Darnell, Martha Craig 1830-1910

DARNELL, CRAIG

Posted By: Marilyn Holmes (email)
Date: 3/14/2013 at 10:38:27

The Grinnell (IA) Herald; Feb. 1, 1910

MRS. MARTHA CRAIG DARNELL

A long life of varied experiences came to a close when on Friday, January 14, 1910, the gentle, chastened, spirit of Mrs. Darnell passed quietly within the veil to that blessed beyond toward which her Christian faith reached out.

Born in Shenandoah County, Virginia, November 22, 1830, Martha Craig had nevertheless spent all of her entire life in the middle west. Her parents removed first to Ohio and then to Illinois. In 1857 Mrs. Darnell came with her husband and their two children, to Mount Pleasant, Iowa, but in 1864 they passed further west and settled near Atlantic, where they resided for twenty years. Two more sons were added to the family after their coming to Iowa, both having since died. Since 1884 Mrs. Darnell and her only daughter have made their home in Grinnell. Here, as elsewhere, Mrs. Darnell has become greatly endeared to the community about her. Though so early transplanted from her childhood's home, she cherished an abiding and loyal affection for the state of her birth and was proud of its great history. Her life-span embraced the whole of the momentous slavery controversy, the stirring events of the Civil War and the turbulent years that followed. From the earliest years her unflagging and intensely patriotic interest in public affairs, made her a watchful student of important questions. Always a discriminating reader, her intelligent appreciation of political and social movements, her keen judgment of public men and her thoughtful comments upon passing events made her a most entertaining companion. She had withal a ready wit and a lively sense of humor, in which those who knew her well took great delight. The frail health of recent years has necessitated a retired and quiet life, but there are many who will miss the cheerful presence of Mrs. Darnell and grieve for the loss of her unfailing kindness, her quick sympathy and the uplift of her steady, constant religious trust.

The funeral services were conducted by the Rev. Elias Handy, pastor of the Methodist Episcopal church, and the Rev. H.N. Dascomb, pastor of the Congregational church in Grinnell. The interment was at Atlantic, Iowa.