Charles Henry Averill and Maria Louise Elliott in Nebraska and on to Illinois

Charles Henry and Maria Louise Averill in Front of the Marengo House Sometime Between 1900 and 1911

Charles Henry Averill represented a major shift in the Connecticut wing of the Averill family. Around 1870, he took his family and they all moved to Nebraska in order to homestead farmland around Wisner. His son, Edward and his daughter, Anna (Annie) stayed in Nebraska. The rest of them moved on with Charles Henry and Maria Louise when they left Nebraska around 1890 in order to go to Marengo, Illinois.

Charles and Maria Enlargement From the Previous Photo

There, they built a house that still stands and is clearly recognizable, though they've added a garage, changed the porch, and made a few other nips and tucks over the last century. I will let the photos and news clippings that accompany this post to tell some of the rest of the story. Click on any graphic for a larger version. This is particularly useful for the newspaper clippings.

Obituary of C H Averill

Obituary of M L Elliott

Google Maps Streetview of CH and ML Averill's House in Marengo