Who Reported This Stuff?

Some of you may find this a bit inappropriate, but the facts are the facts! We find interesting court records while researching our ancestors. After discovering three cases with a common thread, I began to wonder, who reported these incidents and why couldn't the "guilty parties" have been more discreet during the mid-1600s?
(1) Bridget Very and Edward Giles charged and fined for fornication before  marriage. [Both  and had been married before and soon married].
(2) Thomas Very [son of Bridget above] and his wife brought before the court and charged with fornication before marriage. [They were engaged at thee time.]
(3) Peter Twiss and Presila Vinton were brought before the court 3x for the same charge. [OK, in this case Peter was married, and not to Presila.]

Did Puritanical colonial America have fornication police? Or were the culprits just bad about keeping it a secret? Just wondering!

A Possible Breakthrough on Samuel Very's Mother

I was able to add some details to my Very family while in Salt Lake. One of the items was the will of Bridget Very Giles, mother of Samuel Very.

Bridget left Kent, England with her children after the death of husband, Thomas Very, and settled in Salem, Mass. Bay. She married Edward Giles in 1636. Bridget's maiden name was not given.

While searching for additional information on the Twiss and Very families, several links to a Bridget Scudder came up. According to "Our Sussex Roots" and a handful of other pages, Bridget was the daughter of  Henry Scudder and Elizabeth Hale.

Bridget was born about 1591 in Kent, England. She married Thomas Very about 1616. Thomas died in 1631. The widow and her three children settled in Salem, where Bridget married Edward Giles. She was named in the will of Rev. Henry Scudder as a cousin living in New England.

Although more verification is in order, it would appear that Samuel Very's mother was Bridget Scudder.

SLIG 2016 Wrap-up: Malcolm MacCallum remains a mystery

Over the years, some Problem Solving topics have been more successfully tackled than others. This year was one of the "others."

What I knew going in:
Malcolm MacCallum was a Scot taken prisoner at the Battle of Dunbar in 1650.
He was indentured to the Iron Works at Lynn, Essex, Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1651.
He resided at the company's Hammersmith farm for 19 weeks in 1653, probably working the livestock.
About 1655/6, Malcolm married a woman named Martha, probably in Salem.
Between 1658 and 1670, the couple had five children: Mary, Ann, John, Callum/Caleb,  Daniel and Martha.
In 1657, MacCallum was a member of the Scots Charitable Society in Boston.
In 1677, he was listed in a local militia unit.
Daughter Ann married Peter Twiss, Sr. in 1680. The marriage is found in both the Salem and Marblehead records.
Peter Twiss had some dealings with the Iron Works as a farrier.

What I learned:
In 1653 an inventory was taken of the Lynn  Iron Works inventory. It included MacCallum  and the other Scots.
The 1677 militia unit included his future son-in-law, Peter Twiss, Sr.

What I think may be:
The MacCallums lived in closed proximity to Peter Twiss, either in Salem [that part that became Peabody] or Lynn.

To do  list:
Contact libraries in Essex County, MA [specifically in Salem, Danvers, Peabody, Lynn, Saugus and perhaps Marblehead.]

At least I was able to dig up some information on the Twiss, Nurse and Very families!

SLIG Report: Maps and Photos

 

In addition to the text material located on my Essex Co. families, there were a few maps and photos that served as being important.

The bottom map, although extremely difficult to read, shows Samuel Very's land. It is the tract just below the tract that the  compass arrow is pointing at.

Attention again to the bottom map. The small shaded area near the lower center is Cedar Pond. The two larger tracts to the west belonged to Benjamin Very and Elizabeth Nurse. To the far left is the top of Suntaug Lake/Humphrey's Pond. The Twiss property bordered the pond.

A map/drawing of Lynn and Saugus.

The house at the bottom is the Mansfield house. Peter Twiss lived there for a time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SLIG Report - Part VI: Twiss [cont'd]

TWISS/TWIST:

Essex County Deeds:

Book 42:171 - 23 March 1723/4: Joseph Douty to Peter Twiss, Jr. of Salem: 6 acres bordered on the west and south by Peter Twiss, Sr.; on the east by Peter Twiss Jr.; on the north by Salem Common Land. Sale approved by Thomas McIntire.

Book 42:172 – same date: Peter Twiss, Sr. to Peter Twiss, Jr.: For the sum of £14 for 9 acres bordered on the north by Peter Twiss, Sr.; on the east by land formerly owned by Joseph Douty; on the south by Humphrey’s land; on the west by Samuel Pudney. Signed by mark: Peter and Anna Twiss.

Book 49:97-98 – 8 April 1725: Samuel Pudney to Peter Twiss, Jr.: For the sum of £392 for 81 acres and 1029 rods of upland and meadow in the towns of Lyn and Salem, bordered on the east by Peter Twiss, Sr. and James Gould and Peter Twiss Jr.; on the south by Mr Alford and Humphrey; on the north by John Pudney, dec’d and Jonathan Pudney.

Book 49:75-75 - ??/??/1725: Timothy Poole to Peter Twiss, Jr.: For the sum of £220 for 52 acres in Lyn bordered on the north partly by John and Eben Bancroft and William Eaton?; on the east by Eben Newhall; on the west partly by Robert Parker and Charlestown Land.

Book 108:88-89 – 20 May 1757: Peter Twiss, Sr. to Peter Twiss, Jr., both of Danvers. 7 acres in Lyn and Danvers bordered on the southwest by Daniel Mansfield, Jr.; on the northeast the end of Peter Twiss, Sr.’s land. Signed by mark of Peter Twiss, Sr. [Note: With this deed and the one that follows, we are dealing with the 2^nd and 3^rd Twiss generations. Peter, the immigrant died about 1743. Here we are dealing with his son and grandson.]

Book 108:59-90 – 6 June 1757 and 27 September 1757]: Peter Twiss, Sr. of Danvers to sons Jonathan and Peter Twiss of Danvers for the sum of £100 all real estate in Danvers and Lynn, including buildings, upland, meadow, wood and pasture, to be divided into equal halves. Signed by mark: Peter and Sarah Twiss.

Essex Genealogist, Vol 20, #4, November 2000: Lynn Squadrons Oath of Fidelity 1677: Edward Baker’s and William Merriam’s Squadron – there are 18 names on this militia list. #12 is Malcolm Macum and #18 is Peter Twist. [p. 197]

Essex Co., Massachusetts Probate File 28417: 6 February 1769: Peter Twiss, yeoman, died intestate, Danvers [note: most sources give Peter Twiss, Jr.'s death as "after 1757." This probate file narrows Peter's death date to late January to February 1-5, 1769.]

SLIG Report - Part V: Twiss

TWISS/TWIST:

History of Salem: Peter Twiss, yeoman and farrier, married Anne Callum on 26 October 1680, living in Salem  in 1714. Children: (1) Peter Twiss, born September 1681, married Sarah Nurse 20 December 1699. (2) Anne Twiss, born 22 May 1683. (3) Edward Twiss, born 29 June 1685, married Hannah Eborne of Lynn 8 February 1708/9. (4) John Twiss, born 24 January 1687/8, married Abigail Putney 20 November 1718. (5) Daniel Twiss, born 9 June 1690. (6) Mary Twiss [twin], born 11 January 1693/4. (7) Sarah Twiss [twin], born 11 January 1693/4, married Thorndike Very. (8) Martha Twiss, born June 1697, married Jonathan Nurse. (9) William Twiss, born 9 March 1700/1, husbandman, married Lydia Marsh 9 January 1723/4, Mary Doughty 6 June 1728. [p. 157]

The Peabody Story: Peter Twiss and Joseph Douty purchased part of the Humphrey grant in the early 1700s from James Menzies. The Douty and Twiss families were members of the first South Church established in Peabody in 1711 and listed in the first seating in the church records.

The Twiss family lived in the old Collins house on Lake Street. Both the Twiss and Douty families appeared on the 1752/3 highway tax lists. Members of both families served as constables for the collection of taxes.

In 1798, William Twiss owned the old Collins house. It had an area of 836 square feet, with two stories, six windows, 35 square feet of glass, built of wood and valued at $105. Peter Twiss and Joseph Douty were joint owners of a house in the same area valued at $150. [p. 75]

The old Mansfield house was  partly built in 1680 by Col. Bartholomew Gedney. The house had a room on each side of the front door which faced due South. Andrew Mansfield added to the house by adding the width of one room to the east side. This house was lived in by Peter Twiss for a time. [p. 81]

Peter Twiss, Jr. owned land in the Stones Plain area which he sold, with the frame of a house, to Jonathan Southwick in 1735. Twiss also had property in West Peabody, by Suntaug Lake, which he acquired from Joseph Douty in 1723. [p. 144]

SLIG Report - Part IV: Nurse

From History of Salem:

NURSE: Francis Nurse appeared in Salem about 1640 at age 19, and lived there all his life. He was born about 1621 and was a tray maker and yeoman. Francis married Rebecca Towne, who was executed as a witch on 19 July 1692. He died 22 November 1695. Children: (1) Rebecca Nurse married Thomas Preston. (2) Sarah Nurse married Michael Bowden. (3) John Nurse [see below]. (4) Samuel Nurse, married Mary Smith, 5 April 1677. (5) Mary Nurse married John Tarbell. (6) Elizabeth Nurse married William Russell. (7) Francis Nurse, born 3 February 1661, of Reading as of 1697. (8) Benjamin Nurse, born 26 January 1665,  married Sarah Boston of Lynn.

John Nurse, yeoman, married Elizabeth Smith 1 November 1672. She died 22 October 1673. He married Elizabeth Very 17 August 1677. John died about 1 December 1719. She was living in 1723. Children: John Nurse, born 12 October 1673, livrd in Framingham in 1719. (2) Elizabeth Nurse, born 18 March 1677/8, married _____ Douty. (3) Samuel Nurse, born 20 August 1679, mariner and yeoman, wife Elizabeth _____ in 1699, had daughter Deborah and died before 1719. (4) Sarah, born 10 November 1680, married Peter Twist 20 December 1699. (5) Jonathan, born 3 May 1682, husbandman, married Martha Twist [published 13 March 1714], living in 1743. (6) Joseph Nurse, born 20 September 1683. (7) Benjamin Nurse, born 20 February 1685/6. (8) Hannah Nurse, born 22 June 1687, married John Very.  [p.143]

SLIG 2016 Report III: Very and Towne

The History of Salem, Massachusetts: Vol. III, 1671-1716;                                         Sidney Perley; Sidney Perley, Salem, MA, 1928

VERY: Edward Giles married widow Bridget Very and came to Salem with their children about 1634. Bridget’s children by her first husband were Samuel, Mary and Thomas Very. Mary married Thomas Cutler of Reading in 1659. Thomas married his step-sister Hannah Giles on 6 July 1650 and lived in Gloucester. Thomas died there on 28 March 1694 and Mary on 25 August 1693. Samuel Very was a mariner and lived on Fox Hill in what became Peabody. [p. 1-5]

Samuel Very married Alice Woodis. He died in the winter of 1683-4. Alice was a widow as late as 1716. Children: (1) Samuel married Abigail Archer. Abigail was a widow in 1697. (2) Thomas Very* married Elizabeth Proctor on 28 March 1681. He died in 1717, she in 1736. (3) John Very married Hannah Nurse on 31 October 1709 and died in 1720. (4) Elizabeth Very married John Nurse. (5) Sarah Very married James Cooke of Boston and _____ Stover. (6) Jonathan Very was born 1 May 1659. (7) Joseph Very was born 25 June 1661 and died 6 August 1663. (8) Isaac Very [14 June 1663 – 1717]. (9) Joseph Very [13 November 1664 – 1694]. (10) Hannah Very was born 22 January 1666/7 and married William Beans on 6 February 1695/6. (11) Mary Very was born 21 March 1668/9 and married Jonathan Marsh on 24 May 1697. (12) Benjamin Very was born after 1663. [p. 1]

TOWNE/BLESSING: William Towne was baptized in the parish church at St. Nicholas, Great Yarmouth, Norfolkshire, England on 18 March 1598/9. He was the son of John and Elizabeth Towne. William married Joanna Blessing at St. Nicholas Parish Church on 25 April 1620. They settle in Salem about 1640. The Townes removed to Topsfield in 1652. William died in 1673. Children: (1) Rebecca Towne [bp. 21 February 1621; married Francis Nurse.^ (2) John Towne [bp. 16 February 1623/4]. (3) Susanna Towne [bp. 20 October 1625]. (4) Edmund Towne [bp. 28 June 1628 and arrived in America at age nine, as apprentice to Henry Skerry of Salem, aboard the Rose in 1637. He lived in Topsfield, married Mary Browning, died in 1678. She died in 1717.  (5) Jacob Towne [bp. 11 March 1632], husbandman, married Catherine Symonds on 26 June 1657 and died 27 November 1704. (6) Mary Towne [bp. 24 August 1634], married Isaac Esty. (7) Sarah Towne [bp. 3 September 1648] married Edmund Bridges and Peter Cloyes. (8) Joseph Towne [bp. 3 September 1648] lived in Topsfield, married Phebe Perkins. He died in 1713. (Baptismal dates for Sarah and Joseph were probably several years after their births.) [p. 5]

*Thomas and Elizabeth were the couple charged with pre-marital fornication.

^Rebecca and Francis were central figures in the Salem Witch Trials. Rebecca was one of the last to be hanged.

SLIG 2016 Report [Part II]: More on the Very Family

Records & Files of the Quarterly Court of Essex Co., MA

Volume 8: Thomas Very and his wife were brought before the court for fornication before marriage and were fined. Thomas Very petitioned the court arguing that they were engaged to be married with the consent of their parents at the time of the incident. Thomas was the son of Samuell Very Sr. [June 1681] [p. 146]

Volume 8: Will of Bridget Giles of Salem, widow [14 Jan1668] names the following heirs: Samuell Very [20 shillings], Thomas Very [20 shillings], Mary Cutler, wife of Thomas of Redinge [40 shillings], Bridget Very, daughter of Thomas [one cow due when she becomes 18 or gets married], Eliazer Giles [a 10 acre lot and her meadow land], John Giles [all remaining property]. John . Giles named administrator. Wit. John and James Browne. [p. 55-56]

Will of Samuel Very of Salem, about 64 years [3 Jan 1683/4] names the following heirs: Wife Allice [dwelling house, out-housing, all land except that of son Thomas, moveable goods and chattels], Benjamin Very [land and property bequeathed to mother upon her death, then to Samuell Very if Benjamin dies before age 21], Hannah and Mary Very [£10 each], John Very [piece of lowland on south side of river], Jonathan [piece of swampy land bordering Usall Wardall’s east boundary], Isack and Joseph [rest of land divided equally]. Executrix: Alice Very. Wit. Abraham Cole, Richard Croade. [p. 159-161]

Alice Very presented her husband’s will for probate on 20 March 1683/4. There was an objection made that three of her children, Samuel Very, Elizabeth Nurse and Sarah Cooke, were not mentioned in the will.  Alice promised that she would make her two daughters’ shares equal to that of their sisters [£10 each], if their husbands would agree to make no trouble. She and Samuel had come to a satisfactory agreement concerning his bequest. [p. 159]    

SLIG 2016 Report: MacCallum and Very [Part I]

Here is the first installment of my findings at the Family History Library in Salt Lake:

MacCallum:

Records & Files of the Quarterly Court of Essex Co., MA

‘Micham Macculan’ listed among 35 Scots on the inventory of such goods as belonged to the Undertakers of the Iron Works appraised on November 4, 1653 by William Wood. [p. 200]

Very:

The Peabody Story: Events in Peabody’s History 1626-1972;                          John A. Wells; Essex Institute, Salem, MA, 1972

In 1637, Philip Verrin was granted a 160-acre farm in South Peabody next to William Clark’s grant. The land extended from present-day Lynnfield St. to Forest St. The Benjamin Very and Elizabeth Nurse property were below the Verrin grant in 1700.  Samuel Very purchased the tract in 1656 from Richard Way. Very sold part of the property to Joshua Buffum and Joseph Gould [1681]. After Samuel’s death, the land was divided among his heirs. Son Benjamin received a tract valued at £70. Daughter Elizabeth and her husband, John Nurse, received a tract worth £40 in 1686. [p. 82]

Richard Way sold to Samuel Very “all that farm or farme house” situated “neere unto the frame house that is or late was Mr.  Edmond Batters” in 1656. The Very house was on Fox Hill in the current Emerson Park area.

Samuel Very was a mariner, who arrived in the area in 1634 with his mother, Bridget Very Giles [wife of Edward Giles]. Samuel married Alice Woodis and they had 12 children. Very died in 1683. Many of his descendants were mariners or mechanics.

Edward Giles owned 50 acres adjoining Samuel Very’s. Giles had the property from about 1634 until his death in 1649. It went to son, Eleazer after his death. [p. 98]

Finding the Family Story - A Second Example

Yesterday, I examined the Rhodes family with Holden Rhodes Sr. being the family mystery. Very little information has been located on him thus far.

A second case is the Jennison family.

Robert Jennison, the immigrant, was from Colchester, England. Some of the details are sketchy. His birth, about 1606-1615; date of arrival, 1630-1637; date of marriage, about 1639. From the time Jennison was made a freeman in Watertown [1645] until his death on 4 July 1690 at Watertown, local records tell his story.

Ensign Samuel Jennison spent his life in Watertown. Local records give a nice accounting of his community service, birth, marriage, death and family.

Robert Jennison's story lacks the fleshing-out that exists for his father and grandfather. He called Watertown, Cambridge, Framingham and Auburn home over 95 years.

Joseph Jennison has a birth and death date, but little else to tell his story.

Peter Jennison, who saw action at Lexington Green, has a few details to flesh out his life over 66 years.

Dolly Jennison's story is told mostly through her children. An exact marriage date is lacking, but birt and death dates are given.

Finding the Family Story Generation by Generation: Not Always Easy

I'll get back to the Twiss, Very, Nurse and MacCallum families after I get the "new" material organized. For now,  a look at trying to compile family stories over several generations.

In putting together several generations of a family, often times one or two generations provide little or no clues to the life of the individual. A case in point: The Rhodes Family.....

Beginning with the immigrant, Zachariah Rhodes, there is a fair bit of information on him and his wife, Joanna Arnold. Zachariah's probable birth place and estimated birthdate in England, his arrival in Plymouth Colony, and details as a freeman of that colony are documented. Also told is the story of his flight to the new Providence Plantation of Roger Williams due to his belief in the Baptist faith. Zachariah's activities in the new colony are well documented as well. His 1662 will is recorded. Mention of his death in a drowning accident is recorded, as is his burial place.

The life of John, son of Zachariah and Joanna, is fairly well documented, at least until the end of John's life. Questions exist as to the exact date of his wife's [Waite Waterman] death and the date of his 2nd marriage and 2nd wife's maiden name are missing.

Details are more sparse on 3rd generation Major John Rhodes and Catherine Holden. Dates are available for his becoming a freeman and his political or service activities. Birth, marriage and death dates are also available.

Then comes the 4th generation. Holden Rhodes and Mary Remington. The only documented date is Holden's birth. Estimates for Holden's marriage and death exist, but no concrete dates have been found. Details, other than the birth of  Holden and Mary's only known son, Holden, are lacking.

Holden, the 5th generation, is much better documented. His career as a mariner during and after the Revolutionary War is told through various accounts and records. A Seaman's Protection Certificate [issued with the intent to protect American sailors from impressment by the British Navy] gives Holden's physical description at age 46. Vital statistics are available as well. Holden married Susanna Wall.

The 6th generation story, that of Captain Zachariah Rhodes was initially told in a narrative provided by descendant Isaac Prall in the early 1900s. The story, however, lacked dates and documentation. By studying Baltimore city directories and finally discovering Zachariah's story in the "Holden Family in America," the details were fleshed out. Zachariah died at sea in August, 1815. His wife's death is not recorded, but Harriet Cunningham Rhodes, died a short time after her husband - no later than 1818.

Finally, Ann Bethia Rhodes, generation #7. Ann's story unfolded through the probate files of relatives and that of her aunt Pathia/Bathia Cunningham Porter. Only estimates exist for her birth [1812] and death [1865].

There you have it. Seven generations with varying degrees of documentation on their stories.


There you have it

Twiss, Very, Nurse & MacCallum

The week in Salt Lake brought about a few revelations. Not being terribly familiar with the towns/cities of Massachusetts, except when they pop up where ancestral families are concerned, I learned a few things about Essex County.

(1) Salem and Danvers [old Salem Village] are separated by the town of Peabody [pronounced pay-body].
(2) Saugus, technically the home of the Lynn Iron Works, broke off from Lynn to become its own village.
(3) Peabody, at one time part of Salem, was home to the Twiss and Very families.
(4) Humphrey's Pond [now Suntaug Lake] overlapped the boundary between Saugus-Salem and Lynn.
(5) The pond figures into a Twiss deed or two as a boundary.
(6) Somewhere in all of this lies the home of Malcolm MacCallum - which I have yet to locate.
(7) The Twiss property may be a key. Peter Twiss, Sr. married Ann, daughter of Malcolm. Peter was a farrier with dealings with the Iron Works, where Malcom worked. Ann's children married into the Nurse, Aborn, Pudney, Very and Douty families.
(8) Twiss and Joseph Douty purchased part of the Homphrey grant. Other families were nearby.

Now all I have to do is sort all of the details out and make a few contacts in Essex County to piece together the story.

Problem Solving in the Future

It was a nice run. 15 of 16 SLIGs with a unique research opportunity. My "problems" ranged from trying to prove a Mayflower ancestor to attempting to solve my Crail mystery.

I had a pretty good record. There were only about four years where I didn't come close to solving my problem. A couple of times I solved the problems a few months or years later.

The consultants were exceptional. The experiences were memorable.

Hopefully, SLIG will bring the course back from time to time I will miss the course and the folks I shared a two hour block of time with for five days in early January.

SLIG 2017

Here's the line-up for Jan. 22-27, 2017

Advanced Gen. Methods
Family History  Law Library
Diving Deeper into New England
Virginia: Colonial Era to Civil Wae
Forensic Gen.
Norway, Denmark, Iceland
Researching Ancestors from Overseas
DC Research without Leaving Home
Using Standards to Evaluate Gen. Work
Refining Internet & Digital Skills
DNA Bootcamp
Adding Social History to Gen.
Taking Research to the Next Level
Advanced Evidence Analysis

Yes, we have no Problem  Solving!!

Post-SLIG Saturday

Spent part of the day at the library checking into Kenton, Campbell & Boone Co., KY records. I had a little success with Boone Co. cemetery and Campbell Co. marriages.

I made an early day of it to rest up for the  AM flight tomorrow.

SLIG Wrap-up

I spent time today checking over deeds and a few other items on the final day of the institute. Thanks to the deeds and a 1760 map of Salem [including Salem Village/Danvers and Peabody], I have a fair idea where the Twiss property was.

The banquet was OK and the after dinner speaker was very good. They announced the schedule for 2017. I'll list the classes on a later post.

I'll do some additional  research tomorrow, then get ready to head home.

Thursday in SLC

I had discovered yesterday that the town of Peabody separates Salem from Danvers [Old Salem] & also borders Lynn. I decided to investigate Peabody today. The FHL has only two books on Peabody,  but one was an outright gem!

My Twiss & Very families resided in what was the Middle District [now Peabody.] All sorts of fun facts. Location of property, who bought what land from whom, location of homes and a few maps.

Twiss deeds tomorrow!

Wednesday update

Sorry I missed yesterday's update. I had a blood sugar issue.

I sort  of shifted gears after exhausting sources on Malcolm MacCallum, by turning to allied families. MacCallum/Callum kids married into several local Salem & Lynn families. Ann Callum, for example, married into the Twiss family. Her children married into the Nurse, Very and even Callum families.

I was able to find some new data on the Twiss,  Nurse & Very clans. Not a bad day.

SLIG Tuesday

Well, it was one of those days. Court records, local histories, online searches.... no success at all!!

Tomorrow night is SLIG Night at the Family History Library. Snacks,  research and a mini-consultation. Hopefully things will turn around.

Monday at Salt Lake

Our New England Problem Solving group is a good one. 4 of 6 are veterans and our 1st-time consultant is exceptional!

My short day in the library [the FHL closes at 5:00 on Mondays] was spent copying part of an article on the MacCallums, pouring over some court records and deed and probate indexes with mixed success. More info on the 2nd and 3rd generations than the 1st.

I also looked through a few books on Eseex Co. history and vital records.

Hopefully, tomorrow will bring a break-through or two.

Salt Lake Sunday

A busy day. A long flight from Indy. Meetings at 2:00, 4:00 & registration &pre-institute social from 5:00-8:00. Here's to a good night's sleep when all is done. Day 1 of Problem Solving tomorrow.

Genealogy Goals for 2016

Each year I hope to accomplish some new family tasks. Each year some of them are the same due to procrastination. That applies again this year.

(1) Organize my files. Folders are in piles, as are notes and documents. Notes and documents need to be filed and folders need to be alphabetized.

(2) Achieve success at the Salt Lake Institute.

(3) Solve a couple of ongoing genealogy mysteries.

It's a short list. #2 will hopefully be accomplished by the end of the upcoming week. #1 could take most of the year! #3? Hope!

The River Curse!

One of the most exasperating things about conducting research on a family or families is finding them hip-hopping back and forth across county or some other boundary line. In this case it is the Ohio River. I guess today the region would be called the "Greater Cincinnati Metropolitan Area."
Specifically, I'm referring to Kenton and Campbell Counties in Kentucky and Hamilton County  [Cincinnati], Ohio.

Several of  Simmons and Jennison family members settled in the northern Kentucky region of Kenton and Campbell Counties. Often they plied the "river trades" as engineers, boatmen, traders and the like. Just as often they would move from Newport and/or Covington to Cincinnati and back again.

That sets up searching records of all types in either two or three different counties, which can require some dedicated research. In some cases, a person may have lived in Kentucky for his/her entire life and elected to be buried in Cincinnati.

I've run into the same situation with a few other families along the way. So when I started working on my girlfriend's family, guess what? Back and forth across the Ohio!

Ironically, when we go to a Sunday afternoon Reds game in Cincinnati, guess where we end up parking? You guessed it! Across the river in Covington, KY.

Ohio: Stopover for many ancestors

During a national conference many years ago, I stopped at the Ohio Genealogical Society booth and was asked if I had any Ohio ancestors. "Definitely, I think it was a requirement." That gives you an idea of how many of my folks resided in Ohio on their way to Indiana.

They came via Massachusetts through New York and/or New Jersey; western Pennsylvania and down the Ohio River; Virginia to the Ohio; Virginia or North Carolina into Kentucky then Ohio.

There was a migration period beginning before statehood [1797] until the mid-1800s [c1868]. Both sides of the family crossed through Ohio before settling primarily in Central Indiana between 1824 and 1877.

Paternal: Prall, Wolary, Faucett, Clark, Hurin, Hubbard, Miller, Fry. 

Maternal: Crail, Simmons, Jennison, Crousore, Smith, Jones, Moore.

This may seem like a small number of families, but each represents from two to a dozen generations of families funneling into these few.

Is there a region of the country that drives you crazy trying to research it? Tomorrow I'll discuss mine.

Salt Lake Preperations

Well, the time has come to get ready for the Salt Lake Institute next week. I copied off information from several websites relating to my "Dunbar Prisoner" ancestor, Malcolm MacCallum and/or the Lynn [Saugus] Iron Works.

MacCallum and a number of other young Scots who were captured at Dunbar by Cromwell's army in 1650, were indentured to several New England iron works. The week will be dedicated to learning about MacCallum's years in the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

SLIG is introducing several new feature this year. One of those is a Wednesday evening event at the Family History Library that includes a few classes and regional consultation sessions along with a social gathering and research time. I learned yesterday that I am scheduled for a consultation session. That will give me a chance to try to get some assistance on a research problem in my girlfriend's family.

I still have to print my Problem Solving report and study a bit on my research. Of course there's a few non-research tasks to complete - like packing and such.

European Mainland

We cross the Channel to research in western Europe:

Switzerland, Zurich Canton = Rinker family

Germany, Baden = Laubscher, Wagner [my other German ancestors from places unknown, so far]

Belguim, records of old Flanders and Wallonia [DuBois, Billiou and others]

The Netherlands: Leiden for Pilgrim research, Billiou and other families,  Prall research in Heerde.

NOTE: The Dutch research, as well as Welsh, has the exasperating problem of patronymics.
Dutch: Jan Arentsen, Arent Jansen, Pieter Arentsen, Aaron Pieters, etc.
Welsh: Thomas, John ap Thomas, Llewellyn Upjohn, William ap Llewellyn, etc.

There will be a few other stops, Sweden, for example, but the records needed may be too early or long gone.

Happy [Belated] New Year!

The blog has been neglected again by the holidays! [sigh!]

 When last I posted, overseas destination were due up. England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland for starters.

Ireland focus: Counties Cork and Donegal are my two destinations. In both cases I have limited data on my O'Neils and McHughs. I also understand that Donegal is a tough place to research. I think a leisurely train ride from south to north would be in order.

Scotland? Dstinations unknown at this time. I hope to know more after the Salt Lake trip. Possibly Argyle.

Wales: Merionethshire [Rogers, Evans, Pugh], Glamorgan and Monmouthshire [Thomas].

England - an extensive journey. Yorkshire to Hampshire and elsewhere. My most recent immigrant family, the Simmons clan, probably came from Hampshire, so that could be a starting point.

Time to start preparing for Salt Lake!!