Hazel followed her mother's example of being neat and tidy and taking much time and effort to dress well. She enjoyed looking her best at all times. She was stylish and feminine. She loved to dress up her little sisters also. She made little dresses for sister Estella when she was a baby.
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| Friend, Estelle, Binks |
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| Binks in 1918 |
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| Binks in the middle Estelle in middle front |
Hazel followed both her parents in her love to read. The family subscribed to a number of good magazines and the local newspaper. Tons of books were always available in their home. Hazel's love of reading often led her to day dreaming. She dreamed of young love like most teenagers do. But Hazel made no bones about what she was dreaming in a future beau. She told her dad she would marry no one unless he was a handsome young Virginian, well dressed, tall, dark, slender, with brown eyes, and black hair. Dee thought she got that dreamboat idea from one of her novels. He told her the chances of finding a beau like that..out here in the west ...was close to impossible. But Hazel continued to keep her expectations alive for many years by watching all newcomers who came to Spearfish during her young adult life. She was popular around town and she often hung around the post office where her father worked because she knew that's where new people would be coming. To everyone's surprise, one day "he" did arrive. Joe Colaw fit the description of her perfect beau. Of course, we can't say what she did to get his attention, but she surely did.
Joseph Marvin Colaw (1891-1972) was a civil engineer for the N.Y Central Railroad and often came to Spearfish from the Chicago headquarters on railroad business. It wasn't long before the young couple discovered they were right for each other. The townspeople around town told 8 year old Estella, "You'll be losing your sister." She didn't know exactly what that meant, until the day Binks and Joe were married, June 4, 1917. When the minister asked, "Who gives this woman?" Her father responded, "I do, " and Estella threw such a fit that they had to take her out of the church!
Joe and Hazel lived in Chicago for a while and Estella lived with them and even went to school there. Maybe that was to prove to Estella she wasn't ever going to "lose" Binks. Later the Colaw couple moved to Monterey, Virginia where Joe was born. His parents still lived there and he was going to join them in their lumber and cattle business ventures.
Estella went back home to Spearfish to live with her dad. It was during the time in Chicago that Estella changed her name to Estelle. A teacher there called her by that name and she liked it better.
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| Colaw's Arithmetic book |
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| John Marvin Colaw |
Joe's parents were John Marvin Colaw (1860-1940) and Josephine Margaret Judy Colaw ( 1864-1893). John was a Commonwealth Attorney, Commissioner of Accounts to the Circuit Court, Town Mayor, and Councilman for many terms. He is also was a joint author for a series of Arithmetic textbooks used in schools from 1900-1914. A son Owen Dyer Colaw (1887-1957), was born just four years before Joseph. After his wife passed away in 1893, John married Mary Elizabeth Newman. After she died Joseph and Hazel came back to Monterey to be with John after living several years in Boston and Washington D.C. The Colaw family comes from a long line of Swiss/German pioneers who settled in the Shenandoah Valley even before Monterey was a town. At that time, their name might have been spelled Kohler, Koler or Coler.
Hazel and Joe often went to vacations to places like Cuba. They collected antiques, they entertained often, and they cherished their family history. Hazel was instrumental in connecting with "Uncle Toss." She wrote to him in 1913 when she was 18 years old to ask about his role in the Civil War. She wrote again when she was married about age 37. We are lucky to have a copy of letters he wrote back to her. That's another Billington story.
Years later, when Joe died in 1971, in Monterey, Virginia, Estelle went to stay with Hazel for about a year, then Hazel moved to Watsonville to a small apartment to be near sisters Cecile and Estelle until her death January 24, 1978. The three sisters always had a close bond. Hazel had no children of her own, but is loved dearly by her nieces, nephews and cousins.
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| Hazel, Cecile, Estelle |
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Thanks to Kathleen and Jean Harrah, Barbara Bishop Gordon, and Estelle Billington Fontana
for photos, stories, and facts for this Blogpost. Please feel free to add any photos or stories to this blogpost and they will be added to the next Billington blogpost. Send them and any comments to:
lana.rankin@yahoo.com
