Sabrina Darnowsky

As part of my research for Murray Shipley’s biography, I’ve been exploring the backgrounds of the members of the Trustees and the Board of Lady Managers of the Children’s Home, which Murray is generally credited as founding in 1864.

According to contemporaneous newspaper articles, the Trustees included Murray Shipley, Samuel S. Fisher, and Obadiah N. Bush. The Board of Lady Managers included Hannah D. Shipley, Mary J. Taylor, Elizabeth L. Taylor, Margaretta S. Hinchman, Hannah P. Smith, Lydia S. Bateman, Aurelia Fisher, Harriet D. Bush, and Cornelia Marsh.

For most of these women, I recognized the connections to Murray immediately. I knew that Hannah D. Shipley was his wife, Mary J. Taylor was his mother-in-law, and Elizabeth L. Taylor was his sister-in-law. I knew from researching the history of Cincinnati Friends Meeting that Margaretta S. Hinchman, Hannah P. Smith, and Lydia S. Bateman were all fellow Quakers. A little digging on Ancestry.com revealed what I suspected–Aurelia Fisher was the wife of Samuel S. Fisher, and Harriet D. Bush was the wife of Obadiah N. Bush. But who was Cornelia Marsh?

One newspaper article on the Children’s Home helpfully gave the addresses of the lady managers, placing Cornelia Marsh at 35 York Street. I then looked up the name Marsh in the 1864 Cincinnati city directory and found a man named R. B. Marsh, also at 35 York Street. Supposing him to be Cornelia’s husband, I searched for R. B. Marsh on Ancestry.com and found them both in the 1870 census, including the additional information that his first name was Robert and that Cornelia was 47 and born in New York.

After refining my search criteria, I was able to find Robert Marsh’s Find-a-Grave entry, which also included a link for his wife, Cornelia. When I clicked that link, I saw that her maiden name was . . . drumroll please . . . Bush! Perhaps she was somehow related to Obadiah N. Bush!

In the 1850 census, I found a 27-year-old New York-born Cornelia Bush, the daughter of O. N. Bush. I thought that perhaps he also had a son named Obadiah, making Obadiah and Cornelia siblings. The Obadiah N. Bush who was a Trustee of the Children’s Home was born about 1828, so he would have been 22 at the time of the 1850 census and perhaps not living at home. But I could find no proof of the elder Bush having a son named Obadiah.

Even more intriguing, both Cornelia Marsh and Obadiah N. Bush were buried in Spring Grove Cemetery. According to her burial card, Cornelia was buried in Section 17 in a grave owned by O. N. Bush. This was not likely her father, since he died in 1851 and had no connection to Cincinnati. Obadiah himself, also of New York, was buried in Section 47. Unfortunately, the burial card does not name Obadiah’s parents.

So I’m left with a mystery! Who were Obadiah N. Bush’s parents? If he owned plots in Section 17 in Spring Grove Cemetery, why wasn’t he buried there?

Ultimately, I feel that there was some connection between Cornelia Marsh and Obadiah N. Bush. I just can’t prove it.