Charles Fish Family in 1900

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The Charles Fish Family in 1900

Introduction

The Charles Fish Family and Farm

"Snapshots" of the Charles Fish Family and Farm
1830   1840   1850
1860   1870   1873
1880   1891   1900

Fish Family Farmhouse

Fish Family Grave

Fish Family Genealogy

Our last "snapshot" of the Charles Fish Family is in 1900. In the 1900 Census for Hopewell, Margaret is head of household. She is a white female born in February 1819 and age 81. She is single and born in New Jersey of parents born in New Jersey. She is a farmer by occupation. She can read and write English. She owns her farm free. She has been unemployed 0 months in the past year. Living with her is Minnie D. Bendey a white female born in March 1869 and now age 31, single, with no children. She was born in New Jersey of parents born in New Jersey. She is a housekeeper and has not been unemployed in the past year. She can speak, read, and write English.

It is interesting that even at age 81 Margaret gave an occupation and it was farmer. At this time she was living on South Main Street in Pennington Borough, in the house that is now at the center of the William P. Howe center. The 1875 map of the borough shows this as belonging to Charles Fish.

It is also interesting that Minnie Bendey stayed with her. This is the same Minnie who was living with the family in 1880 when she was just 12 years old and whom Charles remembered in his will with a rather large bequest of $1500. She was the daughter of Wesley S. and Mary Bendy of Lawrenceville. She spent over 20 years of her life in service to the Fish family.

The 1903 Pugh and Downing Map of Mercer County shows Margaret Fish as owner of the farm in Pennington. The old Fish farm, with the Charles Fish Barn, has passed from the Baldwin family to C. Waldron.

After Margaret's death this Pennington farm was sold by her estate and in 1910 was purchased by William P. Howe who had arrived in Pennington and became a prominent citizen. (see Margaret J. O'Connell, Pennington People: A Capsule of State and Nation, 1966, p127)

This is the farmhouse in Pennington where Charles and Margaret spent their last years and where both died. In 1910 it was purchased by William Howe whose daughter, Inez, was the donor of Howell Farm to Mercer County. This is one of the farmhouses she grew up in that inspired her to want to have Howell Farm provide opportunities for children to experience turn of the century farm life. This house is today the core of the building at 65 South Main Street in Pennington. ( Photo courtesy of Martha Devlin, great-granddaughter of William Howe and the Hopewell Valley Historical Society.)

Since none of the Fish siblings who owned the Charles Fish Barn had children (unless Joseph was an illigitimate child), the death of Margaret ends the story of our Fish family.