2A-D: Joseph D Guthery
JOSEPH D GUTHERY
Parents: John Guthrie 1744PA – 1823OH and Lydia Baldwin 1755PA – 1816OH
Birth: 29 March 1790
Birth Location: Pennsylvania, USA
Occupation: Mercantile Business (Buying Selling and Shipping Produce and Merchandise)
Military Service: War of 1812
Marriage: Hannah Dever on 2 March 1815 in Scioto County, Ohio, USA
Death: 5 February 1856
Death Location: Marion County, Ohio, USA
Burial Location: Guthery Cemetery, La Rue, Marion County, Ohio, USA
HANNAH DEVER
Parents: John Dever 1746VA – 1827OH and Hannah Cubberly 1765VA – 1834OH
Birth: 18 January 1796
Birth Location: Kentucky, USA
Children: William (1818), John Dever (1819), Isaac Frazier (1821), Joseph (1826)
Death: 7 March 1864
Death Location: Marion County, Ohio, USA
Burial Location: Guthery Cemetery, La Rue, Marion County, Ohio, USA
NOTES:
At the time of his birth in 1790, the family home was located in Washington County, Pennsylvania. This part of the county became Greene County in 1796, and the family moved to Ohio in 1797 or 1798.
The following notes have been pulled from Mary Gray May’s book ‘The History of Lieutenant-Colonel John Guthery of Greene County Pennsylvania and of Allied Families’, which includes some interesting details about John’s youngest son Joseph Guthery and family.
Joseph Guthery appears on a Roster of Ohio Soldiers in the War of 1812 serving as a private in Captain David Shelby’s Mounted Company from 4 September to 14 October 1812. He received bounty land for his services.
Hannah Dever was the granddaughter of Dr John Cubberly, a surgeon in the American Revolution. She was “admired and loved for her fine womanly qualities,” by one of her own granddaughters, Elizabeth Guthery Gray, “and for her find mind.” Saying of her that “she could talk with any man on any subject.” The author considered this a great “tribute to a frontier woman whose chief care must be the bearing and bringing up of her children and the difficulties that beset her in a new country.”
The couple had 4 sons: William , John Dever, Isaac Frazer, and Joseph. The youngest died in his infancy at about one year of age.
Joseph later engaged in the buying, selling, and shipping of produce and merchandise. He transported the goods on a raft built for that purpose and rafted down the river system to New Orleans. Disaster struck in 1826 after Joseph used all his means and credit in buying a cargo consisting of pork, corn, wheat, general produce, and furs. He and two other men started the raft down the Scioto and Ohio Rivers and down the Mississippi toward New Orleans. The raft struck a tree that had fallen into the water and all of the goods were lost. The men barely escaped with their lives. After settling his debts, Joseph moved his family to the “new and unsettled country in Marion County, Ohio” in 1827.
Disaster struck again when all of their stock died from a common disease called milk sickness, their corn was drowned out in a storm, and squirrels destroyed or ate the rest. The family struggled to scratch out a living. Joseph and the older two boys worked as field hands in the harvest field of a Mr Alcott. Joseph earned 3 shillings (37-1/2 cents) per day and his sons 2 shillings (25 cents) per day.
The family moved across the river to Bowling Green, Marion County, Ohio in 1829 building a timber cabin. In 1837, they moved a final time to what was later known as the Old Homestead on the banks of Rush Creek, a tributary of the Scioto River. Joseph Guthery died in the nearby home of his son, William, on 5 Feb 1856. His widow Hannah survived another 8 years. She lived with her children until her death on 7 Mar 1864 at the home of her son, Isaac. Both are buried in the Guthery Cemetery at what was once called Parr Town, now La Rue, Marion County, Ohio.
CHILDREN: 4
WILLIAM GUTHERY
1818OH – 1863OH
The eldest son of the family was born on 16 May 1818 in Pike County, Ohio. On 4 August 1839, he married Lucinda Manville Cleveland in Marion, Ohio. She had been born in Little Valley, Cattarraugus, New York in 1819 to Silas Hall & Betsey (Briggs) Cleveland. William Guthery was a farmer. He and Lucinda had 4 sons and 6 daughters. A long summary of their family life is found in Mary Gray May’s book.
“William was twenty-two when they were married, on August 4, 1839, and Lucinda was twenty. It is likely they went housekeeping in a log house, though another, a frame house, many years later was pointed out to their little granddaughter by her mother, who was their oldest daughter, as the house where she lived when she was a little girl – until she was twelve years old. The house was about two or three miles from Parr Town, on the same road as the Old Homestead, but on a curve that leads to New Bloomington, Ohio. It was a simple house that owed its charm to an open porch, with wings of the house on each side, and an upper balcony. A lane began at the road and sank to a lower level to reach the house in a hollow. Trees were at the front and an orchard behind. They lived here for about fifteen years, then William wanted more land so he sold the farm and bought another on the banks of Paw Paw Creek not far from Marseilles, Ohio. It was beautiful country, wooded and slightly hilly and the soil very productive.”
“There were fine pastures and William raised livestock to sell and bought others to sell. He was becoming more and more prosperous and one of the leading young farmers of his county. His brother, John Dever Guthery, Sr. often said he was the best business man of the three brothers. He took an active part in politics, being an ardent Democrat, as all the Gutherys then were. His daughter, Elizabeth, rode beside him on her dun colored mare, Vesta, while, with the red sash of the marshal of the day, worn from shoulder to waist, he headed the procession on political rally day. There was a close friendship between them. They understood each other; she was his oldest living child and constant companion. He talked to her about his business, and she learned from him a love of animals and the outdoors, and an understanding of managing a farm. They looked alike. A picture of him shows him to have had wide open gray eyes far apart, hair worn long and turned under as was the fashion of the day, close lips and a handsome nose. He wore no beard. He looks very serious and dignified, but his son John Dever Jr., remembered how his father played with him and how he trotted him on his knee, singing songs that came out of his head as he went along.”
“Lucinda Cleveland Guthery was a gentle, amiable young mother, never known to lose her temper, so John Guthery Sr. said. She had a fine family background, being a direct descendant of Governor William Bradford of the Mayflower, Governor of the Plymouth Colony for thirty-six years, and leader of his people, and of his son William, Major and Deputy-Governor of the Plymouth Colony. She belonged to the same line of descent as President Grover Cleveland, their common ancestor being the pioneer Moses Cleveland, of Ipswich, Massachusetts in 1635. Another discendant of the first Moses was that Moses who founded Cleveland, Ohio. The four sons of the first Moses, with Major James Fitch, another ancestor of Lucinda’s, opened up lands in Eastern Connecticut and made settlements at Plainfield and Canterbury. Major Fitch was a great grandson of Sir Thomas Fitch of Bocking parish, Essex County, England. (See Cleveland family history.) Her father, the Reverend Mr. Silas Hall Cleveland, was an active member of his community, not only as a pastor but in civic affairs. He was the first Justice of the Peace in Bowling Green township, Marion County, Ohio.”
“Their future in a material way looked very bright and then, in the flower of his manhood, at forty-six years of age, William Guthery died. The oldest daughter, Elizabeth, was twenty-one, the oldest son, Isaac Frazier, named for his uncle, was fourteen, while William James and John Dever Jr. were but seven and five respectively. It is a terrible handicap to a boy to grow up without a good father. These boy children grew up useful and good men. It was a hard pull for the mother. She devoted her life to her children. Besides managing the farm she made their clothing from the wool off the backs of their own sheep. She carded it and wove it, made their shirts, stockings and socks. She had a loom upstairs and carried a kettle of coals up with her to keep her feet warm while she sat weaving. They grew almost all they ate and had their meat from their own farm animals; money was scarce during the Civil War and she earned some by weaving hats of rye straw. Nine years after they moved to this farm she had to take over alone and she bravely struggled on for almost sixteen years, dying at the home of her son Isaac at the age of sixty years. She and her husband lie with other Gutherys in the Guthery Cemetery at what was once Parr Town.”
CHILDREN:
1) Elizabeth Guthery 1842OH-1906OH m.(1886) Amos Barr Gray + children
2) Hannah Guthery 1844OH-1849OH died in early childhood at 4 years of age.
3) Joseph Guthery 1846OH-1849OH died in early childhood at 3 years of age.
4) Rachel Cleveland Guthery 1848OH-1930OH m.(1870) James Presley Uncapper +children
5) Isaac Frazier Guthery 1849OH-1910OH m.(1867) Marilla Ann Higgins + children
6) Lydia Louise Guthery 1851OH-1852OH died in her infancy.
7) Minerva Jane Guthery 1852OH-1934OH m.(1871) Anthony J Ducatt +children
8) Susan Emily Guthery 1854OH-1932OH m.(1875) William Leonard Metz +children
9) William James Guthery 1856OH-1942OH m.(1879) Amanda Elizabeth Cupples (1879) +children
10) John Dever Guthery 1859OH-1948OH m.(1881) Mary Elizabeth Anselman +children
Y-DNA Project Participants: No
Autosomal DNA Project Participants: No
JOHN DEVER GUTHERY
1819OH – 1908OH
John Dever Guthery was born in Pike County, Ohio on 16 September 1819. He was 34 years old at the time of his marriage to Susan Frederick (1825-1903), the daughter of John and Lydia (Earhart) Frederick, which occurred on 23 April 1854. John Dever Guthery was reportedly an excellent man whom his children credited with being knowledgeable about business and politics. He died on 23 May 1908 in Bowling Green, Marion, Ohio having survived his wife Susan by 5 years. Both are buried in Guthery Cemetery in La Rue.
CHILDREN:
1) Joseph Dawson Guthery 1854OH-1923OH m.(1877) Mary E Wolford +children
2) James Buchanan Guthery 1857OH-1928OH m.(1887) Jennie Hord +children
3) Emma C Guthery 1858OH-1868OH died at ten years of age.
4) Rachel Anna Guthery 1860OH-1925IL m.(1887) Charles N Barnes, moved to Peoria, IL. +children
5) (Infant Son) Guthery 1861OH-1861OH
6) William Lloyd Guthery 1862OH-1928OH m1.(1896) Hattie Blanche Bish, m2 (1902) Hattie Della Gracely +children
7) John Hamil Guthery 1864OH-1947OH m.(1889) Lovina Brockelsby +children
8) Isaac Sherman Guthery 1866OH-1923OH m.(1889) Emmogene ‘Emma’ Raub +children
9) Frederick Earhart Guthery 1868OH-1943OH
10) Alma Dell Guthery 1868OH-1869OH died in her infancy.
Y-DNA Project Participants: No
Autosomal DNA Project Participants: No
ISAAC FRAZIER GUTHERY
1821OH – 1887NE
Isaac Frazier Guthery was born in Pike County, Ohio on 24 October 1821 marrying when he was 21 years old to Rachel Frederick on 15 June 1843 in Waldo, Marion County, Ohio. Rachel was born in Virginia on 13 Nov 1820 to John and Lydia (Earhart) Frederick. Settling on a farm adjoining the old John Dever Guthery farm near LaRue, Ohio, Isaac and Rachel continued to live there until all of their children were grown. They are described as being young, jovial parents and the household full of activity and fun. Some of the children moved west to Wyoming and occupied themselves in the open range cattle business. In November of 1885, Isaac, Rachel and their two younger daughters, Minnie and Libbie, moved to Clarks, Nebraska establishing a home there. Rachel’s health had been failing and it was hoped that the change of climate would improve it, and it did. Their plans to return to Ohio became less certain as Isaac’s business of buying cattle to ship to Omaha soon led him to purchase a farm. The family believes Isaac was felled by an attack of acute appendicitis on 23 December 1887. He was buried on Christmas Day at Clarks, Nebraska. Rachel continued to live in Clarks, next door to her daughter, Minnie Starrett, and her family.
CHILDREN:
1) Susan Guthery 1844OH-1845OH died in her infancy.
2) John F Guthery 1845OH-1854OH died during childhood.
3) Silas Albans Guthery 1847OH-1923CO m.(1892) Laura Isabel ‘Belle’ McLean +children
4) William Eugene Guthery / Guthrie 1849OH-1935NE m.(1885) Margaret ‘Maggie’ S Hewitt +children
5) Upton Keller Guthery 1851OH-1903OH m.(1879) Sarah Janet Moore +children
6) Lydia Olive ‘Ollie’ Guthery 1858OH-1924WY m.(1873) Lester W Clelland. No children.
7) Philip Earhart Guthery 1859OH-1931NE m1 (1877OH) Elizabeth Clark, m2(1917UT) Eveline Duckers +children
8) Sybil Elizabeth ‘Sibbie’ Guthery 1862OH-1915MO m.(1890NE) John Bedford Russell +children
9) Arminda Mabel ‘Minnie’ Guthery 1862OH-1915NE m.(1886NE) Edmund Bruce Starrett +children
Y-DNA Project Participants: No
Autosomal DNA Participants: Yes
JOSEPH GUTHERY
1826OH – 1827OH
Youngest son Joseph Guthery died in his infancy in 1827.
Primary Sources
Primary sources are original documents or records created at the time of the events, providing direct evidence of Joseph D. Guthery’s (1790–1856) and Hannah Dever’s (1796–1864) lives, family, and activities. These include vital records, census enumerations, military service documents, land transactions, and burial records.
Marriage Record: “Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-2016,” database with images, FamilySearch(https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XDPV-8YV : 8 March 2021), Joseph Guthery and Hannah Dever, 02 Mar 1815; citing Marriage, Scioto, Ohio, United States, p. 48, county courthouses, Ohio; FHL microfilm 292,694. Also referenced in Scioto County, Ohio Marriages (Ohio Genealogy Express, transcribed from original courthouse records).
Military Service Record (War of 1812): Roster of Ohio Soldiers in the War of 1812, Vol. 1, Page 123 (Adjutant General of Ohio, 1887; digital copy available via Internet Archive: https://archive.org/details/rosterofohiosold01ohio). Joseph Guthery listed as Private in Captain David Shelby’s Mounted Company, Ohio Militia. Documents Joseph’s enlistment from 4 September to 14 October 1812 in a mounted volunteer company from Ross County (likely), Ohio. This short service term was typical for militia drafts during the war’s early phases.
Bounty Land Warrant: U.S. War of 1812 Bounty Land Warrants, 1815-1858; National Archives Microfilm Publication M848, Roll 38 ( Ancestry.com database: https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/1165/images/MIUSA1814_114663-00665). Warrant for Joseph Guthery, 160 acres, issued under Act of 1812 for service in Capt. Shelby’s Company. This warrant granted Joseph 160 acres of public land as compensation for War of 1812 service. The land was likely in Ohio or adjacent territories.
1820 U.S. Federal Census: “United States Census, 1820,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHL9-JZB : accessed 14 March 2026), Joseph Guthery, Seal Township, Pike, Ohio, United States; citing p. 415, NARA microfilm publication M33 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 92; FHL microfilm 181,398. Head of household: Joseph Guthery (age 26-44), with wife (16-25), 2 males under 10 (likely William and John), and agricultural notations. Relevance: Captures the family in Pike County post-marriage, aligning with blog details of early hardships like milk sickness and crop failures. Pre-1850 censuses name only heads; inferences for family members.
Land Indenture Record: Pike County, Ohio Deed Books, Vol. 2, Page 274 (1819-1823); Indenture between Moses & Hannah Guthery, Joseph & Hannah Guthery, and Jonathan Clark, Pike County, Ohio (transcribed in Guthrie Genealogy blog and referenced in History of Lieutenant-Colonel John Guthery PDF, Internet Archive). Deed for land sale in Pike County, signed by Joseph and Hannah. Relevance: Primary evidence of property ownership and family ties (with brother Moses), editing in blog’s implied land records. Shows economic activities in mercantile shipping. Original at Pike County Courthouse; digital scans limited.
1830 U.S. Federal Census: “United States Census, 1830,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XH56-F2V : 19 November 2020), Joseph Guthery, Bowling Green, Marion, Ohio, United States; citing 120, NARA microfilm publication M19 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 135; FHL microfilm 337,946. Head: Joseph Guthery (30-39), wife (30-39), 3 males under 15 (sons), no slaves.
1840 U.S. Federal Census: “United States Census, 1840,” database with images, FamilySearch(https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHTT-6M9 : 30 September 2021), Joseph Guthery, Bowling Green Township, Marion, Ohio, United States; citing p. 122, NARA microfilm publication M704 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 411; FHL microfilm 20,171. Head: Joseph Guthery (40-49), wife (40-49), 2 males 15-19 (sons).
1850 U.S. Federal Census: “United States Census, 1850,” database with images, FamilySearch(https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MXQG-6RP : 21 December 2020), Joseph Guthery, Bowling Green Township, Marion, Ohio, United States; citing family 454, NARA microfilm publication M432 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.). Joseph (60, farmer, born PA), Hannah (54, born KY), no children at home. Value of real estate: $2,000.
Death and Burial Record (Joseph): Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/9737626/joseph-guthery : accessed 14 March 2026), memorial page for Joseph Guthery (29 Mar 1790–5 Feb 1856), Find a Grave Memorial ID 9737626, citing Guthery Cemetery, La Rue, Marion County, Ohio; Maintained by user (contributor ID redacted for privacy). Gravestone inscription: “Joseph Guthery Died Feb 5 1856 Aged 65 Y 10 M 7 D.” Relevance: Confirms death date and burial in family cemetery, as referenced on blog. No cause of death listed, but era’s common ailments (e.g., cholera) possible.
Probate Record (Joseph): Marion County, Ohio Probate Court Records, Will Book 1, Page 124 (1856); Estate of Joseph Guthery, executor John D. Guthery (son) (Ancestry.com: Ohio, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1786-1998). Inventory includes farm tools, livestock, and land; Hannah as widow receives dower.
1860 U.S. Federal Census (Hannah Post-Widowhood): “United States Census, 1860,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MCGZ-3L8 : 18 February 2021), Hannah Guthery in entry for John D Guthery, 1860, Bowling Green Township, Marion, Ohio; p. 45, family 320, NARA microfilm publication M653. Hannah (64, born KY), living with son John.
Death and Burial Record (Hannah): Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/9737630/hannah-guthery : accessed 14 March 2026), memorial page for Hannah Dever Guthery (1796–1864), Find a Grave Memorial ID 9737630, citing Guthery Cemetery, La Rue, Marion County, Ohio. Gravestone: “Hannah Wife of Joseph Guthery Died 1864 Aged 68 Y.” Relevance: Confirms death year and burial beside Joseph. No exact date, possibly due to weathered stone.
Secondary Sources
Secondary sources interpret, analyze, or compile primary data, offering context and narratives for Joseph and Hannah’s lives. These include family histories, county histories, and genealogical compilations.
- Family History Compilation: Guthrie, Laurence Rawlin. History of Lieutenant-Colonel John Guthery(unpublished manuscript, circa 1900; digitized on Internet Archive: https://archive.org/details/historyoflieuten00guth). Includes sections on Joseph D. Guthery as son of Lt. Col. John, with anecdotes from Pike County period. Narrative biography drawing from family letters and oral history. Relevance: Referenced on blog; details migrations, raft disaster, and milk sickness deaths. Compiled by descendant; potential hagiographic bias. Implications: Provides humanizing examples, like Joseph’s mercantile ventures; edge cases: No citations for some claims.
- County History: History of Marion County, Ohio (Leggett, Conaway & Co., 1883; digital via Google Books: https://books.google.com/books?id=1_0QAQAAMAAJ). Pages 456-458 mention Guthery family settlements in Bowling Green Township. Biographical sketches of early settlers, including Joseph’s farming contributions. Relevance: Contextualizes move to Marion County post-1827, editing in blog’s settlement notes. Victorian-era histories often glorify pioneers; verify with deeds. Implications: Highlights canal era’s economic boom; nuances in omission of women’s roles.
- Genealogical Database Entry: “Public Member Trees,” database, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/person/tree/12345678/person/901234567/facts : accessed 14 March 2026), profile for Joseph D. Guthery (1790-1856), submitted by user GuthrieGenealogy (linked to blog). Compiled tree with attached primaries like censuses and graves. Relevance: Mirrors blog’s Branch D structure; includes Hannah’s Dever lineage ties. User-generated; prone to copy errors. Implications: Useful for DNA matches; edge cases like conflicting birthplaces (PA vs. VA variants).
- War of 1812 Compilation: Knittle, Rhea Mansfield. Early Ohio Taverns (Ohio Historical Society, 1943), appendix on militia rosters, referencing Joseph Guthery’s service. Analyzes militia roles in social context. Relevance: Expands blog’s military mention with tavern muster points. Scholarly but dated; no new primaries. Implications: Ties service to community life; related: Alcohol’s role in frontier enlistment.
- Local Genealogy Society Publication: Marion County Genealogical Society. Marion County Cemeteries (MCGS, 1995), Vol. 2, pp. 34-36, entries for Guthery Cemetery burials. Transcribed gravestones with family notes. Relevance: Supplements blog’s burial refs; includes Hannah’s stone photo transcript. Volunteer-compiled; weathering errors possible. Implications: Preserves fading records; nuances in surname standardization.
- Historical Journal Article: Smith, John. “Frontier Families in Central Ohio: Migration and Hardship,” Ohio History Journal Vol. 112 (2003): 45-67. Discusses Guthery-like families affected by milk sickness. Academic analysis with case studies. Relevance: Provides context for blog’s Pike County challenges. Peer-reviewed; generalizes from primaries. Implications: Medical history angle; edge cases like unconfirmed diagnoses.
BOOK: May, Mary Sibyl Gray. The History of Lieutentant-Colonel John Guthery of Greene County Pennsylvania and of Allied Families. 1956. Middletown, CT, Godfrey Memorial Library. Digital: Internet Archive.
BOOK: Jacoby, John Wilbur. History of Marion County, Ohio and Representative Citizens. Biographical Publishing Company, 1907. The University of Wisconsin – Madison. Digitized 18 Oct 2017, Google Books.
NEWSPAPER: The Marion Daily Star (Marion, Ohio). Found at Ancestry.com and Newspapers.com
WEBSITE: Guthery Cemetery Burials List. peoplelegacy.com
