Family historyThe Daniel Davis News, August 1924
Born near Salem, Ohio
Israel was born on the John Crain or Crane farm in Columbiana County, the son of Daniel Davis Sr. and Sarah Albright Davis and twin brother of Levi.
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Civil War era · Military service not yet documented
Israel Davis
Davis family ancestor
No confirmed military unit or service record
1825–1873 · Ohio, Indiana, Wisconsin, and Minnesota
Israel Davis · reproduced in The Daniel Davis News, August 1924
His story
A life remembered beyond the service record.
Israel Davis was a nineteenth-century Davis family patriarch whose descendants became part of the Dutton family preserved in this archive. His son Levi Emanuel Davis was the father of Pearl Elizabeth Davis; Pearl married Walter Allen Dutton and became the mother of the Dutton children whose military stories span World War II and Vietnam. The surviving family newsletter preserves Israel’s migration, marriage, children, faith, and death during the 1872–1873 smallpox epidemic.
Explore the archive
Related collections
Long-form sources are kept in separate reading rooms so Israel Davis’s profile can remain a clear guide to his life, service, and surviving records.
At a glance
The known record.
Every statement is phrased according to the strength of the evidence currently held or identified.
- 01Born on 4 June 1825 on the John Crain or Crane farm near Salem, Columbiana County, Ohio; twin brother of Levi Davis.
- 02Son of Daniel Davis Sr. and Sarah Albright Davis. His mother died when he was about three years old.
- 03Married Rebecca Pippenger in Carroll County, Indiana, on 16 July 1847. The license writes her surname as Pippenger; later family accounts also use Pippinger.
- 04A 1965 Atwood family genealogy describes Rebecca as the fourth of fourteen children of Peter and Esther (Cripe) Pippenger and supplies grandparent names that remain leads for further documentation.
- 05Father of Susan, Elizabeth Ann, Levi Emanuel, and Catherine Davis.
- 06Grandfather of Pearl Elizabeth Davis through his son Levi Emanuel; Pearl later married Walter Allen Dutton.
- 07Moved from Indiana to Richland County, Wisconsin, in 1865 and to Spring Valley, Fillmore County, Minnesota, around 1870–1871.
- 08Died during the smallpox epidemic on 9 January 1873. Rebecca died five days later, on 14 January; both were buried near Spring Valley, Minnesota.
- 09No reliable military-service record has yet been identified for Israel. His lifetime overlapped the Civil War, but participation should not be inferred from age alone.
Operational timeline
A family life placed through surviving records.
Family historyThe Daniel Davis News, August 1924
Lost his mother in childhood
The family history reports that Sarah Albright Davis died when Israel was about three. After several years, the younger children were placed with other families; Israel was placed with a family named Steward.
Family historyThe Daniel Davis News, August 1924
Joined family in Carroll County, Indiana
After becoming dissatisfied with the Steward household, Israel ran to the home of David Carlyle. When Daniel Davis Sr. returned from Pennsylvania, he took Israel and Benjamin to Carroll County and purchased 160 acres of government land on Wild Cat Creek, about seven miles south of Delphi.
Marriage recordDirectly documented
Married Rebecca Pippenger
The Carroll County marriage license authorized Israel Davis and Miss Rebecca Pippenger to marry and records that minister John Shively joined them as husband and wife on 16 July 1847. The license itself was issued at Delphi on 15 July. Later family accounts spell Rebecca’s surname Pippinger and identify her as the daughter of Peter and Esther Cripe Pippinger.
Family recordThe Daniel Davis News, August 1924
Four children born on the family farm
Israel and Rebecca’s children were Susan, Elizabeth Ann, Levi Emanuel, and Catherine. Daniel Davis Sr. had turned the Wild Cat Creek farm over to the couple after their marriage.
Research statusNo service record identified
Civil War-era service remains unconfirmed
Israel was of military age during the Civil War, but neither the 1924 family history nor the records currently gathered for this archive identify military service, a unit, or a rank. This remains an open research question rather than a service claim.
MigrationFamily newsletter; secondary location detail
Moved to Richland County, Wisconsin
The family history says the prosperity associated with the western states encouraged Israel and Rebecca to move west. A 1965 Atwood genealogy places them more specifically on Bird’s Creek near Basswood, where the family of Israel’s brother Henry reportedly lived.
Migration and communityFamily newsletter; secondary location detail
Moved to Spring Valley, Minnesota
The family settled in Fillmore County near Israel’s brother Peter. The Atwood compilation places their home south of Spring Valley on the York and Etna Road and identifies them as members of the Dunkard Church at Harmony.
Family recordThe Daniel Davis News, August 1924
Israel and Rebecca died in the smallpox epidemic
Israel died on 9 January 1873 and Rebecca on 14 January. The newsletter states that both were buried near Spring Valley, Minnesota.
Family connectionDavis family record
Granddaughter Pearl Davis born
Levi Emanuel Davis and Susan Catherine Caylor’s daughter Pearl later married Walter Allen Dutton, connecting Israel’s Davis descendants to the Dutton family represented throughout this archive.
Beyond the uniform
The person the family knew.
A military file can record a rank, unit, wound, or death—but not a laugh, a favorite story, an occupation, or the way a person was known at home. This section is reserved for photographs, letters, memories, and the details of Israel Davis’s life outside his service.
Family & homeWork & interestsLetters & photographs
Documents & evidence
Building the paper trail.
Read the original records beside selected transcriptions, then follow their evidence directly into the timeline.
Document 01
Marriage License of Israel Davis and Rebecca Pippenger
Carroll County, Indiana · issued 15 July 1847 · marriage certified 16 July 1847
The county license authorizes the marriage of Israel Davis and Rebecca Pippenger and includes the minister’s certification that he joined them as husband and wife on 16 July 1847.
Selected transcription
State of Indiana, Carroll County, ss.
To any person empowered by law to solemnize Marriages, in the County of Carroll, Greeting: You are hereby authorized to join together, as Husband & Wife, Mr. Israel Davis and Miss Rebecca Pippenger according to the laws of the State of Indiana.
Issued at Delphi, 15 July A.D. 1847. James H. Stewart, Clerk [signature reading].
State of Indiana, Carroll County: I, John Shively, a minister of the gospel, do hereby certify that Israel Davis and Rebecca Pippenger were lawfully joined together, as Husband and Wife, on the 16 day of July A.D. 1847, by me.
John Shively, minister of the gospel.
What this establishes
- The marriage license was issued in Carroll County, Indiana, on 15 July 1847.
- The record names the couple as Israel Davis and Rebecca Pippenger.
- Minister John Shively certified that he married them on 16 July 1847.
- The primary record corrects the less precise August 1847 date preserved in the later family newsletter.
Further records
Still being sought
DOC 01
Family accountThe Daniel Davis News, August 1924
Preserves Israel’s portrait, narrative family history, vital dates, children, and descendant tables.
DOC 02
Family accountThe Daniel Davis News, August 1926
Documents Israel’s twin brother Levi and his descendants, records LaVerne Dutton’s 1924 birth, and preserves Daniel Davis Association activity.
DOC 03
Known recordCarroll County marriage license, 1847
Directly records Israel Davis and Rebecca Pippenger’s marriage on 16 July 1847, with the license issued the preceding day.
DOC 04
Family accountThe Ancestry of One Atwood Family, 1965
Pages 27–28 add Bird’s Creek, York and Etna Road, Harmony church, and Pippenger-family research leads; its conflicting marriage date is rejected in favor of the original license.
DOC 05
Family accountDavis and Dutton family records
Support the line from Israel to Levi Emanuel, Pearl Elizabeth Davis, and the Dutton family.
DOC 06
Research leadCivil War military and pension indexes
Needed to determine whether Israel performed military service; none is presently confirmed.
DOC 07
Research leadMinnesota death and cemetery records
May identify the precise burial ground and independently confirm the January 1873 deaths.