Ebenezer Wilson (1805 - 1853)

Born 5 Dec 1805 in Murderkill Hundred, Kent, Delaware, USA

Ancestors

Husband of Sarah Catlin — married 1828 in Delaware, USA

Husband of Ann Mitten — married 16 Apr 1834 in Kent, Delaware, USA

Descendants

Died 15 Jan 1853 at age 47 in Davis, Iowa, USA

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Alan Wilson [send private message]

Biography

This biography was auto-generated by a GEDCOM import. It's a rough draft and needs to be edited.

Name

Name: Ebenezer /WILSON/^[1][2][3][4]

Name: Ebenezer //^[5]

Found multiple versions of NAME. Using Ebenezer /WILSON/.

Birth

Birth:

Date: 05 DEC 1805

Place: Murderkill Hundred, Kent, Delaware, USA^[6][7]

Birth:

Date: 05 DEC 1805

Place: Murderkill Hundred, Kent, Delaware, USA^[8]

Birth:

Date: 05 DEC 1805

Place: Murderkill Hundred, Kent, Delaware, USA^[9]

Found multiple copies of BIRT DATE. Using 05 DEC 1805

Death

Death:

Date: 15 JAN 1853

Place: Davis, Iowa, USA^[10][11]

Death:

Date: 15 JAN 1853

Place: ,Davis,Iowa,USA^[12]

Death: Shot to death by neighbor's son, John Davis.

Date: 15 JAN 1853

Place: Stiles, Davis, Iowa, USA^[13]

Found multiple copies of DEAT DATE. Using 15 JAN 1853Array

Burial

Burial: Round Grove Cemetery or possibly Union Cemetery

Date: 17 JAN 1853

Place: Davis, Iowa, United States^[14]

Occupation

Occupation: Farmer^[15]

Residence

Residence:

Date: 11 OCT 1850

Place: Grove, Davis, Iowa, USA^[16]

Note

Note: #N1161

Marriage

Husband: Ebenezer Wilson

Wife: Sarah Catlin

Child: John Catlin Wilson

Relationship to Father: Natural

Relationship to Mother: Natural

Marriage:

Date: 1828

Place: Delaware, USA

Marriage:

Date: MAR 1829

Place: Kent, Delaware, USA^[17]

Marriage:

Date: MAR 1829

Place: Kent, Delaware, USA^[18]

Husband: Ebenezer Wilson

Wife: Ann Mitten

Child: James Henry Wilson

Relationship to Father: Natural

Relationship to Mother: Natural

Child: Sarah Ann Wilson

Relationship to Father: Natural

Relationship to Mother: Natural

Child: Mary Jane Wilson

Relationship to Father: Natural

Relationship to Mother: Natural

Child: Martha Ellen Wilson

Relationship to Father: Natural

Relationship to Mother: Natural

Child: William George Wilson

Relationship to Father: Natural

Relationship to Mother: Natural

Child: Angeline Wilson

Relationship to Father: Natural

Relationship to Mother: Natural

Child: Hugh Wilson

Relationship to Father: Natural

Relationship to Mother: Natural

Child: Nancy Elizabeth Wilson

Relationship to Father: Natural

Relationship to Mother: Natural

Child: Foster Ebenezer Wilson

Relationship to Father: Natural

Relationship to Mother: Natural

Marriage:

Date: 16 APR 1834

Place: Kent, Delaware, USA^[19][20]

Sources

• Source: S39 Author: Ancestry.com Title: OneWorldTree Publication: Name: The Generations Network, Inc.; Location: Provo, UT, USA; Repository: #R3
• Repository: R3 Name: www.ancestry.com Address: E-Mail Address: Phone Number:
• Source: S53 Author: Yates Publishing Title: U.S. and International Marriage Records, 1560-1900 Publication: Name: The Generations Network, Inc.; Location: Provo, UT, USA; Date: 2004; Repository: #R3
• Source: S54 Author: Ancestry.com Title: Public Member Trees Publication: Name: The Generations Network, Inc.; Location: Provo, UT, USA; Date: 2006; Repository: #R3

Notes

Note N1161Ebenezer Wilson, born December 5, 1805, in Murderkill Hundred, was the youngest child of William and Sarah Wilson. He was named after his great uncle who had been instrumental in raising his father. He received some education and was able to read and write very well. being the youngest, he lived at home longer than his brothers and sisters. When his father died in July, 1828, the Kent County Probate Court named him administrator of the family estate, and his brother Hugh and Daniel George, a relative by marriage, signed the required surety bond for 0.

In March, 1829, he married Sarah Catlin, who was seventeen. When he applied for a license to marry, he and his intended wife did not fill out an official request. Their marriage document was a bonded statement signed by the groom and Joseph George, a close family friend. No actual money was exchanged, but Joseph George would have been liable for damages in the amount specified if either party had not been legally free to enter into marriage.

Ebenezer probably took his bride to the family farm, where they lived with his mother until she died on August 25, 1829. Their first child, born March 22, 1830, was named John Catlin after her mother's family. Sixteen months later, Sarah suddenly died on July 25, 1831, and Ebenezer was left with a small child to take care of. On April 16, 1834, he married his second wife, Ann Mitten (or Minton). On this occasion, John Oneil signed the joint marriage bond with Ebenezer.

In July, 1832, he joined his brother Hugh and his wife in selling their inherited interests in the family's homestead in Woodley Town to Ann Pennington for 0. Monetary returns from farming had continued to decrease for several years, so when his brother suggested that they move west and take up new land, Ebenezer was willing.

It was important that they travel together, since Ebenezer had only one horse to pull his wagon with their meager belongings. The trip was very hard and the road west of Wheeling seemed impossible at times. The inclines seemed steeper for their one horse, and the stumps and rocks in the road were a great problem, but they accepted these difficulties as something to be expected. Both families were devout Christians, and reading from the Bible was an important part of their relaxation. Ann Mitten did have the occasional solace of her pipe, which she smoked infrequently and in private. Truly a woman's pipe, it was small, and shaped like a woman's leg.

After they reached Columbus, they turned southwest on a state road to Cincinnati. From here they followed the Ohio River until they reached the White Water River, they paralleled this stream northward until they arrived in Fayette County, Indiana. Turning to the west, they traveled only a short distance to the new town of Danville. Ebenezer took up land in Rush County, a short distance from Danville. Whether he bought this land or rented it is unknown, but he was probably a tenant.

Ebenezer Wilson, his wife, and son arrived in Indiana in 1834 and settled on a farm in Rush County, just across the county line from Danville where his brother Hugh had established his family. In January, 1835, a few months after they arrived, Ann Mitten gave birth to their first child, James Henry Wilson. They lived on this farm for ten years, and Ann had four other children: Sarah Ann, Mary Jane, Martha Ellen, and William George.

How successful Ebenezer's farming efforts were is not known, but by the summer of 1844, he had decided to move on west to the new territory of Iowa. It is possible that he did not own the farm he worked and decided to move west to the "Beautiful Land," as the fertile territory of eastern Iowa was known. Some of the family of his sister Ann Neill Russell (and possibly Ann Neill herself) had already established themselves in Van Buren County in the southeast corner of Iowa. In 1842 or early 1843 Ann's brother, James Mitten, died, and according to his will half of his land holdings were divided between his sister Ann and his brother Robert. His wife received his liquid assets and the other half of his land. By the time this will was probated and the property disposed of, it probably provided enough to make it possible for Ebenezer and his wife to make the move they had been thinking about.

On July 4, 1844, Ebenezer and his family, accompanied by John Knight and Thomas Price (brother of James Price, the husband of one of Ann Russell's daughters) formed a caravan and headed for Iowa. Besides the wagons, they had a large herd of cattle, sheep, and young horses, most of which belonged to Ebenezer. There was a great deal of rain that summer and high waters made the overland trip through Indiana and Illinois very difficult. The women and children managed the wagons and the camp, and James Henry and John Catlin helped their father and the other men herd the livestock. They finally reached the river town of Warsaw, Illinois just below the point where the Des Moines River flows into the Mississippi. Here they hired a ferry to transport their goods and animals across the river to Alexandria, Missouri. From there they moved north, following the Des Moines River into Van Buren County, Iowa. Van Buren County was formed in 1836, and is named for President Martin Van Buren.

Arrangements had been made, probably by some of the Russell relatives, for the Wilson family to settle on one of several farms owned by Dr. John G. Elbert, a prominent man and landholder in Van Buren County. The farm was located about one mile east of Lebanon, or four miles southeast of Keosauqua, the county seat. Their home was a small log house with a dirt floor and only a fireplace for heating and cooking. Ebenezer and his family lived on this place for two years, after which they moved to another of Dr. Elbert's farms, a little west and about a mile south of the main road running east and west through Keosauqua. The house on this farm was larger, and so was the acreage. Ebenezer also increased the amount of livestock, especially sheep, which the younger children had to tend.

When Ebenezer and his family arrived in Van Buren County they found that a serious boundary dispute between Missouri and Iowa posed a threat to their security. The Black Hawk Purchase, completed in 1834, had included a strip of land fifty miles wide along the west bank of the Mississippi River, which became part of Wisconsin. In 1837 settlers in this area petitioned Congress for separate territorial status, which the Wisconsin legislature approved. Therefore, in 1838, Congress officially established the Territory of Iowa which expanded the Black Hawk Purchase to include "all that part of present Territory of Wisconsin which lies west of the Mississippi River" (to the Missouri River). When the newly elected territorial legislature met it established several counties, including Van Buren and Davis Counties in the southeast. A major controversy developed with Missouri over the state boundaries in these two counties. Missouri's constitution defined its northern limits as the parallel of latitude which "passed through the Rapids of the Des Moines," a definition which the Iowa legislature endorsed. However, a problem developed over the geographical location of the Rapids through which this parallel passed. In Iowa the Des Moines Rapids (sometimes called the Rapids of the Des Moines River) had always been associated with a rough-water formation of the Mississippi just north of where the Des Moines entered it. However, the Missourians were actually referring to rapids in the Des Moines River, located just south of Keosauqua. This resulted in a disputed strip of land about ten miles wide in the southern part of Van Buren and Davis Counties, which became known as the "Hairy Nation" because of the rugged settlers with long hair and beards who lived and hunted there.

County officials of both states levied and collected taxes from the inhabitants of the "Hairy Nation." Many of these independent-minded individuals refused to pay any taxes at all until the matter was settled. Early in 1844, the sheriffs of Van Buren and Davis Counties arrested their Missouri counterparts when they tried to exercise their authority in the contested region, and conflict seemed inevitable.

The farm on which Ebenezer had settled his family was just north of the disputed line. Therefore they were not directly affected. But everyone became concerned when Governor Boggs of Missouri called up the state's militia and Governor Lucas did the same for Iowa, and appointed Colonel Selby as commander of this force. At the same time Lucas sent a delegation of three men, General A.C. Dodge, General Churchman, and Dr. Clark to Missouri to try to negotiate a settlement. This delegation learned that the Missouri sheriffs had abandoned any efforts to collect taxes in the region, and therefore the negotiations could make progress. Missouri officials proposed that the Supreme Court be asked to settle the controversy. Although the Iowa delegation favored this idea, state officials refused, insisting that they were in the right. Eventually, Congress intervened and asked the Supreme Court to decide the matter, which it did in Iowa's favor.

Like most of the other early Iowa settlers, the Wilson family lived on what they produced and could gather from the land. The fireplace was used for cooking and heating, and a major cooking utensil was a long-handled iron skillet with legs and a recessed lid for holding coals. Ann Mitten baked bread and cooked all types of food in this pan. Corn was a major cereal product, and was often roasted, ground into meal in a coffee mill, and made into "Johnny cakes." These breads were about three inches wide, half an inch thick and about eighteen inches long. Most of the regular corn meal, ground in a local grist mill, was made into cornmeal mush, which was used as a thick cereal, or sliced when cold and then fried. In both instances, it was often eaten with molasses. The Wilsons had several milk cows which produced milk, cheese and butter, and a garden for the kitchen usually tended by the children. There were all kinds of wild fruits, many of which Ann Mitten dried for winter use and made into jams. Meat was provided from game and domestic livestock. Pigs were seldom penned, but were allowed to fend for themselves in the woods. Each winter Ebenezer killed several hogs and cured the meal in the smokehouse. He would also render the lard from the fat in huge iron kettles and store it in barrels for use during the year. Sometimes when he killed more hogs than the family could use, he took the meat in a wagon to Keokuk to sell; other times he joined with neighbors and drove a large herd of live hogs to the market.

Although Ebenezer Wilson did not have much schooling by modern standards, he appreciated the importance of education. Where ever he moved, he was active in developing a school district or supporting the one already in existence. The rural areas of Iowa were sparsely populated mostly by subsistence farmers. Therefore, the available schools were typical country institutions usually housed in a single-room log structure. Most were twenty by twenty feet with a ten-foot ceiling, at least one window on each side, and the door to the north. A wood-burning stove was in the center of the room. Around the edges of the room were waist-high shelves used by students to write exercises and place their wraps and lunch buckets. The seats were split-log benches with one section on the east side for the girls and another on the west side for the boys.

There were usually two school terms, the fall and winter semesters. The fall session began on the first Monday in August and ended in time for the boys to assist in harvesting the corn and other fall crops. The winter term always ended in time for them to aid in the spring plowing and planting.

Teachers were both men and women, but most were men. Their pay was determined by the number of students enrolled, and usually averaged from two to two-and-a-half dollars per child per semester. There were no real qualification requirements for a teacher. If they could convince the school board that they could teach the children to read, write, and "cipher," they were usually accepted.

The teacher's authority was absolute, and their methods of discipline varied. One technique used by all for unruly boys was to send them to sit with the girls. A boy hated this as he had to bear the snickers from his peers, and the disdain of the girls. The Wilson children had some interesting experiences with their school-teachers in Van Buren County, which William George Wilson related in his Memoirs.

Religion was very important to all settlers on the great American frontier. Nearly every family had a Bible, often the only book in the house, and the parents read passages from it in the morning and in the evening. Most family activities centered on religious events because frontier farms were rather isolated. It was always a great treat when a preacher visited a home, and he was always encouraged to spend the night.

Church was the center of community social functions as well, and everyone in the family was expected to attend. In many church meetings there were not enough hymnals, but it made no difference since everyone knew the popular hymns by heart. In new settlements, "church classes" were held at individual homes until the group became large enough to form a church and build its own edifice. The camp meeting was probably the most important religious and social event. Every community had an area known as the camp ground where meetings were held for a week in the open or under a large tent. Those attending brought their tents and camped around the site during the services. Sermons were preached in the morning and evening and often several times during the day. While these meetings were sometimes emotional, those attending were sincere in their religious expressions.

Ebenezer Wilson had been a member of several Methodist Churches since his earliest childhood. He was active in developing and supporting new churches in every community in which his family settled. His manner of worship, reading the Bible and family prayer, made a deep impression on all of his children. He was never loud or boisterous but instead low spoken and deeply earnest in his religious convictions. He humbly professed his faith in God and Jesus Christ. His closest friends were equally devout, and when they came to visit with the Wilson family, Bible topics were often discussed. The preachers always found a staunch supporter in Ebenezer and visited his home frequently.

It was his true sincerity that impressed Ebenezer's children to accept his religious convictions for their own. Most of his children joined the Methodist Church while very young. For example, John Catlin Wilson joined when he was twelve, and Sarah Ann Wilson when she was eleven.

After moving to Iowa territory in 1844, Ebenezer was instrumental in building the Methodist Church just a little east of Lebanon. Special spiritual meetings called "Love Feasts" were held there, and all the family attended.

On October 24, 1846, while still living on the first farm of Dr. Elbert, Ebenezer and Ann received their fifth child who they named Hugh, after his uncle and his great-grandfather. Ann had considerable help with her growing family from a niece, Henrietta Russell, a daughter of Ann Russell, Ebenezer's sister, who lived with them for several years, and for whom they had great affection. She was engaged to Swazy Groom, who lived a short distance down the road from the Wilson home. One day his brother hanged himself in Dr. Elbert's barn, which was about 220 yards (40 rods) from the Wilson cabin. This must have had a serious effect on the relationship between Swazy and Henrietta, for they were never married. A few years later Henrietta married Nuetter Rogers, and then moved to Davis County and they were neighbors with the Wilson family.

All the children, even the youngest, had duties to perform, but they were allowed to play. Five-year-old William George had a special ability with the sheep, and took care of them while they grazed in open fields. He was able to identify each animal by its facial features, and they responded to his calls most of the time. Besides playing with his younger sisters, he often went to Dr. Elbert's house nearby to see the doctor's two teenage daughters, Rebecca and Ann. He enjoyed a game they played of jumping a broomstick in a mock marriage ceremony.

When the Wilsons lived on the second of Dr. Elbert's farms, there was a creek nearby, and along its banks were many wild raspberry bushes and hickory and walnut trees. All of the children, especially the girls had additional duties of picking berries in season from which their mother made tasty desserts and preserves. Many of the hickory nuts were roasted by the family as they sat around the fireplace in the winter. One time young William George gathered two bushels of hickory nuts and his father took him and his harvest to nearby Pittsurg where he sold them for five pennies that were used as partial payment for his first pair of boots. It was at this time that Ebenezer bought their first cook stove; no longer would Ann have to wrestle heavy iron pots in the fireplace.

In October 1847, shortly after she had joined the church, eleven-year-old Sarah Ann became very ill. By the thirtieth of October it was clear that she would live only a few more hours. Ebenezer and Ann tried to explain to the other children what was happening. Ebenezer knew that young William George, who was very attached to his beautiful young sister, would have to have the situation explained very carefully. As William George remembered the event: "The day she died (October 31, 1847) father took me by the hand, led me out into a grove nearby, and tried to tell me what was happening to her. I remember that he cried like a child as he talked to me, and this made a most profound impression upon me. I had never seen him cry like this." She was buried in the graveyard near the church in Lebanon.

About a month later, when John Catlin (then 17) and James Henry (then 12) were working in the fields with their father, a rattlesnake bit James Henry on the foot. Ebenezer carried him to the house and John Catlin was sent to a neighbor, Nick Warner, about half a mile away for some whiskey (this was the accepted antidote for snake bites). James Henry was able to throw off the effects of the poison, and within a few weeks was up and around.

In 1847, William Virdin Wilson (then age 23), oldest son of Hugh Wilson, came to Iowa, and for a short time stayed with his Uncle Ebenezer. He soon found work as a carpenter in nearby Pittsburg. In 1849, his brother John Wesley Wilson (age 18) also came to Iowa and after a short stay with his Uncle Ebenezer's family, he moved into Pittsburg, where he was employed as the schoolteacher. While he had less than a high school education, he convinced the school board that he could teach the children how to read, write, and do arithmetic.

The Wilson family was still in Van Buren County when news of the war with Mexico was broadcast. John Catlin, the oldest son, was only fifteen, and too young to enlist. Like many of the settlers in Iowa, they probably regarded the war as a conflict that was far away from them. However, all were electrified with the news of discovery of gold in captured California in 1849, which was made more personal when their young cousin, John Wesley Wilson, who lived in nearby Pittsburg, announced that he was leaving for the gold fields to get rich.

The Wilsons had firsthand experiences with the migration of the Mormons, for the Mormon Trail passed through Van Buren and Davis Counties. For many years persecuted Mormons moved over this trail following Brigham Young's lead in forming a new society in the Salt Lake region. Sometimes they had to camp nearby for several weeks while they repaired their equipment, grazed their animals, or tended to some of their sick. Many of the Iowans, Including the Wilsons, were sympathetic to these people, but on some occasions there were conflicts when some groups would confiscate yokes of oxen, or teams of horses and wagons, because "the Lord had told them to do so." But there was no trouble compared to that experienced by Mormons in Missouri and Nauvoo, Illinois.

The Wilsons knew of individuals who took part in the Underground Railroad which helped runaway slaves escape from their masters in next-door Missouri and other slave states. Many of the residents of the two counties were from southern states, and they vigorously opposed such unlawful activities. Since Ebenezer and Ann Neill Wilson were from a slave-holding state, they could sympathize with the owners, but their Christian beliefs stirred their compassion for the unfortunate escapees seeking freedom.

When the Compromise of 1850 was announced, the Wilson family like other settlers in Iowa hoped that easing of national tensions would enhance development of their region and economic position.

The relationship between Ebenezer Wilson and Dr. Elbert, owner of the farm on which the Wilson family resided, terminated in late 1850. Apparently a dispute had been developing for some time about payments or shares. During one meeting Ebenezer presented his position and Dr. Elbert, greatly offended, exclaimed "You are a damned liar," and struck Ebenezer in the face with his fist. Dr. Elbert was a large powerful man, weighing at least 250 pounds, but Ebenezer, although smaller, was strong and very quick. In the ensuing typically-frontier-type struggle, Ebenezer overpowered the doctor, threw him to the ground, and placed his thumbs in his eye sockets, demanding that he admit that he was defeated. (This was the accepted form of fighting on the American frontier as there were no modern techniques of trying to knock an opponent unconscious.) Not wishing to lose his eyes, Dr. Elbert acknowledged his defeat. Ebenezer came home with his handkerchief over his face, and his account of the event caused a stir of admiration among his sons, and dismay by his wife and daughters. Undoubtedly Ebenezer, a peaceful, devout individual, was also disturbed by the incident.

A direct result of this conflict was that the leasing agreements with the doctor were terminated. For some time Ebenezer had been investigating the possible purchase of land in nearby Davis County; so the difficulty only hastened the conclusion of the transaction. He had quite a herd of cattle and several young horses, as well as a large flock of sheep, and in the spring of 1851, he used most of these as payment for a farm in Grove Township, Davis County, which he bought from a man named Strich.

As Ebenezer and his family approached the village of Pulaski en route to their new home, he pointed out the unique nature of the terrain. Unlike what they had seen in Indiana and Van Buren County, there were wide stretches of prairie-like land without any trees, therefore eliminating the great task of clearing fields for farming.

A practice that had developed during the decades of the westward movement among energetic settlers was to lay claim to government land which they developed into farms before it had been placed on the market for sale. These settlers referred to disdainfully as "squatters" formed "claim clubs" and adopted "laws" which provided that all members would protect each others claim from acquisition by land speculators when it was placed on the market. By 1841 the political strength of the west had increased to such a degree that the demands of the squatters caused Congress to enact the Preemption Act of 1841. This legislation allowed a settler to file a claim for 160 acres of land he had developed before it was opened for public sale, and gave him the right to enter (to buy) the land at .25 an acre after it was surveyed and officially placed on the market.

When the government's survey of the land in Davis County was completed in March, 1844, the same time the county was formed, Mr. Strich, from whom Ebenezer purchased his farm, had entered (purchased) the land under cultivation, but still had a claim to two forty-acre tracts of timber along a creek just south of the farm, and this right of claim passed to Ebenezer.

About a mile south of the Wilson farm, and across the creek, lived a man named Enoch Davis, who had moved into the area about the same time the Wilsons arrived. He liked the timber on the Wilson claim, and proposed that he be allowed to enter both forty acre tracts for the south forty, and when the purchase from the government was completed he would provide a title deed to the north forty. Ebenezer agreed because he did not have sufficient money to enter both tracts (it would have required 0, a large sum for a frontier farmer of that era). Papers were drawn up in which Ebenezer turned over his claim rights to the timber land in return for a clear title deed to the north forty immediately upon completion of the purchase transactions with the government.

When the Wilson family came to their new farm in Davis County in the spring of 1851, their first task was to get the crops in and care for the livestock. Ebenezer and his sons, John Catlin and James Henry, plowed, harrowed, and planted the fields. William George had charge of the sheep and the domestic livestock. The girls helped their mother, and gathered all kinds of wild fruits for preserving and drying.

They were forced to live in the small one-room cabin constructed by the former owner. Whenever they had the opportunity, Ebenezer and the older boys began to cut logs for building an addition to their house. Ebenezer obtained clapboards for the roof and bought milled boards for flooring. The floor of the original cabin was made of puncheons (rough boards split from a log and hand-hewn with an adz). During the early summer of 1851, after the crops were planted, word was sent out that the Wilsons were going to have a "cabin raising," and the people from miles around came to help. Neighbors assisted Ann and her daughters in cooking the dinner for the volunteer workers, and also brought some favorite dishes. While one group of men roughly squared the logs by hewing them, carriers brought them to the men who raised the building. A man stationed at each corner notched the logs so they would fit the ones below and on the connecting side. After the walls were up, the clapboards were laid lengthwise on the roof. The clapboards were secured by heavy weight poles laid across them and wooden wedges were forced between the clapboards and the weight poles. The door was made of hand-hewn boards smoothed with a drawknife, and hung on wooden hinges. It was kept closed with a wooden latch on the inside, which had a string going through a hole to the outside so the door could be opened from without. By pulling the string in at night, the door was secured. The windows were small, but Ebenezer had purchased glass for the frames. The entire cabin addition was completed in one day, except for chinking the cracks between the logs, which was done later by the family. They filled the opening between the logs as much as they could with pieces of wood and then plastered them over with homemade mortar.

Soon after the family arrived in Davis County, they began to take part in religious activities. In nearby Stiles, Iowa there was a Christian Church, and many of its members became close friends with the Wilsons; but since Ebenezer and Ann were Methodists, they worked to establish a church of their own faith. They were glad when a Methodist organization in nearby Roscoe Township formed a circuit of church groups, or societies, in southern Davis County. The Stiles Society was organized by T. Foster Collins (a very close friend of the Wilsons), Henry Collins, Henry Forshee, David Gibson, and Ebenezer Wilson, who was the class leader until his death. For some time they met in different homes but in 1854 a church was built at nearby Round Grove. This area was so called because it was a tree-covered round knoll that stood out in the surrounding prairie. A cemetery was laid out on the knoll where many of the first settlers are buried, including Ebenezer, his wife and two of his sons.

Ebenezer was also active in supporting the rural school, and was elected President of the School Board for the Center School District. For many years its one-room log school was taught by Mr. Rootan, a strict disciplinarian, but a well educated and intelligent man. Several of the Wilson children attended this school for some time.

By 1850 the Wilson household had become quite crowded with eight children and this might have contributed to resentment exhibited by Ann Mitten toward her twenty-year-old stepson, John Catlin. He felt that for several years her dissatisfaction with him had increased in many ways until their relationship had become intolerable. He talked with his father about the situation. Ebenezer who dearly loved his son acknowledged the difficulty, but stated tearfully that he did not know what to do about it. He did agree that if his son insisted on going out on his own he would help him get started. John Catlin found eighty acres of land (it is believed in a nearby township) and Ebenezer paid fifty dollars for a contract of sale, and promised to help his son pay for the farm in any way he could. Ebenezer's other children were saddened to see John Catlin leave, for there was a genuine bond of affection between all of them and their half-brother, a feeling which continued through their adult lives.

In 1852 the School Board of the Center School District voted a property tax for the purpose of constructing a better school building. Enoch Davis, who owned quite a bit of land, protested that his levy was unfair and refused to pay. As the President of the School Board, Ebenezer had to take him to court to force payment. Because the court found for the school district, Davis blamed Ebenezer and swore that he would never turn over the deed to the north forty acres of timber as per their written agreement. Ebenezer took him to court again and the judge ruled in his favor, directing Davis to provide the deed. In order to escape this order, Davis left for California, and put his sons, John W. (the oldest) and William, in charge of his property and affairs.

Davis' sons began a campaign of petty harassment by cutting timber on the Wilson's tract. Ebenezer asked a lawyer in Bloomfield what he could do about the situation, and the attorney helped him obtain a writ of no trespass and served it against the brothers. Late in December, Ebenezer, accompanied by William George, encountered the two boys cutting timber in his section and warned them against violating the no-trespass order. On Saturday, January 15, 1853, a clear, cold day with snow on the ground, Ebenezer and James Henry were getting some corn out of the crib for the animals when they heard someone close by using an ax.

The two, followed by William George, went into the wooded lot, but as they approached the chopping stopped. Suddenly John Davis called for Ebenezer and James Henry to halt where they were and he and his brother emerged from behind a fallen tree with an old cap-and-ball rifle leveled at them. Ebenezer continued to talk to them, and approached closer, whereupon John Davis shot him in the chest. As his father fell to the ground, James Henry grappled with the older and stronger Davis boy, who called for his brother William to hit James Henry in the head with an ax. As the younger Davis boy approached the fray with the ax raised to strike, Ebenezer struggled up from the ground, took the ax away from him and threw it into the brush. He then fell down again, imploring the two boys to quit their fighting. But John Davis had pulled a knife from his belt and succeeded in stabbing James Henry, cutting a long deep gash across his back and side. A neighbor and his son (names unknown) who happened by at that time separated them.

When the fighting had started, William George had run as fast as his little-boy legs could carry him to the house, yelling that John Davis had shot at his father, but he did not think he had been hit. About that time James Henry came staggering to the house holding his side, with blood spurting out between his fingers. Mary Jane and Martha Ellen ran to the scene as fast as they could. They found their father lying on the snow-covered ground in the woods, "praying and shouting the praises of God." He knew that he was dying and he was praying aloud with great feeling for his family and committing them to God's care. He also prayed for forgiveness for the man who had shot him, and then he died there on the snow in the woods.

James Henry was taken into the house where his mother and sisters tried to stop the bleeding, just as some neighbors brought Ebenezer's body in from the woods. Another neighbor rode his horse as fast as he could to Bloomfield (at least ten miles overland) to notify the doctor and Sheriff Samuel McAtee.

The doctor confirmed that Ebenezer was already dead when brought to the house, and he then bandaged James Henry's deep wound. The sheriff talked with the man and his son who had broken up the fight and with James Henry and William George as well. Later that day he arrested the Davis boys and put them in jail.

The yard was soon full of people coming to see if they could do anything to help, and the women brought all kinds of food. Little William George was completely shattered over the incident, and wept all Saturday afternoon until he cried himself to sleep. He did not want to go to church the next day and stayed home with his mother. The funeral was scheduled for the following day, on Monday. Ann, expecting her ninth child, could not bring herself to attend and remained home by the side of James Henry, as did William George, still in shock. Ebenezer was buried at Round Grove Cemetery on January 17, 1853, the day of James Henry's eighteenth birthday.

For over a week, James Henry's life was in doubt. Only gradually did he begin to mend and regain his strength, but he was never as strong and active as before. His need for attention and care, fulfilled by his mother and sisters, helped alleviate the situation.

Having received word of the tragic incident, John Catlin arrived home in time for the funeral. He was deeply saddened by the death of his father, for it seemed as though he was now really alone. He stayed at home for some time taking care of the farm, as James Henry was far too weak, and William George and Hugh were too young.

Realizing that she could not handle the farm by herself, especially since she was expecting her next child in March, Ann asked John Catlin to stay and head the family group. He did not want to, but all the children begged him to do so. The attitude of his stepmother had completely changed; there was no longer any sign of resentment, and their relationship was truly that of mother and son.

There were several problems to be faced: the prosecution of the Davis brothers; concluding the finalization of the deed to the north forty acres of timber, which Davis had refused to provide in spite of the court's directions; and several outstanding debts. John Catlin assumed charge, accepting his responsibility as the oldest son.

On March 23, 1853, Ann gave birth to her last son. He was named Foster, after a very close friend of the family (exactly who is unknown) and Ebenezer after his departed father. His birth was a great event in the Wilson family, and all the children welcomed him. He was "an uncommonly vigorous child," and it was a great occasion when he began to walk at only eight months of age.

John Catlin as the administrator of Ebenezer Wilson's estate, appeared before the County Judge, Henry W. Biggs, on March 17, 1853, and notified him that Enoch Davis had never provided the deed to the north forty acres as per agreement and court order. He asked the judge to renew the directive in the name of Ann Mitten Wilson, himself, and all the children as Ebenezer Wilson's joint heirs. Judge Biggs issued such an order, which included the provision that if it was not forthcoming, he would act as a Special Commissioner to issue the title deed. When Enoch Davis (not yet returned from California) failed to meet the court order, Judge Biggs, on August 18, 1853, gave the Wilson heirs a court-directed title to the forty acres.

There were several outstanding debts that had to be met, and it became necessary to sell part of the timberland. Since the title was from the court, John Catlin asked the court's permission in August 1854 to sell twenty acres of the forty-acre timber tract to Magdalina Augshsbarges for the sum of two hundred dollars to meet outstanding debts from Ebenezer's estate.

About three months after Sheriff McAtee arrested the Davis brothers, they were arraigned before the court, which ordered that John W. Davis be charged with murder. Both were released on bond until the trial date. The Wilsons began to hear reports that John Davis had threatened James Henry, the main witness against him. One time he was spotted standing in the brush just below the barn. Ann Wilson urged her son to be careful and not to go anywhere alone, but James Henry replied that he could not be restricted by threats, as there was too much that had to be done. He purchased a revolver and carried it with him wherever he went. One night there was a great disturbance from the pigpen, and James Henry got up to see what was causing the pigs to squeal so loudly and so long. His mother pleaded with him not to go, for fear that it was a ruse to get him outside where he could be an easy target from ambush. Finally the hogs ceased their noise, and James Henry went back to bed.

When the murder case against John Davis came to court, the brother's lawyer, referred to as "one of the slickest in the territory," asked for a change of venue from Bloomfield. The judge granted the request and transferred the trial to Wapello. The lawyer then asked that the bond under which the brothers were out be continued, and in spite of protest from the prosecutor and the attorney representing the Wilson family, this request was also granted. Reportedly, the Davis' lawyer told the boys that the only way they had of staying free was to leave the country as fast as they could. Suddenly, they were gone, and the case never came to trial.

Enoch Davis, the boys' father, returned the following year. He was ill with cancer of the mouth, but was as hateful as ever and soon died a miserable death. From time to time there were second-hand reports about the Davis boys. Looking forward several years to 1876, John Catlin believed he saw them in the mountains west of Denver, Colorado, at a saw mill and railroad tie camp where they came to obtain supplies. They claimed to be trappers, and called themselves "Happy Jack" and "Squirrel Bill." In the early 1880s or 1890s, one of them, believed to have been William, was recognized in Arizona by a former resident of Davis County. He said his brother was dead, and life was a hell for him. He asked about the Wilsons, and when told they had made it, he said he was glad to hear it.

Finances continued to be hard for the Wilson family. There never seemed to be enough money. John Catlin was about to lose his eighty-acre farm, because he was far behind in payments. After the crops were harvested in 1854, he decided to go to Mississippi along with a close friend named Nelson Ramsey and some other men. They planned to spend the winter cutting wood for the steamboats on the Mississippi River. It was a hard winter's work with very little return, and one of the men stole most of John Catlin's things and money.

A day or so after they returned to the Wilson farm in the spring, Nelson Ramsey became ill with typhoid fever. For several weeks he was attended by Ann Wilson and her daughters, and just as he was making good recovery, John Catlin became very ill with the same ailment, and was also very sick for several weeks. The loving care and attention of Ann and the family pulled him through. At the end of May, James Henry suddenly succumbed to typhoid and did not respond to the care of his mother, sisters, or of a doctor from Pulaski who visited him several times. He died in June 1854. The doctor said that because of the serious wounds he had suffered two years before in the fight with Davis, he did not have the natural resistance to fight off the fever.

During these months of illness, the neighbors for miles around came to help, and virtually every day some lady would bring food. Their men brought their teams and did the plowing and later they came and planted the corn crop. They were real neighbors, never asking if their help was needed, but just coming over and doing what they knew had to be done.

John Catlin Wilson realized that it was impossible for him to leave the family. With James Henry gone there was no man to manage the farm; William George was still too young although he was very strong. John had to let his farm go, because he could not take of it and make the payments. All the children who saw John Catlin as a father figure that was still a brother were glad that he stayed.

On February 15, 1858, Ann Wilson married J. Peter Willis, a close friend of the family for many years who had a small forty-acre farm near the Wilsons' place, and a house in Pulaski. He was very intelligent, well educated, and liked to read. At one time he had been a member of the Ohio House of Representatives. Everyone liked him, and the Wilson children called him "Father Willis." The family moved to the Willis' house in Pulaski.

Relieved of pressing obligations at last, John Catlin married Emley Millum on October 1, 1858, and they moved to the farm of Martin Tuttle (related to the Wilsons by marriage) in Farmington Township in Van Buren County. In the spring of 1859, William George went to visit them and stayed there most of the year. He was a great help to John Catlin, but most important, William needed the affection and understanding provided by his older brother since he was going through some very disturbing experiences.

Early in 1860, Peter Willis and the family moved back to the farm. William George, now eighteen, and Peter Willis, 61, tried to farm the Wilson's eighty acres and the forty-acre tract he owned nearby. It was too much for Peter Willis, and William George was not able to handle everything himself, since his fourteen-year-old brother, Hugh, was not physically able to help.

All things considered, 1860 was good year for the Wilsons. Mary Jane had married the year before and her husband established his medical practice in nearby Pulaski. In the summer, Martha Ellen, now twenty, was teaching school, and Angeline, nearly seventeen, was to start teaching in the fall semester. William George was finally able to find peace of mind by turning to God and understanding the principles by which his father had lived all of his life. And in the fall, just before John Catlin and Emley had their first child, they moved back to Davis County, and John Catlin took over the management of the Wilson and Willis farms.

When the Civil War erupted in 1861, there was a great deal of interest in the neighborhood, and William George decided to enlist as soon as the crops were harvested in August. In the fall of that year, Ann Mitten, Peter Willis, and the Wilson children moved back to Pulaski, leaving John Catlin to manage the family farms by himself.

The war years were anxious years, waiting for word from William George and close friends. His infrequent furloughs were always times of enjoyment. The girls continued to teach school until they were married and after the war William George attended college.

The death of her twenty-four-year-old son, Hugh, in 1870, was a great loss to Ann. It was only partially offset by the birth of her fifth grandchild born to John Catlin and Emley, whom they named Hugh. Foster Ebenezer was growing fast, and again John Catlin was the father figure that he had never known. Peter Willis died on October 7, 1876. The years of birth and death for Peter Willis were the same as for Hugh Wilson, Ebenezer's brother. Ann lived in her house in Pulaski, visited regularly by Foster Ebenezer after he graduated from medical school in 1879, and her daughters Mary Jane, Martha Ellen, and Angeline, who lived nearby with their families. On November 29, 1890, she died quietly, and was buried in Round Grove Cemetery between her two husbands.

1. ↑ Source: #S39 Page: Database online. Data: Text: Record for William Wilson
2. ↑ Source: #S39 Page: Database online. Data: Text: Record for Ebenezer Wilson
3. ↑ Source: #S54 Page: Database online. Data: Text: Record for Sarah Catlin
4. ↑ Source: #S54 Page: Database online. Data: Text: Record for Ann Mitten
5. ↑ Source: #S53 Page: Database online. Source number: 1574.000; Source type: Electronic Database; Number of Pages: 1; Submitter Code: JDH. Data: Text: Record for Ann Mitten
6. ↑ Source: #S39 Page: Database online. Data: Text: Record for William Wilson
7. ↑ Source: #S39 Page: Database online. Data: Text: Record for Ebenezer Wilson
8. ↑ Source: #S54 Page: Database online. Data: Text: Record for Sarah Catlin
9. ↑ Source: #S54 Page: Database online. Data: Text: Record for Ann Mitten
10. ↑ Source: #S39 Page: Database online. Data: Text: Record for William Wilson
11. ↑ Source: #S39 Page: Database online. Data: Text: Record for Ebenezer Wilson
12. ↑ Source: #S54 Page: Database online. Data: Text: Record for Sarah Catlin
13. ↑ Source: #S54 Page: Database online. Data: Text: Record for Ann Mitten
14. ↑ Source: #S54 Page: Database online. Data: Text: Record for Ann Mitten
15. ↑ Source: #S54 Page: Database online. Data: Text: Record for Ann Mitten
16. ↑ Source: #S54 Page: Database online. Data: Text: Record for Ann Mitten
17. ↑ Source: #S39 Page: Database online. Data: Text: Record for Ebenezer Wilson
18. ↑ Source: #S54 Page: Database online. Data: Text: Record for Sarah Catlin
19. ↑ Source: #S39 Page: Database online. Data: Text: Record for Ebenezer Wilson
20. ↑ Source: #S54 Page: Database online. Data: Text: Record for Ann Mitten

Acknowledgments

Thank you to Alan Wilson for creating WikiTree profile Wilson-15597 through the import of LWilson_tree_100208_2013-10-12.ged on Oct 12, 2013. Click to the Changes page for the details of edits by Alan and others.