| Notes |
- Belle Lewis household, 1930 U.S. Census, Kansas, population schedule, Jewell County, Burr Oak Township, E.D. 45-7, sheet 6A, dwelling 131, family 131
Lewis, Belle, head O $1000 no F W 69 wd no yes IL US US yes none
Burr Oak Herald, November 24, 1938
Mrs. Belle Lewis, 77 year old Burr Oak resident, died at her home in the west edge of town Friday morning, after being critically ill for about 10 days. Her two daughters, Mrs. Ralph Parsons of Louisville, Ky and Mrs. Fred Myers of Palm Beach, Florida came last week to be with her. Other children, Charles Lewis and Mrs. Homer Grubbs, local residents, and Mrs. Earl Morris of Hardy, Nebraska had also been with her.
Funeral services were held Sunday afternoon at the Methodist Church with Rev. C.R. Vasey in charge. Burial was made in the Burr Oak cemetery.
The early career of Mrs. Hannah Belle Lewis came to a close Friday morning, November 18, 1938, at her home in Burr Oak, Kansas, after an illness of less than two weeks. She was 77 years, 3 months and 21 days old. Hannah Belle, daughter of George and Mary Hunt, was born in Onarga, Illinois, August 28, 1861, and when about two years old, with her parents, came by ox-wagon and settled near Yates Center, Kansas, where she grew to womanhood, and was married to George W. Fry, October 31, 1880. Two little girls, Bessie and Edith, were born to this union. Bessie died when she was seven years old. After Mr. Fry died in 1884, Mrs. Lewis resided in Yates Center. When visiting her brother at New Market, Iowa, she met and married Mr. Calvin Lewis, April 24, 1886. They moved to Burr Oak soon after their marriage and she has resided her continuously since. To them were born six children, on Walter died in infancy. Another, Dan died in 1912. Since the death of Mr. Lewis in September, 1926, Mrs. Lewis has maintained her home, spending much time with her children, and they with her. Last year, at just this time, she, with her daughter Mattie Grubbs, and grandson, Homer Lewis, were en route to the south to spend the winter.
Since a very early age, Mrs. Lewis was a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and she was a member of the Cheerful Workers church school class, which she enjoyed attending. Mrs. Lewis knew much of the life of the pioneer wife and mother who endured bravely every obstacle which beset all early settlers---when the forces of nature combined to make their lives difficult and rigorous, and sickness and death added to the strain, still with undaunted faith and courage, she was true to her sense of duty and responsibility, bowing and smiling to everyone she met. She was deeply interested in the problems of her family, and faithful to her family in every way; giving of her time, energy, and council at all time. She was friendly and loved friendly groups. She served the W.R.C. as chaplain.
Mrs. Lewis was the last of her generation. She is survived by her son, Charles of the home; daughters Mrs. Edith Morris of Hardy, Neb., Mrs. Grace Myers of Palm Beach, Florida, Mrs. Hazel Parsons of Louisville, Kentucky, and Mrs. Mattie Grubbs of Burr Oak; a sister-in-law, Mrs. Minnie Aldrick of Topeka, Kansas; nine grandchildren, Elleen, Lynn, and Mary Ann Lewis, Jeanne and Lindell Parsons, Lyle, Wendell, and Max Morris and Homer Lewis Grubbs; one great-grandchild; three nieces, Mrs. Berniece Cramer and Mrs. Ed Harrison of Clarinda, Iowa, and Mrs. Glen Miller of Omaha, Nebraska.
The life of Mrs. Lewis was filled with kindly thoughts and helpful deed for those she loved. She truly lived an unselfish life, a good life, well defined by her loving, Christian, pleasing personality, and she will be sorely missed by her friends and relatives.
The funeral was from the home at 2 p. m. Sunday, November 21, with a service at the Methodist Church. A quartet, Mrs. L. A. Pixler, Mrs. A. W. Mann, Alfred Craighead and W. L. McCormick, sang three hymns, "Face to Face, " "Abide with Me," and "Crossing the Bar." Adolph Unruh sang "The End of a Perfect Day." Rev. C. R. Vasey gave the sermon. The pall bearers were Ed Wilsman, E.E. Lewis, Willard Harris, R. R. Richardson, Roy Coyner, and P. H. O'Brian. Interment was in the Burr Oak Cemetery.
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Her granddaughter Lindell Drake Parsons wrote:
I want to tell you what I remember of my Grandmother---Hannah Belle Lewis. She was Grandpa's third wife. The other two died young and one died in childbirth. Grandmother had also been married before and lost her husband early. She had a daughter Edith---I remember her very well. Grandmother's married name was Frye. Before she moved to Kansas, she lived in Onarga, Illinois, which was close to Chicago. She "walked" to Kansas, she said because she was so young that she ran and played around the covered wagon. I have a jewel box which made that trip. It is empty but it is in the cabinet Jim gave me (TV).
She remembered Indians coming to the door of their home and told how frightened her mother was. The Indians sat on the floor and wanted cookies as her mother was baking. Grandmother stood by her baby brother's cradle and rocked him so he wouldn't cry.
Grandmother was a happy person--always busy--cooking or sewing. She stayed with Jeanne and me for three weeks when I was eight years old. Mom and Dad went to an insurance convention at Mackinac Island, MI--about 1928.
Grandmother's maiden name was Hunt. She had two brothers--Al and I don't remember [Daniel--who died in 1907]--the name was Clayton. Later the brothers and families lived in Clarinda, Iowa. They seemed to be quite well-to-do and helped the Lewis family a lot. Mother remembered going by train to Iowa. The whole family moved there for about two years (1910) and then came back to Burr Oak.
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From Hoppers to Copters: Stories of Nuckolls County for 100 Years [1971]
"Belle's Curls"
As told by her son and daughter Charles Lewis and Mattie L. Grubbs
Can curls save a little girl's life?---and that of her family? The growth of the modern hair dressing profession seems to prove that women still think curls can do them a lot of good, but the Clayton family from Onarga, Illinois were convinced that little Belle's curls softened the heart of notorious Kate Bender and caused Kate to defend them against the plans of a group of lurking men, assembled furtively to do the sort of thing that caused eleven or more people to vanish--forever.
Belle Hunt survived to remember the story and the long night when her stepfather guarded his little family; and became, finally, a resident of Jewell County, Kansas. She was a young widow with two little daughters when she met Mr. Lewis and his two motherless sons. Mr. and Mrs. Lewis made their new home in Burr Oak, at that time, a community made up largely of Illinois people. They became the parents of six children, two of whom were residents of Nuckolls county. One Daughter was Mrs. E. B. Morris whose husband published the newspaper in Hardy at one time, and another daughter was Mrs. Ralph Parsons, whose husband was an employee of the Farmers' State Bank and a nephew of Mr. J.R. Parsons who was once the president of this Superior bank.
The Clayton family came to Kansas the first time in a covered wagon hauled by six oxen. The oxen were hitched in pairs, behind each other and were controlled by the driver's bull whip rather than conventional harness such as would have been used with horses.
The prized possession was a barrel of home-made soft soap which was roped on to the wagon. With three small children, one only a baby, soap could be very important to anyone going into a new land with no grocery store and no mail order catalog. There were many streams to be forded--ones too small for any raft or ferryboat such as was necessary on the big Missouri River. Of the few crossings of the Missouri that were in use at that time, old Westport Landing, now Kansas City, was the one best known to travelers of the time.
[It is a great brawling brute of a river. I have come to fear it, " said Samuel Allis 125 years ago after experience with the Missouri in his travels as an early-day missionary to the Pawnee Indians.]
All went well for the Claytons until they tried to ford the Neosho River which was temporarily higher than usual. The current was stronger than expected, also, the oxen turned their heads downstream. The combination of high water and unwilling oxen nearly drowned all of them. There was heavy loss of the wagon's contents but the loss that made the mother cry was her barrel of soft soap. It had floated away from the wagon and was empty when recovered.
Shortly after, Mr. Clayton sold his oxen, purchasing horses to use on his land. Before they became well-established, a death in the family back home where six little children were left without a mother caused them to return to Illinois. When they were free to leave again, they were anxious to get to Kansas and become well settled before spring planting time.
Against the wishes of their relatives and friends, they left January 6, 1873. This time, with frozen trails and frozen streams and rivers, they were able to make a faster trip---and in some ways a safer one. With few difficulties, except cold and snow, the Claytons arrived in Kansas and stopped along the trail one night at the home of the notorious Bender family. The Clayton family later felt that it was Belle's curls which kept them from becoming victims of that family who were responsible for the mysterious disappearance of at least a dozen people.
During the evening, Kate Bender, the grown daughter of the host family, played with the three children and was fascinated by Belle's long brown curls. Holding the child on her lap, Kate curled and re curled Belle's hair and fed the child dried apple pie. Obviously, Kate had taken a fancy to Belle Hunt and later in the evening, during an argument in an adjoining room, Kate must have defended the Clayton family, refusing to let a group of rough men make plans to kill them.
Mr. Clayton, Belle's stepfather, became suspicious as he made trips between his wagon and the Bender house. There were too many saddled horses with no riders in sight, and the place had an eerie atmosphere as well as whispered conversations and obvious disagreement in the other room. Mr. Clayton strapped on his loaded revolver and carried his axe, which he kept nearby as the Benders fed the travelers a late meal.
While Mrs. Clayton and the children rested, Mr. Clayton sat up, awake and fearful, with axe and gun ready for something--he knew not what. At midnight, the house grew quiet, but Mr. Clayton still could not sleep. Instead, he sneaked out at sunup, harnessed his horses, hitched them to the wagon, and made ready to depart. He tiptoed back to awaken his family, who left as fast as they could; they dressed in the wagon as they hurried away from the dangerous Benders.
The Claytons, without any major difficulties, reached their destination, Yates Center, Kansas. Later, after Mr. Clayton's death, Mrs. Clayton and her family moved to Burr Oak where they lived in the house now owned by Mrs. Will Morton.
Perhaps desiring to spend her remaining years in her native state, Mrs. Clayton and Belle returned to Illinois. Here Belle was married to George Frye, a newspaperman who had two small daughters. [ed--he and Belle had the daughters].
Unfortunately, Mr. Frye did not live too long after their marriage; and Belle, accompanied by the two girls, returned to Burr Oak. Here she married Civil War Veteran, Cal Lewis, a widower with two small sons. A part of the Lewis homestead became the Lewis addition to the city of Burr Oak.
Marriage
24 Apr 1886 ? New Market, Taylor, Iowa
Calvin Elvin Lewis (1840?1926)
Name: Belle Hunt Fry
Gender: Female
Birth Place: Illinois
Marriage Date: 24 Apr 1886
Marriage Place: Bedford, Taylor Co., Iowa
Father: George Hunt
Mother: Mary Riner
Spouse: Calvin E. Lewis
FHL Film Number: 1035144
Reference ID: 2:3JQZWWP
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1861 - 1938 (77 years)
