NEEDHAM, William H.

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William H. Needham died at his home in this city Wednesday night at eleven o’clock of apoplexy. His death was the occasion of great surprise to his friends and to the citizens in general, for he had been enjoying exceptionally good health during the past winter and had been down on the business streets at five o’clock of the same day on which he died. He had retired for the night early in the evening. His daughter, Christine, heard him groaning about a quarter until eleven o’clock and going into his room found him suffering great pain. He lived only a few minutes after he was found. His wife was visiting a sister in Houghville. His children, all of whom live in this city, were summoned but did not reach his bedside before his death.

Mr. Needham was born in Randolph County, North Carolina, the 11th of November, 1810. In 1816 his father moved to Clark county, Ind., locating near New Washington. Here he remain­ed until 1824, when his father with the family moved to Johnson county, loca­ting near Needham, on Sugar Creek, where he entered land. As a result of industry, at one time he owned one tract of land of 700 acres. He was a large dealer in hogs from 1840 to 1850, driving them to Lawrenceburg, Madison and Cincinnati. He made a large amount of money in these transactions, but in the financial panic of 1873, he lost everything that he had accumulated during his life time, through the detion [sic] of supposed friends. Mr. Needham was a member of the college board from 1852-5; 1860-66; and from 1870 until 1884, being during the last period chairman of the executive committee. He was most efficient in this capacity. He was one of the organizers of the Second Mt. Pleasant Baptist church and has ever since been a member there. He has been married three times, having three children by his first wife, J. M., who is living in this city, Mrs. Hannah J. Reeves, who died in Mattoon, Ills., and Jesse, who died in this city. By his second wife he had two children, Mrs. Ella Farmer and Miss Christine, both of this city.

The funeral services will be conducted by Rev. P. O. Duncan, pastor of the Second Mt. Pleasant church, on next Sunday morning, leaving this city about nine o’clock. The burial will be at the cemetery near that church, under the direction of D. B. Wilson, of Shel­byville. A few weeks ago Mr. Needham and Moses Greer, who lately died, called on Hughes Corman, who has been ill almost all of the past winter but who is now improving, and spoke encouragingly to him, hoping that he would soon be as well as they were. Now they are both dead and he, who at that time was thought to be most seri­ously ill, is improving.

The Franklin Democrat, Friday, April 6, 1894,
Volume XXXIV Number 39, page 1 column 1

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The funeral of William Needham occurred at the Second Mt. Pleasant church last Sunday morning. Rev. P. O. Duncan preached the sermon from the text found in Hebrews, 4th chapter, 9 and 11 verses: “There remaineth there­fore a rest to the people of God. For he thus entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from His. Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.” Prayer was offered by Rev. N. Carr, and W. T. Stott made a few remarks. The pall bearers were Judge T. W. Woolien, Judge W. A. Johnson, A. B. Colton, George Cutsinger, Isaac Mc­Laughlin, W. J. Buckingham, David Fitz Gibbon and W. W. Rand. The music was furnished by a quartette composed of Mrs. G. M. Overstreet, Jr., Miss Grace Stott, Dr. W. E. George, and J. L. Vawter. The number of per­sons attending the funeral was estimated at 2,000. The grave decor­ations were furnished and arranged by Dave Wilson, the funeral director of Shelbyville. A number of friends of the family from Indianapolis and elsewhere were present.

Link to William H. Needham’s grave

Submitted by Mark McCrady and Cathea Curry