MELCHING FAMILY HISTORY
BY: J. R. VANHOOSE, 
ORVILLE J. MELCHING: He was born on Oct. 14, 1909 in Bluffton, Wells Co., IN.[1] He married MARTHA B. PHIPPS(daughter of Steve B. Bell and Louella Phipps) on April 27, 1929[2] in Independence, Kenton Co., KY.[3] She was born on July 26, 1907 in Cleveland, Cuyahoga Co., OH.[4] and she died on May 19, 1982 in Ossian, Wells Co., IN and is buried in Oak Lawn Cemetery.[5] He died on July 12, 1976 in Warsaw, Kosciusko Co., IN[6] and is buried in the Oak Lawn Cemetery in Ossian, Wells Co., IN. They had the following children:[7]
JOHN(married Mary E. Campbell)
NANCY(Pressler)
SUSAN(Barton)
Orville is the son of:
ALBERT MELCHING: He was born on Nov. 19, 1883 “in a log house” in Allen Co., IN.[8] He married CARRIE KLINE(daughter of James and Emma(Carpenter) Kline) on Jan. 19, 1904 in Wells Co., IN.[9] She was born on June 13, 1888 in Wells Co., IN and died on June 27, 1976 at the Lutheran Home, Ft. Wayne, Allen Co., IN.[10] He attended the Valpariso Banking and Commercial Law School from 1900-1901. He later had an extensive banking career in Wells Co., IN later becoming Ossian State Bank President. He died on Sept. 18, 1977 at the Lutheran Home, Ft. Wayne, Allen Co., IN. They had the following children:[11]
FAY(Borror)
MAX
JOHN
ORVILLE J.
Albert is the son of:
THEODORE MELCHING: He was born on Aug. 17, 1851 in Sievershausen, Germany(Prussia). He married ROSE KREIGH(daughter of Samuel and Magdalene(Beck) Kreigh) on June 15, 1873 in Wells Co., IN.[12] She was born on March 21, 1854 in Jefferson Township, Wells Co., IN and died in 1912 in Wells Co., IN. He came to America with his parents in 1854 and they first settled in Ashland Co., OH then they came to Wells Co., IN in 1870.[13] After Rose died he married Amelia Clark in 1914. He died on April 10, 1935 in Ossian, Wells Co., IN and was buried in the Elhanan Cemetery.[14] They had the following children:
IRENE(William Dustman)
EMMA(Mock)
MAGDALENE(Glock)
CHARLES
WILLIS
WILLARD
ALBERT
ISAIAH
ROSA MAY(born and died in 1888)
LULA(Harry Dustman)
ALVA
FAY(Avery)
Theodore is the son of:[15]
FRANZ CARL LUDWIG MELCHING: He married WILHELMINE CHARLOTTE HAGEL on Oct. 22, 1837 in Sievershausen, Germany(Prussia).[16] They came to America in 1854 and first settled in Ashland Co., OH then they came to Wells Co., IN. She was born in 1812/1813 in Germany and died on February 8, 1902 at the home of her daughter, Mrs. Isaiah Langle in Wells Co., IN. She is buried in the St. Paul Cemetery.[17] He died in 1885/1886 in Jefferson Township, Wells Co., IN. They had the following children:
THEODORE