The Grandparents -- Roy Kackley, Sr.

"As life unfolds, the impact of social forces upon a person's decisions, actions, successes and failures is often forgotten in the day-to-day struggle to make a living. But when he or she steps back and looks at his or her family history and the history of society simultaneously, these forces become apparent. My family has been influenced by immigration, emigration and the search for the "American Dream" -- the dream that says every one, regardless of race, political beliefs or religion can be a success in American if he or she just works hard enough. Social forces played a large role in the search for that dream in my family. This quest took form finally in the mobility of my immediate family, but how did the mobility develop?

"My maiden name, Kackley, is an anglicized German name. We think the Kackleys came from the southern part of Germany near Alsace-Lorraine. The German version of the name has been lost, perhaps because the family has been in the United States more than a century. [In 1982, my father was contacted by Elizabeth Kackley Qualls of Evening Shade, Arkansas who was a distant cousin. She was compiling a book on the Kackleys and wanted information on my father and grandfather. Her book, "Jacob's House," was published in 1990 and traced the Kackley family directly back to Jacob Keckley, Sr. (1701-1788)an Alsatian farmer who immigrated to the United States in the mid 1700's.] Great-grandmother's [Sophia Albricht]parents came from Germany by ship and her father fought at the battle of Bull Run in the Civil War. Evidently these relatives immigrated to find a better way of life and take advantage of the opportunities to be found in a young, growing society.

"Near the end of the 19th century, four Kackley brothers (one my great-grandfather, Edward Kackley) came west from Kentucky looking for a new start in the rich farmlands of the mid-west. They settled in Missouri, Arkansas and Kansas (there is a town in Kansas named after one of them). My grandfather, Roy Lambert Kackley, Sr., was born in Lanton, Missouri in 1895, one of eight children. The family made its living by farming and most of the Kackley children went to school through the eighth grade then went to work on the farm. As they grew up they settled near each other, the four boys involved in farming and the four girls married to local people. The oldest son, Bert Kackley, had the most influence in the family decisions. They were a big close family fond of social gatherings. My grandfather spent his free time camping and hunting with his friends, contributing to the family larder at the same time. [According to Mrs. Quall's book, Edward Price Kackley, my great-grandfather, had a store and post office 5 miles from West Plains, Missouri. He also hauled freight. In 1917, he fell from a wagon and died of a broken neck at the age of 58.]

"In 1920, Roy Kackley moved to St. Joseph, Missouri to find a job. He and my grandmother, Susan Justine Blackiston, had been married a very short time and in 1920 just after the First World War, jobs in the cities were sought by young people hoping to escape the uncertainties of farm life. The search for a means to make a better living is a common goal running through my family history."

Introduction -- A Look Backward

Trish started me thinking about the different generations of our family and how the world changed for each one. It reminded me of 1976 when I was finishing my BS at Cal Poly Pomona (after a 10 year hiatus, which is another story) and was assigned to write a family history for my American Civilization class. After a search through my files I unearthed the report and will copy it here in several installations (with side comments) complete with an interview with our father, Roy Kackley, who died in 1984 and is still dearly missed.

"In writing this family history, one social force seemed to have more influence -- mobility. My paternal great-grandparents, the Kackleys, each moved with their parents to Missouri to find a better way of life. My grandparents, Roy and Susan Kackley, moved to St. Joseph, Missouri in search of work and a home. My maternal grandfather, George Chouckas, immigrated to the United States from Tripolis, Greece and settled in St. Joseph. My maternal grandmother, Anna Bockelman, was the youngest child of German immigrants who came to St. Joseph and again, the reason was the search for a better way of life. However, both sets of grandparents remained in St. Joseph because economic conditions during the Depression influenced them to remain in one place.

"My parents, Roy and Adeline Kackley, were part of the boom after World War II and joined the military because it offered a chance to make a good living. These were the years of the military build-up, NATO, "containment" of communisim, and the military offered good opportunities to a young man.

"Because of the mobility of my childhood, I have learned two languages [spanish and farsi, fluently], seen a great deal of the world and have a different view of American life than my parents."

In the coming posts, I will continue with my grandparents', parents' and my own stories from this 30-year-old report. Maybe Trish and Kon will add their own experiences and comments as I go along.