Notes From My Grandmother | Rowley Lineage and Genealogy, Part 6

Somehow, much of my grandmother's hand written and (badly) typed notes and research wound up in my possession. Traveling from Chicago to Los Angeles and back to Chicago again. It sat, in the dark of my mother's closet, until my dad passed and my mom decided to begin her great purge. Knowing I had picked up the torch, the next generation to pursue the Greatest Hobby on Earth, the papers came to live with me. Unsure for many years on just what to do with them, I have decided to bring them out and share them with you - transcribed, of course - no one can read my grandmother's handwriting! But in her own words; mistakes, rambling sentences, and all. I think she will be pleased her work and her writing are once again out in the light.

Rowley Family Story con't ....

More on Rev. R C Rowley ~ bio, obituary

REVEREND R C ROWLEY ~ NONAGENARIAN

2/3/1909 - Adams County Free Press

We are this week pleased to present our readers the first of a number of pictures of nonagenarians who reside in Adams County. We purpose presenting one each week for some time, giving a short biographical sketch of each individual. All the world honors and respects the man or woman who has grown old in the service of humanity, and we feel that those of our citizens who have attained the advanced age of ninety or more years are deserving of special notice; that their experiences are interesting to our readers.

Rev Rossiter C Rowley, whose portrait we present herewith, is a resident of Corning, making his home with his daughter, Mrs J L Twining. His father, Joseph Rowley, was born in Ontario Co, New York, December 25, 1788. His mother's maiden name was Annie Beach, born in Ontario Co, New York, March 20, 1790. Rev Mr Rowley's parents were married in Victor, New York in 1815. The father died in Portage Co, Ohio, July 7, 1853, aged 63 years. The mother died November 11, 1867, aged 71 years. It will therefore be seen that Mr Rowley's progenitors were long lived stock.

Rossiter C Rowley was born July 18, 1818, in the town of Victor, Ontario Co, New York, and is therefore in his ninety-first year. In 1828 he moved with his parents to Portage Co, Ohio. At the early age of 17 years he decided upon his life's calling and was licensed to preach in 1838, and ordained  minister of the gospel in 1839. He moved to Putnam County, Indiana in 1838, and in November, 1840, was married to Rhoda A Vredenburg. After ministering for a season in Indiana, Mr Rowley removed to Illinois, where he performed missionary work until 1876, in the spring of which year he came to Iowa and settled in this county. He organized the Presbyterian churches in Brooks and Nodaway and officiated as their pastor for 25 years. In 1892 he was honorably retired from the ministry by the Presbytery of Corning, and since that time has made his home with his daughter in this city.

Rev Mr Rowley is one of the grandest men it has ever been our good fortune to know. He is known and loved by almost every citizen of this community. What a wonderful record to have been a minister of the gospel of good tidings for more than the length of an average life! What an experience it must have been that of the man who had preached salvation to the sinner, shared in the joys of his friends and comforted them in their afflictions for more than threescore and ten years! The record of twenty-five years as pastor of one church is indeed a wonderful one, and very few men can boast of a like privilege. It is indeed a pleasing personality that can retain such a hold on the affections of his people. Mr Rowley has been the good shepherd of parents in this community, their children and their children's children. His life has been a benediction to the people of Adams County, and his place in the affections of our people is firmly established. One of the pleasing recollections of his eventful life is the time when General Lafayette, on the occasion of his last visit to America, called at his father's home and held the then lad Rowley on his knee.

Nature has been good to Father Rowley, and despite his advanced age he retains his mental faculties as clear today as half a century ago. Erect in stature and clear of speech, it is a pleasure to be in his society. Optimistic in his views, the reverend gentleman believes that the world is constantly becoming better, and his unswerving faith in humanity is worthy of emulation. We are glad to have him in our community, and trust the he may be spared in health and happiness for years to come.

~~~~~0~0~0~0~0~~~~~

FATHER ROWLEY, ALMOST A CENTENARIAN, RESIDENT OF CORNING DEAD - 1912

 Father Rowley died at Biggsville, Ill Wednesday evening July 10, 1912 at 8 o'clock, at the home of his daughter-in-law, Mrs M M Rowley, being overcome with the intense heat. He left Corning Monday morning of last week for Illinois. His grandson, Frank M Rowley met him at Albia and journeyed on to Biggsville. Tuesday morning he wrote to the homefolk telling of his safe arrival. Tuesday afternoon he decided to visit the home of Mrs M M Rowley, wife of his deceased son. He was unable to withstand the heat and suffered a sunstroke.

R C Rowley was born in Victor, New York, July 18th 1818. In 1835 he was licensed to preach (at the age of 17) and in 1839 he was ordained as preacher in the M E Church. In Sept of 1850 he was appointed to the Lewistown Church and was its pastor for 2 years. In 1856 he again became pastor for 1 year. He was married to Miss Rhoda Ann Vredenburg in 1840. 5 children were born to them. Mrs Rowley died December 12, 1890.

Rev R C Rowley is buried in Walnut Grove Cemetery in Corning, IA.

"His life was spent in doing good and scattering sunshine."

.......... end ..........

©2017 Anne Faulkner - AncestorArchaeology.net, All Rights Reserved

©1950-82 Elizabeth Twining Potwin Thomas - private collection

Jesse Louis Twining: A Well Lived Life (52 Ancestors #20)

Jesse Louis Twining was my 2nd great grandfather. Since I wrote about his wife last week, I felt compelled to carry on with the family. Jesse, I discovered, was quite interesting!

Born in Iowa, died in Iowa. But that did not hinder him from having an adventurous life. Perhaps he felt the need to stay put due to his unsettled childhood.

Born, as I said, in Washington IA on August 5, 1850 to a circuit riding pioneer minister father and a homesteading mother. Through his father he was a descendant from the old Puritan stock that settled Massachusetts. He was the only child born to his mother, who had married his father as a recent widower with 6 small children all under the age of 8!

For the first decade or so of Jesse's life the family moved around a lot. Relocating in one small Iowa town or another as his father was called to establish churches and do missionary work.

For all the traveling about, Jesse did receive a fine education. He was schooled for a time in Washington IA and attended Iowa Wesleyan College in Mount Pleasant. It was there Jesse decided to pursue the noble profession of medicine.

Jesse headed to Chicago IL to pursue his medical training and studied at Northwestern University. (where 10 years later one of my Faulkner ancestors would study medicine!)

Jesse was finishing his residency in October 1871 at Mercy Hospital in Chicago when, on the night of the 8th, the Great Chicago Fire broke out. And, yes, several of my Irons ancestors also lived through that fire - the more I write these stories the more I marvel at "coincidence".

After his graduation Jesse returned to IA to practice medicine and surgery, working as a railroad surgeon in Creston, IA for the Burlington Railway franchise. But he took the pain and suffering of his patients to heart too much and gave up the profession in 1874. Healing was still in his blood, however and he settled in Corning, IA that year as the owner of the town's drug store. His profession was listed as druggist on the 1880 U.S. census.

In 1876, while on a shopping trip to nearby Brooks, IA, Jesse met his future bride, Flora Rowley,  as she shopped for draperies with her father. Apparently it was a match made in Heaven, as the two were wed in October of that same year.

Jesse and Dell, as he was fond of calling his new bride, made their home in Corning for the next 50 years. The couple has four children, three daughters and one son.

Jesse was very active in community life, he served as Mayor of Corning in 1881 to 1882 and again in 1891 to 1892. He was a member of the School Board. He was a past master of the Masonic Lodge in Corning, of which he was a member for 57 years. He was also a Knight Templar, a Knight of Pythias and a Shriner; and belonged to the Blue Lodge and Eureka Chapter no. 77 at Corning; the Bethany Commandery at Creston; and the Kaaba Temple of the Shrine at Davenport, IA.

In 1896 Jesse left the drug store to become a traveling salesman for Arbuckle Brothers wholesale tea and spice co of Kansas City, MO. His territory was Southern IA and Northwest MO. He retired in 1926.

It was said that Jesse Twining was a loving, kind, friendly person who adored his wife and children. He was a good story teller, had many fascinating experiences to talk about, had a fine sense of humor, and was a bit if a tease. "He was one of the most popular men in the county".

Jesse and Dell left Corning after Jesse's retirement to spend their senior years in Des Moines, IA in the home of their oldest daughter Bessie and her husband Irv Potwin.

Jesse Twining died April 7, 1933 just 4 months after the death of his beloved wife. He was 82 years old. They are buried together at the Walnut Grove Cemetery in Corning IA.

Flora Dell Rowley Twining: A Settled Life (52 Ancestors #19)

Flora Dell Rowley was born 12 Nov 1857 in Peoria IL. She was the youngest of five (some say that number was six) children born to the Rev. Rossiter C. Rowley and Rhoda Ann Vredenburg.

Flora spent her youth mostly in Illinois, her father had been assigned a post in that young state as a Methodist church circuit rider. First residing in Peoria then later in Galesburg where in 1860, the family was moved when her father left the Methodist Church to join the Presbyterians. It was here that Flora recalled accompanying her father to church and sitting in a big chair in the pulpit beside him.  As she grew, Flora took an active part in church music as she was blessed with a beautiful voice and musical talent.

In 1876 Rev. Rowley was called to plant new churches in Adams Co, IA, assigned to the towns of Brooks and Nodaway. Shortly after the family's arrival in Iowa Flora met, and quickly married, her husband Jesse Louis Twining. Jesse was the son of the Rev. E. W. Twining and Priscilla B Ashby. Flora had met her future husband while on a shopping trip with her father to purchase draperies for their new home.

The marriage took place 25 Oct 1876 in Corning IA, where the couple made their home for 50 years. It was officiated by both the bride and groom's fathers, as both were men of the cloth. Jesse was a druggist by profession at the time of their marriage, later he became a travelling salesman for the Arbukle Coffee Company. To them were born four children, three daughters and one son.

Not much was written on women then and Flora, "Dell" as she was fondly know to her husband, was no exception.  Painting a picture of her life with only a handful of public records is a challenge. I can imagine that life was pretty good in Corning the later part of the 19th century. Accounts of the time portray her as well liked, being active in both church and club work. The daughter of the town's preacher would surely have brought her favor. "She being one with a happy bright disposition endeared herself to all who knew her."

Main Street Corning, IA c.1900

Flora looked after her invalid mother until her death in 1890. Later she cared for her father and mother-in-law during the last years of their lives, as well as her own father until his death in 1912.


In  1918, Flora faced what every parent fears, the death of a child. Her second daughter, Anna Jeanette "Nettie" died at the age of 35.

Flora Dell Rowley Twining

Sometime between 1925 and 1930 Flora and Jesse moved to Des Moines, to spend their golden years with their oldest daughter Carrie Elizabeth "Bessie" Potwin and her husband Irv. Carrie and Irv had recently become empty nesters and were enjoying the first of their grandchildren,  It was there that Flora passed away after a short bout of pneumonia, two weeks before Christmas, 13 Dec 1932.

Her husband passed the following April.

Flora is buried in the Walnut Grove Cemetery in Corning IA. She rests with her parents, her daughter and her husband

Monroe Augustus Potwin: Mathematics Professor and House Painter (52 Ancestors #18)

Monroe Augustus Potwin was an interesting man. Born Aug 28, 1837 in Ellington, NY, he was the youngest living child born to Dr. and Mrs. Benjamin A. Potwine. (Yes, the name was spelled with an 'e', not sure why it was dropped by Monroe's generation.) There were 12 children born to the couple, three died at birth.

Dr. Potwine died when Monroe was just 14 years old. When the Civil War broke out Monroe was left to care for the family home and his mother and sisters while his three older brothers went off to fight.

Monroe must have had a fine education as he was a Professor of Mathematics and Latin at the Ellington Academy in Ellington NY, where he met his future wife, one of his students Ella Augusta Burt. The couple was married on New Years Day 1866. Monroe was 28 and Ella a mere 15.

The couple remained in New York for three more years, then headed West, to Adams Co, Iowa with two small children in tow. Their first born daughter died along the way.

Settling in Corning, Monroe took up the trade of "House Decorating", or house painter. He was also one of the first teachers at the Rawson School and a charter member of the local Presbyterian Church, the organization of which was made in his home. Monroe was superintendent of sunday school for the church for many years. During the course of his life he remained heavily involved with his church community, sitting on the board of directors, leading the choir, teaching Sunday School. It was said he had an excellent singing voice.

Three more children were born to the couple. In 1885 their first born son died by drowning, he was 12 years old.

When Monroe's wife Ella died in 1902 after a long bout with cancer it was said "her loss was a very severe blow to Mr. Potwin". He subsequently went about  making a home for himself and his young son Cyrus, 10, and threw himself into his house painting business.

Later, Monroe took his youngest son Cyrus under his wing and the pair formed Messrs. Potwin and Son - a much sought after house painting team. The outfit was so highly regarded that a 1914 article in a Corning newspaper quoting: "A fine example is being set in the community by H. F. Fleming, who has just had his house painted by Potwin and Son. Someone is to be congratulated on having chosen a very tasteful color scheme, and the house is now even more attractive than ever. When one can paint in a community for 45 years, it certainly looks as though his work were appreciated."

Monroe died August 25, 1917 and was buried along side his wife in the Walnut Grove Cemetery in Corning. At his funeral the officiating minister spoke advisedly when he said that the memory of such a life was the most valuable heritage the father could leave to his children. Mr. Potwin had the respect and esteem of the people for his exemplary life.


Note: Monroe's obituary was erroneously printed with his middle name first and has thereby caused myriad mistaken identities around the web in many public family trees. His name as listed here is correct. 

Rhoda Ann Vredenburg Rowley: Following In Her Mother's Footsteps (52 Ancestors #14)

Rhoda Ann Vredenburg was born March 4, 1818 in Terre Haute, Indiana. Her father was Reverend Hackaliah Vredenburg, her mother Sarah Kniffen. She was the second daughter born to the couple, and one of nine children. Rhoda's father was a circuit rider for the Methodist ministry and was often gone for long stretches of time. Her childhood in the wilderness of Indiana was one of hardship, scarcity and lack.

In September 1840 Rhoda married Reverend Rossiter Clark Rowley. Rossiter was a fresh young Methodist circuit rider from Ohio who had, sometime after 1838, been assigned to preach in Putnam County, Indiana.

The newly married couple made their home in Greencastle, Indiana "for a season", which based on the birth of their first two children was at least 5 years. It is recorded that Reverend Rowley was called to missionary work in Illinois, and their youngest child was born in Peoria in 1857.

I can only imagine the life Rhoda must have had up to this point. Growing up in the desolate wilderness of a brand new State, being cold and hungry for much of her young life. She was a devout Christian which must have been the appeal to marry a man just like her "dear old dad". She learned at the heels of her mother how to be a preacher's wife, so I imagine the role came naturally to her when she began her own married life. The big city of Peoria, Illinois must have, at first, seemed strange and frightening.

Rhoda and Rossiter had five children in all, but research to date has only uncovered three named children. The assumption is that two children died in childbirth or early infancy.

By 1853 Rev. and Mrs. Rowley had acquired 20 acres of land a mile outside of Peoria and had built a "neat little cottage".  There is an account of the virgin land being plowed by a team of oxen and a considerable orchard being planted. Rhoda must have been very happy at this seemingly idyllic life after so much hardship in her youth.

Sometime around 1860 Rhoda's husband transferred his membership to the Presbyterian Church and was performing missionary work once again. The family is found in Galesburg, Illinois until the 1870's.

In 1876 the family uproots again. This time to Adams County Iowa. Rev. Rowley was in charge of organizing the Presbyterian churches in Brooks and Nodaway, Iowa.

Nothing is written of Rhoda's life, save for her obituary, so I must tell her story through the documentation of her husband. In Rhoda's later years she was an invalid. Often during her years of suffering physicians despaired, as did her friends. It is recorded that Rhoda bore her suffering with Christian fortitude and uncomplainingly.

Rhoda died in her home on December 10, 1890. She was 72 years old. Her last days were spent pain free and she died as if falling asleep. Her last words were "come Jesus, come".


footnote: all of the accounts recorded her were the collected writings of my grandmother during her genealogical research work - all credit goes to Elizabeth Twining Potwin Thomas.