Gilman Houseworth Civil War Documents

Gilman Houseworth lived, for lack of better words, an interesting life....he served and was wounded at Chickamauga during the Civil War. Later back in Ohio he was tried and acquitted of being involved in a bar room murder at Waldo....he managed to survive the death of his first wife, married again, settled down in Kenton, Ohio, died and was survived by his second wife and a handful of kids.

Enclosed in this post are about 15 documents pertaining to Gilman concerning his Civil War service, and papers work his wife filed after his death. Some may be hard to read, but you can get the gist of it.

Millwood and Waldo

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxThe Descendants of Israel Houseworth, for the most part, have remained in small mid western towns and villages, and it's been that way since Israel and Catherine pulled up stakes and began their movements westward.

After Bucks County(Israel's birthplace), they headed for Bedford County, PA, then Wayne County, Ohio, on to Millwood(which Israel is reported to have started), Ohio, Delaware County, then Waldo, Ohio, where Israel made is final stand.

After that, the children of the Solomon and Frederick Houseworth clans moved on to Kenton, Prospect, Roundhead, Lima, and other small towns north and west of Waldo, as well as the town of Scott and Blue Creek Township in Paulding County. where my Great Grandparents, Nelson and Mary Ann saw their lives reach the finish line.

I was going to head over to Millwood(it's been about 5 years) to take some fall foliage photos and see if the little berg has changed, but a tossed back has put that on hold until sometime next week.....the colors(with the late fall) should be at or near their peak next week, so hopefully will take a day and head 150 miles east...then will stop at G&Rs in Waldo on the way back for a famous Bologna Sandwich and beer......the town's claim to fame.....hopefully will be able to post some new photos on this blog, before getting back into the family and more documents.

{photos from the fall of 2000...Millwood, Owl Creek, where John Haun and Israel built the first Grist Mill, and G&R Tavern in Waldo, home of the world famous(not kidding, they have been on A & E and other channels) Bologna Sandwiches.....don't think store bought packaged meats}

pat

Nelson/Mary Ann Children Part 2

Elmer Marion Houseworth(1872-1943)

Elmer in some records as Marion E. Houseworth, he was the youngest of the children born in the Waldo area. The family picked up and moved to Blue Creek Township shortly after Elmer was born....the children of my grandfather Sam, called Elmer "Uncle Doc" , and that is what the back of the post card(pictured) shows. He also was listed as "Main" Houseworth in census records...referring to Head of Household.

Elmer was married one time, in 1905 he married Rosa McMillian in Paulding, Ohio. By the time he is listed in the Fort Wayne City Directory in 1910, he was listed as single. Elmer Marion Houseworth worked as a bartender in the Summit City, then spent the last 20 years of his life working for the Parks Department of Ft. Wayne. Elmer was born February 15, 1872, in Waldo, Ohio, and died at the home of his sister Cora Stookey on February 23, 1943, in Fort Wayne, Indiana, he had just turned 71....he had no known children.

Mary Josephine Houseworth(1873-1933)

Mary J. Houseworth was the first child of Nelson and Mary Ann to be born in Paulding County. She married Elmer Siniff of Rockford, Ohio(Mercer County), on November 11, 1891, in Paulding. They had one son, Clifford Siniff, who was born in Paulding on April 5, 1897.

Clifford was the Allen County, Indiana, Road Superintendent for many years, he had a daughter named Beverly Ann.

Mary J. Houseworth was born on November 18, 1873, in Waldo....she died on February 23, 1933(exactly 10 years before her brother Elmer), in Fort Wayne. Her husband Elmer Siniff was born May 20, 1867, and died in Fort Wayne, on June 21, 1931.

William Nelson Houseworth(1875-1879)

William is the only one of the children of Nelson and Mary Ann Houseworth to not live past childhood. He was born in Blue Creek Township on December 12, 1875, he contracted Scarlet Fever and died at the ago of 3 on February 3, 1879. He is buried in an unmarked grave at the Blue Creek Cemetery.

Alva Newton Houseworth(1880-1922)

Alva was the youngest of the children, he was born in Blue Creek Township, Paulding County, He was living with his mother Mary Ann when she tried unsuccessfully to get a widow's Civil War pension from the government...he is mentioned in those documents. Alva was living in Prospect, Ohio, with his brother John when he suffered a stroke in early 1922. He was moved to Fort Wayne, Indiana, to stay with his sisters Cora and Mary Jo, he apparently suffered another stroke and died on January 20, 1922. Alva was 41 years old when he died, and his buried in the Lindenwood Cemetery in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

He, in records I found later in my research, was listed as divorced from Minnie Brown Houseworth at Richwood, in Union County, Ohio, in 1909....in his obit from the Fort Wayne Newspapers a daughter, Rosella, was listed as living in Columbus, Ohio.

Samuel Lawernce Houseworth(1877-1928)

My Grandfather Sam Houseworth was the 10th of 11 children born to Nelson and Mary Ann Houseworth, he also was born in Blue Creek Township, on December 4, 1877. He married Wilda Waldron in Van Wert, Ohio, on September 26, 1906. Wilda was the daughter of William and Amanda Nungester Waldron and one of 6 children, 4 daughters and 2 sons.

Samuel L. Houseworth passed away as a single man on September 19, 1928, he died of Liver Cancer and was 50 years old.

The Story of Sam and Wilda continues in the next chapter.

{photos...Elmer Houseworth on chair...death certificate of Sam Houseworth...Sam with some fish taken about 1920}

The Children of Nelson and Mary Ann Houseworth

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My Grandfather Samuel L. Houseworth was the 10th of 11 children born to my Great-Grandparents Nelson and Mary Ann.....the oldest 7 were born in the Waldo/Delaware County area, the other 4, including Sam, were born in Blue Creek Township, Paulding County, Ohio.

Alonzo Houseworth 5/1/1860-5/6/1912

Alonzo was the oldest of the 11 kids. "Lonnie" as he was known by his nieces and nephews was 12 years old when the family moved to Paulding County. He was married twice, first to Dora Offill on 3/14/1886 in Paulding. They had a daughter named Daisy Viola born on June 12, 1887. Alonzo and Dora divorced, and Dora and her daughter move to Los Angeles, CA, around 1900. Daisy married a man named Willard Windsor Taylor who also was from Ohio.....they lived in Sandusky, Ohio, Osborne, Kansas, and Los Angeles, they were divorced in 1929. William died in California in 1949, Daisy died in May 1967 in LA. Not sure when Dora died, but she was still alive in California in 1941.

Alonzo married Eleanor Mealey in 1904, the had 4 children, all born in Paulding County: Hazel(1905-before 1987), Gertrude Pearl (5/8/1907-before 1987), Samuel Marion (10-31-1909-9-20-1987), and Della(1912-8-30-1912). Della was born 2 months before Alonzo died, and was only 6 months old when she passed away.

Rita Houseworth(1862-before 1922)

Rita was listed a Guerila in many of the documents of the day. She is the only one of the 11 children that I do not have a date or location of death. Rita married a man named Michael Follmer in Paulding County, on July 3, 1881. Rita and Follmer had at least 3 children, two of which were named after their grandparent Houseworths...Nelson(11/14/1887) was born just 11 days after his like named grandfather. Mary Ann was born December 12, 1882, and then Sarah was born on March 4, 1886. The family apparently moved from Blue Creek and Paulding County to parts unknown by me....I have no further information at this time.

John E. Houseworth(1864-1951)

John seemed to have the typical Houseworth "wanderlust" and is tracked moving several times between Marion County, Ohio, and Paudling County. He ended up in Prospect, Ohio, which is located about 15 miles east of Waldo. I find a women named Bertha Houseworth listed on his death record, and one son named Joseph, who was born in Paulding County in February 1891. There are several Houseworths still living in the Prospect area.

John died on April 4, 1951, in the Marion, Ohio Hospital, and is buried in the Prospect Cemetery, he was 87 years old.

Elva Minerva Houseworth(1866-1945)

I have collected a rather large folder on Elva and her family. Information that I have received from her GG-Grandaughter Pam Swiler in Michigan. Elva married Henry Elmer Mumy in Paulding County on 2-21-1888. The family moved to the Centerville, Michigan, area sometime after the turn of the century.

The couple had 4 children, two which died at a young age....they are buried near their parents in Blue Creek Cemetery. Arley(1892-1907) was killed by a train when he and his team of horses where hit near Defiance, Ohio. Goldie(1899-1900), died in infancy. Oral(1891-before 1966) and Mary Francis Mumy(1886-1956) married her cousin Clyde Blank. Most of this family resides in Michigan, Elva and Henry were great Aunt and Uncle of Billy Mumy, the child actor who played in multiple movies and starred in the TV show "Lost in Space".

More photos and family information on this line will be included later in this writing/blog.

Cora Houseworth(1868-1947)

Cora was born in Delaware County, Ohio, in 1868. She was married 3 times, but only had children with her first husband Mac(or McDonald) Stookey. The couple moved to Fort Wayne, Indiana, and living in Blue Creek Township, and Kokomo, Indiana, before settling in Ft Wayne.

Children of Cora and Mac Stookey:

Hazel Stookey Thompson born Paulding County 1890 died Detroit, MI, April 1974.

Oles Stookey born Paulding Co. 8-31-1891 died Detroit in September 1969

Fred Stookey born Paudling Co. 1-19-1893 died Fort Wayne on 1-24-1962

Bessie Stookey Niggemeyer born in Kokomo, IN in 1897 died in Fort Wayne on 12-13-1918

Hazel and Oles both ended up in the Detroit area, and that is where Cora died on December 2, 1947. Mac Stookey was born in Allen County, Ohio, on 1-5-1866, he died in Fort Wayne on February 9, 1923.

Cora was also married to Charles Gooding on 12-23-1923, after he passed away she married a man named Oscar Westfall on 6-24-1936. Cora was again a widow at the time of her death, she is buried in Fort Wayne at the Lindenwood Cemetery along side her brothers Sam and Elmer.

I have much more information on Cora and her children. Cora stayed close to my Grandmother Wilda Waldron Houseworth, even after Wilda and Sam's divorce.

Hazel Thompson had a adopted daughter Roberta(1913-2000), she also lost 2 children when they were young...a son who was stillborn, and an infant daughter. Oles had a son named Gerald(1919-1980). Fred Stookey was a cement contractor in Ft Wayne. Fred was married twice, his first wife was Mary Oth(1896-1935), after she passed away, he married Hazel Bauer in 1936. Fred and his wives had a total of 9 children, the youngest Bessie Stookey Niggemeyer is the grandmother of Bessie Okray, who supplied me with the family Bible information and oldest photos of the family. Bessie Stookey married Frank Niggemeyer(1890-1973) from Athens, Ohio. The couple had 3 children, Elmer(father of Bessie Okray) 1914-1998, Deline and Core Etta, who died in 1918 as an infant. Bessie Niggemeyer died shortly after the death of her daughter in 1918, she was 21{this was at the same time as the great Spanish Flu outbreak}

Della Houseworth(1870-1952)

Della was born in Waldo, Ohio, on March 6, 1870. She married a man named Charles David Cosart in Paulding County on September 11, 1886. The couple moved to Lima, Ohio, in Allen County. Several Cosart families live in the area today. I do not have a list of children of Della and Charles Cosart, but do suspect they had children.

Charles died in Lima on 4-25-1933, Della was the last of the children of Mary Ann and Nelson to pass away, she died in Lima on September 14, 1952.

THE REST OF THE CHILDREN WILL BE LISTED IN THE NEXT POSTING.

{photos....the children of Nelson and Mary Ann Houseworth around 1900...Cora Houseworth Stookey and Wilda Waldron Houseworth(my Grandmother) about 1900}

Nelson and Mary Ann move to Paulding County

Nelson S. and Mary Ann Houseworth, first cousins they were, married on July 12, 1859, in Delaware, Ohio. Much of my early research failed to find a maiden name for Mary Ann. After a trip to the Delaware County Public Library in 1999 I discovered the reason may have been because their last names were indeed the same....Houseworth. I believe that Mary Ann's last name was omitted because of confusion by authorities or family embarrassment(although cousin marriages, even first cousins, were more common back in the day). The wedding photos/portraits posted earlier in this blog were sent to me by a cousin Bessie Okray, a descendant of Cora, one of the children of Mary Ann and Nelson.

Mary Ann and Nelson and the 7 children born in Waldo moved to Blue Creek Township, Paulding County, Ohio, in late 1872....4 more children(including my Grandfather Sam) were born in Paulding County over the next 8 years.

opinion

_______"I believe that Nelson and several other Houseworth family and Felkey cousins moved to southern Paulding County because the Great Black Swamp was being cleared and they saw the opportunity for cheap land and new jobs. The family settle in Blue Creek Township, where the 4 youngest children were born.

Nelson contracted Typhoid Fever and died in the long since gone town of Follmer in November of 1887. One of the Houseworth daughters married a my by the name of Michael Follmer, thousands of small "towns" spotted the rural landscape back then, named after the families that settled them....the location of Follmer was just north of present day Haviland and is nothing more than acres of farm land in Blue Creek Township today.

Nelson is buried in the Blue Creek Township Cemetery(stone posted earlier), records also indicate that William(died age 3), and oldest son Alonzo are also buried there. I have no stone however for either of those sons. Mary Ann was living in the nearby town of Tipton in June 1896....she passed away that September, but I have no official death or burial records.

Blue Creek Township is located along the northern border of Van Wert County in south central Paulding County....it is located on the southern edge of the Great Black Swamp. In the 1800s when the was being cleared and drained, Blue Creek and Paulding were indeed harsh, wet and mosquito invested environments...it is possible that 50 year old Nelson Houseworth died from the Typhoid caused in full or in part by that very environment, however, we will never know(in all my research I have never found Nelson's middle name, only the S...Solomon was common and his Grandfather's name...possible?)

For excellent information on the Great Black Swamp go to:

http://users.ipfw.edu/zeppp/Nature/swamp.html

{photos:Entrance to Great Black Swamp Center in Paulding, Ohio, (L) Much of the swamp looks like this rich farmland in Paulding County today(R) Location map of the Great Black Swamp}.