Edwards Family Genealogy - Montgomery InGenWeb Project

Mace, May 29—Curtis Edwards who has been at Louisville, Ky., attending a meeting of the Edwards heirs, arrived home on the 24th. On interviewing him the following was learned in regard to the much talked of millions. There appears to be about 700 claimants though many may fail to prove a line of genealogy from Robert Edwards.

The heirs in attendance formed an association, known as the Edward Association and empowered some of the number to go to New York and bring suit in the name of the association on or before July 16, as the time for legal action expires then.

There was also a committee appointed to hunt up the original lease, which was reported to be in the hands of an attorney in New York, who is himself one of the heirs and that the same was on record both in New York and London. They also appointed a committee on genealogy of which J. B. Workman, of Spencer, Ind., is chairman, with representatives as follows: Indiana, Kentucky, Illinois, Tennessee, North Carolina, Canada, Virginia, Missouri, Iowa. This committee will begin work at once by securing a draft of the several families showing the genealogy back to Robert Edwards.

The sum of $1650 was subscribed subject to the call of the secretary, F. T. Fox. The total cost of suit was estimated to be about $2500 and the value of the property involved in this lease is estimated to be about $350,000,000. Mr. Edwards states that their legal talent employed think there is no doubt of the heirs’ success when suit is once commenced.

The genealogy of Carter Edwards, of Mace, appears to be easily traced.

Robert Edwards, who gave the lease for the property in question, about 1780 for 99 years, had three brothers and one sister; viz, David Thomas, William and Anneka Jane Edwards. Robert died in St. Mary’s County, New Jersey, at the age of 101, having never been married, his sister died also single.

Some of the heirs of David and William are in the eastern states while many are scattered over the several states and Canada.

Thomas Edwards, brother of Robert, is the father of Sarah, David, Charles and Curtis Edwards Sr. Sarah married William Tomlin, of New Jersey, while Charles and Curtis Edwards Jr., moved from New Jersey in an early day to Hamilton County, Ohio. Charles is the father of Curtis Edwards Jr., of Mace. Curtis has several brothers and sisters, or their heirs in Montgomery County. Curtis Edwards has two daughters, Mrs. S. B. Linn, dead, while his brother, Hiram, has four children living in this county; three boys and one daughter, now the wife of David Campbell, near Crawfordsville. His brother, Jonathan, moved to Kansas in 1859. He is now dead and has four children. His brother, David, has six children all in this county, except two, one daughter, Mrs. Cale Brown, of Boone County, and one son in New York.

His brother, Seth Edwards, has six children living, all in this county, except James, who lives at Lebanon. His oldest sister married Jacob Thompson, son of Enoch Thompson, one of Montgomery County’s pioneers. His second sister married Jacob W. Miller. They have no children. The third married Burrel McCormick, now dead and she has several children living in Union Township.