Obit: Markam, Morris Samuel (1823 - 1902)

Contact: Stan
Email: stan@wiclarkcountyhistory.org

Surnames: MARKHAM LANGLEY VANCAMP CLUTE HARTSON FRICKE PETERSON JOHNSON BURCH WADE LEWIS CURTISS RANSON RMINNIE KLOSTER BOWEN LANG HARTSON FRICKE HUNT SPERBECK

----Source: Greenwood Gleaner / /1902

A PIONEER HERO DEAD

While splitting wood for James Van Camp Thursday forenoon, Morris Markham dropped to the ground unconscious and was dead within a few minutes thereafter without uttering a sound or apparently suffering a pain. He had been stopping of late with his niece, Mrs. Harriet Langley and was in the habit of doing odd jobs around town. It was only a year or two ago that he was teaming and working around as lively as though he were forty instead of nearly eighty. Mr. Van Camp had gone up stairs over the blacksmith shop and noticed Mr. Markham splitting apparently as usual. When he came down a few moments later the old gentleman was prostrate on the ground, his ax apparently having gone over his head as he was falling. A coroner's jury in charge of Justice of the Peace C. H. Clute was empanelled at one o'clock, this consisting of H. H. Hartson, foreman, Oscar Fricke, P.E. Peterson, Elias Peterson, Henry Johnson and E. T. Burch. After taking all the evidence obtainable a verdict of death from heart failure was returned.

Morris Samuel Markham was born in New York, Dec. 18, 1823. Uneducated save in the barest rudiments, but a thorough scholar in Nature's school, his early life was spent in trapping and hunting. During the 50's he was in Iowa when that state was the frontier and played a heroic part in the Indian troubles at the time of the Spirit Lake Massacre. It was his heroic bravery and daring that helped to save a part of the time of the Spirit Lake Massacre. It was his heroic bravery and daring that helped to save a part of the neighboring settlements before the Indian marauders reached the scene. An extended account of this event was published in the Gleaner in October of 1898.

A couple of years after the Spirit Lake Massacre Mr. Markham married Miss Minerva Wade of Trenton, Grundy county, Mo., and came shortly after to Wisconsin, finally settling on what is now known as the Dimler place on the West Side . To this union were born six children, five of whom with the aged mother are still living. These are: Mrs. Juila Lewis of the West Side, Amasa Curtiss, John Ranson, Mary Jane Markham, and Amy Rminnie, all but the first named living with Amasa near Throp.

Unfortunately, the Greenwood home has been broken up for the past year or more, owing partly no doubt, to deceased's childishness which made it hard to get along with him. Since then he has made his home most of the time with his brother Curtiss and wife who live two miles and a half north of Greenwood.

The funeral was held at two o'clock Sunday afternoon from the Grace M. E. church, Rev. W. E. Kloster officiating, a large number of old settlers and friends, besides the entire family and relatives, being present. The church was nicely decorated by friends. The pallbearers were: Erastus Bowen, Henry Lang, H. H. Hartson, Oscar Fricke, H. W. Hunt and Richard Sperbeck. Interment was made in the Greenwood cemetery.

There is a lonely, vacant room in our hearts and home today, for our dear father is missing, God has taken him away. Dear friends, thou too must bear the rod. That is of all the earthly lot. Yea, bless the everlasting God, Who gave and took, and murmur not. Our aching hearts can not conceive, Nor can our finest wisdom tell Why He who causeth thus to grieve yet ever doeth all things well. Loved ones he left behind him to mourn his sudden death, but some day ere long they will follow to the land of sunshine and rest.--M. M.