Friday's Focus Family: the Hupps of Elwood

Above is a picture of the family of George Washington Hupp and Elizabeth Stokes Hupp, the source of whatever German genes I have. Based on what I know about birth and death dates, in the photo are:

Top row, left to right
Lola M. Hupp (my great grandmother, 1870-1951)
Albert A. Hupp (1878-1947)
Maude Hupp (1882- )
William A. Hupp (1868-1904)
Samuel S. Hupp (1871-1911)

Bottom row, left to right :
George Washington Hupp (1834-1923)
Isabelle Stokes Hupp (1843-1918)

George W. Hupp was born on December 3, 1834, in Shenandoah County, Virginia, near New Market, the son of Samuel A. Hupp and Mary Kipps. Isabelle Stokes was born on May 7, 1843, in Butler County, Ohio, to Jesse Stokes and Elizabeth Hineman. According to George’s obituary, he came as a young man to Indiana in 1859, moving to Elwood in 1862 where he lived the rest of his life. I think this picture must have been from around that time. He does look like a young man headed west looking for adventure.


George and Isabelle were married in 1867. He established the first tinning and plumbing company in Elwood, later opened a hardware store, and much later went into the insurance business. He was a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church and the Odd Fellows Lodge. His home, with much changing and addition, is the current Copher-Fesler-May Funeral Home in Elwood.

It seems the family, like all families had its share of happy and sad times. They apparently liked to travel to Hot Springs, Arkansas, as shown in this picture.



Five children are shown, but three died in infancy. And their son Samuel must have suffered from some type of depression, as a note in the family bible indicates that he committed suicide.

Isabelle’s obituary shows her to have been an active member of the community:

Mrs. Hupp was a lifelong member of the M.E. Church, a worker in its Aid and other societies and a Christian woman who found much for her hands to do and willingly contributed to every good cause. She will be missed in the community where she was so long known and so much beloved.

Every Trip Needs a Cemetery Visit

Anyone doing family history research knows you can't just drive by a cemetery with an ancestor, even if it is a little out of the way.

This week my DH and I took a short trip from Norfolk, VA, to Abingdon, VA, in the farthest reaches of our state, to witness our niece and nephews at a Suzuki violin camp. This is an awesome thng to see, so many young violinists, learning to play in the mountain beauty. Our travels took us through Carroll County, VA, where lies my 5th great-grandfather, Capt. William Bobbitt and his family.

County histories¹ tell a little about William. He lived near Hillsville and the Mountain Plains community of Carroll County. He had several positions of responsibility in the community--surveyor for a road, Captain of the county militia and Justice of the county court. William died in August, 1817.


Finding the cemetery is an adventure. The Quesinberry-Bobbitt Cemetery is located on a small hill, near the intersection of Rte. 682 and Rte. 52 south of Hillsville, next to a cow pasture. The Bobbitt marker is the big modern one amongst all the broken headstones. Very disappointing, but I'm glad to see someone took the time to remember the families buried there. It appears that the Bobbitt headstones have all been broken over time. I guess it won't be a good source for my research, but the photos are still nice to have. Also listed here is his wife, Nancy Ann Mackenzie and their children.



1. John Perry Alderman,Carroll 1765-1815, The Settlements (Alderman Books, 1985) 77-78