Person:William McGrew (9)

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MRS. MELINDA (HURST) McGREW.

Among the inhabitants of Washington township, Wayne county, none
are better known or more thoroughly esteemed than this lad\', who is famil-
iarly and affectionately called "Aunt Melinda " by a large proportion of the
people of the community in which the greater part of her life has been
spent. Well preserved in body and mind, and surrounded with numerous
luxuries and comforts, many of which she owes to her own foresight and
excellent business judgment,- she looks back over a long and varied experi--



828 BIOGRAPHICAL AND GENEALOGICAL HISTORY.

ence, and has but few regrets. Hers has been an exceedingly busy and useful
lite, and at all times she has nobly endeavored to do her full duty toward her
neighbors and friends, as well as toward those of her own household.

The history of Mrs. McGrew's parents is particularly interesting, as
some idea may be gained of what the pioneers of civilization in this state had
to endure, and how, in spite of all obstacles, they came off victors, leaving
a rich inheritance to their posterity, — an inheritance of not only material
possessions but of precept and example well worthy of their consideration.
Dickson Hurst, the father of Mrs. McGrew. was born in Maryland, March
24. 1793. and married a lady of the same state, Melissa Scott, whose birth
occurred February 17, 1796. Soon after their marriage, which ceremony
was celebrated February 15, 18 14, the young couple set out for the west,
where they hoped to establish a home. They were almost entirely without
means, but had brave and determined hearts, and, secure in the loving com-
panionship of each other, felt that they should be able to endure whatever
ill fortune might betide them. The bride's father gave her a horse, and
mounted upon this, with all of their combined possessions in the pack-saddle
on the animal, the husband and wife set out upon their long journey over
mountains and through dense forests until they arrived in Warren county,
Ohio. There he worked at farming and clearing land or whatever he could
find to do whereby he might earn an honest livelihood for his family. His
children were all born in Ohio, and in 1820 the family removed to Wayne
county, Indiana, where he entered one hundred and twenty acres of land.
Ere long he had cleared a small patch of ground and put up a log cabin, and
once more the struggle commenced. Hard work and exposure in all kinds
of weather crippled him with rheumatism and rendered him a great sufferer,
but he never relaxed his earnest purpose, and, in spite of all, he carried out
his plans and gradually amassed a competence. His faithful wife was a true
helpmate, doing everything in her power to aid and cheer him, and with her
own hands she spun and wove the tlax and wool which he raised upon the
farm, then fashioning all of the clothing needed by her household. The
father early turned his attention to the raising of hogs and cattle, of which
he bought large numbers and drove them to Cincinnati, where he obtained
good prices for them. From time to time he made careful investments,
particularly in farm lands, and for years he ranked with the leading prop-
erty-owners of this county, some of his lands being situated in the west. At
length the humble log cabin gave place to a commodious brick house, and
other luxuries and comforts of life were enjoyed by him and his estimable
wife during their latter years.

No man in the county had a better record of uprightness and fairness in
all his dealings, and his kindness and benevolence toward the poor and



BIOGRAPHICAL AND GENEALOGICAL HISTORY. 829

deserving was not the least of his virtues. Though not a church member, he
led a hfe above reproach, and his friends were Region. Broad-minded and
independent in his views upon every question, he diverged from the path
which his relatives had long pursued, politically, an(j gave his allegiance to
the Whig party. His parents, Bennett and Mary (Marshall) Hurst, came
from Maryland to pass their old age in the cosy home which he prepared for
them, and as long as they lived he rendered dutiful care and attention to
their needs. His elder brother, Benedict, settled in Ohio; William and l^en-
nett went to the west, the latter living in Illinois for some time, and finally
dying in Iowa. The three sisters were Mrs. Ellen Rockefeller, Mrs. Polly
Eaton and Mrs. Sarah Cox. Dickson Hurst was called to his reward June
14, 1858. His wife, who was a devoted member of the Methodist church,
died April 22, 1862. Their eldest child, Lucinda, born February 20, 1S16,
first married Joseph Hankins, and later Henry Sweet; Mary A., the second
child, born April i, 1817, became the wife of \\'illiam A. Rifner; William,
born April 4, i8i8, was one of twins, the other dying in infancy; Melinda
was the next of the family; Alfred and a twin who died when young were born
January 28, 1820.

Mrs. Melinda McGrew, the only survivor of her parents' famih', was
born March 24, 18 19, in Warren county, Ohio, and from her earliest recol-
lections has been identified with this section of Indiana. When grown to-
womanhood she married Charles N. McGrew, the wedding ceremony being"
performed in 1844. His father, William McGrew, was one of the frontier
settlers on Green's Fork, Indiana, coming here from Kentucky in 1814. He
improved a farm and reared a large famil}', and was held in the highest
respect by all who knew him. He and his loved wife, both members of the
Christian church, died with the cholera, while in Iowa on a visit. Their
children were named as follows: Lewis; Isabel, wife of C. Myers; John,
who went to Iowa, as also did the eldest son; Mary, wife of John Scott;
Rachel, wife of B. Scott; Charles N. ; Elizabeth, wife of B.Witmer; Melinda,
wife of J. Fertig; Letitia, wife of J. Morris; James B., of Dublin, Indiana;
Hannah, wife of J. Ewing; and Lindsay, of Milton, Indiana.

Charles N. McGrew, who was born in Ohio, January 9, 18 17, energetic-
ally devoted himself to the cultivation and improvement of the farm upon
which he and his young wife settled, the place being a present to her from her
father. Only a small portion had been cleared, and they commenced house-
keeping in the log cabin of the period. Years rolled by, and such changes
had been instituted that one would not have known the farm as the same. A
substantial house replaced the cabin, fine fields of grain were raised where
forests and dense underbrush had formerly stood, and everything bore the
marks of a systematic, thoroughgoing farmer's care. Late in life he



S30 BIOGRAPHICAL AND GENEALOGICAL HISTORY.

unfortunatel)' engaged somewhat in speculating upon the board of trade, and
lost heavily, but in the main he was successful in his undertakings. The
genuine regard felt for him as a citizen, friend and neighbor, was shown by
the fact that he, though a stanch Republican, was elected in a Democratic
district to the office of township trustee, in which capacity he served credit-
ably for some fifteen or twenty years. Hospitable and social in disposition,
he readily won friends, and few men were more welcome in every home in
his section of the county. An honored member of the Odd Fellows and
]\fasonic orders, in the latter having taken the Royal Arch and I'Cnights
Templar degrees, his acquaintance was the more extended and his ideals
and field of usefulness the broader. Death claimed him February lo, 1877,
when he had just passed the sixtieth anniversary of his birth. The funeral
services, held at Doddridge chapel, were attended by a very large concourse
of friends and lifelong associates, and he was tenderly placed to rest in the
cemetery near.

To the union of Mr. and Mrs. McGrew eight children were born, three
of the number dying in infancy. Miranda, who married A. Dailey, died
February 27, 1863, at the age of eighteen years, and left one son, Charles
A., who was reared by his grandmother; Mary died at the age of five years;
Marcus died March 23, 1863; Alfred died at the age of six years; Ida is the
wife of Albert Wilson. Mr. and Mrs. Wilson, who have one son, are now
living with Mrs. McGrew on the old homestead. He comes from one of the
pioneer families of this county and was reared m this township. Both he
and his wife, as well as Mrs. McGrew, are active members of the Doddridge
chapel of the Methodist church. Charles A. Dailey, who is engaged in
farming, is married and has seven children. He is operating a farm which
Mrs. McGrew purchased some years ago, and does credit to her judicious
training. She has proved herself to be an excellent financier and has man-
aged her quite extensive investments and business interests with marked
ability.

SAR Acknowledged Patriot:
generation 1: Anthony Chevalier husband of Rachel Nelson and father of:
generation 2: Charlotte Chevalier who married William McGrew and they became parents of
generation 3: Isabella McGrew who married Charles Myers and they became parents of
generation 4: Allen Myers who married Tacca Moffett and they became parents of
generation 5: Elmer Myers who married Harriet Wright and they became parents of
generation 6: Ellis Allen Myers, SAR member
member: Ellis Allen Myers of Indiana, national member number: 65789
Indiana state member number: 1240
4 Jun 1945


These books were used as proof of Ellis Allen Myers' lineage for SAR membership:
au: Gwathmey, John H.
ti: Virginians in the Revolution, page 147

ti: Montgomery County Ohio Pension R, page 80

ti: Senate Documents Pension Roll Volume III

ti: Biographical and Genealogical History of Union, Franklin, Wayne Counties Indiana, page 829

au: Inter State Publishing Company
ti: History of Wayne County Indiana, volume 2 (1884), page 750

au: Young, Andrew W.
ti: History of Wayne County, Indiana (1874), page 330

au: Haines, John F.
ti: Hamilton County Indiana History (1915), page 985-987

au: Daughters of the American Revolution of Ohio
ti: Official Roster of American Soldiers Buried in Ohio, page 76


???Pensioned in 1818 ref national no 100,000 vol 100 p 311 DAR Adelia McGrew Michaner

See attached JPG image

http://www.hathitrust.org/

Daughters of the American Revolution Genealogy Search Ancestor Search website.
Documentation may be purchased through the DAR website.
Ancestor number: A021467, Anthony Chevaller