John Albright
Dec. 25, 1889 – May 25, 1954

Niles Daily Star, Wednesday, May 26, 1954, page 2, col. 3, microfilm Niles District Library

John Albright, 701 Sycamore Street died at 11: 40 a.m. Tuesday in Lee Memorial Hospital, Dowagiac, after a three week illness.

Surviving are his wife, Clara; one son, Lowell of Niles; five daughters, Mrs. Virginia Jarvis, of South Bend, Mrs. Robert Seitz of Niles, Mrs. Edward Des Lauriers and Mrs. Jack Leggett, both of South Bend and Mrs. Dean Burrow of Niles; 12 grandchildren; two sisters, Mrs. Otto Fenska of Strafford, MO, and Mrs. Lloyd Stull of South Bend; and two brothers, Clifford Albright of Three Rivers and Frank Albright of South Bend.

He was born on Dec. 24, 1889, in Niles, and lived her all his life. He was employed by The Kawneer Company. He served four years in the Navy.

Friends may call in the Pifer Funeral Home where services will be held at 4 p.m. Friday with the Rev. T.M. Greenhoe, Presbyterian pastor, officiating. Burial will be at Silverbrook Cemetery.

Hazel Albright
Oct. 13, 1902 – Sept. 14, 1967

Niles Daily Star, Friday, September 15, 1967, page 2, col. 8, microfilm Niles District Library

SOUTH BEND – Hazel Albright, 64, of 1518 N. Chicago, St., South Bend, died Thursday at 1:20 a.m. in Memorial Hospital, South Bend, after being ill for seven weeks.

Born in Niles Oct. 13, 1902, Mrs. Albright moved to South Bend from Niles in 1941. On April 9, 1923, she was married to Harold F. who survives.

In addition to her husband, she is survived by two sons, Jack L. of South Bend and William H. of Merced, CA; seven grandchildren and a great-grandchild.

Funeral services will be at 1 p.m. Saturday (CDST), in the Welsheimer Funeral Home, South Bend with the Rev. Edward Brueseke of the Zion United Church of Christ, South Bend, of which she was a member officiating.

Burial will be at Silverbrook Cemetery, here.

Friends are being received at the funeral home.

Harold Albright

Sept. 8, 1901 – March 6, 1968

SOUTH BEND - Harold F. Albright, 66, of 1518 N. Chicago St., died suddenly in his home at 10 a.m. Wednesday.

     Moving to South Bend in 1941 from Niles, Mr. Albright was born Sept. 6, 1901 in Dowagiac.  On April 9, 1923, he married the former Hazel Pfeil in St. Joseph. She died September of 1967.

      His survivors include two sons, William of Merced, CA, and Jack of South Bend; seven grandchildren and a great-grandchild; a brother, Clifford A. of Three Rivers; and two sisters, Mrs. Claudine Stull of South Bend and Mrs. Flossie Fenska of Round Lake, IL.

     Funeral services will be conducted Saturday at 1 p.m. in the Welsheimer Funeral Home here with Rev. Edward Brueske officiating.  Burial will be at Silverbrook Cemetery, Niles.

     Friends are being received in the funeral home.

Submitted by family member; publication facts unknown

Clara Albright

Sept. 22, 1894 – Sept. 11, 1968

NILES – Mrs. Clara M. Albright, 73, of 701 Sycamore St., died at 10:30 p.m. Wednesday in Pawating Hospital where she had been a patient for two weeks.

      Mrs. Albright was born Sept. 22, 1894, in Darke County, Ohio, and came to Niles 46 years ago. She married the late John Albright, who died in 1954. She was a member of the Navy Mothers.

      She is survived by a son, Lowell C. of Niles; five daughters, Mrs. Robert Seita, Mrs. Dean Burrow, both of Niles, Mrs. Jack Leggett of Buchanan, Mrs. E.E. Des Lauriers of South Bend and Mrs. Virginia Jarvis of Indianapolis; four brothers, Daniel, James, Leonard and Elmer Marker, all of Ohio; a sister, Mrs. Arthur Olwine of Ohio and 23 grandchildren.

     Funeral services will be held at 4 p.m. Saturday in the Pifer Funeral Home with Rev. Arlan E. Schlundt pastor of St. John’s United Church of Christ, officiating. Burial will be at Silverbrook Cemetery.

     Friends may call at 7 p.m. tonight in the funeral home.

 Published in Niles Dally Star, September 12, 1968

Eva J. Adkins

June 16, 1924 – July 4, 2003

NILES – Eva June (Cheney) Adkins, 79, of 939 Hickory Street, Niles, passed away of natural causes at 12:10 A.M. Friday, July 4, in Lakeland Regional Health System, Niles. Eva was a homemaker.

     Eva was born on June 16, 1924 in Niles to the late L.D. and Cora Cheney. On July 14, 1951 in Gallatin County, IL, she married James Robert Adkins, who died on April 20, 1996.

     She is survived by a daughter, Jackie Adkins of Nicholis, GA; two sons, Jimmie Adkins of Cassopolis, MI, and Tommie Adkins of Niles; two sisters, Maxine Creevey of Galien, MI, and Wanda Thompson of Matthews, IN; a brother, Burton Cheney of Niles; and by 11 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

     Services for Eva will be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday, July 8, in the Pifer-Smith Funeral home, Niles,  with Mr. Burton Cheney officiating. Friends may call form 6 to 8 p.m. on Monday in the funeral home. Memorials may be made to the charity of donor’s choice.

     Burial will be at Silverbrook Cemetery.

 Submitted by family member; publication details unknown

William T. Adams

1842 – Nov. 9, 1908

One of oldest Odd Fellows in this part of State, and prominent builder. Death comes very suddenly.

William T. Adams. stricken down without warning at early hour this morning

      This morning at 5 o’clock, Wm. T. Adams died suddenly of heart failure at his home on North Seventh Street. He had never complained of being afflicted with the disease and was apparently in good health when he arose this morning. Yesterday he attended church and was seemingly as well as ever hence his demise came as a great shock to his family and friends.

      Mr. Adams is survived by a widow and two children. Harry of Brandon, Manitoba, and Miss Bessie of Niles. He leaves a brother, John Adams of Edwardsburg and a sister, Mrs. Elizabeth Kittle of Kalamazoo.

      The funeral arrangements will not be made until Harry Adams is heard from the sad news of his father’s death having been wired to his this morning

Sketch of his life

      He was born in Harris Township, St. Joseph County, Indiana in 1942, his parents being James and Sereptine (Lynch) Adams. The father was born in Delaware, and in 1832 came to the Middle West, setting in Chicago. He walked the entire distance and when he reached the St. Joseph River, he was assisted across the stream by the Indians. On arriving at his destination he found a small village upon a wet prairie. It was five years later before the city was incorporated. He at one engaged in carpenter work there, and built the first jail in Chicago, the structure being made of logs. In the fall of the same year he returned to Delaware, for he had become convinced that the western county had good future prospects, and he not only brought with him his own family but also his father and mother. They settled in Cass County where with his brother, James Adams, he purchased eighty acres of land from the government, on which not a furrow had been turned or an improvement made. He lived a strenuous life, working earnestly and indefatigably to reclaim the land for the purposes of civilization and he added to his holding from time to time. He paid for his first 80 acres only one dollar per acre, and for the next purchase he paid six dollars per acre. He successfully continued in farming up to the time of his death.

     William T. Adams was reared in the state of his nativity, and in early life learned the carpenter’s trade at McLean, Illinois, where he served a three year apprenticeship. He afterwards worked as a journeyman, and in 1870 he came to Niles, where for four years he continued in the employ of others in the line of his chosen occupation. He then began business on his own account as a contractor and builder, and for almost a third of a century and been identified with building operations in Niles, having been accorded a liberal share of work in this direction. He had erected many residences and other buildings and had a reputation for doing honest and capable work.

     Mr. Adams was married in this city in 1873 to Miss Georgiana Webb, and unto them were born two children, Harry and Bessie, both born in Niles. In his political views Mr. Adams was a democrat, and at one time was a member of the city council from the second ward, filling the office about 12 years ago. He was also for 10 years a member of the board of public works at Niles, and for one year was president of the board.  He was a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows having joined the organization more than 43 years ago at Edwardsburg and was one of the oldest Odd Fellows in this part of the state.