Wiliam Wise, son of Peter and Christina ?

William Wise was born in Pennsylvania between 1821-1826. He is the possible/probable son of Peter and Christina Wise, most likely their oldest child. This assumption is based upon the fact that William lived in close proximity to Peter and Christina in Wayne County, Ohio as well as in Miami County, Indiana. William's first wife and several of his children are buried in Gilead Cemetery in the same row as Peter and Christina. Their plots are next to each other.

William could be the male age 20-29 listed in the household of Peter Wise in the 1840 Wayne County, Ohio census. However, his age in later census records indicates that he was born between 1821-1826 which would put him in the 15-19 age group. There was no male listed in that age group in 1840 in Peter's household. In 1850, William was 24 (born 1826), in 1860 he was 37 (born 1823), in 1870 he was 49 (born 1821) and in 1880 he was 58 (born 1822). In all census records in which he has been found, William was listed as born in Pennsylvania.

William was married twice. His first wife, Mary Ann was born 09 Jun 1826 in Pennsylvania, died on 05 Jan 1870, and is buried in Gilead Cemetery in Perry Township, Miami County, Indiana. Her date of birth is calculated from the date of death and age (43y 6m 27d) on her gravestone.

William's second wife, according to the 1880 census, was Nancy who was born in 1833 in Pennsylvania.

Children (based on census and cemetery records) of William and Mary Ann Wise were:

1. Newton O. Wise was born on 16 Dec 1847, died on 10 Dec 1874 at age 26, and was buried in Gilead Cemetery in Perry Township, Miami County, Indiana.
2. Samuel Wise was born in 1850 in Ohio.
3. Wealthy O. Wise was born on 04 Nov 1852 in Indiana, died on 24 Jan 1874 at age 21, and was buried in Gilead Cemetery in Perry Township, Miami County, Indiana.
4. Emeline Wise was born in 1856 in Indiana.
5. Cecillius Wise was born in 1861 in Indiana.

Marriage records have not been found for William, for either of his marriages in Wayne County, Ohio or Miami County, Indiana. No marriage records have been found for his children in Miami County or Wabash County, Indiana. The last record I have on this family is the 1880 census when they lived in Roann, Wabash County. His 19 year old son Cecillius was living with William and his second wife.

William Wise and his family were located in the following census records:

1850 Wayne County, Ohio (Congress Township, page 299)
Wm Wise, 24, male, farmer, born Pennsylvania
Mary, 24, female, born Pennsylvania
Newton O., 2, male, born Ohio
[no name], 3/12, male, born Ohio
Adam Holmes, 23, male, Wagon Maker, born Pennyslvania

1860 Wabash County, Indiana (Pleasant Township, page 2)
William Wise, 37, farmer, real estate valued at $2400, personal estate at $200, born Pennsylvania
Mary A., 34, born Pennsylvania
Newton A., 12, male, born Ohio
Samuel, 10, male, born Ohio
Welthy A., 7, female, born Indiana
Emiline, 5, female, born Indiana

1870 Miami County, Indiana (Perry Township page 141/26)
William Wise, 49, farmer, Real Estate $5000, Personal Estate $500, born Pennsylvania
Wealthy, 17, female, keeping house, born Indiana
Emeline, 14, female, born Indiana
Cecillius, 9, male, born Indiana
James Faris, 80, male, retired farmer, born Virginia, citizen of the U.S.
Nancy Faris, 65, female, keeping house, born Virginia

1880 Wabash County, Indiana (Roann, Paw Paw Township page 44d)
William Wise, white, male, 58, farmer, born Pennsylvania, parents born Pennsylvania
Nancy, white, female, 47, wife, keeping house, born Pennsylvania, parents born Pennsylvania
Cicilius, white, male, 19, son, laborer, born Indiana

Wise Family - Index to Posts

Gilead Revisited

This may look familiar to some readers. It is a slightly different view of the gravesite of the family of Peter and Christina Wise in Gilead Cemetery, Miami County, Indiana.

You see that stone to the left of Peter and Christina's? (Theirs is the fourth tall white marker to the left.) Well, I have reason to believe that it is another daughter of theirs. Had I taken the time last week, to look at other stones in that area (you all know that is what you're supposed to do, don't you?) and make note of the names nearby, then when I found that information on the four claimants in Christina Wise's estate entry at the Courthouse in Peru a week ago, the names might have 'clicked' in this feeble little brain of mine. As it was, it took a while longer, but thanks to an online cemetery index I did make the connection. And yeah, I made another trip to Gilead, Peru, and Wabash. Yesterday. I'm so glad it's not all that far away. Photographs taken on February 14, 2008 by Becky Wiseman.

These were the four claimants mentioned in Christina's estate entry (about half-way down that post): Rosanna Hate (or Hale), Luella Culbertson, William Kircher, and John J. Mohler.

As noted in that post there is a William Kercher in the 1870 and 1880 census for Perry Township, Miami County, Indiana. With him in 1870 is his wife Catherine and daughter Lulla. In 1880 is his wife Catherine, John A. Culberson, son-in-law, and Luella Culberson, daughter.

That stone to the left of Peter and Christina's? It's for William and Catherine Kircher. And the one to the left of theirs? It's for their son-in-law John Culbertson. There will be another post, soon, on what I found on them. Catherine's obituary did not provide any family information (none, nada, zilch), but it was "signed" by Effie Hoffman. That would be her niece, daughter of Eliza Jane Wise Hoffman.



WILLIAM KIRCHER / DIED NOV. 15, 1895 / AGED 67 Y. 10 M. & 3 D.
CATHARINE A. HIS WIFE / DIED FEB. 5, 1884 / AGED 58 Y. 1 M. & 20 D.

With better lighting conditions, the stone on the right would be easier to read and photograph.
JOHN A. / CULBERTSON / DIED / APR. 23, 1883 / AGED 25 Y. 6M. / & 1 D.



I couldn't find this marker when I went to the cemetery last week, but with the online transcription, noted above, it was easily located this time.

ELIZABETH WISE / DIED / MAY 24, 1854 / Aged 17 Y 4 M
Yes, I swept away the snow to read her age, but it isn't a "pretty" picture.

Peter and Christina Wise Family in Gilead Cemetery

Gilead Cemetery, Perry Township, Miami County, Indiana. North Section, Row Five, looking Northeast.
Photographs taken by Becky Wiseman on February 5, 2008. It was a foggy and rainy day. The "blurry" spots are rain drops on the lens of the camera. As always, click on the images for larger versions.



The first marker in the foreground, is the first one in the row, near the roadway that runs through the cemetery. Starting with that marker, we have Mary Ann Wise, Wealthy A. Wise, Newton O. Wise (wife and children of William Wise). The fourth tall marker is for Peter and Christina Wise. The small marker on the right has the initials "P.W." and another identical marker on the left has the initials "C. W."

According to the cemetery transcription books, there is another marker, in the same row but in the south section for Elizabeth Wise who died May 24, 1854 at age 17y 4m. However, I was unable to locate it. Perhaps on a nicer day that is a bit warmer, I might be able to make out some of the inscriptions that I was not able to read during this visit.



The Wise family markers, looking south west. The marker for Peter and Christina, in the foreground, stands well over six feet in height, probably closer to seven. The other two tall markers are about five feet high while Mary Ann's is about four feet high.



Peter's inscription is on the west side of the marker: PETER WISE / DIED / JAN. 29 1875 / AGED 77 YEARS.
The inscription "FATHER & MOTHER" is on the north face of the marker.
Christina's inscription is on the east side of the marker: C. WISE / DIED / APR. 25, 1884 / AGED 83 Y's 1 Mo. 24 D.



NEWTON O. WISE / DIED / DEC. 10 1874 / AGED 26 Y 11 M & D

WEALTHY A. / daughter of / W.& M. A. WISE / DIED / Jan. 21 1871 / AGED / 21 Y 2 M 20 D's

MARY ANN / WIFE OF / WM WISE / DIED / Jan. 5 1870 / AGED / 43 Y. 6 M. & 27 D. Barely discernible is four lines of text beneath the main inscription. Under the right lighting conditions it may be possible to get a good image for reading the text.

At the Courthouse in Peru

Sometimes, the more you find, the more confused you get. More information found = more questions. Or so it seems. My trip to the courthouse at Peru on Thursday wasn't all that fruitful in regards to definite information on Peter and Christina Wise. However, it is more than I had before.

I looked through the Deed Index Books for Peter and/or Christina Wise from 1850-55 and 1874-1890. They were still in Wayne County, Ohio in 1850. Peter died in 1875 and Christina in 1884. The record below was the only one found for Peter. There were none for Christina. Based on the fact that Peter still owned land in 1870 (as shown in the census he had real estate valued at $1000) I didn't check the years 1855-1873, however, considering the fact that he paid more than $3,000 for his land, I should probably go back and check those years as well. That said, I have come across several instances where land transactions weren't recorded until many years later, especially if the transaction was with another family member, so it could be like looking for a needle in a haystack.

The first, and only, land transaction that I found for Peter Wise in Miami County, Indiana was signed on April 13, 1854 and recorded on page 249 in Deed Book "H" and filed for record September 26, 1854.

John Bowers, of the County of Miami and State of Indiana... for the sum of Three thousand and Six hundred dollars to him paid by Peter Wise of the County of Miami... The South West quarter of Section Seventeen (17) in Township twenty nine (29) North of Range five (5) East containing One hundred and Sixty Acres more or less.

One of the ladies in the County Clerk's office helped me with trying to locate estate records. We checked the will books first but neither Peter nor Christina were listed. We next checked the estate books. There was an entry for Christina, but nothing for Peter. The entry for Christina referenced a file number, an inventory book, and an order book but we were unable to locate any of the particular books that were mentioned.

However, there was just a little bit of information available in the book we found (Estate Book 1, page 273). Just enough to make you wonder. It gives Christina's date of death as April 24, 1884 (her grave marker has April 25th). She lived in Gilead. The estate inventory was filed July 15, 1884 and was valued at $3,891.33 which, I think, is a fairly sizeable sum. The inventory was recorded in Inventory Record 5 page 208. I sure would like to find that inventory! There was a reference to Order Book 9 but no page number was given. The final report was given on October 25, 1887.

There was a list of four claimants:
Rosanna Hate, July 10, 1884 $80 and November 11, 1884 $80
Luella Culbertson, November 11, 1884 $62 and November 11, 1884 $62
William Kircher, November 11, 1884 $1405.66 and July 5, 1885 $1339.50
John J. Mohler, January 9, 1885 $735.09 and March 25, 1885 $662.00

That last man listed, John J. Mohler, is the husband of "Mrs. Ella Mohler" who is mentioned as a sister in the obituary of Eliza Wise Hoffman. Are the others related in some way as well? We don't know if this was a settlement to the heirs or simply claims against the estate. If this was a settlement to the heirs, why aren't the other children and/or grandchildren of Peter and Christina included?

One of the items that I copied at the Wabash Library was the plat map for Perry Township, Miami County from the "Combination Atlas Map of Miami County" which is a reprint of the 1877 atlas, which is 2 years after Peter's death. These maps include the name of the landowners for each parcel. The 160 acres of land that Peter Wise purchased in 1854 (noted above) was listed under the name of M. Thomas, not Christina Wise.

There is a William Kercher in the 1870 (age 42) and 1880 (age 53) census for Perry Township, Miami County, Indiana. With him in 1870 is his wife Catherine, age 38, and daughter Lulla, age 10. In 1880 his wife Catherine is 51 years old, born in Ohio and parents were born in Pennsylvania. Listed with them is John A. Culberson, age 22, son-in-law, and Luella Culberson, age 20, daughter. Could Catherine Kercher, born 1829-1832, aka Mrs. William Kercher, be a daughter of Peter and Christina? And Luella Culberson/Culbertson their granddaughter?

Last Sunday, while at the Allen County Library, I copied the pages from the Wayne County, Ohio Marriage Index 1813-1898 that listed the "Wise" marriages. Among the women listed is Rosanna Wise who married Jacob Hale on March 20, 1851. Is this the Rosanna "Hate" listed in Christina's estate record? Is she a daughter of Peter and Christina? I questioned the surname Hate at the time thinking that would be an terrible name to have! But the clerk looked at it too and agreed that it was indeed Hate. There is a Jacob Hale listed in the 1860 census in Seward Township, Kosciusko County, Indiana, which is just a few miles north of where Peter and Christina lived. Jacob is 32 years old and was born in Pennsylvania. Listed with him is 33 year old Rosanna Hale who was born in Ohio, 5 year old May A. Hale who was born in Indiana, and 7 year old Luther Wade, also born in Indiana. I've done some quick searches but have not located Jacob and Rosanna Hale in any other years in Indiana, but I haven't checked any spelling variations yet either.

So, where does this leave me? What I got is a teaser, just a hint of what could be in the record books - if they could be found. I suspect the four claimants are related to Peter and Christina, so there are those names to investigate further. And that is something.