Elsie Janet Corey Cork Grave

When I was a small girl I discovered a big family tree that my great-grandmother, Louise Cork, had put together. I loved that thing! I lent it to my mom who won't give it back now, hint hint. Ever since then I've felt so close to Elsie Cork, my great-great grandmother, Louise Cork's former mother-in-law. I don't really know why although my friend Chrisandra Peterson thinks she may be my guardian angel, that's not the term she used but I can't remember exactly what she called her. Essentially she's the person who probably escorted me to this world and will meet me when I leave it and watch out for me in between. I don't know about that but it sounds good to me! I do know that although she died in 1923, 42 years before I was born, I felt her presence very strongly in the cemetery beckoning me over to their side of the family. I felt like she'd been waiting somewhat impatiently for me. It was a neat feeling. While my own religous belief is that after one dies ones spirit resides in the spirit world I also feel that they get around! The spirit world must be very close and for that reason they hang out with us a little bit, probably more than any of us knows.

I know that my grandma Elsie was waiting for me that day, as was her daughter Gertrude and her son, my great grandfather, Walter aka "Pete" Cork. And I feel really excited about that. I loved being there with them and I really hated leaving. I am positive the veil that separates us from those on the other side is very thin indeed and if we are very lucky we get to see or feel through it just a little bit. And when that happens it is very sweet indeed.

I can't wait to see them again! Face to face!

The Marshall Genealogy Library

This is the Marshall Genealogy Library, it's actually quite large and has amazing information in it. People just donate all kinds of things, the funeral home gives them copies of all of their death records, people have donated old scrapbooks, journals and family Bibles to name a few things. The library is run by volunteers and so isn't open often but the ladies that work their are absolutely incredible! They are sweet, helpful, knowledgeable, encouraging and a pleasure to associate with. We were given the most attentive help from Miss Betty but everyone was lovely. They accept and very much need donations although they did not solicite any ever. They also have a newsletter that anyone can sign up for. One of the best things about small towns is that everyone knows everyone and Marshall is no exception. They were able to point us in all kinds of directions because of their personal knowledge of the town and it's people. I was really tickled to find that Miss Betty had her wedding reception at my aunt Doty's house probably 50 years ago. At the Stars and Stripes store I discovered that the owner knew my aunt Doty as well, she had helped her pick out her wedding dress! Doty knew EVERYONE!

Elsie Janet Corey Cork Home

Elsie Janet Corey Cork was my great-great grandmother. When I was very young I got my hands on a genealogy chart my great-grandmother, Nancy Louise Randall Cork, Elsie's daughter-in-law, had made and was drawn to Elsie. I have been all of my life. When Jack Huffington took us to this house I felt so drawn to it that despite the no trespassing signs I found an open back door and warily went in. It was in sad shape, ceilings falling in, a dead bird in the doorstep and it was lonely! I think houses have a personality and this one wants someone to live in it and be happy again! I wish I'd been brave enough to go deeper than the kitchen and dining room but I wasn't sure of the condition of the floors considering the ceilings were falling in. Of course they were cheap asbestos tile drop ceilings so that doesn't mean that the house was that unstable. I have this thing about family homes. I want to buy up all the family homes and restore them and make them happy again. But I've no money for that and besides how many houses does one person need! It's a fools dream, but I like it!


Elsie lived in this house at the time of her death, August 7, 1923. As was the custom of the time, she died in the house, was laid out in the house and the funeral was held in the house.

The Marshall Cemetery

The Marshall Cemetery, Marshall, Clark County, Illinois on Clarksville Road right off of Highway 40.

The Patterson brothers, Larry and Neal, are the caretakers and are the only reason we found my great-grandparents graves. They were thoughtful and helpful and we appreciated their efforts in our behalf a great deal!

They also do a brilliant job of keeping the cemetery up. They mow nearly everyday! We cleaned some grass shavings off of some graves and cut back some floweredy things that might be rhodendrons and which had overgrown several graves but nothing major, the Patterson's do a great job out there.

I wish there was money to replace or repair the older stones that are being eroded by time and the elements. Marshall has a very small population, about 3,500, and not a great deal of wealth, I think. I guess "in the old days" the families always went out and did the detailed grave cleaning and such but from our own families experience everyone is either dead or moved away and there isn't anyone around to take care of them. That's so sad!

The Archer House est 1841

The Archer House was established in 1841 by Col William B. Arhcer. His father, Zechariah Archer is a grandfather of mine several generations back. In that era there wasn't a sitting judge or a regular court, the lawyers and judges traveled from city to city in a circuit. Abraham Lincoln was a regular in this circuit and stayed at the Archer House each time they were in Marshall. There is in fact a room dedicated to him the "Lincoln Room". There are a lot of rooms! Tucked in all over the place. This inn is packed with charm. While we were there the owner was in the hospital and her 90 year old friend was managing the place for her. She's rather elderly. It needs a lot of tlc but it's a wonderful old place! I'd love to see a bright, energetic couple take over that place and infuse it with money, energy and tlc. I wish I could do it but there's no way. And by the way, the bed was sooo comfortable! I can't say enough how much I loved this place. My grandparents grew up in Marshall and apparently when they were first married they worked as the desk clerk and lived there at the inn. I just found this out about a week ago. I can't wait for our next trip to the inn!

Moonshine, Illinois 300 Rd & 600 St

This is the Moonshine Store in Moonshine, Ill. Clark County is laid out on a grid and is nearly impossible to get lost in even for me who could get lost in a paper sack.

It is in the middle of cornfields at the intersection of 300 Road and 600 Street. And bar none has the BEST cheeseburger I have ever eaten in all of my 42 years, and I've eaten quite a few!

You probably can't tell it but the sign on the right front of the porch says "Moonshine, Population 2". It looks like something out of the Walton's and that's part of it's appeal. I drove 20 miles out of the way to get there for that burger and I'd do it again in a skinny minute! Be aware though, it's only open a few hours a day. The grill shuts off at 12:30 and the store closes at 1:00 pm and they mean it! I watched one gentlemen walk in and then quickly out at about 12:40 checking his watch and empty handed. Having just consumed the best bacon cheeseburger in my life I could appreciate his disappointment!

Cork, Clark, Randall/Randal families in Clark County, Illinois

My friend and sometime boss, Ben Edgell, being a great deal more computer literate than I created this for me to record the genealogical information my mother, Peggy Clark, and I gathered on our recent trip to Marshall, Clark County, Illinois. I live in Burke, Virginia a suburb of Washington, D.C. and mom lives in Columbia, S.C. We flew out and met in the airport at Indianapolis, which I must say has the LONGEST taxi way of any airport I've ever flown into or out of. It wasn't so bad leaving but going it seriously felt like we landed in Terre Haute and drove the airpplane to Indie.

We got there Saturday, May 5th and left Saturday, May 12th, 2007. We rented a car and drove just under 90 miles to Marshall where we stayed in the historic Archer House, a stagecoach inn built about 1841 by Col. William B. Archer, another ancestor of mine. Abraham Lincoln stayed there many times traveling the circuit as a lawyer.

We were there to go through the cemeteries in Marshall, Livingston, West Union, Walnut Prairie and Martinsville. It was a fabulous experience! Mom was looking for the graves of specific people and I was just looking for anyone I was related to in any way, to find out who I belonged to.

This site, if possible, will contain the photos of every grave we know or think belongs to an ancestor of ours, mostly Corks, Clarks, Randalls/Randals, Archers, Kempers and the various collateral lines that break off from the main.

We hope this helps someone else out there! If we can help at all let us know!

Karen Clark Phelps

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