Bruce - Pearce Family Genealogy

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Welcome to my family page. Currently the information contained here pertains to the Pearce side of the family, specifically the Earp - Foster lines. I am working as time permits to complete the stories for each line, but this takes time. Naturally, as new information becomes available I often have to rewrite just when I thought I was finished. So some things never make it to the printer when planned. Hopefully you will find the following information useful.

Isabell Jane Foster (Earp - Bell)
May 15, 1844 ~ March 29, 1931

Isabell Jane Foster was the grand daughter of Irish immigrants, John Foster, Senior and Eleanor Morrow who emigrated from Ireland in 1791. John Foster Senior was born in Northern Ireland in 1779. It was while on board the same ship that John Foster, Sr. and Eleanor Morrow became acquainted. They were married in Pennsylvania in 1801 and had eleven children:

Charles F. and Rosannah married and died in Ohio. Isabell (twin 1805-1894) married Andrew Gregory, they had no children. Jane (twin 1805-1879) married Andrew Cochran (1807 - 1889), they had six children. Margaret Foster married in Ohio and died soon after. Sarah Foster (1808 - 1879) never married and lived with her mother on the farm after her father passed away until her mother’s death. Eleanor Foster (1810-1876) married Cyrus Welton (1815-1856) and had four children; Sarah (Weaver), Andrew, Susan (Dennis, Roland), and Nancy (Dennis). Susannah foster (1811-1884) married John Cochran (1810-1894) and had no children. John Foster Sr. was a schoolmaster, first teaching in Pennsylvania and then in Moultrie County, Illinois. They moved to Moultrie County in 1848 following their son Andrew who had moved with his wife Lucinda Cochran by covered wagon to Moultrie County in November of 1844. and settled in Section 21 of Lovington township. This was about two and one half miles northwest of Lovington in the Hewitt area. They built a log cabin which is about 1/8 of a mile east of house on the farm owned in 1978 by Ernest Winnings. They both died there. It is said that he was the kind of teacher who enforced his ideas with the hickory switch and hazel rod.

John Foster Jr. was the second son of John Foster Senior’s four sons. John Foster Jr. (1814-1908) married Margaret Lamb (1821-1905). They had twelve children.

William J., Isabell Jane, Joseph H. and Andrew C., were born in Ohio. Her family moved to Lovington, Illinois in Moultrie county in 1847 where the family purchased farmland. In Lovington Isabel was joined by eight more siblings; Sarah M., Nancy E., Adley G., Robert M., Nelson C., Marion Emery (twin), Emma (twin), and Fletcher G. He lived northwest of Lovington and owned several hundred acres in section 21 and 22. William J. Foster (1842-1908) married Nancy Earp and had four children: 1) Samuel, 2) Perry, 3) Nettie, and 4) Finn.

Joseph H. Foster (1846-1933) married Emma S. dunscomb (1851-1926) and had two daughters, 1) Nora (Anderson) and 2) Lelia (Harris). He was a Civil War veteran. Andrew C. foster died in childhood. Sarah M. Foster (1850-1937) married John M. Gibeson (1845-1915) and had three children: 1) Carie, 2) Charley, and 3) Bevie L. Gibeson.

Nancy E. Foster (1853-1938) married Orrison Timmons (1851-1919), and they had five children: 1) Cora (Richardson), 2) Della, 3) Eva (Wright), 4) Harry H., and 5) Vivian (Dahman).

Adley G. Foster (1855-1905) married Bessie McCune (1855-1935), and they were the parents of four: 1) Ralph M., 2) Mable (Crawford), 3) Jennie (Selby), and 4) Fred.

Robert M. Foster (1857-1946) married Mary C. Clark (1854-1937), and they had six children: 1) Nelson C., 2) Burr O., 3) Essie (Jones), 4) Alva E., 5) Allen, and 6) Zoe.

Nelson C. died in infancy. Marion Emery (twin)(1862-1946) married Drucilla Randol (1865-1941), and they had five children: 1) Zoe F. (Kearney), 2) Beulah, 3) Linden, 4) Irend (Wilt), and 5) Blaine.

Emma Foster (twin)(1862-1947) married Willis E. Howell (1858-1928), and they had four children: 1) Essie (Shephard), 2) Rupert E. (twin), 3) Hubert (twin) and 4) Margaret (Fagely, Patton, Taylor).

Fletcher G. Foster (1865 - ?) married Effie Dixon (1866-1931) and their children were: 1) Edith (Johnson, Garrett), 2) Ethel (Johnson), 3) Cleo (Bates, Davis), 4) Florence (Mairs) and 5) Bert. This brings us to Isabell Jane Foster. Isabell Jane Foster continued to live in Moultrie County where on November 29, 1860 she married James Earp (1843-1901) , Son of Samuel Earp, a sheriff of Sullivan, Illinois. This marriage produced one daughter, Melissa Jane Earp. The marriage ended in 1877. The year 1877 was an eventful one for Isabell. According to a Sheriff’s Deed dated February 13th, 1877 Isabell and James forfeited their title to lots one and two in block eight of the Sullivan township. The reason for their forfeit is not given in the document. In this same year, Isabell married Silas H. Bell (1852-1899) on November 1.

At this point there is a gap in the information currently available. Where the story picks up again is in Oelrichs, South Dakota about 40 years later. It is possible that upon Silas Bell’s death in 1899 that Isabell then moved with her daughter to Oelrichs where her grand daughter, Madge (Pearce), also resided. Several questions present themselves; what happened during the intervening years between 1877 and 1910?, was there any other places that they may have lived prior to moving to Oelrichs? These questions are as yet unanswered. In Oelrichs, Isabell lived in town presumably with her daughter Melissa. Her grand daughter, Madge, lived outside of town on the Pearce ranch which currently is a part of another ranch.

Her great-grand daugher, Marvel (Bruce), remained in town and lived with Isabel while attending Oelrichs High School. The house they lived in still stands. Although residents of Oelrichs believed this to be the Pearce family home it was most probably where Isabell Jane Foster resided with her daughter Melissa. The Pearce’s owned a ranch to the south on the Ogalala indian reservation.

The following photograph is interesting in that it depicts four generations. It is also valuable as a rosetta stone for identifying people in other photographs. The second photo was most likely taken at the turn of the century. The Victorian style of clothing is very evident here which gives some idea of Isabell’s ubringing and character. The image of a Victorian women brings to mind the image of the proper lady; refined, contained, always observant of proper behavior and etiquette. But, to survive the “wild west” an individual needed a good sense of humor.

Marvel Pearce (Bruce) lived with Isabell (grandma bell bell) in Oelrichs while attending high school. Marvel and her cousin Janice Overstreet (Snook) were getting ready to go to the fair. The style of the times for the girls was to role down their stockings to just above their ankles. In Victorian times, one did not show their ankles, Isabell forbade them to go out in this maner. Regardless of what era you live in teenagers will be teenagers, they went out anyway. They were waiting outside the house, when Isabell came out. Isabell had roled her stockings down and was ready to go with them to the fair. Needless to say, Marvel and Janice rolled theirs back-up.

James Earp 1843 ~ 1901

James Earp was born in 1843 to Samuel P. Earp and Parthenia Earp in Illinois. Little is known of the James Earp’s pedigree beyond Samuel P. Earp. It is known that the first saloon and business in Sullivan was started by a Joel Earp in 1845 on the N.W. corner of Harrison and Washington Streets. Earp Saloon as it appears today - 1996

Considering the population of the United States and of Sullivan in 1845, it is very likely that Joel Earp is related to Samuel P. Earp. The relationship, however, eludes the author. Samuel P. and Parthenia had five children in all: 1) William F. Earp (1834 - ? ) 2) James Earp (1843 - 1901) 3) Sarah E. Earp (1844 - ? ) 4) Caroline Earp (1847 - ?) 5) Nancy Earp (1849 - ?) According to the census Samuel P. Earp was a farmer in 1850. 1850 Census - Moultrie County - Sullivan Township

In 1865 Samuel served as Sullivan’s Sherriff for two years. A receipt from November 1, 1866 details some of his daily duties as sherriff.

An article in the Moultrie County Heritage, vol 22, no.3 Aug 1994 stated that Samuel P. Earp was the guardian of a Milly Ann Earp, January 3, 1853. The relationship of Milly Ann Earp is also unknown.

Little else is known of the Earp families activities. Nancy Earp married William J. Foster (brother of Isabel Jane Foster) July 19, 1866. On November 29, 1860 James Earp married Isabel Jane Foster.

James Earp worked as a saloon keeper in Sullivan. He and Isabel had one child, Melissa born August 28, 1861. In 1871 James and Isabel were deeded the land of James’ father. Transfer of land Deed from Samuel Earp to James Earp, 1871 This photo copy of the deed shows the piece of land being transferred.

An interesting conflict appears here. According to cemetary records held by the Moultrie County Genealogical Society, Parenthia Earp passed away in 1852. However, the judge aparently examined Parenthia in 1871 when James and Isabel were deeded the land. Also according to the Wright Cemetary records she was 50 years old. Information from the 1850 census places her birth in 1819, not 1802 as the Wright Cemetary information would indicate. The next question that arises is who is buried in Wright Cemetary? The inscription on the head stone states “ Wife of S.P. Earp”.

James Earp’s marriage to Isabel ended in 1877. In this same year they lost their land. The reason for this loss was not stated in the Sheriffs Deed. It is hypothesized that this may have had an effect on the end of the marriage.

James Earp went on to marry again. The date of this marriage is unknown. At this point no more information is available about James Earp.