Dale C. Maley: The Fugate saddle story — 1,000 miles and four generations
There have been several cases where young Fairbury men decided to travel and seek fame and fortune, including some who traveled 1,000 miles or more.
Among those who left Fairbury looking to make good was Francis Townsend who was born and raised in Fairbury. When Francis was about 18, he and his brother went west to seek their fortune. They worked on a ranch and baled hay in northern California. Francis then decided to attend medical school and become a doctor.
Late in life, Francis Townsend started a national movement for an old-age pension plan. Townsend's political campaign pressured President Franklin Roosevelt to adopt the Social Security system we have today.
Two other men that left Fairbury to seek their fortune were Edward Von Tobel and his friend, Jacob "Jake" Beckley. They went to St. Louis first and then to California. The boys bought some of the first lots in the new town of Las Vegas. Von Tobel started a lumberyard in Las Vegas and was one of the critical founders of that town.
Another young man who left his home and traveled 1,000 miles by horseback was William Fugate. He eventually made his way to Fairbury.
The Fugate story began with his birth in 1820 in Wayne County, Indiana. He was the son of Josiah Fugate (1790-1848) and Jane Smithers (1788-1848). When William was 3 years old, his family moved to Tippecanoe County, Indiana.
Mary Wray was born in Richmond, Virginia, in 1831. Her parents were Preston Wray and Mary Abshire. When Mary was 4 years old, the Wray family moved from Virginia to Indiana in 1835.
In 1842, William Fugate decided to seek his fortune when he was 22 years of age. He rode his horse from Indiana to Illinois and then to the western border of Missouri. William traveled more than 1,000 miles by horseback. On his trip home, William traveled through the area that later would become Fairbury.
In 1846, 15-year-old Mary J. Wray married Morris Hardin. Unfortunately, Mr. Hardin died just three months after the wedding. Morris and Mary Hardin had no children.
Four years after his long trip on horseback, William Fugate decided to marry Mary Wray in Tippecanoe County. William was 27, and Mary was 16 when they married. They then had five children and William became an Indiana farmer.
In 1856, the William Fugate family moved from Indiana to Avoca Township, northeast of Fairbury. His farm was near Indian Creek, also known as the South Fork of the Vermilion River.
Franklin Oliver was one of the pioneer residents of Livingston County. He arrived south of Chatsworth in 1832 and lived in the same location until he died in 1881. In her Stuffed Clubs & Antimacassars book, Alma Lewis James recounted that Franklin Oliver made an annual trip to Ottawa to have his grain ground into flour.
Because William Fugate lived close to a ford across the Vermilion River, Mr. Oliver would always stop and visit the Fugate farm. William Fugate's wife always prepared a good meal for Franklin Oliver. Because Mr. Oliver often used foul language, Mrs. Fugate ensured her children were always out of earshot of the men eating and visiting.
In 1863, when William Fugate was 42 years old, he registered in Avoca for the Civil War draft. No record could be found of Mr. Fugate serving in the Civil War. Mr. Fugate was likely considered to be too old to serve in the military.
Chloe Maria Fugate, daughter of William and Mary Fugate, married John William McDowell in 1877. John was 27, and Chloe was 17 when they married. John McDowell was the grandson of William and Sarah McDowell, the second settlers to arrive in the Fairbury area, doing so in 1832.
One year after they were married, John and Chloe McDowell had their only child, Gertrude Mertilla "Gertie" McDowell. Unfortunately, Chloe McDowell died in 1879 when she was 19 years old. Daughter Gertie McDowell was just a year old when her mother died.
William Fugate died in 1884 when he was 63 years of age. In his last will and testament, William Fugate left his piano to his granddaughter Gertie McDowell. Because Gertie was just 6 years old when her grandfather died, the piano was held in trust until Gertie reached age 18. William Fugate was buried at Fairbury's Graceland Cemetery.
Four years after her husband died, Mary Fugate married 71-year-old Richard Gookin Crouch. Mr. Crouch had been wed three times before marrying Mrs. Fugate. Fifty-seven-year-old Mary Fugate had been married twice before she married Mr. Crouch.
In 1899, Mary Wray Fugate's mother, Mary Abshire Wray, died in Fairbury at the age of 107. She was buried next to William Fugate in Graceland Cemetery. Mrs. William Fugate passed away in 1916 at the age of 84. She was buried with her mother and second husband, William Fugate, in Graceland Cemetery.
Many Fairbury residents know William "Bill" Fugate, who farmed northeast of Fairbury. He is the great-great-grandson of William Fugate. The family carefully preserved William Fugate's saddle from his 1,000-mile horseback trip in 1842. The saddle was passed down for four generations and is now owned by Bill Fugate.
Bill found the saddle again when preparing for his recent sale of household goods on June 18. Very few leather items survive the test of time because leather is an organic material that gradually decays. William Fugate's 180-year-old saddle still exists but is in very poor condition.
William Fugate discovered and liked the area that is now Fairbury when he made his 1,000-mile horseback trip in 1842. William moved from Indiana to the Fairbury area in 1856, and his descendants have been valuable contributors to the community's success.
This article originally appeared on Pontiac Daily Leader: Dale C. Maley: The Fugate saddle story — 1,000 miles, four generations
