The subtitle of this book is "The Heroes of America's Forgotten Invasion of Russia, 1918-1919". This is relevant to the Beeks family because Wilbur Beeks was one of those heroes, even if he wasn't mentioned in this brand new book.
Usually I don't post about books that tell about members of the family, but this story is compelling both for historical and family reasons, and I want to make sure Beeks family members know about it. I learned some things that I hadn't realized before. For instance, the officers knew in advance that their men were going to Russia, even though the men weren't informed until after they arrived in England. The men expected to go to France to help finish "The War to End All Wars" on the Western Front.
Instead, they were sent 600 miles north of Moscow, Russia, to the town of Archangel, ostensibly to guard stores. In reality they fought Communist Russians deep in the Russian forests, almost from the time they hit the ground, until they were finally withdrawn 9 months later, long after the Armistice had been signed.
The book jumps around quite a bit, giving political background and jumping from company to company, to explain who was doing what at a particular time and place. Just look for the pages about Company K, 339th Infantry, and you will be reading about Wilbur's experiences. The description of the hospital that he was most likely treated in after he was wounded is pretty disturbing.
I wonder how many of the men had PTSD symptoms when they returned? Surely, they had every reason to have problems adjusting back to normal American life. I don't think anyone could have endured this situation without being changed in ways large and small. The wonder is that the story has been kept quiet, except for family members who either were told about it or stumbled across the records.
The book is available on Amazon, and the Huntington, Indiana library has ordered it. (I don't know if they have it yet, or have it on the shelves.) I pre-ordered our copy and got it on the official release date of February 19. I encourage you, if you are a descendant or a relative, to either buy the book, or go to your local library to request it. If they don't have it, they may order it or they may be able to get a copy on inter-library loan. I don't think you'll regret reading this book.
Tuesday, February 26, 2019
Friday, February 22, 2019
Holbrook line: Samuel Eddy, Immigrant, of Plymouth
He wasn't a Mayflower Pilgrim, but there he is, arriving in New England in 1630, probably, and settling in Plymouth Colony. So he knew our Mayflower ancestors William Brewster, Myles Standish, and Edward Doty. He was a tailor, so he may even have sewn clothes for them and their families. How cool is that! I also find it "cool" that there is quite a bit of material available about him, so let's start at the beginning.
Samuel Eddy was born on or before May 15, 1608 in Cranbook, Kent, England, the child of William and Mary Fosten Eddy. If that location and those parents seem familiar, it's because John Eddy, an ancestor on the Allen side of the family, was Samuel's brother. I've written about John before. We know little of Samuel's life in England, except that he was a PK, (preacher's kid, for those who don't recognize the initials). His mother died in 1611 and his father died in 1616, so it's likely that his guardian, older bother Phineas, was the one who decided that Samuel should learn the trade of a tailor. We don't know how much schooling Samuel had, but the terms of his father's will said that he was to be educated before being put to a trade. So presumably he at least had a few years of primary school, and could read and write.
It's believed that Samuel came to New England with his brother John in 1630. John settled in Watertown but Samuel decided to stay in Plymouth Colony. He had enough money left from his father's bequest to purchase a home within two years of his arrival. It's not known for sure when he married, but it was probably around 1635 or 1636 because the children started arriving in 1637. It is believed, but not for certain, that his wife was Elizabeth Savory.
Samuel and Elizabeth had somewhere between 5 and 8 children, depending on which list you believe. Robert Charles Anderson in "The Great Migration Begins" credits them with five children, all born between 1637 and 1647. Life may have been difficult for the two, as they sent at least three of the children to live with others, and to be taught a trade. It's possible that there was not great call for a tailor in Plymouth, or perhaps there was competition.
Samuel was made a freeman on January 1, 1634/35, and was on the surviving tax lists for many years after. He apparently had some sort of aptitude for real estate, because he bought several different parcels during his lifetime, and was granted more by the colony. In 1632/33, his servant, Thomas Brian, ran away but I was not able to learn the resolution of this. His wife Elizabeth was called to court two different times for being absent from the meeting house on Sunday. Once she was doing laundry (which may have been a necessity as there was sickness in the house) and once she went to Boston because someone was ill there, and asked for her. She was admonished, but apparently not punished further, both times.
Samuel was still practicing his tailor trade in 1675/76, because the colony paid him for making uniforms for the soldiers who fought in King Philip's War. Samuel had been a member of the training band but by the time of this war, he was in his late 60's, and had probably been excused from duty. Samuel and Elizabeth moved to Swansea, Massachusetts about 1680, and Samuel died there a year later. He had apparently donated some of his land as a burial ground for his family there, and there are a lot of Eddy wills and estates through the 1700s and later. Elizabeth died at Swansea in 1689. I've been unable to locate a copy of the will or estate.
So here is Samuel Eddy, tailor, husband, father, church member, tax payer, and probably a good man. It would be nice to know more about him, but we have enough information to recognize that he was a valued member of his society and an ancestor worthy of our respect.
The line of descend is:
Samuel Eddy-Elizabeth Savory
Zachariah Eddy-Alice Paddock
Zachariah Eddy-Amphyllis Smith
Elisha Eddy-Sarah Phetteplace
Enos Eddy-Sarah Brown
Enos Eddy-Deborah Paine
Joseph Eddy-Susan Lamphire
Susan Eddy-Hiram Stanard
Louis Stanard-Mary Alice Hetrick
Etta Stanard-Loren Holbrook
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
Samuel Eddy was born on or before May 15, 1608 in Cranbook, Kent, England, the child of William and Mary Fosten Eddy. If that location and those parents seem familiar, it's because John Eddy, an ancestor on the Allen side of the family, was Samuel's brother. I've written about John before. We know little of Samuel's life in England, except that he was a PK, (preacher's kid, for those who don't recognize the initials). His mother died in 1611 and his father died in 1616, so it's likely that his guardian, older bother Phineas, was the one who decided that Samuel should learn the trade of a tailor. We don't know how much schooling Samuel had, but the terms of his father's will said that he was to be educated before being put to a trade. So presumably he at least had a few years of primary school, and could read and write.
It's believed that Samuel came to New England with his brother John in 1630. John settled in Watertown but Samuel decided to stay in Plymouth Colony. He had enough money left from his father's bequest to purchase a home within two years of his arrival. It's not known for sure when he married, but it was probably around 1635 or 1636 because the children started arriving in 1637. It is believed, but not for certain, that his wife was Elizabeth Savory.
Samuel and Elizabeth had somewhere between 5 and 8 children, depending on which list you believe. Robert Charles Anderson in "The Great Migration Begins" credits them with five children, all born between 1637 and 1647. Life may have been difficult for the two, as they sent at least three of the children to live with others, and to be taught a trade. It's possible that there was not great call for a tailor in Plymouth, or perhaps there was competition.
Samuel was made a freeman on January 1, 1634/35, and was on the surviving tax lists for many years after. He apparently had some sort of aptitude for real estate, because he bought several different parcels during his lifetime, and was granted more by the colony. In 1632/33, his servant, Thomas Brian, ran away but I was not able to learn the resolution of this. His wife Elizabeth was called to court two different times for being absent from the meeting house on Sunday. Once she was doing laundry (which may have been a necessity as there was sickness in the house) and once she went to Boston because someone was ill there, and asked for her. She was admonished, but apparently not punished further, both times.
Samuel was still practicing his tailor trade in 1675/76, because the colony paid him for making uniforms for the soldiers who fought in King Philip's War. Samuel had been a member of the training band but by the time of this war, he was in his late 60's, and had probably been excused from duty. Samuel and Elizabeth moved to Swansea, Massachusetts about 1680, and Samuel died there a year later. He had apparently donated some of his land as a burial ground for his family there, and there are a lot of Eddy wills and estates through the 1700s and later. Elizabeth died at Swansea in 1689. I've been unable to locate a copy of the will or estate.
So here is Samuel Eddy, tailor, husband, father, church member, tax payer, and probably a good man. It would be nice to know more about him, but we have enough information to recognize that he was a valued member of his society and an ancestor worthy of our respect.
The line of descend is:
Samuel Eddy-Elizabeth Savory
Zachariah Eddy-Alice Paddock
Zachariah Eddy-Amphyllis Smith
Elisha Eddy-Sarah Phetteplace
Enos Eddy-Sarah Brown
Enos Eddy-Deborah Paine
Joseph Eddy-Susan Lamphire
Susan Eddy-Hiram Stanard
Louis Stanard-Mary Alice Hetrick
Etta Stanard-Loren Holbrook
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
Tuesday, February 19, 2019
Holbrook line: William White, Immigrant (but not on the Mayflower)
I've wanted to write about William White for a long time. Well, actually, I've wanted to learn about him for a long time. I knew he was not the William White of the Mayflower, and that's about all I was sure of. Today I found a very well written and referenced profile of him on WikiTree and I'm going to borrow from it rather shamelessly, in order to provide a brief sketch of this most interesting ancestor. Any errors of course are mine.
William White is a most interesting man. We don't know when or where he is born but conjecture is that he may have been the William White who was born about June 8, 1604 in Derbyshire, England. Both the date and the location make sense based on his marriage date and on his future occupation(s), but the first date that we really can say "this is probably our William White is his marriage to Elizabeth Jackson in 1629 at St. Gregory but St Paul's in London, England. This would put WIlliam at 25 years of age, and also puts him in London, where he apparently lived from his marriage until his emigration to England.
William and Elizabeth's first three children, Elizabeth, William, and Margaret were born in London. Margaret was born in 1635 and Ursula was born in Providence, Rhode Island in 1639 so the family must have emigrated between 1635 and 1639. I would tend to think it was earlier because most families didn't travel directly to Providence, but were in Massachusetts at first. There is a possibility that the family, or at least William, went back to England because he is again noted in 1645, as having emigrated to Massachusetts in the company of Dr. Robert Child who had recruited him to work in the New England Iron Works for five shillings a day.
William was not a common laborer, however. He seems to have had special skills and knowledge because Samuel Hartlibs "Ephemerides in 1643 says "?Mr. White has amongst many other things invented a new kind of Furnace which will save charges and coales. William White's "Catalogue of Inventions reveals him to have been involved in an exceptionally wide range of activities and to have been actively thinking about involvement in colonization.
William was employed at the Saugus Ironworks from 1646-1648 but was not a model employee. He was fined four pounds for selling beer without a license. (It was about this time that his daughter Elizabeth married Benjamin Herendeen, an ironworker, and may have had cause to regret it, as he was found guilty of beating his wife.) Perhaps the family was somewhat dysfunctional.
Next we find William White, and presumably his family, leaving Boston, where he had lived, and going to Bermuda to help a Bermudian merchant, William Berkeley, salvage a sunken Spanish treasure ship. (The term 'Bermudian merchant' may imply that Berkeley was involved in the slave trade in one way or another.) William supported himself and his family by repairing stills the Bermudians used for making liquor, as well as by fishing aand gardening.
Trouble developed between the White family and William Berkeley. In 1654, one daughter, Margaret, charged that Berkeley had raped her. Margaret had been a servant in Berkeley's home. Another daughter, Ursula, said that he had given her a shilling and tried to get her into his bed. Berkeley supposedly retaliated by accusing Elizabeth, William's wife, of putting a spell on his cattle, and accusing William of saying "the devil take them". Both charges implied witchcraft, at a time when this was a serious charge.
It was time for the Whites to end their efforts in Bermuda and go back to New England. He stopped first in Warwick, R.I., having underestimated the time it would take him to join John Winthrop Jr in Pequot. He had intended to work for Winthrop in his "major alchemical/industrial enteerprise that he was planning on Fishers Island near New Haven.
William was granted land at Pawtucket in 1656, next to his son in law Benjamin Hearndon/Herendeen, and later was granted meadowlands. It appears that he had at least something to do with a bridge that was at Weybosset. He sold this land to Hearndon and went back to Boston, where he was described as a bricklayer. William signed his will October 13, 1673, and he had died by December 30 of that year. The inventory, found on American Ancestors, (Suffolk County #676) is difficult to make out but it clearly is more than just a typical household inventory. One item alone is valued at 1000 pounds. Since much of this appears to do with his industrial/alchemical business, one wonders who actually bought the equipment and what the family actually received as proceeds.
There is more to William's story than I have been able to write in this short sketch, but I hope it shows us that not everyone came to New England and farmed or fished. Some helped build the industrial complexes of the day. Some spent time on Bermuda, or Barbados, or other islands. Some were truly interesting, even if they weren't famous. Such was William White.
The line of descent is
William White-Elizabeth Jackson
Elizabeth White-Benjamin Hearnden
Alice Hearnden-Daniel Brown
Hosanna Brown-Mary Hawkins
Othniel Brown-Deborah Brown
Sarah Brown-Enos Eddy
Enos Eddy-Deborah Paine
Joseph Brown Eddy-Susan Lamphire
Susan Eddy-Hiram Stanard
Louis Stanard-Mary Alice Hetrick
Etta Stanard-Loren Holbrook
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
William White is a most interesting man. We don't know when or where he is born but conjecture is that he may have been the William White who was born about June 8, 1604 in Derbyshire, England. Both the date and the location make sense based on his marriage date and on his future occupation(s), but the first date that we really can say "this is probably our William White is his marriage to Elizabeth Jackson in 1629 at St. Gregory but St Paul's in London, England. This would put WIlliam at 25 years of age, and also puts him in London, where he apparently lived from his marriage until his emigration to England.
William and Elizabeth's first three children, Elizabeth, William, and Margaret were born in London. Margaret was born in 1635 and Ursula was born in Providence, Rhode Island in 1639 so the family must have emigrated between 1635 and 1639. I would tend to think it was earlier because most families didn't travel directly to Providence, but were in Massachusetts at first. There is a possibility that the family, or at least William, went back to England because he is again noted in 1645, as having emigrated to Massachusetts in the company of Dr. Robert Child who had recruited him to work in the New England Iron Works for five shillings a day.
William was not a common laborer, however. He seems to have had special skills and knowledge because Samuel Hartlibs "Ephemerides in 1643 says "?Mr. White has amongst many other things invented a new kind of Furnace which will save charges and coales. William White's "Catalogue of Inventions reveals him to have been involved in an exceptionally wide range of activities and to have been actively thinking about involvement in colonization.
William was employed at the Saugus Ironworks from 1646-1648 but was not a model employee. He was fined four pounds for selling beer without a license. (It was about this time that his daughter Elizabeth married Benjamin Herendeen, an ironworker, and may have had cause to regret it, as he was found guilty of beating his wife.) Perhaps the family was somewhat dysfunctional.
Next we find William White, and presumably his family, leaving Boston, where he had lived, and going to Bermuda to help a Bermudian merchant, William Berkeley, salvage a sunken Spanish treasure ship. (The term 'Bermudian merchant' may imply that Berkeley was involved in the slave trade in one way or another.) William supported himself and his family by repairing stills the Bermudians used for making liquor, as well as by fishing aand gardening.
Trouble developed between the White family and William Berkeley. In 1654, one daughter, Margaret, charged that Berkeley had raped her. Margaret had been a servant in Berkeley's home. Another daughter, Ursula, said that he had given her a shilling and tried to get her into his bed. Berkeley supposedly retaliated by accusing Elizabeth, William's wife, of putting a spell on his cattle, and accusing William of saying "the devil take them". Both charges implied witchcraft, at a time when this was a serious charge.
It was time for the Whites to end their efforts in Bermuda and go back to New England. He stopped first in Warwick, R.I., having underestimated the time it would take him to join John Winthrop Jr in Pequot. He had intended to work for Winthrop in his "major alchemical/industrial enteerprise that he was planning on Fishers Island near New Haven.
William was granted land at Pawtucket in 1656, next to his son in law Benjamin Hearndon/Herendeen, and later was granted meadowlands. It appears that he had at least something to do with a bridge that was at Weybosset. He sold this land to Hearndon and went back to Boston, where he was described as a bricklayer. William signed his will October 13, 1673, and he had died by December 30 of that year. The inventory, found on American Ancestors, (Suffolk County #676) is difficult to make out but it clearly is more than just a typical household inventory. One item alone is valued at 1000 pounds. Since much of this appears to do with his industrial/alchemical business, one wonders who actually bought the equipment and what the family actually received as proceeds.
There is more to William's story than I have been able to write in this short sketch, but I hope it shows us that not everyone came to New England and farmed or fished. Some helped build the industrial complexes of the day. Some spent time on Bermuda, or Barbados, or other islands. Some were truly interesting, even if they weren't famous. Such was William White.
The line of descent is
William White-Elizabeth Jackson
Elizabeth White-Benjamin Hearnden
Alice Hearnden-Daniel Brown
Hosanna Brown-Mary Hawkins
Othniel Brown-Deborah Brown
Sarah Brown-Enos Eddy
Enos Eddy-Deborah Paine
Joseph Brown Eddy-Susan Lamphire
Susan Eddy-Hiram Stanard
Louis Stanard-Mary Alice Hetrick
Etta Stanard-Loren Holbrook
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
Friday, February 15, 2019
Holbrook line: William Hayward, Immigrant
It's February and the ice is thawing. I feel like I'm on very thin ice, here, writing about this particular ancestor. I hope I can stay away from all the cracks and holes in his story, and eventually get back to dry and solid land.
Actually, let's start with dry and solid land. It seems pretty well established that William Hayward died at Braintree, Suffolk County, Massachusetts on May 10, 1659. He was at his usual work as a ferryman, and drowned. Perhaps he had a heart attack or stroke that caused him to fall into the water, but the cause of death was apparently drowning. The inventory of his estate showed a value of 195 pounds, 5 shillings, and 6 pence. Power of administration was given to Margery, his late wife, on behalf of herself and the children. His estate included a dwelling house, garden, and orchards, as well as other lands, oxen, cattle and a meager amount of household furnishings including seven shillings worth of books.
Margery, his wife, is believed to be Margery Knight. There are marriage records for a couple by those names on October 10, 1633, Stepney, Middlesex, England, and they are believed to be the same people who later came to New England. Stepney appears to have been a separate village at the time but is now part of the city of London. Some show the couple as having arrived in 1635 but the earliest records are from 1637, when William was in Charlestown. He then went to Braintree ,where he was deputy to the general court in 1641.
By occupation, William was a mariner, boatman, and ferry man. He probably did whatever was necessary to support his family, which may have included as many as eight children, some of them still minors when he died.
That is pretty much what is known about William. I've been birth dates for him of everything from 1585 to 1617. The 1617 date is likely not correct because that would have made him only about 16 years old when he married Margery, which doesn't seem likely. More likely he was born between 1595 and 1610, but there were quite a few William Haywards born during that time period.
So we end with a mystery or two. Who was he, and who were his parents? What were his reasons for coming to America? Presumably he was made a freeman, since he held the office of deputy. When did that happen? Regardless, we once again come to the conclusion that he and Margery are people worthy of respect and honor, for crossing the ocean, for raising a family here, and for giving us those hardy pioneer genes that have served us well.
The lines of descent are:
William Hayward-Margery Knight
Huldah Hayward-Ferdinando Thayer
Ebenezeer Thayer-Martha Thompson
Ebenezer Thayer-Mary Wheelock
Abigail Thayer-Jesse Holbrook
Amariah Holbrook-Molly Wright
Nahum Holbrook-Susanna Rockwood
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
and
William Hayward-Margery Knight
Samuel Hayward-Mehitable Thompson
Mary Hayward-Joseph Rockwood
John Rockwood-Deborah Thayer
Joseph Rockwood-Alice Thompson
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susanna Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
per above
As you'll note, this is a rather tangled tree, with Thompson and Thayers showing up in several different ways. That may explain why we have several ancestors in common with William Howard Taft, former President of the United States.
Actually, let's start with dry and solid land. It seems pretty well established that William Hayward died at Braintree, Suffolk County, Massachusetts on May 10, 1659. He was at his usual work as a ferryman, and drowned. Perhaps he had a heart attack or stroke that caused him to fall into the water, but the cause of death was apparently drowning. The inventory of his estate showed a value of 195 pounds, 5 shillings, and 6 pence. Power of administration was given to Margery, his late wife, on behalf of herself and the children. His estate included a dwelling house, garden, and orchards, as well as other lands, oxen, cattle and a meager amount of household furnishings including seven shillings worth of books.
Margery, his wife, is believed to be Margery Knight. There are marriage records for a couple by those names on October 10, 1633, Stepney, Middlesex, England, and they are believed to be the same people who later came to New England. Stepney appears to have been a separate village at the time but is now part of the city of London. Some show the couple as having arrived in 1635 but the earliest records are from 1637, when William was in Charlestown. He then went to Braintree ,where he was deputy to the general court in 1641.
By occupation, William was a mariner, boatman, and ferry man. He probably did whatever was necessary to support his family, which may have included as many as eight children, some of them still minors when he died.
That is pretty much what is known about William. I've been birth dates for him of everything from 1585 to 1617. The 1617 date is likely not correct because that would have made him only about 16 years old when he married Margery, which doesn't seem likely. More likely he was born between 1595 and 1610, but there were quite a few William Haywards born during that time period.
So we end with a mystery or two. Who was he, and who were his parents? What were his reasons for coming to America? Presumably he was made a freeman, since he held the office of deputy. When did that happen? Regardless, we once again come to the conclusion that he and Margery are people worthy of respect and honor, for crossing the ocean, for raising a family here, and for giving us those hardy pioneer genes that have served us well.
The lines of descent are:
William Hayward-Margery Knight
Huldah Hayward-Ferdinando Thayer
Ebenezeer Thayer-Martha Thompson
Ebenezer Thayer-Mary Wheelock
Abigail Thayer-Jesse Holbrook
Amariah Holbrook-Molly Wright
Nahum Holbrook-Susanna Rockwood
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
and
William Hayward-Margery Knight
Samuel Hayward-Mehitable Thompson
Mary Hayward-Joseph Rockwood
John Rockwood-Deborah Thayer
Joseph Rockwood-Alice Thompson
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susanna Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
per above
As you'll note, this is a rather tangled tree, with Thompson and Thayers showing up in several different ways. That may explain why we have several ancestors in common with William Howard Taft, former President of the United States.
Tuesday, February 12, 2019
Allen line: Rice Gaddis McCoy, "Uncle Rice" to us
The more I learn about the McCoy family, the more amazed I am. I've previously written about William McCoy, the pastor and spinning wheel maker, and about Isaac McCoy, (Uncle Isaac to us), the missionary to the native Americans. Someday I will write about another son, James McCoy, who was our direct ancestor. But today I am excited because I've found some information about Rice Gaddis McCoy. Equally exciting, I've just finished reading a book called "The Frontiersmen" by W. Allan Eckert, and much of Rice's story is described in this book, even though he is not mentioned by name.
The Frontiersmen is about the settlement of Kentucky and Ohio (a little about Indiana and Illinois) during the years from about 1770 to 1815. Much of the story is written about Simon Kenton, who may or may not belong to our family, but that is a story for another day. The book explains the battles with the native Americans which took place during most of this time period, as America kept pushing back the boundaries of the country and as the natives were forced out of their homelands. It is a hair raising story that isn't taught much in school, but it was very important to the development of our history, shameful though it might be.
I had read long ago that William and Elizabeth Royse McCoy's last child, Rice Gaddis McCoy, was one of the first children born in Cincinnati, in 1789. That's not quite true, because Cincinnati at the time didn't exist. There was a small village there, less than a year old, called Losantiville and that's where Rice was born. The family stayed there a very short time before crossing the Ohio river and settling in Shelby County, Kentucky. Ohio had not yet been tamed and Kentucky was only nominally safer than Ohio, with frequent Indian raids still occurring. The McCoys seemed to want to live on the frontier, however, and they were requested to come to Clark County, Indiana to preach the word of God. The whole McCoy family went with them, Rice being a teenager at the time.
There Rice married Malinda Pound on January 2, 1812. This must have been shortly after he returned from serving under Governor William Henry Harrison on his march from Fort Knox (on Maria Creek, probably near Isaac McCoy's first church) to what became known as the Battle of Tippecanoe, at Prophetstown. It wasn't intended to be a battle, really. Harrison was still hoping to end the disputes between the natives and the whites peaceably. Tecumseh, the native leader, was not present but his brother, the Prophet, was there and he directed the natives to attack on November 6, 1811. The Americans weren't quite taken by surprise, but they weren't quite ready for battle yet, either. It took a little while for them to get organized after the natives made their initial attack. We know Rice was there because he signed a document in 1812, a memorial to Congress, asking that he (and others) be reimbursed for property lost at the battle, and we know he was a sergeant in 2 (Bartholomew's Regt) of the Indiana Territory Militia because there are records at the National Archives. Perhaps it was a horse, or some other item of value that Rice lost. It could have been that his extra clothes or ammunition was captured by the natives. At any rate, he was there, he lost something of value, and he came home alive. We don't know whether he served earlier, or whether he served when the War of 1812 broke out, but it's more than possible that he did both.
The article on Find A Grave states that he was ordained to the ministry on the fourth Saturday in July of 1819 at the old Union Baptist Church. His name appeared in the minutes of a conference of all the Regular Baptist churches of western Washington County and eastern Orange County in Indiana. To quote. "It has been said that he was a faithful minister of the gospel, indefatigable in his labors and a most humble Christian. His zeal for the promotion of benevolent institutions and practical godliness made him many enemies in his church."
Rice and Malinda had been married for almost 23 years when Rice died of "chills and fever" on September 8, 1834. His brother James had died of cholera the year before, but this doesn't sound so much like cholera as it does ague or malaria, the illness that was a constant trial to Isaac also. Malinda certainly had a challenge ahead. The couple had fifteen children together and it appears that ten or eleven were living when Rice died. Malinda worked diligently to keep them fed, clothed, and educated, and married again in 1844 to John Martin. He died in 1854, and Malinda died in 1859, the grandmother of about 100 grand children!
There is probably more about Rice and his father and perhaps our ancestor, William, in the archives at Franklin College. I would love to go there and explore the treasures they have! But without knowing any more than this, I can feel a sense of honor and patriotism in this man, in addition to his love for the Lord and his answer to the call of God. We've been blessed with good examples to follow.
The Frontiersmen is about the settlement of Kentucky and Ohio (a little about Indiana and Illinois) during the years from about 1770 to 1815. Much of the story is written about Simon Kenton, who may or may not belong to our family, but that is a story for another day. The book explains the battles with the native Americans which took place during most of this time period, as America kept pushing back the boundaries of the country and as the natives were forced out of their homelands. It is a hair raising story that isn't taught much in school, but it was very important to the development of our history, shameful though it might be.
I had read long ago that William and Elizabeth Royse McCoy's last child, Rice Gaddis McCoy, was one of the first children born in Cincinnati, in 1789. That's not quite true, because Cincinnati at the time didn't exist. There was a small village there, less than a year old, called Losantiville and that's where Rice was born. The family stayed there a very short time before crossing the Ohio river and settling in Shelby County, Kentucky. Ohio had not yet been tamed and Kentucky was only nominally safer than Ohio, with frequent Indian raids still occurring. The McCoys seemed to want to live on the frontier, however, and they were requested to come to Clark County, Indiana to preach the word of God. The whole McCoy family went with them, Rice being a teenager at the time.
There Rice married Malinda Pound on January 2, 1812. This must have been shortly after he returned from serving under Governor William Henry Harrison on his march from Fort Knox (on Maria Creek, probably near Isaac McCoy's first church) to what became known as the Battle of Tippecanoe, at Prophetstown. It wasn't intended to be a battle, really. Harrison was still hoping to end the disputes between the natives and the whites peaceably. Tecumseh, the native leader, was not present but his brother, the Prophet, was there and he directed the natives to attack on November 6, 1811. The Americans weren't quite taken by surprise, but they weren't quite ready for battle yet, either. It took a little while for them to get organized after the natives made their initial attack. We know Rice was there because he signed a document in 1812, a memorial to Congress, asking that he (and others) be reimbursed for property lost at the battle, and we know he was a sergeant in 2 (Bartholomew's Regt) of the Indiana Territory Militia because there are records at the National Archives. Perhaps it was a horse, or some other item of value that Rice lost. It could have been that his extra clothes or ammunition was captured by the natives. At any rate, he was there, he lost something of value, and he came home alive. We don't know whether he served earlier, or whether he served when the War of 1812 broke out, but it's more than possible that he did both.
The article on Find A Grave states that he was ordained to the ministry on the fourth Saturday in July of 1819 at the old Union Baptist Church. His name appeared in the minutes of a conference of all the Regular Baptist churches of western Washington County and eastern Orange County in Indiana. To quote. "It has been said that he was a faithful minister of the gospel, indefatigable in his labors and a most humble Christian. His zeal for the promotion of benevolent institutions and practical godliness made him many enemies in his church."
Rice and Malinda had been married for almost 23 years when Rice died of "chills and fever" on September 8, 1834. His brother James had died of cholera the year before, but this doesn't sound so much like cholera as it does ague or malaria, the illness that was a constant trial to Isaac also. Malinda certainly had a challenge ahead. The couple had fifteen children together and it appears that ten or eleven were living when Rice died. Malinda worked diligently to keep them fed, clothed, and educated, and married again in 1844 to John Martin. He died in 1854, and Malinda died in 1859, the grandmother of about 100 grand children!
There is probably more about Rice and his father and perhaps our ancestor, William, in the archives at Franklin College. I would love to go there and explore the treasures they have! But without knowing any more than this, I can feel a sense of honor and patriotism in this man, in addition to his love for the Lord and his answer to the call of God. We've been blessed with good examples to follow.
Friday, February 8, 2019
Holbrook line: Johann Jost Clapp, Immigrant 1669-1731
We have a lot of New England ancestors, with a few in the Maryland-Virginia area, almost all from England. Sometimes it's hard to remember that we also have German ancestors. Johann Jost Clapp is on of those. He was born August 9, 1669 in Istha, Wolfhagen, Kassel, Hessen (Germany), the son of Nicolas and Elizabeth Potter Klapp. His parents were married in 1668 and Elizabeth died in 1680. It's possible, therefore, that Jost (Joseph, Anglicized) was not an only child but he is the only one that is noted in records I've found.
It is likely that economic factors forced or encouraged the emigration of the Klapp/Clapp family to Philadelphia, Pa in 1727. 14 members, Jost and his wife, Anna Margaretha, along with five of their children and a couple of grandchildren came on the ship "James Goodwell", which arrived in Philadelphia on September 27, 1727. Doubtless they spent a few weeks or months at Germantown, where perhaps there were friends and relatives, before they moved on to Oley township, Berks County. Actually, it wasn't Berks County yet, it was Philadelphia County.
The Clapps were of the German Reformed religion (Protestant but not Lutheran) and when Jost died in 1731 he was probably buried in the church ground there, although I haven't found a record of it. It's not known whether he and his wife had a separate home from the children or whether they lived with one of more of them. Jost was about 62 years old when he died in 1731. Perhaps he had worked himself to death, or perhaps he was hit by one of the fevers so prevalent in the New World. His widow survived him and was doubtless taken in by one of the children, if she wasn't already living with one.
That's as much as I know about this German ancestor. He was a brave man to bring his family (or maybe they talked him into it?) to Pennsylvania when it was still a baby colony, to a land where his native language wasn't the main language spoken, knowing he would be starting from scratch to make a living for himself and Elizabeth. I hope he was satisfied when he died, knowing that his children all had chances to better themselves as they worked hard. The children would go on to North Carolina via the Great Wagon Road, so they had learned well the lessons of stepping out in faith to go to a more productive land.
The line of descent is:
Johan Jost Clapp-Anna Margaretha
John Ludwig Clapp-Anna Margaret Strader
Barbara Clapp-John Philip Clapp
Catherine Clapp-John Adam Brown
Adam Brown-Phoebe Myers
Phoebe Brown-Fremont Holbrook
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
The second line is just like the first, except:
Johann Jost Clapp-Anna Margaretha
George Valentine Clapp-Anna Barbara Steiss
John Philip Clapp-Barbara Clapp
etc.
John Philip and Barbara were first cousins, it seems, although I am still looking for information to confirm this.
It is likely that economic factors forced or encouraged the emigration of the Klapp/Clapp family to Philadelphia, Pa in 1727. 14 members, Jost and his wife, Anna Margaretha, along with five of their children and a couple of grandchildren came on the ship "James Goodwell", which arrived in Philadelphia on September 27, 1727. Doubtless they spent a few weeks or months at Germantown, where perhaps there were friends and relatives, before they moved on to Oley township, Berks County. Actually, it wasn't Berks County yet, it was Philadelphia County.
The Clapps were of the German Reformed religion (Protestant but not Lutheran) and when Jost died in 1731 he was probably buried in the church ground there, although I haven't found a record of it. It's not known whether he and his wife had a separate home from the children or whether they lived with one of more of them. Jost was about 62 years old when he died in 1731. Perhaps he had worked himself to death, or perhaps he was hit by one of the fevers so prevalent in the New World. His widow survived him and was doubtless taken in by one of the children, if she wasn't already living with one.
That's as much as I know about this German ancestor. He was a brave man to bring his family (or maybe they talked him into it?) to Pennsylvania when it was still a baby colony, to a land where his native language wasn't the main language spoken, knowing he would be starting from scratch to make a living for himself and Elizabeth. I hope he was satisfied when he died, knowing that his children all had chances to better themselves as they worked hard. The children would go on to North Carolina via the Great Wagon Road, so they had learned well the lessons of stepping out in faith to go to a more productive land.
The line of descent is:
Johan Jost Clapp-Anna Margaretha
John Ludwig Clapp-Anna Margaret Strader
Barbara Clapp-John Philip Clapp
Catherine Clapp-John Adam Brown
Adam Brown-Phoebe Myers
Phoebe Brown-Fremont Holbrook
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
The second line is just like the first, except:
Johann Jost Clapp-Anna Margaretha
George Valentine Clapp-Anna Barbara Steiss
John Philip Clapp-Barbara Clapp
etc.
John Philip and Barbara were first cousins, it seems, although I am still looking for information to confirm this.
Tuesday, February 5, 2019
Holbrook line: Daniel Lincoln, Immigrant
Daniel Lincoln is one of those men who should appear on a game show called "To Tell the Truth", at the end of which the host would ask "Will the real (Daniel Lincoln) please stand up?" There were several men by that name in the small town of Hingham, Massachusetts. Our Daniel arrived there in about 1644, just as another man by the name of Daniel Lincoln died there. It's possible that the Daniel who died was an uncle or even the father of our Daniel, but no one seems to know for sure. There were a lot of Lincolns in Hingham and it appears that not all of them were closely related, although some surely were.
In Hingham, Daniel is referred to as a "boatman" or "seaman". Nothing in his inventory indicates such a life, but as he lived to be about 80 years old it's possible that he stopped that line of work earlier and turned to something else to support himself and his family. He married Susanna Cushing, daughter of Thomas Cushing, on May 15, 1645 at Hingham, Massachusetts. We don't know whether the courtship began in England or whether it was something of a whirlwind romance, but the two settled down together and as far as I'm aware not, lived happily ever after.
There were eight children born to the couple, one being a son who did not survive long. They were born from 1654 to 1671, which almost makes me wonder what our happy couple was doing for the first ten years of their marriage. Were there miscarriages or premature births during this time period, and if so, what changed that Susanna was suddenly able to have children?
One thing we know about Daniel, who apparently never was granted freeman status, is that he was a good military leader. He was chosen as sergeant for his unit and was involved in King Philip's war in 1675-76, although we don't know when he became sergeant. He still had some of his armor and a sword when he died in 1699. His name is found in some of the early Suffolk County wills, as owing money to merchants. Both times I saw his name, he was one of a long list of debtors to a merchant, so it must have been commonplace to sell on credit and then wait for crops, or a ship, to come in so the debt could be paid.
Most of the other information we have about Daniel we can glean from his inventory. He did leave a will but I can read very little of it. It is Suffolk County case 2519 if you want to have a look at it. I do see that he made some sort of arrangements for his wife. Daniel died March 19, 1699, and Susanna died five years later, in 1704. His inventory mentions books, a dwelling house and all the buildings with it, land, farm animals including several sheep, and household goods. He had two tables and two chairs, which is more than the bare minimum a house of the time would have. The total value of the estate was about 247 pounds.
Sergeant Daniel Lincoln lived in the New World about 55 years and helped shape it, even contributing to the survival of the colony during King Philip's War, and possibly before that. He earned the respect of his peers and even though he wasn't one of the rich and famous, he was one of the people who built America. We can, I think, be proud of him.
Our line of descent is:
Daniel Lincoln-Susannah Cushing
Rachel Lincoln-Israel Lazell
Isaac Lazell-Deborah Marsh
Deborah Lazell-Levi Rockwood
Susanna Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
In Hingham, Daniel is referred to as a "boatman" or "seaman". Nothing in his inventory indicates such a life, but as he lived to be about 80 years old it's possible that he stopped that line of work earlier and turned to something else to support himself and his family. He married Susanna Cushing, daughter of Thomas Cushing, on May 15, 1645 at Hingham, Massachusetts. We don't know whether the courtship began in England or whether it was something of a whirlwind romance, but the two settled down together and as far as I'm aware not, lived happily ever after.
There were eight children born to the couple, one being a son who did not survive long. They were born from 1654 to 1671, which almost makes me wonder what our happy couple was doing for the first ten years of their marriage. Were there miscarriages or premature births during this time period, and if so, what changed that Susanna was suddenly able to have children?
One thing we know about Daniel, who apparently never was granted freeman status, is that he was a good military leader. He was chosen as sergeant for his unit and was involved in King Philip's war in 1675-76, although we don't know when he became sergeant. He still had some of his armor and a sword when he died in 1699. His name is found in some of the early Suffolk County wills, as owing money to merchants. Both times I saw his name, he was one of a long list of debtors to a merchant, so it must have been commonplace to sell on credit and then wait for crops, or a ship, to come in so the debt could be paid.
Most of the other information we have about Daniel we can glean from his inventory. He did leave a will but I can read very little of it. It is Suffolk County case 2519 if you want to have a look at it. I do see that he made some sort of arrangements for his wife. Daniel died March 19, 1699, and Susanna died five years later, in 1704. His inventory mentions books, a dwelling house and all the buildings with it, land, farm animals including several sheep, and household goods. He had two tables and two chairs, which is more than the bare minimum a house of the time would have. The total value of the estate was about 247 pounds.
Sergeant Daniel Lincoln lived in the New World about 55 years and helped shape it, even contributing to the survival of the colony during King Philip's War, and possibly before that. He earned the respect of his peers and even though he wasn't one of the rich and famous, he was one of the people who built America. We can, I think, be proud of him.
Our line of descent is:
Daniel Lincoln-Susannah Cushing
Rachel Lincoln-Israel Lazell
Isaac Lazell-Deborah Marsh
Deborah Lazell-Levi Rockwood
Susanna Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
Friday, February 1, 2019
Holbrook line: John Trumbull, Immigrant 1612-1657
John Trumbull seems to be more of a mystery than I had thought. I have his birth information, and his parentage back for three generations. Or so I thought. Robert Charles Anderson, of "The Great Migration" series, seems to think that there were two John Trumble or Trumbulls, one in Cambridge-Charlestown, and one who went to Rowley. Our target is the man who went to Rowley.
So, we don't know who John's parents are, or where they were from, although the majority of the England births in the supposed time period for James that I could find were from either Yorkshire or Northumberland counties in England. The James Trumble who is frequent given as John's father was a kielsman, or someone who worked on freighters and lighters, small ships that worked around the docks. It was a low status, low paying job, and it seems to some that he would not have had the means to send his son to school for several years.
Our John Trumbull or Trumble surely had some education, for he was the first school teacher in Rowley, Massachusetts, where he was situated by 1639. His wife was Ellen or Elinor Chandler, believed to be the daughter of John Chandler and Ann Swan, and they married July 7, 1635 at Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland, England. She emigrated with her husband John and their first son John, but we don't know exactly when.
As indicated, John was a school teacher. He was made a freeman May 13, 1640. He was also town clerk from 1654-1656, (meaning, among other things, that his penmanship was decent) and a selectman from 1652 to 1654. By trade he was a cooper. He was also a deacon in the church.
John and Elinor had six children together. Elinor died before August of 1650, when John married Ann, the widow of Michael Hopkinson, and they had two more children, besides at least three of Ann's. It would have been a bustling household!
John's estate is rather interesting. There seems to have not been a will, so the court decided how the money should be divided. It shows that Ann's children, and Ann and John's children, mostly received more money than John and Elinor's children did. For instance, Jonathan Hopkinson received 25 pounds, while John, the firstborn of John and Elinor, received 15 pounds. The other children from that marriage received 8 pounds each. 55 pounds was allowed to the widow. It would be interesting to understand the reasoning process in deciding who got what, for typically a wife would receive one third of the estate, particularly if she still had children to raise. Ann got about one quarter of the estate's value.
The estate was valued at almost 226 pounds, minus debts of about five pounds. He had at least eight plots of land, including house, garden and orchards, several farm animals, over a pounds worth of books, a halberd, two swords, and a pair of bandoliers, a fowling piece, but just one bed with some additional bedding. The weapons were likely a requirement of all able bodied men. We don't know how able bodied John was toward the end of his life. If he was born about 1612, then he died about 45 years old, on March 16, 1657. I wonder what else he had hoped to accomplish with his life.
So we have some idea of John's life in New England, but almost none of his life in England. Perhaps someone is working right now to determine which John Trumbull is likely to be ours. It would be nice to know!
Our line of descent is:
John Trumbull-Elinor Chandler
Joseph Trumbull-Hannah Smith
John Trumbull-Elizabeth Winchell
Hannah Trumbull-Medad Pomeroy
Medad Pomeroy-Eunice Southwell
Eunice Pomeroy-Libbeus Stanard
Libbeus Stanard-Luceba Fay
Hiram Stanard-Susan Eddy
Louis Stanard-Mary Alice Hetrick
Etta Stanard-Loren Holbrook
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
So, we don't know who John's parents are, or where they were from, although the majority of the England births in the supposed time period for James that I could find were from either Yorkshire or Northumberland counties in England. The James Trumble who is frequent given as John's father was a kielsman, or someone who worked on freighters and lighters, small ships that worked around the docks. It was a low status, low paying job, and it seems to some that he would not have had the means to send his son to school for several years.
Our John Trumbull or Trumble surely had some education, for he was the first school teacher in Rowley, Massachusetts, where he was situated by 1639. His wife was Ellen or Elinor Chandler, believed to be the daughter of John Chandler and Ann Swan, and they married July 7, 1635 at Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland, England. She emigrated with her husband John and their first son John, but we don't know exactly when.
As indicated, John was a school teacher. He was made a freeman May 13, 1640. He was also town clerk from 1654-1656, (meaning, among other things, that his penmanship was decent) and a selectman from 1652 to 1654. By trade he was a cooper. He was also a deacon in the church.
John and Elinor had six children together. Elinor died before August of 1650, when John married Ann, the widow of Michael Hopkinson, and they had two more children, besides at least three of Ann's. It would have been a bustling household!
John's estate is rather interesting. There seems to have not been a will, so the court decided how the money should be divided. It shows that Ann's children, and Ann and John's children, mostly received more money than John and Elinor's children did. For instance, Jonathan Hopkinson received 25 pounds, while John, the firstborn of John and Elinor, received 15 pounds. The other children from that marriage received 8 pounds each. 55 pounds was allowed to the widow. It would be interesting to understand the reasoning process in deciding who got what, for typically a wife would receive one third of the estate, particularly if she still had children to raise. Ann got about one quarter of the estate's value.
The estate was valued at almost 226 pounds, minus debts of about five pounds. He had at least eight plots of land, including house, garden and orchards, several farm animals, over a pounds worth of books, a halberd, two swords, and a pair of bandoliers, a fowling piece, but just one bed with some additional bedding. The weapons were likely a requirement of all able bodied men. We don't know how able bodied John was toward the end of his life. If he was born about 1612, then he died about 45 years old, on March 16, 1657. I wonder what else he had hoped to accomplish with his life.
So we have some idea of John's life in New England, but almost none of his life in England. Perhaps someone is working right now to determine which John Trumbull is likely to be ours. It would be nice to know!
Our line of descent is:
John Trumbull-Elinor Chandler
Joseph Trumbull-Hannah Smith
John Trumbull-Elizabeth Winchell
Hannah Trumbull-Medad Pomeroy
Medad Pomeroy-Eunice Southwell
Eunice Pomeroy-Libbeus Stanard
Libbeus Stanard-Luceba Fay
Hiram Stanard-Susan Eddy
Louis Stanard-Mary Alice Hetrick
Etta Stanard-Loren Holbrook
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
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