02 June 2012

Divorce Action in Williams County, Ohio - Fackler, 1886


By Pamela Pattison Lash

Laura (St John) Fackler v Marquis Fackler (Journal 14 p3 - 15 Nov 1886; Roll 44 case number 1654 - 26 Jul 1886)
            The couple was married on 27 June 1879.  They had an infant and they cohabited as husband and wife.  He is active and energetic as a businessman and is capable of earning large sums of money but he did not provide for his daughter.  She charged that he was guilty of gross neglect and willfully absent for three years and more, plus bigamy. Laura received $600 in alimony as part of the divorce settlement. 

The divorce was declared in The Bryan Democrat, 18 Nov 1886, p5 under Frackler v Frackler.

From the Richland Shield and Banner, 31 July 1886
Mrs. Laura Fackler, of Bryan, Williams County, has commenced suit for divorce from her husband, Marcus Fackler, who lives in Franklin Township, this county.  This will probably be a surprising bit of news to the friends and neighbors of Mr. Fackler, owing to the fact that his is now living with another woman, formerly Miss Sarah Powell, whom he married since leaving his first wife.  The plaintiff alleges that Marcus had been guilty of gross neglect of duty, adultery, desertion and willful absence for more than three years.  She says they were married at Hillsdale, Michigan, June 27, 1879, and have one child, now aged five years.  Mrs. Fackler asks also to be granted reasonable alimony.  If her statement be true, her husband has been guilty of bigamy, which is a penitentiary offense.

The divorce proceedings, the newspaper account, and the clues within gave me some items to check.  Here’s what I found:

Marquis Q Fackler (10 Mar 1861 Richland Co, OH – 18 Sept 1937 Wright Twp, Hillsdale Co, MI; buried in Walnut Grove Cem, Millcreek Twp, Williams Co, OH) was the son of Daniel Henry Fackler and Lydia Ann Cole.
M1 – Laura St John, 27 June 1879, Hillsdale Co, MI; divorced Nov 1886
M2 – Sarah J Powell, 29 July 1882, Richland Co, OH
M3 – Mary A Barkdoll, 3 Jan1893, Adrian, Lenawee Co, MI
M4 – Ella Emma Kitz Barrick, 4 June 1917, Ashland Co, OH

Laura St. John Fackler Davis (26 Oct 1861 Richland Co, OH – 18 Oct 1909, Bridgewater Twp, Williams Co, OH @47Y 11M 22D; buried at Nettle Lake Cem, NW Twp, Williams Co, OH) was the daughter of Burr St John and Hetty Fesler.

Laura St John married Lyman B. Davis on 5 Mar 1887 in Amboy Twp, Hillsdale Co, MI by HC Kintigh; both were residents of NW Twp and he was 27 from NY but her age was unknown, aside from birthplace of Richland Co, OH.  Their witnesses were Curtis Metzer and Crain D Rice, both of Amboy Twp, Hillsdale Co, MI.

Lyman B. Davis (1860 from tombstone but 1900 census says July 1861- 9 March 1919, Amboy Twp, Hillsdale Co, MI; buried at Nettle Lake Cem, NW Twp, Williams Co, OH) was the son of Hiram Davis and Rachel Jane Rogers.

This is the timeline I’ve made for the principals:

Hillsdale Co, MI Marriages, V3 p338 - On 17 June 1879 in South Wright Twp, Hillsdale Co, MI, Marquis Fuckler married Laura St. John by Volney Reynolds, JP.  (I looked at the original book and it does say Fuckler).  Both were 19 years old, both residents of Williams Co, OH, and both born in Richland Co, OH.  Witnesses were RW and Hattie Reynolds of Wright, MI.  Marquis was listed as farmer.

1870 Madison, Williams, Ohio; Roll: M593_1282; Page: 112A; Image: 227; Family History Library Film: 552781.
h/h 149/152 St John, Burr 34 OH farmer
Hetta 30 OH
Laura 9 OH
Elmira 7 OH
Edwin 4 O
Lucinda 2 OH
Note Burr St John is living next door to his future second wife, Athelinda Bollinger

Marcus Fackler and Laura St John are married on 17 June 1879 in Hillsdale Co, MI

1880 Madison, Williams, Ohio; Roll: 1077; Family History Film: 1255077; Page: 466B; Enumeration District: 003; Image: 0567.
h/h 57/56 Fackler, Marcus 21 OH-OH-OH laborer
Laura wife 20 OH-OH-OH

According to Laura St John Fackler’s divorce proceedings, the couple has a daughter born c1881 but I have not found any birth records in Williams Co, OH for this; sometime after the birth, Marcus left Laura and their child and moved back to Richland Co, OH c1881-1882.

Richland Co, OH Marriages – On 29 July 1882 Marquis Fackler married Sadie Jane Powell, by J S Broadwell, Minister of Gospel, Mansfield, Richland Co, OH

Bellville Star (Richland Co, OH), 17 August 1882, there is a marriage notice for Marcus Fackler and Sarah Jane Powell.

Laura St John Fackler institutes her divorce 26 July 1886 to 18 November 1886, when she is free of Marquis.  Whether Marquis was brought to trial on charges of bigamy has not yet been established so his history from 1886-1893 is currently unknown.

Laura Fackler married Lyman Davis on 5 Mar 1887 so her motive in wishing a divorce may have something to do with wanting to remarry.

On 4 Jan 1893 Marquis Fackler married Mary A Barkdoll in Lenawee Co, MI by James M Kerridge, Methodist minister with Emmerwilda Kerridge and Margaret Allen as witnesses; both were residents of Adrian, MI; he was a machinist and both stated they had never been married before.  His parents were DH Fackler and Lydia Cole; her parentage was not stated.

1900 Mansfield Ward 8, Richland, Ohio; Roll: 1316; Page: 4B; Enumeration District: 125; FHL microfilm: 1241316.
h/h 80/90 Fackler, Marquis 40 (Mar 1860) OH-*-* married 7Y clerk in dry goods store
Mary wife 39 (Apr 1861) 0/0 ch OH-MD-Germ

Possibly 1910 Adrian Ward 4, Lenawee, Michigan; Roll: T624_660; Page: 1A; Enumeration District: 0048; Image: 818; FHL microfilm: 1374673.
As Martin Q Fackler 48 OH-OH-OH machinist for railroad with wife Mary 48 OH-MD-MD and adopted daughter Marie L 13; he was married 2x and 20Y in this marriage

Marquis Fackler married Ella Barrick on 4 June 1917 in Ashland Co, OH
.
1920 Adrian, Lenawee, Michigan; Roll: T625_780; Page: 7A; Enumeration District: 59; Image: 940.
Marquis J Fackler 57 OH-OH-OH carpenter for railroad and wife Ella 51 OH-PA-PA with several Barrick children

1930 Adrian, Lenawee, Michigan
Marquis Fackler 68 OH-OH-OH no occup mar @22Y of age with wife Ella married at 18Y of age (not to each other then) with several Barrick children


31 May 2012

When a Comma Can Make a Difference - Suit of Hardy v Christy, 1870


By Pamela Pattison Lash

Bryan Democrat, 13 Oct 1870, p2 (began legal notice on 31 Aug 1870)
Legal Notice
Martha Jane Hardy v Miller, Christie

“Martha Jane is a resident of Williams Co, OH and an unmarried woman who is now pregnant with a child, that if born alive, will be a bastard, and that said Miller, Christie is the father of the child.  An order of attachment has been sent from the court with proceedings pending.” Note – in this newspaper article there is a comma separating the Miller and Christie, so the error I made at first was that the “father” was Christie Miller.  Instead in other records it appears the “father” is Miller Christie, borne out from the
Civil and Criminal Court Records, Roll 22 case number 44 – 1870 Hardy v Christie.

In the Williams County, Ohio Birth Records, V1 p54 there is a Cora Ellen, daughter of Jane Hardy and Miller Christy, born on 17 Oct 1873 in Springfield Twp. With this idea I checked the 1880 census and found that Cora was indeed their daughter, but not their first:

1880 Tiffin, Defiance, Ohio; Roll: 1011; Family History Film: 1255011; Page: 250A; Enumeration District: 242; Image: 0725.
h/h 133/135 Christy, Miller 34 farmer OH-PA-PA
Martha J wife 28 OH-VA-VA
Charles W (William) son 9 OH-OH-OH
Mary B (Bell) dau 9 OH-OH-OH
Cora 6 dau OH-OH-OH
Note – neighbors to both Christy and Hardy families

Next I checked the marriage records for the couple and found that Miller Christy and Jane Hardy were married in Williams Co, OH on 13 Oct 1872 (Marriages V4 p242) and then I rechecked births using familysearch.com and located this record:
William Christy born 15 Dec 1870, son of Miller Christy and M Jane Hardy, whose baptism/christening place was Williams County, OH and a Mary Bell Christy with the same birth date and parents; therefore it appears that Martha Jane was pregnant with twins when she filed the suit.

Note Charles William Christy’s death certificate states that his birth date is 15 Nov 1870, Defiance Co, OH.

Here’s what else I’ve found on this family:

Miller Christy (18 Dec 1845 OH or PA – 14 Mar 1925 Tiffin Twp, Defiance Co, OH @79Y 2M 26D; burial at New Evansport Cem, Evansport, Defiance Co, OH) son of Robert Christy and Margaret Lesnet

1860 Evansport, Defiance, Ohio; Roll: M653_947; Page: 417; Image: 287; Family History Library Film: 803947
h/h 1017/1005 Miller Christy 13 OH, w/parents Richard and Margaret and siblings Mary, James, Robert, Fred, and Richard

1870 Tiffin, Defiance, Ohio; Roll: M593_1195; Page: 178A; Image: 359; Family History Library Film: 552694.
h/h 21/21 Miller Christy 24 OH with mother Margaret and siblings Mary, Frederick, and Richard

Martha Jane Hardy (26 Mar 1849 pos Delaware Co, OH but death certificate says Alleghany, MD - 15 June 1937 Tiffin Twp, Defiance Co, OH @88Y 2D 19D; burial in New Evansport Cem, Evansport, Defiance Co, OH) informant, Clinton Christy; Martha Jane is the daughter of William and Angeline Hardy

1850 Harlem, Delaware, Ohio; Roll: M432_675; Page: 143A; Image: 103.
Martha J Hardy 1 OH with parents William and Angeline and siblings Edward, Mary, Sarah, Randolph, Rebecca, and Elizabeth

1860 Richland, Defiance, Ohio; Roll: M653_947; Page: 318; Image: 87; Family History Library Film: 803947.
Martha J Hardy 10 OH with parents William (48 VA) and Angeline (46 MD) and siblings Rudolph, Rebecca, Elizabeth, William H, and Caroline.

1870 Springfield, Williams, Ohio; Roll: M593_1282; Page: 210B; Image: 426; Family History Library Film: 552781
Martha J Hardy 21 OH with parents William and Angeline

1900 Tiffin, Defiance, Ohio; Roll: 1263; Page: 15A; Enumeration District: 18; FHL microfilm: 1241263.
h/h 293/297 Christy, Miller 53 (Sept 1846) farmer mar 31Y OH-OH-OH
Jane M wife 52 (Mar 1848) OH-OH-OH 7/7 ch
Mae dau 16 (Aug 1883) OH-PA-OH
Edward J son 8 (Mar 1892) OH-PA-OH
1910 they still reside in Tiffin, Defiance Co, OH but by 1920 they live in Springfield, Williams Co, OH