Kellems- Perry County, Indiana
I am the great-great-great grandson of Sylvester Buchanan Thomas and Sarah Elizabeth Kellems.
Sylvester was born in Washington County, Ohio and moved to Perry County when he was 16. He was the son of John Star and Precious Scott Thomas.
Sarah was born in Perry County on June 12, 1857, daughter of Isaac Riley and Mary Jane Alvey Kellems.
Sarah and Sylvester are both buried in St Mary's Cemetery in Derby, Perry County, Indiana.
Sarah and Sylvester had 7 children- Anastsia, Mary, John Isaac, Jane, Luke, Sylvester Benjamin, and David.
Sylvester Benjamin Thomas(son of Sylvester and Sarah) married Sarah Eleanor Kellems in Perry County on January 16, 1907. Sarah Eleanor's parents were Henry Luke Kellems and Rohda Isabel Harrison* Kellems. Henry Luke Kellems was the brother of Sarah Elizebath Kellems, making Sylvester Benjamin and Sarah Elanor first cousins. Sylvester Benjamin and Sarah Eleanor had 8 children- Eunice, John Leroy, Urban, Raymond Augustus(my great-grandfather), Ernest herman, Ruth, Louise, and Floyd. Both Ruth and Floyd died in infancy. Both Floyd and his mother died of influenza- which of course was an epidemic at the time.
*Sarah Eleanor's mother, Rhoda Harrison Kellems, is said to be the descendant of President William Henry Harrison, though there is not concrete evidence proving it one way or another.
As a side note, Sarah Eleanor's father owned a large farm, a sawmill operation, and a blacksmith shop. I am not sure where exactly the sawmill or blackshop were, but the farm is still in the family. If you are driving into Tell City, Perry County you will exit the interstate onto State Road 37. Roughly 20 minutes up SR 37 you will see a Highway Department Facility and a turn off onto State Road 70. The second right turn is onto Tiger Road- formerly named Luke Kellems Road. Everything along that road was once owned by Henry Luke Kellems and it still in the extended family.
A number of Henry Luke Kellems, some of his children, Sylvester Benjamin, Sarah Eleanor, and their children are all buried in St Mary's Cemetery in Derby, Perry County. There is also the Kellems cemetery inSiberia, Perry County. Up I-64 from the SR 37/Tell City exit is the exit for Bird's Eye/Bristow/ SR 145. Get of there. Take the first right onto Chaplin Road. The road will come to a fork, take the left fork. Continue up this road a ways and you will come to the Kellems cemetery on the right. If you are in Perry County to do research I would also check out the St Augustine Church and Cemetery in Leopold, Perry County.
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Re: Kellems- Perry County, Indiana
Steve Dale 11/11/12