The Hyphen Family Lineage

[Article written by Patricia Ruth-Marsicano, posted 22 Jan 1999 to the message boards on the Ancestry.com website.]

Alice A. Hackett 1854-1941

Alice A. HACKETT was born June 26, 1854 in Huntington County, Indiana to Thomas and Margaret Mahala (PAYTON) HACKETT. She spent her childhood growing up at the Hackett family homestead in Roanoke, Jackson Twp., (Huntington) IN with her siblings; John, Mary Jane, Cornelius, William, Isaac, Mahala, Thomas Benton, and her younger sister Anna. Thomas HACKETT, her father was engaged in the saw-mill
business in his younger days, and later took up farming. Her brother Thomas Benton passed away as a child and when she was seven years old, her older brother William was killed in the Civil War.

On Sunday, July 6, 1873, ten days after her nineteenth birthday, Alice HACKETT wed Franklin H. MINNICH at the home of her parents. Franklin MINNICH was the son of Michael and Sophia (MILLER) MINNICH, who were both German immigrants. Frank and Alice (HACKETT) MINNICH made their home in Roanoke, with Frank working at the sawmill owned by his father.

On July 12, 1875 Thomas Orlan MINNICH was born to Alice and Frank. Thomas was to be the only child that Alice would give birth to. And unfortunately their happiness would be short lasting. In October of 1884, Franklin MINNICH would petition the courts for a divorce from Alice on the grounds of abandonment, and would also want custody of their son Thomas.

Alice denied the allegations and filed a cross complaint against her husband. Alice complained of physical abuse from Frank towards herself and her son. She also claimed that he was the one who abandon her, and when he decided to come home two months later, she left. No final judgment was found, but the divorce was granted, and Alice must have won custody of her son, since he remained with her until his
marriage to Jennie WIGGINS in 1893.

Frank MINNICH married Adorah J. GRIFFTH daughter of William and Seraphina (CLARK) GRIFFITH in 1885, one year after his divorce was final. Frank went on to have two more children, and move to Indianapolis where he died in 1926. But it seems the divorce may have taken it's toll on the relationship between father and son. There is no proof of any further relationship between Frank MINNICH and his first born son Thomas Orlan, and also no mention of him in Frank's obituary.

As the marriage of Alice and Frank was deteriorating; in the city of Huntington, Alfred and Rachael (YOUNG) SLATER were expecting to add to there growing family. On
February 6, 1882, Alfred waited impatiently with his daughters Eldora, Mollie, and Maggie for his wife who was in labor, to give birth. Back in 1882, the SLATERS probably did not know that Rachael was pregnant with twins. Rachael was 44 years old when she went into labor on February 6th 1882, but the lengthy, exhausting delivery of there twin sons proved to be too arduous. Their twin sons, Eldon and Elgin SLATER were born after 34 hours of labor. Rachael SLATER expired on February 8, 1882 from exhaustion.

I have no idea how Alice HACKETT-MINNICH met Alfred SLATER, but on September 21, 1886, in Allen County, Indiana they wed. They never had any children together, but Alice remained close to the SLATER children until her death in 1941, and even lived with her step-son Eldon for several years. The SLATERS were living in Lafayette, IN in
1900 with Alfred's children, and Alice's son Thomas, his wife Jennie, and what would be Alice's only grandchild, Benton Keith MINNICH. At the time, Alfred was working as a
Butcher, but in a few years, heart and kidney problems, possibly attained while he served in the Civil War shortened his life. Alfred SLATER, son of Joseph and Mary
(THOMPSON) SLATER, passed away at the age of 57 years old, on June 5, 1905 at the home of his sister-in-law Anna HACKETT. Alfred was interred at the Soldiers Home
Cemetery in Lafayette, IN.

Alice stayed in Lafayette for a few more years. The 1910 census shows her living at the Soldiers Home, although the city directories show her at different addresses in
Lafayette, and at one time living with her sister Anna there. But she eventually moved back to Fort Wayne where she always lived close to her step-children.

Alice HACKETT-MINNICH-SLATER passed away July 1, 1941, thirty-six years after her husband Alfred. Alice is interred at the Glenwood I.O.O.F. cemetery by her parents and the rest of the HACKETT family.

Alice was my great-great grandmother and died nineteen years before I was born. My mother Jo-Ann, daughter of Benton Keith MINNICH, has no memory of meeting her. My story is more factual than personal since there is no one left to ask about her. Walter HACKETT, MD of Fort Wayne, Alice's great-grandnephew, has only a few memories of her from when he was a child. One was that she had arthritis in her
hands and they were crippled up, and a brief memory of her funeral, and that you had to give "Aunt Alice" a big kiss when you came and again when you left!.

From her interview with F.S. BASH, I feel Alice was a person with a good memory who loved to share stories about the old days, and family stories. I wish she could share some with me!

By: Patti Ruth-Marsicano, 1997
Sources:
1.) Marriage record of Alfred Slater and Alice Minnich, Allen County, IN.
2.) Marriage record of Franklin H. Minnich and Alice A. Hackett, Huntington
County IN.
3.) Marriage record of Franklin Minnich and Adorah Griffith, Huntington,
IN.
4.) Additional marriage information of Frank Minnich and Alice Hackett;
Huntington, IN, Herald, July 16, 1873.
5.) Parentage of Alfred Slater, Ron Schmidt, Ft. Lauderdale, FL, and Eleanor Crum, Huntington, IN.
6.) Civil War record of William Hackett, National Archives, Washington, DC
7.) 1880 Census of Huntington Co.., IN.
8.) 1900 census of Huntington Co., IN.
9.) 1900 census of Tippecanoe Co., IN.
10.) 1910 census of Tippecanoe Co., IN.
11.) 1910 census of Marion Co., IN.
12.) Divorce record of Frank and Alice Minnich, Huntington County Courthouse.
13.) Obituary for Alice Slater, Ft. Wayne Journal Gazette, July 3, 1941, 2:4.
14.) Obituary of Thomas Hackett, Huntington herald, Aug. 14, 1896, p.8, col. 3.
15.) Obituary of Alfred Slater, Lafayette Weekly Courier, Fri., June 9, 1905, p. 7.
16.) Obituary of Michael Minnich, Daily Democrat, Huntington, IN, June 12, 1895,p. 2, col. 4.
17.) Obituary of Franklin H. Minnich, Indianapolis News, April 5, 1926, p. 12, col. 3.
18.) Death certificate of Alice Slater, Allen County, IN.
19.) Death record for Alfred, WPA Index to Death Records, 1882-1920.
20.) Death record of Rachael Slater, Huntington County, Dept. of Health.
21.) Lafayette City Directories, 1911-1919.
22.) The History of Huntington Co., IN, Bramt & Fuller, 1887.
23.) Huntington Herald Press, Column by F.S. Bash, June 7, 1930.
24.) A letter from Walter Hackett, MD, to Patti Ruth-Marsicano dated June 5, 1996.