Matthew Cannon and Jane Fife Cannon of Elkrun Township, Columbiana County, Ohio

     I am going to challenge what has become "truth" found in Horace Mack's book, History of Columbiana County, Ohio which was published in 1879.  On page 131, in the Elkrun Township section, there is a paragraph outlining the four Cannon brothers who removed from Pennsylvania to Elkrun Township.  They are John, Lindsey, Matthew and Thomas.  Lindsey Cannon is my maternal great great great grandfather which is why this paragraph is of interest to me.  Lindsey married a daughter of John and Elizabeth Fife, another early pioneer family of Columbiana County and my maternal 4x great grandparents. 

      What has been taken as truth is, "Two brothers of John Canon were residents of Elk Run,--Mathew, a single man and Lindsey, who settled in St. Clair, but afterwards removed to the place now occupied by his son Mathew." Matthew Cannon was NOT a single man. He was married to one of John Fife's daughters, Jane Fife. Both Lindsey and his brother, Matthew, married Fife sisters.

     I realize some of the information found in these history books is gleaned from current county and township residents.  I know there were Cannon and Fife family members still living in the area.  Perhaps the inaccurate history is due to the fact that there is no marriage documentation for Matthew Cannon and Jane Fife. There are other legal documents; however, that do support their union.

     Matthew Cannon and Jane Fife Cannon are my maternal ggg grand uncle and aunt.  Matthew was born circa 1782 in Pennsylvania and Jane, November 5, 1785, St. Clair Township, Allegheny County,  Pennsylvania.  

1804 Harrison Land Act Map of Ohio
Showing the Steubenville District

     As early as 1805, Matthew was purchasing property in Columbiana County, Ohio through the Steubenville Land Office along with his three brothers.

 

          On April 6, 1805, Matthew Cannon purchased land in Columbiana County, Elkrun Township in Section 26.  He sold this piece of land to his brother, Lindsey Cannon on February 15, 1809.

 

  On April 29, 1806, Matthew Cannon purchased property in Columbiana County, Elkrun Township in Section 29.  This property would be his home.

History of Columbiana County, Ohio, by Horace Mack
page 56 & 57

     On May 8, 1806 the 1st Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 4th Division, Ohio Militia. John, Lindsey and Matthew Cannon were all involved. Matthew is listed under his older brother, John Cannon's Company.

     I put the colored shapes on the Elkrun map to show Cannon properties.  Cannon is marked in orange, although I did not mark one of Lindsey's with orange in Madison Township.  However, his name is

marked.  Matthew's land is the orange square by itself.  

     The 1810 tax assessment above lists John Cannon's property which is a piece that is in section 26 (the upper portion of the large orange rectangle).  Matthew sold the other half of Cannon in section 26 to his brother Lindsey in 1809.  Each of those pieces of property is 156 acres.

 

      Matthew is listed on the 1810 tax list for Columbiana County, Ohio.  There was not a 1810 Census for Ohio.  

Land Patent, Matthew Cannon
January 10, 1812

     On January 10, 1812, Matthew Cannon had paid in full for his land in section 29, Elkrun Township, Columbiana County, Ohio.  Matthew was able to purchase land through the Harrison Land Act at a minimum of $2.00 an acre.  The necessary acreage was 320 acres.  Matthew purchased that amount; however, sold one piece to his brother Lindsey in 1809.  

     On the October 10, 1816 state election both Matthew and his brother John were registered in Elkrun Township to cast a vote for Ohio State officers. 

     There are tax assessments for Matthew Cannon from 1816-1838 listing his property in Elkrun Township, Section 29 available on the Family Search website.  I do want to note that there are several tax records of Matthew's that are listed as Unity Township.  That is incorrect, those records are definitely from Elkrun Township as John Cannon is also there.  Plus Matthew's property is listed as 2-11-29--Columbiana County is 2, Elkrun Township is 11, Section is 29 on what is identified as Unity Township.

     Matthew Cannons 1816 Tax Assessment.  Range 2-Columbiana County, Township 11-Elkrun, Section 29.  160.53 acres in the southeast portion of section 29.   Matthew was the original owner of this property.

     I have been scrolling through the actual Columbiana County marriage record and have seen there are plenty of missing dates.  Certainly in the entire county, folks were getting married almost daily.  I began to see Fife weddings beginning with Lindsey and Elizabeth in 1809.  I think an educated guess is that Matthew Cannon and Jane Fife married between 1809-1815.  

     They definitely were married by June 27, 1816 when Jane Fife Cannon's father, John Fife wrote his will.  John Fife's will was the first legal document I found that pointed me in the direction of Matthew Cannon, a married man.  

St Clair Township, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania
Land of William Fife, Sr and his brother, John Fife

     I will admit that I have not done due diligence on my Fife ancestry. John Fife married his cousin Elizabeth Fife in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. The family removed to Columbiana County, Ohio from St. Clair Township, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania in the early 1800's. John was the son of William Fife, Sr. and Elizabeth was the daughter of John Fife. To be fair, untangling the large Fife family is just a bit daunting.

     John Fife of Madison Township, Columbiana County, Ohio wrote his Last Will and Testament on June 27, 1816.  He mentions all of his children.  The sons receive portions of his real estate, daughters receive an amount of money.  Of interest, he referrers to daughter, Jane as Jenny and Nancy as Agnes.

     Here is the documentation I needed to show that Matthew Cannon was married to one of John Fife's daughters.  "....likewise constitute and ordain my son William Fife and my son in law Matthew Cannon to be the whole and sole executors of this my last will and testament...."

     On page 132 of Horace Mack's book, History of Columbiana County, Ohio, Matthew Cannon is listed in 1820, as a supervisor for the construction of roads in Elkrun Township.  

        

From the book, Marriages of Columbiana County, Ohio

     On page the same page in Horace Mack's book, both Matthew and his brother John Cannon are listed as Justice of the Peace in Elkrun Township.  Lindsey Cannon was also a JP.

     Again, on page 132 of Horace Mack's Book, History of Columbiana County, Ohio is a list of householders residing in Elkrun Township in 1828.  In District 8, Matthew Cannon and Joseph Fife, son of John Fife deceased, are enumerated.  Matthew is living on his land in Section 29.  Joseph is living on land in Section 33 that was given to him by his father before his father died.  

     I will mention here that the Nancy Cannon listed in District 7 is a mystery.  She is listed as Agnes and purchases land in the same sections as John Cannon.  Her name would be Nancy Agnes Cannon.  Who is she?

     My maternal great great grandmother, Nancy Agnes Cannon Orr McCormick was the namesake of two family members.  The Nancy Agnes Cannon purchasing land with her uncle, John A. Cannon and Nancy's aunt, Nancy Agnes Fife.

  

     The tax assessment in 1826 was two pages.  The first page was a listing of land property.  This page is a count of farm animals.  Matthew has 2 horses worth $80.00 and 2 cattle worth $16.00.  Taxes paid were:  State $16.60, Canal $6.80, School $6.80, Road $9.60, County $26.60, Township $3.60.  In total, Matthew paid $81.69 in taxes on his land and $61.20 on his livestock.  Total taxes for 1829 were $142.89.

     Tax Assessment for Matthew Cannon in 1829.  Columbiana County, Elkrun Township, Section 29.  One hundred sixty acres worth $228.00.  State Canal-$86.40, County School-$108.00, Road-$28.80, Township-$21.60 and Poor-$7.20.  Total taxes paid $252.00

     Matthew Cannon, age forty-nine, died on February 18, 1831, probably on his farm in Elkrun Township, Columbiana County, Ohio. He is buried in Jordanville Cemetery, Lisbon, Centre Township, Columbiana County, Ohio.  If you check the Find A Grave website, you will note that Matthew is listed as a single man.  The inaccuracy from the Horace Mack book has been copied.

     The cemetery Matthew is buried in has not been maintained over the decades.  His grave marker was actually unearthed in 1986.  It begs the question, is his wife, Jane Fife Cannon, also buried there and her grave marker buried or destroyed?

     Unfortunately Matthew's Last Will and Testament is not in the Estate Probate documents.  However, his widow, Jane Cannon, is mentioned and named.  His brother, Lindsey Cannon, was named as one of the executors.  Widow Cannon was also a purchaser during the sale of her husband's chattel.  She was able to continue living in the farm in section 29.  

Jane Cannon, Widow

Widow Cannon

     This is a fun page from the sale of chattel.  My maternal 3x great grandfather, Lindsey Cannon, bought his brothers calf for $2.00, my other maternal 3x great grandfather, Joseph Orr, bought a steer for $4.25, my maternal 3x great granduncle, John Cannon purchased his deceased brother's sled for 25 cents.  Joseph and Thomas Cannon were also purchasers.  

     The Widow Cannon had to "purchase" property from her husbands estate.  Some items were, a cow, geese, crocks, jug, 2 tub and set of chairs.  She also bought a grey cott ?  Three others were sold, an oscar cott, and two past? boy cotts.  I have no idea what these are and I cannot find them in the inventory of chattel. 

     Taxes continued to be paid on the Cannon property in section 29.  There are records from 1831-1838.  The 1832 taxes on chattel lists Jane Cannon.  The remainder of tax assessments list Matthew Cannon deceased.

     This is a section of the 1840 Elkrun Township map.  Matthew Cannon, deceased, in red, is marked J.(Jane) Cannon.  In green is my maternal 3 great grandfather's property, Joseph Orr.  The white lines are two of Jane Fife Cannon's brothers, Samuel Fife and either John, James or Joseph Fife.

1840 Ohio Federal Census
New Lisbon, Centre Township, Columbiana County

    Jane Cannon is enumerated in Centre Township in New Lisbon. The area is north west of Elkrun. It is my belief that Jane let out her property to her niece, Nancy Agnes Cannon Orr, who was married to William Morland Orr. Jane probably lived on the farm, too. She may have been in Lisbon for the enumeration either visiting or perhaps she had a house there, too. She is enumerated alone, age between 50-59. She was living in the same area as her married sister Nancy Agnes Fife Springer.  

     I might mention here again, as I first did in the William and Nancy Cannon Orr blog, that it was possible that Nancy was living with her Aunt Jane Cannon after her Uncle Matthew Cannon, died.  Nancy's family was living in another township.  William's father, Joseph Orr, owned property near Jane Cannon, as shown on the 1840 map above.  This is probably how William and Nancy met.

1850 Ohio Federal Census
Elkrun Township, Columbiana County
August 29, 1850

     It was the 1850 census that sent me on the trail of Jane Cannon. I knew she was not one of the Cannon children born to Lindsey, John A. Thomas or Matthew Cannon. The information regarding Matthew Cannon being a single man the Horace Mack book, threw a monkey wrench into my thinking.  This Jane Cannon was born in Pennsylvania and was fifty-nine years old and owned the property worth $2500.00.  Newly widowed Nancy Agnes Cannon Orr is listed as living with Jane Cannon along with four of her five children.  There is a man, Elijah McCormick who also lives on the property and is farming the land for Jane.  Why are these people enumerated together?

     It took days of research and a will and two probate records to figure out the mystery.  Now I know that Jane Cannon, was Jane Fife Cannon, wife of Matthew Cannon, who was not single.  Nancy Agnes Cannon Orr was her niece.  And Nancy's fifth child, a daughter, Mary A. Orr, was enumerated with her aunt, Nancy Agnes Fife Springer in Centre Township.

     To date, this is the last record I was able to locate for Jane Fife Cannon.  She probably died in Columbiana County after 1850.  She was probably buried beside her husband in Jordanville Cemetery.  Sometime between 1850-1860, her brother-in-law, Lindsey Cannon bought her land in Section 29, Elkrun Township.  Matthew and Jane Fife Cannon did not have any children.

I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU. All comments are welcome; however, if they are inappropriate, they will not be published.    PLEASE post your e-mail in the comment section if you would like to network about a particular surname or topic. I will capture it for my use only and not include it when I publish your comment.

© 2021, copyright Linda Hughes Hiser



William Morland Orr and Nancy Agnes Cannon Orr McCormick

     I have spent the past week updating my alpha listing on Flipside. I stopped making additions the first year I blogged....2009. Back then, I figured that since I added a search engine feature, that the alpha list was obsolete. Lately, I have been looking for particular blogs to update or to grab a graphic, and I can't find them using the search engine. Other than getting the list up to date, I was able to find the "holes" in my family genealogy blogs. My maternal great great grandparents, William Morland Orr and Nancy Agnes Cannon Orr McCormick, are ancestors that I have neglected. 

     William Morland Orr was born on April 28, 1813 in Ohio.  He was the son of Joseph Orr and Jane Kelso Orr.  William was the second child born to Joseph and Jane.  Ten additional children joined the Orr family from 1815-1837.

From the will of Matthew's father, Joseph Orr 1857

     I do want to add a note here regarding Matthew's middle name. He is listed as Matthew Morland Orr in his father's will. I have also seen it written as William Morlan Orr. Of interest there was a well regarded Morland/Morlan family in Elkrun Township in the early 1800's. I have never been able to ascertain whether William's middle name was a family name or honoring neighboring friends.

     The Orr's removed from Pennsylvania to town of Lisbon, Ohio, where Joseph was employed as the town's tailor.  By 1828, the Orr's moved a short distance from Lisbon to sizeable piece of land in section 31, Elkrun Township, Columbiana County, Ohio.  The Orr property was not far from Cannon and Fife properties.

     Nancy Agnes Cannon was born in April, 1817 probably on a farm in Elkrun Township, Columbiana County, Ohio.  She was the daughter of Lindsey Cannon and Elizabeth Fife Cannon.  The Cannon's and the Fife's were early Columbiana County pioneers, both families relocating from Western Pennsylvania.  Nancy' namesake, was her mother's sister, Nancy Agnes Fife Springer.  

    When Nancy was an infant, the family removed to St Clair Township, Columbiana County, Ohio.  She was the youngest of three having two older known sisters.  There are gaps between the known children, early in the Cannon's marriage and son, Thomas Cannon, who has no records other than he died at age twenty.  Nancy had seven siblings.

1900 photograph of Cannons Mills

     Nancy grew up in a village named for her family and the business her father ran, Cannons Mills, St Clair Township, Columbiana County, Ohio.  Although the village was small, Nancy would have come in contact with families coming to the mill for flour and her father was also a distributor of homemade whiskey.  In townships close by lived numerous Cannon and Fife families, aunts, uncles and cousins.

     Unfortunately, most records for St. Clair Township have been lost for the years before 1840.  It appears that the early settlers accounts are primarily based on Steubenville Land Records and recollections and stories of family members who were alive when The History of Columbiana County, Ohio was written in 1879 by Horace Mack.  Lindsey Cannon and family had left Cannons Mills between 1840-1850.  

    

     Eighteen year old Nancy married twenty-two year old William Morland Orr, son of Joseph Orr and Jane Kelso Orr, in Columbiana County, Ohio on October 15, 1835.  Reverend Clement Vallandigham, the Presbyterian minister from Lisbon, Ohio performed the ceremony.  

     How the newly weds met is unknown; however, Nancy's Uncle Matthew Cannon owned farmland in Elkrun Township, where William's father, Joseph Orr also owned a section of land.  There was also Fife family nearby.  

     William and Nancy settled on a farm in Elkrun Township.  The Orr's welcomed their first child, Matthew Thomas Orr, on September 8, 1836.  Next, two daughters joined the family; Elizabeth Orr, born 1838 and Mary A. Orr, born 1840.  The girls birth years are approximates determined from census records.

Wm M Orr

     His name on the 1840 Elkrun Census is almost illegible--Wm M.Orr, transcribed as Everall Orr.  He is enumerated with other land owners around his father's farm.  In fact his father is enumerated near the bottom of the page.  Six people were enumerated in the Orr household in 1840, two engaged in agriculture.  As I will note further down in the blog, I believe that the Orr's were living on Nancy's widowed aunt's farm.  Aunt Jane Fife Cannon was enumerated in Lisbon, Centre Township in 1840, not on her property in Elkrun Township.  The family of David Carlisle is directly beside the Cannon property and in the 1840 enumeration Matthew Orr is enumerated directly under David Carlisle.

1 male under age 5--Matthew Orr

1 male age 10-15--Unknown, perhaps a younger brother of William or Nancy or a hired farmhand

1 male age 20-30--William M. Orr

2 females under age 5--Elizabeth Orr and Mary A. Orr

1 female age 20-30--Nancy Agnes Cannon Orr

     Two more daughters were born during the 1840's; Margaret C. Orr, born 1842 and Lucinda Bell Orr, born June 29, 1844.  Lucinda is my maternal great grandmother.

     William Morland Orr died at age  thirty-five on February 11, 1849 in Elkrun Township, Columbiana County, Ohio.  He is buried in Carlisle Cemetery located near his father's land in Elkrun Township.  There is a map below with a yellow star marking the cemetery.  The photo on Find A Grave is mine and I seriously need to drive back to take better photos of all the Orr grave markers.      

1850 Ohio Federal Census
Elkrun Township, District 25, Columbiana County
August 29, 1850

     Nancy Orr was widowed at age thirty-one and had five children to raise alone.  A year later it appears she is living with Jane Fife Cannon, widowed wife of Matthew Cannon, on a farm in District 25 in Elkrun Township.  Jane is her aunt times two.  Jane was her mother's sister and she married Nancy's paternal uncle, Matthew Cannon.

Jane Cannon, age 54, born in Pennsylvania, value of real estate owned $2,500

Nancy Orr, age 34, born in Ohio (age discrepancy)

Mathias Orr, age 14, born in Ohio, attended school

Elizabeth Orr, age 12, born in Ohio, attended school

Margaret Orr, age 8, born in Ohio, attended school

Lucinda Orr, age 6, born in Ohio, attended school

Elijah McCormick, age 27, farmer, born in Ohio

     Mary A. Orr, daughter to Nancy, is enumerated with her Great Aunt Nancy Agnes Fife Springer and Great Uncle John Springer on the Springer Farm in Centre Township, Columbiana County, Ohio.  Mary is age 10 and attended school.

1840 Elkrun Township

     I'm going to address this here and with more detail in a blog about Matthew Cannon and Jane Fife Cannon.  It has taken me countess hours scrolling through land records and wills to put the story of Matthew and Jane Cannon together.  In the Horace Mack book, The History of Columbiana County, Matthew is listed as a single man.  His tombstone mentions the same refrain.  The will of Joseph Fife, 1817 and his own will, 1831, prove he was indeed married.  The piece of property outlined in red is his and following his death, it was willed to his wife, Jane Cannon.

     Perhaps fourteen year old, Nancy Agnes Cannon, either spent time or moved in to assist her widowed aunt between 1831-1835.  This could have been how she met and married William Morland Orr in 1835.  The Orr property is outlined in green.  It think it has changed my original thought that William and Nancy were living on Orr property in 1840.  Instead, I believe they were living on Aunt Jane Fife Cannon's land and William was working her farm.

     You may have noticed that there was a farm worker living on Jane Cannons farm in 1850.  Elijah McCormick married Nancy Agnes Cannon Orr after August, 1850.  I have not found a marriage record for Elijah and Nancy.  They had a daughter, Arabella McCormick in 1851.  

     The marriage was short lived, as Elijah died at age thirty, on September 6, 1853.  He is buried in West Beaver Church Cemetery, Lisbon, Centre Township, Columbiana County, Ohio.  The cemetery is on McCormick Run Road and numerous McCormick's are buried there.  I have not been able to attach Elijah to his birth family.

     

     On March 25, 1859, nineteen year old, Mary A. Orr, died.  To date, the cause of death is unknown.  She was buried near her father in the Carlisle Cemetery, Elkrun Township, Columbiana County, Ohio.

1860 Ohio Federal Census
Elkrun Township, Columbiana County
June 9, 1860

     Nancy, again widowed, is raising her family in Elkrun Township.  Was she able to continue to live on her aunt's property or perhaps on Joseph Orr's land?  Is she living in the village of Elkton and her son Matthew is farming someone else's land while living with his mother?  

Nancy McCormac, age 44

Matthew T., age 23, farmer 

Elizabeth, age 22 

Margaret, age 18

Arabella, age 9

     My maternal great grandmother, Lucinda Bell Orr, was enumerated with the family of Robert Glen Bell and Dorothy Betz Bell in Elkrun Township on the 1860 Ohio Federal census.  She was age 15 had attended school during the year.  She may be helping with housework, but is not listed as having employment in the home.  I have been told by Frederick family, that Lucinda's mother, Nancy, was very good friends with the Bell family.  Lucinda married Alfred Frederick whose ancestors were Betz.   Lucinda must have been also been fond of the Bell family since she honored them by naming her third son, Robert Bell Frederick.  

     Like many mothers and spouses, Nancy spent the first portion of the 1860's worrying about her son, Matthew while he served in the Civil War.  Matthew was a private with Company C, 104th Ohio Volunteer Infantry from August 7, 1862 to June 11, 1865.  

     The first of Nancy's children to marry was her youngest, Lucinda Bell Orr.  Twenty-four year old Lucinda married thirty-two year old, Alfred F. Frederick, on October 22, 1868 in the Probate Court of Columbiana County, Ohio.  Lucinda and Alfred are my great grandparents.

     The second Orr sibling to marry was Matthew.  On December 30, 1869, thirty-three year old Matthew Thomas Orr married twenty-four year old Mary Ellen Smith in Columbiana County, Ohio.  Mary Ellen was the daughter of lawyer, James L. Smith and Elisabeth Roff Smith, who lived in Lisbon, Centre Township, Columbiana County, Ohio.

1870 Ohio Federal Census
New Lisbon, Centre Township
June 1, 1870

     Nancy and her daughter, Arabella, have relocated to the town of New Lisbon in the township to the west of Elkrun.  Her son, Matthew Thomas Orr, was living there with his family.  Perhaps the reason she moved there.

Nancy McCormic, age 53, keeping house, $100 in personal property

Arabell McCormac, age 19, at home, $900 in real estate.

     Nancy and Arabella are living in a house.  Arabella owns real estate.  Either the house they are living in or perhaps she was willed property in Centre Township since her father, Elijah McCormick's family owned property in the township near New Lisbon.

     Nancy's daughter, Elizabeth Orr is not enumerated with her mother.  I have not been able to trace her.  Either she has married or has died between 1860-1870.

     November 10, 1870 brought a joyous event as Nancy's daughter, Margaret C. Orr, age twenty-eight married James F. Groomes, age thirty-four at New Lisbon, Columbiana County, Ohio.  James was the son of James Grooms and Nancy Frederick Grooms.

     Nancy's father, Lindsey Cannon, age ninety-two, died on his farm in Elkrun Township the day following Christmas, December 26, 1870.  He was buried in Carlisle Cemetery, almost across the road from his property.

     On September 14, 1873, Nancy's mother, Elizabeth Fife Cannon, age eighty-four, died on the Cannon farm in Elkrun Township, Columbiana County, Ohio.  Elizabeth was buried in Carlisle Cemetery beside her husband.  

     During the 1870's, Nancy became the grandmother to twelve grandchildren, all living in Columbiana County, Ohio.  

Lucinda and Alfred Frederick

1. Albert L. Frederick--1869
2. William Walter Frederick--1871
3. Robert Bell Frederick--1873
4. Edna May Frederick--1876

Matthew and Mary Ellen Orr

1. Effie Orr--1870
2. Annie Orr--1872
3. Hattie Orr--1874
4. Marie Orr--1876

Martha and John F. Groomes

1. Addie Groomes--1871
2. Myrtha Groomes--1873
3. Harriet Groomes--1875
4. Achsah Groomes--1878

     On December 13, 1879, Matthew Thomas Orr lost his wife, Mary Ellen Smith Orr age thirty-four.  Mary Ellen is enumerated in an Elkrun Township death record.  She was attended to by Dr. F. P. Moore and died from dysentery.  She is buried in Lisbon Cemetery, Lisbon, Centre Township, Columbiana County, Ohio.

1880 Ohio Federal Census
Centre Township, Columbia County
June, 1880

Nancy McCormick, age 64, widowed, employed as a tailoress

Arabella McCormick, age 27, at home

     A new family member was welcomed into the Orr family when Matthew married Libbie Elizabeth Keck on December 18, 1880 in Columbiana County, Ohio.  Elizabeth was the daughter of Charles and Dorothy Keck.

     Five additional grandchildren were born in the 1880's.  Nancy was now a grandmother to seventeen children.

1. Martha Marie Frederick--1880 (My maternal grandmother)
2. William M. Orr--1881
3. Julia Orr--1883
4. Frank Groomes--1885
5. Della Orr--1885

     A time of great sorrow and grief for Nancy came in February 1889.  Her youngest child, daughter Arabella McCormick, age thirty-five, died.  Arabella and her mother had lived together since her birth in 1851.  I have found no death record or burial place for Arabella; however, she did have a probate record.  The only family mentioned were, her mother, Nancy McCormick, her half sister, Lucinda Frederick and her half brother, Matthew Orr.

     Without a 1890 census report or any documents from that decade, it is unknown where Nancy lived.  Did she live alone in Lisbon or move in with one of her three children?

     Seven years after losing her daughter, Arabella, Nancy lost another daughter.  Margaret C. "Maggie" Groomes, age forty-four, died in1896.  She is buried in Mt. Zion Evangelical Church Cemetery, Centre Township, Columbiana County, Ohio.

1900 Pennsylvania Federal Census
Esplen Brough, Allegheny County
June 7, 1900

     This was a fun little find for me.  My maternal great great grandmother, Nancy Agnes Cannon Orr McCormick is enumerated with her daughter (my maternal great grandmother), Lucinda Bell Orr Frederick and my maternal grandmother, Martha Marie Frederick is living at home and on the census.

Alfred Frederick, Head, born May, 1836, age 64, married 32 years, born in Ohio as were his parents, employed as a switch tender, has worked for 12 months, is renting a house at 614 River Avenue, Esplen, Pennsylvania.

Lucinda Frederick, Wife, born June 1854, age 55, married 32 years, mother of five, four alive, born in Ohio as were her parents.

Robert Frederick, Son, born September 1873, age 26, single, born in Ohio as were his parents, employed as a railroad flagman.

Mary Frederick, Daughter, born April 1880, age 20, single, born in Ohio as were her parents, employed as a "scool" teacher for all but two months.

Nancy McCormack, Mother-in-Law, born April 1817, age 83, mother of six, two alive, born in Ohio, father born in Scotland, mother born in Ohio.  I only know of five children.

     The Nancy questions continue.  Was she living with the Frederick's and moved to Pennsylvania with them when they left Columbiana County circa 1895.  I have been unable to locate a death certificate in Pennsylvania or Ohio and no burial place.  She probably was buried without benefit of a grave marker.  I would imagine she and her daughter, Arabella are buried in the same cemetery in Columbiana County, Ohio, either Lisbon Cemetery or Carlisle Cemetery in Elkrun Township.  

Children of Matthew Morland Orr and Nancy Agnes Cannon Orr

1. Matthew Thomas Orr  1836-1909
2. Elizabeth Orr  1838-?
3. Mary A. Orr  1840-1859
4. Margaret C. "Maggie" Orr Groomes  1842-1896 
5. Lucinda "Lou" Bell Orr Frederick  1944-1909

Child of Elijah McCormick and Nancy Agnes Cannon Orr McCormick

1. Arabella McCormick  1851-1889

I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU. All comments are welcome; however, if they are inappropriate, they will not be published.    PLEASE post your e-mail in the comment section if you would like to network about a particular surname or topic. I will capture it for my use only and not include it when I publish your comment.

© 2021, copyright Linda Hughes Hiser



I VOTE TO CONVICT DONALD J. TRUMP

    Let it be known to future generations, I did not support this man or his policies and began to march and protest the day after he was inaugurated.  

© 2021, copyright Linda Hughes Hiser



Mont Mettie Munger and Lucy Wilma Stark Munger

     This blog was originally written as a Tombstone Tuesday entry back in 2009 for the GeneaBloggers.  I have been focusing on my Stark family this past month and need to upgrade my Munger blog as much new information has been found.  

     Mont Mettie Munger and Lucy Wilma Stark Munger are my maternal grand uncle and aunt. I never had the good fortune to know either of them, although Mont died when I was seventeen. My mother did not talk about her extended Stark family while I was growing up. Even as an adult, when I asked about her family, her response always was, "My family is very small." After doing years of genealogy work I have found that her statement is untrue. Granted she was an only child, however the Stark and Frederick components of her background did amount to a large number of folks and they all lived in the same area in and outside Pittsburgh.

     Lucy Wilma Stark was born on November 2, 1886 in the family house, 357 East Street, Allegheny City (now called the North Side), Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.  Her parents were Charles Stark and Wilhelmine Catherine Schwarz Stark.  Wilhelmine has a second blog following the death of Charles.

     Lucy probably had next to no memory of her father.  When she was four he was declared a lunatic and sent to the City Home.  He died there in 1895 when Lucy was nine.  Following his death, her mother moved the family to Avalon, a borough of Pittsburgh along the Ohio River.  

     Lucy had four siblings; Charles Edward Stark, born 1880 (my maternal grandfather), Emily Beatrice Stark, born 1882, Alfred Walter Stark, born 1884 and Dorothy Maria Stark, born 1888.  

     

1900 Pennsylvania Federal Census
Avalon Borough, Allegheny County

June 5, 1900

      The Stark family lived in a house on Center Avenue in Avalon that Wilhelmine owns free of mortgage.  Lucy is age thirteen and attending school.  Her oldest brother, Charles Edward, is employed as a clerk and helping to finance the family.

     There is no knowledge or records for Lucy from 1900 until her marriage to Mont M. Munger in 1908.

     Mont Mettie Munger was born on July 16, 1884 in Frankfort, Clinton County, Indiana.  He was the son of George G. Munger and Angeline "Angie" May Baum Munger.  Following Mont's birth, the family relocated to Creston, Union County, Iowa.  Three siblings joined Mont; Clarence Bruce Munger, born 1891, Hazel Ethel Munger, born 1894 and Edgar Oscar Munger, born 1897.  Mont's mother lists that she had two children die.  Perhaps they were born between Mont and Clarence.

     Mont and Lucy shared the loss of their fathers.  Mont's father was involved in a fight, was struck in the head and sustained a fractured skull.  He died in 1898, when Mont was fourteen.  

1900 Iowa Federal Census
Creston City, Creston Township, Union County
June 15, 1900

     In 1900, Mont was home with his mother, Angie Munger and his siblings, living in the city of Creston at 309 North Cedar Street.  Angie owns the house free of mortgage.  She is listed as a landlord.  Interestingly, Mont's name is listed as Martin M. Munger.

     Between 1900-1910, the Munger family moved back to Mont's birthplace, Frankfort, Clinton County, Indiana.  I assume that Mont moved back with his family and then moved on.

     Recently I found out that Mont was a vaudeville entertainer.  I was able to locate a couple of articles that mention him in 1907 and 1908.  

The Billboard
July 13, 1907, page 9

     Very poor resolution.  Mont M. Munger appeared at the Shelbyville City Opera House, Shelbyville, Indiana on Friday, July 19, 1907.

     The cast contains many well known artists, Mont M. Munger, famous Baritone soloist, member of Hasty's All Feature Vaudeville Company performing at the Crystal today, Tuesday, August 27, 1907.  

     Mont M. Munger performed at the Crystal Vaudeville Theatre, Elkhart, Indiana during the week of Monday, September 16-Friday, September 20, 1907.

     Mont was making his way eastward traveling from Indiana to Ohio.  I continue to look for additional performance notices between September 1907 and June, 1908.  Note that Mont was featured as a "moral" and "refined" vaudeville performer, a singer and dancer.

     

    Sometime between June, 1908 and October, 1908, twenty-three year old Mont Munger made his way to the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area, met and married twenty-one year old Lucy Wilma Stark.  I have not found the marriage record to know the actual date and place of the wedding.  Did they meet at a place of employment?  Had Lucy attended one of Mont's vaudeville shows locally and they fell in love?  The story is lost to the ages.

1909 Pittsburgh City Directory
page 1096

     This is the first and only time I have seen Mont listed as Montgomery.  He seems to have given up his vaudeville days and is employed in Pittsburgh as a stenographer.  

1910 Pennsylvania Federal Census
Pittsburgh, Allegheny County
April 18, 1910

     Mont and Lucy are renting an apartment in a duplex, 224 Euclid Avenue in the East Liberty neighborhood of Pittsburgh.  Mont is employed as a stenographer with a steel company.  They have been married for one and a half years.  Lucy is days away from delivering their first child.

     Wilma Angie May Munger was born on April 21, 1910 at 4:00 a.m.  The birth was attended by Dr. W.C. Allen at the Munger's home, 224 Euclid Avenue, Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.  The baby girl was named for both of her grandmothers.

Granny Wilhelmine Stark, Lucy Stark Munger
and Wilma Angie May Munger
circa 1910

     Mont's mother died on September 30, 1911, in Frankfort, Clinton County, Indiana.  She was the owner of numerous pieces of property in Frankfort and her will allows for the division of said property between her four children.

Wilma Angie May Munger
Baptism October 1, 1912
Bellevue Methodist Church

Lucy Wilma Stark Munger

Wilma Angie May Munger

     Lucy and Wilma Munger have been cropped from a group photograph. I am guessing that it is from my grandparents wedding in 1914. The photographer was, Walter Stark, Lucy and my grandfather's brother.  The little boy behind Lucy is not her child.

1917 Pittsburgh City Directory
page 1855

     Sometime between 1910-1917, the Mungers moved from Pittsburgh to Avalon.  Mont was employed as life insurance agent.

507 Marie Avenue
Avalon, Pennsylvania

     The Mungers house on Marie Avenue had three bedrooms and one bath.  The house was built in 1902.  There are photos on Zillow of what it looks like today.  Although updated, it gives a good look at the inside space.

World War I Draft Registration Card
September 12, 1918

     The Mungers were living at 507 Marie Avenue in Avalon, probably before 1918.  Mont was no longer a life insurance salesman.  He was employed with McCoy Brandt Machinery Company, Penn Avenue in Pittsburgh.  Mont is listed as a man 5 feet 8 inches tall, with black hair and brown eyes.

Fleming, George Thornton, History of Pittsburgh and Environs,
Volume 5, 1922, page 208-209

     This is a snippet of a biography on Walter E. Brandt, owner of McCoy-Brandt Machinery Company. The company stocked machine equipment and carried a huge supply of machines for various enterprises. Mont was either on the selling side or employed as a stenographer or clerk.

1920 Pennsylvania Federal Census
Avalon, Allegheny County
January 2 & 3, 1920

     The Munger family was renting their home at 507 Marie Avenue.  Mont was employed as a clerk in an office.  The Munger's nine year old daughter, Wilma, age nine, was attending school.  Lucy's sixty-six year old mother, Wilhelmine Stark, was a member of the household.  

     On April 6, 1920, the Mungers welcomed a baby boy, Mont Mettie Munger, Jr.  To date I have found no birth records for Mont, Jr.  I have seen his birth listed as Avalon, Bellevue and Pittsburgh.  Whatever baby pictures there may have been are lost to the ages.

Lucy, Junior and Wilma Munger

     These photos I call, "A Day ay the Beach". I am ballparking them to be summer 1922. The Munger and Cooper (Lucy's married sister Dorothy)  families enjoyed the day together. The Mungers had an automobile. I have no idea where the beach was located. It could have been a trip to Erie, Pennsylvania or perhaps they drove out to the Jersey shore.

 

Ready for Sunday School
1923

     Mont, Jr. was referred to as Junior.  I have a few photos of him with my my mother who was one year younger.  

     This is a day journal in my Mother's baby book.  The Munger's attended the same church as my Grandparents and Mother.  I love how my grandmother refers to Mont's car as a "machine".

Cousins sitting on the running board of Uncle Walter's car
Mont Munger, Jr., Martha Jean Stark (my Mother), Wilma Munger
Lois Cooper and Dorothy Cooper

421 Florence Avenue
Avalon, Pennsylvania

     Sometime between 1920 and 1927, the Mungers moved from Marie Avenue to Florence.  This property today is listed as a condo, perhaps it was a two family apartment when the Mungers lived there.

Death Certificate
Lucy Wilma Stark Munger

     Lucy Stark Munger, age forty, died on January 27, 1927 at Bellevue Suburban Hospital, Bellevue, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.  She probably had suffered from heart disease for some time before her death.  Her children, Wilma Angie May Munger, age sixteen and Mont Mettie Munger, Jr., age six, suffered horrendous mental grief with the passing of their mother.  

     Lucy Wilma Munger was buried on January 31, 1927 at Uniondale Cemetery, on the North Side of Pittsburgh (formerly Allegheny City).  Her father, Charles Stark, was also buried in Uniondale Cemetery.

1930 Pennsylvania Federal Census
Avalon, Allegheny County
April 12, 1930

     Picking up the pieces of family life following his wife's untimely death, had to be a struggle for Mont.  This census shows that Mont owned the house at 421 Florence and is renting a section of it to a family of four.  The value of the house in 1930 was $8,000.  Wilma, age nineteen, is living with her father.  Oddly, Wilma's first name is missing from the enumeration.  Mont is employed as a road (traveling) salesman for a paste cleaner supplies company.  Wilma may also be traveling with him.  She is enumerated as a demonstrator for cleaner supplies.  

1930 Pennsylvania Federal Census
Adams Township, Butler County
April 17, 1930

     My question when I saw this census was, where was eleven year old Mont, Jr.?  I found him enumerated at a Children's Home in Butler County, Pennsylvania.  It would make sense that Mont might send his son to a home, since he was on the road for his job.  Still, a very sad outcome for Junior.  To lose his mother and then be sent to a children's home miles away from Avalon where his family and extended family lived.

     On July 5, 1930, Wilma Munger, now known as Billie Munger, married Rolland Larnard Schmucker in Chicago, Cook County, Illinois.  Rolland, called Rollie, was the son of John George Schmucker and Ledah Larnard Schmucker, of Avalon, Pennsylvania.  Did Billie and Rollie know each other in Avalon? Did she reacquaint with him, while traveling with her father, in Chicago where he was living and working in 1930?  A story lost in time.

     Mont became a grandfather during the 1930's.  Billie and Rollie moved back to Ben Avon, Pennsylvania and had two boys, one born in 1932 and one in 1936.  Ben Avon is located beside Avalon.

Mont, Jr. cropped from Yearbook
1937

     It is unknown when Mont, Jr. left the Children's Home and returned to Avalon.  I found him in my mother's sophomore and junior high school class pictures at Avalon High School in 1937 and 1938.  Cropping such a small sizes picture does not make for even decent resolution.

1937 Pittsburgh City Directory
page 1891

     Sometime between 1930-1937, Mont Munger decided to open a retail stationery store in Pittsburgh.  The building is no longer standing.  Perhaps, opening a store and no longer traveling on the road as a salesman, was the reason Mont, Jr. could come home.

     I was surprised to find that Mont wrote two songs in 1938.  And yet, as a young man he was an entertainer and musician.  The themes seem to harken back to a time when his wife, Lucy, was alive and that eleven years after her death, he continues to miss her.

Granny Stark and the player piano

     This is probably a good place to insert a story my Mom told me about her Uncle Mont.  My mother remembers that occasionally the family would congregate at Aunt Dorothy's house in the 1930's.  Uncle Mont would sit at the player piano with a music roll inside playing and, with great showmanship, run his fingers up and down the ivories of the player piano.  She found him very funny.  Apparently, she was unaware that Uncle Mont, was indeed in his past, a showman.

     On March 27, 1940, Wilhelmine Catherine Schwarz Stark, "Granny Stark", died of pneumonia at her daughter, Dorothy Stark Cooper's apartment in Avalon.  Granny Stark lived with the Mungers in the 1920's.

1940 Pennsylvania Federal Census
April 4, 1940

     Mont and his son, Mont J., are lodgers in a house at 415 North School Street in Avalon.  Mont and Junior were living in the same house in 1935.  Mont is listed as owning a stationery store and Junior is a new worker; however, where he is employed is not listed.  Mont completed eighth grade (not unusual for a man his age) and Junior completed two years of high school.

415 North School Street

     Today this house is listed as a single family home, built in 1920.  There are three bedrooms and one bath.  When I tried to loop around to the back of the house on line, it appears that there may be an addition.  The 1940 census enumerates a husband, wife, four sons and three lodgers living here.  The head of the house is a renter.  Not the owner.

     On February 2, 1942, Mont Mettie Munger, Jr. enlisted in the Army Air Force during World War II.

Mont M. Munger World War II Draft Registration
April 27, 1942

     Mont was still living at 415 North School Street in Avalon and owned his own stationery business at 413 4th Avenue in Pittsburgh.  Both Mont and Mont Jr., use Billie's address in Ben Avon as a person who will know their address.

1940 Pittsburgh City Directory
page 1987

1943 Pittsburgh City directory
page 1046

1945 Pittsburgh City Directory
page 434

     Mont, Jr., separated from active service in the Army Air Force on November 19, 1945.  In 1950, he was living in Denver, Colorado.  At some point in time, he legally changed his name to Robert Mettie Munger.  It is unknown if he stayed in touch with his family.  His cousins that I have talked with, had no idea what happened to him.  My own mother never mentioned that Junior was in her class for two years at Avalon High School.  Robert moved to Florida and was buried there in 2007.

1952 Pittsburgh City Directory
page 240

16 Marie Avenue
Avalon, Pennsylvania

1953 Pittsburgh City Directory
page 1099

     Mont moved his business over near the Allegheny River to 138 9th Street in Pittsburgh.  The building is no longer in existence.  This directory also lists his home at 16 Marie Avenue in Avalon.  It was built as a multi-family home in 1902.  I have no knowledge if he owned the property or was renting in 1953.

     This was a surprise when I google searched Mont one day.  Uncle Mont was an author!  Somehow this was not passed down through the family.  In fact, by 1958, no one knew where he was.  Shockingly, a week ago, this book was for sale on eBay.  I now own it.  

   

     The worth of the book, to me, is the dust cover.  I had never seen a photograph of Uncle Mont and the information supplied under "About the Author", gave me the insight into his days in vaudeville.  The content of the book are rhyming couplet poems on philosophical topics with a religious bent.  I have covered Song of Heaven in another blog on Flipside,  Mont Mettie Munger--Writer, Composer, Musician and Vaudevillian.  Mentioned in the Forward is that it took Mont fifteen years to complete the book.

     Mont Mettie Munger, age  seventy-nine, died on June 7, 1964 at Bellevue Suburban Hospital, Bellevue, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania of cirrhosis of the liver.  The informant for the personal information was his daughter, Billie Schmucker, was then living in Summit, New Jersey.  

302 Fisk Avenue
Avalon, Pennsylvania

     

     Mont was living at 302 Fisk Avenue in Avalon when he died.  The house was built in 1920 and recently was listed as a single family house with three bedrooms and one bath.  It is unknown whether Mont owned this house or was a renter. 

     Mont was buried beside his wife, Lucy Stark Munger, on June 10, 1964 at Uniondale Cemetery, Pittsburgh (North Side), Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.

death and burial

On Find A Grave:

Robert Mettie Munger, Jr.

Billie Munger Schmucker

Rolland Larnard Schmucker

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