Wilfred Parrow

                             

                           Wilfred Joseph Parrow                                        1890-1979

Wilfred Joseph Parrow was born January 11, 1890 at Wild Rice, ND to Odile (Dumas) and Edward Parrow.  He married Mary Ann Barbara (Marie) Hoffman, daughter of Simon and Mary Ann Hoffman, on August 5, 1914 at McVille, ND where Wilfred was a barber at the time.  Their best man was Peter Bartholome, a young seminarian who in later years became Bishop of the St. Cloud (MN) diocese.

   By 1917 Wilfred had returned to Havana, ND where he was barbering when their first daughter, Mary Ann Delphine was born on July 29, 1917.  A second daughter, Lorraine Odile was born December 28, 1920 also at Havana.  A son, Wilfred Simon was born March 23, 1924 in Aberdeen, SD.  The family was still living in Havana but Marie was sent to Aberdeen for the delivery.  The family moved to Aberdeen about 1925 where Wilfred continued to barber, owning his own shops until he went into the liquor business at the beginning of WWII.  He had bars in Aberdeen, SD, Cayuga, ND and Streeter, ND before buying a liquor business in Wahpeton, ND in 1945.  He retired in 1958.

   As a young lad, Wilfred was a jockey at the race track run by Owen Gorey and Peter Unise near Marlow, SD where Odile and Edward Parrow were farming.  Wilfred is also remembered as a wrestler in the Marlow area and after moving to Aberdeen, he promoted wrestling and trained boxers.

   After retiring Wilfred and Marie traveled with their trailer home for a while and then lived in Grants Pass, OR for several years.  Later they lived in Vista, CA before returning to Wahpeton, ND.  They spent their summers at Otter Tail Lake near Fergus Falls, MN.

   Wilfred died August 2, 1979 at St. Francis Hospital in Breckenridge, MN at the age of 89.  This was just 3 days before their 65th wedding anniversary.  About a year after Wilfred's death, Marie moved to Aberdeen, first to an apartment and then to Mother Joseph Manor where she died on September 7, 1992 at the age of 95.

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