A Wilson Family Tree
Notes for George A. Murrell
From the Hillis/Abney/Franklin/Smith web site:
The wedding of Sarah Abney Thompson and George Murrell described by T. C. Rainey in his 1914 book, "Along the Old Trail: Pioneer Sketches of Arrow Rock and Vicinity"
A SENSIBLE BUT UNUSUAL WEDDING CEREMONY
ONE WOMAN WHO KEPT A SECRET, YEARS AGO
One winter Sunday morning-to be exact, on January 2, 1878-at the close of the services in the Methodist Church in Arrow Rock, the minister announced that on the following Wednesday morning, at 10 o'clock, a marriage ceremony would be celebrated in that Church, and all who chose to come would be welcome. No explanation was made, and of course, this caused a mild sensation in a village of eight hundred people, every one personally known to the other. All sorts of conjectures were proposed, the most enlightened and skillful gossips were consulted; but every suggestion, after being discussed was pronounced improbable. The whole village acknowledged itself incapable of forming any solution of the puzzle, and the minister was dumb. Not a spoons couple who were "sweet" on each other was known to exist. Time, that old Justice of the Peace, who settles all our difficulties, would have to decide it; but even the old scythe-bearer mowed his swath slowly until Wednesday morning finally consented to arrive.
George A. Murrell, a prosperous farmer, whose wife had died some years previously, lived seven miles from town, on his farm near Jonesborough. He came into my store early Wednesday morning, and announced that he was going to make a trip to St. Louis, and that he would go to Boonville, the nearest railroad station, in a coach, which would leave about noon. He was considerably dressed up, for George, but as he was going away on a visit, that caused no surprise to any of us. We supposed he was going on the mail coach, which carried passengers. It was quite a cold morning, and we sat around the stove and chatted. George seemed to be particularly jolly frame of mind, and we made many remarks about the wedding announced to occur in the church that morning; but no one had even a guess as to who the parties might be. I was not much concerned about the affair myself, and 10 o'clock had almost arrived when George said to me, "Tom, let's go up to the church and see who is going to get married."
I put on my hat and we walked together, talking of indifferent subjects on the, way, and took seats in a pew about the middle of the church, George sitting next the aisle. The church was already half filled, and pretty soon about every seat was taken. Mrs. John C. Thompson, Sr., widow, a member of the church, dressed in full black, a tall and stately lady, came in late, walking alone, and took her usual seat in a pew next the front one. The audience sat and stared suspiciously at each other, but still no hint of the candidates for future happiness.
The minister, after a dramatic pause, arose, and in a very deliberate tone said, "The parties who propose to enter into the holy bonds of matrimony will now please present themselves before the altar," at the same time coming down from his pulpit and standing inside, the railing.
There was a silence so deep that it reverberated. You could feel your pulses beat, for almost a minute, before any movement was made. I began whispering into George's ear, "To be or not to be?" when he said to me, "Tom, I believe if no one goings is going up I'll go myself;" and then he arose and walked very deliberately up the aisle. When he reached the seat where Mrs. Thompson was silting she stood up, dropping a long black veil over the back of her pew, and took the proffered arm of Mr. Murrell. The ceremony was soon over, and I think there were more pop-eyed people gazing at, them during its progress than were ever seen before in that church. At its close every soul present rushed forward and offered sincere congratulations. Both were very well known to their auditors, both were members of the Methodist Church; but even Mrs. Grundy admitted she had been outwitted, for although this marriage was universally conceded to be a very appropriate union in every particular, not a soul in the town had a thought of either in connection with the unusual occurrence.
A carriage was in waiting outside, and the happy pair, highly pleased with the success of their cunning plans, started on their journey.
Further inquiry developed that Mr. and Mrs. Murrell were old acquaintances; that before either had been married they had been on very friendly terms, if not sweethearts. It also was discovered that they had corresponded, and met together in such an apparently casual manner that none of their friends had suspected them. The marriage proved a happy one to both, and was only terminated by the sad death of Mrs. Murrell, several years previous to that of Mr. Murrell, which occurred last year, at the ripe age of 84.
It has always seemed to me that Mr. and Mrs. Murrell chose a very sensible plan for beginning life, together. Mrs. Thompson was a childless widow, living alone in her dwelling in the village, and Mr. Murrell was living on his farm with his two sons, the only white members of his family. Their friends witnessed their wedding, and no one was put to any trouble in preparing for it. It was an ingenious, and at the same time a dramatic entrance into the wedded life. But I, the unsuspecting groomsman, was cut off from the full performance of my office.
The Old "Lochinvar had come out of the West,"
Had walked up the aisle while the people were dumb,
And his groomsman sat twiddling his fingers and thumb?
My friend George had jilted me.
Note that the marriage date given in the story does not agree with the date of 2 Jan 1879 from the Hillis/Abney/Franklin/Smith web site. The latter date is confirmed by the "Saline County Missouri Marriage Index 1820-1881" on Ancestry.com. (2 Jan 1879 was a Thursday, by the way.)
Note: Some of the information in these pages is uncertain. Please let me know of errors or omissions using the email link above. ...Mike Wilson
Page generated on 14 September 2024