Heartland Genealogy

Have you ever discovered an obituary in a location that you never imagined? While searching for an obituary on a collateral line, I stumbled across a brief obit in a 'Mustered Out' column in the National Tribune (Washington, D.C.) Since I had never encountered this type of obit before, I was curious to see if I could find an ancestor in a similar "Mustered Out" column. Thus, I searched for my great-great grandfather, Washington Marion Crawford who died in 1889. And - I found it!

Leon Russell Crawford was born in Newton Kansas on the 6 th of Feb 1894. According to Leon’s wife, Winnie Crawford, the family lived in Oklahoma when Leon and his sister Bernice were young. Winnie stated: Judson Crawford worked on a ranch in Oklahoma because Josie’s sister and husband were there. The family all almost died. Judson was extremely ill. The children, Bernice (over 2) and Leon (1) almost died because of poor diet. Documentation for this story has not been found. However, Josie’s sister and husband did live in Oklahoma. The family was living in Dodge City by his 6 th birthday. As a child, Leon attended the Third Ward School that was located on Boot Hill.