This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: MarjSlaughter Surnames: McClung Classification: obituary Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.kansas.counties.jewell/48.14.1.1.1/mb.ashx Message Board Post: This includes his obituary, too: JC REPUBLICAN 26 FEB 1926 WILLIAM CHARLES McCLUNG 15 Sept 1845 - 25 Feb 1926 (Jewell City Cemetery) The death of W.C. McClung occurred at his home in Manhattan, Kansas, yesterday morning. He died of pneumonia. All his children were with him. The funeral will be held at the Christian church in Jewell next Sunday afternoon, at 2:30. All the people who have lived long in Jewell county knew Mr. McClung. He served as county treasurer and for over thirty years was a hardware merchant in this town. About seven years ago he moved to Manhattan where he engaged in the insurance business with his sons, John and Tom, building a flourishing business. Mr. McClung's outstanding characteristics were steadfastness and loyalty. He was loyal to his country, serving it not only in war but at all times. He was loyal to his community, to his family, to his fellow men, to his church and to all the things he believed God required of him. It was not so much what Mr. McClung did, though he did much, that characterized him as a man, but what he was-his honorable, upright, straight forward reliability in everything. This town will honor his name and memory as long as there remains one citizen who knew him well. His wife, Mrs. Jennie Gray McClung, was killed in a runaway fourteen years ago. His children are Geo. W. McClung, of Davenport, Iowa; John, Tom and Mabel McClung, of Manhattan. Mrs. J.C. Postlethwaite, of Formoso, is his sister. Mr. McClung was 80 years old at the time of his death. An obituary statement will be printed next week. 06 MAR 1926: In the death of W.C. McClung there passed on a friend of ours for forty years; in fact, ever since we were able to toddle about as a baby. For forty years-half his lifetime-we have known and respected him. There was an innate something about the man which commanded respect and, at the same time, induced friendly affection. It is interesting to us in studying it over to realize that never did we think of him as "Old man McClung" or in any of the terms in which we sometimes think of those of advanced years; to us he was the "Old McClung," the "Old" being merely to distinguish him from the younger McClungs. We do not remember that in all those 40 years we have ever heard even a whisper of suspicion as to his integrity, his conduct, or his loyalty to his duty. The same sense of fidelity to duty that caused him to serve his country in the Civil war caused him to fulfill his duty to his church and to his community. 05 MAR 1926 - OBITUARY: William C. McClung was born Sept. 15, 1845, in Williamsburg, Ohio, and died at his home in Manhattan, Kansas, on Feb. 25, 1926, aged 80 years, 5 months and 10 days. He was educated in Ohio, finishing his school work at Oxford, Ohio, finishing his school work at Oxford, Ohio, in Miami University. He answered his country's call in the Civil War, serving with the 167th Ohio infantry. After the war he came to Kansas, settling with Father R.R. McClung on a farm near Manhattan, and in the year 1870, the family moved to Jewell county Here he spent the greater part of his life in lines of usefulness and honor. On Dec. 31, 1878, he married Virginia Gray. Too much cannot be said of their beautiful life together-a life of complete understanding and full of happiness, and her accidental death in 1911 was a blow from which he never completely recovered. At the time of his marriage he was county treasurer and after his term was finished he engaged in the hardware business in Jewell City, continuing until 1914. In 1919 he moved to Manhattan, where with his sons, John and Tom, he organized the firm of McClung & McClung, insurance and loans and continued his active interest in that business until his death. He is survived by his sons, George W., of Des Moines, Iowa, John R. and Tom O., and his adopted daughter, Mabel May, all of Manhattan, and his sister, Mrs. J.C. Postlethwaite, of Formoso, Kansas. Mr. McClung was reared in the Presbyterian church, but united with the Christian church in Jewell and for many years was one of its dependable members, serving as an elder and as treasurer for many years. He continued his active church work in Manhattan, and was an elder in the Christian church there at the time of his death. He was a member of the G.A.R. 05 MAR 1926: FUNERAL OF MR. McCLUNG: The funeral of Mr. W.C. McClung at the Christian church last Sunday was perhaps as largely attended as any ever held in Jewell. The city flag was placed at half mast, the business folks of the town were present, other towns were represented, and the people of a large community who had known Mr. McClung so well and esteemed him so highly were there to pay to his memory every honor it was in their power to bestow. The church was decorated with floral gifts from innumerable old friends, the casket was draped with the old flag and loaded with flowers. The honorary pall bearers were four comrades of the fast vanishing Grand Army of the Republic-Wm. Gaston, Wesley Harbison, W.W. Nixon, Josiah Emmert. A mixed quartet sang-Mrs. E.H. Getman, Miss Faith Carpenter, Howard Stapleton, Ross Hutchison. It so happened in the changes that have come about, that there was no minister in town who had known Mr. McClung, so his old pastor, the Rev. B.A. Channer, of Minneapolis, Kansas, was called to conduct the service. He was assisted by the pastor of the home Christian church and the Methodist pastor. Fifteen years ago Mr. Channer, then a pastor at Goodland, was called here to preach the funeral sermon of Mrs. McClung, who had been killed in a runaway. Eight years previous to that time Mr. Channer, a young minister, came to Jewell as pastor of the Christian church. His first night in Jewell was spent in the McClung home, and there and in the years that followed, the friendships of a lifetime were founded. Mr. Channer called up the memories of that most happy and delightful home with true and vivid picturing, and how plainly all those who had known that home of affection and happiness could again see the joyful and amusing incidents that were transpiring there. One of M! r. McClung's little hobbies was for personal cleanliness. He liked children but he wanted them clean. Any boy who tried to come to the table with the load of dirt a boy likes to carry, found himself suddenly seized, carried to the sink, and there thoroughly scrubbed. The boys soon got to the point where they preferred to do their own scrubbing. Mr. Channer delivered a noble sermon on immortality, and it did the Jewell folks good to hear his voice once more and to again receive from him the exalted ideals of the abundant life here and hereafter with the convincing assurance that "there is no death." His tribute to Mr. McClung was a truthful recital of the faith, dignity, gentleness and true greatness of a life that had been lived among us. The great audience was in perfect harmony with the speaker, as they too knew Mr. McClung. They knew his worth, they knew the genuineness of his character. Such a life as Abraham Lincoln lived unconsciously inspired a nation and in some measure a world. So the life of Mr. McClung touched for good the life of this community. People sometimes say, "Christianity is great, but people fail to live it." Well, Mr. McClung lived it. Without superior claims, without the least sign of parade, he lived it as simply and faithfully as did any disciple who walked with the Master him! self through the fields of Galilee. It was in his business life, in all his dealings with men and women and children, in his family life, and most remarkable of all, in his politics and in his candidacy for office. Mr. McClung was a man of spirit, courage and dignity. He was not the kind of a man anybody would presume to impose upon; but if he had any doubt of the full justice of his own business claim in any transaction, he would not press such claim. He valued the approval of his own conscience and his own sense of right above any material advantage. Mr. McClung lived to be 80, retaining all his mental faculties and a reasonable share of physical vigor. He had the companionship and affection of his children, the respect and honor of everybody who knew him. A good life had been lived. His work was done. He had lived to see his children attain to places of usefulness and influence, high achievements and fine character. It was no sorrow for him to face the new life which, to his faith in God and His goodness, is a life of hope, of beauty, of progress and development, where loved ones shall be known and enjoyed, where the deep longings of the soul shall be satisfied. So we all say goodbye to our old friend, not without some tears at parting, but with much gladness for his life among us and the way he lived it, a help, an inspiration and encouragement to his fellow men and illustrating the permanent value of such home as he and Mrs. McClung established. Burial was in the family grounds in the west cemetery beside the beloved wife of his youth. The following is probably only a partial list of those from other towns who were here to attend the funeral. Mr. and Mrs. J.R. McClung, Mr. and Mrs. T.O. McClung and daughter, Elizabeth, Miss Mabel McClung, J.W. Berry, Will Fay, Mrs. Mary Rowe, Miss Mary Chilcott and Miss Content Peck, of Manhattan; Mr. and Mrs. G.W. McClung and daughter, of Des Moines, Ia; Mrs. J.C. Postlethwaite, Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Miller, and Mr. and Mrs. A.D. Fink, of Formoso; Mr. and Mrs. R.C Postlethwaite and family, Mr. and Mrs. F.I. Drake, Albert Stanley, Frank Clayton, Mr. and Mrs. Ira L. White, Mrs. R.F. Vaughn and Lew Beeler, of Mankato; W.S. Hoag, of Ionia; Mr. and Mrs. Thos. McCall, John McCall, W.E. Hockett, A. Daugherty, of Beloit; Mr. and Mrs. W.A. Matson, of Superior, Neb.; Mrs. Samuel Carney and son, Samuel Carney, Jr., of Sutton, Neb.; Mr. and Mrs. L.J. Nichols, Mr. and Mrs. Gus Sellers, and Mrs. Hannah McCollough, of Randall; Mrs. F.B. Home and Mr. and Mrs. Howard Harbaugh and daught! er, of Phillipsburg; J.W. McCall, of Salina; Mr. and Mrs. B.M. Palmer, of Glen Elder; Mrs. Georgia A. Bice, of Boulder, Colo.; and Mr. and Mrs. John Murray, of Jamestown. Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board. <br>