The Berry Family

The Pantagraph reported in a tongue in cheek article that a Miss Edith Berry, who was once a resident of Bloomington, had fallen in love in Chicago, but been cheated and jilted by her love. Her boyfriend "Jimmy" took her beautiful necklace, a lavaliere, pawned it and left her. Poor Miss Berry, who was 21 years old returned to Kansas City where she worked as a milliner, according to the Chicago American newspaper. Edith married William Lawrence Tenney in 1916 but her dreams of love were once again dashed, this time by divorce in 1940 while living in Sarasota Florida.

Miss Berry was born in Atlanta, the daughter George Berry of a saloon keeper. The Berry's moved to Bloomington sometime before 1910 and Mr. George Berry ran the Kegler tavern on West Monroe and the Stag Hotel at the same location. In 1912 Mr. and Mrs. Berry sold out and moved to Galesburg. Three of their four children stayed in Bloomington and were still living here when their father suddenly died on a business trip in Ottumwa, Iowa on January 9, 1913.

In 1913 Leo Berry, Edith's older brother was present at an accident between a trolley car and mule wagon. The mule was injured such that an officer was required to humanely dispatch the animal. Immediately after the mule was shot, Leo Berry fell down in a dead faint, leading people to believe he had been shot by a fractured bullet. He had only fainted and was taken by ambulance to the John Lambert Tavern on Monroe Street, where he was given attention.