John S. Godown

  Death Notes:

Buried in Republic County Kansas Ida Cemetery

  Noted events in his life were:

• Note: Letter from John S. Godown, 30 May 1863, Norwich Twp., Franklin County, Ohio. My dear and only sister I recived your favor of the 12th with great
pleasure for it had been a long time since I had heard form you we
have written to you and our letters have been returned and we feared
you were all dead of had been dreven out of humanities reach and
whether this will reach you or not I dont know I think by the post
mark that you have a new post office and you did not tell me how to
direct please do so when you write again I am truly sorry for your sad
misfortune you did not tell me whether it was the Rebs done it or
whether it was by accidental please tell me
(page 2) your missfortunes were truly bad but o sister compare it with
mine and you will admit that yours are light crual war has robbed me
of dear my noble brave boy and only son truly this seems greater than
I can bear he enlisted last July went down to Dixie and fought one
desperate battle and was taken prisoner and paroled and came home was
eschanged and was sent down to Vicksburg and took the Typhoid fiever
------? died on the 12th of last month his comrads sent his body home
the first we new of his death was the recipt of poor dead body sealed
up in a metalic case o sister that was a shock from
which I shall never recover
(page 3) this is 5th of June not having a chance to send my letter to
the office you my think it some what old but I fear this will never
reach you for I think your post office has been changed and you have
not let me know for we have wrote to you and the letter came back to
us should this reach you please write all about how your house got
burned you wished to know how we got along in Ohio and what prospect
there was of peace sometimes I think we are in a hopless condition but
then I think our ancestors fought and bled and many of
died and they continued to strugle for seven long and bloody years but
at peace spread her wings over this land so let us not despair but
hope on and continue true to last and all may yet be well
(page 4) I would like you would write to me something about your
circumstances when Mr. Gibson was last at our house he said your place
was mortguaged for bail and he wanted to borrow ---0? dollars of me to
lift the mortgage and he said he had not money enought to take him
home. Joesph said he borrowed 15 dollars of you he paid him that and I
let him have 10 dollars more and he said he would write to us when he
got home to let us know he got home for it was about the time the war
was commencing and we never heard from him after wards pleas write
soon no but our continued love
John Godown

John married Ann Elizabeth Billingsley, daughter of Samuel Billingsley and Ann Maria Catherine Hook, on 18 Nov 1846 in Franklin County, Ohio.¹⁶ (Ann Elizabeth Billingsley was born on 27 Dec 1809 in Baltimore, Baltimore County, Maryland,^16,161 died on 8 Nov 1885 in Belleville, Republic, Kansas ^16,60 and was buried in Republic County Kansas.)