The Great Depression and The Aftermath

Catherine’s eldest sister, Ruth Elizabeth Banks fell ill shortly before Clarence’s departure and passed away at the age of 15 years old. Clarence took two of the three remaining children to Detroit to avoid paying child support to his wife. His daughter, Clara Mae, and son, Robert, Sr. were left to live with their extended family. Robert Banks, Sr. was accepted into Cass Technical High School but the family could not afford the costs of required books and school material, so he entered the workforce as a teenager. His son, Robert Banks, Jr. would be the first in the family to attend and graduate from Cass Technical High School.

Clara Mae contracted tuberculosis while living in the confined living arrangements of her extended family. Clarence did not contact his wife about the death for several months and refused to disclose her burial location. Sophia shared the devastating news with a prominent family in Danville, Illinois. The wife of the prominent family empathized with Sophia and paid for an investigator to locate additional information, but the attempts were unsuccessful.