A couple was married on this date back in 1860 in Perry County, but that couple did not remain here. They moved to Montgomery County, Illinois shortly after that marriage and remained there the rest of their lives. This does not sound like a typical story, but I have to tell you that I have already told a similar tale in a previous post, and that tale was about another couple with the same surname. It was actually about today’s main character’s father, mother, and stepmother. That post was titled, Fath – Bergmann – Lang.

John Leonard Fath was born on November 23, 1841, the son of Leonard and Ellen (Bergmann) Fath. This Fath family is found in the Friedenberg Remembrances book, but that congregation was not established until 1844, so I do not think John’s baptism record would have been found in that congregation’s books which were destroyed in a fire, unless he was baptized after 1844. John is found in the 1850 census at the age of 8. He was the oldest child in that family. By 1850, there were 5 children in the Fath household. John’s father was a blacksmith in Perryville.

John would get married in 1860, but not until after he was found in that year’s census. That Fath entry shown below from the 1860 census shows John as an 18 year-old student. Most teenagers in those days did not attend school. Perryville High School did not get established until later in the 1860’s. Because John would later be a teacher, I think he may have been studying at some institution that prepared teachers. There were 8 children in the Fath household, and his father was still a blacksmith.

Now, we will take a look at the woman who would become John’s bride. Her name was Mary Martha Nugent, who was born on June 17, 1842. Martha was the daughter of John and Ruth (Eccles) Nugent. I have no baptism documentation, but I do know that her later death certificate says she was born in Perryville. When the 1850 census was taken, Martha was 8 years old. Her father, along with an older brother and a young man named William Dietrich, were all coopers in the Brazeau Township. If you look at the places of birth for Martha’s older siblings, you can see that this family had been moving around. In the order of ages, you will see a birth in Ohio, then Virginia, then a couple more back in Ohio again. Plus, her parents were both born in Pennsylvania. Martha was the first of the Nugent children to be born in Missouri.

Like it was with John Fath, Martha is found still living with her parents in the 1860 census. She was 16 years old at the time. This time, her father was a merchant in the Shawnee Township.

John Fath married Martha Nugent on November 1, 1860. According to the Perry County marriage records that I will display, this couple was married by a Justice of the Peace.

Here is a second Perry County marriage record for this couple.

John Fath was registered for the Civil War draft during that war. This document says that for some reason, John was crippled. I found a John Fath Civil War military record, but I think there was another John Fath living in Missouri at the time. It does indicate that John was still living in Perry County.

Later evidence indicates that the Fath pair moved away from Perry County in 1864. When the 1870 census was taken, we find them living in the Hillsboro Township in Montgomery County, Illinois. John is called a school teacher, and there were 4 children in their household. The first 2 children were born in Missouri.

Next, we find the Fath’s in the 1880 census living in the East Fork Township in the same county. The Fath’s had 10 children in all, and in this entry, there were 7 of them. There is a rather strange notation in the occupation column for John. It says his occupation was Father. I think this was a mistake by a census taker, who possibly meant to write “farmer”.

We have to wait until 1900 to be able to view another census entry for the Fath’s. They are living in Coffeen, Illinois, and John was a farmer. Only 4 children were still living with their parents.

The map below shows the locations of Hillsboro, East Fork, and Coffeen, Illinois.

At some point later in their lives, John and Martha Fath had these photos taken.

The 1910 census was the last one in which we find John Fath. John was called a retired farmer at the age of 68. He and Martha had an empty nest.

John Fath died in 1914 at the age of 72. A transcription of his obituary can be found on Findagrave.com. I have to display it in 2 images which may be clicked to enlarge. Several other details about John’s life, including the fact that he was a county clerk, are included in this obituary.

When John died another obituary for him was published in the Perry County Republican.

Martha Fath is found as a widow in the 1920 census. She was living by herself.

Martha Fath died in 1928 at the age of 85. I was able to locate an Illinois death certificate for her.

We can also read her obituary below. Both John and Martha’s obituaries say they were married on November 2nd, but both of the marriage records shown earlier say that the Justice of the Peace performed the wedding on November 1st and signed the marriage record on the 2nd.

John and Martha Fath are buried together in the McDavid Point Cemetery in Coffeen.

I am going to return to the strange entry in the 1880 census for John. Although the census taker may have made a mistake, I think it was an appropriate one. I happen to consider a man with a family has two important occupations other than the ones listed on a census form. Those would be husband and father, especially for a man with 10 children. And what better term would be there be for a man named Fath than “Fath”-er.