Elizabeth Murray 1863-1948

MURRAY, SMITH, HELMER, HUNZELMAN, PARKER, NOLAN, CARLON, RYAN, EBELING, BEATTY, MCCLOSKEY, HANSEN, THOMPSON, ISAACSON, CLARK, STONECYPHER, CURTIS, GORDON, HYMN, BOLSINGER, GILBERT, MILLER, WOODCOCK, MITCHELL, STEINBERG

Posted By: S. Ferrall - IAGenWeb volunteer
Date: 4/18/2011 at 19:26:21

Mrs. Elizabeth Murray, who passed away at the home of her son, Frank, early Thursday morning, June 10th, was buried Monday afternoon. Services were held at the Schutter Funeral Home at 1:30 and at the Methodist church. Rev. Elmer Peterson conducted and a quartet sang two of Mrs. Murray's favorite hymns. Pall bearers were Verne Bolsinger, Harvey Gilbert, Dr. L.P. Miller, Earl Woodcock, Bennett Mitchell and George Steinberg.

Elizabeth Adelaide Smith Helmer was born at Shakespeare, Canada on September 18, 1863, the fourth daughter and fifth child of John and Jane Smith Helmer. The family had long been identified with Canadian-American history as members had served on both sides during the French and Indian Wars and in the American Revolution. One was later to become famous as the Adam Helmers of the book "Drums Along the Mohawk". While Elizabeth's own grandfather had been slain leading his troops in the Mackensie Revolution of 1837-38.

Her father, then sheriff of Hamilton Providence, was a man of peace but a lover of freedom in thought and action so when much of his mill property was destroyed in a fire in the early '60's he came to the United States to find a new home for his family. In 1861 he visited the territory in and around St. Louis, at that time torn by strife between sympathies with the slave and antislave groups. Returning then to Illinois he found exactly the land he liked and in the fall of 1863 when Elizabeth was but a baby of a few weeks, the family moved to Zion, Illinois where she grew to womanhood. She was educated in the rough frontier schools of those days and with a couple of terms at the Onarga Seminary.

On April 9th, 1884 she married John Murray and to this union five sons were born: John, who died in infancy, Frank and Earl, who farm in this vicinity, Harold, a dentist at Lakota, and Ray of Des Moines.

From the date of their marriage they lived near Cissna Park, Illinois and in Chicago until 1895 when John came to Buffalo Center and bought the Ross estate one and one-half miles east of the newly established townsite. During the first year, he broke 100 acres of the virgin prairie, planted wheat and flax and built a barn, house, granary and other buildings. Mr. Murray and his helpers lived the first year in the granary but when the house was completed Mrs. Murray and their two small sons, Frank and Ray, joined him.

From then on her life was the typical life of a pioneer mother, who knew all the joys and terrors of life in a new country with all its struggles and its victories. Their home became a gathering place for neighbors and friends for miles around and it has been said no one ever entered the yard without an invitation to "unhitch and stay for one or more meals or the night."

Mrs. Murray was a long time member of the Methodist church and ever active member of the Ladies Aid. She was also an active member of the W.C.T.U. Her proudest possession was a life membership in that organization, presented her by the local Unit.

Mr. Murray passed away on January 8th, 1928 and for several years Mrs. Murray continued to make her home there, but failing health finally made it necessary for her to move in with Frank's family. She reluctantly left the home which had so long been the center of her life.

For the past year she has been bedfast but knew little or no pain and early Thursday morning after a quiet restful night fell asleep for the last long time. In addition to her four sons, Mrs. Murray leaves 15 gradchildren and 5 great-grandchildren.

Out of town relatives and friends who attended the services were Mr. and Mrs. W.J. Hunzelman and two sons of Des Moines; Mr. and Mrs. R.J. Helmer of Fenton; Mr. and Mrs. Ed Parker and daughter, Mrs. John Nolan of Harvard, Illinois; Art, Eva and Floyd Murray and Murray Carlon of Cissna Park, Illinois; Mrs. J. Ryan of Merrill, Iowa; Mr. and Mrs. O. Ebeling and son, Courtney, of Aredale, Iowa; Mr. and Mrs. Earl Beatty and son, Robert, Mr. and Mrs. Harold Beatty of Ames; Geo. Beatty and daughter, Doris, of Paton; Mrs. McCloskey and son, Ed, Jack McCloskey and daughters of Blue Earth, Minnesota; Mrs. W.C. Hansen, Mr. and Mrs. Pete Hansen, Mr. and Mrs. Reat Thompson of Forest City; Mr. and Mrs. Ted Isaacson, Mrs. Ira Link, Mrs. Howard Clark of Thompson; Howard, Bill and Ted Stonecypher and son of Orchard, Iowa; Mr. and Mrs. Glen Curtis of Swea City; Mr. and Mrs. Ray Gordon of Lakota; Mrs. Leo Hymn of Elmore, Minnesota.

~Buffalo Center Tribune 06/17/1948