Edward (Ed) and Rae (Thomas) Armitstead were married in 1914 and lived
     on the farm his father had homesteaded in 1899. Ed was a good farmer and 
     also spent long hours dragging or grading roads with a blade, on which he
     stood, and drove a team of horses. In spite of poor health, Rae always
     raised a large garden and canned much of it. The baby chicks were hatched
     in an incubator, which was kept in the house. A large flock of chickens was
     always kept on the Armitstead farm. Rae taught Sunday School classes at
     Ashton and Isabel. She attended "normal" school in Pratt while living with
     her Uncle and Aunt, Bob and Bertha Brockman. This entilled Rae to a 
     teaching certificate, and she taught several years before her marriage. Ed
     attended college in Manhattan. Their children Dale Edward, Ruth Maxine,
     and John William (Billy) were born on the farm their grandfather had
     homesteaded. Dale passed away at his home in Pratt on September 4, 1978 and 
     Billy died at the age of 9 months from pneumonia on February 23, 1926. 
     Maxine resides with her husband, Franklin House on their family farm south-
     west of Isabel. 
            
     Source: Isabel, Kansas - The First 100 Years, 1887 - 1987,  pg. 32 
     
     Submitted by: Maxine House