MARY LOUISA (DEROUSE) BOYER

DEROUSE, BOYER, GUNTER, BIRD, MYERS, CAMPBELL

Posted By: Nancee(McMurtrey)Seifert (email)
Date: 2/21/2002 at 20:37:57

Decatur County Journal
Thursday, July l, l9l5

'MEMORIES OF THE LIFE AND DEATH OF MRS.
MARY LOUISA BOYER'

She was the wife of JOSEPH C. BOYER, late of
Eden Township, Decatur
County, Iowa, died Monday morning at six
o'clock, May l2, l9l5, aged l03
years, two months and seven days.

She was born February l7, l8l2, at Prairie Du
Rocher, Randolph County,
Illinois. She was a member of the Catholic
Church since childhood and
lived and died in the faith, true to the
church of her choice. She
lived a long and useful life, loved, honored
and respected by all who
knew her. She was a kind neighbor and friend
to the needy, the sick and
afflicted, always benevolent and charitable.
Many will remember her
hospitable home in Eden Township where she
lived for fifty-four years.
No one ever went from her door hungry; she
gave with a bountiful hand
the substance of her hard toil.

She was married to JOSEPH C. BOYER at St.
Louis, Mo., in the year l847.
Eight children were born to this union,
CHARLES L. BOYER, of St. Cloud,
Florida; MRS. BELLE GUNTER, Leon, Iowa; MRS.
AMANDA BIRD, Denver,
Colorado; MRS. MARY MYERS, Denver, Colorado,
died April l7, l9ll.
HARRISON BOYER, Lamoni, Iowa; SYLVESTER
BOYER, Lamoni, Iowa. JOE BOYER,
Eden Township, died June l2, l898, MRS.
CARRIE CAMPBELL, Eden Township,
died April l, l90l. After her marriage in
l847, MRS. BOYER and her
husband located at Savannah, Carrol County,
Illinois, where they
purchased l60 acres of land, residing there
four years. Her oldest son,
LEANDER BOYER, was born there. In l848 they
sold out at Savannah and
moved to Davenport, Scott County, Iowa, where
they purchased l60 acres
of land. Four children were born to them at
Davenport and moved to
Decatur County, Iowa, locating in Eden
Township where they purchased 200
acres of land of JOHN J. STANLEY, paying
$l,500 in gold for the 200
acres of heavy timber land. There was a
small log house on the land
that father and mother BOYER moved into with
their five small children.

They both worked hard, toiling early and late
to make for themselves a
home out of the wilderness. There were no
neighbors those days in Eden
Township, but the deer and the wild turkey
which were plentiful. Game
of all kinds was in abundance. There was no
railroad in Decatur County
then and not a dozen business and dwelling
houses in all Leon. In two
years time they had the heavy timber cleared
from their land and l20
acres under fence, a large barn and new house
built, a fine orchard and
vineyard took the place of the forest. They
soon had their farm in a
high state of cultivation and bountiful crops
of all kinds were raised.
They had everything in abundance.

Father and Mother BOYER's farm was considered
the best stocked farm in
southern Iowa. They afterwards sold eighty
acres of the 200. Three
children were born on this farm, SYLVESTER,
JOE and CARRIE.
Many were the trials and hardships MRS. BOYER
passed through during the
Civil War. Her husband answered his
country's call in l86l and served
in Sherman's Army until the close of the war.
In l865, her son,
LEANDER, enlisted and went to the war at the
same time at seventeen
years of age. When the war was over and they
came marching home there
were joyous times in the old home on the farm
again for her and her
family.

In l898 the messenger of death brought sorrow
to her home, taking her
only brother, EDMOND DEROUSE, to his home
above. The same month on the
l2th of June, l898, the death angel visited
her home and bore her son,
JOE, to his home in Heaven, leaving her
heartbroken. Then in l90l the
pale boatman with his muffled oars returned
and took her youngest
daughter, CARRIE CAMPBELL, across the dark
river to the other shore to
the home of the blest, leaving her again in
sorrow. On the l7th of
April, l904, the death angel again returned,
taking her husband and
companion from earth to Heaven.

The home circle was broken; her trials and
afflictions were great. She
bore all with patience and Christian
fortitude, but missed her loved
ones and seemed desolate on the farm without
them. She resided six
years in the old home after her husband's
death, then decided to go
south for awhile, leaving Eden Township in
November, l909. She visited
until spring in southern Missouri, then went
to Florida. She purchased
an orange plantation two miles from St.
Cloud, Florida, and resided
there over two years. On April l7, l9ll, God
called her daughter, MARY,
from earth to Heaven, at Denver, Colorado.
One by one her loved ones
were crossing over the river to their home in
Heaven. She became a
great sufferer from rheumatism while residing
in Florida and realizing
that death was near, sold her orange
plantation and returned to Iowa
September l, l9l2.

She went to Lamoni where her son, HARRISON,
resides. She purchased
property in Lamoni and with her son,
SYLVESTER, lived there for two
years. She continued in poor health,
suffering with rheumatism, till
the final end came, May l0, l9l5. She fell
asleep to wake in Heaven,
that bright and beautiful world above.
Angels bore her across the dark
river to her Savior whom she worshiped and
loved.
All her long and useful life, her trials and
sufferings are over; she
has gone to her reward and dwells in the home
of the blest. She was
laid to rest May l3, l9l5, beside her husband
and son, JOE, in the Leon
Cemetery. May angels guard her sacred dust
till the resurrection morn
and her soul rest in peace. May God pity and
comfort her grief stricken
daughters, MRS. BELLE GUNTER and MRS. AMANDA
BIRD. CHARLES L. and
HARRISON and SYLVESTER, the surviving sons
and daughters.

MRS. M.C. BOYER's parents were born in Paris,
France, and emigrated to
America during the Revolutionary War. Her
grandfather was a cousin of
General La Fayette, and served with him in
the continental army during
the Revolutionary War. After the war, he
settled at Kaskaskia,
Illinois, obtaining title to a large tract of
land at that place and
where he was an Indian agent for twenty-five
years and where his
numerous descendants still reside.

-------------------------------------------------------------------
Copied by Nancee(McMurtrey)Seifert
February 20, 2002