Notes for: Marie ("Rhee") Bodine
Betty notes she had one child, Hope Langford b. c1926 in Fannin Co TX. Langford may be the father's surname (note by Betty: Langford was the married name of sister Edith Bodine, who gave the baby, Hope, the Langford surname. Hope was put in orphanage in Ft. Worth TX. Tried to find info on Hope Langford, but man couldn't release info to Betty).
Margaret Marline Bodine said, "Aunt Rhee was just a tiny baby when Grandma Martha died, and Aunt Mitt who was just a couple of years older than Papa so she would only have been approximately nine years old. So it is quite possible the marriage was like many frontier marriages, one of necessity rather than romance.
"During this brief marriage, brief for that time, she gave Grandpa George three more children, the last of which was Uncle Milburn.
"Grandpa was not a disciplinarian, nor was Papa. Aunt Rhee apparently was ignored by her stepmother and had no training whatsoever. She was congentantly deaf and no one had ever considered she was not also mute.
"But mother was able to teach her a few simple words. She learned Papa's name right away, but she was very attached to Papa which created problems. She became extremely jealous of Mother and Papa's babies as they came along to the point of attempting bodily harm.
"From her moment of puberty she became a real problem. Short of tying her up, there was no way they could prevent her from escaping watchful eyes. During one of these forays she managed to become pregnant. They had no idea who the father was. The roads and woods were full of men, young and old, looking for work and probably not many of them would have refused a little diversion on the way. Neither of these two good people would have considered this a shameful birth, a thing to be hidden. Aunt Rhee was a victim and Grandpa figured God would take care of whichever man it was who took advantage of this obvious childwoman of his.
"If anything, Aunt Rhee hated this new child as much if not more than her nephews and niece. She had no concept of motherhood, that this was her child and had no intention of accomodating the needs of a new born infant. Mother had to try to suction enough milk or hold the baby to Aunt Rhee's breast until she could feed. This required the tying of Aunt Rhee. When it became obvious Aunt Rhee was never going to accept this child Mother, Grandpa and Papa made the only decision that could have been made. Grandpa was dying, the depression was upon them, Mother and Papa's first responsibility was to their children. Aunt Rhee could no longer be trusted with children, neither her's nor anyone elses. Uncle Jim had died during the flu epidemic of 1918, leaving a widow and two young boys, James and Robert I believe were their names. It was not an easy decision but it had to be made. Aunt Rhee could no longer be handled at home. She was a threat not only to herself but to others, especially to small and defenseless creatures.
"Papa and Uncle Walter (Mother's brother) drove her and the baby to Fort Worth by buggy. The baby was sick when the left her at the Catholic orphanage at Fort Worth. They drove Aunt Rhee to the State Asylum and institutionalized her on the same day. A few weeks later, Uncle Walter after convincing Aunt Lola they could afford one more baby, returned to the orphanage with the attention of adopting the "beautiful little red haired angel." He was told she had died just two days before of pneumonia. The end of a very sad story. Aunt Rhee would have no doubt lived out her life in the asylum, however long that may have been. If she continued with her violent outbreaks it probably would not have been very long."
From Ronny Bodine:
Marie 'Rhee' Bodine was born deaf. At age 23 and single, she was living with her parents 1920 in Fannin County. Marie Bodine, age 33 and single, was living April 1930 at the Fannin County Poor Farm. She bore a child named Hope, by an unknown father, in 1927, but had no interest in the child and refused to care for it so her brother Paul Bodine and his brother-in-law Walter Thomasson took the child to the Catholic orphanage in Fort Worth and the same day institutionalized Marie. These intimate details were furnished by Margaret Bodine Burgan, the daughter of Paul Bodine, in Jan 2008.
The Texas birth certificate of Hope, no. 1927-20998, records the child as illegitimate, with the mother being "Merea Bodine" of Lueders. Under occupation is written "Mind of a small child--cannot talk."