Rev. Asa Allan Armen is buried here, but not under the name of Asa Armen, for that person never existed!

True, he was licensed as a minister with the United Brethren Church and published a number of religious tunes and texts**. And yes, he married Lucretia Shuck at Hartsville, Indiana on 01 Jul 1884. But...Asa Allan Armen was none other than the Rev. Adam Byron Condo under an assumed name!

Adam Byron was a son of John Condo by his first wife, Catherine Beaver. He appears in his father's household at Miami County, Indiana on the 1860 and 1870 censuses, and then abruptly disappears from all records for thirty years.

The dirt dished on page six of the Columbus (Indiana) Republican of Thursday, 05 Apr 1906 tells the story:

It seems he got into some sort of misadventure in the 1870's when he was a youth and, fearing prosecution, consulted an attorney who advised him to legally change his name and leave Miami County. He went to Maine (who'd think to look there?) and changed his name to Asa Allan Armen, never telling his family where he'd gone or that he'd changed his name. They presumed he was lost to them forever.

On the 1880 census, he was enumerated as Asa A. Armen at Hillsdale, Michigan where he was teaching music for a living. Not long afterwards, he was hired as a music teacher at Indiana's Hartsville College where he fell in love with another instructor, Lucretia Shuck. On their marriage record, he listed his parents as John and Catherine (Beaver) "Armen."

In 1892, his wife Lucretia was hired as a teacher at the high school in Columbus, Indiana. "Asa," his wife and her widowed mother moved there, and he continued his ministerial duties. With his excellent reputation as a minister and composer of religious music, he was promoted to presiding elder of the Indiana Conference of the U. B. Church.

Meanwhile, Rev. A. C. Wilmore knew Rev. "Armen" rather well. He also knew a Rev. Samuel S. Condo who in 1896 had been called from Ohio to be the minister of the Congregational Church at Marion, Indiana. While visiting together at Marion one day, Rev. Condo shared some family photos with Rev. Wilmore. Pointing at one, he lamented that it was a boyhood image of his long-lost brother, Adam Byron. Wilmore at once recognized the fellow and told Rev. Condo he could find his missing brother at Columbus, living under a different name.

Two weeks before the U.B. Church's 1897 annual conference was to begin, Samuel Condo and other ministers arrived at Columbus and confronted Rev. "Armen," threatening dire consequences if he didn't confess his true identity. Several of their threats were extremely exaggerated and, while they may have been uttered to force "Armen's" cooperation, they had the exact opposite effect. He instead resigned his commission with the church, left his wife a letter stating he could no longer live with her (presuming she knew why), and fled to Maine. Only this time it was to have his name legally changed back to Adam Byron Condo. From there, he went to Texas in a self-imposed exile from his wife, church and family. Three years later, he was enumerated as Adam Condo on the 1900 census at Cook County, Texas where he was teaching music for a living.

In the wake of all this Lucretia was staggered, not understanding why he had abandoned her, and assumed the worst. When she learned of her husband's alias and how roughly he'd been treated, she began trying to locate him and assure him that what he'd been told of her part in that confrontation was entirely untrue--she had only recently been told what had taken place years before. She finally found him, and they began corresponding and visiting one another. Her mother, however, forbade her from reuniting with her husband, and they both respected her wishes.

By 1904, Adam Condo had been re-commissioned as a minister in the U.B. Church and had charge of a circuit headquartered at French Lick, Indiana.

In 1906, his mother-in-law died, and he and his wife were finally able to reunite after having spent nearly a decade apart from one another. His marriage to Lucretia had been completely legitimate as he had legally changed his name to 'Armen,' but having changed it back to Condo made it necessary for Lucretia to also legally change her surname name to Condo as well.

He and Lucretia lived together again until her death. Afterwards, Adam married the widow Emma C. Blankenbaker, daughter of Stephen and Zela Josephine (Edmonds) Howell. He is not known to have issue by either of his wives.

**Under his pseudonym Asa Armen, Condo composed 39 religious tunes and texts, and was listed as the editor of the 1884 publication, "The Welcome Voice: a collection of gospel hymns and songs." A list of his known works can be found at the website Hymnary.org [https://hymnary.org/person/Armen_AA?tab=texts].

Rev. Asa Allan Armen is buried here, but not under the name of Asa Armen, for that person never existed!

True, he was licensed as a minister with the United Brethren Church and published a number of religious tunes and texts**. And yes, he married Lucretia Shuck at Hartsville, Indiana on 01 Jul 1884. But...Asa Allan Armen was none other than the Rev. Adam Byron Condo under an assumed name!

Adam Byron was a son of John Condo by his first wife, Catherine Beaver. He appears in his father's household at Miami County, Indiana on the 1860 and 1870 censuses, and then abruptly disappears from all records for thirty years.

The dirt dished on page six of the Columbus (Indiana) Republican of Thursday, 05 Apr 1906 tells the story:

It seems he got into some sort of misadventure in the 1870's when he was a youth and, fearing prosecution, consulted an attorney who advised him to legally change his name and leave Miami County. He went to Maine (who'd think to look there?) and changed his name to Asa Allan Armen, never telling his family where he'd gone or that he'd changed his name. They presumed he was lost to them forever.

On the 1880 census, he was enumerated as Asa A. Armen at Hillsdale, Michigan where he was teaching music for a living. Not long afterwards, he was hired as a music teacher at Indiana's Hartsville College where he fell in love with another instructor, Lucretia Shuck. On their marriage record, he listed his parents as John and Catherine (Beaver) "Armen."

In 1892, his wife Lucretia was hired as a teacher at the high school in Columbus, Indiana. "Asa," his wife and her widowed mother moved there, and he continued his ministerial duties. With his excellent reputation as a minister and composer of religious music, he was promoted to presiding elder of the Indiana Conference of the U. B. Church.

Meanwhile, Rev. A. C. Wilmore knew Rev. "Armen" rather well. He also knew a Rev. Samuel S. Condo who in 1896 had been called from Ohio to be the minister of the Congregational Church at Marion, Indiana. While visiting together at Marion one day, Rev. Condo shared some family photos with Rev. Wilmore. Pointing at one, he lamented that it was a boyhood image of his long-lost brother, Adam Byron. Wilmore at once recognized the fellow and told Rev. Condo he could find his missing brother at Columbus, living under a different name.

Two weeks before the U.B. Church's 1897 annual conference was to begin, Samuel Condo and other ministers arrived at Columbus and confronted Rev. "Armen," threatening dire consequences if he didn't confess his true identity. Several of their threats were extremely exaggerated and, while they may have been uttered to force "Armen's" cooperation, they had the exact opposite effect. He instead resigned his commission with the church, left his wife a letter stating he could no longer live with her (presuming she knew why), and fled to Maine. Only this time it was to have his name legally changed back to Adam Byron Condo. From there, he went to Texas in a self-imposed exile from his wife, church and family. Three years later, he was enumerated as Adam Condo on the 1900 census at Cook County, Texas where he was teaching music for a living.

In the wake of all this Lucretia was staggered, not understanding why he had abandoned her, and assumed the worst. When she learned of her husband's alias and how roughly he'd been treated, she began trying to locate him and assure him that what he'd been told of her part in that confrontation was entirely untrue--she had only recently been told what had taken place years before. She finally found him, and they began corresponding and visiting one another. Her mother, however, forbade her from reuniting with her husband, and they both respected her wishes.

By 1904, Adam Condo had been re-commissioned as a minister in the U.B. Church and had charge of a circuit headquartered at French Lick, Indiana.

In 1906, his mother-in-law died, and he and his wife were finally able to reunite after having spent nearly a decade apart from one another. His marriage to Lucretia had been completely legitimate as he had legally changed his name to 'Armen,' but having changed it back to Condo made it necessary for Lucretia to also legally change her surname name to Condo as well.

He and Lucretia lived together again until her death. Afterwards, Adam married the widow Emma C. Blankenbaker, daughter of Stephen and Zela Josephine (Edmonds) Howell. He is not known to have issue by either of his wives.

**Under his pseudonym Asa Armen, Condo composed 39 religious tunes and texts, and was listed as the editor of the 1884 publication, "The Welcome Voice: a collection of gospel hymns and songs." A list of his known works can be found at the website Hymnary.org [https://hymnary.org/person/Armen_AA?tab=texts].