Walter Ruskin Shaffner One hundred and twenty seven years later.
Walter Ruskin Shaffner was my grandfather, John Fanoit Shaffner’s brother. Walter was born 7 September 1899 to John Martin Shaffner and Elizabeth Deborah Fletcher in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
His mother, Elizabeth Deborah Fletcher Shaffner died on 17 November 1899 in Harrisburg. leaving 6 children, one which was 2 months, 12 days old.
With 6 children to raise, and one a newborn baby, the care was provided by the older sisters (Ettie and Lida) who were 14 and 16 years old and other relatives. But then John Martin Shaffner remarried Emma Reamer on 10 July 1901.
Grandpa maintained that his step-mother, Emma, did not like the stepchildren. So baby Walter went to live with his mother’s sister, Celia Metalla Fletcher Daggett and her husband Richard in Lawrenceville, Tioga County, Pennsylvania. And then Walter died in Elmira, New York on 15 December 1916 from acute indigestion.
I was surprised that in Grandpa’s family history collection there was never a mention of where Walter was buried. Grandpa wrote that he did not know where Walter was buried. Grandpa had filed on a homestead in Montana in 1916 so I suspect that he never received that information.
It had been Grandpa Shaffner’s goal to bring Walter to Montana but unfortunately Walter died before Grandpa was settled on the homestead in Beaverhead County.
My grandfather named his son, Walter Fanoit Shaffner, after his brother. Walter Fanoit Shaffner was born on 29 December 1917.
One of my genealogy quests as been to discover where he was buried. Discovering his funeral notice on a paid subscription website, with a burial at the Harrisburg Cemetery began the search to see the headstone.
Our trip to Pennsylvania, one of my goals was to visit his grave. I contacted the Harrisburg Cemetery and the sexton asked if we could visit on Labor Day 2026 since he would be there that day. After agreeing to the day, I realized the date. September 7th!
Walter’s birthday, 127 years ago!
We were able to wish Walter “Happy Birthday”
