James Albert Yates
Born: Feb 14, 1872, Rushville, IL
Died: Jan 14, 1956, Guthrie, OK

Almedia Pyle (Pile)
Born: Mar 30, 1876, Rushville, IL
Died: June 18, 1958, Guthrie, OK


James and Almedia were married Sept 29, 1902 in Illinois.

Meda Yates
Meda Yates was born March 30, 1876 in Schylur Co., Ill., 6th child of Elias and Sarah Farmer Pyle (Pile). As a child growing up on the farm, she nearly burned to death once, catching fire as her mother made soap. Her body and all her hair was badly burned in this accident.
In her early teens, she suffered typhoid fever, but recovered. At age 20, she married Isaac Farrington. To them was born a son, Ralph Lee, Dec 10, 1898.
She and her family came to Oklahoma in 1899 by covered wagon, bringing with them an orphan niece, Ethyel Green. They forded the Arkansas River on the way to their new home near Evansville.
Drought and other troubles, including prairie fires, presented problems to the couple. Once a fire started several miles away, but they did not think it would reach them. The fire became miles long, and the entire sky darkened by smoke. All the family fought the fire and they managed to save themselves and their home, but the white picket fence around the homestead was burned, as well as all their crops and pasture.
After fighting that fire, Isaac became seriously ill and the family decided to return to Illinois, even though it was winter and the trip was a severe one in a covered wagon. Once back in Illinois, Isaac died.
September 29, 1902, Meda married again, to James Yates. Within 10 years, they had six children: Harley Yates, Eva Willson, Margaret Bechtel, Fred Yates, Cecil Kendell, and Gladys Privette. During the years of the children's arrival, Meda took care of her oldest son, Lee who had developed tuberculosis, and also her invalid father. Washing was done by hand with water carried from a nearby creek, with homemade soap. Clothing that was completely worn out by the family was recycled into rag rugs for the home.
Church attendance was important to the family and provided a change from work as well as spiritual refreshment. Family gatherings and fish fries also were part of the family life.
In Jan 1918, the Yates family moved to Oklahoma, disgusted with floods that had taken their crops in Illinois. The box car containing their stock and furniture was also ridden by James Yates, to care for the stock. Since it was 20 below zero when they left, it was a problem to stay warm in the unheated car. He wrapped a blanket around himself and his lantern to keep from freezing. In addition to the 5 horses and 3 hogs they shipped, they also brought furniture, 200 bushels of corn, 25 gallons of molasses, and some rendered lard. They settled in the Irvin School district near Guthrie, Logan, OK. Their first year suffered a bad drought, but the next year was better and they cleared $400 from the peach crop.
In 1925, they and everyone else had bumper crops of cotton and pickers were hard to come by. Having an extra house on the property, they offered it to a family of pickers, but it was burned the following night after the offer, supposedly by a resentful neighbor.
Lee Farrington died of TB in 1927, the same year Eva married Harry Willson, and the same year the Yates family bought their first car. The car went through the garage before it was stopped on its first trip home, predictably, since Grandfather Yates had had no driving experience and little instruction.
In 1933, Meda and James joined the Methodist Church. All the children except Fred married in the next few years. The niece, Ethyel Green, who had originally come to Oklahoma with Meda on the first trip, came and helped care for them after their health failed and they moved to Guthrie. Ethyel had married and raised a family, but was then widowed. Fred, the son who had been caring for them, was unable to continue both the farming and caring for them after they moved.
Among the joys she counted in her life was having a large family gathering at Christmas 1955, when most of the children and grandchildren were home. James Yates died Jan 14, 1956, and Meda lived until June 18, 1958. She was survived by 6 children, 12 grandchildren, and 3 great-grandchildren.