Mary Strieby, widow of Samuel Strieby, made application for a widow's pension (Claim no. 387, 838) at Emma, La Grange Co, Indiana on January 4, 1889. She was dropped from the U. S. Pension Agency rools, December 6, 1902 for failure to claim pension for three years; the last payment date shown was August 4, 1898. This date indicates that the tombstone death date (reported as 1888) should be 1898, which agrees with the date of her will, October 14, 1898. Since her will was made and executed in Kosciusko Co, Indiana, it is evident that she returned there from La Grange Co, Indiana. In no place on the pension papers does her name appear as Mary Jane as it does on the Tombstone as copied by D. A. R members. It is possible that the name should be interpreted as Mary James.
Mary Strieby claimed her husband enlisted under the name Samuel Struley. The records of the War Department indicate the last name as Striely. The Indiana State Archives show Samuel Streeby enrolled October 15, 1862, age 44, and that he was mustered in at Indianapolis, a Private in Company K, 57th Indiana Regiment, as a wagoner, and that he was mustered out at Hillsboro, Tennessee, July 30, 1863. He had dark eyes and hair, a fair complexion, and was 5 feet, 7 inches in height. Since the widow did not know where his company officers were located, she asked proof of Samuel's service from Levi Wogoman and Robert G Edsall, two of his comrades.
Mary's daughter, Mary E James whose address was Syracuse, Indiana on June 2, 1890, made a statement in behalf of her mother as did Margaret (Strieby) Stocker, whose post office was Cromwell, Noble Co, Indiana, age 72 in 1890. The latter testified that Samuel Strieby was her brother; that she had been present at the infare dinner for Mary James and Samuel on the day that they were married, and that she was present at the birth of Mary Elizabeth (James), their daughter.
Among the pension papers is a certification, dated November 9, 1888, from the probate judge of Carroll Co, Ohio that the marriage license was issued to Samuel Strebe and Mary James, November 15, 1845. Because three lines of the wording on the form are crossed out, it is possible the minister failed to make a return. Your compiler made a trip to Carroll Co in the 1940's but failed to find this record. Mary testified the minister was Rev Thomas Cummins. The place mentioned was Leesburg (Leesville?) Ohio.
Samuel may have been the Sammuel "of County of Carroll" who bought land in Section 33, Twp 1, Range 16 in 1847 from William Wert in Richland Co, Ohio (Deed Bk 11:517) but with no record of sale at a latter date, and the same Samuel Streeby of Carroll Co who bought 77 acres in E 1/2 of NW quarter, Twp 14, Section 26, Range 6 from James L McCarty in 1853 and sold in 1856 to Jackson Tope of Carroll Co (Deed Bks 13:429 and 15:476). Samuel's name was spelled Streby in the McCarty deed; his wife who signed with him in the Tope deed, was Mary.
Both Samuel and Mary are buried in Union, also called Strieby, Cemetery, in Turkey Creek Township. The names of their children appear as in the pension claim except for Nancy who is included from a list given to the compiler by a descendant. She probably died before the family moved to Indiana.
