Nettie L Stump's headstone was listed in the 1934 DAR survey of Spring Hill Cemetery.
By the time I found the cemetery in 2004, the stone was missing. Her stone was
discovered in the overgrown backyard of Frances Gorges' Pacheco rental property
just before Christmas 2008. Frances' daughter, Debbie Carlin, found our
website doing a google search for Nettie, and used the contact information
found there to contact me. Nettie's stone was returned to Spring Hill on
February 20th, 2009.
We know a bit about Nettie's parents. Her father, James Stump, was the fourth son of John C. Stump. James had been born in Virginia in 1835. We have a nice write up about James' father:
"Let me tell you a little about, or rather quite a bit about John Conrad Stump and his large family. They were early settlers here [Bodega]. We don't know whether he was the father of 20 or 23 children as has been said. Margie has only been able to track down nineteen. The newspaper said he was the father of 23, 20 living at the time of his death, May 20, 1876. He was buried in the local cemetery, but fifteen years later, in 1891, his wife had the body removed to Oakland for burial beside the remains of his daughter, Mary.
'John C. was born in Darmstadt, Germany about 1804, coming to the United States prior to 1828. Whether he was married at the time we don't know. He settled in Virginia and 12 or 13 children were born there; (not necessarily in order of birth) Andrew, Conrad, Henry, James, Lewis, Arnold, Samuel, Solomon, Daniel, Mary, Rose and Erica (Dorcas was listed in the 1860 census as 11 years old. She was not on Marjorie's list).
'John and most of his family (his wife had died) came to Bodega in 1852, where he was engaged in farming first, later becoming the owner of the Bodega American Hotel and Saloon, August 10, 1868. The hotel was probably built between March 1, 1865, when John bought the property for $150 and April 1866, when he sold the American Hotel to Ben Joy for $2,000. The Hotel was torn down in 1960 by Mr. E. Sandy. On October 1, 1866, John C. Stump bought 124,836 acres on the outskirts of Bodega Corners plus all the adjoining lots on the south side of South Street and Briard Street in town, 10 in all. Upon his death the property was sold at a sheriff's sale to Fannie Duncan for $4,146.58. Bridget Brannigan, Irish born Catholic from Oakland became John's second wife around 1865. She had been his housekeeper. Their six children were: Mary C., Catherine L., Bernard J., Annie V., and twins Matthew N. and John M. Presumable all born in Bodega. The Stump family played an important role in early Bodega history, but as the various members grew up, most of them moved to other parts of the state or county. Andrew, who was born Oct 10, 1827, in Virginia, came to California around 1849, was listed in the 1852 census as 25 years, occupation, teaming, retired to Monte Rio (Sonoma County) where he died in 1913, age 86 years." Source: Bodega Bay Navigator by Mrs. Ruth Burke of Bodega, CA, with information supplied by Mrs. Margie Stump Mcdonald, a great granddaughter of John C. Stumpf."
This same source says of Nettie's father, James,
"The fourth son of John C. Stump was James, born in Virginia about 1835. We know he was listed as Judge of the Bodega Port Precinct in Sept 1855, Sonoma County elections. He owned two warehouses in Bodega port and a Saloon, which burned down during the Bodega fire Sept. 1874 [three years before Nettie’s birth]. James married Christiana [Mary] Lowery Sept. 9, 1862. Her parents were William II and Elvira Lowery. They had five children.”
Although they may have had 5 children living to adulthood, James and Christiana (Mary) had at least 7 children. They had 6 children listed in the 1880 census, and we also know they had their “dear little Nettie” who died between the 1870 and 1880 census records, so is not recorded in the census.
Nettie's mother was Christiana Blanch (Mary) Lowrey (sometimes spelled Lowery). Christiana was born in Missouri around 1848. The 1880 census lists both of Christiana's parents as being born in Tennessee. Christiana's father, William Henry Lowrey, moved to Missouri with his parents, Jacob Denton Lowrey and Allie Murphy, and siblings around 1844 (William Henry Lowrey was one of the 11 surviving children in his family). William Henry Lowrey, lured by the gold fields, came first to California with his father and and brother George in 1850. They returned to Missouri in 1852, then most if not all of the Lowrey family all moved to California in 1854. From Lowrey family researchers:
"They were probably fairly close knit families since they all decided to move west to California. Family stories passed down imply that eighteen wagons were involved in the trip and it took place probably in 1854. This is supported by the fact that Jacob would have sold his land in Missouri before leaving for California and Cass County land records show him selling land there with the latest sale dated 16 Feb 1854."
Christiana's father, William Henry, was a farm laborer. The 1870 census shows William Henry Lowrey living in Bodega with his wife, Alvira, and 6 children still living at home. Christiana was already married by this time, and in the household of her husband, James. James' occupation was listed in the 1870 Bodega census as saloon keeper, his wife as "keeping house." Christiana and James married in 1862 or 1863 when Christiana was just 14 or 15, and James was 27 or 28. Nettie's oldest brother and Christiana's first child was born in 1863. Christiana's last child of record was born in 1879, two years after Nettie's death.
With Nettie at Spring Hill are Nettie’s grandfather, William H. Lowrey, and her great aunt, Mary Lowrey Ford. There is also a second William Lowery buried at Spring Hill – possibly an uncle of William H. Lowrey.
