Romance at York

John Byrd (Jr.) and Ina Kincaid

Nellie Byrd

The following is an account of your great uncle, John Byrd Jr. and his wife Ina Kincaid. Ina's family was of Scottish descent and from Maine. John's father, also named John, fought for the south in the civil war . The Byrds originally came from Virginia. John's father came to Missouri as a boy. The following was written by one of Ina and John's daughters, Nellie Byrd.

"Mother, Ina Louise, was 13 when they [her family] moved there and she and Uncle Ernest went to school in York.

The main entertainment for the young people was dancing, taffy pull, horse back riding, sleigh rides in the winter. Mother was a very attractive girl - 5'7," dark complexion, large brown eyes, bright brown hair - very vivacious, full of energy and she took part in all the fun, but was not dating, although some of the boys would bring her home from dances. Daddy (John Byrd) became very interested in her and although he was somewhat older, began taking her home and claiming most of her dances. Grandfather Kincaid heard about it and said no more. So they met secretly and planned to run away and get married, which they did. Ina asked her parents if she could go by stage to visit Aunt Cora and they let her. John went into Helena by horseback earlier and met her there. They were married May 14, 1889 in Helena and then went to Toston to Aunt Cora's for their honeymoon.

Grandfather's main objection to John Byrd was that they were from the South and, of course, he was a Northerner, and the Civil war hadn't been over long enough for them to forgive and forget. Grandfather Kincaid did not speak to my mother for seven years after she married Dad - but later Daddy became his favorite son-in-law."

Comment: Some things don't change. Probably John was much more attractive to Ina after her father forbade her to see him. Whew. I bet Aunt Cora was in big trouble with the family too.