The following April 8, 1920, Lowell Tribune article was found on page 1, column 4:
Married Fifty Years
Monday, March 29, 1920, was the fiftieth anniversary of the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. O.V. Servis, and the event was celebrated by inviting several of the relatives in to spend the evening with them. The evening was very pleasantly spent by all present in visiting and talking over old times. There were about fifty guests present. Mr. and Mrs. Servis have lived on the same place that they moved onto when they were married fifty years ago. An excellent lunch was served to the guests. We join the many friends of Mr. and Mrs. Servis in extending congratulations and best wishes and hope they live to enjoy many more anniversaries of their marriage.
According to an entry copied from an Old Settler Historical Association booklet and found in the Local History File at Lowell Public Library (LH--Vital Statistics, vol. 2, page 99), O.V. Servis, an Eagle Creek Civil War Veteran, died on Jan. 7, 1923, at the age of 80. An obituary in the Lowell Tirbune (see below) lists O.V. Servis' death date as Feb. 7, 1924. Newspaper obituaries are published immediately upon deaths, so Feb. 7, 1924 is more likely to be the true death date, than is the date in the book.
A copy of the following article and obituary from the Lowell Tribune can be found in the Local History Files at Lowell Public Library (LH--Vital Statistics, vol. 4, page 48):
Feb. 7, 1924 DEATH OF OLD SOLDIER
Orlando V. Servis, the only surviving veteran of the civil war living in Eagle Creek township, died at his home this morning. Funeral services will be held at the home Saturday at 2 p.m. Interment will be made in the mausoleum in Lowell. Obituary next week.
Feb. 14, 1924 OBITUARY
Orlando V. Servis, son of Orlando V. and Eliza (Flint) Servis, was born in Eagle Creek Township, Lake Co., Indiana, September 12, 1843, and departed this life at his home, February 7, 1924, at the age of 80 years, 4 months, and 26 days. He leaves a wife, one daughter, Mrs. Mae B. VanSweargen, a grandson, Eugene, and a sister, Mrs. H.P. Bradt and nephew, Leonard Bradt, of St. Louis, Mo., besides a host of friends and other relatives to mourn his departure.
Mr. Servis attended school and assisted his father until 1861, when the most strenuous part of his life, however, was passed away from the peaceful limits of Lake county, in the daily marches of the great Rebellion, in which he was one of the faithful soldiers of the Union, and gave over four years of conscientious service for its integrity. In 1861 he enlisted in Company E, Ninth Indiana Infantry and served two years as a private, and was then made first sergeant of his company. At the end of his first term of enlistment, he re-enlisted in the same company and served until the end of the war. He took part in the siege of Corinth, Pittsburg Landing, Stone River and Chicamauga and was with Sherman until wounded at Pine Mountain, Georgia, also took part in battles of Nashville and Franklin, He had also been wounded at Battle of Resoca, a cannon ball passing between his knees, inflicting a severe injury to his left knee. In all he served four years and two months, and received his honorable discharge at Camp Stanley, Texas, was mustered out at Indianapolis, Ind. He was a member of Burnham Post G.A.R. at Lowell.
He was married in 1870 to Miss Nancy A. Pearce.
Funeral services was held at the home Saturday at 2 P.M., conducted by Rev. T.J. Aiken, of Hebron. Interment was made in the Mausoleum at Lowell. Undertaker Weaver had charge of the burial service. The following acted as pall-bearers: Albert Buchanan, John A. Johnson, J.C. Brownell, J.P. Dinwiddie, J.M. Pearce, C.C. Osborn.
Town Historian Richard Schmal later informed the library that while this news item shows burial in the Mausoleum, it must have been temporary. Orlando V. Servis is listed with other family members in the family plot in Lowell Cemetery.
Last updated on March 26, 2009.
Go to Orlando V. Servis, "Pioneer History Index," for further information.