Biographical and genealogical history of the state of Delaware, Vol. II, Part 20

Author: Runk, J.M. & Co
Publication date: 1899
Publisher: Chambersburg, Pa.
Number of Pages: 1500


USA > Delaware > Biographical and genealogical history of the state of Delaware, Vol. II > Part 20


Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).


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BIOGRAPHICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA


of Milford Conclave, No. 32, I. O. IT., and Sackamas Tribe, I. O. R. M. He is a Demo- erat.


On March 19, 1889, in Cheswold, Dr. George W. Pleasanton was married to Jen- nie, daughter of John and Jane Moore, of Cheswold. Their children are: I. Carl M., born December 5, 1889; II. George L., born June 24, 1891; III. Jessie, born August 31, 1894. Dr. Pleasanton attends the M. E. church.


ROBERT H. DAVIS, Milford, Del., son of Thomas and Hester (Shockley) Davis, was born at Gravel Ford, Sussex county, Del., March 23, 1824.


The Davis family is of Welsh descent, and was one of the first to follow the Swedes and Finns to Cape Henlopen. It was five years after the first setlement in this state that a tract of land in that portion of Cedar Creek hundred known at Slaughter's Neck was ac- quired by a Davis, and since 1632 a part of that land has been in possession of the Davis family. Mark Davis, grandfather of Robert II. Davis, and grandson of Nehemiah Davis, born in Cedar Creek hundred in 1732 (!), purchased a large plantation from George Reed, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, and that tract also is still owned by one of the Davis family.


Mark Davis spent his entire life in farming in Cedar Creek hundred. He married Sarah, daughter of Nathaniel Young, who was of Irish ancestry. They had children: [. Man- love, married Mary Wiltbank; II. John, married Miss Clark; III. Robert, married Pol- ly Campbell; IV. Mark, 2, married Comfort Loffand: V. Henry, married Edith Townsend; VI. Thomas; VII. Nehemiah; VIH. Mary, married Robert Watson and afterward Clem- ont Manlove; IX. Sarah (Mrs. George Ifandy), of Philadelphia; X. Nehemiah, 2. Mr. Davis died in 1799; his widow died about 1822.


Thomas Davis, father of Robert II. Davis, was born in Cedar Crock hundred. Sussex county, September 13, 1784. He was en- gaged in farming for many years and was an influential public citizen. He was an officer in the war of 1812 and represented Sussex county in the Assembly and Senate of the State Legislature. Thomas Davis was twice


married. ITis first wife was Ann Young, of Sussex county; their children are: I. Mary, married Benjamin Burton, and after his death, Henry Carter, is now a widow, aged eighty-five years, resides in Frederica, Kent emumty; 1I. Sarah, wife of Curtis S. Watson, both deceased. Thomas Davis married soc- ondly Hester, daughter of Eli and Nancy Shockley, of Sussex county, and had chil- dren: 1. Ann, deceased; II. Thomas J., of Milford, married Mary Potter; III. Robert H. Thomas Davis died in Cedar Creek hundred November 2, 1854; Mrs. Davis died in April, 1867.


Robert H. Davis spent a large part of his life on the homestead farm, engaged in agri- cultural pursuits and in teaching school. He, like his father, has been prominent in pub- lic affairs. In 1866, he was elected on the Democratic ticket to the legislature, and served one term. In 1871, he was elected state treasurer, and his administration of his office was so satisfactory that he was again elected in 1873. Since 1872 he has resided in Milford, and has served the people of that borough as a member of council and as school commissioner. For thirty-five years he has been a notary public. He has always been an ardent advocate of the principles of the Democratic party.


On January 9, 1850, in Indian River hun- dred, Robert HI. Davis was married to Anna J., daughter of George and Elizabeth (War- rington) Frame, born near Georgetown, Del., December 10, 1828. Their children are: I. Hester, born in Indian River hundred, Feb- ruary 6, 1851, married George P. Minor-, January 8, 1885, died February 13, 1892; II. Thomas, attorney-at-law, of Washington, born at Gravel Ford, August 18, 1852, mar- ried Clara, daughter of James Springer, of Newark; III. George Frame, born March 3. 1854, married Sarah Richards, December 31, 1884, died July 10, 1891, leaving his widow and two children; IV. Anna Jane, born March 26, 1856; V. Mary Ellen, born Octo- her 7, 1857; VI. Nathaniel W., born Au- gust 3, 1859, died April 26, 1895, was a mem- ber of the New Castle bar: VII. There-a Olivia, born August 12, 1862, died March 25, 1868; VIII. Robert Paynter, member of the Sussex county bar, born April 1, 1865, mar- ried Catherine, daughter of William .1. Humes, of Milford, October 22, 1597: IX.


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Cora Burdella, born February 27, 1870. Mr. Davis and family attend the M. E. church.


The Frame family, to which Mrs. Davis belongs, has also attained distinction in of- ficial life. Robert Frame, grandfather of Mrs. Davis, was a son of George and Eliza- beth (Paynter) Frame. Ile was an early resi- dent of Sussex county, and married Mary Vaughn, a sister of Major Vaughn of Revo- lutionary fame. One of his sons was Robert, 2, who was a conspicuous member of the . Kent and New Castle county bars, and at one time attorney general of Delaware. George Frame, father of Mrs. Davis, was born in In- dian River hundred, near St. George's Chapel. Ile was by profession a surveyor, and was chosen county surveyor and afterward sheriff of Sussex county. He also represented Sus- sex county for several terms in the legislature. George Frame married Elizabeth, daugh- ter of James Warrington, born May 31, 1802, in Sussex county. Their children are: I. Robert, of Sussex county; II. Mary Vaughn ( Mrs. Manlove D. Wilson), of Middletown, Del., widow; III. Payu- ter, of near Georgetown; IV. Anna J. (Mrs. Robert HI. Davis); V. Henry C., of near Millsborough, married Anna Kollock; VI. Elizabeth W. (Mrs. Nathaniel Williams), of Middletown, widow; VII. George Washing- ton, sea captain, deceased, married Margaret Herring; VIII. Thomas Jefferson, of Phila- delphia, married Margaret Tindell; IX. Clem- ent T., Baptist minister, of Knoxville, Tioga county, Pa., married Josephine Willis; X. Jane W .; XI. Thalia M. Mr. Frame died in 1845, aged forty-nine years; Mrs. Frame died January 5, 1879, aged seventy-six years. She was a member of the M. E. church.


GEORGE WILLIAM MARSHALL, M. D., Milford, Del., son of Dr. William Mar- shall and Hester Angelina (MeColley) Mar- shall, was born in Georgetown, Sussex county, Del., August 31, 1854.


In 1866, the family removed to Milford, Kent county, Del. George W. Marshall grad- nated at Delaware College in 1874 with the degree of A. B., and in 1876 from Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, with that of M. D. In 1877 his Alma Mater conferred upon him the degree of A. M. He set- tled a Milford, and has ever since


been actively engaged in the practice of his profession. Amidst the active duties of professional life he found time to devote to the interest of the National Guard, and was captain for eight years, lieutenant-colonel for two years, and colonel of the First Regi- ment of Infantry, N. G. D., for seven years, resigning his commission in 1895. In politics he is a Republican, and has served his party with loyalty and fidelity. For four years he was president of the Republican League of ('Inbs of Delaware, and for seven years has been chairman of the Kent county Republican Executive Committee. In 1892 he was a dele- gate to the Republican National Convention held at Minneapolis, that renominated Benja- min Harrison; in 1896 he was elected an alter- nate delegate. For ten years he was secretary of the Delaware State Medical Society; in 1886 he was elected president, and at the Centennial Anniversary of the Society (1859), having been selected, read a paper on "A Century of Surgery."


Dr. Marshall is a member of the Presby- terian church and of the Masonic Fraternity, Temple Lodge, No. 9, A. F. and A. M. Delta Chapter No. 4, and St. John's Commandery, Knights Templar, No. 1, of Wilmington; a member of the American Academy of Med- icine and of the Historical Society of Dela- ware. He is one of the trustees of Delaware College, serving upon the Committee on In- struction and Discipline, and has since its or- ganization been a trustee of the State College for Colored Students. For eighteen years he has been a school commissioner, and is now serving as president of the Board of Educa- tion of the public schools of Milford, Kent county. Dr. Marshall has served in the town council and has been president of coun- cil; he rendered effective service in establish- ing the light and water plant of Milford, and for two terms served as commissioner.


On April 25, 1878, Dr. George W. Mar- shall was married to Mary Louise, daughter of Andrew Donnell and Rose (Mathewson) Donnell, of Newark, Del. They have four sons: I. Andrew Donnell Marshall, born February 10, 1879; IT. William Marshall. Jr., born November 26, 1880; III. George Chester Marshall, born October 23, 1552; IV. Samuel Mathewson Donnell Marshall, born October 2, 1884.


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JACOB Y. FOULK, Milford, Del., son of Jacob and Edith (Yarnall) Foulk, was born at Foulkland, Christiana hundred, New Cas- tle county, Del., June 14, 1826.


The ancestors of Jacob Y. Foulk came from Sweden at an early period of the set- tlement of Delaware, and acquired land near the Old Swedes' church, of Wilmington. Stephen Foulk, great-great-grandfather of Jacob Y. Foulk, was a prominent man. In the chronicles of the original settlements on the Delaware it is related that he gave the ground for the erection of a market-house in Wilmington. His son, William Foulk, was a resident of New Castle county and the owner of the extensive Foulk estate; he was a miller and wagoner, serving in the latter ca- pacity in the war of 1812. He married and had children: I. Sarah (Mrs. Isaac Roland); II. Susan (Mrs. William Foot); III. John ; IV. Jacob; V. Stephen, married Miss Springer; VI. Elizabeth, was first Mrs. Sinex, and afterwards married James Donald.


Jacob Foulk, second son of William Foulk, was born on the homestead at Foulkland, No- vember 25, 1792. He became a brick-layer and builder and resided in Christiana hun- dred and Wilmington during his entire life. Jacob Foulk married, March 13, 1823,


Edith, daughter of Holten and Ann Yarnall, of Brandywine Springs. They had children: I. James, born February 20, 1824, died Sep- tember 21, 1824; II. Jacob G .; III. Mary P., born October 31, 1828, married Abram Jones, merchant, of Wilmington; IV. Lewis II., of Wilmington, born March 31, 1831, has married three times, his present wife was Miss Crouch; V. William H., contractor and builder of Wilmington, born May 2, 1834; VI. Franklin, born May 8, 1837, died July 28, 1838; VII. Stephen, born June 27, 1839, died January 20, 1865, in Milford, from the effects of hardships endured while a member of a cavalry regiment during the Civil War; VIII. Sarah A., born December 11, 1844, died September 24, 1860. Jacob Foulk died in Milford, April 1, 1877; his wife died Sep- tomber 4, 1856.


Jacob Y. Foulk spent his youth at Brandy- wine Springs and Wilmington, attending school in both places. In 1846, after he had been graduated from Smith's Academy in Wilmington, he came to Milford and studied pharmacy with Joseph S. Bennett, who estab-


lished the first drug store in Milford. From that time until 1897 Mr. Foulk was contin- uously in the drug business in this town. About 1852 he formed a partnership with Joseph II. George, under the firm name of Foulk & George. Two years later Mr. Foulk and Jesse Sherwood purchased the drug store originally conducted by Joseph S. Bennett. Four years afterward Mr. Foulk disposed of his interest to Mr. Sherwood, and was en- gaged in business on his own account until 1863, when he admitted John Delamater to partnership. The firm of Foulk & Delama- ter was in existence eighteen years and was then dissolved by mutual consent. From 1881 until the beginning of 1897 Mr. Foulk continued in the business alone, and then re- tired. Mr. Foulk has been an active and use- ful citizen of Milford. He has been volun- tary weather reporter for the United States government for nineteen years, and is re- porter for Delaware College. On March 23, 1895, he was appointed justice of the peace for seven years by Governor Marvel, and on June 5, of the same year, was appointed no- tary publie for a like term by Governor Wat- son. On January 3, 1898, he was elected alderman of Milford. Mr. Foulk is a mem- ber of Crystal Fount Lodge, No. 10, and Kirkwood Encampment, No. 6, I. O. O. F., of Milford. IIe is past grand chief patriarch and past grand master for Delaware and past grand representative to the sovereign lodge of the United States. IIe is also an honorary member of the Jr. O. U. A. M. His political affiliations are with the Republican party.


On May 5, 1850, in Philadelphia, Jacob Y. Foulk was married to Ellenor II., daughter of Jabez IT. and Ellenor Hitch (Trader) Crop- per, born in Milford, Del., August 27, 1830. Their children are: I. Annie E., born July 9, 1851, married Rev. E. W. Goylard, pastor of North Amherst Congregational church, has five children; 11. Edith C., born July 23. 1854, widow of Dr. William G. Phelps, of Boston, Mass .; III. Jonathan, born February 3, 1857, died March S, 1858; IV. William, born February 28, 1859, died February 22, 1895; his widow, Caroline ( Wheeler) Foulk, and three sons reside at Milford; V. Franklin, horn March 8, 1862, died June 13, 1866: VI. Jabez J., of Milford, born August 6, 1865, married Lydia Kennedy, has two children; VII. Mary, born April 17, 1869, teacher in


. Hubbard, m.L,


Agora B. Houtburde


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STATE OF DELAWARE


Milford public schools; VIII. Mallery, of New York City, born July 10, 1872. The ancestors of Mr. Foulk were members of the P. E. church, but he is a communicant of the Presbyterian church and president of the board of trustees of the Milford congrega- tion.


Mrs. Foulk's ancestors came from England. Her grandfather, Levin Cropper, was the first of the family to settle in America. He crossed the ocean with his wife and three chil- dren in the last decade of the eighteenth cen- tury, and purchased land in Sussex county, where he made his home. AAfterward, he en- gaged extensively in real estate brokerage. He was married in England to Elizabeth Bradley. They had children: I. Joseph; II. William; III. Jabez HI. Joseph and William died young. Both parents are deceased.


Jabez II. Cropper was born February 14, 1790, on board the ship in which his parents were sailing to America. He spent nearly all his life in Kent county. He was a tailor, and for many years conducted a merchant tailor- ing establishment in Milford. On February 25, 1813, Jabez II. Cropper married Ellenor Hitch, daughter of Elijah and Ellenor Tra- der, born near Seaford, Sussex county, De- cember 25, 1796. Their children were: I. William H., born December 17, 1813, died August 15, 1836; II. Elizabeth B. (Mrs. Wil- liam N. W. Dorsey), born September 21, 1815, died March 26, 1873, leaving four chil- dren; III. Joseph B., born December 8, 1817, died February 8, 1818; IV. Ellenor T., born November 17, 1819, died January 10, 1824; V. Catharine W., born March 6, 1521, died October 16, 1875, married Jonathan May, president Sixth National Bank of Phil- adelphia, who, with two sons, survives her; VI. Moulton R., born July 30, 1823, died August 30, 1825; VII. Jabez, born March 23, 1828, died March 31, 1835; VIII. Ellenor II .; IX. Jerome Bonaparte, born June 20, 1836, died December 24, 1836. Mr. and Mrs. Jabez II. Cropper are deceased.


REV. JONATHAN SPENCER WIL- LIS, Milford, Del., son of Hon. William Bar- naby and Mary (Spencer) Willis, was born at Oxford, Talbot county, Md., April 5, 1830.


Mr. Willis is descended in a direct line from an English knight, Sir Richard Willis, who came to America with Sir William Fairfax.


That practical cousin of the sixth Lord Fair- fax was dispatched to Virginia to take charge of the immense domain which had come into the Fairfax possession through marriage with the Culpepper family. Sir Richard Willis lived in Virginia, as did his son, but his grand- son, John Willis, removed to Snow Hill, now Preston, Caroline county, Md. John Willis' grandson, also named John, was the grandfa- ther of Jonathan Spencer Willis. He removed from Caroline to Dorchester county, Md., and there engaged in business as a merchant and ship-builder. Later, he changed his residence to Oxford, Md., and followed the same occu- pations there. Either President Adams or President Jefferson appointed him custom- house officer and collector at Oxford and that office he held for thirty-five years contin- uously. So serupulously accurate was he in his accounts and so careful in his decisions that not an error of book-keeping or judgment was ever charged against him. He was a man of high character and universally respected. John Willis married Elizabeth Barnaby, a native of Maryland, supposed to have been of Scotch-Irish descent. They had children: I. Sarah (Mrs. Benjamin Denny), died aged seventy-five years; II. Elizabeth (Mrs. Joseph Robinson), died at the age of eighty years; III. Ann, lived to an advanced age; IV. Mar- garet, lived to an advanced age; V. William Barnaby; VI. John, married Elizabeth Spen- cer, had two sons, lived to an advanced age and died in Missouri; VII. Charles, died in Louisville, Ky., aged forty-nine years; VIII. Catharine, married Spry Denny, a ship- owner; IN. Nicholas, of Talbot county, Md., married Susan Bowdle, was once sheriff of Talbot county, is of advanced age; X. Keziah, died young. John Willis died in 1839, aged seventy-five years; Mrs. Willis died about 1810.


Hon. William Barnaby Willis was born in Oxford, Md., May 8, 1804, and resided in Talbot county throughout his life. He was a very successful farmer and very influential in local and state Democratie politics. He was sheriff of Talbot county for one term, and a member of the Maryland legislature for two terms, 1841-2 and 1851-2. In 1829, he mar- ried Mary, daughter of Captain Jonathan and Eleanor Spencer, born in 1806, at Wye Land- ing, Talbot county. They had children: 1. Jonathan Spencer; H. Alexander, born in


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BIOGRAPHIICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA


1832, died at the age of twenty-two years; III. Margaret Eleanor (Mrs. Alexander Ball), born 1834, died in Washington, D. C., in 1870, had two sons and one daughter; IV. Elizabeth Spencer (wife of Rev. Dr. Jas. II. Lightbourne), of Long Island, born in 1835, has children, i. Albert, editor of the Wool Record and secretary of the Wool Exchange, of New York City, was editorial writer on the New York Mail and Express, ii. Ella (Mrs. Arthur Middleton), of New York City, has three children, iii. Julia, wife of Dr. Bruare, resides near Trenton, N. J., has one child; V. Thomas, retired farmer of Kent county, Md., born September 15, 1836, married Mary E. Chaplain, has chil- dren, i. Henry, ii. Nellie, iii. Anna, iv. Wil- liam, v. May; VI. Sarah ( Mrs. Alfred Moore), of Royal Oak, Md., has children, i. James, ii. Grace; VII. Albert, died young; VIII. Sam- uel, died young; IX. William, retired farmer of St. Michael's, Talbot county, Md., married Nellie, daughter of William II. Harrison, has children, i. Emily, ii. Eleanor, iii. William, iv. Lambert, v. Spencer, vi. Dashiell. Mr. Willis died in 1865; Mrs. Willis died in Tal- but county, in 1876.


The Spencer family, of which Mrs. Willis was a member, is of English extraction. Mrs. Willis was the eldest of three daughters born to Jonathan Spencer, a brave captain in the War of 1812, and Eleanor Robinson. Cap- tain Spencer was a man of splendid physique and engaging personality. Hle died at an carly age. He was a son of Perry Spencer, builder of the famous Baltimore "Clipper" ships, a colonel of militia and a soldier in the Revolutionary War. His ancestors were among the carliest settlers in Maryland.


Rev. Jonathan Spencer Willis spent his carly life on the homestead farm in Talbot county, and was educated in the district schools and by private tutors. He acquired a knowledge of Greek, Latin, French and German and afterward taught in the district schools of the county and Trappe Academy for seven and one-half years. In 1854 he en- tered the ministry of the M. E. church, and served various charges in Maryland until 1860, in which year he was called to Philadel- phia and was for two years pastor of the Tabernacle church; then he was transferred to Mt. Vernon Street church for two years and organized the present Spring Garden con-


gregation ; became pastor of the Western Presbyterian church for a year, then resigned his charge and removed to Delaware, where he remained a short time with two congrega- tions; in 1868 he was called to New York and was connected with the New York East Conference for nine years, having in this time two pastorates in New York and one in Stamford, Conn .; in 1877, he returned to Delaware and after he had had charge of two more congre- gations retired from the ministry, in 1885, his years in the sacred calling numbering thirty- one. Mr. Willis went to Glenworthe, his beautiful home farm, and has resided there for the past thirteen years. He has been much interested in fruit-growing and has devoted a portion of his land to the cultivation of peaches, etc. In 1892, Mr. Willis was the Republican nominee for Congress from Kent county, but was defeated by 467 votes; in 1894 he was again nominated and defeated his opponent by a majority of 1,300; in 1896 he was given a re-nomination but failed of elec- tion.


Rev. Jonathan Spencer Willis was married three times. Ilis first wife was Ann, daughter of Hugh and Rebecca (Denny) Valliant, of Talbot county, Md. They had three children, who died in childhood. His second wife was Annie Barrett, daughter of William and Eliz- abeth (Barrett) Townsend, of Frederica, Kent county, Del. They had two children: I. Elizabeth Townsend (Mrs. William HI. Me- Callum), of Philadelphia; II. a son, died in infancy. The third wife of Mr. Willis is Edith, daughter of Isaac II. and Mary 1. (Dunton) Gillespy, of Greenwich, Conn. They have had two children: I. - -, died in infancy; II. Jonathan Spencer, Jr. Mrs. Willis is a great-granddaughter of Major John Gillespy of Revolutionary fame.


WILLIAM THORNTON VAULES, Mil- ford, Del., son of John R. and Ann (Thorn- ton) Vaules, was born in Milford, January 6, 1827.


Ilis paternal ancestors are supposed to have come from Sweden. His maternal ancestors were English. At an early period in the col- onization of America, three brothers named Thornton came to this country from England. One settled in Massachusetts, another in New


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STATE OF DELAWARE


Jersey, and tradition has it that the third se- leeted Delaware for his home.


William Vaules, paternal grandfather of William Thornton Vaules, was a resident of Cedar Creek hundred, Sussex county, Del., and owner of a large farm in that hundred, known as the Reilly Bennett farm. He mar- ried Miss Davis, and had children: I. Sarah; II. Sophia; III. John R. William Vaules attended divine services in the old M. E. church about five miles south of Milford, known as Cedar Creek church, and in its churchyard he was buried. ITis only son, John R. Vaules, was born in Kent county, and spent nearly all his life in Milford. He was engaged in various pursuits. John R. Vaules married Ann, daughter of William Thornton, of Sussex county, and had ten chil- dren: I. William Thornton; II. Sarah ( Mrs. Sutcliffe), of Trenton, N. J., widow; III. Elizabeth (Mrs. John B. Creed), of Lam- bertsville, N. J .; IV. Ella (Mrs. Samuel Bel- lijen), of Trenton, N. J., widow; V. Delilah (Mrs. Shurman), of Philadelphia; VI. John, died in early manhood; and four who died in infancy.


William Thornton Vaules has resided in Milford during his entire life. He quitted the public schools at the age of twelve, and ob- tained a situation as errand boy in the store of Thomas Wallace. He was afterwards ad- vanced to the position of salesman. In 1850 he established himself in general mercantile business, in partnership with Purnell Lofland, under the firm name of Vaules & Loffand. Five years later Mr. Vaules purchased the in- terest of his associate, and a year afterward disposed of the business. On October 15, 1856, he entered the employ of the Delaware R. R. Co. as station agent at Harrington, Kent county. In 1859, when the railroad was ex- tended to Milford, he was transferred to the latter place, and has since discharged the duties of agent of the D., M. and V. branch of the P., W. & B. railroad with fidelity and to the satisfaction of officials and patrons of the road. Mr. Vanles has also served as treas- urer of the D., M. & V. R. R.


William Thornton Vaules was twice mar- ried. His first marriage took place in Milford, May 22, 1850. ITis wife was Clementine H., daughter of Levin and Mary Todd, of North West Fork, Sussex county, Del. They had children: I. William S., born March 15,


1851; II. Henry T., born October 4, 1852; III. Delaware, born November 9, 1858. Mrs. Clementine II. Vaules died August 29, 1805. Mr. Vaules afterward married Sarah MI., daughter of George and Elizabeth Minors and widow of James Layton. Their marriage was solemnized in Milford in July, 1866. Their children are: I. Anna M. (Mrs. Dr. P. T. Carlisle), of Frederica, Del., born October 27, 1867; II. Ella L. (Mrs. Dr. G. L. Greer), of Milford, born March 14, 1871. Mrs. Sarah M. Vaules died December 8, 1896. Mr. Vaules is a member of the M. E. church, has filled all the church offices and is at present a steward and class leader.




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