Livin’ on love, buyin’ on time
The first photograph is a portrait of Caleb and May (French) Barton taken on their wedding day, June 5, 1898. The second photograph is a picture of Mr. and Mrs. Barton celebrating their anniversary exactly 50 years later on June 5, 1948. Just take a moment to gaze at these two photos and admire a couple who seem as much in love with each other 50 years after saying “I do” as they were when they first walked up the aisle as husband and wife.
I came across these photos during my internship at the Yates County History Center in the summer of 2021, as I cataloged and organized what I call the people photographs collection – four boxes of photographs arranged alphabetically by the subjects’ last names. I was intrigued when I found a photo of a couple on their wedding day and then, almost right next to it in an otherwise unordered jumble of photos, a photo of the same couple on their 50th anniversary.
When I became an employee of the History Center in December 2021, I decided I should locate these photos and share them in a Valentine’s Day Facebook post. I did just that, learning and sharing more details about the Bartons and their wedding and anniversary celebrations in the process.
According to the Wednesday, June 8, 1898 edition of the Yates County Chronicle, Caleb and May were married the previous Sunday, June 5 in “one of the largest gatherings ever witnessed in Branchport” at the Baptist church, following that morning’s Children’s day service. Now, I’m not sure if the large gathering was people coming to the children’s service or people waiting for the Bartons’ wedding. But the church “was beautifully decorated with flowers, birds and old gloria,” the Chronicle states, noting the “speaking by the children was excellent” and then came “a very important feature of the program” with the wedding. Since the Bartons’ wedding coincided with the children’s service and was considered an important part of it, I assume they were somehow involved with the church and perhaps with the children’s program.
The Rev. A.A. Wickham, the church’s pastor, officiated as May French (erroneously listed as Mary French in the article), of Branchport, married Caleb Barton, of Pulteney. The bride and groom stood under “a most beautiful bell,” 10 feet in diameter, during the services. Its top was made of snow balls and lined with red flowers. The Chronicle closes with, “All join in wishing them a pleasant life’s journey.”
Exactly 50 years later, according to the Thursday, June 3, 1948 edition of The Chronicle-Express, Mr. and Mrs. Barton planned to celebrate their golden anniversary on Saturday, June 5 with an open house at their home in Pulteney from 3 to 6 p.m. On Jun 10, 1948, the Penn Yan Courier noted a large crowd gathered at the Bartons’ home for the celebration. Mrs. Barton wore her wedding gown, and a large wedding cake adored the table. “It was a day to be remembered by all,” the newspaper stated.
The Bartons remained married for almost another four years; the May 1, 1952 edition of The Chronicle-Express carries Mr. Barton’s obituary – calling him Edwin Caleb Barton in the text but referring to him as Caleb E. Barton in a photo caption. Born August 16, 1867 in Pulteney, he died at age 84 on April 29, 1952 at Hopkins Nursing Home in Guyanoga. A lifelong resident of Pulteney, Mr. Barton and his wife lived in their home since 1901. The Bartons apparently did not have children; aside from Mrs. Barton, Mr. Barton’s survivors are his sister and several nieces and nephews. While I could not find an obituary for Mrs. Barton in our newspaper collection, a photo of the Bartons’ gravestone and information about them on Find-A-Grave reveal Mrs. Barton was born in 1875 and died on June 15, 1962 at age 86 or 87.
