Today I’m going to introduce you to my great-great-grandmother, Sarah Jane Fesler, who was born 175 years ago today! Her life was not an easy one, as her “Find a Grave” article states, her marriage was “troubled”.
Sarah Jane Fesler, found in the photograph collection owned by Anna Maria Morgart
According to her death certificate (I know, a secondary source, but it’s the only record I have that states her birthday), Sarah Jane Fesler was born on 17 Nov 1847 to George Fesler and Mary Elizabeth Oakman in Wells Tannery, Pennsylvania, a township in what was then Bedford County (it became a part of Fulton County less than 3 years later). Sarah was the oldest of 10 children born to her parents. Her siblings were John Oliver, Mary Isabelle, James, Rebecca May, Margaret, Frances, George Henry, Jr., William, and Lillie May.
Sarah’s dad, George Fesler, had a variety of vocations over the years. In the 1850 Census he was listed as a laborer, in 1860 a farmer, in 1870 and 1880 a Stone Mason, then back to being a farmer again in 1900 and 1910.
Randall Childers
In the 1860 Census, Abraham Childers and George Fesler’s families are listed on the same page, with just 4-families between them, so they lived in the same area of Fulton County. This would be my best knowledgeable guess at how Sarah Jane Fesler met Randall Childers. The word “troubled” seems to be a regular recurring word when it comes to their marriage. They had a total of 9 children over the course of 28 years (with Sarah being just 18 when Mary Etta Childers was born in 1865, possibly 1867).
According to Randall’s Civil War Pension file, Randall and Sarah were married on 22 February 1866. Randall would have just returned from fighting for the Union in the Civil War where he went in as a Private in 1861 and came out a Corporal, mustering out in Victoria, Texas on 25 September 1865. Randall did take a furlough from the Army in 1864 to see his elderly parents according to his Civil War pension file, I can only assume that he and Sarah must have spent some time together if Mary Etta’s date of birth really was 4 February 1865, however Randall’s pension file states Mary was born in 1867.
The Civil War pension of Randall Childers was retrieved from the National Archives by www.civilwarrecords.com
By 1870 their oldest son, George Harry Childers was born on 30 December 1868 but the 1870 Census can make you scratch your head as Sarah is listed as “Jane”, age 21, the wife of Randall Childers on page 10 of 15 of the Wells Tannery portion of the Fulton County 1870 Census dated 9 June 1870, but on page 12 of 15 of the Wells Tannery portion of the Fulton County 1870 Census, “Sarah J” is listed as a child of George Fesler, age 23.
1870 Federal Census of Wells Tannery, Fulton County, Pennsylvania, Page 10 on the left, page 12 on the right. Both pages were found on Ancestry.com
Sarah is listed as “wife” with Randall in the 1880 Census. By this time, they have had 5 of their 9 children (all their children’s names are Mary, George, Abraham, Jennie, William, Elizabeth, Bertha, Bessie, and Charley). Randall came out of the War with health issues, with repeated references to “disease of the testicles (as a result of mumps), chronic diarrhea, and malarial poisoning, and due to these lingering ailments that he obtained during the war, he began requesting a pension around 1870.
But through the wonders of newspapers you can find out little details about your ancestors lives, and one such article lets me know that Sarah stayed in contact with her dad throughout the years as she apparently stayed the weekend with him in 1902 with her daughter (my guess is that she went with Bessie).
Sarah and Randall stayed together until according to his pension record, he left Pennsylvania in 1904 and first moved to Goldsboro, Maryland, and then in 1906 to moved to Lenoir City, Loudon County, Tennessee, where he lived for the rest of his days.
While Randall moved out of state and on with his life, I imagine life was a whole lot different for Sarah. She was left with all the world to know that she had been abandoned. While Randall was telling the government that she died in 1907 and getting remarried to Nanny Rocky, Sarah continued to live in a world wondering, like her children, where was Randall and was he ever coming home?
In the 1910 Census Sarah is living as the Head of Household in Tod Township, Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania, with her 3-sons (Harry, William, and Charley) all residing with her. In 1920 she has moved in with her youngest daughter, Bessie, and her family. The 1920 Census was taken on 14 January 1920 and Sarah died just 2 days later.
In her final years, Sarah had gotten ill with a sickness that seemed to linger.
1 June 1917 of the Bedford Gazette found at Newspapers.com
I always feel sad when I read her obituary as she was still referenced as “Mrs. Randall Childers” even though he had left her some 16 years previously.
This obituary for Sarah Jane Fesler was found in the Bedford Gazette on Newspapers.com from 23 January 1920
The cause of death for Sarah was chronic interstitial nephritis, which is when “the spaces between the kidney tubules become inflamed” (per Google). It could be caused by any number of autoimmune diseases that probably hadn’t been identified back before 1920, but explains why she had been ill for a few years.
Death certificate of Sarah Jane Fesler found at Ancestry.com
Though Sarah is buried at the Wells Valley Cemetery across from the Methodist Church I was unable to find her grave specifically when I traveled there in 2019. I can only assume it is near her parents and siblings.
I wish I had more anecdotal stories about my 2nd-great-grandmother, instead of the rather sad tale of woe in relations to her life. She deserved to be loved, and it doesn’t seem like she had a lot of time to be happy due to her sick husband.
The week 9 prompt of Amy Johnson Crow’s 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks is “multiples”. I am taking an indepth look at my great-great grandfather, Randall Childers, who my cousin Darlene referred to as “the bigamist” as he moved away and remarried having multiple wives.
Found it amongst a box of photos at my Dad’s with “Randall Childers” written on the back.
Randall Childers was born in Wells Tannery, Pennsylvania when it was still a part of Bedford County on 17 January 1840 to Abraham Childers and Mary Ann Green. He was the oldest of their 3 children (Mary Ann had another son, Jonathan Weiser, from a previous relationship), the others being Rachel (1842-1876) and Fayetta (1844-1924). His dad was a chair maker while his mother kept house.
The Civil War
In 1861 at the age of 21 Randall enlisted for the Union joining the 77th Volunteer Pennsylvania Infantry as a part of Company A and saw action in the following battles:
Battle of Shiloh
Siege of Corinth
Battle of Stones River
Tullahoma Campaign
Battle of Chicamauga
Siege of Chattanooga
Atlanta Campaign
Battle of Resaca
Battle of Kennesaw Mountain
Siege of Atlanta
Second Battle of Franklin
Battle of Nashville
Sarah Jane Fesler
In December 1865, Randall mustered out of the army at the close of the Civil War. He returned home to Pennsylvania where he married Sarah Jane Fesler around 1866 (I have yet to find a marriage record for an exact date, this was noted on the 1900 census that they had been married for 34 years). In December 1866 their daughter, Mary Etta Childers was born. This union would provide a total of 9 children:
Mary Etta Childers – 1866-1941
George Harry Childers – 1868-1941
Abraham Childers – 1870-1946
Jennie Childers – 1873-1934
William Dodson Childers – 1876-1959
Elizabeth Helen Childers – 1883-1968
Bertha Childers – 1886-1963
Bessie Viola Childers – 1890-1963
Charles Peter Childers – 1893-1970
Jobs
After initially coming back from the war, Randall’s occupation was listed as “laborer” but by 1880 it was listed as a miner on the census. He began receiving a Civil War pension in 1879. By 1900 he is listed as a farmer, a vocation he takes with him when he moves to Tennessee by 1905. On his pension papers he changes where his payment goes and lists himself as a widower, noting his daughter, Jennie Childers (or Mrs. A.S. May) as his closest living relative).
I always thought it strange that Randall moved to Tennessee as I didn’t recall any relatives there. But after doing extra research on him, during the Civil War he was stationed at Whiteside Bridge. Though Loudon is not even the county where the bridge is located, it’s not that far.
Wife #2
On 8 July 1907, Randall Childers marries the former Nancy Elizabeth Rockey (I believe this is a married name, still trying to find her maiden name) in Loudon County, Tennessee.
During his 12.5 years of marriage to Nannie Childers, for 11.5 years Randall was married to two women simultaneously as Sarah Jane Fesler passed away on 19 January 1920. Sarah still lived in Pennsylvania with their children.
I’ve not seen an obituary for Randall but the post listed on Sarah’s Find A Grave clearly states they had “issues”. I have no idea what the “issues” were that made my great-great-grandfather to move a few states south and begin a new life, but they must have been something.
From July 15-17 my husband and I traveled to Bedford County, Pennsylvania so I could research my family. It was such an honor to know I walked where they walked. It was a great trip that was full of adventure and I’ll be honest, spending one on one time with my husband was a nice treat.
As I recount my trip I just want to add that I suggested to my husband that maybe we should take my car as it would get better gas mileage. I’ll be honest with you, I have a 2013 Chrysler 200. I love my car (the first car I ever purchased was a 1993 Plymouth Sundance, and if my Sundance would have evolved, it would be in the realm of the Chrysler 200). Even my father thought we should take it for the same reason, better gas mileage. But believe me, my front-wheel-drive vehicle could never have conquered the hills of Cambria, Bedford, Huntingdon, Fulton and Somerset counties like my husband’s Ford F-150. As we headed from one cemetery to the next in Cambria county, we went up a hill so steep it was at a 15-degree incline (well, that hill we didn’t have to go up – hubby did it for fun). My car would never have survived either hill. I attempted to take a photo but my phone doesn’t do it justice.
You have to look all the way down and focus on the house to fully appreciate how steep the hill is. His hitch scraped against the street when we got to the bottom and leveled out.
We are at the bottom road about to drive up, the first hill (where there is pavement) was steep, but the upper portion (where it is grass) is the 15-degree incline. We actually needed to turn before the grass to get to the next cemetery.
First Stop: South Fork Cemetery
We left Ohio on Monday morning and traveled to Pennsylvania. It only took us about 3 hours and our first stop was South Fork Cemetery in South Fork, Cambria County. Here I found 2 out of 3 of my direct line relatives, and the grave of my Great-Aunt Vada. The person I couldn’t find was Susan Jane Foster Blair, my Great-Great-Grandmother. I was really bummed. I remember seeing her name as a teenager and you know how sometimes you have a relative that just pops out at you? That was Susan Jane Foster for me. We searched all around but were unable to locate her grave. South Fork was probably the largest cemetery we visited, but I am hoping to contact someone who could possibly have a map or layout of the cemetery, as it is one without an office, which explained the lack of information on the internet. (I’ll note here, none of the cemeteries we visited had an office).
The gravestone of my Great-Grandfather, Andrew Jackson Blair, who died when a mine he was working in collapsed and crushed his lungs. He was 45 years old.
The gravestone of his daughter, my Great-Aunt Vada Blair Reese. She died in Arizona in 1995, she was 87.
This is the headstone of my Great-Grandmother, Bertha Childers Blair Chappell. Her first husband was Andrew Jackson Blair (above) and her daughter was Vada. Bertha passed away in 1963 at the age of 77. To see an actual photo of her, look to my header, she is the one on the end of the couch not as happy as the others. Her son, Leroy, is on the far right, he is my Grandfather.
Second Stop: Mount Hope Cemetery
Our next stop had us taking the above hills to arrive at Mount Hope Cemetery. This was a much smaller cemetery, and luckily because of websites like Find A Grave someone had already uploaded a photo of my Great-Grandmother’s gravestone so I had some idea what to look for shape-wise.
Below is the headstone belonging to Margaret Wise Custer, though I knew her as Gammy. She is the only one of the relatives I searched for on this day that I had met. I have vague memories of her playing the “mouth organ” in a nursing home. She passed away in 1987 at the age of 96. My Grandma, her daughter, lived to be 94. Good genes.
My Great-Grandmother, Margaret Dora Wise. To see what she looked like look at the top border photo, she is the white-haired lady with the patterned dress laughing (her daughter is to the right).
Third Stop: Hopewell Cemetery
When we looked up Hopewell Cemetery on Google Maps attempting to get something of an address for this location, it looked rather flat. We could see it had sections but never dreamed the slant that the cemetery was created on. It was the next largest cemetery we visited. I didn’t find my Great-Great-Grandparents that were buried here. Since I had no cell service I wasn’t able to consult Find A Grave to see if either of them were listed. Turns out that my Great-Great-Grandfather, Philip Wise did have a photo on the website, but his wife, Barbara Waite Wise, did not.
Hopewell is filled with old graves that are very worn. We tried to look all over in the older section of the cemetery, thinking that is where they may be (Philip passed in 1878 while Barbara passed in 1881).
I did find my Great-Great-Aunt Elizabeth Childers Whitfield’s grave in my search and took a photo of it (she was my Great-Grandmother Bertha Childers older sister). I figured it made the stop somewhat worth it. But looking at the photo – look at how angled the ground is! This was another spot I’m not sure my car could have survived.
Stop Four: Duvall’s Cemetery
Duvall’s Cemetery was built on land that belonged to my 5th-Great-Grandfather, Basil Foster. So this one had a little extra charm for me, I was going to walk on land that I knew belonged to my ancestors. I’m a geek and think that’s thrilling. I think everyone else thinks I’m nuts in these situations (you should see me at Yorktown and Mount Vernon knowing I’ve walked where George may have stepped, it gives me goosebumps).
But Duvall’s Cemetery is also where many of my direct line relatives are buried. I actually found out 2 days after this visit it held one more grave, that of Andrew Jackson Blair, my Great-Great-Grandfather, father of the aforementioned Andrew Jackson Blair, and husband of the aforementioned Susan Jane Foster (yes, as in Basil Foster). I actually looked for Susan here but was unsuccessful.
Here are my relatives buried in Duvall Cemetery: Andrew Jackson Blair (1851), Charles Jackson Morgart (my Great-Grandfather, first husband of Margaret Wise, aka Maggie Custer), Basil Foster, Richard Lewis Foster, Charity Johnstone Foster, Thomas Foster, Eliza Horton Foster – just to name a few. These are my direct line ancestors as on my first trip, I’d have to spend all day in each cemetery to find everyone.
Richard Lewis Foster, my 4th-Great-Grandfather
Charity Johnstone Foster, my 4th-Great-Grandmother
Basil Foster, my 5th-Great-Grandfather
Charles Jackson Morgart, my Great-Grandfather. The only photo I have of him is the baby picture used above on my header border. He was born in 1873, so to have this christening photo is just incredible for me.
I was unable to find Thomas Foster, my 3rd-Great-Grandfather, or his wife, Eliza Horton Foster, my 3rd-Great-Grandmother. There were many worn graves and some that had fallen apart off the screws where the tops were face down into the grass. It was so sad to see so many graves this way. These were someone’s people, and my husband told me straight off that no, he could not lift them alone. He knows me so well.
Stop Five: Wells Valley Methodist Cemetery
As we were driving, on our way to what ended up being our sixth stop, I saw a road and it turned out we were near Wells Valley Methodist Cemetery, where a majority of my Fesler and Childers family members are buried. I was not able to find everyone, but I did find 2 of the 5 that I was looking for – the first being my 3rd-Great-Grandfather, George Henry Fesler who fought in several smaller battles during the Civil War and his wife, Mary Elizabeth Oakman Fesler. My Great-Great-Grandmother, Sarah Jane Fesler Childers is reportedly buried there as well, but I was unable to find her. The area where the Fesler’s is an older portion of the cemetery in the back corner under a huge tree. Where George’s has been maintained – his wife and children’s are very worn.
George Henry Fesler, he was born in 1824 and passed away in 1911.
Mary Elizabeth Oakman was born in 1826 and passed away in 1872. Her gravestone has “Mother” on the top which is still visible though the rest of the marker is bare.
Others we were unable to find were my 3rd-Great-Grandparents, Abraham Childers and his wife, Mary Ann Green. This was another spot where Find A Grave would have been helpful as it has one of theirs listed, but again, no service (I’ll know to save the photos ahead of time for future visits).
Stop Six: Mount Zion Lutheran Church Cemetery (aka Rays Hill Cemetery)
When we pulled alongside the road to Mount Zion Lutheran Church and Cemetery, the parking lot was blocked off with metal gates. As we sat in the car we saw huge gravestones saying “Ritchey” which was one of the names I was looking for. We searched for a while and then it hit me – I’d seen the headstones on Find a Grave and began looking for white. Here, if we had just started in the front (translated, not far from where we parked) my Great-Great-Grandparents were in the front row, and my 3rd Great-Grandparents were in the row directly behind them.
Anna Cypher Ritchey was my 3rd-Great-Grandmother on my dad’s maternal side. She was born in 1820 and passed in 1889.
George Ritchey, husband of Anna Cypher, he is my 3rd-Great-Grandfather, born in 1810 and died in 1898.
Mary Ann Ritchey Morgart Hughes was born in 1851 and passed away in 1908. My Great-Great-Grandmother.
George Washington Morgart, my Great-Great-Grandfather. He was born in 1849 and passed away unexpectedly in 1895.
Stop Seven: It’s Not a Cemetery, it’s a Tavern
So as we drove along the Lincoln Highway I hoped we would drive by the Morgart Tavern, which was started by my 5th-Great-Grandfather, Peter Morgart, and then run by my 4th-Great-Grandfather, Baltzer Morgart. The building was constructed in the 1760’s and the walls are to be 2-feet deep. I was so excited when we found it. We knocked on the door before taking photos but no one was home. It’s when you find the places and even buildings where they lived that tickles me the most, a feeling of they were here.
Stop Eight: Providence Union Church Cemetery
This was our favorite cemetery, primarily because when we arrived we parked the truck, opened the door and there was my 5th-Great-Grandfather’s resting place front and center. He and his wife were our easiest finds of the day. We probably spent 5 minutes here. Captain Solomon Sparks fought in both the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812. His daughter, Mary Sparks, was married to the before-mentioned Baltzer Morgart.
Captain Solomon Sparks, my 5th-Great-Grandfather, born in 1760 and passed in 1838.
Rachel Weimer Sparks, my 5th-Great-Grandmother, born 1764 and died in 1842.
Stop Nine: The Morgart/Morgret Family Cemetery
This was a fun one as it’s literally in the middle of someone’s backyard. I don’t think the family is a Morgart, I would like to think they would have asked more questions about my being related to them (or not, being an uber-introvert my husband knocked on the door and asked if it was okay to go look at the cemetery, they were very nice and told us we could even pull up in the driveway next to the pole barn. I also want to add that seeing as it was mowed to the same height as the rest of the yard, this family took excellent care of the cemetery, you could easily read things, the gravestones we were weed-whacked, just really impressed).
So here I had many relatives buried, my 5th-Great-Grandfather, Peter Morgart, and his wife, Christiana Hess (my 5th-Great-Grandmother), my 4th-Great-Grandfather, Baltzer Morgart and his wife (and my 4th-Great-Grandmother), Mary Sparks, and lastly my 3rd-Great-Grandparents, Andrew Jackson Morgart and his wife, Rebecca O’Neal.
Grave of Peter Morgart, my 5-Great Grandfather who fought in the Battle of Yorktown in the Revolutionary War and watched as Cornwallis surrendered to General George Washington (or so the lore goes, gives me goosebumps as everyone knows George is my hero!). He was born in 1758 and died in 1846.
Headstone of my 5th-Great-Grandmother Christiana Hess Morgart. She was born in 1761 and died in 1839.
Gravestone of Baltzer Morgart, my 4th-Great-Grandfather who ran the Morgart Tavern. He was born in 1785 and died in 1853.
Gravestone of Mary Sparks, my 4th-Great-Grandmother born 1798 and died in 1874. She was the daughter of Captain Solomon Sparks.
The headstone of Andrew Jackson Morgart who was my 3rd-Great-Grandfather. He was a farmer who was born in 1824 and died in 1870.
The grave of Rebecca O’Neal Morgart, wife of Andrew Jackson Morgart who was born in 1824 and passed away in 1898. She was my 3rd-Great-Grandmother.
Last Stop: Dudley Methodist Cemetery
Our last stop was to find my Great-Great-Grandparents, Jonas and Anna Maria Leighty Wise. I was so excited to find them as 2 days later I was able to take a photo of a picture that my second cousin Hope had of them that was left after a Wise Family Reunion back in the 1990s. My Grandma Blair (her married last name) also talked so fondly of her “Granny Wise” that finding their graves had a lot of importance. But my husband and I must have looked at every single tombstone in the cemetery and we were unable to find them. I was so disappointed. I had no cell service so I was unable to look them up (it would have done me no good, there are no photos on Find A Grave). They were the parents of my Great-Grandmother, Margaret Wise.
Since returning home I did email the Dudley United Methodist Church on a hope they had a layout of the cemetery but I’ve not heard back from them. I could kick myself as it didn’t occur to me when I was there, but my husband found 9 graves of Wise’s but I didn’t recognize the names. Only later did it register that my Great-Great-Grandmother had a total of 15 children, but only 5 survived. Nine graves he found – I wonder if they are 9 of the 10 she lost.
Wrapping It Up
Since this post is ever-so-long I’ll stop here and do another post for the next 2 days. Cemetery hopping is fun. It gave me an opportunity to be near my ancestors. Without them, I wouldn’t be here. It’s just so fascinating to learn their names and to do my best to learn about them and who they were. Just trying my best for them not to be forgotten.
Helping History Come Alive 