In 1912, women needed corsets to maintain the slim silhouettes of their dresses and found their walking speeds impeded by hobble skirts. Big hats covered hair piled atop their heads, and shoes sported buttons and bows.
New Mexico became a state in January followed by Arizona in February. In March, Juliette Gordon Low founded the Girl Guides [Girl Scouts] and the first cherry blossom trees were planted in Washington, DC. The Titanic hit an iceberg on April 14 and sank the next day as the band played on. The Boston Red Sox defeated the New York Giants four games to three to win the World Series in October, and Woodrow Wilson was elected the 28th President of the United States in November.
You can learn all these useful items by googling “1912.” You won’t find something that occurred on October 21. A little girl was born that day to Erskine and Ada Hannah on a dairy farm in Sturgis, Mississippi. She lived her entire life in the state, never more than 150 miles from her place of birth. Her limited travels took her to a small percentage of the fifty states, Argentina, and Germany.
She took her position as oldest child and role model for her five brothers and sisters sometimes more seriously than they liked. She taught four daughters born to her and a foster daughter to love God, people, and books – pretty much in that order. She loved the title of “Grandma” and made sure her grandchildren knew the magic words – “thank you” and “please.” She touched innumerable lives as she served as both driver and partner for her visually challenged husband, a North Mississippi country preacher.
You won’t find Virginia Hannah McGee’s name on any of the datelines of “What Happened in 1912,” yet Mama’s influence continues to be passed along – even to great-grandchildren she never knew.