Peter L Smull Family: Oscar S Smull, County Home Superintendent

UNK SMULL > PETER SMULL > PETER L. SMULL > OSCAR SAMUEL SMULL

I wrote about my questions and points related to Oscar's father, Peter L Smull, here. Oscar S Smull was born 13 Sep 1861 in Rock Grove, Stephenson County, Illinois. In 1870, he was living with his parents, Peter L and Rebekah Smull. Peter L Smull, Jr., the eldest of the two boys, was not living at home. In 1860, he had been living with his grandparents, Peter and Mary Smull. The 1870 Census indicates Peter L Jr. was living with Simon and Rebecca (Brown) Rote in Lancaster, most likely as labor. He was 12. In 1880, Oscar was working as a farmhand on the C.A. Sullivan farm in Stephenson County.

Oscar grew up and married Miss Cora Stites on 02 Oct 1887. She bore him three children: Lucy Amanda, Archie Leroy, and Florence. She died 28 Jul 1895. In  1900, Oscar and his daughters were living with his cousin Thomas Newcomb Smull. Newcomb and his wife had one child who had died during her first year of life. They ended up raising the girls, and later, Archie, after his living situation at the John McDaniels farm.

Oscar married Lena Gerbitz, who was born on 23 Mar 1888 in Cadiz, Green County, Wisconsin. They married 09 Oct 1907 in Dubuque, Iowa. They had four more children: Edrye, Marjorie,  Oscar James "Jim," and Francis W.

Between 1910-1913, Oscar was appointed as Superintendent of the County Poor Farm, later called the County Old Folks' Home. In 1935, his pay was $1,800 per year.  Thinking back, that was a time when the poor elderly and infirm needed some provision for their care. This was a time before Social Security. When the old age pension was started in 1935, the Home had 70 residents; with 30 of those over the age of 65. Those under 65 years old would be able to remain in the home once the new pension started.

In 1927, a terrific fire destroyed the 3-story stone and brick building and annex after a fire of unknown causes started in the attic. Smull was working in the fields and saw smoke from the fire. Amazingly, all 59 old residents were rescued, including the six who were missing at the original count. Only two firefighters were injured. Smull was reappointed by the County Commissioners each year until his retirement in 1942.

After his retirement, he and his wife moved to 1408 South Chicago Ave, Freeport and lived in town. Friends gave them a little shower with gifts since they were basically reestablishing their home all over again.

Oscar died 11 Dec 1945 and Lena died 20 Oct 1952 in Freeport.

Mystery Muddle: Who is John W "Johney" Smull of Centre & Stephenson County?

I believe John W. Smull is the "missing" son of Peter Smull and Mary Waggoner. This has been a major ponderable in my studies. Without a birth or death certificate, it leaves some room for question, but I'm pretty sure I solved this particular mystery at last.

Who is John W. Smull of Centre County who moved to Stephenson County in 1870?

Records are sadly lacking with any specificity for the era 1800-1850. No names on census reports except the household head, no great newspaper items for rural areas, blah, blah.

Here's what I know:

The various census from 1820-1840 indicate that Peter and Mary had a dozen children. I was able to identify 11 and believe the missing child was a boy born between 1826-1830.

John W. Smull's middle initial stands for "Wagner." If he is Peter & Mary's child, he would be the first son of the union and Waggoner is Peter's wife's maiden name. Mary's father's name was John. Germans often named their children after someone specific - in this case, it would be his maternal grandfather John Waggoner.

Now, we know that John W. "Johney" Smull was born 30 Apr 1826 in Pennsylvania and as of the 1850 census, resided in Rebersburg. It is reported that in 1850, he married his wife, Amelia Kahl. They lived in Pennsylvania until 1867, when they are found in Illinois. They were the last of the Peter & Mary children to head west. In 1880, they are in Waddams, Stephenson County.

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Peter's son, Peter L., is still a bit of a mystery and I don't know how he was with his children. When Peter L's son Oscar's first wife died, Oscar's son Archie went to live Ella & JW McDaniel - but that didn't work out so well. The three children and Oscar resided with "his cousin" Thomas N Smull, who is Thomas Newton Smull, son of John W. Smull. The children remained with TN Smull and his wife after Oscar's remarriage and are often confused with being TN Smull's children, when they are in fact, Oscar's by his first wife.

Johney's first son is named Myron Peter Smull. Peter would be Johney's father if my surmise is correct.

The only fly in the ointment is that Peter and Mary also had a son named Johnathan Smull, born in 1834 (my 2nd great grandfather). Would they have two such similarly named sons? German children often had three names at baptism and could have been called any of those names at any point in their lives. Hmm. Very curious. Johnathan (1834) is never referenced with a middle name nor middle initial. He was also referred to as Johnathan, not usually John or Johnny. Based on all of the German naming traditions and varied uses of their 3-name system, I would say it would be possible to have both a John and a Johnathan in the same family - especially if children were named after specific other people.

Johney died in McConnell, Stephenson County 04 Feb 1903. Amelia died 05 Oct 1907.

I'm calling it - this is indeed the last of the Peter Smull, Mary Waggoner children.

Peter Smull Family: Julia Smull

PETER SMULL > JULIA A SMULL m John Haas

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Julia was born 08 Nov 1830 in Centre County, Pennsylvania and married John Haas, son of David Haas and Barbara Mitterling in 1847 in Pennsylvania. John was born 20 Dec 1832 in Juniata County, Pennsylvania. My family will intersect with this sprawling Haas clan again on the Cooper side of the family.

John was also the grandson of Capt Valentine Haas, a veteran of the War of 1812 serving in the 77th Pennsylvania Militia under Lt Colonel George Weirick. Valentine was also a justice of the peace. The family at that time resided in Snyder County.

The Haas' moved, along with many of the Smulls, to Stephenson County, Illinois after their marriage and settled near Dakota where they farmed. Their daughter Ida was born on 06 Oct 1871 in Rock Grove, Stephenson County. 

The 1910 census indicates that Julia had three children, with two living, but I have found no evidence of other children at this time. Ida is the only one who resided with them during any available census of 1880 and 1910, but I've not located the 1860 and 1870 census for this family so it's totally possible an older child grew up and was gone before the 1880 census. There is a stone on either side of the Haas main monument - both unreadable. I believe one is an infant and since Ida's obit says she is buried in this cemetery, I believe the larger stone to the right is hers. I've been to this cemetery and there is no other monument for Ida here. (CEMETERY: Rock Grove Union Cemetery, Stephenson County, Illinois).

In 1880, their household consisted of John, Julia, Ida and Julia's sister, Charlotte Amanda, who had been cared for by her parents until their deaths (she was classified as "Idiot"). Amanda, as she was called, died three years later at age 38.

John died on 27 Sep 1881 in Dakota at the age of 48. His widow, Julia, remarried at some point, to a man named Miller. The 1910 census supports this as well as her sister Mary Smull Meyers Frantz's 1908 obituary which has Julia Miller as a surviving sister.

Julia died on 24 May 1912 in Dakota.

Ida remained single her entire life and in the 1930 census, she is listed as a servant in the Oscar and Lena Smull's home in Silver Creek in Stephenson County. Oscar was the son of Peter Smull, Jr. Her death record indicates she died on 10 Apr 1938 in McConnell, Stephenson County and her job was listed as housekeeper. Services for her were held at the Oscar Smull home.

The Mystery of the Basswood School

Peter Smull > Peter Smull > Oscar Smull > Archie LeRoy Smull

Oscar Smull was born in Rock Grove township in Stephenson County, Illinois and spent his early life on the farm of his parents, Peter Smull and Rebecca Cronoble. On 02 Oct 1887, he married Miss Cora Stites who passed away in 1895. They had three children:  Lucy Amanda, Archie LeRoy, and Florence. After Cora's death, Oscar moved in with his cousin Thomas Newton Smull's family with the girls. Son Archie moved in with his aunt and uncle John W. and Ella McDaniel. McDaniel was a wealthy farmer. The later fate of Archie's living situation may well have been determined by the testimony Archie provided in a notorious trial held in Stephenson County in 1908 because I can imagine John was none too pleased with Archie during the trial.

The story began as far back as 1901 when John McDaniel purchased the land adjoining the land where the Basswood School near McConnell, Illinois, was located. McDaniel disputed the land boundary and insisted the school had been built on his land - a survey was completed and the results presented to the school board. His request that the boundaries be adjusted were rebuffed. It sounds like to McDaniel, this inaction started a series of skirmishes that would not end until 1908, dividing the townspeople like the Hatfield's and McCoy's. Numerous attempts to do away with the school were made, including a mysterious fire that burned it to the ground in 1905. In July, the following year, the walls of the new school were blown up in the middle of construction.

The final tale related to the Basswood School dispute occurred in 1908. In March, McDaniel was indicted by two grand juries and charged with "procuring dynamite and having guilty knowledge of its presence in the Basswood School," A bag of forty pounds of dynamite had been found in the school building, fortunately, unexploded.

The star witness for the prosecution was young Archie Smull, his ward, who testified that his uncle had shown him where the dynamite was located in a field and told him to place it in the school and light the fuse. The defense attempted to make Archie look like less than a stellar witness and provided disputing witnesses who provided an alibi for McDaniel and/or other testimony that put a big dent in the case. In the end, the jury could not reach a verdict but tilted toward conviction, but a second trial was ruled out. After reading all the articles available, my guess is John did indeed have ill intent with that bag of dynamite and got very lucky.

Archie Smull by age 19 was a farmhand working in Green County, Wisconsin. He married Hazel Keller in 1914. They had six children. He operated a dairy farm for decades. Archie died in Green County on 22 Mar 1980.

Oscar married again in October, 1907 to Lena Gerbitz. They had four additional children: Oscar James "Jim," Edrye, Francis, and Marjorie. He served as the Superintendent of the County Home for many years before retiring. He died 11 Dec 1945, his daughters Florence and Marjorie preceding him in death.