Celebrating the Life of Robert Josiah Bates

Today I am remembering my second great grandfather, Robert Josiah Bates. He was born 28 June 1853, the first born of Seymour and Elizabeth Ann “Betsy” (Blue) Bates. [For the Blue Family genealogists, Robert is identified as 1.1.3.2.1.4.1.1] His parents had eight more children after Robert.

Robert’s father, Seymore was born in St. Lawrence County, New York and moved to Illinois. There he met Betsy Blue, a life-long resident of Illinois, and they married in Menard County, IL on 8 July 1852. From what I have been able to find, the couple farmed and raised their family in Illinois.

Robert was also a farmer, according to his death certificate. He and Marga Anna “Margie” Radley, who had been born in Ohio in 1857, married in Menard County, Illinois on 25 Nov 1873. The couple had five children–four daughters named Rose, Effie, Floy (my great grandmother) and Oda, and one son, Alonzo. I have heard Floy’s grandsons refer to their great-uncle as “Uncle Lonnie” and he was a favorite whenever he came for a visit.

Margie died in 1911 when Robert was 58 years old and their youngest, Oda, was about 11 years old. I have not found a record of Robert remarrying, so he and the older daughters (my great-grandma Floy was ten years older than Oda and was the closest in line to her) likely had responsibility to raise Oda.

I wonder if Floy had quite a bit of that responsibility since she and Oda were so close. Floy married Carl Adermann when she was 17, but they lived in Illinois for ten year after that. When Floy’s first child was born, they named him Oscar Dearl Aderman so his initials would be ODA in honor of her younger sister.

Robert lived another 15 years after his wife, Margie, died. He died on 18 May 1926 in Corwin, Logan County, Illinos and was buried next to Margie at the Lucas Chapel Cemetery in Lincoln, Logan County, Illinois.