Franklin Benton & Delia Robbins

Last week you met Grandma Mary's oldest daughter, Jemima Benton, and her husband, Sidney Atwell. This week we are pleased to present to you the oldest and only son of Mary Alice Godwin Benton Palmer and her first husband, Ezra Benton: Franklin Benton. This biography was written by the wonderful and talented author, Kristin Holt, one of the authors of Franklin and Delia Robbins Benton's children. 

Franklin Benton, second child of Ezra Benton and Mary Alice Godwin Benton, was born in 1831. He was an active child, curious and always investigating something...which found him in trouble more often than not. He met Delia Robbins shortly after his twenty-second birthday, when her parents purchased a farm not far from the Benton home. For Franklin, love at first sight was a sore reality. For Delia, not so much. He courted her for three years before she determined she was, also, in love with him and consented to be his wife. Franklin and Delia were wed on September 1, 1854.

Their marriage was quickly blessed (1855) by the birth of their first child, Zebulon, a vigorous baby boy. A daughter followed in 1856, named Pleasance for her mild and pleasant temperament. Not long thereafter, their third and final child, a daughter, was born in 1856.

 

 1859 Painting of Denver, Colorado

For the first few years of their marriage, Franklin supported their little family by farming just as his father had done before him. But Franklin had never enjoyed the work and found himself aching to do something else. When gold was discovered in the Pike's Peak area of the then Territory of Kansas, Franklin persuaded Delia, the newlywed couple decided to gather their belongings, three babies, and make the trek to newly founded Denver City. The journey was a difficult one, with three children under the age of four, but Delia was determined to keep their family together, and Franklin was determined to open a store in Denver and there to support his family.

16th Street, Denver, Colorado

In the years that followed, the family's Dry Goods brought in ample business, and Franklin enjoyed shop-keeping much more than he had farming. Delia raised the children in their home, through the block from the store, and as the children grew, both Franklin and Delia assumed Zebulon would follow his father into the business, but to their dismay, they learned--belatedly--that Zebulon had as little interest in shop keeping as his father had shown in farming. Delia had grand ideas for her daughters, assuming they would marry and follow the way of things, become mothers themselves and remain living nearby. But both Monica and Pleasance were strong willed young women and both brought consternation--and tremendous joy--to their parents.

And now you know more about their parents, once again, we present the three children of Franklin and Delia Benton:

Monica Benton in Monica's Mystery by Kate Cambridge:

Monica Benton has to leave home, fast. Her parents are planning to marry her off to a man who thinks women belong in the home. It would never work.

Monica is a Suffragette, an amateur sleuth — and a good one. She sees no reason why she can’t join the ranks of the local lawmen, or even become a Texas Ranger, should she choose!

What will happen when she visits her best friend in Galveston, Texas, only to find herself face-to-face with Gabriel Randall, the handsome leader of the local Texas Ranger unit, whose cases she’s been meddling in?

For the first time, she finds herself knee-deep in territory she has no idea how to navigate, and more than just her life is on the line. She has no idea what to do with an attraction that is getting harder to deny by the day.

Purchase Monica’s Mystery on Amazon by CLICKING HERE.

Pleasance Benton in Pleasance’s First Love by Kristin Holt:

Colorado, 1879

His worst mistake was letting her go.
His second-worst mistake? Bringing her home.

No one will ever know how badly Pleasance Benton's abandonment threw Jacob Gideon. He landed hard, hard enough he didn't care to find a replacement. Now that he needs a woman, he figures the safest way is to order one from a catalog.

Pleasance is back to reclaim her rightful place at Jacob's side. One way or another she'll remind him theirs is a match made in heaven...once the shock wears off. The teensy-weensy problem? Jacob doesn't know that she--his first love--is his catalog bride.

Purchase Pleasance’s First Love on Amazon by CLICKING HERE:

Zebulon Benton in Zebulon's Bride by Patricia Pacjac Carroll:

He’s vowed not to marry until he has established his ranch in Montana. Then he meets Amy, and she has other ideas.

Zebulon Benton dreams of going to Montana, but he’s the only son. His mother doesn’t want him to g, and his father needs help with the family store. Unknown to Zeb, his mother sends off for a mail order bride. After all, if Zeb marries and settles down, he won’t want to leave his home in Denver.

Enter Amy Gordon from New York. She appears to be the perfect bride for Zeb. If only ...

Purchase Zebulon’s Bride on Amazon by CLICKING HERE:

You may purchase all of the books in the Grandma’s Wedding Quilts series by CLICKING HERE.