Thus far, this project has focused on Archibald Worthington, but this blog is about his daughter Margaret. She lived her own story, and it is an important one to tell.
Margaret was born to 30-year-old Archibald and 34-year-old Elizabeth Worthington on May 6, 1849, in Highland Township, Defiance County, Ohio. Her parents had a son named Henry at the time of her birth. Henry was born in 1847 while their parents were living in Virginia. They were freed slaves and made their way to Ohio. There are many moves up through Virginia and now West Virginia before they settled long term in Defiance County.
Her brother, James Worthington, was born in 1853, also in Defiance County. After his birth, census records show that they lived in Union Township, Fayette County, Ohio, the closest town being Washington Courthouse. They remained in that area until around 1860, when census records place them once again in Defiance County.
When Margaret was 13 her oldest brother Henry enlisted in the 54th Regiment of the volunteer infantry on May 12, 1863, in Massachusetts. This was only the second black regiment at that time in the Civil War in the country. They were sent to battle in South Carolina. Henry was captured and held as a POW. He caught typhoid fever and perished on Jan 8, 1865, before he could be released into the union army. He is buried in the Salisbury National Cemetery in North Carolina.
At the age of 19, Margaret married John Wise on February 18, 1869. According to Ancestry.com, John was born in Virginia in 1846. He seems to have been a farmer while living in Highland Township, as an 1881 Defiance Democrat newspaper articles shares that John M. Wise “lost a lot of sheep as they were killed by dogs.” Margaret and John had five children together: Florence, William, Elizabeth (Lizzie), Irving, and Bertha.
In February 1883, a tragedy occurred to the Wise family. John had traveled into Defiance with a load of wood to sell. He tried to drive his horse and buggy across the frozen canal as a shortcut. The weight of the horses and the buggy broke through the ice and took John into the canal. He drowned along with his horses. This left Margaret a widow at the age of 34 with five children. There are no sources for where John is buried. Worthington Cemetery would be a logical and practical place for them to lay him to rest.
Margaret suffered another terrible loss a month later when her mother Elizabeth passed away at the age of 69 on March 17, 1883. The cause of death was listed by the coroner as bilious fever. This was a condition of the liver, so likely she died of liver disease. Elizabeth is one of the people named that is buried in Worthington Cemetery according to the WPA Report in the 1930s for Defiance County cemeteries. Her mother Anna Champ, who traveled up from Virginia with them, is also named.
The Mumford family also lived in the Highland Township community. James Worthington, Margaret’s younger brother, had married Mary Mumford in 1874. Margaret married William M. Mumford on July 7, 1883. The following year they had their first child, a son, Harry Mumford, born on July 14, 1884. They went on to have three more children: Frank, Mary Marie, and Vivian. William owned about 80 acres in Highland Township and farmed them. William’s mother died in 1892 of consumption.
The family moved to “town” and were living at 411 Seneca St. when they lost their beloved son Frank. Reported in the September 30, 1897, Defiance Democrat, Frank and his brother Harry went to pick hickory nuts when Frank fell from one of the trees in the “old cemetery on Auglaize Ave.” He had bruised his head and a bone on the first finger of his right hand had broken through the skin. Neighbors ran to assist Margaret with her son. Dr. Stevens arrived and administered chloroform to the boy because of the pain. The doctor was trying to set the finger when the effects of the chloroform began to wear off. He became ill and choked on large pieces of food that were ingested just before going to pick the nuts.
This from September 30, 1897, newspaper article, “Frank was a good boy, a member of the Salvation Army Sunday School and funeral services were held from the Salvation Army Hall Tuesday morning at 10 o’clock. Mr. and Mrs. Mumford are respectable citizens who are well known. They own their property on the East Side and the mother had the boy’s life insured for a small amount.” A month later in October, his parents ran an ad in the Defiance Democrat giving thanks to their friends for their kindness as they bereaved their late son Frank. No cemetery is provided for the internment. Many of the Mumford family are buried in Hill Cemetery in Ayersville in the Mumford family plot. Frank is not listed there. It is very possible he is one of the souls buried in Worthington Cemetery along with his grandmother and great grandmother.
The 1900 census records indicate that the family had moved to Toledo, Ohio. Their address being house #8 on Indiana Ave. The Census lists William and his stepson William Wise as day laborers, his stepson Irving Wise as a teamster, and both stepdaughters, Lizzie and Berthie, as house servants. Matilda does not have an occupation listed, most likely she was a homemaker for all of them.
William Mumford Sr., the patriarch of the Mumford family, was still living in Defiance County. He fell ill and passed away on July 5, 1905. It was reported in the July 14 edition of the Defiance Express newspaper that his was one of the largest funerals ever held in the vicinity. There were more than 50 carriages, and the Ayersville Baptist Church could not hold all the attendees. It says that he was held in high esteem and was a man of sterling worth. He was laid to rest in Hill Cemetery in the Mumford family plot.
As for Margaret’s father Archibald Worthington, he remarried in June 1883 to Mary Brown. They moved from the area to Wilmington, Ohio. He transferred his property in Highland Township to Margaret and her brother James Worthington. It is important to note that Archibald put Margaret’s share of land in her name, not her husband’s name. (Thank you to Barbara Budde, a researcher on this project, for pointing this out!)
There are articles in the newspapers that tell of him coming back to visit his son and daughter even after he moved. Margaret and James eventually sold the property when they moved from Defiance County. Archibald has a small business in Wilmington. Archibald died in 1895 at the age of 87. He is buried in Sugar Grove Cemetery. An obituary telling of his death ran in the Defiance Newspaper stating that Archibald was a former Highland Township resident.
James and his family moved to Toledo around 1900, then onward to Chicago by 1920. His wife Mary Mumford Worthington died on March 24, 1921, and she was brought back to Highland Township and buried in Hill Cemetery in the Mumford family plot. James died December 10, 1934. We do not know where he is buried. Worthington Cemetery was no longer in use after 1900.
Margaret lived in Toledo until her death on March 15, 1912. She is buried in Forest Cemetery in Toledo. William died on March 4, 1915, and is buried also in Toledo, but in Woodlawn Cemetery. Margaret persevered through many terrible experiences in her life. Her descendants are now part of this project, and we hope to have them attend the dedication of the Historic Marker.