McKibbin, Larimer, Work

Death of Harriet Larimer McKibbin,
who was married to Alexander "Squire" McKibbin

The McKibbin/McKibben family married into hubby's Larimer family multiple times. Did they know each other in Northern Ireland, where both families lived before coming to America? The Work family was also reportedly a cousin to the Larimers, and intermarried in America. For a family history of the McKibbin and related lines, see this digitized book.
Marriage of Harriet Larimer & Alexander McKibbin

The first marriage I know of was Harriet Larimer (hubby's 1st cousin 4x removed, 1819-1887) who married Alexander "Squire" McKibbin (1817-1888) on July 14, 1842 in Clinton township, Elkhart county, Indiana. In the official marriage document, at right, her name is "Harriett Larimore" and his is "Alexander McKibbin."

When Harriet died, one of the local newspapers printed a sentence about her death, shown at top. Why was Alexander McKibbin, who was born in Turkeyfoot, Somerset county, PA, nicknamed Squire? I don't know--yet.

The Squire's father was Thomas McKibbin (1766?-1843) born in Ireland and married there to Jane Irvine (1777-1858), probably in County Down, Northern Ireland. Exactly when they voyaged across the Atlantic, I don't know, but they were in Turkeyfoot, PA by 1813 when one of their later children was born. The Squire's father died in Elkhart.

Harriet Larimer McKibbin's father was Robert Larimer (1792-1850), born in Mifflin county, PA, the grandson and namesake of the original Larimer ancestor who was shipwrecked on his way from Northern Ireland to America and then settled in PA.

The younger Robert Larimer's family moved through Pennsylvania and then to Ohio, after Robert's service in the War of 1812 and his land bounties that led to acquiring farm land. In the 1840 Census, Robert Larimer (Harriet's father) lived in Perry, Ohio. By 1843, two of Robert's brothers (John and James Larimer) had died in Elkhart, Indiana and Robert himself died there in July, 1850.

Maybe they chose Elkhart for its farming possibilities...and their cousins, the Work and Short families, followed soon afterward. In newspaper clippings from Elkhart, the Work and Larimer families are mentioned as cousins.

Posts about McKibbin/Larimer/Work include:
  • Daniel Wood Larimer (1852-1917) married Samantha Alice McKibbin (1853-1928) in Elkhart, Indiana in 1873. He was a descendant of the original shipwrecked Robert Larimer. She was the daughter of the Squire and his wife.
  • Hallie Richard Larimer (1899-1960) who married Mary Magdalen McKibbin (1903-1976) in 1920. He was a descendant of the shipwrecked Robert Larimer, she was a descendant of the Squire and his wife.
  • Then there's the Larimer-McKibbin-Elliott connection of intermarriages, which came to my attention as I researched the family's reunions.
  • Work Family History book (publicly available, for free) has info about Larimer, Short, and Work genealogies!
  • Aaron Work - fire insurance agent, son of Cynthia Hanley Larimer and Abel Everett Work. 
  • Aaron Work was a roomer in the 1920 Census, but NOT with the King household. Don't trust transcriptions, view the image to see what it really says.
  • The McKibbin FAN club at work: Census page from 1850.
  • Another FAN club name: Everett/Everitt intermarriages with Larimer. 
  • Isaac Larimer Work (1838-1862) served in the Union Army during the Civil War. I wrote his brief bio and posted on Family Search and Fold3. Plus on Find a Grave too.
  • Researching the Work family led me to an interesting county history book with details about Samuel Work and his descendants.
  • Checking family genealogy books to learn more about the interconnections between these families via in-law research.
  • Larimer, Work, Short families held reunions 1900-1920 in Elkhart, Indiana. Some McKibbin in-laws probably attended.
Interestingly, some women in the McKibbin branch of hubby's family tree had "Jane" as their middle name. This is a common middle name in the Wood family tree, as well.

Also see my Larimer ancestor landing page here

2 comments:

  1. Marilyn SiglerMarch 13, 2017

    Your McKibbin family is also my family. Thomas Sr came from County Down, Ulster. My ancestor was Thomas McKibbin Jr., born in 1806 in Comber, County Down, NI. Thomas McKibbin Jr married Eleanor Bayes, the daughter of Anna Wright McMillen and Thomas Bayes, in Turkeyfoot Township, Somerset County, PA. They moved to Paint Township, Holmes County, Ohio where Thomas McKibbin Sr and the family were naturalized by Thomas Bayes, who was a justice of the peace. Thomas McKibbin Jr bought a farm in Wauseon, Oh, and he and his wife are buried in the Bayes cemetery there, while the rest of the family went on to La Grange and Elkhard, IN. Thomas McKibbin Jr had a son, Robert Irvine McKibbin, named after his father's brother, who was born in 1839 in OH. He was in CO K of the 38th OH Volunteer Infantry with his brother William and brother-in-law William Garman, married to his sister Jane, in the Civil War, and their unit marched with GEN Sherman to Savannah, GA. The unit was composed of family members. After the war, Robert McKibbin was given land in Beaverton, Gladwin County, Michigan where he created a large farm and cemetery. They were my father's grandparents. I inherited the bible of Thomas Jr and that of Robert and Nancy Fairchild McKibbin. Their son, Royal Bird McKibbin, was my grandfather. He was born in Beaverton, MI in 1878. His wife Beatrice Hughes, my grandmother, was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Her parents, Joe and Isabella Desire Towle Hughes, were from London, Ontario. My grandparents had two children: Juanita M. McKibbin, wife of Lloyd Colgan, and my father, Hugh Robert McKibbin. My parents had three children, my brother 1LT Hugh R. McKibbin Jr, my sister Lyn Sharon McKibbin Moran and me. My siblings died young. I am married with three children and 9 grandchildren, and I live with my husband in Texas. My father graduated from the USNA at Annapolis and he was a career naval aviator. My father and brother graduated from the USMA at West Point. My brother's name is on the Vietnam Veterans' Memorial i graduated from the U of Texas at Austin.

    Marilyn McKibbin Sigler

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  2. Hello to you McKibbins/McKibbens. I'm a McKibben on my maternal side through my grandmother, Ethel Marie McKibben (1895-1996) born in Pendleton Co., Kentucky and married to James Clinton Staats of Jackson County, West Virginia and Cincinnati.

    I've hit the proverbial brick wall with my grandmother's father, Charles F. McKibben (b. circa 1860 in Cincinnati), who married Lillian Honora 'Nora' Fossett of Pendleton County. He apparently was a bookkeeper in Cincinnati and he and his wife has two daughters. Then he seemed to disappear. One Kentucky biography account (about his son-in-law) claims he died in New Richmond, Clermont County, Ohio. However, Charles left no paper trail beyond his Kentucky marriage record-- no birth, death, burial, will or probate information. His wife Nora died fairly young so perhaps he moved away. There seems to be no connection to the various pockets of other McKibbens/McKibbins in Bracken Co., KY, Clermont County, Pennsylvania or elsewhere.

    Anyway, I wanted to put my family history out there with you (and Marilyn McKibbin Sigler above) to see if you can advise. However, even if I can't solve this conundrum, it's nice to be able bond with others of the greater McKibben clan. Keep up the good work of your blog and I look forward to reading future missives.

    Kate (nee Denison) Bell. kate.denison.bell@gmail.com

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