"[Cahows] Robert Penn

Amanda (Dreisbach) 23y 6m 23d consumption 1-12-1875 Mass?

Miranda wid 85y 11m 10d paralysis 3-28-1888

Josephine A. 58y 7d rheumatism 3-11-1888

Norton Daniel J.(pumpmaker) 66y 7m 11d paralysis &8-11-188 dysentery

[Ohio] Polly 75y cancer 1-12-1876

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[Wm D. mother?] Elizabeth Corbin died September 7, 1893 age 77y 9m7d born Erie, Pa, died Akr. of Phosphorus poison Res 593 W. Exchange..."

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"2 Jan[uary] 1987

Went to [Western Reserve] Historical Library this A.M. with Abbie -- looking for Akron City Directories for years of William Vernon's presence -- also to investigate Elizabeth Corbin, 77 died 1893 591[sic] W. Exchange Akr. Spent approximately 3-4 hours reviewing films. Had also found data on Elizabeth Corbin for Mercer County Pa 1880 in the [U.S.] census - went to find city directory in card index to order from [stacks] balcony - found card reference for birth cem[etery] inscription for D.A.R. mag[azine]s, and marriage book on Harrison C[oun]ty [West Virginia] 1785-1898; ordered and reviewed - looking in Harrison C[oun]ty book, found James L. Grooms-Lodema Harvey marriage, plus Henry Grooms-Sarah Shaw, Turner Shaw-Mary Wadsworth, etc., found this book by sheerest accident..." [entries from author's research diary]

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The Akron Beacon & Republican Beacon, vol. XXIV no. 234 Republican vol. V no 273 Friday evening September 8, 1893 [obit]:

"CORBIN- In Akron, O., September 7, 1893 at 617 W. Exchange Street, of cancer. Mrs. Elizabeth Corbin, aged 77 years, 7 months and 19 days. Funeral this afternoon at the house at 3 o'clock, and remains will be taken to Cockerton[sic], Pa. for burial on the Erie, at 8:10 tomorrow morning."

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"3-18-[19]88 Using Eliz[abeth] Corbin as a link to finding W[illia]m D.'s origins in Pennsylvania; since she was shipped back to 'Cockerton' [Cochranton], Pa. "by the Erie." (I thought it meant Erie town, or county- it meant Erie Railroad) at her death 9-7-1893, I looked on the map. There was a Cochranton in Mercer County. I had found an Elizabeth, 63, living with Abner Corbin & family (incl. a daughter named Eliz.) in the 1880 Mercer Cty. U.S. census earlier. I knew this would be the same Eliz., as the ages gelled. While at Akron library on 3-15-1988, I had looked for Eliz.' obit in the Akron Beacon & Republican NP [newspaper], and it gave me Cochranton. Now to find the family. While at the library, I looked for Eliz. in city directory for 1892-1897. Found her listed as the widow of William, living a few houses up from William D. and Viola. So I knew who her husband had been. Just hadn't linked her to William D. yet...

Using the new 1860 index for Pa. [at WRH library], I looked up William D. in Mercer County. I had found a Wm for 1840, so I know a Wm had been in Mercer County. I searched the 1860 and 1870 census in Mercer County, Crawford Cty. [next door to Mercer]; went to Ohio census index for 1850, looked up listings in Licking, Muskingum, Franklin, Lake Counties for William Corbin - all had the wrong wife's name. Then I tried Chautauqua County in New York State [just across the border]. No luck. [Next] I tried looking for Corbet, Corbrun, Corbit, and I finally found a William Corban in Mercer County in 1860. I then looked for my William and Elizabeth in 1870, and found him under Corban. Finally..." [Note from author's research diary]

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"April 2, 1988 -- Today is Easter Sunday. Yesterday Abbie and I decided to take a long-thought-about drive to Cochranton, Pennsylvania, in Mercer County. That's the county where I finally discovered William D. Corbin was from. In all likelihood that is the county in which William D. became involved in the Union Army at the start of the Civil War.

I had documentation of William D. and family in Summit County, Ohio in 1880, while an Abner Corbin and wife Ursula lived in Deer Creek Township, Mercer County, Pa., with Abner's mother Elizabeth, also in 1880. I had subsequently found Abner, wife Ursula, without mother Elizabeth, in Medina County next door to Summit County, in 1900. I had also come across the death record in an old Summit County courthouse record book for an Elizabeth, a former resident at 593 W. Exchange Street - just several houses away from William D. - who had died on 7 September, 1893. In her obituary was the observation, "...her remains are to be sent to Cockerton, Pa. on the Erie [Erie Railroad?]". On a hunch, I searched the census records for Corbins for 1860, found a William and Elizabeth and family where, among the children was a William aged 15 years. Hence the trip to Cochranton to try to find the gravesites of William and Elizabeth and other Corbins.

We had headed southeast out of Cleveland toward Youngstown across Rte 80 to Rte 79, then north to State Rte. 285. We crossed a steel girder bridge over Deer Creek on our way to Cochranton. It took us 130 miles and about two and a half hours to reach the community. We stopped at a pleasant diner for a rest and lunch (the last restaurant we would stop at during our subsequent search trips) and to find out where the cemeteries and the local library were. Not expecting much, after a brief stop we headed out for the Cochranton Cemetery.

It was past the only traffic light in town, up a fairly severe hill. The cemetery was reasonably large by the town's standards, and it eventually took us about an hour and a half to cover it. On this leg of our journey, I tried the only building on the grounds. I found a phone number tacked up on the building.

Our next stop was the library a few blocks away. It was a rather small facility housed in the back portion of a larger wooden building, so that when we first arrived, it appeared closed. We did find it open after a little prudent searching around. I wanted to get access to the town's city directories, but all the librarian had to offer was some volumes on local history. We inquired about the location of all the local cemeteries, and the use of the town's phone book. The librarian gave us the name of the town's historian , and directions on how to find his place of business. I looked in the phone book and wrote down the names and addresses of any Corbins in town. I found one name -- D. M. Corbin. I then I then called the number I had gotten from the cemetery building, and arranged a meeting with the man who answered. He had a book of the cemetery plot owners.

He was the local cemetery monument maker, and also took care of all the cemeteries in the area. When we got to his house beside the monument works, he met us in his driveway to explain that he had looked in his book. He found no Corbins in any of the cemeteries he had lists of. He mentioned several other cemeteries beside the Cockranton; the Conneat cemetery, the Deer Creek, the Mumford. We asked directions to the Conneat, said our thanks and set out for our second cemetery search.

The highway took us a few hundred feet further up, and a turn onto a paved single lane road to the left, which dropped down and over a railway crossing, across a bridge over Deer Creek, and an immediate left turn onto a dirt road. We drove down the pitted and cratered road for perhaps a mile and came to a rickety steel girder bridge bearing off to the left, crossing the river we had been following. Past the bridge and up a slight hill, we came to a banked field to our right, spotted with some upright headstones. A smallish white sign with black lettering proclaiming the cemetery's name was supported by two metal uprights. We pulled the car off the road onto the cemetery grounds and got out to start our trek. We searched up one row and down another, Abbie taking one end, I took the other. Our search took us upwards of half an hour to 45 minutes. We discussed some of the families interred there as we got back in the car. Our next destination was Mumford.

We retraced our route back over the rickety bridge, along the packed dirt road to the single-laned road. We turned left onto the road and speed away to the end of it, back onto Rte 285. We turned right away from Cochranton. We had passed this cemetery on our way into town, so I knew approximately where I'd find it. A couple of miles further we came to it just off the highway to our right. A dirt driveway ran along both sides of the cemetery. We turned into one of the driveways and followed it to the back of the cemetery. We got out and began our search. At this point we were searching for any Corbin stones.

We spent another half hour trudging through the headstones with no luck. Across the highway, I noted, was the Mumford Church.

We decided to head back to town and look up the local historian for some history and new directions. We found his place of business back off the street in an alleyway. Introducing ourselves to the young, curly-headed chap, we inquired about the townsfolk, especially Corbins, and its history. He chatted with us about his efforts to preserve some of the town history. After half an hour he gave us directions to Deer Creek Cemetery, and offered to meet us at his home with his records.

Following a map drawn out for us, we headed crosstown to Rte 285. The road goes straight past the Rte. 285 intersection, through French Creek township, and winding up and down through the hilly countryside, snaking past the many farmhouses that dot the landscape. Inside of a few miles we came upon the little village of Milleridgeton. Just past town we came to the landmarks we'd been told to watch for -- a crossroad with a white farmhouse on the left far corner, and a red barn on the left near corner, across from the farmhouse. We were to turn right onto the crossroad going away from the farmhouse.

The road was a paved two-lane farm road which led into the farmland, taking us down into a dip, then up over a small hill, into another dip and up another hill. It bore a little to the right, past a creek to a side road on the left. The cemetery was on the near corner to the side road, another dirt road going off out of sight. Adjacent to the cemetery was the Deer Creek Methodist Church, a simple white frame structure. The front door was open, showing a small vestibule beneath a not-too-tall steeple topped with a cross.

I turned the car around in front of the church and pulled onto the grass facing the cemetery -- the only parking space off the road. We again began our search for the elusive Corbin headstones. Again, after a short search, we returned to the car and our rendezvous with our historian in town.

We found him back at his shop doing some Saturday work for a customer. We discussed his records, while he related his efforts to rejuvenate his town's interest in its history, and its old structures. He sketched out a rough map of the Cochranton Cemetery plot layout, and how it has been used over the years. We said our thanks and goodbyes, and headed back to the Cochranton Cemetery for one more look.

We found the "Potter's Field" our historian had told us about, and I took a couple of photos -- just in case -- while we were there. We looked for and found the older section of the cemetery. A low hill of sorts, about fifteen feet in diameter surrounded by a waist-high wall dominated the center of the cemetery, ringed by a paved road, with spokes of road going off in four directions, with crossroads at periodic intervals. The older part of the cemetery was indicated in four sections at quadrants to the hillock in the center, the oldest clockwise at 10 o'clock, next at 2 o'clock, then at 4 o'clock, finally at 8 o'clock to the hillock. I started at '10 o'clock' and Abbie at '2 o'clock'.

Our second search took us another hour. We returned to the car and pointed it out of town. We took a different route home across Pymatuning Lake. The drive back took 86 miles and about an hour and a half. We arrived home about 6:15 P.M.

The interesting thing about this trip was that the principals we were looking for weren't any part of my family -- except for the relationship I have with my two sisters. But I would have liked to have added William D.'s parents commemorative photos to our growing family album, and to have located their resting places. I know that in due time the efforts expended on this venture will serve a good memorial purpose, and that this family needs to be remembered as all others do. Mom would approve." [Notes from author's research diary]

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Several more trips were made back to Mercer County, looking for the resting places of William and Elizabeth Corbin, including side trips to the county courthouse for some research of the archives. Perhaps at least twelve outlying cemeteries, including many of the surrounding small communities, were visited. Some Corbins were finally located, but it is at this point the merest of speculation as to any familial relationship.

The chance discovery of Elizabeth Corbin's death record entry while researching the Cahow name was this author's introduction to William D.'s parents. The fact that he and his parents were listed in the U.S. census as being from Pennsylvania was confirmation of who she was, but the census wouldn't indicate which county to search. Nor would it have introduced the researcher to Elizabeth's family, the Deans.

All that is know at this writing of William D.'s father, William, is that in the 1870 census he is found in New Lebanon Borough in Mercer County at age 59, was a laborer, and had a worth of $100. His wife Elizabeth was 54 years old and, in that census, they had a son John, aged 16 years, living with them. All were from Pennsylvania.

The 1860 census lists him as being 50 years old, with his wife and family. William would have been born about 1811, probably married about 1840. This author presently has no record of his interment.

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Of Elizabeth there is considerably more record. She is found in the History of Mercer County listed with her parents and family.

She was born Elizabeth Dean, daughter of Abner Dean and Susanna Remley of Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, late of Lebanon Borough, Mercer County. She was born about 31 December, 1816. Elizabeth died on 7 September, 1893 at her home in Akron, Ohio. She was apparently transported for burial in New Lebanon Cemetery with her family, although (after exhaustive search) this author found no headstone or recorded burial plot. Elizabeth and William had at least six children:

3F#16.1 Abner D. Corbin- b September 1839, m about 1865 to Ursula E; at least six children: 3F#16.1.1 Charles P. Corbin- b December 1866, m Anna Belle McLain- b April 1854; at least two children: 3F#16.1.1.1 Hazel E. Corbin- b 11 August, 1891; 3F#16.1.1.2 Leona B. Corbin- b 3 February, 1892; #F#16.1.2 Hudson Corbin- b 12 February, 1869, d 10 October, 1885; 3F#16.1.3 Lilly May Corbin- b about 1872, m 27 January, 1898 to William G. Osborn; 3F#16.1.4 Elizabeth Corbin- b 1874; 3F#16.1.5 Edward Clyde Corbin- b 17 July, 1876, d 26 July, 1877; 3F#16.1.6 Jay E. Corbin- b 26 February, 1887, m 1.) 7 February, 1909 to Clara E. Thorpe- b 12 December, 1888, dau of Clarence Elwin Thorpe and Rose Wolf, m 2.) 20 August, 1913 to Ruth Avery, dau of Stillman and Nellie B. Colton- adopted by Frederick and Ina Avery;

3F#16.2 William D. Corbin- b 24 June, 1846, d 10 February, 1908, m 6 December, 1868 to Mary Viola Cahow; at least nine children;

3F#16.3 Gilbert Corbin- b about 1848;

3F#16.4 Margaret Corbin- b 1850;

3F#16.5 John W[illiam?] Corbin- b 1853, m about 1893 to Bessie A. Jordan; at least one child, 3F#16.5 Marvin Wendell Corbin- b 20 July, 1894, m 22 December, 1918 to Ruth Marie Bowdle- b 13 April, 1899, dau of John W. Bowdle and Belle Neale.

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At this writing this author has no documentation, and only circumstantial evidence, of 3F#16 William Corbin's family or origins. However, this family has resided near the family of Caleb Corbin, wife Sarah, sons Jacob and Elijah, daughter Delia Hanna, since the 1840 U.S. census in Slippery Rock, Mercer County, which is now part of Lawrence County.

Other Corbins in Mercer County would appear to have links to the Corbins of Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania, who apparently originate in Maryland. This author presently presumes the Corbins to have originated in Maryland.

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