Relay – A Family History Blog

 

William Decker (born about 1810 probably in New Jersey, married first about 1840 probably in Mifflin County Pennsylvania,¹ married second about 1852 probably in Mifflin County Pennsylvania² and died Dec 1859 in Allen County, Kansas³) lived squarely in the middle of that difficult period of rapid early US expansion.  He had at least 2 marriages – both in a state that did not record civil marriages during his lifetime (Pennsylvania.) He apparently fathered at least 6 children – in states and time periods when births were not recorded by the civil authorities. He lived in at least 4 states but he appeared on only one census where the members of his household were enumerated by name.⁴ He left no will and his probate record gives us very few clues about his situation around the estate, except that there seems to have been conflict.⁵ How we know these facts and how to do we rebuild a family for William, specifically how do we reassemble siblings, wives and children?

Beginning with William’s enter in the 1850 census – the only census that names his household –  we start constructing a hypothesized family.

• William Decker born circa 1810, New Jersey, farmer
  • Elizabeth born circa 1840, Pennsylvania – probable daughter
  • Caroline born circa 1842, Pennsylvania – probable daughter
  • Sarah J. born circa 1845, New Jersey – probable daughter
  • Alfred Decker born circa 1825, Pennsylvania, no occupation – probable relative
  • Nancy Decker born circa 1826, Pennsylvania, no occupation  – probable relative
  • Isaac Decker born circa 1847, Pennsylvania – probable relative
  • “Seglus” Scott born circa 1834, Pennsylvania, no occupation – complete unknown
    

The arrangement of the census listing seems to indicate two possibly related families in one household. There is no female of an age to be the mother of the 3 young girls and the wife of William Decker.  So William is a probable widower, with his wife dying sometime between 1846 and 1850.

The 1850 Mifflin County census gives us 2 other nearby Decker households – Abel born circa 1808 in New Jersey and Jefferson born circa 1800 also in New Jersey.  William and Jefferson are near neighbors, Abel about 10 household away.  Abel, Jefferson, Albert, Nancy and Silas start William’s F.A.N. club (Friends, Associates and Neighbors.) Issac is too young to add much information at this time.

Published wills for Mifflin County provide a wife for the widowed William Decker. The will of John Wharton – proved in 1848 – names sons Samuel, William and Henderson as well as daughters Ellen, Jane (deceased wife of William Booth) and Catherine (deceased wife of William Decker).⁶ We can add John, Samuel, William and Henderson Wharton to William’s F.A.N. club as well as William Booth.

Mifflin County land records give us both a possible date for a move into Mifflin County and additional members for the F.A.N. club. The first recorded deed is a purchase of land by a William Decker in 1837 and two additional Decker men, William senior and Johnston appear in land records together with the other members of the F.A.N. club. ⁷ The Decker men in the F.A.N. club buy,  and sell land and witness each other’s deeds in Mifflin County between 1837 and 1856. Alfred Decker and Johnston Decker appear only as witnesses, in Alfred’s case probably because he is underage and not yet ready to purchase his own property. The absence of Jefferson from these documents even as a witness is interesting, despite living virtually next door to William perhaps he is not a relative.

Probate records solidify relationships and provide a family framework as well as clues for future research. – On the 7th of August 1849, William Decker submitted, for probate, the estate of William Decker “his late father” and was appointed his administrator.  Samuel Wharton serves as one of William Decker’s bondsmen. Within the probate packet an 1854 petition to sell real estate to settle the debts of the estate names the following heirs – “William Decker, Mary Ann Decker intermarried with Samuel Wharton,  Johnston Decker and Alfred Decker (who reside in Mifflin County) and Abel Decker residing at Eagle Point Post Office, Ogle County, Illinois.”⁸

The William Decker 1837 land purchase in Mifflin County suggests the 1840 census will provide additional data⁹–

William Decker household

1 male 15-20 (Alfred), 3 males 20-30 (Abel?, William and Johnston?), 1 male 50-60 (William senior).

1 female >5 (granddaughter), 2 females 15-20 (unknown female born between 1820 and 1825 and Susannah Wicks Decker wife of Abel born 1822), 2 females 20-30 (Mary Ann Decker born 1811 and probably Catherine Wharton born between 1810-1820)

At this point we have a highly probable family framework –

• William Decker, died 1849 and unknown spouse, died before 1849
  • Abel born 1808 – Susannah Wicks born 1822 (they had a large family which will be discussed later.)
  • William born 1810 and wife Catherine Wharton born 1821-1820 and died between 1846-1848
    • Elizabeth born 1840
    • Caroline born 1842
    • Sarah born 1845
  • Mary Ann born 1811 and husband Samuel Wharton
  • Johnson born between 1810-1820 – (he has not been found on the 1850 census although based on the probate documents for William sr., he was living in Mifflin County in 1849. Given the unknown female of appropriate age he could be married but there is no evidence for this.)
  • Alfred born 1825 and wife Nancy born 1826
    • Isaac born 1847

And a F.A.N.club consisting of several men surnamed Wharton, Jefferson Decker, William Booth and a mysterious “Seglus” Scott.

The Decker deeds also create a small mystery.  William Decker jr (our research subject) has wife Catherine in his sale deed in 1846.  Her father’s will indicates this is Catherine Wharton who died between 1846 and 1848 and whose daughters appear in William’s household in 1850.  However in 1854 William Decker again has a wife Catherine when he sells land. These deeds are both written and recorded in 1854 so they are not unrecorded earlier deeds of the deceased wife Catherine Wharton Decker. William undoubtedly married a second wife named Catherine between 1850 and 1855.

Between 1850 and 1853 Abel Decker left Mifflin County for Ogle County, Illinois.  Based on the 1854 sale deed and the completion of probate on the estate of the senior William Decker, William jr, his family and his brother Alfred immigrated to Illinois where their households are enumerated in Hancock County in the 1855 Illinois state census.¹⁰
Quite a number of the F.A.N. club are missing from the 1860 census of Mifflin County including William, Abel, Albert, Johnston and Jefferson Decker and Silas Scott.  The Wharton members of the F.A.N. club and William Booth remain in Mifflin County.

In 1855, Alfred’s household is the same overall configuration as his proposed family from 1850. William’s household now has –

• 2 males <10 (sons of William and the second Catherine see discussion  in section on sons and daughters of William), 1 male 40-50 (William)
• 2 females 10-20 (see discussion  in section on sons and daughters of William) , 1 females 20-30 (second wife Catherine?)

Between 1849 and at least 1855, Abel Decker was in Ogle County, not too far from Hancock County¹¹ But Illinois was apparently not the Decker brothers final residence.  Abel moved first to Missouri and then to Iowa by 1870¹² William and Alfred headed for the gentle hills of Southeastern Kansas.¹³  where they were joined by Johnston Decker in his only named census appearance.  According to the Territorial census all 3 men arrived in Allen County, Kansas in September 1858.  In the immediate neighborhood of William, Alfred and Johnston Decker are J. Decker (although this could also be read as J. Derter. Decker seems more likely.) arrived in September 1857; Thomas McLelan arrived in April 1858, George Acely September 1858 and James McLelan arrived April 1858. Review of the F.A.N. club suggests J. Decker may be Jefferson Decker. Thomas McLeland will soon marry Caroline Decker, James McLeland is Thomas’s younger brother.  George Acely, born in Pennsylvania circa 1839, is a likely member of the F.A.N. club and needs to be followed further.

2 years after arriving on the Kansas frontier in the Fall of 1857, William Decker died of “liver complications,” possibly hepatitis, at the age of 49. He left a wife, and at least 5 living children. Because he died suddenly he left no will and his affairs appear to have been complicated.  The probate of his estate eventually named several of his heirs but it was a drawn out and messy process.

next – The children of William Decker and his two wives (and what happened to those guys in the F.A.N. club who showed up in Kansas?)