Category Archives: Death

Hamilton Brown | Murdered

Hamilton Brown was the oldest son of James Brown (ca. 1802-1867) and older brother of Elizabeth (Brown) Anderson. In the 1850 census, Hamilton is listed with his wife Rebecca Ramsey, in the household of James Brown. Hamilton and Rebecca were relative newlyweds, having married in 1849 and Hamilton and his half-brother, Thomas J, were workingContinue reading “Hamilton Brown | Murdered”

Joseph Relfe | Widow

Joseph Relfe died in 1818, leaving an estate in debt, a widow, and four “infant” boys, Stephen, Joseph, Malachi and Josiah. In this case, the “infant” boys are merely under 21 years of age. Many family histories located on the web and in ancestry.com list Joseph Relfe’s wife as Mary Trueblood with a son, Joseph,Continue reading “Joseph Relfe | Widow”

Nathan B Cook | Casualty of Disease

Nathan B Cook was the second son of Permelia (Baker) Cook Rickner. Permelia had married James H Cook (I) in Washington County, Missouri in 1828. In the 1830 US Federal Census, they were enumerated in Crawford County, Missouri, a neighboring county in Meramec Township, created in 1829 from Gasconade county. Nathan’s father died prior toContinue reading “Nathan B Cook | Casualty of Disease”

Moses J Baker | Civil War

Samuel Rickner married Permelia Baker in 1832. Rickner, an immigrant from Switzerland, married into a slave-holdinng family that had migrated to Missouri from Kentucky and who in previous generations had migrated from the Albemarle Sound region of North Carolina, all slave-holding states. In the mid 1830s, the Rickner family and Permelia’s brother, Moses J BakerContinue reading “Moses J Baker | Civil War”

Jonathan Walden | Brother, Lewis

Jonathan Walden’s obituary states that his parents died when he was young and he converted to the Baptist faith, shortly before moving to Ohio. It gives no other indication to his family. The earliest records located for Jonathan show that he married Sarah Millikin in Jackson County, Ohio in 1832 (Ohio, County Marriage Records, 1774-1993Continue reading “Jonathan Walden | Brother, Lewis”

John Walden | Morgan’s Raid

In 1867, William A. Walden posted an Executor’s notice in the Jackson Standard that he had been appointed as the executor of John Walden’s last will and testament. His will was recorded in the Probate Office of Jackson County, where his mother and most of his siblings were residing. He bequeathed “all the interest IContinue reading “John Walden | Morgan’s Raid”

Samuel Norton | Death on the Prairie

In 1820, Samuel Norton moved his family from Vermont to Crawford County, Illinois. In 1821, he died, leaving his wife and children behind on the prairie. In 1820, Samuel Norton used credit to purchase the eighty acres of land about 5 miles of Lawrenceville, in the Allison Township. His son, Samuel Harris Norton, was issuedContinue reading “Samuel Norton | Death on the Prairie”

Devine Anderson | Traveling to Kansas

Devine Anderson (1824-1867) lived in Illinois for most of his life. In 1865, he wrote a letter to a former neighbor about moving to Kansas. The obituary for his daughter, Tabitha Anderson (1861-1935), describes how she and her family moved from Illinois to Kansas in 1866 by covered wagon. The letter is transcribed below, with additional facts interspersed that connect to the letter contents.