Person Page 949

1850 Census, Grundy Co., TN, Dwell. 7, Fam. 7, 15 Oct, from Census Microfilm:

Harrison Tallman 31 TN.

Sarah 22 TN.

James W. 4 TN.

George 2 TN.

Levi 5/12 TN.

Tabiatha Simms 50 TN.

James 21 TN. Student at school

1860 Census, Grundy Co., TN. 11-429, as transcribed by Byron and Barbara Sistler:

John H. Tallman, (46) Wife, Sara, (33)

James W., (14)

George F., (12)

Levi W., (10)

David S., (8)

Andrew J., (6)

Mary J., (4)

Albert H., (1.)

Around 1848 Benjamin moved to Jones County, Iowa from Canal Winchester, Franklin County, Ohio. Sometime in the 1850s Benjamin moved his family to the next county to the west, Linn County. He was involved with the United Brethren Church which founded a town and college at Western. Benjamin was the farm agent and resident agent for the college for many years. At one time he served on the Board of Regents. When the church founded the town it was hoped that the lots and nearby farms could be sold to the members thereby creating a strong religious community. They were also in a good position to be on a major north/south railway line. Such was not to be the case though. The railway located to both the east and west of the town by a few miles and an influx of immigrants from Bohemia bought up much of the surrounding land. The college fell on hard times and eventually closed. One of Benjamin's jobs was to operate the college farm. The farm provided a work/study program for needy students as well as a means for the college to earn outside income. Benjamin owned no land in Linn County until 1864 but he clearly lived there much earlier, so he probably resided on the college farm itself. He purchased 80 acres adjacent to the college farm just to the north (E1/2, SE1/4 Sec. 28-82-7). A barn that he built was still standing in 1987.

Benjamin died in 1881 and his wife Romancy moved to Rippey in Greene County, Iowa, to live with her daughter Amy. Another daughter, Eliza also lived around Rippey and Romancy later lived with her. There is also some indication that her son Miller also lived in the area for a while. There seems to have been quite an exodus of Tallmans to Greene County. Several sons of Benjamin's brother John also moved there. Many of Benjamin's younger children moved to Minnesota. Benjamin is buried in Western Cemetery in Linn County, Iowa.

MARRIAGE: Fairfield County, Ohio Marriage Records Book 1, by S. S. Geohegan.

Performed by Peter Stepens Minister of the Gosple. 24 Dec 1833.

Findagrave #162410298

Gravestone notes -- (Findagrave.com):

Daughter of Stephen and Sarah (Stevenson) Glanville. Sarah (Glanville) Tallman, who married Benjamin Tallman in Fairfield Co., OH, on Dec. 24, 1833, is a documented burial in this cemetery, with a headstone that had previously been read and then noted as only partially legible and weathered.

Marker has almost completely deteriorated; however, there is one small area where enough of the engraving remains to allow what appears to be the name "Tallman" to be enhanced and read on the computer. There are also two partial digits visible at the far right end of the line below "Tallman." The first digit appears to represent the top of a 3; the second is more fully visible, but I was unable to determine whether it was a 9, 0 or 6 at the time read.

According to my notes, the marker also includes a faint AH in the area of the given name (originally thought to be Hannah, but matches more details of the reading for Sarah Tallman).

If correctly identified, headstone originally read: Sarah, wife of Benjamin Tallman, died January xx, 1836, aged 20 years (may have been January 2, the date Benjamin and Sarah's daughter, Sarah Jane Tallman, was born).