Milford Earl Shepherd

b. 16 December 1891, d. 3 February 1967
  • Milford Earl Shepherd was born on 16 December 1891 in Harper County, Kansas.
  • Milford Earl Shepherd registered for the draft on 5 June 1917 in Lawrence County, South Dakota, while single and living at 88 Charles Street in Deadwood, and employed there by Chicago Burlington & Quincy Railroad.
  • The following appeared on 2 June 1918 in The Deadwood Daily Pioneer-Times: Mrs. H. M. Shepherd went out on the Burlington to Ravenna to Keep house for her son, Earl, who is employed by the Burlington.
  • He married Vera Marie Walter, daughter of William W. Walter and Esther (?), say 1925.
  • The following appeared on 15 August 1929 in the Deadwood Pioneer-Times: Mr. and Mrs. Earl Shepherd and daughter, Maxine, who have been visiting with mr. Shepherd's mother, Mrs. H. M. Shepherd and his sister, Mrs. Zona Perry, departed on the Burlington yesterday for their home in Alliance, Nebr.
  • Milford Earl Shepherd and Vera Marie Walter appeared in the US federal census of 1 April 1930 in Alliance, Box Butte County, Nebraska, at 616 Missouri Avenue. Other members of the household included Esther Maxine Shepherd.
  • He was employed by the railroad as a trainman, according to the 1930 census.
  • The following appeared on 10 March 1933 in the Deadwood Pioneer-Times: Mrs. H. M. Shepherd, of this city, left on the Burlington yesterday afternoon for Alliance, called there by the illness of her grandson, Richard, son of Mr. and Mrs. Earl Shepherd.
  • Milford Earl Shepherd appeared in the US federal census of 1 April 1940 divorced and lodging in the Central Hotel.
  • He was employed as a passenger brakeman by the steam railroad, according to the 1940 census.
  • Milford Earl Shepherd died on 3 February 1967 at age 75.
  • He was interred at Alliance Cemetery, Alliance, Box Butte County, Nebraska.
  • The following appeared on 29 April 2010 in the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle: Maxine Esther Davis, 88, of Cheyenne died April 26 at Davis Hospice Center.
         Mrs. Davis was born Oct. 12, 1921, in Florence, Kan., to Harry Lee Blair and Marie Vera (Walter) Blair. Following the divorce of her parents, Mrs. Davis was adopted by Earl Shepherd, her step father, and was raised in Alliance, Neb.
         She had lived in Cheyenne since 1990, having previously resided in Cheyenne from 1957 until 1972 when she moved to Oklahoma City, and later Irving, Texas, to be closer to family.
         Following her graduation from high school in Alliance in 1939, Mrs. Davis studied nursing at the St. Agnes Academy in Alliance. On Feb. 21, 1942, she married Culver O. Davis, a United States Army Air Corps pilot, whom she met during his basic training at Fort Logan in Denver, thus beginning her lifelong career as an "Air Force wife."
         She was proud to follow her husband to duty stations in California, Wisconsin, Georgia, Texas, New Mexico, Kentucky, South Dakota, Washington D.C., and Japan.
         When her husband retired from the Air Force in 1957, with a war-time 100 percent medical disability, Mrs. Davis assumed the responsibility of being his caregiver, in addition to being his advocate, confidant, and best friend, roles in which she faithfully served until his death in 2009, all while raising their three children.
         In her later years, Mrs. Davis and her husband returned to college attending Laramie County Community College, the University of Wyoming and the University of Central Oklahoma.
         Mrs. Davis is survived by her two sons, Christopher O. Davis and Kelly S. (Monica) Davis, both of Cheyenne; two grandchildren, Courtney (Miranda) Davis of Goodfellow AFB, Texas, and Sarah Davis of Quinlan, Texas; two great-grandchildren, Baylin Davis and Duke Blankenship; and a brother, Richard (Joan) Shepherd of Boerne, Texas.
         She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband of 67 years, Culver O. Davis; and a daughter, Becky Davis of Tokyo.
         Cremation has taken place at Cheyenne Memorial Gardens under the direction of Wiederspahn-Radomsky Chapel of the Chimes. A private family memorial service will be held at a later date with internment at Lakeview Cemetery.
         In lieu of flowers, friends should make memorial contributions to Davis Hospice Center, 6000 Sycamore Road, Cheyenne.
  • Last Edited: 31 Dec 2015

Family: Vera Marie Walter b. 2 February 1905, d. 7 July 2002