52 Ancestors: #28 Lewis Milburn Worland and the Cross-cut Saw

Lewis Milburn Worland, Shelbyville, Indiana

My great-great grandfather Lewis Milburn Worland was born May 26, 1867 in Shelby County, Indiana.  His parents were John William "Smokey John" Worland and Emily Montgomery.  Lewis was the fifth of nine children. As a young adult, Lewis was worked on his father's farm, along with his two older brothers.

Lewis was married to Rebecca Annabel Fisher on January 18, 1894.  At 37, Rebecca was ten years older than her husband.  The picture on the left was taken just prior to his leaving for Jasper Count, Indiana to claim Rebecca as his bride.

The couple had two sons and a daughter: Leonard, Dola, and Luther.   Leonard and Dola were born when Lewis and Rebecca lived in Jasper County.  For a short time, the Worlands resided in Jennings County, which is where their daughter Dola later met her husband, Clyde Holtzlider.

Worland family c. 1901.

Lewis was a farmer for most of his life, but for a time he was a sheriff in Milhousen, Decatur County.  Lewis' son, Leonard, also became a sheriff.  My grandma, Martha Holtzlider, used to visit her uncle Leonard at the Shelby County jail.  She remembered taking food to the prisoners and sliding the trays under the doors.

Six of Lewis' grandchildren served during WWII.  His grandson and namesake, Milburn Holtzlider, posthumously received the Purple Heart Award after he was shot by a sniper at Iwo Jima.

On July 17, 1947,  Lewis died from a heart attack.  He had been cutting wood using a cross-cut saw; he was 80 years old.  A month later, his wife Rebecca had a paralytic stroke and passed away.