Samuel C. Osbourne

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Samuel was son of Cynthia Ann Stewart and Dr. Samuel Montgomery Osborne. He had one brother that died young and two sisters that he grew up with in Louisville, Jefferson Co., KY. He was educated at the Methodists' new Asbury University in Greencastle, IN. (now DePauw). He married Frances Matilda Van De Grift in Indianapolis, Marion Co., IN. on Dec 24, 1857. At that time he was secretary to Gov. Willard of IN. He served in that position for four years. In 1861 he went to war (Civil War) in the 46th Indiana, Company F. He was commissioned Captain on Feb. 6, 1862 for the Union, but never assigned a company; he resigned after 6 months. On July 11,1863 he enrolled in the "home guard" Indiana Legion at Indianapolis. During this time he was deputy clerk of the state Supreme Court of IN. The latter part of 1863, Sam decided to accompany a friend to CA., and in May 1864, Fanny set out to join him, taking six-year old Belle with her. They shipped out of New York and crossed the isthmus of Panama together, arrived in San Francisco, and caught up with Sam in Virginia City, NV. Sam's ventures in the mining towns did not reap what he anticipated, and from persuasion from his wife, they headed to San Francisco where he prospered as a court reporter.

Their son, Lloyd, was born there in 1868, and their youngest son, Hervey, was born in Oakland in 1871. In 1875 Fanny persuaded her husband into letting her take the children to France so they could get an education abroad, and fulfilling her aspirations to study art abroad as well. Tragedy befell them when their youngest son, Hervey, died in Paris in 1876. Sam did journey to Paris to be by his son's side at his death, but the marital complications between Fanny and Sam continued as she wanted to stay and not return to the States. It was during this time that she met and fell in love with Robert Louis Stevenson, but returned to Sam in 1878. Fannie and Sam could not work out their marital problems and divorced in Jan. 1880. Fanny married Stevenson in May 1880 and Sam married his 2nd wife, Rebecca Paul about the same time. In 1887, tragedy befell Sam.

He disappeared and never showed up again. Speculation has it that he could have been robbed and murdered. Some clothes were found later, tattered and worn, that was said to have been his. From "This Life I've Loved", autobiography by his daughter, she writes on page 42 about his disappearance. "She was handed a San Francisco newspaper and there across the front page was her father's name. He was a popular man, a member of the Bohemian Club, and was highly respected among his associates. His business affairs were in order; there were large sums owing the firm that his partner couldn't collect without his signature. Pauly, her stepmother told her that her father went to court for a night session, asked her to have supper for him at midnight, kissed her, and went off down the street whistling. He left the court house a little before midnight, in his usual good spirits, and disappeared forever"…… (The date of March 28, 1887 is the date of his disappearance.)