Do you have any DNA results that cause you to want to dig deeper to document a relationship? Well, a fourth cousin of mine agreed to submit his DNA for a BigY test. His preliminary results are back and they may show a DNA relationship between our CRAWFORD line and the other CRAWFORD lines of Warren County, Indiana and Garrard County, Kentucky.
Since I don’t want others to claim he doesn’t descend from my James but from one of the others, I’m trying to put together documentation to support the link to Nelson G. Crawford, son of James and Sally Crawford. Unfortunately, this line goes thru Nelson’s son, William who died in November 1860 when his wife was about six months pregnant with their first child, William Clay Crawford.
I do have the probate file for William C. Crawford that has his wife, Mary E. Crawford along with James H. Crawford and Nelson G. Crawford post bond toward the appointment of James H. Crawford as the administrator of the estate. (James H. Crawford was William C. Crawford’s older brother.) But what I’m missing is documentation that William Clay Crawford is the son of William C. Crawford and his wife Mary Bell.
Thanks to my cousin, I have a photocopy of an obituary clipping for William Clay Crawford. This obituary talks about the parents of William Clay dying when he is young. Unfortunately, it does not identify the parents.
Newspaper clipping
Herald Democrat (Leadville, Colorado)
16 April 1929Page 1
Death Took Good CitizenWm. c. Crawford Passes
Away Suddenly from
Heart Attack Early Mon
day Morning — Body Will
Be Taken to LongmontIs Loss to Leadville
Because of his unusual good health and daily appearance in local life, Leadville was shocked Monday morning upon learning of the sudden death of W. C. Crawford, resident of Leadville for twenty-five years, prominent in local fraternal circles and well known thruout the community.
Death claimed Mr. Crawford shortly after 1 o’clock Monday morning at his home, 133 East East Eighth street. Mrs. Crawford was awakened by his heavy breathing and a few minutes later he had passed away with a heart attack. He was 68 years old.
Mr. Crawford enjoyed unusually good health throughout his lifetime and Sunday afternoon he had motored to Twin Lakes with Mrs. Crawford and his son and daughter-in-law, Mr. and Mrs. Paul W. Crawford. That night he had taken lunch with them and from all appearances seemed in his usual good state of health.
For years he has walked to and from the A. V. smelter daily in connection with his work as ore shipper’s agent for local mining men. Saturday he visited the smelter as usual, making the trip down and back on foot.
William Clay Crawford was born Jan. 30, 1861 in West Lebanon, Ind. He was left an orphan at an early age by the death of his parents. On May 4, 1886, he was married to Miss Anna E. Paul in Brashear, Mo., and moved west in the early eighties.
He first settled in Aspen, Colo., where he began his career of handling shipments of ore from mining companies and individuals thru the smelter. After following this work in Aspen, for three years and making many acquaintances there, he came to Leadville in 1890 to follow the same occupation. Because of his reliability and honesty, he quickly enrolled practically all of the mining companies as his customers and for the past many years has acted as an agent for most of the ore that has been shipped to the A. V. smelter, both from the immediate Leadville district and from outside points such as Aspen Breckenridge and Gilman.
In 1893, when there were [seven] smelters operating in Pueblo, Mr. Crawford moved to that city where for fifteen years he followed the same occupation which he had begun at Aspen. While in Pueblo he continued to handle much of the ore produced in the Leadville camp, besides that from other Colorado mining areas.
Because of his familiarity with all types of ores and his local connections with the smelter, Mr. Crawford [acted] for several years as deputy customs inspector for the United States government looking after ores shipped here under bond from Canada and other places.
For many years he was a director of the American National Bank of Leadville and when that institution was consolidated with the Carbonate National bank in 1925 he was made a director of the Carbonate American National bank, a position which he held down to the time of his death.
Having joined the Masons many years ago and taken numerous degrees, he was prominently connected with that order. He was a member of the Leadville Lodge No. 51, A.F. & A. M.; Leadville Chapter No. 10, R.A.M. and Mount of the Holy Cross Commandery NO. 5, Knights Templar.
The Masons will have charge of short services at the Masonic Temple tonight at 7 o’clock and the body will be sent on NO. 16 train tonight for Longmont, Colo., for interment. Funeral services will be held in Longmont Wednesday afternoon at 2 o’clock at the Masonic Temple there.
Active pallbearers at the services here tonight wiil include William Harvey, W. E. Bowden, F. L. Smith, George Casey, E. P. Chapman and Charles Bargler.
Honorary pallbearers will be John A. Ewing, Jesse F. McDonald, Alex G. Thomson, M. A. Nicholson. W. H. Cole, D. P. Bonner, Frank E. Mercercau, Charles E. Mullow and C. M. Rice.
Mr. Crawford is survived by his widow, Mrs. Anna E. Crawford, two sons, Clarence Clay Crawford, Johnstown, Colo., and Paul William Crawford, Leadville, and two grandchildren, Clay and Ann Crawford of Johnstown.
In speaking of the sudden death of Mr. Crawford, Fred L. Smith, vice-(Continued on page 6 col. 5)
Death Took Good Citizen
“Death Took Good Citizen,” obituary of W. C. Crawford, newspaper clipping, from Herald Democrat (Leadville, Colorado) 16 April 1929; Crawford Family Papers
(Continued from Page 1)
president of the Carbonate American National bank, said Monday night that he had been closely associated with him for over twenty-five years both as a Mason and at the bank and that he had found him to be a reliable diligent, honest and energetic citizen. In his capacity as director of the bank he will be greatly missed, he said, and his place will be hard to fill.
“He was a good father, a substantial citizen and well liked in the community,” Mr. Smith stated. “In his work he was reliable, honest and capable. As ore shipper’s agent, he handled ore from the Ibex property for many years, both while in Leadville and in Pueblo and in this connection he was always found to be honest and reliable.”
E. P. Chapman, employed by the A.S. & R. company, and an associate of MR. Crawford for about twenty-five years, both in lodge and business relations also spoke highly of him. He was an energetic and capable man and well liked by those who knew him, he said.
