Sarah Elizabeth (English) Kyger
CHURCH_AFFILIATION: Sarah was a Methodist.
OBITUARY: Death of Mrs. Sarah Kyger
Aged Leader of W.C.T.U., Church and Community Activities Passes Away
She Was 81 Year Old
Mrs. Sarah Elizabeth Kyger died at 12:30 yesterday afternoon at her home at 1006 North East street after two months's illness with complications incident to old age. She had been bedfast one month.
Mrs. Kyger was the daughter of Robert and Martha English, who were pioneer settlers of Illinois, coming from Ohio. She was born December 10, 1840 in Pike county, Illinois, and came to Bloomington in 1861, where she made her home and attended the Normal university during the civil war, later teaching school for two years at Georgetown, Ill.
October 31, 1865, she was married in Danville to Tilman D. Kyger, who was a captain in the union army. They were the parents of two sons, Herbert E. Kyger, of 1006 North East street, with whom she made her home, and John T. Kyger, who died twenty-seven years ago. Her husband died February 21, 1876.
After the death of her husband, Mrs. Kyger continued for a number of years to make her home in Danville, where she was prominent in church activities and took an active part in the W.C.T.U. work., serving as district treasurer, county president of Vermilion county and local president in Danville.
She moved to Bloomington in 1898, where she united with the Grace M.E. church and became an active worker. She was a public-spirited woman, taking an interest in all affairs for the good of the community. After coming to Bloomington, twenty-three years ago, she became president of the Woman's Foreign Missionary Society of the Grace church, serving for eleven years, and was active in community affairs until three months ago.
Besides her son, Mrs. Kyger is survived by a sister, Mrs. Anna Merritt, of East Gove street, and a brother, English, who recently moved to Bloomington from Decatur.
An incident in the life of Mrs. Kyger, which will be of interest to her friends, happened at the time that Dr. Barnes was connected with the Wesleyan university, when the drive was on for $40,000 to be raised for science hall. A voluntary subscription with a few remarks from Mrs. Kyger at a time when the committees in charge were most discouraged was said by Mr. Barnes to be the turning point in the campaign, and the success of the campaign was largely due to her cheerful and encouraging remarks.
(Source: Bloomington, IL paper, Monday Morning, 11 Jul 1921)
