Mathews Family
I will start this branch of the Mathews family with my Mother (Beulah Rae) and my Grandmother Beulah Lucille Sullins (Mimi). Mimi almost lived to span three Centuries. Born in 1893 she passed away in 1994, just six years short of living in 3 Centuries. That is Mimi just above in the banner series of photographs and on the far right photograph. She is the lady on the right side of the photograph in the white dress. If I have my facts correct that is her daughter Gwendolyn in the middle and Mimi's mother in the back, Susie (Cullins) Mathews. On the left of that photograph is Elnore (Shinefeld) Cullins, Mimi's Grandmother. Here is a larger copy of that photograph:
My Great Grandfather was Samual Bruce Mathews (born in 1865 in Marshall, Illinois) who married Susie Cullins in 1889 in a small town, just across the border from Illinois, named Vigo, Indiana. Samual started to work on the railroad in about 1888 and retired with 48 years of service in 1936.
I received this following story from Suzanne Allen (Suzanne parents were Fred & Cecile Bulmer):
Railroading seemed to be in the Mathews' DNA..I remember my grandad..Samual Bruce Mathews..began railroading when he was, literally, just a kid. & Those were the days before unions so engineers could work well up into their old age and had to be helped on and off the engines. & Grandad worked on the engine with such an engineer whose temper was known all up and down the line and whose white beard was so long it had to be doubled and fastened with a clothes pin. & One of Grandad's many chores was polishing the all of the brass on the engine and, in those days, there was alot of brass; the engineer was constantly carping at Grandad; one day when they had pulled into a station and after Grandad had helped the engineer (who, of course, was snarling at Grandad)off the engine so the man could go to the restaurant) Grandad climbed back up into the cab, polished the brass like fury and then wrote the following note:
"I've rubbed and I've scrubbed till my fingers are blisters; How'd you like that, Old Billy Goat Whiskers?"Of course, Grandad didn't work on that engine again but he did stay with the railroad for 50 years and, of course, became an engineer. & I remember the day he retired: & I was sitting on the window seat of Grandma's and Grandad's house (corner of 12th and Jefferson..the better to keep an eye out in case your mom came over to play) and here came Grandad down Jefferson, carrying his grip(that was railroad talk for overnight bag..like a satchel) in one hand and a brown paper bag in the other..I was so excited but when he came in and opened the bag so I could reach in for my treat..they were persimmons..yech!
Samual & Susie raised their family in Beardstown, Illinois. This is their house on 12th & Jefferson Street in Beardstown.
Samual Bruce was one of the 7 sons and 3 daughters of William Mathews (my Great, Great, Grandfather) who was born in 1824 in Ohio and Lucy Ann Noyes born in Quebec, Canada in 1846. They were married in Clark County, Illinois (probably around Marshall) in 1860. All of William and Lucy's children were born in Marshall, Illinois. Williams occupation was listed as a farmer on the U.S. Census.
The parents of William Mathews were Alexander Mathews (born in 1784 in Pennsylvania) and Prudence Laughlin (born in 1793 also in Pennsylvania). In the 1840 U.S. Census, Alexander was living in Ohio. He and his family moved to Illinois sometime before 1850. In the 1850 Census they had 6 sons and 1 daughter. Alexander was also listed as being a farmer.
