Plowing Through an Adopted (not really!) Family Line-Robert E. Rose

One theme of 52 Ancestors in 52 weeks is "Plowing Through". I didn't know what I was going to write for this but when I wrote about last weeks ancestor I decided to focus on "plowing through" one branch of the family that is part of an adoption.

As you read previously, Mable died leaving 4 young boys, 3 with no father to help. Charles and William were sent to an orphanage, Raymond was kept with his biological father and Robert was adopted by Mabel's aunt, Della.

So to give an overview of this part of the adopted family, I am going to give a quick rundown.

Robert Rose was adopted by James Martin and Della Mordock (Cowger) Heisel. (Mordock! I wonder where that name came from.....another mystery to solve!)  I don't know if this was official or if Robert just came to live with Della and her husband.

Della was hard to track as sometimes she went as Della, other times she went as Delila. I will remain calling her Della moving forward.

Della was born to Isiah Cowger and Rebecca Hardwick. Isiah and Rebecca were married in 1864 in Rush County, Indiana.  Together they had 13 children:
Susan
Sarah
Stephen
Mahala
Margaret
William
John
Jane
Joseph
Cordia-This is Mabel's mother
Julia
Pearly

Whew!

Della married James Heisel on March 9, 1916. He was 36, she was 41. They lived in Rush County, Indiana and both died there. From what I can tell, they both lived in Rush County their whole lives.

Mabel passed in 1923 so Della and James adopted Robert. I am not sure when, I am guessing not long after Mabel died. I do not have any records of the adoption. Della, James and Robert were not a family for very long as James passed away in 1927.

In the 1930 census Della and Robert are living with Della's sister Julia Anne and her husband William Moore in Wayne, Indiana.

Della died in 1933 and is buried in Crown Hill Cemetery in Indianapolis, IN.

In the 1940 census, Robert is still living with Julia and William in Wayne, IN and is a laborer. He is listed as their nephew.

So why were Charles and William sent to an orphanage but Robert was adopted? My guess would be that Robert was only 3 when Mabel died so he had the appeal of being young. Charles was 10 and William was 9, they were older and ornery!

**Does anyone know what Robert's middle name was? I only see the middle initial.....