Hector Jennings, a Man of Service

Hector Jennings was born in Elmira, New York, in 1804, and died in Sandusky, Ohio on January 27, 1900. He was married to Delina Cummings in 1825. The family settled in Sandusky about 1838.

The January 29, 1900 Sandusky Register stated, “His early steps in learning's paths were taken under the guidance of his mother, who at the same time instilled a profound love for God and fellow men which gave rise to qualities of uprightness and honesty in his character which he retained through life. They were also productive of a strong love of liberty, which made him ever the champion of the oppressed and down trodden. During the days before the war his home was very often the refuge of the fugitive bondsmen.”

Mr. Jennings was an ardent foe of slavery, and he was pleased that several of his sons enlisted for service for the Union during the Civil War. He tried to enter the conflict as well, but he was barred due to his advanced age.

Through military records accessible via Ancestry Library Edition, we learned that James Jennings was a Colonel in the 4th Ohio Volunteer Infantry. H. C. Jennings was a Corporal in the 65th Ohio Volunteer Infantry. William and Wesley B. Jennings both served in the 123rd Ohio Volunteer Infantry; William as a musician, and Wesley as a First Sergeant. The daughter of Hector Jennings, Mrs. Caroline Cady, was reported to have ministered to prisoners, and residents of the hospitals and the soldiers’ home.

Though many of his children moved away from this area, Hector Jennings, his wife Delina, son Wesley B. Jennings, and daughter Mrs. Caroline Cady are all interred in Block Two of Sandusky’s Oakland Cemetery.

Caroline Cady, Christian Worker

This obituary of Mrs. Caroline Cady appeared in the Sandusky Register on April 25, 1905. A transcription of her obituary reads:

Mrs. Caroline Cady

Mrs. Caroline Cady entered into rest at her home, 115 Bell Street Monday morning, April 24^th at 5 o’clock, aged 77 years and 8 months, after an illness of several weeks. Only for one week was she thought to be critically ill, pneumonia having developed.

In the death of Mrs. Cady Sandusky has lost one of its pioneer Christian workers. For 25 years past she has proclaimed the gospel of Christ to the prisoners at the jail, police station and hospital at the Soldiers’ home, distributing hundreds of Bibles in which she had marked God’s loving promises to those that see Him, and has seen many give up their ways of sin for a holy and happy life. She has rendered assistance to many, given wise counsel and encouragement. Homes have been made happy in times of sorrow and need. Always remembering the words of our Lord: “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these, ye have done it unto me.” About two years ago she lost her sight but still worked the Master, sending out God’s word in leaflets, well knowing it would not return unto Him void but accomplish that whereunto it was sent. The end of her life was like an ideal setting of the sun to rise again in a perfect day. She realized and said underneath her were the everlasting arms. “On Christ the solid rock I stand. All other ground is sinking sand.”

She leaves three daughters, Mrs. Lewis Lea, Mrs. W.G. Myers and Mrs. Minnie Kelley; one sister, Mrs. Josephine J. Couch, and three brothers, J.W. Jennings of New York, J.T. Jennings of Seattle, Wash., and H.C. Jennings of Fostoria.

The funeral services will be held at her home, 115 Bell Street, Wednesday at 2 p.m. Burial private.

Dearest mother, thou has left us.

Here they loss we deeply feel.

But ‘tis God that has bereft us,

He can all our sorrows heal.

Caroline Cady was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Hector Jennings, and the widow of William Cady, a Civil War Veteran. In her younger days she operated a millinery shop in downtown Sandusky. 

Obituaries in newspapers in the late nineteenth century and the early twentieth century were filled with descriptive language, and pointed out the character of the deceased. They were generally written by someone who had known the deceased well, and often included Bible verses and poems. Below is a postcard of the old hospital on the grounds of the Ohio Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Home (now the Ohio Veterans Home) where Mrs. Cady frequently paid visits to provide counsel and encouragement to the patients.