Phyllis's Great Ancestors
Phyllis Stephenson would have been 94 yesterday, so I'm thinking about her and the Stephenson ancestors. Her great grandmother was Jemima (Maudlin) Stephenson. Jemima came from a long line of Maudlins who had come to North Carolina from Scotland and then to central Indiana when it was a young state.
Jemima lived to age 89 years in Vernon Township, Indiana. This photo shows her sweeping her doorstep when she was in her last year of life.
Jemima's grandfather, Mark Maudlin, had come to Vernon Township in 1818, according to the booklet "Stephenson Family History." They were Quakers, and Jemima's father Nathan was assessed $4.00 for refusing to take part in militia matters.
When Nelson and Jemima died their bodies were interred in Old Mt. Tabor Cemetery, on land that had been homesteaded by Nelson's father Benjamine. He had also come to Indiana when it was newly designated a state, from Henry County, Kentucky, where his parents, William and Rebecca (Robinson) Stephenson, had a farm. Rebecca and Jemima's parents also rest at Old Mt. Tabor Cemetery. The grave monuments of Jemima and Nelson are tree statues, which were popular at the time. The monuments indicate that the Stephensons were members of Woodmen of the World, a fraternal order that provided life insurance and burial services.
Following are some photos from the cemetery.
Grave marker for Jemima (Maudlin) Stephenson, born August 16, 1824, died May 9, 1913.
The graves of Simpson Stephenson and his wife.
My grandfather, Charles Sylvester Stephenson, and his older sister Mayme would have known Nelson and Jemima, since they were born in 1881 and 1878, respectively. The other children were born in the years from 1912 to 1927, when Phyllis, the last of the children, was born.
