Boeing Aerospace. In Everett, Ben met Shannyn Collins who was born in Everett in 1980. Shannyn earned a bachelor’s degree from Cal State-North Ridge and a master’s degree in teaching from Washington State University. Shannyn (Collins) Ivers currently is a grade schoolteacher in Fairfax-Alexandria, Virginia. Ben and Shannyn were Married in 2009, and have one child, Edith Florence Ann Ivers, born in 2014. Ben’s career at Boeing has required extensive domestic and international travel for years, as does his current position as Director-Autonomous Systems Regulatory Affairs at Boeing in Washington D.C. and Everett, Washington.

Bradley Joseph Ivers was born in 1983 in Pasadena, California. Brad received a bachelor’s degree from Citrus College, Covina California. Brad met Amanda Totten, who was born in Atascadero, California. Amanda received a bachelor’s degree from Cal Lutheran, Fillmore, California. Brad and Amanda were married in 2018 and moved to Clarksburg, West Virginia where Amanda (Totten) Ivers is an analyst for the FBI-Federal Bureau of Investigation. Bradley works for Aurora Flight Sciences, a subsidiary of Boeing Aerospace in Bridgeport, West Virginia. Amanda and Brad have three children – Finn Ivers, who was born in 2021 in Clarksburg, West Virginia, Owen Patrick Ivers who was born in Clarksburg, West Virginia on March 17, 2023, and the newest member of the Ivers family – Jack Robert Ivers, who was born in Clarksburg, West Virginia in April 2024.

Margaret (Peggy) (Murphy) Caullay was born in Kilmacolm, Scotland 1912, emigrated to Windsor, Canada 1928. Peggy married Arthur Joseph Murphy, an English immigrant from Barrow-In-Furness, Lancashire, England to Walkerville, Ontario, Canada in 1934. The Murphy family moved from Windsor to California in the early 1950s, where Margaret (Peggy) died in 1986 – Arthur died in California in 1990. Aunt Peggy was the fun Aunt who kept things light. She was the one to mug for the camera while taking a bite out of a large turkey leg. The Murphys were the first in our extended family to have a TV, making occasional sleepovers in Windsor by nephews Dave and Wade Ivers even more enjoyable. Before moving to suburban Windsor, the Murphy home on Marentette Avenue in Windsor was a short walk from Granny and Grandpa’s house at 1050 Gladstone Avenue in Windsor. Margaret (Peggy) Caullay and Arthur Murphy had four children – Arthur Joseph (Buddy) Murphy, Margaret Ann (Paliwoda) Murphy, Sheila Elizabeth Mary (O’Brien) Murphy, and John (Jack-Jackie) Murphy.

Arthur Joseph (Bud) Murphy – born in Windsor, Ontario, married Helen O’Laughlin in 1965. Bud had a highly successful 35-year career as an engineer and a senior executive with Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL-NASA). Bud worked in support of early NASA spacecraft Gemini, Mercury, Mariner and Viking. Later in his career, Bud managed technology development programs for NASA and became a fierce advocate for continual future space exploration. Bud died in August 2022.

Margaret Ann (Paliwoda) Murphy born 1938, Windsor, Canada married Morris Paliwoda who was born in 1937 in Montreal, Canada, they moved to California in 1964 – Margaret Ann died in an automobile accident while on vacation in Poland in 1993 and is buried in California. Morris died in California in 2012.

Sheila Elizabeth Mary (O’Brien) Murphy born 1941, Windsor, Canada – moved to California with Murphy family 1959 – married Francis (Frank) E. O’Brien in Huntington Beach, California. Sheila died in July 2022.

John (Jack-Jackie) Murphy was born in Windsor, Ontario, Canada in 1953. Jack emigrated to Altadena, California with his parents in 1953 where he attended and graduated from La Salle High School in Pasadena. Jack married Theresa McLaughlin in 1975 at St. Lukes Catholic Church in Temple City, California. They moved to San Juan Capistrano and had three children before divorcing in 1985. Jack worked as a lineman for the phone company before entering the California Highway Patrol Academy. While at the CHP Academy, Jack decided against a career in Law Enforcement and he opted instead to work in private security at Honda Research, Burlington Coat Factory and mostly at the Morongo Indian Reservation Casino where he moved up the ranks and retired in 2020. It was at Morongo that Jack met and married Paula Martinez. Paula and Jack were married 23 years when he died in 2024.

Moira Elizabeth (Biedebach) Caullay was born in Windsor, 1931 – emigrated to California in 1953, married Lloyd Biedebach in 1966. Lloyd was born 1932, died 2019. Moira and Lloyd had no children – Moira died in 2021 in Covina, California. Moira worked for Bell Telephone Canada in Windsor before moving to California where she resumed her Bell career and retired from Pacific Telephone & Telegraph.

I Digress – Hogmanay, Christmas, And Superstitions

As I sit at my computer to edit this family history for the umpteenth time in a seemingly never-ending process, I am reminded by this writing of my Mother Anne’s Scottish New Year traditions that we observed as a family growing up. Tradition says that The New Year or “Hogmanay” (ancient Scottish) should be welcomed into a clean house, so extra effort was spent that day cleaning, organizing, and “tidying up”. After a late supper we would listen to the radio, or watch TV after the mid-1950s, to hear Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians orchestra play Auld Lang Syne and countdown to midnight. Snacks were prepared and after 12 o’clock we were treated to a small glass of Mogen David wine diluted with cream to celebrate “Hogmanay”. Before midnight we would gather pots, pans, and lids from our kitchen to bang like cymbals and drums at midnight on our front porch while yelling “Happy New Year!” and “Happy Hogmanay!” for all to hear. After our cacophony and the distant sounds of occasional gunfire (a Detroit tradition) subsided the family went back into the house. My Brother Dave would stay on the porch, however, to knock on our door and become our first visitor in the new year bringing gifts in the Scottish tradition of “First Footing” on Hogmanay. Traditionally, the First Footer would be a dark-haired male bearing gifts of coal, a silver coin, salt, and whisky, or Mogen David wine in our house for no particular reason. These gifts and the practice of First Footing symbolize good fortune for the coming year. My Father, with his balding gray hairline lacked the dark hair needed for the role of first footer—and his arrival home from work from the afternoon shift at Cottage Hospital at his usual half-past-twelve hour missed the midnight celebration. In Scotland the New Year or Hogmanay is well celebrated, but Christmas, December 25th, remains more religious and is a day for exchanging gifts and family feasts. Father Christmas, also known as Santa Claus, delivers gifts to children as they sleep on Christmas. Families and friends share festive meals—and gifts are exchanged on Christmas day. Twelfth day, or Epiphany, is the end of the Christmas season and is less celebrated.

SUPERSTITIONS

In contrast to the good fortune and good luck promised by “First Footing” many Scots of past generations believed that some day-to-day practices might cause bad luck and should be avoided. According to my Sainted Mother, it was bad luck to lay a hat on a bed, to place shoes on a table, to open an umbrella indoors, to walk under a ladder, or to sweep dirt out the front door. There probably are more causes of bad luck, but don’t ask… why?!

“LIFE GOES ON!”

the words of Robert Frost – Poet Laureate

and

the Beatles – Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da

and

Wade Ivers

Life Goes On!

“Life goes on!”
the words of Robert Frost – Poet Laureate
and
the Beatles – Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da
and
Wade Ivers