Excerpted from the upcoming sequel to the book Edward Farmar and the Sons of Whitemarsh.
John Wiley Farmer, was born in Dent County, Missouri on 18 March 1859 to Hiram David Farmer and Mary “Polly” Jones.[1] When his father Hiram died, “Wiley” was four years old and was compelled to work tending to the family garden and other chores with little time for school.
On 26 February 1881, when Wiley was twenty-one years old, he married Virginia Belle Johnson. Virginia’s mother had died in 1861 when she was young. Her father was William F. Johnson of Tennessee, a prosperous farmer, an active member of the Christian church, and a cousin of President Andrew Johnson.
Wiley rented his family farm for one year until he sold his Missouri property and set out for Montana with his father-in-law and family, the Mark Morris family, the William B. Daniel family, the Hills’ family, the Warner Johnson family, and the Hedricks family.
After traveling up the Missouri River, Wiley and Virginia arrived into Fort Benton on the General Terry on Saturday, 06 May 1882.[2] The family spent two months in Fort Benton and then took secured pre-emption claims on Little Belt Creek near the Highwood Mountains, twelve miles northeast of Belt. Wiley and his father-in-law were still improving their Highwood land months later in February and March of 1883.[3]. The Farmers homesteaded on the ranch farming, raising cattle and many fine horses.
In February 1900, a smallpox outbreak occurred in the “Missouri Ridge” despite quarantine efforts. Afflicted were the Crocker family and Mrs. L. Nottingham, whose husband was arrested for breaking the quarantine. Other reported diseases in the area included a virulent case of diphtheria, a prevailing epidemic of mumps, scarlet fever, whooping cough, chicken pox, and a disappearing outbreak of measles.
The brother of the children’s school teacher, Dr. Vidal, discovered that two persons in Wiley’s household had a mild case of smallpox. The house was immediately quarantined. A barbed wire fence surrounded the house and a special officer was stationed to watch the house, day and night, and to prevent any of the vaccinated schoolchildren from playing near it.
Within a month, all eight persons in the household were showing mild symptoms – except Wiley, who “was in country when the disease developed” and was forbidden to see his family. This left Virginia, who was six months pregnant, to care for eight children alone: William Addison had turned eighteen a few weeks earlier, Abraham Jeffrey “Jeff” had turned ten a few weeks earlier, seven-year-old Wiley Lawrence, six-year-old Mary Viola, four-year-old Effie Victoria, four-year-old Louisa Virginia “Lulu”, Alfred Marion who was about to turn two, and Braxton Franklin “Frank” who was under the age of two.
By the end of March 1900, all eight members had recovered. The family was the last case of smallpox in town, and with the quarantine lifted, the family moved out to their country home.[4]
Wiley and Virginia’s daughter Mabel Marian was born in May 1900 but the joy of a newborn child soon disappeared when after a brief illness, Virginia passed away at her home on Saturday, 30 June 1900.[5] About five months later, on 26 November 1900, 18-month-old Mabel died at about 5 o’clock that evening.[6]
Philip Farmer is the author and publisher of “Edward Farmar and the Sons of Whitemarsh,” a 500-page, 155-year biographical history of the family immigration from Ireland into Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee, and Harlan County, Kentucky. A sequel is currently in work.
[1] Hiram David Farmer (12 August 1827, Harlan, Kentucky – 16 March 1863, Youngs Point, Louisiana) the son of David M. Farmer (1801-1889) and grandson of Stephen Farmer; Mary “Polly” Jones (1832-1916) the daughter of Wiley Jones (1811-1893) and Sarah Hendrickson (1814-1900).
[2] “What the Boats Brought,” The River Press (10 May 1882), p.5
[3] The Benton Weekly Record (24 February 1883), p.5; The Benton Weekly Record (10 March 1883), p.5
[4] “Disease Spreading,” The Anaconda Standard (09 February 1900), p.11; “Spray of the Falls,” Great Falls Tribune (03 March 1900), p.3; “State News,” The Butte Daily Post (06 March 1900), p.5; “In Belt,” The Anaconda Standard (26 March 1900), p.11; The Anaconda Standard (02 March 1900), p.11; Great Falls Tribune (21 March 1900), p.6.
[5] Great Falls Tribune (09 July 1900), p.7; “Of Local Interest,” Great Falls Tribune (08 July 1900), p.12. There are two 1900 United States Federal Census that enumerate Virginia. The first was completed by Thomas Gordon on 05 July 1900 for Highwood Township, Choteau County, Montana (Twelfth Census of the United States, Schedule No. 1 – Population, SD #155, ED #192, sheet 31, line 16) and the second was completed by William G. Light on 26-28 July 1900 for Belt Township, Cascade County, Montana (Twelfth Census of the United States, Schedule No. 1 – Population, SD #155, ED #144, sheet 29, line 46). It would reason that Virginia was enumerated when the census was started, and passed away before they were completed.
[6] Great Falls Tribune (27 November 1900), p.9.