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Norman A. Clarke was born in Funkstown, Washington, Maryland on March 30, 1862. As a young man, he and his brother traveled from Maryland to Springfield, Clark, Ohio where he married Hester Ann Leffel in November of 1887.
The couple moved to Dayton Ohio, where Norman was a foreman in a manufacturing shop. Hester died in 1912. Norman brought her body back to Springfield to be buried with her birth family. They had no children.
I lost track of Norman for a bit, but caught up with him through a marriage certificate filed when he remarried in Chicago where his brothers lived. Adele Curie(?) had also been married previously and she had a young son.
Norman and Adele move to Lafayette, Tippacanoe, Indiana where Adele had family. Norman worked as a foreman in a card factory. By 1930, Norman had retired. He and Adele lived out their last few years in Dayton. They are buried at Woodland Cemetery near Adele's son Charles Leigh Paulus.
Norman is my 2nd great-grandfather's brother. He left a better paper trail than ggg William Penrod Clarke. Through Norman, I have been able to learn a tremendous amount about William and their nine siblings. Knowing Norman was in Ohio when William was in Illinois helped verify the identity of my 3rd great-grandfather back in Funkstown, Washington county, Maryland.
Recently Norman provided another clue that may help explain how, when, and why the brothers traveled to Ohio. "Early Clark County Ohio Families Vital Statistics" states Norman's sister-in-law Ada Mary Leffel married Clinton L Reese who was born January 11th, 1857 in...drum roll please...Washington County, Maryland.
There's nothing like a well-written obituary; a death notice that contains the names of people and places connected to the deceased. Yesterday I received a copy of such an obituary from Joseph Berger at the Washington County Free Library in Maryland.
For some time I have been trying to clarify the relationship between my grandfather and a gentleman who might be his great-grandfather. I located a likely candidate, but it was hard to decide if it was the real deal or just a maze of interesting coincindences.
Harold Clarke Mueller's grandparents Ella and William Penrod Clarke lived with his family in the 1920 Chicago census. William and both his parents had been born in Maryland. As a young man, William traveled to Springfield Ohio where his daughter (Harold's mother) Ellen Gertrude was born.
Norman Clarke also lived in Springfield. There was reason to believe he and William were brothers, but not enough evidence to prove or disprove this theory. While William relocated to Chicago, Norman and his wife Hester moved to Dayton Ohio. Hester died and Norman later remarried in Chicago. Another coincidence, or proof of a relationship between these two men?
William and Ella moved to Michigan in late 1910. According to the 1920 and 1930 censuses, they farmed in Van Buren County. Harold visited his grandparents often. He liked Michigan and moved there after retiring from his trucking job.
In the meantime, Elmer Eugene Clarke appeared in Chicago. He and his parents had been born in Maryland. His children had names similar to those listed with my likely candidate in an earlier census. Not names like John or Mary, mind you, but names like Lyman, Zora, Morgan, Hester, and Stella. But how to prove these three men were brothers?
Enter that well-written obituary. According to the August 30, 1910 issue of the Daily Mail (a newspaper in Hagerstown Maryland), 80 year old Morgan H. Clark died at the home of his daughter Mrs. John Highbarger (Zora). He was survived by (among others) the following children; William Clark, Michigan; Norman, Dayton, O; and Elmer, Clarence, and Harry in Chicago. Bingo!
Of course there are other ways to confirm the connection between these men and I'm hot on the trail of several. But Morgan's obituary confirmed that I am barking up the right family tree.
