the farm because he was going to marry the blond girl from Graham.
Transcript of Trena's Testimony, February 5, 1985.
attorney: Your father's name was-your real father's name was what?
T rena: Clarence Otto.
attorney: Clarence what?
Trena: Otto.
attorney: Otto was his last name?
Trena: I think it's his middle name. attorney: Last name?
Trena: McCloud.
attorney: Is he alive?
Trena: I don't know.
attorney: Do you know where he lives?
Trena: I never have.
attorney: Was he married to your mother when you were born?
Trena: Uh-huh.
attorney: Never asked your mother where he was?
Trena: Uh-huh.
attorney: Did she know?
Trena: Huh-uh.
Trena Louise McCloud was born in the small prairie town of Whiting, Kansas, on January 24, 1957. Her mother, Treva, was the second child in a family of eight girls and four boys. In her early twenties Treva met Clarence McCloud, a county road worker, and moved in with him not long afterward. In the spring of 1956, when they had been together about a year and a half, Treva became pregnant. One October afternoon in the seventh month of Treva's pregnancy, Clarence told her he was going out for a few things and would be back shortly. He was never seen or heard from again.
Treva would later tell Trena that the reason her father left her was "because he didn't want you."
Treva wasn't ready to settle down, either, and she and her younger sister Brenda set off for St. Joe to seek their fortune, leaving Trena behind in the care of her grandparents in Whiting. Eventually, the two sisters migrated north to the Skidmore and Quitman area, where Treva met Ronnie McNeely.
Ronnie was a slight, almost skinny man. A nice enough guy and a decent worker, Ronnie wasn't a strong personality. His nickname was "Muscles." Growing up, Ronnie had done what a lot of poor boys did in rural northwest Missouri: He trained and traded dogs and hunted coons. In the fall hunting season, he would go out in the timber five or six nights in a row, hunting coon for the sport and to earn, sometimes, decent money for the pelts. He became good friends with another coon hunter and dog trainer, a man who preferred running his dogs through the timber and over the creeks on a moonlit night to doing anything else, except perhaps running women.
In 1963, Treva and Ronnie married and moved into a house outside Graham, a couple of miles down the road from the McElroy place. The newlyweds' house was rundown and had neither indoor plumbing nor electricity. Several months later, when Trena was almost seven years old, Treva brought her out from Kansas to become a part of the family.
Trena was a pretty girl, with clear blue eyes, light blond hair that fell to her shoulders, and a soft alabaster complexion. A little on the chubby side, she was an easy child, gentle, quiet, and very shy, responding to overtures with a slight smile. To some, she seemed a little too passive.
Ronnie got a job working on the bridge crew, and Treva began having more children. In a few years, Trena had three brothers and one sister. As the older sister, she worked hard taking care of her siblings and doing housework. One friend of Trena's, who stayed over at her house a few times, remembered Treva sitting around drinking coffee and smoking while ordering Trena to cook breakfast, do the laundry, or fetch water. The children came to call the person who took care of them "Sissy." Although Sissy continued to use the last name McCloud, she soon came to call Ronnie "Dad."
Trena grew up a rural kid in a rural family, meaning in the case of non-landowners, lots of kids, very little money, and not a whole lot of education. The man usually worked for someone else as a hired hand, driving combines and grain trucks in season, and maybe pumping gas or tending bar in the winter. The woman stayed at home and cared for the kids and possibly waited tables at the cafe in town a few evenings a week.
Money was scarce even in decent times, and the kids who were tall enough to
Transcript of Trena's Testimony, February 5, 1985.
attorney: Your father's name was-your real father's name was what?
T rena: Clarence Otto.
attorney: Clarence what?
Trena: Otto.
attorney: Otto was his last name?
Trena: I think it's his middle name. attorney: Last name?
Trena: McCloud.
attorney: Is he alive?
Trena: I don't know.
attorney: Do you know where he lives?
Trena: I never have.
attorney: Was he married to your mother when you were born?
Trena: Uh-huh.
attorney: Never asked your mother where he was?
Trena: Uh-huh.
attorney: Did she know?
Trena: Huh-uh.
Trena Louise McCloud was born in the small prairie town of Whiting, Kansas, on January 24, 1957. Her mother, Treva, was the second child in a family of eight girls and four boys. In her early twenties Treva met Clarence McCloud, a county road worker, and moved in with him not long afterward. In the spring of 1956, when they had been together about a year and a half, Treva became pregnant. One October afternoon in the seventh month of Treva's pregnancy, Clarence told her he was going out for a few things and would be back shortly. He was never seen or heard from again.
Treva would later tell Trena that the reason her father left her was "because he didn't want you."
Treva wasn't ready to settle down, either, and she and her younger sister Brenda set off for St. Joe to seek their fortune, leaving Trena behind in the care of her grandparents in Whiting. Eventually, the two sisters migrated north to the Skidmore and Quitman area, where Treva met Ronnie McNeely.
Ronnie was a slight, almost skinny man. A nice enough guy and a decent worker, Ronnie wasn't a strong personality. His nickname was "Muscles." Growing up, Ronnie had done what a lot of poor boys did in rural northwest Missouri: He trained and traded dogs and hunted coons. In the fall hunting season, he would go out in the timber five or six nights in a row, hunting coon for the sport and to earn, sometimes, decent money for the pelts. He became good friends with another coon hunter and dog trainer, a man who preferred running his dogs through the timber and over the creeks on a moonlit night to doing anything else, except perhaps running women.
In 1963, Treva and Ronnie married and moved into a house outside Graham, a couple of miles down the road from the McElroy place. The newlyweds' house was rundown and had neither indoor plumbing nor electricity. Several months later, when Trena was almost seven years old, Treva brought her out from Kansas to become a part of the family.
Trena was a pretty girl, with clear blue eyes, light blond hair that fell to her shoulders, and a soft alabaster complexion. A little on the chubby side, she was an easy child, gentle, quiet, and very shy, responding to overtures with a slight smile. To some, she seemed a little too passive.
Ronnie got a job working on the bridge crew, and Treva began having more children. In a few years, Trena had three brothers and one sister. As the older sister, she worked hard taking care of her siblings and doing housework. One friend of Trena's, who stayed over at her house a few times, remembered Treva sitting around drinking coffee and smoking while ordering Trena to cook breakfast, do the laundry, or fetch water. The children came to call the person who took care of them "Sissy." Although Sissy continued to use the last name McCloud, she soon came to call Ronnie "Dad."
Trena grew up a rural kid in a rural family, meaning in the case of non-landowners, lots of kids, very little money, and not a whole lot of education. The man usually worked for someone else as a hired hand, driving combines and grain trucks in season, and maybe pumping gas or tending bar in the winter. The woman stayed at home and cared for the kids and possibly waited tables at the cafe in town a few evenings a week.
Money was scarce even in decent times, and the kids who were tall enough to
Similar Books
