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Monday, September 30, 2013

Matrilineal Monday - Ella Caroline Webb

Ella Caroline Webb is a third-great grandmother on my maternal side. Ella was born November 17, 1864 to Charles and Louisa (Watson) Webb.
I have found no documentation for Ella's birth other than her death certificate and obituary. I can also find no information on her mother, Louisa. The first document I find noting Ella Webb is the 1870 census, which shows her living with her father and his family. It can only be assumed that Louisa died between 1864 and 1870 and that Charles moved in with his mother to help care for the child. Ella was born in Nebraska, but by 1870 she and her father are living in Ray County, Missouri.
 
Charles Webb was a farmer and owned land in Ray County. Ella lived with her father on his farm until she married Henry Clay Hankins in 1885.
Henry and Ella Hankins had two children, both girls. The birthdates of the girls are fairly far apart, but I have found no records to indicate that there were other children.
Ella lived out her life on a farm in Rayville, Missouri.
She died on January 6, 1946 following a five-month battle with stomach cancer. She is buried next to her husband in Crowley Cemetery, Rayville, Missouri.
Due outs for Ella:
1. Post on genealogy boards and reach out to Ray County Historical Society to try to track down photographs of Ella.

Saturday, September 28, 2013

Surname Saturday - Marcellus White

Marcellus White is my third-great grandfather on my maternal side. Marcellus was born in Roanoke County, Virginia in 1832 to Edmund and Sarah (McClanahan) White. He was the sixth of nine known children.
I have little to no information about the White family in Roanoke. In fact, I don't have conclusive proof that "Virginia Marcellus" is indeed my "Missouri Marcellus." However, I believe that this line of Whites descends from Samuel White, one-time owner of the Fort Lewis plantation in Roanoke County, Virginia. We first find the family together on the 1850 census.
They are living in Roanoke County, Virginia and Marcellus is listed as a clerk. He father is listed as a retail merchant so it could be that Marcellus worked for his father.

Sarah McClanahan White, Marcellus' mother, died in 1856. I have not found the White family on the 1860 census. I have found one potential match that shows Marcellus, his wife and his father in Ray County, Missouri.
I spoke more about this document here. Sometime around 1860 Marcellus married Mary J. Tosh. I have researched all of the marriage records in Roanoke County, Virginia, but have found no record of their marriage.

Marcellus fought in the Civil War and served with the Salem Flying Artillery, made up of soldiers from Roanoke County, Virginia. He was captured soon after the battle of Gettysburg and spent many months as a POW. He was mustered out of service at Appomattox Court House, where his unit was noted as having fired the last round of the Civil War.

Following the war the White family are found in Ray County, Missouri. Marcellus and Mary had 6 children.
Marcellus was a farmer. There is no documentation showing that he ever owned his own land. The family lived in Grape Grove Township, which is north of present day Hardin, Missouri. Other than his Civil War record and census documents, there is no other paper trail for Marcellus. I know very little about the man. There are no newspaper accounts, no obituaries and no information about his life once he makes it to Missouri. He dies in August 11, 1895 and is buried in Lavelock Cemetery, Ray County, Missouri.
Due outs:
1. Try to locate a birth record for Thomas E. White. It may indicate where the White family was in 1860.
2. Search Virginia newspapers to see if there is information about any business owned by the Whites in the 1850s.
3. Continue to search for definitive documentation that Marcellus is indeed from Roanoke County, Virginia.

Other posts about Marcellus:
A timeline - Marcellus White
Marcellus White, Civil War Prisoner of War
Who is "My" Marcellus?
The search for Marcellus' land
The Civil War remembered - May 14, 1861

Friday, September 27, 2013

Follow Friday - Favorites for September 27, 2013

Favorites is my weekly list of favorite genealogy, history and random finds from across the Net.
Sometimes Heroes don't wear capes (be sure to like this video on YouTube!)
Is this really Abraham Lincoln?
Stunning tribute to D-Day fallen
WWI letters found in a candy tin: their fading words
Grandpa Arthur and his mandolin at Jana's Genealogy
If I was in the show...what would you take to Genealogy Roadshow?
Does the shape of chocolate change it's taste?
Use them incorrectly and hashtags make you sound like a #fool
19 pieces of Bill Murray fan art
The history of the Trapper Keeper
Mystery bride at Jollett, Etc.
Tips for maintaining your textile heirlooms
Early Jim Henson commercials
A case for researching parallel lines at A Family Tapestry
A lovely tribute to a lovely grandmother
 

Thursday, September 26, 2013

Sometimes heroes don't wear capes

Check out this great video, produced entirely by Army Reserve Soldiers. The Soldiers are taking part in the "Capture your Hooah" video contest. If you enjoy the clip, please like it on YouTube. The winning team gets a trip to Washington, D.C.! Thanks for your support!
(For those receiving this via a feed, please click here to see the video.)

Monday, September 23, 2013

Matrilineal Monday - Talitha Unknown

Talitha is my third-great grandmother on my paternal side. I have written much about the Creed line, into which Talitha married, but I know little to nothing about Talitha herself. In fact, I do not even have proof of her last name.
Edward and Talitha Creed family on 1850 census, Cherokee County, North Carolina 
This snippet from the 1850 census is the only paper documentation I have found that shows Talitha. According to this record she was born in North Carolina around 1808. I can find no birth or baptism record for her nor can I find a marriage record for Edward and Talitha.
Based on the age of their children, Edward and Talitha were married prior to 1832. Talitha is not listed with Edward on the 1860 census, so I am assuming she died sometime between 1850 and 1860, though I can find no death record or headstone.

I have found other trees online that link Talitha to the Moses Cockerham family of Surry, North Carolina, but there are no documents posted to prove that. I have searched for marriage and death records for "Talitha," "Telitha," and "Tabitha" and have found nothing.

Due outs:
1. Research Surry County baptism records to determine if there is a record of her birth, marriage or death.

Friday, September 20, 2013

Follow Friday - Favorites for September 20, 2013

Favorites is my weekly list of favorite genealogy, history and random finds from across the Net.
11 nouns that only have a plural form
For my parent readers: a grocery-store tantrum does not a bad parent make
11 reasons Agatha Christie was as interesting as her characters
Modern marketing trailer for Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Epic.
An attempt to fit the entire Civil War on a single chart
Finding the source title of images at Family Search
Dying of laughter at Cubbage Genealogy
Vintage photo table runner
Darth Vader's family ties
Mystery boy donates $10.03 to local police
Another great obituary remembering "the man, the myth" Freddie McCullough
Genealogy Roadshow premiers next week on PBS
Is your family history archive ready for a disaster?
Cocktail secrets from the Union Army
Uncle Sam: The Man and the Meme
 
 
 
 


Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Wordless Wednesday - Aghhhhh!

My mom in 1954, 9 months, releasing some Aghhhh!

Friday, September 13, 2013

Follow Friday - Favorites for September 13 , 2013

Favorites is my weekly list of favorite genealogy, history and random finds from across the Net.
Woman finds long-lost love's diary in museum
Best good news stories of 2013...so far
15 signs you were in a high school musical
Finding your roots...our hobby in the mainstream media
WWI troops create pretty pincushions for their sweethearts
Rise of the super libraries
Scathing obituary paints ugly picture
An amusement park ride patent in the family at Nutfield Genealogy
Tips for translating records at Ancestry.com
Pack rat solutions at Filiopietism Prism
Joshua Chamberlain's Medal of Honor found at church sale
A window to the past: photograph albums at Wisteria
A wonderful obituary for Mary "Pink" Mullaney


Monday, September 9, 2013

Matrilineal Monday - Eliza Johnston

Eliza Johnston is my third great grandmother on my father's paternal side. I have written a little about Eliza before due in most part to the fact that I'm not positive that she is actually my third great-grandmother. However, I'll call her mine for now.

Eliza was born November 8, 1844 in Chicago, Illinois to James Johnston and Jane Montgomery. I have not be able to find any documentation on her family around this time and can not find them on any census record, therefore, I do not know if she had any siblings.
Eliza married William Moulton Butler and they had ten children.
Eliza with her granddaughter, Isabel Roper, circa 1912

In a documentary sense, Eliza's life is a mystery until 1880. That is the first time I find a record of her and it is on the 1880 census.
Here she is listed in Hobart, Indiana with her husband and seven children. Rewind 10 years and in the 1870 census, there is a woman named Elizabeth Brown living in William M. Butler's household.
I believe that Elizabeth Brown the housekeeper, listed above, and Eliza Johnston my grandmother are one in the same. I have several pieces of evidence to point to this. First, William M. Butler owned a plot in Graceland Cemetery, Chicago, Illinois. Among those buried in the plot is Charles E. Brown, an infant, interred August 16, 1866.


In the George Thomas Little book, The Descendants of George Little who came to Newbury, Mass. in 1640, Little supplies a list of children born to William Butler and "Mrs. Eliza Brown." Among those is a Charles Edward Butler, born October 16, 1865 and died August 26, 1866. Though the death dates vary by 10 days, I believe that the two children are one and the same.

I believe that Eliza was married to a man named Brown and following his death or an estrangement, she took work as a housekeeper in the Butler household. I believe that William fell in love with Eliza and they had several children out of wedlock. Because they lived in a time when that was unacceptable, when their young child Charles died he was given his mother's last name. Although quite a bit of documentation states that Eliza and William were married in 1861, this can not be true because he was still married to his first wife Celia. I found the following marriage which I believe is the correct marriage for the couple.
The marriage date is listed as April 10, 1872. The couple already had five children by this point and Eliza would have been two months along with the sixth child when they were married. I have no idea why they would have waited so long to get married, as William's first wife died in 1864.

Whew, that sums that issue up. Sometime in the 1870s the family moved from Chicago to Hobart, Indiana. Eliza appears to be a homemaker throughout her life and was a member of the Presbyterian Church in Hobart. William died in 1895 and Eliza lived near or with her children until her death on December 31, 1918. She is buried in Graceland Cemetery, Chicago, Illinois.
The inscriptions for both William and Eliza are incorrect on their headstones. Nothing like getting things right.
Due outs for Eliza:
1. On a couple of censuses, her birth place is listed as Wisconsin. It could be that her family lived there prior to moving to Chicago. I need to look for possible marriages and deaths in that state for the Johnstons and the Browns.
2. Search for siblings of Eliza. Look at the Hobart newspaper for any reference to visitors to Eliza or the Butler family.

Other posts about Eliza:
Exploring the Common: Johnston and Montgomery

Sources:
1880 United States Federal Census; Census Place: Ross, Lake, Indiana; Roll: 291; Family History Film: 1254291; Page: 537B; Enumeration District: 069; Image: 0488; Description ED: 069; Description: Ross.  Ancestry.com and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 1880 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA.

Little, George Thomas. The Descendants of George Little who came to Newbury, Massachusetts in 1640. Rachel Little genealogy, pp. 171-172. Published by the author. Auburn, Maine. 1882.

Friday, September 6, 2013

Follow Friday - Favorites for September 6, 2013

Favorites is my weekly list of favorite genealogy, history and random finds from across the Net.
31 beautiful sights on this incredible planet
Pages from 19th-century schoolgirl's hand-drawn atlas
5 best free sites for newspaper research at The Ancestor Hunt
The Book of Me, Written by You: great personal discovery prompts at Angler's Rest
WWI last letters and wills now available for search online
Newly digitized suffrage posters
Stylish uniforms of flight attendants through the years
Learn more about the Vietnam-era Coffelt Database at Adventures in Genealogy
Macht So! How learning the mother tongue can help your research
Pigeons in bras go to war
A sign that you have taken your genealogy research too far?
Family treasure exists in the simplest of objects at Filiopietism Prism
5 ways to avoid being rude
46 state fairs and what makes them special


Thursday, September 5, 2013

Treasure Chest Thursday - Hot Wheels

I have always been a tomboy. I'm not very good at typical "girl" things (doing hair, playing with babies, etc.) and I never have been. I am very good at playing with Hot Wheels, though. (Please note that in my world all small metal cars are called Hot Wheels, regardless of the brand!) I have always loved my Hot Wheels and had a massive collection of them growing up. I vividly remember driving them around the large maple tree in our front yard, creating a dirt trail and race track.

When I was in high school I came home one day and found a ton of trash bags by the curb. Apparently my dad had been spring cleaning...which included my room. Turns out he had thrown out my Hot Wheels! What the what? We spent the next hour going through each trash bag until we found them again. You do NOT throw away a girl's car collection.

I recently moved in to a new house and am still unpacking. Yesterday I came across what is left of my Hot Wheels collection and had to break a moment to remember the fun of driving them. I am very lucky to have two little boys that also love to play cars...though they won't get their hands on these treasures!

Tuesday, September 3, 2013

Happy Birthday, Little One

Today is Little One's third birthday! Happy birthday to a wonderful partner-in-crime, hugger and general trouble maker. We love you!

Sunday, September 1, 2013

Happy Birthday!

Today is this little one's birthday. It's been an amazing ride, raise a glass to many more happy years!