Henry Hiram Wilky (1838-1900) - Farmer

 

PCA Archives

Henry Wilky began life as Heinrich Wilke.  He was born on January 8, 1838, in Duchy of Brunswick (Braunschweig), Germany, to a farm family.

Germany saw much political turmoil in the following years, as a revolution in 1848 failed and Prussia became the most powerful of Germany’s many duchies.  Europe was also undergoing an industrial revolution, as farms with mechanized equipment were soon outcompeting small farms that depended on hand labor.  Prussia’s imperial ambitions also led to the conscription of young men into the military.  Wilke may have left Braunschweig for any of these reasons.

He arrived in New Orleans in 1855 and made his way up the Mississippi River to Burton, Adams County, Illinois, where he found employment on the farm of Peter Rump.  The Rumps were originally from Hanover--only 40 miles from Braunschweig. 

Henry obviously intended to remain in the United States, as he filed a naturalization petition in 1860.  By 1861, he had a farm of his own and, on April 2^nd, he married Sophia Lutgerding, a neighbor.  She was the daughter of George Lutgerding and Elizabeth Rump (possibly a relative of Peter Rump) of Adams County, Illinois.

The Wilkys had six children:  George L., born 1862; William H., born 1865; Frederick Daniel, born 1867; John Adolph, born 1870; Clara Ellen, born 1877: and Lena Madelia, born 1880.  The family very likely spoke German at home.  By 1870, they had moved to Marion County, Missouri, where the census recorded them as Wilkys.

By 1882, the oldest Wilky sons were adults and needed farms of their own.  Henry and Sophia sold their property in Missouri and came by train to Maricopa in November.  From Maricopa, they traveled by wagon to Phoenix.   At first, they homesteaded in the area of 99^th Ave and Indian School but, due to lack of water, they had to move to about 67^th Ave and Indian School.

The Wilkys’ last years were marked by the loss of close relatives.  Their son John Adolph died in 1886 and son Frederick Daniel in 1900.   Henry Wilky himself died on December 22, 1900, of septicemia.  He was buried in the family plot in City Loosley Cemetery.  Sophia followed him in 1908.

The Wilkys’ descendants prospered in Arizona.   More than a century after their arrival in the Valley of the Sun, they generously donated funds for a wrought iron arch for Rosedale Cemetery.

- by Donna L. Carr

 

William Lindsey George (1832-1897) - Farmer and Contractor

 

PCA Archive

William Lindsey George was born April 29, 1832, in Shelby County, Kentucky, to James Whitefield George and Frances Booker, farmers.  The Georges had a total of eleven children.

Shelby County was not far from Louisville—and the Ohio River.  Many of Kentucky’s agricultural products were floated down the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers on flatboats to New Orleans.  So, after faraway Texas became a state, the Georges moved there, settling in Guadalupe around 1854.

William married Eliza LeGette in about 1858 and they soon had an infant son, James.  The federal census of 1860 records the family farming in New Braunfels, Comal County, Texas.  William’s parents and younger siblings lived on a ranch not far away.

After the outbreak of the Civil War, William waited until March 26, 1862, when he enlisted in Seguin, Texas.  He was assigned to Company K, 8th Texas Infantry, CSA, later under the command of Colonel Ireland.  The 8th Texas Infantry served in East Texas throughout the war, so William was able to visit his family occasionally.  His wife Eliza gave birth to son Henry in September, 1862, and to William Jr. in March 1864.  At the end of the war, William was discharged with the rank of captain.

Big events were taking place on the Great Plains, as the Transcontinental Railroad pushed westward.  By 1870, the entire George family had moved to Kansas City, where they worked as cattle traders.  William even became (briefly) the president of a Kansas City bank.

In 1886, the Georges moved to Arizona, where William ran a freighting business and became involved in building railroads, canals and reservoirs.  He was one of the contractors who built the Gila Bend canal and the Agua Fria reservoir.

As a prominent businessman, William maintained a keen interest in local politics and was several times asked to run for office.  In 1888, he yielded to voters’ entreaties but bowed out rather than stoop to the kind of unethical behavior needed to get elected.  Thereafter, he was elected to the County Board of Supervisors strictly on his merits.

In August 1897, William experienced a couple of angina attacks.  Although the attacks passed, his doctor advised him to send for his wife, who was in California.  She arrived in Phoenix just five hours before William died early in the morning of August 20th. 

The funeral sermon was preached by Rev. W. E. Vaughan of the Methodist Episcopal church.  A modest man, William had previously requested that there be no empty eulogies, but his friends and business associates attested to his honesty and moral uprightness.   He was buried near his brother James Benjamin in Porter Cemetery, Block 41, space B. 

by Donna L. Carr 

Candido Diaz (1889-1919) - Copper Miner and Farmer

 

Courtesy of Grand Daughter

Candido Diaz was born February 2, 1889, in San Juan de Los Lagos, Jalisco, Mexico.   He was the oldest of ten children born to Juan Diaz and Maria del Refugio Garcia.

On January 17, 1913, he married Candida Guzman of the same town.  The young couple is believed to have had two little daughters, although only the second, Maria Engracia, has a birth record.  She was born on April 3, 1915, and christened a few days later.

The Mexican Revolution, which began in 1910, lasted until 1920.   Perhaps the Diazes hoped to avoid being drawn into the fighting.  By 1917, they were living in Tyrone, New Mexico, a mining town run by Phelps Dodge Corporation.  Supposedly, their first daughter died there.

In 1919, Diaz was a copper miner and farmer in Miami, Arizona, another Phelps Dodge town.  When he contracted influenza, he was taken to St. Joseph's Hospital in Phoenix, where he died on February 7.

The virulence of the Spanish Flu epidemic made immediate burial necessary. His wife Candida, who spoke only Spanish, had to rely upon English-speaking strangers to make the arrangements. She never knew exactly where her husband was buried.

Nevertheless, Candido's story was passed on for nearly a century, until his grand- daughter, Dolores “Lola” Mendez, found his death certificate on line.  As was often the case with Mexican names, Diaz's death certificate was incorrectly filed; it’s under 'Candido Garcia'4, his mother’s maiden name.  Still, it was possible to positively identify him by the date of death.   He had been buried in the Maricopa County Cemetery, now known as Cementerio Lindo.

Although Candido Diaz has no grave marker and the exact location of his grave is forever unknown, his family is relieved to know that he was accorded a Christian burial and rests beside so many other victims of the influenza epidemic.

- by Donna L. Carr

 

#9 Mary A. List Mosier (1843-1897) - Farmer’s Wife

 

PCA Archives

Mary Ann List was born August 15, 1843, in Pennsylvania.  She was the oldest of seven children belonging to David J. List and Ursula Newell.

The Lists had moved to Lee County, Iowa, by 1858, when Mary Ann married Benedict Mosier at the tender age of fifteen.  Soon thereafter, the young couple moved to Tyler Township, Hickory County, Missouri, where Mary Ann bore eleven children between 1860 and 1875.  Six survived to adulthood.  The Mosiers were farmers and, apparently, quite successful ones.  Mary Ann’s parents moved to Missouri at about the same time.

In the summer of 1861, Benedict Mosier enlisted in Company C, 8th Missouri State Militia Cavalry, serving in Captain William C. Human’s company.  The mission of the regiment was to prevent Confederate forces from establishing a foothold in southwestern Missouri.  The soldiers went on numerous scouting patrols and engaged in a few skirmishes.  Since Mosier’s duties kept him fairly close to home, he was able to make periodic visits to his family. 

Mary Ann’s father, David List, served in the same regiment although he was more than forty years old at the time.  He died in Missouri in 1868, leaving his wife and five children.

Although the Mosiers had a productive farm in Missouri, they moved to Arizona around 1884, as did Mary Ann’s widowed mother and several of her siblings.  Possibly the Mosiers’ son Sydney was ill and required a warm, dry climate.  He died on 30 May 1886 and was buried in City Loosley Cemetery.

Mary Ann undoubtedly lived the life of a farmer’s wife.  In addition to the usual household chores, she occasionally worked in the fields and forked hay for the cattle.

Late in life, Mary Ann developed heart problems.  In April 1897, she resigned her position as a Sunday School teacher because of ill health.  While driving home on 14 December 1897, she apparently suffered a stroke.  A neighbor moving cattle noticed that the horse and buggy had stopped in the road and came to her aid, but attempts to revive Mary Ann failed.  She too was buried in City Loosley Cemetery.

Following Mary’s death, Benedict Mosier was much chagrined to learn that Arizona was a community property state and that Mary’s property would be split between him and their children.  It had never occurred to him that his late wife owned anything, much less half of the marital assets.

Mary Ann’s mother, Ursula Newell List, outlived her, dying in Glendale, Arizona, in 1906.

Benedict died on 4 October 1908 and was buried in the family plot in City Loosley.

-by Donna Carr

 

 

Magdalena Mendivil Donnelly (1830 - 1905) - Rancher’s Wife

PCA Archives

Maria Magdalena Mendivil was born sometime between 1832 and 1839 in Altar, Sonora, Mexico.  She came north around 1857 with three of her brothers.  While her brothers went on to Monterey, California, in search of work, Magdalena remained with family friends in Yuma.  By the time the brothers returned, however, they found that Magdalena had moved in with George Kippen, an agent for a mining company, who was about twenty years older than she.

To date, no record of an actual marriage has been found.  Very likely this was because George Kippen was already married to Jane A. Nichols of Fairfield County, Connecticut, by whom he had three children.   Sometime after the birth of the third child, George left Connecticut for good.  By 1852, he was working as a miner in California.

The 1860 federal census of Colorado, San Diego County, California, shows George Kippen and Madalena Maldives [sic] living there in the same household, although not married.  Their first son John was born 1860.  John was quickly followed by a daughter, Delfina.

Having had little success at mining, Kippen got a contract to haul supplies from California to the military outposts in Arizona.  He was at Camp McDowell, working as a sutler’s clerk and pharmacist, when he died suddenly on 22 February 1868 and was buried in the post cemetery.  Because Kippen was a civilian employee, his body was not transferred to the national cemetery in San Francisco when the post was decommissioned in 1891.  His headstone can still be seen today at Fort McDowell. 

With Kippen dead, Magdalena was hard-pressed to support her children.  By 1870 the family were living in the household of a Charles Foster in Arizona City, Yuma County, Arizona.  They appear on the 1870 federal census under the surname “Kippin”.

Around 1871, Magdalena met and married a wagonmaster, Frank “Owen” Donnelly, in Yuma, Arizona.  Donnelly, an Irish Catholic, had been born around 1837 in the village of Tyme, County Cork, Ireland.  Upon immigrating to the United States, he found few job opportunities for Irish immigrants.  So, on 21 June 1859, Donnelly enlisted as a private in Battery F, 2^nd U. S. Artillery, at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, and served until he was discharged on 2 May 1862.

Frank “Owen” Donnelly and Magdalena’s first child, Amelia was born 12 April 1872 in Yuma.  Isabelle “Lizzie” was born 7 April 1874, and Katherine “Kate” Inez was born 6 December 1878.  The Donnellys eventually moved to a ranch near Florence, on the San Pedro River.

By 1890, Frank Owen Donnelly was infirm and living in the Old Soldiers’ Home in Sawtelle, Los Angeles County, California.  He died there on 21 September 1894 and was buried in the National Cemetery in Los Angeles.  Magdalena received a widow’s pension based on his Civil War service.

On the 1900 federal census, Magdalena was recorded living in Pinal County, Arizona, on the Donnelly ranch with her son John Kippen, daughter Kate Donnelly, and granddaughter Elsie Harrington.  She died of pneumonia in Phoenix on 11 February 1905 and was buried in Rosedale Cemetery, Phoenix.

-by Donna

Nathaniel “Nathan” Sears (1810-1885) - Farmer and Stockraiser

 

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Nathaniel Sears, or Nathan as he was usually known, was born about 1810 in Kentucky.  His parents were Jesse Sears and Margaret Ellen Cox.  Nathan’s paternal grandfather, John Lewis Sears, Sr., was a veteran of the Revolutionary War and had acquired bounty land there.

On April 16, 1830, Nathan married Nancy Mills in Pulaski County, Kentucky.  Their first two sons, Jesse and Thompson, were born there.  However, around 1835, the Sears family removed to Missouri, where Nathan and Nancy had five more sons in quick succession.  The 1850 census of Missouri records them as small farmers.

By 1860, the Sears family was living in West Point, Bates County, Missouri, and Nathan was running a grocery store.   Sons Eli, Winfrey and Alexander were still in the household, but the older boys were married and gone.

At least three of the Sears sons fought for the Confederacy during the Civil War, although it is not known whether they served in regular regiments or as irregulars.  At any rate, they all left Missouri after the war.

1870 found Nathan and Nancy farming near Anaheim, California.  Five of their sons-- Thompson, James, Eli, Winfrey and Alexander--were also farming nearby.  Surprisingly, Nathan and Nancy’s household included two young African American children, George and Rhoda, who had been born in Missouri. 

Sometime between 1876 and 1879, sons John Marion and Eli moved to Phoenix, Arizona.  The 1880 federal census lists their occupation as freighters/teamsters.  Nathan and Nancy were also in John Marion’s household, although by then they were retired.

Nathan’s wife Nancy must have died between 1880 and 1882, for Nathan married a widow, Furlisa (Felicia?) Ann House Howerton, on November 16, 1882.  Nathan and Furlisa had only three years together, as he passed away on their wedding anniversary, November 16, 1885, in Tempe.

It is presumed that Nathan Sears was buried in the Pioneer & Military Memorial Park, that being the only cemetery in use in 1885.   However, no grave marker has been found.

While Sears did have a will, it was not entered into probate until January 9, 1893.   His estate was estimated to be worth about $7000.  Per a prior agreement, he left half of his cattle and all his horses to his son John Marion, who was a rancher.  The other half of the cattle were to be divided equally among his other sons.  To his widow he left five milk cows and any offspring they might have.  Sons John Marion and James were named as co-executors.  There is no explanation for the seven-year delay in probating the will.

-by Donna

George Ulmer Collins (1835-1904) - Farmer and Rancher

 

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At the time of his death, George U. Collins was a prosperous cattleman and farmer, as well as a member of the Arizona Territorial Legislature.

Born March 1835 in the state of Maine, George was the oldest child of Thomas R. Collins and Lucy W. Ulmer.  The 1850 federal census of Liberty, Waldo County, Maine, records the Collinses as farmers.

By 1860, young George was living in East Boston, Massachusetts, and his occupation was listed as ‘ship’s carpenter’.  Perhaps George took advantage of his proximity to sailing ships to do some traveling.  At any rate, 1870 found him living in Santa Cruz, California, living with Mary Fenderson, whom he had met and married there in 1861.  George was working as a tollgate keeper in 1870, and his estimated worth was $2000—not bad for the times!

Evidently, George used some of his funds to move to Arizona in 1875 and purchase land.  By 1880, he and his family were living on a farm in Township 1N2E, three and a half miles southwest of the original Phoenix townsite and not far from the Salt River.  Collins was an early user of irrigation water, which he used to grow alfalfa.  As the little settlement of Phoenix grew, George became a prosperous farmer and rancher.

George’s wife Mary died unexpectedly on October 29, 1890.  One of her sons was bringing an armload of firewood to the house when he saw her fall, but he was unable to revive her.  She was buried in a Phoenix cemetery, most probably in what is now the Pioneer & Military Memorial Park.  Two of her grandchildren were buried in City Loosley Cemetery--possibly near her--a few years later. 

George continued working on the family farm.  Rather than relying on gravity to fill his irrigation ditches, he began digging a well in 1900.  Although he struck water at 29 feet, he continued digging to assure a good source of water throughout the dry season.  In 1901, he installed a 60-hp pump to bring the water to the surface, thereby making his property the best watered in the area. 

As an influential early settler, George joined the Masonic Order, the Knights Templar and the B.P.O.E. He was also active in local politics, being elected to the Arizona Territorial Legislature in 1903.

Shortly before Christmas in 1903, George came down with a cough which turned into pneumonia.  He died on January 1, 1904, and was buried in the Masons cemetery.  There is no grave marker.

When George’s will was entered into probate, his adult sons were chagrined to learn that he had left half of his estate to the Knights Templar, of which he had been a long-time member.  The other half was to be divided between his two sons.  They argued that their father had been unduly influenced by one of his Masonic brethren, who might stand to benefit in some way.  However, the court ruled that the will was valid, since George’s bequest was to the Order itself and not to any particular individual.

-By Donna

 

Higinio Bernal (1845-1912) - Farmer

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Higinio was born around 1845 in Ures, Sonora, Mexico.  He was one of several children born to Tiburcio Bernal and his wife.   Higinio had an older sister, Trinidad, born 1843, as well as a younger brother named José Maria, born 1853, also in Sonora.

The Bernals seem to have been farmers throughout their lives.  Both of the Bernal brothers were living in San Bernardino County, California, in 1872, as that is where Higinio married Juana Ruberto Albañez.   According to the 1900 federal census, she was the mother of ten children total, of whom the oldest six may have been born in California. 

Around 1877, Higinio and Juana moved to Phoenix, Arizona, where they had four more children.  These younger children are the ones who appear in the Bernal household on the 1900 census.

A retired farmer, Higinio was living at 800 South 5th Avenue in Phoenix when he passed away on April 22, 1912  He had been paralyzed and bedridden for some time prior.  He was buried in City/Loosley Cemetery, Block 19.  There is no grave marker.

His widow Juana died in 1933 and was buried in St. Francis Cemetery.

-Donna Carr

 

Honoring Valor: The Restoration of a Veteran's Grave Site

 

PCA Archives

Amer DeShane McGinnis was born around 1849 to John and Laura McGinnis.  He enlisted in the military in 1867 when he was a farmer at 21 1/2 years old, and participated in the Indian Wars, as a soldier in Company A, 32nd United States Infantry. He was discharged June 28, 1870.  He married Annie Pickering, the widow of William L. Pickering on November 27, 1890 at Vulture City, Arizona. William had died in Vulture City. He was the owner of a saloon there. Unfortunately, Annie died on July 23, 1891.

Later, Amer would be appointed as a U.S. Postmaster at Calderwood, Maricopa, Arizona on January 26, 1892. Amer died on November 8, 1905, and is buried next to his wife Annie in City Loosley. 

-Val

 

Recently, we were honored to have volunteers from the Travis Manion Foundation help with placement of a military marker for Amer McGinnis and a weed cleanup in our cemetery. The new marker was a replacement for the old one that had weathered to the point where the Amer's name was no longer visible. Veterans of the group joined together to place the marker, which weighs 220 pounds.  The mission of the TMF is to empower veterans and families of fallen heroes to develop character in future generations.  Thank you all.

-Patty

 

Benedict Mosier (1833 - 1908) - Soldier and Farmer

PCA Archives

Benedict F. Mosier was born 8 Dec 1833 in Alsace Loraine, France, possibly in is father’s hometown of Strasbourg, Bas-Rhin.  He was the second son of Christian Mosier and Ann Wenger.  

Shortly after Benedict’s birth, the Mosiers sailed from France, arriving in New York City on June 7th, 1834.  From there, they traveled to Holmes County, Ohio, where several more children were born.  According to family lore, they may have been Mennonites; Strasbourg was a center for Protestant sects not particularly welcome in Roman Catholic France. 

The Mosiers were in Iowa by 1858, when Benedict wed Mary Ann List. Soon thereafter, the young couple moved to Tyler Township, Hickory County, Missouri.  There, they had ten children born between 1860 and 1875, six of whom survived to adulthood. The Mosiers were farmers and, apparently, successful ones. 

In the summer of 1861, Mosier enlisted in Company C, 8th Missouri State Militia Cavalry,vii serving in Captain William C. Human’s company.  The mission of the regiment was to prevent Confederate forces from establishing a foothold in southwestern Missouri.  The soldiers went on numerous scouting patrols and engaged in a few skirmishes.  Since Mosier’s duties kept him fairly close to home, he was able to make periodic visits to his family. 

As the Mosier sons grew up, they began to migrate west.  Benedict and Mary Ann accompanied them to Phoenix, Arizona, in 1884.  Their son Sydney died on 30 May 1886 and was buried in City Loosley Cemetery.

Late in life, Mary Ann developed heart problems.  While driving home on December 14, 1897, she apparently suffered a stroke.  A neighbor moving cattle noticed that the horse and buggy had stopped in the road and came to her aid, but attempts to revive Mary Ann failed.  She too was buried in City Loosley Cemetery. 

Benedict Mosier joined the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) and, in 1904, applied for a pension based on his Civil War service.  After his wife’s death, he went to live with one of his children in Mendocino, California.  Plagued with eczema in his final years, he ultimately sold his property in Mendocino and returned to Phoenix, where he died on 4 October 1908.  He was buried in the family plot in City Loosley.  - by Donna Carr