Milner Monument

The Milner monument in the North Ridge section of Oakland Cemetery honors the memory of Henry and Thomas Milner and their wives. Thomas and Henry Milner were born in England in the 1820's to Thomas and Ann (Bowser) Milner. The Milner family emigrated to the United States, and settled in Erie County, Ohio. By 1880 both Thomas and Henry Milner and their families were living on farms in Perkins Township, close to the Columbus Pike. The first Mrs. Thomas Milner, nee Francis Bennett, died of consumption in 1879. Thomas Milner married Clarinda Downs in 1883.

Henry Milner died on October 22, 1889. His funeral cortege to the grave numbered over one hundred vehicles. The October 25, 1889 "Sandusky Register" reprinted the tribute to Mr.Milner from the Erie County Board of Agriculture. The resolution read in part: "Mr. Milner was one of the few men who not only gave of his time and his means freely but repeatedly lent his personal credit for the maintenance and advancement of the society during its most critical period...we have lost not only a true-hearted friend but an adviser to whom we have looked for guidance in our deliberations..." Henry Milner was married to Huldah Westfall Milner, and they raised an adopted daughter, Sarah Milner Steen. Both Henry and Huldah Milner were pioneer members of the Perkins Grange. Mrs. Milner died on May 12, 1901. She had been known fondly as "Aunt Huldah" by her large circle of family and friends in Perkins Township.

Below is an image of the home and farm of Henry Milner, as it appeared in the 1874 Erie County Atlas, published by Stewart & Page. Click on the image for a larger view.



Sadly, Thomas Milner took his own life on October 20, 1899, following several months of failing health. The October 23, 1899 "Sandusky Register" reported that Thomas Milner was "one who had proved himself a faithful friend, a loving, judicious husband and father, a wise counsellor and a just man." After Thomas Milner's death, Clarinda Milner moved to Columbus, Ohio. She was buried in Oakland Cemetery in Erie County after her death in January 1921.