I found this letter a few years ago. I found it fascinating, because it confirmed relations and knowledge of those relations that had been lost to time. This will probably be most interesting to local folks, as they will recognize some of the names and descendants as I start explaining the letter.
This letter is written to Sarah Jane (Garretson) Creighton (1841 - 1920) from her niece (by marriage) Elizabeth (Lizzie) Creighton (1871-1941). Keep in mind that they lived in the same county but at this time, I’m guessing about 15 miles apart.
Lizzie is informing her aunt of her sister’s death. She passed the afternoon of April 19th and she was buried the next day. The funeral service was held at the house conducted by the local preacher from Mt. Horeb church, perhaps a mile down the big hill from where they lived.
It had me a bit confused as to why Lizzie was the one informing her aunt, by marriage, of the sister’s passing. That seemed to me like a task normally left to someone in the Garretson family. Of course, then I had to look up information about this sister.
The sister who passed was Rebecca Garretson (1845 - 1886). She was married to a Civil War Veteran named Leander Davis. aha! Leander was the first cousin of Sarah Jane’s husband, Richard Creighton.
I suspect the “Sally” that Rebecca asked to care for her daughters was Sarah “Sally” Creighton. The three daughters were Luella “Ella” Madeline Davis (1974 - 1950), Elizabeth “Libby” J. Davis (1877 - 1898), and Sarah Ann “Sadie” Davis (1881 - 1960). Sally was also raising Lizzie, because Lizzie’s own mother had passed when she was only about 18 months old and the father was “unknown.”
I find the mention of a summer school interesting. These were farm kids, so perhaps there was a short session before harvest. I think it’s the first time I’ve ever heard of summer school back then.
Now, keep in mind this is all on my grandma’s paternal line.
But then…
Sadie grows up and marries Forrest Berry, my grandma’s uncle on her maternal side, in 1907. Forrest passed in 1929 from his appendix, leaving Sadie with two sons: Leander Davis Berry and Robert Monroe Berry.
For the locals:
If anyone ventures into the local Diner, you’ll notice Leander Berry’s high school diploma hanging on the wall.
Yes, this is the same Davis family as the current township trustee.
Thanks for joining me at The Creighton Cabin. All of this would have been occurring while James and Catharine kept the home fires burning at The Cabin. Their own three children would have been pre-teen and teenagers. It gives you a sense of what life was like. Finding old letters adds so much color to just names and dates of local history and genealogy.
Until next time…
Considering I was a kid in the 1950s--some of our neighbors and family were born in the 1880s and 1890s-- they were alive in the 50s and I remember them; this is a dear letter to read. Thank you for sharing it. When I was younger a lot of letters included some excuse for mistakes, in a hurry to go somewhere or limited in time or other circumstances somehow. It was a humble apology understood and well received.
Crystal, what a cool find! I love that you have shared this with us!