Early Days in Lyman #25

EARLY DAYS IN THE TOWN OF LYMAN
by Bela Foster

Continuing . . .
In 1856 Mr. and Mrs. Saul Burt and family of five sons and two daughters came to Ford County with the Lymans and lived with them the first year. Mr. Burt and Mrs. Lyman were brother and sister. Mr. Burt had married a young widow, Mrs. Kingsley, with a son and a daughter, David and Mary Kingsley. To them were born four sons and a daughter, Morris, Oscar, Ollis, George, and Ida. The Burt family then moved to a farm one mile west and half a mile north of the Lyman home. They lived there about thirty years. The father, mother and children were active in church work. The children were singers and helped in the musical part of the services. Mr. Burt was teacher of the Bible class as I first saw him. He was active in the work when the services were held in the home and also after they had moved the services to Thawville.
He was also active in public affairs; and is frequently mentioned among the town officers. Although he lived across the line in Brenton township he had many friends on the Lyman side.
David Kingsley married Mary Hitchcock, daughter of a Congregational minister at Onarga. They had two sons, Frank and Charles and two daughters, Ada and Alice.
Frank married and lives in the southern part of Illinois near Newton. Charles married Josie Remsburg. They had one daughter. Charles and his sister, Alice, were pupils of mine in 1887. Both are now dead. She married John McCann of Gilman.
Ada is married and lives in Minnesota.
Katherine Kingsley married E. D. Smith of Onarga, a wagon maker. Mr. Smith and Mr. Atwood had come to Ford County in 1856. Mr. Atwood had settled near where Piper City is now and Mr. Smith west of there near the Livingston county line. In 1857 Mr. Smith moved to Onarga and worked at the wagon maker's trade. In 1858 he married Katherine Kingsley. Later he farmed west of Onarga several years and then moved to the Lyman farm in Ford County in 1880. His children attended the Marston school and played ball with the rest of us on the 160 acre ball park.
In 1881 Mrs. Smith died leaving a family of four sons and two daughters, Cora the oldest daughter and Friend, the oldest son, besides the father and step mother have gone to the home beyond.
George Smith, the second son, married Julia Havens, the daughter of Edmund T. Havens, and granddaughter of E. F. Havens. They now own the farm formerly occupied by Mr. Bentley, about two miles west of Onarga, an up-to-date residence.
Mr. and Mrs. George Smith have four daughters and one son Gladys, Mildred, Julia, Jennie and Benjamin. One son, Edmund, was killed overseas during the world war. One daughter, Cora, a teacher, died several years ago. Gladys, the oldest daughter, married a Mr. Lane. They live in Michigan. Mildred married a Mr. Wilson, now deceased. She and her daughter, Louise, live with her Father, Mother, and daughter Benjamin (???). Julia and Jennie are twins. Julia married Mr. Mason. they live in Mishawaka, Indiana. Jennie married Mr. Sullivan, now deceased. She lives in Chicago.
H. D. Smith married Carrie Crawford, daughter of John Crawford, one of Lyman Township's prosperous farmers of years gone by. She died in 1931. He lives in Thawville. The had three children, Katherine, Harriet and John. Katherine married Mr. Jacson and their home is near Thawville. Harriet married Mr. Grace and their home is in Chicago. John married Winnie Weber. They live in Thawville.
Alex (Al) Smith married Rena Iler, daughter of B. F. Iler, another of Lyman Township's early farmers. They have four daughters, Mildred, Susanne, Almeda, Aldeen. They live near Onarga.
Morris Burt, oldest son of Mr. and Mrs. Saul Burt, married the daughter of Captain Beach of Onarga.
Oscar Burt married Oral Norton, a sister of the late Mr. L. B. Wilcox. She was a school teacher. Her home was in New York. She taught school here for one or two years.
George Burt married Lou Ella Watson, the step daughter of Mr. King who built the first house at the section corner where George Fuoss lives. She was a step sister of E. I. King who was a former business man of Roberts. He was a carpenter and wagon maker with Henry Tinklepaugh.
Ida Burt married George Ashman who was a cabinet maker in Roberts. They lived here a few years and then moved to Gilman. He was in business there and proved very successful. Mrs. Ashman was one of our teachers. I have a little card she gave me. 

--Roberts Herald. 4 September 1935. Bela Foster