The Norton Tombstone

In 2007, my father-in-law Gene Norton took me to a small cemetery in the middle of a farm about 12 miles northeast of Arkansas City, Kansas to see the grave of his great-grandfather.

C. V. Norton (1833-1914)

Catherine His Wife (1843-1916)

Charles V. Norton first appears in Cowley County, Kansas records in the 1880 Federal Census.  His age of 45 on that census would suggest a birth year of 1834 or 1835. He was a farmer in Liberty Township, so the view from his tombstone in Liberty Cemetery, tucked away on the crest of ridge in open pasture, is probably reminiscent of his original scenery.

The census notes Charles was born in Pennsylvania, his father originally from New York and his mother from an unspecified state in the US.  Charles became one of the many settlers pushing westward in the 19^th century.  Previously belonging to the Osage tribe, Cowley Country was opened for settlement on July 15, 1870.  Charles appears to be one of the new comers in that subsequent decade that caused the county’s “white” population to swell from 550 in 1870 to 21,538 in 1880.  Charles was living with his wife, Catherine Thomson, 36, his son Will, 14, Catherine’s father, John Thomson, 77, and her brother George Thomson, 46.  Another brother of Catherine, Gilbert (44) lived on an adjacent property. 

John Thomson and the two sons all list Scotland as their place of birth, as well as for John’s parents and former wife.  Catherine, though, was born in English Canada placing the Thomson’s Atlantic crossing sometime between 1836 and 1844.  In the 1910 federal census, Catherine lists the year of her immigration from Canada to the United States as 1845.  In the 1875 Kansas census, the Thomson’s list their point first state after immigration from Canada as Kansas, but 1845 would have been way too early for Cowley County and about five years too early for the earliest white settlements in Kansas, so the records are incomplete.  In 1875, the all of Thomson’s were living under one roof with John and his wife J. E.; the three adult children were all single noting close but isolated family.  John’s trade was a tailor, and Gilbert and George were farming, each with their own claim.

One humorous note on the 1880 census is the occupational listing of George Thomson:  Loafer.  Indeed, the habit of living with his sister and brother-in-law carried from life over to death with George listed at the bottom of Charles and Catherine’s tombstone.  The modern tombstone that lists Charles, Catherine, and George in Liberty Cemetery incorrectly inserted a “p” to make “Thompson.”  However, “Thomson” is the spelling used on multiple records as well as a spelling of Scottish origin compared to the Scandinavian “Thompson”. 

Catherine, though, was not Charles’ first wife or the mother of Will.  The 1910 lists their marriage in its 31^st year, dating the wedding to 1879 when Will was 13.  Will’s birthplace in the 1880 census is stated as Nebraska, and his mother’s the same as Charles, Pennsylvania.  A good correlation exists between the Charles Norton of Cowley County in 1880 and a Charles Norton of Lincoln, Nebraska of 1870.  The Nebraska Charles lists an identical birth year and birthplace, as well as a son name Will with again a matching birth date, though stating Iowa as Will’s birthplace instead of Nebraska.  The wife of the Nebraska Charles Norton was Alzina, born in New York instead of Pennsylvania in 1841.  Census records are inherently suspect due to their dependence on accurate recollections and accurate recordings by inaccurate humans.  So, if we excuse the inaccuracies and assume the two Charles Norton’s might be one in the same, a plausible westward path can be constructed from the records.

Charles was born in Pennsylvania in December 1833.  By the time he was 21, he had married a young woman (15!) named Alzina, and their first child, J. Wesley was born while they were still living in Pennsylvania.  Within two years following (ca. 1857), this family of three moved to Iowa and had three more children over a nine year period, George H., Carrie M, and Willie.  By 1870, they had resettled to Lincoln where Charles’ occupation was “Teaming”, and their owned land was valued at $1,000.  Given that Charles and Will together arrived in Cowley County by 1879, we can assume that Alzina died unexpectedly in that decade.  The next youngest, Carrie, would have been 19 by 1879, so possibly already married and remaining in Nebraska.  Charles and Will meet the Thomson’s once in Cowley County; Charles and Catherine wed in 1879, and they get John and George as part of the bargain, and all five are living on Charles’ farm in Liberty Township.

By 1885, Charles and Catherine have two children of their own: Orrin, born in 1881, and Zelda, born in 1884.  John and George are no longer listing as living within their household.  By the turn of the century, Will had moved out of the house while Orrin and Zelda were still at home as teenagers, 19 and 16 respectively, and still attending school.  The same census though lists the Norton family living with Catherine’s brother Gilbert, who had married Mary E. Morrell, bringing with her two adult children, Henry and Viola, 22 and 23, presumably from an earlier marriage.

The 1910 census lists Charles (Charley) and Catherine living alone in their 31^st year of marriage with Orrin and his family living on an adjacent property.  Catherine lists that she had four children, two still living.  Records found so far only list Orrin and Zelda, so either the other two could predate Charles or have been born and died in between censuses.  Catherine lists this marriage as her first, and Charles his third.  Following Charles’ death in 1914, Catherine lived her final two years with her daughter Zelda and family in Liberty Township.  Their tombstone represents their final record after 35 years together on the prairies of Liberty Township.

The Descendants of Charles V. Norton

Will Norton; b. 1866

Only two records exists for Will, the first being the 1880 census.  As stated above, Will was born in Nebraska, and his mother was from Pennsylvania. In 1885, at age 19, he is still listed as single, living at home.  No further records for Will have been found.

Orrin Norton; b. May 18, 1881

Orrin was the first child of Charles and Catherine, born in their third year of marriage.  In 1905, age 24, Orrin married Carrie E. Connell (b. 1886).  Carrie was the oldest of the six children of John E. Connell (b. 1864) and Evelyn Connell (b. 1868).  John, a farmer, was from Tennessee and Evelyn from Missouri where Carrie was born and the family lived from 1885 to at least 1892.  They spent at least 3 years in Oklahoma around the turn of the century, coming to Pleasant Valley in Cowley County between 1903 and 1905.

Orrin and Carrie had two sons, Vincent M. (b. 1905) and Ray (b. 1907).  They lived and farmed in Liberty Township.  In 1915, Carrie’s brother Rufus Connell, his wife Nettie, and their infant daughter Dorothy were living in the same house, but gone by 1920. 

The most specific information about Orrin is from his World War I Draft Registration card.  Completed on September 12, 1918 when he was 37, his exact birth date is listed as well as his mailing address, R 7 D #5 Winfield.  Carrie is of course is nearest relative.  He is a farmer, of medium build and height, with brown hair and eyes.  The distinctive description, though, is an observed physical disability, “withered arm”.  Orrin’s signature is preserved on this record as well.

The record of Orrin and Carrie ends in 1920, only continued by the family recollections of Orrin coming to live with his former daughter in-law, Wilma (Tolles) and his grandchildren in the basement of their house in Winfield.

Zelda Norton; b. Aug, 1884

Zelda was the second recorded child of Charles and Catherine, born three years after Orrin.  In 1902, Zelda married a farmer, Harvey E. Manahan (b. 27 Dec 1881; d. 1951).  Harvey was born in Kansas, the elder of two children of Marquis M. Manahan (b. Ohio, 1855) and Mary Elizabeth Anglemeyer (b. Indiana, 1861; d. 1932).  The parents emigrated from Michigan, and were in Liberty Township no later than 1885 as farmers.

Zelda and Harvey had three daughters, Rosa (b. 1904), Bessie (b. 1905), and Elsie (b. 1908).  The family lists a progression of townships in the various census records, though this could be from shifting boundaries:  1905—Liberty, 1910—Sheridan, 1915—Liberty, 1920—Dexter, and 1930—Dexter.  Elsie’s birthplace is Oklahoma indicating a possible brief relocation circa 1907—1908.   Harvey’s younger brother Howard (b. 1889) was living with the family in 1910, and as mentioned above, Catherine Norton in 1915.  All three daughters were still at home in 1920, but by 1930, only the middle daughter, Bessie remained at home.