SAGE, Parthenia (Smith) 1824-1909

SAGE, GOOKINS, GIBBS

Posted By: S. Bell
Date: 2/16/2013 at 01:52:01

[Waterloo Daily Courier, Monday, January 18, 1909]

Saturday afternoon at 4:35 at the home of her son, Dr. Fred C. Sage, 930 Walnut Street, Mrs. Parthenia Sage, one of the pioneer residents of Black Hawk county, answered the final summons and passed peacefully to that vast beyond from whose bourne no traveler returns. Her death was not unexpected as she had been failing for the past three months, her condition being critical for two weeks past. Out of town relatives were summoned and were with her when the end came.

Mrs. Sage, whose maiden name was Parthenia Smith, was born in Marcellus, Onondago County, New York, March 20, 1824, and thus lacked only two months of being eighty-five years old. She was the twelfth child and the last surviving one of a family of thirteen children. Her younger and last brother, Samuel Smith, formerly of Waterloo, died in California two years ago.

On January 15, 1845, when nearly twenty one years old, she was married at Marcellus to Horatio Sage, the day before her death being her sixty-fourth wedding anniversary.

Of the six children born to the union, five are living and all but one of these are present for the funeral, the daughter in California being unable to come. The children are Mrs. Almeda T. Gookins, Neenach, Cal.; Mrs. Harriet C. Gibbs, New Castle, Neb.; Giles W., Ernest E., and Dr. Fred C. Sage, Waterloo. Her third child, Celinda, died in her seventh year near Belvidere, Ill., where the family had moved in 1851. An adopted nephew, John M. Smith, of Minneapolis was as dear to her as her own children and with his wife was present to assist the children during their last ministrations. There are numbered among her descendents also nineteen grandchildren and eleven great grandchildren.

After a residence of fifteen years in Belvidere, Ill, the family moved to Black Hawk County in April 1866, settling on a farm in Bennington township. Her husband died October 27, 1879, and since that time she had made her home with her son, Ernest E. Sage, on the old homestead bur for a number of years had spent her winters with her younger son, Dr. Fred C. Sage, in this city, where her last illness and death occurred.

When eighteen years of age, Mrs. Sage was converted during a series of meetings held by a Congregational minister in her native town. She affiliated with this church until the family came west when she united with the Methodist Episcopal church. She was a devoted member of the church and a regular attendant up to a few months before her death. She took great interest in the services and alwasy attended the Old People's Banquet, being present at the last one held in the fall at Grace M.E. church. Her abiding faith and her consistent Christian character and example have been a comfort and inspiration for many years to all who knew her. Her greatest desire was to give comfort to others and even in her last hours her constant thought was of those about her rather than herself.

Soon after her eightieth birthday Mrs. Sage, at the request of her children wrote a beautiful and interesting autobiography, telling of the leading incidents of her life and events which she wished her children to remember. After expressing the joy in her heart and continued faith in a risen Savior she closes the account of her life with a quotation from the seventy-first Psalm, verses 17 and 18: "O God, Thou has taught me from my youth and hitherto have I declared Thy wondrous works. Now also, when I am old and gray headed, O God, forsake me not until I have showed Thy strength unto this generation, and Thy power to everyone that is to come."

The funeral services were held this afternoon, a brief service at the house being held at 1 o'clock, followed by the service at the church at 1:30, Rev. E.D. Hall, pastor of the church, officiated and interment was in Fairview Cemetery at the side of her husband, who preceded her to the grave thirty years ago. The pall bearers were F.J. Gibbs, A.J. Edwards, George Knapp, David Hutton, Dr. Carl Bickley, George Ferguson. The funeral was largely attended, a number of the friends from Bennington Township being present at the services.