John Ezra MILLER
1884 - 1981 (~ 97 years)
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Name John Ezra MILLER Born May 1884 Wetzel Co, WV 
[1, 2] - The birth date 1876 on John Ezra Miller's headstone is at variance with other records. His birth date is given in the 1900 Census as May 1884, age 16, which is consistent with age 18 given in his April 1901 marriage record and age 26 in the 1910 Census. But after that time, he consistently overstated his age. His stated age 40 in the 1920 Census would put his birth in about 1880, age 57 in the 1930 Census puts it in about 1873, and age 63 in the 1940 Census puts it in about 1877. In his 1918 World War I draft registration and in his 1934 marriage record, he stated his birth date at 7 May 1880. A newspaper account in May 1981 states that he was born on 7 May 1876 and was about to celebrate his 105th birthday. It appears, however, that the most accurate and plausible indication of his age was the 1900 Census, putting his birth date in May 1884 and his age at death in June 1981 at 97.
In the 1900 Census and his 1901 marriage record, his name was given as John E. Miller. But beginning with the 1910 Census, his name appeared in records only as Ezra Miller.
The matter of Ezra's parentage is not clear. His 1934 marriage record states his parents as Henry & Martha (Miller) Quinn, while the 1981 newspaper article identifies them as Henry & Martha (Miller) Gump. A birth record on file for him in Wetzel County appears to be a delayed entry filed many years after his birth. The record identifies him as James Ezra Quinn, born on 30 May 1884 in Folsom, son of George Quinn and Fannie Miller. We have found no other record of Ezra's mother being anyone other than Martha Miller, and there is no record of marriage between her and either a Quinn or a Gump or anyone else. Two men named Henry Quinn, one born in Ireland in 1828 and the other in West Virginia in about 1856, were residents of Wetzel County during the time in question. Most likely, Ezra was born out of wedlock, fathered by one of them.
Gender Male Census 1900 Grant District, Wetzel Co, WV Residence 1901 Doddridge Co, WV [3] Census 1910 Grant District, Wetzel Co, WV Occupation 1910 [4] farm manager Occupation 1918 [5] farmer Residence 1918 Folsom, Wetzel Co, WV [5] Census 1920 Arches Fork, Wetzel Co, WV Occupation 1920 [6] laborer in woods Census 1930 Grant District, Wetzel Co, WV Occupation 1930 [7] farmer Residence 1934 Folsom, Wetzel Co, WV [2] Census 1940 Smithfield, Wetzel Co, WV Occupation 1940 [8] road construction worker (WPA) Residence Pine Grove, Wetzel Co, WV [9] Residence SINCE 1980 Sardis, Monroe Co, OH [9] Died Jun 1981 Ohio [1, 10] Buried IOOF Cemetery, Salem, Harrison Co, WV [11] Person ID I35462 Doddridge County Roots Last Modified 6 Jun 2021
Mother Martha Ann MILLER, b. Dec 1843, d. 12 Jun 1932, Smithfield, Wetzel Co, WV (Age ~ 88 years) Family ID F40225 Group Sheet | Family Chart
Family 1 Flora J. GEORGE, b. 1 Jan 1878, Doddridge Co, WV , d. 25 Sep 1933, New Martinsville, Wetzel Co, WV (Age 55 years) Married 3 Apr 1901 Lyon, Doddridge Co, WV [3] Notes - 1910 Census, Wetzel Co, WV (Grant District), enumerated on Apr 23 1910 at Morgan Run:
Ezra Miller, 26, farm manager, married 9 yrs; wife Flora J, 33, married 9 yrs, mother of 4 children (all still living); dau Irene G, 10; dau Mary A, 7; son Alva, 5; son Gilbert, 2; mother Martha A, 64, widowed, mother of 6 children (4 still living); boarder Russell Gains, 18, single, farm laborer; boarder John Phillip, 16, single, farm laborer.
NOTE: A nearby household was that of Ezra's sister and brother-in-law Amy and William A. Swiger and their children.
1920 Census, Wetzel Co, WV (Grant District), enumerated on Feb 17 1920 at Arches Fork Road:
Ezra Miller, 40, laborer in woods; wife Flora J, 45; son Alva, 15; son Gilbert, 13; dau Pearl, 11; son Archie, 5; son Gordon, 3; mother Martha, 79.
1930 Census, Wetzel Co, WV (Grant District), enumerated on Apr 14 1930:
Ezra Miller, 57, farmer; wife Flora J, 53; son Archie W, 15; son Gordon R, 13; mother Martha A, 87, widowed; father-in-law William E. George, 94, widowed.
The next enumerated household was that of Ezra's brother and sister-in law, Gilbert and Margaret Miller.
Children + 1. Alvy MILLER, b. 10 Oct 1904, Wetzel Co, WV , d. 14 Oct 1982 (Age 78 years)2. Gilbert MILLER, b. 5 Aug 1907, Wetzel Co, WV , d. 15 Apr 1970, Smithfield, Wetzel Co, WV (Age 62 years)Documents 
35462_JohnEzraMiller_FloraJGeorge_MarriageRecord_3Apr1901.jpg Family ID F57778 Group Sheet | Family Chart
Family 2 Martha Dessie MAYFIELD, b. 16 Jan 1891, Morgansville, Doddridge Co, WV , d. 14 Feb 1965, Smithfield, Wetzel Co, WV (Age 74 years) Married 7 May 1934 Clarksburg, Harrison Co, WV [12] Notes - 1940 Census, Wetzel Co, WV (Grant District, Town of Smithfield), enumerated on Apr 5 1940:
Ezra Miller, 63, road construction worker (WPA); wife Dessie, 47. Both were residing in rural Wetzel County in 1935.
Documents 35462_EzraMiller_DessieMayfieldMorganSponaugleFord_MarriageRecord_7May1934.jpg Family ID F40224 Group Sheet | Family Chart
- The birth date 1876 on John Ezra Miller's headstone is at variance with other records. His birth date is given in the 1900 Census as May 1884, age 16, which is consistent with age 18 given in his April 1901 marriage record and age 26 in the 1910 Census. But after that time, he consistently overstated his age. His stated age 40 in the 1920 Census would put his birth in about 1880, age 57 in the 1930 Census puts it in about 1873, and age 63 in the 1940 Census puts it in about 1877. In his 1918 World War I draft registration and in his 1934 marriage record, he stated his birth date at 7 May 1880. A newspaper account in May 1981 states that he was born on 7 May 1876 and was about to celebrate his 105th birthday. It appears, however, that the most accurate and plausible indication of his age was the 1900 Census, putting his birth date in May 1884 and his age at death in June 1981 at 97.
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Documents 35462_James-Ezra-QUINN_aka-Ezra-MILLER_BirthRecord_30May1884.jpg
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Sources - [S638] Headstone (year only).
- [S1654] Harrison County Marriage Records, Clarksburg, WV, MR p. 75 : http://www.wvculture.org/vrr/va_view.aspx?Id=56551&Type=Marriage.
- [S1554] Doddridge County Marriage Records, West Union, WV, http://www.wvculture.org/vrr/va_view.aspx?Id=11793537&Type=Marriage.
- [S2248] 1910 Census, Wetzel County, WV.
- [S1875] World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918, National Archives and Records Administration, (Ancestry.com online database).
- [S2199] 1920 Census, Wetzel County, WV.
- [S2230] 1930 Census, Wetzel County, WV.
- [S2648] 1940 Census, Wetzel County, WV.
- [S1924] Social Security Death Index.
- [S15] Social Security Death Index.
- [S934] Findagrave.com.
- [S1654] Harrison County Marriage Records, Clarksburg, WV, MR p. 75 : http://www.wvculture.org/vrr/va_view.aspx?Id=56551&Type=Marriage.
Identified as Ezra Miller, widowed, 54, b. May 7 1880 in Wetzel Co, res. Folsom in Wetzel Co, son of Henry Quinn & Martha (Miller) Quinn; and Dessie Martha Ford, widowed, 40, b. Jan 16 1894 in Doddridge Co, res. Salem in Harrison Co, dau of James Mayfield & Jane (Swiger) Mayfield. Married May 7 1934 in Clarksburg.
- [S638] Headstone (year only).