Alternate Spellings - None found
Links - Myers, Sloan (for marriage of Amanda Looser to Samuel Nelson)
Contacts - Al Wyckoff is descended from Andrew and Clara Peterson Nelson;
Jamie Dawn Nelson Paul is a descendant of William Perry Myers and has much information on the family. She has family photos. See the Myers-Nelson Family Web Site.
Nelson Page in progress - started 4/27/2011
Andrew and Clara Peterson Nelson
Al Wyckoff sent us an obituary of Samuel T. Nelson in 2002 from his research of the Nelson family. It states that "Mr. Nelson was a native and life long resident of Mercer County, born in New Boston township Aug 20, 1861. He was the son of Andrew and Clara Peterson Nelson, natives of Sweden, who came to the United states in 1852, locating in New Boston Township that same year."
This obituary was extremely helpful in identifying the correct family related to New Boston Township. Unfortunately both "Andrew" and "Nelson" are fairly common names and we find more than one Andrew Nelson family in Mercer County in census records. In 1870 there is an Andrew and Hannah Nelson family in Aledo with children John, 13, Ida, 10, Josephene, 7, and Caroline, 3. The family we are interested in is found in Eliza Township in 1870 #156: Andrew Nelson, 44, born Sweden; Clara, 45, born Sweden; Maria, 15, Il; Albert, 13, Il; Clarinda, 11, Il; Samuel, 9, Il; Amanda, 5, Il; Alice, 1, Il; Augustus, 17, Il, assists on farm. The relationship of Augustus to the family is not really clear, but we do find a Gust Nelson, age 26, next to the Anderson Nelson family in Eliza Township, in 1880, so perhaps he is another son of the family.
In 1880 in District 174, Eliza Township, we find #99 Anderson Nelson, 54, farmer, born Sweden; Clara, 56, born Sweden; Albert, 23, born Il; Samuel, 18, Il; Amanda, 15, Il; Alice, 20, Il. At #100 we find Gust Nelson, 26, Il; Christine, 20, born Sweden and this appears to be the Augustus that was with the family in the 1870 census.
Due to dozens of people with the surname Nelson the marriage records of Mercer County are another nightmare in researching these families so we will only include those that we are fairly certain of. We find Samuel Theodore Nelson married to Amanda Jane Looser, on 9/17/1889. This marriage is confirmed by tombstones next to each other in Eliza Creek Cemetery: Samuel T. Nelson 1861-1934 and Amanda J. Nelson 1866-1942. With them is Pearl I. Nelson 1898-1957. Near them we find the tombstones of Andrew Nelson, born Feb 1, 1826, died March 2, 1911, and Clara, wife of Andrew Nelson, died December 76, 1894 age 70 years 1 mo 17dys. Next to them is Clarinda, daughter of A & C Nelson, died Oct 5, 1877, age 18y 5m 22d. There are photos of some of the tombstones on the Eliza Creek Cemetery page.
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