The Early Life of Julia Beam
Part 1 introduced Julia Beam who was tarred and feathered on 17 October 1891 by a group of men in Glen Gardner, Hunterdon County. Newspapers throughout the country followed the trials with great interest.
The Beam Family
Julia Beam was likely born in August 1873 in Lebanon Township, New Jersey, in an area called Germantown in Tewksbury, Hunterdon County. She was the oldest surviving child of Theodore Beam and his first wife, Ann Elizabeth Call. Typical of the time frame, the births of most of the children were not formally registered. Ann Elizabeth Beam would have twelve children in total, at the birth of her last child a boy; nine were still living. Julia’s mother died on 16 January 1894, five days after giving birth. The cause of death was puerperal peritonitis complicated by La Grippe, “childbed fever,” and the flu. Like many of her peers, Julia’s mom had children regularly until she passed away.
Theodore Beam would take a second wife, Catherine Frank [Franks]. The couple married in 1897, and the union would produce two sons before Theodore passed away in 1898. Catherine was still very young and went on to marry Joseph Apgar in 1899. The two youngest Beam sons, George and Alfred, possibly assumed the surname of their Stepfather, Joseph Apgar. The children of Theodore’s first marriage appeared to scatter or have passed after the death of their father.
The family was nothing out of the ordinary. Theodore was a laborer, owned no property, and kept out of the court records for the most part. One news article indicated that Julia was mistreated as a child. She was sent to work at age eleven, had little education, and had not attended church. Another reporter suggested that she was lying about being married; Marvin Walters already had a wife, and it would have been impossible to wed. There is no way to know how Julia was raised or if she knew her husband was a bigamist. She was seventeen or eighteen when she married and likely more of a sympathetic figure than the horrible influence the people of Glen Gardner deemed her.
In the 1880 census, Theodore’s family and his younger brother’s family shared the same residence. Both men were laborers, and neither could read or write. Julia’s mother Elizabeth [Ann Elizabeth] was able to read. Julia was attending school at age seven. In the 1900 census, Julia and her younger sister, Sarah, both grown, indicated they could read and write. After the death of her parents, Julia was caring for her younger brother, William, and he was attending school. The Beam children weren’t entirely uneducated, as suggested. Though several news articles described Julia as simple or childlike, it was more likely a reflection of her youth and being placed in a difficult situation.
The Beam family was large, and Julia was the eldest surviving daughter. Her family likely expected her to marry and not be a burden. It doesn’t appear that her parents were willing or able to support her when she was alone.
The Marriage
Julia Beam and Melvin [Malachi] N. Walters were married in the Lower Valley Presbyterian Church 29 December 1890 by the Pastor. On the marriage return, it was indicated that it was Walter’s second marriage. The church was near Julia’s home; it seems unlikely the Pastor would marry the couple if he believed Melvin was still legally married. It was not as if the couple wed away from the area or were trying to hide the fact that the groom was married previously. Months before their union, the local newspaper stated that Walters was initiating divorce proceedings against his first wife. His first marriage seems to have been 1888 to a woman named Almira Harrison. A search of the state archives did not turn up a divorce record; his newspaper announcement may have misled different parties to believe that he could legally re-marry.
The time between when Julia was wed and deserted by her husband was not very long. In about ten months, she went from being a newlywed to homeless and victim of vigilantes. The headlines focused on her actions, but minimal mention was made of her husband or the events that led up to the attack.
Marriage Document of Julia Beam and Melvin Walters
Sources
New Jersey, Department of Health Bureau of Vital Statistics, Death Certificate, no number, (1931), Julia Frank [Beam], SHEVS004 reel no. 708, New Jersey State Archives, Trenton.
New Jersey, Department of Health Bureau of Vital Statistics, Marriage Certificate, W-39, (1890), Melvin N Walters and Julia Beam, SHEVS003 reel no. 77, New Jersey State Archives, Trenton.
1880 U.S. census, Hunterdon County, New Jersey, population schedule, East Lebanon, Enumeration District (ED) 86, sheet 352 a (stamped), house number 125, family 2, Theodore Beam; digital image, Ancestry.com, (https://www.ancestry.com/: accessed 8 April 2018), citing National Archives microfilm publication T9. [Julia A. Beam aged 7 eldest child enumerated, birth year about 1873].
New Jersey, Department of Health Bureau of Vital Statistics, Death Certificate, no. B75, (1894), Elizabeth Beam [Call], SHEVS004 reel no. 141, New Jersey State Archives, Trenton.
New Jersey, Department of Health Bureau of Vital Statistics, Birth Certificate, number, (1897), George Beam, SHEVS002 reel no. 153, New Jersey State Archives, Trenton.
Find A Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com : accessed 08 April 2018), memorial page for Theodore Beam (1846–1898), Find A Grave Memorial no. 71533016, citing Middle Valley Cemetery, Washington Valley, Morris County, New Jersey, USA ; Maintained by Donna (contributor 46910450).
New Jersey, Department of Health Bureau of Vital Statistics, Marriage Certificate, A-2, (1899), Joseph Charles Apgar and Catherine Frank [Beam], SHEVS003 reel no. 147, New Jersey State Archives, Trenton.
1900 U.S. census, Hunterdon County, New Jersey, population schedule, Clinton Township, Enumeration District (ED) 3, sheet 57b (stamped), house number 51, dwelling 167, family 174, Joseph C. Apgar; digital image, Ancestry.com, (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 8 January 2018), citing National Archives microfilm publication T623. [Joseph Apgar is the head of the household, two Step-Sons George Beam (3), and Albert (1), but 10 years later on the 1910 census they are listed as sons with the last name Apgar].
1910 U.S. census, Hunterdon County, New Jersey, population schedule, East District Lebanon Township, Enumeration District (ED) 8, sheet 230b (stamped), dwelling 99, family 104, Joseph C. Apgar; digital image, Ancestry.com, (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 8 January 2018), citing National Archives microfilm publication T623.
“For Tarring a Woman,” The Sun [New York], 20 November 1891, page 1, column 1, digital image; Newspapers.com, (http:www.newspapers.com : accessed 21 October 2017).
“Tarred and Feathered because she was Bad; Glen Gardner’s Young Men were being Corrupted,” New York Herald, page 18, column 3, digital image; Genealogybank (http://ww.genealogybank.com : accessed 7 October 2016).
1880 U.S. census, Hunterdon Co., N. J., pop. Sch., E. Lebanon, ED 86, sheet 352 a, house no. 125, family 2, Theodore Beam; digital image, Ancestry.com.
1900 U.S. census, Hunterdon County, New Jersey, population schedule, West Lebanon, Enumeration District (ED) 18, sheet 248A (stamped), house number NA, dwelling 257, family 260, Edward Lisk; digital image, Ancestry.com, (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 8 January 2018), citing National Archives microfilm publication T623.
1900 U.S. census, Hunterdon County, New Jersey, population schedule, East Lebanon, Enumeration District (ED) 17, sheet 229A (stamped), house number NA, dwelling 80, family 85, Luther Frank; digital image, Ancestry.com, (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 8 January 2018), citing National Archives microfilm publication T623.
New Jersey, Department of Health Bureau of Vital Statistics, Marriage Certificate, W-39, (1890), Melvin N Walters and Julia Beam, SHEVS003 reel no. 77, New Jersey State Archives, Trenton.
Brief News Items from Glen Gardner,” transcript by Bill Hartman, Rootsweb (”http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~njhrna/ : accessed 4 November 2016); citing original publication in the Hunterdon County Republican, 4 June 1890.[Note: Rootsweb is currently experiencing hosting issues, but I have Mr. Hartman’s pdf].
“Married,” transcript by Bill Hartman, Rootsweb (”http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~njhrna/ : accessed 4 November 2016):citing original publication in the Hunterdon County Republican, 7 January 1888.[Note: Rootsweb is currently experiencing hosting issues, but I have Mr. Hartman’s pdf].
