Person:Melvina Misner (1)

BURIAL: Rawling, Melvina M., 2 May 1845 - 21 Mar 1811 (I assume the 1811 should be 1911 and have assumed that Melvina is Edgar's wife. Howard Johnston note). BURIED: Smith Hill Cemetery, Otisville, Forest Township. SOURCE: SMITH HILL CEMETERY, inscriptions copied by Merle Perry Jr. in June & July of 1962, page 34.

CENSUS: 1870 Federal Census RAWLING, EDGAR (1870 U.S. Census) MICHIGAN , GENESEE, FORESTAge: 38, Male, Race: WHITE, Born: CANASeries: M593 Roll: 671 Page: 239 198 178 Rawling, Edgar, 38, m, w, keeping hotel, 2000, 200, b. Canada, 1, -, 1,

                                  Melvina, 31, f, w, keeping house, b. Canada, -, -, 1,
                 Misner, Aretta, 16, f, w, waiter & cook, b. Canada, -, -, 1,
Howard Johnston note:  Fields 11 & 12 indicate father [11], mother [12] are of foreign birth.  Field 13, which has been checked for Edgar, Melvina and Aretta is supposed to indicate a person was born within the year, which certainly isn't the case.  The census taker probably  meant, when he checked Field 13, is that the mother is of foreign birth.

1900 United States Federal Census <http://www.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=7602&enc=1> about Edgar Rawling Name: Edgar Rawling Home in 1900: Forest, Genesee, Michigan Age: 68 Birth Date: Mar 1832 Birthplace: Canada Race: White Ethnicity: American Immigration Year: 1852 Relationship to head-of-house: Head Father's Birthplace: England Mother's Birthplace: England Spouse's Name: Amanda M Marriage Year: 1866 Marital Status: Married Years Married: 34 Residence : Otisville Village, Genesee, Michigan 348 352 Rawling, Edgar, head, w, m, Mar 1832, 68, m, 34, -, -, Canada, England, England, 1852, 48, no, Carpenter, 0, -, yes, yes, yes, O, F, H. Amanda M, wife, w, f, May 1845, 55, mm 34m 0, 0, Canada, Canada, Canada, 1855, 45, -,-,-,-, yes, yes, yes. Smith, Walter R. adapted son, w, m, Apr 1892, s, -. -, -, MI, MI, MI, -, -, -, at school, -, 10. Bills, Sampson, boarder, w, m, June 1832, 68, Wd, -, -, -, PA, VT, NY, -, -, -, CARPENTER, 0, yes, yes, yes. 1910 United States Federal Census <http://www.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=7884&enc=1> about Edgar Rawling Name: Edgar Rawling Age in 1910: 79 Estimated Birth Year: abt 1831 Birthplace: Canada English Relation to Head of House: Head Father's Birth Place: England Mother's Birth Place: England Spouse's Name: Amanda M Home in 1910: Forest, Genesee, Michigan Marital Status: Married Race: White Gender: Male Year of Immigration: Un Household Members: Name Age Edgar Rawling 79 Amanda M Rawling 66 53 53 Rawling, Edgar, m, w, 79, m2, 42, Can, English, England, English, Un, Na, English, carpenter, N, no, yes, yes, -, O, F, H. Amanda M, wife, f, w, 66, m2, 46, -, -, Can, English, Can, English, Can. English, Un, -, English, Picking beans, -, ?, no, O, yes, yes.

OBITUARY: Born at Townsend, Norfolk Co., Ontario, Canada, 2 May 1845. In 1870 married Edgar [sic] Rawlings[sic] Except for living 3 years in Ovid (MI), they lived all their married years in Otisville. They had no children. SOURCE: Flint Daily Journal, 27 Feb. 1911, page 4. Additional Information in another article: Had been recently cared for by her sister, Mrs. Elizabeth Petit, Mrs. Rawlings came to Michigan at age 12 with her parents. She is survived by 2 brothers : Albert Misner, and J. W. Misner, President of Otisville Village Council; and 4 sisters: Mrs. Petit, Mrs. Jane Menz of Otisville, Mrs. Orletta Cole of Denver, CO, and Mrs. Amelia McSorley of Alpena (MI). According to this article, Melvina had been very despondent about the death of her husband. The family had been very concerned about her and her sister, Mrs. Elizabeth Petit, had been living with her, since she had deteriorated since Edgar's death some 6 weeks earlier. On Feb. 22, 1911, both Melvina and her sister Elizabeth had attended the funeral of their cousin. Melvina went home before Elizabeth. Upon returning home, Elizabeth had found that Melvina had committed suicide, she had hung herself. SOURCE: Flint Daily Journal, 22 March 1911 (abstracted).

OTISVILLE WOMAN COMMITS SUICIDE Mrs. Rawling despondent over husband's recent death. BODY FOUND AT END OF ROPE Coroner Taylor decides no inquest necessary. Woman had been in poor health for weeks and relatives say her mind was affected. [end of leaders in news article]. (Special to the Daily Journal) Otisville, Mich., March 22 -- Mrs. Melvina Rawling, aged 65 years, who for the last few weeks has been despondent, committed suicide yesterday afternoon about 3 o'clock by hanging herself in the wood shed of her home. Recent deaths of relatives is thought to have given the aged woman the idea of ending her own life. She had threatened on several occasions to commit suicide, giving no reason except that she was despondent and gloomy. Six weeks ago Mrs. Rawling's husband died and since that time it had been noticeable that the woman's mental condition was rapidly becoming more serious. Saturday night her cousin, James H. Smith, died at Otisville and the funeral was held on the same afternoon that Mrs. Rawling ended her life. Mrs. Elizabeth Petit, a sister of Mrs. Rawling, attended the funeral and upon returning to the Rawling house, where she had been residing for several weeks, discovered the body of her sister hanging from a rafter. Mrs. Rawling had taken a small rope and thrown it over a rafter and made it secure. After stepping upon a ladder and tying the end about her neck she had stepped off and was found hanging only three inches from the floor. Upon discovering Mrs. Rawling, Mrs. Petit rushed from the house and summoned W. Ormsby, who, assisted by other men, cut the rope. It is said that Mrs. Rawling had been dead but a short time when her body was discovered by her sister.

         NO INQUEST TO BE HELD 

Three years ago Mrs. Rawling suffered with a derangement of the mind, but afterward became much better. Only a few weeks ago was it noticed that her condition was once again becoming serious. She had threatened to take her own life on numerous occasions but her relatives in Otisville were never of the opinion that she would carry out the threat. Under Sheriff Green and Coroner Taylor were notified of the suicide and arrived in this village from Flint two hours after the death. The coroner after making an investigation decided that an inquest would be unnecessary. Mrs. Rawling was born at Townsend, Ontario, and when 12 years of age came to Otisville with her parents. She leaves two brothers, Albert Misner and J. W. Misner, president of this village, and four sisters, Mrs. Petit and Mrs. Jane Metz, of Otisville; Mrs. Orietta Cole, of Denver, Colo., and Mrs. Amelia McSorley, of Alpena. SOURCE: The Flint Daily Journal, Wednesday, March 22, 1911, page 3.

           MRS. RAWLING BURIED 

FUNERAL HELD AT HER RESIDENCE IN OTISVILLE Otisville, Mich., March 27. The funeral of Mrs. Melvina Rawling was held from the residence Thursday afternoon. She was born in Townsend, Norfolk Co., Ontario, May 2, 1845. At the age of 12 she came to Michigan with her parents, settling in Forest Township. In 1870 she was married to Edgar Rawling and they lived in Otisville from that ime tuntil their death, except for a period of three years when they lived in Ovid, Mich. They had no children. For several months previous to her death, Mrs. Rawling suffered a sever nervous illness which resulted in a partial derangement of mind aggravated by the death of Mr. Rawling five weeks ago, and led to the ending of her life Tuesday. Rev. Lansing preached her funeral sermon and the same mixed quartet sang the same hymns that were sung at Mr. Rawling's funeral. SOURCE: Flint Daily Journal, 27 March 1911, page 4.