Tombstone Tuesday: Olive Space Kesler

Olive Mabel Space, born 26 March 1878, in Merrill, Lincoln, WI; the only child of Zephaniah Allen Space (1826-1902) and Harriet Armanda Fryer (1854-1940).


Zephaniah and his first wife, Margaretta Ann Shankle were one of the early pioneers who immigrated to Wisconsin's northwoods "pinery" in the mid 1840's prior to Wisconsin's admission as the 30th state in the union. They established one of the first hotels in Jenny, now Merrill, WI; the couple divorced in 1877.

Harriet Fryer was the third of Francis Fryer (1829-1907) and Lucinda Hart's (1831-1912) eight children. Francis and Lucinda were married in Frankfort, KY, in 1850. The couple came to Wisconsin, settling in Oshkosh before immigrating to Minnesota before the family settled in Langlade county. Harriet married Stephen Dunbar in 1873; the couple had one child, Royal Ainsley Dunbar born 14 May 1875 in New London, Waupaca, WI. Following his mother's marriage to Zephaniah, Royal was adopted by Zephaniah and he took the Space surname. It is unclear if the adoption was part of any official process as no documentation has been located.


Zephaniah, Harriet, Roy and Olive settled in the township of Morley in Langlade county. Morley's modest beginnings were as a log building built by Edward and Jean Morley in 1881. The two brothers operated a post office, stage stop and store. The "Morley Territory" was located in what is now the Town of Vilas and the western portion of the Town of Peck and a small portion of the Town of Ackley. It was also a part of the Town of Pine River, Lincoln county. Still later, it became a part of Ackley, Langlade county before finally being subdivided into the towns of Vilas and Peck. (A nightmare for genealogists researching their family connections in this part of the county!)


Like her father, Olive taught school and was interested in historical events and served as the "custodian of the Historical Society Museum" in Antigo.


Olive was married to Willard Lloyd (1869-1906) in 1897, the couple had two children, the youngest was 16 months old at the time of Willard's death. Olive married Lafayette Kesler (1866-1937) in 1915 and had two children including a daughter, Harriet Lethe Kesler named for Olive's mother.

Olive Space Lloyd Kesler died at the Langlade Memorial Hospital on Sunday, 28 January 1968 and is buried in the Antigo Cemetery.

"Tombstone: Olive M. Kesler." Digital image. Undated. Original photograph

privately held by Cindy Bergeron Scherwinski as part of the Space Family Papers.

52 Weeks to Better Genealogy -Challenge #1 [Your] Local Library

The Challenge: Go to your local library branch. Make a note of the genealogy books in the collection that may help you gain research knowledge. Don't forget to check the shelves in both the non-fiction section and the reference section. If you do not already have a library card, take the time to get one. If you have a genealogy blog, write about what you find in your library's genealogy section.

I admit to being a tech-junkie: laptops, Smartphones, wi-fi, netbooks, iPod and my latest wish-list must have, Barnes & Nobel's very own eBook Reader, Nook. However .... nothing can compare to the feel of a book. There is something comforting walking around the stacks, pulling a book off the shelf and having the words come to life as soon as your eyes make contact with the page. And the wonder of it all - is you can take them home. I truly believe that a library card, which gives you access to almost any book in the world, is one of our society's greatest idea come to life. When I read Geneabloggers Challenge #1, I could hardly wait for Friday afternoon when I had scheduled my time at the Portage County Library.

A creature of habit, my first stop is always to the new book section. As I make my way across the room, a book on a display catches my eye, The Cut of Men's Clothes 1600-1900 by Norah Waugh. Published in London, England, the book has photographs, line drawings, patterns, detailed descriptions including accessories. I make a note of the title and call number; this book will be a great reference in helping me date my orphan photographs.

After a relaxing 15-minutes spent perusing the new book section I head over to the Genealogy Room but not without selecting two books. Hidden among "Remember the Carrot" and "A Child's Book of Poems" I discovered a 20-page publication titled "Prison Life: Personal Reminiscences of Two Days at Chickamauga and Fifteen Months in Rebel Prisons" authored by Edward McGlachlin. The book was compiled by a local woman, Dianne Peplinski from the writings of McGlachlin in 1885 which appeared in the Stevens Point Journal. My great-grand uncle, John P. Little, was captured during the battle of Chickamauga and died in Andersonville Prison at the age of 17. This book will add insight into what John Little's tragic final last months of an all too short life was like. The second new publication is "How to Do Everything Genealogy Second Edition" by George G. Morgan. I never get tired of reading genealogy how-to books looking for another tip, trick or something that makes me say, "I have to try that!"

Among my top five "Most Wanted 2010" are the unknown parents of great-great-great grandfather Lewis Facer Sr. Born circa 1792 in Zanesville, Ohio, Lewis's pension record (the only record able to locate at this time) from the War of 1812 states his father was born in Virginia. I remove"Ohio Wills and Estates to 1850: An Index" from the shelf and sit down at the table. After reading the forward and explanation of abbreviations, I turn to find the surname Baker. Lewis's wife was Susan B. Baker. Census records state she was born in Michigan circa 1800; their first son, Lewis Facer Jr was born about 1820 in Michigan but I have no documentation to back this up. The full page of Baker's is a bit daunting until I realize that there are only four Baker's who had wills or estate records filed in Muskingum County.

While I did not find any listings Facer, there are several listings of variations: Farr, Farra, Farrar, Farrce, Farrer, Frase, Fracy, Fraze and Frazee. Since this is an index, the interpretation of the listings is a matter of opinion. I make a note of the names, dates and counties which will provide enjoyment for several week-ends to come.

While none of my ancestors spent more than few days in my county of residence (Stevens Point was a 'jumping off place' to the northwoods), it does not mean striking out at my local library researching my family history.

Tombstone Tuesday - John Crump Hogarty 1825-1904

Grave marker of John Crump Hogarty and his family located in the Riverside Cemetery in Hogarty, Marathon County, Wisconsin. John Hogarty, Willard Ackley, Benjamin Gilham and my great-great grandfather, Isaac Stone, were among the early settlers in what is now Marathon, Lincoln and Langlade counties.





John Hogarty, born in Virginia, came to the area known as Marathon county around 1844 and along with Ackley and Isaac Stone settled aong the banks of the Eau Claire River. When Marathon County was created in 1850, the area was occupied by the Ojibwe. The Eau Claire, navigable by canoe, was important to the area due to the presence of large tracts of virgin timber, known simply as "The Pinery."


Hogarty set up a trading post halfway up the Eau Claire; records show the principal trade was pork, flour, salt, a few 'groceries', dry goods, hardware and crockery. Isaac Stone also set up a post with similiar goods; both Hogarty and Stone bartered for furs, maple syrup and timber. Hogarty and Stone engaged in cutting and floating pine logs down the Eau Claire River with Willard Ackley, who operated a post at the forks of the east and west branches of the Eau Claire, ten miles upstream of Hogarty.


All of these men married into the Ojibwe, marrage records show the men served as witnesses at these ceremonies. Unfortunatley, no record has been found to document Isaac's marriage. However, documents do show that in 1855, following the birth of their third known child, Isaac Stone's wife died and was buried at Hogarty's Trading Post. Eventually this site became the Riverview cemetery.



The back of the marker reads:

"An Irish-Chippewa Family of Wisconsin"

John C. Hogarty of Irish ancestry, born in Virginia in 1825, came to Marathon County about 1844 and died in 1904. He was a farmer, lumberman and Civil War Veteran. He married Set-Os-Na-Qua, daughter of Swa-Juan-A-Qua and Nit-Wen-Osk and grand-daughter of Chief Great Eagle, after her death he married Moke-Gesick-Co-Qua, daugther of Sak-a-See-Do-Qua and ay-May-Way-Con

Copyright © 2009 by Cindy Bergeron Scherwinski