William Harden (1878-1966) |
William Harden is my Great
Grandfather and the father of my grandfather, Jack Harden.
He was born May 28, 1878 in Brazil, Clay County, Indiana, and he died in
January 27, 1966 in Indiana. I have just
the vaguest memory of him. What I mostly remember is a grumpy old man in a wheelchair. But I'd probably be grumpy too, if I had gangrene and had to have my leg amputated.
Most of what
I know about him I have learned from relatives, or from my research. His parents were John William Harden and
Jeanetta Frances Crawley. He was one of eight
children, being their fifth child and youngest son. His father died when he was thirteen. At that point he quit school and went to work
in the coal mines in Indiana to help support his mother and sisters.
Most of the younger family generations
called him “Pop”. I’m not sure when he
acquired this name, perhaps when he became a father. Among family members there are discrepancies concerning
his legal name. The name that appears the most
often on documents is “William Harden”. Some
family members say that his name was “William Dean” or “William Edward”. I have not found proof for either of these name
variations.
He married Delphia Maude Keiser
late 1907 or early 1908. Supposedly,
they took the train from Terre Haute, Indiana to Paris, Illinois to get
married. But thus far, I have not found
their marriage license to confirm this information.