The corner stone of the present Church at St. Martin of Tours in Flaherty, KY was laid in 1893. The building was completed in 1894. Many generations have found this Church to be most conducive to worship of our God. Many people sacrificed and contributed their money, material and labor to the building of this beautiful Church. Some of those people have their names in the stained glass windows. This web page is dedicated to those people. It is the intention of the webmaster to insert a short biography of each person whose name appears in the windows. Hence, this page is a work in progress.
The first four frames are windows on the right as you face the front of the Church. The fifth and sixth frames are windows on either side the two side doors at the rear of the Church. The seventh – tenth frames are windows on the left as you face the front of Church. The last frame holds the windows on either side of the altar. The windows on either side of the altar are lit from behind by florescent lights. The actual windows were filled with brick when some minor remodeling was done several years ago.
For a more comprehensive listing of those people who contributed to the building of the present day St. Martin of Tours Church, Flaherty, KY go to our home page and click on the History link.
If you have information about those people whose names appear in windows, you can contact the parish office at 270 828 2552. Or you can contact the webmaster at [email protected]
Charles Jones b. 26 April 1816, d. 26 May 1894 m. Henrietta Simpson. They had eight children: James William, Eliza Ann, Sarah Ann, Mary Elizabeth Jones, John Harrison , Thomas Alexander, Henry Polin, and Charles R. Jones. Mr. Raymond Jones, who lived to be almost 100 years of age is descended from Henry Polin Jones and his wife, Mary Capitolia Medley.
W. H. Edelin is William Henry Edelin b. 8 Sept 1842, d. 9 April 1899. It is believed that he came from Washington County near Fredericktown. He m/1 Eliza Medley, b. 10 Dec 1844, d. 20 Aug 1883. She was born Teresa Eliza Medley, d/o George W. Medley and Ann Caroline Montgomery. Teresa and her parents were on the first 1853 census taken by Father Charles Ignatius Coomes, our first pastor. William and Teresa Eliza were married in 1866 and had four children: Frederick Garland who married Annette Louise "Lula" Craycroft, Charles H., James Medley Edelin, and a daughter, Mary Emeline. William H. Edelin m/2 Isadore "Donie" Cosby, daughter of Dr. Joseph D. Cosby. She was born 25 Oct 1844 and d. 28 May 1892. Donie was an aunt to Harry Cosby and Frank J. Cosby and their sister, Anna May Cosby (who married Martin Craycroft) as she was a sister to their father, Dr. Henry D. Cosby. The name, Edelen, has appeared with different spellings in St. Martin’s records. The Flaherty Edelens of today descend from Frederick Garland Edelen. Mrs. Isabella Sims. Isabella had been a mystery to us until the first week of August. A parishioner whose mother was directly descended from Mrs. Isabella Sims’s last husband, James Alfred Sims, called to tell us that an Isabella Lyons had married Michael Whelan in Marion County, Kentucky. Isabella had been married to a Henry Lyons and appeared with him in the 1860 Marion County Census. Isabella appears with Michael Whelan in our 1870 Meade County Census. At age 45 she had married Michael Whelan, a resident of Meade County, Kentucky on 2 January 1867 in Marion County. The Marion County records state that her parents were born in Virginia. Michael’s first wife and mother of all his children, Anne Ellen Brown, died in 1866 and is buried in our cemetery. It is unknown now what Isabella’s maiden name was. In a newspaper article in the Catholic Advocate about our then newly dedicated church in 1894, it is stated that Mrs. Isabella Sims contributed money for a window "in memory of Michael Whelan." It is possible that Isabella is the same lady who died at the home of Thomas W. Brown in Marion County near Pleasant Run and was buried from St. Ivo’s Church on Monday, 11 December 1899 at age 79. Her fourth and last husband, James Alfred Sims, is the maternal gg grandfather of most of the Greenwell families in our parish today. Michael Whelan b. 13 Oct 1806, d. 7 Oct 1874, son of Michael Whelan and Grace Eleanor Tennelly. Michael was born in Washington County, Ky from whence he moved to Meade County after the 1850 Census. He and his wife, Anne Ellen Brown, were married at St. Rose’s Church in Washington County in 1837, where several of their oldest childrens’ Baptismal records can be found. Michael is the progenitor of most of the Whelans in our parish today. His and Anne Ellen’s children were Charles Kendrick Whelan, Mary Eleanor, John Alexander, Felix Thomas, Daniel O’Connel, Sara Ann, Susan Appalonia, and Eliza Frances.
P. P. Nevitt was Philip Pius Nevitt b. 1 July 1820, d. 26 May 1895. He was the son of Richard Nevitt and Mary Ann Spalding of Nelson County, Ky. Philip’s father died when he was only two years old. He was raised by Philip Peak, whom his mother married in 1825. The Peaks moved to Meade County from Nelson County about 1839. Philip P. Nevitt m. Elizabeth C. Bryan, d/o Ignatius Bryan and Mary Wathen. Elizabeth was b. 23 July 1822, d. 1 Dec 1889. They are buried in St. Martin’s Cemetery as is Phillip’s mother, Mary Peak. Phillip and Elizabeth Nevitt had eight children: Mary Jane, Henry Clay, John Ignatius, Laura Ann, James Hilery, Richard Horace, Frances Ellen, and Julia Bell. ![]() |
Biographies compiled by Ann Sipes with the help of other parishioners, both former and present.