Notes by Colleen Brown: The dreaded word "Cholera" marks Union Township's first established cemetery (Vieley). The epidemic struck New Elizabeth (Lizton) August 22, 1873.
The first victim was Mrs. William (Fannie) Davis on Friday, Aug 22, 1873, in the early evening at age 18. She had taken ill about one o'clock in the afternoon and died about five in the evening. Her child died just eighteen hours after it was attacked.
Benjamin Hedges and two children died in an old house south of Main Street. Neighbors burned the Hedges house and moved the widow into the William Davis house where another daughter died.
There were no new cases after September 13, 1873. The three week epidemic resulted in twenty-three deaths. David V. Leak and Jesse Vieley dug most of the graves. All except the town doctor, Dr. Dicks, and Mrs. George Shirley were buried in the Vieley Cemetery just east of Lizton
****10 percent of the population of New Elizabeth (200) died. Death or flight from the disease took all but five of the 75 families from the town****
Notes by David Smith: from the article "Plague of New Elizabeth" by Don and Ruth Hall in the September 1974 issue of the Indiana Magazine of History:
"...Benjamin Hedges was considered the community's Methuselah because only three years before he had fathered a son. His daughters - Alice, five; Elizabeth, seven; and Laura, ten - were also rather young. The old man had obvious cholera symptons, but after he died, Lane attributed his death to 'mostly ... old age.' Oscar, Hedges' three year old son, contracted the disease and died within seven hours of the first noticeable symptoms. At least two reports say the child lasted only two hours. Although townspeople who saw him were horrified by the intense suffering which caused the little boy to curl in pain, two hours is proably an exaggeration. After Oscar died, one of the girls took the disease and was dead in a few hours.
With the death of the old man and the two young children there was a growing sense of alarm in New Elizabeth. ... As the bodies of the old soldier and his two children were boxed and taken to the cemetery, the Hedges house seemed to exude the malady that caused the deaths. Probably on the insistence of neighbors, Mrs. Hedges and her two remaining daughters moved into the then vacant house where Fannie Davis and her child had died. The sorry little Hedges home was then torched.
...Mrs. Hedges, who had moved herself and her daughters to permit the burning of her house, suffered yet another loss. Probably less than a week after moving into the Davis home, a second daughter, developed the disease and died. Alice, the remaining daughter, was stricken but survived."
The 1870 Census shows the family consisting of Benjamin (age 75), Harriet (age 34), Laura (age 7), Elizabeth (age 4), Alice (age 2) and Milton B. (age 8 months) and a female Matilda Lewis (age 13) who was Harriet's daughter from her previous marriage to John P. Lewis. The ages of the three daughters agree with the above account. The 1880 Census shows Harriett Hedges (age 45) with daughters Elizabeth (age 16) and Alice (age 14) and son Milton (age 10). Thus it appears Elizabeth did not die in the cholera epidemic although Laura did. Perhaps another daughter was born to the family after the 1870 Census was taken and she was one who died.
from Roscoe Leak's 1911 History of the Lizton Christian Church: "...Benjamin Hedges , husband of Mrs. (Hedges) Ross, died, also two children, in an old house south of the State road. A little boy two years old died in two hours after he took sick. He cramped and drew almost double and cried 'Mamma, I hurts!' But nothing could be done for him. All the victims suffered intensely. The people moved Mrs. Ross into the house that Wm. Davis had lived in and burned her house. Another daughter died there."
This account confirms the Hall article in that a son and two other children of Benjamin Hedges were victims.
The first victim was Mrs. William (Fannie) Davis on Friday, Aug 22, 1873, in the early evening at age 18. She had taken ill about one o'clock in the afternoon and died about five in the evening. Her child died just eighteen hours after it was attacked.
Benjamin Hedges and two children died in an old house south of Main Street. Neighbors burned the Hedges house and moved the widow into the William Davis house where another daughter died.
There were no new cases after September 13, 1873. The three week epidemic resulted in twenty-three deaths. David V. Leak and Jesse Vieley dug most of the graves. All except the town doctor, Dr. Dicks, and Mrs. George Shirley were buried in the Vieley Cemetery just east of Lizton
****10 percent of the population of New Elizabeth (200) died. Death or flight from the disease took all but five of the 75 families from the town****
Notes by David Smith: from the article "Plague of New Elizabeth" by Don and Ruth Hall in the September 1974 issue of the Indiana Magazine of History:
"...Benjamin Hedges was considered the community's Methuselah because only three years before he had fathered a son. His daughters - Alice, five; Elizabeth, seven; and Laura, ten - were also rather young. The old man had obvious cholera symptons, but after he died, Lane attributed his death to 'mostly ... old age.' Oscar, Hedges' three year old son, contracted the disease and died within seven hours of the first noticeable symptoms. At least two reports say the child lasted only two hours. Although townspeople who saw him were horrified by the intense suffering which caused the little boy to curl in pain, two hours is proably an exaggeration. After Oscar died, one of the girls took the disease and was dead in a few hours.
With the death of the old man and the two young children there was a growing sense of alarm in New Elizabeth. ... As the bodies of the old soldier and his two children were boxed and taken to the cemetery, the Hedges house seemed to exude the malady that caused the deaths. Probably on the insistence of neighbors, Mrs. Hedges and her two remaining daughters moved into the then vacant house where Fannie Davis and her child had died. The sorry little Hedges home was then torched.
...Mrs. Hedges, who had moved herself and her daughters to permit the burning of her house, suffered yet another loss. Probably less than a week after moving into the Davis home, a second daughter, developed the disease and died. Alice, the remaining daughter, was stricken but survived."
The 1870 Census shows the family consisting of Benjamin (age 75), Harriet (age 34), Laura (age 7), Elizabeth (age 4), Alice (age 2) and Milton B. (age 8 months) and a female Matilda Lewis (age 13) who was Harriet's daughter from her previous marriage to John P. Lewis. The ages of the three daughters agree with the above account. The 1880 Census shows Harriett Hedges (age 45) with daughters Elizabeth (age 16) and Alice (age 14) and son Milton (age 10). Thus it appears Elizabeth did not die in the cholera epidemic although Laura did. Perhaps another daughter was born to the family after the 1870 Census was taken and she was one who died.
from Roscoe Leak's 1911 History of the Lizton Christian Church: "...Benjamin Hedges , husband of Mrs. (Hedges) Ross, died, also two children, in an old house south of the State road. A little boy two years old died in two hours after he took sick. He cramped and drew almost double and cried 'Mamma, I hurts!' But nothing could be done for him. All the victims suffered intensely. The people moved Mrs. Ross into the house that Wm. Davis had lived in and burned her house. Another daughter died there."
This account confirms the Hall article in that a son and two other children of Benjamin Hedges were victims.
Notes by Colleen Brown: The dreaded word "Cholera" marks Union Township's first established cemetery (Vieley). The epidemic struck New Elizabeth (Lizton) August 22, 1873.
The first victim was Mrs. William (Fannie) Davis on Friday, Aug 22, 1873, in the early evening at age 18. She had taken ill about one o'clock in the afternoon and died about five in the evening. Her child died just eighteen hours after it was attacked.
Benjamin Hedges and two children died in an old house south of Main Street. Neighbors burned the Hedges house and moved the widow into the William Davis house where another daughter died.
There were no new cases after September 13, 1873. The three week epidemic resulted in twenty-three deaths. David V. Leak and Jesse Vieley dug most of the graves. All except the town doctor, Dr. Dicks, and Mrs. George Shirley were buried in the Vieley Cemetery just east of Lizton
****10 percent of the population of New Elizabeth (200) died. Death or flight from the disease took all but five of the 75 families from the town****
Notes by David Smith: from the article "Plague of New Elizabeth" by Don and Ruth Hall in the September 1974 issue of the Indiana Magazine of History:
"...Benjamin Hedges was considered the community's Methuselah because only three years before he had fathered a son. His daughters - Alice, five; Elizabeth, seven; and Laura, ten - were also rather young. The old man had obvious cholera symptons, but after he died, Lane attributed his death to 'mostly ... old age.' Oscar, Hedges' three year old son, contracted the disease and died within seven hours of the first noticeable symptoms. At least two reports say the child lasted only two hours. Although townspeople who saw him were horrified by the intense suffering which caused the little boy to curl in pain, two hours is proably an exaggeration. After Oscar died, one of the girls took the disease and was dead in a few hours.
With the death of the old man and the two young children there was a growing sense of alarm in New Elizabeth. ... As the bodies of the old soldier and his two children were boxed and taken to the cemetery, the Hedges house seemed to exude the malady that caused the deaths. Probably on the insistence of neighbors, Mrs. Hedges and her two remaining daughters moved into the then vacant house where Fannie Davis and her child had died. The sorry little Hedges home was then torched.
...Mrs. Hedges, who had moved herself and her daughters to permit the burning of her house, suffered yet another loss. Probably less than a week after moving into the Davis home, a second daughter, developed the disease and died. Alice, the remaining daughter, was stricken but survived."
The 1870 Census shows the family consisting of Benjamin (age 75), Harriet (age 34), Laura (age 7), Elizabeth (age 4), Alice (age 2) and Milton B. (age 8 months) and a female Matilda Lewis (age 13) who was Harriet's daughter from her previous marriage to John P. Lewis. The ages of the three daughters agree with the above account. The 1880 Census shows Harriett Hedges (age 45) with daughters Elizabeth (age 16) and Alice (age 14) and son Milton (age 10). Thus it appears Elizabeth did not die in the cholera epidemic although Laura did. Perhaps another daughter was born to the family after the 1870 Census was taken and she was one who died.
from Roscoe Leak's 1911 History of the Lizton Christian Church: "...Benjamin Hedges , husband of Mrs. (Hedges) Ross, died, also two children, in an old house south of the State road. A little boy two years old died in two hours after he took sick. He cramped and drew almost double and cried 'Mamma, I hurts!' But nothing could be done for him. All the victims suffered intensely. The people moved Mrs. Ross into the house that Wm. Davis had lived in and burned her house. Another daughter died there."
This account confirms the Hall article in that a son and two other children of Benjamin Hedges were victims.
The first victim was Mrs. William (Fannie) Davis on Friday, Aug 22, 1873, in the early evening at age 18. She had taken ill about one o'clock in the afternoon and died about five in the evening. Her child died just eighteen hours after it was attacked.
Benjamin Hedges and two children died in an old house south of Main Street. Neighbors burned the Hedges house and moved the widow into the William Davis house where another daughter died.
There were no new cases after September 13, 1873. The three week epidemic resulted in twenty-three deaths. David V. Leak and Jesse Vieley dug most of the graves. All except the town doctor, Dr. Dicks, and Mrs. George Shirley were buried in the Vieley Cemetery just east of Lizton
****10 percent of the population of New Elizabeth (200) died. Death or flight from the disease took all but five of the 75 families from the town****
Notes by David Smith: from the article "Plague of New Elizabeth" by Don and Ruth Hall in the September 1974 issue of the Indiana Magazine of History:
"...Benjamin Hedges was considered the community's Methuselah because only three years before he had fathered a son. His daughters - Alice, five; Elizabeth, seven; and Laura, ten - were also rather young. The old man had obvious cholera symptons, but after he died, Lane attributed his death to 'mostly ... old age.' Oscar, Hedges' three year old son, contracted the disease and died within seven hours of the first noticeable symptoms. At least two reports say the child lasted only two hours. Although townspeople who saw him were horrified by the intense suffering which caused the little boy to curl in pain, two hours is proably an exaggeration. After Oscar died, one of the girls took the disease and was dead in a few hours.
With the death of the old man and the two young children there was a growing sense of alarm in New Elizabeth. ... As the bodies of the old soldier and his two children were boxed and taken to the cemetery, the Hedges house seemed to exude the malady that caused the deaths. Probably on the insistence of neighbors, Mrs. Hedges and her two remaining daughters moved into the then vacant house where Fannie Davis and her child had died. The sorry little Hedges home was then torched.
...Mrs. Hedges, who had moved herself and her daughters to permit the burning of her house, suffered yet another loss. Probably less than a week after moving into the Davis home, a second daughter, developed the disease and died. Alice, the remaining daughter, was stricken but survived."
The 1870 Census shows the family consisting of Benjamin (age 75), Harriet (age 34), Laura (age 7), Elizabeth (age 4), Alice (age 2) and Milton B. (age 8 months) and a female Matilda Lewis (age 13) who was Harriet's daughter from her previous marriage to John P. Lewis. The ages of the three daughters agree with the above account. The 1880 Census shows Harriett Hedges (age 45) with daughters Elizabeth (age 16) and Alice (age 14) and son Milton (age 10). Thus it appears Elizabeth did not die in the cholera epidemic although Laura did. Perhaps another daughter was born to the family after the 1870 Census was taken and she was one who died.
from Roscoe Leak's 1911 History of the Lizton Christian Church: "...Benjamin Hedges , husband of Mrs. (Hedges) Ross, died, also two children, in an old house south of the State road. A little boy two years old died in two hours after he took sick. He cramped and drew almost double and cried 'Mamma, I hurts!' But nothing could be done for him. All the victims suffered intensely. The people moved Mrs. Ross into the house that Wm. Davis had lived in and burned her house. Another daughter died there."
This account confirms the Hall article in that a son and two other children of Benjamin Hedges were victims.
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