For Veterans Day, I thought it would be appropriate to highlight Philip Mason, my third-great-grandfather and veteran of the 14th West Virginia Infantry. Philip was born 20 November 1834 in Monongalia County, (West) Virginia, the son of John and Elizabeth (Everts) Mason.
Philip married Martha Hibbs in 1858 in Marion County, (West) Virginia. (Of course, theirs would be among the three marriage records on the page that don’t have the exact date filled in. Thanks, Marion County clerk.) Martha died in 1893.
Not too surprisingly, Philip remarried after Martha’s death. On 3 July 1894, he married Amanda D. Lowers in Ritchie County, West Virginia.
Philip Mason and Amanda Lowers
As was typical for widows of Civil War veterans, Amanda applied for a widow’s pension after Philip died in 1909. It was in her declaration for a widow’s pension that I got a bit of a surprise:
Philip and Amanda were married on 3 July 1894. (Yes, I knew that.) Amanda D. Mason was divorced from Weeden N. Lowers on 21 June 1894.
What? Not only was Amanda married before, but she divorced her husband a mere 12 days before marrying Philip.
I haven’t tracked down the divorce file for Amanda and Weeden, but the dates makes me wonder how it played out that Philip married Amanda just 12 days after the divorce was finalized. Was Philip a bit of a ladies man?
Philip died 10 January 1909 in Washington County, Ohio and is buried in the veterans section of Oak Grove Cemetery in Marietta.
Amy, maybe your story is similar to mine. My great-great grandmother Ella Pillsbury Hutson divorced her husband James Hutson in 1895 based on abandonment years earlier. The day after the required 30 day notice period expired, she married John Henderson. I’ve concluded that the only reason for the divorce was because she wanted to remarry. It was good for me because the divorce created another record with more information.
I’ve considered that possibility. Won’t have a better idea of what happened until I get a copy of the divorce file.
That’s truly an epic beard! Looking forward to part deux (once the divorce record comes in).
Amy, the first thing I noticed on the widow’s pension application was that they were married by a Reverend named A. Woman. 😉
Love these insights to my ancestors’ lives.
Glad you enjoy them, Becky!
John Howland #45 Mayflower Passenger
http://myfamilysbranchesandtwigs.blogspot.com/2014/11/john-howland-45-mayflower-passenger-52.html