Doris Burr was born in Kalamazoo on March 3, 1920. Upon her centenary she is eligible to receive a congratulatory letter from the president of the United States.
In those 100 years, Burr has seen 45 different presidents of the United States. She was around before the first motion picture with sound was produced in 1927 and for Amelia Earhart’s historic solo trans-Atlantic flight in 1932. A lot has happened in the last 100 years, and she has seen it all, said her granddaughter, Wendy Burr.
Her parents were Henry Metty and Bertha Dehoff Metty. She had one brother, Earl Metty. The family lived near the corner of XY and 32nd Street when she was born.
She attended one room schoolhouses growing up, including Harper School #3 at age 6. It was located on 32nd street between XY and YZ Ave. She also attended “Carney School” #2, in Climax Township on Q Ave between 38th street and 40th street. For third grade, the family moved further south, and in 1929 she attended “Bond School” #7 in Brady Township on the corner of U Ave and 34th Street. For 9th grade, she attended Vicksburg High School in 1934 and graduated in 1938. In high school, the family lived at the John Oswalt farm on 37th Street where they sharecropped. It was there that she met her next door neighbor, Merle Burr, and fell in love. They were married on May 1, 1943. Doris worked at the gas station on the corner of W Ave and 36th St. and would walk to work every day. She also attended many shows in Vicksburg at the theater with family and friends.
They sharecropped about 200 acres at the Burr farm on the corner of XY and 37th St. In 1948 the Burrs purchased the farm by logging off 22 acres of woods for the down payment. They raised three boys; Delbert, Frank, and Roy. After retirement from the farm, they moved to a home in Athens. They were active in the Athens Christian Center church and later attended Faith Christian Church. Burr now resides in Leonidas at the Birch, an assisted living facility. She has three children, Delbert, Frank and Roy; five grandchildren, Allen, Wendy, Matt, Tracy and Debbie; and six great-grandchildren. Happy Birthday, Doris!