My day started with getting to Fort Madison an hour ahead of schedule. I took a self-tour of the Old Fort, which is a military fort which was preserved along the banks of the Mighty Mississip. I took some photos.

 

 

Since I had more than 45 minutes to wait until the courthouse opened, I decided to go out to the Embury Cemetery in search for Leonard’s headstone. I walked the entire “old” section of the cemetery, but no stones were found. I thought perhaps a couple of stones, which were unreadable, were for them, but I determined that they indeed were not, because the stone for the child had a death date that was not Eddie’s. Dern it!

 

Just as I was about to leave the cemetery, a couple showed up to clean the Embury Church, located just across the gravel road from the cemetery. I walked into the church to see if I could find out if they had records for the cemetery. The older lady wasn’t very helpful… she knew of someone in the church who had the records, but didn’t have her phone number. She told me how to get to her house, but her directions were very vague at best.

 

I did find out, however, that the Embury Church was a Methodist church which was founded in 1869. So, chances are that Leonard and Eva perhaps attended this church at some point, perhaps (although they were Catholic, so that’s a stretch).

 

After I left the cemetery, I went back to Fort Madison to go to the courthouse in search of any records I could find. I found the death record for Leonard Kult Sr., and also found a birth and death record for Edward (Eddie) Kult, his son.

 

From their records, I discovered that Leonard and his family lived in Charleston Township Iowa when Eddie was born on July 6, 1880, but must have moved to Van Buren township during the year, before Eddie died on July 8, 1881. They also were in Van Buren township when Leonard died in March 1883. Leonard died from heart disease, which he had suffered with for 10 years previous. The same physician attended both the birth and death of Eddie and the death of Leonard - it was J.H. Todd from Donnelson, IA.

 

Eva was born 5 days after Leonard died, and Eva was reported to be born in West Point, Iowa. Not sure how that happened. And, I never found a birth record for Eva. That could be because it’s either in a different courthouse, or the doctor attending the birth never reported the birth.

 

After I left the courthouse, I went to the Cattermole Public Library in Fort Madison, just a couple blocks away from the courthouse. The only thing I found there was the same records that I found at the courthouse. However, a lady who was also doing her family history told me that I could probably find some information from the Donnellson Library. So off I went… back to Donnellson IA.

 

The librarian at Donnellson was very nice, however, she didn’t know how to run the microfilm machine very well. But after we finally figured it out, I found a census record for a “Leonard Kund” who lived in Charleston township in 1880, with four out of five children with the same names, with Mary, Joseph and John listed as being born in Pennsylvania (which they were). The disappointing and mystifying part is that the last child is listed as “Clara” and “female” and “daughter”, instead of Leonard, who would be the same age, but definitely a “male” and a “son”. Who the heck is Clara? And where did Leonard go? So, that makes me not entirely certain if this is the correct record for them. Another mystery.

 

 

I wanted so much to find a land record or something that would give further clues. But none were to be found.  It was a great experience however, and a nice drive in the countryside. The Iowa country looks more like Missouri to me… in reality the Missouri border is only 9 miles away from Embury Cemetery, so I guess that’s why it really looks more like Missouri than Iowa.

 

Anywho, I decided to head back home. I got tired, however, so I decided to stop in Moline for the night at a Best Western/Airport Inn.

 

It was an interesting and revealing day!