The Sword of Joseph (Tremau) Sippy!

Joseph Tremau, born in France in 1764, came over from France with Lafayette's forces to aid the American colonists in their war against British rule.  He had enlisted as a seaman on board the ship, "La Blanche" under the fleet commander, Escadre du Comte D'Estaing.  He was at the Battle of Yorktown where it is reported he suffered a minor wound, and he was nursed back to health at the home of John and Elizabeth Johnson in Maryland.  There he fell in love with and subsequently married their daughter, Lucretia.  To avoid returning to France after his recuperation, Joseph changed his name to Sippy, supposedly a form of his mother's maiden name which had been Sippo or Scipio according to some sources.  Joseph and Lucretia were married in 1786 in Frederick, Maryland.  Their first 5 children were born in Virginia followed by 13 more after they had moved to Medina County, Ohio.  Joseph died in 1819, and Lucretia, at the age of 67, married Samuel Lane, another Veteran of the American Revolution and the father in law of her son, Jacob.  Lucretia died in 1857.

The following five photographs were taken by myself at the home of Robert Ross Bowlby in March, 2000.  Joseph Sippy's granddaughter, Phoebe Sippy, married Robert's great-grandfather, William Bowlby.  Surprisingly, the sword appears to be of British design.  Since Joseph was at the last battle that ended the war, the Battle of Yorktown, he could have captured it, found it on the battlefield or possibly even purchased it after the battle.  At any rate, the style of the sword is consistent with that time period, so we can be confident that this is not a fake family heirloom.

(Sword photos by Al Hudgens, March 2000)

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Below are photos of Joseph (Tremau) Sippy's widow, Lucretia and her 2nd husband, Samuel Lane, a veteran of the Revolutionary War.  Samuel was her son Jacob's father in law, and Samuel and Lucretia were married in 1836.  When Lucretia died, she left 117 grandchildren living and 92 great-grandchildren.   These photos were taken somewhere around 1840.    Photos are from the book, "Fulton County Folk, vol 2", published in 1981 by and used courtesy of the Fulton County (Indiana) Historical Society.  

 Samuel Lane   (1769-1845)                 Lucretia (Johnson) Sippy Lane   (1769-1857)

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Dr. Joseph Sippy   (1791-1879), son of Joseph (Tremau) Sippy.  

This Joseph Sippy was the leader of a group of 47 people who founded Akron, Indiana in 1836.  Born in 1791, Joseph fought in the War of 1812.  He and his wife, Martha Cogswell of Beaver County, Penn- sylvania, were the parents of 12 children.  At about 44 years of age, he made a prospecting trip through the Northwest Territory with the purpose of selecting a location for a homestead.   The area where Akron now stands is the location he chose, and his glowing reports upon his return to Ohio were enough to convince the other families to join in this settlement to be named, Akron.   Dr. Sippy donated land where the Methodist Church is now located and land for the "Akron Citizen's Cemetery".  The spot where his original cabin stood is now the Gearhart Parking Lot on the south side of Rochester Street in the first block east of the stop light.

Dr. Sippy was the first medical doctor in the Akron area, and he was known to have used a great many herbs from the North Woods in his remedies.  Some include ginseng, yellow root or golden seal, black and blue cohosh, spignut, yellow percoon, yellow dock, snake root, sassafras, and sarsaparilla.  A generous and caring man, her never turned away the poor when they needed his healing touch.  He and John Ball, who lived northwest of Akron, both had stations in the "Underground Railroad" which helped Negro slaves escape north through Fulton County into Canada.  Shortly before the outbreak of the Civil War, Joseph and his family moved to Wisconsin where both he and his wife are buried.

 Photo and biographical notes courtesy of Fulton County Historical Society from their book, "Fulton County Folks - vol. 2", pub. 1981

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    The farm of Jacob Sippy, Joseph (Tremau) Sippy's 11th child.

Jacob Sippy, born 22 September 1802, married Martha Lane, the daughter of the aforementioned Samuel Lane, 2nd husband of Lucretia (Johnson) Sippy.  Jacob and his family came to the Akron, Indiana area in 1845 from Beaver County, Pennsylvania.  They settled on their farm which was actually just east of Akron in Henry Township.  Jacob was, at 6'2",  known to be a giant of a man.  It is recorded and witnessed in the registrar's office in Fulton County, Indiana that Jacob Sippy lifted and turned end for end a wooden pump stock that weighed fourteen hundred pounds.

Photo and biographical notes from "Fulton County Folks - vol. 2, published by and used courtesy of Fulton County Historical Society.

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Four Generations of Sippys, from the book, "Fulton County Folks - vol. 2", published in 1981 by and courtesy of Fulton County Historical Society.

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The infamous Libby Prison of the Civil War period.  Union soldier, Hiram Sippy (1848-1864), died here of starvation at the young age of 15.
 

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Lewis Sippy Civil War Veteran Record & Wife Elizabeth's Widow's Pension Form

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From Crook to Lawman!  Ben Sippy (1843-?)

Our notorious ancestor shows up in the 1880 U.S. Census for Tombstone, Arizona Territory on page 2.  The entry for him states his name as Benjamin Sippy, white male, "minor" by occupation and 33 yrs. 5 mos. of age which matches his birth records.  He stated that he and both of his parents were born in "Pensylvania".

Ben Sippy was elected Town Marshall of Tombstone, Arizona Territory in 1880 defeating Virgil Earp in a special election.  In office less than a year, Ben took a two week leave of absence and never returned.  Virgil Earp was appointed to finish out Ben's unexpired term which was to include the infamous Gunfight at the O.K. Corral in 1881.

Photo from the book, "Wyatt Earp's Thirteen Dead Men" used with permission from the author, Ben Traywick, Tombstone Town Historian.  I met Mr. Traywick briefly in March of 2000, and if you ever visit Tombstone, be sure to drop in and say hi.  He has a place right across the street from the "Tombstone Epitaph".

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Dr. Bertram Welton Sippy  (1866-1924), was regarded as one of the world's greatest stomach specialists.  At the age of 22 he graduated from Rush Medical College and later studied at the universities of Berlin and Vienna.  He was a member of the Rush Medical College faculty from 1900 to his death in 1924.  He wrote many works on diseases of the stomach.  His treatment of ulcers with medicines instead of surgery gained him world-wide fame and attention in that area.  Through his work he built a large fortune which accounts for his 10,000 acre estate in the area around Woodruff Lake, Michigan.  He lived and worked in Chicago, Illinois, and died in 1924 in Michigan.

Photo and biographical notes from the book, "Fulton County Folks - vol. 2", published 1981 by and courtesy of Fulton County Historical Society.

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Sources & Acknowledgements for this Page:

 Clara (Petranek) Bowlby; Bob & June Bowlby; Sippy Newsletter by Dayton Sippy (c. 1980's); Ben Traywick, Tombstone Town Historian (2000);  Al Hudgens;  Fulton County (Indiana) Historical Society.