DUNBAR SAGA #8 – Sister And Brother

Today, you will be reading about the 7th and 8th child of Lewis and Mary “Polly” Powers Dunbar. You ask why? Because they both lived to adulthood but both died fairly young, thus not as much to say about them as someone who lived into their 90s as many of the Dunbars did!

Catherine was their 7th child and third daughter. She was born Nov 29, 1833 in Sugar Creek Township, Montgomery County, listed in the 1840 census as a female 5-10 years old and named in 1850 at age 17. Sadly, just the very next year she died before her 18th birthday (Jan 4, 1851) and she was buried in the same cemetery where her mother rested (she had passed in 1850) and her father would in 25 years, at Union Cemetery at Clarks Hill in Tippecanoe County. (thanks to the Dunbar Family History by Andrey Schroeder).

Elias, her brother the 5th son, 8th child of Lewis and Polly was also born in Sugar Creek Township Aug 27, 1835 and is in both census records in his father’s household and on his own accord as a married man in the 1860 census. He married a cousin of his mother’s, Esther Bowers daughter of Abner Bowers and Charlotte Hoffman on April 3, in 1856 the ceremony performed by Rev. John P. Livengood. Elias’ father sent a note to “Mr. Clerk of Montgomery County Indiana – pleas let the bearer have Marriage License for my son Elias Dunbar and oblige me Lewis Dunbar – Witness present: Silas Dunbar.” That would be a nifty piece of family history with both Lewis and Silas’ signatures (cdpl).

Sadly, Elias died five years later of typhoid. His FindAGrave entry (photo by srenie – Union Cemetery, Clarks Hill) says he was a Civil War soldier (although a descendant’s wife is working on getting it taken off), his death came before the Civil War on 12 Feb 1861. I found no records he was in any unit, his wife did not get a widow’s pension, so that one is hard for me to swallow. He is of course, buried in Union Cemetery. Esther herself would pass just five years after he did, having been married to William Chenoweth but a year, and their only child just a few months old. On Nov 17th, 1862 the Dunbar children’s guardianship went through, Esther’s father, Abner giving surety and Abonijah Bowers, her brother becoming their guardian. Imagine this took such awhile as she was just living with her children with her father and finally took it to court. Or, perhaps Elias died in 1862 (making it a possibility to have been in the war) vs. 1861 but since nothing other than a note on his entry on FindAGrave says he was in the war, thinking not. Sadly, the daughters, Mary Ellen and Charlotte would be gone in a very short time. Elias and Esther’s son, Elias Peter was born two days after his father’s death. At age 28, he married Emma Coe Parker in Tippecanoe County and they had six sons and two daughters, all to grow to adulthood as far as I know. Elias Peter and his wife celebrated their 50th anniversary and beyond. He passed at age 80 (7 May 1941) and is buried in Plainview Cemetery, Emma passing at age 90 in 1956.

Willard Parker Dunbar, son of Elias Peter distinguished himself in many ways as a veteran of WWI (oddly, he requested a religious exemption as a member of the Church of the Brethren) as a teacher, coach, boxing champion and expert rifleman while teaching at the Culver Military Academy. He married Irma Dykes a Sugar Creeker Nov 29, 1926 while he taught at Culver (mathematics, as well as the assistant coach in rifle marksmanship having represented Culver on the marksman team) and Irma, a graduate of Butler was in several plays and had a dramatic studio in Indianapolis. The Academy had a lovely formal dinner for the couple after a small wedding. He also represented Indiana in a Civilian Rifle Team and the US Army Reserve Corps team. At a point, he was assistant coach on the US International Champion rifle and pistol team. In 1931, he returned here and took up farming, chiefly raising cattle.

Many visitors would come to see his strategies. He and Irma were parents of three sons (Willard, Samuel, Peter) and a daughter (Jean).

Joseph Elias was born in MoCo and died in Colfax, Clinton County at age 85. He taught locally then went on to become a University of Minnesota professor from where he retired and was a life member of the American Legion. He may have had one son, Wilbur.

A 45-year farmer in Boone and Montgomery, Austin Walton Dunbar (born on Halloween 1894 died the day after Christmas 1975) was a WWI veteran, member of the Church of the Brethren, married Catherine Everhart (whom he had met at a church social) and they parented one son, John Robert and four daughters (Caroline, Joan, Mary and Nancy). Austin received his teacher’s license but taught briefly. Mainly he loved his free time walking his fields in Boone and Montgomery County searching for artifacts, tallying quite a collection of nice pieces. Thanks so much to Austin’s grandson, Dan and his wife Dana for guiding me along on the Dunbar Saga.

Harvey Nelson Dunbar was also born at Bowers (21 Nov 1897) and died fairly young for a Dunbar (age 59 on 27 March 1957 in Lafayette), buried of course at Plainview. He and wife Geneva Robinson had at least five children (Bettie (b/d 1921), John (a WWII veteran and operated the Phillips 66 station in Clarks Hill, as well as working at International Harvester, John Deere and the Tipp Co Highway), Donald (b/d 1931), Marilyn and lastly, Nelson who passed in the 2020 covid epidemic – buried Plainview.

Roscoe Arthur also did not live to be old for a Dunbar, born at Bowers 2 May 1899 and dying 26 August 1956, buried at Annapolis, Maryland in Hillcrest Memorial Gardens. He married a Darlington gal, Helen McGuire Custer 25 June 1924. He was a school teacher but not sure why they went to Maryland. They had at least one child, James Ralph (Jim, a Colonel in the Air Force but buried at the US Naval Academy Cemetery in Annapolis where he attended school serving as a pilot in the Vietnam War, and perhaps why Roscoe moved East). And add his three children to the ever-growing Dunbar leaves!

Theodore Bowers Dunbar (born appropriately at Bowers 2 Feb 1902) lived for many years in Charleston, West Virginia but passed 23 Aug 1977 in San Jose, California and is buried in Grandview Cemetery in Southmont, Cambria County, Pennsylvania. He taught high school and was a Farm Bureau insurance agent.

The oldest daughter of Elias Peter and Emma Coe (Parker) Dunbar was Mae Elizabeth born in Bowers (5th day of 1890) and passed away at her long-time home in Coshocton County, Ohio. She married Leslie V. Halladay who at least for a few years was in our area. They produced one daughter, Beatrice. Mae graduated from North Manchester College and taught high school in Wisconsin for quite some time. She was active in Eastern Star and Coschocton Women’s Club. Leslie farmed, then managed a Farm Bureau. They were both active members of the Brethren Church and were married in Montgomery County 12 Oct 1915, spending the majority of married life in Ohio.

Perhaps sister Lillian Esther followed her brother to West Virginia? At any rate, she was born in Colfax and died in Charleson WV at age 77 on 13 Nov 1968. She married Manassah Judy in 1912. He was a farmer, principal of a high school, insurance agent and served several years as Grant County, WV clerk of the court. They had no children and no clue how they’d have met.

Sadly, these two Dunbars didn’t live a lengthy life as so many of the family did. Catherine died so young and Elias living not a great deal longer, but both had their blessed places in the family of Lewis and Polly, as well as continuing the Saga.

Karen Zach is the editor of Montgomery Memories, our monthly magazine all about Montgomery County. Her column, Around the County, appears each Thursday in The Paper of Montgomery County. You can reach her at [email protected].