Written: Don and Ed Guenther (2021)

Early Dukes

It is believed that the early Dukes of southern England had nobility in their blood. We can hope so. They are rooted in the Anglo-Norman history of movers and conquerors and some think they came to England in the 12th century.

Colonel William Duke (1667 – 1693) 

William Duke(1667- 1693) was born on May 19, 1667, in Nottinghamshire to John Duke(1638- 1679) and Jane Elizabeth(1638-  ). He was baptized on April 20, 1675. William’s father John appears to have died in York, Virginia, in America in 1679.

Robin Hood, Nottinghamshire, England

Tourists still flock to Nottingham-shire to glimpse the region of Robin Hood’s origins. No one knows if there was a real man to spawn these legends, but William grew up hearing the story, probably over and over again. Robin Hood was the model of all that was gallant. Protect the poor and innocent, live free, and honor the King!

William Duke was born in Nottinghamshire, home of Robin Hood, Maid Marion, Little John and Sherwood Forest! Here the birch and oak trees grew big and old. 

The medieval woodland was not wild as many suppose, but was a productive resource that was carefully managed. Landowners got the most value from their woodland by using techniques such as ‘coppicing’ and ‘pollarding’ to produce poles and laths for building. ‘Underwood’ (twigs, brushwood, etc) was collected and sold for domestic fuel, and the woodland supported several industries, such as charcoal burning and the stripping of oak bark to use in tanning leather. The fall crop of acorns produced by the oaks was used to feed pigs. And in the forest pastures, cattle, sheep and deer grazed. Hunting in Sherwood Forest in the 12th century was punished by death or dismemberment, but by William’s time it was opening up a bit.

William would have thrived on the adventures in the tales of Robin Hood. He grew up with weapons in his hands. Bow and arrow, sword, spears, knives. But with the heavy hand of the English Kings in control it is doubtful that William actually killed game in Sherwood Forest, though many did, not unless the family had connections, which they very well might have. 

William Duke Marries Thamar Taylor

William married Thamar Taylor around 1690. Thamar(Martha) lived in the day of horse and buggy, kerosene lamps, and cooking over wood fires, although coal had become the preferred fuel of the day. Baths were a luxury that might be attained once a year; more than that was an extravagance! With no refrigeration, fresh food was a must. And the loom was used to make fabric.

King William(III) of Orange

William of Orange, (King William III), was king over England, Scotland, and Ireland. There was a falling out in the family over religion; King William was Protestant, his father-in-law, King James, was Catholic. King William had deposed James in 1688. Bad blood there. James mustered an army of 25,000 men from all over the board and tried to grab hold in Ireland. William of Orange came at him with 36,000 men, one of which was Colonel William Duke riding cavalry!

The Battle of Boyne, 1690

The Battle of Boyne  was fought in 1690 between the two rival claimants of the English, Scottish, and Irish thrones  across the Boyne River near Drogheda on the east coast of Ireland.

The battle, won by King William III, was a turning point in England’s quest to be a world superpower. William of Orange disregarded the counsel of his generals and called for a frontal attack, moving the cavalry across the River Boyne in several locations.

William Leads Calvary

It was a bloody day but Colonel William Duke rallied the cavalry to victory. The smells of battle, clanking metal against metal, war cries. Horses snorting. Suffering and pain. The blood. The fierce wild ride on horseback. England’s flying colors! It was fearsome, but also glorious! Death stalked each of them. William’s arms were so tired by the end of the day that he could barely hold them up. He fought for his King! He honored the King!

England established muscle in Ireland following the battle, moving many men into the country. It was at this time in 1691 that William Duke, with his beautiful English wife Thamar Taylor, came into Ireland. They would have been allotted land. Their son John was born in Ballymoney, Antrim County, Ireland, in 1694. 

John Duke (1694 – 1751)

John Duke(1694- 1751) married Ann Suckling (1697 – 1768). John and  Ann were both English. She was born in Antrim County, Ireland. He was in business with his son John Jr., they were farmers, leasing land on a large estate owned by the once powerful O’Neil family in Ballymoney, Ireland. (The O’Neills take their name from Niall Glundub, an early 10th-century High King of Ireland from the Cenel Eogan origins. ) They also got into trading, especially in the linen business. They were protestants, uncompromising Calvinists.

Pianos were becoming popular. Ann probably heard one of the first pianos played. Mercury thermometers were being used. And for washing clothes there was the plunge and stir method in a tub, the washboard not being invented until the early 1800’s. A few odors never hurt anybody if she missed a wash. It must have been a good feeling to have the clothes washed and hang drying in the breeze, with the fresh air smell the new washed clothes had. When a body thought about it, what were odors anyway except a sensation of the senses. Hogwash to those people who thought they needed baths all the time! Could you imagine if a body had to run all those kids through the bath once a week?

Ann died in 1768 in Warren, North Carolina, likely after remarriage following John’s death. John died in Antrim County in 1751. 

John and Ann Duke had a son named John, in Antrim County in 1720.

John Duke (1720 – 1790) 

John Duke(1720- 1790) married Margaret Hendricks(1723 – 1790) in Ballymoney, Antrim County, Ireland, on May 1, 1745. He was 25 and she was 22.

Life in Ireland, 18th Century

Wars in Ireland continued through the centuries. Wars against the Romans, or Anglo-Saxons, Wars between Catholics and Protestants, fighting between clans. War became a way of life in Ireland. Soldiers were bred there, many to make their living in various armies around the world. With the wars and economic desolation, the Irish became movers. Many came to America, as our English ancestor John Duke did. He lived in Ireland but was English. Ireland was part of the English crown, but you couldn’t tell that to the Irishmen! John Duke was a tradesman and he was looking for a way out of Ireland! Ireland’s economy was crushed by the British.

Much was happening in Ireland. The English did not manage Ireland well. Some absentee landlords managed their estates inefficiently, and food tended to be produced for export rather than for domestic consumption. Two very cold and dry winters near the end of the Little Ice Age led directly to a famine in 1740-41, which killed about 400,000 people, maybe 20 % of the population, and caused over 150,000 Irish to leave the island. With the famine came disease also. From the 15th to the 18th century, Irish prisoners were sold as slaves. For centuries, the Irish were dehumanized by the English, described as savages, so making their murder and displacement appear all the more justified. Ireland was not a happy place for an Englishman.

John and Margaret were looking for a change. What better place than the land of opportunity, America! The trick was to get himself, his wife, and their 4 children there! There was William age 8, Francis 5, John 3, and Robert 1.

Atlantic Voyage 1756

In 1756 the sailing vessels of this time were hazardous at best. Many went down at sea, many people died on the voyage. The Atlantic crossing would have been fearful for Margaret at best. America may be a land of opportunity, as John told her, but could she keep her 4 sons alive? Perhaps John could secure a cabin on ship or they could have some private sector. Perhaps. After all, John was a businessman, a man of connections! The boys probably fared better than Margaret, they only had to think of themselves. Margaret had to keep them fed, keep them sanitary and free of diseases that the rats or other travelers could bring or unsanitary conditions or a hundred other things. If the sea was calm with gentle breezes good time was made. If the winds blew, time was lost; only her deep faith in God could bring hope. 

Many weeks passed at sea, one single day at a time and sometimes a day was indistinguishable from the night as they huddled together against the tumbling ship. The voyage took about two months and seemed endless. Still, what did they leave behind? Ireland? You could have it. But maybe John could have managed something in England instead of traipsing across the world to the unknown! No point in thinking about that, this was a done deal. Still, she would have had her doubts. John talked big, but Margaret knew that behind his mask was just as much fear and uncertainty as she felt. She felt like a pot being scoured, nothing left but the bare metal. Her soul was bared.

All Margaret had known was the simple life in Ireland, now this. And the endless ocean. It is wondered if she was pregnant on the trip, many women were.

The boat was tossed about and sometimes she had to retrieve the tumbling children back onto their mats. Landsakes! What had they gotten themselves into? She had never felt so sick in her entire life. She wanted to die, but that was not an option! The boys mostly seemed able to hibernate, why couldn’t she? At long last the boat came into harbor in Chesapeake Bay, or perhaps New York Harbor. Could they make a home here? Who were the Indians? Where would church be? How many women would be here? Would laundering the clothes be convenient? They would make a home here if Margaret had anything to say about it! She was the stuff America needed!

New England to Virginia, 1757- 1760

They started in New England, but by 1760 they were in Virginia. John was a businessman for sure. He traded with pioneers moving south and west. He did business with the famous loyalist Captain Pearis, an Indian agent.

John also traded linen, salt and wheat and other commodities with the famous John Van Meter, and with the family of Revolutionary War General Daniel Morgan.  He did business with lots of other important people too, including loans to James and John Wright, William Morgan, Henry Pettigrew, John Watson, Charles Burk, and Edward Lucas as recorded in John Duke’s journal. But his descendants don’t need to worry about any money still floating around out there, for he collected it all. He was a shrewd businessman!

(Smyth, Samuel Gordon.  A Genealogy of the Duke-Shepherd-Van Meter Family, Lancaster, Pennsylvania: The New Era Printing Company, 1909, p. 293)

Presbyterian Church, Calvanists

John and Margaret Duke belonged to the Presbyterian Church, Calvanists. They would travel great distances to get to services, so committed were they to the faith of their ancestors.  And you sure didn’t work on a Sunday, no sirree. On Sundays the children sat… and sat… and sat.  The sermons lasted longer than the children could cipher. Talk about long winded, these guys would just be winding up after a couple of hours! And you were careful about asking Mother to use the outhouse too often! She probably viewed the long sitting as a rest. You sat.  Added to their brood was Mary in 1757, their first born in America.

Thirteen English Colonies

America was growing in English colonies. The first colony was in Jamestown, Virginia, in 1607 but grew to 13 by the middle of the 18th century. Maybe the hardships of Ireland and the brutalities of England  and the endless fighting could come to a stop here. Maybe America could be a place for future generations to call home. It was, after all, an extension of English rule. Was English rule good? It just was. Or was it? As the years began to roll by and John became established in trading, talk began to circulate that perhaps the tyranny of the king could be stopped. A whole new land could be forged, governing itself. There was this one man in particular that had strong views in this regard. He lived somewhere near to John and no doubt did trading with John. His name was George Washington. 

Seeds for the Revolution, 1765

At Winchester, George Washington had his first political success, being elected to The House of Burgesses; John Duke, being a free man, voted for George as John recorded in his journal. The House of Burgesses in 1765 proposed The Stamp Act Resolve, which called for a repeal of Parliament’s Stamp Act, which enacted taxes on the colonies. This was the beginning of the American Revolution!

In 1776 Thomas Payne published ‘Common Sense’; Virginia Governor Dunmore sailed to England ending British authority in Virginia; the Virginia convention proposed independence from Great Britain; Congress passed the American Declaration of Independence; and Patrick Henry was chosen to be the first governor of Virginia! George Washington’s crossing of the Delaware River on the night of December 25, was the first move in a surprise attack organized and led by George Washington against the Hessian forces in Trenton, New Jersey, that morning of December 26, 1776.

Francis Hopkinson’s flag, Wikipedia, 1777 

The Birth of a Nation, 1776

John and Margaret saw the birth of a nation. They became Americans and George Washington became the first president of the United States of America. Maybe Robin Hood really had lived! Maybe he lived again in America! America had the fighters of Ireland and England! They fought side by side for freedom! John brought the fighting blood to America, and when the Revolution against England came about, he was strongly pro-American and his sons were of like mind. They had had enough of English tyranny and corrupt kings. George Washington was a convincing man.

The Industrial Revolution, 1760 

Margaret saw many changes in the world, the greatest being the beginning of America! By 1860 steam power was taking the world by storm as well as mechanical inventions of all kinds. There was the spinning jenny, the flush toilet!, bi-focals, steamboats, and the power loom. Changes were happening faster than a body could figure.

John and Margaret Duke Death, 1790

John and Margaret both died in 1790, a love story, and were buried at the Southwood Springs Cemetery, but fire has since devoured the graveyard and no known remnants of it remain.  God had heard her prayers and brought her to the shores of America. Her children would have to fight their own fights, fighting through against all odds to something good, something lasting. The war heroes she produced were Francis and John Jr. John and Margaret had nine children: 1. Elizabeth(1747-1773), 2. William(1748-1794), 3. Francis(1751-1777), born in Ireland, dying in the American Revolutionary War, 4. John Jr.(1753-1791) was born in Ireland but died for his new country of allegiance, America. He died in an Indian war at Fort Henry in 1791; 5. Robert(1755-  ), 6. Mary(1757-1762), 7. Matthew(1758-1820), 8. Margaret(1760-1792), 9. James(1765-  ). All 9 children died in America.

John and Margaret Duke had Francis in 1751, in Ireland.

Francis Duke (1751 – 1777)  

Francis Duke(1751- 1777) was born at 2 am three days before the waning moon on February 11, 1751, in Ballymoney, Antrim County, Ireland. In 1756 at the age of 5 Francis faced the perils of the Atlantic with his parents on their way to the promised land of America, Maybe the tale of Robin Hood could be replayed in their modern day. Francis grew up in West Virginia.

Francis Duke married Sarah Shepherd (1758 – 1832) in 1773 in Berkeley County, West Virginia. Sarah was the oldest daughter of Colonel David Shepherd, of English descent. Francis was 22, Sarah 15.

The American Revolution, 1776- 1777 

The Revolutionary War in America flowed with the blood of Amercans, mostly young men. They fought for the right to be free, to worship in the way they believed, and to raise their own children to be the same. Many of them did not like England or the Crown. Too much oppression.

David Shepherd, Sarah’s father,  was Commander of Fort Henry Wheeling in Virginia in 1777. In the early part of September, 1777, it was ascertained that a large Indian army was concentrating on the Sandusky River, under the bold, active, and skillful renegade, British commander Simon Girty. Colonel Shepherd had many trusty and efficient scouts on the watch; but Girty deceived them all and actually brought his whole force of between four and five hundred Indians against Fort Henry. Girty then appeared at the window of a cabin with a white flag in his hand, and demanded the surrender of the fort in the name of his Britannic majesty. At this time, the garrison numbered only twelve men and two boys. Yet Colonel David Shepherd promptly replied to the summons, that the fort should never be surrendered to the renegade.

Battle of Fort Wheeling, 1777

The gallant Colonel Shepherd was fatally wounded in the battle. He is remembered as a Revolutionary War hero. Colonel Shepherd had appointed his daughter Sarah’s husband, Francis Duke, as Deputy Commissary. On September 1, 1777, Francis  gave his life in this battle when trying to get into the fort to offer aid, coming downriver with his men from Beech Bottom. He was killed by the Sageus Indians and then that night they came and scalped his dead body. The fort was saved. This all happened in September of 1777. Francis was 26 years old, leaving his beautiful wife Sarah and two little boys.

Francis’ Final Ride at Fort Wheeling

“When Intelligence of the investiture of Wheeling, by the savages, reached Shepherd’s Fort, a party was immediately detached from it, to try and gain admission into the besieged fortress and aid in its defense. Upon coming into view, it was found that the attempt would be useless and unavailing, and the detachment consequently prepared to return. Francis Duke… was unwilling to turn his back on a people straightened as he knew the besieged must be, and declared his intention of endeavoring to reach the fort, that he might contribute to its defense. It was useless to dissuade him from the attempt, he knew its dangers, but he also knew their weakness, and putting spurs to his horse, rode briskly forward, calling aloud, ‘Open the gate! Open the gate!’ He was seen from the fort, and the gate was loosened for his admission, but he did not live to reach it, pierced by bullets of the savages, he fell, to the regret of all… He had been stationed at Beech-Bottom blockhouse, as assistant commissary… He was a brave and generous man.” (Alexander Scott Wither’s Chronicles of the Border, 2009, p. 359)(Samuel Gordon Smyth’s Duke Genealogy, 1909, p. 310)

Samuel Gordon Smyth’s Duke Genealogy, 1909, pages 292-317 tell about Francis’ birth, his marriage, and his service in the Revolutionary War, including his death at the Battle of Fort Wheeling.

Francis Duke’s Grave 

Sarah Survives

Francis left behind his wife Sarah Shepherd and young son John as well as an unborn son Francis. Sarah had family to assist her in her plight as a single mother. The clan. Francis’ possessions included cows, a bull, 10 gallon kettle, mattock, axe, old bell, knife, plow, and an adze. Francis knew what tools a man needed all right. And that big kettle could cook for an army! These things were left to Sarah. He also left her two boys to raise, carrying on the line. She was proud of her sons for fighting for the freedom of America. The boys grew on the story of their dad in the American Revolutionary War, and just maybe tales of Robin Hood.

Three years after Francis died Sarah went on to marry Levi Springer, bearing 9 more children. She is buried at Great Bethel Baptist Church Cemetery in Fayette County, Pennsylvania, God rest her soul. 

Before she died though, Sarah saw changes. She bought clothes and fabric made from cotton harvested by Eli Whitney’s cotton gin. Vaccinations were catching hold. In 1798 she could buy the first soft drink! Maybe she had one. To be living in the 19th century was truly a marvel! Maybe one of the boys could fetch her one of those soft drinks next time they were in town.  Mighty tasty.

Francis and Sarah Shepherd Duke had John in 1753.

John S. Duke (1774 – 1849)

John Duke(1774- 1849) was born on June 24, 1774, in Brooke, Stafford County, Virginia.

He married Catherine Hoover (1778 – 1813) in 1794 in Brooke. He was about 20 and she was nearly 16. Life was before them and they would live it to the full. John was Heir-at-law to Francis Duke, inheriting his lands. They settled in Brooke, Virginia. In 1803 they moved to Homer, Licking County, Ohio, when there were only 15 residents there. John was the first Justice of the Peace. He was considered a pioneer of this county. Life was good for Catherine; after all, she had an outhouse, knew how to put up food for the winter, and how to keep children alive in a hard world.  What else was there?

John and Catherine had seven children: 1. Levi(1795- 1880), 
2. David(1797- 1888), 3. William(1799- 1874), 4. Sarah(1802- 1866), 5. Henry(1806- 1860), 6. John(1806- 1860), 7. George(1807- 1873).

When Catherine died on October 10, 1813, John took a second wife, Elizabeth Wheeler(1795- 1878), in 1817. John was 43, Elizabeth 22. John and Elizabeth had six more children.

John Duke died in Canton, Benton County, Iowa, on January 14, 1849.

John and Catherine Duke had George in 1807.

George Duke (1807 – 1873) 

George was born on September 10, 1807, in Licking County, Ohio. He would marry Hannah Jackson(1812- 1887) in 1831.

Hannah Jackson

In 1821 George’s future bride, 12 year old Hannah Jackson, began moving west with her family  toward Ohio. Hannah was the daughter of John Jackson (1762-1850) and Hannah (1783-  ). She was born in Lowell, Massachusetts. The family stopped in Chillicothe, Ross County, Ohio, where they lived for 4 years. When Hannah was 16 they moved to Columbus, Franklin County, Ohio.  The population of Columbus at that time was about 3,000 people, practically a thriving city. 

In the year 1850 Hannah’s father John Jackson died on April 9 in Keptown, Effington County, Illinois. His wife Hannah moved in with her Daughter Sarah’s family, the McCrackens. In 1852 a cholera wave swept through and devastated their family. John’s wife Hannah died on October 6, 1856, in Keptown.

George Duke Marries Hannah Jackson, 1831

George married Hannah Jackson(1809 – 1887) on August 24, 1831 in Columbus, Ohio. George was 24 and Hannah was 19. More English blood here with Scottish mixed in and perhaps a bit of the dreaded Irish. Their firstborn was a son, Calvin(1833- 1888), who was born on October 30, 1833, one month after the conclusion of a cholera outbreak in the city.

Effingham County, Illinois, 1845

Itching to go west, George and Hannah moved to Effingham County, Illinois, around 1845. What a wonderful time they lived in… steam power was rooted in the country, propelling trains and factories. You could take your girl to the soda fountain in town. Doctors started using stethoscopes. Toy balloons, typewriters, and matches were being marketed. Hannah may have had a sewing machine. Reapers and planters were coming out. You could get a fancy revolver, handy for gophers and other varmints. George would need one on the farm for sure. The telegraph was invented. Photography was happening. In 1846 you could get anesthetized for tooth extraction! In 1849 the safety pin was available! What in the world did anyone do without the safety pin! My goodness, would it ever stop? The Industrial Age was waking up.

Baptized in the Jordan, 1847

While living in Effingham County, George and Hannah were baptised in a stream called Jordan in 1847, according to a record by Matilda Duke, their daughter.

It seemed that everyone was looking west where the sun set on the far side of the earth. One day one of them would trek all the way to the distant waters of the Pacific Ocean that they had heard about. A man would have elbow room there, a place to rest. One day…

Black Hawk County, Iowa

Around 1862 they moved again, this time to Black Hawk County in Iowa. They settled in Waterloo. George was a  pioneer of Black Hawk County, coming with the first settlers. The pioneers were people of strength and fortitude. Westward, always westward. 

Death of George and Hannah Duke

George and Hannah are buried in Fairview Cemetery, Waterloo, Black Hawk County, Iowa.

Hannah notes that her husband George died in Christ in 1873. George and Hannah had 12 children:

1. Calvin Duke(1833-1888): In the Civil War Calvin Duke fought in the famous Vicksburg Campaign under General Ulysses S. Grant in 1863.  In May 1864 the 22nd regiment ordered to serve in Virginia, including during General Philip Sheridan’s Shenandoah Valley Campaign of August-November 1864.

2. Mary F. Duke(1835-1899).

3. Neasbert Aldon Duke(1837-1888). 

Neasbert’s and Eleanor’s Sons

Neasbert’s and Eleanor’s Daughters

Neasbert

    4. Zenas Duke(1839-1925)

Zenas Duke fought for the North in the Civil War. He was in Company C of the 32nd regiment, Iowa, Infantry. Zenas fought in the Battle of Pleasant Hill(Waterloo Evening Courier, Oct.16, 1909).

Sarah Duke

5. Sarah Duke(1841-1922)                               

6. Matilda Duke(1843-1907)

John C. Duke 

7. John Duke(1845-1911)

In 1911 John contracted Bright’s Disease, a very painful death.

8. Eliza Duke(1847- 1883). 

Christina

9. Christina Duke (1852-1928)

10. Salathiel (Duke1854-1923)

Matilda Duke (1843 – 1907) 

Matilda Duke was born on August 14, 1843, in Effington County, Illinois, and was the daughter of George Duke and Hannah Jackson.  At age 18 she married William Stead(1843-1907), fresh from England, an Englishman! This must have pleased Matilda’s father George.They were married on October 2, 1861 in Waterloo, Iowa. They had 3 children: Alice, George, and Archie. They lived on the farm at first with Matilda’s parents. 

The farm life was hard for the pioneers. No tractors, just horse and plow and hand harvesting, but machine harvesting was becoming common. Many of them died young, having worked themselves to death. But they did what was useful and necessary and they raised their children. Though life was hard they saw many changes that would make it easier.

More Changes

Gas street lights were taking hold. Plastics came out, barbed wire, the first telephones. In 1880 toilet paper was invented! Karl Benz invented the first internal combustion automobile. In 1888 there were drinking straws and match books. In 1893 it was the zipper! The end of the 19th century saw the beginnings of motion pictures, rubber heels on shoes, and bicycles. Times were changing. The industrial revolution was in full swing!  But no hot shower for Matilda. No electricity. No plumbing. The clothes were plunged in the tub or taken to the river with a washboard, another new fangled item. Some of those city folks were talking of taking baths upwards of once a week. Good grief.

Matilda’s Death, 1907

Matilda was well known all over Black Hawk County and her death was felt in Waterloo by those who knew her and her generous heart. She was a kindly lady and gave most of her attention to her family with its multiple cares. She was a faithful member of the Methodist Episcopal Church and a laborer in that organization.

Matilda’s obituary in 1907 tells her story:

“Mrs. William Stead, residing between Waterloo and Cedar Falls, died at her home yesterday at 5 o’clock from the effects following an operation for relief from gallstones. The operation was performed last Saturday. Mrs. Stead was well known all over Black Hawk County and her death has brought sorrow to many hearts. She was a kindly lady and gave most of her attention to her family and multiple cares. She was a faithful member of the Methodist Episcopal Church and a laborer in the membership of the organization. Matilda Duke was born on Aug. 14, 1843, near Effingham, Ill., and was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. George Duke, who were pioneers of Black Hawk County, coming to this county about 45 years ago. She was married here to William Stead, who died in the city several years ago.”(Waterloo Daily Courier, Thursday, December 26, 1907, Waterloo, Iowa).

Matilda is buried in Elmwood Cemetery, Waterloo, Black Hawk County, Iowa. She was buried beside Samuel and Alice Guenther’s first born, Charles Stead III, who was born and died in 1904. Perhaps Matilda wanted to comfort the child in death, or maybe comfort herself over the loss of her grandson. Sam and Alice then gave birth to Berchion in 1907, the year Matilda died. Next followed another ill fated son, Robert William in 1908; he died in 1909. What better place to lay the little boy then on the other side of Matilda. Matilda was a devout Christian and a loving person. How fitting that in death she would be a comfort for others. Her grave sports no headstone but she is there nonetheless. And so are the two boys. 

William and Matilda Stead had 4 children: Frank(1863-1917), George B.(1866-1935),  Alice A.(1871-1925), and Archibald W.(1876-1944).

Alice A. Stead (1871 – 1925)

Alice was born July 3, 1871 in Waterloo, Iowa. She married Samuel E. Guenther(1871-1943) on July 17, 1902.

Alice saw the first vacuum cleaners, crayons, and instant coffee! The automobile was becoming standard transportation. Pullman made railroad cars with sleeping compartments. She likely owned a camera. Radios and toasters were available. In 1919 women were able to vote.

Sam and Alice had John in 1912.

John Guenther (1912 – 1991) 

John Guenther was born in Iowa. He married Geraldine Clara Delsman(1916-2012) on June 4, 1935, in Coos Bay, Oregon. Geraldine was the culmination of Oregon Trail travelers. The westward movement had found its end on the coast of Oregon. There was no further to go. The Pacific Ocean could be seen from the house window in their Glasgow home.

They had 14 children. Geraldine wasn’t coming west, she was the west, grew up in it. She saw the world through its biggest changes since the Garden of Eden. She never stopped marveling at new fangled conveniences. Gramma would not have wanted to go back in time for anything, but she did feel like she was 18 years old in her mind, even at age 90 something. She remembered swishing her skirts as she and John walked down the North Bend main street of a Sunday to watch the building of the North Bend Bridge, the magnificent structure that still stands today. 

They were west as far as they could get. The Pacific was just over yonder, over the gentle rise of the dunes. From their porch they could watch the ships coming into port, coming in around the north bend of the bay. The ships came from far lands, from England or Ireland or Germany or France.

What would the early Dukes have thought if you told them that America, England, and Ireland would be at peace with each other, sometimes even assisting the other.

John and Geraldine lived out their years in Glasgow, Oregon. Their children took baths once a week, no more, no less. Every Sunday. The girls got clean water, the boys followed after in muddied water. Baths were a real nuisance to the boys!  What was the use anyway? A body just got dirty again. Especially in the Sherwood Forest of Glasgow and the unnamed creek running through the property.       

One time John and Geraldine cashed in a whole jar full of Buffalo Head nickels to go to the movies! They saw many changes in America. Cars, electricity, air planes, televisions, and hot water. Telephones. Washing machines. The ice box was out, refrigerators in. Finally, Geraldine saw cell phones and the internet! The Modern Age was here. They lived. They really lived!

You will still find many of their descendants living in the North Bend area, the children romping through their own Sherwood Forests! Robin Hood lives! 

Margaret would be proud.

Historical Notes

Afterward by Ron Guenther: Gerladine Guenther lived to see the transition into the Modern Age.  She started to drive when she was twelve years old, in 1926. In those days  you hardly needed a license, you just drove, like horse and buggy days. The police were more understanding, too. If you got into a wreck when you were drunk, you were innocent because you were not responsible for your actions. You couldn’t be, after all, you were dead drunk! Geraldine’s first car came when she married John in 1935. 

The first electricity was a bit more complicated. In 1935, I believe it was, Congress passed the Rural Electrification Act and that was in effect for fifty years. Rural folks got cheap electricity. Electricity came to Arago in the mid 1920’s. Before that, everyone had kerosene lamps and candles. If you had to iron, you heated your iron on the stove. You usually had two irons so one was always heating while you used the other. We usually lost electricity for about three weeks every year when I was young due to storms. We also had kerosene lamps then. Those were adventurous times for us children.

Geraldine got her first electric washing machine in the 1930’s; the machine started out being gas powered but the salesman converted it to electricity. I do not know where, probably at her mother’s place on the farm. It was years before she had a dryer.

Geraldine got her first refrigerator in about 1945 after moving to Glasgow. Before that they had rented a locker in town. She got her first sewing machine around 1940. A couple of years later, she also got a mangle and she was very clever in her use of the mangle. She used that instead of an iron in many instances. All this was the beginning of modern times!

Bibliography

Wisconsin Historical Society, Duke Genealogy, 1846, B89062873856A

 Gue, Benjamin F, Earliest Times to the Beginning of the Twentieth Century, Vol 2, pgs. 320-321, 1903 

Huebinger, M., D.E., manager; Atlas of Black Hawk County: Iowa; Pub. by Iowa Pub. Co.; Copyright 1910 by Iowa Pub.:  http://digital.lib.uiowa.edu/cdm/ref/collection/atlases/id/3459

Kellog, Louise Phelps(editor), Frontier Retreat on the Upper Ohio, 1779- 1781. (Madison:Wisconsin Historical Society, 1917, pp. 65-68; 2s148-151)

Smyth, Samuel Gordon.  A Genealogy of the Duke-Shepherd-Van Meter Family, Lancaster, Pennsylvania: The New Era Printing Company, 1909: https://archive.org/details/genealogyofdukes01smyt

Alexander Scott Wither’s Chronicles of the Border; editors Thwaites, Reuben Gold, 2009