RELEASE DATE: APRIL 19, 2015
KINSEARCHING
by
Marleta Childs
P. O. Box 6825
LUBBOCK, TX 79493-6825
[email protected]
Another fragile newspaper clipping found in the Opal and Lester Saffell family papers, currently held in a private collection in Lubbock, Texas, is the obituary of Civil War soldier, Erasmus Spicer. The only date on it is a handwritten note, “Saturday, April 17.” According to information on the websites, Ancestry.com and Findagrave.com, Erasmus died in 1920 in Warren County, Illinois. So the article probably came from an Illinois newspaper, perhaps the “Daily Review Atlas,” published in Monmouth. (Some punctuation, capital letters in proper names, and other letters have been added or deleted for clarity and readability of the clippings. All-caps for surnames are used for emphasis.)
“Erasmus Spicer Died at His Home This Afternoon” (Headline)
Death this afternoon shortly after 2 o’clock claimed Erasmus SPICER, an aged citizen residing at 215 North Second Street. He had been in failing health for some time, and while his death was not entirely unexpected, it will come as a severe shock to members of the family and his friends in the community.
Funeral services have not yet been definitely arranged but will probably be held Monday afternoon at 2:30 o’clock from the late residence in charge of the Rev. G. E. MAYO, pastor of Liberty Chapel. Burial will be in the Kirkwood Cemetery.
Deceased was born in Virginia on June 8, 1845, and spent the early years of his life in that state. He enlisted in the Union Army and served one year in Company E, Second District of Columbia Infantry.
He was united in marriage on August 15, 1865, to Miss Sarah V. GRIMSLEY, at Washington, D. C., and to the union, five children, all of whom survive, were born.
They are
Mrs. C. E. PARRISH and Mrs. Bertha ADAMS of this city;
Carl T. SPICER of Chicago;
Mrs. M. BARRACK of Craig, Colorado; and
Walter SPICER of Saskatchewan, Canada.
Mr. Spicer had been a resident of Illinois for 48 years and lived for many years in the Ponemah neighborhood, south of this city, where he was engaged in farming. He came to Monmouth last September.”
This week we include another item that ties in with the HAMLIN family mentioned in the Kinsearching column dated 12 April 2015.
This tidbit has the handwritten date, 1929.
“Delbert SHEPPARD, Claude HAMLIN, Marion AHLSTRAND, and Richard R. PIKE left Friday for Ames to attend the state college.”
(Another undated item, “How Names Change,” probably came from a wire service and appeared in newspapers all over the country.)
“There was a curious transformation of names among the refugees who fled to England after the revocation of the Edit of Nantes. Many of the Huguenots translated their names to English....” For example, Boileau became Drinkwater; Loiseau became Bird; Dubois became Wood; and Sauvage became Savage or Wild. (The rest of the article was cut off.)