Gifts on Paper

From my personal blog: Gifts on Paper: Cross, Teachout, Freeman

The Freeman Who Isn't A Mystery

Edward Freeman and Cornelia Jane (Fuller) Freeman

In my last post about my 3 g grandfather, Henry Freeman, I shared that he is pretty much a mystery as I am unable to find anything about him after the birth of his youngest son.

Henry's younger brother, Edward, is most certainly not a mystery. While there are aspects that I still am not able to answer,for the most part his life is known.

He was born on 11 May 1837 in Barrows, Rutland, England.  He is listed as a lad of four years of age in the English 1841 Census. He can be found again ten years later as a teenager in the English 1851 Census.  According to the 1910 Census of of Iowa (Clay County) he immigrated to the United States at the age of 20 in 1857.  I have not found his point of entry as of this writing, nor have I been able to locate him in the US 1860 Census.

On 28 February 1862 he is married to Cornelia Jane Fuller, daughter of Abial J. Fuller and Cordelia Jane (Pettit) Fuller in Spring Green, Sauk Co., Wisconsin.  Cordelia's younger sister, Elizabeth (my 2nd g grandmother) would marry Edward's nephew, William M. Freeman (my 2nd g grandfather) 15 years later.

Edward also completed a Civil War Draft Registration on 1 July 1863 in Spring Green, Sauk Co., Wisconsin as did his older brother, Henry.  There is a notation in Edward's registration that "he claims to have never declared his intentions."  There is no such notation in Henry's.  Neither brother would go on to fight.

Their first child, a son, William Jesse Freeman, is born in 1863 followed by the birth of their first daughter, Elizabeth Cordelia in 1864.  Their second daughter, Mary Jane, nicknamed Jennie is born in 1867.  Their third daughter, Hattie is born in February of 1870.  All the above mentioned children are born in Wisconsin, probably Spring Green, Sauk Co. as they are all listed with their parents in the 1870 US Census in that county.

Sometime in the next decade, they would join the Fuller/Freeman migration to Chickasaw County, Iowa.  Cornelia's parents would move there (only two of Cornelia's brothers stayed in Wisconsin) as would Henry's widow and sons, William, James, Edward, and Joseph as all are listed in the 1880 US Census of Chickasaw County, Iowa.

Edward and Cornelia would add another daughter to their family, Anna, born in March, 1875 in Fredericksburg, Chickasaw Co., Iowa.  Five years later they would have a final child, Eddie, who died in infancy.

Again the Freeman and Fuller families would make another move sometime before 1885 to Buena Vista County, Iowa. Between 1885 and 1910,  Edward and Cornelia would live in Sioux Rapids, Buena Vista Co., Iowa and Spencer, Clay Co., Iowa.

Their daughters married and moved to South Dakota.  In their later years, Edward and Cornelia can be found living with their children.  Edward would die in Frederick, Brown Co., South Dakota on 27 February 1915 at the age of 77.

On 29 March 1915, Cornelia bought several grave plots in Riverside Cemetery, Spencer, Clay Co., Iowa. Cornelia would continue to live with her daughter until her death in 1928.  Both she and Edward would be laid to rest in Spencer.

The Freeman family Bible and many, many pictures are in the possession of one of their descendants, as yet unknown to me.  The only reason I know this, is in doing research I came across a query by a researcher who had these items in his possession but had given them to this descendant many years previously.  This researcher was able to provide me with digital scans of a few of the pictures, which I treasure.

Edward's obituary from the Spencer Times, March 2, 1915:

Henry and Edward, separated only five years by birth.  The older brother lives only a short while but leaves a legacy in those who live on.  The younger brother leaves both a personal legacy and a legacy in his descendants.  How I wish I could have known both men.

The Sad Story of Beatrice Fern Cross

Beatrice Fern Cross

Born: 13 October 1897

Died: January 1898

Buried:  Garfield Cemetery, Webb, Iowa

Garfield Cemetery is located a little over 2 miles from where I grew up.  Each Memorial Day we would make our annual visit and place flowers on the graves of our relatives.

Little Beatrice Fern's grave always made me so sad, but none more so than when I took this picture last week.  It used to have a little piece of paper with her name and dates on it underneath the glass that is now broken. Here is this little forlorn grave, now without even that piece of paper to tell the world she lived, if only for 3 months.  That this small little grave stone has survived over 100 years is truly miraculous.  Beatrice was the first Cross to be buried in this cemetery.

Beatrice's father was my great grand uncle, Noah Ellsworth Cross (the middle Cross brother in the front row in the little picture up in the right corner of this page).  He was always referred to as Uncle Ellsworth when I was growing up.  Beatrice was the first child of Uncle Ellsworth and his wife Eliza Ann (Lobb) Cross.  Eliza was 31 and Ellsworth 33 when Beatrice was born.

I have often wondered how devastating her death must have been to them.  Eliza  was born and raised in England, both of her parents having died before she arrived in America in 1889. She didn't even have her mother to console her.  Ellsworth's parents were also dead.  Here is this young couple on the cold prairie of Iowa, in January of 1898, burying their little girl.

Uncle Ellsworth and Eliza would leave Iowa, joining 3 of his brothers in Oklahoma, all four Cross brothers having secured land in the land rush. Only my great grandfather, Henry would stay behind in Iowa.

The rest of the story is not sad for Ellsworth and Eliza.  They would have 3 more children all born on their new homestead in Oklahoma:  Lillian Violet (Cross) Goin, Elsie M. (Cross) Hansen, and Henry Ellsworth Cross.

They would make several trips to Iowa to visit my great grandfather until Uncle Ellsworth's death on 7 September 1933.

On those trips, I wonder, did they make their way to little Beatrice Fern's grave?