Ephraim Niess was my great-great-grandfather. He died two months after my father was born. There was an entry in notes made by his widow that Catharine and Ephraim had made a trip to Washington D.C. in early November, leading me to believe it was to see my father as an infant since he would have been their first great-grandson. I don't know what newspaper this was in, but it must have been a Harrisburg, Pennsylvania one, since that is the city that Ephraim died in. He died November 25, 1915.
E.H. NIESS, VETERAN, DIES AT AGE OF 74 YEARS.Ephraim H. Niess, ward assessor for the First ward and re-elected this month, died last evening at his home, 117 Dock Street, aged 74 years. He was a veteran of the Civil War, having enlisted in Company E, 122d regiment of Pennsylvania volunteers. Married in 1864, he moved to this city in 1866 from Marietta, he received employment in the Bailey Iron Works, remaining there for nearly fifty years.
Mr. Niess was a member of Post 58, G.A.R., and Dauphin Lodge No. 160, I.O.O.F. His widow, Mrs. Catherine Auxer Niess, and four children, Edwin A. and John E. Niess, of Washington, D.C.; Mrs. Louis J. Houseal and Frank B. Niess of this city, survive. Funeral services will be held from the late residence Monday afternoon at 2 o'clock, conducted by the Rev. George R. Hoverter, of Lancaster, former pastor of Nagle Street Church of God. Interment will be made in the Harrisburg Cemetery.
The following obituary appeared in The Church Advocate, Harrisburg, PA., a publication of The Churches of God, on February 16, 1916:
NIESS.-Ephraim H. Niess was born October 21, 1841, and died November 25, 1915, aged 74 years, 1 month and 14 days.
Brother Niess was a faithful member and a loyal supporter of the Nagle Street Church of God, Harrisburg. His life for Christ was earnest and consistent. The church honored it. He was for a number of years an elder and the treasurer of the church. In 1862-63 he served in Company E., 122nd Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry. He was a member of Post 58, G.A.R., Harrisburg, and had attended the national encampment at Washington D.C. During the illness which caused his death he suffered intensely, and often expressed the desire to go home. Like Abraham, "he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God." The end came peacefully. God had led "through the valley and the shadow." He is survived by his wife, three sons, a daughter, four brothers, two sisters and many relatives and friends.
The funeral services were conducted by Rev. G.R. Hoverter, assisted by Rev. Wm. N. Yates, Rev. Jay C. Forncrook, Rev. E. A. Mell and the pastor. Interment in the Harrisburg cemetery.
The next obituary appeared in the Patriot, Harrisburg, Penna, Saturday, November 27, 1915, p 15, column 2:
Deaths:NIESS - Ephraim H. Niess, died November 25, 1915, aged 74 years, after a short illness.
Funeral services 2 p.m., Monday, November 29. at his late residence, 117 Dock street. Relatives and friends are invited to attend.
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