By Don Taylor
Hypothesis
The John Montran Project is a personal project to explore the hypothesis that my great-grandfather, John Montran married twice. Once to Ida May Barber and once to Maude Minnie Winter. He had one daughter with Ida (Donna) and had two daughters with Maude. I hope to be able to confirm or refute that the two John Montrans were the same individual. In this article, I look at John Foster Montran’s granddaughter Olga Ruth Babcock. If my great-grandfather Montran is the same person as Olga’s grandfather, she and I would be 1st cousins, once removed.
Roberts-Brown 2017 – Montran Project
List of Grandparents
- Grandfather: John Foster Montran
Olga Ruth Babcock Hinds Buchanan (1916-2001)
Olga Ruth Babcock was born on 18 May 1916, in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Canada. She was the first child of Minor Howard Babcock and Thelma M (Montran) Babcock.
In 1917, when Olga was a one-year-old, her family immigrated to the United States. In 1920 the young family is living in San Francisco where Olga’s father is a bookkeeper for an Auto Sales company.
In 1922, Ruth’s brother, Montran Howard Babcock was born.
In 1926, Ruth’s father became a naturalized citizen. Because Ruth was a minor, she also became a citizen as part of her father becoming a citizen.
In 1930, Olga’s parents had migrated to Inglewood, California. Minor was an accountant and her mother was apparently keeping house. 
Olga married James R. Hinds on 24 September 1938. Apparently, the marriage didn’t go well because James filed for divorce in Reno, Nevada on 14 October 1940.
Sometime between 1935 and 1940 Olga’s father died. Olga’s mother was the proprietor of a guest house that included 11 lodgers as well as Thelma, Olga, and Montran.
On 15 August 1941, Olga married Chester White Buchanan. Chester died in 1963 and is buried at Inglewood Park Cemetery, in Inglewood.
Olga’s brother, Montran, died in 1972 and her mother, Thelma, died in 1974.
Olga lived until 2001. I have not been successful in finding any information regarding burial or another memorial.
In all my research, I have found no evidence that Olga had any children. As such, this lime may be a dead end. I will look at Montran’s life next.
Sources
- 1916 Canada Census, Family Search, 1916 Canada Census – Miner H Babcock. “Canada Census, 1916,” database with images, FamilySearch : 3 April 2016), Miner H Babcock in household of Daniel Cameron, Saskatchewan, Canada; citing p. 16, line 43; Library and Archives Canada, Ottawa, Ontario; FHL microfilm 2,434,946. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KMPM-81T
- 1920 Census (FS), Family Search, Miner [Minor] H Babcock – San Francisco, San Francisco, California. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MH4H-8MD.
- 1930 Census (NARA), Com, Minor Babcock – Inglewood, Los Angeles, CA [Maude Montran]. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XCJJ-G73.
- 1940 Census, Com, 1940 – Thelma (Montran) Babcock – Inglewood, Los Angeles, California.
- California, County Marriages, 1850-1952, Family Search, James R Hinds & Olga R Babcock. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K8VW-2MM.
- Reno Gazette-Journal ((Reno, Nevada), ), Com, 1940-10-14 – Page 12 – Court Actions Filed – James R. Hinds vs. Olga Ruth Hinds.
- S. City Directories, 1822-1995, Ancestry.Com, Inglewood, California, City Directory, 1935 – Page 30 – Babcock. https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?viewrecord=1&r=an&db=USDirectories&indiv=try&h=1379164103.
- S., Naturalization Records, 1840-1957, Ancestry.Com, Minor Howard Babcock – Naturalized 17 Sep 1926.
Minor Howard Babcock born 17 Nov 1891 Hartington, Ontario, Canada
Thelma M. born 23 June 1895, Philadelphia
Olga R born May 18, 1916 Moose Jaw Canada
Montran B. born June 11, 1922, Inglewood, CA
Naturalized: Sep 17, 1926. https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?viewrecord=1&r=an&db=USnaturalizationOriginals&indiv=try&h=4172998.
- S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007, Internet, Olga Ruth Babcock – Buchanen / Buchanan. https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?viewrecord=1&r=an&db=Numident&indiv=try&h=17522194.