The Forties

    Louis and Louise share a tender moment on opposite sides of a tree trunk.

    After Bill Padbury died, Theresa lived on in the house, although she couldn’t control the plants and garden in the fertile Illinois climate. In her back yard, she grew horseradish, rhubarb, and lots of tiger lilies. “She taught me to walk,” Tom recalled. "According to Grandma and Grandpa, she would put a dish towel underneath my arms and hold me up." She lived in the house until she passed away, shortly after these pictures were taken in the mid-1950s.

    The more conservative clothing styles and the gray hair seem fitting on Louie and Louise, since they’re about to become grandparents.

    Pictured here are four generations of the family (l-r): Teresa, Louie, Bob, and infant Betty.
   But there was a new last name added to this group. In the years just prior to the beginnings of Bob’s family, he translated the Poltevecque name (which means “Paul the Bishop” in French) to Bishop, which was easier to pronounce and shorter on the marquees when he performed with his band. He carried on the Poltevecque name in his first born son Tom, giving him the middle name of Paul. Teresa’s home is beginning to show its age in this photo.

    The proud grandparents with Betty, who’s holding a stuffed animal.

    Louie and Louise with a recent addition to Bob’s family: daughter Laura (left) stands next to Betty outside the church at the wedding of Marge’s sister Marilyn, June, 1950, soon after Tom Bishop was born.

    The Bishops share a fun moment with Louise in the dining room of her home on the southside of Chicago. Shown are (l-r) Louise, Marge, Betty, Bob, and Laura.
   "One time one of my friends called me up," Laura remembered, "and said some nasty things about me, with her friends giggling in the background. It hurt me so much and I wanted to get revenge, so I asked Grandma what I should do. She said,'You know what the best revenge is? Be nice to her.' It didn’t seem to make sense, but the next day at school I tried it. When I saw her, I was really nice to her. That night, she called me up in tears and apologized. And we once again became good friends."

    Louie amuses Betty and Laura with some of their dolls. "I used to sleep in Grandpa's bedroom," Betty remembered, "and the passing trains on the tracks across the street made shadows on the wall. I was lying there scared half to death by the shadows when Grandma came in and, sitting on the edge of the bed, said to me, 'Just remember, Betty. There is no spot where God is not, for God is everywhere.' It calmed me right down and I went right to sleep."