0270 - VAY (ID) BRANCH : Kenny, Patrick (Pat) & ArVilla - Family History (2002)

. 0270

. PATRICK AND ARVILLA (WILSON) KENNY by Harry Kenny (2002) file date: 2006-07-28 .

description of work:  A history of the Patrick and ArVilla (Wilson) Kenny family authored by their son Harry.  The Kennys were members of the Vay (ID) Branch of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints where Pat also served as pastor.  tags:  Patrick Kenny, Pat Kenny, ArVilla Dora Wilson, ArVilla Kenny, Edward Harry Kenny, Harry Kenny, Vay Idaho, William Kenny, William Lewis Kenny, Loretta Kenny, Lou Kenny, Lou Z. Belshe, Addie Kenny, Bill Kenny, James Kenny, Charles Gertum, Mary Elizabeth Wilson, Theodora Horn, Charles Horn, Frank Horn, Edward Horn, George Horn, John Deeter

[Printed with photographs: 1) William Kenny, Lou (Belshe) Kenny and daughter Addie; 2) Patrick Kenny and ArVilla Wilson wedding – 1919; 3) Pat Kenny family – 1944 – Pat, ArVilla, Harry and Bill; 4) Pat Kenny Herefords - 1950s; 5) triplet bull calves on Kenny ranch.] .

Pat Kenny’s father, William Kenny, was born in County Roscommon, Ireland in 1850.  At the age of 13 he worked his way to England and spent several years in the British merchant marine before coming to America.  He spent a short time driving horse-drawn street cars in San Francisco before coming to Portland, Oregon.  He filed for homestead in 1883 near the James Belshe family who had come in 1881 to Oregon.  He courted their red-haired daughter, Lou Z. Belshe, for several years before they married in 1886. .

Twelve children were born to William and Lou, although only eight lived to adulthood.  Patrick, one of those twelve children, was born February 13, 1897, while they were living in Oregon. .

The William Kenny family moved many times, selling their ranches and moving to better areas.  In 1904, William decided to homestead in Canada.  With two wagons and 28 head of horses, they headed northeast, crossing the John Day River and following the Oregon Trail eastward as far as the Umatilla River.  Then it was Walla Walla, Waitsburg, and Spokane.  They reached northern Idaho near Newport, Washington and crossed the Canadian border at Porthill.  Creston, B.C. was the end of the wagon road, and so from Creston they traveled by train to the Calgary area.  They took up a homestead 35 miles east of Olds, Alberta, and lived in a tent while the boys hauled lumber for the house. .

For seven years the Kenny family raised livestock and endured the severe winters.  Finally, Lou issued an ultimatum to William.  He could remain in Canada if he wanted to, but she was returning to the States.  Son, James, had already made that decision. .

They sold their homestead then, and on July 10, 1911, their livestock and machinery sold at auction.  They returned to the States about the same way they had gone to Canada.  When asked where in the States they were going, William said, “We’re going to start out, and when Lou says ‘stop’ we’ll stop.” .

From Creston, B.C., the family trailed into northern Idaho, eventually stopping at Valley, Bonner County, Idaho.  A livestock ranch, the Gertum place, along Hoodoo Creek was for sale.  They purchased the Charles Gertum homestead (the NE quarter of Section 12, T55N, R4W) and settled down once again. .

The four youngest children (Adeline, Ella, Margaret, and Patrick) attended the brand new school called Seneacquoteen that had just been built in 1910 near the intersection of the Vay Road and the old River Road (Priest River Road later, now Dufort Road).

***

Newspaper article 1911:  .

“William Kenny, late of Alberta, acquires the Gertum property.  It will be of considerable interest to the many friends of Charles Gertum to learn that he has sold his fine ranch, comprising of 160 acres of the best kind of land, all level with Hoodoo Creek running through it.  It is generally considered that the purchaser, William Kenny, has done pretty well for $4500, even as a cash proposition.  Mr. Kenny comes from Alberta here, and with his family – he will bring six children with him – will make a valuable addition to the citizenship and social life of Valley and Bonner County.” .

*** .

Eighteen years after returning to the States, William died of pneumonia on March 8, 1929, at age 78 years.  He is buried at Seneacquoteen Cemetery.  Lou eventually moved to Moro, Oregon, to live with a daughter.  She died September 27, 1938, of a stroke and is buried in the Moro Cemetery.  From their eight children, they had 15 grandchildren, ten still living – Harry Kenny being one of them. .

William and Lou’s son, Patrick, remained on the Kenny ranch.  He married ArVilla Dora Wilson in 1919 after he came home from the service of World War I.  ArVilla had come to the Vay community in 1900 with her mother, Mary Elizabeth Wilson, and four other children.  ArVilla had been born in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota, in 1899.  The family had come by train, arriving on the Great Northern at Riverside (the Ellersick Brothers milltown) north of Laclede.  Their grandmother, Theodora Horn, lived across the river as did her uncles, Charles, Frank, Edward, and George Horn.  It was Thanksgiving Day when they arrived.  The ice was so thick that the ferry wasn’t running so they walked across the river.  ArVilla always said that if she had been a little older than a babe in arms, she would have refused to cross.  She was always so afraid of deep water. .

ArVilla had also attended the Seneacquoteen School, graduating from the 8th grade.  After graduating in 1916, ArVilla drove what was known as the “school wagon” to pick up school children in the Vay community.  Later, she and her sisters carried the mail each day from the Spokane International Railroad depot at Vay to the post office – about one-half mile distance. .

Pat and ArVilla had two boys: Edward Harry born in 1921 and William Lewis born in 1923.  Pat was a logger, farmer, and cattleman.  He and the boys made a living by doing all three at times.  Over the years, he worked for Long Lake Lumber Company, A.C. White Mill, Humbird Lumber Company, Panhandle Lumber Company, and later Diamond Match and Ohio Match, along with raising cattle.  At one time Pat and ArVilla milked 23 head of cows by hand.  In later years they went into raising Hereford beef cattle.  He raised registered bulls for sale (the old Domino line).   .

ArVilla was a good cook and they grew a lot of their food.  She canned just bout everything for winter.  She and Pat were active members of the Reorganized Latter Day Saints Church which was built nearby on the Vay Road. .

Pat was a good natured fellow and loved by all.  He died of a heart attack August 22, 1965, while driving a herd of cows across Hoodoo Creek to the east side.  Several neighbors, Ellen Jolley, Kathy Jones, and John Deeter, all on horseback, were helping.  One cow had run back, and Pat rode after it.  He had his heart attack and slipped right out of the saddle.  John Deeter tried artificial respiration until Dr. Siemsen came out, but Pat could not be revived.  He was 68 years old.  ArVilla lived on the ranch for 18 more years.  She died May 1, 1983.  They both rest at Seneacquoteen Cemetery. .

Their sons, Harry and Bill both served in World War II, Harry in the Navy and Bill in the Army.  They both returned to the farm after the war, although Bill had to remain in Germany with occupation forces an extra year.  Harry married and moved to Montana where he worked for various logging companies for the next nineteen years.  Bill also married and lived in Montana.  He began to have heart problems as a young man, and when in the Helena, Montana Veteran’s Hospital awaiting surgery, he passed away on February 16, 1972, at age 49.  He left a wife, Loretta, and three children, Sandra, Dennis, and Colleen. .

Harry had taken over the operation of the Kenny Ranch when his father died in 1965, and he and his wife, Hazel, still live there. .

By Harry Kenny, 2002. . .

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~ by saintshistorychannel on January 2, 2008.