Henry and Nancy Dewey Family History

Henry and Nancy Dewey

This history, such as it is, has been

compiled by

Nancy Mima Dickinson

Great Granddaughter Of Henry and Nancy Hunt Dewey

June 30, 1942

NOTE: With only minor corrections in spelling and formatting, this is an exact copy of the typed and
reproduced manuscript produced by Ms. Dickinson in 1942. Any use must credit Ms Dickenson as the original author of this work.
This copy retyped for use in desk-top publishing by

Davis F. Ball, grandson of Grace Nancy Dillman.

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The children of Henry and Nancy Hunt Dewey were Catherine, who died at 14 years of age, Sarah, Isaac, Polly, who died at 6 months, Jonathan, Solomon, Eliza, who never married, Aaron, Nathan, Rebecca, David, Enoch, Nancy, Lucina, who died on the eve of her marriage.

Sarah, daughter of Henry and Nancy Dewey, married Joseph Stretch (of Scotch descent). They owned a farm in Pokagon Township, Cass County. To them were born John, Henry, William, Isaac, Susanna, Aaron, and Nancy. John Stretch married Emily McCoy. To John and Emily McCoy Stretch were born William Henry, Joseph, George, Isaac and Ira. Henry, son of Sarah Dewey and Joseph Stretch, married Mary McCoy (sister of Emily McCoy, John’s wife). To Henry and Mary McCoy Stretch were born Sarah (who married Nelson Caryl), Frank, and Charles, who never married, Emma who married Arnold Benson. William, son of Sarah Dewey and Joseph Stretch, married Catherine Van Vlear. To them were born three daughters. The oldest died in infancy. Mollie married Richard McCoy. Clarissa E. married William Bates. Isaac, son of Sarah Dewey and Joseph Stretch, married and went to California in an early day. There is no record of his children, if any. Susanna, daughter of Sarah Dewey and Joseph Stretch, married William Reynolds. To them were born Noah, James, Perry, Sylvester, Arthur, Sarah & Lottie. Aaron, son of Sarah Dewey and Joseph Stretch, married and died while still young in the state of Idaho. Nancy, daughter of Sarah Dewey and Joseph Stretch, married Jacob Dillman. Children of Jacob and Nancy Stretch Dillman were Forrest, Wilber, Walter, Lottie, Gertrude, Clyde, Fred and Grace, born in Cass County, Michigan. Grace married Asa Ball of Cass County. They have two children, a son Dillman and daughter Mary Alice, both of whom married.

Isaac, son of Henry and Nancy Hunt Dewey, married Rebecca Cunningham. Their children were Henry, who died at two years of age (I have heard that this child was the first buried in the Dewey Cemetery), Susann, James, Sarah and Rebecca. Susann married Adam Suits. She died at the birth of her first child. James married and moved away. Sarah married a man by the name of Bullard and they had no children that lived. Rebecca died young.

Jonathan, son of Henry and Nancy Hunt Dewey, married Mary Griffin. They owned a farm in Pokagon Township. To them were born Albina, Lucina, Levi and Henry. Albina married John Mater. Their children were Elmer and Grace. Elmer was an M. D. graduate from Rush. He practiced medicine in Constantine, South Haven and Dowagiac, Michigan. He married Ida Shrikingast of Dowagiac, Michigan. They had one child, Fred. Grace Mater was a teacher in the Dowagiac schools. Lucina married Hiram Dillman. They had one child, Jonathan Dillman of Dowagiac. Jonathan Dillman married Libby White of Pokagon. They had one child, Gordon. Levi, son of Jonathan and Mary (Polly) Griffin Dewey, married Catherine Sifford. They had one child, Belle, who married Clarence Merwin. They had three children, Ollie, Winnie and Grace. Henry, youngest child of Jonathan and Mary Griffin Dewey, married Elizabeth Foltz. There were two daughter, Gertrude and Mabel. Gertrude married Clarence Dewey (second cousin). They had one child, Sidney. Mabel married Harry Straub. There was one daughter, Isabelle Straub.

Solomon, son of Henry and Nancy Hunt Dewey, married Elizabeth Griffin (sister of Mary Griffin who married Jonathan Dewey). To them were born Nancy, Mary Elizabeth, Dorcas, Sarah, Martha, Margaret, and Jonathan. They owned a farm in Silvercreek Township. Nancy, daughter of Solomon and Elizabeth Griffin Dewey, married John Van Vlear of Pokagon Township. They had two children, Elizabeth and Naomi. Elizabeth Van Vlear married George Sifford and they had three daughters, Dora, Clara, and Blanche. All married but had no children. Naomi (Nettie) Van Vlear married a Mr. Higgins. There were two children, Harry and Florence. They moved to California where Mr. Higgins died and Nettie married her brother-in-law, Mr. Higgins and they had four children by this union, three daughters and a son, Ralph. Florence and Harry returned to Michigan to their grandparents, John and Nancy Van Vlear, when grown. Florence married and died. Harry went to North Dakota, married and disappeared and there was never any trace of him. Ralph also vanished from his home in California when quite young and there was no trace. The three daughters of Naomi Higgins are living in California. Nancy and John Van Vlear adopted a son, Roy, who married Irene Acherman. They had three children, Vae, Stanley, and Grace.

Mary Elizabeth, daughter of Solomon and Elizabeth Griffin Dewey, married John Phipps Dickinson of Goshen, Indiana. To them were born nine children. Martha Jane, Bertha Ellen (who died in infancy), Anna Joella, Charles Allen, Nancy Mima, Dorothy Elizabeth, Mary Alice, William Waldo (who died in infancy), Fannie Leonore. Martha Jane married William Sadd of Warsaw, Indiana. Their children were Jesse (who died when a young man), Annette Sadd, who married Clyde Gardner of Dowagiac, Michigan, and had one daughter, Dorothy Gardner. Naomi Sadd (died in infancy) and Bessie Unice Sadd, who married William Van Iderstine of Chicago, Illinois, and had two sons, Earl Van Iderstine, who died at eight years of age, and Noel Van Iderstine. Lawrence Sadd, son of Martha Jane and William Sadd, married Clara Erris and they had one child, Robert Sadd. Mabel, daughter of Martha J. and and William Sadd, was born in Chicago and married LeRoy Brigham. Their children were Bettie, who died in infancy, and Lee Brigham. Anna Joella Dickinson married Joseph Allen Smith of Middlebury, Indiana, in Chicago. Charles Allen Dickinson married Louise Sparks of Waldron, Indiana. They were married in Chicago, Illinois. Their children, born in Chicago, were Fred S., Walter Allen, Robert Harold, Russell Waldo and Herbert Kenneth who was born in South Haven, Michigan. Fred S. Dickinson Married Lillian Allen in South Haven. They had five children, Julian, Robert, Kenneth, Thelma and Virginia. Nancy Mima Dickinson, daughter of John Phipps and Mary E. Dewey Dickinson, never married. Dorothy Elizabeth married Robert Barton in Chicago, Illinois. Mary Alice Dickinson married Bernard Phillips of Silvercreek Township, Michigan Fannie Leonore Dickinson died in 1910, unmarried.

Dorcas, daughter of Solomon and Elizabeth G. Dewey, married john Clifton of Cass County. They moved near Webster City, Iowa. Their children were Charles, Frank, Lester Byron, and John. All are in Iowa if still living and all are married.

Martha, daughter of Solomon and Elizabeth G. Dewey, married John Winder of Goshen, Indiana. They had two or three children. Martha died while young and Mr. Winder took the children west. I have no knowledge of them.

Margaret, youngest daughter of Solomon and Elizabeth G. Dewey, married William Alexander of South Band, Indiana. He was in the lumber business and son of Scotch descent. Their children were Nettie, Libby, Lottie, Eva, Ida, Maggie, William and James. Nettie Alexander married John Maston of Cass County. They had two children that lived, Edna and Floyd Maston, who were both living in Benton Harbor when last heard of. Libby Alexander married Lemuel Hartzell of Pokagon, Michigan. They had two sons, Lyle and Leo. Lottie Alexander married Jacob Miller of Cass County and their children were Webster, Milo, Paul, Martha, Alden and Kenneth. Webster is the world-famous reporter with the United Press in Europe (see his book, “I Found No Peace”). Eva Alexander married and had no children. Ida Alexander married a man named Myers of Rock Island, Illinois. They had children of whom I have no record. Maggie Alexander married Edward Thompson of Dowagiac, Michigan, a nephew of the P. D. Beckwith who founded the Round Oak Stove Works of Dowagiac. They had three children, Cecil, Raymond and Eva. All married and are living in Battle Creek, Michigan. William Alexander died when about twelve years of age. James Alexander served in the Spanish American War, but died soon after. He was not married.

Jonathan, only son of Solomon and Elizabeth Griffin Dewey, enlisted in the Civil War as a drummer boy, and died at seventeen years of age.

Elizabeth Griffin Dewey died when her children were all young and their uncle and aunt, Jonathan and Mary Griffin Dewey cared for them until they were old enough to look out for themselves.

Solomon Dewey, born in Wayne County, Indiana, 1811 - died in Michigan in 1868. He had married a second wife, Kezia Price Lenen, a widow with one child. (Kezia Lenen’s father was Thomas Lenen, and mother Minerva McKinstry.) They had several children but only three reached maturity. Thomas married Julia Secore of Cass County and they had a son Clarence who married Gertrude Dewey. Amy, daughter of Solomon and Kezia, married Samuel Shawl. They had two sons, Roy and Ralph Shawl. Frank, son of Solomon and Kezia married Reasa Scattergood of Dowagiac and their children were Lila and Esther. Frank and his wife moved to South Dakota when they were young and are living now in Aberdeen, South Dakota, but lived on a ranch for many years. Their daughters are married and have children.

Aaron Dewey, son of Henry and Nancy Hunt Dewey, married Elizabeth Simpson of Cass County, Michigan. They owned a farm in Silvercreek. Their children were Sarah, Henry, John, Aaron, Mary Ann, David and Charles. Sarah married Alonza Harris. After his death, she married Andrew Aldrich and they had no children. Henry married Sarah Decker. They had one son, Homer, who married and died not long after his marriage, leaving a daughter, Sarah. Aaron married and left two sons, Tracy who married Celia Barney and I think Ralph was the other son. Mary Ann, daughter of Aaron and Elizabeth Simpson Dewey, married John Earl and they had one daughter, Sara Earl, who married a Mr. Timmons. They had two sons. If they are living, they live around Dewey Lake. David son of Aaron, married Katherine Wolf in Kansas and they had no children.

Charles, son of Aaron and Elizabeth Simpson Dewey, married Emma Wolf, sister of David’s wife, in Kansas. Dr. Charles Dewey was a dentist. Charles and Emma Wolf Dewey had a son, Martin, who also was a dentist. He was the world famous D. Martin Dewey, specialist in Orthodontia. He taught in Columbia University and founded the Dewey School of Orthodontia in New York. Aaron and Elizabeth moved to Kansas in an early day, but returned to Michigan in their old age and are buried in Dewey Cemetery. Sarah D. Aldrich, Mary Ann D. Earl, Henry and Aaron, children of Aaron and Elizabeth , all owned farms near Dewey Lake, Cass County, where some of their descendants are now living.

Nathan Dewey, son of Henry and Nancy Hunt Dewey, was born in Wayne County, Indiana, November 25, 1818. He died in 1910, at the age of 92 years in the home of his daughter Emma D. Orford, near South Haven, Michigan. He was buried in Keeler Cemetery. Nathan Dewey married Laura Barney of Chautagua, New York. Their children were Elizabeth, Laura, Silvia, Emma, Frank and Charles. Laura Dewey married a Mr. Bowling. She taught school in Cass county before her marriage. She departed from this life while living in Bear Lake, Michigan. There were several children, some probably there at the present time. Emma, daughter of Nathan Dewey, married John Orford and lived in and near South Haven, Michigan. Charles was a physician. He practiced medicine in Keeler, Michigan, and afterward in Black Earth, Wisconsin, Mattawan, Michigan and Olivet, Michigan where he died. He married Miss Jennie B. Jessup of Dowagiac, Michigan, and they had two children, Harold Vaughn and Gladys Verle. The daughter married Dr. F. L. Harden, Osteopath of Dowagiac, and lives there. They have one child, Dorothy Verle. She graduated from Stephens College where she majored in pipe organ and received her degree of B. S. in Education from Northwestern University and is a teacher. The son married Lora Phillips of Casselton, North Dakota. He is a trick operator for the Great Northern Railroad. Thy have one child, Russell Dewey, who is also an operator on the Great Northern. Dr. Charles Dewey married a second time and had two children. Both died just after reaching maturity. Elizabeth, daughter of Nathan Dewey, married a Mr. Sprague. I believe they had children.

Rebecca Dewey, daughter of Henry and Nancy Hunt Dewey, married Joseph Walters. They had two daughters, Rosella and Alice. Rosella married Mr. Bedford who was the owner of the large Bedford peach orchards of Pipestone, Michigan. There were no children that lived. Alice, daughter of Rebecca and Joseph Walters, married Luther Wood of Pokagon, Michigan. They lived in Niles, Michigan many years where he was Mayor. They had two sons.

David, son of Henry and Nancy Hunt Dewey, married Anna Simpson (younger sister of Elizabeth, wife of Aaron). To them were born two sons, Norman and Almond. Norman married and had two children, a son and daughter. Norman is living in Dowagiac, Michigan. Almond died some years back.

Enoch, son of Henry and Nancy Hunt Dewey, married Rachel White. Their children were William Henry and three girls, Etta, Pearl, and I have no record of the name of the other daughter. They were born and lived in Cass County but I have no information regarding them.

Nancy, daughter of Henry and Nancy Hunt Dewey, married Alex Moore of Silvercreek Township, Cass County, Michigan. They owned a farm there. Their children were Minerva, Almeda, Ada, Bennie (who died), Albert and Berdie. Minerva was the first wife of Norman Dewey (her first cousin). She died young. Ada married a Mr. Garrett of Silvercreek. Albert, I think, married a Miss Knap. Berdie married Sarah Reynolds and had one daughter, Hazel Moore, who is married. Their children all lived around Dewey Lake or in the vicinity. With very few exceptions the older members of the Dewey clan were farmers. I should say all were farmers and most of their descendants. All the children of Henry and Nancy Hunt Dewey owned their farms and the daughters married farmers. In fact there was little else one could do in the timbered wilderness of the middle west. No market for lumber, they cleared the land and burned the trees to clear the ground to raise food for their families. Later there was a market for the trees when settlers founded towns. They valued education and built school-houses, donating the land and timber and helping with the work.

Until just a few years ago an old school house was standing in a beautiful grove of maple trees, four miles south of Dowagiac, on land which belonged to great grandfather, Henry Dewey. After the school was taken up, Jonathan, Henry’s son, who owned the land and building, permitted the Dunkards to hold services in it but they became so few that it was not used for years. The children of Jonathan, Solomon, Sarah Dewey Stretch, and many others received the beginning of their education in this building. While there were few particularly famous persons among them, I am sure no pioneer family could or ever have handed down a cleaner heritage to their descendants. They were noted for their sterling honesty, industry and obedience to laws. Very little is known of the Hunt family. Henry Dewey married Nancy Hunt in Wayne County, Indiana. The traditions handed down would indicate that she was a rather superior woman for that time. We are told she was very beautiful. She brought up a fine family in the wilderness and had the love and respect of the Indians and every generation since has named daughters for her.