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Father: George William Hanes
Mother: Harriet E. Altenburg
Milton Wesley Wagner
b. July 25, 1875
d. March 14, 1954
m. Laura Wilmetta Hanes
Oct. 17, 1900 at Harriet Hanes residence, DeKalb Co., IN
Parents: Mr. and Mrs. Silas Wagner
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In the Butler Record, Oct. 19, 1900 it says, "MARRIED At the residence of Mrs. Harriet Hanes, two miles west of Butler, Oct. 17th, Milton W. Wagner and Wilmetta Hanes, Rev. Fresch officiating."
In the Friday Dec. 27, 1895, "The Butler Record", it says, "Miss Metta Hanes returned yesterday from an extended visit with her sisters and friends in Chicago and Milwaukee."
In her mother's obituary, it says she is living in Goshen.
In the Butler Record, Oct. 14, 1904, it says, "Mrs. Wilmetta Wagner and two children, of Ada, Ohio, are the guests of her mother, Mrs. G. W. Hanes, and other relatives and friends."
In the Nov. 30, 1906, Butler Record, "Chas. Hanes and wife, of Angola spent Sunday with Milton Wagoner and family."
May 10, 1907, The Butler Record, "Mr. and Mrs. Milton Wagoner and children spent Sunday with her mother, Mrs. G. W. Hanes."
Butler Record, July 19, 1907, "Milt Wagner has accepted a position in
Goshen and is moving his family to that place."
Her obituary which was published in "The Elkhart Truth" Elkhart, IN
March 19, 1962, reads, "MRS. LAURA W. ATWATER, GOSHEN - Mrs. Laura
Wilmetta Atwater, 87 of 303 E. Washington died in Goshen Hospital this
morning. She had been ill six months. Mrs. Atwater, widow of
Walter Atwater, formerly operated an alterations shop in this community
more than 50 years. She was born at Butler March 8, 1975 and married
Mr. Atwater Sept. 26, 1936. He died July 8, 1958. Surviving
are a daughter, Mr. Virgil Hardin, Lagrange, a sister, Mr. Clara McCague,
Butler, seven grandchildren and 21 great-grandchildren. Mrs. Atwater
was a member of St. John's Catholic Church here and of the Lagrange Catholic
church Holy Name Society. Services are tentatively set for 10 a.m.
Wednesday in St. John's Church. Burial will be in Violett Cemetery.
Freinds may call at Yoder-Culp Funeral Home after 7 this evening."
In another obituary given to me by Betty Geyer, November 1999, it has a picture and says, "SEAMSTRESS HERE FOR MANY YEARS DIES IN HOSPITAL Mrs. Laura Wilmetta Atwater, 87, 313 East Washington Street, widow of Walter Atwater and a Goshen resident for the past 50 years, died at 3:10 a.m. today at Goshen General Hospital. She had been a patient at the hospital for one day and death followed an illness of six months. Mrs. Atwater operated an alteration shop in the Shoots building a number of years ago. She was born March 8, 1875, in Butler. Her first husband was Milton Wagner. She married Walter Atwater Sept. 26, 1936, and he preceded her in death July 3, 1958. Surviving are a daughter, Mrs. Virgil (Florence) Hardin, Lagrange; seven grandchildren; 21 great-grandchildren, and as sister Mrs. Clara McCague, Butler. Friends will be received after 7 p.m. today at the Yoder-Culp Funeral Home. Tentative funeral services have been set for Wednesday at 10 a.m. at the St. John's Catholic Church, of which Mrs. Atwater was a member. Burial will be in Violett Cemetery. Mrs. Atwater was also a member of the Rosary Society at the church."
Notes for Milton Wesley Wagner:
Information from Carl Hanes' obituary. Also information from
Marriage Records. He worked in a packing house. His parents
were S.T. (Silas) and M.A. (Edwards) Wagner. They were divorced.
I have his name as Milton in the Bible Records copied onto sheets of paper.
Death date from: Information from chart that Betty Geyer gave me Nov. 1999. She said she got the report from Laura Dietz N6721 Ridge Rd., Glenberrlah, WI 53023.
His obituary said, "MILTON W. WAGNER Milton Wesley Wagner, 79, of 519 South Third Street, died at 2:45 a.m. today at Goshen Hospital to which he was admitted Tuesday. Death was caused by a complication of ailments after an illness of about 12 months. Born in Ohio, July 25, 1874, Mr. Wagner was a son of Mr. and Mrs. Silas Wagner. He had been employed for many year by the Goshen Cushion and Body Company and when he was a young man pitched for the old Goshen Greys professional baseball team. He was a member of the Masonic lodge. Surviving are a daughter, Mrs. Florence Hardin, who is with her husband, W/O Virgil Hardin, in Germany, seven grandchildren; 10 great-grandchildren; and two sisters who reside in Ohio. A son, Carl, was electrocuted while working in South Bend June 6, 1950. Friends will be received at the Culp Funeral Home from Saturday noon until the hour of the funeral there Sunday at 2:00 p.m. The Rev. Trevor Dillon will officiate and burial will be in Violett Cemetery."
Marriage Notes for Laura Hanes and Milton Wagner:
In the Oct. 19, 1900 Butler Record, "At the residence of Mrs. Harriet
Hanes, two miles west of Butler, Oct. 17th Milton W. Wagner and Wilmetta
Hanes, Rev. Frech officiating."
Notes for Walter Atwater:
Information from Peg Crouch. His death date is in her obituary.
His obituary says, "WALTER ATWATER CLAY TRUSTEE DIES ON MONDAY Walter Atwater 81, trustee of Clay township died at the LaGrange County Hospital early Monday morning. He had been taken to the hospital Saturday but was previously in the hospital for a longer period. Mr. Atwater had served previously as trustee of Clay township and had been active in affairs of the Democratic party. Becoming skilled in highway affairs he was made a district supervisor in the Indiana Highway Department and served several years, part of the time in the Goshen block and part of the time in the Waterloo block. The deceased was born April 18, 1877 in Clay township, the son of Myron D. and Ann Brindley Atwater, and lived in that township throughout his life farming most of his active years. He married Clara Latta who passed away in 1927. In 1936 he married Wilmetta Wagner who survives. He also leaves two sons, Maynard and Marion of Clay township; 48 grandchildren and 10 great grandchildren, one brother, Grover near LaGrange, one sister, Mrs. Elmo (Mary) Neely or Lagrange and one step-daughter Mrs. Virgil Hardin. The funeral was held Wednesday afternoon at the Carney Funeral Home with the Rev. Father Raymond of St. Joseph church and the Rev. L. J. Beaver of the Church of God, taking part in conducting the service. Burial was at Greenwood cemetery."
Marriage Notes for Laura Hanes and Walter Atwater:
Information from her obituary.
Children of Laura Wilmetta (Metta) Hanes and Milton W. Wagner
(1) Florence Emily
Wagner
b. October 04, 1901 d. June 17, 2000 LaGrange, IN
m. Virgil Hardin March 27, 1942 Elizabethtown, Kentucky
Virgil was born Nov. 22, 1915 and died June 20, 1996
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Notes on Florence Emily Wagner:
In the Butler Record, Aug. 17, 1906, "Bessie Aldrich entertained a number of her little girl friends Saturday afternoon, it being her fifth birthday. Those present were Florence Wagoner, Gertrude Worthington, Creel Pugsley, Elizabeth Mondhank, Louise Willock, Berah Rickey, Fredrus Stoner and Quavada Jennings. Ice cream and cake was served and a good time was had by the little folks."
In the April 4, 1913, The Butler Record, "Carl and Florence Wagner of Goshen made an over Sunday visit with their grandmother, Mrs. Harriet Hanes, west of town."
July 10, 1914, The Butler Record, "Miss Florence and Master Carl Wagner of Goshen returned to their home Monday evening after spending three weeks as the guests of their grandmother, Mrs. Harriet Hanes and family of near Butler."
In "The Truth" Feb. 6, 2000 (an Elkhart paper), it has an article about Florence. "NURSING A FULL LIFE FLORENCE HAS CARED FOR AREA RESIDENTS, INJURED WAR SOLDIERS Florence E. Wagner was one of 12 in the 1919 graduation class at Goshen High School. That was the old high school building on Fifth Street, now the Municipal Building Annex. Her name is Florence Hardin now and has been since 1942. She hasn't lived much in Goshen since the 1940's, during the war, but she still speaks of it as home. Her home, since 1962, has been in the house her stepfather built on U.S. 20 at the west edge of LaGrange, right next to his filling station. That's how some members of an endangered species, for LaGrange County, got there. Democrats. "Be careful, they're awful touchy about that here," said Hardin, who at 98 might be the oldest Democrat in the county. Her stepfather, Walter Atwater, used to run the state highway garage in Goshen and eventually ended up in LaGrange County, where he became Clay Township's trustee. In later years Florence's husband, Virgil, served as LaGrange County Democrat chairman. Florence Hardin's is the story of a lifelong nurse who cared for people almost all her life, even long after she quit "working" as a nurse. After graduating from high school Florence went to Goshen College. In fact, she said, all the members of her high school graduating class took some courses at the college. "Tuition was $10 a semester," she said, "but I'll tell you, it was just as hard to get $10 then as it is to get a thousand dollars today." She went on to Evanston, Ill., by train, and studied nursing at St. Francis Hospital, getting her R.N. degree in 1926. Her first job as a registered nurse at Beth Israel Hospital in Denver, Colo. Florence join the Army and was an Army nurse at Fort Knox, Ky., when she met Virgil, who was from southern Indiana, in 1942. They were married that year. She was 41. Army rules prohibited married women in the service, so Florence returned to Goshen while her husband spent the next three years in the European Theater of World War II. "He wrote me a letter every day and I wrote him a letter every day," said Florence, who was then worked as a private duty nurse. The woman she cared for needed much attention. "I had a 20-hour day, with four hours off in the afternoon," she said. Because she and Virgil both married late in life, they decided they were going to adopt. After the war she joined her husband in Germany, where he was part of the occupation force for three years, and there they arranged to adopt a 3-year-old boy. Their son, whom they named John Thomas Hardin, went to Purdue University, became an officer in the U.S. Navy, served aboard the first nuclear submarine to sail under the polar ice cap, and now is a lawyer outside Little Rock, Ark. He's also the father of her two grandsons, Matt, 14, and Jake 11. Virgil, who had joined the Army as a private during the depression, stayed in the Army for 25 years and eventually earned a commission. Florence went to her one-and-only function for officers and their wives when the wife of an "academy" man referred to her up-from-the ranks husband as "one of those." Virgil had a number of assignments after the war and Florence's favorite was Culver; where Virgil worked with the military school's famed Black Horse Troop and taught mechanics. They were in Okinawa when Virgil was discharged in 1962; in March of that year Florence's mother, Wilmetta Atwater, a well-know seamstress in Goshen, died at her home there. Walter Atwater had died in 1956. Wilmetta continued living in the house in Goshen and also kept the house in LaGrange, where the Hardin's settled after Virgil's discharge. Virgil went into real estate (Grogg-Hardin Realty) and Florence took it upon herself to look after people who were ailing or in nursing homes. One woman she cared for in Goshen was the niece of a woman she had cared for earlier. Florence arranged for the niece to be transferred to a nursing home in LaGrange so she could stop by daily. Virgil died in 1996, four years after the Hardins celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. Florence's eyes aren't so good and she uses a walker to get around. Her niece, Betty Geyer of Bristol, checks in regularly and then there's Jim Hart. He delivers her newspaper every day, keeps her supplied in soft drinks and usually stays for a visit before continuing his rounds. "My newspaperman's a saint," says Hardin. There are those who she cared for over the years who would have said the same of her even though she is a Democrat."
Mr. and Mrs. Walter Atwater of 313 East Washington street, announce the marriage of their daughter Miss Florence Wagner R. N. a 2nd lieutenant in the U. S. Army, to Master Sergeant Virgil L. Hardin, son of Willard Hardin of Princeton, Ind. The ceremony took place at Ft. Knox, Ky. Where both the groom and his bride were stationed, on March twenty-seventh. The service was read by Chaplain Macijewski in the post chapel. Master Sergeant Hardin, who is with the 1st armored division has been transferred to For Dix, N. J. Mrs. Hardin will join him there later before he leaves for foreign duty. She will then return to her post at Fort Knox." This information from the scrapbook of Clara Hanes McCague and family. Florence had this scrapbook for many years.
Her funeral was at St. Joseph Catholic church, Tuesday, June 20, 2000. She was buried at Violet Cemetery, Goshen, IN.
Information on Virgil Hardin:
In the Wednesday, June 26, 1996 Lagrange Standard it has a picture
of Virgil with his obituary. "LAGRANGE COUNTY COMMUNITY LEADER VIRGIL HARDIN
DIES Virgil L. Hardin, 80, LaGrange, died Thursday, June 20, 1996
in Lutheran Hospital, Fort Wayne. He was born November 22, 1915 in
Winslow to William and Bessie (Alexander) Hardin. He joined the U.S.
Army in 1936, serving overseas for 38 consecutive months. He fought
in North Africa and Italy, including the Anzio beachhead. He also
served with various units in Germany, Japan, and Okinawa. he retired from
the army in 1957 as Chief Warrant Officer. he was a member of American
Legion in LaGrange and V.F.W. in Goshen. After coming to LaGrange, he worked
at Sealed Power Corp., then started a 20-year real estate career, including
the founding of Grogg-Hardin Real Estate Agency. He served as Chairman
of LaGrange County Democratic Party for 10 years, and as Director of Civil
Defense for 10 years. He married Florence Wagner in Elizabethtown,
KY, March 27, 1942. She survives. Other survivors include one
son, Tom, Little Rock, Arl.; three sisters, Elizabeth Houchin, Stendal,
and Essie White and Evelyn Mounts, both of Patoka, two brothers, Leonard,
Washington, Ind., and Herbert, Nelso, Ky.; and two grandchildren.
The funeral was Monday at Carney-Frost Funeral Home, LaGrange with the
Rev. Lowell Anderson officiating. Preferred memorials are to The
Salvation Army."
They adopted one child:
John Thomas (Tom) Hardin m. Joyce
Morgan Tull Tom and Joyce had two children:
Matthew Kelley and Alexander Jake
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Information from Peg Crouch.
The family reunion gavel was made by Carl Wagner. In the minutes of 1928 it says, "The business meeting was called. The first, upon calling to order was the presentation by Wilmetta Wagner of a gavel, to the organization. The gavel was made more precious because it was the work done by Carl Wagner, and we all know how Mother (talking about Mrs. George William (Harriet) Hanes) did cherish anything made by her wonderful grandchildren."
July 10, 1914, The Butler Record, "Miss Florence and Master Carl Wagner of Goshen returned to their home Monday evening after spending three weeks as the guests of their grandmother, Mrs. Harriet Hanes and family of near Butler."
In a clipping from Betty Geyer (given Nov. 1999), it has a picture of Carl . "ELECTROCUTED Carl C. Wagner, above, Goshen electrician, was fatally shocked at South Bend yesterday while working with a crew of linemen. Mr. Wagner, the father of six children, is a former employee of the City Light and Water Works and the Goshen office of the Indiana Associated Telephone Corp."
I am not sure if it is Mary or Carl that died in 1950. A sheet in Betty Geyer's information she sent me said that Carl did. The booklet was a little confusing to which one it was. Will ask later.
In his obituary in the Elkhart Truth, Wednesday, June 7, 1950 it says, "SHOCK FATAL TO GOSHEN MAN Goshen: Carl Clinton Wagner, 46 of Goshen, an electrician employed by the Clifton engineering Co. of Three Rivers, Mich., was fatally shocked Tuesday afternoon when he came in contact with a cable touching a 33,000 volt power line in South Bend. Wagner was one of a crew setting utility poles. The line that caused his death was a transmission wire between the Colfax avenue and South Bend stations of the Indiana and Michigan Electric Co. A pole tilted as the crew was setting it, and touched the power line. The men stepped back when they felt the tingle of the slight current transmitted thought the pole by the chemical preservative with which it had been treated. Freezes to Cable. When Wagner stepped back he grasped a steel cable that had come in contact with the live wire. His fellow workmen saw him stiffen, then relax, "frozen" to the cable. Edward Poole of Mishawaka, a crewman, extricated Wagner with a grappling hook within 40 seconds, and he was taken to St. Joseph's hospital, South Bend. There oxygen was administered in vain. Dr. T. C. Geracrewsk, St. Joseph county coroner, said death was instantaneous. Wagner was a veteran of Worl War II and a member of the Goshen American Legion and the Reformed church. BORN IN OHIO He was born Oct. 12, 1903 in Ada, Ohio, a son of Mr. and Mrs. Milton W. Wagner. He married the former Mary Miller in 1925. Surviving besides the widow are two sons, Fred; serving with the Navy in the Pacific and en route home, and Robert W., at home; four daughters, Mrs. Richard (Betty) Geyer of Goshen, and Florence M., Mary L. and Dorothy Anne, all at home, three grandchildren; his mother, Mrs. Walter Atwater of Goshen; his father, Milton W. Wagner of Goshen, and sister, Mrs. Virgil (Florence) Hardin of Culver. Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m. Friday at the Culp Funeral home. the Rev. Trevor Dillon, pastor of the First Presbyterian church, will officiate and burial will be in Violett cemetery."
Notes for Mary Miller:
Information from the reunion when Theron, Sue, and Peg were labeling pictures. She was deaf.
The rest of the information below (not all was copied) from the booklet by Fred Wagner given to me by Betty Geyer, Nov. 1999. Fred noted that he "labeled" people deaf not to be derogatory but to be helpful in health history because so many people had this problem in the family.
Her parents were Andrew Miller, b. Sept. 23, 1866 Lagrange Co., IN d. March 7, 1946 at Middlebury and Lamora Ringler b. Aug 5, 1873 Lagrange Co., IN d. April 3, 1954. They had ten children; William, Leroy, Melvin, Anna, Edna, Mary, Fred, Leo, and Albert.....I count only 9.
Leroy Miller (a brother to Mary) b. March 8, 1893 d. March 8, 1896 Middlebury, IN.
William L. Miller was a brother to Mary. He was born Feb. 18, 1892 d. April 9, 1961 Adrian, MI He married Kathryn Stockberger and had four children: James, Chester, Phyllis, and William Jr.
Anna Miller was a sister that was also deaf, born Oct. 2, 1898 Shipshewanna, IN d. Feb 12, 1980. She married Thomas Norton b. Jan 27, 1893 Ottawa, IL. d. Jan 5, 1930. They had two children Julia and Thomas. Julia married Anthony Pascus and live in New Mexico. Thomas Norton married Rosemary Francisco and had two children, Kevin and Sharon. Anna remarried Aug. 23, 1930 to Walter Burris (deaf) b. Jan. 2, 1905 Muncie, IN d. Nov. 14, 1971 in Homewood, IL. They had three children: Ralph, Katherine, and Joan.
Melvin Miller was a brother and was born March 21, 1897 Middlebury, IN. He was deaf. He married Wilhemina Griffin (deaf) b. Jan 21, 1901 Portland Mi; d. Dec. 9, 1975 Goshen, IN. They had two children Rosetta Jean Miller and Frederick Miller. Rosetta was an educator and married to Robert Miller Aug. 7, 1926 Middlebury, IN and have one child Mitchel.
Mary also had a sister Edna that was deaf. She was born Sept. 24, 1900 Lagrange, IN and d. Sept. 21, 1984 in Goshen, IN. She was married Aug. 23, 1934 to Jackson Minar B. Nov. 15, 1901 Elkhart, IN. and died Aug. 31, Goshen, IN.
Fred Miller was a brother, also deaf. He was born March 29, 1906 in Middlebury, IN and d. Dec. 26, 1925 in a train/automobile accident.
Leo Miller was another brother b. May 30, 1911 Middlebury, IN and died March 23, 1987 in MI. He married Retha B. Miller b. Feb. 1, 1911 Middlebury, IN and she died Nov. 5, 1968 in MI. They had one child R. Max (born April 29, 1932, Middlebury, IN and married June 12, 1953 to E. Margarete Dreisbach, b. June 12, 1930 Florsheim, Germany and had R. Max and E. Margarete had three children, Robert Leo Miller, b. Nov. 15, 1959, Albert Wayne Miller b. June 14, 1960, and Petra Lynn Miller b. Aug 21, 1962 West Berlin, Germany. Petra married Nov. 21, 1987 to Steve Dyer b. Jan. 4, 1964 Garden Grove, CA and Petra and Steve have two children Anja Dyer, born Sept. 13, 1988 and Taylor Dyer b. Nov. 3, 1989.)
Albert Miller b. Aug. 24, 1914 Middlebury, IN was another brother. 1st wife: Alice Hays b. Nov. 28, 1913 Bremen, IN and died Nov. 12, 1977 Bristol, IN. 2nd wife: Leona M. Lang b. Nov. 10, 1932 New Albany, IN (married Nov. 17, 1978) They are living in Bristol.
They had 6 children:
Betty Mary Wagner m.Richard Dale
Geyer Betty and Richard had four children: James
Dale Geyer, Jeri Dee Geyer, Janis Marie Geyer, and Jay Richard Geyer;
Fred Don Wagner m. Evelyn Ruth Veatch Fred and Evelyn had three children: Fredrick Don, Jannette Marie, and Raymond Dale:
Robert William Wagner m.Phyllis Orene Miller Robert and Phyllis had five children: Karen Rose, Steven Michael, Gregory Lee, Bruce Ray, and Cheryl Ann:
Florence Melodie (Wootchie) Wagner m.Bud LeRoy Sechrist Florence and Bud had five children: John Alan, David LeRoy, Mark, Paul Alvin, and Glenn Irving Sechrist
Mary Lamora Wagner m. Donald Franklin
Backman They had one child:
Martin Lewis Bachman
Dorthy Ann Wagner married (1) Kenneth Stutzman They had three children: Mary Joan Miller Stutzman, Edna Laura Stutzman, and Nancy Ann Stutzman and married (2) Gerald Eugene Miller They had one child Mary Joan Miller Stutzman (I presume Gerald adopted her)