Martha L. West

Notes:

Ashes of Woman and Son Strewn on River To Fulfill Last Wish
A letter from Mrs. Anna Palmes Shurick of St. Paul, Minn., to her cousin, H. W. DeLong. Sr.. contained a clipping from a St.Paul paper as follows: Two thin streams of white ashes fell lightly from the rail of the Marshall avenue bridge Tuesday evening intermingling into a single eddying column as they descended to the surface of the Mississippi river below. Fifteen men and women stood with bowed heads as the fine particles swirled indistinctly, then disappeared. The brief ceremony marked the carrying out of the wishes of Mrs. Martha Horton of St. Paul that the ashes of herself and her one son who died 15 years ago, be strewn
together over the surface of the Mississippi.

Mrs. Horton's only child. Verne W. Hartman. died June 25, 1913 He was 43 years old and all his life had been devoted to his mother. He never married, but gave all his time to his parent. When he died his body was cremated and the ashes sealed in an urn. After Mrs. Horton's death, June 21, when 79 years old, a note addressed to Listoe & Wold undertakers, was found directing that her body be cremated and the ashes scattered with those of her son from the St Paul end of the Marshall avenue bridge. A group of close friends complied with the request. Mrs. Horton was a daughter of the late Perry West of this village, born here, and married early to life Fred Hartman of this village, to whom a son was born as noted above. In later years she married Frank Horton, also of this village, who was well known here, and after his death she moved to Minnesota where she has since resided. She was a remarkably intelligent woman and had contributed often to local papers. A number of friends remember her, her father and her brother. Lieut O. W. West, of the 1st New York Dragoons.
(The Dansville Express, Dansville, NY, July 20, 1928)

Family/Spouse: Frank Horton. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Martha married John Frederic Hartman about 1869 in North Dansville, Livingston County, New York. John (son of Henry Hartman and Eliza M. House) was born in 1846 in North Dansville, Livingston County, New York; died on 6 Nov 1872 in North Dansville, Livingston County, New York; was buried in Greenmount Cemetery, North Dansville, Livingston County, New York. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Verne W. Hartman, son of Mrs. Martha L. Horton, died June 25th at East Shore Park, White Bear Lake, Minnesota, where he had been taken in hopes of finding relief. He had been living for sometime with his mother at Detroit, and after going to Bear Lake he seemed to improve, but the relief was only temporary and he passed away very suddenly. He had been ailing for six years but did not give up business until February, his trouble became a complication of diseases. His body was cremated at his request and his ashes will be brought here soon and deposited in the family lot in Greenmount. Mr. Hartman was born in this village, his father being Fred Hartman who died when his son was a baby. The young man was given a good education and he took naturally to journalism and was engaged in newspaper work for some time. For a few years past he conducted a paper published in the interest of a large business firm in Detroit and was making a success of it and he was regarded by his employers as a very talented man. He was the companion of his mother who is worn with grief, as his death leaves her alone, not a near relative to mourn with her over his untimely death.
(Dansville Express, July 17, 1913)