Not My Relatives, but We Still Honor and Remember Them

/ M. J. McKinley / Leave a comment

Memorial day, 2026, and I attended the small-town Memorial Day Ceremony sponsored by the local American Legion post. There were no impressive fly-overs or celebrities present. Just regular folks, some veterans, some not, all gathered at the small veterans memorial park to remember. There was the standard high school honor guard bringing in the colors, the playing of the National Anthem & the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance as well as the reading of “In Flanders Fields.” I watched as just after the 3-shot volley & during the playing of Taps by the lone trumpet a man across the street stopped his pickup and stood in reverence to the fallen.

The main speaker for the event was a General from the nearby military base. He reminded us why we were gathered & the importance of continuing to remember those who came before and gave all for the country where we live freely. He challenged us to step up to the memorial and find a name and then research the story of that person—to find out where they went to school, who they were & what happened to them & share it with someone. So I figured I would take up that challenge. I already knew the stories of two men on the wall as I had helped fill in some blanks in their stories for a church record book a few years ago. But I figured I would try to find the story of someone else. So here goes…

The wall only contains 18 names, six from WWI, six from WWII, five from Vietnam & one from the Middle East Conflict-War on Terrorism. I chose PFC Jim Kirby from the WWI list.

First, I looked at Newspapers.com. PFC Kirby’s name was included with others on November 9, 1919 as Madison County, AL prepared to honor the 1 year anniversary of Armistice Day & remember those lost during the war. His name was listed on the honor roll in the paper every couple of years in the 1920’s, with the final listing on June 1, 1931 as Memorial Day was observed. One entry in The Huntsville Times for July 14, 1928 headlined that the “Names of Madison County’s War Dead to be Included on Great Birmingham Memorial Tablet.” Jim Kirby was listed with other “Men From Madison County Who Lost Their Lives During the World War” but this time toward the bottom of the list under another heading, “Colored.” I looked at this part of the list a little closer & found that some of the other names on the local Veterans Memorial were also here, James Burks, Will Davis, and Dennis Fulks, all on the “Colored” roll. This made me curious to find out about all of them, not just Jim Kirby.

Then, of course I went to Ancestry.com and Fold3.com to see what I could find on these men. There wasn’t much to find about their lives before they were drafted into the Army. I found their Draft cards on Ancestry.com and other lists of military service as well. The big hit was the Alabama Department of Archives & History collection of WWI Service Records. So At least I think I have found some basic information about their military service. But I can’t say I am fully confident of all of it.

Private James Alexander Burks was born July 28, 1896 or 1897. His records give conflicting information. His WWI draft card lists him as working for the United States Cast Iron Pipe & Foundry Company in Chattanooga, TN.

He was inducted into Military service on August 26, 1918 and was transported to Camp Sherman in Chillicothe, OH.

His WWI Service Record indicates that he was a part of the 45th Company, 12th Training Battalion, 158th Depot Brigade. This unit was a training unit to prepare soldiers for deployment to combat units. He died of bronchial pneumonia on October 12, 1918. He was only in the service for almost 2 months.

Private First Class Will Davis was a bit more difficult to research due to the common name. I narrowed things down from the Alabama Archives records as the only “Colored” Will Davis from Madison County who had died while in the service. He was  born on October 15, 1894 and according to his draft card, was a Railroad trackman. His card indicates that he was born in Tanner, AL which is actually in Limestone county. Also of note, he submitted his draft card in West Virginia.

His WWI Service Record indicates that he was inducted on January 14, 1918 at Autauga County, AL. He was part of the Casual Company, 421st Reserve Labor Battalion. This was a commonly segregated unit that served stateside camps with loading supplies, construction and logistical support. The “Casual Company” designation means that he was not permanently assigned to a unit. Will Davis died of pneumonia on October 17, 1918. The card indicates he was a Private & not a Private First Class as listed on the Memorial. So again, I’m not really sure if I have all of the information correct on this young man.

Private Dennis Fulks was born March 6, 1893 in Madison, AL. I found him in the 1900 and 1910 US Census records living with his parents and sister, Mary. He worked on the family farm. His draft card indicates that he was married.

An Alabama Marriage record found on Ancestry.com lists Dennis “Fowlkes” as marrying Mosetta Matthews on February 10, 1913. Of note on this record is that he did not sign his name, only made “his mark” with an “X” just as he did on the draft card.

Private Fulks is listed on the “Embarkation” list from Hoboken, NY as traveling 3rd class with Company K of the 809th Pioneer Infantry. The ship is not listed. His wife, Mrs. Mose E. Fulks, is listed as the person to notify in case of emergency. Also note that his name was spelled “Dennies” on this list.

According to his WWI Service Record, Private Fulks was inducted into the Army on September 1, 1918. He was part of the 71st Company of the 163rd Depot Brigade which was his training unit in Iowa. He arrived for overseas duty on September 23, 1918 serving with Company K, 809th Pioneer Infantry. This was a segregated unit that served as combat support, construction and logistics. He died of lobar pneumonia on October 8, 1918. He only served for a little over a month. While initially buried in France, his remains were returned to his family in 1920.

So this now makes 3 young men who died of pneumonia. What is that all about? If we look at history from that time, there was an epidemic of the Spanish Influenza that spread rapidly through military units. According to a public health report entitled “The U.S. Military and the Influenza Pandemic of 1918 to 1919,” written by Carol R Byerly in 2010 for the NIH, the Spanish Influenza surged during the Fall months of 1918. She reports that 20 to 40% of the U.S. Army were affected by the flu or associated pneumonia. The close quarters and unsanitary conditions of many camps made for easy spread of the infection. These three men were victims of this epidemic.

Moving on to our final service member, and the one I originally intended to research, Private First Class Jim Kirby…He was born on August 13, 1895 in Harris Station, AL. This was also in Limestone County.

He was inducted on October 29, 1917. He is on the transport list from Hoboken, NY on the ship, Vauban on June 14, 1918 as a part of Company F, 366th Infantry, 92nd Division. His mother, Mrs. Jinnie Kirby, of  Route 1, Madison, AL is listed as his emergency contact.

His WWI Service Record confirms that he was assigned to Company F of the 366th Infantry which was part of the 92nd Division or “Buffalo” Division. The 92nd Division was a segregated unit. Company F was a frontline rifle company and was involved in combat in France. According to his service card, Private First Class Kirby was killed in action on November 11, 1918, yes, that November 11, the final day of the war, the day when peace was declared.

There is another record card for PFC Kirby. It tells of his burial and reburial.

As was common during wartime, casualties were buried in a temporary cemetery, then reburied when a Memorial Cemetery was established. The back of this card states that on August 17, 1922, he was reburied in his final resting place, Grave 16, Row 4, Block A of St. Mihiel American Cemetery, in Thiaucourt, France.

These days, Veteran’s Day is a holiday to honor those who have put on the uniform to support our country, concentrating on the living, while Memorial Day honors those we have lost. However, what we call Veteran’s Day started as Armistice Day, celebrating the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month when the “Great War” ended. It was a day to honor those lost in that war and to pray for peace—that nothing like that “world war” would happen again. So I think it is fitting to remember today these men who fell during that war.

May God bless our current veterans and active duty military.

© MJM 2026

Who Were the Wall’s & Why Were My Ancestors at Their Reunions?

/ M. J. McKinley / 1 Comment

In the pile of photographs my paternal Grandfather, Loran McKinley, Sr. (1916-2003) gave me were 3 pictures of large groups. Some of the same people were in each of these photos. He identified himself and his parents in one of them. Two of them were labeled “Wall’s Reunion” from 1920 and 1926 and the other just had a caption of “June 4, 1916.” Grandpa said all of the photos were of Wall family reunions, but the caption on the photo from 1926 indicated it was the “8th Annual Wall’s Reunion” & that didn’t match if the first one was also a Wall reunion. And to top that off, I had no idea who the Wall’s were and how we were related to them.

Wall family reunion 1916
Wall family reunion 1920
Wall family reunion 1926

These photos have intrigued me for years. I would pull them out now and then and wonder about the reunions and all of the family members depicted. I searched   newspapers for “Wall reunions” with little luck. I even saw one of the photos online with a few people identified. How nice it would be to identify everyone in each of the pictures. But that would take a lot of work.

Since I received them, I have done a bit more family history research and have figured out who the Wall family was and how my family fits in. And I think the first photo does depict a Wall family reunion, but maybe they didn’t call it that until they started having formal reunions a couple of years later. I’ll try to discuss the photos in more detail in future posts, but first…

The Wall family:

I knew the groups in the photos were from Morgan County, IN. So that was the first place to search. If you look at information about the Wall’s in Morgan county, you will find a notation that they were the “same family for which Wall Street in New York was named.” But let’s correct that tale first off. Wall Street was named for a dirt path that ran alongside a fortification wall that was built in the 1600’s. It was not named for a family.

The book, The Pioneers of Morgan County; Memoirs of Noah J. Major, published in 1915, mentions a man named William Wall as the husband of a daughter of the early Morgan County settler, John Stipp. But that didn’t help me much. The book also indicates that the oldest daughter of Benjamin Stafford married Martin Wall. I recognized Benjamin Stafford (1810-1891) as my GGG Grandfather. Further research on Ancestry.com & findagrave.com indicated that Martin Wall was Benjamin Martin Wall (ca1830-1912) and his wife was Sarah Ann “Sally” Stafford (1831-1869). Sarah Ann was the daughter of Benjamin Stafford and his first wife, Ruth Gifford (1810-ca1833).

So I had one connection to the Wall family. But it didn’t stop there. I was able to find Benjamin Martin Wall’s parents as William Wall (1795-1880) and Mary Margaret Stipp (1798-1865). Mary Margaret was the daughter of the Morgan county pioneer, John Stipp (1773-1857). I found an image on Ancestry.com that is reported to be William and Mary.

William Wall & Mary Margaret Stipp

William and Mary Wall also had a daughter, Susan (1822-1888). She married Joseph Fry in 1838 and was widowed by 1851 when he died either during a flatboat trip to carry goods to New Orleans, or just after returning home. She was left with 5 sons.

Getting back to my GGG Grandfather, Benjamin Stafford. After his first wife, Ruth died, he married Margaret Price & had 8 children with her. Margaret died in 1852.  Then, it is said that Benjamin married a Miss Sloan, but I have yet to find any credible information regarding this marriage. In 1854, he married Susan (Wall) Fry. He still had children at home as well. He was 44 years old and Susan was 32 years old. They had 7 more children together, one of which was my GG Grandmother, Priscilla Stafford (1859-1941). So this is my direct line to the Wall family and may be why my relatives were at their reunions. Looking again at the Wall family connection, Benjamin and his daughter, Sarah, married siblings. Interesting.

I looked further into the William Wall and Mary Stipp family to see if there might be any other interesting connections. One of note is that Mary Stipp had a sister, Sarah (1801-1887) who married John Rudicel (1799-1865). Their daughter, Mary Eva Rudicel (1828-1872) was the second wife of Noah J. Major (1823-1911). This same Noah Major is the man whose memoir was published posthumously. This memoir is a great reference for research on the pioneer families of Morgan County, IN. This photo of Noah and Mary Eva was also posted on Ancestry.com.

Mary Eva Rudicel & Noah Major

So, I finally found the reason my ancestors would have been at Wall family reunions—we had a direct relationship to them through the Stafford line.

But I still would like to have more information about the photos and the reunions. Maybe next time…

© MJM 2026

Touched by a Revolution

/ M. J. McKinley / Leave a comment

My Dad’s brother, Leroy McKinley (1942-2024) used to say that the movie “The Patriot” was essentially about some of our ancestors. I watched that movie again recently and saw a few similarities. The movie depicts the violent episodes that happen when men are involved in war. The hero in the movie was a warrior, which is a bit different than our ancestor; but the villain, a rogue leader of the Loyalists fit the picture of the villain in our story. 

The ancestors Uncle Leroy was talking about were early settlers of North Carolina, one of the 13 colonies whose people rose up against King George & his representatives in a revolution that eventually resulted in the formation of a new republic, the United States of America. 

Millikan Land, Randolph Co., NC

More specifically, the patriarch of the family, William Millikan (1720-1805), was born in Ireland and came to Pennsylvania with members of the Society of Friends. There aren’t many records that verify the specifics of his life. It is said he was born in 1720, but I can’t say I have confirmed that. He married Jane White (?1720-1758) in Chester County, Pennsylvania, in 1751. They had 10 children. It is said that after Jane died, William married a second time to Hannah Rowan, but she died in 1759. He then supposedly married a Jane Rowan. He moved his family to North Carolina sometime around the death of his first wife. He settled first in Rowan county, then in Guilford county, then Randolph county. But he didn’t move, the counties formed around him. Rowan split to form Guilford, then Guilford split to form Randolph in 1779.

William was present at the first meeting of the leadership of the newly formed Randolph County on March 8, 1779. The records of that meeting and following sessions of the Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions can be found on Familysearch.org.
An excerpt of the first meeting is below:

“State of North Carolina, Randolph County
Proclamation being made
The act of assembly passed at the last Session at Halifax for the erecting of the said County of Randolph was read at the Home of Abraham Reece on Monday the 8th day of March in the year of our lord One Thousand Seven Hundred & Seventy nine, and in the Third year of the Independence of the said State.
The Commission of the peace for holding Courts P. in [said] County of Randolph, being read, where in, William Cole, John Collier, Joseph Hinds, George Gartner, John Arnold, William Plunket, William Millikan, John Hinds, Jacob Sheppard, Richardson Owen, Windsor Pierce, William Bell, William Merrell, John Lowe, Enoch Davis & James Hunter, Esquires were nominated Justices for holding Courts P. in and for the County aforesaid.” 

William was also appointed as Justice of the Peace on the same day and took the oath of allegiance.1 He was named Register of Deeds and was placed in charge of a tax district. His name is listed in the records of the Randolph County Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions for the subsequent years. Some of those records even seem to be in his handwriting.

Like many of the members of the Society of Friends (Quakers) he was a pacifist. He did not fight the battles, but it is said that he did believe in the cause and supported the Patriots. As a result of his support, and possibly because of his leadership in the government of the county, he was a target for the Loyalists. 

Col. David Fanning was a Loyalist militia leader based in Randolph County, NC. Throughout the years of the Revolution, he led many battles and skirmishes against the Patriots in the region. Both Loyalists and Patriots were ruthless in their fighting, often plundering houses and hanging captured combatants. It seems that Col. Fanning was one of the more renegade leaders of Loyalists. The Patriots would not agree to his terms for peace in the region after Cornwallis’ surrender at Yorktown in 1781. Therefore, on March 10, 1782 Col. David Fanning began his revengeful raid on Patriot leaders in Randolph County. He stated in his own memoir that he and his men had just received the special order of uniforms which were  “linnen[sic] frocks, died black, with red cuffs, red elbows, and red shoulder cape also, and belted with scarlet, which was a total disguise to the rebels, which the red was all fringed with white fringe.”2 

Col. Fanning then gathered his men to “give a small scourge” to the Patriots. He targeted some leaders of the Patriot militia as well as supporters of the cause. He first went to Col. Andrew Balfour’s house, brutally killed him in front of family members & then moved on. 

William Millikan’s home was next. William is said to have lived near Johnsonville, the county seat. William wasn’t home when Fanning and his men arrived. Some sources say that he was tending some cows away from the house and was able to hide from the attack. Finding that William wasn’t in the house, Col. Fanning ordered the house and outbuildings burned. When William’s wife, Jane, carried a prized feather bed out of the house to salvage it, the men threw it back into the flames and when the feathers started to burn they scattered them throughout the house. The men reportedly taunted Mrs. Millikan as she watched her home and goods burn. They then took William’s son, Benjamin with them to lead them to another Patriot’s home.   

Stories aren’t clear as to who was targeted next. But eventually, after dark, the band of raiders arrived at Col. John Collier’s home. Some stories say that Benjamin Millikan was present for this encounter and was used to try to lure Collier from the house, saying he had come as a friend. Collier managed to escape but his house was also burned. Fanning and his men finished their bloody scourge at the home of Capt. John Bryant, killing him, but sparing his family. Fanning wasn’t done fighting, however, and continued on, battling the Patriots until September 1782, when he left the Carolinas for Florida. Due to his ruthless ways, he was one of the Loyalists that was excluded from getting a pardon at the end of the war. Col. Fanning’s exploits are well documented in North Carolina history sources.

I did notice that three of the men Col. Fanning went after were members of the leadership for Randolph County. They all knew each other and worked together to establish a new government in the county. Here their names are listed in the record for the Randolph County Court:

“June Term 1781
The County Court  of Pleas and Quarter Sessions being held for the County of Randolph at the courthouse in Randolph this 11th day of June A.D. 1781…
Present
Jno Collier C…
Andrew Balfour …C
Wm Millikan Esq
The Court adjourned till tomorrow at 9 O Clock
The Court met according to adjournment. June the 12th A.D. 1781”

Back to my ancestor, William Millikan. He survived the attack on his home and is said to have taken his family and moved in with his son Samuel until he could rebuild. William is recognized in the DAR books as a supporter of the cause (listed under “Milliken” Patriot # A079802). He continued to be a leader in Randolph County. It is said that he died around 1804. He has markers in both Springfield Friends Meeting & Centre Friends Meeting cemeteries in Guilford County, NC.

His son, Benjamin (1755-1842), also survived his ordeal. Interestingly, at 27 years, he and Col. Fanning were about the same age when the incident occurred. One story says that Fanning intended to hang Benjamin & another man captured in the raids. While they were hanging the other man, Benjamin managed to escape. Even though he was already married and had started a family by this time, his sons, who carried on the Millikan name, had not yet been born. My GGGG Grandfather, Samuel was born in 1789.

But the Millikan family story from the Revolution doesn’t end there. We have one more family member to mention, William’s daughter, Hannah (1756-1852). She was married to Enos Blair (1750-1834) in 1775 in Guilford County, NC. While she was busy having babies every year or two, she was also devoted to the Patriot cause. The stories told about her indicate how she supported soldiers with food and shelter when needed. It is said that Patriot militiamen would hide in the woods and she would get food, medicine and messages to them. Once when she was captured by the Loyalists, she indicated that she had been helping a sick neighbor. Two stories are more specific about her hiding Patriots. First, she hid two soldiers in her corn crib and sat peacefully shucking corn while the Loyalists searched the farm. Another time, she is said to have hidden a soldier in her home. Col. David Fanning entered, searching for the Patriot, Hannah was sitting on the bed mending the torn mattress. She allowed the search of her home all the while sitting on the hiding place of the soldier. She had hidden him in the mattress and when the Loyalists left, she ripped open the mattress and the Patriot escaped. At some point during the war the Blair’s house & outbuildings were also burned & the family was forced to watch the loss of all of their possessions. Hannah reportedly received a pension from the government for her service to the Patriot forces. She and her husband are also buried at the Springfield Friends Meeting cemetery.

So, other than the movie depicting the response of the hero to fight in battle, the rest of the story somewhat matches the experiences of many “civilians” of the Revolution—houses burned, lives disrupted, friends killed, all the brutality of war literally at their doorsteps. While my pacifist ancestors chose not to raise weapons against others, they couldn’t just sit back and wait for the war to end. Essentially everyone had to choose a side & they chose the side of Independence and did their part to make it happen. 

Happy 250th to the United States of America!! From a descendant of North Carolina Patriots.

© MJM 2026

1. The Oath of Allegiance for the State of North Carolina from the Rowan County, NC Courts 1778: 
“I do sincerely promise and swear, that I will be faithful and bear true Allegiance to the State of North Carolina and to the powers and Authorities which may be established for the Government thereof not inconsistent with the Constitution, and that I will to the utmost of my power maintain and defend the Same against all attempts whatsoever; and I do declare that no foreign prince, Person, State or potentate, hath our ought to have, any Jurisdiction, Power, Superiority, preeminence or Authority, civil or ecclesiastical, within the Same; and I do Solemnly and Sincerely declare, that I do believe in my Conscience that neither George III King of Great Britain, nor the Parliament thereof jointly with the said King, or Separately, have any right or Title to the Dominion of Sovereignty over this State, or any part of the Government thereof; and I do renounce, refuse, and abjure, any allegiance or Obedience to them, or either of them, or to any person or persons put in Authority by or under him or them; and I do swear that I will to the utmost of my power, defend the said State against all traitorous Conspiracies and attempts whatsoever that shall be made against the same and I will do my utmost endeavor to disclose and make known to the Legislative or executive powers of the said State, all Treasons and Traitorous Conspiracies which I shall know to be carried on or intended against the said State, and I do faithfully promise to the utmost of my power to support, maintain and defend, the Independence of this State against him the said George, and all other persons whatsoever; and all these things I do plainly and sincerely acknowledge and swear, according to the express words by me spoken, and according to the plain and common sense and understanding of the same words, without any Equivocation, mental evasion or secret reservation whatsoever; and I do make this acknowledgement, abjuration, renunciation and promise heartily willingly and truly upon the true faith of a Christian. So help me God.”

2. The Narrative of Colonel David Fanning, (a Tory in the Revolutionary War with Great Britain;) giving an account of his adventures in North Carolina, from 1775 to 1783, as written by himself; Fanning, David, Wynne, Thos. H. et al; 1861; Richmond, VA. Duke University Libraries; archive.org

Married How Many Times?

/ M. J. McKinley / Leave a comment

When I started collecting information and photos on my Paternal side of the family, my Grandparents would add a few notes about some of the family members. One relative, Bertha Portis, was said to have been married seven times.

Bertha Ann Portis was the daughter of George Portis (1839-1916) and Mariah Minton Portis (1848-1923). She was an older sister to my Great Grandmother, Gertrude Portis McKinley (1888-1967).

According to a marriage record and her death certificate, Bertha was born March 22, 1875 in Morgan County, IN. Most notes state that Bertha was the twin of Burton Portis, but his WWI draft card & death certificate indicate that he was born on March 22 in 1876. The 1880 US Census for the family has both Bertha and Burton listed as 4 years old. The assumption is that they were twins & one of them chose to use a different birth year.

So how many times was Bertha married? This is what I have found so far: 

1. On November 24, 1895, when Bertha was 20 years old she married Thomas P. Crider, age 37. They were married in Morgan County, IN by Nelson Alley, a Methodist minister. Their marriage record is available through Familysearch.org.

While the marriage record lists the groom’s name as Thomas P. Crider, the middle initial was actually “H.” Thomas Hammans (or Hammons) Crider was a widower with a 12 year old daughter, Effie, at the time of his marriage to Bertha. He was a carpenter. Bertha and Thomas had a son, Franklin Burton Crider on August 23, 1896. 

By the time of the 1900 US Census, Bertha and Thomas may have been separated.

Thomas is listed as widowed in the family with his parents, Lewis & Mahala Crider in Center Twp of Marion County, IN. His daughter, Effie is also listed with the family.

Bertha, on the other hand is listed as married in the family with her parents, George & Mariah Portis in Martinsville, Morgan County, IN. Her son, “Goldie” F. was also listed with the family. Goldie was a nick-name for Frank. Also note on this census record Bertha’s birth year is indicated as 1876. 

In 1902, Bertha and Thomas were divorced. 

2. On June 19, 1902, in Hendricks County, IN, Bertha married William Henry Erton. Their marriage record was also found on Familysearch.org.

William was a 37 year old farmer and she was 27. Coincidentally, he was also the uncle of Adeline Lampkins, who had married Bertha’s brother, Burton in 1899. On December 14, 1905, they had a daughter, Floy Mariah Erton. William and Bertha were divorced on March 1, 1909. 

3. Now with two children, 35 year old Bertha got married for the third time on October 29, 1910 in Morgan County, IN to William Lewis Gunn, a 62 year old widowed farmer. William had 4 children near the age of Bertha. 

The Marriage License application for William and Bertha is where the information regarding the dates of her first two divorces came from. She is listed as Bertha Erton on this record. The record is from Familysearch.org.

This marriage didn’t go very well for Bertha as a newspaper article from the Martinsville Reporter-Times on April 8, 1915 states that “Bertha N. Gunn has filed suit for divorce from William N. Gunn. They were married October 29th, 1911, and separated March 28, 1912. The defendant is charged with failure to provide for the plaintiff.” On September 8, 1915, the same newspaper reported that “Bertha N. Gunn has been granted a divorce from Wm. L. Gunn. The defendant was charged with cruel treatment. Plaintiff’s former name, Bertha N. Erton, was restored to her.” There were some errors in the report—as the marriage date was 1910, not 1911 & Bertha’s middle initial would have been “A” instead of “N.” The report may have come by telephone to the newspaper office and her middle name of Ann may have been received as “N.”  

On April 22, 1914, Bertha sent a postcard photograph to her parents.

 She writes: “Dear parents, Will write you again as I have took a fancy to come down Saturday morning and Mr Lydy is coming Saturday night he wants to see after a farm don’t go to any trouble for us this is all the post card I had this was taken Xmas Eave hope this will find you all well good by, Bertha to all xxx”

She doesn’t say who the man is with her in the photo. She was still married to but separated from William Gunn on Christmas eve 1913 when the photo was reportedly taken. She mentions a Mr. Lydy in the note. There were Lydy families in the Morgan County area but I could not find any reference to them in relation to Bertha. So this is a bit of a mystery. 

Then there was another article in the Martinsville Reporter-Times newspaper on May 7, 1914: “Mrs. Maria Portis returned to her home in Brooklyn today after a visit with her daughter, Mrs. George Beecham and family.” I could not find any other references for George Beecham. So I wonder if this again was a telephone report to the newspaper office that was actually indicating a visit to Mrs. Georgette Finchum, another daughter of George & Mariah Portis. 

Somewhere during this time-frame, Bertha and her children, Frank Crider & Floy Erton sat for this photograph.

4. The Indianapolis Star newspaper listed a marriage license between Charles Arthur Gardner & Bertha Ann Erton on December 15, 1916 in Marion County, IN. Charles was 38 years old and Bertha was 41. Charles was divorced with one son. He was a motorman for a cable car in Indianapolis. The couple had significant challenges during their short marriage. 

On December 16, 1916, the Indianapolis News reported that “Charles Gardner…a street car motorman, was injured seriously today when his car ran into the rear end of another South Meridian street car at Meridian and Alder streets.” Reportedly, the brakes on his car failed and he was “trapped in the vestibule, which was demolished.” He was reported to have a severe chest injury and there were concerns that he would not survive. 

Charles filed suit against the Indianapolis Traction & Terminal Company requesting $10,000 in damages for his injuries in this accident. This suit was filed on March 2, 1918 as reported by the Indianapolis Star. He claimed he was given a “car to operate that was badly damaged” and because of this he could not apply the brakes in time to avoid the accident. He stated his “right side and lung were permanently injured and several ribs were broken. His spine was jarred so badly that he has been affected mentally ever since.”

However, he did not live to see the result of this suit. On October 23, 1918, the Indianapolis Star reported that Charles Gardner was killed from injuries received while working at the Citizens Gas Company. His legs were caught and crushed in the gears of a machine. His right leg was surgically amputated at the hip & his death was attributed to blood loss and shock. His hometown newspaper, the Madison Courier, from Madison IN, gave a little more graphic detail of his injuries, stating that he was “disemboweled before the machinery could be stopped.” He was buried in Fairmount cemetery.

5. After that troubling time, Bertha married again July 19, 1919 in Marion County, IN to Charles Sidney Abney. Charles was 47 years old, widowed with 4 children and Bertha was 44. Charles worked as a carpenter. Bertha and Charles are listed in the 1920 and 1930 US Census records living in Indianapolis on Morgan Street. They were also listed in the Indianapolis City directory for 1931 at the same address. However, this marriage may have had its problems as well. The Indianapolis Star newspaper court calendar reports from September 12, 1922; September 14, 1922; November 24, 1922 and February 22, 1933 indicate that Bertha filed for divorce from Charles. I would guess the final listing was valid and they did get divorced in 1933. Or perhaps they got divorced in 1922 and remarried. 

6. Bertha married for the final time on April 13, 1935 at the age of 60. The Indiana Marriage Records Index on Ancestry.com records the marriage license between Bertha and John Lewis Mathews. He was also a carpenter and was 57 years old. By this time her children were married and Bertha had 6 grandchildren. John and Bertha were listed in the 1940 Indianapolis City directory living at the same Morgan Street address that Bertha shared with Charles Abney.  

Bertha died on February 6, 1940 in Indianapolis, IN of a coronary occlusion. She had a short obituary in both the Indianapolis News & the Indianapolis Star on February 7:

She was buried in Bethel cemetery at Bethel Friends church in Morgan County, IN alongside her parents.

Bertha Ann Portis was married several times, but I only found records for 6 marriages and not 7 as I was told. Regardless, I hope Bertha found what she needed through all of these relationships. 

MJM © 2026

Granny & Grandpa

/ M. J. McKinley / Leave a comment

We called my maternal great-grandparents “Granny & Grandpa.” In reality Granny was Amanda (Steinhaus) Beiersdorf (1894-1973) and Grandpa was Herman Beiersdorf (1895-1983). They were born and raised in Sheboygan, Wisconsin; both being first generation descendants of German immigrants. They were each part of large families in the German Lutheran community of Sheboygan. Herman was baptized and confirmed at Immanuel Lutheran Church and Amanda was baptized and confirmed at Bethlehem Lutheran Church. They attended the church affiliated schools, but I don’t think they went to High School. 

In the 1910 U.S. Census, when they were both around 15 years old, they were already working. Amanda was sewing in a glove shop along with her sister, Martha. Herman was wood turning in a chair factory and his brother, Albert was also listed as a laborer in a chair factory. 

I’m not sure how they met, perhaps through family, friends or Lutheran events in Sheboygan. Regardless, they were married July 3, 1916 in Sheboygan. Their witnesses were his brother, Ewald & her sister, Clara. Their church marriage certificate is written in German. I don’t have a formal wedding picture for them, but I wonder if this served as their wedding photo.

Grandpa kept a few notes of special days through many years in a “1955 desk diary” calendar. He marked a note on February 25 that they moved to Port Washington, WI in 1917. His WWI draft card states that at the age of 22yrs he was a department foreman for the Wisconsin Chair Co. in Port Washington. Herman is listed in the 1920 U.S. Census as a boarder and working as a shop foreman. Amanda is not listed with him and I couldn’t find her in the 1920 census at all. She may have been in Sheboygan visiting relatives and missed the census taker in each city. On August 23, 1920 in Port Washington, their daughter, Lucille was born. The family continued to live there until 1923. He noted that they moved back to Sheboygan March 28, 1923. 

Herman also noted that on October 1, 1923 they had a “new home.” 

The young family moved into a new house in Wedemeyer’s addition on South 14th Street in Sheboygan. They lived in this house for 50 years. In this home, they hosted family gatherings and “card parties” through the years. They remodeled it a few times; in particular, they enclosed the porch before I remember visiting as a child. On that enclosed porch they had toys for us to play with. The interior stairs were perfect for us as kids to scoot down on our backsides. There was an alley and garage in the back of the house. Posts were set in the ground in the back yard for clotheslines. Mom remembers that they had a wringer washing machine in the basement and as a child she would sometimes help run the clothes through the wringer to the rinse water & through the wringer again to baskets. The clothes were hung on the lines behind the house. The house is still standing.

The 1928 City Directory of Sheboygan has Herman working for the Bemis-Riddell Fibre Company. In the 1930 U.S. Census, the home is valued at $3000. Herman is a laborer in a Fiber Factory. In the 1940 U.S. Census records, Herman is listed as working as a finisher in a Leather Factory. He reported on his WW2 Draft card that he worked for the Armour Leather Company. In 1950, the U.S. Census has Herman listed as a leather finisher for a Tanning Company.

In 1930, there was a newspaper article reporting that Herman Beiersdorf of N. Fourteenth street was sentenced to 90 days in jail for beating his wife. Three days later, The Sheboygan Press printed another article clarifying the address again, stating that Herman Beiersodorf of S. Fourteenth street was not the same man. I guess someone had mistaken Grandpa for the convicted man. 

My Mother remembers that “Grandpa was a gentle man, hard worker, always pleasant to be with.” She said that when he would come home from work, he would change clothes & hang his work clothes in the back hall so the smell wouldn’t get inside the house. I expect the smell was from formaldehyde, which was used in the tanning process. In fact, I remember as a child rummaging through old “formaldehyde barrels” that he had used for storage. Looking back, it may not have been a good idea to reuse those barrels for personal storage.

Mom remembers Granny as being “kind, gentle, pleasant, submissive, usually doing something in the kitchen wearing an apron or working in the garden.” She would walk a few blocks to the butcher shop & would order weekend breakfast coffee cake from a local German bakery.

She also told me that Granny didn’t write much and may have been embarrassed by her lack of education. We have only this one note in her handwriting.

The couple started traveling some as they got older. In 1955 they took a “Happiness Tours” trip to New York where they visited Niagara Falls and New York City. They managed to visit their daughter, Lucille’s family in Missouri when the family was stationed there with the U.S. Army. Lucille and her two daughters would also sometimes stay with Herman and Amanda if they were not able to move with Lucille’s husband, John Chvarack.

They celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary in 1956.

Herman retired in 1958.

On March 18, 1961, The Sheboygan Press reported that Herman & Amanda were traveling to visit their daughter Lucille Chvarack and family in Frankfurt, Germany. They planned to spend the summer in Europe. While there they planned to visit Holland, Paris, Garmisch, Berchtesgaden & other tourist attractions.

Here they are in front of the apartment  complex where they were visiting. 

They did manage to tour the country, however, the trip did not quite go as they expected. The Sheboygan Press reported on July 19, 1961 that Amanda had a “serious heart attack” while in Germany and was hospitalized at an American hospital. She was to stay in the country for four more months for recovery. The Press also included a mailing address for her in Germany. She did recover from that event and they eventually returned home. 

  

They spent their 50th wedding anniversary in 1966 with family in San Antonio, TX. Their daughter and family had returned to the U.S. by then and they had two great-grandchildren as well. I remember that Granny and Grandpa would visit us wherever we lived in the U.S.

Amanda died in Sheboygan June 20, 1973 from heart failure. Soon after this, Herman sold the house and moved to Salinas, California to live with his daughter & granddaughter, Lois (1947-1991). I remember visiting them & he always had gum or candy for us if we behaved in church. He liked to laugh & tap us playfully with his cane to get our attention. He spent the rest of his life in California, where he died April 19, 1983 from a stroke. He and Amanda are entombed at the Garden Terrace Mausoleum in Sheboygan. 

© MJM 2026

An Unfinished Story

/ M. J. McKinley / Leave a comment

I was looking through some of my old genealogy files, trying to organize things & I opened the file of old letters. This letter seemed simple enough and I wanted to find out more about the author, and while I did find some records to fill in his story, I didn’t find enough to complete it. 

The letter: To Arza Millikan (1883-1964), my paternal Great Grandfather. From Wm. C. Millikan. It was postmarked from Newport, R.I. on Nov 20, 1909. And the first page gives more information as to the origin: Fort Adams, R.I. The salutation is “Dear Cousin.”

The transcription is:

Port Adams, R.I.; Nov. 18” 09.; Mr. Arza Millikan, Sheridan, Ind. 
Dear Cousin.
After a long silence on my part I will endeaver to write you a few lines to let you know I am still living and geting on fine, truly hoping you the same. I guess you think I am an interesting one
(2) to correspond with, don’t you?
Well I must admit I am very careless about writing sometimes I fail to write home for weeks at the time and they will wonder what has become of me, You see after a fellow has been away from home so long as I have he gets negligent and fails to write to his own people.
Well I would like to be out in the good
(3) old state of Ind. for a short time anyway and visit all of my kin people I think if nothing prevents I will take a trip out there next spring and see if I can’t find me a nice little Ind. girl. You see I can get 3 month furlough any time I want it now for I have been in the service over seven years and never had a furlough yet
(4) and I know quite a number of fellows in Ind. I have met since in the Army and of course I would go and see them while out there. I may quit Soldiering after I get this enlistment in and if I do I am coming out and settle down in old Ind. I think. So if you know of a nice little Lady friend that would like to correspond with a soldier
(5) just put me wise and I will try and interest her through the mail ha ha enough on that, well old Cus. I like R.I. fairly well and New Port certainly is one good place in the summer-time but cold and windy in winter oh my. I certainly do get good and sick of it here in winter but we don’t have much duty on the outside
(6) in winter time you see we have indoor instructions here in the cold weather we do guard duty of course but we only go on guard about once every three weeks and then only lasts 24 hrs at the time 2 hours on duty and 4 off so we certainly have an easy time and more fun in the summertime than a little.
I think there is more girls in the state of R.I.
(7) than any state I was ever in in all my life. Say Cus when are you going back to New Mexico to live and how do you like that part of the country write and tell me all about yourself and don’t forget to get me a lady friend to correspond with in Ind.
So give all my best regards and tell the Riggs family hello for me.
Your cousin Wm. C. Millikan

So, of course the question is, “Who is Wm. C. Millikan?” Clues in the letter indicate he is a “cousin” of Arza’s. He has been in the military for 7 years. He is familiar with Indiana, where Arza lives & would like to visit again. He is looking for a girl—so he is single. He mentions the Riggs family. There were Riggs who show up on the same page as Arza in the 1900 and 1910 census records for Hamilton County, Indiana. I assume this is who he mentioned in the letter.  

First, perhaps his military service records would give more information as to who he was. I was able to find through Ancestry.com some “US Army Register of Enlistment” files from 1798-1914. These files had a William C Millikan listed for several years:

In 1902 he was listed as enlisting on October 8, in Tampa Florida by Lt. Smith for 3 yrs. He was born in Randolph Co, NC; age 26 & 2 months; occupation Farmer; eyes Blue; hair light brown; complexion fair; height 6ft 1 1/2 inches. This connects w/ 7 years in the military as the postmark on the envelope was 1909. 

Looking at the clues from this register, William was born in Randolph County, NC in roughly 1876. I went back to my genealogy files for Millikan’s from Randolph County, NC—there were a lot of them. One that fit the date of birth was William C. Millikan, son of Thomas Franklin Millikan (1846-1924). This William was the grandson of John Kelly Millikan (1826-1908) who was the brother of Clark Millikan (1824-1926), the grandfather of Arza Millikan (1883-1964), to whom the letter was written. William and Arza would have been 2nd cousins. One assumption is that William may have visited Indiana to work on Clark Millikan’s farm for a season. There were other relatives who did this. 

I don’t have good sources for William C Millikan. Records from other researchers indicate he was born in 1876. He shows up as a 3-year-old in his father’s household in the 1880 US census in Randleman Township, Randolph County, NC.

The 1900 US Census has him listed with his brother, Joseph. They are still in North Carolina, Randleman town of Randleman Township, Randolph County. He is listed as a 23-year-old farmer. His birth date was listed as July 1876. So this seems to coincide with the other records regarding age.

But this is about where the family record ends. I found an obituary for Thomas Millikan,  father of William C. He died in 1924 and the obituary stated that only one of his children, Joseph, was still living. W.C. is in the list of deceased children. The obituary of another brother, Samuel Bentley, who died in 1915, also indicated that all other siblings except Joe had passed away. Other siblings of William had passed away before this letter was written. I have not been able to find an obituary for William. But right now the indication is that he died before 1915. 

So, now that I have some idea of who William might have been, I figured I would look a little more at his military records. As I mentioned, I found records of enlistment on Ancestry.com. The first record from 1902 stated that he was in the “CA” or Coast Artillery, Company 107-117. (The Coast Artillery Corps was a US Army corp established in 1901 to defend the coastlines using heavy artillery.) Continuing on with the enlistment records, William re-enlisted in 1905 and again in 1908. 

Fold3.com had additional records for William’s military service. The “US, Returns from Regular Army Coast Artillery Corps Companies, 1901-1916” records essentially gave a status report of William’s service through the years. 

The first record for Company 117, Coast Artillery for February 1903 has William joining on Feb 3, ’03. He was a private. He was a Sergeant on the report from May 1905 and on Detached service at Ft. Monroe, VA. The report from October 1905 showed that he was discharged on October 7 and reenlisted on October 8 at Fort Fremont, SC. His character was “excellent.” He transferred to the 127th Company at Ft Fremont, SC on June 8, 1907.

In 1908, William was listed as a Private again and was discharged from the 127th Company, Coast Artillery Corps at Ft. Fremont on October 7 with final statement given of his service being “honest & faithful” and his character “very good.” He reenlisted with rank of Private to the 117th Company Coast Artillery Corps at Fort Slocum, NY on October 16th. 

He was on detached service to Ft. Wetherill, RI in January 1909. Then in 1910, he is at Fort Adams, RI which is just across the harbor from Ft. Wetherill. As a side note, most of the forts mentioned are no longer military installations, but several have been preserved as state parks. 

He shows up again in the US Census in 1910 in Newport city, Newport County, RI, Ft Adams. This entry has him listed along with the other soldiers at Ft. Adams. He is reported as being 30 years old.

The last Coastal Artillery return reports that I can find reference his desertion July 8, 1910 from Ft. Adams. The next report indicates that he was “apprehended at Newport, RI and returned to Military Control at Fort Adams RI Aug 6, ’10.” The final “Return of the 117th Company of the Coast Artillery Corps, for the month of September 1910”:

William is listed as being sentenced by a General Court Martial on September 25, 1910 to be Dishonorably Discharged. His services was “not honest and faithful.” So I wonder what happened to William during his time in the Coast Artillery that he went from being a Sergeant with faithful service to a Private, dishonorably discharged for desertion and service that wasn’t honest & faithful. 

This seemed to end what I could find about William. Then I took one more look on Familysearch.org & used their “full-text” search tool. I found some general index cards for Adjutant General communications. There was an index card for his reenlistment in 1908. Then there were cards regarding his desertion July 10 and apprehension August 9, 1910. The last card was from January 24, 1911 regarding clemency. William was listed as a “Mil. Convict, Ft. Adams, R.I.” I then looked at the National Archives to see if the Adjutant General Communication files were listed there but did not find files for 1911. 

So this is the end of the trail on “cousin” William C. Millikan. I haven’t been able to locate any more records for him. My assumptions for his identity may be correct or not. Maybe someday I’ll be able to find another record that completes this unfinished story.

MJM © 2025


Gone Fishing

/ M. J. McKinley / Leave a comment

I went fishing today at a little pond not too far from my house. Caught a few small bluegill and a nice big catfish. The pond is “catch and release” so no taking anything home. 

But I got to thinking about a picture in my collection of my Great Grandfather, Herman Beiersdorf (1895-1983).

Herman is the one in the center who seems to be dressed a little too formally to go fishing. The picture was taken sometime after he was married in 1916 as he is wearing a wedding ring. 

I don’t know who the other two men are, but I wonder if the one on the right is his brother, August C. (1884-1974).

Herman is holding basic fishing gear—bamboo poles. No reels or bobbers. Just a pole, line and hook. I wonder what they used for bait? I expect they fished in the Sheboygan river. Looks like they managed to catch a good “mess of fish.” And I bet that was dinner for the day. 

I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that they went fishing frequently. I hope they had fun. 

©MJM 2025

Did You Hear the Story?…

/ M. J. McKinley / 1 Comment

A little over a year ago, one of my Father’s cousins was passing through this area and stopped in to show us a box of old books that had belonged to our ancestors. He said his family members didn’t want the books and would be happy to give them to me. He is related through Arza Clark Millikan (1925-1975) who was the brother of my Grandmother, Margaret Millikan McKinley (1917-2007).

The box contained several early school books that belonged to my Great Grandfathers Alva Boone (1861-1945) & Arza Millikan (1883-1964); as well as my Great Great Grandfather Lewis Elwood Millikan (1855-1949).

In the Forth Grade Reader, there was a fragile 3-page report on the robin, written by Arza. The first paragraph is shown here:

Another item that was in the box with the books was the following program announcing the commencement of the Washington Township, Hamilton County, IN school district. Arza was listed in the program as one of the graduates. He would have been 14, so this was an 8th grade graduation. I don’t know that he went further in school as I have not found a high school graduation record for him.

While we visited, Dad’s cousin would often say “Did you hear the story?…” and start with a question about the family. We had a good visit and talked through many of the family stories. 

He asked “Did you hear the story that we had the old family Bible?” I said I hadn’t & I didn’t know of a family Bible other than the ones I had in my possession. Then reaching the final book in the box, there it was, the old Millikan family Bible! The cover was falling off and many pages were loose.

The title page indicated that the Bible was published in 1849. I wonder if when it was brand new it was given to our ancestor, Clark Millikan (1824-1926) when he married his first wife in 1851? It would have come with the family in the wagon on the trip from North Carolina to Indiana after the Civil War. 

The records pages were lying loose in the front of the Bible. Usually I find them in the center section, between the Testaments. Thankfully they were in pretty good condition and the writing was legible. The handwriting is a pretty close match to Clark Millikan’s.

First the Marriage record page with two entries:  “Clark Millikan to Nancy Adams on 18th of Dec A.D. 1851. Clark Millikan to Lydia Hinshaw on the 4th of Jan A.D. 1855.”

Next, the record of Births:

“Clark Millikan Born April 12th A.D. 1824. Nancy Millikan Wife of Clark Millikan Born 30th of April A.D. 1816. Nancy A. Millikan Daughter of Clark and Nancy Millikan Was Bornd September 30th, 1852. Lydia Millikan Wife of Clark Born 24th of August AD 1833. Louis Elwood Millikan son of Clark and Lydia was Born 10th of October AD 1855. An Infant Born November 19th AD 1857. Flora Ellen Millikan Born June 30th AD 1860. Londa Martisha Millikan Born Oct 2d AD 1862. Martha Alice Millikan Born the 8 mo the 7 A.D. 1864. Anna Florance Millikan Born they 12 mo. the 5th 1869. Lucetty Jane Millikan Born the 12 mo the 19th A.D. 1874.”

A couple of comments on the Births entries—The entries from Clark to Nancy A seem to have been written at the same time. The ink color changes a bit for the next entries. And there is even an entry written in pencil. I wonder if Clark intended to mark Louis’ birth, but realized his mother, Lydia hadn’t been recorded so crossed out the entry to put Lydia first. Also, all other records I have seen have Louis spelled “Lewis.” I have always thought as well that “Londa” was actually “Lunda” Martisha.

Finally, the Death Record:

“Nancy Millikan Wife of Clark Millikan Departed this life October 11th A.D. 1852. An Infant Departed this life December 8th A.D. 1857. Lucetty Jane Millikan daughter of Clark & Lydia Departed this life they 8 mo the 30th 1878.” There were no other entries.

Completing the entries for deaths:  Lydia died Sept. 18, 1917. Flora Ellen died June 2, 1923. Clark died Feb. 1, 1926. Martha Alice died March 13, 1926. Nancy Angeline died April 17, 1926. Anna Florance died Feb. 21, 1945. Londa Martisha died Dec. 14, 1947. Louis Elwood died March 16, 1949.

So there really was a family Bible & Arza Clark’s family did have it. I wouldn’t have known it existed unless that cousin had come by with a box of books. The Bible went back home with him to give to one of his family members.

©MJM 2025

The Choir

/ M. J. McKinley / Leave a comment

One of the treasures I have from my Maternal side of the family is a group photograph labeled “Maennerchor Immanuel—1915.” This photo hangs in my living room. I always wondered what the story was behind it.

One thing I did know was that my Great Grandfather, Herman Beiersdorf (1895-1983) was in the photo. Looking closer, I also found his older brothers, Fred (1882-1963) and August (1884-1974) in the group. Herman is on the bottom row, 2nd from left. August is on the same row, far right. Fred is on the fifth row, far left.

But what was the group that the three brothers were a part of? I recognized the name “Immanuel” as the church the Beiersdorf family attended in Sheboygan, WI. The word “Maennerchor” translated to “men’s choir.” So the brothers were part of the Immanuel Lutheran Church men’s choir. 

I wanted more information about the choir, and I was hoping to find a list of all of the men in the picture, so I contacted Immanuel Lutheran Church in Sheboygan, WI. I was put in touch with a woman who keeps the archives for the church and she sent me a wealth of information about the Maennerchor. 

From the church’s 25th anniversary booklet (translated from German): “This choral society was founded on November 27, 1911. The purpose of the men’s choir is to cultivate spiritual and secular singing and to promote close cooperation within the community.” In essence, it was a men’s club focused on singing and fellowship. Choir rehearsals were held at 8 p.m. in order for members to have “time to work in their gardens.” They had to pay an entrance fee of $1.00 and monthly dues of 15¢. Fifty men were part of the original choir. The choir sang during the church services and community events. They joined an association of male choirs of Lutheran churches in Wisconsin and participated in many Saengerfests or “singing festivals” through this organization. During the flu epidemic in 1918, choir members sang at funerals, giving solace to families who had lost loved ones during that terrible time. Another reference from the church indicated that the Men’s choir would join with the Mixed choir and the church band for a special Christmas concert for the children of the Immanuel Lutheran school & would give special gift bags to the children. 

I also received the full list of members in the photograph:

Seventh Row: Emil Klewin, Herman Erdmann, Herman Bendler, William Guether, Erwin Nack, Emil Marquardt, Ernst Oberheu

Sixth Row: Hugo Kaems, Paul Mahnke, Charles Grimmer, Elmer Doege, Arthur Kaems, William Schild, Herman Wesener, Robert Perl

Fifth Row: Fred Beiersdorf, August Lutze, Fred Schoening, Nels Nelson, Otto Marquardt, Louis Falk, Frank Becker, Barney Schneidewind

Fourth Row: Albert Falk, William Daehnert, Ernst Leikip, Fred Schoen, William Steffen, Sr., Herman Kohls, Herman Daehnert, Edgar Reinholz

Third Row: Gustave Littman, Charles Pantel, Albert Nack, Carl Bendler, Oswald Wolfgram, Charles Lutze, Otto Daehnert, Richard Klatt, William Busse

Second Row: Hugo Overbeck, George Gauger, Henry Zinkann, Erich Gauger, Theodore Burger, E.W. Fremder, Director, Oscar Uttech, Carl Vorphal, John Stengel, Adolph Littman

First Row (Bottom): Alfred Kowert, Herman Beiersdorf, William Zamzow, Rev. Theo. Laetsch, Sr., William Kolbe, Valentine Drews, Emil Erdman, August Beiersdorf

This confirmed that I was correct in the identification of the Beiersdorf brothers in the photo. But I also saw some other familiar family names on the list. William Kolbe could be a cousin to the Beiersdorfs—son of Herman & Minnie Juergen Kolb. And perhaps there is a typo in the list—4th row, Herman Kolbs—is this actually Herman Kolbe? If so, this would be the brother of William. Brothers Carl Bendler and Herman Bendler were brothers-in-law of August Beiersdorf—brothers of Helen Bendler Beiersdorf (1888-1962). 

Regarding the Beiersdorf brothers tenure in the choir: Herman sang Second Tenor and was in the choir from 1913 to 1917. He married Amanda Steinhaus (1894-1973) in 1916 and started attending her family church, Bethlehem Lutheran after that. Fred sang First Bass and was in the choir from 1915 to 1923. August sang Second Bass and was a part of the choir from 1915 to 1926. 

Of course I still wanted to find out more about the choir. As I usually do when I’m looking for a story, I went to Newspapers.com and searched for any information about the choir, particularly in the Sheboygan Press. I found an article from April 9, 1915 announcing a concert on April 11 with the Philharmonic Orchestra. 

Then in November, there was another announcement for a concert with the Philharmonic Orchestra to be held November 21 at the “new” Bethlehem (Lutheran) Church hall. The announcement included the exact same photograph of the choir that I had! The group was to sing two numbers with the orchestra and there would also be “several amusing selections, such as solos trios & dialogues.” On Saturday, November 20, there was a notice that the concert had sold out so they would repeat the program again on Monday the 22nd. I guess the choir was a hit.

There were several more articles and announcements in the Sheboygan Press about choir programs through the years. There were also mentions of the choir participating in “Saengerfests.” The official translation of Saengerfest is “singer festival.” In essence, choirs would come together for a day of singing, with competitions and parades & picnics.

I had also received from the Immanual Lutheran Church archives two pictures referencing the July 11, 1920 Saengerfest of the O.W.V.L.M. (Ost-Wisconsin Verband Lutherische Maennerchore) or Eastern Wisconsin Association of Lutheran Men’s Choirs. The festival was held at Sheboygan, WI.

According to an article in the Sheboygan Press on July 6, 1920, a chartered special excursion train would bring “500 singers & guests from Two Rivers, Maintowoc and Newton” on the morning of the festival. The choirs and bands from Sheboygan would meet the train at the depot. There would then be a parade from the depot to the Immanual hall on S Seventeenth Street and Illinois Avenue. The mass choir of over 200 voices would rehearse before marching to the Lake Front Shooting park for the festival. A stage was constructed just for this event. They expected “several thousand people” to attend and were prepared to serve meals to everyone.

The program for the festival was also published in German in the article from July 6. The first part would start at 10:30a.m. with a worship service with community singing, Scripture reading, a selection by the mass choir, a sermon given by Pastor Theo Laetsch, a special collection for missions, and prayer and blessing. The second part of the festival would start at 2:00p.m. with a singer’s march, a welcoming speech from Sheboygan’s mayor, Herman Albrecht, and songs by the different choirs as well as the mass choir. The last musical number was to be a medley of “The Best-Loved Southern Melodies” which seemed out of place with all of the German music listed in the program. 

Being a part of the Association of Men’s choirs gave the choir the opportunity to sing at many  venues and events.The choir continued to participate in several more Saengerfests through the years. The Immanuel Choir is said to have manned the “Beer stand” at the festivals—this was their means of raising money. 

An article in the Sheboygan Press from November 23, 1946 announced the 35th anniversary celebration for the choir. At that time the choir consisted of 16 men with two members of the original choir still singing, Albert Nack & Louis Falk. The choir would sing at both the German and English worship services on November 24. The 16 men in the choir would be joined by 10 former members for that day. 

Due to declining membership, the choir was disbanded on November 9, 1982. The organization had served the congregation and community well for 71 years. From what I gather, the choir was more than just a “church choir,” it was an organization that celebrated good music performances & good fellowship for the men involved. 

©2025 MJM

Dear Cousin Mattie…

/ M. J. McKinley / Leave a comment

As I have mentioned before, my Grandmother, Margaret Millikan McKinley (1917-2007), kept many family papers and photographs. Some of what she saved were letters from various family members. I wonder why some letters were saved and many more were discarded. But I am grateful for those letters that give a glimpse of family life & maybe even a little more insight into family relationships. Here is one such letter:

HJL1890en copy

The envelope indicates this letter was sent to Martha E. Millikan, Sheridan, Ind. (Hamilton Co.)

It was sent from Moffits Mills, NC with the postmark of Oct 1, ’90.

Note the 2¢ stamp! Things have really changed!

MarthaEMillikancrop copy

Martha E. Millikan was Martha Ellen (Barker) Millikan. She was born May 25, 1858 in Randolph County, North Carolina. She moved to Hamilton County, Indiana in 1866, with her parents, Elihu Barker (1822-1910) and Hannah Jane (Allen) Barker (1825-1899); and siblings, Amelia Ann (1855-1890), John Gurney (1860-1942) & William Capres (1865-1880). She married Lewis Elwood Millikan (1855-1949) in 1882. Lewis and Martha or “Elwood” and “Mattie” as they were commonly known, were my Great-Great Grandparents. Mattie died Feb. 27, 1932.

As for the letter in the envelope, the handwriting is beautiful! I’ve heard that cursive isn’t taught much anymore in school, so I wonder if young people can even read this. 

On the top right of the first page, it says “Kemps Mills, NC” while the postmark said “Moffit’s Mills, NC.” I found only one map online that shows the location of these two places. The map is dated to 1873 and hand-drawn by J.W. Bean & can be found in the digital archive of the University of North Carolina.(https://dc.lib.unc.edu/cdm/ref/collection/ncmaps/id/223) Essentially these communities were centered around family-owned grist mills on Richland Creek about 10 miles southeast of Asheboro, NC. My guess is that the Post Office was at Moffit’s Mill at the time the letter was written. 

The transcribed letter:

Kemp’s Mills, N.C.

9 mo. 29th 1890 

Dear Cousin Mattie:–

Thy interesting letter of 8 mo. was duly received. Were truly glad to hear from so many of our relations. We are in usual health:–all able to help in the common cares of life. Our relations are mostly well so far as we know except Simeon Barker, we hear is quite sick. I was at Uncle Seth’s in last month:–They seemed lively enough considering their age & were able to get out to Quarterly Meeting at Marlboro. Suppose you have heard of their son, Benjamin’s death.

It was brother Jno’s right arm that was taken off. There was a tumor on it near the shoulder which was thought to have been caused by a severe bump he received from the plow handle while 

[pg 2] plowing several years ago. During the past year or so, the tumor increased so rapidly in size, and hurt so much, that it became evident something had to be done more than outward appliances, so he went to what is said to be the best Surgical Hospital in Phila. to have it removed. When they commensed the operation all the doctors agreed that in order to save his life the arm would have to be severed, which they did by unjointing at the shoulder. In thirty days he was able to leave the Hospital. Has got well and enjoys good health but has not been home:–Writes that he hopes to visit us sometime at least. He is employed by Rhoads & Co. 229 Market St. Phila. to keep books and help clerk in a Rubber & Belting store. Has learned to write tolerably well with his left hand, also can operate the typewriter. We miss him much but are 

[pg 3] glad to know he is doing well where he can enjoy life perhaps better than here considering his condition.

The Teacher’s Institute at Asheboro commences today but I am not expecting to teach this winter so have not gone, much as I enjoy attending. Brother Jno. and I both attended last fall. We have an abundance of rain. Wheat was very light last year and if the rain continues, it will be difficult to get any sowed soon. People here have good corn. No peaches the past summer worth relating and only a moderate apple crop. Late ones are rotting; we have been canning and preserving some of ours. Cotton fields are looking white and ready to pick; have ours partly picked out. There is a fine crop of persimmons beginning to ripen but we make little use of them except that the pigs eat them.

How is Cousin Amelia and family? 

[pg 4] I believe thee did not write anything in thy last letter about them. I would be pleased to visit thee and others but do not know that I can do so soon. Mother often talks of writing to relations in Ind. Aunt H. Hockett in particular, knowing her lonely condition but can not see and write so well as when younger. 

Aunt Catharine Barker was here not long ago on a visit; seems and looks real cheerful but cannot hear very well.

Gideon and Asenath Cox staied with us two nights. I believe they honestly think Texas the place to live. Thee may let thy father’s folks read this if they wish to hear about brother’s arm.

It is nearly bedtime so no more at present. Write soon. Thy cousin, H.J. Littler

Jno’s address is 229 Market St. as I have written, but he says so many letters come to the store that he prefers having letters directed to his lodgings which is at 480 N. 5th St. Phila. Penn. I think he would be pleased to hear from any of you. H.J.L.

The letter was written by Mattie’s cousin, H.J. Littler on September 29, 1890. It was written in response to Mattie’s letter a month earlier. Note the use of “Thee” & “Thy” which were commonly used by Quakers in speaking to their close relatives. 

H.J. Littler turns out to be Hannah Jane Littler (1863-1945). Her Mother was Tamar (Barker) Littler (1827-1919) who was the sister of Mattie’s father Elihu Barker. Hannah was a teacher, which may explain her beautiful handwriting. 

Hannah mentions several family members in her letter, many of them Barker cousins. I had some notes regarding this family, but had to verify some information so I used Ancestry.com, Findagrave.com and Newspapers.com to clarify the details of the relationships. 

Enoch Barker was the patriarch of this family. He was born in 1776 in Guilford Co, NC & he married Elizabeth Davis November 23, 1800 in the Holly Spring meeting house in Randolph County, NC. Elizabeth was born in 1782 in Chatham Co, NC. She died in 1834 and Enoch died in 1848. From what I know, they were both lifelong residents of North Carolina. They lived and raised their family in the community near the Holly Spring Friends (Quaker) meeting house. Their children were: Sarah (1801-1846), Daniel (1803-1892), Nicholas (1805-1886), John (1807-1890), Isaac (1810-1820), Seth (1812-1894), Mary (1815-?), Hannah (1818-1899), Elihu (1822-1910), and Tamar (1827-1919). 

Starting at the beginning of the letter, Hannah mentions Simeon Barker, who was probably her cousin. He was born in 1835 to Nicholas Barker (1805-1886) and Catharine Cox (1806-1896). I expect this Catharine was the “Aunt Catharine Barker” mentioned later in the letter. She would have been 84 years old when she visited Hannah. 

She then mentions “Uncle Seth” and his son, Benjamin. Uncle Seth Barker (1812-1894) was married to Margaret Cox (1812-1891). Seth and Margaret would have been in their late 70’s at the time Hannah wrote this letter. The “Quarterly Meeting” was a regional meeting of Quakers held at the Marlboro Meeting House in Sophia, NC. Their son, Benjamin, was born in 1850 and died June 6, 1890. He was 40 years old and left a wife, Esther and family.

Hannah’s brother, John Oxley (“Jno” is an abbreviation for John), was having a rough time with the surgical amputation of his right arm at the shoulder. He spent 30 days in the hospital. But as Hannah wrote, it seems he had recovered well after the surgery and was adjusting to his disability and was working as a clerk & bookkeeper. John Littler was born July 2, 1859. He is listed in the 1880 census as being a student at the Westtown boarding school in Westchester, PA. The school was founded by Philadelphia Quakers. This explains how he ended up in the Philadelphia area. He died September 8, 1891.

Hannah then mentions the status of farming in the region. Sounds like they were having a good year for some crops while others were hampered by the weather. 

Hannah asks about “Cousin Amelia.” This would be Mattie’s sister, Amelia Ann Barker. She was born in Randolph County, NC September 24, 1855. She married Simeon Fesmire (1852-1925) in 1889 but as Simeon’s obituary stated, “she only lived 11 months” after they were married. She died November 29, 1890, only 2 months after Hannah’s letter was written. 

Then there is “Aunt H. Hockett” who lived in Indiana. Hannah Barker Hockett (1818-1899) was married to Mahlon Hockett (1808-1885) in Holly Spring MH in 1858. He was a widower with 4 children. From what I can tell, they had no additional children. They moved to Rush County, IN sometime before the 1880 US Census was taken. He died there in 1885. According to my Grandmother’s notes, Hannah later lived with her brother, Elihu near Sheridan in Hamilton County, IN, not far from where Mattie and Elwood lived.  

At the end of the letter, Hannah mentions Gideon and Asenath Cox, from Texas. Asenath was Hannah’s cousin, daughter of Daniel Barker (1803-1892). She was born in 1829 and married Gideon Cox (1822-1892) in 1858. She was his second wife. They moved to Estacado, TX in 1881, following his son, Paris Cox who had a vision of establishing a Quaker community there. Gideon & Asenath would have been in their 60’s when they visited the folks back home. Gideon died in Texas & Asenath died in Whittier, California, where she had been living with their son, Manley. One more family relationship: Gideon’s half-brother, Thomas was the husband of Sarah Barker Cox (1801-1846), Hannah’s aunt. The Cox and Barker families had many branches and intermarried through many generations so these relationships are somewhat difficult to decipher. 

So again, I wonder why this letter was kept through the years, but I’m glad it was. It shows how over 130 years ago the family was able to stay connected while living so far apart from each other. 

© MJM 2024