MRS. ELIZA (Louisa) WALKER

At the family residence near South Boston, this county, on Sunday
morning last at 3 o'clock, Mrs. Eliza Walker, the venerable wife of 
Wm. S. Walker, Sr. died at the advanced age of eighty-seven.  She 
had been failing for several weeks but beyond slight lapses of her 
memory nothing serious was thought to be the matter until la grippe
seized her, which combined with other ailments incidental to one of 
her years, warned her relatives and friends that the end of her long 
life was drawing near, and she passed peacefully away on the day 
and at the hour mentioned.

The long life of this aged couple is so woven together in incidents
historical as well as biographical, it will be necessary to combine 
in this brief sketch the lives of both, since both have filled such a 
large and bright place in the current history of the county.  the 
maiden name of Mrs. Walker was Leffler, and she was born in the 
now populous and wealth Shelby county, Ky., March 18, 1805.  Mr. 
Walker is a native of Virginia, where he was born January 14, 1804, 
his parents locating in Kentucky, near the Lefflers, when he was quite 
a child.  Here these two children became acquainted and finally 
married in 1829, when she was but fifteen and he nineteen.  The same 
year they located in this county, near New Philadelphia, where they 
lived several years.  He then entered 80 acres of government land 
near South Boston and commenced clearing it of its wild growth, 
adding to his acreage year by year as his means would permit, until
the present fine large farm resulted.

Mrs. Walker was the mother of thirteen children, ten of whom, six
daughters and four sons, survive her.  These are Mrs. Mary J. Brim, 
Thomas and Miss Nancy, who have always remained at home, 
dutifully caring for her parents, during their declining years;  Mrs. 
Nancy Smith, of Clark county, James a resident of New Albany; Mrs.
Elizabeth Williams; Wm. S. Walker, Jr., Mrs. Martha Meadors, Mrs. 
Lucinda Elrod and Benjamin F. Walker, the two last names being 
residents of Clark county.  From these have sprung forty-one grand 
children and thirty-eight great grand children.  Of the children dead,
two died young; the other, Andrew, was a member of the 66th Indiana
regiment and died at Chattanooga during the war.  Grandfather Walker 
has a brother Thomas still living at Orleans, In., who was formerly 
sheriff of Floyd county.  Father Walker claims that he was never 
beaten save by one man in using the reaping hook.  the first plow he 
used in Kentucky was the old-style wooden mould board.  One of 
these he brought with him to Indiana.  A neighboor took a pattern of 
one of these plows and had several made which met with ready sale.

The funeral services over the remains of Mrs. Walker were held 
Monday last, at 12 o'clock at Conaway Chapel, of which Methodist 
Society she became a member over forty years ago, joining with 
her husband.  The discourse was delivered by Rev. Puett of New 
Philadelphia, who gave an eloquent tribute to this very excellent
woman, to which Rev. W. B. Applegate added a few remarks after 
which the remains were laid to rest in the burial ground next to the 
chapel.  The attendance was the largest ever seen at a similar 
service in that section.

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Copyright© by Antoinette, February 27, 1999