Luella Christie was born in 1859. She lived a life of privilege, but her life was one of struggle and tragedy. In her early life, she was raised by a loving family, attended the finest schools and received an excellent education. At age twenty-two, she married a young man from a wealthy Connecticut family
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Within a year, Luella's husband died at the age of twenty-five. After the death of her husband, Luella's world fell apart. Her money quickly vanished and she lived on the kindness of others for three years.
One day during the height of her struggle, she met a man named Abner Withey who worked as a cigar maker in New York City. Abner was very different from Luella's first husband and his love helped pull her through those dark times. The two fell deeply in love and became engaged about two years later.
However, Luella's fortune continued to plummet and Abner lost everything he owned and moved to Columbus, Ohio where he built a new life for himself.