Sunshine (Clinton) Merriwether (circa 1876-1940) was born to Willis Y. and Nancy “Nannie” (Smith) Clinton around 1876. She was the second of two daughters. Willis worked as a janitor. The family lived on Lampton Street in the Smoketown Neighborhood and attended Fifth Street Baptist Church. Willis died in 1892, and Sunshine’s sister Jessie died in 1897. According to the 1900 census, Sunshine and her mother were living on Laurel Street in Smoketown, and Sunshine was working as a teacher. By 1908, she had married Harry Hall Merriwether, the grandson of Harry Merriwether. According to the 1910 census, Harry was a chauffeur and they were still living on Laurel Street. In 1898, Harry purchased land on River Road from his grandfather to build a house (the Merriwether House). Harry, Sunshine, and Nannie were living in the house by 1920. Nannie Clinton died in 1923 at the approximate age of 83. Harry continued to work for the wealthy families near River Road. He and Sunshine never had any children. The house’s proximity to the Ohio River made it attractive to boaters and vacationers in the early 20th century. The family built and managed docks and cottages on their property, allowing for the rest to be farmed. On July 13, 1940, Sunshine died after a three year illness. She was buried in Section B, Range 9, Lot 2 of Eastern Cemetery. Her parents and sister are also buried in the plot. Their graves are unmarked.

Harry then married Elnora Williams with whom he had two children: Mary and Bernard. The Merriwether House is a symbol of black settlement near Harrods Creek. At the turn of the 20th century, there were a handful of black communities in the county. Free blacks developed most of them after the Civil War. The National Register nomination for the Merriwether House states, “These settlements are particularly important because they served to challenge the norm the mass migration of blacks into Louisville. While this urban migration continued for more than a half century, a virtually undocumented rural movement was fostered in small settlements and on farmsteads.” Photo of the house from “Courier-Journal” April 2, 2014.

Nora Elfleda “Grandma Tingle” (Wilson) Tingle (1868-1948) was born to Benjamin and Ellen Wilson in 1868 in Jackson, IL. She was one of at least four children. Benjamin worked as a carpenter and a farmer. The family moved to Marion, AR by 1880. On July 14, 1887, Nora married Charles Slusser, son of Jeremia and Ellen Slusser. Together the couple had three children: Charles Benjamin, William Lawrence, and Leafy Agnes. Charles worked as a farmer and died in AR in 1896 at the approximate age of 30. By 1904, Nora was married to Henry Sweet, a widower with two sons, and living in Louisville with their blended family of seven. According to the 1910 census, Henry was a Public Works laborer and Nora was keeping house in their rental home at 207 S. 15th Street. Charles Benjamin was working as a box factory laborer, William Lawrence was a traveling salesman, and Leafy was a housekeeper. By the 1915 city directory, Nora was a widow. In 1916, she married Robert Tingle and they remained in Louisville throughout their lives.

On January 24, 1948, Nora died at her home, 528 S. Preston Street, in the Phoenix Hill Neighborhood. She was 80 years old. Known by her family as Grandma Tingle, Nora left a long legacy. At the time of her death, her son Charles and daughter Leafy were living along with 15 grandchildren and 21 great grandchildren. Nora was buried in Section 7, Range 14, Lot 24 of Eastern Cemetery. Her grave is unmarked. Nora’s son Charles married Nellie Potts and together they had 10 children in St. Louis, MO. Nora’s son William married Maude Potts and they had at least three children in Louisville. Leafy Agnes married Joseph Fisher and together they had two children in Louisville. Leafy Agnes and Joseph are also buried in Eastern Cemetery. The photos of Nora are from Ancestry users Diana Roston and Lary Slusser.

Margaret “Margie” (Knedgen) Heckler (1913-1984) was born to Frank Blaise and Clara Theresa (Young) Knedgen on May 6, 1913 in Seldia, MO. She was one of at ten children. Frank worked as a carpenter and Clara kept house. The family moved to Kansas when Margie was around two years old. On September 12, 1942, Margie married Maurice May in Stueben, IN; however, the couple was divorced by March 22, 1946. On April 1, 1946, Margie married John Albert Heckler, the son of Albert Wesley and Maggie (Mitchell) Heckler, in Genesee, MI. The couple remained in Michigan for a number of years before moving to Louisville. John was a truck mechanic for the Hall Construction Co. and Margie kept house. While the couple never had children, they were aunt and uncle to a host of nieces and nephews.

In their later years, the couple lived on College Court, a complex that was owned by Louisville Metro Housing Authority in the Limerick Neighborhood. On June 7, 1982 John died at their home at the age of 72. He was buried in Section 3, Row 1, Grave 21 of Eastern Cemetery. On April 5, 1984, Margie was in her apartment on College Court when it caught fire. She died 15 days later in the burn unit at Humana Hospital. She was 83 years old. She was buried next to her husband and they share a headstone. According to “Courier-Journal” article about the fire, “Ms. Heckler is the fourth person injured in the past months in fires in housing-project apartments where officials say smoke detectors—required by law to be in place—had not been maintained.” The photo of Margie and her siblings is from Find a Grave user Mary Jo Schleicher.

Matilda “Tillie” (Sievert) Moench (1867-1955) was born to Henry and Dora (Gohde) Sievert, German immigrants, on August 18, 1867 in Louisville. She was the youngest of six children. Henry ran a saloon on Market Street, between Shelby and Campbell Streets. In 1872, he died from tuberculosis at 55. He was buried in Section A, Range 10, Lot 33 of Eastern Cemetery with a large monument. The 1880 census shows Tillie, her mother, and three of her siblings (John, Henry, and Augusta) living with their sister Minnie and her husband Clements Ohr in Phoenix Hill. By 1890, Tillie was working as a sales woman for J. Bacon & Sons and Lorch & Levi Co. In 1900, she was living with her mother, Henry, and nephew William Horning. Tillie’s sister Augusta married John Horning. Augusta died of tuberculosis in 1898 and was in Eastern Cemetery. John was a patient at Central State Hospital.

In 1907, Tillie’s mother died at the age of 87 and was buried next to her husband. Tillie and William then moved in with Minnie’s children John, Annie, Katie, and Minnie. The family was living at 538 E. Chestnut Street in Phoenix Hill. On October 9, 1912, Tillie married George Moench in Los Angeles, CA. George was the son of German immigrants, Gottlieb and Fredericka (Rentschler) Moench of Louisville. He and his brother Charles lived together in Los Angeles where George was a clerk. Tillie stayed in CA at least until George’s death in 1938. She may have remained in CA until Charles’s death in 1942.

On October 18, 1955, Tillie died at the age of 88. She was buried in Eastern Cemetery with her parents, three of her siblings (John, Henry, and Augusta), her brother-in-law John Horning, her nephew William Horning, and the ashes of her husband George and brother-in-law Charles. Her grave is unmarked. Tillie outlived her family except nieces Minnie and Katie Ohr and nephew John Ohr with whom she lived. Tillie’s obituary talked about her passion for bowling. She bowled in women’s leagues for ages 50+ and had the highest average several times. At the age of 83, her average was 158. Tillie’s photo is from “Courier-Journal” October 19, 1955.

Prima Augusta (Fitzbutler) Washington (1868-1962) was born in Amherstburg, Ontario, Canada on August 3, 1868, to Henry and Sarah Helen (McCurdy) Fitzbutler. She was the eldest of six children. Henry was the first African American graduate of the Detroit Medical College (1869) and the University of Michigan School of Medicine (1872). After graduation, he, Sarah, and their four children moved to Louisville where he organized the Louisville National Medical College, the first to accept African Americans. It became the best African American medical college in the US, and the only one owned and operated entirely by African Americans. Sarah graduated from the College and became the first African American female to receive a medical degree in Kentucky. Prima also graduated from the College, but she never practiced medicine. Her sister Mary and her brother James also graduated from there. James and Mary were physicians in Chicago.

Prima graduated from Central Colored School (now Central High School) in 1885. She then graduated from the Louisville National Medical College in 1901. Out of high school, Prima was working as a teacher in Louisville—a profession she would have for most of her life. She spent most of her career at Samuel Taylor Coleridge School. By 1920, she married James L.V. Washington, son of James L.V. and Mary Washington. James was on the board of directors of the Mammoth Life Insurance Company and a founding member of the Kentucky chapter of the Knights of Pythias. The couple did not have children. On May 15, 1946, James died at the age of 77. He was buried in Greenwood Cemetery where Prima’s parents were buried. However, she had his remains moved to Eastern Cemetery in October 1946. On April 2, 1962, Prima died at the age of 93. She was buried in Section A, Range 29, Lot 8 of Eastern Cemetery. She shares a headstone with her husband. Photo of Prima is from “Courier-Journal” April 4, 1962.

There aren’t many records on the early life of Elizabeth (Simms) Norris (circa 1817-1893). According to her Find a Grave memorial, her granddaughter Artemissa (Norris) Chambers’s family bible tells some of her life story. The memorial reads, “Elizabeth Simms Norris was born in 1817 to unknown parents of a Cherokee tribe from the Oconee area of Pickens County, South Carolina. Around the time that the U.S. Congress passed the Indian Removal Act of 1830, Elizabeth was taken in by or worked for the Simms (Sims?) family in Pickens/Oconee County, South Carolina. The fate of her parents is unknown. By 1836, Elizabeth met Richard Norris of Cherokee County, Georgia where they lived before moving to Lumpkin County, Georgia where many of their 11 children were born. Their children were Amanda, Alford, Arminda, Serena, Wesley, Andrew, Milligan, Tempey, MaryAnn, William and Sarah.”

Elizabeth and some of her children moved to Bullitt County, KY by 1870. It is unclear why they moved to the area. In 1880, she was living with her son William and her daughters Serena, MaryAnn, and Sarah in Spring Garden. This area is now known as Southside, Highland Park, Strawberry Lane, Airport area. According to city directories, Elizabeth then lived at 1540 Lexington Street (now W. Breckinridge Street) until her death. On March 22, 1893, she died at the approximate age of 76. She was buried in Section 4, Row 47, Grave 17 of Eastern Cemetery. Her grave is unmarked. Six of her children are also buried at Eastern (William, MaryAnn, Andrew, Serena, Amanda, and Sarah “Sally”). To date, there are no primary sources to confirm Elizabeth as a member of the Cherokee Nation, only her family history. However, her removal from her birth family could explain this. The Indian Removal Act of 1830 forced eastern Native American tribes to move west of the Mississippi River, which led to the Trail of Tears. After refusing to leave their lands, the US Army forced the Cherokee people to walk over 1,200 miles to Indian Territory. It’s estimated that more than 5,000 Cherokee died as a result of the Trail of Tears.

Catherine “Katie” (Bisinger) Cochran (1865-1920) was born to Anton and Elizabeth (Lockner) Bissinger, German immigrants, on November 13, 1865 in Louisville. She was the second of seven children. Anton was a laborer and Elizabeth kept house. The family lived in the Germantown Neighborhood. Between 1888 and 1901, five of Katie’s siblings succumbed to tuberculosis before reaching the age of 30. Tuberculosis was also known as Phthisis, Consumption, and the White Plague as well as the Robber of Youth as it had a higher death rate amongst young people. Her family is buried in Section A, Range 19, Lot 46 of Eastern Cemetery with a large monument.

On November 30, 1886, Katie married Jefferson “Jeff” Cochran in Louisville, and together they had three sons: Arthur, Herbert, and Milton. The 1900 Census showed the family living near Middletown with Jeff working as a notary public. Also living with the family was an adopted daughter Leonora and Jeff’s sister Ruby. The 1910 Census showed the family still living in Middletown. Jeff was a Jefferson County Deputy and Katie kept house. The couple’s three sons were still living at home. Arthur was a teamster, Herbert was a quarryman, and Milton was an engineer for the L&N Railroad. Lenora was listed as Lenora Botto, a niece, with her sister Anna Botto. The girls were daughters of Katie’s sister, Minnie (Bissinger) Botto, who died of tuberculosis in 1896.

On March 4, 1916, Jeff died at the age of 54. He was buried in Section B, Range, 4, Lot 31 of Eastern Cemetery. In 1920, Katie was the head of the house living on a farm on Shelbyville Pike. Arthur, Herbert, and his wife Georgia were also living with her. On May 10, 1920, Katie died of a stroke at the age of 54. She was buried with her husband. Their graves are unmarked. Their sons were later buried in the family plot. In the photo, Katie is on the left and her niece Beatrice is on the right. The photo is from Ancestry user rec1046.

Sophia (Barth) Schank (1807-1877) was born to Johann Carl and Sophia (Kiefer) Barth in 1877 in Nohfelden, Germany. Not much is known about her life in Germany. On March 29, 1825, she married Peter Schank, son of Johann Matthias and Maria Elisabeth (Ruppenthal) Schank, in Nohfelden. Their seven children were all born in Germany (Peter, Margaret, Philipp, Sophia, Karl, Catharina, and Jacob). In 1840, the family immigrated to the United States. Between 1820 and 1870, over seven and a half million Germans immigrated to America in order to escape economic poverty and political unrest. By 1850, German immigrants embodied nearly 20% of Louisville’s population, and they shaped every facet of daily life, from politics to fine art. The Schank family arrived in Baltimore from Le Havre, France aboard the “Colchis.” Their daughter Catharina, who was only two years old, died on the second day of their voyage. By 1850, the family was living in Louisville in the Phoenix Hill Neighborhood.

Peter worked as a laborer while Sophia kept house. Their son Peter died in 1854 leaving a widow and three daughters. One of the daughters, Sophia, moved in with her grandparents. Death records could not be found, but around 1865, Peter died and was buried in Section A, Range 5, Lot 32 of Eastern Cemetery. Sophia then lived with her granddaughter Sophia (Schank) Speckmann. On September 20, 1877, Elizabeth died at the age of 70. She was buried next to her husband and they share a headstone. Their lot also includes their son Peter, an infant grandchild as well as their son Philipp, his wife Margaret (Kieger), and their children Philipp, Charles, Margaret, and Dora.

Mary Jennie (Morgan) Wolfington (1873-1964) was born to Andrew Jackson and Harriet (Coons) Morgan on July 14, 1873 in Indiana. She was the youngest of four daughters. Andrew was a farmer in Owen Township, Clark County, IN and a Civil War veteran. Harriet was keeping house. On June 28, 1899, Jennie married Charles Wood Wolfington, son of William and Elizabeth (Timberlake) Wolfington, in Clark County, IN. By 1900, the couple was living on Franklin Street in Louisville’s Butchertown Neighborhood. Charles was working as a truckman for the railroad. In looking at census documents, Charles and Jennie always rented their homes and moved around quite a bit. In 1910, they were living on Washington Street in Butchertown and Charles was working as a paper cleaner for a wall paper house. In 1920, they were at 538 S. Shelby Street in the Phoenix Hill Neighborhood with Charles working in a flour mill. In 1930, they were living at 834 E. Main Street in Butchertown with Charles working as a faucet tester for a foundry. Then in 1940, they were back in their apartment at 538 S. Shelby Street where they would remain.

On December 25, 1947, Charles died at the age of 78. He was buried in Section A, Range 13, Grave 39 of Eastern Cemetery. On February 8, 1964, Jennie died at the age of 90. She had been residing in the Keeling Nursing Home (236 E. Kentucky Street) and was a member of the Marcus Lindsey Memorial Methodist Church. Jennie was buried next to her husband in Eastern Cemetery. They share a headstone. Photo of young Jennie and photos of her and Charles are from Ancestry user frnktyler2.

Leonora “Nora” (Anderson) Spitzer (1863-1948) was born to James and Minerva (Bradford) Anderson on April 8, 1863 in Boston, KY. She was an only child. In 1870, the family was living in Covington, KY where James was working as a tobacconist and Minerva was keeping house. They had a domestic servant named Nancy Croxton. By 1880, the family was back in Boston where James was working in a country store. In 1883, Leonora gave birth to a daughter named Ethel A. Bradford. No records on Ethel’s father could be located. On June 24, 1888, Leonora married Rudolph A. Spitzer of Canada in Floyd County, IN. Rudolph’s parents were German immigrants to Canada. Together the couple had five children: Minerva, Luella, Alfred, Samuel Rudolph, and Laura.

According to the 1900 Census, the family was living at 1426 Hemlock Street in the Park DuValle Neighborhood. Rudolph was working as a switchman for the railroad and had been in the US since 1866. All six children were in the household as well as Leonora’s parents. In September 1912, Rudolph died at the approximate age of 55. He was buried in Cave Hill Cemetery. Leonora remained in their home and continued to live with some of her children and eventually grandchildren. Generations of the family remained in that house well into the 1950s. On September 3, 1948, Leonora died at the age of 85 in Dayton, OH. She had only been living in Dayton with her daughter Minerva (Spitzer) Gregg’s family for five months before her death. Leonora was cremated and her cremains were buried in Section A, Range 3, Lot 46 of Eastern Cemetery. No other members of her family are buried in the cemetery. The photo of Rudolph and Leonora is from Ancestry user Lrfstigers. It’s a cabinet card with the photographer’s name at the bottom, Devenny, as well as his location, 3rd and Jefferson Streets. Charles H. Devenny had a business at this location from at least 1886-1890. This is likely when the photograph was taken.

Ann (Humphrey) Creagh (1799-1862) was born in 1799 in Cork, Ireland to unknown parents. Around 1818, she married John Creagh, son of William Henry and Fidelia (Hawkins) Creagh, in Ireland. Their daughter Ellen was born in Ireland and died in infancy. Then in 1819, the couple immigrated to the United States. The Creagh family arrived in Baltimore and lived there until the 1840s. Their five children were born in Baltimore (John, Richard, Elizabeth, Isabella, and William). However, only John, Richard, and Elizabeth survived to adulthood. By 1850, the family was living in Louisville as were their adult children. Between 1820 and 1930, over 4.5 million Irish immigrated to America in order to escape economic poverty and political unrest. By 1850, roughly one-third of Louisville’s population was comprised of Irish and German immigrants. In 1855, a combination of anti-Catholicism and nationalism led by the Know-Nothing Party caused “Bloody Monday” riots in which immigrants and their homes were attacked and burned. There were at least 22 deaths.

John worked as a tobacconist and grocer in Louisville. He and Ann lived on 4th Street in the Central Business District. In 1851, their son John died at the age of 31. He was buried in Section A, Range 13, Lot 8 of Eastern Cemetery. Then in 1859, their son Richard died at the age of 36. He was buried with his brother. On December 15, 1862, Ann died at the age of 62. She was buried with her sons in Eastern Cemetery. Then on November 13, 1869, John Creagh died at the age of 73 and was buried next to his wife. Their plot also includes their daughter-in-law, Richard’s widow Nancy (True) Creagh as well as three great grandchildren. This historic photo of the Creagh family plot shows their mostly intact headstones. Today, these need repair, and some are not readable, which is why this drawing was created. The plot photo, drawing of the stones, and photo of Ann are from Find A Grave user jbinsure.