MELISSA RUTHVEN KENASTON CARPENTER

Headstone of Melissa Carpenter buried at the Odell Pioneer Cemetery in Dayton, Oregon.
  • Born: 16 January 1846 | Franklin, Ohio
  • Died: 2 June 1927 | Dayton, Oregon
  • Spouse: William J. Carpenter
  • Married: 17 January 1867 | Rock Island, Illinois
  • Children:
    • Marietta Drucilla Carpenter Myres (1868 – 1933);
    • Ollie Elmer Carpenter (1873 – 1939);
    • Othie Edwina Carpenter Gardiner (1875 – 1967);
    • Ottis Wayne Carpenter (1878- 1944);
    • Ethel M. Carpenter (1879-1880);
    • Osyth Ethelyn Carpenter (1881 – 1974);
    • Vida Lorena Carpenter Robison (1883 – 1965);
    • Joel Vilah Carpenter (1886 – 1959);
    • Earl Roff Carpenter (1887 – 1957);
    • Clyde Henry Carpenter (1889 – 1957)

Melissa Ruthven (sometimes spelled Ruthan) Kenaston Carpenter was born on January 16, 1846, in Franklin County, Ohio. At the age of 21, she married Civil War veteran William Joseph Carpenter in Rock Island, Illinois.

During their marriage, the Carpenters lived in several locations across the Midwest, including Nevada, Iowa; Platte, Nebraska; Keya Paha County, Nebraska; and East River Township, Iowa. They eventually settled in Oregon, moving to the Portland area in 1906. William operated a meat market in Portland, and in 1916, the couple purchased a farm in the Webfoot area of Dayton, Oregon, where they lived until their deaths.

Photo of William & Melissa Carpenter, both who are buried at the Odell Pioneer Cemetery in Dayton, Oregon.
Photo credit: Judy Kenaston Warren

Melissa and William had 10 children, with all but one surviving Melissa. Their daughter, Ethel, died in infancy.

Melissa contracted pneumonia and passed away on June 2, 1927, at the age of 81. William followed her 9 years later, passing at the age of 91. Both are buried in the Odell Pioneer Cemetery.

Obituary:

Melissa Ruthfen Kenaston Carpenter was born in Ohio on Jan. 16, 1846 and spent her girlhood in Mercer Co., Ill. In 1867 she married William Carpenter of Rock Island, Ill. and moved with him to Oregon in 1906 and after to Yamhill Co. in 1916 where they took up residence in Webfoot.

On June 2 she died at her home at the age of 81 and is survived by 38 grandchildren and 9 great grandchildren; her husband William Carpenter, and 9 children: Ella D. Myers, Springriver, Neb.; Ollie E. Carpenter, Nampa, Id.; Othie E. Gardner, Albany; Ottis W. Carpenter, Portland; Asytha E. Carpenter, Portland; Veda I. Robison, Kuna, Id; Joel V. Carpenter, Granger, Wa; Earl R. Carpenter, Portland; and Clyde H. Carpenter, Los Angeles, Cal.

Arrangements were made by the Ladd Funeral home and were conducted at the Odell Memorial Chapel on Sunday, June 5, with Rev. Leroy Walker of Dayton, officiating.

-Telephone Register, 10 June 1927 

 

 

 

REFERENCE

Ancestry.com. Illinois, U.S., Marriage Index, 1860-1920 [database on-line], Melissa R Keniston, Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015. Retrieved March 18, 2025.

Find A Grave. (n.d.). Findagrave.com. Retrieved from https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/11919462/melissa-ruthan-carpenter

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

National Archives and Records Administration. (1885). Nebraska State Census. Township 34 Range 21, Keya Paha, Nebraska, 4, William J. Carpenter household. Retrieved March 22, 2022, from Ancestry.com.

Oregon State Library; Death Index 1921-1930 Begin-A; Reel Title: Oregon Death Index A-Z; Year Range: 1921-1930,Mellissa Ruthan Carpenter. Retrieved March 18, 2025 from Ancestry.com [Oregon, U.S., Death Index, 1898-2008 [database on-line]].

U.S. Census Bureau. (1850). 1850 United States Federal Census. Sharon, Franklin, Ohio, population schedule, 25B, Joel Kenaston household. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) microfilm publication M432, Roll 680. Retrieved March 22, 2022, from Ancestry.com.

U.S. Census Bureau. (1860). 1860 United States Federal Census. Township 17 N 2 W, Mercer, Illinois, 968, Joel Kenaston household. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) microfilm publication M653, Roll 211. Retrieved March 22, 2022, from Ancestry.com.

U.S. Census Bureau. (1870). 1870 United States Federal Census. Nevada Township, Iowa, 121B, Joseph Carpenter household. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) microfilm publication M593, Roll 420. Retrieved March 22, 2022, from Ancestry.com.

U.S. Census Bureau. (1880). 1880 United States Federal Census. Platte, Nebraska, E.D. 112, 307B, Joseph Carpenter household. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) microfilm publication T9, Roll 754. Retrieved March 22, 2022, from Ancestry.com.

U.S. Census Bureau. (1900). 1900 United States Federal Census. East River Township, Iowa, E.D. 0085, 7, W. Carpenter household. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) microfilm publication T623, Roll 451. Retrieved March 22, 2022, from Ancestry.com.

U.S. Census Bureau. (1910). 1910 United States Federal Census. Portland, Oregon, E.D. 0245, 3a, William J. Carpenter household. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) microfilm publication T624, Roll 1288. Retrieved March 22, 2022, from Ancestry.com.

U.S. Census Bureau. (1920). 1920 United States Federal Census. Dayton, Oregon, E.D. 477, 3a, William J. Carpenter household. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) microfilm publication T625, Roll 1506. Retrieved March 22, 2022, from Ancestry.com.