M. (1) 24 Nov 1868 in Knox County, Indiana2
Husband: William L. Edeline
M. (2) 3 Sep 1880 in Vincennes, Indiana3
Husband: Robert James Wilhite
D. 2 May 1918 in Vincennes, Indiana4
Mary Louise Ravellette was the mother of five children, whom she largely raised on her own. But in 1895, her oldest son committed a crime so serious, that he took to the road to escape capture, and this caused a rift she could never mend.
Mary was born on October 3, 1850 in Vincennes, Indiana,1 a place where she had deep roots. Her parents, François Louis Ravellette and Susanne Gaile, were descended from the French fur traders who founded Vincennes during the 18th century. Some of her father's heritage was also Native American, and she seemed to have inherited a lot of that DNA, as evidenced by her descendants. By the time Mary was born, Vincennes was heavily populated by the children and grandchildren of settlers from Virginia and Kentucky. This made her family part of a Creole minority, who spoke a version of French in their home, and kept traditions different than many of her neighbors.
Mary had eight siblings, including a twin brother named William.5The older children couldn’t read or write,6 so they probably never attended school, but youngest sister Marguerite appears to have been literate, suggesting that at least she received a little education. Mary's father died when she was 13,7 and it seemed to fall upon the older children to help look after the younger ones. When their mother also passed away six years later,8 Mary took her 10-year-old brother Andrew into her household for a time.9
There are no known photos of Mary, but this is her sister Marguerite, and Mary's twin brother William.
By then, Mary had gotten married. On November 24, 1868, she wed William Edeline,2 who was also from Vincennes; he was of French descent on his father's side, and non-French on his mother's. Mary joined William on his 40-acre farm in Knox County. She became pregnant almost immediately, and gave birth to her first child, a son name John, in September 1869.10,11 This was followed by Robert Edward in 1871,12 Susan Isabelle in 1873,13 and Marguerite Nora in 1876.14 But later that year, something happened to William, and by October, he had died.15 He was only 28 years-old and left no will; his probate record shows that the value of his property was $231.
Life must have been difficult for Mary during the years after William died. The 1880 census showed her living with her four young children, and no one in the household appeared to have been a breadwinner.16 Later that year, Mary married a second husband, a man named Robert James Wilhite, who worked at a stove factory, presumably as a laborer. Their marriage produced a daughter Laura in 1883,17 but some time after that, they separated. In 1888, Mary was listed in the Vincennes city directory living on her own under the name Edeline.18 Robert filed for divorce in 1892,19 which seems to have been granted soon after. He remarried in 1895,20 but Mary remained alone for the rest of her life.
It was in May of 1895 that Mary’s family became associated with a sensational crime in Vincennes. On a Saturday night, her 25-year-old son John, accompanied by some friends, stalked a man named Moses Latta, whom John had a grudge against. He confronted Latta as he emerged from his fiancé's home, pulled out his gun, and shot him point blank. Latta collapsed and died shortly after, but John quickly ran away to Mary’s house. He gave her his gun, told her to hide it, then he left. The police arrested John's accomplices soon after, but he was never caught. Mary and the family never saw him again.21
Excerpt from article in Vincennes Commercial, May 21, 1895.
Mary centered the rest of her life around her other children and family members. One-by-one, the children got married, and two gave her grandchildren. Some of the grandchildren later remembered how Mary would speak in French to her daughter Susan whenever she didn’t want the kids to listen in.22 Mary’s son Ed left Indiana for a time, living in Memphis, where she made trips to visit him in 1903 and 1906.23 There were also frequent visits to the town of St. Francisville, across the Wabash River in Illinois. St. Francisville was a Creole community, and several of Mary’s siblings and cousins lived there.
On May 2, 1918, Mary died at her home in Vincennes.4 A granddaughter recalled that she had been emotional over selling her house, and that this may have contributed to her death at age 63.24 Mary received a small obituary in the Vincennes newspaper — the article mentioned all of her children except for John.25 The family had no knowledge of the fact that John had changed his name and moved to Los Angeles, starting his life over and raising a family there. It wouldn’t be until June 2017 that DNA evidence and genealogy research reconnected the family.
Mary's daughter Susan with her husband and children, and John's children — grandchildren that Mary never knew.
1. John Edeline (AKA James William Elwood) – B. 18 Sep 1869, Vincennes, Indiana;10,11 D. 5 Nov 1925, Los Angeles, California;10 M. Eleanor Mabel Hewes (1880-1942), 18 Feb 1898, Los Angeles, California26
2. Robert Edward “Ed” Edeline – B. 10 Oct 1871, Vincennes, Indiana;12 D. 2 May 1963, Evansville, Indiana;12 M. Frances Rebecca Shappard (1871-1917), 12 Aug 1902, Knox County, Indiana27
3. Susan Isabelle “Bell” Edeline – B. Dec 1873, Vincennes, Indiana;13 D. 14 Apr 1941, Vincennes, Indiana;13 M. (1) George W. Hill, 17 Jun 1891, Knox County, Indiana;28 (2) Frank June Payton (1868-1926), 13 Jun 1895, Knox County, Indiana29
4. Marguerite Nora Edeline — B. 20 Mar 1876, St. Francisville, Illinois;14 D. 19 Jan 1938, Vincennes, Indiana;14 M. Claude Burton Campbell (1882-1950)30
Child by Robert James Wilhite:
1. Laura Wilhite – B. 7 Sep 1883, Vincennes, Indiana;31 D. 21 Jan 1953, Vincennes, Indiana;31 M. James Weaver Summers (1881-?)32
Sources:
1 Birth record of Mary Louise Ravalet, Indiana Births and Christenings, 1773-1933, FamilySearch.org
2 Marriage of William Edeline and Mary Edeline, Indiana Marriages, 1811-2019, FamilySearch.org
3 Marriage of Robert Wilhite and Mary Edeline, I.M.
4 Death record of Mary Wilhite, Indiana Death Index, 1882-1920
5 Death record of Franois Louis Ravalette, I.B. & C.
6 1880 U.S. Census, Vincennes, Indiana
7 Birth record of William Ravalet, I.B. & C.
8 Death record of Susanne (Gaile) Moyes, Illinois Diocese of Belleville, Catholic Parish Records, 1729-1956, FamilySeach.org
9 1870 U.S. Census, Vincennes, Indiana
10 Death record of James Ellwood, California Death Index, 1905-1939, FamilySearch.org
11 1900 U.S. Census, Los Angeles, California
12 Find-a-Grave listing for Robert Edgar Edeline
13 Find-a-Grave listing for Susan Isabelle (Edeline) Payton
14 Find-a-Grave listing for Marguerite Nora (Edeline) Campbell
15 Probate record of William Edeline, Probate records, Circuit Court, Knox County, Indiana, 1817-1921
16 1880 U.S. Census, Vincennes, Indiana
17 Find-a-Grave listing for Laura W. (Wilhite) Summers
18 1888 Vincennes, Indiana city directory
19 Divorce record of Robert Wilhite vs. Mary Wilhite, Indiana Divorce Records
20 1900 U.S. Census, Vincennes, Indiana
21 “Latta’s Murderer: John Edaline Said to Have Fired the Fatal Shot,” Vincennes Commercial, 21 May 1895
22 Family stories told by Mary’s granddaughter, Marjorie Bartholomai (1917-2016)
23 Articles in Vincennes Commercial, 25 Sep 1903 and 18 May 1906
24 Undated letter written by Mary’s granddaughter Frances Widenor (1900-1984)
25 Death notice for Mary Louise Edeline, 3 May 1918, Vincennes Morning Commercial
26 Marriage record of James William Elwood and Eleanor Mabel Hewes, California Marriages, 1850-1945, FamilySearch.org
27 Marriage record of Robert Edward Edeline and Frances Rebecca Sheppard, I.M.
28 Marriage record of George W. Hill and Susan Isabelle Edeline, I.M.
29 Marriage record of Frank Payton and Susan I. Hill, I.M.
30 Marriage record of Claude B. Campbell and Nora M. Edeline, I.M.
31 “My Ancestry & their descendants plus misc research,” Denis Paul Edeline, RootsWeb.Ancestry.com
32 Marriage record of Weaver Summers and Laura Wilhite, I.M.
