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| 1948 |
Born Wallace Hoyt Potts 1916 to George Herbert Potts and Lydia Stone Hoyt. Wallace's parents separated in 1928. He lived with his father but for an unknown reason at some point he couldn't live with his father and moved in with United Brethren minister Rev Jaynes and wife in Norwalk, OH. His mother could not support him. He worked and saved and earned a Club scholarship to go to Ohio State University in pre-law in 1934. He was a page in the Ohio Senate while going to school. He had a nervous breakdown in 1937 and moved in with his sister Elsa and her husband Howard Florian. He would suffer from mental disorder the remainder of his life. He returned to school the following year in Education. He met Wilda McCallister at school Dec. 1938. Their first date was the play Shadows and Substance by Sean O'Casey. Wallace changed his name to Potts Hoyt after he met Wilda but before they were married. The name change was "partly because he thought it would be more of an advantage as a teacher" according to his Wilda. It is also speculated that it was because of differences with his father. They married Dec 16th, 1939 at the Olentangy Village apartments. Their families did not attend the wedding. He finished school in 1940. He majored in Social Studies (history) with a minor in English (speech). Wallace and Wilda lived in a rooming house on 8th Ave. near OSU while he worked in the dorms. While they were expecting their first child, Sean (b. Feb 1941), they moved to an apartment on Frambes Ave. that belonged to a college professor, Frances Jones, who had been a great help to Wallace in the college speech dept.
He got a job teaching English in Orwell, OH. They lived in the old town hall next to the school with no running water except a pump in the kitchen. He worked at Heckler Dairy in the summers. Since the owners of the town hall apartment only rented it in the fall through spring and lived there in the summers Wallace and Wilda stayed summers elsewhere. Once with his brother Herbet, once over a restaurant, once in a summer cabin at Heckler's beach. He made $1200 a year teaching. He was laid off in 1942.
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| 1974 |
Wallace left his Job at Lakeside in hopes of leaving for the service. With no job they went to live in grandfther's house who according to Wilda "died in 1943 and property wasn't settled" (Sean's grandpa? Wilda's grandpa Ferguson?). He took a job at Jeffrey Motors. While there he had another breakdown. He committed himself to Toledo State Hospital. As a result he was not allowed to accept his military appointment. He was in the hospital from July to Dec 1943. While in the Hospital his Mother stayed with Wilda and the kids. When he got out he took a job Chevrolet Transmission Plant in Toledo. He left this job in June to move to Spokane, Washington (1944) because (according to Wilda) he wanted to help the war effort. When he couldn't get a job there, he moved to Seattle and worked for Boeing aircraft in material control as an expeditor. After living in a boarding house for a while they bought a house Lake City Development. His Daughter Noreen was born in 1945. When the war was over and many Boeing employees were laid off. Wallace's mother died in Nov. 1945 and was buried in Acacia Cemetery. Wallace worked there a couple weeks and they sold the house in Lake City and bought a smaller house with an acre of land in Belllvue, WA.
Wallace got a job as n insurance adjuster in Sep 1945. (The order of dates don't make sense to me but this is the way Wilda wrote it) After being on the road for "a while" he was promoted to head of the department. In 1947 Wallace had another "nervous breakdown" he was "let go" in June, 1947. He went to a private Hospital in the care of Dr, Wirth. They had to sell the home to pay the bills. They drove back to Ohio in July, 1947. They stayed with his sister Elsa's family while she was in the hospital having surgery for cancer. After this he attained a teaching position in Loudonville, Ohio. They rented an apartment in Loudonville on US 3 near Shreve. They soon moved to a duplex owened by the Henleys.
Wallce had his fourth "nervous breakdown'. The hospitalizations are for schizophrenic episodes. He was removed from the home this time while his eldest son watched on. He was in Columbus State Hospital form Jan to Feb 1948. After this he worked at Wander in Wooster. After a fifth episode he was hospitalization from June, 13th through July 22nd (again at CSH) he got a job at "Flxible" in Sep 1948. No sooner than he started he was hospitalized again October 24th to Dec 7th and was "released" from Flxible. Between this and his next hospitalization he worked at Sohio. From Apr - May 50 he was again hospitalized. The Henleys sold the house to Don Kick so the Family had to move.
Wilda's parents put a down payment on a partially finished house and loaned money to Wallace to finish it. I think this was the home in Loudonville, OH. Wallace was back in the hospital yet again from October 7th through December 21st, 1950.
Upon getting out of the hospital he took a job with Cooper Bessemer in Mt. Vernon. Again he was back in the hospital from April 2nd to May 1, 1951. Over the years his treatment included insulin and shock therapy. The family was often on welfare and Wilda worked many jobs to cover family expenses during the years Wallace was hospitalized.
Next, Wallace worked at Borg-Warner in Wooster. Again he was sick. This time Dr. Benjamin Kovitz recommended a new drug, Reserpine. It worked and this is the last mention of hospitalization for Wallace for mental illness.
In addition to the nervous breakdown in '37, Walace was hospitalized in '43 (5 months), '47 (one month), '48 (3 times for a total of 5 months), '50 (twice for a total of 3 months), '51 (one month) and his final breakdown (undated btween 51 and 53) marked his final time.
After this he took a job with Kallmerten & Baier cement in Mansfield as a bookkeeper. In 1957 he took a job with Bellville High School as a teacher and coach of plays. During Summers he went to OSU to get his Master's in Guidance.
In 1959 he started teaching at Maumee High School. They bought a house in Maumee on Anderson Ave. He finished his Master's in 1961.
He sold the house on Anderson to buy land and build in a new development also on Anderson in 1963. This is the earliest home where I remember visiting my grandpa.
In 1976 Wallace and Wilda moved to Ashland, Ohio to a lot that had two homes connected by a central garage with my great grandparents. I remember thinking how add the split homes were and that my grandparents and my great grandparents were next door. 1964 or 65 he started working as a guidance counselor for Penta County Vocational School. Wallace retired in 76 with a hearing disability. Wilda's parents moved to Lexington, KY in 1977 and Wallace and Wilda They moved to a duplex in Ashland.
November 15, 1979 Wallace died in his sleep of "emphysema and heart disease."
I know form being in his vicinity that he snored louder than anyone else I have ever met (his son Sean being an impressive snorer also). He also smoked a lot and was very overweight.
From as early as I can remember until his death I visited with him, went on annual camping trips and holidays, went to the Toledo Zoo and Cleveland Indians games with him. He always had a hearing aid in one ear and a transistor radio in the other with baseball on. I have many letters to the editor he wrote about how the Tribe could improve.
Most of the information in this post is from a document typed by Wilda Hoyt.
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