BLACK, George K - 1951 - Fountain County INGenWeb Project

George Keys Black died last Friday, August 31, 1951 after an illness of two weeks.  He was the survivor of the six children of Robert James and Eliza Guthrie Black and of two younger half sisters, daughters of Robert James and Kerron Mooreman Black.  He and a twin brother were born on May 13, 1868 their parents’ tenth wedding anniversary. The mother died when these boys were two years old.  Various relatives cared for the six children until they were old enough to support themselves or to help each other. They helped one another often; otherwise, their fortunes might have been less good. They became farmers, teachers, a physician and property owners. A sister set up housekeeping with George Black when he began to operate a farm at Hastings, Ill in 1891.  15 years later she was again to make her home with him in our present community during her fatal illness.  By the time George Black reached manhood he had completed grammar school, worked with a coal company and as a farm hand and had traveled from his native Vermilion County to Massachusetts Bay, the Dakota plains and Missouri.  In Missouri he had met and courted Hattie Lee Wilson.  He brought her to Hastings as his bride in 1893.  Two children were born to them there. In 1899 this family – the 30 year old parents and two small children – moved to the present Black homestead in the Osborn Prairie community. Five more children were born to George and Hattie.  Four of the 7 died in the short interval from 1902 – 1909: Margaret, Clara, Ruth and an infant son. During the next several years the three sons who survive today, Robert, John and George Jr reached adult and young manhood.  In 1933 Mr. Black lost his companion.  During the remaining 18 years of his life, he successively lived alone with Robert and Gladys and with George Jr. and Evelyn in his home.  His expressed formula for overcoming grief was to increase his responsibilities and labors.  He was reluctant to reduce these responsibilities and labors.  He was reluctant to reduce these responsibilities and continued first to manage and later to take an active and lasting interest in his farm in spite of an illness that considerably weakened him 7 years ago.  Throughout, he would entertain no idea of living elsewhere than in the house that he had come to know as home.

George K. Black accepted the responsibilities that go with community living. He held the various lay offices of the Osborn Prairie Church, Sunday School and Cemetery Association.  He was elected to and accepted local civic duties.  He aided charitable organizations through contributions and solicitations.  When maintenance of law and order was viewed as everybody’s job he worked with a protective association.  However, he had no interest in organizations that sponsored intolerance.  He underwrote the financial obligations of friends when he could ill afford to do so and accepted without malice such losses as were incurred.  Loyalty, steadfastness of purpose and the will to overcome adversity, devotion to the church, the Bible and prayer and both the giving and expecting of a full day of labor on each of six days of the week were part of the make up of George Black.  These may seem to depict him as a grim man.  Quite the contrary, he was jovial and he maintained his love for the give and take of verbal fun through the conscious moments of his final illness. The residents of the Osborn Prairie know, through legend and acquaintance, that strong personalities have shaped and continue to mold the course of the rural

Community.  It is no slight to others of these distinguished persons for the friends and cousins of George K. Black and for his three sons and their wives, 9 grandchildren and 8 great grandchildren to believe that his name belongs in that company.  Our pride in the accomplishments of Mr. Black and our good fortune in having his personality and example with us for so many years do not exempt us from sorrow today.  Perhaps we, too can lessen our grief tomorrow by accepting great responsibilities and performing more labors than was our lot yesterday.

Card of Thanks – The family of George K. Black expresses gratitude for the many tokens of respect paid to our father during and after his fatal illness, and for the expressions of sympathy that were made to us.  Robert S. Black and family.  John W. Black and family.  George Black Jr. and family. – kbz

Source: Thanks to the Covington Public Library for sending their wonderful collection of obituaries to share with you here (especially Brenda) – hand dated