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The Descendants of John Whitfield Generation No. 4 4. Helen Ann4 Rumney (Annie3 Whitfield, John2, John1)2 was born November 12, 1909 in Seattle, King Co. Washington, and died March 21, 1996 in Aberdeen, Grays Harbor Co. Washington. She married (1) Alfred Ghilarducci August 02, 1926 in Spokane, Washington. Alfred was the son of Leondro Ghilarducci and Salomina Parenti. He was born May 07, 1894 in Lucca, Italy, and died June 22, 1973 in Aberdeen, Grays Harbor Co. Washington. Helen then married (2) Jim Dallas November 18, 1933 in Aberdeen, Washington. He was born September 03, 1898, and died 1953 in Aberdeen, Grays Harbor Co. Washington. Six years later Helen married (3) Jim Reed October 10, 1959 in Aberdeen, Washington. He was born November 09, 1902, and died December 1978 in Aberdeen, Washington. Family lore as told to one of Helen's daughter, is that Helen was put with another family sometime shortly after the death of her father, Hugh Rumney in September of 1912. According to Helen, her mother was unable to care for herself and both daughters because of the need to work. The older daughter would have been about five and Helen about three. The family Helen went to live with was a Minister and his wife in Puyallup, Washington and Helen couldn't remember their name. Apparently there was quite a legal battle when Helen's mother married again and tried to regain custody of her daughter. An article appeared in the May 27, 1999 issue, of the Aberdeen Daily World newspaper under the headline "75 Years Ago Today." The Helen Hunter mentioned here is Helen Ann Rumney who used the name of her mother's second husband, Norris Hunter. It is interesting to note Helen had never spoken about this incident to any of her three children. The first they knew of it was the article in the newspaper 75 years after it happened. The 1999 account is slightly different from the article appearing in 1924. The 1924 version is copied here. The Aberdeen Daily World, Tuesday Evening, May 27, 1924 Boatmen Save Girls Who Falls In River Helen Hunter, 14, Resuscitated by Prompt Action of Tug Crew After Half Hour in Water Seamanship on the part of Capt. J. C. McMillan of the tugboat Warren and the first-aid work by the crew saved the life of Helen Hunter, a 14 year-old Terrace Heights schoolgirl, this afternoon when she was rescued from the Wishkah River in an unconscious condition. Miss Hunter was taken to the Aberdeen General Hospital, where she regained consciousness. She resides with her parents at 514 Burleigh Street. The body of the girl was seen floating in the river by the crew of the tugboat which was towing two rafts down the stream. The tug crew tied the rafts to the North Aberdeen Bridge and turned in the stream and rescued the body. On the trip back to the bridge, members of the crew administered first-aid to the girl and breathing was started. She was immediately rushed to the Aberdeen General Hospital in an ambulance that had been called, and regained consciousness a few minutes after arriving there. Captain McMillan declared that the work of the crew in administering first-aid probably saved the girl's life, as she had been in the water half an hour before she was rescued. The members of the crew were Chief Engineer Manley, Deckhand John Malyen and Fiireman Robert Downs. According to friends of Miss Hunter, she was returning to her home from Terrance Heights school when the accident occurred. Alfred Ghilarducci had at least three siblings. Brothers Attilio, Alberto, and sister Pia. Their parents were Leondro Ghilarducci and Salomina Parenti. Leondro's parents were Sabastino Ghilarducci and Angela Tuporini. Alfred Ghilarducci, at the age of 15, left home and his family to come to the United States. It is believed he had no contact with his family in Italy after coming to the U.S. Little is known of how he got to Aberdeen, Washington or how he was hired, to work in the woods, by the Saginaw Logging Company. He married Helen Rumney and they had three children; a son and two daughters. Alfred and Helen divorced when the children were still young. The Ellis Island internet web site lists Alfred Ghilarducci as arriving on the ship, La Touraine, on March 20, 1910. Other facts shown are: Ethnicity = Italy, Italian North; Place of residence = Capanouri, Italy; age on arrival = 16; male; single; and Port of Departure = Le Havre, Seine-Inferior, France. Also included in the information was the statement that Alfred was on his way to visit his brother, Alberto Ghilarducci, at 16 Adams in Chicago, Illinois. An obituary for Alfred Ghilarducci was published in the June 23, 1973 edition, of the Aberdeen Daily World, Aberdeen, Washington. Fred Ghilarducci Alfredo (Fred) Ghilarducci, 79, a long time Harborite, died unexpectedly Thursday at his home in Aberdeen, 1619 W. Market St. He was born May 7, 1894, in Lucca, Italy and came to the United States in 1913, settling in Chicago. He moved to the Harbor area in the early 1920's and had made his home here since. He worked as a re-sawyer for many local sawmills. Survivors include a son, two daughters, a sister in Australia and several brothers and sisters in Italy. Six grandchildren and numerous nieces and nephews also survive, together with many friends on the Harbor. Arrangements will be announced by the Eldering Mortuary in the funeral notice column. Helen Rumney and Alfred Ghilarducci had one son and two daughters. Helen Rumney and her second husband, Jim Dallas, had one son.
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