Cosy time of 9 years old Eunice Winstead and 22/24 years old Charlie Johns, doing the dishes. Brother and sister? Cousins or just neighbors? No, a newly married couple from January 1937
How was that even possible? Well, it was legal in Tennessee where there were no age limits in marriage at that time. As it is, it was the marriage of this couple that brought about a change in the legal system: The new minimum age of marriage was set at 16 years. This change in the legal system also was introduced in Minnesota, Rhode Island and Washington, D.C..
Who in his/her right mind could find this couple acceptable as bride and bridegroom, and how were they married? Well, it seems that Charlie bought his way into the married stage by paying a Baptist preacher one dollar to conduct the wedding after falsifying the age of his bride. As to the parents of the 9 years old bride, then their devious daughter told them a tall tale of her going to the store to buy a doll, but instead she ran off and got married - and stayed married. At first, both her and Charlie's mothers were against this marriage, but they came to accept it as Eunice's mother had married at 16, and her sister at 13, so there was a tradition for very young brides in the family.
However, the marriage drew attention in the press. Charlie tried to stay out of the discussions, and - as far as I can see - there were no serious attempts of splitting the couple. Actually, they had nine children, the first one, the daughter Evelyn, was born when Eunice was 15 years old. When she was 17 she outraged her father by eloping with 20 years old John Antrican, and he accused him of falsifying her age to get a valid marriage license.
Charlie died in 1997 and Eunice in 2006, but they seem to have had a happy marriage
Wikipedia
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