Sunday, May 28, 2017
Remembering Our Ancestors
First of all, I owe you all an apology. I needed to take a much needed break from my blogs and work on some personal life changes which actually took longer to take care of than I originally anticipated.
Finally, those things are all taken care of and I've also downsized my home and moved to where I can be closer to my grand children. Now it is time to get back to my blogs and get on schedule to where you can expect new information from me every month.
I have noticed a lot more interest lately in genealogy, be it learning how to create your own family tree or doing the DNA tests and trying to read the results and making contact with relatives all over the world that you never knew existed. Or maybe you are a youngster that had a homework assignment, where the teacher wanted you to put together your family tree and because of that experience you now are continuing your research trying to learn more and more about the older ancestors of your family.
This weekend I had several of my grandchildren over to the house and my computer was set up on the dining room table and the screen opened to the family tree on Ancestry. I'm trying to take advantage of the free access to military records over the Memorial Day weekend and get some of these important documents attached to the members in our family.
It was exciting to see them wanting to know more about the photograph of the person they were looking at; who they were, how they were related and if they were famous. Hopefully I've created enough curiosity that they will continue to want to know more and more as time goes on. For only being 10,8 and 5 some of the questions they asked were really interesting. This weekend has been a real eyeopener and learning experience for me, giving me new insight on what I need to include to make our family history come alive so that it meaningful to the younger generations. I know that as I bring these records up to date and make their own personal special family history books, I'm going to need to be including a lot more information than I originally thought.
For example they were interested in how someone was born in one city and state or even another country, ended up far away and dying in another city, state or country. I can see I am going to need to include the stories about how they came to America, and include pictures of the ship they came on and if possible show the actual ship log with their names on it. I will need to add maps to show their movement from one state to another and even the route they might have traveled if possible. They wanted to know what they did for a living, how they traveled back in the 17- 1800's, was it by horse back, wagons or cars ? They were interested in seeing pictures of military uniforms as well as the clothing that the women, children and civilian men wore in those time periods. We ended up having a mini-history lesson. Oh the wonders of the internet! I'm so thankful that we live in these times to where information is so much more readily available.
I want their family history to come alive, not just be numerous names, dates and places listed on a piece of paper. Once you start this obsession of doing genealogy, there is never an end as it goes from generation to generation. You need new torchbearers and hopefully I've created a few this weekend.
Wednesday, August 20, 2014
Why Do a DNA Test?
As you begin working on your family tree, gathering information from relatives, you are going to also gather some interesting "stories" about your heritage and those members of your family, many of which you have probably never even heard a word about before now. You will hear the usual stories about your heritage, that you are of German, French or English background, or perhaps that you have a famous Native American Indian in your lineage somewhere.
As you gather your information, sooner or later, you are going to hit the proverbial "Brick Wall" You are stuck, can't find another generation further back; can no longer even connect a male surname to any definite location in a given country any more. You know that they had to come from somewhere and the question now is where did they migrate from.
If you are to this point, it is definitely time to consider investing in some DNA testing which is currently available through Ancestry.com. Normally these tests run $99 each but they presently are having a sale at $79.00.
By doing your DNA, you may turn up some ethnic backgrounds that you never knew you had in your family tree or you can rule out various nationalities also.
Some folks like to get their DNA tests pretty soon after starting work on their family tree because they can post their DNA test results with others who have matches to your DNA groupings. You can then exchange information back and forth with one another, thus developing areas of your family tree that you might not have been able to expand before.
If you are wanting to validate the male lineage of your family, be sure to have a male member do the testing. If you are female, you can have a brother, father, or father's sibling do the DNA test. If you are more interested in the female side of the family, you, a sister,or mother can do the test.
I am new to the entire process of reading DNA test results and if you have problems understanding them also, don't be afraid to ask for assistance. Just know that you are opening up an entire new avenue of research and investigation once you do your tests.
As you gather your information, sooner or later, you are going to hit the proverbial "Brick Wall" You are stuck, can't find another generation further back; can no longer even connect a male surname to any definite location in a given country any more. You know that they had to come from somewhere and the question now is where did they migrate from.
If you are to this point, it is definitely time to consider investing in some DNA testing which is currently available through Ancestry.com. Normally these tests run $99 each but they presently are having a sale at $79.00.
By doing your DNA, you may turn up some ethnic backgrounds that you never knew you had in your family tree or you can rule out various nationalities also.
Some folks like to get their DNA tests pretty soon after starting work on their family tree because they can post their DNA test results with others who have matches to your DNA groupings. You can then exchange information back and forth with one another, thus developing areas of your family tree that you might not have been able to expand before.
If you are wanting to validate the male lineage of your family, be sure to have a male member do the testing. If you are female, you can have a brother, father, or father's sibling do the DNA test. If you are more interested in the female side of the family, you, a sister,or mother can do the test.
I am new to the entire process of reading DNA test results and if you have problems understanding them also, don't be afraid to ask for assistance. Just know that you are opening up an entire new avenue of research and investigation once you do your tests.
Friday, July 13, 2012
The Decker Family Who Disappeared
When doing your family history, sometimes you come across
some things that peak your curiosity. Maybe there were many in one family who
all die within days, weeks or months of one another, or they took off for parts
unknown and you haven’t been able to figure out where they went to.
In the case of multiple deaths within a family grouping in a
short period of time, you can probably trace the cause (even without death
certificates for proof) to what was going on in that time frame in that
particular part of the country. Epidemics of diseases, such as plagues, small
pox, yellow fever,or scarlet fever would claim the lives of many in one family,
along with those of their neighbors. Natural catastrophes, such as floods,
earth quakes, tornadoes or hurricanes as well as the droughts which caused “The
Dust Bowl” era can also be researched on line and could be the reason.
I am going to share with you the mysterious disappearance of
one of our own families in the hopes that just maybe there could be some
descendants still alive out there who can help shed some light on what
happened.
This is the story as it has been passed down to family
genealogists.
There were three brothers, Aaron, James and William Decker
who all married and left the area of Stony Brook which is near Patterson New Jersey
in Passiac County
to travel to Crawford Co, Ohio,
settling there in 1828.
We know that Aaron and James were twins and born in 1783 in
Stonybrook. There is also a good chance that William was actually a triplet but
we do not know that for sure since William was stolen by Indians as a child. He
was brought back as a young man by the Indians and identified by his mother by
a scar on his foot.
Aaron married Mary Vandroof or Vandrehoof. (there are
several spellings of her last name) We
know that they had the following children: Frederick born 1812, Mahalan born
1818 , Maria born 1822, Alexander born 1827, Emaline born 1829, Caroline or
possibly Caty , Jane born 1819, James A born 1810 and Sally Ann 1816
James (Jacobus) Vanderveer , nicknamed “Cobe” married Jane
Luke. Her parents were Abram or Abraham Luke and Ann Ryerson. At some point in time Abraham changed his last
name to Decker but so far none of our family researchers have been able to locate
any official documents as to when that was done nor why he would take that
step.
James and Jane had David, born 1809, Harriet (Julia), John
born 1818, Martin born 1816, Charles , Catherine born 1817, Aaron born 1820,
William born 1828, Eliza, Jeremiah, Ann
Jeannetta, Emma born Sept 1827, Mary Ann and four others who died in
infancy.
Most of their children were born in New
Jersey, .
William married Harriet Luke, Jane’s sister. We also know that he married at least three
times and that Altye or Altia Meyers (Marten) was also another possible
wife. We know that there were at least
three children born of the marriage between William and Harriet, Johnson, Julia
and Mary Ann. There are another 18 children but their names are unknown at this
time, as is which woman of the other marriages are their mother. We do not have ages on the children of
William and Harriet’s children but we have to assume they were approximately
the same ages as those of William’s brothers children.
We have no idea exactly when they all formed their wagon
train and left New Jersey, or the
exact month in which they arrived in Crawford Co. Ohio. The closest I can
estimate would be July 1828 , since we have James & Jane’s son William
being born in Crawford Co OH on that date. We also do not know what prompted
the move away from their father and other family members in the first place.
The three brothers and their families all arrived in
Crawford Co. Ohio and William and his family returned East immediately. It is
said that the family was lost sight of in Pennsylvania. It is also noted that their son Johnson, died
among the Indians at Council Bluffs, Iowa.
What happened upon arrival in Ohio
after such a long and tedious trip to make William and his family turn around
immediately to return east? Did Johnson
leave his father, mother and sisters to travel to Council
Bluffs Iowa by himself? He
would have probably been in late teens or early twenties, certainly considered
a man by that day’s standards but to go off by himself in unknown territory to
me does not seem likely although certainly possible. The wording “died among
the Indians” also fascinates me. To me it suggests that he was living among the
Indians there in Council Bluffs and
that he wasn’t killed by the Indians. I’ve not been able to locate a burial
site for him, but then again, if he was living “among the Indians” that would
also suggest that he might have married an Indian or at least taken on the
Indian customs of cremation burial. We have no information as to if he married,
or how long he lived in Council Bluffs before he died or if he didn’t go there
directly upon leaving Ohio but maybe went to another state on the route back
east with his parents and stayed for awhile before returning to Council Bluffs.
William would have been approximately 45 years of age when
they made the trip to OH and returning back East alone, with his wife and two
daughters, also seems highly unlikely.
Between 1846 and 1852, Council
Bluffs ( then known as Kanesville)
and was the headquarters for a substantial
LDS presence in western Iowa as they later
migrated to Utah.
There were Indian uprisings beginning in 1831 with the Black
Hawk Wars and those skirmishes and wars went on for several years. We know that
there was gold and silver discovered in and around Council
Bluffs in the 1850’s which lured many men to come to
the area in the hopes of striking it rich.
With the family “lost sight of” in Pennsylvania,
we have to assume it was in the latter part of 1828 to early 1829. Were William and Jane attempting to get back to where they
originally came from in New Jersey? Did they decide to start afresh in a totally
new area? We have no answers and so far all researching for records have met
with the proverbial brick wall!
Please if anyone out there happens to be from this family or
knows anything about their history, contact me!
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Hubbard Family Researchers
I am searching for other Hubbard Researchers who are interested in correcting mistakes I'm seeing on family search.org, rootsweb.com (world connect) and ancestry.com to name a few places where I am locating numerous errors in our family history.
I started going to each of those where I located errors where they combined two family lines together, making a comment or a "postem" to tell them their information is incorrect. After finding page upon page of erroneous information, I quit and decided possibly I could reach more people here through my blog.
Probably one of the best sources of early history of the Hubbard Family in the United States is one called "The One Thousand Years of Hubbard History" by Day. I will advise anyone who does use it for research to watch information closely because of the way some of it is organized. Be sure you get the groups of children listed with the correct parents. Also be sure that you make sure that you don't confuse different branches with the same first name and last name together as one family
The families in question right now that I've been working on are George Hubbard and his wife Mary Bishop. His records have been intermingled with those of George Hubbard who married Elizabeth Watts! Both George's were born in England, their parentage is unknown and even the exact location of where they came from in England is unknown.
It is known that George (dob 1594-1600) who married Mary Bishop came to the US in about 1633, around the same time that the other George arrived also. George and Mary first settled in Watertown and then moved to Wethersfield,Ct in October 1635. In 1638 he and his family removed to Milford,Ct. and then later to Guilford
Ct in 1648. He is called George Hubbard of Guilford Ct in the book "The One Thousand Years of Hubbard History.
Several of their children were born in England and came to America's shores with their parents while the others were born here. Known children of this family are Mary, John, Sarah, Hannah, Elizabeth, Abigail, Daniel and William. In "The One Thousand Years of Hubbard History", there is also listed a son named George with a question mark after it. I've not been able to locate any information on this George.
The other George and his wife Elizabeth Watts are ancestors of the famous Elbert Green Hubbard of the Roycroft movement and writer of "Message to Garcia" and other political writings, who died aboard the Lusitania in 1915 with his 2nd wife Alice Moore. This George is known as George Hubbard of Middletown, Middlesex, CT
This George and his wife Elizabeth also came from England and was born in 1601. Elizabeth was born in 1618.
They had the following children: Daniel, Mary, Joseph, Samuel, Nathaniel and Elizabeth.
In "The One Thousand Years of Hubbard History" it states that George and Mary (Bishop) along with another George Hubbard, Thomas Hubbard and a William Hubbard and Mary's (Bishop)family (John Bishop and children) all left Watertown and went to Westerfield. After being there about 3 years, George and Mary and their family left with Thomas Ufford, William Fowler, Rev. Peter Pruden and others, going southward to the shores of Long Island sound and settled in Milford. There is a list of 44 names as Settlers of Milford Nov 21, 1639 on the first page.
He then sold his property on Milford Island before 1650 and moved to Guilford along with his son in law John Fowler.
Descendants of George and Elizabeth (Watts) line migrated from Connecticut into New York and eventually ended up in parts of Illinois and then back to New York again. I find that Daniel Hubbard (son of Daniel and Temperance from Middlesex Ct) and his wife Eunice Clark, at some point moved to Green Co. N.Y. where Daniel died in 1825. I do not have a death date for Eunice. Their son, Rev Solomon born 1770 in Middlesex Co, Ct died 1823 in Mayville Chautauqua Co, N. Y. and his wife, Hannah (Willard) died in 1834 in Buffalo, Erie Co. N.Y.
Their son Silas born in 1821 married Frances Julia Read/Reed. He became a Doctor and moved his family to Bloomington Illinois where his son Elbert Green was born. This is the Elbert Green who married Bertha C. Crawford first and had four children, Elbert, Sanford, Ralph and Catherine . They divorced and he married Alice Moore, and they had a daughter Miriam Elberta Hubbard who was born out of wedlock.
Elbert and Bertha married in Bloomington Illinois but returned to Erie, N. Y. where their children were all born.
I believe that all descendants of Elbert Green Hubbard, are now deceased. I do know that some of them were still involved in running the Roycroft museum in New York for many years.
It is a shame that researchers of the two George Hubbards from Connecticut were not diligent in maintaining the accuracy and integrity of all the work which had been done and recorded for prosperity. I am in hopes that somehow it can be once again separated and corrected in all records.
I personally would love to find out positively one way or another if these two lines do entwine somewhere along the way because I would be delighted to find that I am related (even by a shirt tail) to the famous Elbert Green Hubbard, writer and craftsman, who died aboard the Titanic.
I am desperately searching for any descendants of either of these two lines who can supply additional correct information on them or a professional genealogist who would be interested in attempting to figure out how we can get what records are now out on the Internet that are incorrect either corrected or removed so that these errors do not persist in generations to come who may be in search of their ancestors.
I started going to each of those where I located errors where they combined two family lines together, making a comment or a "postem" to tell them their information is incorrect. After finding page upon page of erroneous information, I quit and decided possibly I could reach more people here through my blog.
Probably one of the best sources of early history of the Hubbard Family in the United States is one called "The One Thousand Years of Hubbard History" by Day. I will advise anyone who does use it for research to watch information closely because of the way some of it is organized. Be sure you get the groups of children listed with the correct parents. Also be sure that you make sure that you don't confuse different branches with the same first name and last name together as one family
The families in question right now that I've been working on are George Hubbard and his wife Mary Bishop. His records have been intermingled with those of George Hubbard who married Elizabeth Watts! Both George's were born in England, their parentage is unknown and even the exact location of where they came from in England is unknown.
It is known that George (dob 1594-1600) who married Mary Bishop came to the US in about 1633, around the same time that the other George arrived also. George and Mary first settled in Watertown and then moved to Wethersfield,Ct in October 1635. In 1638 he and his family removed to Milford,Ct. and then later to Guilford
Ct in 1648. He is called George Hubbard of Guilford Ct in the book "The One Thousand Years of Hubbard History.
Several of their children were born in England and came to America's shores with their parents while the others were born here. Known children of this family are Mary, John, Sarah, Hannah, Elizabeth, Abigail, Daniel and William. In "The One Thousand Years of Hubbard History", there is also listed a son named George with a question mark after it. I've not been able to locate any information on this George.
The other George and his wife Elizabeth Watts are ancestors of the famous Elbert Green Hubbard of the Roycroft movement and writer of "Message to Garcia" and other political writings, who died aboard the Lusitania in 1915 with his 2nd wife Alice Moore. This George is known as George Hubbard of Middletown, Middlesex, CT
This George and his wife Elizabeth also came from England and was born in 1601. Elizabeth was born in 1618.
They had the following children: Daniel, Mary, Joseph, Samuel, Nathaniel and Elizabeth.
In "The One Thousand Years of Hubbard History" it states that George and Mary (Bishop) along with another George Hubbard, Thomas Hubbard and a William Hubbard and Mary's (Bishop)family (John Bishop and children) all left Watertown and went to Westerfield. After being there about 3 years, George and Mary and their family left with Thomas Ufford, William Fowler, Rev. Peter Pruden and others, going southward to the shores of Long Island sound and settled in Milford. There is a list of 44 names as Settlers of Milford Nov 21, 1639 on the first page.
He then sold his property on Milford Island before 1650 and moved to Guilford along with his son in law John Fowler.
Descendants of George and Elizabeth (Watts) line migrated from Connecticut into New York and eventually ended up in parts of Illinois and then back to New York again. I find that Daniel Hubbard (son of Daniel and Temperance from Middlesex Ct) and his wife Eunice Clark, at some point moved to Green Co. N.Y. where Daniel died in 1825. I do not have a death date for Eunice. Their son, Rev Solomon born 1770 in Middlesex Co, Ct died 1823 in Mayville Chautauqua Co, N. Y. and his wife, Hannah (Willard) died in 1834 in Buffalo, Erie Co. N.Y.
Their son Silas born in 1821 married Frances Julia Read/Reed. He became a Doctor and moved his family to Bloomington Illinois where his son Elbert Green was born. This is the Elbert Green who married Bertha C. Crawford first and had four children, Elbert, Sanford, Ralph and Catherine . They divorced and he married Alice Moore, and they had a daughter Miriam Elberta Hubbard who was born out of wedlock.
Elbert and Bertha married in Bloomington Illinois but returned to Erie, N. Y. where their children were all born.
I believe that all descendants of Elbert Green Hubbard, are now deceased. I do know that some of them were still involved in running the Roycroft museum in New York for many years.
It is a shame that researchers of the two George Hubbards from Connecticut were not diligent in maintaining the accuracy and integrity of all the work which had been done and recorded for prosperity. I am in hopes that somehow it can be once again separated and corrected in all records.
I personally would love to find out positively one way or another if these two lines do entwine somewhere along the way because I would be delighted to find that I am related (even by a shirt tail) to the famous Elbert Green Hubbard, writer and craftsman, who died aboard the Titanic.
I am desperately searching for any descendants of either of these two lines who can supply additional correct information on them or a professional genealogist who would be interested in attempting to figure out how we can get what records are now out on the Internet that are incorrect either corrected or removed so that these errors do not persist in generations to come who may be in search of their ancestors.
Monday, January 2, 2012
Are You New to Genealogy Research?
Welcome to the wonderful world of genealogy research!
With increased interest in doing genealogy research, I have to suggest first of all signing up to get great information from Kimberly Powell who is the guru at about.com! Be sure to bookmark genealogy.about.com as one of your favorite websites and sign up to get her emails sent to you regularly. She gives you some great tips on getting started, how to organize your files, different types of charts that you can use and all kinds of great websites that you can check out.
I’ve been doing genealogy for quite a few years now, but I continue to get her emails, check out the genealogy section on about often and am amazed at the knowledge that she has. She is always listing websites that I’ve never even known about or ones that I’ve forgotten. She also has several good books that you can get at the library or purchase at the bookstore if you wish to have a hard copy on hand at all times.
When I hit “brick walls”, which I seem to do quite often with all of the different families that I’ve been researching, I will often turn to her website for inspiration and websites that might help me break that wall down.
Several other places that you can also get good genealogy search tips is from ancestry.com. They have a learning center with a wide variety of articles to assist you in learning to search for your ancestors. If you are not able to pay for the subscription part of their site, some parts of it are free, take advantage of their message boards and the other free parts of their website.
familysearch.org is another one of my favorite sites where there are thousands and thousand of records. You can also get a free family tree making file at their website if you have not purchased one elsewhere. If you would like to build your tree on-line, there are many places where you can also do that free of charge. My preference is tribalpages.com where you can control who has access to your information. They have both a free section as well as a paid subscription section which is extremely reasonable.
Other sites I like are Cyndi's List and geneabloggers,genealogy.com,olivetreegenealogy.com,and familytree.com You can get lost in them for hours and hours looking at information. Then there is findagrave.com which has many cemeteries listed both in the US and some other foreign countries where you can search for your ancestors grave site.
I found a great new website that I am going to be taking advantage of, thanks to an article today by Kimberly at about.com. You plug in your ancestors name and birth and death years and it will create a timeline for you of things that happened during their lifetime. ourtimelines.com is going to be so helpful in knowing when many things happened during their lives.
Of course you can always just use your favorite search engine, type in the name and the word family or genealogy after it and pull up many different locations where you can find information on that person (in most cases) and many people will use this as their first method of searching. Have fun searching!
With increased interest in doing genealogy research, I have to suggest first of all signing up to get great information from Kimberly Powell who is the guru at about.com! Be sure to bookmark genealogy.about.com as one of your favorite websites and sign up to get her emails sent to you regularly. She gives you some great tips on getting started, how to organize your files, different types of charts that you can use and all kinds of great websites that you can check out.
I’ve been doing genealogy for quite a few years now, but I continue to get her emails, check out the genealogy section on about often and am amazed at the knowledge that she has. She is always listing websites that I’ve never even known about or ones that I’ve forgotten. She also has several good books that you can get at the library or purchase at the bookstore if you wish to have a hard copy on hand at all times.
When I hit “brick walls”, which I seem to do quite often with all of the different families that I’ve been researching, I will often turn to her website for inspiration and websites that might help me break that wall down.
Several other places that you can also get good genealogy search tips is from ancestry.com. They have a learning center with a wide variety of articles to assist you in learning to search for your ancestors. If you are not able to pay for the subscription part of their site, some parts of it are free, take advantage of their message boards and the other free parts of their website.
familysearch.org is another one of my favorite sites where there are thousands and thousand of records. You can also get a free family tree making file at their website if you have not purchased one elsewhere. If you would like to build your tree on-line, there are many places where you can also do that free of charge. My preference is tribalpages.com where you can control who has access to your information. They have both a free section as well as a paid subscription section which is extremely reasonable.
Other sites I like are Cyndi's List and geneabloggers,genealogy.com,olivetreegenealogy.com,and familytree.com You can get lost in them for hours and hours looking at information. Then there is findagrave.com which has many cemeteries listed both in the US and some other foreign countries where you can search for your ancestors grave site.
I found a great new website that I am going to be taking advantage of, thanks to an article today by Kimberly at about.com. You plug in your ancestors name and birth and death years and it will create a timeline for you of things that happened during their lifetime. ourtimelines.com is going to be so helpful in knowing when many things happened during their lives.
Of course you can always just use your favorite search engine, type in the name and the word family or genealogy after it and pull up many different locations where you can find information on that person (in most cases) and many people will use this as their first method of searching. Have fun searching!
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
William Howard Taft
There are many famous people who are descendants of the Samuel Chapin/ Cecily Penny linage. Today I would like to focus on the pedigree of William Howard Taft, born September 15, 1857 in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Not only was he our 27th U.S. President, serving just one term from 1909-1913. he also served as the Provisional Governor of Cuba, and also held the position as the Civil Governor of the Philippine Islands under Teddy Roosevelt.. Under Ulysses S. Grant, he served as Secretary of War and as Attorney General in his cabinet. President Warren Harding appointed him as Chief Justice of the United States in 1921 and he served in that capacity for nine years, resigning just shortly before his death in 1930 on March 8th in Washington D.C.
He married Helen Herron (her nickname was Nellie) in 1886 and they had three children, Robert Alphonso, Charles Phelps and Helen Herron . President Taft led the way for his sons and grandsons, who also chose political careers. His son, Senator Robert Alphonson Taft, his grandson Senator Robert Alphonso Taft II ,and his great grandson Robert Alphonso Taft III who served as Governor of Ohio. .
William Howard Taft descends from Samuel Chapin, & Cecily Penny, their son Josiah Chapin and his wife Mary King, their son, Seth who married Bethia Thurston, their son John who married Dorcus, their son John who married Rhonda Albee and their daughter who married Levi Howard.
Samuel Chapin and Cecily Penny
Samuel CHAPIN (1598-1675)Paignton, Devonshire, England
Cicely PENNY (1601-1682) Paignton, Devonshire England
Son: Josiah CHAPIN (c1634-1726)Oct 29, 1634 in England
and Mary KING (1639-1676) Jun 15, 1639 in Weymouth, Norfolk Co, MA
Married on Nov 30, 11658 in Weymouth, Norfolk Co, Ma
Children: Henry Feb 15, 1671-Mar 20, 1671 Weymouth, Norfolk MA
Deborah Jun 16, 1664 Weymouth, Norfolk Ma died Aug 16, 1668 Braintree Norolk MA
Deborah Feb 12, 1675 Braintree, Norfolk Ma died Apr 9, 1702 Uxbridge, Worchester Ma
Sherm May 11, 1667 Weymouth, Norfolk MA died Jun 6, 1667 Braintree, Norfolk, MA
John 11 Jun 1661 Weymouth, Norfolk, MA died 22 Feb 1686 At Sea
Joseph 17 May, 1670 Weymouth, Norfolk MA died 1722
Josiah Jr Dec 17, 1665 Weymouth, Norfolk MA died May 20, 1693
Henry Feb 15, 1671 Weymouth, Norfolk MA died Mar 20, 1671 Braintree, Norfolk Ma
Deborah Chapin Jun 16, 1664 Weymouth, Norfolk MA died Aug 16, 1668
Seth (Captain) Aug 4, 1668 Braintree, Norfolk MA died Apr 1, 1746, Mendon Worchester MA
Second wife: Lydia Brown Pratt
Married Sep 20, 1676 Braintree, Norfolk MA
And had 4 or 5 children.
Sources:
Sources:
Title: Mendon, Worcester Co., Massachusetts Vital Records
Publication: Births, Marriages, and Deaths
Repository:
Media: Book
Page: Page: 455
Text: Death: Chapin, Josiah Esqr., Sept. 10, 1726. (In his 92d y. G.R.1.).
Title: Weymouth, Norfolk Co., Massachusetts Vital Records
Publication: Baptisms, Births, Marriages, and Deaths (Published 1910)
Repository:
Media: Book
Page: Vol. II Pages: 45; 108
Text: Marriage: Chapin, Josiah and Mary King, Nov. 30, 1658.* * Intention not recorded.
I did not give you the entire family tree of this family but if you go to rootsweb.com, ancestry.com or famiysearch.org I am sure you will find many records on him if you would like to complete his family tree.
William Howard Taft is just one of many historical people that descended from this family. Since there seems to be quite a bit of interest in this family particular line, I will put together some additional articles about other people.
In the meantime, happy digging!
Not only was he our 27th U.S. President, serving just one term from 1909-1913. he also served as the Provisional Governor of Cuba, and also held the position as the Civil Governor of the Philippine Islands under Teddy Roosevelt.. Under Ulysses S. Grant, he served as Secretary of War and as Attorney General in his cabinet. President Warren Harding appointed him as Chief Justice of the United States in 1921 and he served in that capacity for nine years, resigning just shortly before his death in 1930 on March 8th in Washington D.C.
He married Helen Herron (her nickname was Nellie) in 1886 and they had three children, Robert Alphonso, Charles Phelps and Helen Herron . President Taft led the way for his sons and grandsons, who also chose political careers. His son, Senator Robert Alphonson Taft, his grandson Senator Robert Alphonso Taft II ,and his great grandson Robert Alphonso Taft III who served as Governor of Ohio. .
William Howard Taft descends from Samuel Chapin, & Cecily Penny, their son Josiah Chapin and his wife Mary King, their son, Seth who married Bethia Thurston, their son John who married Dorcus, their son John who married Rhonda Albee and their daughter who married Levi Howard.
Samuel Chapin and Cecily Penny
Samuel CHAPIN (1598-1675)Paignton, Devonshire, England
Cicely PENNY (1601-1682) Paignton, Devonshire England
Son: Josiah CHAPIN (c1634-1726)Oct 29, 1634 in England
and Mary KING (1639-1676) Jun 15, 1639 in Weymouth, Norfolk Co, MA
Married on Nov 30, 11658 in Weymouth, Norfolk Co, Ma
Children: Henry Feb 15, 1671-Mar 20, 1671 Weymouth, Norfolk MA
Deborah Jun 16, 1664 Weymouth, Norfolk Ma died Aug 16, 1668 Braintree Norolk MA
Deborah Feb 12, 1675 Braintree, Norfolk Ma died Apr 9, 1702 Uxbridge, Worchester Ma
Sherm May 11, 1667 Weymouth, Norfolk MA died Jun 6, 1667 Braintree, Norfolk, MA
John 11 Jun 1661 Weymouth, Norfolk, MA died 22 Feb 1686 At Sea
Joseph 17 May, 1670 Weymouth, Norfolk MA died 1722
Josiah Jr Dec 17, 1665 Weymouth, Norfolk MA died May 20, 1693
Henry Feb 15, 1671 Weymouth, Norfolk MA died Mar 20, 1671 Braintree, Norfolk Ma
Deborah Chapin Jun 16, 1664 Weymouth, Norfolk MA died Aug 16, 1668
Seth (Captain) Aug 4, 1668 Braintree, Norfolk MA died Apr 1, 1746, Mendon Worchester MA
Second wife: Lydia Brown Pratt
Married Sep 20, 1676 Braintree, Norfolk MA
And had 4 or 5 children.
Sources:
Sources:
Title: Mendon, Worcester Co., Massachusetts Vital Records
Publication: Births, Marriages, and Deaths
Repository:
Media: Book
Page: Page: 455
Text: Death: Chapin, Josiah Esqr., Sept. 10, 1726. (In his 92d y. G.R.1.).
Title: Weymouth, Norfolk Co., Massachusetts Vital Records
Publication: Baptisms, Births, Marriages, and Deaths (Published 1910)
Repository:
Media: Book
Page: Vol. II Pages: 45; 108
Text: Marriage: Chapin, Josiah and Mary King, Nov. 30, 1658.* * Intention not recorded.
I did not give you the entire family tree of this family but if you go to rootsweb.com, ancestry.com or famiysearch.org I am sure you will find many records on him if you would like to complete his family tree.
William Howard Taft is just one of many historical people that descended from this family. Since there seems to be quite a bit of interest in this family particular line, I will put together some additional articles about other people.
In the meantime, happy digging!
Friday, July 15, 2011
Banging Your Head against Brick Walls
Every time I solve one problem, it seems like I create at least ten more when I am doing genealogy. I get one brick wall broken down and then whammy…..I am hit in the head with a zillion more!
I am actually working on two different Parker lines, one from my family and one from my son-in law’s family and I am running into the same problems with both of them. I either can only get back so far in time on a generation or else I have some information on the families but not enough to figure out where they were born, where they lived or where they died. I have about exhausted every avenue I can think of on some of these people!
Therefore, I am going to post here about one of the Parker families that is on my side of the family.
This is the story of Ezra B.PARKER DOB unknown and Lydia Alta Decker; born 1856 in Bucyrus, OH and Died May 1930 Lydia was the daughter of David DECKER and Rebecca SCHRUM (M) . David’s parents were James Vandeveer (Cobe) DECKER and Jane LUKE.
They married in Aug 1877, probably either in OH or in IL since they lived in Cornell, IL for a time. I do not know if Ezra died but my records show that she later married William ANDERSON. There were two children of this union Cleopatra PARKER born in 1879 in Iowa, and Charles Albert PARKER born in 1884, I have no children listed for her marriage to William Anderson.
Cleo had a brother Charles Albert PARKER, he was born Sept 1884 and in 1905, he married Golda KINNEY. They had three children, Madge Evelyn, George Leverne and Marjory Bernice.
Cleopatra (Cleo) PARKER married A. J. BURT (no known info) in 1894 and then later married G. W. HUNTER. With A. J. she had the following children: Iris Lorena born 1899, Lelah Montress born 1897, Charles Emery born July 1895 (he married Mary Casson, had two daughters Montress Vanetta Burt born 1920 and June Lee Burt born 1926.
Iris Lorena BURT (1899-1918 Peoria IL) married Howard TALBOT in Nov 1914. They had at least two children that I know of, Audrey Berdette born Oct 1917 and Eugene Burt born Dec 1920. Eugene married Helen Elizabeth HAWKINS
I have searched and searched for records on this family from stem to stern and have come up empty handed. It is interesting how actually you can find more on some of the older generations than you can on the newer ones.
I hope that there is someone out there on the Internet who is related and going through the same frustrations that I am of not finding much information.
Is there anyone out there related to this family?
I think I am going to have to invest in these books, they look like they might help me.
I am actually working on two different Parker lines, one from my family and one from my son-in law’s family and I am running into the same problems with both of them. I either can only get back so far in time on a generation or else I have some information on the families but not enough to figure out where they were born, where they lived or where they died. I have about exhausted every avenue I can think of on some of these people!
Therefore, I am going to post here about one of the Parker families that is on my side of the family.
This is the story of Ezra B.PARKER DOB unknown and Lydia Alta Decker; born 1856 in Bucyrus, OH and Died May 1930 Lydia was the daughter of David DECKER and Rebecca SCHRUM (M) . David’s parents were James Vandeveer (Cobe) DECKER and Jane LUKE.
They married in Aug 1877, probably either in OH or in IL since they lived in Cornell, IL for a time. I do not know if Ezra died but my records show that she later married William ANDERSON. There were two children of this union Cleopatra PARKER born in 1879 in Iowa, and Charles Albert PARKER born in 1884, I have no children listed for her marriage to William Anderson.
Cleo had a brother Charles Albert PARKER, he was born Sept 1884 and in 1905, he married Golda KINNEY. They had three children, Madge Evelyn, George Leverne and Marjory Bernice.
Cleopatra (Cleo) PARKER married A. J. BURT (no known info) in 1894 and then later married G. W. HUNTER. With A. J. she had the following children: Iris Lorena born 1899, Lelah Montress born 1897, Charles Emery born July 1895 (he married Mary Casson, had two daughters Montress Vanetta Burt born 1920 and June Lee Burt born 1926.
Iris Lorena BURT (1899-1918 Peoria IL) married Howard TALBOT in Nov 1914. They had at least two children that I know of, Audrey Berdette born Oct 1917 and Eugene Burt born Dec 1920. Eugene married Helen Elizabeth HAWKINS
I have searched and searched for records on this family from stem to stern and have come up empty handed. It is interesting how actually you can find more on some of the older generations than you can on the newer ones.
I hope that there is someone out there on the Internet who is related and going through the same frustrations that I am of not finding much information.
Is there anyone out there related to this family?
I think I am going to have to invest in these books, they look like they might help me.
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Documenting Now For Future Generations
Back in November 2010, I wrote an article about Continuing Family History and how we often get so caught up in researching all our ancestors from the past that we are neglecting to keep up with documenting current generations and stories and mementos of today. Terri left me a comment which has taken me some time to formulate a good answer. She stated, “It's interesting Kay that you talk about preserving our history now for future generations. It is more difficult today to do that with technology the way it is. I have so many letters from my ancestors but today we just text, email or phone. We don't write things down. We need to think about how to preserve heirlooms and record events for our future children.”
Here are some things that I have been doing for my children and my grandchildren that might also be helpful to you.
First of all, I have set up several family trees using tribal pages.com where I have first a master tree with all the connecting family branches and then trees also set up for each of my children and their spouses and their group tree. This way, they can see how everything connects together on the master tree and then if they want to just concentrate on their own tree along with that of their spouse, they can do that also. The nice thing about tribal pages is that you can enter information about each person in the notes section and you can also include photographs if you have them.
As a security measure, I also have these trees on my computer as well as copied onto discs along with a copy of my family tree maker, which is the program off of the LDS website, so that they can install this program on their own computers if they want to continue to do additional work on the lines. This also ensures that if for some reason the Internet site is no longer available that all of my work will not have been done in vain.
The next thing I have done is created genealogy books for each family so that they can have a hard copy that they can physically hold and read and absorb all the information that it contains. In some cases, there is so much information more than one book is required.
As for heirlooms to pass onto future generations, I began by going through my photographs, labeling as many as I could on the backs and placing them into individual envelopes for each of my children. There are some personal items that I want them to have and I have told them that I would like them to have those right now so that I am sure that they will receive them. If there are certain items that I just have to have, then I will be sure that those things are listed in my will and that their names will be listed on the physical item so that they will assuredly receive them.
I also have heirlooms that once belonged to my grandparents, some of which will also be disturbed the same way. If no one wants those items, then I will have them donate them to a museum, or I will handle it myself before I leave this beautiful world.
At present, there are four boxes in my hall closet, labeled with the name of each of my children. Inside they are going to find a collection of items that we have previously discussed that are to be theirs, along with some other items that I’ve saved over the years that I think they will be pleased to have.
I started a journal of my life for my children and my grandchildren. I want them to know about my growing up years as well as all the marvelous things that I have been privy to in the history of this world and our country. Thank you Terri for your comment to my post because it has reminded me that I really need to be more diligent, working on this on a regular basis.
Like Terri, I also regret that nowadays so much of our communication is handled by the impersonal emails, the twitters and by phone. We no longer often hold a physical letter or greeting card in our hands and see the writing of that person, which by the way, really does tell so much about their personality! But graphoanalysis is another subject and maybe something I will post about at a later date if some interest is shown by my readers.
I personally am probably the worlds worst pack-rat when it comes to saving things from my children and their growing years such as pictures that they created and were lovingly hung on the refrigerator, to handmade birthday cards and Christmas gifts that they have given me over the years. I have their graduation announcements from school and even came across their old vaccination records when I was cleaning out my keepsake drawer. I’ve saved Mother’s Day, birthday and Valentine’s Day cards that they have given me over the years, all stored in a special box.
I do know of one father who was stationed overseas in Iraq for over a year and he kept every single email that his wife and children sent to him. He plans on including that into his genealogy records. I am sure those will be very interesting reading for his grandchildren some day.
So even though communications of today have gotten away from the handwritten word, there are still ways of preserving precious memories and I hope that this will give all of you some new ideas for saving yours.
Here are some things that I have been doing for my children and my grandchildren that might also be helpful to you.
First of all, I have set up several family trees using tribal pages.com where I have first a master tree with all the connecting family branches and then trees also set up for each of my children and their spouses and their group tree. This way, they can see how everything connects together on the master tree and then if they want to just concentrate on their own tree along with that of their spouse, they can do that also. The nice thing about tribal pages is that you can enter information about each person in the notes section and you can also include photographs if you have them.
As a security measure, I also have these trees on my computer as well as copied onto discs along with a copy of my family tree maker, which is the program off of the LDS website, so that they can install this program on their own computers if they want to continue to do additional work on the lines. This also ensures that if for some reason the Internet site is no longer available that all of my work will not have been done in vain.
The next thing I have done is created genealogy books for each family so that they can have a hard copy that they can physically hold and read and absorb all the information that it contains. In some cases, there is so much information more than one book is required.
As for heirlooms to pass onto future generations, I began by going through my photographs, labeling as many as I could on the backs and placing them into individual envelopes for each of my children. There are some personal items that I want them to have and I have told them that I would like them to have those right now so that I am sure that they will receive them. If there are certain items that I just have to have, then I will be sure that those things are listed in my will and that their names will be listed on the physical item so that they will assuredly receive them.
I also have heirlooms that once belonged to my grandparents, some of which will also be disturbed the same way. If no one wants those items, then I will have them donate them to a museum, or I will handle it myself before I leave this beautiful world.
At present, there are four boxes in my hall closet, labeled with the name of each of my children. Inside they are going to find a collection of items that we have previously discussed that are to be theirs, along with some other items that I’ve saved over the years that I think they will be pleased to have.
I started a journal of my life for my children and my grandchildren. I want them to know about my growing up years as well as all the marvelous things that I have been privy to in the history of this world and our country. Thank you Terri for your comment to my post because it has reminded me that I really need to be more diligent, working on this on a regular basis.
Like Terri, I also regret that nowadays so much of our communication is handled by the impersonal emails, the twitters and by phone. We no longer often hold a physical letter or greeting card in our hands and see the writing of that person, which by the way, really does tell so much about their personality! But graphoanalysis is another subject and maybe something I will post about at a later date if some interest is shown by my readers.
I personally am probably the worlds worst pack-rat when it comes to saving things from my children and their growing years such as pictures that they created and were lovingly hung on the refrigerator, to handmade birthday cards and Christmas gifts that they have given me over the years. I have their graduation announcements from school and even came across their old vaccination records when I was cleaning out my keepsake drawer. I’ve saved Mother’s Day, birthday and Valentine’s Day cards that they have given me over the years, all stored in a special box.
I do know of one father who was stationed overseas in Iraq for over a year and he kept every single email that his wife and children sent to him. He plans on including that into his genealogy records. I am sure those will be very interesting reading for his grandchildren some day.
So even though communications of today have gotten away from the handwritten word, there are still ways of preserving precious memories and I hope that this will give all of you some new ideas for saving yours.
Monday, April 4, 2011
Headaches and Heartaches
Misinformation can cause you a lot of headaches and heartaches when you are in the process of doing genealogy work. Granted, your prior generations may have started working on your family tree, but if they have not documented their resources, there is a very strong chance that they have gathered information from relatives, family bibles, hearsay or family tales as well as genuine document sources. But if they have not made any notations of where their information has been gathered from, please do not take it as the gospel truth! Take the time to go back and recheck your information and add documentation.
One of my pet peeves is seeing information that has been put onto what I consider reputable source websites by people posting their family information which has not been verified and proven. Just because you have found a tree that looks like it matches your family’s information and has additional information that you now want to add to your tree, don’t just do so without being sure that it is indeed your family’s roots.
I hate to point fingers, but I have found incorrect information at both sites where you have paid to have a subscription to access information as well as at free websites where people have posted information. These are well known websites and we tend to rely on them as being accurate. It is important to remember that they do not verify the information that has been submitted to them.
If you find what appears to be matching information for your family, make an attempt to reach the poster of the information so that the two of you can share references and other family information to validate everything as true. Chances are you are going to find relatives and establish some long lasting relationships in the process.
I want to share with you a very obvious mistake on a family tree that hopefully you will see as quickly as I did when I saw it. I will make mention that I have contacted the website and asked if there is any way they can put me in touch with the author of this family tree so that we can discuss this information.
History of the Olmstead/Olmsted Family
The Olmsted family originated in England
My records start with Richard, born about 1430 and mentioned in the Domesday Book, Essex Co, England 1086. Olmsted Hall meaning “Place of the Elms” is a moated structure and now belongs to Queens College, Cambridge.
Next listed is James Olmstead born in about 1520 married to Alice. My records have no last name for her but on line I found her last name could be Sorrell or Hawkins. I also found 3 children listed of this marriage.
Next is James Olmstead born about 1550, who died in 1595. He married Jane Bristow on Aug 12, 1576 and they lived in Great Leighs, Co, Essex, England.
As my reference I have Olmstead Genealogy
Jacobus, Old Fairlefied Vol I pg 451
James immigrated to America in 1632 aboard the ship “Lyon” and settled in Cambridge, MA and in 1636 some removed to Hartford. James came to America with his Uncle James Olmsted .Some online references also state there were other nephews and a niece in the party.
Since James and Jane Bristow are my direct lineage, prior researchers in our family only concentrated on our direct line and did not list all of their children. We are descended from Richard Olmsted and his wife Frances Slany/Slaney. My records indicate that she has a brother Thomas Slany of London, whom I have not definitely located yet or her parents.
My records show that Richard and Frances had the following children:
Richard baptized 1612
Mary baptized 1615
John baptized 1617
Sarah baptized 1620
Rebecca baptized unknown but married to Thomas Newell
Joseph baptized 1627
Again, References used were
Olmstead Genealogy
Jacobus, Old Fairfield, Vol. I pg 451
Here is where the fun part starts
I found a record on line where someone posted a tree for this family with all of the above information. On their tree they show the son Richard, baptized in 1612 with parents as
James and Jane Bristow. They show that the SON was married first to Jane Bristow and then to Frances Slany . The record went on to state that Jane Bristow was born in Hatford, CT and that she married Richard in Essex England and their children were born in Hatford CT. There were 3 children from this marriage, Richard born between 1608-1612, James born 2/16/1617 and John born 2/16/1617.
Before we go further with this record do you see the glaring blunders? They have the son marrying his mother! They also have his mother being born in America and then marrying the son back in England.
The son, Richard, of Richard and Frances Slany had 3 children, their mother unknown
Yet I find records saying that Frances Slany was the mother of these children!
James an unnamed daughter and John (my line) born 1649 who married Mary Benedict and then married Elizabeth Pardee Gregory. I have found records where all of the children from both marriages were mixed in together as well as records where one of the children was listed with the wrong mother.
I have found records where Eunice is listed as the daughter of Mary as well as Elizabeth. Now I need to go back to my resource records just to be sure that what my prior researchers found is indeed correct. To see with my own eyes the printed material they used to validate who’s daughter she really is.
If there are any other Olmstead/Olmsted researchers out here reading this article, I hope you will come forward and contact me so that we can work on some research together.
There is no way I am publishing any of my information on line until I am sure it is correct, at least in my own mind, and be willing to share it with the world.
One of my pet peeves is seeing information that has been put onto what I consider reputable source websites by people posting their family information which has not been verified and proven. Just because you have found a tree that looks like it matches your family’s information and has additional information that you now want to add to your tree, don’t just do so without being sure that it is indeed your family’s roots.
I hate to point fingers, but I have found incorrect information at both sites where you have paid to have a subscription to access information as well as at free websites where people have posted information. These are well known websites and we tend to rely on them as being accurate. It is important to remember that they do not verify the information that has been submitted to them.
If you find what appears to be matching information for your family, make an attempt to reach the poster of the information so that the two of you can share references and other family information to validate everything as true. Chances are you are going to find relatives and establish some long lasting relationships in the process.
I want to share with you a very obvious mistake on a family tree that hopefully you will see as quickly as I did when I saw it. I will make mention that I have contacted the website and asked if there is any way they can put me in touch with the author of this family tree so that we can discuss this information.
History of the Olmstead/Olmsted Family
The Olmsted family originated in England
My records start with Richard, born about 1430 and mentioned in the Domesday Book, Essex Co, England 1086. Olmsted Hall meaning “Place of the Elms” is a moated structure and now belongs to Queens College, Cambridge.
Next listed is James Olmstead born in about 1520 married to Alice. My records have no last name for her but on line I found her last name could be Sorrell or Hawkins. I also found 3 children listed of this marriage.
Next is James Olmstead born about 1550, who died in 1595. He married Jane Bristow on Aug 12, 1576 and they lived in Great Leighs, Co, Essex, England.
As my reference I have Olmstead Genealogy
Jacobus, Old Fairlefied Vol I pg 451
James immigrated to America in 1632 aboard the ship “Lyon” and settled in Cambridge, MA and in 1636 some removed to Hartford. James came to America with his Uncle James Olmsted .Some online references also state there were other nephews and a niece in the party.
Since James and Jane Bristow are my direct lineage, prior researchers in our family only concentrated on our direct line and did not list all of their children. We are descended from Richard Olmsted and his wife Frances Slany/Slaney. My records indicate that she has a brother Thomas Slany of London, whom I have not definitely located yet or her parents.
My records show that Richard and Frances had the following children:
Richard baptized 1612
Mary baptized 1615
John baptized 1617
Sarah baptized 1620
Rebecca baptized unknown but married to Thomas Newell
Joseph baptized 1627
Again, References used were
Olmstead Genealogy
Jacobus, Old Fairfield, Vol. I pg 451
Here is where the fun part starts
I found a record on line where someone posted a tree for this family with all of the above information. On their tree they show the son Richard, baptized in 1612 with parents as
James and Jane Bristow. They show that the SON was married first to Jane Bristow and then to Frances Slany . The record went on to state that Jane Bristow was born in Hatford, CT and that she married Richard in Essex England and their children were born in Hatford CT. There were 3 children from this marriage, Richard born between 1608-1612, James born 2/16/1617 and John born 2/16/1617.
Before we go further with this record do you see the glaring blunders? They have the son marrying his mother! They also have his mother being born in America and then marrying the son back in England.
The son, Richard, of Richard and Frances Slany had 3 children, their mother unknown
Yet I find records saying that Frances Slany was the mother of these children!
James an unnamed daughter and John (my line) born 1649 who married Mary Benedict and then married Elizabeth Pardee Gregory. I have found records where all of the children from both marriages were mixed in together as well as records where one of the children was listed with the wrong mother.
I have found records where Eunice is listed as the daughter of Mary as well as Elizabeth. Now I need to go back to my resource records just to be sure that what my prior researchers found is indeed correct. To see with my own eyes the printed material they used to validate who’s daughter she really is.
If there are any other Olmstead/Olmsted researchers out here reading this article, I hope you will come forward and contact me so that we can work on some research together.
There is no way I am publishing any of my information on line until I am sure it is correct, at least in my own mind, and be willing to share it with the world.
Friday, April 1, 2011
FREE at Ancestry.com Civil War Records
In case you have not heard of Ancestry.com (is that possible?) and know that they have both a paid for subscription part as well as many records that you can get free of charge, be sure to go there and register!
The week of April 7th to April 14th Ancestry.com is opening up their Civil War records along with Census reports from 1860 and 1870 to the general public. If you have not had the opportunity to locate those records or census reports before now, it is a great time to take advantage of this offer.
I would suggest that you go through all of your family surname records and write down every man and boy from the age of 14 on up who could have possibly participated in the Civil War. Even young boys went along to help the soldiers so don't discount the boys. Also make sure that you copy down the towns, or at least the areas where they lived at the time, which will assist you in knowing which regiment they may have been attached to.
Then plan on burning some midnight oil so that you can look them all up during this week. Hopefully you will turn up lots of information to add to your files.
Happy Hunting
The week of April 7th to April 14th Ancestry.com is opening up their Civil War records along with Census reports from 1860 and 1870 to the general public. If you have not had the opportunity to locate those records or census reports before now, it is a great time to take advantage of this offer.
I would suggest that you go through all of your family surname records and write down every man and boy from the age of 14 on up who could have possibly participated in the Civil War. Even young boys went along to help the soldiers so don't discount the boys. Also make sure that you copy down the towns, or at least the areas where they lived at the time, which will assist you in knowing which regiment they may have been attached to.
Then plan on burning some midnight oil so that you can look them all up during this week. Hopefully you will turn up lots of information to add to your files.
Happy Hunting
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Walking In Their Shoes
I am so pleased to see how much the show Who Do You Think You Are? has spurred interest in so many people to begin, or continue, their quest to find their roots. The show makes it look so simple doesn’t it? Just plug information into Ancestry.com and magically YOUR family appears! In reality it isn’t that easy. There are many features about Ancestry.com that I like but please, please, please ( I can not stress this enough) don’t believe everything you read on there or other sites, such as World Connect.com , RootsWeb.com, Genealogy.com, or Family Search.org and others, as being the gospel truth! Records on those sites are all listed by people just like you and me, amateurs putting together their family history. Those sites do not go through and check each and every piece of information that is submitted to them. We are all prone to making mistakes. Now am I saying not to use these resources? No, by all means use them as reference material , just like you would anything else that you might find elsewhere on the internet. But then research and document it with proof to be sure it is indeed correct material to go with your own family genealogy.
Be sure that you start with what you know about your own family and work backwards. I so hope that people are taking time to truly document their findings and making sure that they are indeed finding their own family! Now with that being said, I am going to tell you that sometimes rules are meant to be broken. I know, big contradiction to what I just told you isn’t it? Perhaps you know that your great great great grandfather was someone famous…. lets say like Daniel Boone, Walt Disney or Frank Lloyd Wright, these are all hypothetical by the way, but what if you know there is a connection, your family has told you that you are related. You have several generations in-between where you have a big gap. Since they are famous, you could take their descendant chart and work from them back through to where it meets up with yours. Just be sure that you are indeed correct by getting supporting documentation! Maybe you are not a direct descendant but a cousin several times removed, or a cousin by marriage, etc.
Let me give an example by telling you about what has happened in some lines of searching for my own family history. I have come across mix-ups in posting entire generations as being part of a family group when they were not part of the family at all, but because so many of the “names matched up” someone along the way decided they were indeed all of the same family. If they had really and truly paid attention and done their research, they would have found yes, indeed members of the families all seemed to name their children identical, but they were from two separate areas of New Jersey and Connecticut! I have one ancestor where we truly are not 100% about his wife or wives, but now there are several listings for him on Ancestry.com and World Connect with each wife entered separately as his spouse!
I have come across women married to a man who were listed as his child and not his wife! Because someone didn’t take time to truly research and document, now it is out there on the internet and others continue to copy this information as if it is true when in reality it is not.
Because a father and a son both have the same name, and there is no JR after the son’s name, someone took it upon themselves to enter a tree where they combined them as one person, where as if they had paid attention to where they lived, who their wives were and their dates of birth and death, the error would never have been made. Now those of us who are true direct descendants of these men, have to go in and try and straighten out this mess so that records at D.A.R., S.A.R. and other organizations can be corrected and taken off of dispute!
So in your zest to locate your family’s ancestors and truly enjoy the adventure of finding them, be sure to:
1. Document your sources be it birth and death certificates, marriage licenses, copies of land documents or gravestones (by the way I’ve seen some of these be spelled wrong and have incorrect dates) or if you are using family owned documents. Leave a good paper trail so others can follow in your footsteps and carry on when you have passed away.
2. Take time to find some books about the era and area where your ancestors lived and read up on what was going on in that time frame. Pay attention to the nationalities of the people who lived in the area, their religious affiliations, were there epidemics of illness which would wipe out families or communities. Were there Indian disputes which would cause people to migrate out of the area. Was there major crop failures, or perhaps they were in the middle of a battlefield area and had to evacuate.
3. Find maps from that time period, boundaries of cities, counties, states, and even countries have not always been as they are today. How do I know? Well, I found out the hard way that there were parts of Switzerland that were actually part of Germany at one point in time!
4. I know that there were census reports back to the 1790 period but be careful trying to understand them. The handwriting is often horrible, there are various spellings of names and instead of listing all the members of a family by name they are recorded by an age bracket. Also remember back in that time, there was a different calendar, many still used the Julian calendar, compared to the Gregorian calendar that we use today, which is going to throw your dates off.
5.Collaborate with other family members to try and find your ancestors. Reach out in your attempts to locate other branches of your family because they might have information to share that you don’t have and between all your efforts you can put together the puzzle of your family. Look for the ancestors of siblings of your relatives. They may be looking for you as well. For instance, go post on message boards, join Surname or Ethnic groups over at Yahoo and get acquainted. There is also a group called Brickwall at Yahoo that has some wonderfully talented researchers who are willing to give you assistance. If you are of Native American Indian descent, join one of the tribal groups on yahoo. The Cherokee board is very helpful, even if you are not Cherokee.
6. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. I don’t care if it is from another researcher on a website, maybe they don’t even happen to have the same surnames in their family but would be able to give you some good tips and advice. Ask a librarian at your local library because many of them are knowledgeable. Go to the local genealogy library in your town because many of the people who work in there have been doing research for years and years. Also you are always welcome at the local LDS Church library in your city. They certainly are not as large as the facility in Salt Lake City, but they do have resources there as well as they are able to order films from other locations for you to view. Again, the people who work in this library are also very knowledgeable.
7. “If it is worth doing, it is worth doing well” and doing it correctly. Even if you do publish information on any site or even on your own site and you have it open for public viewing, please be sure to let others know that “to the best of your ability you know this information is correct, but we are all open to human error, if you see something that you dispute, please contact me.” Or write something to that effect. Also if you do not include information about where your sources of information have been gathered from, indicate you do have documents on file if they are interested or if you don’t have any, advise that also.
8. Now get started. Gather together some pedigree charts or get a genealogy program installed on your computer (there are some good ones that you pay for as well as some free ones), get a notebook or set up a section on your computer so that you can be ready to add some great stories about the different people in your family so that your ancestors come to life for others. There is nothing exciting about just seeing a family tree with lots of names and dates written down!
Happy Hunting!
Be sure that you start with what you know about your own family and work backwards. I so hope that people are taking time to truly document their findings and making sure that they are indeed finding their own family! Now with that being said, I am going to tell you that sometimes rules are meant to be broken. I know, big contradiction to what I just told you isn’t it? Perhaps you know that your great great great grandfather was someone famous…. lets say like Daniel Boone, Walt Disney or Frank Lloyd Wright, these are all hypothetical by the way, but what if you know there is a connection, your family has told you that you are related. You have several generations in-between where you have a big gap. Since they are famous, you could take their descendant chart and work from them back through to where it meets up with yours. Just be sure that you are indeed correct by getting supporting documentation! Maybe you are not a direct descendant but a cousin several times removed, or a cousin by marriage, etc.
Let me give an example by telling you about what has happened in some lines of searching for my own family history. I have come across mix-ups in posting entire generations as being part of a family group when they were not part of the family at all, but because so many of the “names matched up” someone along the way decided they were indeed all of the same family. If they had really and truly paid attention and done their research, they would have found yes, indeed members of the families all seemed to name their children identical, but they were from two separate areas of New Jersey and Connecticut! I have one ancestor where we truly are not 100% about his wife or wives, but now there are several listings for him on Ancestry.com and World Connect with each wife entered separately as his spouse!
I have come across women married to a man who were listed as his child and not his wife! Because someone didn’t take time to truly research and document, now it is out there on the internet and others continue to copy this information as if it is true when in reality it is not.
Because a father and a son both have the same name, and there is no JR after the son’s name, someone took it upon themselves to enter a tree where they combined them as one person, where as if they had paid attention to where they lived, who their wives were and their dates of birth and death, the error would never have been made. Now those of us who are true direct descendants of these men, have to go in and try and straighten out this mess so that records at D.A.R., S.A.R. and other organizations can be corrected and taken off of dispute!
So in your zest to locate your family’s ancestors and truly enjoy the adventure of finding them, be sure to:
1. Document your sources be it birth and death certificates, marriage licenses, copies of land documents or gravestones (by the way I’ve seen some of these be spelled wrong and have incorrect dates) or if you are using family owned documents. Leave a good paper trail so others can follow in your footsteps and carry on when you have passed away.
2. Take time to find some books about the era and area where your ancestors lived and read up on what was going on in that time frame. Pay attention to the nationalities of the people who lived in the area, their religious affiliations, were there epidemics of illness which would wipe out families or communities. Were there Indian disputes which would cause people to migrate out of the area. Was there major crop failures, or perhaps they were in the middle of a battlefield area and had to evacuate.
3. Find maps from that time period, boundaries of cities, counties, states, and even countries have not always been as they are today. How do I know? Well, I found out the hard way that there were parts of Switzerland that were actually part of Germany at one point in time!
4. I know that there were census reports back to the 1790 period but be careful trying to understand them. The handwriting is often horrible, there are various spellings of names and instead of listing all the members of a family by name they are recorded by an age bracket. Also remember back in that time, there was a different calendar, many still used the Julian calendar, compared to the Gregorian calendar that we use today, which is going to throw your dates off.
5.Collaborate with other family members to try and find your ancestors. Reach out in your attempts to locate other branches of your family because they might have information to share that you don’t have and between all your efforts you can put together the puzzle of your family. Look for the ancestors of siblings of your relatives. They may be looking for you as well. For instance, go post on message boards, join Surname or Ethnic groups over at Yahoo and get acquainted. There is also a group called Brickwall at Yahoo that has some wonderfully talented researchers who are willing to give you assistance. If you are of Native American Indian descent, join one of the tribal groups on yahoo. The Cherokee board is very helpful, even if you are not Cherokee.
6. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. I don’t care if it is from another researcher on a website, maybe they don’t even happen to have the same surnames in their family but would be able to give you some good tips and advice. Ask a librarian at your local library because many of them are knowledgeable. Go to the local genealogy library in your town because many of the people who work in there have been doing research for years and years. Also you are always welcome at the local LDS Church library in your city. They certainly are not as large as the facility in Salt Lake City, but they do have resources there as well as they are able to order films from other locations for you to view. Again, the people who work in this library are also very knowledgeable.
7. “If it is worth doing, it is worth doing well” and doing it correctly. Even if you do publish information on any site or even on your own site and you have it open for public viewing, please be sure to let others know that “to the best of your ability you know this information is correct, but we are all open to human error, if you see something that you dispute, please contact me.” Or write something to that effect. Also if you do not include information about where your sources of information have been gathered from, indicate you do have documents on file if they are interested or if you don’t have any, advise that also.
8. Now get started. Gather together some pedigree charts or get a genealogy program installed on your computer (there are some good ones that you pay for as well as some free ones), get a notebook or set up a section on your computer so that you can be ready to add some great stories about the different people in your family so that your ancestors come to life for others. There is nothing exciting about just seeing a family tree with lots of names and dates written down!
Happy Hunting!
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Robert Todd Lincoln In His Father's Shadow
The minute you hear the name Lincoln you immediately think of Abraham Lincoln and his wife Mary Todd. You also usually think about his mother Nancy Hanks, because of her elusive background and fewer people even remember his father, Thomas Lincoln.
Abraham Lincoln and Mary Ann Todd were married 1842
They had four sons, but three of them died before reaching adulthood
Robert Todd Lincoln was the first born, in 1843 in Springfield Illinois
Edward Baker 1846 died Feb 1. 1850 in Springfield, ILL
William Wallace "Willie" born Dec 21, 1851 died Feb 20, 1862 Washington DC
Thomas "Tad" born Apr 4, 1853 died at age 18 July 16, 1871 in Chicago, Ill
Their son Robert also had quite an impressive life, beginning by following in his father's footsteps by becoming a lawyer.
Robert Todd Lincoln, born in 1843, at Springfield Illinois died on July 26, 1926 at his home in Vermont at the age of 82. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery along with his wife Mary and their son Jack. The three of them are buried together in one tomb.
Robert graduated from Phillips Exeter Academy in 1860 and then studied at Harvard University from 1861 to 1864. He was a member of two fraternities, Delta Kappa Epsilon (Alpha Chapter) and the also Delta Chi. He was enrolled in the Law School at Harvard but he did not graduate.
After his father was assassinated, Robert moved back to Chicago with his mother and his brother Tad. and it was there that he completed his law studies at the University of Chicago (present name) and was admitted to the bar on Feb 25, 1867.
His mother didn't want him joining the Civil War, but eventually he did over her objections, and with the blessings of his father. He was a Captain in the Union Army, serving in the last weeks of the Civil War, under General Ulysses S. Grant, assigned to his immediate staff. He was present when Lee surrendered at Appomattox.
Robert was married,on Sept 24, 1868, to Mary Eunice Harlan (Sept 25, 1846-March 31, 1937) She was the daughter of Senator James Harlan and Ann Eliza Peck of Mount Pleasant, Iowa.
They had a son Jack (Abraham Lincoln II who died at age 16 (March 5, 1890) in England.
A daughter, Jessie Harlan Lincoln Nov 6, 1875 - Jan 4, 1948 Born in Chicago, Illinois died Jan a4, 1948 at Rutland Hospital in Rutland Vermont. She married Warren Wallace Beckwith , eloping on Nov 10, 1897 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. They had two children, Mary Lincoln (Peggy)Beckwith born in 1898 in Des Moines Co, Iowa. She died in 1975 Rutland Vermont. And son, Robert (Bud) Todd Lincoln Beckwith on July 19, 1904 and died Dec 24, 1985 in Saluda, Middlesex Co. Virginia. He married Hazel Holland on March 14, 1927 and then Annemarie Hoffman on November 6, 1967 in Hartfield Virginia and then Margaret "Maggie" Fristoe in 1976. He had several step-children but no issue of his own. He was the last Lincoln descendant. Jessie divorced Warren in 1907 and married Frank Edward Johnson in 1915 and then Rober John Randolph in 1926. There were no children born of the last two marriages.
Daughter Mary Todd Lincoln (Mamie) born Oct 15, 1869, Chicago, Illinois, married Charles Bradley Isham on September 02, 1891 in Holy Trinity Church, Brompton Parish, near London, England. They had a son, Lincoln Isham, born June 8, 1892 . Lincoln married Leahalma Correa in 1919 but died September 1 1971 at Putnam Memorial Hospital, Bennington Vermont, without issue. Leahalma had a daughter,
Frances Mantley, whom Lincoln helped raise.
Robert turned down President Rutherford B Hayes' offer to appoint him Assistant Secretary of State, but later accepted President James Garfield's Secretary of War position, serving from 1881-1885.
Robert assisted Oscar Dudley in establishing the Illinois Industrial Training School for Boys in 1887 which was located in Norwood Park and In 1899 the school relocated to Glenwood, Illinois. Girls were not enrolled in the school until 1998. Under the name Glenwood School for Boys & Girls, the school continues to operate today as a haven for both boys and girls whose parents are unable to care for them.
Later, he served as the U.S. minister to the United Kingdom from 1889 to 1893 under President Benjamin Harrison, then returned to private business as a lawyer.
He was general counsel under George Pullman, and was named president after Pullman's death in 1897. In 1911, Robert Lincoln became chairman of the board, a position he held until his death in 1926.
The last public appearance of Robert Lincoln was at the dedication ceremony of his father's memorial on May 30, 1922, in Washington, D.C.
Trivia:
Robert was once saved from possible serious injury by Edwin Booth, the brother of John Wilkes Booth. They were on a train platform in Jersey City New Jersey. The incident occurred in late 1864 or early 1865, the exact date is not known, shortly before President Lincoln was assassinated.
The train platform was crowded with people and it was late in the evening, people were securing sleeping car places from the conductor. Robert was pressed against the car body and the train began to move. He lost his footing and ended up down into an open space when someone grabbed him by the coat collar and pulled him up onto the platform. That person was Edwin Booth, an actor, whom Robert knew and called by name, as he thanked him.
He was present at three assassinations, His father's, where he had turned down an invitation to go to the theater with them because he was not feeling well, President Garfield's in 1881, where he was actually an eye-witness, and President McKinley's in 1901 where he was there but not an eye-witness to the actual event.
Lincoln constructed an observatory at his home in Manchester, Vermont, because he was a serious amateur astronomer.
His telescope still exists; it was restored and supposedly is still being used by a local astronomy club.
Abraham Lincoln and Mary Ann Todd were married 1842
They had four sons, but three of them died before reaching adulthood
Robert Todd Lincoln was the first born, in 1843 in Springfield Illinois
Edward Baker 1846 died Feb 1. 1850 in Springfield, ILL
William Wallace "Willie" born Dec 21, 1851 died Feb 20, 1862 Washington DC
Thomas "Tad" born Apr 4, 1853 died at age 18 July 16, 1871 in Chicago, Ill
Their son Robert also had quite an impressive life, beginning by following in his father's footsteps by becoming a lawyer.
Robert Todd Lincoln, born in 1843, at Springfield Illinois died on July 26, 1926 at his home in Vermont at the age of 82. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery along with his wife Mary and their son Jack. The three of them are buried together in one tomb.
Robert graduated from Phillips Exeter Academy in 1860 and then studied at Harvard University from 1861 to 1864. He was a member of two fraternities, Delta Kappa Epsilon (Alpha Chapter) and the also Delta Chi. He was enrolled in the Law School at Harvard but he did not graduate.
After his father was assassinated, Robert moved back to Chicago with his mother and his brother Tad. and it was there that he completed his law studies at the University of Chicago (present name) and was admitted to the bar on Feb 25, 1867.
His mother didn't want him joining the Civil War, but eventually he did over her objections, and with the blessings of his father. He was a Captain in the Union Army, serving in the last weeks of the Civil War, under General Ulysses S. Grant, assigned to his immediate staff. He was present when Lee surrendered at Appomattox.
Robert was married,on Sept 24, 1868, to Mary Eunice Harlan (Sept 25, 1846-March 31, 1937) She was the daughter of Senator James Harlan and Ann Eliza Peck of Mount Pleasant, Iowa.
They had a son Jack (Abraham Lincoln II who died at age 16 (March 5, 1890) in England.
A daughter, Jessie Harlan Lincoln Nov 6, 1875 - Jan 4, 1948 Born in Chicago, Illinois died Jan a4, 1948 at Rutland Hospital in Rutland Vermont. She married Warren Wallace Beckwith , eloping on Nov 10, 1897 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. They had two children, Mary Lincoln (Peggy)Beckwith born in 1898 in Des Moines Co, Iowa. She died in 1975 Rutland Vermont. And son, Robert (Bud) Todd Lincoln Beckwith on July 19, 1904 and died Dec 24, 1985 in Saluda, Middlesex Co. Virginia. He married Hazel Holland on March 14, 1927 and then Annemarie Hoffman on November 6, 1967 in Hartfield Virginia and then Margaret "Maggie" Fristoe in 1976. He had several step-children but no issue of his own. He was the last Lincoln descendant. Jessie divorced Warren in 1907 and married Frank Edward Johnson in 1915 and then Rober John Randolph in 1926. There were no children born of the last two marriages.
Daughter Mary Todd Lincoln (Mamie) born Oct 15, 1869, Chicago, Illinois, married Charles Bradley Isham on September 02, 1891 in Holy Trinity Church, Brompton Parish, near London, England. They had a son, Lincoln Isham, born June 8, 1892 . Lincoln married Leahalma Correa in 1919 but died September 1 1971 at Putnam Memorial Hospital, Bennington Vermont, without issue. Leahalma had a daughter,
Frances Mantley, whom Lincoln helped raise.
Robert turned down President Rutherford B Hayes' offer to appoint him Assistant Secretary of State, but later accepted President James Garfield's Secretary of War position, serving from 1881-1885.
Robert assisted Oscar Dudley in establishing the Illinois Industrial Training School for Boys in 1887 which was located in Norwood Park and In 1899 the school relocated to Glenwood, Illinois. Girls were not enrolled in the school until 1998. Under the name Glenwood School for Boys & Girls, the school continues to operate today as a haven for both boys and girls whose parents are unable to care for them.
Later, he served as the U.S. minister to the United Kingdom from 1889 to 1893 under President Benjamin Harrison, then returned to private business as a lawyer.
He was general counsel under George Pullman, and was named president after Pullman's death in 1897. In 1911, Robert Lincoln became chairman of the board, a position he held until his death in 1926.
The last public appearance of Robert Lincoln was at the dedication ceremony of his father's memorial on May 30, 1922, in Washington, D.C.
Trivia:
Robert was once saved from possible serious injury by Edwin Booth, the brother of John Wilkes Booth. They were on a train platform in Jersey City New Jersey. The incident occurred in late 1864 or early 1865, the exact date is not known, shortly before President Lincoln was assassinated.
The train platform was crowded with people and it was late in the evening, people were securing sleeping car places from the conductor. Robert was pressed against the car body and the train began to move. He lost his footing and ended up down into an open space when someone grabbed him by the coat collar and pulled him up onto the platform. That person was Edwin Booth, an actor, whom Robert knew and called by name, as he thanked him.
He was present at three assassinations, His father's, where he had turned down an invitation to go to the theater with them because he was not feeling well, President Garfield's in 1881, where he was actually an eye-witness, and President McKinley's in 1901 where he was there but not an eye-witness to the actual event.
Lincoln constructed an observatory at his home in Manchester, Vermont, because he was a serious amateur astronomer.
His telescope still exists; it was restored and supposedly is still being used by a local astronomy club.
Monday, February 21, 2011
Abraham Lincolon and President's Day
In honor of President's Day, I thought it only fitting to honor Abraham Lincoln.
Abraham Lincoln, our 16th President, was born February 12, 1809 near Hodgenville, Kentucky to Thomas Lincoln and Nancy Hanks. When Abe was only two years old, the family moved from Kentucky to Indiana .Nancy had two other children, Sarah and Thomas, although Thomas died in infancy. Nancy Hanks Lincoln died in 1818 when Abe was only about 9 years old. Soon after Nancy's death, his father then married Sarah Bush Johnston in 1819 and she brought three children with her into this marriage. Abraham got along very will with his step-mother and credited her with being a strong stable influence in his life. John Hanks visited the family in Indiana and helped clear their land and Thomas expressed to him that the soil wasn't that good for growing crops. When John got ready to leave, after being with them for about two years, he was going to Illinois to look at some land and Thomas told him to contact him about what he found.
Everyone knows that Abraham Lincoln was known as the Civil War President and that he was assassinated on April 15, 1865 by John Wilkes Booth, while attending a show at the Ford Theater in Washington, D. C.
Abraham married Mary Todd in 1842 and they had four sons, William Wallace "Willie, Thomas "Tad, Edward Baker and Robert Todd who was the only one to live to maturity, marry, have children and lead a very public and active life in Washington, which I don't think many people are aware of. I will save that for another article.
I personally am honored to at least be able to claim Abraham Lincoln as a shirt-tail relative although he is not of my own direct lineage. Elijah Loomis, the brother of my ancestor Mary Olivia Loomis, married Emily Hanks. Emily's father, John I. Hanks and his parents were William Hanks and Elizabeth Hall. John was a first cousin to Abe's mother, Nancy Hanks.Now you can understand why I told you about John Hanks and his being close to the family even after Nancy's death.
John Hanks married Susan Wilson in 1826 and in 1828 moved his family to Macon County, Illinois. John had written to Thomas Lincoln about the wonderful farm land and how it was superior to that of the land in Indiana. It was in 1830 that Thomas then moved his family to Illinois and John Hanks and Abe hauled the logs together with a yoke of oxen, and a cabin was built near the Sangamon, in Harristown township, Illinois in which the Lincoln family lived while they resided in Macon county.
Abraham Lincoln and John Hanks both served in the Black Hawk War. John also served in Co. A, of the 21st Illinois regiment. This was the regiment that Gen. U.S. Grant entered the war as the Colonel in command.
In the 1880 Census for Hickory Point Township, Macon Co, Illinois, John I. Hanks, now 78 listed as father-in-law, is living with Elija (Eliza on the records) and his wife Emily and their children. There is also a little girl, 10 yrs old named Emma Hanks and she is listed as a daughter. Who's daughter is she? John's wife Susan died before this child would have been born. Did John remarry?
Some trivia facts about Abe Lincoln:
Did you know that he was the first President to wear a beard while serving as President in the White House?
One of the reasons he grew a beard was because he had a receding chin.
The only campaign stop that Abram Lincoln made in Michigan during his Presidential political campaign was in 1856 at Kalamazoo, Michigan. He spoke in Bronson Park. There is now a plaque there commemorating the event.Interest fact is that Silas Hubbard and Mary Olivia Loomis Hubbard, the sister to Elijah Loomis who was married to Emily Hanks, the daughter of John Hanks who was cousin to Abe's mother Nancy and who was close to Abe, were living in Kalamazoo at the time. Abraham spent the night in Kalamazoo before heading back to Illinois the next day. I wonder if he stayed with Silas and Mary?
Abraham Lincoln, our 16th President, was born February 12, 1809 near Hodgenville, Kentucky to Thomas Lincoln and Nancy Hanks. When Abe was only two years old, the family moved from Kentucky to Indiana .Nancy had two other children, Sarah and Thomas, although Thomas died in infancy. Nancy Hanks Lincoln died in 1818 when Abe was only about 9 years old. Soon after Nancy's death, his father then married Sarah Bush Johnston in 1819 and she brought three children with her into this marriage. Abraham got along very will with his step-mother and credited her with being a strong stable influence in his life. John Hanks visited the family in Indiana and helped clear their land and Thomas expressed to him that the soil wasn't that good for growing crops. When John got ready to leave, after being with them for about two years, he was going to Illinois to look at some land and Thomas told him to contact him about what he found.
Everyone knows that Abraham Lincoln was known as the Civil War President and that he was assassinated on April 15, 1865 by John Wilkes Booth, while attending a show at the Ford Theater in Washington, D. C.
Abraham married Mary Todd in 1842 and they had four sons, William Wallace "Willie, Thomas "Tad, Edward Baker and Robert Todd who was the only one to live to maturity, marry, have children and lead a very public and active life in Washington, which I don't think many people are aware of. I will save that for another article.
I personally am honored to at least be able to claim Abraham Lincoln as a shirt-tail relative although he is not of my own direct lineage. Elijah Loomis, the brother of my ancestor Mary Olivia Loomis, married Emily Hanks. Emily's father, John I. Hanks and his parents were William Hanks and Elizabeth Hall. John was a first cousin to Abe's mother, Nancy Hanks.Now you can understand why I told you about John Hanks and his being close to the family even after Nancy's death.
John Hanks married Susan Wilson in 1826 and in 1828 moved his family to Macon County, Illinois. John had written to Thomas Lincoln about the wonderful farm land and how it was superior to that of the land in Indiana. It was in 1830 that Thomas then moved his family to Illinois and John Hanks and Abe hauled the logs together with a yoke of oxen, and a cabin was built near the Sangamon, in Harristown township, Illinois in which the Lincoln family lived while they resided in Macon county.
Abraham Lincoln and John Hanks both served in the Black Hawk War. John also served in Co. A, of the 21st Illinois regiment. This was the regiment that Gen. U.S. Grant entered the war as the Colonel in command.
In the 1880 Census for Hickory Point Township, Macon Co, Illinois, John I. Hanks, now 78 listed as father-in-law, is living with Elija (Eliza on the records) and his wife Emily and their children. There is also a little girl, 10 yrs old named Emma Hanks and she is listed as a daughter. Who's daughter is she? John's wife Susan died before this child would have been born. Did John remarry?
Some trivia facts about Abe Lincoln:
Did you know that he was the first President to wear a beard while serving as President in the White House?
One of the reasons he grew a beard was because he had a receding chin.
The only campaign stop that Abram Lincoln made in Michigan during his Presidential political campaign was in 1856 at Kalamazoo, Michigan. He spoke in Bronson Park. There is now a plaque there commemorating the event.Interest fact is that Silas Hubbard and Mary Olivia Loomis Hubbard, the sister to Elijah Loomis who was married to Emily Hanks, the daughter of John Hanks who was cousin to Abe's mother Nancy and who was close to Abe, were living in Kalamazoo at the time. Abraham spent the night in Kalamazoo before heading back to Illinois the next day. I wonder if he stayed with Silas and Mary?
Friday, February 11, 2011
Digging Up Moore and Moore Bones
I hope that I am not the only one who is intrigued by how different names can end up in different parts of the country and then wonder if they end up connecting somewhere along the way!
As I work on two separate families, both with Moore lineage, I have to ask myself will they meet somewhere along the way? Is it possible that My MOORE family, originating in Canada and moving to Michigan, join up with my son-in-law’s MOORE family that so far I am finding in the southern part of the United States?
Coming from My Northern Moore family we have
Ebenezer Moore married to Elizabeth Wood they are from Canada
Son Charles married Hannah Triey they are from Canada
Son Sylvester married Jane Andress (often a form of Andrews)
Son David Michael born 1864 in Michigan married Clara Belle Mac Donald
Son William Henry married Lua Louisa Ackerman in Mt Pleasant Michigan, who are my grandparents.
Now lets look at the Southern Moore Family
According to one researcher, William Moore was born in 1725 in King George Virginia to Francis Moore and Elizabeth Harbin. Francis was born about 1706 and Elizabeth about 1704 in King George.
William and Mary French had Several Children:
Mary born about 1760 in Morgan, Lincoln Co, NC,
John born about 1762 in Morgan Lincoln Co NC
William birth date unknown but dying before Oct 1770 in Lincoln Co. NC. Who married Mary Steele.
William’s will dated Oct 1770 states Joseph as an heir. He was married to Rebecca Ballew around 1784 in Kentucky. I have his full name as James Joseph and born between 1757 and 1759.
Joseph and Rebecca had two sons who carry the Greenberry name,
Burt Greenberry Moore, born 1796 (he married Mary French) and their son, Greenberry H. Moore was born Oct 31, 1815.
Delilah born abut 1785 who married William Robertson,
Edmund 1787 who married Nancy Asher,
Alexander born about 1793. who married Sarah French (be interesting to see if this ties into relatives of Mary French who married Burt)
Joab born abut 1792,
Willliam L born about 1792 who married Charity Carter,
Hester Ann born 1897 married Morgan Childs
Robert Wilson. born 1808 married Lydia Cabaney/Cabney/Caviness (no one can agree on the spelling of her last name)
Daniel Boone born 1895 married Emily Lincecum (Lincum)
Dr. John Major born 1805 married Martha Medley
Burt Greenberry Moore and Mary French had a son they named Albert Greenberry Moore born in July 1848 in Itawamba Co MS. Albert in turn married Frances Truelove and they had a son that they named Albert Greenberry Jr born in Sept 1885.
They also had
Alexander Hamilton married Susan Bullard
George Washington married Martha A. Medley (is this the same Martha that Dr. John Major Moore Married?)
Eliza Jane married John Nelson Maxcy
William Hugh married Elizabeth Ann Walker
James Madison married Mary H. Truelove (is she related to Frances that married Albert Greenberry Jr?)
Mary Demaris Adeline
Sarah Ann
Joseph Birton
John Woffard
Alick
Robert Wilson Moore who married Lydia Cabaney/Cabney/Caviness
Had the following children:
Robert Calhoun married Nancy Ellen Collins
David H. C.
James married Serina Robertson
Mary
John
William
Lydia
Nancy
By 1880 Robert and Lydia moved their family to Parker County Texas, as they appear on the census there in that year.
Robert Calhoun and Nancy had the following children
Ruben Tyson married Oda Marie Price
Lydia Margaret married A Q Teague
Mary Elizabeth married George Riggs
Prudence Rachel
George William
James married Edith Doner/Donner
William P
At some point, Robert “Cal” Moore moved his family out of Texas.
Several of the children ended up in Oklahoma, namely Ruben Tyson and his sister Lydia Margaret and brother James. I have not completed my investigation on the rest of the children from this marriage.
I guess my next step will be to see if any of My Northern Moore’s moved South down into the North Carolina area or into some of the other Southern states. It doesn’t look like the Southern Moore’s moved North at all.
As I work on two separate families, both with Moore lineage, I have to ask myself will they meet somewhere along the way? Is it possible that My MOORE family, originating in Canada and moving to Michigan, join up with my son-in-law’s MOORE family that so far I am finding in the southern part of the United States?
Coming from My Northern Moore family we have
Ebenezer Moore married to Elizabeth Wood they are from Canada
Son Charles married Hannah Triey they are from Canada
Son Sylvester married Jane Andress (often a form of Andrews)
Son David Michael born 1864 in Michigan married Clara Belle Mac Donald
Son William Henry married Lua Louisa Ackerman in Mt Pleasant Michigan, who are my grandparents.
Now lets look at the Southern Moore Family
According to one researcher, William Moore was born in 1725 in King George Virginia to Francis Moore and Elizabeth Harbin. Francis was born about 1706 and Elizabeth about 1704 in King George.
William and Mary French had Several Children:
Mary born about 1760 in Morgan, Lincoln Co, NC,
John born about 1762 in Morgan Lincoln Co NC
William birth date unknown but dying before Oct 1770 in Lincoln Co. NC. Who married Mary Steele.
William’s will dated Oct 1770 states Joseph as an heir. He was married to Rebecca Ballew around 1784 in Kentucky. I have his full name as James Joseph and born between 1757 and 1759.
Joseph and Rebecca had two sons who carry the Greenberry name,
Burt Greenberry Moore, born 1796 (he married Mary French) and their son, Greenberry H. Moore was born Oct 31, 1815.
Delilah born abut 1785 who married William Robertson,
Edmund 1787 who married Nancy Asher,
Alexander born about 1793. who married Sarah French (be interesting to see if this ties into relatives of Mary French who married Burt)
Joab born abut 1792,
Willliam L born about 1792 who married Charity Carter,
Hester Ann born 1897 married Morgan Childs
Robert Wilson. born 1808 married Lydia Cabaney/Cabney/Caviness (no one can agree on the spelling of her last name)
Daniel Boone born 1895 married Emily Lincecum (Lincum)
Dr. John Major born 1805 married Martha Medley
Burt Greenberry Moore and Mary French had a son they named Albert Greenberry Moore born in July 1848 in Itawamba Co MS. Albert in turn married Frances Truelove and they had a son that they named Albert Greenberry Jr born in Sept 1885.
They also had
Alexander Hamilton married Susan Bullard
George Washington married Martha A. Medley (is this the same Martha that Dr. John Major Moore Married?)
Eliza Jane married John Nelson Maxcy
William Hugh married Elizabeth Ann Walker
James Madison married Mary H. Truelove (is she related to Frances that married Albert Greenberry Jr?)
Mary Demaris Adeline
Sarah Ann
Joseph Birton
John Woffard
Alick
Robert Wilson Moore who married Lydia Cabaney/Cabney/Caviness
Had the following children:
Robert Calhoun married Nancy Ellen Collins
David H. C.
James married Serina Robertson
Mary
John
William
Lydia
Nancy
By 1880 Robert and Lydia moved their family to Parker County Texas, as they appear on the census there in that year.
Robert Calhoun and Nancy had the following children
Ruben Tyson married Oda Marie Price
Lydia Margaret married A Q Teague
Mary Elizabeth married George Riggs
Prudence Rachel
George William
James married Edith Doner/Donner
William P
At some point, Robert “Cal” Moore moved his family out of Texas.
Several of the children ended up in Oklahoma, namely Ruben Tyson and his sister Lydia Margaret and brother James. I have not completed my investigation on the rest of the children from this marriage.
I guess my next step will be to see if any of My Northern Moore’s moved South down into the North Carolina area or into some of the other Southern states. It doesn’t look like the Southern Moore’s moved North at all.
Saturday, February 5, 2011
New Website To Check Out
Have you ever felt like one or more of your ancestors just fell off the face of the earth without a trace? It might be a good idea to do a time-line of events that happened during the last years that you were able to locate them in a given area. Perhaps they lived in a state that had a tornado, floods or droughts. Back in the days of the settlers, maybe there were Indian wars, or skirmishes with the British!
I came across a new website that may be of interest to everyone. It is called www.3.gendisasters.com.There are all types of disasters listed there, from natural to manmade events, where you can read about an event and in most cases names of victims lost in the tragic event are listed. You can search by state, year, or types of events.
You may be able to locate one of your "brickwall" ancestors there! I went and browsed through the site the other day and was very impressed with the number of articles that are already listed there and more are being added all the time.
So go check it out and let me know what you think about it
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Infectious Disease With No Known Cure
There is no cure for this disease. It is passed on from one generation to another, to at least one member of the family. The method of transmission seems to result from several sources, neither of which are possible to suppress or circumvent.
Onset of this disease often results during one’s high school years, where there is an unusual desire during American History class to dig deeper and learn if any of your ancestors came across on the Mayflower, was one of the original settlers in a community, ended up marrying a Native American Indian, or was murdered in the Salem Witch Trials.
If one isn’t infected by this disease at that point in time, it often invades our system when one of our close loved ones dies. All of a sudden this yearning to know about your heritage invades your entire body and you realize you have to get going on the search before any more of the “older generation” passes away, or you yourself get too much older and the family history is not recorded for the generations that will follow you. This is followed by a fever, a yearning desire to get started on this project immediately.
There is no cure, all you can do is take medication in order to subdue this disease. That means lots of research, whether it is by using the internet to get you started, or by visiting old courthouses for documents and finding old graveyards where your ancestors are buried. The brick walls that you encounter will keep you awake at night, those old buried bones seem to cry out to you “ find me find me” ! Sometimes the burning desire is so deep that you get up in the middle of the night, brew yourself another cup of coffee to help keep you awake and you pursue the hunt one more time! You try posting more information, rewording your request or the people that you are hunting for on one of the many genealogy message boards. It means searching records again, maybe this time for a sibling of your direct ancestor, or contacting others in the family who also suffer from this same disease. Consequently more and more websites are popping up on the internet as this disease spreads. Information can become available through the most unlikely sources sometimes. You know that you are truly addicted with this infection when you scrutinize each of the addresses of people who send you emails and they include the names of others on their lists to see if any of the Surnames match those you are looking for? Or if you have joined any Yahoo groups and you watch the names and where they live? .
I have so many different lines that I am following, that I often feel like Michael Jackson in the graveyard of his movie Thriller! All of those zombies, clamoring for his attention and the feeling of being overwhelmed by it all! There are times when I think ok, I’ll step back, work on just one line and guess what happens? Out of the blue I will get an email and it will be someone who is looking for the same people I am and they are related through one of the other offspring of the family. I end up once again picking up the torch and trying to light a pathway so that we are both able to find what we are looking for. So much for concentrating on just one line.
So I go back to my conglomeration of Moore’s the ones in my family from the North, being Michigan and Canada and the Moore’s from the South, being my son-in-law’s family, wondering if they will end up being connected somewhere along the way. The same with my Parker family from Illinois and his from Georgia, Tennessee, Arkansas, Texas and Oklahoma. Will all those Parker’s take me back to Chief Quanah Parker?
It is so difficult to try and stay centered on just one family! My cousins and I have tried that with our Decker line. We were fortunate enough to locate several more family researchers and we are all still trying to unravel the mystery of who exactly was Peter Decker’s wife! It would have been simple, if there weren’t more than just one Peter Decker, living in or near Passaic New Jersey, and who didn’t all name their children, using the same names of John, Andrew, Jacob, James and Isaac! They all lived in close proximity to one another and are often mixed up and end up in each other’s genealogy history. Once again, the need arises for as much accurate documentation as you can lay your hands on, and finding family bibles or journals which will be able to unravel the mess!
So as I start this new year, I am anxious to hear from all of you as to how you go about solving your brick walls. How do you stay centered on just one or two people to try and track down at a time?
Since there is no cure, I am looking for some other methods of finding solutions to these problems and the burning question…….. Who do you think you are?
This looks like a good book to add to my library! So many times we forget about the women and really need more ways to locate them.
Onset of this disease often results during one’s high school years, where there is an unusual desire during American History class to dig deeper and learn if any of your ancestors came across on the Mayflower, was one of the original settlers in a community, ended up marrying a Native American Indian, or was murdered in the Salem Witch Trials.
If one isn’t infected by this disease at that point in time, it often invades our system when one of our close loved ones dies. All of a sudden this yearning to know about your heritage invades your entire body and you realize you have to get going on the search before any more of the “older generation” passes away, or you yourself get too much older and the family history is not recorded for the generations that will follow you. This is followed by a fever, a yearning desire to get started on this project immediately.
There is no cure, all you can do is take medication in order to subdue this disease. That means lots of research, whether it is by using the internet to get you started, or by visiting old courthouses for documents and finding old graveyards where your ancestors are buried. The brick walls that you encounter will keep you awake at night, those old buried bones seem to cry out to you “ find me find me” ! Sometimes the burning desire is so deep that you get up in the middle of the night, brew yourself another cup of coffee to help keep you awake and you pursue the hunt one more time! You try posting more information, rewording your request or the people that you are hunting for on one of the many genealogy message boards. It means searching records again, maybe this time for a sibling of your direct ancestor, or contacting others in the family who also suffer from this same disease. Consequently more and more websites are popping up on the internet as this disease spreads. Information can become available through the most unlikely sources sometimes. You know that you are truly addicted with this infection when you scrutinize each of the addresses of people who send you emails and they include the names of others on their lists to see if any of the Surnames match those you are looking for? Or if you have joined any Yahoo groups and you watch the names and where they live? .
I have so many different lines that I am following, that I often feel like Michael Jackson in the graveyard of his movie Thriller! All of those zombies, clamoring for his attention and the feeling of being overwhelmed by it all! There are times when I think ok, I’ll step back, work on just one line and guess what happens? Out of the blue I will get an email and it will be someone who is looking for the same people I am and they are related through one of the other offspring of the family. I end up once again picking up the torch and trying to light a pathway so that we are both able to find what we are looking for. So much for concentrating on just one line.
So I go back to my conglomeration of Moore’s the ones in my family from the North, being Michigan and Canada and the Moore’s from the South, being my son-in-law’s family, wondering if they will end up being connected somewhere along the way. The same with my Parker family from Illinois and his from Georgia, Tennessee, Arkansas, Texas and Oklahoma. Will all those Parker’s take me back to Chief Quanah Parker?
It is so difficult to try and stay centered on just one family! My cousins and I have tried that with our Decker line. We were fortunate enough to locate several more family researchers and we are all still trying to unravel the mystery of who exactly was Peter Decker’s wife! It would have been simple, if there weren’t more than just one Peter Decker, living in or near Passaic New Jersey, and who didn’t all name their children, using the same names of John, Andrew, Jacob, James and Isaac! They all lived in close proximity to one another and are often mixed up and end up in each other’s genealogy history. Once again, the need arises for as much accurate documentation as you can lay your hands on, and finding family bibles or journals which will be able to unravel the mess!
So as I start this new year, I am anxious to hear from all of you as to how you go about solving your brick walls. How do you stay centered on just one or two people to try and track down at a time?
Since there is no cure, I am looking for some other methods of finding solutions to these problems and the burning question…….. Who do you think you are?
This looks like a good book to add to my library! So many times we forget about the women and really need more ways to locate them.
Friday, November 19, 2010
Cherished Memories
I wanted to do an article about creating heirloom memories that can be passed from generation to generation and with Thanksgiving and Christmas right around the corner I thought I would share this family created heirloom with you.
When I was little, back in the 1940’s money was tight and the family wanted to do something special for my grandparents but were not sure exactly what to do. Then my mother came up with an idea that all family members could participate in and it wouldn’t be a strain on anyone’s pocketbook. She decided to make a holiday tablecloth and have everyone draw a simple picture of their child onto the tablecloth. The drawings were then painted to make them permanent. As I remember, each picture had the name of the grandchild it represented under it.
As I grew up, I can remember this tablecloth being used every year at Thanksgiving and Christmas get-togethers. After grandma died, I have no idea what happened to the tablecloth. I would love to know where it is today!
This might be a project that you would enjoy doing for your parents or grandparents. I can envision updating the idea using silhouette cutouts and including all members of a family group. Then as each generation comes along, adding them to the tablecloth as well. I think this would be so much fun to see how a family grows from generation to generation!
You would probably need about 31/2 to 4 yards of muslin as the base for your tablecloth. You could decide on what type of cutouts you would use, either simple gingerbread boys and girls, the old fashioned silhouettes, or hand drawn pictures directly onto the table cloth. I think it would be nice to put each child’s name and birth date under their picture. With so many families now spread out all over the country, having them each mail their family creations to one person to finish the construction would be the simplest thing to do.
If you get started now you can have this put together and under the tree for Grandma and Grandpa. Can you imagine how thrilled they will be?
What other suggestions do you have for making heirlooms to pass from generation to generation?
When I was little, back in the 1940’s money was tight and the family wanted to do something special for my grandparents but were not sure exactly what to do. Then my mother came up with an idea that all family members could participate in and it wouldn’t be a strain on anyone’s pocketbook. She decided to make a holiday tablecloth and have everyone draw a simple picture of their child onto the tablecloth. The drawings were then painted to make them permanent. As I remember, each picture had the name of the grandchild it represented under it.
As I grew up, I can remember this tablecloth being used every year at Thanksgiving and Christmas get-togethers. After grandma died, I have no idea what happened to the tablecloth. I would love to know where it is today!
This might be a project that you would enjoy doing for your parents or grandparents. I can envision updating the idea using silhouette cutouts and including all members of a family group. Then as each generation comes along, adding them to the tablecloth as well. I think this would be so much fun to see how a family grows from generation to generation!
You would probably need about 31/2 to 4 yards of muslin as the base for your tablecloth. You could decide on what type of cutouts you would use, either simple gingerbread boys and girls, the old fashioned silhouettes, or hand drawn pictures directly onto the table cloth. I think it would be nice to put each child’s name and birth date under their picture. With so many families now spread out all over the country, having them each mail their family creations to one person to finish the construction would be the simplest thing to do.
If you get started now you can have this put together and under the tree for Grandma and Grandpa. Can you imagine how thrilled they will be?
What other suggestions do you have for making heirlooms to pass from generation to generation?
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Continuing Family History
As a family historian and amateur genealogist, I have found that delving into the past is a great adventure. It is interesting and exciting to learn about our ancestors and what their lives were like back in the “olden days.” There is something exhilarating about finding that lost relative and knocking down that brick wall!
But, in our quest to learn about the past history of our ancestors, are we forgetting about our families of the present? Are we keeping up with entering new arrivals into our families? Are we recording stories about our lives of today for future generations to enjoy? We need to be recording these things as well so that our children, grand children and great grand children will have first-hand knowledge of our lives and not have to just read about what the world was like when we were growing up in history books. We need to remember that someday we will be gone and someone (hopefully) is going to be looking for us!
Now that we have computers, it is so easy to start a journal of our lives and keep a running record of events. There are also web hosting locations where you can post your family tree either for free or for very little money. You can create settings where just family members are allowed in or you can leave it open for public viewing, the choice is yours. If you do set it up where only family members are allowed on your website, be sure to record passwords for access so that when you die, others in the family are able to get in and continue your work. I presently have one website set up as family access and have one other family member listed with administrator duties.
Make your family history come alive with photographs and stories of both those of ancestors and of current members of the family. Don’t let precious stories slip away and become distant memories.
You never know when someone else in the family will be bitten by the genealogy research bug. For some it comes early in life and for others, not until our golden years. In my case, it took the death of my mother to really become interested in doing more research. Granted, I had records already compiled from my father’s side of the family because of my earlier generations doing the research in order to become members of D.A.R.
In case you are not familiar with D.A.R. it stands for Daughters of the American Revolution. There are several other organizations that one might like to join such as the C.A.R. (Children of the American Revolution) or S.A.R. (Sons of the American Revolution).
There are also southern organizations such as S.C.V. (Sons of Confederate Veterans) and the United Daughters of the Confederacy for those with Southern roots, if you wish to join.
With the passing of each generation, my family tree is blooming and becoming a forest! I am one of these people who love to not only research direct descendants but also collateral lines, so my files are becoming very extensive. I only pray that when I am gone, my work will be preserved for future generations to explore and enjoy.
But, in our quest to learn about the past history of our ancestors, are we forgetting about our families of the present? Are we keeping up with entering new arrivals into our families? Are we recording stories about our lives of today for future generations to enjoy? We need to be recording these things as well so that our children, grand children and great grand children will have first-hand knowledge of our lives and not have to just read about what the world was like when we were growing up in history books. We need to remember that someday we will be gone and someone (hopefully) is going to be looking for us!
Now that we have computers, it is so easy to start a journal of our lives and keep a running record of events. There are also web hosting locations where you can post your family tree either for free or for very little money. You can create settings where just family members are allowed in or you can leave it open for public viewing, the choice is yours. If you do set it up where only family members are allowed on your website, be sure to record passwords for access so that when you die, others in the family are able to get in and continue your work. I presently have one website set up as family access and have one other family member listed with administrator duties.
Make your family history come alive with photographs and stories of both those of ancestors and of current members of the family. Don’t let precious stories slip away and become distant memories.
You never know when someone else in the family will be bitten by the genealogy research bug. For some it comes early in life and for others, not until our golden years. In my case, it took the death of my mother to really become interested in doing more research. Granted, I had records already compiled from my father’s side of the family because of my earlier generations doing the research in order to become members of D.A.R.
In case you are not familiar with D.A.R. it stands for Daughters of the American Revolution. There are several other organizations that one might like to join such as the C.A.R. (Children of the American Revolution) or S.A.R. (Sons of the American Revolution).
There are also southern organizations such as S.C.V. (Sons of Confederate Veterans) and the United Daughters of the Confederacy for those with Southern roots, if you wish to join.
With the passing of each generation, my family tree is blooming and becoming a forest! I am one of these people who love to not only research direct descendants but also collateral lines, so my files are becoming very extensive. I only pray that when I am gone, my work will be preserved for future generations to explore and enjoy.
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Is There A Witch In Your Family?
Mary Bliss Parsons Accused of Witchcraft
photograph taken from Wikipedia website but not validated by them that this is indeed a true photo of
Mary Bliss Parsons.
Since it is the time of year for witches and goblins and the celebration of Halloween, I figured it would be a good time to talk about witches, or supposed witches in our family trees. I get to claim Mary Bliss Parsons, who was the sister to Samuel Bliss, that I am descended from!
Probably one of the more famous women accused and acquitted of witchcraft was Mary Bliss Parsons, which actually happened in about 1654, many years prior to the famous Salem Witch Trials which started in 1692.
http://ccbit.cs.umass.edu/parsons/hnmockup/story.html
Mary Bliss, daughter of Thomas Bliss and Margaret , married Cornet Joseph Parsons in Hartford, CT in 1646. They lived in Springfield, Massachusetts for several years, where they had 3 children before moving to Northampton, in 1654. The Parsons had a total of 11 children. One of their sons, Ebenezer, was killed by Indians.
Joseph was a color-bearer in the Hampshire Troop of Horses, a prominent man in town of considerable wealth, working as a merchant and fur trader for the Pynchon family. He was also a selectman. He was licensed to keep an Ordinary, which today would be known as a tavern.
Supposedly a feud developed between the Parsons family and that of James and Sarah Bridgman who also migrated to Northampton the same year as the Parsons did. Rumors of witchcraft began to circulate shortly after their arrival, implying that the family’s success came at the expense of others and as the result of Mary’s dealings with the devil. Joseph Parsons, took the bull by the horns and initiated a slander case in 1656, in hopes of heading off these allegations. The record of this notable case will be found in Trumbull's History of Northampton, Vol.I, pp. 43-50; also on pages 228-234, copied from the original record now on file in Boston.
He won this case but 18 yrs later, Mary was officially accused of and tried for witchcraft in the year 1674/1675. Some records say that she was actually placed in jail in March of 1675 to await her trial but records from the actual trial did not survive. But on May 13, 1675 a jury found her not guilty. Even though she was eventually acquitted, some say that once again she was subject to another inquiry in 1679, but no records remain to prove this. Joseph and Mary packed up their family and left Northampton between 1679 -1680, amid lingering questions and gossip and they moved back to Springfield. Mary was a widow when she died in 1712, her husband preceded her in death by twenty-seven years.
The year before the famous Salem Witch trials, six Massachusetts women were hanged. and then twenty four innocent lives were taken during the Salem Witch Trials. The witch hunt began in Salem Village but spread to almost every town in Essex county. Before it was all said and done, 170 to 190 men, women and even children were accused. Many were held in jails in Ipswich, Salem, Boston, and Cambridge. Between the months of June and September 1692, nineteen people were hung, one was pressed to death and four died in prison awaiting trial. In 1693 the trials were ended.
There are now various theories as to what caused these bizarre accusations of witchcraft and being possessed by demons and casting of spells upon other people.
See http://ccbit.cs.umass.edu/parsons/hnmockup/witchcraft.html for related theories, and books, both factual and fictional regarding the witchcraft era.
Mary Bliss had the following siblings:
Ann who married Captain Robert Chapman
Thomas who married Elizabeth Birchard
Samuel who married Mary Leonard
Nathaniel who married Catherine Chapin
Lawrence who died in 1675
Sarah who first married John Scott, then Sam Terry and a Mr. Foot.
Elizabeth who married Miles Morgan (she was his 2nd wife)
Hannah who never married
Hester who married Ed Foster.
My descendant line:
Samuel Bliss who married Mary Leonard
Their son Thomas Bliss who married Hanna Cadwell
Their daughter Hannah Bliss who married Samuel Hubbard.
Even more information at this website
http://www.pcez.com/~bigshoe/shoegen.html many family lines at this website!
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Tunnel Vision Searching For Ancestors
One thing that is easy to do when researching your ancestors is to get tunnel vision! You get so focused on your direct lineage that you can’t see the forest for the trees. You have to start learning to be a detective and look at all the clues that are out there.
Okay, so you hit a brick wall. Do you have the names of siblings? Have you searched for their records? You can often find their spouses and their children and where everyone is buried. Check the cemetery well because chances are you are going to find other relatives buried there, in fact you may even find the graves of the direct lineage you have been searching for!
By checking census reports for siblings, you can often find where family members have moved in together, perhaps hard times forced them to share a household or a sibling is now carrying for an elderly parent or parents.
Back in the olden days, many women died during or shortly after childbirth from complications. There were also epidemics of small pox, etc that wiped out many members of a family all at one time. Surviving children were often sent to live with relatives either for safety’s sake to get them away from such illnesses or because a surviving parent, usually a father in cases where the wife died at childbirth, is not capable of taking care of a house full of children. It was not unusual for there to be seven, eight, ten or even a dozen children. The older children might stay with the father, because they could help around the house. The girls could do cooking, cleaning, mending and caring for the younger siblings or the boys could help in the fields bringing in crops, The younger children, were often sent to live with relatives, brothers and sisters of the parents mostly. But it was not unheard of for even grandparents to step in and take the children to raise.
If you come across a census report, where you have relatives who all of a sudden have additional children living with them, where the ages just seem to send up a “red flag” that they are not close enough in age to the other children, or adults who are now parents of a young child and the wife is no longer of childbearing age, this should automatically make you ask “where did that child come from? Who do they really belong to?”
Another thing you need to be aware of is that the spelling of names changed over time and I don’t just mean last names but first names as well. Remember that your ancestors all originally came from foreign countries and their names would have been spelled as they were “in the old country.”
Because communities were close knit and sometimes because of religion, families often intermarried. A perfect example of that is within my own family lineage. I have Decker, DeBow, Ryerson’s that have intermarried from one generation to the next!
The other day I was working on trying to locate Tina DeBow, who is at least one of the wives of Peter Decker. Some have suggested that Tina DeBow could actually be Christina DeVoe! Peter also may have been married to Stintje (Stintie) De Mott. I have located other generations where there have been marriages with the DeBow or Debow name, so I am inclined to believe that the DeBow is correct. But, there is a chance that somewhere, somehow her name was transcribed incorrectly. Tina sends up a “red flag” to me as actually being her given name since that is not a name that was typical back in the 1700’s. So of course I have several courses of action to take here. I can look for Christina DeBow or Debow as well as Christina or Tina DeVoe or Devoe. Since there is a strong possibility that Peter married more than once, I also need to check for Stintje(Stintie) DeMott or Demott. Do you notice I am checking for various spellings? In checking cemetery listings, I have found the DeBow name spelled both ways.
I hope some of these hints will help you with your brick walls! I’d love to hear from you.
This book is excellent, with lots of places listed to look on line for information.
Okay, so you hit a brick wall. Do you have the names of siblings? Have you searched for their records? You can often find their spouses and their children and where everyone is buried. Check the cemetery well because chances are you are going to find other relatives buried there, in fact you may even find the graves of the direct lineage you have been searching for!
By checking census reports for siblings, you can often find where family members have moved in together, perhaps hard times forced them to share a household or a sibling is now carrying for an elderly parent or parents.
Back in the olden days, many women died during or shortly after childbirth from complications. There were also epidemics of small pox, etc that wiped out many members of a family all at one time. Surviving children were often sent to live with relatives either for safety’s sake to get them away from such illnesses or because a surviving parent, usually a father in cases where the wife died at childbirth, is not capable of taking care of a house full of children. It was not unusual for there to be seven, eight, ten or even a dozen children. The older children might stay with the father, because they could help around the house. The girls could do cooking, cleaning, mending and caring for the younger siblings or the boys could help in the fields bringing in crops, The younger children, were often sent to live with relatives, brothers and sisters of the parents mostly. But it was not unheard of for even grandparents to step in and take the children to raise.
If you come across a census report, where you have relatives who all of a sudden have additional children living with them, where the ages just seem to send up a “red flag” that they are not close enough in age to the other children, or adults who are now parents of a young child and the wife is no longer of childbearing age, this should automatically make you ask “where did that child come from? Who do they really belong to?”
Another thing you need to be aware of is that the spelling of names changed over time and I don’t just mean last names but first names as well. Remember that your ancestors all originally came from foreign countries and their names would have been spelled as they were “in the old country.”
Because communities were close knit and sometimes because of religion, families often intermarried. A perfect example of that is within my own family lineage. I have Decker, DeBow, Ryerson’s that have intermarried from one generation to the next!
The other day I was working on trying to locate Tina DeBow, who is at least one of the wives of Peter Decker. Some have suggested that Tina DeBow could actually be Christina DeVoe! Peter also may have been married to Stintje (Stintie) De Mott. I have located other generations where there have been marriages with the DeBow or Debow name, so I am inclined to believe that the DeBow is correct. But, there is a chance that somewhere, somehow her name was transcribed incorrectly. Tina sends up a “red flag” to me as actually being her given name since that is not a name that was typical back in the 1700’s. So of course I have several courses of action to take here. I can look for Christina DeBow or Debow as well as Christina or Tina DeVoe or Devoe. Since there is a strong possibility that Peter married more than once, I also need to check for Stintje(Stintie) DeMott or Demott. Do you notice I am checking for various spellings? In checking cemetery listings, I have found the DeBow name spelled both ways.
I hope some of these hints will help you with your brick walls! I’d love to hear from you.
This book is excellent, with lots of places listed to look on line for information.
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