Saturday, April 19, 2014

Sidney Jennings Keffer (1906 - 1995)



Occasionally while digging for records you find other cool stuff. I'm not a big book buyer but when i thumbed through this old copy of William Shakespeare i noticed all these neat little drawing inside. It belonged to a Jennings Keffer who was a sophomore @ Middlepoert High School (Virginia ?) in 1922. How could i not buy this? So cool and a really neat little time piece. Jenngings was quite the little doodler and seems like a swell guy buy the doodles of his friends on the back pages of the book. What little info i could find was that he was born in 1906 making him around 16 when he doodled in this book and that he died in 1995. Anyway, as with some of the odd records i find collecting of personal recordings, this is like an archeology dig through time and i felt the need to share it even if it is not music related. I added what little info i could find below. If anyone reading this has anymore info i'd love to find out more about Mr. Keffer. Maybe someday a family member will google his name and find this..... 92 years later your not forgotten Jennings.

Sidney Jennings Keffer (1906 - 1995)

Born in West Virginia, USA on 1906 to Inri Hamilton Keffer and Minora Mabel Starling. Sidney Jennings married Frances Mary Daniels. He passed away on 8 Jan 1995 in Franklin, Ohio, USA.


Athens Messenger April 22, 1930

MIDDLEPORT MENTION

Misses FANALE and Mae VARDEMAN, Olive GERMAN, of the Cincinnati
Conservatory of Music. Glen BAKER, Cincinnati, and Jennings KEFFER,
Dunbar, W. Va., were Easter guests of Miss Frances DANIELS.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Just wanted you to know that I found your posting and am so glad that I did. Sidney Jennings (Jinks) Keffer was my grandfather. I don't remember seeing any pictures that he drew as I grew up. Your posting was such a fun find for me and my children. I believe that the print was his but the signature looks like my grandmothers handwriting - they met while they both attended Middleport High School. Jinks (he disliked both his names) was named for family friends. He was born 1907 and did die 1995 from pneumonia. He loved smoking, drinking beer, watching the Reds on TV and the Ohio State Buckeyes, and bowling. He made his grandchildren laugh when he tried to sing along with Heart while their song played on the radio, sang us songs from his youth, and just by being himself. He always made pancakes for us and the birds (little stringed scraps too small for us but just the right size for the birdies). He was an awesome grandpa to my two older brothers, myself, my step-brother, both step-sisters, and my younger half sister (not his grandchild at all but didn't want her to feel left out). We miss him so. Thanks for sharing your find of his book from high school.

Devil Dick said...

Shana! I'm so glad you found me and thank you for the information on your grandpa! sounds like a swell guy! If you'd like i will glady send the book to so you can keep it in your family!?
email me @ solacetom@aol.com and i can pop it in the mail for you?
Tom