Benjamin B. Holcomb
was born in Marcellus, Onondaga county, New York, March 24, 1819, and
died in Fremont, Indiana, Feb. 12, 1905, aged 85 yrs, 10 months and 18
days.
In his death of Mr. Holcomb our county has lost one of its really
old-time pioneers, one who delighted in calling up incidents of the
longt ago, and with his
cheerful, genial manner did much to help entertain our Old Settlers
meetings. He came west with his parents in 1836 by the way of the
lakes, on the steamer Dewitt
Clinton, landing at Toledo when the only house there was used for a
hotel. They came to Camden, Michigan, where they entered land,
his father dying in 1863 and
the mother in 1871, after raising a family of 8 children and seeing
them all settled in homes of there own. The subject of this
sketch was married in a log
cabin in Branch county, Michigan, to Sarah L. Beach in 1841.
Three children were born to this union, two dying in infancy and the
third, Jerome B. who grew to
manhood, died March 3, 1888. Mrs. Holcomb died February 16, 1888.
When a boy, Mr. Holcomb learned the shoemaker's trade of his father and
afterwards learned the harness-maker's trade which he followed in
Freemont for 45 years, helping to make the first harness in thie town.
He was a member of the Masonic
order and was also an Odd Fellow, being one of the charter members of
Heaton Encampment at Angola.
Funeral services will be held today, Wednesday, at Freemont, and his
familiar face and kindly greetings will only remain as a pleasant
memory to his many friends.
Submitted By: Greg Austin
piano88boy@yahoo.com