When Alvin William Brunken was born on September 3, 1908, near Platte Center, Nebraska, his father, William, was 30 and his mother, Clara, was 24. He married Evelyn Alice Pereboom on August 2, 1935, in Lahoma, Oklahoma. They had five children in 13 years. He died on May 8, 1996, in Vian, Oklahoma, at the age of 87, and was buried in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
Mr. and Mrs. John Brunken, sr., attended the christening of their grandson at the home of their son William, north of Platte Center, last Sunday.
- WHAT: Announcement of Alvin William Brunken’s christening
- WHO: Alvin William Brunken, Mr. and Mrs. John Brunken, sr.
- WHEN: 1908
- WHERE: Platte Center, Nebraska
- SOURCE: The Columbus Journal, October 1, 1908 page 8
- WHAT: Alvin demonstrating his football position
- WHO: Alvin William Brunken
- WHEN: Circa 1924 – given that Alvin was on the Lahoma High School football team in 1924
- WHERE: Lahoma, Oklahoma
- SOURCE: Hilda Brunken’s Album
- NOTES: According to the 1927 Lahoma Public Schools Senior Commencement Program, Alvin participated in sports while he attended high school. He was on the Lahoma High School football team in 1924, track team in 1924-1925, on the basketball team in 1926-1927 and on the baseball team in 1927.
- WHAT: A Lahoma High School tradition was for students to dress as tramps on April Fools Day.
- WHO:
- “Buzz” Hollingsworth
- Alvin Brunken
- Earl Maphet
- Eva Dvane
- Delbert Hern
- Clay Holiday
- WHEN: April 1, 1924
- WHERE: Lahoma, Oklahoma
- SOURCE: Hilda Brunken’s Album
- WHO: Alvin William Brunken
- WHEN: DateUnknown
- WHERE: LocationUnknown
- SOURCE: Donna Martin
- WHO: Alvin Brunken
- WHEN: DateUnknown
- WHERE: Lahoma, Oklahoma
- SOURCE: Hilda Brunken’s Album
- WHAT: Checking under the hood of an automobile.
- WHO: Alvin William Brunken
- WHEN: Circa 1926 – The dates on items in Hilda’s Memories album were between 1924 and 1930.
- WHERE: Lahoma, Oklahoma
- SOURCE: Hilda Brunken’s Album
- WHAT: Alvin Brunken is on his way back to Oklahoma Agriculture and Mechanical College (Now Oklahoma State University).
- LEFT TO RIGHT: Mildred Brunken. Leona Brunken, Tillie Holtz. Harold Brunken. Alvin Brunken – As per Label on picture
- TOP TO BOTTOM: UnIdentified
- WHEN: Circa 1928 -Alvin was able to only attend college for one year – he had to drop out because of financial limits
- WHERE: Lahoma, Oklahoma
- SOURCE: Mildred Kletke
- WHAT: Alvin in his Reserve Officers Training Corp (ROTC) uniform
- WHO: Alvin William Brunken
- WHEN: Circa 1928
- WHERE: Lahoma, Oklahoma
- SOURCE: Hilda Brunken’s Album
- NOTES: Alvin attended college at Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical College (Now – Oklahoma State University) in Stillwater, Oklahoma. A requirement at the time was that all male students must take ROTC training during their freshman and sophomore years.
- WHAT: Alvin William and Evelyn Alice Pereboom are Married
- LEFT TO RIGHT: Alvin William Brunken, Evelyn Alice Pereboom
- WHEN: Circa 1935
- WHERE: Lahoma, Oklahoma
- SOURCE: Donna Martin
Evelyn and Alvin lived the first six years of their marriage, from 1935 until 1941, in Breckenridge, Oklahoma. The first year Evelyn commuted to Lahorna, Oklahoma where she taught First and Second grades in the public school. Later she taught for two years at Breckenridge before Alan was born in 1939. During those six years Alvin managed the Blackwell Mill and Elevator Company elevator in Breckenridge. In December 1941 they moved to Oklahoma City, where Alvin took a position as a route salesman with The Borden Company, Glen (1943), Jere (1946), Dean (1947) and Gary (1952) were born in Oklahoma City. In 1973 Alvin retired from The Borden Company as Manager of Public Relations for the State of Oklahoma.
Evelyn Alice Pereboom
When Evelyn Alice Pereboom was born on June 7, 1911, near Covington, Oklahoma, her father, Wilhelm, was 26, and her mother, Lena, was 19. She married Alvin William Brunken on August 2, 1935, in Lahoma, Oklahoma. They had five children in 13 years. She died on October 9, 2011, in Stillwater, Oklahoma, at the age of 100, and was buried in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
- WHO:Evelyn Alice Pereboom, daughter of Lena (Johnson) and Wilhelm John Pereboom
- WHEN: 1932 – as per the original picture caption
- WHERE: Lahoma, Oklahoma – probably
- SOURCE: Evelyn Brunken
- NOTES: Future wife of Alvin William Brunken
- WHAT: Confirmation Class 1925
- LEFT TO RIGHT: Earl Lichtenberg, Tillie Holtz, Clara Stable, Evert Schneider, Leona Brunken, Evelyn Pereboom, Rebecca Brakhage, Lorence Nolting, Gertrude Brakhage, Ellen Thain
- WHEN: 1925
- WHERE: Lahoma, Oklahoma
- SOURCE: Hilda Brunken’s Album
- Girls in Confirmation Class 1925
- LEFT TO RIGHT: Tillie Holtz. Clara Stable. Leona Brunken. Evelyn Pereboom, Rebecca Brakhage, Gertrude Brakhage, Ellen Thain
- WHEN: 1925
- WHERE: Lahoma, Oklahoma
- SOURCE: Hilda Brunken’s Album
- Evelyn’s first teaching position was at Pleasant Valley.
- BACK ROW, LEFT TO RIGHT: UnIdentified, UnIdentified, UnIdentified, Evelyn Alice Pereboom, UnIdentified, UnIdentified,
- FRONT ROW, LEFT TO RIGHT: UnIdentified
- WHEN: 1932 – as per the picture caption
- WHERE: Lahoma, Oklahoma – North of
- SOURCE: Hilda’s Brunken’s Album
- NOTES:
- On the back of the picture was the caption “Pleasant Valley School North of Lahoma 1932”
- Was there more than one school named Pleasant Valley in the vicinity of Lahoma, Oklahoma? I raise the question because Hilda Brunken and Harold Brunken were attending a Pleasant Valley school in 1922 – See post Pleasant Valley School – 1922. And, Mildred Brunken completed her eighth grade from Pleasant Valley Public Schools in 1934.
-
- WHO: Evellyn Peerboom – Public School Teachers Certificate
- WHEN: July 11, 1932
- WHERE: Oklahoma
- SOURCE: Evelyn Brunken
- NOTES: It is interesting to note that Evelyn’s Teachers Certificate was issued as being able to teach anything in the 1st through 8th grades for the term of life and had no termination date.
- WHAT: Newspaper article about teaching in a one room school.
- WHO: Evelyn Brunken
- WHEN: DateUnknown
- WHERE: Orion, Oklahoma
- SOURCE: Evelyn Brunken
- NOTES: She shared this newspaper clipping with me to describe what it was like to be a teacher in a one room school when she began teaching.
Evelyn went on to teach at other schools. In Evelyn’s obituary, it was noted that
“After graduation she taught in several one-room schools in north central Oklahoma including Turkey Creek School west of Enid, which was moved to the grounds of the Cherokee Strip Regional Heritage Center in Enid as a permanent part of that facility. In the spring of 2011, at the grand opening of the Center’s new museum building, Evelyn was honored as the oldest living Turkey Creek teacher.”
SOURCE: The Oklahoman from Oct. 11 to Oct. 12, 2011. Downloaded February 4, 2015 from http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/oklahoman/
Evelyn’s Quilts
Evelyn was a talented and skilled quilter. She won numerous prizes with her quilts at State Fairs including Best Of Show one year at the Tulsa State Fair as well as other prizes and awards at the Oklahoma State Fair in Oklahoma City and at many Sequoyah County Fairs. In 1998, she took part in a three-person show with her son, Glen Brunken, Professor of Art at Slippery Rock University, and grandson, Bill Brunken, an artist, in which she exhibited her quilts and they exhibited their art works in Slippery Rock University’s Gault Gallery. One of her quilts was exhibited at Oklahoma State University’s, Gardener Art Gallery. Two of her quilts are on permanent display in Oklahoma State University’s Curriculum Materials Library.
- WHAT: Evelyn’s Quilts
- WHO: Evelyn Brunken
- WHEN: DateUnknown
- WHERE: LocationUnknown
- SOURCE: Evelyn Brunken
- NOTES: Quilt won Best Of Show at the Tulsa State Fair
- WHO: Evelyn Brunken
- WHEN: DateUnknown
- WHERE: Vian, Oklahoma
- SOURCE: UnKnown
- NOTES: Quilt won Best Of Show at the Tulsa State Fair
- LEFT TO RIGHT: Evelyn Brunken, Alvin Brunken
- WHEN: DateUnknown
- WHERE: LocationUnknown
- SOURCE: Darrel Kletke
- LEFT TO RIGHT: Evelyn Brunken, Alvin Brunken, Mary Brunken
- WHEN: DateUnknown
- WHERE: LocationUnknown
- SOURCE: Darrel Kletke
- WHO: Alvin Brunken
- WHEN: DateUnknown
- WHERE: LocationUnknown
- SOURCE: Darrel Kletke
- WHO: Alvin and Evelyn Brunken
- WHEN: DateUnknown
- WHERE:
- SOURCE: Mildred Kletke
- WHAT: Golden Anniversary Announcement
- WHO: Evelyn Brunken, Alvin Brunken
- WHEN: August 14, 1985
- WHERE: Edmond, Oklahoma
- SOURCE: Evelyn Brunken
Congratulations to the following anniversary celebrants: Brunken Two former Oklahoma City residents recently were given a surprise reception in recognition of their 50th wedding anniversary. Alvin and Evelyn Brunken were honored by their children Aug. 4 at the Sheraton Hotel in Edmond. The couple married Aug. 2, 1935, in Lahoma.
Their children include Alan Brunken, Stillwater; Glen Brunken, Slippery Rock, Penn.; Jere Brunken, Columbus, Ohio; Dean Brunken, Edmond, and Gary Brunken, Tulsa. They have six grandchildren.
SOURCE: The Oklahoman; Date:1985 Aug 09; Section:None; Page Number: 72
- LEFT TO RIGHT: Evelyn Brunken, Alvin Brunken
- WHEN: 1985
- WHERE: Edmond, Oklahoma
- SOURCE: Evelyn Brunken
Credits: Many thanks to Alvan Brunken for identifying people, events, places and dates.