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Note: RFN17 BIOGRAPHY [UL:George and Eva Smith:UL][BO::BO] George Jacob Smith first met Eva Mable Goodale when they were both students at Moorhead State Teacher's College. While going to school, Eva earned some of her spending money by babysitting for Harry Halvorson, who would become her second husband many years after the death of George Smith. George and Eva were married on June 8, 1923. After George received his teaching degree, they moved to Holt, Minnesota. Eva taught at that time with a two-year teaching certificate from Moorhead State College. One of their favorite pastimes in those early years was working difficult math problems together. In 1926 they moved to Birchdale, Minnesota with their infant daughter Virginia. Their house was a teacherage just across the schoolyard from where George was teaching. There were times when Ginny and Viv, as young girls, would sneak up to the school and peek in the windows where their Dad was teaching. At one time he got so upset with Eva for not watching them more closely that he had them tied by long ropes to a tree near the house. In 1930 they accepted teaching positions at a little two room school in Mina, South Dakota, near the town of Aberdeen. Dorothy and the twins, Don and Donna were added to the family during that time. It was very dry during that time, with many dust storms and Eva often had to hang wet bath towels in the windows to keep the dust out of the house. It was also a time when many bums traveled from door to door begging for food and bands of gypsies roamed the countryside. The gypsy women wore long skirts with many pockets and stole many items from local stores, hiding their stolen goods in the pockets. In 1933 they returned to Birchdale, Minnesota to live in the same house they had left three years earlier. George taught at Indus High School, where he was Principal, with four teachers under his supervision. The little house was actually built as a one bedroom home, but George was able to partition off part of the living room to make room for the five children. They used gas and kerosene lanterns for lighting and had no running water. The well, with a hand pump, was two blocks away. In the winter they would often melt snow for doing dishes and washing clothes, but drinking water still needed to come from the well. Dorothy had a vivid memory of one very cold, subzero day when her older sisters dared her to stick her tongue to the pump handle. It stuck firmly to the frozen metal and in a panic she pulled away, leaving the top surface of her tongue painfully behind. The toilet was an outhouse in the back yard. The house was heated by wood, which was provided as part of George's salary. In 1941 they moved to Littlefork, Minnesota and lived in a house that had been the first hospital there. This was the first time that they had a home with electricity. George was Superintendent of Schools and also taught some classes. When he needed a teacher to fill a vacancy, Eva began teaching after 19 years of being a housewife and mother. In 1943 the family moved to 506 Stanton Ave. in Fergus Falls, Minnesota. This was a small home that George had inherited from his father, Jacob Smith. The house next door was owned by Jacob's brother, Jackson. George's mother, Tina Smith, lived upstairs with his uncle and aunt. At that time George accepted a job in Alaska, working with his younger brother Jake as an electrician at the Air Base near Anchorage. He sent home checks of $700 - $800 which was big money in those last years of World War II. With the money that Eva was able to set aside, Virginia attended college for two years at St. Cloud State College. While going to school, she worked at Montgomery Ward and the Atwood Book & Gift Shop. She then repaid the school loan and the money was used to send Vivian to college for two years. At that time tuition, room and board cost only $420 each quarte
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