Conrad Ickes and Elizabeth Lingenfelter Ickes

Conrad Ickes was born in 1812,  probably in the house located on the original homestead in Dutch Corner. His parents, Adam and Mary, and his grandparents, John and Mary (Elizabeth) were all living there together.

Various tracts of land were bought, sold, inherited, divided, sub-divided, etc. between John and Adam and Adam and Conrad.  Until I dig deeper through all the land records including deeds, warrants, patents, surveys, and maps I can't state definitively who lived exactly where and when.  I do know, however, that Conrad spent much of his adult life on a farm very close to the borough of Pleasantville and adjacent to George's Creek.  Conrad also purchased a 2nd farm located in Union Township.

Conrad's farmhouse Near George's Creek, 1861 map

This house and barn sit on the exact location of Conrad's house

Farmland adjacent to the house

Conrad and Elizabeth's lives together were filled with heartache and loss.  Their first child, Mary Ann,  died when she was only 4 months old.  Elizabeth became pregnant with her second child, Daniel Webster, just 2 months later.  Daniel married when he was about 19 years old and relocated to Sandusky County Ohio.  On 4 Oct 1868 (when Daniel was 28 yrs. old) their oldest son, George died. He was 8 1/2 years old.  The very next day their 7 yr. old daughter Elmira died.  Eleven days later, on the 16th of October, Daniel died, leaving his wife alone with their 21 month old daughter, Elizabeth. In December of that same year, daughter Elizabeth died.

Conrad and Elizabeth's son, William, came next.  He died when he was 17 years old.  Adam, my 2nd great-grandfather, was the next born and outlived both his parents.  Daughter Mandilla was born two years after Adam and died at the age of 12.  Her mother was buried right beside to her.  John Clayton, born a year and a half after Mandilla only lived 11 months.  He was followed by Richard Watson, the only other child to outlive Conrad and Elizabeth.

Their last child, Eliza Virginia, was married at the age of 17 and died at the age of 19, just 2 months after giving birth to her first child.

Conrad's wife, Elizabeth, died in January of 1868 (the same year son Daniel and all three of his children died) and is buried on a hill overlooking the farm.

Family Cemetery (now called Hoover Cemetery) overlooking Conrad's farmland

Elizabeth Lingenfelter Ickes' grave marker

A view near the cemetery.  Conrad's house would have been just beyond the closest trees.

Shortly after the death of Elizabeth, Conrad purchased a house in the borough of Pleasantville.  He married Mary Blackburn who outlived him.  Eventually his Pleasantville home was demolished and in 1947 the Blackburn funeral home was built in its place. He also purchased a general store in Pleasantville from his son Adam.

Location of Conrad's house in Pleasantville, 1877 map

Conrad was described by his granddaughter, Allegra (Aunt Alle), as a "very strict church man".  He was an Elder and a very active member of the Lutheran Church. He was a director and a member of the building committee for a new church building, St. James Lutheran Church, located in Pleasantville. It was completed in 1877. Conrad died 3 months after the church was dedicated and was buried in the Pleasantville Cemetery.

Conrad's grave marker in the Pleasantville Cemetery

Conrad's grave marker with St. James Lutheran Church in the background

Aunt Alle wrote of him, "He lived a quite, retired life after moving to town, owned two farms, spent his time hunting and looking after his farms."

Conrad Ickes 1812-1887

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All original content, images, commentary, etc. copyright © by Joy Denison 2015-2016.  All rights reserved. All writings, poems, speeches, essays, images, scans, likenesses, etc. by Adam Ickes (b 1845) as well as personal histories, images, and all other content by all persons referenced and discussed within the pages and posts in this blog may not be copied, shared, or reproduced in any way without expressed permission by the owner unless included here from other referenced sources or are historical records already considered to be in the public domain.