Individual Details
Pauline "Polly" High
(10 Feb 1924 - 8 Aug 2017)
myFTDNA: Pauline High
Shares 35cM of DNA with Rex Wilson.
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Pauline “Polly" High Atherton went to join our Lord on August 8, 2017 in Houston, Texas. She was the beloved daughter of Kate Greer and Robert Ingram High. She was born on February 10, 1924 in Chambers County, Alabama at the home of her parents. Polly was a Baytown, Texas resident for almost 70 years.
Polly married William Clifford “Bill" Atherton on October 26, 1945 in Auburn, Alabama. Theirs was a romance that blossomed during World War II. After the war, Bill attended Auburn University year-round on the GI bill while Polly worked on campus. Bill and Polly moved to Baytown in the summer of 1948 after Bill graduated with a mechanical engineering degree from Auburn and accepted a position with the Humble Oil Company. Bill, the love of her life, preceded her in death by 33 years.
Polly grew up on a farm outside Camp Hill, Alabama. She was a middle child, the third of Robert and Kate High’s six children. She was preceded in death by her brother Robert Ingram High, Jr., her sisters Kathleen High Land, Frances High Woolfolk, and Mary High, and great grandson Braysen Kade Schumacher son of Brandon Schumacher and Amanda Maines. She is survived by her sister Mildred High Folks of Birmingham, Alabama.
Bill and Polly’s five children all survive her: Dr. Robert Walter Atherton, Dr. William Clifford Atherton, Jr., Brenda Paulette Atherton, Katherine Anne Atherton Wright and Donald Charles Atherton. She is also survived by her sixteen grandchildren: William Alexander, Robert Lucas, Emma Greer and Sarah Kate Atherton, children of Cliff and Susan Atherton; Joseph William, Robert Sean, Casey Leigh, Stephanie Michelle, and Brandon Kyle Schumacher, children of Brenda Atherton; Richard Neil, Angela Christine and Dr. William Charles Pittman, children of Katherine Anne and Robert Wright; and Casey Danielle Sailer, William Trent, Brooke Nicole, and Olivia Pauline Atherton, children of Don and Caroline Atherton. Great-grandchildren are Julia Alonzo Schumacher, daughter of Joseph and Carmen Schumacher; CaraLynn Elizabeth and Alexander Neil Pittman, children of Neil and Jennifer Pittman; and William Benjamin Pittman son of William and Shandy Pittman.
Bill and Polly were members of the Greatest Generation. They raised their family in Baytown with a focus on stability, character and education. Polly was a supportive mother in all of her children’s endeavors: school work, scout meetings, baseball games, piano lessons, band concerts and more. When her grandchildren came along, she was a dynamic force in their lives as well. All five of her children graduated from college, and four received one or more graduate degrees.
Polly was a longtime member of Cedar Bayou-Grace Methodist Church where she regularly attended the Ladies Bible Class. She also enjoyed her membership in the Plumwood-Eva Maud Garden Club.
Children and grandchildren alike will always remember her as an authentic Steel Magnolia, a 5-foot tall, indomitable spirit. Polly will be missed by her family and her friends, as well as her miniature Schnauzers, Zoe and Georgie.
For those who prefer to make a memorial gift, the family suggests Houston Hospice, Houston Achievement Place or the children’s ministry at Cedar Bayou-Grace Methodist Church.
The family will receive friends from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., Friday, August 11, 2017 at Navarre Funeral Home. A service will be held at 11:00 a.m., Saturday, August 12, 2017 at Cedar Bayou Grace United Methodist Church with Rev. Jose Pena officiating. A private family burial will follow the service.
Shares 35cM of DNA with Rex Wilson.
-----------------------------------------
Pauline “Polly" High Atherton went to join our Lord on August 8, 2017 in Houston, Texas. She was the beloved daughter of Kate Greer and Robert Ingram High. She was born on February 10, 1924 in Chambers County, Alabama at the home of her parents. Polly was a Baytown, Texas resident for almost 70 years.
Polly married William Clifford “Bill" Atherton on October 26, 1945 in Auburn, Alabama. Theirs was a romance that blossomed during World War II. After the war, Bill attended Auburn University year-round on the GI bill while Polly worked on campus. Bill and Polly moved to Baytown in the summer of 1948 after Bill graduated with a mechanical engineering degree from Auburn and accepted a position with the Humble Oil Company. Bill, the love of her life, preceded her in death by 33 years.
Polly grew up on a farm outside Camp Hill, Alabama. She was a middle child, the third of Robert and Kate High’s six children. She was preceded in death by her brother Robert Ingram High, Jr., her sisters Kathleen High Land, Frances High Woolfolk, and Mary High, and great grandson Braysen Kade Schumacher son of Brandon Schumacher and Amanda Maines. She is survived by her sister Mildred High Folks of Birmingham, Alabama.
Bill and Polly’s five children all survive her: Dr. Robert Walter Atherton, Dr. William Clifford Atherton, Jr., Brenda Paulette Atherton, Katherine Anne Atherton Wright and Donald Charles Atherton. She is also survived by her sixteen grandchildren: William Alexander, Robert Lucas, Emma Greer and Sarah Kate Atherton, children of Cliff and Susan Atherton; Joseph William, Robert Sean, Casey Leigh, Stephanie Michelle, and Brandon Kyle Schumacher, children of Brenda Atherton; Richard Neil, Angela Christine and Dr. William Charles Pittman, children of Katherine Anne and Robert Wright; and Casey Danielle Sailer, William Trent, Brooke Nicole, and Olivia Pauline Atherton, children of Don and Caroline Atherton. Great-grandchildren are Julia Alonzo Schumacher, daughter of Joseph and Carmen Schumacher; CaraLynn Elizabeth and Alexander Neil Pittman, children of Neil and Jennifer Pittman; and William Benjamin Pittman son of William and Shandy Pittman.
Bill and Polly were members of the Greatest Generation. They raised their family in Baytown with a focus on stability, character and education. Polly was a supportive mother in all of her children’s endeavors: school work, scout meetings, baseball games, piano lessons, band concerts and more. When her grandchildren came along, she was a dynamic force in their lives as well. All five of her children graduated from college, and four received one or more graduate degrees.
Polly was a longtime member of Cedar Bayou-Grace Methodist Church where she regularly attended the Ladies Bible Class. She also enjoyed her membership in the Plumwood-Eva Maud Garden Club.
Children and grandchildren alike will always remember her as an authentic Steel Magnolia, a 5-foot tall, indomitable spirit. Polly will be missed by her family and her friends, as well as her miniature Schnauzers, Zoe and Georgie.
For those who prefer to make a memorial gift, the family suggests Houston Hospice, Houston Achievement Place or the children’s ministry at Cedar Bayou-Grace Methodist Church.
The family will receive friends from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., Friday, August 11, 2017 at Navarre Funeral Home. A service will be held at 11:00 a.m., Saturday, August 12, 2017 at Cedar Bayou Grace United Methodist Church with Rev. Jose Pena officiating. A private family burial will follow the service.
Events
| Birth | 10 Feb 1924 | Chambers County, Alabama | |||
| Census (family)-shared | 11 Apr 1940 | (Robert Ingram High and Kate Greer) Waverly, Chambers County, Alabama |  |  | |
| Marriage | 26 Oct 1945 | Auburn, Lee County, Alabama - William Clifford Atherton Sr. | |||
| Death | 8 Aug 2017 | Houston, Harris County, Texas | |||
| Burial | Cedar Crest Cemetery, Baytown, Harris County, Texas |
Families
| Spouse | William Clifford Atherton Sr. (1920 - 1984) |
| Child | Living |
| Child | Living |
| Child | Living |
| Child | Living |
| Child | Living |
| Father | Robert Ingram High (1890 - 1957) |
| Mother | Kate Greer (1893 - 1983) |
| Sibling | Annie Kate High (1915 - 1916) |
| Sibling | Robert Ingram "Sidney" High Jr. (1917 - 1990) |
| Sibling | Margaret High (1920 - 1922) |
| Sibling | Kathleen High (1922 - 2016) |
| Sibling | Frances Elaine High (1928 - 2011) |
| Sibling | Mildred High (1930 - 2019) |
| Sibling | Mary Louise High (1934 - 2000) |
Notes
Census (family)-shared
Robert I High Husband M 49 Alabama - FarmerKate G High Wife F 46 Alabama - House keeper, home
Robert I High Jr Son M 22 Alabama - Farm boss
Kathleen High Daughter F 17 Alabama - House work, home
Pauline High Daughter F 16 Alabama - House work, home
Francis High Daughter F 10 Alabama
Mildred High Daughter F 9 Alabama
Mary High Daughter F 6 Alabama
Endnotes
1. .