I had heard stories about Greeley when I lived there, but nothing consequential. Besides he wasn’t Dutch. His life was in the never land of BD — before the Dutch (not Brian Dowling) in Clymer’s awareness. Greeley was the” other guy” at the Jackson Center, where I was a board member. Greeley’s candidacy for President in 1872 was supported by Jamestown’s Reuben Fenton though, and without that, the current Jackson Center would have no need for its omnipresent Grant Room, for Grant would have dined at Fenton’s house, not that of Alonzo Kent. But alas, that wasn’t the case. And even the Methodist Bishop (John Heyl Vincent) couldn’t change the history of Grant’s visit to Chautauqua in 1875. He had lunch at Kent’s House, not Fenton’s ,because the rather connected and smart former Governor preferred Greeley over Grant.

Clymer Central School was directly across the street from the Clymer Cemetery too, but our teachers never mentioned Greeley that I know of.

“So I went exploring around my home town.”

I went to Clymer Cemetery and found all sorts of interesting Greeley memorabilia. At some stage in my searches I talked with my high school classmate, Melvin Wallace, about his neighborhood. Mel lived on the Stateline road about 10 miles west of the Spirit Hill corner, and that corner was where my high school classmate Judy Camp lived. So during conversations at the various “Class of ’56” reunions that Mel and his wife Judy were gracious to host, I talked to Mel about his neighborhood. He mentioned Barnes Greeley and that his Grandmother was raised by Barnes and his wife.

Carol Wallace Shampoe was the great-grandmother of Bailey, Trent, Sydney and Michael at the Clymer Cemetery. Photo courtesy of Sonya Shampoe, whose son Randy Shampoe Jr., passed away in 2020. He was the father of Trent, Sydney and Michael.

I had seen Judy Smolk about three times since our high school graduation in 1956, but when I thought she might know something about Greeley’s property, I asked her about it…. by email, of course. She didn’t know much either but began the search that begat this ‘Remembering Relatives on Memorial Day’ piece. All the cemetery connects in this piece are as a result of Judy’s hard work. And, in fairness to our high school teachers, without the internet, Greg Peterson’s Robert H. Jackson Center, a Methodist bishop from Meadville and a book a Jamestowner wrote about the District, none of this could have been collected and written about now either.

Mel Wallace and his family operate one of the largest, most successful dairies in the town of French Creek… The Clymer school district is large ranging from the Pennsylvania borders on the south and west to the towns of Sherman on the north and Panama on the east. Mel and his sisters went to Clymer to school. All told, from Mel’s house to North Clymer is about 20 miles as the crow flies. That’s why, though we didn’t know why, we all attended Clymer Central School. The children from age 6 to 18, in about 200 sq. miles of the district, go to the Clymer Central School.

“The Clymer Cemetery was always a curious place for me, the son of Dutch immigrants.”

The high school band marched there on Memorial Day because, I always thought, it was closer to the town than the Dutch cemetery where all of our relatives were buried. When the band got there after a parade up Main Street one or another of the trumpet players would play “Taps” with its invariable missed notes. After Taps we were all excused — marching for the day was over with and it was back to pick up baseball and picnics.

In the cemetery 50 plus years later, I found the graves of lots of Greeley’s, including Mary Woodburn and Zaccheus….. Horace’s parents; Nathan Barnes and his two wives; and even one of the Greeley’s related to Zac’s brother Benjamin. Ben moved to Spring Creek later begetting a series of barbers among whom was a Zac Greeley that gave little Bob Jackson his first haircut.

Melvin Wallace is pictured at the Cutting Cemetery at the Marker of Genevieve Wickwire Wallace. Genevieve Wallace, Melvin’s grandmother, was Horace Greeley’s great niece. She was born during the Civil War. Her mother, Mary Arminda Greeley Wickwire, died when she was 12 years old. She was raised by her grandfather, Nathan Barnes Greeley, at the Greeley family home in Wayne Township, PA. She married, gave birth to 8 children, and passed away at age 84. Several area residents are her great or great, great grandchildren.

Thus began my search for Greeley, Clymer, Greeley’s progeny and whatever else might show in those very old tombstones. I found the burial places of both Revolutionary War and War of 1812 veterans. And, though I didn’t look, there must be veterans of the Civil War buried there too.

In fairness others have written a bit about Greeley in Chautauqua County. But none have done what Judy has done — figure out who living there now traces back to the man that originated America’s first quality daily newspaper, the New York Tribune . Future pieces will deal with Greeley, the political figure, and with a contemporary from the time-almost-as famous-Beman Brockway.

Here are some of their stories.

GENEVIEVE WALLACE

Genevieve Wallace, Melvin’s grandmother, was Horace Greeley’s great niece. She was born during the Civil War. Her mother, Mary Arminda Greeley Wickwire, died when she was 12 years old. She was raised by her grandfather, Nathan Barnes Greeley, at the Greeley family home in Wayne Township, PA. She married, gave birth to 8 children, and passed away at age 84. Several area residents are her great or great, great-grandchildren.

Melvin Wallace is pictured at the Cutting Cemetery at the Marker of Genevieve Wickwire Wallace. Genevieve Wallace, Melvin’s grandmother, was Horace Greeley’s great niece. She was born during the Civil War. Her mother, Mary Arminda Greeley Wickwire, died when she was 12 years old. She was raised by her grandfather, Nathan Barnes Greeley, at the Greeley family home in Wayne Township, PA. She married, gave birth to 8 children, and passed away at age 84. Several area residents are her great or great, great grandchildren.

CAROL WALLACE SHAMPOE

Carol Wallace Shampoe was the great-grandmother of Bailey, Trent, Sydney and Michael.

Her son, Randy Shampoe, Jr., passed away in 2020. He was the father of Trent, Sydney and Michael

Connections with ancestors make a connection with history: In the case of these travelers, the history of the settlement of the town of Clymer by immigrants from New England in the 1820s and Horace Greeley’s connection with the Civil War. Genevieve Wickwire Wallace, Horace Greeley’s great niece, and the ancestress of all these historians, was born during the Civil War. Her father was a Civil War soldier, Myron Wickwire. Her great-uncle, Horace, used his influence as an editor and publisher to convince Abraham Lincoln to sign the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863.

THE CEMETERY MARKERS SPEAK TO US

Pictured are the grave markers of Zaccheus Greeley and Mary Woodburn Greeley in the Clymer Village Cemetery. Photos courtesy of J. Ganske

Judy Smolk: At age 19, in 1830, Horace Greeley left his parents’ home in Wayne Township, just across the state line from Clymer. He walked and went by the Erie Canal and Hudson River boat to New York City, where he arrived with $10 in his pocket. Ten years later he founded the New York Tribune and for the next 30 years he was the busiest, boldest and most influential newspaper editor and publisher in America. There are a number of descendants of Nathan Barnes Greeley in our area. We hope this article helped you make a “Greeley Memorial Day Connection” with your history and the importance of Horace Greeley in 18th Century United States history.

Doug Neckers: This Memorial Day is unlike any in my lifetime — certainly since the end of World War II. We are in the throes of one of the greatest pandemics in human history. It’s not surprising we don’t know how to deal with it; but we really don’t. Our nation, about which we sang: “The Battle Hymn of the Republic,” Kate Smith sang “America,” or many sang of “America the Beautiful, from Sea to Shining Sea,” is torn apart by political strifes — some invented or created — others for real. Our leaders are so inept they can’t even agree to try and understand what is ailing the nation they swore to defend.

Many living know their immediate ancestors, but have little idea who parents’ and grandparents’ neighbors were, how difficult life was then, or how they survived tough times. We have chosen to turn our attention to our hometown — a center of what was beautiful for us when we were young — to try and understand the legacy of some we never knew: and likely our grandparents didn’t know either.

Our old home town isn’t down by the old mill stream — but the history of Broken Straw Creek (to come) — makes us feel as though it were, and its people are our people. On this Memorial Day, let us all remember that some made our stay for those short years what it was. It’s a “getting to know you moment” — by a generation that was Clymer for a generation that is Clymer now.

Pictured are the grave markers of Zaccheus Greeley and Mary Woodburn Greeley in the Clymer Village Cemetery. Photos courtesy of J. Ganske

Charlotte TeWinkle Holmstrom and her brother, Geary TeWinkle at the Holland Cemetery in Clymer at the marker of Pearl Wallace TeWinkle. Pearl Wallace TeWinkle, grandmother of Charlotte and Geary, was Horace Greeley’s great, great niece, and the daughter of Genevieve Wallace. Their grandfather, John Hendrik TeWinkle, was descended from Dutch immigrants to Clymer in the 1840’s and 1850’s. Photo courtesy of G. Gleason

Heather Reardon Schneider is pictured at the cemetery marker of Ruth and Ray Vanderkooi in the Holland Cemetery. Schneider is their granddaughter and a descendant of the Greeley family.