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Abraham Younkin Jr. |
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Abraham Younkin Jr. Courtesy Kenneth Collins, Della Shafer, Younkin Family News Bulletin |
He apparently was born several months after his father's death in 1790. The early years of his life otherwise are opaque to us, other than that Nicholas Wyker was appointed guardian for Abraham and his sister Mary in Bucks County Orphans Court in November 1794. His identity is confirmed in a Bucks County deed which states that "Abraham Youngkin & Mary Overholt, late Youngkin now the wife of Isaac Overholt. Abraham & Mary are children of Abraham Youngkin late of Tinicum Twn. Harman Youngkin by will 1788 bequeathed to his son Abraham who died." [Deed Book 41, page 280]
Then as Ohio opened to more orderly, safe settlement, he made his way there by 1811, when he would have been 20 years of age.
On Nov. 6, 1811, when Abraham would have been about age 21, and living in or near Marietta, Washington County, OH, he married Sarah "Sally" Montgomery (1798- ? ), of Maryland. She was two years older than he. The nuptials were conducted by Stephen Lindsly of Washington County, OH.
The couple went on to bear these eight known children -- Adaline Eliza Younkin, Marietta Porterfield, Susanna "Susan" Beeson, John M. Youngkin, Sarah Annette Byal, Robert McNeal Younkin, Hall [Harold?] Younkin, Henry Clay Younkin and Dr. Jerome Wilson "J.W." Younkin.
When the federal census enumeration was made in 1820, the young family dwelled in Hocking Township, Fairfield County, OH. From there the couple settled in the burgeoning town of Lancaster, Fairfield County, where he acquired lot 10 in town from Abraham Ruger in 1821.
The Younkins were plunged into grief at the death of their son John on Dec. 30, 1821, with burial taking place in the Old Methodist Cemetery in Lancaster.
When a Presbyterian Church was constructed in 1822-1823, Abraham traded tailoring services in return for a $10 credit as a subscriber to the fund. This was recorded in Charles M.L. Wiseman's 1898 book Centennial History of Lancaster, Ohio, and Lancaster People. Abraham is known to have taken on an indentured servant, 16-year-old Joel Todd, ward of Robert Todd. The length of the term was to be four years and two months, to commence on Oct. 29, 1825.
Sarah underwent an adult baptism in Lancaster on Nov. 20, 1826. A record was kept in the church records and preserved by the Presbyterian Historical Society in Philadelphia, PA. The seven eldest offspring together were given the rite of baptism in the Presbyterian Church in Lancaster on May 10, 1828. Son Jerome then was baptized in the same church on April 8, 1831.
The U.S. Census of 1830 shows that 12 people lived under the Younkins' roof in Fairfield County.
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| Findlay, Ohio, 1850 at the time Abraham was mayor. Historical Collections of Ohio by Henry Howe |
Abraham joined the Masonic lodge in Lancaster. Among the other members were Gotlieb Steinman, John Noble, Thomas H. Cushing and George Sanderson.
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A younger Abraham Courtesy Kenneth Collins, Della Shafer, Younkin Family News Bulletin |
In 1846, Abraham was a charter member of the Hancock Lodge of the International Order of Odd Fellows.
When the federal census was taken in Findlay in 1850, Abraham and Sarah headed a household which also included physician Jesse Beeson, his wife Susan, their children Sarah and Jerome, and 20-year-old Mary Stuart.
On Oct. 22, 1852, a charter was granted to form a Masons lodge in Findlay, with Abraham as an original member and holding the initial office of Master. Others in the original group were Abel F. Parker, Edwin Parker, David Patton, J.M. Coffinberry, George Arnold, Adolphus Morse, E.S. Reed and C.B. Wilson. The lodge grew, and Abraham helped obtain another charter to form a Chapter of Royal Arch Masons, where he held the office of King. Said Daniel B. Beardsley's 1881 book History of Hancock County From Its Earliest Settlement to the Present Time, "The chapter has always held its meetings in same room with the Lodge. Its membership is now about forty."
Abraham was elected Mayor of Findlay serving during the 1847-1852 period, succeeded by George W. Galloway. He also maintained his tailor business during that time, as shown in the 1850 U.S. Census enumeration. In 1850, physician Jesse Beeson and his wife Susan and their children lived in the Younkin household in Findlay, also with 20-year-old Mary Stuart.
The Younkins appear to have made a move during the 1850s to Putnam County, OH. There, Sarah died at the age of 69 on Aug. 13, 1858. Her remains were lowered under the sod of Harman Cemetery in Gilboa, Putnam County. A stone was erected that is legible today.
The widowed Abraham then moved into the household of his married daughter Adaline Van Pelt in Washington, Fayette County, OH. There, he worked as a clerk as shown in the U.S. Census of 1860.
Then in 1870, census records show that at the age of 79, he was living in the residence of his married grandson William Henry and Nancy Van Pelt in Hartsgrove, Ashtabula County, OH.
Possibly during the decade of the 1870s, he moved to Texas to reside with his married daughter Susan Beeson and family in Lavaca County, TX. He is shown in the Beesons' household in 1880, at the age of 90, with his occupation shown as "Farmer."
He died in the home of his married daughter Susan Beeson in Big Brushy, TX on June 24, 1881. His gravesite seems to be lost to history. A short obituary stated that he was aged 90 years, three months and six days and that he "leaves a large circle of friends and relatives to mourn his loss. He had been a member of the Masonic society for nearly seventy years, and had taken nearly every degree in that order." The obituary was preserved by his direct descendant Kenneth Collins of Ponca City, OK.
Abraham is named in the 1910 book by Jacob A. Kimmell, Twentieth Century History of Findlay and Hancock County Ohio and Representative Citizens, and in the 1961 book by William Depue Humphrey, Findlay: The Story of a Community.
In its edition of Sept. 6, [year?] the Lancaster Eagle-Gazette named Abraham as one of Lancaster's original settlers in Square 12 on the south side of Mulberry Hill.
Abraham was profiled and pictured in an article by his direct descendant Della M. Shafer in the July-August-September 1992 edition of the Younkin Family News Bulletin, published by the late Donna (Younkin) Logan.
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| Della Shafer's biography of Abraham and family - Younkin Family News Bulletin |
~ Daughter Adaline Eliza (Younkin) Van Pelt ~
Daughter Adaline Eliza Younkin (1812-1899) was born in October 1812 in Lancaster, Fairfield County, OH.
She was baptized with six of her siblings on May 10, 1828, in the Presbyterian Church in Lancaster, at the age of 16.
When she was 18 years of age, on May 25, 1830, she was joined in wedlock with John Van Pelt (April 22, 1808-1880), a native of New Jersey. The wedding was held in Lancaster.
Together, the pair is believed to have borne Sarah Jane Young, William Henry Van Pelt, John Randolph Van Pelt, Mary Ellen "Mollie" Parvin, Charles Abraham Van Pelt, Mary Louisa Brown, James B. Van Pelt, Jesse Beeson Van Pelt, Katherine Elmer "Katie" Van Pelt and Emma Smith.
The federal censuses of 1850 and 1860 show the Van Pelts in Washington Court House, Fayette County, OH. John earned a living as a grocer, assisted by his son John in 1860. Adaline's widowed father lived under their roof in 1860.
By 1870, the family had relocated to Saybrook, Ashtabula County, OH, where John had turned to farming as his occupation. Then in 1874, they pulled up stakes and moved to Cedar Rapids, Linn County, IA, where John established a grocery store.
John dropped dead in his store on Jan. 5, 1880, in Cedar Rapids. The Sioux City Journal reported that the cause was heart disease. Burial was in Cedar Rapids' Oak Hill Cemetery. In his last will and testament, written in 1875, he bequeathed his estate to his widow.
The U.S. Census for 1880 shows Adaline and her unmarried son John, age 44, living in a residence in Cedar Rapids.
Death enveloped her back in Ashtabula County in 1899. Interment was in Saybrook Cemetery.
Daughter Sarah Jane Van Pelt (1830- ? ) was born in about 1830 in Ohio. At the age of 20, in 1850, she lived with her parents in Washington Court House, Fayette County, OH. It is possible that on Oct. 23, 1854, in Fayette County, she first married Simeon C. Ellis ( ? - ? ), although this needs to be confirmed. By 1875, she had entered into marriage with (?) Young ( ? - ? ).
Son William Henry Van Pelt (1833-1913) was born in about 1833. On May 6, 1868, at the age of 35, he married Nancy Quigley (Dec. 27, 1835-1918). The wedding took place in Hartsgrove Township, Ashtabula County, OH, by the hand of Rev. Z.S. Arnold. There were three known sons of this union -- John Edwin "Ed" Van Pelt, George Van Pelt an a son who died in infancy. In 1870, this couple lived in Hartsgrove, Ashtabula County, OH, with William's aged, widowed grandfather residing in their household. In time, in 1886, they migrated further west to Kansas, settling in northeast Great Bend, Barton County. Nancy is known to have entertained an extended visit from a sister in the summer of 1898, with the sister returning home to Ohio in late August. Then at the death of Nancy's sister Elizabeth Quigley, in January 1906, the funeral service was held in the Van Pelt home in Great Bend. The Van Pelts in the late summer of 1908 hosted a visit from Nancy's niece, Anna Quigley, who was en route from Ohio to her home in Rock Ford, CO. The couple marked their 51st wedding anniversary in May 1909. A related story in the Great Bend Tribune said that they lived four miles north of town and that he had "made a pleasant call to this office. W.H. has a record. He has lived in this country over 20 years and yet has stayed at home so well that he knows only a very few men either in town or county." William fell and fractured his hip in late 1910 but recovered sufficiently enough to be out and about with the use of crutches. In their final years they resided part time in a house they had bought in Great Bend but mostly with their son Ed in a separate residence. They belonged to the Presbyterian Church. Sadly, he passed away at the age of 79 on Jan. 23, 1913. Burial was in Great Bend Cemetery. A preliminary obituary in the Barton County Democrat noted that he "was one of the pioneers here..." Funeral services were delayed by two days so that a grandson could travel from Ohio to be at the rites. Nancy lived for another five years as a widow. From the effects of a heart valve leakage, she died suddenly at the age of 82 years, seven months and one day. In an obituary, the Tribune said that for a number of years, she "had been in feeble health, troubled with occasional sick spells, but was not considered as being in a dangerous condition... Mrs. Van Pelt was a kind, christian woman, a loving and devoted wife and mother and those who knew her loved her. She was of a retiring nature and the younger generation did not have the pleasure of her acquaintance but the earlier settlers knew and appreciated the sterling qualities of herself and her husband."
- Grandson George Van Pelt ( ? - ? ) dwelled in Ohio in 1918.
- Grandson John Edwin "Ed" Van Pelt (1869-1953) was born in 1869. While growing up in Ashtabula County, OH, he once told a newspaper reporter, "the hawks became such a menace to farm poultry that the county offered a bounty of 50 cents a head on the birds, and that one young man of his acquaintance killed enough hawks to send him through one term at college. Then with the depletion of the air invaders, the field mice grew so numerous and destructive that the bounty was lifted." At about age 17, Edwin accompanied his family on a cross-country migration to Kansas and settled in Great Bend, KS. There, he began to farm. The day after Christmas 1908, he married Julia Florence Frost ( ? -1920). Rev. Westwood presided. The Barton County Democrat reported taht the groom was "one of the prosperous young farmers of the north side" and the bride "one of Great Bend's most popular teachers... [She] is the daughter of Luther Frost, one of the pioneer settlers of the country and is well and favorably known here. She has been employed as a teacher at the east school building, and will finish her term. Mr. Van Pelt is too well-known here to need further introduction and has a host of friends who wish him and his bride a long and happy wedded life." Prior to marriage, Julia had been a school teacher in Illinois, Kansas and New Mexico, and was a noted musician and seamstress. Their duo of children were George Van Pelt and Mary Van Pelt. With Julia's health in decline, the family relocated to Colorado in 1918 and made a home in Montrose. Sadly, she died in January 1920, with the news printed in the Great Bend Tribune and Hoisington (KS) Dispatch. Burial was in Montrose's Grand View Cemetery. The widower moved back to Great Bend and lived for another 33 years. Circa 1938, he served the public as police judge.
Son John Randolph Van Pelt (1835- ? ) was born in about 1835. Unmarried at the age of 25, in 1860, he lived at home in Washington Court House, Fayette County and assisted his father in a grocery business. He is believed to be the same J.R. Van Pelt who, in June 1867, announced in the Fayette County Herald that he and partners M. Draper and S.W. Cissna had opened a new grocery store "at the old store room of M. Draper, on court street." He eventually relocated cross-country to Cedar Rapids, IA, where he opened a grocery business, joined by his brother Charles in November 1870. In 1879, he is known to have visited his uncle Dr. Robert McNeal Youngkin at his home in Florence, KS. The 1880 federal census enumeration shows John at age 44, in Cedar Rapids, sharing a home with his mother, and marked as a "retired merchant."
Daughter Mary Ellen "Mollie" Van Pelt (1836-1895?) was born in about 1836. She was united in matrimony with Uriah H. Parvin (Jan. 1 or 14, 1839-1917). Their known daughters were Adeline A. "Addie" Parvin and Carrie Parvin. During the Civil War, Uriah joined the Union Army and was assigned to the 22nd Ohio Infantry, Company F, enlisting on April 20, 1861, just eight days after the war erupted at Fort Sumter. His three-month term of service ended on Aug. 19, 1861. Later, he joined the 114th Ohio Infantry, Company C. He was a musician/drummer with his regiments, and is known to have suffered from sunstroke in the line of duty. At one time they lived in a house facing Main Street in his hometown ofWashington Court House, Fayette County, OH. Uriah was a tailor and advertised his services in "fashionable tailoring" in the Fayette County Herald in 1867-1868. In the 1870s, he was a member of the bucket team of the Reliance Fire Engine Hook and Ladder and Hose Company in town. He was named in the gossip columns of the Herald during the Christmas season of 1877 when giving the editors a copy of the Cedar Rapids Times and Cedar Rapids Daily Republican. The Parvins are known to have hosted Mary Ellen's single sister Kate in July 1878, visiting from Cedar Rapids. Grief cascaded over the family when daughter Carrie became stricken with membranous croup and died at the age of about seven on Oct. 20, 1879. A one-sentence notice of her demise was printed in the Herald. When Mary Ellen's father died in Cedar Rapids in January 1880, she was named in a short obituary in the Herald. Uriah on June 14, 1880 was awarded a military pension in recognition of his Civil War service. [Invalid App. #380.090 - Cert. #282.211] Sadly, Mary Ellen reputedly died on or about Christmas Day 1895 at Washington Court House. Uriah outlived his bride by more than two decades and continued to ply his trade as a tailor. In 1900, he and his unmarried daughter resided together in Washington Court House. Sadly, she died in 1903. He was strick down by cerebral paralysis and at the age of 78 passed away on June 6, 1917 in Mount Sterling, Madison County, OH. Minnie White of Mount Sterling was the informant for his official Ohio death certificate.
- Granddaughter Adeline A. "Addie" Parvin (1869-1903) was born in 1869. Her name appeared in the gossip columns of the Cincinnati Enquirer in September 1888 when hosting a visit from Fannie Burrows of Cincinnati and again in June 1891 when entertaining Nellie Weakly and Lida White of Lancaster, OH. She made her own weeklong trip to Lancaster in February 1894. Unmarried at the age of 30, in 1900, she shared a home with her widowed father in Washington Court House, OH. Sadly, at the age of of 33 or 34, she died in 1903. Burial was in Washington Cemetery.
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| Above: Charles A. Van Pelt's final home, the Sawtelle Pacific Branch Home for Disabled Veterans in Malibu, CA. Below: the Home's burying ground, today known as the Los Angeles National Cemetery, where he sleeps in honored rest. |
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Son Charles Abraham Van Pelt (1845-1916) was born in Feb. 1845. He grew up in Washington Court House, Fayette County, OH. During the Civil War, he joined the Union Army and was assigned to the 175th Ohio Infantry, Company D. After the war's end, he was transferred to the 189th Ohio Infantry, Company D. He received his honorable discharge at Nashville in September 1865. After returning home, he immediately moved to Ashtabula County, OH. Then at the age of 25, in November 1870, he migrated to Iowa to join his older brother John in a grocery business in Cedar Rapids. On Jan. 20, 1874, in Linn County, he wed Mary Jeanette Minor (Aug. 1847- ?). The pair's only known daughter was Carrie Fetsch. They lived in Grand Rapids in 1880, with him employed as a merchant. By 1900, they had migrated to Southern California, where Charles earned a living as a paint salesman in Los Angeles. On Sept. 13, 1905, he was approved to receive a military pension as compensation for his service. [Invalid App. #1.340.219 - Cert. #1.132.347]. With his health in decline in 1906, he entered the Sawtelle Pacific Branch Home for Disabled Veterans in Malibu. He died on Sept. 28, 1916 from the effects of chronic heart disease and was interred in the Home cemetery. A brief death notice appeared in the Los Angeles Times. The widow filed in 1919 to receive his pension, but it was not awarded. [Widow App. #1.147.694] The pension also has a "C" designation - C2487007.
- Granddaughter Carrie Van Pelt (1876- ? ) was born in about 1876 in Iowa. She married (?) Fetsch. Her dwelling-place in 1916 was in Los Angeles.
Daughter Mary Louisa "Louise" Van Pelt (1848-1925) was born in April 1848 in Washington Court House, Fayette County, OH. She married blacksmith George L. Brown (Nov. 1840-1911), reputedly an immigrant from Canada or Scotland. Together, they produced nine offspring -- Lillian M. "Lilly" Sager, Adda Amidon, J.R. Brown, William H. Brown, Jennett L. Welch, George W. Brown, Robert E. Brown, Clifford E. Brown and Carrie Brown. The 1880 U.S. Census shows the family on Spruce Street in Ashtabula, with George continuing to labor as a blacksmith. Grief blanketed the family when daughter Carrie died at age three in 1887. As of 1900, the family lived in Saybrook, Ashtabula County, with George's occupation remaining as blacksmith. Louisa succumbed to the spectre of death at the age of 77 on May 7, 1925 in Ashtabula's general hospital. An obituary said she had "been in failing health for everal years and had been confined to the hospital for a number of weeks" and added that she had "long been a resident of Ashtabula." Rev. M. Matheson, pastor of the Prospect Presbyterian Church, led the funeral rites. She sleeps for the ages in Saybrook Cemetery.
- Granddaughter Lillian M. "Lilly" Brown (1871- ? ) was born in 1871. On Sept. 1892, in Ashtabula, she wed Rufus D. Sager ( ? - ? ). Their residence in 1925 was in Harbor, OH.
- Granddaughter Adda I. Brown (1873- ? ) was born in 1873. She married William Amidon ( ? - ? ). Circa 1925, their dwelling-place was in Eagleville, OH.
- Grandson John R. Brown (1875- ? ) was born in 1875. He lived in Harbor, OH in the mid-1920s.
- Grandson William H. Brown (1877- ? ) was born in about 1877 in Ohio.
- Granddaughter Jennett L. Brown (1878-1962) was born in 1878. She was joined in wedlock with William Welch. In the 1920s, they lived on Granger Road in Ashtabula. Their home was used in 1925 for the funeral of Jennett's mother.
- Grandson George W. Brown (1882- ? ) was born in Oct. 1882. He put down roots in Harbor, OH.
- Grandson Robert E. Brown (1887- ? ) was born in April 1887. He made a home in 1925 in Harbor, OH.
- Grandson Clifford E. Brown (1889- ? ) was born in May 1889. He was in Harbor, OH in 1925.
Son James B. Van Pelt (1850-1868) was born in 1850. Sadly, he died at age 19 in Saybrook on Oct. 9, 1868. The cause of his untimely passing is not yet known. Burial was in Saybrook Cemetery. A brief notice was printed in the Ashtabula Weekly Telegraph.
Daughter Emma Van Pelt (1851- ? ) was born in about 1851. Single at the age of 19, she lived at home with her parents in 1870 in Saybrook, Ashtabula County, OH. She married (?) Smith ( ? - ? ).
Son Jesse Beeson Van Pelt (1853-1928) was born in on Oct. 2, 1853 or 1854 in Washington Court House, Fayette County, OH. Circa 1880, he was joined in holy wedlock with Indez Parrett (Aug. 3, 1860-1928), also a native of Washington Court House and the daughter of Augustus F. and (?) (Hess) Parrett. The couple's only son was Harry Van Pelt. They made their dwelling-place on West Prospect Street in Ashtabula, and he was employed as a dock engineer and stationery engineer. By 1910, Jesse worked as a hired man in the farming community of Ashtabula. Both husband and wife surrendered to the angel of death in the same year. Having contracted cancer of the stoma ch and intestines, she passed away first, on July 9, in Ashtabula General Hospital. Suffering from bilateral bronchial pneumonia at age 75, he died in Lake County Hospital in Painesville two days before Christmas 1928. The remains were interred in Saybrook Cemetery. Henry Van Pelt of Painesville signed the Ohio death certificate.
- Grandson Harry B. Van Pelt (1884-1967) was born in Aug. 1884. He spent his youth in Ashtabula, OH. In 1910, still a bachelor at age 25, he earned income as a clerk in a cigar store in Ashtabula. On June 25, 1910, in Ashtabula, Harry entered into marriage with Mabel S. (1887-1972). He died in Wayne, MI at the age of 82 in July 1967. The remains were shipped to Ashtabula for burial in Saybrook Cemetery.
Daughter Katherine Elmer "Kate" Van Pelt (1855- ? ) was born in 1855. She was unmarried in 1875-1878 and dwelled in Cedar Rapids, IA. She was named in the gossip columns of the Fayette County Herald of Washington Court House, OH when visiting her married sister Mary Ellen Parvin in July 1878. Her fate after that is not known.
~ Daughter Marietta (Younkin) Porterfield ~
Daughter Marietta Younkin (1814-1905) was born on July 17, 1814. She claimed to have been born in Chillicothe or Galion, OH.
On May 10, 1828, in the Presbyterian Church in Lancaster, Fairfield County, OH, the 13-year-old Marietta and six of her siblings were given the rite of Christian baptism.
Then at the age of 27, on Nov. 9, 1841, she was united in holy matrimony with widower Col. William Porterfield (Oct. 15, 1804-1888) in Hancock County, OH. Rev. Vaneman officiated. The bride was about 10 to 11 years younger than the groom. He was a native of Virginia.
William was married once before, on Aug. 14, 1825, to Maria Honn (1807-1840), with the nuptials taking place in Knox County, OH. The first family of children were Samuel Newton Porterfield, Mary Porterfield, James Porterfield, Emanuel Porterfield, Catherine A. Willoughby, Jonah Porterfield and David W. Porterfield. Their births were duly inscribed into the family Bible. Sadly, it's believed that Mary (born April 19, 1828), Emanuel (born Dec. 22, 1832) and Jonah (born Aug. 23, 1838) may have died young.
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| Transcribed Bible record of the births of the elder Porterfield children - National Archives |
Marietta's five known offspring with William included Robert Shannon Porterfield, Jerome Porterfield, Clara I. Henry, Edward Porterfield and Charles E. Porterfield.
Census records for 1850 show the family in Findlay, with William working as a merchant.
When the federal census enumeration was made in 1860, the Porterfields dwelled on a farm in Blanchard Township, Hardin County, OH, receiving their mail at the Dunkirk post office. Swiss-born Maria Sigler, age 71 and inform, resided in the household that year.
Circa 1864, the family relocated to Nebraska. They first settled in Council Bluffs, where in 1867 through 1869 he was county treasurer. From there they moved to Fremont, Dodge County.
The U.S. Census of 1880 shows William and Marietta and adult sons Jerome and Charles in Fremont, in a home on Fifth Street. William earned a living for a few years as a merchant.
The pair traveled to Council Bluffs in June 1881 to see their son James. Reported the Fremont Weekly Herald, "They will remain to see the Tournament, and then proceed to Ohio to visit the scenes of their early life and see relatives and friends. Mr. Porterfield is now 80 years of age." They returned home in October.
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President Grover Cleveland
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Marietta and William returned to Findlay in the late summer of 1884. While there, they visited with Marietta's brother-in-law, Absalom P. Byal. The Weekly Jeffersonian reported at that time that William "is aged 83 years, but hale and hearty, and in the full enjoyment of all his faculties, except that he is a little hard of hearing."
Again traveling in March 1885, they went to Chicago for a long visit in the home of A.P. Willoughby at Hyde Park. In September 1885, William delivered a historic document to the local newspaper office, a warrant dated Oct. 24, 1744 and issued at Fairfax, VA. The Weekly Herald said that the "document was rescued by one of the colonel's sons at the battle of Fairfax court house and was preserved for its antiquity. The warrant was issued in his majesty's name and the paper, writing and spelling is quaint and peculiar to the age in which it was written 141 years ago.
William suffered from sore muscles and senility toward the end. While shoveling snow in the winter of 1887, he received a sprain which left him confined to the house. He died in April 1888 in the home of his married daughter Clara. The Weekly Herald eulogized that:
"Col. Porterfield" has been for many years one of the best-known and best-respected men in this community, where his genial character and integrity were so universally recognized. For a man of his age -- 86 years -- he has benerally been quite rugged, and has always been energetic, being a familiar face upon our streets up to a short time before his final illness. He had recently returned from Colfax Springs, Iowa, where he received considerable benefit for the rheumatism with which he was suffering, but has been quite weak ever since his return. All the members of his family were present during his last hours.
Funeral rites were conducted in the family home, led by Rev. Braden.
Marietta lived for another 16 years as a widow, remaining in their East Fifth Street dwelling. She broke her forearm one day in October 1895 when cleaning her house and accidentally stepping into an open hot air register.
After developing pneumonia, she died at the age of 88 on Jan. 15, 1905. An obituary was printed in the Fremont Evening Tribune. The obituary aid she had been a resident of Fremont for the past three decades. Burial took place in Fremont's Ridge Cemetery.
Stepson Samuel "Newton" Porterfield (1825-1897) -- often shortened to "S.N." -- was born on Feb. 19, 1825 in Martinsburg, Knox County, OH. His birth was recorded in the family Bible. He and his brother James migrated to the West Coast, in the California Gold Rush of 1848-1849, working in 1850 as a merchant in Calaveras County, CA. In young manhood he also went to Wisconsin for a time. In January 1854, at the age of 27, in Bellevue, NE, he was joined in wedlock with Mary D. Hatch (Jan. 8, 1831-1915), a native of Erie, PA. The pair "had the distinction of being the first white couple to be married in the state of Nebraska," said the Council Bluffs Nonpareil. She had come west in 1850 to teach at Bellevue College, south of Omaha, across the river from Iowa. Their brood of offspring included Frank W. Porterfield, F. "Paul" Porterfield, Mark Porterfield and Mary Lucille Bullock. They established a home in Canesville, later renamed Council Bluffs, in April 1854, with Mary joining the Christian Science Church. By 1860, working as a provisions dealer, they dwelled in Council Bluffs, with him continuing in this occupation until the outbreak of the Civil War. In the early 1870s, they moved away from Council Bluffs and ran hotels in Creston and Colfax. In 1870, Newton was listed by the census-taker as a retired miller, and in 1880 as a furniture dealer. After the Colfax hotel building was destroyed in a fire, they migrated to Atlantic, and after a few years came back to Council Bluffs. He coninued in the hotel business, operating the Pacific and Ogden houses. Their dwelling-place was on the corner of First Avenue and Seventh Street. He served a term as county treasurer and two as a city councilman. Mary received a bequest of $800 from the estate of his sister Clara Henry in 1889. They are known to have traveled to Fremont for the funeral of his brother-in-law John C. Henry in June 1880. Circa 1890, he was a ticket taker on the Council Bluffs and Omaha Bridge, employed by the Omaha and Council Bluffs Railway and Bridge Company. When the automobile became commercially available, he went to work for the local motor company in town. Sadly, Newton died at their 707 First Avenue home on Aug. 26, 1897. The Nonpareil said in an obituary that "Council Bluffs loses another well known and respected citizen who has made this city his home for many years. Mr. Porterfield has been ailing for the last eight months and his end was not wholly unexpected. He was one of the oldest residents of the city, having come to Council Bluffs in 1854, when it was little more than a mere village." Mary survived her husband by 18 years. Her final years were spent in the Waterloo residence of her son Frank. There, she died on July 15, 1915. The Nonpareil eulogized that she was a "pioneer resident of Council Bluffs... She was of a very sunny, happy disposition and the family was a favorite with the people of the city."
- Step-grandson Dr. Frank W. Porterfield (1857-1937) was born in about 1857. He married Alice Sigwalt (1861- ? ). Their two offspring were Mrs. Milo Smith and J.S. Portrfield. Frank became a physician and in 1880 practiced in Council Bluffs. By 1899, he had relocated to Atlantic, IA, and was active with the Iowa State Medical Society, chairing the Expert Testimony Committee. He also was active with the Knights of Pythias, and won a hotly contested election for the office of statewide grand chancellor with Frank W. "Vinegar" Smith of Davenport. In connection with this fight, his pen-and-ink portrait was printed in the Cedar Rapids Gazette on Aug. 14, 1901. He won the vote by a margin of 407-225. Then in 1904, he ran for railroad commissioner, but the nomination went instead to Nathaniel S. Ketchum of Marshalltown. When he again moved in 1912, to Waterloo, the Marshalltown Evening Times-Republican called him 'one of the most prominent physicians of southwestern Iowa" and that he "has been quite prominent in Iowa politics. He is at present the Cass county member of the Ninth district congressional committee. He has several times been seriously talked of for congressman in the Ninth district." For 25 years, up to his death, he was employed as division surgeon of the Illinois Central Railroad. As well, he was an examining physician with the Rock Island and Great Western Railroads. With the nation engaged in World War I, he also served as chairman of the local draft board. His home was in the Hotel Ellis in Waterloo. He died in Chicago's Illinois Central Hospital on Dec. 21, 1937. His funeral was led by Rev. Harry J. Moore of the Westminster Presbyterian Church, who said that "It is easy for a minister to speak at this service for one who was a physician. Luke was a great physician. Jesus also was called a great physician for it is said that he went about doing good and tht he healed many. The professional which Dr. Porterfield followed was one of service in relieving pains of men. He had carefully fitted himself in preparation necessary to service.... Beneath his bluff exterior, Dr. Porterfield had a very kindly heart. His long record of continuous service, night and day, to a great host of men on the railroads which he served showed evidence of his constant care and thought." The remains were cremated, and his photo appeared in an obituary in the Waterloo Courier.
- Step-grandson Fred "Paul" Porterfield (1865-1929) was born in about 1865 in Council Bluffs. In 1880, at the age of 15, he earned income as a telegraph messenger in Council Bluffs. He later became a "pioneer business man" of Atlantic. Fred entered into marriage with Nellie W. (1878-1958). One known son was Frank P. Porterfield. Sadly, in the fall of 1929, he made the decision to end his life. Reported the Associated Press in a story printed in the Muscatine Journal and the Lincoln (NE) State Journal, he "was found dead at his home, his head in the oven of a gas stove and the jets turned on. A pillow had been placed inside the oven to rest his head. The body was fully dressed indicating he had just arisen as the bed had been occupied." Burial was in the local Atlantic Cemetery.
Step-great-grandson Frank P. Porterfield (1898- ? ) was born in about 1898. During World War I, in June 1917, he joined the U.S. Army as a member of the 168th Infantry, Company M, and performed as a bugler. He was deployed to Europe and took part in fighting around Sergy, France. He and Sgt. Oscar Johnson "made a little raid of their own and captured four German machine guns with their crews, returning to their own lines unharmed," reported the Des Moines Register. Circa 1929, Frank resided in Peoria, IL.
Step-great-granddaughter (?) Porterfield ( ? - ? ) was united in matrimony with Arthur Sulhoff. They relocated to Chicago.
- Step-grandson Mark Porterfield (1867-1889) was born in 1867. He grew up in Council Bluffs. Grief blanketed the family when he died suddenly at the age of 22 in Council Bluffs, on Jan. 29, 1889. His funeral services were held in the family home, with Rev. Dr. Phelps providing a "touching address," said the Council Bluffs Nonpareil. Burial was in Fairview Cemetery.
- Step-granddaughter Mary Lucille "Lou" Porterfield ( ? -1952) was born in (?) in Council Bluffs, IA. As a young woman, Lou was employed as supervisor of music in the public schools of Council Bluffs. On Jan. 17, 1906, she wed William Culver Bullock ( ? -1933), with the ceremony held in Atlantic. The young couple dwelled in Lisco, NE in 1915 and put down roots near Oshkosh, NE, where they were longtime ranchers. One known son was William P. Bullock. William died in 1933, and Lou relocated into the town of Oshkosh, where she resumed her work as a private music instructor. In time she went to dwell with her son in Scottsbluff, NE, at the address of 2014 Avenue D. Sadly,, she died at the age of 78, in a local hospital, on Nov. 23, 1952. Rev. W.C. Heidenreich led the funeral rites. Her obituary appeared in the Scottsbluff Star-Herald. Son William went on to serve with the Scotts Bluff County Extension Service.
Stepson James Porterfield (1830-1887) was born on Jan. 10, 1830. A notation of his birth was recorded in the family Bible. In 1850, he made a home with his father and stepmother in Findlay and earned a living as a clerk. He was married. The federal census enumeration of 1860 shows him living next door to his mother and stepfather in Blanchard, Hardin County, OH, and working in the lumber business. He migrated to Nebraska during the 1860s. At one time he lived in Fremont, where in 1871 he announced he was opening his own dry goods business, having withdrawn from his former one, Porterfield & Newman. Later by 1881, he migrated to Council Bluffs. He and his parents are known to have attended the "tournament" in Council Bluffs in June 1881. At the age of 57, he died in Council Bluffs on Aug. 18, 1887. Funeral rites were conducted in the home of his brother S.N. Porterfield at the Bluffs. News of his demise was published in the Fremont Daily Herald. and Council Bluffs Daily Nonpareil, the latter of which said that "a very large concourse of friends of the deceased attended the last sad rites. Rev. G.W. Crofts delivered a touching discourse, and a choir rendered several appropriate selections."
Stepdaughter Catherine A. Porterfield (1834-1892) was born on Nov. 10, 1834 in Ohio. She married Alfred Parsons Willoughby (May 12, 1827-1916). He was a native of Hartford, CT. Their home in 1880 was in Davenport, IA. There, he was employed as manager of the Pioneer Relief Association. Then for many years, in the early 1880s and onward, they lived in the Hyde Park section of Chicago, at the address of 4020 Cottage Grove Avenue. They were the parents of Minnie Willoughby, Clara Fowler, Mollie Willoughby and Maud Willoughby. They hosted her parents for a visit in the winter of 1885, as noted in the gossip columns of the Fremont Weekly Herald. Sadly, she became seriously ill in about 1890 and suffered for several years until the end. She died on Feb. 2, 1892, her daughter Clara having traveled from Fremont, NE to be with her. The body was interred in Oak Woods Cemetery in Chicago. As a widower, A.P. moved to Sheffield, IL and was there in 1913. At the age of 87, in August 1913, he is known to have traveled by train to Fremont via Omaha, and then when a hotel was not available, convinced a friend to take him on to the Fowler home. Said the Fremont Herald, "Mr. Willoughby seems to take keenest delight in travel and perpetrating happy surprises upon his relatives." A.P. died on Jan. 20, 1916. The funeral was held in the Fowlers' residence on Nye Avenue, with burial in Ridge Cemetery.
- Step-granddaughter Minnie Willoughby (1860- ? ) was born in about 1860.
- Step-granddaughter Clara Willoughby (1863-1943) was born on Feb. 1, 1863 in Lacon, IL. On Feb. 8, 1888, at the home of her parents in Chicago, she entered into marriage with Willard Horton "Will" Fowler (1861-1939). Rev. Williams, of the Chicago Congregational Church, led the nuptials. In announcing the union, the Fremont newspaper said the wedding "was a quiet affair, the nuptials being solemnized in the presence of a small number of intimate friends and relatives.... The groom is a young man who was born and raised in this vicinity. He is a "home product" of whom all his friends are proud, and is one of the best young men Fremont has turned out. For several years past he has held responsible positions in Fremont banks and has always distinguished himself for his efficiency and strict liability. He is now secretary of the Western Trust & Security Co. in which position his honor, integrity and ability are most highly appreciated by all connected with the institution. The bride has spent two or three winters in Fremont with her aunt, Mrs. Henry, and has become a general favorite in society here." Two known children of this union were Alfred Fowler and Ruth Clarke. They were members of the Christian Scientist Church, and she belonged to the Lewis and Clark Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, was an early member of the Charity Club and served one term as president of the American Legion auxiliary. Their lives were turned upside down when their son Alfred died of pneumonia after serving in Italy during World War I. Sadly, Clara died in the home of her first cousin John "Rex" Henry in Frmeont on April 25, 1943.
- Step-granddaughter Mary L. "Mollie" Willoughby (1865-1928) was born on May 16, 1865. She grew up in Hyde Park near Chicago. She is known to have spent the late months of 1888 and early weeks of 1889 in Fremont, NE with her married sister Clara Fowler. She appears to have remained single her entire life. In 1914, she lived in Sioux City and made a visit to the Fowler home in Fremont. Death enveloped her at age 62 on Jan. 19, 1928. Burial was in Ridge Cemetery in Fremont.
- Step-granddaughter Maud Willoughby (1874- ? ) was born in about 1874.
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Robert Shannon Porterfield Courtesy William Jones |
Son Robert Shannon Porterfield (1842-1914) was born on Nov. 30, 1842 in Findlay, Hancock County, OH. In adulthood he stood 5 feet, 6¼ inches tall and sported a dark complexion, brown eyes and black hair. On Nov. 12, 1861, in Dunkirk, OH, he joined the Union Army during the Civil War. He was placed in the 82nd Ohio Infantry, Company G and attained the rank of corporal. Very little is known of his service, except that in July 1864 he was stationed in Atlanta. There, on July 5, 1864, he claimed to have been stricken with sunstroke and "was never in hospital, but was in ambulance, unable to march." The regimental surgeons prescribed cold compresses. He remained with his regiment for the next six months and received his honorable discharge in Savannah, GA on Jan. 2, 1865 and returned home. Thereafter he claimed that he had contracted heart disease while in the service.
He first lived in Galion, OH for a year and then in 1866 moved to Council Bluffs, IA on the outskirts of Omaha, NE, staying there three years. In 1869 he went to Chicago. His whereabouts in 1870, when the United States Census was taken, have not yet been ascertained. He made another move in 1873 to Fremont, NE. For two more years, he was in Denver and then for the next year in Virginia City, MN, where he worked as a railway clerk for the government. He then accepted employment as a postal clerk with the Wabash Railroad in Indiana and boarded in the home of his future mother-in-law.
On June 3, 1874, in Tippecanoe, Lafayette County, IN, at the age of 31, he was united in the bonds of holy matrimony with 22-year-old Mary Bridgette Flynn (Sept. 20, 1851-1921), a native of Utica, NY who grew to adulthood in Lafayette. Rev. William C. Dickinson officiated the nuptials, held in the residence of David H. Flynn, and May Johnson is among those known to have been present. Two known sons in this family were David Clarence Porterfield, born in Indiana, and Robert Rex Porterfield, born in Colorado. Robert's cousin Mrs. J.E. Hinkins later recalled that Robert and Mary "lived kindly, loving and helpful to each other; that their two sons ahve been brought up to be a credit and honor to their parents; that they were a kind a loving family." When the federal census enumeration was made in 1880, the family was living on a farm in Nebraska in Cedar Township, Saunders County. At that time, 20-year-old Henry Schuyler lived under their roof and provided farm labor. Mary is known to have received a bequest of $500 from the estate of Robert's sister Clara Henry in 1889. He was in Denver in 1890 but later that year, on Aug. 8, 1890, in Nebraska, he was awarded a military pension. [Invalid App. #865.467 - Cert. #972.943]
In 1889-1890, after Robert's sister Clara Henry died, Robert's sons received an inheritance and bought a cottage house in Hyde Park near Chicago, which they gave to Robert and Mary. For the next 24 years, up to his death, he was employed as a ticket agent and expressman by the United States Express Company. He also was a postal clerk and worked closely with friend and letter carrier James P. McGrath. In their years in Hyde Park, recalled friends Frank W. and Amy Lane, "Mr. Porterfield worked 'down town' ... and his wife was a person who seldom went down town to the place where her husband worked, nor was she a person who visited her neighbors, as she was wedded to her home & family." During that time he is known to have received medical treatment at Hahnemann Hospital. But for five years leading up to 1898, he wrote that he had "done no work and have earned nothing towards my support for past 5 years and for the reason over this period I have been continuously entirely disabled from my occupation." Robert was active with army veterans and held a membership in the Grand Army of the Republic, George Meade Post 444. Their address in their early years in Chicago was 5201 Dreel Avenue and in 1907-1914 was at 5530 Ellis Avenue, Chicago. The pair held a membership in the Church of the Redeemer Episcopal Church. They bought their groceries at Emert S. Pfan's store at 941 East 55th Street and where Robert's pension checks were cashed. Their fire insurance was carried by John B. and Clara E. Osborne.
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| Letter by Robert's brother-in-law, on GAR stationery, and a flyer sent by a lawyer to solicit Mary's case in trying to secure a widow's pension. Courtesy National Archives |
As of 1905, he received monthly checks of $8 as his pension. In undergoing regular medical examinations by military surgeons, to remain eligible for his pension, he was checked for disease of the rectum, rheumatism of the left shoulder and two fistulas at the anus. A doctor in 1905 observed "Moderate debility from age. Nutrition fair. Muscular strength somewhat impaired. No apparent loss of memory or mental failure. Special senses well preseerved. Chest symmetrical, no cough, rales or expectoration." At the death of his mother in Fremont, NE in 1905, he traveled to attend the funeral. Sadly, suffering from kidney disease ("parenchymatous nephritis"), chronic diabetes and bowel abscess, he died at home at the age of 71 on July 11, 1914. A one-paragraph obituary appeared in the Chicago Tribune, which reported that he "came to Chicago twenty-four years ago..." The body was transported back to Lafayette for burial in the Spring Vale Cemetery, with David H. Flynn and John M. and May Johnson in attendance. The widowed Mary then petitioned to receive her late spouse's pension, and it was granted after some delay. [Widow App. #1.036.188 - Cert. #787.901] Chicago and Lafayette friends Winfield Scott Blocker, John M. Johnson, May Johnson, Frank W. and Amy Lane, and Thomas Stenhouse stepped forward to write letters and give written testimony of support in her claim. Her brother David H. Flynn, self-employed with D.H. Flynn & Company, was an insurance agent in Lafayette for the Massachusetts Bonding and Insurance Company and wrote a letter on company stationery. He wrote a similar letter in his role as adjutant of the John A. Logan Post of the GAR. Mary survived her spouse by seven years. She surrendered to the angel of death in her residence at the age of 67 on May 15, 1921. Her obituary in the Lafayette Journal and Courier said she was the "sister of David H. Flynn" and that her "demise was caused by a complication of diseases." Her remains also were laid to rest in Spring Vale.
- Grandson David "Clarence" Porterfield (1877- ? ) was born on March 1, 1877 in Indiana. He grew up in Chicago and was employed as a draftsman at the age of 23 in 1900. As of 1915-1921, he was in New York City. Clarence was in Evanston, IL in 1958 at the death of his brother.
- Grandson Robert "Rex" Porterfield Sr. (1888-1958) was born on April 10, 1888 in Colorado. He married Jeannette Wall ( ? - ? ). Together, they produced two children -- Robert Rex Porterfield Jr. and Marie Zeiler. The Porterfields dwelled in Chicago in 1921. The family was blanketed in grief when son Robert Jr. was killed in a parachute invasion of Germany in the last month of World War II in Europe. Death cleaved Rex away in New Orleans at the age of 70 on Oct. 28, 1958. Following funeral services in the Church of the Redeemer at 56th and Blackstone Avenue, burial was held in Lafayette's Spring Vale Cemetery. An obituary was published in the Chicago Tribune.
Great-grandson Robert Rex Porterfield Jr. ( ? -1945) was born on (?). He studied at Purdue University in young manhood and was admitted to membership in the Pi Kappa Phi fraternity. During World War II, he joined the U.S. Army and was a member of the 507th Parachute Infantry. On March 24, 1945, he was killed in a jump at Wesel, Germany. His remains were not brought back to the U.S. until 1948 for interment in Lafayette, IN. Services were held in Chicago's Church of the Redeemer, with an obituary published at that time in the Chicago Tribune. Robert is depicted in a painting, "Down to Earth," by watercolor painter Robert Baldwin, published in the World War II Magazine article "The Drop Zone in August 2021 by James M. Fenelon.
Great-granddaughter Marie Porterfield ( ? - ? ) wed (?) Zeller.
Son Jerome Porterfield (1845-1912) was born on July 24, 1845 in Findlay, OH. He was a lifelong bachelor, In 1867, he accompanied his parents in a move to Council Bluffs, IA and in 1870 to Fremont, NE. At the age of 34, in 1880, he lived with his parents in Fremont and earned a living as a livestock dealer. He also was an implement dealer in partnership with his nephew Rex Henry. Said the Fremont Tri-Weekly Tribune:
Mr. Porterfield possessed exceptionally genial qualities and was a great favorite in certain circles. He was a close student of the markets and for years had been conspicuous at the offices where the daily reports were received. To his associates he was familiarly known as "Jerry."
At the death of his married sister Clara Henry, Jerome in 1889 received a bequest of $3,000 from the estate. He made news in 1893 when traveling to What Cheer, IA to superintend construction of an opera house under contract to Oliver Smith. He often spent his summers at Hot Springs, AR, and held memberships in the local lodge of the Eagles. Having resided in Fremont for more than four decades, many in the same household as his nephew, he died from the effects ot an "arterial ailment" on April 17, 1912. Funeral services were held in their home, led by Rev. W.H. Frost, with interment in Ridge Cemetery. His brother Robert traveled from Chicago to attend the rites.
Daughter Clara I. Porterfield (1848-1889) was born on April 22, 1848 in Ohio. She entered into marriage with John C. Henry (1844-1880), son of Andrew Henry and a native of Tompkins County, NY. They were the parents of an only son, John "Rex" Henry. John was a cattleman in Fremont, considered the local "cattle king." In addition to his duties herding his stock, he also made business trips in May 1878 to Oregon and Washington Territory. He made news in 1878 when traveling to Chicago via railroad with 14 carloads of cattle, with the Fremont Daily Herald saying "This is only a small per cent of the cattle he will ship this season." Early in 1880, he traveled to Oregon with Lee and Blewett to launch a drive of several thousand head of cattle to Nebraska. Then in May 1880, he went to their ranch near North Platte, while Clara stopped in Columbus to see relatives. He told friends that he expected to gather together 6,000 head of cattle during the annual spring roundup. The event took place near Finch's Ranche, on the south Loop at the mouth of Ash Canyon, about 50 or 60 miles north of Willow Island. Grief cascaded over the family when the 36-year-old John was cut away by the angel of death on June 12, 1880. The Columbus Journal reported that, while with his brother Robert cutting out their cattle from a larger herd, with his horse in a gallop on the range:
...his horse stumbled, pitching him over his head, Mr. Henry falling squarely upon his head, as we are informed upon the solid ground. He was not conscious afterwards, and died within three hours. They were at the time eight miles from the ranche and about 55 miles from Plum Creek, the nearest railroad station. A spring wagon was sent for to the nearest ranche, and one of the employes carried water in his hat a distance of five miles, and everything done which could be, under the circumstances, but without avail. His remains were brought to this city on Sunday, and taken on Monday to Fremont, his home, where they were buried yesterday, a very large concourse of friends and acquaintances witnessing the last solemn rites to the generous-hearted and mild-mannered man who was so suddenly precipitated from vigorous life into that unconsciousness which precedes the final dissolution of the spirit from the body. The deceased was a man of very excellent character, whose memory will long be cherished by his hosts of friends.
Funeral services were held at the Occidental Hotel in Fremont. The Weekly Herald eulogized that "In the death of John C. Henry, this community especially, and the State at large, loses on of its most worthy citizens, and a true-hearted and honorable man." Clara published a card of thanks in the Weekly Herald, expressing her "grateful acknowledgement for the universal kindness and sympathi extended by the citizens of Fremont to them in their bereavement." She outlived her spouse by nine years. Clara supervised the installation of a large, Vermont hurricane granite marker in Ridge Cemetery at her husband's grave. It was said to be a square shaft some six feet in height, with a heavy base and highly polished faces. Produced in Omaha, at a cost of $1,200, it was said to be "one of the handsomeest among several other very fine monuments in Ridge Cemetery, which has been much improved in the past year," noted the Weekly Herald. In January 1884, her niece Clara Willoughby came from Hyde Park in Chicago to spend the winter. In January 1887, she returned to Findlay for a visit, and in July 1888 went to Hyde Park to see her sister (?) Willoughby. She became dangerously ill in in late 1888 and became somewhat of an invalid, seeking medical relief which never came. She traveled to Chicago in May 1889, with the news printed in the gossip columns of the Fremont newspaper. Thanks to a special act of kindness from local railroad freight agent Morehouse, she came back home in a special car in July 1889, but her health was still poor. She died at the age of 41 years, four months and 29 days on Sept. 20, 1889. Funeral services, by the hand of Rev. N.H.G. Fife of the Presbyterian Church, "were simple but impressive," said the Tri-Weekly Tribune. "A number of beautiful floral tributes were sent in by friends. The procession was a very long and imposing one." Burial was in Fremont's Ridge Cemetery. Among those traveling to attend were Mr. and Mrs. A. Henry of Omaha, Mr. and Mrs. Robert Henry and children of Columbus, NE, Dr. and Mrs. Porterfield from Atlantic, IA, Mary Porter of Council Bluffs, IA, Viola Coffin of Omaha and Mr. and Mrs. K.C. Morehouse, also of Omaha.
- Grandson John "Rex" Henry (1878-1946) was born on Feb. 1, 1878 in Fremont. The baby weighed in at 8 lbs. He was just two years old at his father's tragic death and 11 when his mother died, and his care was entrusted to his grandfather Andrew Henry of Columbus, NE. Rex also may have been raised by his bachelor uncle Jerome Porterfield. As a young man, he was employed by the pioneering real estae firm Richards-Keene and Company. At high noon on March 29, 1906, in Omaha, he tied the marital knot with Lettie Floyd Moulton ( ? - ? ), daughter of W.D. Moulton. Rev. T.J. Mackay officiated at the ceremony held in the home of E.M. Abbott. In announcing the union, the Fremont Tri-Weekly Tribune said the bride "was lovely in a dress of white crepe de chine and was attended by Miss Minnie Bunt of Fremont who wore white net over silk.... Mrs. Henry is a bright and charming young woman who is well known in Fremont where she lived for a number of years and was graduated from the High school. She possesses many lovable virtues and was a favorite in her social circle here. She moved to Omaha with her mother about a year ago where she has made her home since. Mr. Henry is one of Fremont's wealthiest and most popular young men. He attended the colleges at Madison, Wis., and Shattock, Minn., and on returning to Fremont was elected captain of the signal corps, which office he now holds. He has large interests and he has engaged himself in looking after them." The pair honeymooned in Europe with stops in Chicago and New York. They bore one son, J. "Rex' Henry Jr. In 1909, he joined the Fremont Independent Telephone Company and operated his own land and investment business. During World War I, he was an American Red Cross field director at Camp Dodge and Fort DesMoines. Also in 1918, he was named to the Fremont board of public works and elected chairman in 1923, holding that post for decades. Then in 1941, he was tapped to be general manager of the department of utilities in Fremont. Said the local newspaper, he "was an important factor in a move to secure legislation setting up a retirement program for utility and municipal employes. His role with the department of utilities was largely responsible for development of the plant from one with a value of about $500,000 to an institution valued at about $3,000,000 now." He was a longtime president of the Fremont Foundry and Machine Company, was vice president of the Fremont National Bank and treasurer of the Fremont Stock Yards and Land Company. He served on the boards of directors of the Nebraska Children's Home and the Missouri Valley Section of the American Waterworks Association. His other charitable activities included the Fremont Good Fellows, providing Christnas dinners for the neede, a vestryman of the St. James Church, director of the Fremont YMCA, Rotary Club, Masons, Tangier shrine and Elks lodge. He belonged to the Nebraska and American Bankers Associations and was vice president of the board of the Fremont Hotel. He died at the age of 68 on June 20, 1946. He was pictured in his Tribune obituary, which included among his survivors his cousins Alice V. Porterfield of Omaha and Mrs. Paul James of Denver. His funeral was led by Rev. Frederick B. Muller at St. James Episcopal Church.
Great-grandson John "Rex" Henry Jr. lived in Plattsmouth, NE in 1946. He was the father of James Rex Henry.
Son Edward Porterfield (1848- ? ) was born in about 1848. Nothing more is known.
Son Charles E. Porterfield (1851-1914) was born in Feb. 1851 in Findlay, OH. A bachelor in 1880, he resided with his parents in Fremont, NE and earned a living as a stock herder. Charles first entered into marriage with (?). They resided in Norfolk, NE and in June 1887 endured the tragic death of his father-in-law, killed while herding near Rapid City. Charles' parents are known to have traveled from Fremont to Norfolk for the funeral. In 1889, following the death of his married sister Clara Henry, he received a bequest of $3,000 from the estate. Charles migrated to the Pacific Northwest and in 1892 was in Seattle. Circa 1894, Charles at the age of 43 wed a second time to 18-year-old Florence M. (Jan. 1876- ? ). They were a quarter century apart in age. The pair put down roots in in Seattle, with him employed as a railroad clerk in 1900. He is known to have returned to Fremont to visit his brother Jerome in June 1905. Their address in 1906 was 3050 First Avenue. Charles is believed to have relocated to Tacoma by 1910. After contracting pneumonia, he was admitted to Pierce County Hospital in Tacoma, and died there on Nov. 29, 1914, at the age of 64. His death certificate gave his occupation as accountant and birthplace as Ohio but did not name his parents. Burial was in the county's pauper cemetery in Tacoma.
~ Daughter Susan (Younkin) Beeson ~
Daughter Susan Younkin (1819-1907) was born on April 24, 1819 in Ohio.
On May 10, 1828, in the Presbyterian Church in Lancaster, Fairfield County, OH, she and six of her siblings were given the rite of Christian baptism.
In 1842, she was joined in matrimony with Dr. Jesse Beeson (June 9, 1813-1884), a native of Columbiana County, OH.
Together, the pair produced two known daughters -- Sarah M. Atkinson and Irene Dodd.
As a teenager, he "learned the printer's trade and worked for a small newspapeer near his home county," said the book Daughters of the Republic of Texas. Prior to marriage, in 1836, Jesse reputedly served in Col. Wilson's Regiment during the Texas Revolution.
The United States Census of 1850 shows the Beeson family living under the roof of Susan's parents in Findlay, with Jesse earning a living as a physician. Later, they lived in Van Buren, OH.
Then in 1856, the family relocated to Fon du Lac, WI, remaining a year. They pulled up stakes and moved to Texas in 1857 and settled in Lavaca, Lavaca County. The 1860 federal census shows Jesse continuing to practice medicine in the new location. He also is said to have been an adventurer and publisher. As such, they were considered by the Houston Post among "the early settlers in this part of Texas." The census of 1880 lists the Beesons in Lavaca, and Susan's elderly, widowed father in the household.
Interestingly, Jesse and an "S. Yonkin" are named as the only two physicians in the town of Hope, Lavaca County, TX as shown in the 1886 Medical and Surgical Directory of the United States. Their nephew, Dr. John Abraham Youngkin, also practiced in Lavaca County circa 1897-1898.
Sadly, Jesse died on Feb. 11, 1884 in Hope, Lavaca County.
Susan outlived him by 23 years. Said the Post, "She was a consistent member of the Presbyterian church and lived a noble, Christian life."
She died in the residence of her married daughter Irene Dodd in Yoakum, TX at the age of 87 on Jan. 30, 1907. News of her demise was published in the Postand the Waco Times-Herald. Another obituary said "We 'stand up before that hoary head' and so honor to that 'crown of glory' which was ever 'found in the way of righteousness'."
Daughter Sarah M. Beeson (1844-1892) was born in about 1844 in Ohio. She tied the knot with William Patton ( ? - ? ).
Daughter Irene Beeson (1846-1928) was born on Aug. 11, 1846 in Ohio. She wed Thomas McKendree Dodd ( ? - ? ) and in 1907 resided in Yoakum, TX. Her final address for eight years was on Beaumont Road in Orange County, TX. There, stricken with pneumonia and influenza, she died on April 12, 1928, at the age of 81. H.M. Tippett of Orange, TX signed the death certificate, with burial takign place on Yoakum, TX.
~ Daughter Sarah Annette (Younkin) Byal ~
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Maple Grove Cemetery, Findlay Courtesy Marilyn Law |
Daughter Sarah Annette Younkin (1823-1865) was born on May 8, 1823 in Lancaster, Fairfield County, OH.
On May 10, 1828, in the Presbyterian Church in Lancaster, Fairfield County, OH, she and six of her siblings were given the rite of Christian baptism.
In 1840, as a teenager, she migrated with her parents to Findlay, OH. Then on Nov. 12, 1843, at the age of 20, she joined the Presbyterian Church of Findlay on a professional of religion "during a communion season of precious interest," wrote her former pastor, "R.H.H.," published in the Findlay Jeffersonian.
[She] was a devoted wife, and a kind, faithful and sympathizing mother. In the community she was respected by all who knew her, and as a Christian, she was exemplary though retiring. The home circle was the place where her christian virtues were best seen. Previous to making a professional of religion, she said to the writer who was at the time pastor of the church, that she felt it to be a very solumn thing to profess religion and became a member of the church but still she felt it to be a great privilege. Her christian life was characterized not by excitement, but by a calm and quiet deportment, exemplifying an humble trust in the Savior.
On Sept. 25, 1845, she was united in matrimony with Col. Absalom P. Byal (June 19, 1821-1911), a native of Stark County, OH.
The known children born to this couple were Clara E. Byal, Sarah Catherine "Kate" Carlin, William A. Byal and Ida Hercilia Bradner plus an infant daughter who died in 1851.
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Absalom P. Byal
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During that first era of marriage, the 1845-1846 timeframe, Absalom is known to have hauled wheat to what today is Sandusky, OH, receiving as pay a bushel of corn for a bushel of wheat transported. He later remembered that "I afterward engaged to furnish wheat to parties in Carey," said the Jeffersonian. "The price ran up to $1.00 a bushel, but I could not haul it for the mud. I bought a hog that weighed 400 pounds for $7.00. I also bought a pair of very fine horses for $110.00. If there had been a Railroad here, they would have been worth more than double that sum."
As sheriff in 1847, he led a jury of six men to appraise a corridor of land from Findlay to Carey, where the first railroad eventually would be constructed.
The federal census enumeration of 1850 lists the Byals in Findlay, with him employed as a clerk with the "C.C.P." (Court of Common Pleas). That year, Catharine Jane Henderson, age 14, and William Snyder, age 15, lived in the household. Under a new constitution of 1851, the clerk's position was changed from appointed to elected, and he left to study law. Judge Thurman of the state supreme court admitted him to practice law in about 1852 and he worked in this field for five years, until 1857, when he devoted himself to full-time farming.
Absalom's occupation in 1860, as shown in the U.S. Census, was farmer. He was active with the Hancock County Agricultural Society and in 1859 was elected vice president. He appears to have served with the Society for decades. He also was an officer of the local lodge of the Masons. The family relcoated into Findlay in 1861, purchasing a town lot north of Front Street on a property on the east side of Main Street. He held onto this lot until 1868 when selling it to Gen. M.B. Walker and then buying a farm on the Lima Road, where he eventually "built a fine residence and embellished the grounds with groves and shrubbery, until it is one of the handsomest homes in Hancock County."
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| Absalom's biography, 1903 - Courtesy Google Books |
Sadly, at the age of 42 years and 13 days, Sarah died following a short illness in Findlay on May 21, 1865. In her obituary in the Jeffersonian, "R.H.H." said that "as she came near her departure, she calmly took leave of her husband and dear children, expressing the assurance that the Savior was with her. 'Her end was peace'." Burial was in Maple Grove Cemetery. Her demise occurred just a little over a month after the close of the Civil War.
Absalom in 1867 wed a second time to Sallie P. Maverty (1841-1897), who was a native of Ontario, Canada, then known as "Upper Canada." They are shown together on a farm in the 1870 federal census of Findlay. Sadly, their daughter Nellie, born in 1868, drowned in a well at the age of 2 on May 29, 1871. Their son George F. Byal became a well known farmer.
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Absalom's profile, 1910 - Courtesy Google Books |
Absalom also was profiled on three pages of the 1910 book Twentieth Century History of Findlay and Hancock County, Ohio, authored by J.A. Kimmell, MD (Chicago: Richmond-Arnold Publishing Co.). The section says that "Few, if any, of the men living in Hancock County today, have been so closely connected with the progress and official affairs of the county as has the Hon. Absolam P. Byall.
In 1869, Absalom was elected president of the Democratic Central Committee of Hancock County and later in the year appointed a viewer of a new country road in the community. He was chosen as chairman in 1870 of the Farmers Club of Hancock County. Among the goals of the new club were to protect against horse thieving and also selection of the best horses for breeding.
Absalom served as a member of the constitutional convention of 1873 that met in Columbus. The Twentieth Century History says they "held sessions until the breaking out of cholera in August of 1872, when it adjourned and reassembled in Cincinnati December 1st of the same year, and remained there until the 15th of May, 1874." According to Wikipedia, the delegates proposed a new constitution with a host of changes. Among them were establishing annual legislative sessions, a gubernatorial veto that could be overridden by a three-fifths vote of each house, creation of state circuit courts, allowing for women to be elected to school boards, and restrictions on municipal debt. They also proposed that circuit courts be established to relieve the case backlog of the Ohio Supreme Court and to allow the licensing of liquor sales. All were voted down.
Absalom and his wife are known to have traveled to Philadelphia in September 1876 to help celebrate the nation's centennial anniversary. He was elected in 1878 as a board director of the Findlay Manufacturing Company.
In December 1883, Absalom is known to have purchased 83 acres in Findlay from seller Samuel J. Fellers for the price of $7,000. He also sold part of his acreage to the county for use as the camp-meeting grounds, which were named the "A.P. Byal Park" in his honor.
He was elected to the Ohio legislature in 1883. Among his initiatives was an amendment to the Ohio liquor laws, which was voted down in the lower house in February 1885. The Twemtieth Century History said that as a legislator, Absalom "displayed great strength of character, and many important measures were entrusted to his care in their passage through the House, not only from his own county but from others as well. His well known integrity and steadfastness called forth the confidence in his honesty and influence to carry a bill to a favorable termination in that body."
He passed away in Findlay at the age of 89 on June 16, 1911. Burial was in Maple Grove Cemetery. An obituary said he was "one of the best known citizens of Hancock county..." He left behind an estate worth an estimated $70,000.
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Mt. Hope Cemetery, San Diego Courtesy "PIN" |
- Granddaughter Madge Alice Bahl (1875-1962) was born in 1875 in Kansas. In 1926, Madge purchased her parents' lot in Springfield for $100. By 1929, at the death of her father, she was living with them in San Diego. In time, by 1935, she wed Iowa native Jetson G. Wright (1880-1955). The 1940 and 1950 United States Censuses show them together in San Diego, residing in the city and without any occupations. Jetson surrendered to the angel of death in 1955. Madge followed him to the grave in 1962. They both repose in a plot of graves with her parents at Mount Hope.
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| Sheep ranch in Montana, as Dr. Cass Carlin would have known |
Daughter Sarah Catherine "Kate" Byal (1848-1933) was born on Feb. 21, 1848. At the age of 22, in 1870, she lived at home and was a teacher. On May 1, 1872, in nuptials held in her father's home, she wed Cass Rawson Carlin, MD (Sept. 13, 1846-1884), son of William D. and Harriet E.H. (Rawson) Carlin, MD. The wedding ceremony was conducted by Rev. A.B. Fields and announced in the Findlay Jeffersonian. The couple produced five children -- Carl G. Carlin, Maude Byal Carlin, Claire Rawson Carlin, Claude Byal Carlin and Blanche Carlin. Sadly, son Carl died at the age of three in 1876. Burdened with poor health, he is known in January 1875 to have purchased an apiary (beehives) in Shreveport, LA and moved there for a time. The following winter of 1876, he and J.J. Bradner and family made arrangements to go to Florida to continue to "engage in bee culture," said the Jeffersonian. "May they be prospered." Circa 1882, back in Findlay, Cass made news when he built a new fence around their house at the corner of Lima and Main Streets . He also purchased a ranch in Montana about that time, where he began raising sheep at Miles City. The Carlins all moved there in about 1883. The family was plunged into grief when Cass and their three-year-old son Claude tragically and senselessly were murdered by a posse of lawmen at Christmas 1884. Reported the Fort Benton River Press:
A desperado named Sullivan, on Christmas Eve at a dance, killed a man named Roberts. He escaped but was promptly followed by several deputy sheriffs. He took refuge at a sheep ranch a short distance from town. The proprietor, Dr. Carlin, not knowing who he was, allowed him to come in and get warm. The deputies coming up opened fire upon the house without warning, Sullivan escaping through the back door. They were told Sullivan was not there, but the firing continued, even after being told the house was full of women and children. The doctor finally came to the door with his child on his arms, and both were shot and killed by the deputies. The doctor was a quiet inoffensive man and a good citizen and the citizens of Miles City (Mont.) are greatly agitated over the affair. Sullivan was finally captured and lodged in jail, which was strongly guarded to prevent him from being lynched.
The horrific news was telegraphed to Cass's brother W.L. Carlin in Findlay. An obituary in the Jeffersonian said "His violent death is all the more to be regretted, as the widow will soon again become a mother." A story published in the Cleveland Leader, and reprinted in the Jeffersonian, gave even more details:
A vigorous search by officers and vigilantes has been made two days and nights for Bob Sullivan, who fled immediately after shooting Roberts Thursday afternoon. Jim and Frank Conley found him at a ranche fifteen miles north of this place. The officers, knowing the desperate character of Sullivan, stood at each side of the door and called on him to surrender. As he emerged he threw up both hands, but in the right he held a revolved thrown back so that officers could not see it. As soon as he gained sight of Frank, he commenced shooting, then throwing down his revolver, he grabbed a Sharp's rifle, continuing the fire. In the excitement Dr. Carlin, with a three-year-old boy in his arms, also ran, out, when Carlin was struck, a ball penetrating his wrist and the child's neck,, and passing diagonally through his breast. Sullivan then escaped in the darkness. At 3 o'clock this morning, as they were topping a hill, they saw an object ahead which proved to be the desperado. As the officers neared him he lay down, and warning him that he would not surrender without further fight, he offered to go ahead to Miles City. Rather than shoot him the officers told him to go on. They followed and on arriving here he gave up his rifle and was placed in jail. Carlin was a respectable, well-to-do sheep grower, who came from Findlay, O. His wife and two children arrived here this afternoon. Sullivan has been known as one of the hardest characters of Muscleshell county. Much indignation is expressed at the foul deed, and many threats of lynching are heard.
The remains were shipped back to Ohio to sleep for the ages in Maple Grove Cemetery in Findlay. The Jeffersonian ran a lengthy story about the funeral:
Two pieces of crepe, the larger black and the smaller white, emblematic of manhood and infancy, fluttered on the front door of the residence of Dr. B. Rawson, on Main street yesterday afternoon. Within the parlor of the mansion rested two coffins, one of a man full-grown, the other of a child... The bodies arrived on the noon train from Fostoria yesterday and were met at the depot by a delegation including nearly every physician of the city, and a number of other friends, who escorted them to the residence of Dr. Rawson. The bodies had been well prepared by the undertakers in Montana, and were in metallic caskets, and arrived here in a very good state of preservation. At the depot the body of Dr. Carlin was placed in Clark's large hearse and the body of the child was place in the small white hearse, used only for children, and conveyed slowly to the home of the grandfather and great-grandfather of the unfortunates, who less than a year ago left it with such bright hopes and anticipations. During the afternoon and this forenoon there were many callers who mingled their sympathy and tears with those of the mourners.
Dr. Cass Carlin was well known to almost everybody in Findlay as a quiet, kind and courteous gentleman, a man of few words, rather timid in his deportment, slow to make friends, but when once a friend he was as true as steel. He was a resident of this city nearly all his life, and grew to manhood here, graduating from the union schools, and afterward taking degrees in medical colleges in New York and Philadelphia. He had a thorough medical education, and practiced his profession with success, but for a number of years followed other vocations on account of ill health, residing at various times in Louisiana, Florida, Southern California, and other parts of the country. About fifteen years ago he was united in marriage with Miss Sarah K., daughter of Hon. A.P. Byal, and their union was blessed with happiness and prosperity. Three bright-eyed children came to make life's pathway pleasant, and Dr. Carlin and his wife lived surrounded with all that heart could desire. The doctor returned from the west, where he had located a sheep ranch, about a year ago, and after remaining a short time making preparations, himself and family bade adieu to the home of their childhood, the scene of so much joy, and bravely faced the hardships and dangers of a life on the frontier. They made a rough home in the wilderness of the west and were already beginning to reap the reward of their labor when the awful blow that made the widow a widow and a double mourner, came.
In the night, when sharing the hospitality of a friend, in common with other wayfarers, to whom every door is open when night overtakes them, the family were startled by an imperative knock at the door, and a demand for a hunted murderer to throw up his hands and come forth. This man was also a transient guest at the house, and no one knew him or his autocedents. With the coolness characteristic of the thorough desperado, he seized the rifle and ammunition of the host and benefactor and sallied forth unseen by the cowards who waited outside, and who poured volley after volley of death-dealing bullets into the little cabin that sheltered none but just men, innocent women and prattling children. When opportunity offered the officers of the law were informed that the desperado had fled, and that none but law-abiding people were in the cabin, and the majority of them were women and children. In rough tones the officers ordered them to leave the building and look out for themselves, so that the brave (?) posse could again bombard the wall of logs with their leaden hail.
At this juncture the inmates flocked through the little doorway, eager to leave the scene of so much danger, two of the children clinging to their mother's hands while the father picked up the third one -- his baby boy -- and pressing the terrified darling to his breast, while the child twined his little arms tightly around his father's neck, scared, and wondering at the horrible noises and strange scene. It was when the child's little head crept closer and closer to his father's breast, as that father was hurrying to a place of safety that the cruel blow was struck. A bullet, nearly an inch in diameter, large enough to bring down the largest, fiercest tiger in the jungle, was fired, and passing through the delicate throat of innocent boy, entered the breast of his noble father and both fell dead almost at the feet of the agonized wife and mother.
Let us draw a veil over the horrors of the long hours of watching that followed. The agony of the young mother, in her delicate condition, protector and child weltering in their precious life blood, separated by thousands of miles from all her loved ones, in the rough cabin of the frontier settler, the sorrowful scene can be vividly pictured in the minds of all who have a spark of humanity in their breasts. Let us hope that the events of that terrible night may pass into the sea of forgetfulness and that the mother may have the necessary strength and fortitude to survive the cruel blow.
The desperado, Morris Sullivan, was charged with murder in Custer County. Because the community was so upset with the entire incident, and he likely feared he could not get a fair trial, he asked for a change of venue to Billings. Back in Findlay, the local physicians gathered as a body to give eulogies and create a resolution to be published in the hometown and Miles City newspapers. Very pregnant at the time, Kate remained in Miles City for the birth of their daughter Blanche in January 1885. She then returned to Ohio and subsequently petitioned the Hancock County Probate Court for permission to sell her husband's real estate. Her heartaches were not over. When black diphtheria struck in June 1889, she lost daughters Claire and Blanche a week apart, with burial in Findlay. Daughter Maude also contracted the black diphtheria but recovered with serious handicaps, and Kate spent the rest of her life providing her with constant care. In May 1920, she traveled to California for a vacation, staying with her sister Ida Bradner at the Eleanor Hotel in Long Beach and then going to Pasadena for a week's visit. Her final years were spent at the address of 803 South Main Street. Kate suffered a stroke in the fall of 1933 and lingered for a few months, dying in Findlay at the age of 85 on Nov. 24, 1933. On her official Ohio certificate of death, her mother's maiden name was spelled "Youngkin," as provided by informant Dr. W. Byal of 2602 South Main Street.
- Granddaughter Maude Byal Carlin (1877-1918) was born on July 18, 1877 in Louisiana. In 1889, at the age of about 12, she and her sisters contracted black diphtheria, with the sisters succumbing to the illness. Maude "recovered after a frightful illness that left her handicapped as to health for a number of years," said a newspaper. "Her life has been one struggle to maintain a condition of health consistent with real enjoyment in living. The mother's constant care has surrounded her with every pleasure possible [and every] comfort was provided for..." Maude never married. She resided in Findlay, on South Main Street and she suffered from kidney disease. While spendng the winter and spring of 1918 in San Diego, at the age of 40, her kidney problem became more acute. She died three days after the onset on May 24, 1918. Burial was in San Diego's Greenwood Memorial Park.
Son William A. Byal (1850-1941) was born on June 9, 1850 in Findlay. He earned a living in 1870 as a farm laborer in Findlay and in 1873-1874 served as secretary of the Hancock Grange. On Oct. 7, 1874, he entered into marriage with Eliza Bushnell ( ? - ? ). The nuptials were led by Rev. Dr. Bushnell at the home of the bride's parents in Fremont. Punned the Fremont (OH) Weekly Journal, "We tender our warmest good wishes to the young couple. May their life's journey be a pleasant one. Eliza is a good girl and William is By-al accounts well aware of it." William went on to earn medical and law degrees from Ohio State University. He is known to have purchased an elegant new home in 1887 on Logan Avenue, having"wisely concluded to remain in Findlay permanently in the future," reported the Findlay Weekly Jeffersonian. That same year, he purchased shares in the Findlay LaGrange Rolling Mills with partners Thorp and Andrews. At that time, said the local newspaper, Andrews was "having the machinery made ready for shipment. Some of the lighter machinery was shipped yesterday." Two years later, he purchased a horse-drawn streetcar line in Findlay. Circa 1892, he was admitted to practice law in the state of Ohio but appears to have spent his career practicing medicine in Findlay. Continuing to expand his business interests, he bought an interest in a mine in Colorado and in May 1899 traveled there to Lake City to oversee his investment. William and partners R.K. Davis and Dr. E.B. Brokaw acquired a 36-acre trace in south Main Street in 1913 from William's widowed sister, S. Kate Carlin, with an eye toward organizing a land company. As of 1913, his portfolio also included wholesale hay shipping. His last address was 803 South Main. He died as a widower at the age of 90, having suffered from senility and hardening of the arteries, on Jan. 6, 1941. Charles B. Byal of Upland, IN was the informant for the death certificate.
Daughter Ida Hercilia Byal (1854-1930) was born Jan. 20, 1854 in Findlay, OH. When she was 20 years of age, on Nov. 10, 1874, she tied the marital knot with John James "J.J." Bradner (Oct. 1837-1918), a native of New York. The nuptials were held at the home of Ida's parents, by the hand of Rev. Eben Muse. Together, they produced a brood of at least five -- James P. Bradner, Carrie Graner, Clarence M. Bradner, Don Byal Bradner and one who died prior to 1900. When the federal census enumeration was made in 1880, the family lived in Findlay, next-door to her father and stepmother. That year, John employed as a fanning mill maker. Fanning mills were woode farm implements using a metal crank and wooden hand grip to separate chaff, dirt, dust, straw and weeds from grains such as barley, oats and wheat. The Bradners migrated to Indiana, where in 1900 they dwelled in Franklin, Grant County, with John working as a manufacturer of beekeeping supplies. During the decade between 1900 and 1910, they moved to Marion, Grant County, with John continuing to produce beehives. In time they pushed further to the West Coast and settled in Los Angeles County. Sadly, John died on Feb. 15, 1918 in Altadena, CA. Ida survived as a widow for another dozen years. In 1920, her sister Kate Carlin visited from Findlay, and the two stayed at the Eleanor Hotel in Long Beach. Her final address was 577 North Chester Avenue in Pasadena. As her health failed, she went to San Francisco where her son James was living. The spirit death whisked her away into eternity in San Francisco on Sept. 18, 1930. The San Francisco Examiner and Pasadena Post published obituaries. Their remains sleep for all time in Mountain View Cemetery in Altadena, CA. James P. Bradner was named to administer the estate.
- Grandson James P. Bradner (1876-1957) was born on Jan. 7, 1876 in Findlay, OH. He learned the electrician's trade and in 1900, a bachelor at age 24, earned a living in that field in Franklin, Grant County, IN. Then in 1910, still single, he worked as an electrical engineer in an electrical works in Marion, IN. He later moved to San Francisco, where he was employed with General Electric Company. James is known to have served as a captain during World War I and was promoted to major in August 1918. At the death of his mother in 1930, he was named executor of the estate. He was employed in 1930 as district manager for a fire extinguisher company. Bearing the title of "Major" he served on the board of directors of Buttes Oilfields Inc. and the Buttes Gas & Oil Company of Oakland. He died in San Francisco on Dec. 6, 1957.
- Granddaughter Carrie Helen Bradner (1877-1953) was born in July 1877 in New York, her father's home state. Unmarried at age 32, in 1910, she lived with her parents and adult siblings in Marion, IN. On July 13, 1913, when she was 36 years of age, she wed Adolph George Graner (1877-1957), a native of Lancaster, Atchison County, KS. Their wedding ceremony was held at the Glenwood Mission Inn in Riverside, CA and announced in the El Dorado (KS) Republican, which said that "Butler county people will be interested in this news, as Mr. Graner was in the clothing business in El Dorado two years and made many friends here. He left here for New York City four years ago." The newlyweds' first home was at 840 South Flower Street in Los Angeles. At the death of Carrie's aunt Kate Carlin in Findlay in 1933, Carrie received the bequest of a town lot at San Clemente, CA. As of 1944, the Graners dwelled in Pasadena. Sadly, Carrie was spirited away by the angel of death on Nov. 23, 1953. Her remains repose for all time in Mountain View Mausoleum in Altadena, CA. Adolph outlived her by four years. He died in Los Angeles County on March 5, 1957.
- Grandson Clarence M. Bradner (1879-1966) was born on July 31, 1879 in Ohio. His occupation was box maker in 1900 in Franklin, Grant County, IN. By 1910, now in Marion, IN, he was an operator of gold and silver mines. He and his brother James relocated to San Francisco in the early 1910s. In 1914, he married Mabel A. Mitchell (1887-1955) and their union held over the span of 41 years ago. They resided for a time in Tonopah, during the World War I era, where she volunteered with the American Red Cross. In recognition of her efforts, she received a Distinguished Serevice Medal "for being the only Red Cross secretary who worked without remuneration during the period," said the Reno Gazette-Journal. They came to Reno, NV in about 1922. Clarence worked in the automobile business and insurance services. He held memberships in the Kerak Temple, Scottish Rite and Washoe lodge of the Masons. Sadly, Mabel passed away in a local hospital on Oct. 31, 1955. Rev. John T. Ledger, pastor of the Trinity Episcopal Church, led the funeral rites. Soloist John Battaglia, accompanied by Mary A. Atcheson, performed "Abide with Me" and "Jesus Lover of My Soul." His final address was at 306 Wonder Street. He died at the age of 86, in a local rest home, on July 12, 1966. An obituary in the Reno Nevada State Journal named his survivors as nephew Hugh Bradner of Berkeley, CA, nephew Mead Bradner of Foxboro, MA, cousin George Gradner, sister-in-law Marie Yeazelle and brother-in-law Alvin Malmberg. Burial was in Mountain View Cemetery, known today as Masonic Memorial Gardens of Reno.
Grandson Capt. Donald Byal Bradner (1891-1955) was born on Nov. 26, 1891 in Marion, IN. He was a student in 1910 at the Mackay School of Mines at the University of Nevada. In 1913, he wed Agnes Claire Mead ( ? - ? ). Two sons resulting from this marriage were Hugh Bradner, PhD and Mead Bradner. The family resided in Tonopah, NV in 1918, where his brother Clarence was living at the time, and he was employed as a metallurgist with Monopah Mining Company. Said the Wilmington (DE) News Journal:
Arlington National CemeteryThen he went into government work, first as assistant chief of the explosives section of the U.S. Bureau of Mines and later in charge of research for the Chemical Warfare Service at Edgewood Arsenal. he was chief chemist at the Chemical Warfare Service from 1921 to 1924 and for the next two years, was a chemical engineer in DuPont's chemical Department. From 1926 to 1942 he was director of research and development of the Champion Coated Paper Company, later reorganized as the Hamilton Division of the Champion Paper and Fibre Company, and from 1934 to 1942, he was vice president and general manager of Hamilton Laboratories, a subsidiary of Champion Paper an Fibre Company. During his career, more than 50 patents were issued in his name.
After a move to Ohio with Champion, Donald and William J. Montgomery jointly invented a process for coating paper and received a patent in 1936. Working for Hamilton Laboratories in 1938, he and Mahlon J. Rentschler developed an invention, patented in Canada, "for a germicidal and antiseptic composition consisting of a saline phenylmercury compound acidified by a tribasic acid." He also received a patent in 1931 for producing "irritating smoke clouds... a mixture of white phosphorus and a halogen derivative of acetophone." The Hamilton (OH) Evening Journal near Cincinnati reported that he "offered the use of this new kind of tear gas to the government without royalty or other charge. It is invaluable for national defense and will effectively conceal the location and movement of our troops from an enemy and also so affect the enemy as to impede its advance." The Cincinnati Enquirer said in 1938 that Champion Paper proposed to increase its shares by 5,000 to sell to him, as director of research, at $20 per share, as part of a 10-year contract. Another of his patented inventions was an enhanced method of making starch sized paper in 1940. Donald in 1946 joined DuPont Company in 1946 as a consultant to its development department. He sued his former employer Champion Paper in September 1951 for $109,463 and a mandatory injunction over some sort of practice to which he objected. Death claimed him in Washington's Hotel Statler at the age of 63 on Sept. 30, 1955. The body was transported to Fort Myer, VA for interment in Arlington National Cemetery. His rank of captain was inscribed on his upright grave marker.
Great-grandson Hugh Bradner, PhD (1915-2008) was born on Nov. 5, 1915 in Tonopah, NV. In childhood he and the family relocated to Ohio, settling near Cincinnati in Hamilton, OH. At the age of three, it's said, he was "dropped from a pier to sink or swim," reported the Miami Herald. "He swam, and as time went on became sufficiently at home in water to coach swimming and water polo at Caltech." He was an alumnus of Miami University of Ohio and received his doctorate in physics from the California University of Technology. He was united in holy matrimony with Marjorie Hall ( ? -2008). At Caltech, said the Herald, he "studied not only the constituents of the atom but also the floor of the ocean, doing both with a characteristic zest and adventurousness." Hugh went on to a career as a physicist and oceanographer. In his early career, Hugh was chosen by J. Robert Oppenheimer to set up the atomic bomb laboratory at Los Alamos, NM. Later, testing a new invention in icy cold Lake Tahoe, he created the rubber/neoprene wetsuit initially used by Navy divers to remain warm and wet in cold water, and later adopted by swimmers and the surfing community. In a latter to the U.S. Navy in 1952, he spelled out his disinterest in obtaining a patent for the wetsuit, to not "compromise my position of unbiased consultation on swimmers' problems." He taught physics and conducted research at the University of California at Berkeley until 1961, when he joined the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in San Diego. He died at home in San Diego, 25 days after his wife, on May 5, 2008.
Great-grandson Mead Bradner ( ? -1997) grew up in Hamilton, OH in the suburbs of Cincinnati. He was a 1932 alumnus of McGuffey High School and a 1938 graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He was employed in the 1950s as research director for an industrial control instrument manufacturer. On July 3, 1943, he married Margaret Scott Peg Lincoln ( ? - ? ), daughter of Francis French Lincoln of Mt. Airy near Philadelphia. The marriage was announced in the Philadelphia Inquirer. Six children of this family were Scott Bradner, Lincoln Bradner, Kay Bradner, Allen Bradner, Vern Bradner and Grant Gradner. Mead created a specially built "house-bus" in their garage that the family used for vacations, called the "Shoe." It was fashioned from a 22-passenger bus built in 1941 and featured cold and hot running water, 24-volt electrical system, a bottled gas range and a radio receiver. The vehicle and family were featured in the West Lebanon (NH) Valley News (Aug. 16, 1956). All eight members of the family were pictured with the Shoe in the Spokane (WA) Chronicle (July 27, 1957) during a driving trip to visit his mother in California. Circa 1978, he worked for the Applachian Mountain Club overseeing the Warner Trail, a 34-mile course from Diamond Hill, RI to Canton, MA. In 1991, he was a director of the Neponset River Watershed Association. Mead died on May 25, 1997. His obituary was published in the Boston Globe, in which the family asked that any memorial donations be made to the Friends of the Warner Trail.
~ Son Dr. Robert McNeal Youngkin ~
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Dr. Robert McNeal Youngkin Courtesy Kenneth Collins, Della Shafer, Younkin Family News Bulletin |
On May 10, 1828, in the Presbyterian Church in Lancaster, Fairfield County, OH, he and six of his siblings were given the rite of Christian baptism.
He was twice-wed. His first bride was on April 3, 1849 to Elizabeth Crosser (1828-1857).
One known daughter of the pair was Helen M. McGinnis.
In 1856, they relocated from Lancaster to Mechanicsville, Cedar County, IA.
His second spouse was Elizabeth Ann Conner (1841-1915). Their wedding was held on Dec. 11, 1862 in Mechanicsville.
They produced a daughter of their own, Isola Bell.
While residing in Iowa, said a newspaper, Robert "made a public profession of faith in Christ and united with the Presbyterian church."
They moved in 1874 from Mechanicsville to Florence. Their address was on West Fourth Street.
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Dr. Robert McNeal Youngkin Courtesy Kenneth Collins, Della Shafer, Younkin Family News Bulletin |
When the City of Florence held an election for mayor, councilmen and police judge in March 1880, Robert served as one of three judges of the election. He was elcted mayor about that same time.
In August 1899, they endured the death of married daughter Helen McGinnis in Black Hawk, CO. Eulogized the Bulletin, "Her death was a great shock to the entire family, and the father never seemed to regain entirely his wonted health and strength."
He passed away in Florence on April 24, 1904. In an obituary, the Bulletin said that "Although his eath has been momentarily expected for several days, the announcement came as a severe shock to all. Dr. Youngkin was held in high esteem by everyone who knew him and the sorrow for his death is universal. He never knew a sick day in his life until two years ago. Since then he has been in continued ill health." Funeral services were held in the home, led by Rev. C.F. Brause of the Presbyterian church. A vocal quartet provided music, including Florence Miller, May Hancock, Dr. R.A. West and D.F. Hancock.
As a widow, Elizabeth Ann's mental health declined, and by 1909 she was considered "a person of unsound mind."The Probate Court of Marion County assigned her daughter Isola Bell as guardian.
She died at the age of 74 on May 7, 1915. The body was brought to Florence to sleep in the sacred soil of City Cemetery, with Rev. Hamilton leading graveside rites. An obituary was printed in the Bulletin.
Daughter Helen M. Youngkin (1852-1899) was born on Sept. 5, 1852 in Ohio. In April 1875, she married John McGinnis (1848-1928). Their wedding was conducted in Florence, Marion County, KS. Known children in this family were Mollie M. Young, Judson McGinnis, Wade Baker McGinnis, John Francis Mcginnis and Russell Harding McGinnis. Their residence in 1889 was in El Dorado, KS. They migrated to Colorado, settling in Black Hawk, Gilpin County, where he had obtained employment as an agent with the Colorado and Southern Railroad. In this capacity, he was responsible for shipments large quantities of concentrates and smelting ore. In the month of November 1899 alone, he registered 289 cars to the smelters of Denver, representing 5,317 tons. Some of the material alternately was shipped to smelters at Idaho Springs. He also sold passenger tickets, including 200 at Christmas 1899, all bound for Denver. Sadly, stricken with pneumonia at the age of 46, and with her parents having arrived for a visit a day or two earlier, Helen died in Black Hawk on Aug. 7, 1899. The remains were transported to Kansas, accompanied by the widower and children, for burial in Hillcrest Cemetery in Florence. An obituary was published in the Florence Bulletin.
- Granddaughter Mollie M. McGinnis grew up in Dodge City, KS and in 1880 visited her mother's parents in Florence, prompting the local Herald newspaper to say "She is a bright little girl." Still single in 1904, she livedin Pueblo, CO and traveled to Florence to attend her grandfather Youngkin's funeral. She eventually wed (?) Young.
- Grandson Judson McGinnis ( ? - ? )
- Grandson Wade Baker McGinnis ( ? - ? )
- Grandson John Francis McGinnis ( ? - ? )
- Grandson Russell Harding McGinnis
Daughter Isola Youngkin (1864-1955) was born on March 24, 1864 in Mechanicsville, IA. When she was about age 10, she accompanied her parents and sister in a move to Florence, KS. In June 1889, in nuptials held in her parents' home, she wed Allen Hervey Bell (1863-1934). Rev. W.D. Patton presided. In announcing the marriage, the Florence Herald and Walnut Valley (KS) Times of El Dorado said "Well, the fraternity of the 'Brotherhood of Bachelors' has lost one of its most valued members, he having deserted their ranks, and became a Benedit at about noon last Sabbath, however, no one was greatly surprised at this, as many of the friends of the contracting parties were anticipating such a climax for some time... The bridegroom is an honest, industrious and estimable young gentlemn, and well worthy of the heart and hand of the fair young lady, while the bride is an amiable, kind and industrious lady, and we here congratulate Mr. Bell in his selection of a life companion." The Bells lived in Fairview, OK before returning to Florence in 1911. Together, they produced a brood of three -- Harry Earl Bell, Ellena Marguerite Collins and Dorothy Youngkin Bell. Isola held a membership in the First Methodist Church, Order of Eastern Star, White Shrine and Twentieth Century Club. Her final home was in Wichita, KS, with her daughter Dorothy, at the address of 504 South Elizabeth. She died in Wesley Hospital at the age of 91 on May 25, 1955. She was pictured in her obituary in the Wichita Beacon.
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| Kenneth and Virginia (Madsen) Collins Courtesy Della Shafer and Younkin Family News Bulletin. |
Grandson Harry Earl Bell (1891-1992) was born on March 9, 1891 in Florence, KS. He grew up on a farm located between Blue Rapids and Irving, KS. Harry joined the local lodge of the Masons and in May 1914 became a master Mason. He is known to have served in World War I, attaining the rank of lieutenant. He was joined in wedlock with Laura "Lora" Hogg (1897-1990). The pair did not reproduce. Laura was a 1914 graduate of Irving High School. In young manhood, Harry was employed as a county road patrolman along the Blue Rapids to Irving route, said the Marysville (KS) Advocate, "the first to use a four-wheeled unit as a change form the old-fashioned road drag, powered by a four-horse team." They relocated to the District of Columbia in 1941 when he accepted a government position. They remained in the Washington, DC area for 45 years, and in 1986 returned to Kansas to dwell in the Kansas Masonic Home in Wichita. In March 1989, having remained a Mason over the decades, he received a 75-year membership pin. Sadly, Lura passed away in 1990. He died in Wichita at the age of 101 on the Fourth of July 1992. An obituary appeared in the Advocate. Their ashes sleep for all eternity in Arlington National Cemetery (Columbarium 3-Y-15-2).
Arlington National Cemetery
- Granddaughter Ellena "Marguerite" Bell (1893-1967) was born on Feb. 17, 1893. On April 10, 1915, at the age of 22, she wed Earl Leroy Collins (1893-1967), son of Elmer Bensen and Alice Minetta (Greek) Collins. The couple's nuptials were conducted in Wichita. Circa 1955, they made a residence in Florence, KS and in 1967 at 504 South Elizabeth in Wichita. They held a membership in Trinity Methodist Church. Tragically, on Aug. 23, 1967, Marguerite and Earl were killed in two-vehicle accident when he failed to yield the right-of-way at the intersection of U.S. Route 60 and Missouri Route 86 in Neosho, MO. News of the tragedy was printed in the Wichita Eagle and Salina (KS) Journal. Their son Kenneth Edward Collins was married twice. His first bride was Gwen Ellen Abbott ( ? - ? ). The wedding was held in Garden City, KS. Their two children were Janice Kay Collins and Duane Edward Collins. His second spouse was Virginia (Madsen) Roth. Kenneth and Virginia compiled a family history research trove about Abraham Younkin and his son Robert McNeal Youngkin.
- Granddaughter Dorothy Youngkin Bell (1896-1972) was born in 1896. She was unmarried and shared a home with her mother in Wichita in the mid-1950s. Her last residence was in an apartment at 1633 May in Wichita. She succumbed to the spectre of death at age 75 on May 22, 1972. Interment of the remains was in Florence, KS. Her obituary was published in the Wichita Beacon.
~ Son Hall [Harold?] Younkin ~
Son Hall [Harold?] Younkin ( ? - ? ) was born on (?).
On May 10, 1828, in the First Presbyterian Church in Lancaster, Fairfield County, OH, he and six of his siblings were given the rite of Christian baptism.
Nothing more about his life is known.
~ Son Henry Clay Younkin ~
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Henry Clay and Elizabeth (Shafer) Youngkin Courtesy Della Shafer |
He reputedly grew up learning the tailor trade from his father in Findlay, OH.
On May 10, 1828, in the First Presbyterian Church in Lancaster, Fairfield County, OH, he and six of his siblings were given the rite of Christian baptism.
Henry entered into marriage in 1849 with Elizabeth Shafer (1827-1910).
They became the parents of two -- Dr. John Abraham "J.A." Youngkin and Josiah Shafer Youngkin.
The couple migrated to Texas, arriving in old Indianola, TX on Dec. 3, 1859. They first lived in the small village of Hope, where Henry taught school, and their son JOhn became a trail driver. Later, they moved to the town of Yoakum, Lavaca County. There, he served in Texas Militia and was appointed to the rank of colonel by Gov. Edmond J. Davis.
Henry circa 1870 was elected as one of three elected representatives of the 25th District of Texas. Later that year, he is known to have voted "yea" to an amendment to an educational bill, that "nothing contained in this section shall be construed as requiring or authorizing the mixture of the races in any public free school of this State; but separate equal and uniform in every respect, shall be established for the races respectively."
Then in 1884 he is believed to have been appointed postmaster for the town of Antioch, TX.
Their final years were spent in Hallettsville, TX. There, at the home of their son John, they marked their golden wedding anniversary in 1899. At that time, said the Victoria Advocate, the pair "have lived more than the allotted three score years and ten and are hale and hearty."
Henry passed away on Oct. 20, 1909, in Yoakum, at the age of 82.
Many years later, their direct descendants Melvin and Della Shafer of Haysville, KS shared their genealogical research for publication in the Younkin Family News Bulletin, including a biography of Abraham Younkin, a newsletter edited by the late Donna (Younkin) Logan.
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| Dr. John Abraham Youngkin Sr. seated, center, and sons, back, L-R: Clay, Josiah II, Frank and Albert. Front, L-R: John Abraham "Ponnie" and Robert Henry "Jim. - Courtesy Younkin Family News Bulletin, July-Sept. 1991 |
Son Dr. John Abraham "J.A." Youngkin Sr. (1850-1928) was born in 1850. At the age of nine, in 1859, he migrated to Texas with his parents and first arrived at old Indianola. At the age of 19, in aboui 1869, he "went up the old trail" as a trail driver and later joined the Old Trail Drivers Association. He completed his education in the local country school and then obtained a medical degree in 1876 from Tulane University. Circa 1874, John was joined in wedlock with Pauline Dorothy Arnim (1859-1952). Their nuptials were held in Hallettsville, TX, and their union endured for a remarkable 54 years. They produced a brood of these offspring -- Josiah Shafer "Si" Youngkin, Elizabeth Louise Bryan, Francis Marion Youngkin, John Abraham Youngkin Jr., Robert Henry Youngkin, Pearl Howerton, Birdie Grace Majors, Albert Arnim Youngkin and Clay Youngkin. He first practiced medicine in Antioch, TX before moving to Sweet Home after the railroad was built. John and his brother Josiah became partners in the 1880s of "Youngkin Bros." located in Sweet Home. Their firm sold drugs, medicines, chemicals, paints, oils and varnishes in addition to brushes, stationery and toilet articles. From there he moved to Yoakum, TX, and was considered a pioneer of that community, one of the first settlers. He helped to found the Yoakum National Bank as a stockholder and circa 1898 also owned cattle.His name was in the news in Corpus Christi in 1904 when summoned to treat the dying Mrs. Lerick, who had been horifically burned by an exploding can of kerosene in her home. By 1906, he was living in Austin, and told an American-Statesman reporter about the old days in town, "when Austin was a mere village. [He] remembeered the time when the people had to cross the Colorado river over a pontoon bridge, way back in 1868. He said that Austin was comparatively in its infancy then and far from the beautiful city that she is today. When asked what county he was from, the doctor said he did not know exactly, as his office is situated in DeWitt county and his residence is in Lavaca county, consequently he has never been satisfied whether he is a resident of Lavaca county or one of DeWitt. The town of Yoakum is built on the county line separating DeWitt and Lavaca..."
Grandson Josiah Shafer "Si" Youngkin II (1877-1960) was born on Jan. 26, 1877 in Lavaca County, TX and named for his uncle. In childhood, circa 1885, he and his family relocated to Yoakum. Josiah was united in matrimony with Minnie Mae Sample (Dec. 21, 1887-1975). Their trio of children included Pershin Ison Youngkin, John Henry Youngkin and Pauline Pantuso. Josiah's place of residence in 1928 was at Wichita Falls. In time he moved back to Yoakum and worked in an automobile repair shop. They lived at 815 Edgar Street. Sadly, Josiah died in Huth Memorial Hospital at the age of 83 on Feb. 13, 1960. Rev. W. George McWilliams presided over the funeral rites, with interment following in Oak Grove Cemetery. The Victoria Advocate printed an obituary, which said that he had been a Yoakum resident for 75 years. Minnie outlived him by 15 years. Death spirited her away in Yoakum on Feb. 5, 1975. Rev. W.W. Connally presided over the rites, with an obituary appearing in the Advocate. Josiah II was pictured and his family spelled out in the Younkin Family News Bulletin edition of April, 1991, authored by Della Shafer.
Article about Josiah II -
Younkin Family News BulletinGreat-grandson Pershing Ison Youngkin (1920- ? ) was born on Jan. 18, 1920 in Yoakum, Lavaca County, TX. On May 28, 1948, he tied the marital knot with Elizabeth Jane Morrissey (Dec. 24, 1923- ? ). Five children produced by this marriage were Jeffrey Thomas Youngkin, Paula Elizabeth Younkin, Richard Shafer Youngkin, Robert Clay Youngkin and Saralyn Youngkin. They were in Houston in 1960 and in Littleton, CO in 1975..
Great-grandson John Henry Youngkin (1921-1988) was born on June 19, 1921 in Yoakum. He remained in the town of his birth. Death spirited him away on Yoakum at the age of 67 on Nov. 30, 1988.
Great-granddaughter Pauline Youngkin (1923-2009) was born on Sept. 29, 1923 in Yoakum, a twin with an unnamed sibling who sadly died at birth. On July 1, 1955, she wed Sam Pantuso (Oct. 18, 1925- ? ). Their nuptials were held in Sequin, TX. They dwelled in San Antonio in 1960-1975 and bore a son, Dino Christopher Pantuso. The marriage ended in divorce, and Pauline took back her maiden name. She died on Oct. 27, 2009 with an obituary appearing in the Victoria Advocate.
- Granddaughter Elizabeth Louise Youngkin (1878-1926) was born in 1878. She married W.E. Bryan and was in Independence, KS in 1928 and in Tampa, FL as of 1960.
- Grandson Francis Marion "F.M." Youngkin (1878-1946) was born on Feb. 17, 1878 in Yoakum, TX. He lived in Big Wells, TX in 1928 and in Cotulla, LaSalle County, TX in 1934-1946, earning a living as a service station operator. He was felled by a heart attack and died at the age of 68 on Sept. 26, 1946. His remains were placed into eternal repose in Brenham, TX.
- Grandson John Abraham Youngkin Jr. (1880-1975) was born on Feb. 5, 1880 at Antioch, Lavaca County, TX. He was a longtime cattleman. Circa 1925, he was planted in Moravia, CA. He was married and divorced. By 1960, he returned to Texas and lived in Yoakum at the address of 200 Hubbard Street. As his health failed, he was admitted to reside in the Cuero Nursing Home in DeWitt County. He was swept away by the angels at the age of 95 on Aug. 17, 1975. Burial was in Oak Grove Cemetery.
- Grandson Robert Henry Youngkin (1883-1982) was born on April 4,1883. He put down roots in Beeville, TX and earned a living as a cotton buyer. His final time was spent in the Yoakum Memorial Nursing Home. Burdened with a thickening or hardening of the arteries added to congestive heart failure, the spirit of death cleaved him away at the age of 99 on Dec. 19, 1982. The remains were lowered into the sacred soil of Oak Grove Cemetery in Yoakum.
- Granddaughter Pearl Youngkin (1885-1982) was born in 1885. She entered into marriage with Phillip Howerton. Their home in 1928 and in 1960 was in Corpus Christi.
- Granddaughter Birdie Grace Youngkin (1886-1940) was born in 1886 in Lavaca County, TX. She tied the marital knot with (?) Majors and may have dwelled at one time in Three Rivers, TX. She became widowed sometime prior to 1940. Her address in 1940 was 200 Hubbard Street in Yoakum. She suffered from uremia and acute inflammation of the gallbladder ("cholecystitis") and died from their effects at the age of 54 on June 19, 1940. Burial was Yoakum's Oak Grove Cemetery.
- Grandson Albert Arnim Youngkin (1889-1950) was born in 1889. His dwelling-place was in Wichita Falls in 1928.
- Grandson Clay Youngkin (1891-1961) was born on Oct. 11, 1891 and had no middle name. His homeplace in 1960 was in an apartment at 3106 Darnell in Yoakum. He was stricken by a heart attack and passed away in Harris Hospital in Forth Worth at the age of 69 on Aug. 1, 1961. His remains sleep for the ages in Yoakum Cemetery.
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| Patent issued to the Youngkin brothers, 1890 - Courtesy Google Books |
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Dr. Josiah "Si" Youngkin Courtesy Kenneth Collins and YFNB |
Son Dr. Josiah Shafer "Si" Youngkin (1855-1925) was born on June 21, 1855 in Gilboah, Putnam County, OH or in Upper Sandusky, Wyandot County, OH. (Sources for his birthplace differ.) Josiah migrated to Texas in 1859 when he was about four years of age. He eventually was joined in the holy bond of wedlock with Rebecca G. Cox (1865-1895), daughter of Nathaniel Harmon and Penelope Leah "Lea" (Bennett) Cox. They became the parents of two -- Lina Elizabeth Chambers and John Henry Clay Youngkin. As with his brother, Josiah became a physician and in 1883 obtained a degree at the Tulane University School of Medicine in New Orleans. He first practiced in Hope, TX before moving to Sweet Home after the railroad was built, and thence to Yoakum, TX. Specializing in part as a veterinarian, he and his brother received a U.S. patent on April 22, 1890 for what they called "new and useful Improvements in Compounds for Exterminating Srew-Worms." The compound they invented was a combination of chloroform, alcohol, tincture asaftida and carbolic acid, designed to destroy worms in an animal's wound while doubling as an anti-septic. In 1894, in Yoakum, he was employed as a surgeon by the San Antonio and Aransas Pass Railway. That year, in September, he and another railroad surgeon were called upon to conduct an amputation to the right foot of Rev. Lewis Fitzgerald, who had fallen off a passenger train at Hallettsville. Then in November 1897, he amputated the right leg below the knee of Will Schneider, who had accidentally shot himself with a six-shooter he was carrying in his pocket while at a dance. Josiah was in the news again in June 1902 when operating on the right foot of Walter Rees, son of a former sheriff, who had been wounded when his gun accidentally fired. Heartbreak cascaded over the family when Rebecca passed away at the age of just 29 on Jan. 28, 1895. Her remains were lowered under the sod of Oak Grove Cemetery in Yoakum. Josiah went on to wed again to his wife's sister, Evalina Silvertooth "Lina" Cox (June 7, 1868-1944), a native of Old Sweet Home, Lavaca County. The second union produced three more children -- Saralyn Pratt, Rebecca Youngkin and Mary Alice Buchanan. Suffering from cancer of the gallbladder, Josiah died at home on Hubbard Street in July 1925. The Shiner (TX) Gazette euologized that "Another pioneer citizen of Yoakum has 'crossed over the river to rest in the shade of the trees on the other side.' We refer to the passing of that well known human landmark, Dr. J.S. (Si) Youngkin..." The widowed Lina lived on for another nearly two decades. In her last years she sufferd from heart disease and an intestinal obstruction. The angel of death cleaved her away in Yoakum's Huth Memorial Hospital on June 23, 1944. Interment was in Oak Grove Cemetery, with her daughter Rebecca providing information for the official Texas certificate of death.
- Grandson John Henry Clay Youngkin (1887-1979) was born in 1887. On June 10, 1914, he was united in holy matrimony with Violet Anderson ( ? - ? ). The nuptials were led by Rev. A.E. Boyd at Highland Park Baptist Church in El Paso. In announcing the marriage, the El Paso Herald said that the "bride was gowned in a white silk, covered with white embroidered net. The dress was made with a graceful length train, and she wore a long tulle veil, which was held in place about her head with sprays of orange blossoms. She carried a shower boquet of bride's roses, the shower effect being formed of sprays of white sweet peas, white lilies of the valley and ferns and trailing satin ribbons." He relocated to Colorado and was there in 1925. He dwelled in Denver in 1968.
- Granddaughter Lina Elizabeth Youngkin (1886-1968) was born in 1886. She first wed Walter Chambers ( ? - ? ). They lived in Amada, AZ in 1925 and bore a trio of children, Joan Beeler, Dorothy L. Williams and John Walter Chambers. Later, she tied the knot with William J. McConnaughay ( ? - ? ). Her address in 1968 was in Phoenix at 3015 West Holly. She died in late Dec. 1968, with an obituary published in the Arizona Republic.
- Granddaughter Mary Alice Youngkin (1905-1998) was born on Dec. 6, 1905 in Yoakum, TX. She married Henry Egbert Buchanan ( ? - ? ), son of E.J. Buchanan. The couple did not reproduce. Henry received his education at Cuero, Yoakum and then at Texas A&M College. He was employed by the Texas and New Orleans Railroad Company. He then joined Humble Oil and Refining Company as a bulk agent and on Nov. 1, 1934 was transferred to Victoria, TX as district agent. On their arrival in Victoria, they rented an apartment from Janie S. Fly but were making plans to move into the residence of Mr. and Mrs. Cyril Hopkins. Fate intervened when the Buchanans were badly injured in an automobile accident in DeWitt County in November 1934 when their vehicle "plunged into a broken bridge across a three-foot-deep raving near Fordtran," said the Victoria Advocate. They were admitted to Huth Memorial Hospital in Yoakum. The Advocate reported that Henry "received an ugly gash on the forehead and body bruises. Mrs. Buchanan's nose and jaw were broken. She also suffered a compound fracture of the right thigh and numerous cuts and bruises about the face and body as well as internal injuries." Mary Alice slowly recovered and in mid-December was released to be moved into her mother's residence on Hubbard Street. Henry joined the Masons lodge in Victoria, and they belonged to the First Baptist Church. He was transferred to Humble's finance department in Houston in 1944. Mary Alice spent her working career as an interior designer in the Houston area. They transferred their membership to South Main Baptist Church, with her teaching Sunday School. Their final home together was in Houston. Sadly, Henry died at the age of 52 on June 10, 1956. At the age of 91, Mary died on Jan. 22, 1998. Burial was at Yoakum City Cemetery, with Rev. M. Eugene Vickrey providing the final rites. An obituary appeared in the Advocate.
- Granddaughter Saralyn Youngkin (1899-2000) was in Yoakum, TX in 1925. She was twice-wed. She first tied the knot with (?) Bigelow. In 1968, her residence was in San Marcos, TX. Later, she entered into marriage with (?) Pratt. She lived in Houston in 1998. Saralyn died in San Marcos at the age of 101 on June 9, 2000. Funeral services were held in the local First Baptist Church, with a brief death notice appearing in the Austin American-Statesman.
- Granddaughter Rebecca Lee Youngkin (1903-2003) was born in 1903. She appears not to have married. Rebecca made her residence in the mid-1920s in Yoakum, TX. In 1925, she and friend Frances Ross spent the summer in Calgary, Canada. By 1944, she had moved to Houston, and may have stayed for good, with an address in 1944 of 218 Hawthorne. She was named in a Victoria Advocate article in October 1999 in connection with the designation of the Bennett Cemetery near Sweet Home as the first "Official Historic Texas Cemetery" in Lavaca County, as the "resting place of old traildrivers, pioneer Texans and soldiers of many wars."
~ Son Dr. Jerome Wilson "J.W." Youngkin ~
Son Dr. Jerome Wilson "J.W." Youngkin (1830-1907) -- often spelled "Youngkins" -- was born on Sept. 9, 1833.
On April 8, 1831, in the First Presbyterian Church in Lancaster, Fairfield County, OH, he underwent the rite of Christian baptism.
His first marriage, in 1856, was with Mary A. Hall (1838-1859).
The two daughters they bore together were May Darling and Celia Conn.
Sadly, Mary died in 1859.
Jerome joined the Union Army during the Civil War. He was placed in the 21st Ohio Infantry, Company D.
Jerome appears to have established a medical practice in about 1876 in Wolcottville, IN. The town straddled parts of LaGrange County and Noble County. He stayed in this role for 31 remaining years of his life.
Circa 1878, Jerome again was united in holy matrimony with Eliza J. Bingman (Feb. 7, 1853-1923), daughter of John F. and Susanna (Bock) Bingman.
Jerome was involved in a public controversy in July 1892 over the parole of killer Jack Dyer of Rome City, IN, who had murdered his wife. The Indianapolis News reported in a story datelined Wolcottville that "Governor Chase explains that he was influenced by a petition signed by numerous citizens, including eleven of the jurymen who passed sentence upon Dyer. Ther was also an affidavit by Doctor Younkins, of this place, in which he made it appear probable that Dyer's wife committed suicide. The Doctor is being censured, since has known these facts during all the thirteen years that Dyer has been in prison, and also because his affidavit was not made until after the death of the physician who was present at Mrs. Dyer's death."
As compensation for his wartime service, Jerome received a military pension in 1904. [Invalid App. #1.323.651 - Cert. #1.100.827] As of January 1905, he received a monthly check in the amount of $12.
Jerome surrendered to the angel of death at the age of 74 on Sept. 20, 1907, in Wolcottville. The Steuben (IN) Republican said he "was found dead on his porch..." His remains sleep for all time in Woodland Cemetery in Wolcottville. A physician ruled that the "probable cause of death was heart failure [and] old age." In signing the official Indiana certificate of death, Eliza was not able to provide the names of her husband's parents, other than the mother'smaiden name of "Montgomery."
The widowed Eliza then filed to receive her late husband's pension, and it was awarded as of Oct. 18, 1907. [Widow App. #878.193 - Cert. #637419]
Remaining in Wolcottville, Eliza was felled by a cerebral hemorrhage at the age of 70 and died on March 31, 1923.
Daughter May Youngkin (1856-1952) was born in 1856. She wed (?) Darling.
Daughter Celia Youngkin (1859-1952) was born in 1859. She married (?) Conn.
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Copyright © 2019, 2023 Mark A. Miner |
Research for this page graciously shared by the late Donna (Younkin) Logan |