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William 'Gaddis' Minerd |
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Church where Gaddis' remains are buried |
William "Gaddis" Minerd was born in Farmington, Fayette County, PA, the son of Samuel and Rebecca (Smalley) Minerd.
He apparently was named for William Gaddis, "a well known wagon maker of the town [who] carried on that business for many years," said the 1913 book, History of Uniontown, Pennsylvania, authored by James Hadden. The elder Gaddis may have been a good friend, or customer or supplier, of the Minerds.
Little is known of Gaddis's short life, leading up to his death as a young teenager. Sadly, the July 7, 1870 Uniontown Genius of Liberty reported in a simply worded obituary that:
Gaddis Minard, son of Samuel Minard, of Wharton township, died on Tuesday, …of inflammation of the bowels. He was about 13 years of age, and was a bright and interesting boy.
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Obituary, 1870 |
His death occurred on Nov. 28, 1870. The lad was buried at what is now the Mt. Washington Presbyterian Church at Farmington. A short obituary was published in the local newspaper.
When his parents left the area in 1886, some 34 years after his death, and migrated westward to Kansas, Gaddis in a sense was "left behind."
Gaddis' grave marker no longer exists, but it is known to have been standing as recently as 1984. That year, cemetery burials were catalogued by local historian Sonia Cesarino, and his name appears on the list.
Copyright © 2000, 2007, 2009-2010, 2018 Mark A. Miner