John Crick, a farmer of Louisburg township, Montgomery county, is a native of Old England. Where he was born, in Bolnhurst, on the 25th of February 1842. His father was James H. Hopwood and his mother Sarah Crick. The parents lived and died in the old Country, where in Bedfordshire, our subject was educated and learned his trade.
In the year 1866, the latter crossed the ocean and located in Philadelphia, where he worked at his trade, as a machinist with the firm of Bemeat & Dougherty, and also with the Sellers Tool Co., He remained in Philadelphia about one year and then went to Susquehanna, the same state, where he entered the employ of the New York and Erie Railroad. Later he came to Chicago and worked for the Rock Island Railroad Company, He was with the Kansas Pacific for two years at different points and then, finally abandoned the life of a machinist and in 1871 located on the farm where he now resides. This farm consists of 160 acres of fine land, which our subject keeps in a high state of cultivation. It is stocked well with the best grades of cattle and horses and shows the skillful hand of the master agriculturist.
The domestic life of Mr. Crick began April 15th, 1863 on which date he was joined in marriage with Mary, a daughter of Valentine and Clarinda (Durand) Cryderman. Mrs. Crick’s father was a native of Canada, where he was born in 1816. In early manhood he located in Indiana and there married. He, later, moved to Illinois, where Mrs. Crick was born, she being one of a family of ten children, viz: George, deceased; Amelia, first married John Smith, but is now the wife of Edward Hays; Silvia deceased wife of Jesse N. Gallamore, her children being: Nellie, Rose, Ivy, Jessie, Florence, Clarinda, Maude, Amy and Vance; the fourth child is Mrs. Crick; Merritt L., lives with his mother in Wilson county, Kansas; James Valentine, Amos married Cornelia Ragland, lives in Neodesha, Kansas; William Adna, John Married Dora Wellsing and lives in Washington, and an infant unnamed.
To Mr. and Mrs. Crick have been born a family of six children, as follows – Nettie, born January 4th 1875, resides at home; Jesse, born October 5th 1876; Daisy B., born July 14th, 1879; Amy E. born September 22, 1881; Harry born November 12th,1884 and Frank V. born Sept 7th, 1886. Of these children, Jesse the oldest son enlisted in the Spanish American war in the spring of 1898, and served until his discharge at San Francisco, November 1, 1899. He resided for a time in Missoula, Montana and is now an employee of the Northern Pacific railway and at present resides in Aguascalientes, Mexico where he is a locomotive engineer.
Mr. and Mrs. Crick are devout and consistent members of the Methodist Episcopal church and are leading members of society in the community, where they interest themselves in every cause which looks to general betterment. He has never sought public office and is pleased to support the principles of the Republican party by his vote. He is a charter member of William Penn Lodge of Elk City I.O.O.F. He joined this order in 1870 in Wyandotte, Kansas and has been a life long member of the same. Those who know Mr. Crick and his family best are uniform in their opinion of the splendid character which they maintain in the community.
taken from Independence Daily Reporter, Independence, Kansas dated 7-16-1909
John Crick an old settler and well known citizen of the Central school house in this county died at his home Sunday July 11, aged about sixty-seven years. He located there in 1871 and later married to Miss Mary Cryderman, who survives him. Other of his family are two daughters, Mrs. Otto Kuhnke of Elk County and Mrs. Daisy Ricketts of Lafontaine, and Frank and Harry Crick, his sons who were at home. Mr. Crick was a farmer, he was born in England in 1842 and came to the United States when quite young.
The funeral was held Monday at 3:00 O’clock P.m. the services being conducted in the M. E. Church at Lafontaine by Rev. J. K. Morgan of Neodesha. Mr. Crick had been a member of that church for many years and was a staunch Republican. Stomach trouble was the cause of his death.