|
a.
|
Note: Rezin Shelby, the son of David Shelby and Mary (Williams) Shelby, was born on December 22, 1791 at Laurel Point, Washington Co., Pennsylvania. Rezin served as a Captain in 1st Regiment (Denny's) Ohio Militia during the War of 1812. His service was listed as from July 23 to September 6, 1813. Rezin Shelby first purchased land in Eugene Township, Vermillion County, Indiana in 1822 when it was put on sale by the government. He entered land in section 28 in 1822 and 1825 and in section 33 in 1825. This last entry was for 51 acres on the north bank of the Vermillion River on the east side of what is now, Indiana 63. 0n this tract he built a large brick home and also on this tract is located the Shelby family cemetery where he and most of his family are buried. In 1825, he married Jane Thompson, the daughter of William Thompson and Jane (McFarlane) Thompson, and they had five children. Rezin was active in the organization of Vermillion County beginning in 1824 and was one of the first judges, being elected in 1833. He continued to buy government land so that by 1836, he had acquired 620 acres, all near his home, in sections 5, 21, 28, 32, and 33. Rezin's brother Joseph settled near Covington, and his brother Isaac near Lafayette, in Vermillion County. Rezin Shelby's land extended all the way to the Wabash River on the north side of the Vermillion River and was a very historic site. It was the site many years earlier of a French trading post operated by a man named La Salle. It was also where the Indian village was located that was wiped out by Hamtramck's expedition from Vincennes in 1790 that gave rise to one version of the Vermillion River being so named because it's water "ran red with blood". It was also the location of the nearest thing to a navel battle in the Vermillion area when George Rogers Clark sent a fleet of boats up river from Vincennes and captured a British supply fleet bound for that post. Because of all these events, many bullets, arrowheads, and rusted rifle barrels have been discovered in the area, over the years. Judge Shelby died in 1856, at the age of 65, and his grave in the Shelby family cemetery has a large monument weighing many tons. It was brought down the Wabash from some point upstream, probably Lafayette, and after being unloaded nearby, was dragged on a mud boat by twelve teams of oxen. Jane Shelby died in 1878 and was also buried in the family cemetery. The cemetery is still there and is in fairly good condition. The stones are relatively new, except Rezin's, being placed there in 1902, and are made of long lasting granite so they can still be easily read. When Rezin Shelby died, David Shelby, his oldest son, was left as the head of the family. He was well educated and energetic. Besides managing the farm which was extremely large for the laborious farming methods of those days, he also took an interest in public affairs, as had his father before him. He was elected County Auditor in 1854 and County Surveyor in 1859. By the time his two year term as Surveyor had expired, there were bigger and more exciting things happening. The Civil War was brewing and David organized a company of men and in accordance with the custom of the time was made Captain. It became Company K of the 97th Indiana Infantry, and fought through out the entire war. In 1864 after two years of hard fighting, David, who was by then commander of his regiment, became ill from exposure and died at Altoona Pass, Georgia. His remains were shipped back to Vermillion County where they were buried in the family cemetery. He had never married. His brother, William Thompson Shelby, had remained at home to look after the family and its affairs. Not a lot is known about him other than he died in 1878 and like David, had never married. In the meantime, both Mary and Rachel had married and left the family farm. Mary was married in 1858 to Joseph Rives Dickenson then of Perrysville, Indiana. There is some indication that the marriage was not approved of by the rest of the Shelby family, and a few months later Mary signed off her interest in the Shelby family property for a sum of cash. The next mention of this branch of the family in Vermillion County was in 1903, when a suit was filed in Danville by Joseph Dickenson, then living in Alaska, on behalf of the children of Mary Shelby Dickenson, deceased. It claimed that they had never received their rightful share of the Shelby estate. This suit was unsuccessful. Their daughter, Jane Shelby, never married and was called "Miss Jane" to distinguish her from her mother, "Mrs. Jane". Her brothers, David and William, both left their interest in the Shelby property to her and this, and her mother's will, left her owning all the Shelby land on the east side of the road including the Shelby home. After Mrs. Jane's death in 1878, Miss Jane continued living in the old home for two years and then moved to Danville to live with her sister Rachel. Jane died in 1901 and was buried in the Shelby family cemetery, however for some reason there is no stone marking her grave. Rachel Shelby, the youngest of the Shelby children, was married in 1861 to Albert Head of Eugene, Indiana. He was the son of Francis Head who operated a woolen mill there and later in Perrysville. Albert and Rachel had three daughters; Rose, Jane and Chloe. Rose Head married O. B. Wainscott in 1880 and had no children. Jane Head married Wm. E. Fithian in 1897 and had no children. Chloe Head married Guy McDowell in 1888 and had two daughters, Rachel and Jane who both married and had children. Albert Head died in 1876 and his wife, Rachel, in 1900. Both were buried in the Shelby family cemetery. When Miss Jane Shelby left the family home in 1880, she was the last Shelby to live there. The large farm required one or more tenants, and after Miss Jane moved to Danville, the tenants moved into the old brick house. In 1919, the house burned to the ground while the occupants were away. The cause of the fire was never determined. _____ 1850 US CENSUS - Eugene Township, Vermillion Co., Indiana: Rezin Shelby 58, m, farmer, Penn. Jane Shelby 52, f, Penn. David Shelby 23, m, farmer, Ind. William Shelby 21, m, farmer, Ind. Jane Shelby 18, f, farmer, Ind. Mary Shelby 16, f, Ind. Rachel Shelby 11, f, Ind. James M. Emily 14, m, Ind. Jacob Parker 9, m, Ind. Casper Rowland 4, m, Ind. _____ SHELBY CEMETERY: Location - North of the intersection of Routes 63 & 234 just East of Cayuga, IN, then North on Route 63, a short distance North of the bridge over the Big Vermilion River, turn East (right) down a lane, crossing the old highway, then on East to the Cemetery which is a short distance from the North bank of the Vermilion River. Head Albert 1834 1876 Head Rachel S. 1838 1900 Head Francis 1864 1864 MacDowell Chloe H. 1867 1921 Shelby David 1827 1864 Shelby Jane 1798 1878 Shelby Jane 1831 1901 Shelby Rezin 22 Dec 1791 24 Jan 1856 Shelby William T. 1828 1873 Wainscott Otterbein B. 1861 1881 Wainscott Rose H. 1862 1931 Note: this property was posted with No Trespassing signs but the farmer who lived up the next lane north of the lane leading to the Cemetery gave permission to go back to the cemetery. (Illiana Genealogist Volume 11 #4, page 70, 1975)
|