Jonas Edward Mills
Jonas Edward Mills, born 18 Feb 1852, Staten Island NY, died 13/14 October 1885, Brookton NY. Oldest child of Edward Hallock and Mary Ann Mills. Jonas worked as clerk in E. H. Mills’ dry goods store in Mott’s Corners/Brookton and he was a member of the High Bridge Lodge # 296 of the Independent Order of Good Templars, a temperance group in Brookton.
| Year | Type | Town | Name | Age | Birthplace | Occupation | Industry |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1860 | US | Castleton | Jonas E Mlls | 8 | New York | ||
| 1870 | US | Pembroke | Mills Jonas E. | 18 | New York | At home | |
| 1875 | NYS | Pembroke | Jonas E Mills | 22 | Staten Island | ||
| 1880 | US | Caroline | Mills Jonas. E. | 28 | New York | Clerk in Store |
— United States Federal Census and New York, U.S., State Census, ancestry.com. Click column headers to change sort order. Download source data.
Jonas was baptized in the Reformed Dutch Church of Port Richmond:
Date Baptized Parents’ Names Born 1852, July 30 Jonas Edward Edwd. Mills & Mary A. Pine 18th Feb. 1852
— Jan 1923, Records of the Reformed Protestant Dutch Church on Staten Island, New York City, transcribed and edited by Royden Woodward Vosburgh, v2, p60, Staten Island, Richmond County, NY Genealogical Resources, FHL Film 514656 Item 5. Partial transcription.View largest available size.
— Church Register 1790-1908, Reformed Dutch Church of Port Richmond, p16. Digitally photographed by Kathleen Langdon and used with permission via personal correspondence 13 Feb 2023. View largest available size.
— Church Register 1790-1908, Reformed Dutch Church of Port Richmond, p16. Digitally photographed by Kathleen Langdon and used with permission via personal correspondence 13 Feb 2023. View largest available size.
Jonas was a member of the Brookton “High Bridge Lodge #296” of the Independent Order of Good Templars, for at least part of the time that Emily was also a member.
— 15 Feb 1884, Meeting minutes notebook of the Independent Order of Good Templars, High Bridge Lodge No. 296, Tompkins County History Center, Ithaca NY. View largest available size.
Jonas’ death came several months after Reverend Horace N. Humiston sold the Mills’ Home to Esther Vorhis. (Caroline Deeds 5, p138.) Although I can’t say for certain that the Mills lived in the home at 475 Brooktondale Road the entire time they lived in Brooktondale–as I am still researching deeds in light of the 1880 Federal Census–I am reasonably confident that Jonas died in the home that was “occupied by E. H. Mills as tenant” by 1891 (Deeds 138, p329).
The 1885 New York State Death Index lists Jonas as dying on October 14:
— 1852-1956, New York, U.S., Death Index, ancestry.com. View largest available size.
However, the Ithaca Daily Journal reported that he died on Tuesday, which in 1885 fell on the 13th. Both the Ithaca Daily Journal and The Daily News in Batavia agree that he was interred on Thursday 15 Oct 1885:
Jonas Mills of Brookton, was suddenly taken very ill last Saturday and died on Tuesday. His burial occurred to-day.
— 15 Oct 1885, Ithaca Daily Journal, Ithaca NY, p3, nyshistoricnewspapers.org. View largest available size.
… The remains of Jonas Mills, a son of E. H. Mills, a former resident of this village, now of Brooklyn, New York, were brought to this place yesterday afternoon for interment. …
— 16 Oct 1885, The Daily News, Batavia NY, p1, nyshistoricnewspapers.org. View largest available size.
On Monday, 12 Oct 1885, as Jonas lay ill, the Ithaca Daily Journal (p3, q13) reported the area was experiencing “Indian Summer” accompanied by “gorgeous sunsets” that for the Mills family cast in silhouette the great wooden trestle in Brookton. On Wednesday, 14 October, the barometer fell, predicting rain and colder temperatures for the following day, when Jonas was interred alongside his brother Horace at Corfu. By Friday, the sky cleared and warmer temperatures returned in time for the planned Good Templars’ “pie and fruit party” at Lounsbery Hall, above E. H. Mills’ general store in Brookton, where Jonas had been working as clerk not a week prior. (13 Oct 1885, Ithaca Daily Journal, Ithaca NY, p3, q31, nyshistoricnewspapers.org.)
I have not yet found follow-up reporting on the Good Templars’ party, and considering that the announcement in the Journal was printed before Jonas’ death, perhaps the party above the Mills family store was subsequently cancelled. An examination of the Good Templars’ Meeting Minutes presently archived at the Tompkins County History Center will show that there are meeting minutes for the Friday evening prior, 09 Oct, and the following Friday evening, 23 Oct, but no meeting was recorded for Friday, 16 Oct.
I assume that Edward, Mary Ann and Emily all accompanied Jonas to Corfu, in a trip similar to that described for Mary Ann a decade later. Jonas died during the time that Edward was Brookton Postmaster, and George Richardson was working for Edward.
Jonas is interred at Evergreen Hill Cemetery, 112 Alleghany Rd, Corfu NY 14036.