Byron Henry Doll (1892-1949)

 Byron Henry Doll was born June 21, 1892 in LaGrange County, Indiana, a mostly agricultural area, even today.  Although he was the fourth child born to Henry H. and Lucy A. (Crow) Doll, two of those siblings, Joy Nell and Nathaniel Lewis died in 1889.  He had an older brother, Theries D. (born in 1890), and a younger sister, Louisa (Lulu) D. (born in 1895).

Lucy, Byron’s mother died June 12, 1898, just nine days before his 6th birthday.  After her death, the family was split up.  Byron and his father went to live with his paternal grandmother, Dianna Vorhis, in Benton Twp., Elkhart Co., Indiana, while Theries and Louisa went to their maternal grandparents, Nathaniel and Eliza (Airgood) Crow at Lake Wawasee, Turkey Creek Twp., Kosciusko Co., Indiana.

On April 29, 1910, Byron enlisted in the Navy as an Apprentice Seaman.  During his tour of duty he served on the USS Constellation, the Naval Hospital at Newport, Rhode Island, USS Wisconsin, the USS Petrel, the USS Sterett and the Naval Hospital in New York, NY.  He received an honorable discharge on June 20, 1913, the day before his 21^st birthday.

 Byron married Elva Sheffield on April 10, 1914.  Following are excerpts from a yellowed newspaper clipping found with Byron and Elva’s marriage certificate.  Which newspaper is unknown.

Wawasee, Ind.—April 12.—A wedding that has been anticipated with interest for some time here and in Syracuse was performed Friday afternoon, April 10, 1914 at the Christian parsonage when Miss Elva Sheffield of Syracuse became the bride of Byron H. Doll of Wawasee.  The young couple have been busily furnishing and getting their home in the suburb of Syracuse ready for occupancy several months past and Friday, accompanied by the bride’s father, William Sheffield and the grooms sister, Miss Louisa Doll. . .they slipped quietly over to Warsaw and were married.  The party returned the same evening in time for an elegant supper which was served by the bride’s mother, Mrs. William Sheffield. . ..

Between 1914 and 1925 Byron and Elva had five children; O’Leary D. (1914-1987), Madalean E. (1916-1997), Erma D. (1918-2001), Marguerite A. (1921-1998) and Robert E. (1925-2006).

In 1926, the family moved to Elkhart.  The 1930 census indicates that Byron was a heat-treater in a band instrument factory.  Elva was an office girl in an insurance company.  Although Byron was a machinist for most of his working life, there was a period during the early 1930s when he owned the Doll Insurance Agency, selling general insurance and bonds.

Byron was diagnosed with ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease) around 1946 or 1947.  According to the website www.alsa.org “ALS is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord.”  Life expectancy is 2-5 years. 

The photo above is of Byron and Elva at their cottage on Baldwin Lake in July of 1948.  By this time the disease had progressed to the point that he was unable to speak.

Byron died at 2:30 a.m. on April 7, 1949.  Cause of death was Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis.