Early Life and Artistic Beginnings Nettie Blanche Lazzell, known affectionately as “Pet” by her family, emerged from the rural landscapes of Monongah, West Virginia, in 1878. Born into a large family deeply rooted in pioneer history – her father descended from those who first settled Monongalia County – she spent her formative years on a working farm near Maidsville. This upbringing instilled within her a quiet resilience and an observant eye for the natural world, qualities that would later permeate her artistic vision. The rhythms of agricultural life, punctuated by the hardships of loss—h…