Lena Ellen (Gerke) (Carr) (Hedtke) Voss Obit

Lena Ellen (Gerke) (Carr) (Hedtke) Voss
May 3, 1877 - Dec 17,1920
Posted by Steve Kukuk

Lena was my father’s step-aunt. The McGuire Cemetery website shows Lena’s birth year as 1872 and death year as 1908. These dates are not correct — as there is no stone on her grave, this information must have come from another source.

Lena’s birth date was 3 May 1877 (Kurten, Brazos, TX). She died 17 Dec 1920 (Perry, Noble, OK) due to a gunshot would administered by her husband. I am attaching a transcript of her death notice from the 23 Dec 1920 "The Perry Republican”. As the newspaper was published prior to 1922, copyright is not an issue. Lena’s maiden name was Gerke, but she was married three times (Carr, Hedtke, Voss)

23 Dec 1920, The Perry Republican

Lena Voss (Lena Ellen (Gerke, Carr, Hedke) Voss)

Born: 3 May 1877, Kurten, Brazos, TX

Died: 17 Dec 1920, Perry, Noble, OK

Death Toll Increases

Mrs. Lena Voss died Friday morning at 4:30 as a result of gun shot wounds inflicted by her husband, Chris Voss, on December 9^th.

In the opinion of medical specialists given out last week Mrs. Voss had an excellent opportunity of recovery but complications set in on Thursday from the wound in her left lung and she succumbed Friday morning. The bullet which entered the mouth was located and removed from the back of the throat without an operation but the bullet which entered the breast was never located.

Funeral services were held Sunday from the Baptist church in this city, Rev. Vermillion officiating and the body interred in McGuire cemetery 10 miles west of Perry, near Lucien.

Four children survive the mother. Walter Hedtke, 4 and Elvie Lee Hedtke, 9 years old, son and daughter of a former marriage, and a grown son and daughter, Nealy and Lenora Carr who live in Texas are children of her first marriage.