Celia & Philena Dirlam – Garfield Cemetery, Garfield, Pawnee County, Kansas

The cemetery records for Garfield Cemetery, show three individuals with the surname of Dirlam. But there is only one headstone with the Dirlam name. The headstone reads: Dirlam

Philena 1843-1887

Celia 1842-1878

Celia and Philena were sisters-in-law who each married a Dirlam brother. There is no stone for the seven-year-old son of Philena Dirlam.

Celia E. Baker was born in 1842 in Ohio. On March 25, 1878, she married Verazzano Dirlam. He enlisted in Co. H 41st OH Infantry and served for three years. Celia and Verazzano were the parents of three sons. The family moved to Pawnee County in the spring of 1873 with plans to farm.

Philena J. Harrington was also born in Ohio in 1843. She married Theodore Dirlam on September 19, 1865. He served in Co. B 169th OH Infantry for one hundred days. Two of their children were born in Ohio and the third in Pawnee County.

Both families were part of the Ohio soldier’s colony which came to Pawnee County in 1873. The brothers were farmers but also dabbled in stock-raising and dairying. After fighting grasshoppers and drought, Theodore began working in a general store and eventually became a partner. The brothers were involved in Garfield Township as both served as trustees.

In May of 1878, Celia passed away leaving Verrazano a single parent with three children ages 12, 11, and eight. Verrazano himself was in failing health so in 1881, he took his three sons back to Ohio. He died the following year from stomach issues that were caused by his time as a soldier.

Philena and Theodore lost their seven-year-old son, Claud, in1880 after a bout of pneumonia. Philena suffered from cancer for two years and passed away in 1887 at the age of 43. Celia, Philena, and her son, Claud, are buried in the Garfield Cemetery.

Theodore took his two daughters back to Ohio in 1884 at the request of his ailing widowed mother. Theodore died in 1930 and is buried with Verazzano in Old Huntington Cemetery, Huntington, Ohio.

Note: Verazzano and Theodore had two other brothers who served in the Civil War. Henry died because of wounds received during the Battle of Missionary Ridge which was fought on November 25, 1863.

Note: Their grandfather was born in Germany in 1750 and came to America in 1785. The Declaration of Independence was finalized on July 4, 1776. The US Constitution went into effect on June 21, 1788.