* MEMORIAL created with the more common spelling of last name.
NAME (AKA): Aljernon 'Allen Jernon' Sidney Orendorff. (The 'G or J' are interchangeable).
1. His name Orndorff actually has several variant spellings Orendo(r)ff, Orndorff, etc.
2. Aljorn / Algies are acceptable nicknames per online search on Names (as on his census').
PARENTS: David T. Orndoff and Elizabeth 'Eliza' Strowsnyder (Strosnider, etc)
TWIN: Lucille 'Lucy' Orndoff
MARRIAGE: Eunice 'Unie' Farner (AKA: Forner)
DATE: January 14, 1891 / Paola, Miami County, Kansas
MARRIAGE RECORD / LICENSE: #431
State of Kansas, County of Miami
Date of Marriage: 14th day of January, 1891
Name: A Orndoff, age 21, of Paola, Kansas
Name: Unie Farner, age 16, of Sommerset, Kansas by consent of parents, in the presence of Rosy Farner, Marriage performed by J P Ranney, Probate Judge
---
Name: Allen Orendoff, White, 22 years of age
* Parents: David Orendoff, Eliza Strowsnyder
Name: Unie Farner, White, 17 years of age
Parents: John Farner and Mary Spane
Date: January 14, 1891, Paola, Kansas
(Source: Book, Kansas, Miami County, 1891 Marriage Book H, Page 431, Marriage Record 431 - See Attached copy of original pages from Marriage Book.)
CHILDREN: Mary; John David; Jasper L.; Elbert F.; Charles Bartlett; Boutters Matthew ('Jack'); Algernon ('Allen Jernon' Sidney) Jr.; and Glenna Bernice. (Elbert did not survive childhood.)
***********************************
BIOGRAPHY:
Algernon ‘Allen Jernon’ Sidney Orndoff, Sr. was born April 30, 1868 in war-ravaged Wardensville, WV to David Thomas and Elizabeth ‘Eliza’ (Strowsnyder) Orndoff. Allen was born a twin to Lucille 'Lucy' Anne Orndoff. Family of eight children. Copies of Allen's old bible states "David Orndoff the father of this family ... married twice, his last wifes name was Eliza Strosnyder".
Allen’s mother died late 1869-1870 before Allen was two years old, at which time the entire family was disbursed to various foster parents and the poor house farm. The elderly father, David, could not take care of them, possibly ill himself, since David was also receiving aid from the 'Guardians of the Poor' system. 1870 census shows Allen / Algies, 2 years old, with foster family Secrists in Capon Valley, West Virginia. (Source regarding parents David / Eliza: Annual reports Board of Guardian Accounts, Board of Overseers of the Poor of Hardy County, and Poor Farm Book, loose leafs, found at Moore County Courthouse).
Allen was ‘adopted’ by Abraham and Catherine Secrist; and raised by their two unmarried elderly daughters, Christina and Mary Secrist, 'gentlewomen and kind by all reports in spite of their poverty'. Allen was taken to Kansas through Missouri with the Secrist family; eventually settling in Matfield Green, Kansas where the brother Morgan and two sisters built a home and a gist Mill in 1871 on a three-acre millsite, which was deeded over to another person in December 1873 due to the borrowed funds and financial depression of that same year - selling the mill at a considerable loss, the brother Morgan left the two sisters and Allen to fend for themselves. (Source: Kansas, Chase County Historical Sketches, Vol I.)
‘Algernon Orndorff had been taken west with the family and after the parents death it was reported that he was adopted by Christina.’ 1875 Census Allen is in Kansas. (Spaid Genealogy, Chapter X. Families allied to the Spaids, Page 354).
1880 Census showed Allen went to school in Matfield Green, Chase County while living with Mary and Christina Secrist. ‘They had a young boy with them that they had adopted and when he grew to manhood he also left the country.' (Source: Kansas, Chase County Historical Sketches, Vol II, page 377, paragraph 1, Mary and Christina Secrest).
Allen married Eunice ‘Unie’ Farner January 14, 1891 in Paola, Miami County, Kansas. Moving from place to place with his family, he declares himself a farmer. From this marriage union eight children were born. One child, Elbert, did not survive childhood; and one child was born posthumously six months after his death. This child, Glenna, passed away in 2004 as the only surviving child of Allen and 'Matriarch' of the Orndoff family, sharing stories and information personally and at family reunions.
Allen was a loving husband and father. When his youngest son Elbert became ill with diptheria and another infectious disease, Allen and Unie dispersed all their other children to family members to keep them safe.
Allen, 39, passed away February 17, 1908 in Jingo, Kansas. Allen Sr is survived by his widow, Unie, and seven children: Mary, John D., Jasper L., Charles B, Boutters M. ‘Jack’, Algernon ‘Allen’ S. Jr., and Glenna B.
He was preceded in death by one child, Elbert F. Orndoff.
When his wife, Unie, was ever asked by other family members about Allen - the love of her life, she would start crying and say 'it is just so sad' - she could never talk about him!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
OBITUARY #1:
A. Orndorff Dead: "A. Orndoff, a highly respected resident of the Jingo neighborhood died Monday after an illness of several weeks. Mr. Orndoff and family had been residents of that neighborhood for about one year, coming from Somerset, Kansas. The remains were sent to his former home Tuesday where interment was made." (LaCygne, Linn County, Kansas, Friday, The Weekly Journal).
OBITUARY #2:
"Mr. Orndoff who lives west of Jingo and who has been in poor health for some time died last Monday. He leaves a wife and six children besides other relatives and friends. Interment was made in the Jingo cemetery Tuesday afternoon.” (Sunny Ridge, Linn County, Kansas).
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
BURIAL: Two different places of burial are mentioned in the obituaries. It is believed that Allen is buried in one of the unmarked graves in his wife Unie’s (Farner) family plot in Somerset. There is no stone for him in the Jingo or Somerset cemeteries. Both cemeteries have been walked through several times, with no stone found.
CEMETERY RECORDS: 'At the time of Allen Sr. passing, the funeral home directer, an elderly man with shaky hands, kept the records which were unreadable. Upon the advent of a younger man taking over the funeral home and cemetery records, all the records were gathered and destroyed. Therefore, no cemetery records exist'. (Per genealogist, Kansas Genealogy Society, 1996. Confirmed by Forner/Farner family genealogist who worked there, Lorene Fort).
(Source: Obituaries)
***********************************
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
CENSUS':
1. 1870 Census: 'Algies' (2) is living with Abram & Catherine Secrest, (including their children, Christina and Mary Secrest) in Forks of Capon, Capon, Hampshire County, Virginia.
2. 1875 Census: Aljorn (7) is living with S. Myers (34) and Mary A. Myers (34) in the Township of Sycamore, in the County of Butler, Kansas.
3. 1880 Census: Aljorn (12) is living with Christina Secrest and Mary E. Secrest in Matfield Green, Chase County, Kansas.
SIBLINGS:
* Twin - Lucy Ann Orndoff/Orndorff (various handwritten family notes mention his twin Lucy).
* Additional siblings include Joseph Arimathea Orndorff, Hezekiah Claggett Orndorff, Simon H. Orndorff, Hannah Francis Orndorff (Dominiack).
* There are ten half brothers and sisters from David Orndorff's first marriage with Isabella Racey.
* Reportedly have an unconfirmed brother, William
(NOTE: Researched by Linda Orendoff Voss - this is my paternal great-grandfather)
NAME (AKA): Aljernon 'Allen Jernon' Sidney Orendorff. (The 'G or J' are interchangeable).
1. His name Orndorff actually has several variant spellings Orendo(r)ff, Orndorff, etc.
2. Aljorn / Algies are acceptable nicknames per online search on Names (as on his census').
PARENTS: David T. Orndoff and Elizabeth 'Eliza' Strowsnyder (Strosnider, etc)
TWIN: Lucille 'Lucy' Orndoff
MARRIAGE: Eunice 'Unie' Farner (AKA: Forner)
DATE: January 14, 1891 / Paola, Miami County, Kansas
MARRIAGE RECORD / LICENSE: #431
State of Kansas, County of Miami
Date of Marriage: 14th day of January, 1891
Name: A Orndoff, age 21, of Paola, Kansas
Name: Unie Farner, age 16, of Sommerset, Kansas by consent of parents, in the presence of Rosy Farner, Marriage performed by J P Ranney, Probate Judge
---
Name: Allen Orendoff, White, 22 years of age
* Parents: David Orendoff, Eliza Strowsnyder
Name: Unie Farner, White, 17 years of age
Parents: John Farner and Mary Spane
Date: January 14, 1891, Paola, Kansas
(Source: Book, Kansas, Miami County, 1891 Marriage Book H, Page 431, Marriage Record 431 - See Attached copy of original pages from Marriage Book.)
CHILDREN: Mary; John David; Jasper L.; Elbert F.; Charles Bartlett; Boutters Matthew ('Jack'); Algernon ('Allen Jernon' Sidney) Jr.; and Glenna Bernice. (Elbert did not survive childhood.)
***********************************
BIOGRAPHY:
Algernon ‘Allen Jernon’ Sidney Orndoff, Sr. was born April 30, 1868 in war-ravaged Wardensville, WV to David Thomas and Elizabeth ‘Eliza’ (Strowsnyder) Orndoff. Allen was born a twin to Lucille 'Lucy' Anne Orndoff. Family of eight children. Copies of Allen's old bible states "David Orndoff the father of this family ... married twice, his last wifes name was Eliza Strosnyder".
Allen’s mother died late 1869-1870 before Allen was two years old, at which time the entire family was disbursed to various foster parents and the poor house farm. The elderly father, David, could not take care of them, possibly ill himself, since David was also receiving aid from the 'Guardians of the Poor' system. 1870 census shows Allen / Algies, 2 years old, with foster family Secrists in Capon Valley, West Virginia. (Source regarding parents David / Eliza: Annual reports Board of Guardian Accounts, Board of Overseers of the Poor of Hardy County, and Poor Farm Book, loose leafs, found at Moore County Courthouse).
Allen was ‘adopted’ by Abraham and Catherine Secrist; and raised by their two unmarried elderly daughters, Christina and Mary Secrist, 'gentlewomen and kind by all reports in spite of their poverty'. Allen was taken to Kansas through Missouri with the Secrist family; eventually settling in Matfield Green, Kansas where the brother Morgan and two sisters built a home and a gist Mill in 1871 on a three-acre millsite, which was deeded over to another person in December 1873 due to the borrowed funds and financial depression of that same year - selling the mill at a considerable loss, the brother Morgan left the two sisters and Allen to fend for themselves. (Source: Kansas, Chase County Historical Sketches, Vol I.)
‘Algernon Orndorff had been taken west with the family and after the parents death it was reported that he was adopted by Christina.’ 1875 Census Allen is in Kansas. (Spaid Genealogy, Chapter X. Families allied to the Spaids, Page 354).
1880 Census showed Allen went to school in Matfield Green, Chase County while living with Mary and Christina Secrist. ‘They had a young boy with them that they had adopted and when he grew to manhood he also left the country.' (Source: Kansas, Chase County Historical Sketches, Vol II, page 377, paragraph 1, Mary and Christina Secrest).
Allen married Eunice ‘Unie’ Farner January 14, 1891 in Paola, Miami County, Kansas. Moving from place to place with his family, he declares himself a farmer. From this marriage union eight children were born. One child, Elbert, did not survive childhood; and one child was born posthumously six months after his death. This child, Glenna, passed away in 2004 as the only surviving child of Allen and 'Matriarch' of the Orndoff family, sharing stories and information personally and at family reunions.
Allen was a loving husband and father. When his youngest son Elbert became ill with diptheria and another infectious disease, Allen and Unie dispersed all their other children to family members to keep them safe.
Allen, 39, passed away February 17, 1908 in Jingo, Kansas. Allen Sr is survived by his widow, Unie, and seven children: Mary, John D., Jasper L., Charles B, Boutters M. ‘Jack’, Algernon ‘Allen’ S. Jr., and Glenna B.
He was preceded in death by one child, Elbert F. Orndoff.
When his wife, Unie, was ever asked by other family members about Allen - the love of her life, she would start crying and say 'it is just so sad' - she could never talk about him!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
OBITUARY #1:
A. Orndorff Dead: "A. Orndoff, a highly respected resident of the Jingo neighborhood died Monday after an illness of several weeks. Mr. Orndoff and family had been residents of that neighborhood for about one year, coming from Somerset, Kansas. The remains were sent to his former home Tuesday where interment was made." (LaCygne, Linn County, Kansas, Friday, The Weekly Journal).
OBITUARY #2:
"Mr. Orndoff who lives west of Jingo and who has been in poor health for some time died last Monday. He leaves a wife and six children besides other relatives and friends. Interment was made in the Jingo cemetery Tuesday afternoon.” (Sunny Ridge, Linn County, Kansas).
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
BURIAL: Two different places of burial are mentioned in the obituaries. It is believed that Allen is buried in one of the unmarked graves in his wife Unie’s (Farner) family plot in Somerset. There is no stone for him in the Jingo or Somerset cemeteries. Both cemeteries have been walked through several times, with no stone found.
CEMETERY RECORDS: 'At the time of Allen Sr. passing, the funeral home directer, an elderly man with shaky hands, kept the records which were unreadable. Upon the advent of a younger man taking over the funeral home and cemetery records, all the records were gathered and destroyed. Therefore, no cemetery records exist'. (Per genealogist, Kansas Genealogy Society, 1996. Confirmed by Forner/Farner family genealogist who worked there, Lorene Fort).
(Source: Obituaries)
***********************************
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
CENSUS':
1. 1870 Census: 'Algies' (2) is living with Abram & Catherine Secrest, (including their children, Christina and Mary Secrest) in Forks of Capon, Capon, Hampshire County, Virginia.
2. 1875 Census: Aljorn (7) is living with S. Myers (34) and Mary A. Myers (34) in the Township of Sycamore, in the County of Butler, Kansas.
3. 1880 Census: Aljorn (12) is living with Christina Secrest and Mary E. Secrest in Matfield Green, Chase County, Kansas.
SIBLINGS:
* Twin - Lucy Ann Orndoff/Orndorff (various handwritten family notes mention his twin Lucy).
* Additional siblings include Joseph Arimathea Orndorff, Hezekiah Claggett Orndorff, Simon H. Orndorff, Hannah Francis Orndorff (Dominiack).
* There are ten half brothers and sisters from David Orndorff's first marriage with Isabella Racey.
* Reportedly have an unconfirmed brother, William
(NOTE: Researched by Linda Orendoff Voss - this is my paternal great-grandfather)
* MEMORIAL created with the more common spelling of last name.
NAME (AKA): Aljernon 'Allen Jernon' Sidney Orendorff. (The 'G or J' are interchangeable).
1. His name Orndorff actually has several variant spellings Orendo(r)ff, Orndorff, etc.
2. Aljorn / Algies are acceptable nicknames per online search on Names (as on his census').
PARENTS: David T. Orndoff and Elizabeth 'Eliza' Strowsnyder (Strosnider, etc)
TWIN: Lucille 'Lucy' Orndoff
MARRIAGE: Eunice 'Unie' Farner (AKA: Forner)
DATE: January 14, 1891 / Paola, Miami County, Kansas
MARRIAGE RECORD / LICENSE: #431
State of Kansas, County of Miami
Date of Marriage: 14th day of January, 1891
Name: A Orndoff, age 21, of Paola, Kansas
Name: Unie Farner, age 16, of Sommerset, Kansas by consent of parents, in the presence of Rosy Farner, Marriage performed by J P Ranney, Probate Judge
---
Name: Allen Orendoff, White, 22 years of age
* Parents: David Orendoff, Eliza Strowsnyder
Name: Unie Farner, White, 17 years of age
Parents: John Farner and Mary Spane
Date: January 14, 1891, Paola, Kansas
(Source: Book, Kansas, Miami County, 1891 Marriage Book H, Page 431, Marriage Record 431 - See Attached copy of original pages from Marriage Book.)
CHILDREN: Mary; John David; Jasper L.; Elbert F.; Charles Bartlett; Boutters Matthew ('Jack'); Algernon ('Allen Jernon' Sidney) Jr.; and Glenna Bernice. (Elbert did not survive childhood.)
***********************************
BIOGRAPHY:
Algernon ‘Allen Jernon’ Sidney Orndoff, Sr. was born April 30, 1868 in war-ravaged Wardensville, WV to David Thomas and Elizabeth ‘Eliza’ (Strowsnyder) Orndoff. Allen was born a twin to Lucille 'Lucy' Anne Orndoff. Family of eight children. Copies of Allen's old bible states "David Orndoff the father of this family ... married twice, his last wifes name was Eliza Strosnyder".
Allen’s mother died late 1869-1870 before Allen was two years old, at which time the entire family was disbursed to various foster parents and the poor house farm. The elderly father, David, could not take care of them, possibly ill himself, since David was also receiving aid from the 'Guardians of the Poor' system. 1870 census shows Allen / Algies, 2 years old, with foster family Secrists in Capon Valley, West Virginia. (Source regarding parents David / Eliza: Annual reports Board of Guardian Accounts, Board of Overseers of the Poor of Hardy County, and Poor Farm Book, loose leafs, found at Moore County Courthouse).
Allen was ‘adopted’ by Abraham and Catherine Secrist; and raised by their two unmarried elderly daughters, Christina and Mary Secrist, 'gentlewomen and kind by all reports in spite of their poverty'. Allen was taken to Kansas through Missouri with the Secrist family; eventually settling in Matfield Green, Kansas where the brother Morgan and two sisters built a home and a gist Mill in 1871 on a three-acre millsite, which was deeded over to another person in December 1873 due to the borrowed funds and financial depression of that same year - selling the mill at a considerable loss, the brother Morgan left the two sisters and Allen to fend for themselves. (Source: Kansas, Chase County Historical Sketches, Vol I.)
‘Algernon Orndorff had been taken west with the family and after the parents death it was reported that he was adopted by Christina.’ 1875 Census Allen is in Kansas. (Spaid Genealogy, Chapter X. Families allied to the Spaids, Page 354).
1880 Census showed Allen went to school in Matfield Green, Chase County while living with Mary and Christina Secrist. ‘They had a young boy with them that they had adopted and when he grew to manhood he also left the country.' (Source: Kansas, Chase County Historical Sketches, Vol II, page 377, paragraph 1, Mary and Christina Secrest).
Allen married Eunice ‘Unie’ Farner January 14, 1891 in Paola, Miami County, Kansas. Moving from place to place with his family, he declares himself a farmer. From this marriage union eight children were born. One child, Elbert, did not survive childhood; and one child was born posthumously six months after his death. This child, Glenna, passed away in 2004 as the only surviving child of Allen and 'Matriarch' of the Orndoff family, sharing stories and information personally and at family reunions.
Allen was a loving husband and father. When his youngest son Elbert became ill with diptheria and another infectious disease, Allen and Unie dispersed all their other children to family members to keep them safe.
Allen, 39, passed away February 17, 1908 in Jingo, Kansas. Allen Sr is survived by his widow, Unie, and seven children: Mary, John D., Jasper L., Charles B, Boutters M. ‘Jack’, Algernon ‘Allen’ S. Jr., and Glenna B.
He was preceded in death by one child, Elbert F. Orndoff.
When his wife, Unie, was ever asked by other family members about Allen - the love of her life, she would start crying and say 'it is just so sad' - she could never talk about him!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
OBITUARY #1:
A. Orndorff Dead: "A. Orndoff, a highly respected resident of the Jingo neighborhood died Monday after an illness of several weeks. Mr. Orndoff and family had been residents of that neighborhood for about one year, coming from Somerset, Kansas. The remains were sent to his former home Tuesday where interment was made." (LaCygne, Linn County, Kansas, Friday, The Weekly Journal).
OBITUARY #2:
"Mr. Orndoff who lives west of Jingo and who has been in poor health for some time died last Monday. He leaves a wife and six children besides other relatives and friends. Interment was made in the Jingo cemetery Tuesday afternoon.” (Sunny Ridge, Linn County, Kansas).
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
BURIAL: Two different places of burial are mentioned in the obituaries. It is believed that Allen is buried in one of the unmarked graves in his wife Unie’s (Farner) family plot in Somerset. There is no stone for him in the Jingo or Somerset cemeteries. Both cemeteries have been walked through several times, with no stone found.
CEMETERY RECORDS: 'At the time of Allen Sr. passing, the funeral home directer, an elderly man with shaky hands, kept the records which were unreadable. Upon the advent of a younger man taking over the funeral home and cemetery records, all the records were gathered and destroyed. Therefore, no cemetery records exist'. (Per genealogist, Kansas Genealogy Society, 1996. Confirmed by Forner/Farner family genealogist who worked there, Lorene Fort).
(Source: Obituaries)
***********************************
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
CENSUS':
1. 1870 Census: 'Algies' (2) is living with Abram & Catherine Secrest, (including their children, Christina and Mary Secrest) in Forks of Capon, Capon, Hampshire County, Virginia.
2. 1875 Census: Aljorn (7) is living with S. Myers (34) and Mary A. Myers (34) in the Township of Sycamore, in the County of Butler, Kansas.
3. 1880 Census: Aljorn (12) is living with Christina Secrest and Mary E. Secrest in Matfield Green, Chase County, Kansas.
SIBLINGS:
* Twin - Lucy Ann Orndoff/Orndorff (various handwritten family notes mention his twin Lucy).
* Additional siblings include Joseph Arimathea Orndorff, Hezekiah Claggett Orndorff, Simon H. Orndorff, Hannah Francis Orndorff (Dominiack).
* There are ten half brothers and sisters from David Orndorff's first marriage with Isabella Racey.
* Reportedly have an unconfirmed brother, William
(NOTE: Researched by Linda Orendoff Voss - this is my paternal great-grandfather)
NAME (AKA): Aljernon 'Allen Jernon' Sidney Orendorff. (The 'G or J' are interchangeable).
1. His name Orndorff actually has several variant spellings Orendo(r)ff, Orndorff, etc.
2. Aljorn / Algies are acceptable nicknames per online search on Names (as on his census').
PARENTS: David T. Orndoff and Elizabeth 'Eliza' Strowsnyder (Strosnider, etc)
TWIN: Lucille 'Lucy' Orndoff
MARRIAGE: Eunice 'Unie' Farner (AKA: Forner)
DATE: January 14, 1891 / Paola, Miami County, Kansas
MARRIAGE RECORD / LICENSE: #431
State of Kansas, County of Miami
Date of Marriage: 14th day of January, 1891
Name: A Orndoff, age 21, of Paola, Kansas
Name: Unie Farner, age 16, of Sommerset, Kansas by consent of parents, in the presence of Rosy Farner, Marriage performed by J P Ranney, Probate Judge
---
Name: Allen Orendoff, White, 22 years of age
* Parents: David Orendoff, Eliza Strowsnyder
Name: Unie Farner, White, 17 years of age
Parents: John Farner and Mary Spane
Date: January 14, 1891, Paola, Kansas
(Source: Book, Kansas, Miami County, 1891 Marriage Book H, Page 431, Marriage Record 431 - See Attached copy of original pages from Marriage Book.)
CHILDREN: Mary; John David; Jasper L.; Elbert F.; Charles Bartlett; Boutters Matthew ('Jack'); Algernon ('Allen Jernon' Sidney) Jr.; and Glenna Bernice. (Elbert did not survive childhood.)
***********************************
BIOGRAPHY:
Algernon ‘Allen Jernon’ Sidney Orndoff, Sr. was born April 30, 1868 in war-ravaged Wardensville, WV to David Thomas and Elizabeth ‘Eliza’ (Strowsnyder) Orndoff. Allen was born a twin to Lucille 'Lucy' Anne Orndoff. Family of eight children. Copies of Allen's old bible states "David Orndoff the father of this family ... married twice, his last wifes name was Eliza Strosnyder".
Allen’s mother died late 1869-1870 before Allen was two years old, at which time the entire family was disbursed to various foster parents and the poor house farm. The elderly father, David, could not take care of them, possibly ill himself, since David was also receiving aid from the 'Guardians of the Poor' system. 1870 census shows Allen / Algies, 2 years old, with foster family Secrists in Capon Valley, West Virginia. (Source regarding parents David / Eliza: Annual reports Board of Guardian Accounts, Board of Overseers of the Poor of Hardy County, and Poor Farm Book, loose leafs, found at Moore County Courthouse).
Allen was ‘adopted’ by Abraham and Catherine Secrist; and raised by their two unmarried elderly daughters, Christina and Mary Secrist, 'gentlewomen and kind by all reports in spite of their poverty'. Allen was taken to Kansas through Missouri with the Secrist family; eventually settling in Matfield Green, Kansas where the brother Morgan and two sisters built a home and a gist Mill in 1871 on a three-acre millsite, which was deeded over to another person in December 1873 due to the borrowed funds and financial depression of that same year - selling the mill at a considerable loss, the brother Morgan left the two sisters and Allen to fend for themselves. (Source: Kansas, Chase County Historical Sketches, Vol I.)
‘Algernon Orndorff had been taken west with the family and after the parents death it was reported that he was adopted by Christina.’ 1875 Census Allen is in Kansas. (Spaid Genealogy, Chapter X. Families allied to the Spaids, Page 354).
1880 Census showed Allen went to school in Matfield Green, Chase County while living with Mary and Christina Secrist. ‘They had a young boy with them that they had adopted and when he grew to manhood he also left the country.' (Source: Kansas, Chase County Historical Sketches, Vol II, page 377, paragraph 1, Mary and Christina Secrest).
Allen married Eunice ‘Unie’ Farner January 14, 1891 in Paola, Miami County, Kansas. Moving from place to place with his family, he declares himself a farmer. From this marriage union eight children were born. One child, Elbert, did not survive childhood; and one child was born posthumously six months after his death. This child, Glenna, passed away in 2004 as the only surviving child of Allen and 'Matriarch' of the Orndoff family, sharing stories and information personally and at family reunions.
Allen was a loving husband and father. When his youngest son Elbert became ill with diptheria and another infectious disease, Allen and Unie dispersed all their other children to family members to keep them safe.
Allen, 39, passed away February 17, 1908 in Jingo, Kansas. Allen Sr is survived by his widow, Unie, and seven children: Mary, John D., Jasper L., Charles B, Boutters M. ‘Jack’, Algernon ‘Allen’ S. Jr., and Glenna B.
He was preceded in death by one child, Elbert F. Orndoff.
When his wife, Unie, was ever asked by other family members about Allen - the love of her life, she would start crying and say 'it is just so sad' - she could never talk about him!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
OBITUARY #1:
A. Orndorff Dead: "A. Orndoff, a highly respected resident of the Jingo neighborhood died Monday after an illness of several weeks. Mr. Orndoff and family had been residents of that neighborhood for about one year, coming from Somerset, Kansas. The remains were sent to his former home Tuesday where interment was made." (LaCygne, Linn County, Kansas, Friday, The Weekly Journal).
OBITUARY #2:
"Mr. Orndoff who lives west of Jingo and who has been in poor health for some time died last Monday. He leaves a wife and six children besides other relatives and friends. Interment was made in the Jingo cemetery Tuesday afternoon.” (Sunny Ridge, Linn County, Kansas).
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
BURIAL: Two different places of burial are mentioned in the obituaries. It is believed that Allen is buried in one of the unmarked graves in his wife Unie’s (Farner) family plot in Somerset. There is no stone for him in the Jingo or Somerset cemeteries. Both cemeteries have been walked through several times, with no stone found.
CEMETERY RECORDS: 'At the time of Allen Sr. passing, the funeral home directer, an elderly man with shaky hands, kept the records which were unreadable. Upon the advent of a younger man taking over the funeral home and cemetery records, all the records were gathered and destroyed. Therefore, no cemetery records exist'. (Per genealogist, Kansas Genealogy Society, 1996. Confirmed by Forner/Farner family genealogist who worked there, Lorene Fort).
(Source: Obituaries)
***********************************
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
CENSUS':
1. 1870 Census: 'Algies' (2) is living with Abram & Catherine Secrest, (including their children, Christina and Mary Secrest) in Forks of Capon, Capon, Hampshire County, Virginia.
2. 1875 Census: Aljorn (7) is living with S. Myers (34) and Mary A. Myers (34) in the Township of Sycamore, in the County of Butler, Kansas.
3. 1880 Census: Aljorn (12) is living with Christina Secrest and Mary E. Secrest in Matfield Green, Chase County, Kansas.
SIBLINGS:
* Twin - Lucy Ann Orndoff/Orndorff (various handwritten family notes mention his twin Lucy).
* Additional siblings include Joseph Arimathea Orndorff, Hezekiah Claggett Orndorff, Simon H. Orndorff, Hannah Francis Orndorff (Dominiack).
* There are ten half brothers and sisters from David Orndorff's first marriage with Isabella Racey.
* Reportedly have an unconfirmed brother, William
(NOTE: Researched by Linda Orendoff Voss - this is my paternal great-grandfather)
