For just a moment in time, there once was a baby girl named Inez Barcie McDavid. 

Inez Barcie McDavid was born to William John McDavid and Barcelona Sylvania (née Foster). 

She was the third child born to the couple. Her siblings included:  Anna Jane (1875-1941), Dr. Jesse T. (1877-1951), Eva N. (1882-1969), Linda Emma (1884-1963), John Russel (1887-1918), William Foster (1888-?), and Lt. Joel Furnas (1892-1919). 

Her father, William, grew up the son of a farmer, and later a Dep. Sheriff, in Montgomery County. Before marriage, William graduated from Lincoln college in 1872 and shortly after, took his pastorate.

Two months before Inez’s birth, the family was noted in the 1880 census as living in East Fork, Montgomery County, Illinois. William worked as a farmer and minister.  

Inez was born on August 31, 1880 and passed away on July 30, 1881. 

By 1900, the family was residing at 8 South Main Street in Hillsboro. In 1902, William was elected the School Superintendent for Montgomery County. 

In 1903, a new church was formed and on May 13th, Irving Cemetery was established. William bought a family plot the next day for $7.00. In today’s money, that’s $257.82. I’d say that’s a really good deal considering family plots now cost thousands of dollars! 

The family had purchased a home by 1910 and were residing on Garfield Street. It’s believed that he still owned property in East Fork at the time. 

William passed away at the age of 65 in Decatur, from “leakage of the heart”. His obituary notes him as the Pastor of the Presbyterian church in Irving for 30 years. 

The siblings went on to become notable members of society. Jesse became a doctor, John Russel was a lawyer, and Joel was a Lieutenant. Joel died near Paris, France while testing a government aircraft and is buried there.

Their mother, Barcelona, lived to be 85. Anna and John are buried in Irving Cemetery along with their parents. 

So how is Inez’s story relevant today and how do we know she existed? 

She was mentioned in her brother John Russell’s obituary and the Irving Centennial, but we’re not really sure where she was buried. 

A portion of her headstone was discovered in Troy, Illinois. The memorial was donated to the Troy Genealogical Society, in October 2025, with the intention to return the stone where it belongs. It had been purchased at a yard sale several years ago. 

Troy Genealogical Society started research immediately and found that Inez was so far away from home. Unfortunately, they dissolved as of December 2025 and the project was transferred to Madison County Genealogical Society. 

With combined efforts from Mike Rappe (Montgomery County Historical Society), on June 14, 2026, we were able to place Inez’s headstone next to her parents where she belongs.