b. 15 January 1871, d. 20 January 1953
Birth | 15 Jan 1871 | J Estell Moffett was born on 15 Jan 1871 in Burlington, Kansas. His first name was Joseph, but he never used the name. Instead everyone referred to him as "J. Estell" or "Ett."5,6 |
Moth-Death | Feb 1878 | When Ett was seven years old his mother died after giving birth to a younger brother in Coffey County, Kansas.7 |
| | Shortly afterwards, Ett and his sister Herma went to live with a couple by the name of Parrish.7 |
Migration | 1879 | In 1879 the Parrishes loaded Herma and Ett into a wagon and left Kansas in the middle of the night. Though no one knew where they had gone at the time, they were headed for Colorado, where Mr. Parrish had sold trinkets in the gold fields the previous year. They settled on a farm near Monument, Colorado.7,8 |
| | Ett did not get along well with the Parrishes, who were not kind to him. At the age of about fifteen he took back the name "Moffett" and left to live with a family by the name of Shubert who were wonderful to him and who remained close to Ett for the rest of their lives.7 |
Migration | | Ett's father, John Moffett, located him in Colorado in the 1890s and by 1898 was living with him. When John left to return to Nebraska he owed Ett money. Ett followed John to Weeping Water (Cass Co.), but then moved on to Coffeeville, Kansas, where there was much talk about the pending opening of the Cheyenne Strip in Oklahoma. But the opening was delayed and work was scarce so Ett returned to Monument.7 |
| | In May 1895 Ett's sister Herma married Elmer Moody in Colorado Springs. This led to an acquaintance between Ett and Elmer's sister Sylvia. |
Marriage | 16 Mar 1902 | He married Sylvia May Moody, daughter of James Robinson Moody and Myra McMichael, on 16 Mar 1902 in Colorado Springs, El Paso County, Colorado.9,10 |
Migration | | Sadly Herma (Moffett) Moody died in Jul 1902, following an operation for appendicitis. Ett and Sylvia suffered a second loss in 1904 when their first child died at the age of 18 months. The couple then left the Colorado Springs area and moved out onto the plains at Calhan (Colorado).11 |
Migration | 1909 | In 1909 they moved to Willow Springs in Howell County, Missouri.11 |
Cens-1910 | 3 May 1910 | There they were enumerated on the 1910 federal census. Ett (recorded as "J. Moffett") was farming. Sylvia was taking care of the family which by then included three children: Willard (5), Herma (2) and Robert (9 mos).12 |
Migration | 1912 | In 1912 the family returned to the plains of Colorado, settling on a farm near Keysor.11 |
| 1913 | Here they experienced the Big Snow" of 1913; one of the worst winters in the history of Colorado. |
Residence | | For the next several years the family stayed in Colorado, although they moved from farm to farm and at one point lived in a sod house.11 |
| | Two more daughters joined the family during this period, Margaret, born in 1911 in Missouri, and Isabel, born in 1914 back in Colorado. |
Migration | Fall 1917 | Then, in the fall of 1917, they moved back to Missouri, this time settling in Salem.11 |
Migration | 1920 | For a brief period in 1920 Ett moved the family to Crawford, Kansas, where he worked on the Missouri Pacific Railroad.11 |
Migration | 1920 | Later, in 1920, Ett rented a ranch near Matheson, Colorado, and the family again returned to Colorado.11 |
Occupation | | Ett worked at a variety of jobs through the years. Among other things, he bought and sold horses and livestock, and farmed.11 |
Occupation | | His son Willard, writing about his father, comments that Ett was a wonderful horseman. As a young man Ett would catch wild horses and break and train them. Later he worked as a teamster.7 |
| | Willard also comments, "My father must have been born with itchy feet as I can't remember him living longer than two years in one place."11 |
Residence | 1927 | In 1927 Ett and Sylvia sold their cattle, their large farming equipment and most of their horses and rented a small fruit farm. Over the next few years they moved to three different small fruit farms in Penrose, Colorado.7 |
Residence | | When Ett finally retired they settled nearby, in Canon City.11 |
Residence | | However, following the pattern of his earlier years, Ett did not stay in one place for long. He and Sylvia moved back on to the plains at Calhan to be near their son and daughter, but the winters proved too harsh and they returned to Canon City.11 |
Death | 20 Jan 1953 | Ett died on 20 Jan 1953 in Canon City, Colorado, at age 82.13 |
Burial | 23 Jan 1953 | He was buried on 23 Jan 1953 at Evergreen Cemetery in Colorado Springs, El Paso County, Colorado.14 |