John’s only child, Effie, never married. She never worked outside the family home. Could she have suffered from a childhood disease that left her disabled?

John Henry Wakenight

Born: 1 FEB 1856 in Donnelsville, Clark County, Ohio

Father: Daniel Wakenight (1830 to 1923)
Mother: Lydia Kerns (1836 to 1909)

Spouse: Arabell Kershner (1855 to 1926)

Married: 22 SEP 1878 in Leaf River, Ogle County, Illinois

Children:

Effie M Wakenight (31 DEC 1880 to 8 JUN 1945)

Died: 4 DEC 1936 in Leaf River, Ogle County, Illinois

Burial: North Grove Evangelical Cemetery

Timeline:

1860 Pine Creek, Ogle County, Illinois
1864 Death of sister, Cora
1870 Pine Creek, Ogle County, Illinois
1878 Marriage to Arabell
1880 Leaf River, Ogle County, Illinois
1880 Birth of daughter, Effie
1890 Unknown (the 1890 Census was destroyed in a major fire)
1893 Leaf River, Ogle County, Illinois
1900 Leaf River, Ogle County, Illinois
1904 Death of brother, Jacob
1909 Death of mother, Lydia
1910 Leaf River, Ogle County, Illinois
1912 Leaf River, Ogle County, Illinois
1920 Leaf River, Ogle County, Illinois
1923 Death of father, Daniel
1926 Death of wife, Arabell
1930 Leaf River, Ogle County, Illinois
1936 Death and burial

Occupation: farmer

Records:

1860 to 1880, 1900 to 1930 US Census Records
Illinois Marriages, 1851-1900
The U.S., Indexed County Land Ownership Maps, 1860-1918
Illinois, Deaths and Stillbirths Index, 1916-1947
The U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current

Variations of Surname: Waiknight

Spouse:

Arabell Kershner:

Arabell was born on 21 AUG 1855 in Adeline, Ogle County, Illinois. She died on 26 NOV 1926 in Leaf River, Ogle County, Illinois.

Her father was John S Kershner. He was born in 1830 in Hagerstown, Washington County, Maryland. He died in 1913 in Westphalia, Anderson County, Kansas.

Her mother was Sophia A Bressler. She was born in 1834 in Pennsylvania. She died in 1903 in Leaf River, Ogle County, Illinois.

Arabell had five known sisters and brothers, all born in Adeline, Ogle County, Illinois:

Charles S Kershner (1858)
Sadie Margaret Kershner (1860)
Lizzie Kershner (1863)
Martha E Kershner (1866)
Edward Kershner (1868)

Daughter:

Effie M Wakenight:

Effie was born on 31 DEC 1880 in Leaf River, Ogle County, Illinois. She died on 8 JUN 1945 in Belvidere, Boone County, Illinois.

As I built Effie’s profile, I discovered that she never got married. From 1900 to 1940 she recorded her marital status as “single” on the US census records. These documents also show that Effie never worked outside of the home.

After her father’s death in 1936, Effie moved to a convalescent home located at 525 Kent Street in Rockford, Winnebago County, Illinois. The U.S. City Directories, 1821-1989, show her living at this address in 1937 and 1941. The 1940 US census verifies this address and lists Thomas and Edith Puddicombe as managers of this house.

Here is what the convalescent home looked like in 2019:

I then wondered if Effie could have contracted a disease that left her disabled. An article entitled “The History of Pediatric Infectious Diseases“, under the chapter, Late Nineteenth-Century, explains:

“Infectious diseases such as diarrhea, diphtheria, scarlet fever, and tuberculosis dominated as the major causes of morbidity and mortality among children.”

This is total speculation on my part, yet I always try to answer these types of questions. Why did Effie never marry? Why did she not work outside the home?

Effie was born after the 1880 US census was enumerated. The 1890 US census was destroyed in a major fire. The 1900 to 1940 US censuses did not ask people about their physical or mental status.

Could a family historian or family bible have the answer to these questions? John’s line ended with his daughter, Effie. Yet, both his brother and sister have grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

It may be that one of their descendants will become interested in their family tree. And, with their research, they may be able to answer the questions about Effie M Wakenight.

Some of the family surnames connected to Jacob and Anna are Gorsuch, Mandeville, Mayer, Milhaven, and Rundel. These families lived in and around Winnebago County, Illinois.

Notes:

For more information on this part of the Wakenight family, please visit Sharon Strow’s website, “Descendants of Daniel Wakenight.”

Creating Your Family Tree

Interested in building a great family tree? Remember these important steps:

Look in your photo albums. You may have old pictures that your parents or grandparents gave you. Or, ask them for copies of photos that they have in their possession. Many people will write names and dates on the backs of photographs. Letters, diaries, and family bibles are also an excellent source for births, marriages, and deaths.

Talk to your older relatives to find out about your ancestry. They may relate stories about an ancestor that you can add to your family tree. Family history is usually not found in newspapers. It is more of a verbal memory that is passed down from generation to generation.

Find the right family tree builder that suits your needs. You can choose one that has a paid subscription like Ancestry.com. There are also free sites like FamilySearch.org.

When you start building your family tree, add documentation to your ancestor’s profile. The records can include birth, marriage, death, census, military, city and, county directory listings. Any information that you can find will help create a life story about your ancestor.

If you have a unique surname, like Wakenight, you may find databases on the internet that are useful in your search. I use SurnameDB.com for my English surnames. There are many others on the internet for other countries like Ireland, Italy, and Germany.

Genealogy is the study of a person’s “line of descent.” As you create your family tree, you would typically start with one individual and go “back into time.” You would add their parents, grandparents, and so on. There are also family trees that go “forward into time.” Many of these family trees start with a famous person, such as a president or royalty, and move forward into the present time. The purpose of this type of pedigree is to establish a person’s bloodline to that famous person.

There is no limit on how big your family tree can grow. The blank canvas is there for you to use. Cherish your family history, and it will be there for generations to come!