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Birth name
Margaret Elizabeth Kern
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Place of Birth
Columbus, Indiana, US
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Place of Death
Indianapolis, Indiana, US
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Burial Place
Garland Brook Cemetery, Columbus, Indiana, US
𪌠Margaret Elizabeth Kern
1855 â 1919
A resilient matriarch, homemaker, brawler (on occasion), and the steadfast spine of the Beyl family tree.
đ Early Life
According to death records and Find A Grave, Margaret Elizabeth Kern was born in November 1855 in Indiana. While her parentsâ names remain elusive, census data tells us they were both born in Germany. It’s possible she was part of the wave of German-American families who settled throughout Indiana in the mid-1800s, bringing with them tight-knit traditions, Lutheran faith, and some truly stubborn gene lines.
đ Marriage to Jacob Beyl
According to the 1900 census, Margaret married French-born railroad laborer Jacob Beyl in 1871. Their early years together were spent at 228 Jackson Street in Columbus, Bartholomew County, Indianaâa home that would remain the backdrop for much of their familyâs story.
đŠâđ§âđŚ Raising a Family
By 1880, Margaret (then going by Elizabeth) was the mother of two young children: William, age 4, and Mary, just 9 months. Her household was bustling, but not without hardship. Jacob was listed as âmaimed, crippled, bedridden, or otherwise disabledâ in that yearâs censusâan ominous but unclear note.

Margaret eventually gave birth to seven children, though only five survived to adulthood:
- Jacob William Beyl (1876â1921)
- Mary Elizabeth Beyl (1879â1916)
- John Edward Beyl (1887â1966)
- Lillian Frances Beyl (1890â1953)
- Grover Thomas Beyl (1892â1938)
By 1900, the household had grown to include a granddaughter, Hellen M., just 11 months old, likely the child of either Mary or Lillian. Life on Jackson Street remained tight, both in terms of quarters and kinship.

đĽ Legal Trouble in 1901
Margaret was no passive matron. In 1901, she found herself the subject of a legal notice for hurling “some colorful words” and allegedly assaulting one Pearl McCain. It seems Margaret wasnât afraid to throw handsâor at least provoke a scene when the moment called for it.

đ Work & Widowhood
Margaret and Jacob lived at 542 Jackson Street, according to the 1907 U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995. Jacob was a Carpenter at the time.

By the time the 1910 Census was taken, the family had moved up Jackson Street to No. 542. Jacob had retired, and Margaret was working as a âChesserâ at a poultry houseâlikely preparing or grading chickens. Her household included sons Jacob Jr., Edward, and Grover, all working labor jobs. Despite hardship and loss (three of her children had passed by this point), she continued to hold her family together.

After Jacobâs death sometime before 1915, Margaret remained at 542 Jackson Street with her sons, still working, still raising, still anchoring.

In 1917, Margaret still lived at 542 Jackson Street, per the U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995. She was a widow. Her son, Jacob Jr, still lived with her.

đŻď¸ Final Days & Burial
Margaret passed away at 12:45 pm on April 11, 1919, of chronic myocarditis, with kidney disease complicating her condition. She was 63 years old.

She was buried beside her husband Jacob in Garland Brook Cemetery, Section 15.

đ§Ź Legacy
Margaret’s legacy runs deep through the branches of the Beyl family. From her came carpenters, laborers, dreamers, and at least one family line bold enough to brawl in broad daylight. Her story may be partially shrouded in mysteryâespecially regarding her own parentsâbut her strength and spark echo loudly through the generations.
This page will be updated as more is uncovered. To share memories, stories, or stray hints about Margaretâs elusive roots, please leave your comments on her Introduction Page. Thatâs where the conversation livesâcome help us flesh out the woman behind the census lines.
Talk soon,
~Kris

đŻď¸ Revisited by Bones
Something about Margaret Elizabeth Kern lingers in the air, like the scent of coal smoke clinging to a well-worn apron. She was the kind of woman who kept the house warm, the children fed, and the neighbors guessing. You donât survive seven births, raise five children to adulthood, and work in a poultry house well into your fifties without an iron spine and a sharp tongueâand according to the local papers, Margaret had both.
She was a homemaker, yes, but not the quiet kind. The kind whoâd stand her groundâon Jackson Street or in court if need be. Her census entries and city directory listings are stitched with loss and survival, with empty lines where childrenâs names shouldâve been and occupations no widow should have had to shoulder alone.
And yet⌠she endured.
What we donât know still tugs at me: Who were her parents? What kind of childhood did she have that made her a woman who didnât just bend under pressureâbut held the line?
Sometimes, history doesnât hand us a tidy ending. Sometimes it gives us a woman like Margaretâhalf-sewn, half-lost, entirely unforgettable.
Until we find her roots, weâll keep tending the branches.
âBones
Keeper of the Unspoken & Advocate for the Women Who Refused to Vanish Quietly
Margaret Elizabeth Kern
(1855 - 1919)