Francis Gilmer Minor

Francis Gilmer Minor was the only child of Virginia and Francis Minor, born to the couple on February 8, 1852, when Virginia was 28.

All that is known of this life is that he died tragically at the age of 14 on May 15, 1866. My book contains the official account of what happened, but in short, Francis was outside shooting birds while Virginia and Francis ate dinner. His gun jammed, and in an attempt to clear it, he was looking down the barrel when the trigger slipped and he was shot in the face.

This likely look place at a shooting park behind the Six Mile House tavern just across the road from Minoria, the estate where the Minor’s lived. For the location of the park see this drawing, plate 103, by Richard Compton and Camille N. Dry.

Francis is buried alongside his parents at Bellefontaine Cemetery in St. Louis. lot 1623. No photos of him exist.