Mrs. Milly Morris

MORRIS, BEAMER

Posted By: Renee Rimmert (email)
Date: 3/19/2017 at 22:43:26

Centerville Loyal Citizen
Wednesday, April 3, 1867

Died
March 20th, 1867 in Pleasant township, Appanoose county, Iowa, Mrs. Milly Morris, aged 97 years.

Deceased was born in Pasquontank county, North Carolina on the 11th day of the 12th month, 1769. She was six years old when the Declaration of Independence was declared; remembered well of seeing the long lines of Revolutionary soldiers as they passed and re-passed her father's house. The writer has often heard her telling of their sufferings and hardships, and of hearing the cannon's roar, and of the sufferings of the people during their long and hard struggle for independence.

She was married in 1788 to Isaac Morris, with whom she lived for about 33 years, enjoying the pleasures of life, and raised a family of thirteen children - ten sons and three daughters. But the hand of Providence removed her husband to that land from which none return, in about the sixtieth year of his age. Mrs. Morris still continued to keep house, and had the care of the farm which she and her husband had made in the State of Virginia. Meantime her family had all become men and women, and married and moved to themselves, and mostly lived in in the State of Ohio. Then she concluded to close out her own estate, and go and live with her children, staying awhile with one and then with another; all the while laboring and helping those with whom she was staying. Thus she spent about thirty years more of her life. Finally she conceived an idea that she ought to visit her daughter in Iowa, Mrs. Beamer; and in 1855 she came to this county, and always being contented under all circumstances; she was well please with the new country in the far west, and was afterwards heard to say "I thought Ohio was a good country but this certainly is a better one." She continued to enjoy good health in her new western home for about nine years, and then she began to decline; but still retained her mind in all the vigor of youth. She was social and cheerful under all circumstances, even in her declining years she retained all those social qualities that made all feel happy in her presence, and while the last few years of her life was more trying than is the lot of most persons, from the fact that her vision was entirely gone and her hearing very imperfect, yet she was never known to murmur or complain, but bore the infirmities of age with the christian's hope. But about the 1st of March, 1867, it became apparent to all who knew her that she could not last long. She slowly wore away until the 20th, when God in His wisdom removed her from time. Thus passed from this world one who had been an acceptable member of the M.E. Church for about three-fourths of a century. No doubt she was raised up by God to be one of the number that were to live through all the important decades of the last century; for she experienced the ills of the Revolutionary war, and she felt for those that had to suffer in the late rebellion, and was often heard to say that she hoped the war would not last as long as the Revolutionary war did; and that all the boys would live to get home again. And here we would do injustice to her memory if we failed to say that she was well represented in the Union army in the late rebellion; for she had in two branches of her family, and all from this county, eight grand sons to volunteer; six served a full term of three year each, and one then re-enlisted. The other two were discharged for disability; making in all more than twenty years, from this county. The other branches of the family did well; but the exact time is not known, but it is thought that it would make from one-half to three-fourths of a century. She was often heard to say that she did not know how may of her children were in the service; but she could pray for them anyway, and it is not known that she lost more than two. She, too, has passed from her labor of love, but her virtues will be remembered by all who knew her, especially those of her own offspring; for above all mere secular gifts is a parent's good name. But there are some things that are better than that namely: those transmissible, moral qualities which put the soul from the first under the dominion of the higher instinct. And from mother Morris this has been inherited by a long line of children, grand children, great children (sic) and great grand children; for which, if they should live for long ages, they would not be able to thank God enough in this world.

-John Hughes-