HAMAKER, Mrs. and Mr. John

HAMAKER, RAINS, ROCKAFELLOW

Posted By: Lois Shaul (email)
Date: 11/9/2018 at 16:37:20

Malvern Leader
May 19, 1887
Page 4

The illness of Mr. John Hamaker entire family and the death of Mrs. Hamaker on Thursday and Mr. Hamaker on Saturday, of last week, while the children (nine in number) except the one year old infant, were all confined to their beds, makes on of the saddest cases it has ever been our duty to chronicle. About three weeks ago the babe was taken with measles and in a few days the entire family was prostrated with the same disease, leaving not one member to look after the sick. They were all confined to their beds for several days. The father and mother recovered so far as to be around some when pneumonia (which the physicians inform us not infrequently follows measles) developed, and about midnight Thursday the mother died, and at dusk Saturday the spirit of the father also took its flight, leaving nine orphaned children. At the hour of the fathers funeral on Sabbath three of the children were thought to be in a very critical condition and grave fears were entertained that they would not survive the inroad the disease had made upon their systems.Happily, however, a change for the better soon set in and on Monday morning the physician found them much improved with fair prospects for recovery. The fear is now that the severity of the disease may leave some constitutional derangement that will cause them future trouble.
To add to the peculiar sadness of the cases, some of the children were so low that it was deemed unwise to inform them of the death of the father, and the sad news was withheld from them for several days. Again, Mrs. Hamaker's mother was telegraphed and written to in Dakota before her daughter's death, but failing to get the telegram knew nothing of the sad events until she reached Glenwood Tuesday on her way here.The funeral procession which followed Mr. Hamaker's remains to Malvern Cemetery, Sunday afternoon (where his wife had been buried but two days before) was very large, testifying to the respect in which the family are held by their neighbors and friends. The heartfelt sympathy of this entire community goes out to the bereaved children(ranging in age from twenty years to one) and other relatives in this very severe affliction.
Mr. Hamaker was one of the pioneers of Mills County. With his parents he located in what is now Silver Creek township, on the old Henry Rains farm, about the year 1858. The senior Mr. Hamaker, with the assistance of John and George, erected a grist and sawmill near the site of the present White Cloud mills. They operated the saw mill about three years. John finally purchased the grist mill from his father and not being a practical miller, traded it to his brother George for a portion of the fine farm where he died last week.
Mrs. Hamaker's maiden name was Rockafellow, and she was a cousin to George Rockafellow, of Malvern.