The Wilkerson Family

page 5

The Thomas and Caroline "Carrie" Kelley Wilkerson Family

My Great Grandfather Thomas Wilkerson was born in 1865 in Clarksville, Ohio and died in 1933 at the age 67 yrs. 5 mo.  I have already  talked about Clarksville, although in Clinton County, is very close to Spring Hill.  Many Wilkersons were born, married and buried there.  Thomas was John and Ann's  youngest child.  At the age of 21 he married 19 year old Caroline "Carrie" Marion Kelley on December 20, 1886 in Union Star, Missouri.  He was a farmer and then a merchant. He owned a hardware store in Union Star, Missouri for many years.  

W. E. Piper and Jim McClain had put in a hardware stock and tin shop next to the Simpson Store building and in a few years erected a new structure.  Later James Thomas and Henry Sharp bought out McClain’s interest, and later on they sold out to Tom Wilkerson, and D. O. Robison.  John and Frank Farrell, in 1905, built two rooms joining west on this store and bought an interest with Robison and Wilkerson.  In 1907, Sanford Wilkerson moved to Union Star from his farm near Savannah and bought the entire stock of hardware, furniture and implement business.  Mrs. Sarah McQuinn purchased the building.  In 1921, Mr. Wilkerson moved the hardware and furniture stock to the Kimberlin building on the north side of the street.  In 1923 he built the west room on the corner which is the present hardware store.   His son, Bruce, assumed management in 1924, and ran the business until 1966.  In 1944 the partition between the two rooms was removed making one large store room.  Mr. and Mrs. Floyd Hutchcraft bought the stock in 1966 and still operate under the title of "Wilkerson Hardware.  Here with a picture with Tom and Sanford in front of the hardware store.

He died in 1933 in Union Star, Missouri. 

Obituary

"THOMAS WILKERSON FORMER RESIDENT DIES" 1-11-1933

Thomas Wilkerson thirty years a merchant in Union Star, died at 1:00 o'clock Wednesday afternoon at his home from the effects of an apoplectic stroke suffered last Thursday, from which he had never regained consciousness. Funeral services were held at 1 o'clock Saturday afternoon at the Christian Church conducted by the Rev. S. Riggs, assisted by Rev. J.C. Bigbee and Rev. J. B. Wairafen.  Burial was in Savannah.

Mr. Wilkerson was the youngest of a family of twelve brothers and sisters, and the fourth of the family to have died within a year.  John Wilkerson of Mt. Ayr, Iowa, Mrs. James Ballas of St. Joseph and Albert Wilkerson of Union Star, brothers and sister of Tom Wilkerson all died in 1932, and another brother, Sanford Wilkerson, Union Star hardware merchant, died in 1932.  Of the family of twelve the following three survive:  Vince Wilkerson, Union Star; Mrs. J. Q. Wells, Helena; and Mrs. John Osborn of Cosby.  This was an Andrew county family of clean lives of the finest of men and women, and Thomas as one of them.  Andrew county is honored by their living here.

Mr. Wilkerson was born in 1865 in Warren county, Ohio, and his parents brought him to Missouri when he was a baby.  He was reared near Savannah, and there he married Miss Carrie Kelly, who, with five of their seven children, survives.  Mr. Wilkerson moved to Union Star in 1900 to engage in the hardware business, in which he continued until about eight years ago, since which time he has been in the grocery business.

The surviving children are: Mrs. Charles Pemberton, Billings, Mont.; Mrs. Clarence Smoot and Mrs. Marvin Gibbons of St. Joseph and Mrs. Tom Smoot and Lloyd Wilkerson of Union Star.  Also surviving are six grandchildren and one great-grandchild.  Two children Alva and Anna, preceded their father in death."

Caroline "Carrie" Kelley

    Caroline "Carrie" Kelley was born November 20, 1867 in Marion County, Indiana.   Here is a picture of her with her twin granddaughters - Donna (my Mother) and Dorothy Pemberton.  The picture must have been taken in the late 1930's.  Her Grandfather Samuel Kelley was an early settler in Grant County, Indiana.  Her father Abraham Kelley, Samuel's eighth son, was also a Civil War Veteran.  He married Charity Echelbarger in 1866 in Grant County, Indiana.  Abraham and Charity had nine children before she died in 1881 of which Caroline was the oldest.  Sometime between 1881 when Charity died and 1887 Abraham and his nine children moved from Grant County, Indiana to Andrew County, Missouri.  I suspect he moved to Missouri because his brother had moved there.  In 1887 Abraham married Anna Marie Bouman in Andrew County, Missouri.  By 1887 Carrie had already married Thomas Wilkerson so she must have married him within a couple years after they moved to Andrew County.  Abraham, Anna and the seven younger children then moved to San Diego, California in 1906.  Abraham died December 21, 1921. Here is a picture of his gravestone in Mt. Hope Cemetery, San Diego, California. Caroline stayed in Missouri and Albert the oldest brother went back to Indiana.  Caroline died October 25, 1953 in Union Star, Missouri.

Thomas and Caroline Wilkerson's Children

 Thomas and Carrie had seven children: Kate (my grandmother), Anna, Mary Atha, Lena, Mildred, James Alva, Lloyd. This picture of the family as taken around 1905 - Front row from left:  Mary Atha, Kate, Lloyd, Mildred and Lena.  Back row from left:  Anna Mae, Carolyn and Thomas.  James Alva has already died in 1901 when he was six years old.

My Grandmother Kate Wilkerson was the oldest child.  I will go into more detail about her life on the next page.  She was born September 26, 1887 in DeKalb County, Missouri.  She died May 26, 1981 at 94 in Bothell, Washington.

   Here is a picture of Kate and Annie.  It must have been taken in the early 1890's.

The next oldest daughter was Anna Mae "Annie".  Annie was born in July 1889 and died in 1920 at the age of 31. She never married.     Here is a picture of Annie and with of her friends.  I believe Annie is third from the left.

On July 19, 1892 Mary Atha "Atha" joined the family.  She married Thomas Smoot and lived her whole life around Union Star, Missouri.  She died May 5, 1983.

A year later in in October 1893 another daughter Lena Leota Wilkerson was born.  She married Thomas Smoot's brother Clarence.  She and Clarence had two daughters:  Marguarite and Helen "Bernice".  Her obituary stated that she "Died at 84 after a one-year illness.  A native of Union Star, Mrs. Smoot  lived in the St. Joseph area since 1929. She was a retired clerk for the United Department Store and a member of the First Christian Church of St. Joseph."

Finally in November 1895 a boy was added to the family - James Alva "Alva".  Unfortunately Alva died when he was six in 1901. I don't know what he died of.

Mildred Wilkerson was born in 1898.  She married Marvin Gibbons and they had two daughters Eugenia and Ethelda. Here they are with their grandparents Tom and Caroline Kelley Wilkerson.

Finally in 1902 the family was complete when Thomas Lloyd "Lloyd" Wilkerson was born.  Lloyd married Verna Swink in 1930 and they had a daughter Gayle.  Lloyd spent his entire life in Union Star and died November 8, 1963.

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