CHARLES H. YOUNGER, SR.
Company "E" 9th West Virginia Infantry
Company "B" 1st Veteran Infantry

FREDERICK YOUNGER
Company "E" 8th West Virginia Infantry; Subsequently 7th Cavalry

CHARLES H. YOUNGER, JR.
Company "E" 9th West Virginia Infantry
Company "B" 1st Veteran Infantry


Presented by Linda Cunningham Fluharty, 2019.


This story is about Charles Younger and his sons in the Civil War.
It also the tale of the postwar MURDER committed by Civil War veteran, Charles Younger, Jr.

murder

murder


SERVICE RECORDS

CHARLES H. YOUNGER, SR. - "E" 9th West Va. Infantry
CHARLES H. YOUNGER, SR. - "B" 1st West Va. Veteran Infantry

FREDERICK YOUNGER - "E" 8th West Va. Infantry/7th Cavalry

CHARLES YOUNGER, JR. - "E" 9th West Va. Infantry
CHARLES YOUNGER, JR. - "B" 1st West Va. Veteran Infantry

Charles Younger, Sr. was born in Prussia about 1810, although his birthdate has not been established with any certainty. He came to the United States, date unknown, and on February 2, 1837, he married Elizabeth "Eliza" Lowry in Muskingum County, Ohio.

At the time of the 1850 Federal Census of Mason County, (W) Virginia, Charles Younger, 38, a laborer, born Germany, and his wife, Elizabeth, 33, born in Virginia, had the following children: Mary, Frederick, James, Salina, Sophia, Charles, and Elizabeth.

In 1860, Charles Younger, 56, born in Prussia, and Elizabeth, 58, born in Virginia, were still living in Mason County. Their children were listed as Frederick, Serena, Sophia, Charles, Elizabeth, Cristina, Jackson and Harriet A. The youngest was 8 months old.

Frederick (also Fredrick) Younger was the first in the family to enlist for service in the army during the Civil War. He was 23 when he joined for duty and enrolled on October 9, 1861 at Point Pleasant, Mason County. He mustered in November 20, 1861 at Charleston (W) Virginia to serve in Lieut. Curtis' Company of the 8th West Virginia Infantry (The 8th Inf. Regt. became the 7th West Virginia Cavalry in January 1864).

Frederick's younger brother, Charles, Jr., enlisted in December 1861, and their father enlisted in August 1862, both in the 9th West Virginia Infantry.

After less than a year of service, Frederick was accidently killed. "Thrown from the cars near Wheeling, Va. while boarding with his Regt. Oct. 3" and killed instantly," according to his service record. An article in the Wheeling newspaper, October 4, 1862, states: "A Soldier Killed. - We learn a soldier of Milroy's brigade, whose name we could not learn was killed yesterday near Moundsville. He was on the top of a car and as the train passed under the bridge, near Moundsville, the unfortunate fellow struck his head against the timbers and was knocked off and killed."

The father, Charles H. Younger, Sr., enlisted on August 18, 1862 in Mason City, Mason County, (W) Virginia to serve three years in Company "E" 9th West Virginia Infantry; he mustered in at Winchester. In November 1864, when the 9th Infantry was consolidated with the 5th West Virginia Infantry to form the 1st Veteran Infantry, he served in Company "B" of the Veteran Infantry until he was discharged on June 28, 1865.

Charles H. Younger, Jr., 18, born in Meigs County, Ohio, joined for duty and enrolled on December 12, 1861 at Mason City; he mustered in on February 28, 1862. He is described as 5 feet 5 inches tall, with dark complexion, hazel eyes, and light hair. He re-enlisted and mustered in as a veteran volunteer on January 1, 1864. Later in 1864, he was listed as a deserter. That charge was later dropped because, in fact, he had been captured and was a POW at Andersonville Prison in Georgia. As indicated in his service record, he ESCAPED. Finally, upon consolidation of the 5th and 9th Infantry regiments, Charles served in Company "B" 1st West Virginia Veteran Infantry until he was discharged on July 21, 1865.


Charles H. Younger, Jr. was born in Meigs County, Ohio, per marriage record, on January 1, 1843. On April 9, 1864, while on furlough from the army, Charles, 21, married Clarissa J. Johnson, 22, in Mason County, "at the home of her father," Ezra. The mother was Asa/Ara (Lemaster) Johnson. Ezra Johnson was from Vermont and had served in the 2nd Cavalry from that state in the War of 1812.

According to one of the news articles, after the war, Charles Younger, Jr. returned home to Point Pleasant, Mason County, but then he made a trip to the Wheeling area. "He had about $600 in his pocket, and soon began to live a very fast and dissipated life.." Presenting himself as a single man, he began a relationship with Mary Magdaline Glass. Then, Charles Younger, 21, a resident of Point Pleasant, married Mary M. Glass, 22, on August 3, 1865 at Wheeling, Ohio County, West Virginia. Born in Brooke County, (W) Virginia, she was the daughter of Henry Glass, a brickmaker, and Mary M. Glass of that county.

MARY MAGDALINE GLASS

As stated in one of the articles, Mary M. Glass was the sister-in-law of John J. Brown, a shoemaker in the Wheeling area. John J. [Justice] Brown's wife was Elizabeth Glass, Mary Magdaline's sister. They lived in Wellsburg, Brooke County, near Wheeling, in 1860. In 1870, they were living in Wheeling.

The news articles name Mary M. Glass as the woman who married Charles Younger, but she was previously married to John "Andrew" Gates, although no record has been found. They are listed in the 1860 census, residing in the home of her parents in Brooke County with their son, John Gates, age 3. The whereabouts of [John] Andrew Gates, Sr. born in Germany, is unknown after the census of 1860, but he *may* have died before Mary M. married Charles Younger in 1865. In 1870, the Gates' son, John, under the surname "Glass", was living with the Glass grandparents in Wellsburg. When John Gates married Eliza Weddell in Wheeling on November 2, 1880, he was still going by "John Glass." By 1900, he was using the Gates surname, and his name appears on his death certificate as Gates. Born on February 8, 1857 in Wellsburg, West Virginia, John Andrew Gates, Jr. died December 24, 1940 in Bridgeport, Belmont County, Ohio. He was a retired custodian of the Center Wheeling Market. He and his family are buried at Greenwood Cemetery, Wheeling.

As stated, John, the son of Mary M. Glass Gates was living with her parents in Wellsburg in 1870. Meanwhile, Mary Magdalina Gates, 27, a widow, daughter of Henry and Mary M. Glass, married Perry R. Mabeth, 24, in Wheeling, Ohio County on February 8, 1869. Perry was a brickmaker, born in Kentucky, and residing in Wheeling. Absolutely nothing more has been found about them.

BACK TO THE MURDER

Charles Younger, Jr. murdered his wife, Clarissa Johnson Younger, before the middle of July 1866, and the neigbors became suspicious about July 14, as indicated in the news article. At that time, the seven year old sister of Charles Younger, which would be Harriet, stated that "Brother Charley killed Charley's wife." The news report went on to say that the child was "taken from her parents to prevent her being harmed.."

West Virginia Death Record of Clarissa Johnson Younger: "Clara Younger, July --; 1866; Mason County; Killed by husband; 20; daughter of Ezra and Ellen [sic] Johnson; Housekeeper; Spouse of Charles Younger; Reported by Charles Younger, father-in-law."

The death entry above Clarissa's is for Hariet Younger, age 7. Her death occurred July 31,1866, just two weeks after the murder. She is the child who was supposedly taken from the home for her protection, yet she died after being "scalded."

murder

There are many news articles about the murder of Clarissa Johnson Younger, as well as about the trials of Charles Younger. Although early reports implicated his father in the murder, as well, Charles, Sr. was apparently ruled out as a perpetrator.

Charles Younger was sentenced to hang. In September 1867, he escaped from jail: "Broke Jail - On Thursday night of last week, Charles H. Younger, convicted of the murder of his wife, and under sentence of death, succeeded in making his escape from the Jail of this county, by sawing through the iron bars of his cell and then digging through the wall of the building. It is supposed that he had been furnished the saw by some of his friends. Said Younger is about 6 feet high, black eyes, black hair, dark complexion, smooth face, stoutly built, weighs about 185 pounds, about 22 years of age, and has the name of his murdered wife (Clarissa H. Younger) "tatooed" on one of his arms. A reward of one hundred dollars has been offered for his apprehension. Keep a look out for him. [The Weekly Register (Point Pleasant, W. Va.), Sep 5, 1867.]

Charles was captured and, on appeal, he was awarded a new trial. His attorneys admitted his guilt but claimed he was insane. In the second trial, he was again sentenced to be hung, but West Virginia Governor Boreman intervened the day before the scheduled execution. In the end, Charles Younger was sentenced to eighteen years in the state prison in Moundsville. In the 1880 census, C. H. Younger, 35, widower, born Ohio, employed in Wagon Shop, was a prisoner at the State Penitentiary in Moundsville, Marshall County, West Virginia. The date of his release from prison is not known.

LIFE DURING AND AFTER PRISON

Relationship & Family with Eliza Burden

On a date unknown, Charles Younger, presumably while a prisoner at the penitentiary in Moundsville, began a relationship with Eliza Burden, whom he *may* have married about 1882.

In the 1850 Federal Census of Pickens, South Carolina, the members of the Burden family, all listed as Mulatto, were Jack Burden, Head of Household, age 28; Olly, 24; Caroline, 30; John, 10; Wade, 7; Catherine, 3; Elizabeth, 1.

The Burdens first appear in (West) Virginia in the 1860 Federal Census of Marshall County, race identified as Mulatto, all born in South Carolina, except for the youngest child. "Ally", the head, age 35 in 1860, is also called Olly and then Oliver in records. Caroline, age 38 in 1860, is variously identified as Mulatto and as Indian in census records. Children in 1860 were John J., 19; Wade H., 17; Catharine, 13; Mary E. [Elizabeth], 10; Eliza A., 8; Sarah, 5 and Jincy, 1.

When Wade H. - surname spelled "Borin" - married Mary Ann Dardinger on September 21, 1871 in Marshall County, his parents are identified as John and Caroline. It seems in the realm of possibility that Caroline was the wife of John "Jack" Burden before they moved to Moundsville.

Wade H. Burden served during the Civil War in 3rd West Virginia Infantry that subsequently became the 6th West Virginia Cavalry. His name was spelled as Borin, Boren, Borean for the duration of his life - but this is Wade H. Burden.Service Record. They ended up out west and he is buried in Sallisaw, Oklahoma.

Eliza Burden, still at home with her parents in 1870, was 17. Other siblings in the home were Elizabeth, 19; Sarah, 16; Jinsey, 13; Melissa, 10, and George W., 4.

At the time of the 1880 census of Marshall County, Eliza, 25, a servant, was listed with her parents and some siblings. Also in the home were three young boys - Michael, 6; John T., 5; Louis, 4 - described as the grandsons of the head of household. Records establish that Michael and Louis were the sons of Eliza Burden and Charles H. Younger. Per many records, Louis was Jud Louis/Lewis. John T. is more likely to be Sarah Burden's son, Jack Thomas King, who died in Marshall County in 1946, age 74, establishing his birth year as 1874-75. Sarah Burden had married George W. King in 1886, and the child apparently went by his surname - or, possibly, King was really the father.

Somehow, when Charles Younger was in Moundsville, presumably a prisoner, he *possibly* became the father of two sons, at least according to the records.

Charles Younger, apparently released from prison, is with his family in the 1900 census in Moundsville, Marshall County. Born in January 1845 in Ohio, he was working as a coal miner. He and his wife, Eliza, born in South Carolina in 1855, had been married for 18 years, according to the record. Their two sons, Michael, 26, and Jud, 24, also coal miners, were living in the home. The race of the family is stated as White.

A year earlier, on September 26, 1899, a death notice appeared in the Wheeling Daily Intelligencer, under the heading, "Moundsville": "Mrs. Caroline Burden died at the home of her daughter, Mrs. Charles Younger, on Third street, at 6:30 o'clock yesterday morning. She was nearly, if not altogether, 100 years of age. Her age is not definitely known." The father, Olly/Oliver Burden, died in 1895 and is buried at Fairview Cemetery, Marshall County.

Eliza's, and presumably Charles', older son, Michael Oliver Younger, was born December 27, 1873. He had named his brother, Jud Lewis Younger, as his close relative on his WWI Draft Registration. Michael lived with his mother in 1910 and with his brother, Jud, in 1920. Michael got married in 1935 at age 50, to Vannie B. Tetzaff, who was divorced; her maiden name was Bowyer. Following Michael's death on June 11, 1942, his widow, Nannie Younger, gave the information for the death record of Jack Thomas King, when Jack died in November 1946. Jack was Michael Younger's first cousin, the son of Michael's aunt, Sarah Burden King, as mentioned earlier. Jack lived in the home of Michael and Vannie at the time of the 1940 census.

Jud Lewis Younger was born on March 7, 1876. He married Myrtle Sylvie McCarriher in Marshall County in 1893, at which time Charles H. Younger provided the information for the marriage certificate. The fate of Jud's first marriage is unknown. He married Margaret "Maggie" E. Roush in Belmont County, Ohio on December 28, 1904. Their children in 1920 were Junior B. (married Ocea Derrow), Bernice M., Howard L. (married Virginia Winters, 1930; Sara Ellen Robinson, 1944), Helen E., Paul R., James B. Children born after that census were Dean Franklin (married Margaret Eileen Lowe, 1944), Arthur Eugene (married Blanche Flor Ovies, 1947), and Margaret Eileen. Jud L. Younger died on October 20, 1926, after he was "accidentally caught and crushed by fall of stone in coal mine" at the Glendale coal mine.

Both Michael and Jud Younger are buried at Greenlawn Cemetery in Moundsville.

NO record has been found of a marriage or divorce between Charles Younger and Eliza Burden.

Eliza Younger is found in the 1910 Marshall County census, a "widow," age 57. (Fact: SHE WAS NOT A WIDOW, at least not a widow of Charles Younger.) The record indicates that she had given birth to two children, both living. Her son, Michael, 37, a shipper at an enamel company, resided with her. Their race is stated as White. Eliza died of Chronic Heart Disease in Marshall County on February 9, 1913, which is confirmed by Lutes Funeral Home records. The West Virginia death record transcription has incorrect info for both her age and her death year. She is buried at Greenlawn Cemetery, and her gravestone bears the dates 1852-1913.

Charles Younger Married Again & Had Many Children

Meanwhile, on May 24, 1904, in Gallia County, Ohio, Charles Younger, 67, son of Charles H. Younger and Elizabeth Lowery, born Pt. Pleasant, W. Va., married Meday Rupe, 20. She was born in Kyger, Ohio, the daughter of James Rupe and Ella Flint, according to the marriage record. Subsequent records indicate that her name was Alice Almeda Rupe.

Children of Charles and "Meday" Younger, gleaned from census and baptismal records: Elizabeth Belle, Alta Marie, Anna L., Virginia Irene, Charles, Dorothy and Francis M.

From the time Charles and Meday married in 1904, they seem to have had a normal life in Gallia County, Ohio - for thirty years - without the intrusion of the facts of his possible bigamy, his imprisonment for murdering his first wife, or his other family in Moundsville. He did manage to have a couple of minor scrapes with the law, however.

Finally, soldier and ex-convict, Charles Henry Younger, Jr., died on August 15, 1932 at Gallipolis, Gallia County, Ohio. He is buried at Pine Street Cemetery, Gallipolis.

OBITUARY - Gallipolis Daily Tribune, August 16, 1932 -- "Chas. H. Younger, Old Soldier, Passes Away - Charles H. Younger, a union soldier in the '60s, died at about 9 o’clock last night at his home in East Gallipolis. He had been in poor health for several months, or since he suffered a stroke of paralysis, but had been seen on the streets here a few times since then. He was 88 years old and a native of West Virginia. - Mr. Younger was twice married and is survived by his second wife, the mother of his children, seven of whom survive. One of them, Mrs. Allie Beckett is in Marysville; Mrs. Elizabeth Marks is in Cleveland, and the others live here. - Funeral services will be held at 2 o’clock Wednesday at the home. Rev. Carl Clendenin will probably officiate. Burial in Pine Street cemetery by Undertaker Tope. A deputation from the Legion Post will take part in the rites."

His widow promptly ordered a government headstone to be shipped to her in Gallipolis, Ohio.

The soldier had first applied for a government pension in September 1891. He received Certificate #827892. Following his death, his widow applied for a pension but no certificate was issued. This writer chose not to purchase the $80 pension file, but it is quite likely that the widow's application prompted an investigation into the marital history and status of Charles Henry Younger.

LITTLE DID THEY KNOW

age

Alice Almeda "Meday" Rupe Younger, born on April 17, 1883, died September 11, 1948. She is buried at the Pine Street Cemetery.


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