Stumbling Along Again

Rhodes: I mentioned Ann Bethia Rhodes Prall in an earlier post. That still stands - I'd like to find her birth and death records. As for the rest of the Rhodes clan, Holden Rhodes [Ann's great-grandfather] lack a specific marriage date [to Mary Remington -c1749] and death date [c1774]. Ann's parents, Captain Zachariah Rhodes and Harriet Cunningham are lacking death dates. Harriet died about 1818 in Baltimore's Fells Point neighborhood, based on a city directory search. Zachariah's exact date of death may never be known. His sloop, Hannah, left Baltimore for Puerto Rico on 14 August 1815 and he was lost at sea. I would like to track down some official record of the ship.

Hubbard: Sarah Hubbard Wolary also has a previous mention. I'm lacking a date of death for her. Locating some record identifying Sarah's mother would be a huge breakthrough. Add to that her birth, marriage and death details!

Double Stumble

Wagner: My maternal great-grandmother, Louisa Wanger McHugh's parents, John Wagner and Catherine Laubscher were both from Baden. Discovering their home parish and village would be a nice breakthrough. The Wagners were Catholic. They settled in Pennsylvania, where Louisa's oldest brother, Henry, was born. The family moved to Missouri about 1844. William and Louisa were born there, Louisa in Madison Co. Discovering where and when the Wagners settled in PA would also be a plus.

Simmons: An incredible breakthrough about 3-4 years ago expanded my maternal Simmons line from 5 generations to 11. There are still a few unanswered questions in the mix. John William and Dolly [Jennison] Simmons were a wandering family. They bounced around from Chenango Co., NY to points in Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky. John died in Newport, Campbell Co., KY in 1857. Dolly, after spending the majority of her final years with son Sylvanus and his family in Orange Co., IN, died in Covington, Kenton Co., KY. Verifying both deaths [say, burial places?] would add to the story. Also locating a marriage record for the couple would be an added benefit.

Then there's the afore mentioned Sylvanus. The names of his wife and two daughters changed over the years! Catherine Van Liew became Harriet/Henrietta P. Daughter Sarah became Henrietta and daughter Margaret J. became Ada J. I have no explanation, but facts confirm that Ada's mother was Catherine. The obit for Mrs. Simmons stated her name as Henrietta and her son-in-law as a Mr. Bateman, Ada's husband.

More Stumbling

Cawby: Cawby is one of my more interesting surnames considering it has 80-100 spelling variations. C and G were interchangeable with many of them. If my research is correct, Johannes Cabi/Cabe was of German origin. He arrived in Philadelphia, settled in Maryland and later North Carolina. Kentucky was his final home.

Mysteries? Who was John Cawby [that's Johannes Anglicized] first wife and mother of my line? Where was John from in Germany?

Not much needed here, but maybe finding the answers would open up a new line or two to torment me!

Stumbling Along

Wolary: Margaret Jane Wolary was my paternal great-grandmother. Her grandfather, Henry [1788-1849], was a first generation German - I think. The surname has several spellings: Wolary, Woolery and Ullery being the most common. He settled among the Welsh and English Quakers and Swiss Lutherans in Frederick Co., VA. He had moved his family to Ohio, but returned to visit his wife's family when he died in Virginia.

I would like to track down his parents.

Stumbling Blocks continue - BIG TIME!

Crail: Do I or don't I have the line back across the Atlantic? That is one of the many perplexing questions on my maternal grandmother's family. Beginning in 1860, I was able to located the Crail boys in the Indiana census. Sylvester, John and Aaron [my ancestor] had all married and started families. They would be off to fight in the Union Army during the next four years. None of them would come out well. Sylvester died a near invalid in the State Soldier's Home at Lafayette in 1898. John survived until 1907, but was ill much of the time. My Aaron died from "lung fever" in 1868, leaving a wife and six children 10 or under. His eldest, James [my great-grandfather], was a blacksmith turned veterinarian.

What of Aaron's parents, James Crail and Mary A. Jones? They do not make an appearance in the census between 1840-1870. Mary shows up as a widow in 1880. She had also been in the Indy city directories since 1875. Mary resided with John during her later years. Previous to that, Mary and James were involved in the purchase and sale of town lots in Marietta, Shelby Co., Indiana in 1851 and 1854.

I have been told that there was a 4th brother, George. He seems to fit. Same parents, missing from the same censuses, no record before 1880 except the city directories. Some of the details given to me, different combinations of Sylvester, John and Aaron for brothers and the assignment of one of ggf James' sons [Harry] to George have made me wary. Neither my mother nor her brother recalled a George.

If my elder James is indeed James Berry Crail, Jr., then I can trace the family back to Scotland, I have located church and tax records for a James Crail in Hamilton Co., Ohio at the time the family should have been there around the birth of Aaron two elder brothers. Also, Crails who would have been family appear in the tax records.

James Berry Crail Sr. resided in Bartholomew and Brown witsh most of his children nearby. If my James was part of this family, why did he go elect to break from the family?

Where were James, Mary and possibly George in 1850, 1860 and 1870? When was James born? When did he die?
Finally, did James and Mary get along with the aliens that whisked them from the planet in 1854? :)-

More Stumbling Blocks

Faucett: My paternal grandmother's family still has some mysteries to be solved. When and where were John Faucett and Eve Fry married? Where does John's son Thomas fit into the picture? Who were John's parents and where were they from? Were the Faucett's English, Irish, Ulster Scots, Huguenots or some other nationality? How's that for a handful of stumbling blocks?!

Stumbling Blocks

McHugh: I consider Mom's family as late arrivals. John and Daniel McHugh arrived in Pennsylvania during the 1830s. The brothers were from County Donegal. Daniel married before they left. John married in Pennsylvania to Sarah Hickey about 1835/6.

My uncle told me that the brothers lived in Mahanoy City [Schuylkill Co.] and worked in the coal fields to earn enough money to move west. Jo Daviess Co., IL and Lafayette Co., WI were their two western stops.

I have a pretty good handle on the Lafayette Co. years, so Pennsylvania and Illinois are the places I need to research.

Perhaps Daniel's marriage record, if available, would give me their hometown and parish back in Donegal.