William Rueben Zimmerman (1905 – 1925)

William Rueben Zimmerman, known in the family as Rueben, to distinguish him from his namesake and uncle William Lee Zimmerman, was born on August 4, 1905. Rueben was the second child and son of Parker Zimmerman and his second wife, Mellie Bollinger.

Mellie tragically lost her life in a wash day accident in December 1909. Mellie and her mother were washing clothes in a tub outside, when fire from underneath the wash tub caught Mellie’s dress on fire. The fabric burned quickly. Mellie eventually died from the burn wounds ten days later. Mellie’s mother burnt her hands badly beating the fire out.

Rueben was only five years old, when his mother died. Mellie’s friend and the local school teacher, Lydia Margaret “Dolly” Story, started helping Parker with the children. Parker and Dolly married the following year. Besides Parker’s and Mellie’s three children, little Ida, who was not even a year old died three months before her mother, Parker and Dolly had eight more children.

Rueben was a bit of a legend in the family because Aunt Effie, Parker’s sister, told my Aunt Willa that Rueben was a barber and part-time professional wrestler. Aunt Effie said Rueben died young from injuries suffered during a wrestling match.

I did not find a record of Rueben wrestling but there was professional wrestling in New Madrid and Sikeston as well as wrestling at the state fairs in the summer. The newspaper articles did not list the participants in most accounts.

I do know Rueben did not die from injuries in the ring. Rueben contracted tuberculosis, still often a death sentence in rural areas during the 1920s. Unfortunately, it was not only a death sentence for Rueben.

20-year-old Rueben died from the effect of tuberculosis on September 18, 1925. Rueben left an 18-year-old widow Cecilia Zimmerman nee Madden. Celilia was born on March 3, 1908, to Effie and Bertha Madden nee Dickenson.

19-year-old Cecilia Zimmerman died from the effects of tuberculosis on April 4, 1927, nineteen months after Rueben died. I do not believe Rueben and Cecilia had children but I cannot completely rule out a surviving child.

Parker buried his second child. Before his death in the Cape Girardeau Tornado of 1949, Parker buired one more child.