The 27th Session of
the Kansas Methodist Conference was held in Abilene, Kansas in March, 1882. With
his half-fare railroad pass in hand, Rev. James S. Griffing boarded the Union
Pacific train in Manhattan and left town to attend what would be his last Annual
Conference. Church
records indicate that the conference convened at 9 a.m. on March 9th.
James is listed as Treasurer of the Missionary Society, Chairman of a standing
committee on Freedman’s Aid, and one of seven ministers on the Triers of
Appeals. Though apparently still active, on March 14th James was granted a
supernumerary position, meaning that he was no longer required to hold an
appointment and to preach regularly. Such positions were often granted to senior
ministers when failing health prevented their continued service.
Union Pacific Railroad Half-Fare Permit
issued to Rev. James S. Griffing in 1882
It is probable that by 1882,
James was suffering from malaria cachexia – a chronic form of malaria. The
parasite that had entered his body 27 years earlier when he first came to Kansas
Territory to preach the Gospel, had in stages laid waste to his 59-year old
body. Reduced in weight, anemic, and probably jaundiced, James’ declining
physical condition did not go unnoticed by the other conference attendees.
According to his good friend, and fellow Wesleyan University graduate,
Rev. Joseph Denison:
In 1856, [James] had an
attack of chills followed by a bilious fever and that by Typhoid fever, so that
there seemed no hope of his recovery and his physicians thought that should he
recover, he would never preach again. After his sickness, he never became what
he was before. All his powers were in a measure impaired, and yet with wonderful
courage and fidelity he continued to preach [for 26 more years] until a short
time before his death…
A
week after returning from the Annual Conference, and while in this reduced state
of health, James was stricken by a pernicious form of the malaria known as
“Bell’s Mania.” In his book published in 1892, Dr. William Osler described
the disease as follows:
The disease may set in
abruptly or be preceded by a period of irritability, restlessness, and insomnia.
The mental symptoms develop with rapidity and may quickly reach a grade of the
most intense frenzy. There are the wildest hallucinations and outbreaks of great
violence. The patient talks incessantly, but incoherently and unintelligibly. No
sleep is obtained and at last, worn out with the intensity of the muscular
movements, the patient becomes utterly prostrated and assumes the sitting or
recumbent posture…Very acute cases may terminate within a week; others persist
for two or even three weeks. The course of the disease is almost uniformly
fatal. [1]
Had
James been in some eastern city where doctors more familiar with advances in
modern medicine might have been found, perhaps he would have received the
massive doses of quinine that may have stemmed the disease. But in rural Kansas,
no such doctors existed. Worse still, many doctors – including the one who
treated James – still believed that “religious
excitement” could bring on insanity.
After
two days of increasing symptoms, such as those described by Dr. Osler, Augusta
took her ailing husband to Dr. Solon D. Ross, [2] a distant relative of hers who had recently moved to Manhattan from Illinois in
order to establish his first medical practice. When he examined the manic
patient on March 24th, Dr. Ross became quickly convinced that
James’ agitated and feverish state must be due to insanity and he recommended
to Augusta that she seek to have her husband committed to the State Asylum.
For the next three days, Dr. Ross treated James with sedatives while
Augusta contacted her eldest son, John, then living in Topeka, to come to
Manhattan and file the necessary records in Riley County Probate Court.
On March 25th, John sent his mother the following postcard:
My Dear Mother,
Roll [Naylor]
[3] came by our house a little while ago and said that Pa was very sick and that you
thought of telegraphing me, I came right up ready to start out, can find no
telegram or other word. Please write right away and let me know. We are very
much frightened. Yours, -- John
Leaving
his heavily pregnant wife at the homestead two miles east of Topeka, John made
his way to Manhattan where he discussed the matter with his mother and then
swiftly started the legal proceedings by asking Henry W. Stackpole, who kept a
law office at 223 Poyntz Avenue in Manhattan, to draw up the information
necessary to file the petition.
On March 27th, the following three records were entered:
In Probate Court in and for
Riley County and State of Kansas. In
matter of Insanity of J. S. Griffing
To the Probate Judge of
said County,
The petition of the
undersigned respectfully represents to this court that J. S. Griffing of Riley
County, State of Kansas, is insane and incapable of managing his affairs and
prays the process of this court that the same may be enquired of that he may be
so adjudged.
John S. Griffing
Subscribed and sworn to
before me this 27th day of March 1882. D. Hungerford, Probate Judge.
State of Kansas. Riley
County. In the Probate Court in and for said County. In the matter of the
insanity of J. S. Griffing.
To A. A.
Parkerson,
Constable of Manhattan City.
You are hereby commanded to
summon six Good and Lawful Citizens of said Riley County, one at least of whom
shall be a physician in good standing, to act as jurors in a case wherein J. S.
Griffing is charged with being a person of unsound mind, unsafe to be at large
and a fit person to be sent to the State Insane Asylum. Said jurors to appear at
the Office of the Probate Judge of said Riley County in Manhattan City Kansas at
3 o’clock P.M. on the 27th day of March A.D. 1882.
Given under my hand and the
seal of said Probate Court this 27th day of March A.D. 1882.
D. Hungerford, Probate Judge.
State of Kansas, County of
Riley. We the undersigned jurors in
the case of James S. Griffing, having heard the evidence in the case, are
satisfied that said James S. Griffing is Insane and is a fit person to be sent
to the State Insane Asylum; that he is a resident of the State of Kansas and
County of Riley; that his age is 49 years; that his disease is of a short
months one week duration dating from his first symptoms; that the cause is
supposed to be mental anxiety; that the disease is not with him hereditary; that
he is not subject to epilepsy; that he does not yet manifest homicidal or
suicidal tendencies.
Jurors [signatures]
E. L. Patee, M. D. [4]
W. H. Bower [5]
S. M. Ferguson [6]
Chas. E. Allan [7]
Martin Armentrout [8]
Wm Pickett [9]
Wasting
no time, Judge Hungerford dispatched a telegram on March 27th
to Dr. Knapp [10], Superintendent of the State Insane Asylum at
Osawatomie submitting application for admission. On
the 28th, Dr. Knapp returned the following form letter:
Mr. D. Hungerford,
Probate Judge, Riley County
Dear Sir.
Your application in the
case of Jas. S. Griffing is received. He can be admitted into the State Insane
Asylum at Osawatomie on arrival. It will be necessary to have him supplied with
at least three changes of clothing, including the same amount of woolen
undergarments, and one pair of slippers, in addition to boots or shoes. Please
have him fully informed before starting as to where he is going, and the reason
why. Yours truly, -- A.H. Knapp, Superintendent
Receiving
Dr. Knapp’s letter on the 29th, Judge Hungerford completed the
following “Lunacy Receipt” and handed it to the Riley County Sheriff:
State of Kansas, Riley
County. In the Probate Court of said County.
In the matter of the Insanity of James S. Griffing
To J. M.
Myers [11], Sheriff
of Riley Co. Kas. You are Hereby Commanded, Without unnecessary delay, to take
James S. Griffing adjudged to be insane, and deliver him into the custody of the
Superintendent of the State Insane Asylum, together with the accompanying
warrant, to the Steward directed, and return, within thirty days, this Precept.
With the receipt of the Superintendent indorsed thereon.
This 30th day of March A.D. 1882.
D. Hungerford, Probate Judge.
On
Thursday, March 30th, James boarded a train in Manhattan, accompanied
by his son John and the Deputy Sheriff of Riley County, Albert H. Houghton. James
was heavily sedated and wearing handcuffs. There was no fanfare. The tears of
family and friends flowed uncontrollably. But before the train pulled out of the
depot, Dr. Solon Ross appeared at the platform and handed John the following
letter in a sealed envelope with the request to deliver it to the doctors at the
asylum upon their arrival:
To Whosoever it may
concern. This is to certify that I was called to treat the case of J. S.
Griffing on Friday last, the 24th of March. I found him suffering
under an attack of Acute Mania. The hallucination was with regard to a deed that
had been placed in his hands as Treasurer of a Missionary Society. The deed was
worthless and had been among his papers for several years unknown to him. Upon
finding said deed he imagined his character was ruined and family reputation
gone. He had considerable fever the first day I was called. I gave drops of
Baptisia and fever was as much better the next day as could be expected under
his condition of mind. Fever has not been marked since first day. To produce
sleep, I have given Chloral Hydrate, about 5 grs. at a dose and 4 doses 20
minutes apart has usually been sufficient to give 5 or 6 hours sleep. In
addition to the baptisia, I have given the 3d dilution of Belladonna and 3d
dilution of Bryonia but without avail. [12]
The mania is increasing in violence. The patient is perfectly wild and it
is unsafe for him to be at large, and he is also in a condition where immediate
attention is required and under circumstances where proper restraint can be used
to procure safety and special treatment to aid in his recovery. In my opinion 24
hours proper treatment now will avail more than as many days in a week from now.
-- S. D. Ross, M.D.
Early
Friday morning in Kansas City, John took advantage of a quiet moment to write
his mother a progress postcard:
My Dear Mother,
We are waiting now for
the trains. I have been up to try to find cousin Lydia. [13]
I found Mr. Holmes but Lydia was out in the country 3 miles. They do not live at
[corner] of 7th and Central. Pa was very quiet all the way down and
slept part of the time. He is sitting here now near me as quiet and nice as the
rest of the people.
Later
that same day, on the return trip, John wrote his mother a letter from Kansas
City with the day’s events:
Kansas City, Friday
Evening [March 31, 1882]
My Dear Mother,
I am on my way back and
have to wait for the train, so I thought I would improve the time and write to
you. The trip down there [to Osawatomie], which we dreaded so much, was so much
quieter and better than I expected that I feel relieved. He was so quiet that
Houghton took off the handcuffs. The folks there [at the Asylum] are so pleasant
and everything is so nice that if I wasn’t so tired, I would feel almost
happy.
Dr. Knapp wasn’t there
but the other doctors [14] were and they showed me around & everything is so neat
and pretty. The floors in the large halls, where there are no carpets, are waxed
and everything is done to order and in order. The inmates that I saw seemed to
think much of the doctors and I have inquired considerable & used my eyes
too, and I think Pa has a real home.
The place is so much
different from what I expected to find it. Mrs. [Cynthia] Roscoe lives in Paola and she is
an intimate friend of Mr. Knapp's. I didn’t have time to go to her house but I
saw her sonand he said his mother would do all she could. But from what the
doctors told me, there is a better way yet. They say that whenever you want to
hear from Pa, you must write to Mr. A. H. Knapp and he will answer all letters.
It doesn’t matter how many you send. They say that they have no stated times
to write, but that they answer all communications, so you can just send him a
card whenever you want to hear or you can write a letter.
They are very hopeful
& thought there was great hopes of him, and commenced work on him right
away. I know he will receive good treatment at their hands. I found out one
thing that made me have all the better opinion of them; they are strong
temperance men and real gentlemen.
I must quit now. Write
soon and if there are any questions you want to ask, ask them. Of course you
must not expect he will be cured in a week. It takes time, but let's look on the
bright side anyway.
Your
affectionate son, -- John
Insane Asylum at Osawatomie, Kansas
Circa 1880's
Kansas State Historical Society
When
John arrived home in the early morning hours of Saturday, April 1, he found that
his wife had already delivered their first child on the previous day. Wishing to
let his mother know the good news, he again penned her another letter:
Topeka Kansas,
Saturday
morning
My dear mother,
Got home this morning
about ½ past two and found a pleasant surprise waiting for me. I hope you
opened the letter [my wife] Lizzie sent to me so you will find out what the
surprise was. The baby, [Fredric Griffing
was born 3-31-1882] of course is the prettiest & nicest ever was. He has a
thick head of black hair, a good head and large strong chest & lungs. He
weighed 8.5 pounds. Lizzie was not sick but two or three hours and had a
reasonably easy time and is in good spirits. The doctor seemed to think her
fortunate indeed. Everybody thinks it is such a nice baby.
It didn’t
cost me but about $8.00 to go down to Osawatomie so I send you $5.00 at present
and will try to send you some more sometime. If you need any money any time, let
me know. Mr. Houghton bought me a ticket going down from Kansas City to Paoli
($1.70) because I helped him some about Pa. But he could have taken him just as
well alone as far as the taking was concerned. He was real good about taking Pa
and did not treat him roughly. He has taken so many down there in the last five
years that he is a real good hand and knows just what to do. He telegraphed from
Kansas City to Paola to have a team ready to take us so we got back in time for
the return train. He said he had more hopes of Pa that he had of any he had
taken down and several he has taken have recovered.
Dr. Ross wrote Dr. Knapp
a very long letter telling him all about it. I think Dr. Ross is a good man and
a gentleman. Our folks here feel very badly about it. Well I must quit. Write
often. Your affectionate son, John
According
to admission records, when James arrived at the Asylum in Osawatomie he was
“very noisy and excited” and his physical condition was “poor.” Prompted by Dr. Ross’s letter containing his diagnosis and
treatment, the admissions clerk entered the following on admissions form case
number 1152:
On March 22nd
1882, while attending a religious meeting (patient is a Methodist Minister),
became suddenly excited, loud and incoherent, and violent.
Under
“supposed causes” the clerk entered: Mental
exertion beyond his strength.
Less
than three days after admission, James expired. His date of death is given as
April 3, 1882. Family and friends, still struggling to accept the fate of their
loved one’s sudden illness, now found themselves stunned by the news of his
passing.
With
indomitable courage, Augusta wrote the following response to the telegram that
bore the dreaded news:
Manhattan
[Kansas]
April 4, 1882
Supt. Of Asylum for the
Insane, Osawatomie, Kansas
Please deliver the body
of my husband, Rev. J. S. Griffing, to Mr. Chas. Waring, the bearer of this, who
is instructed to bring the body to this place. -- J. Augusta Griffing
James’
body was retrieved by Charles Waring [16], as instructed, on April 5th and
returned to Manhattan in a casket purchased from Mr. A. E. Chalmers [17]
in Osawatomie for $25. Meanwhile, Augusta gathered her family about her and began
preparations for James’ funeral. Regrettably, James’ sudden illness and
death had left the family totally unprepared for funeral arrangements. There was
no family burial plot and there was precious little money available to procure
one now. When family friend Isaac T. Goodnow and his wife Ellen heard of
Augusta’s plight, they offered to sell a plot they had previously purchased in
Sunset Cemetery where James could be laid to rest.
Augusta accepted the gracious offer, paid them $10 for it, and interment
took place on April 6th in Lot 250, Block 1.
Certificate of Cemetery Lot
For
the next several days, Augusta paid off the bills for the various services
performed in attending to the funeral of her husband. Forty-one year-old Dr.
Hiram S. Roberts billed
her $3 for preparing the body for burial; Fifty-two year old undertaker William H. Bower -- who happened to
also serve as one of the jurors at James’ insanity hearing -- billed her $9
for attending the hearse, for supplying one bottle of embalming fluid, and for
digging the grave; Fifty-four year old carpenter Charles Waring billed her $25.40 for his various services and
expenses in retrieving the body from Osawatomie; Twenty-five year old Henry W. Stackpole billed her $10
for legal services; and twenty-seven year old Dr. Solon Ross billed her $13.50 for eight house calls to
treat her husband between March 27th
and March 30th.
Dr. Solon Ross's Bill for Housecalls
Henry
W. Stackpole's Bill for Legal Services
But
the stream of visitors and flood of condolence letters only temporarily
disrupted Augusta’s haunting thoughts of what James' last days must have been
like. It troubled her so deeply that she felt she must write the Superintendent
of the Asylum a letter and ask him some questions.
Did he suffer? Did he seem to know where he was?
On April 17th, the Superintendent responded to her questions:
Osawatomie
[Kansas]
April 17, 1882
Mrs. J. A.
Griffing,
Manhattan, Kansas
Dear Madam,
Yours of the
11th inst. is received. When your husband arrived here he was suffering from acute
mania, was in a state of great excitement, which was only temporarily relieved
at times by short sleep. Delirium continued interrupted only by sleep until the
3d inst. when he died from exhaustion of acute mania. His death was easy and I
do not think he realized that he was away from home. He seemed entirely
unconscious of his surroundings.
Yours respectfully, --
A.H. Knapp, Supt.
Engraving of Osawatomie Hospital in 1890's
In
a letter dated April 16th, John Griffing tried to ease his mother’s
mind and answer these same questions:
…You asked if Pa seemed
to realize that he was among strangers and away from home. No, he did not. I
watched him closely too when we came to the Asylum and went in and he did not
seem to notice anything unusual and he didn’t seem to miss you or anybody. And
it was only when I was in sight that he noticed me. I thought at first I would
tell you, and then I thought you might think from that he was worse and so I did
not say anything about it. At any rate, Ma, we all know he is NOW in a better
world than this and although it seems hard to part with those we love so much,
yet we all must die, and let us try to live so that we all meet (as Pa used to
pray) an unbroken family in heaven. It has always seemed to me before this that
I would hardly care much to go to heaven because so few of my best friends were
there, but now [that] Pa is there, there is more attraction, and I want to meet
him sometime ‘over yonder.’ There
he will be in his right mind.
Among
the numerous sympathy letters retained by Augusta were a number of very
complimentary ones, including the following one received from Benjamin M. Curtis of
Topeka. At the time, Mr. Curtis was Clerk of the District Court in Shawnee
County, Kansas.
Mrs. J. A.
Griffing,
Manhattan, Kansas
Dear friend,
We have heard of your sad
affliction and I assure you that your deep sorrow is felt by us all. It is so
hard to give up our friends. My heart aches for you, for the burden is so hard
to bear. I know how sad and lonely you must now be. I
know how kind and good your dear husband was. I was taught, in early childhood,
to know and love him, and many and many a time I have heard my parents say,
‘Brother Griffing is the best man we ever knew.’
I know Pa [18] loved him as he did his own brothers…
Your friend,
B. M.
Curtis
Another
friend of the family wrote a poem, dated April 28th, 1882:
In Memoriam of Rev. J. S. Griffing
Some one
draws near the “pearly gates,”
And light
from the glorious center
Gleams
o’er the pilgrim as he waits
For the
welcome bidding, “enter.”
The warden
cries, “lo, he maketh moan,
And reason
is tottering on its throne.”
“His
passport is sure,” the Lord replies –
“He has
long my cross been bearing;
Throw wide
the gateways of the skies
To the
home I’ve been preparing
Strike
your sweetest lyres, ye angel bands,
For my
child comes not with empty hands.”
Oh rare,
true soul, life’s warfare hard
Merged
into victory splendid,
When all
the gates of heaven unbarred
And this
poor life was ended.
And the
Dear Lord knew at once His own
Despite of
reason’s tottering throne.
In tenderest sympathy, --
Kate R. Hill. [19] I felt it would
be a privilege to me to write these few lines in loving memory of one so very
dear to us and to all who had the honor of his acquaintance….
In
concluding his memoriam to James S. Griffing that was published in the Methodist
Annual Conference Meeting Minutes, Rev. Joseph Denison wrote:
...[James
Griffing] has been treasurer of the Kansas Conference Missionary Society from
the first and no trust committed to him was ever neglected or slighted. As a
professing Christian, a preacher, a pastor, a husband, a father, a friend, a
citizen, he was emphatically a good man and full of faith and of the Holy Ghost,
and while his departure makes one less in the church militant, it makes one more
in the church triumphant.
[1]
Source: The
Principles and Practice of Medicine, by William Osler, M.D., Published
in New York, 1892. p. 925.
[2]
Solon Daniel Ross, M. D.
born about 1855 in Illinois. He was the son of Melissa Goodrich and
Daniel Ross who lived in Normal IL. He
married Orlena Follett, born 1857 in Pontiac, IL. She was the daughter of Orville Follett and Susan Griffin. Solon attended college at Normal, IL. After his marriage on February 11, 1880 in McLean County, IL, he
moved to Manhattan , KS where he started a medical practice. A few years
later he moved to Lonoke, Arkansas. Source:
Moultrie County Heritage, Vol. 5, No. 2, May 1977, p 51-52.
[3]
James Rollin (“Roll”)
Naylor born about 1859 in Tecumseh, Kansas Territory. Son of Osborn and Polly Naylor. The first meeting of the Methodist
Society organized in Tecumseh by Rev. James S. Griffing in 1856 was held in
Osborn Naylor’s cabin. Source: Shawnee County Historical Society Bulletin, No.
29, December 1957. Two Families
of Old Tecumseh, Naylor and Morris, by Ruth Naylor Chandler, p. 26.
[4]
Eliphalet Leroy Patee "was born in
Oxford, Delaware County, Ohio, February 23, 1832. He was educated at the Ohio
Wesleyan University, graduating in the scientific course in 1849. Was a student
one year at the Eclectic Medical College, Cincinnati, and for two years at
Starling Medical College, Columbus, Ohio, graduating there in the class of 1852.
Afterwards he took a one term course at a Homoeopathic Medical College in
Cleveland. He began the practice of his profession at Portland, Meigs County,
Ohio, in the fall of 1853, where he continued until January, 1854, when he
settled and practiced a year, and took a past graduate course at Miama Medical
College. In the fall of 1855 he came to Kansas, taking a homestead at Ashland,
in Riley County, and the following year moved his family to the State where he
had determined to make his home. He came with the Cincinnati Colony, but left
the boat at Kansas City, purchased a team, and came the remainder of the way
overland. April 14, 1861, he entered the Second Kansas Volunteer Infantry, and
was commissioned First Assistant Surgeon. Was mustered into the United States
service, June 20, 1861. After the battle of Wilson's Creek and the death of Gen.
Lyon, the troops with which he served retreated to Rolla. Lieutenant-Colonel
Charles W. Blair ordered him to remove the sick and wounded to St. Louis. His
train arrived at night with the suffering men, covered with dust and overpowered
with heat. Working all night, he succeeded in dressing the wounds and caring for
all his men. Gen. Fremont visited the hospital early in the day, and detecting
the marvelous energy and power of the man, ordered him not to return to the
front, but placed him in charge of the hospital - New House of Refuge. In July,
at his personal request, he was again ordered to the front. Gen. Blunt gave him
detached service until September, and then ordered him to report at his
headquarters at Fort Scott. He was promoted to be Surgeon, rank of Major,
September 19, 1862, and was Medical Director of Blunt's army, until July, 1863,
when he was detailed upon the staff of Gov. Kearney, ranking as Colonel. In this
capacity he helped organize the Fifth and Fourteenth Kansas regiments. He served
until the close of the war, and then returned to his practice at Manhattan,
where he has been in continuous practice since, and ranks as one of the best
surgeons in Kansas. He is purely eclectic in his practice, counseling all
schools of practice. He has held several important civil offices. In 1867 he was
appointed Clerk of the District Court for Davis County, then attached to Riley
for judicial purposes, which position he held by appointment and election for
four years. In 1864 he was elected Treasurer of Riley County, and re-elected in
1866, holding the office four years. He has also been Coroner of the county
several terms. He is a member of the Masonic order, and of the I. O. O. F., G.
A. R., and K. of L. He was married September 22, 1852, in Morgan County, Ohio,
to Miss Cynthia A. Dye. They have three children - Alice (Mrs. Dickens),
Clarence and Henry, all grown up and away from the parental homestead."
Source:
[5]
William H. Bower "was born in New York City, October 13, 1829. When a
child, his parents moved onto a farm in Chatham, N. J., where he was educated in
the academy of that place. At about the age of seventeen he went to learn the
cabinet-making business, and served an apprenticeship of four years. He then
went West to South Bend, Ind., and Southern Michigan, and worked a year. In
1850-51 he traveled through Illinois, and returned to his old home, where he
remained until July, 1854, when he traveled West, through Iowa, Nebraska and
Kansas, looking upon the site of Leavenworth, then covered with a forest just
beginning to be cleared away for the future city. Returning to Illinois, he
worked for a time at Jerseyville, but the next spring, 1855, he again traveled
through Southern Illinois, and finally located at Springfield, where he lived
until February, 1858, when he came to Riley County to stay. He settled at
Manhattan, and worked as a contractor and builder until the war, when he
enlisted as a private, in April, 1861, in Company B of the Second Kansas
Volunteer Infantry. He served six month, when the regiment was mustered out by
reason of the expiration of term of service. He was in the regiment sent against
the Indians in July, 1864, and in the militia of the Price raid in October of
that year. In November, 1861, he was elected Clerk of the District Court, and
re-elected in 1863, serving four years in that office, meanwhile acting as
Deputy County Clerk and Register of Deeds. He has been City Marshal and
Collector of Taxes, and is now a member of the City Council, which office he has
before filled. In 1875 he opened his present business, undertaker, in the city
of Manhattan. He belongs to the Odd Fellows. He was married September 24, 1862,
to Miss Hannah H. Hornby, of Manhattan. They have one child - Mary C., born
September 19, 1863." Source:
[6]
Samuel Milton Ferguson
(#741 in Pioneers of the Bluestem Prairie)
Samuel Ferguson was born in 1833 and became a blacksmith by
profession. He worked for a time as the blacksmith at the St. Mary’s
Indian Mission school and then moved to Manhattan where he opened a smithy
on the corner of Humboldt and 3rd Street. His father-in-law was
William Pickett, another juror.
[7]
Charles E. Allen was a single, 47 year-old stone mason who hailed from
Massachusetts.
[8]
[9]
William Morris Pickett
(#950 in Pioneers of the Bluestem Prairie) William Pickett was born
in 1810 in Connecticut. He was a farmer and a carpenter, by profession.
