Obituaries |
submitted by: Julia Johnson - julia.johnson63@gmail.com |
[Clayton, Henry Sherman] Bedford Free Press Thursday October 13, 1910 p. 5 Siam Monday evening at eleven-thirty o'clock, Henry Clayton, who has resided here all his life, passed away. It will be remembered that he has been an invalid for the past ten years, being entirely helpless a greater part of this time. He was an honest, upright man and was respected by all. Rev. Beverage, of Shambaugh, conducted the funeral services at the M. E. church Wednesday and the remains were laid to rest in the Siam cemetery. The family have the sympathy of all. [Clayton, Henry Sherman] Bedford Free Press Thursday October 20, 1910 p. 4 Obituary Henry S. [herman] Clayton was born near Siam September 3, 1869, and died at his residence October 10, 1910, aged 41 years, 1 month and 7 days. He was the fourth son of Mr. and Mrs. G. [eorge] W. [ashington] Clayton [Fidelia Schoonover], who were early settlers in Taylor county. He was married September 11, 1893 to [Mary] Chrystal Smith, eldest daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Isaac Smith. To them were born three children, Ralph, Lily and Omar [Omer]. Omar's presence gladdened their home but 8 short years when the Master called him to his Heavenly home. His entire life was spent in the community where he was born, having been afflicted with paralysis for 11 years, the past 8 years being entirely helpless. Medical aid was bought but none could be obtained sufficient to heal his afflicted body. He was cared for by his affectionate wife and dutiful children. Patient in his suffering, always greeting his friends who called on him with a smile, and during his last hours committed himself wholly into the care and keeping of his Heavenly Father, admonishing his family to put their trust in the' same Father who careth for the widow and the orphans. Funeral services were held October 12, at 2 o'clock p. m. in the M. E. church, at Siam, conducted by their pastor, Rev. Beverage, who took for his text, Zech. 14-7. interment was made in the Siam cemetery. The deceased leaves to mourn his departure a devoted wife, one son, one daughter, an aged mother, four brothers, one sister, together with other relatives and a large circle of friends, who by their attendance at the funeral showed the high respect in which he was held. The sorrowing family have the sympathy of the entire community in their bereavement. [CLAYTON, HENRY SHERMAN] Bedford Free Press Thursday August 12, 1909 p. 4 Siam News On Saturday Aug. 7th, at about twelve o'clock occurred the death of Homer [Omer B.] Clayton, youngest child of Henry S. [herman] and [Mary] Crystal [Smith] Clayton, who live just south of town. Little Homer [Omer] on Tuesday previous to his death
was taken with spinal meningitis and his condition was not thought to be
serious until on Friday when he began to grow gradually worse until as stated
above the spirit took its flight and returned to the God who gave it. It would
seem that this family have had more than their share of affliction for the last
few years as it will be remembered that the father has been almost totally
helpless for a number of years requiring the care of a child and now the
youngest child, torn from their loving embrace it seems almost more than they
can bear. Little Homer [Omer] was a
bright little fellow loved by all who knew him. He was an exceptionally good
dispositioned boy and will be missed by the family and the community in which
he lived. Why these afflictions come we cannot tell but sometime in the future
perhaps it may be made known to us. When we see a precious blossom that we've
tended with such care rudely taken from our bosom. How our aching hearts
despair. Round his little grave we linger till setting sun is low. Feeling all
our hopes have perished with the flowers we cherished so. Clarinda Herald Journal Thursday March 11, 1993
Pheobe Clayton
Funeral Services were held Wednesday for Pheobe [Phoebe] Harper Clayton, 104, who died Monday, March 8, 1993 at Bethesda Care Center in Clarinda where she had lived since 1985. She was born April 2, 1888, the second in a family of ten children born to John and Lillie (Hay) Harper. All of them are now deceased. They were Mrs. Ervin (Mary) Hamm, Harry Harper, Mrs. Moses (Vera) Fuller, Mrs. Paul (Ina) Jones, Mrs. Tom (Nita) Dowd, Mrs. Hugh (Vesta) Hudson, Margaret Harper, Mrs. Orie (Beulah) Gorrell and John Harper. Her childhood was spent in Shambaugh, where she attended school and graduated with the eighth grade class of 1902. After that she went to Shenandoah, where she took a Normal Training Course. She taught her first school in a small country school called Cottonwood just east of Elmo, Mo. Her teaching was done in Page and Taylor County schools. They were: Pin Hook, Oak Grove, Hawleyville, Mount Joy, Olive Branch, and Siam; While at Olive Branch during the days of Jessie Field Shambaugh, she helped in organizing the 3-H Club (as it was then called). Her school at Olive Branch did a lot to help promote the work of the 3-H Clubs in both the county and state. Her last school was in Siam. It was here that she met her husband to be, Ora G.[riffith] Clayton. They were married May 15, 1917, at her home in Clarinda. They had two daughters, Frances and Ruth Ellen. She also had four stepchildren; the one surviving, is Mrs. Nannie Young of Milwakee, Or. Deceased are Dessie (Clayton) Redenbaugh, Ralph Clayton and Floyd Clayton. She spent 25 years on the farm until in 1943, when her husband passed away. She moved to Clarinda at that time and has lived there since. She spent the next 25 years caring for elderly ladies in her home. The last few years she has made her home at Bethesda Care Center. Surviving are her daughters, Mrs. Frances Cogdell of Atlanta, Ga., and Mrs. Ruth Ellen Wasson of Council Bluffs, and stepdaughter, Nannie Young. There are five grandchildren, six great-children, ten step-grandchildren, many step-great-grandchildren, and one daughter-in-law, Mrs. Vera Clayton of New Market. She also leaves several nieces, nephews, and cousins. Funeral services were Wednesday, March 10, at the United Methodist Church in Clarinda with Dr. Emmanuel Dass and Rev. Alfred Hunter officiating. Burial was in the Siam Cemetery. Walker- Merrick Funeral Home was in charge of arrangements. Bedford Free Press Thursday September 16, 1926 p. 6 SIAM Friends here were very much shocked by news of the death of Wm. Clayton at Excelsior Springs, Mo., last Friday. Mr. Clayton spent his childhood and early manhood here and had many friends who are grieved at his passing away. His remains were brought to the home of his brother, C. [harles] A. [ddison] Clayton Saturday evening, accompanied by his wife and brother. Funeral services were held from the Methodist church at 2 o'clock Monday, conducted by Rev. Bennett. He leaves to mourn their loss, his wife, one son and four daughters, one sister and three brothers, all of whom were present at the funeral except two brothers. He was laid to rest in the Siam cemetery. [Clayton, William Ellsworth] Bedford Free Press Thursday September 16,
1926 p. 8
Wm. Ellsworth Clayton
Wm. Ellsworth Clayton, son of G. [eorge] W. [ashington] and Fidelia [Schoonover] Clayton, was born in Siam, Taylor county, Iowa, Feb. 11, 1865, and departed this life Sept. 10, 1926, age 61 years, 6 months, and 29 days. His boyhood and early manhood was spent in Taylor County where in 1887 he married Martha Hutchinson. He accepted Christ in early manhood and became a member of the M. E. church at Siam. In 1891 he moved with his family to Wisner, Nebr., where he lived on a farm until 1914 when he retired on account of ill health. The last four years of his life were spent at Excelsior Springs, Mo. in an effort to regain his health. "Colonel" as he was familiarly known had a host of friends in Taylor county, Iowa, Wisner, Nebr. and Excelsior Springs, Mo. and was loved by all for his cheerful disposition and kind heart. He was a good citizen a loving husband and a kind and generous father. He leaves to mourn their loss, his wife, Martha Clayton, a son Jesse Clayton of Coffey, Mo. four daughters, Inez May Humphrey of Nebr., Rose C. Bolor, Omaha, Nebr.; Ethel I. Spires, O'Neill, Nebr., and Ruth Fitzgerald, Fullerton, Nebr., also one sister, Maggie Roush, Siam, Iowa, three brothers, John Clayton, Parker, S. D., Ora Clayton, Lakota, N. D., and Chas. A. Clayton, who was faithfully with him through his illness to the end. Bedford Times-Press Wednesday September 15, 1999 Lola Sleep Coe
Funeral services for Lola Sleep Coe, age 93, who died at Ft. Lauderdale, Florida on September 10, 1999 were held Tuesday, September 14 at 2:00 p.m. at the Novinger Taylor Funeral Home in Bedford with Pastor Ted DeHass officiating. Burial was in the Siam Cemetery. Funeral services were conducted by Novinger Taylor Funeral Home. Lola Mae Sleep [Smith] Coe was born to Albert [Jasper] Sleep and Martha D. [Jane] Weingarth Sleep at Bedford, Iowa on November 29, 1905. She lived in Bedford and grew to maturity in Bedford where she attended the public school and Christian Church of Bedford. On September 23, 1960 she was united in marriage to Samuel S. Coe at Chicago, Illinois and they lived in Chicago and Springfield, then moved to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. She was employed by the Stevens Hotel in Chicago for many years. Lola was preceded in death by her parents; sisters, Alma Bales, Fannie Marshall and Bertha; nephews Harold Marshall and Robert D. Marshall. Left to cherish her memory are nieces and nephews, Franklin and Valerie Marshall, Herbert and Mary Marshall, James and Diane Marshall, Richard and Donna Marshall, Joanne and Yousif Aljebouri, Martha and George Martin and Sandy Olson; also many great and great, great nieces and nephews. She was a kind and considerate loving person and will be missed by all who knew and loved Lola Mae. She and her mother were avid Cubs fans and would go to Wrigley Field in Chicago every Tuesday, which was ladies day. Lola Mae also loved music and enjoyed dancing. She also liked playing cards. Bedford Free Press Thursday February 18, 1897 p. 2 SIAM On Wednesday morning of last week John A. [lbert] Collins departed this life. The remains were buried on Thursday In the Siam cemetery. A large concourse of sympathizing friends attended the funeral. He leaves a wife and four children to mourn the loss of a kind husband and father. [Collins, John Albert] Hopkins Journal Thursday February 18, 1897 SIAM Died, at his home, two miles east of Siam, on Wednesday, Feb. 10, John Albert Collins. A short funeral service was held at the home, conducted by Elder Burch. A large procession followed the remains to the Siam cemetery.
[Collins, John Albert] Bedford Free Press Thursday February 18, 1897 p. 3
John F. [Albert] Collins, an old and respected resident of Polk township, died Wednesday, Feb. 9, 1897, aged 51 years. The funeral was conducted from the residence on Thursday. Full particulars of the death and funeral have not been obtainable. Clearfield Enterprise Thursday October 18, 1923 p. 2 B. S. Collins [Simeon Benjamin
Collins], 73 years of age, was found dead in his home near Siam on last
Friday, the 12th inst. He was an odd man, kept largely to himself, and was thought
to have large sums of money about the place. This was excuse enough to start
the hunt for buried treasure, which is a recurring adventure in the
neighborhood.
[Collins, Simeon Benjamin] Bedford Times-Republican Tuesday October 16, 1923 [p. 1] Mysteries of Half Century Again Revived The Mysterious Death and Finding of the Body of B. S. Collins Last Friday, Brings Back Memories of Over Half Century Ago ________________
What the Next Century Will Reveal No Living Mortal Can Forecast B. S. Collins [Simeon Benjamin], an aged bachelor residing near Siam, was found lying dead under the table of his kitchen Friday afternoon by a party of men who came to find out his condition, he having been ill for several days. About 11:00 o'clock a. m., he was last seen alive by Caleb Jobe, Grover Manley, J. F. Sleep and Troy Sleep, who visited him. He was being treated by Dr. Sargent of Hopkins. When William Smith, Clem Jeffers, Chas. Damewood, Walter Henderson and Joe Smith arrived at his home about 1:15 they found the stove lids lifted, a basket of wood nearby, and Mr. Collins under the table, dead. Fearing that he had met with foul play, as his body was under the table, Sheriff Parrish, County Attorney Locke and County Coroner Dr. Beauchamp were immediately called, before the body was moved. Mr. Collins was 73 years of age He was an odd man and was always thought to keep much money in his house. His home was a three-room structure, a relic of better days. The roof was sagging, the house badly in need of repairs. A dark grove of trees surrounded the building. Children on their way to and from school feared the man, and he refused to allow them to gather the walnuts along the fence, although he had no use for them. High weeds and grass grew around the place. Although he owned 200 acres of good farmland, he never built a barn. His stock sheds were made of poles and straw and his fences were made of rails. His farm is located two miles east of Siam, on the Golden Rod Highway on the banks of the West 102 River. As far as is known he had no relatives near here. He lived apart from his fellow men, his only connection with the outside world being through the Masonic lodge. In his pockets was found $37.45 in cash and currency and $3.00 in a check. $25 was found at different places over the room. The story of his death created a sensation in the neighborhood.
It has long been rumored that the man had sums of money hidden on his place,
and before the body had been moved persons began digging in the yard for buried
treasure. Mr. Collins was one of the
old pioneers of the region. The peculiar death of another of the old Siam
settlers recalls the weird history of the district, starting before the Civil
war and continuing through the guerilla warfare. Probably no other community
has such a notorious series of events. At the present time Siam is a little
inland village in Polk Township in southwestern Taylor County. It consists of
one store, two churches, school, telephone exchange and about two dozen houses. It is served by mail carriers from
Hopkins, Mo., and Bedford, Iowa, and is a peaceable looking a little hamlet as
could be imagined, but no less than a score of murders are said to have
occurred in the vicinity, and if the truth could be found, perhaps the fate of
many missing men would be solved on the state border line in the Siam district. [Collins, Simeon Benjamin] Bedford Free Press Thursday October 18, 1923 [p. 1] S. B. Collins Found Dead in Home S. [imeon] B. [enjamin] Collins, an aged bachelor living east of Siam on his 200-acre farm, was found dead at his home last Friday by friends. Funeral arrangements were made by his many friends and he was given a very fine burial service last Sunday at the church in Siam. The obituary will be found else where in this issue. ''Uncle Sim" as he was lovingly known by his neighbors, had lived alone on the farm since the death of his mother about ten years ago and of late years had been in very poor health. His greatest desire was to be of as little bother as possible to his neighbors and his worst fault was that he would not let others do things for him so he lived a rather out of the ordinary life. He was an honored member of the Siam Masonic lodge and until recent years when his health failed, he mingled with his fellow men on the best of terms, often coming to Bedford to trade and visit and to Siam, his nearest trading point. A tale printed in the Times the first of the week wherein his death was mentioned, painted a lurid picture of his going, made him out as a suspected miser and recluse of whom the children were afraid and then not satisfied with that, inferred by a few more hundred words that his neighborhood of Siam was a breeding spot for foul murders. Old residents of that community know better and resent such tales of barbarism about their peaceful community. Some sensational magazines of the trashiest order have carried tales of like color about the Siam district, and the Times dug up a lot of that rot just because an old man died at his home near there. Siam and its people has never been any different than hundreds of other communities throughout its history despite some sensational, trashy stories that had their birth about the time a lady of that district began talking of things that might have happened there when she was a young girl. Nothing was proven. The less such lurid tales of the early days are dug and enlarged, the better. [Collins, Simeon Benjamin] Bedford Free Press Thursday October 18, 1923 p. 7
Obituary—Simeon Collins Simeon Collins died Oct. 12, 1923, at his home in Polk Township, Taylor County, Iowa, where he had lived alone since the death of his mother ten years ago. A large crowd of his friends and neighbors gathered at the Christian church in Siam, Sunday afternoon to show their respect for "Uncle Sim" whom most of them had known all their lives. His nearest relatives are some nieces and nephews who were at the funeral. Rev. Tolley, the Methodist minister from Bedford, preached a very good sermon from the text, "A good man shall be satisfied from himself." He spoke of the satisfaction that comes from a well ordered life lived in harmony with the laws of the Universe; of character building and of the influences that help to lift the level of a community. Many commented on the excellence of the sermon and of the good that may come from such a talk. The songs sung by Mrs. Reed, Mrs. McPherrin, Mr. Clayton and Mr. Radke with Miss Miller at the piano were very appropriate. The Masonic funeral ceremony was given in full at the grave by Mr. Wm. Penn Spencer, a member of the Siam lodge of which Brother Collins was an honored member. Many Masons from Siam and some from Hopkins and Bedford were in attendance. [Condy, Martha Hutchinson Clayton] Bedford Times-Press Thursday October 18, 1951 p. 2 SIAM NEWS Former Resident Dies Mrs. Martha Clayton Condy, 86, a former resident of Siam, died Oct. 13 at the home of her daughter, Mrs. Rose Bolar in Omaha, after a long illness. Graveside services were held at the Siam cemetery at 2 o'clock Monday afternoon, Oct. 15, conducted by Rev. I. E. Stickelman of Clarinda, pastor of the New Market Christian church. Martha Hutchinson, daughter of Isaac [Brown] and Samantha [Nancy Leddick] Hutchinson, was born near Siam, Iowa, Sept 30, 1865. On Feb. 24, 1887 she was married to William E. [llsworth] Clayton. To them were born five children, four daughters and one son, all of whom survive. They are Mrs. Ivey Humphrey of Brownville, Nebr., Mrs. Rose Bolar of Omaha, Mrs. Ethel Leander of Mold, Wash., Mrs. Ruth Fitzgerald of Fullerton, Nebr., Jesse Clayton of Lamar, Mo. In 1880 Mr. and Mrs. Clayton moved from Siam to Nebraska locating on a farm near Wisner. Later they retired on account of Mr. Clayton's health and moved into Wisner, and then to Excelsior Springs, Mo. Mr. Clayton died Sept. 10, 1926. In August 1927, Mrs. Clayton was married to Archie Condy. He passed away Nov. 18, 1935. Mrs. Condy lived alone until 1947, when she went to Omaha to make her home with her daughter. Surviving with the children are one sister, Mrs. G. [eorge] M. [ilton] McFarland [Anna] of Lyons, Kans.; one brother, Isaac B. [rown] Hutchinson of New Market; 11 grandchildren, 19 great grandchildren, one great great grandchild. Lenox Time Table Thursday March 7, 1974 [p. 1] Clark Taylor Rites Tuesday Clark Taylor, long time resident of Taylor County, died suddenly at his home in Lenox, March 1st. Clark S. Taylor, only son of Albert C. [Alvin] and Effie [Estella Thompson] Taylor, was born January 19, 1904 in Bedford, Iowa. He passed away March 1, 1974 at his home in Lenox at the age of 70 years, 1 month and 10 days. He spent most of his life in Taylor County. He worked as a clerk in various clothing firms. His last employment was with Dale’s Clothing from which he retired in 1970. Mr. Taylor was a veteran of World War II and a member of the American Legion. He was also a member of the Masonic Lodge. He was preceded in death by his parents and one sister, Vera Martin. Left to cherish his memory are three sisters, Susie Brown of Lenox, Ruby Speelman and her husband, Adley of Creston, Helen Hamblin and her husband Lloyd. Also three nephews, Gary Hamblin of Oakland, Iowa, Richard Hamblin of Fort Collins, Colo., William Martin of Corning, N. Y. and one niece, Karen Martin of Chicago, Ill., and seven grand nieces. He was a kind and loving brother and will be sadly missed by his family as well as other relatives and many friends. Services were held March 5, 1974 at 2 p. m. at the Larkin-Bender funeral home with Rev. Wallace Nelson officiating. Music was furnished by Norma Paymal. Casket bearers were Dale Purdom, Ed Richey, Bing Miller, Ernie Campbell, David Ferris and Marven Reed. Interment was in West Fairview cemetery. |