Category Archives: Knox County

Isaac McCoy

Leave a reply

Isaac McCoy
b. 13 June 1784, Uniontown, Fayette County, Pennsylvania, to William H. and Elizabeth (Rice) McCoy
d. 21 June 1846, Louisville, Jefferson County, Kentucky

m. 6 October 1803, Louisville, Jefferson County, Kentucky
Christiana Polk
b. 12 November 1784, Nelson County, Kentucky, to Charles and Delilah (Tyler) Polk
d. 6 August 1850, Kansas City, Jackson County, Missouri

Children with Christiana Polk:
• Mahala (1804-1818)
• Rice (1807-1833)
• Josephus (1808-1831)
• Delilah (1809-1844) married Johnston Lykins
• John Calvin (1811-1889) married (1) Virginia Chick, (2) Elizabeth Woodson
• Elizabeth (1813-1822)
• Sarah (1815-1835) married (1) Thomas Jefferson Givens, (2) Thomas Gilens
• Christiana (1817-1837) married William Ward
• Nancy Judson (1819-1850)
• Eleanor (1821-1839) married Husband Dononue
• Maria Staunton (1823-1824)
• Isaac (1825-1849) married Martha Stone
• Charles Rice (1827-1831)
• infant (1831)

The family moved to near Sellersburg, Clark County, in the Indiana Territory in 1804. Later, they moved to Vincennes, Knox County, where Isaac was a spinning wheel maker and a jailer. In 1805, they moved back to Clark County, where he was licensed as a Baptist minister. Isaac served at Mariah Creek Church in Knox County, starting in October 1810. In 1818, he established an Indian mission north of Terre Haute near Montezuma on Raccoon Creek in Parke County. In 1820 he went to Fort Wayne in Allen County to establish a church for Indians; Christiana had a school that taught spinning and weaving. In 1828, Isaac was appointed a member of the commission to arrange the removal of Indians to reservations in Kansas. He and two sons moved to the Kansas City, Missouri area. In 1843, Isaac returned to Indiana where he was appointed Secretary and General Agent for the Indiana Mission Association of Louisville, Kentucky.

Isaac wrote a book on the white man’s attempt to Christianize the Indians in 1840. A memorial book Early Indian Missions by W.N. Wyeth tells of the lives and mission work of Rev. and Mrs. McCoy. Many of his writings are in the Isaac McCoy Collection of the Kansas Historical Society. The towns of Niles and Grand Rapids, Michigan were originally McCoy Indian Missions.

Submitted by:
Christie Hill Russell
Paris IL
E-mail: christie@cartar.com

Vincent Scott McClure

2 Replies

Vincent Scott McClure
b. 30 October 1815, Oaktown, Knox County, Indiana, to Samuel and Jane (Curry) McClure
d. 18 May 1893, Eugene, Lane County, Oregon

m/1. 1834, Knox County, Indiana
Sarah “Sally” Bruce
b. Bruceville, Knox County, Indiana, to Major William and Sarah (Polk) Bruce
d. 1858, Eugene, Lane County, Oregon

m/2. Oregon
Sarah Tandy Benson

Children with Sarah Bruce:
• Hester “Hettie” (1835-1901) married Isaac William Bond
• Jane married William F. Lyon
• William Henry Harrison

The family emigrated on 20 March 1853. They traveled seven months by ox and wagon with several family members to Oregon. They were part of “The Lost Wagon Train of 1853” which got lost between Fort Hall and the Cascade Mountains. They finally arrived in the Willamette Valley in late October. He was instrumental in the formation of the First Christian Church in Eugene in 1866 and served as the first deacon. He was elected to the state legislature in 1862, serving one term.

Submitted by:
Christie Hill Russell
Paris IL
E-mail: christie@cartar.com

Oscar Macy

Leave a reply

Oscar Macy
b. 28 July 1829, Knox County, Indiana, to Obed and Lucinda (Polk) Macy
d. 1 November 1910, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California

m. 24 June 1873, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County
Margaret Elizabeth Bell
b. 2 December 1848, Millersburg, Ohio
d. 28 October 1891, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California

Children with Margaret Elizabeth Bell:
• Estell (b. 1874)
• Margaret Lucinda (1876-1908)
• Irene (1879-1902) married F.J. Whitney
• Alice Bell (b. 1882)
• Oscar Alexander (1884-1918) married Ella McLean

Oscar started west in the spring of 1850. He started from Bloomington, Monroe County, Indiana, overland to Columbus, then by railroad to Madison, by steamboat to Louisville, Kentucky, and another steamboat to St. Louis, Missouri, then by another boat to Kansas City, Missouri, where his parents and family met him. It then took them nine months to cross the plains.

He had a gold stake for a while. Then he became a printer for several publications. He was the Deputy Collector of Customs at San Pedro and a member of the Los Angeles City Council. Macy Street in Los Angeles is named for this family, since the only house on the street for many years was the Macy’s house.

Submitted by:
Christie Hill Russell
Paris IL
E-mail: christie@cartar.com

Obed Macy

Leave a reply

Obed Macy
b. 14 December 1801, Guilford County, North Carolina, to William and Mary (Barnard) Macy
d. 9 July 1857, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California

m. 17 October 1824, near Bruceville, Knox County, Indiana
Lucinda Polk
b. 6 January 1808, Knox County, Indiana, to Charles and Margaret (McQuade) Polk III
d. 3 August 1872, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California

Children with Lucinda Polk:
• Amanda (1824-1826)
• Urania (1828-1916) married David Williams Cheesman
• Oscar (1829-1910) married Margaret Elizabeth Bell
• Nancy (1832-1916) married Aphek Lorenzo Woodruff
• Lousia (1834-1896) married John Moran Foy
• Charles P. (1837-1850)
• Margaret (b. 1839)
• William (1841-1923)
• Obed (1843-1922) married Mary Teresa Sullivan
• Lucinda (1844-1926) married Samuel Calvert Foy
• Mary Jane (1849-1917) married Taliesin Evans
• Alice (1852-1854)
• Christina (1855-1856)

Obed came to Liberty, Union County, Indiana, in August 1818. He also lived in Bruceville and Oaktown, Knox County, Indiana, before emigrating in 1850. His son Charles died of cholera near the South Platte River on the California Trail. Obed was a medical doctor in Bruceville, and the first medical doctor in Los Angeles.

The family crossed the plains in 1850, arriving at San Gabriel Mission on 1 January 1851. They camped two months at San Gabriel, and then moved to El Monte. In 1852, the family moved to Los Angeles, where Dr. Macy bought the Bella Union Hotel. They lived on the northwest corner of Los Angeles and Commercial Streets. Dr. Macy then procured a site on the Zanja Madre at what is now the corner of North Main and Macy Streets, where he built a low spreading building.

Submitted by:
Christie Hill Russell
Paris IL
E-mail: christie@cartar.com

Lucinda “Pet” Macy

Leave a reply

Lucinda “Pet” Macy
b. 21 December 1844, near Mariah Creek, Knox County, Indiana, to Obed and Lucinda (Polk) Macy
d. 2 November 1926, Pasadena, Los Angeles County, California

m. 7 October 1860, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California
Samuel Calvert Foy
b. 23 September 1830, Washington, D.C.
d. 20 April 1901, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California

Children with Samuel Calvert Foy:
• Samuel Calvert (1860-1860)
• Mary Emily (1862-1962)
• James Calvert (1865-1922) married Adell O’Melveny
• Oscar (1867-1867)
• Cora Calvert (1870-1920)
• Samuel Calvert (1873-1874)
• Edna Calvert (1875-1909) married Otto Henrich Neher
• Irma Calvert (1878-1896)
• Alma Calvert (1880-1900) married Thomas Lee Woolwine
• Florence Calvert (1883-1910) married Remington Olmsted

Lucinda’s family left Knox County, Indiana, in 1850 and settled in California in 1852. Lucinda enrolled in the city school of Los Angeles the very first day there was a public school there, after learning her A-B-C’s from the family Bible on the overland journey to California. Mr. Foy was in the cattle business and for five years they lived near Stockton. They moved to Los Angeles in 1865. Lucinda moved to Pasadena, California, in 1904.

Submitted by:
Christie Hill Russell
Paris IL
E-mail: christie@cartar.com

George Leech

Leave a reply

George Leech
b. 13 April 1756, Parish Lusk, Dublin, Ireland, to George and Mary Sarah (Moore) Leech
d. 23 April 1827, Shawneetown, Gallatin County, Illinois

m. Spring 1781, Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania
Achsah Applegate
b. 10 February 1762, Bordentown, Burlington County, New Jersey
d. 17 March 1825, Shawneetown, Gallatin County, Illinois

Children with Achsah Applegate:
• Sallie
• Soloman
• Amira “Amy”
• Francis
• George, III
• Samuel
• Achsah
• Hannah
• Elizabeth

George Leech attended school and trained for the ministry in Dublin, Ireland. In 1774 at the age of 18, and with his 20-year-old brother, he came to America.

George fought in the American Revolution, serving from 15 August 1776 through 17 January 1781 under the command of Colonel Richard Butler in the Continental Line of the North Pennsylvania Regiment. During that period, he was brevetted to Captain by a resolution of Congress.

George emigrated from Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, in 1784 to Vincennes, Knox County, Indiana. While in Pennsylvania, George had studied law, and in 1805 he was appointed a Judge of the Court of Common Pleas for Knox County, Indiana.

Submitted by:
Hubert F. Leech
Warren MI
E-mail: hhubeanddot@aol.com

Ferdinand Hollingsworth

Leave a reply

Ferdinand Hollingsworth
b. 24 May 1808, Knox County, Indiana, to Thomas and Mary Anne (Sartor) Hollingsworth
d. 26 May 1879, near Carthage, Jasper County, Missouri

m. 26 October 1836, Knox County, Indiana
Rebecca Hill
b. 19 April 1818, Knox County, Indiana, to John and Mary Ann (Clark) Hill
d. 23 April 1910, near Carthage, Jasper County, Missouri

Children with Rebecca Hill:
• Albert (1839-1908) married Janette Sartor
• Clark (b. 1841) married Mary [–?–]
• Thomas P. (b. 1845) married Samantha E. [–?–]
• John (ca. 1850-1878) married Harriet Lavina Sartor
• Mary A. (1852-1916) married Rush Smith
• Eliza Jane (b. 1854) married Thomas Dodson
• Everett (1856-1925) married Christina [–?–]
• Henry (b. 1858)
• Elliott (1860-1918) married Jennie E. Nickolson
• Hugh (b. 1861)
• Melissa (b. 1863)

Ferdinand served in Company B, Mounted Rangers in the Black Hawk War, 1832, from Oaktown, Busseron Township, Knox County, Indiana. The family lived in Knox County until emigrating in 1870.

Submitted by:
Christie Hill Russell
Paris IL
E-mail: christie@cartar.com

Samuel Piety Hill

Leave a reply

Samuel Piety Hill
b. 31 December 1858, Bruceville, Knox County, Indiana, to George Washington and Indiana Ann (Piety) Hill
d. 13 April 1946, near Carthage, Jasper County, Missouri

m. 6 June 1886, Union Township, Jasper County, Missouri
Mary Ellen “Mollie” Burgoon
b. 29 January 1868, Grapevine, Tarrant County, Texas, to George B. and Letta Jane (Fortner) Burgoon
d. 14 August 1934, Carthage, Jasper County, Missour

Children with Mary Ellen Burgoon:
• Bruce (1887-1906)
• Lee Raymond (1888-1973) married Alice Curtis
• Frankie Faye (1891-1989) married Frank Leslie McRae
• Grace Mae (1893-1985) married (1) Chester Arizon Dipboye, (2) Luther Ellison
• Glenn George (1898-1989) married (1) Marie [–?–], (2) Adelaide M. Whitten
• Bernice Ellen (1899-1995) married (1) Joseph Mohl, (2) Ray Kibler
• Clayton Gaul (1901-1994) married Georgia Clara Janney
• Lawrence Chester (1903-1987) married Mary Elizabeth Garrett

Samuel’s parents came to Orange County, Indiana, from Tennessee in 1814. The family left Knox County, Indiana, in 1872. Samuel was a truck farmer and Justice of the Peace in Jasper County, Missouri.

Submitted by:
Christie Hill Russell
Paris IL
E-mail: christie@cartar.com

William Wallace Harper

Leave a reply

William Wallace Harper
b. 29 October 1820, Knox County, Indiana, to William and Elizabeth (Dunn) Harper
d. 4 February 1888, Mount Valley, Labette County, Kansas

m. 24 October 1842, Knox County, Indiana
Mary Ann Hill
b. 14 November 1823, Knox County, Indiana, to John and Mary Ann (Clark) Hill
d. 8 September 1912, Carthage, Jasper County, Missouri

Children with Mary Ann Hill:
• W. (abt. 1843-bef. 1871)
• John S. (1845-1845)
• George Franklin (1846-1892) married Laura Alice Shick
• Eliza Jane (1848-1851)
• William B. (1851-1852)
• Mary Elizabeth (1852-1875) married Thomas Hollingsworth
• Rebecca J. (1852-1852)
• James W. (b. ca. 1856)
• Hannah L. (1857-1857)
• Rebecca J. (1857-1857)

The family emigrated from Indiana in 1871 with their three children (George, Mary, and James). William was a miller and the first mayor of Mound City, Kansas. He also served in the legislature about 1874.

Submitted by:
Christie Hill Russell
Paris IL
E-mail: christie@cartar.com

Henry George Barnhardt Franke

Leave a reply

Henry George Barnhardt Franke
b. 5 August 1871, Piqua, Miami County, Ohio, to Bernard and Anna Franke
d. 29 April 1945, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois

m. 15 June 1897, Vincennes, Knox County, Indiana
Elnora Henretta Medires
b. 15 September 1872, Vincennes, Knox County, Indiana
d. 26 February 1939, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois

Children with Elnora Henretta Medires:
• Henry B. W. (1898-1925)
• Joseph M. (1899-1935)
• Leo J. (1901-1943)
• Mary C. (1903-1955)
• Walter J. (1908-1954)
• Anna (1910-1992)

Henry immigrated to Indiana in 1896 and left from Knox County in 1900.

Submitted by:
Marlene Petty Polster
Crown Point IN
E-mail: mars@mail.incongrp.com