In search of the past

I went to Phoenix on Tuesday, determined to find more information about my great grandfather William Pike. He is my Grandma Balmes' father, and I know very little about him, but he's been waking me up at night with a sense of urgency to learn more. William married when he was 33. He married a young Irish woman that had come to America in her teens, and worked as a house servant for several years. They had 7 children, the oldest is my Grandma, the youngest were twins born in October 1918. By the end of that month, William had lost his wife and 3 children to the terrible influenza, and one child a few years earlier. He was left with 3 children to raise alone.

Sometime before 1920 he was badly injured in a work accident which crushed his chest and left him unconscious for days. No one knew his children were locked in their apartment, running out of food, waiting for Daddy to come home. When he finally gained consciousness, his first thoughts were for his children, and someone went to help them. He had been a successful Ironworker before the accident, but couldn't return to construction work. I believe the doctor's suggested he move to AZ for his health, and he came, leaving the children in New Jersey in an orphanage until he could get settled.

He started selling things in his front yard,first a tent, then other items, until he built a steady 2nd hand business. Marie married Hap Balmes, Bina went to work as a clerk, and his only living son Bill attended school. I don't know if any of them graduated from high school, Marie went to work shortly after moving to AZ, not liking school here. William died 8 years later, in 1930. I went looking for his grave on Tuesday. I found the cemetery with no problem, thanks to a handy GPS, love that! I walked all around the area that they showed me on the map, to no avail. Maybe his headstone sank, I was told the ground was 'unstable' in that area. I think that he doesn't have a headstone, the kids were young, the depression had hit, and there just wasn't enough money. I know my heart ached for him a little, buried there all alone, his wife and 4 children buried back east, his kids scattered between California and Arizona.

What am I supposed to find? I looked for a probate or tax record, there was none, so he probably didn't own his home. I found him in 3 city directories in Phoenix, and drove by the addresses. They were all gone- either torn down to make way for high rises or, in one address, a vacant lot/parking area. Nevertheless, I feel impelled to keep looking, to find more about his life, to preserve his story. He was tough, a survivor, and a protective, loving father. He deserves to be remembered.