The family of Isaac Bell 1715 or so to 1778

 Here's another family that needs a great amount of work.  For Isaac Bell, who is most likely the son of John and Martha Odell Bell, we have a great number of potential wives and a great number of potential children.  And of course, there's not much information for some of the children, and of course some of the children are not the children of Isaac and any of his supposed wives.  There are very few records for Isaac that are available on line, and a trip to New Jersey may or may not reveal additional information.  

The list of wives that I have for Issac, or potential wives, include Elizabeth Hixon, Deborah Peck, Keziah Corwin, Deborah Hazen, Deborah Roberts, and Rhoda Ayers.  I've had correspondence over the years with someone who has gone through some of the church records, and is convinced that his wife was Rhoda Ayers.  I am sure there was an Isaac Bell married to Rhoda Ayers, but I'm not sure it was this one.  I have not seen any of her documentation, but the dates don't seem to match with the little we know about Isaac.  James Bell  died in 1778 in Sussex County, New Jersey, and his wife at that time was named Deborah.  Son James  refers to his brother in law, Nathaniel Hazen, which would lead one to think that Deborah Hazen is not the right name for Isaac, except that many trees call Isaac "James Isaac" so here we are again. Many trees list Isaac's wife as Keziah Corwin, but when I look at the Corwin family, Keziah is said to have married "a" Bell, with no firm dates but it seems to be a generation off.  On my tree, I have not noted a name for Isaac's wife.

An Isaac Bell was born in 1736, and he is often assigned as a son to our Isaac.  The younger Isaac died in 1813.  His wife may have been Keziah Corwin, or possibly Rhoda Ayers..  The only child I can find for him is Jane or Jean.  

Jesse was born in 1737 and died in 1791.  He married Mary Gray, whom I can't further identify.  Their children include Sarah, Daniel, James, and Mary.

There may have been a daughter, Sarah, born in 1738.  I have not found anything further about her.

Ephraim was born about 1740 and died in 1742.  I found the same information for Joseph, but I am a bit skeptical about him.  I think he may have belonged to another Bell.

James was born in 1741 and died in 1778.  His wife was Deborah Hazen, as mentioned above.  They had children, but are not named in the will and I don't have access to the estate papers, which might tell us more.  

Zephaniah was born in 1743 and died in 1813 in Greene County, Kentucky.  His wife may be Sophia Gunterman, but she may have been a second wife.  There are two marriage dates for this couple, about 30 years apart.  Zephaniah's children are quite numerous-Henry, Peter, Rhoda, Sophia, Zephaniah, Mary, Ester, John, Susanna, Elizabeth, Catherine, Jane, Isaac, and Nancy.

Next came Peter, born in 1745 and died in 1831.  He married Nancy Hull, the daughter of Benjamin and Ann/Anna Duer Hull.  Their children are John, Margaret, Robert, Nancy, Jacob, Sarah, Ester, and Rhoda.  A man named Peter Bell served in the Revolutionary War.

Benjamin was born in 1747 and died in 1820 in Quebec, Canada, if this is the correct Benjamin.  It leads one to wonder whether he might have been a Loyalist in the Revolutionary War, who chose to leave during or after the war, but that is speculation.  He married Elizabeth Pettit, the daughter of Jonathan and Deborah Robins Pettit.  Their children are Anna, Jonathan, Deborah, Dinah, Elizabeth, Mary, Isaac, Nathaniel, Sarah, and Benjamin.  

Henry Bell was born in 1750 and died in 1783.  His wife's name may have been Elizabeth, but I could find nothing further, or firm, about Henry.

John Bell was born in 1752 and died in 1837 in Bellville, Richland County, Ohio.  He married Sarah Hunt, who is so far not identified further.  Their children include Peter, Isabella, and Lewis.  He may be the John Bell who was listed as a soldier in the War of 1812 in Belmont County, Ohio.

Robert was born in 1753 and died shortly before his brother John, in Bellville, Ohio, a town that Robert founded.  His first wife, and the mother of his children, was Mary Yost, the daughter of Nicklaus and Eva Catherina Klason Yost.  Their children are Sarah, Catherine, John, Robert, Zephaniah, Elizabeth, and possibly another Catherine.  His second wife was Hannah Martin Boggs, the daughter of Reuben and Mary Jane Van Buren Martin.  This marriage was in 1827, not long after both Robert and Mary Jane lost their first spouses.  I will follow this family in my next post.

George Bell was probably Isaac's last child, born in 1754 and died in 1791.  There are indications that he may have been married, but I could locate nothing further about him.

Abraham, Rhoda, Sophia, and Sarah can all be seen as children of our Isaac, but I have identified more likely candidates for parents for each of them.  Their birth years range from 1765 to 1782, considerably after the births of the children named above.  

Once again, this is a most unsatisfactory blog post, from a family historian's point of view.  I want to provide complete and completely accurate information, but this is not possible for this family.  Can you provide additional information?