Peter Milton Lee
1851 - 1925 (74 years)-
Name Peter Milton Lee Born 6 Jun 1851 Vermilion County, Illinois 
[1, 2] Gender Male Census 1880 Blount Township, Vermilion County, Illinois Occupation farmer [2] Died 3 Aug 1925 Kankakee, Kankakee County, Illinois [1, 2] Buried 7 Aug 1925 Kankakee State Hospital Cemetery, Kankakee, Kankakee County, Illinois [1, 2] Person ID I505 Gritton Last Modified 27 Jan 2023
Father Squire Edward Lee, b. 1 Oct 1814, Mercer County, Kentucky , d. 4 May 1880, Vermilion County, Illinois (Age 65 years) Mother Fannie Sowders, b. 22 Jan 1820, Ohio , d. 23 Jun 1893, Vermilion County, Illinois (Age 73 years) Married 16 Jun 1836 Vermilion County, Illinois [3, 4] - Marriage License Abstracts Vermilion County, Illinois 1826-1852. Page 44. William Lee, father, signed permission for Squire Lee. John Sowders signed for Fanny. [3]
Family ID F191 Group Sheet | Family Chart
Family Sarah Ann Gritton, b. 16 May 1852, Indiana , d. 3 Aug 1941, Farrington Township, Jefferson County, Illinois (Age 89 years) Married 31 Dec 1868 Vermilion County, Illinois [1, 4, 5, 6] - Marriage License Abstracts Vermilion County, Illinois 1853-1874. Page 84. Squire Lee, father, and Cym Lee signed for Milton Lee. W. W. Gritton, father, signed for Sarah A. Gritton.
Divorced Oct 1883 Vermilion County, Illinois [1] Children 1. Luna Amelia Belle Lee, b. 1871, Vermilion County, Illinois , d. 23 Mar 1897, Iowa (Age 26 years)2. Mary F. Lee, b. Abt 1872, Vermilion County, Illinois 3. Joseph Mack Lee, b. 23 Apr 1872, Newtown, Vermilion County, Illinois 4. John Wesley Lee, b. Abt 1876, Vermilion County, Illinois 5. Ina S. Lee, b. Nov 1875, Vermilion County, Illinois , d. 7 Jul 1906 (Age 30 years)6. Milton Lee, b. Abt 1880, Vermilion County, Illinois Last Modified 6 Jul 2019 Family ID F242 Group Sheet | Family Chart
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Event Map 
Born - 6 Jun 1851 - Vermilion County, Illinois 
Married - 31 Dec 1868 - Vermilion County, Illinois 
Census - 1880 - Blount Township, Vermilion County, Illinois Divorced - Oct 1883 - Vermilion County, Illinois 
Died - 3 Aug 1925 - Kankakee, Kankakee County, Illinois 
Buried - 7 Aug 1925 - Kankakee State Hospital Cemetery, Kankakee, Kankakee County, Illinois = Link to Google Earth Pin Legend 
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Notes - Milton Lee was the son of Squire Edward Lee and Fannie Sowders. Squire and Fannie were prosperous early settlers, farmers and landowners in Blount Township, Vermilion County, IL
Milton married first Sarah A. Gritton on 31 December 1868. Between 1869 and 1880, they had as many as seven children later given to adoption. Per the 1880 census, six of those children were: Luna Belle; Mary F; Joseph M; John Wesley Lee; Tonie S; and Milton. Charles Lee Mobaker was Milton and Sarah's youngest child. Milton and Sarah divorced in 1883.
Milton married second Margaret Rebecca Randall Jones on 6 November 1884. Milton and Margaret had four children together.
Milton was a troubled man. He was afflicted with mental illness that may have been bi-polar disorder. Milton was absent from his family for long periods of time. When he did come home, he would have fits of rage that terrorized his children.
Milton was admitted to the State Hospital in Kankakee where he is a resident in the 1900 Census. The 1920 Census shows Milton as a resident of Blount Township, Vermilion County, IL. However, Milton passed at the State Hospital on 3 August 1925. He was buried in the State Hospital Cemetery 7 August 1925.
Milton used and went by his middle name, "Milton." His Lee family descendants distinctly remember him as Peter Milton Lee. His step-descendants choose to remember him as Milton E. Lee. Both offer legitimate arguments, but his full name, like the man, remains an enigma. There is complete agreement that he was known as Milton Lee. [1]
- Milton Lee was the son of Squire Edward Lee and Fannie Sowders. Squire and Fannie were prosperous early settlers, farmers and landowners in Blount Township, Vermilion County, IL
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Sources - [S2] Find a Grave.
- [S7] Illinois, Deaths and stillbirths index, 1916-1947.
- [S45] Marriage license abstracts, Vermilion County, Illinois: 1826-1853, (Illiana Genealogical and Historical Society).
- [S12] Illinois Marriages.
- [S75] The Family of Gritton, Don Claypool, (Don Claypool, 1997).
- [S48] Marriage Abstracts, Vermilion County, Illinois: 1853-1874, (Illiana Genealogical and Historical Society).
- [S2] Find a Grave.