J.B. Curry, Highland Cemetery, Wichita, KS

The grave of J.B. Curry at Highland Cemetery in Wichita bears two rare marks.

J.B. Curry gravestone at Highland Cemetery.

The first rare mark is the Knights of Honor monogram. John was a member of the Knights of Honor and his wife was a recipient of the generous death benefit the organization offered. You can read more about the Knights of Honor here: What’s That Symbol? Knights of Honor Monogram.

Knights of Honor monogram

The epitaph reads “Here is one who is sleeping in faith and love with hope that is treasured in heaven above.” The words are positioned just above the second rare mark on his gravestone, the maker’s mark of Brown & Walgamot.

Brown & Walgamot

C.C. Brown was the proprietor of Arkansas Valley Marble Works in Wichita for a short period of time. In 1883, Brown took on a partner named Samuel Walgamot, “an old and experienced hand in the marble business.” The partnership between Brown & Walgamot was short lived; in 1884, Arkansas Valley Marble works was sold, but Brown & Walgamot were in business together long enough to crank out a few gravestones for some of Wichita’s earliest citizens, including J.B. Curry.

Wichita New Republic, Mar 27, 1884

John’s gravestone is inscribed “Erected to the memory of her husband,” but his wife’s name is not on here, and she is not buried here.

J.B. Curry

The official cemetery records (available online) say this gravestone is for James B. Curry, and the 1880 census says his name was James. But J.B.’s name was John.

The gravestone doesn’t contain his full name, just the initials J.B., and it also bears no dates.

Who was J.B. Curry?

John B. Curry came to Wichita in 1877 and started a watch and jewelry store in downtown Wichita that he ran until his death in 1883.

According to his obituary, John was born in in Kilkee, County Clare, Ireland in 1836 and had ties to Connecticut and Iowa. It also states he came to America as a child, and passenger lists confirm he arrived in 1848 at age 12, and he was traveling with Patrick (age 30) and Rebecca (age 10).

I believe I found John on the 1850 census in Connecticut with sister Rebecca and some other family members. And I was able to find John B. Curry in an 1861 Connecticut directory working as a watchmaker.

John B. Curry, watchmaker, in Connecticut in 1861. Source

John married a woman named Mary Nevin, probably in Connecticut, and they had a son, John Jr., in 1859.

Is this John? The 1860 census has John, Mary, and John Jr. living in New York, but it says John Jr. was born in New York. Other census records say John Jr. was born in Connecticut or Tennessee (the former is probably accurate). I found no other record mentioning the Curry’s in New York, and since he’s in the CT directory in 1861, this may not be him.

J.B. Curry in Iowa

I found at least two references in Wichita documents suggesting John lived in Iowa. In addition to the mention in his obituary, at least one Wichita city directory lists his origin as Davenport, Iowa.

1883 Wichita directory stating J.B. Curry is from Davenport, Iowa. Source

I didn’t find him on a census record in Iowa, but I found J.B. Curry in a Davenport city directory in 1865 under watch and jewelry shops. He was operating a watch repair store in Davenport, Iowa in the 1860’s.

The Morning Democrat, Mar 5, 1863

John appeared on at least one tax roll in Iowa as a “retail dealer,” and he advertised his business in the Davenport newspaper.

The Morning Democrat, Sep 21, 1864

John the watchmaker also appears on Iowa’s draft registration records from 1863, but it doesn’t appear that he served.

The Curry’s appear to have been in Iowa from about 1862-1865. By late summer of 1865, John’s Davenport watch shop had a new proprietor, and he had moved on.

J.B. Curry in Tennessee

When J.B. Curry arrived in Wichita, one Wichita paper said he came from Memphis, and I found John B. Curry, watchmaker, in Memphis directories beginning in 1866.

John B. Curry in Tennessee, 1866. Source

The watchmaker also appears on the 1870 census in Memphis with Mary, John Jr., and two more children—Morgan and Elizabeth. Morgan Curry died at age three, and his death was announced in a Memphis newspaper.

Public Ledger, Aug 2, 1871

The obituary says that Morgan died at home, but the following year a man named J.B. Curry sued the street railway company for “running over and killing [his] son last summer.”

Public Ledger, Apr 16, 1872

The article doesn’t mention the son’s name, and later articles indicate the accident happened January 1, but the obituary says Morgan died August 1.

Morgan doesn’t appear on any more census records with J.B.

J.B. Curry in Wichita

John came to Wichita in 1877, maybe without his first wife Mary and daughter Elizabeth. I couldn’t find a record of either of them after 1870 and neither appeared to have been in Wichita. I found a Mary Curry who died in Memphis a few days after John’s new jewelry store in downtown Wichita was announced. She’s the right age, but it’s not clear if this was his wife that he left behind or another Mary Curry in Memphis.

The Weekly Eagle, Jun 21, 1877

John married a young woman in Wichita named Kate Pepper on November 4, 1878. Kate was just nine years older than John’s oldest son, John Jr., who seems to be the only child who came to Wichita with him.

Source

J.B. was Wichita’s “Boss” jeweler. Other cities had their own Boss jewelry house, but Wichita’s was ran by John. “Boss” is a reference to James Boss, who patented a gold-filled watch case in 1859. The Boss watch case was the first widely adopted and commercially successful gold-filled watch case.

Wichita Daily Times, Dec 10, 1881

James Boss sold his watch case patent to a company that oversaw the massive growth of the J. Boss brand. They used “an extensive system of advertising” to promote their product, including the opening of Boss-branded jewelry stores in many states and the production of a series trading cards that jewelers could use to advertise.

Jewelers could stamp their mark in the blank space on the card. The reverse side contained marketing copy about Boss watch cases. Source

Curry, a skilled watchmaker, ran Wichita’s first and only Boss jewelry house for six years selling watches, clocks, jewelry and silverware. Others would later take over Curry’s Boss Jewelry House, but he was the original Boss jeweler in Wichita.

Wichita Daily Times, Dec 3, 1881

The 1880 census shows J.B. in Wichita, but someone wrote his name as James. It’s not clear why, but it could simply be confusion between James Boss watch cases and J.B. the Boss jeweler.

James B. the jeweler, wife Catherine, son James B. Source

John Jr. was known locally as Johnnie. He followed in his fathers footsteps (at least for a time) and briefly ran his own watch and clock repair business in Wichita the year his father died.

Wichita Daily Times, Apr 20, 1883

John’s Death, Will, and Knights of Honor Benefit

John got sick at the end of November, 1882 with “a severe attack of malarial fever” and he never recovered. In January 1883 he was sick enough to transfer the day-to-day operations of his Boss jewelry store to others.

News of John’s death was first announced in the Wichita Daily Times on May 8, 1883.

Wichita Daily Times, May 8, 1883

His obituary contains details about his life that help piece together his history and includes his first name of John, his birthplace of Ireland, his first home in Connecticut, and a reference to Davenport, Iowa.

Wichita Daily Times, May 9, 1883

John was a member of Knights of Honor Lodge #528 in Wichita. At the time of his death, the secret society was near its peak membership numbers, and the $2,000 death benefit was still being paid out quickly.

In John’s will, he states how he wants his Knights of Honor death benefit disbursed to his family. He leaves $500 to a daughter he shares with Kate, $300 to his son (and all his tools, jewelry, and personal belongings), and the remainder ($1,200) to his wife.

“It is my will that the proceeds of my benefit certificate in the Knights of Honor be disposed as follows, to wit: Five Hundred ($500.00) dollars thereof to my daughter Mary N. Curry, and Three Hundred ($300.00) dollars thereof to my son, J.B. Curry, Jr., and the rest thereof to my wife Kate Curry.”

John’s will, signed before his death. I wasn’t able to find daughter Mary on any census records, but John did “deliver a bundle of cigars” in 1881, leaving me to wonder—was Mary a minor? Other documents in his will hinting at a dispute may hold some clues. Source

The receipt for John’s burial, the hearse, embalming fluid, and other items purchased from H.W. Kendle related to his burial were included in his probate file.

Receipt dated May 10, 1883 from H.W. Kendle. Source

There is also a receipt from the Wichita Cemetery Company for the cost of the lot ($18) and the digging of his grave ($4) at Highland Cemetery.

Receipt dated May 14, 1883 from Wichita Cemetery Company. Note his name is written as John here by the cemetery sexton, Henry Smith. Source

Kate was paid $2,000 by the Knights of Honor in the summer of 1883. She may have used a portion of the proceeds to pay Brown & Walgamot for the gravestone that bears the Knight of Honor monogram, but there was no receipt for a gravestone in the probate file.

Wichita Daily Times, Aug 2, 1883

Additional Resources

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