Isum, Harriet, and Mahlon, Children of Caleb Case and Sophia Camp Case

The Children of Caleb and Sophia Camp Case

Lydia - 1830 - 1893

Maynard D.- c. 1832 - 1867

Isum W. - c. 1834 - 1861

Dexter Rival - 1835 - 1912

Emillus - 1837 - 1924

Mahlon - 1840 - 1861

Harriet - 1842 - 1861

Mary Lucetta - 1848 - 1914

Martha - c. 1853 - 1933

Sophia Case, a widow by 1854, had much more sorrow in her future.  In 1861, she lost three children within a span of three months.  

Isum died first on New Year's Day - January 1, 1861 at the age of 28.
I know he was a teacher for a number of years, as some original documents exist to support this.

One of the earliest documents saved by the family, dated 1848.

 The first is a math problem found together with a teaching license.  Whether this is a problem he had to solve to pass a teacher examination or whether it is a problem he wrote for his students can not be determined.  Could you solve this?

"A and B dig a ditch, 100 Rods in length for $100.  Each one earns and received $50.  But A, haveing the hardest part of the digging, has $0.50 more per rod than B.  How much in length does Each one dig; and at how much per rod?"

An exciting find for me was the original of Isum's teaching license, issued on January 31st, 1857.

I wonder if this is the oldest one in existence in the county.

"County of Dekalb
Jan. 31st 1857
This certifies that the bearer Isum Case on examination by me this day is considered qualified to teach Orthography, Reading, Writing, Geography, Arithmetic, English Grammar and Algebra and is hereby licensed to teach a common school for the period of two years.
James N Chamberlain"

(Orthography is spelling.)

Tax Receipt from 1860, for 1859 Taxes

 Isum also owned some land, as the above tax receipt indicated.  He paid his poll tax and then made payment for two pieces of land, 80 acres in Section 28 and 80 acres in Section 21 which were in Dekalb County, Indiana. However, I think this is the family farm owned as the "Heirs of Caleb Case."

Isum never married, living at home with his family his whole life, teaching and farming.  He is buried with other members of the family at White Cemetery, Spencerville, Indiana.

As the family mourned the loss of Isum, they also had to deal with the sickness of Harriet.  She was born on August 16, 1842 and died January 28, 1861 at the age of 18 years, 5 months and 12 days.

 

And then came Mahlon...

Born on May 24, 1840, he died just a few months after Isum and Harriet, on March 3, 1861 at the age of 20 years, 9 months, and 9 days.  

 

 What a tragic loss for this family, especially when we now know that the loss of Maynard would come just six years later in California.  I have not been able to find a cause of death for these three Case siblings.