52 Ancestors - #4 Edna Virginia Sparks

Virginia Age 14

Edna Virginia Sparks was born April 7, 1903 in Ephraim, Sanpete, Utah.  She was the seventh child of Benjamin Walter and Jane Hilda Fredricka Nielson Sparks.  She went by Virginia and was most likely named after her father's home state.  Older siblings include:  Benjamin Hume (Hume); Hilda Ada (Ada); Claude Ivan (Ivan); Lillian May (Lillian); Walter Nielson (Walter); and, Myrtle June (June).  She was followed by  Rachel Marie, who was the final child.

Ephraim is a small agricultural town located in central Utah.  It was settled in the mid 1850s by Mormon pioneers.  The majority of the population for several years consisted of Mormon immigrants from Denmark, Sweden and Norway.  This industrious group cleared the land and tilled the soil.  At one point, Sanpete County was known as the "Granary of Utah."

Virginia always taught her children and grandchildren the importance of loving and supporting family members.  This was a significant factor in the survival of her family when her father passed away unexpectedly in 1909.  He succumbed to injuries sustained in a fall from horse in a November blizzard.

At the time Virginia was only six and her oldest brother was only 16.  The family pulled together to make ends meet and stay together.  Her maternal grandparents and uncles helped the family as well as they all worked together to maintain their home.  This caring and sharing extended throughout their lives. Family and extended family were always welcome at each others homes and the brothers and sisters continued to help each other whenever they were needed.

Boyd & Iris

Virginia married Wilford Guy Lunn on August 6, 1925 in Manti.  They had two children, Boyd and Iris.  Making their home in Salt Lake City beginning in 1927, they raised their children near Liberty Park enjoying both city and country lifestyles as they visited the farm and fish hatchery operated by Guy and his brother Gary.  Visits back to Ephraim were provided bonding opportunities with cousins, aunts, uncles and Virginia's mother.

For a school assignment, I interviewed about current events of the 1920s. The following are her responses to some of those questions.

• President Wilson:  (I felt he was an intelligent person, and I knew he was a professor at one of the Ivy League schools and he seemed to be a member of the social group."
• League of Nations:  "I felt that the League of Nations was a good idea and I think we should have joined."
• Fashion:  "I liked the fashions and have always like the fashions of the day.  I liked the one-piece bathing suit."
• Talkies:  "I thought talkies were magnificent and fabulous.  My favorites were Al Jolson, Ralph Bellamy, Rudolph Valentino, Mary Pickford and Bette Davis." 
• Modern conveniences:  We had a beautiful radio, a Eureka vacuum, a new model iced refrigerator, and an electric washing machine.
  We got a new car every two years.  We usually had Chevies, four-door sedans.  When your mother was born, we had a 1926 Model A Ford Sports Coupe with a crank."



Iris, Virginia & Rhoda Lunn

• Charles Lindbergh:  "I thought he was a miracle man - everyone else felt this way also.  No one then realized what aviation would really mean to America and the world.  I can still remember when my son went down to see Lindbergh at Liberty Park."  

Virginia's loving, happy homelife would once again be altered by unexpected circumstances.  In 1934, Guy was kicked by a horse on a hunting trip.  The injury would turn into carcinoma of the leg and be the cause of his death in May, 1935.

Robert & Virginia at their home on
McClelland Street

In 1938, Virginia married Robert H. McCune (Mac) on Valentine's Day.  This romantic start lasted through 34 years of marriage.  Together they would experience the war years with its stresses, sorrows and rationing; work related transfers and resulting separation from family; tragedy with the untimely death of Boyd; health issues, and the infirmities associated with aging.

With their out of state work assignments, Virginia and Mac visited Utah at every opportunity to spend time with their children and grandchildren. These visits often coincided with holidays like Christmas and the Fourth of July.  In addition, they would often invite one of the grandchildren to accompany them home for a week or two of one on one time.  This was often spent on the road with Grandma and Grandpa as Grandpa made service calls for his work.  Grandchildren became familiar with Cheyenne, Riverton and the Wind River Valley, Thermopolis and its thermal wonders; and the highway from Salt Lake to Cheyenne including Evanston, Little America, Green River, Rock Springs, Rawlins, and Laramie.

Assigned to Denver in the late 50s and early 60s, Virginia and Mac would welcome family and friends to their home in the suburb of Englewood.  Summer vacations would include visits to the Denver Museum of Natural History, rowing boats on the lake at the Denver City Park, Estes Park, Royal Gorge, and Colorado Springs and the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo.

With her children grown, Virginia was able to devote time to her hobbies.  These included:

Virginia, granddaughter & Bingo

• Dog breeding and showing - Virginia raised black cocker spaniels and spent many hours grooming and training them for dog shows.  Her champion female, Bingo, won many ribbons.
• Ceramics - Using her artistic talent, Virginia made many pieces that were given to family and friends as well as decorative items for holiday celebrations and functional household items.  She shared her talent with her grandchildren on their visits showing them how to clean greenware, painting and firing items of their very own.
• Sewing - An excellent seamstress, Virginia made wardrobe enhancements for her grandchildren and helped with school clothes as they grew.

Family was always an important part of Virginia's life.  She spent time with family members whenever possible.  Frequent trips were made to Ephraim to visit her sisters and brothers.  For several years her sister June and her family lived across the street from the Lunn/McCune family on McClelland.  June's sons, Robert and Cornell were more like brothers to Boyd and Iris.

Lillian Rust, Virginia McCune,
June Blackham & Rachel Mortensen

The sisters all remained close even when separated by many miles geographically.  Letters and family pictures were regularly exchanged.  Pictured are the four surviving sisters at a gathering in Ephraim at the home of Rachel.  Death was the only separation they could not overcome.  Ada passed away in 1916 due to complications from childbirth; Rachel passed away in 1983 due to cancer; and Virginia passed away August 29, 1988 from heart disease and complications following surgery.  Lillian and June would join their sisters and ancestors in 1993 and 1996 respectively.