Harshbarger line: Emanuel Harshbarger 1854-1928

Here is a transcription of the obituary for Emmanuel Harshbarger.  The newspaper is from Columbia City, Indiana, Wednesday Evening, May 9, 1928 but the header is missing.  This may be from the Columbia City Post.

Headlines: " Emanuel Harshbarger Dies at His Home Sunday   Death Took Place at 3:30 A.M. As Result of Illness Due to Diabetes And Goitre-Funeral Services Tuesday Afternoon at Thorn Creek Bethel." (All of this was in capital letters but that seemed to be too "loud" so I toned it down.)

"Emanuel Harshbarger, 74 years old last July, died Sunday morning at 3:30 o'clock at his home in Thorncreek township on the old Tri-Lake Road two miles north of Columbia City after an illness due to goitre, diabetes, and complications.  Mr. Harshbarger had been in failing health and became seriously ill seven weeks ago.  His daughter, Mrs. Simon Gardner, cared for him since that time.  Mr. Harshbarger went to the Cryle clinic at Cleveland, Ohio for a week but was unable to obtain pronounced relief and it was found there that he was suffering from diabetes. 

He was born in Summit County, Ohio on July 28, 1854 (date is fuzzy but I think this is what it says) and was a son of Lewis and Catherine Mencer Harshbarger.  The parents of Mr. Harshbarger brought him to Union township, Whitley county, when he was but three years old.  He resided on that farm until thirty-nine years ago when he purchased the farm on which he resided at the time of his death.

Mr. Harshbarger owned the saw mill on his farm for seventeen years and owned it previous to the time he began operating his cider mill.  The cider mill was in operation until last year when Mr. Harshbarger discontinued it.  In addition to running the mills Mr. Harshbarger also moved buildings and farmed.

On May 5, 1876 Mr. Harshbarger was united in marriage to Clara Ellen Harter, who died three years ago.  Eight children were born to this union, of whom four are living, namely: Grover Harshbarger, of Huntington, Mrs. Simon Gardner, Mrs. Charles Shepherd and Logan Harshbarger, of Columbia City.  The deceased is survived by one brother, Henry, of Jefferson township and two sisters, Mrs. Mary Smith of Columbia township, and Mrs. Cassie Banta, of Fort Wayne, and seven grand children and four great grandchildren.

Mr. Harshbarger united with a church in Union township when a young man.  He was highly respected and well liked by all who knew him.

Funeral services will be held Tuesday afternoon at 2:30o'clock at the Thorncreek Bethel Church of God.  Rev. Emma Isenbarger will conduct the services and burial will be in the church cemetery.

Note:  The birthdate we have is July 16, 1855 and the location we have is Stark County, Ohio.  It is more likely to be Summit County.  I can't reconcile the birthdates, but since his tombstone also says July, 1854 I am changing my records for both date and location.  I also note that I am missing two children, who would have died young, in my records.  Reading an obituary is a very good thing to do!

The line of descent is:

Emanuel Harshbarger-Clara Ellen Harter
Grover Harshbarger-Goldie Withers
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendents

Harshbarger line: William H. Withers estate 1936

On one of my trips to Whitley County, Indiana, I copied down the basics of the estate of William H Withers.  I may have had a copy of it at one time, because this isn't dated although I believe it would be from 1936, since he died January 24,1936.  I will mark this on my to do list the next time I go back, because I hate to leave things undone.  However, I'd also hate to have this information about him and not post it, because someone, some where, may be glad to have these 'crumbs' to lead them on the trail.

The appraisers of the estate (also not noted-Gee, was this the day I went with husband and he was in a hurry to leave?  or maybe we took photos that didn't turn out) gave the following values to his personal property:

Checking account  $29                                  Mower                           $3
2 horses                  $50                                 Corn cultivator               $2
3 cows                  $120                                 Hay rake                         $2
1 cow                     $30                                  Onion drill                      $1
calf                         $10                                  2 wheel hoes                  $2
brood sow              $25                                 30 onion crates                $1.50
7 shoats                 $140                                50 lb peppermint oil        $7.50  ??
1923 Dodge auto   $35                                  Set of harness                 $2
Wagon                   $10                                  2 tons of hay (??)             $10

Harness                    $3                                 50 bu. corn                      $25

Riding plow             $3                                 Walking breaking ???       $.50

Total appraised value  $579  No taxes owed
Debts to J.A. DeMoney, funeral $257.50
Dr. B.F. Pence, medical bill     $17.50

Net value of estate  $304.

I've read enough to know that growing onions and then mint in Whitley County, Indiana was back- breaking hard work, and did not pay well.  This estate is evidence of that.  We have no personal stories other than a story about an automobile accident that left his vehicle smelling differently than it had before, to rely on in trying to learn about this man, so this gives us more information than we had before. 

There is an outside chance that someone reading this may have a picture of William or/and of his wife, Della Kemery.  I would certainly love to hear from you, if that person is you!  

The line of descent is:

William H. Withers-Della Kemery
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendents

Harshbarger line: Catherine Mancer Harshbarger 1830-1914

I don't often write about women in the family, simply because they are not easy to research.  I think about them a lot, though, and when I find a bit of information about someone I rejoice. 

This is the obituary for Catherine Mentzer (Mancer), who married Lewis Harshbarger on February 26, 1852 in Summit County, Ohio. It comes from the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette, of Tuesday, September 1, 1914, page 2.

"Whitley County Resident Dies."

"Mrs. Catherine Mancer Harshbarger, widow of the late Lewis Harshbarger, who made her home with her daughter, Mrs. Samuel A. Smith, near the Compton church in Union township, died Monday morning from heart troubles that afflicted her for over two years. Katherine Mancer was born in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, on April 30, 1830 and was in her 85th year.  She moved to Summit county, Ohio with her parents and was married to her deceased husband, who passed away forty years ago.  Nine children blessed the union, five living, they being Milo, Emanuel and Henry Harshbarger, Mrs. Samuel Smith, all of this county, and Mrs. George Beatty, of Fort Wayne.  Funeral Wednesday at 2 o'clock p.m., Rev. L.A. Luckenbill officiating.  Interment in the Egolf cemetery, Thorncreek township."

I knew most of the facts in the obituary but it's always nice to have them written down so neatly, and it allows one to wonder.  First, I wondered exactly when the Mentzer family moved from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania to Summit County, Ohio.  I don't know exactly when it was, but the family was there in 1840, in Franklin township, under the name Coaured Mincer (don't ask, I don't know how the name got so mangled.)  It looks like her mother, Elizabeth Tullepen, may have been dead by then because Conrad is listed as being 40-49, but there is no one in the right age group to be Elizabeth.  Lea and Caroline, Catherine's sisters, are there, and a male aged 10-14 who may or may not be brother Joel (age is off by a couple of years. Perhaps Joel had already left home and there was another son of whom I know nothing?) 

So Catherine would have been just a young girl when the family left Lancaster County and went to Summit County.  Did they go by river, or canal, or overland?  At any rate, it must have been a very interesting trip, and I hope Catherine learned to like traveling.  A few years after her marriage to Lewis, the family moved, in about 1859, to Union Township, Whitley County, Indiana.  Again, this would not have been an easy trip, although it is possible that much of the trip was by canal.  Lewis was joining his brother John and the families lived side by side in Union Township.  They had to build their homes and farms from the ground up, as it was basically wilderness with at most, a log cabin and a few acres of cleared field when they arrived. 

The obituary mentions 5 living children for Catherine and Lewis, but doesn't mention the three children that didn't survive.  Burying three children was not unusual for a pioneer family, but it wasn't easy, either, especially for a mother.  It also wasn't easy to lose a husband, but Lewis died in 1875.  Most women with young children in the family would quickly remarry, but Catherine stayed single. The 1880 census shows her with three children still at home, ranging from 10 to 14 years old.  They were old enough to help with the farming by then, but those first five years of widowhood must have been physically very demanding.  How did she do it? She stayed on the farm as long as she could, it appears, for she is still there in 1900, by herself now and 70 years old.  Even in 1910, she is still there, although daughter Lovina, now 53, is with her.  Could she have supported herself by renting out the farm, or did she have some other means of making an income?  Did her children support her financially?  I would like to know how she survived, and how long she managed to stay in her own home before dying at her daughter's home.

Meanwhile, I'd like to honor this ancestor of my children.  She is a woman to be admired for her stamina and strength, and her determination to raise her family herself. 

The line of descent is

Lewis Harshbarger-Catherine Mentzer
Emanuel Harshbarger-Clara Harter
Grover Harshbarger-Goldie Withers
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendents