Independent-Walter Dickerson 1763-1855 (52 Ancestors #27)

This week’s challenge was to write about “Independent” in honor of the 4^th of July.  My great-great-great-great grandfather is the most researched of my ancestors who fought in the Revolutionary War.

Walter Dickerson was born in New Jersey on 17 June 1763. He served as a private in his uncle Thomas Dickerson’s company during the war. According to service records, Walter joined in July of 1780 for a six month service term, and was wounded in the ankle during his service.

Walter married Penelope Heaton 2 March 1785 in Morris County, New Jersey.  They traveled the Cumberland Gap to Washington County, Pennsylvania for a few years, then on to Butler County, Ohio.  They had 11 known children, the last being born in 1804. Walter and Penelope were listed in the 1820 and 1830 Censuses for Butler County, Ohio. In 1832, Walter was issued $20 for his pension.

By 1835 Walter and Penelope Heaton Dickerson and most of their family had moved to Vigo County, Indiana.  Walter was about 72 years old when they moved. 

According to Revolutionary Soldiers of Vigo County:

“Here they settled down, worked, built their home and reared their children.  They built log houses, log school houses, roads and bridges using a saw mill on what was later the Paul Kuhn property.  In 1822, a son-in-law Graham built the Otter Creek bridge at a cost to the county of less than $300.  The lumber was prepared at the Dickerson saw mill.  The early Dickersons were school teachers, county commissioners, store keepers, judges, postmasters, postmistresses and road supervisors."

Penelope died in November of 1849 (at the age of 86), and Walter remarried in August of 1850 (at the age of 87) to Sarah, widow of Garthwait.  Sarah was about 20 years younger than Walter and was listed as a physician in the 1850 Vigo County Indiana Census.

In 1855 Walter applied for a 160 acre land grant based on his war service. He died in October of that year, but the land grant was issued to his widow Sarah.

Walter "married twice after Penelope's death in 1849 at the age of 86. He attained the great age of 92 years, three months and 21 days."

"Walter Dickerson (1763-1855) died at the home of my grandparents Martha Dickerson and James Ferrel."  from Bessie Ferrel Ballard, 1959. (See Wabash Courier-Vigo Co.IN-Oct. 13, 1855)

Walter and his family are buried in the Dickerson Cemetery, which is now in the Hulman Links golf course.  Cemetery records state that he died at age 92y 5m 21d.  (NOTE: it has been written that Walter and his wife are buried on what was their old homestead.)

"On May 27, 1929, his grave was officially honored with a white marble government tombstone.  Ceremonies were conducted by Fort Harrison Chapter, DAR.  The grave location was described then as 'on the Paul Kuhn farm, directly across the road from the Glenn Orphan Home'".

William Henry Murphy 1838-1891 ((52 Ancestors #26)

Wow, it is amazing that we are halfway through the year now!  And I have to admit, I am impressed that I haven’t missed writing a blog for this challenge each week!  It has been a wonderful challenge, leading me into deeper analysis and research, and for that I am truly grateful! 

I chose to write about my great-great grandfather, William “Bill” Henry Murphy, for this week’s challenge of Halfway. I feel like I have only learned/found half (or less) of information about his life.  Most importantly right now to me, after over twenty years of researching, I still have been unable to learn his date of birth, or locate a picture of him.  Here’s what I do know about William H. Murphy:

I know that William was born in 1838 in Kilkenny, Ireland.  I have found records of the baptisms of his siblings, but not for his.  

William came to Peoria, Illinois from Ireland with his parents and siblings in 1849. They came through New Orleans and settled in the Kickapoo, Peoria County area.  He is listed in the 1850 and 1860 Kickapoo censuses as living with his parents.

Found in the Peoria Daily Transcript 4-3-1863 P2 C6:

"William H. Murphy-Private, 33 years of age, 5 feet 6 inches high, black hair, hazel eyes, dark complexion; residence Kickapoo, Peoria co. IL. Deserted at Peoria, Ill. Sept. 15, 1862."

I believe that this would be my William, although the age is wrong.  Since he deserted that means no pension records from the Civil War.

William married Elizabeth Smyth in 1864 in Kickapoo. He is not found in the 1865 Illinois State Census, but his first two children were born in Kickapoo…James in 1866 and Patrick in 1868.

In the 1870 Census, William and Lizzie are listed as living in Peoria, Illinois with their two sons.  William is listed as a distillery worker.  

 Four children were born to William and Lizzie between 1870 and 1880: Alice in 1870, William H. in 1872, Charles E. in 1874, and Robert Emmett in 1878.  In the Peoria 1880 Census, William and Lizzie are listed with their six children.  William is listed as a cattle feeder.

Two more children were born in the family: my great-grandfather Edward R. was born in 1880, and an infant was born in 1883.  Lizzie died either in childbirth or the following day in 1883.  William re-married a year later, to Anastasia Henebery Cunningham, widow of Daniel Cunningham. 

 In the 1888 Peoria Census, William and Ann were listed at the family home, but only Ann’s children were living there.  It seems that William’s children were living with a brother of Lizzie’s in Peoria.

In the 1889 Peoria City Directory William was listed as Superintendent of Streets, with his office at the City Hall.

William’s wife, Ann, died in 1890, and William died the following year, in 1891.  His obituaries state that he had served as a Deputy Sheriff, Superintendent of Streets, and a term on the City Council.

Because of William’s activities in the city, I think that there would probably be articles in the newspaper about him, but the newspapers from that time are not indexed and are not searchable, nor are they available on Newspaper.com. 

Marriage and Death Certificates for that time do not have dates of birth listed on them. The mortuary who buried him does not have records for 1891.

And that is the sum of what I know.  I would love suggestions on further researching William if anyone has any ideas!

Heirloom from Elizabeth Smyth Murphy, my great-great grandmother (52 Ancestors #24)

I have many heirlooms that have either been left to me, or have been handed down to me.  My great-grandmother left her Haviland china to me, stating that she wanted her oldest great-granddaughter to have it.  I have since passed it on to one of my daughters.  My grandmother left me both her china and her silver.  I have many pieces of jewelry from my mother.  But my oldest heirloom came from Elizabeth Smyth Murphy, my great-great grandmother.

Elizabeth was born in 1844 and married William Murphy in 1864 in Peoria County, Illinois.   William and Elizabeth had seven known children.  She died at the age of thirty-eight in 1883, leaving her husband of eighteen years and children ranging in age from sixteen years old to two years old.  She died from Puerperal peritonitis, which is defined by Wikipedia as: “Puerperal infections, also known as postpartum infections, puerperal fever or childbed fever, is any bacterial infection of the female reproductive tract following childbirth or miscarriage.”  So it appears that Elizabeth died after having an eighth child.

The heirloom of Elizabeth’s that I have is a rocking chair that was made between 1870 to 1880.  It was passed down from her youngest son, to his daughter, then to my mother.  My mother gave it me years ago.  You can tell by the picture that it has been re-upholstered at some time.  It is very solid and beautiful.  I love having such a beautiful chair and that it goes back so far in my ancestral line!

Wedding-Lucina Adamson & George Washington Gibson (52 Ancestors # 23)

 “Wedding” is the theme for this week’s challenge.  I tried to think of the marriages I had learned about that had the most impact on me, and I thought of my great-grandfather’s sister, Lucina.

Lucina Adamson, daughter of Aaron and Martha Jennings Thompson Adamson, was born about 1842 in Illinois.  On the 17^th of October 1861, Lucina married John M. Dewhirst in Richland County, Illinois.  Lucina was nineteen years old and John was twenty-one years old at the time of their marriage.  Sadly, John died five months later of typhoid, leaving Lucina a widow at the young age of nineteen or twenty. 

Lucina remarried on the 26^th of October in 1863 in Clay County, Illinois, one year and seven months after her first husband, John Dewhirst, had died.  At the time of this marriage Lucina was about twenty-one years old and her new husband, George Washington Gibson, was twenty-four years old.  

I have written before about this second marriage of Lucina’s.  In the Clay County Marriage Records, it is recorded that she married Washington Lewis in Clay County.  I quickly realized that it was not Washington Lewis that Lucina had married, but it took me years to find that it was actually Washington Gibson who she had married, not Washington Lewis.  The two Washington‘s were listed as living next door to each other in the 1865 Clay County census. I am guessing that the county clerk who recorded the marriage just mistakenly put down the wrong last name.

Lucina and Washington Gibson’s marriage also ended sadly, with Lucina’s death in 1866 when she was about twenty-four years old and had been married to George for two years and five months.

It doesn’t appear that Lucina had children, at least not any that had lived for long. 

Lucina’s story has always struck me as tragic.  It’s hard to imagine how she went through nursing and losing her first husband so soon after they married.  And then she married again and she died.  Very sad.