How we are related:
Martha Geneva Ashby Speakman
Daniel Vaughn Speakman
“We take the pleasure of enclosing herewith credentialed ticket and badge issued with the compliments of President. J. T. McNaught. Mr. J. E. Langford who will have full charge of the pageant requests that you report not later than 7:00 p.m., Monday, October 4th at the Queen’s Quarters when you will receive full instructions as to your part in the pageant. We have already mailed you detailed instructions and trust you have received same. We wish you to have no anxiety as to your welfare while on the fairgrounds and we desire you to know, also, that every safeguard will be thrown around you, that nothing may happen to mar your visit. Assuring you of our desire to make your visit to the fair one long to be remembered. We are yours respectfully, J. G. Ensign.
Badge will be handed you at the fairgrounds Monday.
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| Geneva Ashby - 2nd from left |
From an audio tape recorded in 1972 by Dan Speakman at the home of his mother
Martha Geneva Ashby Speakman (1895-1981).
Transcribed by Sue S. Lambert
Dan: Didn’t you tell me at one time that you were in
the state competition in a beauty contest or
something?
Tell us about it.
Geneva: You’ve seen the picture of me, haven’t you?
Dan: Well, maybe I’ve seen one, I don’t remember.
Geneva: It was right up at the state capitol.
Dan: Was it just a competition up there, or did you
represent Millard County?
Geneva: Millard County
Dan: Well, you had a beauty contest here first, then?
Geneva: No, they just chose a queen and four maids of honor from this county.
I was one of them.
Dan: Well what did you have to do to compete for that?
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| Ogden Standard October 8, 1914 |
Dan: But you didn’t compete here before you left?
Geneva: No, went to Salt Lake.
Dan: How did they choose you from the county?
Geneva: Oh, they just picked us.
Dan: They picked you from here and then you were judged up there?
Geneva: Yes.
Dan: What did you have to do up there, just …
Geneva: No, we had to compete.
Dan: Did you have several dresses that you had to wear?
Geneva: We had costumes, new costumes
Dan: Well, what did you have … ?
Geneva: You can see a little picture.
Have you seen that picture?
Dan: Did you have a formal or a swim suit competition or
what did you have?
Geneva: No, all in the same thing.
Dan: Just one costume is all that you went out in.
Geneva: All the same costume. The county did it.
Dan: The county hired it for you?
Geneva: Yes.
Dan: Did you win up there?
Geneva: I was the Maid of Honor. I won third prize.
Dan: Third prize.
Geneva: I got from Orbach’s.
They gave me the best hat they had.
They gave me two of them.
Dan: Is that right?
Geneva: They sat around this big coliseum outside town.
You had to walk around a platform around all the people sitting there.
And Dad was there, and somebody said,
“Oh, there’s a beautiful girl!”
and he said, “That’s my daughter!”
And then we had to walk down this big platform to get our prize.
They gave us an envelope. Governor Spry gave it to us.
We had to walk down to get our prize and he gave it to us. Flap, flap, flap, flap.
Before we went they had a big, big banquet all decorated just beautiful and
they took us there in a coach that looked like this with four big white horses.
We sat in this curve ..
Dan: Curves like you see in the movies?
Geneva: Yes.
Dad: Fancy?
Geneva: Well it curved down the middle with four big white horses.
Dan: You sat down in the curve and the man sat up in the front on the seat of the dome?
Well, did Dad drive his team clear from here? Did you have a …
Geneva: He used to have this covered … No, he had one of his cars …
Dan: He had his car then that he went up
Geneva: No, I don’t know how he – he went in the parade with us.
Dan: Oh.
Betty: Was this before you were married, or when?
Geneva: I was seventeen. Yeah, long before I was married.
How we are related:
Martha Geneva Ashby Speakman
Daniel Vaughn Speakman
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