Christian Cowen Stoner (1844 - 1931)

Born 27 Dec 1844 in North Woodbury Township, Bedford, Pennsylvania, United States

Ancestors

Husband of Rachel Annis (Winebrenner) Stoner — married 29 Aug 1867 in Noble, Noble county, Indiana

Descendants

Died 16 Jan 1931 at age 86 in Long Beach, Los Angeles, California, United States [uncertain]

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Alison Gardner [send private message]

Plot: Lawn W

Biography

Private; Forager Christian Stoner served in the United States Civil War.
Enlisted: Dec. 24, 1863
Mustered out: Jul. 15, 1865
Side: USA
Regiment(s): 14th Army Corps, 88th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Co. B; 38th Regiment, Co. G

Christian Cowen Stoner was born in the area of Morrison's Cove, in North Woodbury township, Bedford County, Pennsylvania. He claimed to have been born in Blair County, Penn., because Blair County was formed when he was an infant. The family moved, when C. C. was nearly 4 years old, to Noble County, Indiana. He claimed that his father made the move "in the dead of winter, with $4 and a cow." There were some other people in that area that made that move around the same time, supposedly they were all part of the same church.

C. C. grew up in Noble Township, Noble County, Indiana. He attended a local one-room schoolhouse there. The family were members of the Christian Church based at Miriam, Indiana, pastored by Peter Winebrenner, who also was a circuit-rider, serving the area. The church preached abolitionism, and C. C., his older brother David, and 3 cousins all enlisted in the Civil War. C. C. was the only one of them to come back alive. His brother was killed in one of the last skirmishes, and one of his cousins perished as a prisoner of war. C. C. enlisted Dec. 24, 1863, at age 19, after losing 2 cousins to the war. He was discharged in late July, 1865. He was in Gen. Sherman's army, Co. B, 88th Indiana Volunteers Infantry, 14th Army Corps. He was on Sherman's march through the south, from Chattanooga, Tennessee, through Georgia, South and North Carolina, Virgina, and ending in "Washington City" at Lincoln's review of the troops. He participated in the battles of Resac, Dallas, Dalton, Snake Creek Gap, Buzzard's Roost, Kenesaw Mountain, Peach Tree, Jonesboro, Goldsboro, Bentonville, and others. ^[1] He was transferred to the 38th Regiment June 7th, 1865; mustered out July 15, 1965.

After the war, C. C. returned home. He finished school at Wolf Lake high school. He taught school, and within a couple of years, he married Rachel Winebrenner, his minister's eldest daughter. They set up housekeeping in Indiana--the census lists them there in 1870, and they have taken in 6-year-old Ulyses Hardy.

In 1873, they moved to Nelson Township, Cloud County, Kansas. He is listed there in the 1875 state census, and his parents are with them. Ulyses seems to have stayed in Indiana. C. C. took his soldier's pay, and bought a homestead there, sight unseen, in 1873, about 12 miles east of Concordia, which was up for sale at a very good price, as the homesteader had not been able to "make good" on the homestead (live up to the requirements of the Homesteading Act). When they got there, Rachel sat down and cried, as the dwelling consisted of a small one-room stone building with no roof, and the fields were thick buffalo grass with little broken sod.

C. C. was industrious, and quarried more limestone, with which he built two more rooms on the cabin, and built both roof and ceiling. They had a bedroom for themselves, and one for the parents, and a kitchen/common room. C. C. plowed and planted, but the weather was unreliable in Kansas, and he often would loose crops, and had to supplement his income in other ways. He "read law", and practiced locally as an attorney. He was elected Justice of the Peace in the Nelson Center district soon after moving to Kansas, and continued in this position for 15 years. He taught at the Nelson Center country school, while his daughter Ella was attending there. That would have been the 1880's. His son George was born on the farm in 1884. He was listed in the Kansas state census as living in Concordia with his family in 1885. His son Peter was born on the farm in 1888. He was elected Probate Judge for Cloud county that year, and served for two terms. He rented out the farm and moved back to Concordia for 4 years. He was elected chaplain of the Cloud County Alliance of the People's (Populist) Party for the year starting July, 1890. As probate Judge, in 1891, he was also appointed by the county commissioners as the purchasing agent for Cloud county, in lieu of the county clerk, who was Republican. He also served in the Assembly of the Kansas state legislature, as a Populist Party representative, from 1896 to 1898, in Topeka; but the legislature only met in the winter, and the boys were big enough to run the farm in his absence, so the family did not have to move. In 1898, he was listed on the anti-republican caucus in the House (or Assembly) in support of a railroad bill. Although the bill that was actually passed, with the votes of the populists, they wrote an objection to the bill, C. C. Stoner being one of the signers, protesting the input from railroad attorneys and the railroad lobby in the creation of the bill. They felt it was not the bill they promised the people, but a compromise, which was the best they felt they could get, but that it still felt like a defeat. In 1896, C. C. served on the Permanent Organization Committee of the Populist Party, and was elected a Populist delegate to the state convention.

In 1897, C. C. was granted his pension for fighting in the Civil War, of $6 monthly. ^{[2] [3]}

C. C. and Rachel had a total of 5 children, 2 dying in infancy. Given the reasonable number of children, I'd conjecture that they used birth control. My mother told me that when she was first married (before the advent of birth control pills) that her mother told her of an old-fashioned method of birth control that she had used--douching with vinegar-water after you-know-what. I don't think my grandmother learned that from her mother, as she had a gazillion siblings. More likely from her mother-in-law.

In 1903, when C. C.'s sons were of age to attend college, he rented out, and later sold, the farm (the family he sold it to still owns it), and moved to Lincoln, Kansas, where he bought a small 10 acre parcel with an orchard. He could not support the family on such a small farm, so he also bought the Lincoln Sentinel, the local newspaper. He worked as editor and publisher, and his two boys ran the presses. The Lincoln house had 4 bedrooms, so Peter and George shared a bedroom, and they also took in 4 roomers in the two extra bedrooms, for extra income, to put the boys through college.

They attended the Christian church there, after his son-in-law, Henry Secrist, along with C. C.'s two sons, built the church building.

In Oct. 1907, their barn, in Cloud County, on the land which was rented out, was hit by lightning and burned. The barn was insured, but not the contents, which would probably have belonged to the renters. Two horses were killed.

Around 1907, they decided to move out to Orange, California, where he bought a lot and built a house, with the help of Henry Secrist (Henry and Ella had moved to Long Beach in 1906) and George and Peter. C. C. also went in with George on a small orange ranch; George and Peter expanded the planted area. In Orange, C. C. served as a city trustee for 6 years; for 4 or those, he was the Chairman of the city board, or acting mayor. He was then appointed as city recorder.

He was a member of Gordon Granger post 138, and an elder of the First Christian Church of Orange.

C. C.'s wife Rachel died in 1923. Some time after this, C. C. sold the house and moved in with his sister-in-law, Barbara Ohlwine. C. C. died in 1931.

Reseach Notes

1850 census (Noble, Noble, Indiana) Jacob Stoner M 37 Pennsylvania Mary Stoner F 38 Pennsylvania Elizabeth Stoner F 16 Pennsylvania Mary Ann Stoner F 13 Pennsylvania David Stoner M 9 Pennsylvania Christian Stoner M 5 Pennsylvania Nancy Ann Stoner F 0 Indiana

1860 census: (Indiana) Household Jacob Stoner M 48 Penn Polly Stoner F 51 Penn David Stoner M 20 Penn Christian Stoner M 16 Penn Nancy A Stoner F 10 Ind Ellen Stoner F 6 Ind Alta James F 6 Ind Jacob Bethel M 2 Ind

1870 census: (Indiana) Christian Stoner M 24 Pennsylvania Rachel Stoner F 19 Indiana Ulyses G Hardy M 6 Indiana

http://gen.nobleco.lib.in.us/Guardianships/AK.htm Gives guardianship of Sylvester and Almon Hardy, heirs of Arba Hardy, to James C. Stewart, filed Mar 29, 1883

1875 Cloud county, Kansas state census Jack Stoner M 64 Pennsylvania Polly Stoner F 66 Pennsylvania C Stoner M 30 Pennsylvania K A Stoner F 24 Indiana B E Stoner F 0 Kansas

SERVICE.--Pursuit of Bragg into Kentucky October 1-15, 1862. Battle of Perryville, Ky., October 8. March to Nashville, Tenn., October 16-November 7, and duty there until December 26. Advance on Murfreesboro December 26-30. Battle of Stone's River December 30-31, 1862, and January 1-3, 1863. Duty at Murfreesboro until June. Middle Tennessee or Tullahoma Campaign June 23-July 7. Occupation of Middle Tennessee until August 16. Passage of the Cumberland Mountains and Tennessee River and Chickamauga (Ga.) Campaign August 16-September 22. Davis Cross Roads or Dug Gap September 11. Battle of Chickamauga September 19-21. Rossville Gap September 21. Siege of Chattanooga, Tenn., September 24-November 23. Chattanooga-Ringgold Campaign November 23-27. Lookout Mountain November 23-24. Mission Ridge November 25. Pea Vine Creek and Graysville November 26. Ringgold Gap, Taylor's Ridge, November 27. March to Charleston December 30, 1863, to January 10, 1864. Demonstration on Dalton, Ga., February 22-27, 1864. Tunnel Hill, Buzzard's Roost Gap and Rocky Faced Ridge February 23-25. Atlanta (Ga.) Campaign May 1-September 8. Demonstration on Rocky Faced Ridge May 8-11. Buzzard's Roost Gap, May 8-9. Battle of Resaca May 14-15. Advance on Dallas May 18-25. Operations on line of Pumpkin Vine Creek and battles about Dallas, New Hope Church and Allatoona Hills May 25-June 5. Operations about Marietta and against Kenesaw Mountain June 10-July 2. Pine Hill June 11-14. Lost Mountain June 15-17. Assault on Kenesaw June 27. Ruff's Station July 4. Chattahoochie River July 5-17. Buckhead, Nancy's Creek, July 18. Peach Tree Creek July 19-20. Siege of Atlanta July 22-August 25. Utoy Creek August 5-7. Flank movement on Jonesboro August 25-30. Near Red Oak August 30. Battle of Jonesboro August 31-September 1. Operations against Hood in North Georgia and North Alabama September 29-November 3. March to the sea November 15-December 10. Siege of Savannah December 10-21. Campaign of the Carolinas January to April, 1865. Averysboro, N. C., March 16. Battle of Bentonville March 19-21. Occupation of Goldsboro March 24. Advance on Raleigh April 10-14. Occupation of Raleigh April 14. Bennett's House April 26. Surrender of Johnston and his army. March to Washington, D.C., via Richmond, Va., April 29-May 19. Grand Review May 24. Mustered out June 7, 1865. ^[4]

Sources

1. ↑ https://archive.org/stream/historyoforangec00armo#page/285/mode/1up
2. ↑ The Topeka State Journal, Aug. 20, 1897 https://www.newspapers.com/image/323096904/?terms=%22Christian%2BStoner%22
3. ↑ The National Field, Oct. 14, 1898 [The Topeka State Journal, Aug. 20, 1897 https://www.newspapers.com/image/323096904/?terms=%22Christian%2BStoner%22
4. ↑ http://www.civilwararchive.com/Unreghst/unininf7.htm#88th

• Lois Gardner

• "Life History of Peter W. Stoner, Containing Items of Interest Only to His Children" by Peter W. Stoner, unpublished, written about 1967

• "Autobiography of Peter W. Stoner" by Peter W. Stoner, unpublished, written about 1978

• Bob Wolfe http://www-personal.umich.edu/~bobwolfe/gen/mn/m8661x8664.htm

• "Indiana Marriages, 1811-2007," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VRXD-QPT : 10 December 2017), Christian Stoner and Rachel A Winebrenner, 29 Aug 1867; citing Noble, Indiana, United States, various county clerk offices, Indiana; FHL microfilm 1,704,899.

• Find a Grave https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/8722423/christian-cowen-stoner

• "United States Census, 1840," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHYD-3Y9 : 8 September 2017), Jacob Stoner, North Woodbury, Bedford, Pennsylvania, United States; citing p. 349, NARA microfilm publication M704, (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 445; FHL microfilm 20,538.

• "United States Census, 1850," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MHJ1-356 : 12 April 2016), Christian Stoner in household of Jacob Stoner, Noble, Noble, Indiana, United States; citing family 71, NARA microfilm publication M432 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).

• "United States Census, 1860", database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M4FT-KM5 : 13 December 2017), Christian Stoner in entry for Jacob Stoner, 1860.

• Fold 3 https://www.fold3.com/image/272/294988742?xid=1945 https://www.fold3.com/image/249/359026?xid=1945 https://www.fold3.com/page/643181657-christian-cowen-stoner

• History of the 88th Indiana Infantry https://archive.org/stream/historyeightyeig00indi/historyeightyeig00indi_djvu.txt

• Indiana Volunteers, 88th Regiment https://civilwarindex.com/armyin/soldiers/88th_in_infantry_soldiers.pdf
• Indiana Volunteers, 38th Regiment https://civilwarindex.com/armyin/soldiers/38th_in_infantry_soldiers.pdf

• "United States Civil War Soldiers Index, 1861-1865," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FS4M-L38] : 4 December 2014), Christian Stoner, Private, Company B, 88th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Union; citing NARA microfilm publication M540 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 74; FHL microfilm 881,795.

• Noble county Civil War discharge records http://www.indgensoc.org/membersonly/county/noble/civil_war_discharge_papers_results.php

• "United States Civil War and Later Pension Index, 1861-1917", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NHCC-KWB] : 24 March 2016), Christian Stoner, 1896.

• https://www.fold3.com/image/294988742

• "United States Census, 1870," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MX6W-1D6 : 12 April 2016), Christian Stoner, Indiana, United States; citing p. 7, family 62, NARA microfilm publication M593 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.); FHL microfilm 545,846.

• Kansas State Census, 1875 https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QL6X-MW2Z

• U. S. Census Fact: Residence (1880) Nelson, Cloud, Kansas, USA https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/person/tree/79590363/person/36408326173/facts

• Kansas State Census Collection, 1855-1925, 1885, Concordia, KS

• "Kansas State Census, 1895", database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QL8V-C12C : 12 November 2017), B E Secrist, 1895.

• "United States Census, 1900," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MMTC-PZY : accessed 30 January 2018), Christian C Stoner, Lawrence & Nelson Townships, Cloud, Kansas, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 21, sheet 12A, family 247, NARA microfilm publication T623 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1972.); FHL microfilm 1,240,475.

• U. S. Census Fact: Residence (1910) Orange, Orange, California, USA (from Ancestry.com)

• "United States Census, 1920," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MH7R-8KB : accessed 30 January 2018), Christian Stoner, Orange, Orange, California, United States; citing ED 73, sheet 3A, line 49, family 82, NARA microfilm publication T625 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1992), roll 123; FHL microfilm 1,820,123.

• "United States Census, 1930," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XCJT-L1Z : accessed 30 January 2018), Christine C Stoner in household of Barbara E Beolwine, Long Beach, Los Angeles, California, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 1113, sheet 9B, line 86, family 175, NARA microfilm publication T626 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2002), roll 130; FHL microfilm 2,339,865.

• Samuel Armor, History of Orange County California with Biographical Sketches (1921), 285, https://archive.org/stream/historyoforangec00armo#page/285/mode/1up.

• The Advocate newspaper, Topeka, KS, Aug. 12, 1896 https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn85032018/1896-08-12/ed-1/seq-1/#date1=1870&index=0&rows=20&words=C+Stoner&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=Kansas&date2=1907&proxtext=C.+C.+Stoner&y=9&x=15&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1

• The Advocate, Meriden, Kansas, July 23, 1890 https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn85029079/1890-07-23/ed-1/seq-13/#date1=1870&index=1&rows=20&words=C+Stoner&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=Kansas&date2=1907&proxtext=C.+C.+Stoner&y=9&x=15&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1

• The Advocate, Topeka, Kansas, Aug 19, 1896 https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn85032018/1896-08-19/ed-1/seq-8/#date1=1870&index=2&rows=20&words=C+Stoner&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=Kansas&date2=1907&proxtext=C.+C.+Stoner&y=9&x=15&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1

• The Advocate, Topeka, Kansas, Nov. 11, 1896 https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn85032018/1896-11-11/ed-1/seq-8/#date1=1870&index=4&rows=20&words=C+Stoner&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=Kansas&date2=1907&proxtext=C.+C.+Stoner&y=9&x=15&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1

• The Advocate, Topeka, Kansas, Dec. 21, 1898 https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn85032019/1898-12-21/ed-1/seq-1/#date1=1870&index=5&rows=20&words=C+Stoner&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=Kansas&date2=1907&proxtext=%22C.+C.+Stoner%22&y=10&x=14&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1

• Western Kansas World, Aug. 18, 1906 https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn82015485/1906-08-18/ed-1/seq-5/#date1=1870&index=6&rows=20&words=C+Stoner&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=Kansas&date2=1907&proxtext=%22C.+C.+Stoner%22&y=10&x=14&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1

• The Advocate, Meriden, Kansas, July 29, 1891 https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn85029079/1891-07-29/ed-1/seq-13/#date1=1870&index=7&rows=20&words=C+Stoner&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=Kansas&date2=1907&proxtext=%22C.+C.+Stoner%22&y=10&x=14&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1

• Topeka State Journal, Oct 4, 1907 https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn82016014/1907-10-04/ed-1/seq-3/#date1=1870&index=8&rows=20&words=C+Stoner&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=Kansas&date2=1907&proxtext=%22C.+C.+Stoner%22&y=10&x=14&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1

• Topeka State Journal, July 22, 1896 https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn82016014/1896-07-22/ed-1/seq-5/#date1=1870&index=17&rows=20&words=C+Stoner&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=Kansas&date2=1907&proxtext=%22C.+C.+Stoner%22&y=10&x=14&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1

• Concordia Blade, June 17, 1892 https://kansashistoricalopencontent.newspapers.com/image/127944911/?terms=C.%2BC.%2BStoner