Made of Steele
Ethel Arabella McCarthy, was born on December 27th, 1917 to parents Patrick McCarthy and Louisa Helena Utz. Patrick was of Irish decent and Louisa was that of German decent. Ethel was a red head. She was born during WWI, grew up during the great depression, and raised a family during WWII. She was a very tough woman.
Ethel grew up very quickly. She only went to school up until she was in 8th grade, but she was very smart. She married when she was fifteen years old, lying about her age so that it was legal. Her marriage license says that she was 21 when Ethel married Clarence Charles Steele. Together they had eight children, Walter, Martha, Roger, Miriam, Beverly, Baby Girl Steele, Donald, and Laura. Baby Girl Steele died shortly after birth, and was not named. They buried her with a tomb stone labeled “Baby Girl Steele”. This resulted in nine people living in a small farm house. Money was tight because of the big family, but having seven kids was a blessing for the family farm.
The farm was a vertically integrated small farm. Clarence and Ethel borrowed money from Ethyl’s uncles, Adolf and Albert Utz. They purchased 40 acres, and later added another 48, resulting in an 88-acre operation. Clarence raised grain and hay on the land to feed his livestock. This included a few cows, pigs, and chickens for the family to eat. They churned their own butter, and baked their own bread. They also sold eggs from their chickens for extra income. Running a farm was hard work, but it was worth it, it fed the big family.
Ethel raised her family during one of the most critical times in America’s history, World War II. During the war, she worked at Ohio Steel Tube in Shelby, Ohio. She was a true Rosy the Riveter, and not afraid of a man’s job. She also working at Fox’s Greenhouse. There, she did flower arrangements for weddings and funerals. From home, she also made and sold wedding cakes. She did everything she could to bring in money for her family.
Clarence passed away in 1962 when Ethel was only 45 years old. Money was always a struggle, but his loss made it harder. Ethel still had three kids at home during the time, but continued to work and support her family. She held the farm together, along with her family.
Despite the struggles in Ethel’s life, she was a great mother and hard worker. She even became a wonderful grandmother to sixteen grandkids. She became a great grandmother too. Unfortunately, Ethel passed away in July of 1995, before most of her great grandchildren were born, including myself. I am proud to call Ethel my great grandmother. I am proud to say she was truly “Made of Steele”.