Hand Stitching in New York

This piece of stitched material is in the photo album the Kendrick family so generously shared with me.  The note says, "G'ma Arnold made this before she left New York."  This G'ma would be Lora (Johnson) Arnold.  In the top photo a date has been written on the material, 186?; the fold hides the last digit.  Although the detail in the photo appears large, the piece actually is maybe 1 1/2 inch wide.  Tiny, precise stitching. 

"Pearle" McNeil

Born in Wessington, South Dakota, on July 24, 1887, Lula "Pearle" McNeil is the oldest child of Eli T. and Harriet M. (Arnold) McNeil.  Pearle's mother Harriet "Hattie"(Arnold) McNeil is the oldest child of Amos and Lora (Johnson) Arnold.  
Pearle graduated from Roberts High School in the class of 1904.  (Peale is in the center, just to the right of the principal.) She continued her education at the Illinois State University in Normal, Illinois.  For several years she was a very successful teacher in the public schools. 

--"Let's Talk About Roberts.  Larry Knilands and Jean Fox.  

Pearle married Chester Dillon August 11, 1915.  The marriage took place on the lawn of the rural Melvin home of the McNeil family with about 60 guests in attendance. 

 

--Melvin Motor.  13 August 1915.

Chester's career  eventually landed the couple in Birmingham, Alabama, where Chester was working for the Birmingham State University.  
In the winter of 1920 Pearle's parents and her sister Ellen went to Birmingham to visit.  While there, Pearle was taken ill with influenza and passed away February 12, 1920, at the age of 32.  She was expecting their first child at the time of her death.
She is buried at Lyman Township Cemetery in Roberts, Illinois, near her parents. 

 

--Roberts Herald.  18 February 1920.

Pearle is easy to identify in family photos, always wearing her dark hair in a high bun.

McNeil Farm

Section 8, Wall Township, Ford County, Illinois. 

On the 1884 plat of Wall Township this section is owned by C. Anderson, probably Christopher Anderson of Roberts.  The 1901 map shows Amos Arnold as the section owner.  There appears to be a small square between the H and the A in the word "Hattie" on Section 8 which would indicate a residence.  The home location does not appear on the 1981 Ford County, Illinois Rural Resident Directory.

--Historical Atlas of Ford County Illinois.  1884.

--Ford County, Illinois.  Rural Resident Directory.  1981.

RESEARCH:  Photograph this property.  Are there any buildings here?  Find a photo of the home.  

Abigail Heyworth

Abigail White Mary Heyworth
Born:  January 1879
Died:  1969
Married:  21 May 1903 to George Crocker Backus

Children:
Hiram Heyworth Backus
Louise Howard Backus
George Arnold Backus

Abigail is the daughter of Hiram & Mary "Pet" (White) Heyworth. 
Mary was the daughter of J. B. and Eunice "Abbie" (Arnold) White.
Eunice "Abbie" is a sister to Amos Arnold.

Five Generations

Five generations of Arnolds are buried at Lyman Township Cemetery in Roberts, Illinois.  The first burial being the six-month-old child of Johnson and Beckie (Zwig) Arnold in 1887.  The original Arnold plot was purchased by Amos Arnold the 19th of July in 1887 from the Lyman Township Cemetery Association, two days after the death of his grandchild.  Lot No. 253. 
And Amos Silas Arnold who died the 17th of July, 1887, was buried here.  He was the first child of Johnson and Beckie Arnold.

 

 

I think the above photo was taken at the time of the setting of the large Arnold Stone.  I am not sure of the date, but I imagine the stone was placed between 1887 and 1913, the year Amos Arnold died. The photo below I took about ten years ago. This Arnold plot is located near the center of the cemetery. I need to go back and take it again with more of an angle so the views match.

 

 

Howard Edgar Harry Cook

--Newspaper Clipping.

--Buried Lyman Township Cemetery.  Roberts, Illinois.

Seward Arnold

--Kendrick Family Album.

Ted Kendrick

Ted's mother is Marguerite (Linn) Kendrick. Marguerite (Linn) Kendrick is the daughter of Frank and Seba (Arnold) Linn. Seba (Arnold) Linn is a daughter of Amos and Lora (Johnson) Arnold. 

The Kendrick family still live and farm near Roberts.

 



 

--The News-Gazette. 4 March 2018. Page B-4.