No 3: The Players

The First Rice family
- Erastus Rice (1783-1834): Farmer.  Married to Lucretia Rice
- Lucretia [Howe] Rice (1786-1854): First marriage to Benjamin O. Spencer. Second
  marriage to Erastus Rice
- Gilbert Jay Rice (1816-1904): Business entrepreneur. Son to Erastus and Lucretia. Father to
  Francis Jay Rice.  Grandfather to Leslie Francis Rice.
- Elihu Rice (1827-1912): Business entrepreneur and banker. Son to Erastus and Lucretia.
  Brother to Gilbert
- Benjamin O. Spencer (1812-1878): Grocer. Son of Benjamin O. Spencer, Sr. and Lucretia
  [Howe] Rice. Half-brother and business partner to Gilbert Jay Rice

The Second Rice family
- Gilbert Jay Rice (1816-1904): Son to Erastus and Lucretia. Father to Francis Jay Rice.
  Grandfather to Leslie Francis Rice.
- Julia Martha [Potter] Rice (1826-1906). Daughter of Anselm and Julia G. Potter. Married to
  Gilbert J. Rice. Mother to Francis Jay Rice and grandmother to Leslie F. Rice
- Edward “Eddie” Potter Rice (1851-1860): Son of Gilbert Jay Rice and Julia M. Potter
- Francis Jay Rice (1853-1936): Minister. Son of Gilbert Jay Rice and Julia M. Potter

The Potter family
- Anselm Potter (1786-1848): Lawyer. Married to Julia G. [Turner] Potter.
- Julia Geraldine [Turner] Potter (1796-1875): Married to Anselm Potter.
- Minerva Hart Potter Stuart (1821-1846): Daughter of Anselm and Julia Potter. Married to
  William Z. Stuart of Logansport
- Julia Martha [Potter] Rice (1826-1906). Daughter of Anselm and Julia G. Potter. Married to
  Gilbert J. Rice of Logansport.

Other players

- Mary Dexter Wilson (1828-1854): First cousin to Julia M. Rice.

No. 2: Where Did The News Article Come From?

Sometime in the late 1960s, I was given a cardboard box of pictures, letters, and assorted documents.  These were remnants from the Rice family which had been accumulated through generations, simply thrown into a box, unsorted, unlabeled. The box was undoubtedly passed to my Grandfather Leslie F. Rice by his father or mother on the occasion of their deaths.  “Granddad” died in October 1965 which was before I gave much thought to my family history, and thus, before I began to ask questions about this box of memorials. Thus I can only make assumptions as to the path from originality to my Granddad’s possession.

Obviously and happily, the Rice family has through the years been “box collectors”, that is, various individuals have thrown diverse items into a box for safe but unsorted future keeping. When Granddad died in 1965, his belongings were distributed, some being passed on to my oldest cousins, and some to me.  Although, I do believe that most of what was passed on to my cousins was copied such that I have historical references.  For this I can thank my mother, Virginia Rice Bohn.

Most of these items in this box of adventure were unidentifiable as to who was being represented or when, yet among the papers and pictures are many treasures.  Among the remnants which I found in the box were letters written by or to my Great-grandfather Gilbert Jay Rice. The letters were written during the period 1897 to 1904, the last letter being written by his brother relating the death of Gilbert at a hospital in St. Paul, Minnesota.

The dominant theme within these letters is Julia Martha Rice’s divorce from her husband in 1854. Gilbert’s loss emanates with each word, each sentence, and each paragraph.  Gilbert for over 40 years, mourned for his boys, and never recovered from the divorce. We are told that he never understood the reasons for his wife’s leaving, (in his words “deserting”), the family.  And, of course, the great sadness in all of these events was Gilbert’s loss of his two sons, Eddie and Frank.

One can only speculate as to the path of the news article, from the moment it was cut from the newspaper until it was found among Granddad’s possessions.  Keeping in mind the divorce itself and its participants, one can make a few assumptions.

1. The journalist is quite critical of the divorce process and, therefore, one can assume that Julia Potter Rice would not have kept the article for future memories. She very likely would not have wanted to be reminded of the entire affair.
2. The two boys, Edward and Francis were too young (2yrs, 7mths and 4 mths old) to have any interest in the article at the time. 
3.  Gilbert Jay Rice, however, would have had strong reasons for keeping the article. The journalist supports Gilbert’s opposition to the divorce and claims that this was also true of the Logansport community itself. 
4. After Julia left Logansport with the boys, Gilbert had no contact with either Julia or his sons.  Thirty-three years would pass until 1897 when letters were exchanged between him and Francis.
5. Gilbert’s letters are dominated with the sorrow and regrets which he experienced through all the years. From 1854 through 1897.  It is likely, therefore, that he kept the article as a reminder of the actual divorce and as a “support” for his opposition to the support.

One can also compare handwriting on the Gilbert Rice letters to that which is written at the top of the news article.

 

 Notice the following which occurs both in the letter and the article:

The “M” in the letter (My Julia…) with the “M” on the article. Both are written with a long “left arm”. 

The date is written with "th".  This form was surely not unusual, but we also know that Gilbert used this method frequently.  

Gilbert in his letters frequently underlined text. One can see that this is done both in the letter and in the article. 

 I, therefore, am concluding that the article was cut out of the newspaper in 1854 by Gilbert. He kept the article, reading it occasionally while still trying to understand what happened. Then, around the turn of the century when he began communicating with his son he sent it as "proof" of why he never accepted the divorce.

Francis who was a collector of family historical items, thew the article in the box which eventually was given to Granddad Rice. At Granddad's death, it was given to his children and from them to me.

 

No 1: Rice Against Rice

In my hands I am presently holding a most remarkable piece of paper.  A newspaper article from 1854.  But it’s not the age that makes it notable.  It’s what it reveals.  Small in size, but with just a few words organized in only a few sentences, this article awakes the curiosity button of anyone reading it, at least it did mine.  I mean, a simple statement such as “It is probable taking this as a criterion, that three-fourths of the wives in the community are entitled to a divorce”, surely would encourage one to wonder what this is all about.  And as I delve deeper into this short news item, other phrases hop out to increase the adrenaline of curiosity.   “…a large audience had attended with considerable interest to the trial”, and “The verdict created universal surprise, and since considerable excitement”, or  “…public sentiments seldom as unanimous as it is in the case against the result.”

The article first came into my possession some fifty years ago, and since my first reading I have always wondered about the background for these descriptions. Through years of research, a few details have become available, shedding light on the individuals involved, but not enough to give full explanations. Thus, the article has remained in my archives, waiting to be taken up again and researched anew in an effort to bring alive the individuals who experienced the actual events of the courtroom in 1854.

Without a doubt the most notable aspect of this article is the event which it describes. But nearly as remarkable as the story itself is the path this yellowing news item took in order to come into my possession. This too is a part of the story lending itself to research and speculation, and to some extent wonderment.

The article is entitled “The Circuit Court”.  

It has been cut out from the “Logansport Journal” of Logansport, Indiana. 

The date of printing was May 6 1854.

Someone has written that very same date,  “May 6^th 1854” at the top.   

This is followed by “Tryal”, at least that’s what it looks like to me.

It describes the case of “Rice against Rice”.

 

The article is worn, yellowing, and in some places difficult to read. The following is a transcript:

The Circuit Court

   Adjourned on Sunday morning at 3 o,clock.

                                     …………..

   The Case of Rice against Rice, for divorce, detained the Court to the later hour at which it adjourned.  It was submitted without argument, as there was no time to allow it.  Much disappointment was felt in consequence, as a large audience had attended with considerable interest to the trial.  The verdict created universal surprise, and since, considerable excitement.  We heard but little of the evidence, but public sentiment is seldom as unanimous as it is in this case against the result.  It is probable, taking this as a criterion, that three fourths of the wives in the community are entitled to a divorce, and most of them could claim it upon juster grounds than were presented at this trial.  The jury, doubtless did what they conscienciously believed to be demanded by the facts in the case, but their manner of viewing them certainly magnified or distorted them.

Comments made by the journalist who wrote this little item have awaken a need to pry and poke, a need to follow an adventurous road of questions to see where it leads.  Or, to put it simply, I just need to satisfy my curiosity, it’s a pleasure in itself. 

 

What is meant by “submitted without argument”?
Why did a large audience attend a court case concerning divorce?  What was the reason for the “considerable interest”?
Why was this trial a jury trial?
Why did the verdict create “universal surprise, and since, considerable excitement”?
What were the grounds given for the divorce?
What were the “facts in the case”?
Who cut out this article and kept it?
I received this article from my Grandfather. How did my Grandfather obtain the article?

And so, in June 2013, the opportunity arose for me to set aside six days in Logansport. Sunny days of walking the streets, visiting the cemeteries, searching through archives of newspapers and historical documents, relaxing in parks.  Activities which have given me a sense of the location, insights in our family, and numerous upon numerous documents, all of which should allow us to find answers to some these questions and many more. 

As I pour through the material gathered, I will make this information available through the articles which follow.
The articles will be numbered in order to make them easier to read on this website.