Ida May grew up in the small Illinois town of Naples. They lived near the Illinois river, which frequently flooded. Ida May's father, John Linkins, was very well off. He had a Drygoods store, a servant (white), and a private teacher for his children.

Ida May almost died in her youth of typhoid fever. Ida May experienced 3 wars in her lifetime: Civil, WW1 and WW2. She traveled to Japan and China upon a Great Northern ship. Her brother Charles was postmaster in 1885, Insurance Broker in 1920 Los Angeles, and died in LA in 1930.

Sister Margaret "Tina" operated an orange and lemon farm on Foothill Blvd. in Pomona from 1910 until she died in 1929.

Ida May (based on her semi-autobiographical novel Virginia's Life) was a spoiled child. William helped discipline her. She was an excellent singer and pianist. She was very religious often having trouble with William's card playing co-workers.

Ida May published six books: "A Modern Becky Sharp" (under name May Lincoln, 1916 about her trip to Japan and available on Google); "Virginia Lysle" (1935, about her growing up); Conquered by Love (1936, about her sister Tina and cousin Leona G Corcoran and Margaret Dunham, Margaret's daughter), Virginia's Married Life, (1936, about her married life), Cruising Alaska's Coast, and Henry Rand's Family (1938).

During World War 1, with son Arthur in the military, she overheard in a restaurant, a governess speaking German. Ida May was offended, and told the lady to never come here again. Most of the other clients agreed with her. William was so surprised by her nerve.

At her first Broadway play in New York, she walked out when a female actress showed too much leg, saying "I'll never go to a play again".

In her book, "Henry Rand's Family", she prefaces it by says she is "Perturbed by the serious condition of modern youth, (and) appalled by the nonchalant attitude of most parents.."

She was a very refined lady, liking clean living, flowers, nice furniture and clothing, all in "good taste". Her hair turned white prematurely, and she would not color it. She had a nice, thin figure. She rowed a boat for her children on lake Minnetonka, and golfed in her later years. Her wonderful summers at Daytona Beach helped convince her that William's idea to move to California was best.

Arthur was unlike his brothers, being very sociable and active. At age 6 in Daytona Beach, Florida, he sang and danced in a play. He was sent to Shattuck Military School in Faribault, Minnesota at age nine in 1901. His father had enough of him. Arthur's brother Laurence was at the University of Minneapolis; Brother Raymond was sickly; Brother Roy stayed with his father William thru High School.

Arthur began at Perdue University in Indiana in 1911. He was in a Fraternity, but left school in his Junior year. He started a plumbing business in Indiana, installing steam heating systems in schools. In 1917, Arthur joined the Army and became a Master Sergeant. When he returned to Indiana, his plumbing business had disappeared due to the lack of skills. He married Louise around 1916. She died around 1934 in a car accident with Arthur driving. Arthur worked in paper manufacturing in Minneapolis, then Wisconsin and married Frances in 1935 and became quite wealthy and had many patents. He moved to Glens Falls, New York and began a paper company there. He made many cross country trips in his Packard 12, and got sufficient gas from the Navy, in spite of rationing.

In 1940, Arthur invented an electric torpedo firing mechanism for the Navy. He had to ramp up to 100 employees to make parts 24 hours a day. Arthur enjoyed his 65 foot boat which he kept in Ft Lauderdale, Florida, spending winters there. Arthur helped when his father William died in Los Angeles in 1941. Arthur arranged for his sick mother, Ida May, to be transported by train with two nurses to his home in Glens Falls. Two months later, his mother died, and he transported her back to Los Angeles to be buried in 1942 next to her husband.