Individual Notes
Note for: Harriet E. (Hatty) Simpson, 16 Sep 1841 -
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Individual Note: Separated in 1864? Harriet's first marriage produced one son (Gains?). She had two daughters from her second marriage, Rose Barton and Harriet Barton. Harriet Barton never married.
Individual Notes
Note for: Lewis L. Simpson, 11 Aug 1842 - 1 May 1863
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Individual Note: MILITARY: Lewis L. Simpson joined the Union Army as a Private in Company K, 89th Regiment of New York Volunteers on September 17, 1861 at the Village of Unadilla, in Otsego County, N.Y. Co. K was commanded by Frank Burt.
On September 14, 1862 Lewis received a wound in the left knee by a mini ball at the battle of South Mountain in Maryland (Fox's Gap). Because of this wound, Lewis's left leg was amputated just above the knee at the United States Hospital in Maryland, on or about September 17, 1862. On February 5, 1863, Lewis L. Simpson received a Certificate of Disability for Discharge. Five days later, in Washington, D.C., he applied for a Pension.
Lewis returned home and died in May 1, 1863. There may have been contributory negligence on his part causing the necessity for a second amputation, and consequently the fatal result. There may have been surgical malpractice in the case. Lewis had never married nor were there any children. He was buried in the Methodist church cemetery in Sand Hill, New York, a tiny settlement near Wells Bridge, New York. Both military and pension records exist for Lewis as his mother later applied for his pension. When she died her estranged husband (William Simpson) also applied.
Individual Notes
Note for: Justus Lewis (Jesse) Simpson, 16 May 1837 - 2 Jul 1917
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Individual Note: BIOGRAPHY: All the honor that belongs to the high-minded, public-spirited citizen belongs of right to Justus L. Simpson, of Francesville, Indiana, but it is as a soldier that Mr. Simpson has the strongest claim on the admiration of his fellow citizens. He is not only a soldier, but the grandson of a soldier, and his service in the war of the states in behalf of the Union was so heroic and his sufferings were so great that his military experience was exceptional in many ways.
Mr. Simpson was born on a farm near Gilbertsville, Otsego County, New York, May 16, 1837, a son of William and Lovina (Young) Simpson. His father's father did gallant service in the war of 1813-14. Records of other wars in America and in England bear the name of Simpson so prominently that there can be no question that Justus L. Simpson inherited the military instinct and predilection in an unusual degree.
August 30, 1862, when he was a little past twenty-five years old, he enlisted at Gilbertsville, New York, as a private in Company G, One Hundred and Fifty-second Regiment, New York Volunteer Infantry, to serve three years or during the war. He served until honorably discharged, February 4, 1865, on account of wounds received in a charge in the battle of Hanover Court House, Virginia. He participated in a charge on the rebel works at the battle of Suffolk, Virginia, and in the Wilderness campaign he was under constant fire for twenty-two days, from May 2 to May 24, 1864.
The principal battles of this series were those of the Wilderness, Spotsylvania Court House, North Anna Court House and Hanover Court House. In the last named engagement he was shot, May 24, 1864, under the following interesting circumstances: His regiment was deployed for service on the skirmish line. After twenty-four hours' arduous service it was relieved and sent to the rear among the reserves, but was almost at once called upon to relieve a regiment which had exhausted its ammunition, and took its place on the firing line in the woods, where it was under direct and galling fire in front of the enemy. The soldiers availed themselves of such shelter as trees offered, and Comrade Simpson gained the slight protection of the tree, whose trunk was about six inches in diameter. He was on his knees, loading his musket, when he found that a rebel sharpshooter had him in range. One shot struck the tree directly in front and in range of his forehead, and a second and a third shot narrowly missed him. A lieutenant standing about a rod in his rear cautioned him to look out as a sharpshooter had located him. As many as nine or ten shots came close to him, and soon he was struck, the ball passing through the flesh of the upper part of the left leg, and through the right leg, cutting off the leaders and making a fearful wound. Comrade Simpson attempted to gain the shelter of a large tree a little distance in the rear, but found he could not walk. The lieutenant ordered two men to take him to the shelter of the tree. There he fainted, and, according to his vivid imagination, beautiful flowers, trees and fine white houses appeared to him with remarkable distinctness and minuteness. This pleasing illusion was followed by loud noises and great distress. Still unconscious, he was carried to the rear in a rubber blanket by four comrades, who finally procured a stretcher, and he was taken to the field hospital, about two and a half miles from the place where he was shot. His wound was dressed, and he lay in the hospital until next day, when he was taken to the Potomac River and by steamboat to Washington, where he was placed in the Columbia College Hospital, and remained until about August 20, when he was transferred to Philadelphia and placed in Judicial Square Hospital. Gangrene in his wounds set in soon after, and then he fully expected death from day to day. The physician at Judicial Square Hospital told him he had but one chance for his life, and that was at Turner Lane Hospital. He was so weak that he was removed only with great difficulty, stimulated by four ounces of brandy. Here Dr. King, of Pottsville, Pennsylvania, was his physician. This very skillful surgeon removed the mortified flesh with much difficulty by repeated burnings. The operation was a terrible one, and it is impossible to realize Mr. Simpson's sufferings. The flesh was eaten away until he could have put his hand into the wound. His brother George visited him in September, 1864, and when he first saw him thought he was dead, so deathly was his appearance and so awful his condition of emaciation and weakness as he lay for fresh air under a tent. The patient did not know his brother. Mr. Simpson feels that he owes his life to Dr. King, to the Sanitary Commission, and to benevolent ladies who came every day to visit the sick and bring them flowers and delicacies.
Until wounded Comrade Simpson was always an active soldier, and was in all the campaigns, marches, battles and skirmishes in which his regiment took part, and was prompt and cheerful in the discharge of all his duties. He received a severe sunstroke in 1863, and still feels the effects of it. He was then on a forced march, but did not leave his regiment. He left his home in New York State, April 14, 1865 [the day Lincoln was shot], for Illinois, and went directly to Kankakee. After a short visit he went to Iroquois county, Illinois, as a cattle-herder, and remained there one year. As he rode a horse he could do this kind of work, but was very lame, and could not get his heel to the ground for two years after he left the service. For two years afterward he was overseer for the firm of Milk, Bancroft & Serring on a farm of six hundred and fifty acres, all planted in corn. Later, and until 1871, he managed another large farm. Meantime, December 22, 1868, he had married, at Kankakee, Illinois, Susan E. Clemans, a native of Wayne County, New York, and a daughter of Lorenzo and Sarah (Kelly) Clemans.
Lorenzo Clemans was born in Wayne County, New York, in a house which had been built in the pioneer days by his father, Dr. Asaph Clemans. Dr. Clemans, whose mother was a sister of General Israel Putnam, of Revolutionary fame, was of Puritan stock and married Orpha Ives, a daughter of Moses Ives, who was a Revolutionary soldier from Connecticut. They had children named Moses, Asaph, Rensselaer, Putney, Nancy, Clarissa, Polly and Susannah.
The Doctor, who took his medical degree in Rochester, New York, was in his day a distinguished physician and a man of much property, who acquired a considerable landed estate, most of which is now owned by his descendants. In political faith he was for many years an old-line Whig. He was one of the organizers of the Republican Party and voted for Fremont and for Lincoln. He was an active member of the Methodist church and a class-leader in his organization, and died aged seventy-two, after a busy and useful life.
Lorenzo Clemans, son of Asaph Clemans and father of Mrs. Simpson, was born about 1818, and died aged seventy-eight. He was a successful farmer and married Sarah Kelly, a native of Oneida County, New York. The family of Kelly is prominent in New York, especially in Buffalo, and Mrs. Lorenzo Clemans’ sister, Mary, married a general of the Confederate army.
Mrs. Clemans had two brothers, named Joseph and Ezekiel. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Clemans were named Oscar, Lydia, Orson, Susan E., Ann, Colista, Rensselaer and George. Oscar, who was a member of a New York infantry regiment, died the death of a soldier during the civil war.
In 1875 Justus L. Simpson removed, with his wife, to Newton County, Indiana, and managed a cattle ranch for Lemuel Milk, of Kankakee, Illinois, until 1876, when he bought his present farm in Salem Township, which was known as the old Nathaniel Waple farm. He has lived on this place since 1876, and has improved it by drainage and by the erection of new buildings. His residence, in the midst of a beautiful grove, is one of the most tasteful and attractive in this part of the county, and the hospitality dispensed under its roof is as generous as it is spontaneous. To Mr. and Mrs. Simpson have been born five children: Jennie A., Cora M., Romeo, Jessie Ray and Sherrie. Romeo died in infancy; the others survive. Jennie A. and Cora M. became well known school-teachers. The former taught at Francesville and at other points in Pulaski county for nine years and is now the wife of William Bechdolt, of Oregon. Cora M. has had an experience of ten years in the public schools and is now teaching in the high school in Salem Township. She attended the normal school at Valparaiso, Indiana, and Terre Haute state normal. Jessie Ray lives in Oregon, and Sherrie on the home farm.
Mrs. Simpson and her daughters are members of the Christian church. Comrade Simpson is a Grand Army man and a good Republican. While a resident of Newton County he served the people of McClellan Township as assessor and as trustee. He is influential in his part of the county, because those who know him have confidence in his integrity and good judgment.
HISTORY: (Newton Co., IN Biography: Newton County, McClellan Township. From A History of Warren, Benton, Jasper & Newton Counties, 1883): Justus L. Simpson was born in Otsego County, New York, May 16, 1837. He is one of seven children of William and Lovina A. (Young) Simpson, natives of New York. He received his education in the common schools of his native state. At the age of ten, he was adopted by S. Platt, with whom he lived until twenty-one.
He then worked by the month until 1862, when he enlisted in Company G, One Hundred and Fifty-second New York Volunteer Infantry, and served with the regiment until discharged February 24, 1865. He participated in all marches of his regiment, being under Gen. Dix at the siege of Suffolk in the Peninsular campaign. During the New York riots, his regiment was ordered out, after which they were transferred to the Army of the Potomac, under Gen. Grant. He was at the battles of the Wilderness, Spotsylvania Court House, and, while charging the enemy's works at Hanover Court House, received a gunshot wound in the leg, which laid him up eighteen months, and from the effects of which he has never entirely recovered.
On December 22, 1868, Justus married, at Kankakee, Illinois, Susan E. Clemans, of Wayne County, New York, the daughter of Lorenzo D. and Sarah (Kelly) Clemens. Four children were been born to them, three of whom, Jennie A., Cora M. and Jesse R., survived. Romeo died in infancy.
In 1875, Mr. Simpson came to McClellan Township, Newton County, Indiana, where he has since managed a cattle ranch for Lemuel Milk. It consists of 3,000 acres, upon which are several hundred cattle. In politics, Mr. Simpson is Republican, and one of the foremost men of the township.
HEPPNER: (Heppner Herald, May 21, 1915) J.L. Simpson honored on his 78th Birthday. Last Sunday was a happy day for Mr. J.L. Simpson and one which he will remember the rest of his life. On that day was celebrated his 78th birthday and a number of his relatives gathered at the beautiful Simpson home in west Heppner and observed this event in a fitting manner. One of the treats of the day was the three-course dinner which was prepared by his able and loving wife. During the day Mr. and Mrs. Simpson were often called upon to relate stories of their early life and struggles back in their old home in New York and Indiana and it is not amiss here to give a brief account of the lives of these two well known people who have lived in Heppner for the past eight years and who have made a wide circle of friends and have been agents for good in the community.
"Mr. Simpson was born in Otsego County, New York, in the year 1837. His father was a soldier in the War of 1812 and the son also served his country during the terrible Civil War and was mustered out in 1865 on account of wounds received in the battle of Hanover Court House, Virginia. After the war he went to Illinois and there met Miss Susan E. Clemans and the two young people were married in the year 1868. Mrs. Simpson's parents were likewise descendants of men and women who had been prominently identified with the early history of this country.
In 1875 they moved to Indiana where they lived until they came to Oregon several years ago. For some time they lived at Milton and then came to Heppner. They enjoy excellent health here and have one of the most attractive homes in our city.
Among those present at Mr. Simpson's birthday celebration were Mrs. J.M. Moss of Milton, a sister; Mr. and Mrs. William Frazier of Milton, the latter being a niece of Mr. Simpson; Mr. and Mrs. W.W. Bechdolt and two children of Hardman, Mrs. Bechdolt being a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Simpson. The Herald joins with their friends in hoping that they will live to enjoy many such events as the one just mentioned."
Justus was a member of the N.Y. Volunteer Infantry in the Civil War and was wounded in the battle of Hanover Court House, Virginia. He was mustered out because of his wounds in 1865. He married Susan E. Clemans of the Clemans family of Illinois, Heppner Pioneers in 1868 and moved to Indiana in 1875. He moved to Milton, Oregon in 1905 and to Heppner, Oregon in 1907 where he died July 2, 1917. He was buried in the Heppner cemetery on the 4th of July, 1917 at the age of 80.
According to material from the Frazier Farmstead Museum in Milton-Freewater, Oregon, he had 2 daughters and 2 sons. One (unnamed) daughter married W. W. (J.) Bechdolt in Hardman, Oregon (now a ghost town). Daughter Cora May married E.J. Merrill, also from Hardman. Son J.R. (Jessie Ray?) Simpson lived in Monon, Indiana. Son S.A. Simpson (Sherry) lived in Medaryville, Indiana. Justus died a member of the GAR and the Christian Church in Heppner,Oregon.
(Heppner Herald, Friday, July 6, 1917) J.L. Simpson, an aged and highly respected resident of Heppner passed away at his home here Monday, July 2, aged 80 years. Deceased was a native of New York state and lived for a time in Indiana before coming to Oregon 12 yearsago. The family first settled at Milton, remaining there two years, removing to Heppner ten years ago.
He was a veteran of the civil war being a member of the New York Volunteer Infantry. He was an honored member of the G.A.R. and of the Christian church. He is survived by a widow and four children. The children are: Mrs. J. Bechdolt and Mrs. E.J. Merrill, of Hardman, J.R. Simpson, of Monon, Ind., and S.A. Simpson, of Medaryville, Ind. A brother and sister in New York state and a sister at Milton, Oregon, also survive him. Funeral services were held in the Christian church Wednesday July 4, at 9:30 a.m., internment being in Heppner cemetery.
CENSUSES: Justus lived in Kankakee County, Illinois 1865 to 1875; Pulaski & Newton Counties, Indiana 1875 to 1904; Milton, Oregon 1904 to 1906; Heppner, Oregon 1906 to 1917.
In 1850, Justus Simpson (14) was living in Butternuts, Otsego, New York with Slawson Platt (56), Minerva Platt (54) and Jane A. Platt (19).
1880 US Census for McClelland Township, Newton County, Indiana lists Justice L. Simpson (44), Susan E. Simpson (32), Jennie A. (11 b. Illinois), Cora Ann (10 b. Illinois), Jessie R. (3 b. Indiana).
In 1900 Justus (63) lived in Salem, Pulaski, Indiana with wife Susan E, (50), Cora M. (28), Jessie R. (23) and Sherrie A. (17).
By 1910, Justus (72) lived in MT Vernon Precinct, Heppner City, Morrow County, Oregon with Susan (60).