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Below is a family biography included in The History of Crawford County, Missouri published by Goodspeed Publishing Company in 1888.  These biographies are valuable for genealogy research in discovering missing ancestors or filling in the details of a family tree. Family biographies often include far more information than can be found in a census record or obituary.  Details will vary with each biography but will often include the date and place of birth, parent names including mothers' maiden name, name of wife including maiden name, her parents' names, name of children (including spouses if married), former places of residence, occupation details, military service, church and social organization affiliations, and more.  There are often ancestry details included that cannot be found in any other type of genealogical record.

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Hon. Ellis G. Evans, well known to the citizens of Missouri, and especially of the southeastern portion of the State, is deserving of honorable mention in the present volume, as the following necessarily brief sketch of his life will indicate. Born in St. Francois County, Mo., July 10, 1824, he was the third of eight children of William and Mahala (George) Evans, natives, respectively, of Tennessee and Virginia. The former came to Missouri in 1802 with his maternal grandmother, Mrs. Sarah (Barton) Murphy, who, it may be mentioned, taught the first Sunday school west of the Mississippi River; she was a woman of rare natural instincts and force of character, and after the sudden death of her husband, Rev. William Murphy, a Baptist minister, brought her family, slaves, possessions, etc., to this then Territory of Louisiana, and settled on land which Mr. Murphy had previously purchased from the Spanish Government. Her arrival was on June 12, 1802, at which time Roman Catholicism was the only religion tolerated, but in 1803 free privileges were secured, and she offered the first public prayer in this vicinity. She was the aunt of David Barton, Missouri's first United States Senator, and was president of the first constitutional convention of Missouri. The grandfather of Ellis G. Evans, Thomas George, was a zealous worker of the Methodist faith, and an enthusiastic Christian, often shouting. His two children were Rhoda and Mahala, the latter of whom married William Evans July 27, 1818. He (William) was an agriculturist, and farmed until engaging in the milling business with his father-in-law. It was on the site of this mill, known now as Big River Mills, that Ellis was born, receiving his primary school instruction from his father, a man of high moral standing, and who occasionally taught school for that community. When eighteen years of age he commenced to learn the carpenter’s trade, first at Farmington and afterward at St. Louis, in which city he cast his first vote. He has since worked at his trade in various places in the State. In 1851 he opened a general store at Steelville, which, after being conducted under different firm names, was discontinued in 1857. Subsequently he followed his trade until the outbreak of the war, in the meantime having erected several buildings of importance at St. James, where, on the occasion of the arrival of the first train, he was chosen to present a flag to its conductor. While at Steelville he assisted in building up the Steelville Academy (belonging to the Cumberland Presbyterian Church), and was made trustee and secretary of the board. August 20, 1850, Mr. Evans was married to Miss Emily M. Treece, daughter of Jacob Treece and Martha, nee Bail, natives, respectively, of Pennsylvania and Ohio, Four children blessed this union: Eugene A., married Miss Lellie E. Simpson, and now resides at Springfield, Mo.; Horace Dell, of St. Louis, recently married Miss Annie Towl, of Annapolis, Mo,, and is now postal clerk on the fast train from St. Louis to Kansas City; Inez and Lettie, the two daughters, reside at home with their father, who located in Cuba in 1862, soon after which he was appointed postmaster of that place. He was also made commercial agent, and later deputy United States assessor for this division, and when a draft was ordered he was appointed on the enrolling board, and also deputy provost marshal. In 1864 he was elected a delegate to the State Constitutional Convention, represented the Twenty-second Senatorial District, and aided very materially in framing a constitution (elsewhere referred to) which was adopted by a vote of the people at the succeeding election. Subsequently he was appointed aid-de-camp on the staff of Gov. Fletcher, was paymaster of the militia with the rank of major, and in 1866 he was nominated by the Republicans and elected State Senator, representing the same district (Twenty-second) for four years. During his term of service he was mainly instrumental in defeating the project of locating the agricultural college at Columbia, until the projectors agreed that a branch called School of Mines might be located in his district. While the Senate was not in session Mr. Evans was editor-in-chief of the State Times, published at Jefferson City. Soon after leaving there (owing to the owner of the paper having bolted the Republican nominations) he was appointed register of the United States land office, at Boonville, serving nearly four years. In 1874 he lost the use of a lower limb by paralysis, supposed to have been caused by injury of the spine from a fall, and early in the following year the other leg began to weaken, the result of which was that, despite medical treatment, he has been a confirmed cripple since July, 1875, and is obliged to use a wheelchair as a means of locomotion. Although the crash of 1873-74 ruined him financially he is never idle, and for several years he has been United States commissioner, notary public, land agent, etc., acting in these different capacities with a care and judiciousness reflecting no little credit on his business ability. Since his affliction numerous acquaintances have shown their sympathies in various ways; his sons have nobly assisted him, but his greatest protector was a devoted wife, who was given the post office at Cuba, and served the people with great acceptability, giving universal satisfaction, until, in a change of administration, a voter claimed the office as a supporter of Cleveland, and she was removed, notwithstanding the protests of the most prominent Democrats in the community. On Monday, December 27, 1886, while attending to her household duties, Mrs. Evans was the victim of a most distressing accident, which resulted fatally. Her clothing catching fire in an unusual manner, she was soon enveloped in flames, and died the same night after intense suffering. She was a lady of kind heart and excellent judgment, and loved by every acquaintance, and the many expressions of sympathy upon her untimely death warmly attested the strong friendships held by her in life. As indicated, Mr. Evans has always been a stanch Republican. He became a newspaper correspondent before he was of age, and has had considerable experience in the journalistic field besides the enterprises referred to. In 1876 he was editor of the Rolla Eagle, and also wrote for the Carthage Banner, when it started as a daily. He has ever advocated advance measures in all things, supporting the measures of female suffrage and negro suffrage. He is a strong Prohibitionist, never used liquor or tobacco himself, and in religion is a Methodist, to which church he has belonged for forty-five years, and is now (March, 1888) a layman delegate to the annual conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, which is being held at Sedalia.

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This family biography is one of 117 biographies included in The History of Crawford County, Missouri published in 1888.  For the complete description, click here: Crawford County, Missouri History, Genealogy, and Maps

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