Martha Ann Odell Coovert

Headstone of Martha Ann Odell Coovet, buried in the Odell Pioneer Cemetery in Dayton, Oregon.

“Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord. They rest from their labors and their works do follow them.”

Early Life and Family Background

Martha Ann Odell Coovert was born in 1822, the eldest of ten children born to John and Sarah Odell. When Martha was three years old, her family moved from Wayne County, Indiana, to the wilderness of Carroll County, Indiana, near Delphi. They were among the first white families to settle in the area.

Marriage and Journey to Oregon

At around 18 years old, Martha met farmer Abram Coovert. They married in early January 1845 in Carroll County, Indiana.

In the spring of 1851, the Cooverts, along with the Odell family, set out for Oregon in search of a new home. They left Indiana with two wagons, six yoke of oxen, and two horses. The months-long journey was difficult, with harsh weather, the threat of disease, and the challenges of crossing the vast western landscape. But in September 1851, they arrived in Oregon and settled on a 241-acre plot of land 3.5 miles southeast of Dayton.

Life in Dayton and Community Contributions

Martha and Abram became prominent figures in early Dayton. Abram built a grist mill on their land, which quickly gained a reputation for producing high-quality flour. In 1878, they dedicated portions of their property to establish a church and a schoolhouse, reinforcing their commitment to the growing community.

Martha played a key role in the family’s early agricultural endeavors. In a 1958 interview in the McMinnville News-Register, her granddaughters recalled her apple-drying operation:

“[Abram and Martha] had one of the first apple orchards and Mrs. Coovert dried and packed the fruit which was shipped to Portland.

Her first dryer held only six trays and the process was slow. Later she had a machine to core and slice while girls checked and arranged the slices on the trays, which were placed on little cars that traveled through tunnels over furnace heat. The finished product was packed in wooden boxes and stenciled “A. Coovert No. 1 Dried Apples.”

(Doud, 1958)

Martha was a devout lifelong member of the Methodist Church, having been raised in the faith. She remained an active supporter of the church throughout her life.

Children and Losses

Martha and Abram had seven children, three of whom were born before their move to Oregon:

The four youngest children—Henrietta R., Wilbur Lee, Ida Elizabeth, and Ora M.—were born on the family homestead in Dayton. Sadly, daughters Henrietta and Ora both died from diphtheria in 1863, just months apart.

All of Abram and Martha’s children are buried in the Odell Pioneer Cemetery, with the exception of John Q. (buried in Indiana) and Mary Ellen, who rests in Rose City Cemetery in Portland. However, Mary Ellen’s husband, John Lambert, is interred at the Odell Pioneer Cemetery.

Later Years and Death

Martha passed away in 1903 at the age of 81 from apoplexy (stroke), having spent over half a century building a home and community in Dayton. Abram followed her in 1907 at the age of 87. Together, they left a lasting legacy, both through their family and their contributions to the town they helped shape. Today, they rest alongside five of their seven children in the Odell Pioneer Cemetery.

Obituaries:

Mrs. Martha A. Coovert was stricken with apoplexy at her home in Webfoot early Saturday morning and died Tuesday afternoon at 5:30, aged 80 years. She was born in Indiana and crossed the plains in 1851. Her husband and three daughters remain: Mrs. Katie Nichols, Mrs. J.A. Lambert, and Mrs. N.A. Harris. Mrs. Coovert’s funeral was held on Wednesday afternoon, Rev. R.E. Dunlap of Dayton officiating, and the internment took place at Odell Cemetery.

– Telephone Register, 28 March 1903

(Dayton Herald, 1903)
(Statesman Journal, March 29, 1903, p. 4)

Tombstone inscription:

Pioneer of 1851

“Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord. They rest from their labors and their works do follow them.”

(Marshall, 1976, p. 2)

REFERENCE

Abram Coovert, of Dayton [Obituary]. (1907, February 3). Sunday Oregonian, p. 4.

Ancestry.com. Genealogical material in Oregon donation land claims [database on-line]. Image 51. Provo, UT: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005. Retrieved March 19, 2025.

Ancestry.com. Indiana, U.S., Marriage Certificates, 1960-2012 [database on-line]. Martha Ann Odell. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2016. Retrieved March 19, 2025.

Dayton Herald. (1903, March 27). Page 1, column 4. Retrieved March 23, 2025, from https://oregonnews.uoregon.edu/lccn/2024240272/1903-03-27/ed-1/seq-1.pdf

“Died.” Statesman Journal, 29 Mar. 1903, p. 4.

Doud, Ruth. (1958, September 29). Mr. and Mrs. Russell May operate Century Farm at Webfoot. McMinnville News-Register.

Find A Grave. Martha Ann Coovert. Findagrave.com. Retrieved from https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/11919469/martha_ann-coovert

Frink, C. H. (1953). They were God-fearing people. In Dayton Reading Club (Ed.), Some Dayton chapters in the Oregon story (pp. 33-36). Dayton Reading Club. Retrieved from https://www.daytonoregon.gov/upload/page/0132/Some_Dayton_Chapters_in_the_Oregon_Story.pdf

Genealogical Forum of Oregon. (n.d.). Odell Cemetery biographies (p. 39).

Marshall, M. D. (1976, September 20). History of Ebenezer Chapel. Dayton Tribune, p. 2.

Odell, Martha Ann. Early Oregonians Database Index. Oregon State Archives. Retrieved from https://secure.sos.state.or.us/prs/profile.do?ancRecordNumber=46023

Oregon State Archives; Salem, Oregon; Oregon, County Birth and Death Records, 1855-1962. Abram Coovert. Retrieved March 19, 2025 from Ancestry.com. Oregon, U.S., County Births and Deaths, 1855-1970 [database on-line], image 30.

Oregon State Archives; Salem, Oregon; Oregon, Death Records, 1864-1967. Abram Coovert, Retrieved March 19 2025 from Ancestry.com. Oregon, U.S., State Deaths, 1864-1971 [database on-line], image 2426.

Oregon Historical Society; Portland, OR; Index Collection: Pioneer Index. Coovert, Mrs. Martha Ann O’Dell. Retrieved March 19, 2025 from Ancestry.com, Oregon, Biographical and Other Index Card File, 1700s-1900s [database on-line], image 909.

Oregon State Library; Oregon Death Index 1903-1920; Reel Title: Oregon Death Index A-L; Year Range: 1903-1920. Coovert, Abram. Retrieved March 19, 2025 from Ancestry.com, Oregon, U.S., Death Index, 1898-2008 [database on-line], image 2422.

U.S. Census Bureau. (1850). 1850 United States Federal Census. Jackson, Indiana, dwelling 53, family 47, 481a, Absalom Covert [Abram Coovert] household. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) microfilm publication M432, Roll 137. Retrieved March 22, 2022, from Ancestry.com.

U.S. Census Bureau. (1860). 1860 United States Federal Census. Dayton, Oregon, 664, Abram Coovert household. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) microfilm publication M653, Roll 1056. Retrieved March 22, 2022, from Ancestry.com.

U.S. Census Bureau. (1870). 1870 United States Federal Census. Dayton, Oregon, 570A, Abram Coovert household. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) microfilm publication M593, Roll 1288. Retrieved March 22, 2022, from Ancestry.com.

U.S. Census Bureau. (1880). 1880 United States Federal Census. Dayton, OR, E.D. 135, 434B, Abram Coovert household. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) microfilm publication T9, Roll 1084. Retrieved March 22, 2022, from Ancestry.com.

U.S. Census Bureau. (1900). 1900 United States Federal Census. Dayton, Oregon, E.D. 0166, 13, Abram Coovert household. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) microfilm publication T623, Roll 1353. Retrieved March 22, 2022, from Ancestry.com.