STONE FAMILY HISTORY

Stone Name Meaning and History

English: from Old English stan ‘stone,’ in any of several uses. It is most commonly a topographic name, for someone who lived either on stony ground or by a notable outcrop of rock or a stone boundary-marker or monument, but it is also found as a metonymic occupational name for someone who worked in stone, a mason or stonecutter. There are various places in southern and western England named with this word, for example in Buckinghamshire, Gloucestershire, Hampshire, Kent, Somerset, Staffordshire, and Worcestershire, and the surname may also be a habitational name from any of these. Translation of various surnames in other languages, including Jewish Stein, Norwegian Steine, and compound names formed with this word.

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ELIJAH B. STONE

In Elijah's Army enlistment papers, he lists his origin as Madison, Ohio.

Whether this meant Madison County, Ohio, or merely a town called Madison in Ohio is not known for certain.

For awhile I was consumed with searching Franklin County, Ohio (which has a town named Madison in it) because of the following lead:

Franklin County, Ohio Will Abstracts, Book C, Page 128: George Goodson, Sr., of Harrisburg, Pleasant Twp. Signed 27 September 1851. Proven 16 October 1851. Wife: Rebecca (Wilson) Goodson. Son: George Goodson. Grandchildren: Lucius Moorhead Morrow and his heirs; Rachel Blare and her heirs; N.W. Goodson and his heirs. Mentions Elijah Stone, a minor, who "lives with me." Witnesses: William Walker and Joseph B. Mitchell. Source: CD #177 Broderbund.

Elijah would have been about about 14 years old and definitely a minor. It is interesting to note that only a year before this will was written, mentioning an Elijah Stone, we find this George Goodson and his wife Rebecca, and there is not another living soul in the household.

I searched Pleasant Township census records page by page and could find no one with a name resembling Elijah Stone. In fact, I've search all of Ohio for Elijah with no luck.

There is a 13-year old Ebesler P. Stone living in Madison, Guernsey County, Ohio in 1850. The right age for Elijah. Living with the Gill family. But from Elijah to Ebesler seems quite a stretch. As far as I can tell, the young Ebesler Stone is only mentioned in this one census and never again.

I eventually went back to looking at Madison County, not Madison Township.

In the 1830 census of Mt. Sterling, Madison County, Ohio, we find:

Marshal Stone and his family. This caught my eye since Elijah named his first-born son Marshall Jesse Stone.

According to this census, the family consists of:

2 males under 5, 1 male 15-20, 1 male 50-60; 1 female 15-20.

In 1830, Elijah would not yet have been born. I would interpret the male 50 to 60 to be Marshall Stone and it would appear that there is no mother in the household. The young boys could be the sons of the female, age 15 to 20.

Living next door to Marshall Stone is William Stone. He is younger, between 20 and 30 years of age, possibly a son of Marshall's. There is a lone female, age 15 to 20, and one young male, under the age of 5.

I checked the next census year, 1840, and found:

Marshal Stone living in the nearby community of Mt. Sterling. His household now consists of:

Males
2 under 5
1 10-15 years
1 30-40 years
1 60-70 years

Females:
1 under 5
1 40-50 years

Also nearby was:

William Stone, age 30 to 40
One male between 5 and 10
One male age 10 to 15
One female under age 5
Two females age 5 to 10
One female age 20 to 30 (the spouse)

In July 2011, I received an email from William Kahler. Bill sent me a copy of a 1907 Tribune newspaper article which, in part, states:

"Marshall Stone, with his brother Samuel, came from Scotland to Maryland where William was born Samuel located in Virginia, but Marshall came to Ohio where he raised a family of ten.

"William Stone had three brothers, George, Edward, and Samuel also two sisters, ______ and Parmelia Truitt, and four half-brothers, John, Abe, James, and Elijah."

Bill concluded, and I concur, that Marshall Stone and his first wife, Sarah Timmons, are almost certainly the parents of Elijah Stone.

Marshall Stone was born between 1770 and 1775 in Maryland. It is presumed, but not proven, that his parents were Thomas Stone and Sarah Sally Kinsey. Marshall's grandparents then might be John Stone and Mary Marshall (our Marshall could be named for her).

There is an unsourced family tree on Ancestry.com that follows this family back to William Stone, who was a Governor of Maryland, but I found at least one glaring error in the tree and so do not give it much weight. It also contradicts the newspaper article mentioned above that lists Marshall and Samuel as having come from Scotland to Maryland.

Marshall was married three times: Lydia Minshall, Sarah Timmons, and Sarah Bradford. It is thought there may be a fourth wife also.

To continue with Elijah Stone:

At some point in his life, Elijah left Ohio and settled in DeWitt County Illinois. There, on March 12, 1857, he married Nancy Malone. Nancy was the daughter of Baltus Malone and Hannah Lisenby. I have read that the Lisenbys were one of the founding families of Dewitt County.

After almost exactly nine months of marriage, their first baby was born: Permelia J., born December 14, 1857. A year and a half later, Marshall Jesse was born (May 06, 1859).

Three years after their marriage, Elijah and Nancy are found in the 1860 census for DeWitt County, Illinois, in Creek Township.

Stone, Elijah, age 24, male, farmer, personal prop $150, b. Ohio
Nancy, age 28, female, keeping house, b. KY
Parmelia J., age 2, female, b. IL
Marcle* Jesse, age 1, male, b. IL
*Marshall

There is another Stone family listed three households away from Elijah and Nancy: James Stone, age 28, born in Ohio, wife Eunice, 25, born in Ohio, and sons Alonzo, 8 and Zermes 5, both born in Illinois.

It seems possible to me that James is Elijah's brother. When I checked the 1850 census for Madison County, Ohio, there he was! Age 24 with his wife Eunice. I'm going out on a limb and saying that James and Ellijah were related. Two Stone boys from Madison, Ohio living three households away in a new town in a new state. It seems unlikely that is all a coincidence.

Elijah and Nancy also had daughters Hannah, Nettie (Annette), Martha E. (who died young), and Mary J. (who also died young) and sons Russell Elijah and Marshall.

Elijah served during the Civil War in the 10th Regiment of the Illinois Cavalry Volunteers (Company M), having volunteered for sevice on 5 January 1864 and being medically discharged on 10 February 1865 due to chronic nephritis, among other things.

Some time between 1870 and 1875, Elijah moved his family to Montgomery County, Kansas. It is unclear if Nancy died before or after the move, but most believe it was after.

However, on January 4, 1875, Elijah married for a second time. This time to Mary Parks, born about 1852 in Pennsylvania. In 1875, the State of Ohio took its own census and we find Elijah and family in Caney Township:

Kansas State Census Collection, 1875 > Montgomery County, Caney Twp.

Stone, E.B., 39 years old, $400 in real, $200 in personal, farmer, b. in Ohio, emigrated to KS from IL.
Stone, M., 24 years old, b. in Pennsylvania, emigrated to KS from Iowa. occupation: cook
Stone, P.J., age 17, cook, b. in IL
Stone, M. J., age 15, farmer, b. in IL
Stone, H., age 13, cook, b. IL.
Stone, O.G., age 11, farmer, b. IL
Stone, A., age 7, b. IL
William Martin, age 6, b. KS
S. ___ land, age 3, b. KS

NOTE: It is not clear who Wiliam Martin and S. _____land are, but could be children from a previous marriage of Mary Park's.

Just a few short months after this census, Elijah died (August 13, 1875).

It has recently come to my attention that the United States Government provided headstones to soldiers who didn't have one. The record states:

Headstones Provided for Deceased Union Civil War Veterans, 1879-1903
Name: Elijah B Stone
State of Cemetery: Kansas
Date of Death: 13 Aug 1875
Burial: Mt. Hope Cemetery, Independence, Kanssas

An act of Congress of February 3, 1879 (20 Stat. 281), extended the privilege of government-provided gravestones to soldiers buried in private cemeteries (20 Stat. 281). This act provided:

... That the Secretary of War is hereby authorized to erect headstones over the graves of soldiers who served in the Regular or Volunteer Army of the United States during the war for the Union, and who have been buried in private village or city cemeteries, in the same manner as provided by the law of March third, eighteen hundred and seventy-three, for those interred in national military cemeteries....

The Secretary of War shall cause to be preserved in the records of his Department the names and places of burial of all soldiers for whom such headstones shall have been erected by authority of this or any former acts.

After Elijah's death, his children petitioned the government for his pension. The affidavit was included in the paperwork:

I am one of the heirs of Elijah B. Stone, decd. I was present when my Father, the above named Soldier died. He frequently complained of chronic diarrhoea, rhematism and heart trouble and suffered severely therefrom. He had a severe attack of diarrhoea, followed with heart disease and the morning he died, rheumatism set in. We send for Doctor Taylor, he came and treaded him, soon after Doctor left, Father took another bad spell and died; I have been informed that Doctor Taylor does not transact business any more, on account of old age.

Signed, Hannah Stone Wyrick

That request was denied.

Montgomery County marriage records show that Elijah and Nancy's daughter, Hannah M. Stone, 18, married 25-year old Wessley Wyrick on October 4, 1879 and daughter Nettie Stone, 18, married 45-year old W.S. Allen on December 5, 1881.

June Gill states that first born, Permelia Stone, married a man named Norris. Clara Stone also recalls there was an "Aunt Pamela" who married a man named Norris. I can find no record of the marriage or of who Mr. Norris might be.

Marshall Jesse Stone married Fannie Susanna Hallett.

Sarah M. Stone married George Graham.

Annette (or Nettie) married Herman Henderson.

Russell Elijah Stone married Amanda Helen Cox.

RUSSELL ELIJAH STONE

After the death of his father, Russell Elijah Stone, according to granddaughter Verna, went to "live with the Indians" in the Osage Nation. While Russell was living there, Amanda Helen Cox came to visit her sister who was also living there, and maybe even visited some cousins who were living on the reservation. Antwine Rogers was possibly an uncle or cousin to Amanda. It has also been said that Will Rogers was a distance cousin.

Amanda, 18, and Russell, 25, were married on January 2, 1891, in Montgomery County, Kansas. According to the license, they both lived in Skiatook (Osage Territory, later Oklahoma).

While living in Skiatook, little Myrtle was born and died. She is buried there. Amanda gave birth to twin boys next, named Clarence and Lawrence. Russell left Amanda and the boys at Skiatook and went to Oklahoma Territory and raced in the land rush when the government opened the lands to white men. He claimed 160 acres on the Cherokee strip. Their neighbors were the families of Bill Cannon, Riley Hines, and Al Burris. Bill Cannon was Russell's best friend.

The first house Russell build on his homestead was a sod house. But he may have brought Amanda and the boys down even before the house was built. According to family lore, Amanda and the boys were living in a tent, Russell was away, and a huge stampede occurred. Amanda's granddaughter, Verna, believes it may have been the famous stampede that started clear over in Tulsa and lasted for two or more days. Anyway, some men came and strung lariats and lanterns around the tent, hoping to part the cattle. Either that worked, or the cattle did not come their way, because they made in through the stampede without injury. Later, Russell built a cabin on the same homestead to replace the sod house and, eventually, a two-story cabin was built on the property.

Children born to Amanda and Russell after baby Myrtle and the twins were: Clara Louisa, Verna, Orlando, Blanche, and Rex.

The Stone homestead in Stroud, Oklahoma about 1897


An improved homestead, year unknown. Persons in the photograph are people to whom Russell had rented the house.


The two-story house built by Russell Stone.

Russell had a rock quarry, a freighting line up and down the strip, and a patent on a butter churn which he took with him on his wagon to sell. He hauled his cotton to market drawn by the finest red Missouri mules in black leather strappings with bells. He bred and raised mules, once sending to the Dakotas for two expensive mares. Daughter Clara got to go with him when he went to the rail head station to accept delivery of the pair.

Once, he relocated to Colton, Oregon and bought a saw mill. They didn't stay long in Oregon, though. They moved back to Stroud, Oklahoma.

They used to go to the Sac and Fox dances on Saturday nights with friends, Bill Cannon and Riley Hines and their wives. One night, Riley Hines was getting the team ready to go home and some cowboys were playing around and a gun went off. Riley Hines was shot and killed. No one went back to the dances any more after that. Russell's daughter, Clara Louisa, is named after Riley's widow, Clara.

Amanda Helen Cox Stone died July 1, 1909, at the age of 35. She died at home, with Russell sitting beside her on the bed. He had his arm around her shoulder, kind of helping her to sit up. He called each of her children to her bedside and she spoke with each one and then she prayed and then she died. She is buried across the road from where the old cabin on the homestead was. Clara, the oldest daughter, quit school at age 14 to take care of the household and the family.

Russell traded that homestead for another one at Olive, Oklahoma. In 1913, Russell became very ill. His old friend, Bill Cannon, came and got him and took him home with him. He even hired a nurse to take care of him, but Russell died 3 or 4 days later; they say he died of a broken heart. He was brought back to Stroud and laid to rest close to Amanda in the Oak Grove Cemetery.

The children were now orphans, although the twins were 20 years of age.

While Clara and her brothers and sisters were in Stroud, burying their father, a young man named Lucien Dewitt McDaniel was living there. He and Clara met and, a few months later, were married.

Read the story of their "engagement," Lucien's unique proposal, and the story of their life together on the McDaniel Family web page (see below).

For an extra special treat, read more of Clara's life with her parents, Russell and Amanda Stone, in the early days of Stroud, Oklahoma in Clara's Book (see below).

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The McDaniels

Clara's Book

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