The last arrivals in and a return to Indiana: 1913

The last of the family to arrive in Indiana was Wisconsin native Charles McHugh. He had married Bess Catherine Crail in Chicago in 1910. The McHughs moved to Indianapolis about 1913. The primary reason for the move was the transfer of Bess' father, Dr. James Crail, to Indy.

James had been born in Indiana, attended veterinary college in Ontario Canada, practiced in Shelby Co., IN, was appointed federal meat inspector in Chicago, then transferred to Indy.

Arriving in Indiana

My ancestral families began arriving in Indiana during the 1820s, at least those who were to remain here for several generations.

1) John Faucett & Joseph Faucett: The Faucett clan arrived in Indiana in 1824. John had purchased two tracts of land, one in Marion and one in Hendricks County. John settled the former and deeded the latter to Joseph and two sons-in-law. Joseph's son, Benjamin, would moved the family to Indianapolis during the early 1880s. John Faucett had previously resided in Virginia, Pennsylvania and Ohio.

2) Enoch Gulley & Willis Gulley: Enoch and Willis, along with other members of the family, moved to Shelby Co., Indiana in 1828. Enoch died within a year of arrival. Willis remained in Shelby Co. until 1834, then moved to Decatur Co. He spent a brief time in Hendricks Co. before returning to Decatur Co.

The Southern Migration Route

Several ancestral families called Virginia or North Carolina home. These families would find their way into Kentucky after the Revolutionary War. Madison, Pendleton, Jessamine and other nearby counties became home for a generation before uprooting to resettle in Indiana.

The families that were part of these migrations arrived in the Colonies between 1620 & about 1760.
What about those later arrivals? The McHughs [early 1830s], Laubschers & Wagners [late 1830s] & Catherine O'Neil [early 1850s]? They will be discussed tomorrow.

As for post-Civil War immigration, there was none. Castle Garden, Ellis Island & other ports of immigration are left to those of you whose ancestors sought land in the developing West, fled military conscription in Europe, escaped Fascism in Germany or Communism in Eastern Europe & SE Asia or any other reason to pack up & move to the US.

That Quaker Migration

As I mentioned yesterday, the Quakers who settled in Pennsylvania opted for settlement in the South. They left PA for Maryland and eventually landed in the Frederick County area of Virginia. After leaving the Quakers due to marrying contrary to discipline - there were Swiss Lutheran neighbors - my ancestors took off for Ohio & eventually found their way into east-central Indiana.

Central Migration Route to Hoosierland!

My Mid-Atlantic ancestors tended to take one of two routes:

1] NY-NJ-PA-OH-IN.

or

2] Pennsylvania south into Maryland & Virginia before eventually swinging NW for Ohio & Indiana. The vast majority of the families in this group were Quakers.

#1 includes the families that started out in New England, as well as New York & Maryland.

Two prime examples:

Prall: The family settled on Staten Island, the moved to New Jersey, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Indiana.

Simmons: New York City was the family's original home in America. The Revolutionary War sent them to NJ & PA, before returning home. A move to upstate NY followed, then western Pennsylvania, the northern neck of Virginia, SW Ohio and on to central Indiana.

Migration Patterns

While attending a conference a few years ago, the keynote speaker discussed the three primary migration routes into Indiana.

(1) Northern route: New England to the Connecticut Reserve in northern Ohio to Indiana.
(2) Central route: Mid-Atlantic States to Ohio to Indiana.
(3) Southern route: Southeastern States [primarily the Carolinas & Virginia] to Kentucky or Tennessee  to Indiana [or to Ohio to Indiana].

I can cover two out of three - the Central & Southern Routes.

My New England ancestors migrated to New York and New Jersey, rather than take the northern route across Ohio, before crossing into Pennsylvania and boarding flatboats for SW Ohio. After a few years in Ohio, they headed for central Indiana.  

Return to the Blog!

I've been neglecting the blog for the past couple of weeks. Thanksgiving commitments, research and other stuff have kept me away. Finding the time to flesh out my "dream trips" to research in England, has been lacking, as well.

To catch up on my missed Thanksgiving post: A special thanks to the Pilgrim founders of Plymouth, most especially ancestor Elder William Brewster - who stayed hidden until I was able to straighten out a couple of misplaced relationships in my Hazen ancestral line.