Friday, March 18, 2016

Mystery Muddle: The Children of Peter Smull

Help Solve the Mystery
This is a continuation of the remaining mysteries of the Peter Smull line. His parentage is still a mystery and you can read about it here.

Peter Smull married Mary Waggoner (who are her parents, she asked?), most likely in Centre County, Pennsylvania before 1830. John Waggoner was the father and she had a brother William.

In searching through the cobbled together bits and pieces of various census and news articles, I've been able to identify 11 of the reported 12 children of the couple.

Catherine Smull b 1822 Centre Co. Penn; d 1876 Rock Run, Stephenson, IL m 1842, Pennsylvania; William Kryder, son of John and Susanna Keun,  b 1821 in Pennsylvania; d 1902 Dakota, Stephenson, IL. He remarried after her death to Sarah Crock. I've located six children: James Henry, Lydia, Mary Elizabeth, John J, Susannah Elmira, and Norman.

Sarah Ann Smull b 1822 Centre Co Penn; d 1892 Dakota, Stephenson, IL m date UNK David Kryder, son of John and Susanna Keun, b 1823 Pennsylvania; d 1889 Dakota, Stephenson, IL. One child: Samuel (1856-1864)

Mary Smull b 1824 Centre Co Penn; d 1908 Dakota, Stephenson, IL m (1) John Meyer 1844, Pennsylvania, d 1848; One child: Jacob. m (2) George Frantz 1849, Pennsylvania. He was born in 1822 in Pennsylvania and died 1889 in Dakota, Stephenson, Illinois. Three Frantz children: Anna, Henry T and George McClellan (moved to Canada and pioneered in Starbuck, Manitoba.

UNKNOWN SMULL MALE. Believe this son was born between 1826-1830 based on back-tracing the 1830 and 1840 Peter Smull Census.
  • I'm trying to dissect the various Smulls in Stephenson County to deduce who this man was. If you have information that will help solve this mystery, please let me know by leaving a comment.
Matilda Rebecca SMULL b 1828, Centre Co Penn; d 1915 Stephenson Co, Illinois; m Daniel Meyer, 1851, Miles, Centre Co, Penn; son of  Henry Meyer and Hannah Bierly, b 1831 Centre Co Penn; d Dakota, Stephenson, Illinois. I've located nine children: Sarah A, Dora Hannah, Newton Henry, Thomas Ephriam, John Franklin, Peter David, Emma Jane, Effie Susan, and Mary

Julia Ann Smull b 1830 Centre Co, Penn; d 1912 Dakota, Stephenson, Illinois m 1847, Penn; (1) John Haas, son of David Haas and Barbara Mitterling. b 1832 Juniata Co Penn; d 1881 Stateline, Vilas, Wisc., one daughter, Ida, died a spinster, 1938 m bef 1889 (2) UNK Miller

Peter L Smull, SR b abt 1833, Centre Co Penn; d 13 Sep 1900, Dakota, Stephenson Co; Ill at the home of his sister Matilda; m 1861 Rebecca Cronoble (this may have translated from Grenoble and been listed as Grenoble in Pennsylvania); three sons b abt 1835 d UNK probably Stephenson Co, Ill.
  • Peter is a bit of a mystery. He's referenced in the local paper once in a while and at least for a time, worked as a shoemaker, but he remains a big question mark. 
  • His first child Peter L Jr doesn't seem to have lived with his parents. In 1860 he was living with grandparents Peter and Mary and in 1860, he was a 12-year-old living in the household of Simon & Rebecca Rote in Lancaster, Ill. I would guess as a hired hand. 
  • Second son, Oscar Samuel is with his parents in 1870 and in 1880, when he was 18 and a farm hand for CA and Sarah Sullivan. 
  • No records exist for Rebecca Cronoble (possibly Grenoble) either, other than as referenced parent on various documents related to the children. No death record is available for her or Peter L Sr
  • The last news item related to this Peter is in 1900. He is not listed as a survivor on his sister Mary Frantz's obituary from 1908, so I would peg his death at sometime between 1900 and 1908. *Update (2/28/2017): I found an obscure reference to his death on 13 Sep 1900 in a Rockford newspaper gossip column. He died at the home of his sister Matilda Meyer in Dakota.
Johnathan Smull b 1834 Centre Co Penn; d 1885 Bradford, Chickasaw Co, Ia; m 1860 Monroe, Wisc Mary Jane Cooper, daughter of William Lloyd Cooper and Elizabeth Beams, b 1842 Rock Grove, Stephenson Co, Ill; d 14 Feb 1905; Plainfield, Bremer, Ia. They had eight children: Ulysses (died as a young man), Franklin Sylvester, Jennie Elnora, Viola Geneva, Katie Mabel, Saidee  L, Florence, and Amy, who died as an infant/young child.

Adam Smull b 1836 Centre Co Penn; d 1868 Stephenson, Ill; m 1859 Green Co Wisc; Mary Moses; b 1836 Penn; d 1929 Dakota, Stephenson, Ill. Mary and Adam had no children. She did not remarry.

Samuel Smull b 1840 Centre Co Penn; d 1919 Clark, South Dakota; m 1866 Mitchell, Ia; Lorena Thompson; daughter of Daniel Thompson and Ann Cooper; b 1850 Illinois; d 1918 Clark, South Dakota. They had two sons, Betran and Leon Willis.

Henry Smull b 1842 Cente Co Penn; d 1900 Macon, Macon, Ill; m 1864 Stephenson, Ill; Elizabeth "Lizzie" Smith; b 1846 Stephenson, Ill; d 1933 Decatur, Macon, Ill. He had six children: William W, Henry Arthur, Bertha C (never married), Elizabeth "Lizzie" Plummer, Charles E, and Pet (who died in infancy).

Charlotte Amanda Smull b 1844 Miles, Centre, Penn; d 1883 Dakota, Stephenson, Ill. Charlotte was classified as an "idiot" and lived with her parents and finally with sister Julia and husband John Haas until her death.

I'd be very glad to have people poke holes in this theory of descendancy. And, if you have other information, I'm dying to get all the mysteries solved from the seat at my desk because it's not likely I'll ever get to Centre County!

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