George S. Geiger (1811 - 1885)

George S. Geiger was born in January 11, 1811 in Harrisburg, Dauphin, Pennsylvania.^[1] He was a son of Johannes "John" Geiger and Maria "Mary" Shoch. George was educated in the common schools in Pennsylvania. He moved from Pennsylvania to Ohio in 1832 and lived in the following counties: Circleville, Pickaway and Franklin; owning at one time the farm on which the city of North Columbus has since been built.

Marriage

George married Rebecca Culbertson Wallace on June 17, 1852 in Martin's Ferry, Belmont, Ohio.^[2]

1860 Census Prairie, Franklin, Ohio^[3]

• George Greger Male 49 Pennsylvania
• Rebecca C Greger Female 34 Pennsylvania
  • Mary Greger Female 8 Ohio
  • Fanny Greger Female 3 Ohio
  • George Greger Male 0 Ohio
• John Wallace Male 64 Pennsylvania
• Mary Wallace Female 45 Pennsylvania
• William Lee Male 20 Pennsylvania

During the Civil War, George was an army contractor and moved the family to Louisville, Kentucky.^[4] He was a sutler with the Fifteenth Ohio regiment.^[5]

In April 25, 1866 George sold the farm and migrated to Kansas, remaining in Topeka until the fall when he settled in Ellsworth. He took up claim two hundred miles from the Missouri river, near Fork Harker on the bank of the Smokey Hill. At that time, Ellsworth was struggling into existence and the Geigers found themselves at the very forefront of pioneer crudeness.^[6] George slept with loaded guns and had a barbed wire surrounding his claim. The Indians never crossed it, believing it to be a trap to corral them. George Geiger was one of the members of the town company Wamego. He engaged extensively in building and dealing in town lots, erecting seven buildings during his two years of residence. He served as the first Postmaster, the business of the office increasing during his incumbency sic from $1 per month to $100 per month. He was twice appointed Probate Judge of Ellsworth County, but never qualified for that office. After the two years, on March 4, 1868, he moved back to Topeka and engaged in mercantile business with his step-son Wallace McGrath under the company name of Geiger & McGrath.^[4]

1870 Census Topeka, Shawnee, Kansas^[7]

• George Geiger Male 59 Pennsylvania
• Rebecca C Geiger Female 44 Pennsylvania
  • Mary Geiger Female 17 Ohio
  • Fanny Geiger Female 13 Ohio
  • Elizabeth E Geiger Female 7 Ohio
  • Wallace McGrath Male 25 Ohio
• George Hamilton Male 45 England
• Elizabeth Hamilton Female 37 England

1880 Census Prairie, Franklin, Ohio, United States ^[8]

• Gorge Granger Self Male 69 Pennsylvania
• R. C. Granger Wife Female 55 Pennsylvania
  • M. E. Granger Daughter Female 14 Ohio
• Lorra Jentry Other Female 25 Tennessee

Death

George Geiger died on May 9, 1885 in Topeka, Shawnee, Kansas after enduring a long and painful illness. He was buried at the Topeka Cemetery, in Topeka, Shawnee, Kansas, United States.^[4][9][10]

Last Will and Testament

I now make this _____ to my foregoing last will and testament. I do not wish to make any change in said will except to this effect: that if my said wife should die before my decease, then it is in my will that all my estate real and personal should go to the children of my said wife to wit: Wallace McGrath, Mary G. Lee, Fannie G. Thompson, and Malvina E. Rogers, to be divided equally among them, then their share to their heirs. ^[11]

Witness my hand and seal this 6th day of April 1885 Geo Geiger

Sources

1. ↑ Historical Society of Pennsylvania; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Historic Pennsylvania Church and Town Records; Reel: 691.[online database] Ancestry.com.
2. ↑ Ohio, County Marriage Records, 1774-1993. [online database] Ancestry.com.
3. ↑ United States Census, 1860 [online database] FamilySearch. George Greger; Prairie, Franklin, Ohio; Roll: M653_962; Page: 220.
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1 4.2} Death of Mrs. A. H. Thompson. The Western dental journal, Vol: 17. 1903 pg. 133-136.
5. ↑ Kansas State Historical Society, A Baby Wagon 101 Years Old. Biennial Report, Vol: 18
6. ↑ A Hundred Kansas Women. The Topeka Daily Capital. Topeka, Kansas. 19 Jul 1908, Pg 11.
7. ↑ United States Census, 1870[online database] FamilySearch. George Geiger, Topeka, Shawnee, Kansas, United States; citing p. 16, family 149.
8. ↑ United States Census, 1880, Gorge Granger, The Township Of Prairie, Franklin, Ohio, United States ; citing enumeration district ED 4, sheet 71C.
9. ↑ Find A Grave memorial page for George S. Geiger (27 Jan 1811–8 May 1885), Find A Grave Memorial no. 85776277, citing Topeka Cemetery, Topeka, Shawnee County, Kansas, USA
10. ↑ Obituary George Geiger. The Weekly Commonwealth 14 May 1885 Pg. 8.
11. ↑ Kansas, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1803-1987 [online database]. Ancestry.com.