By David Fleet
Editor
On Jan. 10, 1951 the population of Oakwood grew by four residents.
That day on the east side of Brandon Township, now more than 70 years ago, Kenneth Rosebush, 36, a stone mason, and his wife, Anne, 34, gave birth to quadruplets at St. Joseph Hospital, Pontiac. Kenneth, Krystal, Keith and Kristine, were delivered in good condition via cesarean. The babies were healthy with the girls weighing one to two pounds while the boys were about three pounds. At the time of their birth the Rosebush babies were the first set of split-sex quads born in the United States. There were no fertility drugs used and the odds quadruplets were 1 in 700,000.
They have since passed away, starting with Keith, 31,1982; Kristine, 61, 2012; Krystal 68, 2019 and Kenneth, 68, 2019. At the time of the quads birth in 1951, the Rosebush family already had four girls ranging in age from seven to 15 years.
“They all stayed friends through life,” said Dusti Bailey, a Lapeer resident and daughter of Kristine. “And the quads remained close. Each of the older Rosebush girls were assigned one of the quads to care for. They were very sneaky as kids growing up, mom would tell us and mischievous too.”
Mom (Kristine) often shared she knew what her sister (Krystal) was feeling or thinking. The boys moved away from the area, but mom and aunt Krystal live nearby.”
Twin telepathy is the idea that one twin can access the thoughts of another twin without the other giving any prompts or signs. While there is not any conclusive, evidence-based proof, the quads often suggested its validity.
In 1951, to help fund the family of eight, the father Kenneth Rosebush signed a $29,000 contract with a milk company for exclusive rights to the quads’ names. The quads also received all the milk they could drink for 10 years, according to news reports.
The quads attended Oxford Schools.
“My uncle Kenny had moved overseas and I never met him,” said Bailey. “When my mom passed, after the funeral we were all at my house and I sent Kenny an email to let him know. He responded, ‘that he had felt her passing and that something was missing in his life before he knew it.’”