We are beholden to David and Arleta Longenecker for the information, or most of it, contained in this page. While David's Mother, Lesta Longenecker, collected most of it, along with the pictures and other documents, David and Arleta have preserved it. They have graciously supplied me with copies.
A Bit of History of the Noe Family
Daniel and Susan Noe lived in and around Woodbridge and Perth Amboy, New Jersey, from the time of their marriage in 1837 until the year 1867. Daniel was an oyster fisherman. They leased their own private cove from the government where he and his sons seeded and harvested their own crop of oysters. They marketed much of the crop directly to hotels in New York. In addition to oysters they also raised fancy berries and fruit which they sold through the same channels.
While living there they lost one son, Ellis, who drowned at sea, while working as a cabin boy on a whaling vessel, July 24, 1853. They also lost a son, Lewis F. in the Civil War. He was killed in action in June, 1864.
In the year, 1867, they moved, with their family, to Illinois, to enable their sons to take up farming. The move to Illinois was not beneficial to Daniel's health and he died one year later. They moved to an area of what is now Adams County, in the southeastern portion of the county, where there is a community known as Beverly. The sons farmed in that vicinity and also did building and construction work. Being a pioneering area there was much in the way of construction going on. The family remained in that state and the sons married local girls. One son, Smith, received a head injury during the Civil War which always caused him a great deal of distress and he spent his later years in the Veteran's Hospital at Jacksonville, Illinois. In later years Adam moved to Santa Ana, California, where he lived with his family the remainder of his life. Dallas, the fifth son, also left Illinois and the family lost track of him entirely, as so often happened in those days of slow and difficult communication, Many have thought that he had settled in Minnesota or Wisconsin. There are many Noe's in that area who claimed a definite tie to the Noe family in Illinois.
Esther remained single and devoted her life to her family, caring for her mother, Susan, in the last years of her life and anyone else needing care. Sarah married Charles Richardson, who came from New York in 1869 and had settled in Illinois. They had four children. Susan married Charles Beltz in 1873, who died several years later. She then married John Garoutte and they had an unknown number of children. Mary Georgeanna married Thomas L. Briggs and they had six daughters, the oldest of which was Helen Isadore, my grandmother.
All of the original Daniel Noe family are deceased. A few of their sons and daughters, a host of grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren are living and scattered throughout the United States of America, to which Pierre Noe came as an immigrant nobleman in the year 1663.
Why is this important or even relevant history? Danuiel and Susan Noe were the parents of Mary Georgeanna Noe Briggs, mother of Helen Isadore Briggs, mother of Hazel Deane Schwanke.
Children of Daniel Noe
Daniel Noe, son of Benjamin and Esther, (maiden name unknown), was born in Woodbridge, New Jersey, December 9, 1789.
He married Betsy Bowers, January 26, 1811. She died March 18, 1836.
Their children:
James, born June 30, 1813
Phoebe, born November 14,1816
Ann born June 8, 1819
Eliza born Novenber 14, 1821
Ezra born February 22, 1824
Charity born May 28, 1830
Priscilla born February 14, 1836
Daniel Noe married Susan Kelly, May 3, 1837.
Susan was the daughter of John Kelly and Christian (Dunham) Kelly
She was born, Decamber 1, 1811 and died September 20, 1890
Children of Daniel & Susan Noe:
SmithbornMay 26, 1838
Lewis F. bornSeptember 8, 1839
AdambornJune 11, 1841He died December 1, 1925
Ellis bornOctober 2, 1842
Dallas born August 3, 1844
Sarah Ann bornDecember 26, 1845
Esther bornJanuary 1, 1848
Susan bornDecember 23, 1850 She died 1925
Mary Georgeanna
bornSeptember 9, 1860 She died Nov. 14, 1914
Daniel Noe died January 26, 1868
Susan (Kelly) Noe died September 20, 1890
Both were buried in the "Old Cemetery" behind what is now the Methodist Church in the city limits of Beverly, IL. The cemetery is in extremely bad shape. Many of the stones are missing entirely and many of those remaining are just either lying around or propped against a tree. Lois and I found their stone, propped against a tree near the center of the cemetery.
Christian (Dunham) Kelly died December 1, 1833 according to family bible.
Susan Kelly Noe
We have no picture of Daniel Noe. These are pictures of his brother, Adam Noe, with his wife Lizzie.
Mary Georgeanna Noe, married Thomas Leroy Briggs, adopted son of Robert and Elizabeth (Lutz) Briggs, September 30, 1880, in Pike County, IL.
Their children were:
Helen Isadore,bornFebruary 3, 1883,diedAug. 13, 1928 Minerva May born Jan. 30, 1883 died Jan. 19, 1941
Sarah AnnbornDec. 18, 1885 died July 31, 1903
Esther NoebornJune 11, 1888 died?
Naomi H. bornAug. 13, 1893 died Aug. 22, 1896
Mary Elizabeth bornApril 25, 1896 died ?
Thomas Leroy Briggs died on July 11, 1899 as the result of an accident while putting up hay. He was buried in the cemetery 1/2 mile out of Beverly, Illinois.
Mary Georgeanna Briggs died November 14, 1914. We have been unable to find where and under what circumstances, Mary Georgeanna died. I think
it probably occurred in St. Louis because of a news article in the Beverly news section of "The Quincy Daily Herald" which stated that she had gone to St. Louis with her daughter to spend the winter. I have found no further mention of her as yet.
Stone marker for the grave of Thomas L. Briggs, of Beverly, Illinois.
It is interesting to note that someone had placed flowers at the grave.
I returned and left a note in plastic in the hope that it would be seen and they would contact us.
The Thomas Leroy Briggs family, 1898
Front row, L to R: Thomas L., Mary Elizabeth (Mollie), Mary Georgeanna
Back row, L to R: Sarah Ann (Pansy), Helen Isadore (Grand Muzzy), Minerva May (Minnie), Esther Noe
Sarah Ann, died in her teens and is probably interred in the cemetery at Beverly.
Helen Isadore, became the natural mother of Hazel Deane Bennett who later married Orin F. Schwanke and became our mother.
Minerva May (Minnie) married a Fishbeck.
Esther Noe Married a Creswick and died in 1964.
Mary Elizabeth, (Mollie) married George Burns, a famer in Iowa.
A sixth daughter, Naomi H. was born August 13, 1893 and died August 2, 1896
Index
History of the Huston family is even more scarce. We know from records that the parents of Sherbern Sherwood Huston were Sherbern Henry Huston and Della Spencer Huston of Macksburg, Iowa where "Bernie" was born.
Myra A. Huston Snyder, age 65
June 24, 1920
Sister of Sherbern Henry Huston
"Bernie's" aunt
History
C. F. Schwanke
H. S. Gillespie
C. E. Gillespie
S. S. Huston
J. M. Bennett
Lois & Bill
Carl & Les
Ray & Pat
Alan & Sharon
Pete & Sharon
The Palmers
Dan & Brandy
Curt & Jenny
Jesse & Diana
Mary Briggs, Minnie & Helen
Smith Noe, Mary's brother
Smith's wife is also buried at a cemetery near Beverly. I will try to get more details later on, perhaps in the spring.
Huston
Sherbern Henry Huston, born November 28, 1849, died February 7, 1894
Della Anis Spencer, born May 17, 1853, died July 16, 1918
They were married on September 1, 1871 and parents of a number of children: Albert, Dora, Roy and Glen as well as Sherbern Sherwood (Bernie).
Bernie, Dora, Albert
Glen & family
Roy & family
Bernie & Roy
Shoebox
O, F. Schwanke
Wildlife
Christmas
ShoeboxII
God's Plan
This page was last updated: March 8, 2009
Norman and MaryBelle Huston visited Lois and I during the summer of 1985.
It was the first time I had seen Norman since the late twenties when they lived in Davenport, IA. He was just a boy of ten or twelve then and I was not much over five.