Character Analysis
Howard Leland Hutchings
While Howard narrates the frame story, we can't really call him a main character. Rather, he's there to receive the story from Grandma Tilly, providing her with an audience for her tale. We know very little about Howard except that he is 15 years old and has lived his entire life in St. Louis. He admits, "And so I knew but little about myself" (1.4), because he knows nothing of his Illinois family. Grandma Tilly's story is here to fix that, though.
Dr. William Hutchings, Jr.
Dr. Hutchings, Jr., is Howard's father and Noah and Delphine's son, though he has lived his life as the son of Tilly and Dr. Hutchings, Sr., due to Delphine's fear that someone would discover the truth about her ancestry and hold it against him. Howard describes him as "a very well-thought-of doctor in the St. Louis of that time" (1.2) and "a self-made man" (1.5). As for Dr. Hutchings, he himself claims, "I'm proud of every drop of blood in me" (15.56), though we have to ask why he hasn't gone home to Grand Tower in at least 15 years if he's so proud. Perhaps his feelings are more complex than he admits.
Earl and Raymond Hutchings
Earl and Raymond are Howard's 5-year-old twin brothers, and they come as a unit, meaning their characters are virtually indistinguishable. As Howard puts it, "They were too young to figure much in this story" (1. 8). They keep great-uncle Noah occupied so that Howard winds up pairing off with Grandma Tilly to hear her story. Thanks, bros.
Mrs. Hutchings
Mrs. Hutchings is Howard's mother. Howard says, "My mother was very standoffish about my dad's side of the family" (1.8), and of the trip, "Mother wasn't going and didn't want us to go. And I didn't know why" (1.12). We can imagine a couple of reasons. One is that she knows the truth about her husband's parents and is afraid of the consequences to her family if anyone finds out. Another is that she knows the truth and is just super racist. A third is that she's kind of a snob, and her husband's family isn't fancy enough for her. And, one last theory is that her family was on the side of the South during the Civil War and is still bitter about it. We never find out for sure.