H0111
The study's number for this person. Cite it and it will always lead here, whatever the spelling.Ralph Edward Putt
Born in 1924 and died in 2015.
born 30 Nov 1924 died 2015
Life story
Moline
Ralph Edward Putt was born on 30 November 1924, the son of Lewis E. Putt and Rose E., who were both born in Illinois.1–2 He grew up in Moline, Rock Island County, Illinois, a manufacturing town on the Mississippi across the river from Davenport, Iowa. In 1930 his father was an electrician, and by 1940 a millwright. A younger sister (living) was born about 1932.1–2 The family lived in Moline through the Depression, from at least 1930 until 1940.2
Marriage and work
In 1949 Ralph married Vivian Rose Sims, a Davenport-born girl raised in Rock Island.3 In April 1950 they were living at 211 17th Avenue in Moline, where they had been since the year before. Ralph, twenty-five, was working in personnel, and Vivian was a stenographer at an iron works.4 They had two children (living).3
Later years
Vivian's obituary follows the couple's later life only through her own homes: Poughkeepsie, New York, then Florida, Alexandria, Virginia, and Florida again, and from 2010 Clayton, North Carolina.3 Ralph died in 2015 and was buried in Rock Island National Cemetery, back in the county where he had grown up; after her death in 2020 Vivian was laid to rest with him there.3
What we know
Proven
- Birth, 1924
- Marriage to Vivian Rose Sims, 1949
- Occupation at Moline, 1950
- Death, 2015
- Burial at Rock Island National Cemetery
- 4 homes, from the census and other records
What's still open
- Sources. His census facts come from the census records attached to him in the family's Ancestry tree (1930, 1940 and 1950); the 1950 address and household come from his wife's line of the same census (index read 27 Sep 2026).
- Birth. The tree gives 30 Nov 1924 and attaches the three censuses, which support the year only; Find a Grave gives 1924.
- Death. 2015, from the dates Find a Grave gives on his wife's memorial; her obituary says he died before her.
Sources
Sources 1–2
1 1930 U.S. Federal Census, Moline
1930 U.S. Federal Census, Moline, Rock Island County, Illinois, E.D. 57, sheet 7B: Ralph Putt (son, single) in the household of Lewis E. Putt (head, married; electrician) and Rose E. Putt (wife); FHL microfilm 2340288; database with images, Ancestry.com (as attached in the family tree; the index entry and the image not re-read).
2 1940 U.S. Federal Census, Moline, 1935
1940 U.S. Federal Census, Moline, Rock Island County, Illinois, E.D. 81-59, sheet 2A: Ralph Putt (son, single; residence in 1935 Moline) in the household of Lewis E. Putt (head, married; millwright) and Rose E. Putt (wife), with a daughter (name withheld: living); roll m-t0627-00875; database with images, Ancestry.com (as attached in the family tree; the index entry and the image not re-read).
Source 3
3 Find a Grave, memorial 212772081, 1928
Find a Grave, memorial 212772081, Vivian Rose Putt, née Sims (14 Sep 1928, Davenport, Scott County, Iowa – 13 Apr 2020, Clayton, Johnston County, North Carolina), Rock Island National Cemetery, Rock Island, Rock Island County, Illinois, plot 4-0126; inscription "Loving wife mother friend loved the Lord"; linked to her parents Ray Sims (1902–1968) and Edna Lorene Cribb Sims (1903–1933) and her spouse Ralph Edward Putt (1924–2015, m. 1949); with her obituary, courtesy of McLaurin Funeral Home, Clayton, N.C. (born at Davenport to Ray and Edna Sims; after her mother's early death raised by Harry and Dagmar Long of Rock Island; Rock Island High School; secretary at Moline Iron Works and John Deere Malleable; married Ralph Edward Putt in 1949; later of Poughkeepsie, N.Y., Florida, Alexandria, Va., Florida, and from 2010 Clayton; died Monday, 13 April 2020; predeceased by her husband; survived by two children and grandchildren [names withheld: living]; memorial service 18 July 2020 at McLaurin Funeral Home; to be buried with her husband in Rock Island National Cemetery) (findagrave.com/memorial/212772081). Indexed in "U.S., Find a Grave Index," Ancestry.com (read 27 September 2026).
Source 4
4 1950 U.S. Federal Census, Moline, 1949
1950 U.S. Federal Census, Moline, Rock Island County, Illinois, E.D. 81-60, sheet 5, dwelling 58, 211 17 Ave., roll 4079: Ralph Putt (head, 25, married; "personell work"), with his wife Vivian Putt (22, born Illinois [sic]; stenographer, iron works; married one year; same house in 1949); National Archives, Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; database with images, Ancestry.com (his line as attached in the family tree; her line, with the address, read 27 September 2026).
More sources are in the evidence below.
Life in time
30 Nov 1924
Birth
How we know
The date is the family tree's; the censuses attached to it support the year, and Find a Grave gives 1924. The place is not recorded; it was probably Illinois (see Research Notes).
The Ancestry tree gives 30 Nov 1924 and cites his lines of the censuses of 1930, 1940 and 1950, which give ages, not dates; he was 25 in April 1950, which fits. Find a Grave (linked from his wife's memorial) gives 1924. No birth record, Social Security record or obituary giving the day has been seen, so the day rests on family knowledge and the year on the records.
1930
Residence , Moline, Rock Island, Illinois, United States
How we know
Moline (E.D. 57, sheet 7B). Son, single, in the household of his parents Lewis E. and Rose E. Putt.
His own line of the 1930 census, as attached in the family tree (index; image not re-read). His parents identify the household.
1935
Residence , Moline, Rock Island, Illinois, United States
How we know
His residence on 1 April 1935, from the 1940 census.
The 1935-residence column of his line of the 1940 census, as indexed.
1940
Residence , Moline, Rock Island, Illinois, United States
How we know
Moline (E.D. 81-59, sheet 2A). Son, single, in the household of his parents Lewis E. and Rose E. Putt, with his younger sister (living).
His own line of the 1940 census, as attached in the family tree (index; image not re-read). His parents identify the household.
1949
Marriage, with Vivian Rose Sims
How we know
The year is from Vivian's obituary and Find a Grave; the place (probably Rock Island County, Illinois) and the day have not been found. In April 1950 they had been married about a year.
Vivian's obituary, carried on her Find a Grave memorial, says that she married Ralph Edward Putt in 1949, and the memorial links his as her spouse, "m. 1949". The 1950 census shows Ralph Putt, 25, head, and his wife Vivian, 22, at Moline, married for one year.
1950
Residence , Moline, Rock Island, Illinois, United States
How we know
211 17th Avenue, Moline (E.D. 81-60, sheet 5, dwelling 58). Head of household, 25, married, with his wife Vivian, 22; they had lived in the same house in 1949.
His own line of the 1950 census, as attached in the family tree; the address and his wife's details are from her line of the same census (index read, 27 Sep 2026).
1950
Occupation , Moline, Rock Island, Illinois, United States
How we know
"Personell [personnel] work" (1950 census). The employer is not known.
The occupation column of his line of the 1950 census, as indexed.
2015
Death
How we know
Year only, from Find a Grave (linked from his wife's memorial); his wife's obituary says he died before her. The family tree's 17 Dec 2015 (and the old tree's Clayton, North Carolina) have no source that gives them.
Vivian's Find a Grave memorial links a memorial for her husband Ralph Edward Putt, 1924–2015, and her obituary, carried on it, says she was predeceased by her husband Ralph. His own memorial has not been read.
-
1924 Birth
The date is the family tree's; the censuses attached to it support the year, and Find a Grave gives 1924. The place is not recorded; it was probably Illinois (see Research Notes).
The Ancestry tree gives 30 Nov 1924 and cites his lines of the censuses of 1930, 1940 and 1950, which give ages, not dates; he was 25 in April 1950, which fits. Find a Grave (linked from his wife's memorial) gives 1924. No birth record, Social Security record or obituary giving the day has been seen, so the day rests on family knowledge and the year on the records.
-
1930 Residence
Moline (E.D. 57, sheet 7B). Son, single, in the household of his parents Lewis E. and Rose E. Putt.
His own line of the 1930 census, as attached in the family tree (index; image not re-read). His parents identify the household.
Source 1
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1935 Residence
His residence on 1 April 1935, from the 1940 census.
The 1935-residence column of his line of the 1940 census, as indexed.
Source 2
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1940 Residence
Moline (E.D. 81-59, sheet 2A). Son, single, in the household of his parents Lewis E. and Rose E. Putt, with his younger sister (living).
His own line of the 1940 census, as attached in the family tree (index; image not re-read). His parents identify the household.
Source 2
-
1949 Marriage, with Vivian Rose Sims
The year is from Vivian's obituary and Find a Grave; the place (probably Rock Island County, Illinois) and the day have not been found. In April 1950 they had been married about a year.
Vivian's obituary, carried on her Find a Grave memorial, says that she married Ralph Edward Putt in 1949, and the memorial links his as her spouse, "m. 1949". The 1950 census shows Ralph Putt, 25, head, and his wife Vivian, 22, at Moline, married for one year.
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1950 Residence
211 17th Avenue, Moline (E.D. 81-60, sheet 5, dwelling 58). Head of household, 25, married, with his wife Vivian, 22; they had lived in the same house in 1949.
His own line of the 1950 census, as attached in the family tree; the address and his wife's details are from her line of the same census (index read, 27 Sep 2026).
Source 4
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1950 Occupation
"Personell [personnel] work" (1950 census). The employer is not known.
The occupation column of his line of the 1950 census, as indexed.
Source 4
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2015 Death
Year only, from Find a Grave (linked from his wife's memorial); his wife's obituary says he died before her. The family tree's 17 Dec 2015 (and the old tree's Clayton, North Carolina) have no source that gives them.
Vivian's Find a Grave memorial links a memorial for her husband Ralph Edward Putt, 1924–2015, and her obituary, carried on it, says she was predeceased by her husband Ralph. His own memorial has not been read.
Source 3
- proven
Hover or drag along the line, or select a point and use the arrow keys.
Places in this life
2 places, in order- 1 Moline, Rock Island County Residence 1930 · Residence 1935 · Residence 1940 · 2 more
- 2 Rock Island National Cemetery, Rock Island County Burial
Family
The evidence 9 facts with their grades, 4 sources, and the research notes
Facts
| Fact | Date | Place | Grade | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Birth | 30 Nov 1924 | proven | 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 | |
| Residence | 1930 | Moline, Rock Island, Illinois, United States | proven | 1 |
| Residence | 1935 | Moline, Rock Island, Illinois, United States | proven | 2 |
| Residence | 1940 | Moline, Rock Island, Illinois, United States | proven | 2 |
| Marriage with Vivian Rose Sims | 1949 | proven | 3 , 4 | |
| Residence | 1950 | Moline, Rock Island, Illinois, United States | proven | 4 |
| Occupation | 1950 | Moline, Rock Island, Illinois, United States | proven | 4 |
| Death | 2015 | proven | 3 | |
| Burial | Rock Island National Cemetery, Rock Island, Rock Island, Illinois, United States | proven | 3 |
Research notes
- Sources: His census facts come from the census records attached to him in the family's Ancestry tree (1930, 1940 and 1950); the 1950 address and household come from his wife's line of the same census (index read 27 Sep 2026). His marriage, death year and burial come from his wife's Find a Grave memorial and the funeral-home obituary it carries; his own memorial has not been read.
- Birth: The tree gives 30 Nov 1924 and attaches the three censuses, which support the year only; Find a Grave gives 1924.1, 2, 4, 3 The place is not recorded; his parents were born in Illinois and lived in Moline, so Illinois, probably Rock Island County, is likely but not recorded. The old family tree attaches a Moline High School yearbook of 1943 (not read). His Social Security record, a delayed birth record or an obituary would confirm the date and place.
- Death: 2015, from the dates Find a Grave gives on his wife's memorial; her obituary says he died before her.3 The family tree's 17 Dec 2015 has no source, and the old family tree's place, Clayton, North Carolina (where Vivian lived from 2010), is also unsourced; both are leads. His own Find a Grave memorial and the national cemetery's gravesite index should give the exact date.
- Military service: Burial in Rock Island National Cemetery implies veteran status; since his wife was buried with him, he was very probably the veteran. He turned 18 in November 1942, so service in World War II is likely; no draft registration, enlistment or veterans' record has been searched.3
- Marriage: Only the year, 1949, is known; in April 1950 they had been married about a year.3, 4 The Rock Island County marriage record should give the day.
- Children: Two (living), per his wife's obituary; they are not named here.3
Working notes
- Death 17 Dec 2015 is unsourced in the tree (lead)
- Death year from Find a Grave (tree 17 Dec 2015 a lead); probably buried Rock Island National Cemetery (wife's obituary)
Sources
- 1
1930 U.S. Federal Census, Moline, Rock Island County, Illinois, E.D. 57, sheet 7B: Ralph Putt (son, single) in the household of Lewis E. Putt (head, married; electrician) and Rose E. Putt (wife); FHL microfilm 2340288; database with images, Ancestry.com (as attached in the family tree; the index entry and the image not re-read).
- 2
1940 U.S. Federal Census, Moline, Rock Island County, Illinois, E.D. 81-59, sheet 2A: Ralph Putt (son, single; residence in 1935 Moline) in the household of Lewis E. Putt (head, married; millwright) and Rose E. Putt (wife), with a daughter (name withheld: living); roll m-t0627-00875; database with images, Ancestry.com (as attached in the family tree; the index entry and the image not re-read).
- 3
Find a Grave, memorial 212772081, Vivian Rose Putt, née Sims (14 Sep 1928, Davenport, Scott County, Iowa – 13 Apr 2020, Clayton, Johnston County, North Carolina), Rock Island National Cemetery, Rock Island, Rock Island County, Illinois, plot 4-0126; inscription "Loving wife mother friend loved the Lord"; linked to her parents Ray Sims (1902–1968) and Edna Lorene Cribb Sims (1903–1933) and her spouse Ralph Edward Putt (1924–2015, m. 1949); with her obituary, courtesy of McLaurin Funeral Home, Clayton, N.C. (born at Davenport to Ray and Edna Sims; after her mother's early death raised by Harry and Dagmar Long of Rock Island; Rock Island High School; secretary at Moline Iron Works and John Deere Malleable; married Ralph Edward Putt in 1949; later of Poughkeepsie, N.Y., Florida, Alexandria, Va., Florida, and from 2010 Clayton; died Monday, 13 April 2020; predeceased by her husband; survived by two children and grandchildren [names withheld: living]; memorial service 18 July 2020 at McLaurin Funeral Home; to be buried with her husband in Rock Island National Cemetery) (findagrave.com/memorial/212772081). Indexed in "U.S., Find a Grave Index," Ancestry.com (read 27 September 2026).
- 4
1950 U.S. Federal Census, Moline, Rock Island County, Illinois, E.D. 81-60, sheet 5, dwelling 58, 211 17 Ave., roll 4079: Ralph Putt (head, 25, married; "personell work"), with his wife Vivian Putt (22, born Illinois [sic]; stenographer, iron works; married one year; same house in 1949); National Archives, Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; database with images, Ancestry.com (his line as attached in the family tree; her line, with the address, read 27 September 2026).