It's been awhile since I had a Beeks ancestor to write about. Sometimes I just somehow miss these people, and sometimes the first time I looked for information, I couldn't find enough to write about. It's also possible that I've relaxed my definition of "enough". When I started doing these brief sketches, I made it a goal to write 8-10 paragraphs about each ancestor. Now, I'm willing to write even just a little bit, figuring that something is better than nothing. With Joseph, I've found enough to give at least some outline of his life, although there are still big question marks, too.
Joseph was born about 1605 possibly in Crewkerne, Somerset, England, although his parents have not yet been identified. We know he was born about 1605 because in a court case in 1640, Joseph stated that he was 35 or thereabouts. Crewkerne is a very old town, dating back to the time of Alfred the Great. There is a 15th century church there, which Joseph would probably have attended. There was also a school at the time that Joseph lived there, but we don't know whether he attended or not.
Joseph married Rose Allen, daughter of George and Katherine (maiden name not certain) Allen, in England. We know that it was in England becae his son was "of age" when Joseph died in 1647, which means the son must have been at least 18. That puts his birth date at 1629, so this Joseph likely married in or about 1628. The couple had at least five children together, a son and then four daughters.
We don't know for sure when Joseph came to New England but he was in Dorchester as early as 1633 and in Lynn in 1636. By 1637 he was in Sandwich, in Plymouth Colony, where he is considered one of the 61 original signers and one of just 16 long term settlers. The church of Sandwich seems to have not been as Puritan as was liked, and they went for ten years without a pastor. There is some thought that the people of the town, or at least some of them, were early Quaker adherents.
We know Joseph was part of a military band, probably guarding against Indians but we don't know whether he actually fought in any battles. We know he owned property as early as 1639. By occupation, he was a millwright, which may explain why he went from place to place for a few years before settling in Sandwich. He was a freeman in 1643/44constable in 1644, and either he or his son was a surveyor of highways in 1647.
Sadly. that is the last we hear of Joseph, for he died in 1647 in Sandwich. We have no information about his cause of death but he was only about 42 years old, so it was likely an illness of some sort. Fevers and dysentery were relatively common at the time.
His inventory was valued at about 205 pounds, but the estate wasn't settled for another 18 years, as the youngest of the children finally reached maturity. Rose remarried after a few months as a widow, to William Newland, and she died in 1694.
The line of descent is
Joseph Holley-Rose Allen
Mary Holley-Nathaniel FitzRandolph__
Samuel FitzRandolph-Mary Jones
Prudence Fitzrandolph-Shubael Smith
Mary Smith-Jonathan Dunham
Samuel Dunham-Hannah Ruble
Jacob Dunham-Catherine Goodnight
Samuel Dunham-Eliza Matilda Reese
Margaret Catherine Dunham=Harvey Aldridge
Cleo Aldridge-Wilbur Beeks
Mary Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
Showing posts with label Aldridge. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Aldridge. Show all posts
Friday, May 15, 2020
Friday, April 17, 2020
Beeks line: Thomas Rees born sometime,, died 1783
Do you remember the cat who would weekly proclaim "I hate meeces to pieces!" I believe Pixie and Dixie were the mice in question but I don't remember the name of the cat. Anyway, "Reeses" rhymes with "meeses". While I don't necessarily "hate" this line, it is enough to make me pull my hair out. Sorry about the vent, but at the moment my local genealogist/librarians are not available to soothe me.
So I'm writing about Thomas Rees today. Several sites say he was born in 1705 and died in 1783. But they also say he was married to Margaret Bowen, and that Thomas Rees and Margaret were married for several (the document says "many") years when Thomas and Margaret asked for a certificate from the Radnor Monthly Meeting to send to the Goshen Monthly Meeting. It states that "Whereas Thomas Reese and his wife Margaret Reese inhabitants within the verge of your meeting have made application unto us for something by way of Certificate unto you. These are therefore to certifie on their behalf that they was both of them educated amongst us and esteemed of us until they joined in marriage contrary to the order and departure of Friends which they these are satisfied unto this that they have been under trouble and exorcised of mind for many years as well as for the conduct of their lives desiring their sorrows for the same and that they took the blame and shame thereof on themselves and that they hoped through divine assistance to take care for the future not to do anything as may bring a reproach upon truth or a grief to friends, so desiring their insofar and that they who make their profession to the Divine Principal of Truth may be conducted and prospered by it to the end of their day, we remain your friends from our Monthly Meeting, at Radnor this 14th of 1st mo year 1722/1723."
Note: I did not transcribe this, but I sure do thank the unknown person who did. In copying it I have changed capitalizations but not the punctuation, or lack thereof. There are also the signatures of several members of the Radnor Monthly Meeting on this letter. I found this fascinating, but the main point is that Thomas was likely not born in 1705 in order to have married Margaret and be "under trouble and exorcized of mind for many years" by 1722/23. So, either this is not the Thomas Reese and Margaret Bowen who are said to have lived later, or there is another Thomas and Margaret that would be the parents of the Thomas and Margaret I think I'm writing about.
The children of Thomas and Margaret were born mostly in the 1730s and 1740s. It does appear that this was a Quaker family because they are later found at Hopewell Monthly Meeting in Frederick County, Virginia, in the far north "point" of the state. This is in the area of Opequon Creek. Early records there were lost in a fire so we don't know how early the Reese's arrived there. They seem to have been there by 1743, so they would have been in place for the battles of both the French and Indian war and the Revolutionary War. As a Quaker, Thomas wouldn't have been in the militia and he may have had to make a decision as to whether or not he would support the British in the first war and the patriots in the second war. Some Quakers were happy to supply materials and food for the troops, and some were not willing to do so, as they opposed any violence, or supporting any violence. It was a decision each man would have to make for himself. This area would have been under frequent, if not constant, threat of attack by native Americans.
Thomas and Margaret had 10 children who lived to adulthood. Two of them are direct ancestors, through this line. Thomas's uncle, Morris is also in the Beeks line. All of these trace back to David Rees. Theyr may be another line, also, for there is another wife of a Thomas Reese named Rebecca Price, and Price is a common contraction for ap Rhys. (These are Welsh names).
Thomas died in 1783 in Frederick County, Virginia and Margaret died two years later, probably in Washington County, Pennsylvania, where she had gone to visit or live with two of her sons. Obviously, there are still several records for me to look at for Thomas, especially land records and his will or estate records. But this is a start, to help us understand a little a very confusing set of families.
The line of descent is:
Thomas Reese-Margaret Bowen
Thomas Reese-Hannah Reese (she is the daughter of Morris Reese, who is a brother to the first
Thomas)
Solomon Reese=Anna possibly McNeal
Owen T Reese-Margaret Ellen Moon
Eliza Matilda Reese-Samuel Dunham
Margaret Catherine Dunham-Harvey Aldridge
Cleo Aldridge-Wilbur Beeks
Mary Beeks-Cleveland Harshaber
Their descendants
So I'm writing about Thomas Rees today. Several sites say he was born in 1705 and died in 1783. But they also say he was married to Margaret Bowen, and that Thomas Rees and Margaret were married for several (the document says "many") years when Thomas and Margaret asked for a certificate from the Radnor Monthly Meeting to send to the Goshen Monthly Meeting. It states that "Whereas Thomas Reese and his wife Margaret Reese inhabitants within the verge of your meeting have made application unto us for something by way of Certificate unto you. These are therefore to certifie on their behalf that they was both of them educated amongst us and esteemed of us until they joined in marriage contrary to the order and departure of Friends which they these are satisfied unto this that they have been under trouble and exorcised of mind for many years as well as for the conduct of their lives desiring their sorrows for the same and that they took the blame and shame thereof on themselves and that they hoped through divine assistance to take care for the future not to do anything as may bring a reproach upon truth or a grief to friends, so desiring their insofar and that they who make their profession to the Divine Principal of Truth may be conducted and prospered by it to the end of their day, we remain your friends from our Monthly Meeting, at Radnor this 14th of 1st mo year 1722/1723."
Note: I did not transcribe this, but I sure do thank the unknown person who did. In copying it I have changed capitalizations but not the punctuation, or lack thereof. There are also the signatures of several members of the Radnor Monthly Meeting on this letter. I found this fascinating, but the main point is that Thomas was likely not born in 1705 in order to have married Margaret and be "under trouble and exorcized of mind for many years" by 1722/23. So, either this is not the Thomas Reese and Margaret Bowen who are said to have lived later, or there is another Thomas and Margaret that would be the parents of the Thomas and Margaret I think I'm writing about.
The children of Thomas and Margaret were born mostly in the 1730s and 1740s. It does appear that this was a Quaker family because they are later found at Hopewell Monthly Meeting in Frederick County, Virginia, in the far north "point" of the state. This is in the area of Opequon Creek. Early records there were lost in a fire so we don't know how early the Reese's arrived there. They seem to have been there by 1743, so they would have been in place for the battles of both the French and Indian war and the Revolutionary War. As a Quaker, Thomas wouldn't have been in the militia and he may have had to make a decision as to whether or not he would support the British in the first war and the patriots in the second war. Some Quakers were happy to supply materials and food for the troops, and some were not willing to do so, as they opposed any violence, or supporting any violence. It was a decision each man would have to make for himself. This area would have been under frequent, if not constant, threat of attack by native Americans.
Thomas and Margaret had 10 children who lived to adulthood. Two of them are direct ancestors, through this line. Thomas's uncle, Morris is also in the Beeks line. All of these trace back to David Rees. Theyr may be another line, also, for there is another wife of a Thomas Reese named Rebecca Price, and Price is a common contraction for ap Rhys. (These are Welsh names).
Thomas died in 1783 in Frederick County, Virginia and Margaret died two years later, probably in Washington County, Pennsylvania, where she had gone to visit or live with two of her sons. Obviously, there are still several records for me to look at for Thomas, especially land records and his will or estate records. But this is a start, to help us understand a little a very confusing set of families.
The line of descent is:
Thomas Reese-Margaret Bowen
Thomas Reese-Hannah Reese (she is the daughter of Morris Reese, who is a brother to the first
Thomas)
Solomon Reese=Anna possibly McNeal
Owen T Reese-Margaret Ellen Moon
Eliza Matilda Reese-Samuel Dunham
Margaret Catherine Dunham-Harvey Aldridge
Cleo Aldridge-Wilbur Beeks
Mary Beeks-Cleveland Harshaber
Their descendants
Friday, January 17, 2020
Beeks line: Benjamin Dunham 1681-1715
For a man in the ancestry of Barack Obama, there is still a lot of mystery about him. Was his name actually Singletary? I've not found any reference to that name in the vital records and histories of Woodbridge, New Jersey that I've seen, but many genealogies have him listed as either Dunham alias Singletary or Singletary alias Dunham. That story is too complicated to go into here, especially since I am not confident of the answer. Another mystery is the name of his wife. Many trees list her as Mary Rolph or Rolfe, but I can find no supporting documentation for that. Most experts now give her name only as Mary.
We do know that he was born August 22, 1681, in Woodbridge, New Jersey, the son of Jonathan and Mary Bloomfield Dunham (alias Singletary?). He was one of possibly as many as 12 children born to this couple, so he had lots of companions growing up, even in a small village such as Woodbridge was. His father, Jonathan, was a miller and probably one of the more prosperous people in the town. The Dunhams may had been friendly with the Quakers who also settled in Woodbridge, but our family appears to have been congregationalist in belief, or at least in practice.
Woodbridge was on the frontier when it was settled. There are references to wolf pits built within the township, which actively trapped wolves, and of course the early settlers would have hunted them, or at least had firearms handy, to protect their families. Benjamin's father built a house in 1700 that was built of brick and still stands, known as the Jonathan Singletary Dunham house. If Benjamin wasn't living with another family prior to his marriage, he would have lived here for a few years in his late teens and early twenties.
Marriage records for Benjamin have apparently not been found, which makes it a bit mysterious as to when and where it was decided that he had married Mary Rolfe. However that may be, a marriage evidently occurred about 1705 or 1706, and his wife does seem to have been named Mary.
Of Benjamin's adult life, we know three things. He was considered to be wealthy, he was actively involved in starting an Anglican house of worship and providing a place for a small church to be built, and he served in the militia. I don't yet know his occupation. His impetus for starting the Anglican church seems to be that he was unhappy with the presbyterian government of the church as it was set up at the time, and he failed to see eye to eye with that pastor. The militia would have been called out whenever there was a scare from the native Americans, which did happen from time to time.
The marriage, and Benjamin's life, was a short one, producing just four children. Benjamin died on December 31, 1715 of unspecified causes, in his thirty fifth year. There is an abstract of a will from 1706 that is being accepted as his will, although I haven't read the original. If he wrote the will in 1706 and didn't die until 1715, it makes us wonder whether he survived an early illness or injury that perhaps made him aware of the brevity of life. It's also possible that he died of a lingering illness or condition. Or perhaps he wrote the will during the early months of his marriage, at the request of his wife or in-laws. We just don't know.
I think Benjamin is an interesting man. I'd like to know why he was considered wealthy, what his occupation was, how often he saw military service, and why he decided to become Anglican. There are things we'll never know, but there's always the possibility that more information will come to light.
The line of descent is
Benjamin Dunham-Mary
Jonathan Dunham=Mary Smith
Samuel Dunham=Hannah possibly Ruble
Jacob Dunham-Catherine Goodnight
Samuel G Dunham-Eliza Matilda Reese
Margaret Catherine Dunham=Harvey Aldridge
Cleo Aldridge-Wilbur Beeks
Mary Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
We do know that he was born August 22, 1681, in Woodbridge, New Jersey, the son of Jonathan and Mary Bloomfield Dunham (alias Singletary?). He was one of possibly as many as 12 children born to this couple, so he had lots of companions growing up, even in a small village such as Woodbridge was. His father, Jonathan, was a miller and probably one of the more prosperous people in the town. The Dunhams may had been friendly with the Quakers who also settled in Woodbridge, but our family appears to have been congregationalist in belief, or at least in practice.
Woodbridge was on the frontier when it was settled. There are references to wolf pits built within the township, which actively trapped wolves, and of course the early settlers would have hunted them, or at least had firearms handy, to protect their families. Benjamin's father built a house in 1700 that was built of brick and still stands, known as the Jonathan Singletary Dunham house. If Benjamin wasn't living with another family prior to his marriage, he would have lived here for a few years in his late teens and early twenties.
Marriage records for Benjamin have apparently not been found, which makes it a bit mysterious as to when and where it was decided that he had married Mary Rolfe. However that may be, a marriage evidently occurred about 1705 or 1706, and his wife does seem to have been named Mary.
Of Benjamin's adult life, we know three things. He was considered to be wealthy, he was actively involved in starting an Anglican house of worship and providing a place for a small church to be built, and he served in the militia. I don't yet know his occupation. His impetus for starting the Anglican church seems to be that he was unhappy with the presbyterian government of the church as it was set up at the time, and he failed to see eye to eye with that pastor. The militia would have been called out whenever there was a scare from the native Americans, which did happen from time to time.
The marriage, and Benjamin's life, was a short one, producing just four children. Benjamin died on December 31, 1715 of unspecified causes, in his thirty fifth year. There is an abstract of a will from 1706 that is being accepted as his will, although I haven't read the original. If he wrote the will in 1706 and didn't die until 1715, it makes us wonder whether he survived an early illness or injury that perhaps made him aware of the brevity of life. It's also possible that he died of a lingering illness or condition. Or perhaps he wrote the will during the early months of his marriage, at the request of his wife or in-laws. We just don't know.
I think Benjamin is an interesting man. I'd like to know why he was considered wealthy, what his occupation was, how often he saw military service, and why he decided to become Anglican. There are things we'll never know, but there's always the possibility that more information will come to light.
The line of descent is
Benjamin Dunham-Mary
Jonathan Dunham=Mary Smith
Samuel Dunham=Hannah possibly Ruble
Jacob Dunham-Catherine Goodnight
Samuel G Dunham-Eliza Matilda Reese
Margaret Catherine Dunham=Harvey Aldridge
Cleo Aldridge-Wilbur Beeks
Mary Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
Tuesday, August 20, 2019
Beeks line: Felix Weiss, Immigrant
Much of this post will be speculation, especially regarding his early years. I am throwing this out for amy historians who may recognize Felix and say "I know this man!" and be able to help correct whatever inaccuracies are in this blog post. Some of it I am quite sure about but the early years are very murky indeed. There is at least one story that needs to be told now, and if we never get answers to our questions then at least we know this much.
First, entirelyl speculative, is the possibility that Felix came from Switzerland. There is a record of Felix Wyss, carpenter, and also Conrad Wyss, cooper, leaving the Parish of Affoltern, Mt. Albis (also seen as Affoltern arm Albis), which was about 8 miles southwest of Zurich. Felix came with his wife, Anna Huber and five little children, Anna, Hans Heinrich, Hans Jacob, Johannes, and Heinrich, and he was listed as a carpenter. Conrad, who may have been likely a relation of some sort, came on the same ship with his wife Barbara Dupa and four young children.
If this was our Felix, then more of his tree is available to us and we can likely go back several generations. .
I'll get the cart ahead of the horse here for a little bit and say that the records showing Felix as having died in 1779 in Monroe County, Pa are a bit misleading. Monroe County wasn't formed until 1836. At the time our Felix lived there, it was Northampton County, and it was very much frontier country. So most of our records are found in Northampton County, and as always, we wish for more.
Felix apparently led a hard life as I have not yet found him on tax rolls for Northumberland County. He may have been devastated by the French and Indian War and subsequent harassment (a kind word) by native Americans. The one record I've found with his name on it is from September of 1763. In it, he was a petitioner to the government, asking for help against the native Americans. It was written from Brinker's Mill to Mr. Horsfield and the petiotioners were 18 men , "the neighbors that are now living or rather staying here at this present time". The petitioners asked for soldiers to be placed at Jacob Brinker's Mill, "the people have been driven from their houses, their livelihoods destroyed by savages; they gladly returned to their homes , their desolate habitations, so they coudl use the mill and almost forgot their woes but now, every day, they were 'exposed to the unmerciful hands of these savages just at our backs". Only half the men had even one chrge of powder or lead, God was their only protection, "Please place soldiers at the mill." We have no idea of the stresses and fears that our families lived under. These fears were very real, as several families from this area were massacred before the area was truly settled.
The mill is located on McMichaels creek in what is now Hamilton Township, Monroe County, Pennsylvania, so this gives us a general location of where Felix and his family lived. The current stone building was actually built about 1800, but there was a log mill there for 50 years prior to the "new" construction, and this would have been the location where Jacob, along with 17 others, signed the petition. Most of the names on the petition are either German or Swiss.
Felix died in 1779 in what is now Hamilton Township, Monroe County.
Here's another problem with this man. Our Felix is given an approximate birth date of 1720, but other records show a Felix born in 1703. Were there two Felix Weiss's? Were they related? Confounding the mystery is that our Felix's wife is shown as Anna Maria Van Buskirk, but...someone with the same purported birth date is shown on Find a Grave, which is somewhat unreliable or at least incomplete, as actually being a Weiss first and then a Van Buskirk. Was this Anna Huber, then Weiss, then van Buskirk? The dates are a problem, or were the names a pure coincidence? These Felixes, and Annas, have me confused, so don't take this as written in stone. It's written in sand, waiting for the complete facts to emerge.
The possible line of descent is:
Felix Weiss-Anna
Johan Jacob Wise-Charlotte Raub
Andrew Wise-Mary Serfass
David Wise-Matilda Martin
Elizabeth Wise-John Beeks
Wilbur Beeks-Cleo Aldridge
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
First, entirelyl speculative, is the possibility that Felix came from Switzerland. There is a record of Felix Wyss, carpenter, and also Conrad Wyss, cooper, leaving the Parish of Affoltern, Mt. Albis (also seen as Affoltern arm Albis), which was about 8 miles southwest of Zurich. Felix came with his wife, Anna Huber and five little children, Anna, Hans Heinrich, Hans Jacob, Johannes, and Heinrich, and he was listed as a carpenter. Conrad, who may have been likely a relation of some sort, came on the same ship with his wife Barbara Dupa and four young children.
If this was our Felix, then more of his tree is available to us and we can likely go back several generations. .
I'll get the cart ahead of the horse here for a little bit and say that the records showing Felix as having died in 1779 in Monroe County, Pa are a bit misleading. Monroe County wasn't formed until 1836. At the time our Felix lived there, it was Northampton County, and it was very much frontier country. So most of our records are found in Northampton County, and as always, we wish for more.
Felix apparently led a hard life as I have not yet found him on tax rolls for Northumberland County. He may have been devastated by the French and Indian War and subsequent harassment (a kind word) by native Americans. The one record I've found with his name on it is from September of 1763. In it, he was a petitioner to the government, asking for help against the native Americans. It was written from Brinker's Mill to Mr. Horsfield and the petiotioners were 18 men , "the neighbors that are now living or rather staying here at this present time". The petitioners asked for soldiers to be placed at Jacob Brinker's Mill, "the people have been driven from their houses, their livelihoods destroyed by savages; they gladly returned to their homes , their desolate habitations, so they coudl use the mill and almost forgot their woes but now, every day, they were 'exposed to the unmerciful hands of these savages just at our backs". Only half the men had even one chrge of powder or lead, God was their only protection, "Please place soldiers at the mill." We have no idea of the stresses and fears that our families lived under. These fears were very real, as several families from this area were massacred before the area was truly settled.
The mill is located on McMichaels creek in what is now Hamilton Township, Monroe County, Pennsylvania, so this gives us a general location of where Felix and his family lived. The current stone building was actually built about 1800, but there was a log mill there for 50 years prior to the "new" construction, and this would have been the location where Jacob, along with 17 others, signed the petition. Most of the names on the petition are either German or Swiss.
Felix died in 1779 in what is now Hamilton Township, Monroe County.
Here's another problem with this man. Our Felix is given an approximate birth date of 1720, but other records show a Felix born in 1703. Were there two Felix Weiss's? Were they related? Confounding the mystery is that our Felix's wife is shown as Anna Maria Van Buskirk, but...someone with the same purported birth date is shown on Find a Grave, which is somewhat unreliable or at least incomplete, as actually being a Weiss first and then a Van Buskirk. Was this Anna Huber, then Weiss, then van Buskirk? The dates are a problem, or were the names a pure coincidence? These Felixes, and Annas, have me confused, so don't take this as written in stone. It's written in sand, waiting for the complete facts to emerge.
The possible line of descent is:
Felix Weiss-Anna
Johan Jacob Wise-Charlotte Raub
Andrew Wise-Mary Serfass
David Wise-Matilda Martin
Elizabeth Wise-John Beeks
Wilbur Beeks-Cleo Aldridge
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
Friday, August 2, 2019
Beeks line: John Rolfe, Immigrant 1634-1681
No, he wasn't that John Rolfe, not the one who was married to Pocahontas, not the one who figured large in the early days of Virginia. But nevertheless, he is a John Rolfe who is an early immigrant, and who has a story to tell.
The story starts in England, where John was born or baptized May 10, 1634 in Whiteparish, Wiltshire, England. Whiteparish is a small town about seven and a half miles southeast of Salisbury, and at the time of John's birth was a sheep raising area, with textile manufacturing in Salisbury providing an outlet for the wool produced there. His parents were Henry and Honor (Rolfe) Rolfe, and their family tree is quite convoluted. There are Rolfes on both sides of the family going back to about 1515, but it's not know whether it was the 1515 Rolfes (one apparently unproven) or whether the connection goes further back. Anyway, it's a lot of Rolfes, and more than one Honor, to keep straight-or not.
Henry and Honor had at least four children. They are believed to have been in Massachusetts Bay Colony by about 1638, although no documentation seems to exist for their trip. John would have been a very young child at the time; Imagine being a three or four year old boy with a ship to explore, and imagine being a young mother, with other children, trying to prevent said boy from going overboard. All were probably glad when they arrived at their destination.
The family settled first in Newbury, where John grew to manhood and married Mary Scullard, daughter of Samuel and Rebecca Kent Scullard, on December 4, 1656. Mary was very young, possibly as young as 14, when they married. They had eleven children together, losing the first one in infancy. Their first three children were born in Newbury, but they moved on to Nantucket about 1663.
This seems to have much to do with the situation described in "Good Wives" by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich. John was a fisherman, and had just left for a trip to Nantucket, leaving his young wife and children adequately protected and supported, as he supposed. But by the time he returned from his trip, Mary and been involved in something of a scandal, involving a gentleman from England, a physician, who decided he wished to bed her, never mind that she was nursing her third child. He was found out, by a neighbor who came in through a window since the door was locked, and rescued Mary, although they agreed to say nothing about it. Mary told all to her mother and had a witness (who, hard as it is for us to imagine) shared the bed with Mary in order to keep her safe, although it wasn't a very effective protection as it turned out.
The man involved was found guilty and Mary was vindicated, but John decided this was a good time to move to Nantucket, where he would be closer to the fishing grounds. They stayed in Nantucket for somewhere around ten years. By this time, John was approaching 40 and may have been looking for an easier way to make a living than fishing. The family moved to Cambridge, where John purchased and apparently operated a mill.
John died at Newbury on October 1, 1681, perhaps while visiting his brother Benjamin. It seems to have been a sudden death and the will may have had an oral codicil, as there is no provision in the will for his wife but the additional testimony of women who were there makes clear that he wanted to have his wife cared for also. Mary was pregnant with their last son when John died. John's inventory was valued at somewhere around 500 pounds (it's not totaled on the two pages, but I added up to about 485 pounds in my head, plus all the shillings and pence; I'm definitely no expert on that!). It seems like a pretty good estate for a fisherman or millwright, either one. He was just 47 when he died and was just in his peak earning years. He had tools and farm animals, copperware, earthenware, and pewter, and five spinning wheels, so this was not a poor family. I didn't see any mention of books or of munitions.
Mary lived about six more years and died in Cambridge. Most of their children moved to the area of Woodbridge, N.J, and changed the spelling of their name to Rolph, except for their son John. I didn't find anything that helped me understand John's religion but some of his children may have become Quakers, or at least lived in harmony with them in Woodbridge. It would be nice to know more about John, but at least we know he was a hard-working man, and one of the few men in the family who fished for any length of time, for a living.
The line of descent is:
John Rolfe-Mary Scullard
Mary Rolph-Benjamin Dunham
Jonathan Dunham-Mary Smith
Samuel Dunham-Hannah Ruble
Jacob Dunham-Catherine Goodnight
Samuel Dunham-Eliza Matilda Reese
Mary Catherine Dunham-Harvey Aldridge
Cleo Aldridge-Wilbur Beeks
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
The story starts in England, where John was born or baptized May 10, 1634 in Whiteparish, Wiltshire, England. Whiteparish is a small town about seven and a half miles southeast of Salisbury, and at the time of John's birth was a sheep raising area, with textile manufacturing in Salisbury providing an outlet for the wool produced there. His parents were Henry and Honor (Rolfe) Rolfe, and their family tree is quite convoluted. There are Rolfes on both sides of the family going back to about 1515, but it's not know whether it was the 1515 Rolfes (one apparently unproven) or whether the connection goes further back. Anyway, it's a lot of Rolfes, and more than one Honor, to keep straight-or not.
Henry and Honor had at least four children. They are believed to have been in Massachusetts Bay Colony by about 1638, although no documentation seems to exist for their trip. John would have been a very young child at the time; Imagine being a three or four year old boy with a ship to explore, and imagine being a young mother, with other children, trying to prevent said boy from going overboard. All were probably glad when they arrived at their destination.
The family settled first in Newbury, where John grew to manhood and married Mary Scullard, daughter of Samuel and Rebecca Kent Scullard, on December 4, 1656. Mary was very young, possibly as young as 14, when they married. They had eleven children together, losing the first one in infancy. Their first three children were born in Newbury, but they moved on to Nantucket about 1663.
This seems to have much to do with the situation described in "Good Wives" by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich. John was a fisherman, and had just left for a trip to Nantucket, leaving his young wife and children adequately protected and supported, as he supposed. But by the time he returned from his trip, Mary and been involved in something of a scandal, involving a gentleman from England, a physician, who decided he wished to bed her, never mind that she was nursing her third child. He was found out, by a neighbor who came in through a window since the door was locked, and rescued Mary, although they agreed to say nothing about it. Mary told all to her mother and had a witness (who, hard as it is for us to imagine) shared the bed with Mary in order to keep her safe, although it wasn't a very effective protection as it turned out.
The man involved was found guilty and Mary was vindicated, but John decided this was a good time to move to Nantucket, where he would be closer to the fishing grounds. They stayed in Nantucket for somewhere around ten years. By this time, John was approaching 40 and may have been looking for an easier way to make a living than fishing. The family moved to Cambridge, where John purchased and apparently operated a mill.
John died at Newbury on October 1, 1681, perhaps while visiting his brother Benjamin. It seems to have been a sudden death and the will may have had an oral codicil, as there is no provision in the will for his wife but the additional testimony of women who were there makes clear that he wanted to have his wife cared for also. Mary was pregnant with their last son when John died. John's inventory was valued at somewhere around 500 pounds (it's not totaled on the two pages, but I added up to about 485 pounds in my head, plus all the shillings and pence; I'm definitely no expert on that!). It seems like a pretty good estate for a fisherman or millwright, either one. He was just 47 when he died and was just in his peak earning years. He had tools and farm animals, copperware, earthenware, and pewter, and five spinning wheels, so this was not a poor family. I didn't see any mention of books or of munitions.
Mary lived about six more years and died in Cambridge. Most of their children moved to the area of Woodbridge, N.J, and changed the spelling of their name to Rolph, except for their son John. I didn't find anything that helped me understand John's religion but some of his children may have become Quakers, or at least lived in harmony with them in Woodbridge. It would be nice to know more about John, but at least we know he was a hard-working man, and one of the few men in the family who fished for any length of time, for a living.
The line of descent is:
John Rolfe-Mary Scullard
Mary Rolph-Benjamin Dunham
Jonathan Dunham-Mary Smith
Samuel Dunham-Hannah Ruble
Jacob Dunham-Catherine Goodnight
Samuel Dunham-Eliza Matilda Reese
Mary Catherine Dunham-Harvey Aldridge
Cleo Aldridge-Wilbur Beeks
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
Tuesday, July 23, 2019
Beeks line: William Beeks, Civil War veteran, and ancestor
I've been studying family history for thirteen years, and I've made thousands of interesting discoveries (and more than a few mistakes). I thought I pretty much knew everything back through the past five or six generations. That was another mistake. I thought that the William Beeks who was in the Civil War, from Lagro, Wabash County, Indiana must have been another William Beeks, because his parents were listed on an 1890 "enrollment" form as Martin Beeks and Sarah Beeks.
I was wrong. The form was wrong.
So, here's a brief review of William Beeks. William was born in 1832 or 1833 in either Greene or Clinton County Ohio. His parents were John and Polly (possibly Mary) Carter Beeks. They had married in 1830 in Greene County, Ohio. I'm not at all sure that I have all of their children, but William was one of them. The Beeks family had moved to Lagro, Wabash County, Indiana by 1850, where John farmed and William undoubtedly helped him.
By 1860, William was ready for marriage. He married Fanny Dils and had two children with her, Elias and Isaac. She died shortly after the death of their second child, and he then married Mary Wise on January 14, 1863. Or did he...He certainly married her, but was she Mary Wise? That is a subject for another blog post, when I know more. Their first two children were named Charity, for Mary's mother, and Jackson, for her father...Or were they her parents? Stay tuned.
All of this was happening during the background of the Civil War. Wabash County sent many, many men to fight for the Union. Elias and Isaac may have been raised by their grandparents, because they were with John and Polly in the 1870 census, but William had two young ones at home when he (apparently) enlisted in the Army on January 28, 1865. I don't yet have access to all of his military records, so it's possible he was drafted, but the form I am working from says "volunteers". He was assigned to company F of the 153rd Indiana Infantry.
This unit was officially mustered in at Indianapolis on March 1, 1865, although company F, composed of men from Wabash and Grant counties, may have formed and drilled between the January and March dates, closer to home. They had very little time for training after they mustered in, because they were on their way to Nashville, Tennessee by March 5. I don't know whether they ever got to Nashville because the regiment was stopped at Louisville and three companies were ordered into guerilla warfare in and around Russellville, Kentucky. Company F was not one of them. They went to Taylor Barracks, where they stayed for the rest of the war.
Taylor Barracks is interesting because it was a camp for black Union soldiers. I would sure be interested in knowing what a regiment of troops from Indiana was doing there. Were they some kind of guards for the supposedly freed soldiers? Were they sent there for training which, due to the war ending, never happened? Did they perform hospital duty for the sick soldiers? I don't yet know the answer to these questions.
I do know that the unit was disbanded on September 4, 1865, and I think that William came home a sick man. The 1890 enrollment form says he suffered from chronic diarrhea (dysentery), which was both debilitating and common with soldiers of that era. I've found that he applied for an invalid pension shortly before his death. It looks like this was granted, because there are also records for a widow's pension. William died September 25, 1888 and his widow, Mary, died December 17, 1928. From what I know now, it looks like neither left Lagro township, except for the war experience.
My next step is to save up the money to order the pension records. I want to know, and I want the family to know, more about his Civil War service, and to understand how it affected him for the rest of his life. I also want to know if the records give us any clues about Mary, his wife. Was she a Wise, or was she, as I've been told, adopted at a very young age? Might her birth name have been Rauch? Did she even know she was adopted? These may end up to be two separate lines of investigation, but I'm intrigued by both. I hope to find some answers.
The line of descent is:
William Beeks-Mary Wise or Rauch
John Beeks-Elizabeth Wise
Wilbur Beeks-Cleo Aldridge
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
I was wrong. The form was wrong.
So, here's a brief review of William Beeks. William was born in 1832 or 1833 in either Greene or Clinton County Ohio. His parents were John and Polly (possibly Mary) Carter Beeks. They had married in 1830 in Greene County, Ohio. I'm not at all sure that I have all of their children, but William was one of them. The Beeks family had moved to Lagro, Wabash County, Indiana by 1850, where John farmed and William undoubtedly helped him.
By 1860, William was ready for marriage. He married Fanny Dils and had two children with her, Elias and Isaac. She died shortly after the death of their second child, and he then married Mary Wise on January 14, 1863. Or did he...He certainly married her, but was she Mary Wise? That is a subject for another blog post, when I know more. Their first two children were named Charity, for Mary's mother, and Jackson, for her father...Or were they her parents? Stay tuned.
All of this was happening during the background of the Civil War. Wabash County sent many, many men to fight for the Union. Elias and Isaac may have been raised by their grandparents, because they were with John and Polly in the 1870 census, but William had two young ones at home when he (apparently) enlisted in the Army on January 28, 1865. I don't yet have access to all of his military records, so it's possible he was drafted, but the form I am working from says "volunteers". He was assigned to company F of the 153rd Indiana Infantry.
This unit was officially mustered in at Indianapolis on March 1, 1865, although company F, composed of men from Wabash and Grant counties, may have formed and drilled between the January and March dates, closer to home. They had very little time for training after they mustered in, because they were on their way to Nashville, Tennessee by March 5. I don't know whether they ever got to Nashville because the regiment was stopped at Louisville and three companies were ordered into guerilla warfare in and around Russellville, Kentucky. Company F was not one of them. They went to Taylor Barracks, where they stayed for the rest of the war.
Taylor Barracks is interesting because it was a camp for black Union soldiers. I would sure be interested in knowing what a regiment of troops from Indiana was doing there. Were they some kind of guards for the supposedly freed soldiers? Were they sent there for training which, due to the war ending, never happened? Did they perform hospital duty for the sick soldiers? I don't yet know the answer to these questions.
I do know that the unit was disbanded on September 4, 1865, and I think that William came home a sick man. The 1890 enrollment form says he suffered from chronic diarrhea (dysentery), which was both debilitating and common with soldiers of that era. I've found that he applied for an invalid pension shortly before his death. It looks like this was granted, because there are also records for a widow's pension. William died September 25, 1888 and his widow, Mary, died December 17, 1928. From what I know now, it looks like neither left Lagro township, except for the war experience.
My next step is to save up the money to order the pension records. I want to know, and I want the family to know, more about his Civil War service, and to understand how it affected him for the rest of his life. I also want to know if the records give us any clues about Mary, his wife. Was she a Wise, or was she, as I've been told, adopted at a very young age? Might her birth name have been Rauch? Did she even know she was adopted? These may end up to be two separate lines of investigation, but I'm intrigued by both. I hope to find some answers.
The line of descent is:
William Beeks-Mary Wise or Rauch
John Beeks-Elizabeth Wise
Wilbur Beeks-Cleo Aldridge
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
Friday, May 31, 2019
Beeks family: Thomas Moon 1756-1828
It's been a long time since I've written about a Beeks ancestor. I've known about Thomas Moon for a long time, as a name and dates, but that much information wouldn't fill a thimble, let alone a blog post, so I've not pursued him. Today his name struck my fancy, mostly because I noticed he lived during French and Indian War as well as the Revolutionary War. I wondered if there was more information available than just names and places, and I've found enough to fill in a couple of parts of his life, anyway.
Thomas Moon was the son of Jacob and Jane Rees Moon. He was born October 11, 1756 near what is now Arden, Berkeley, West Virginia, in the Shenandoah Valley. At that time, it was part of Frederick County, Virginia. The area is in that tiny hook between Maryland and West Virginia, and Arden is 160 miles from Fort Frederick, near Hagerstown, Md. Fort Frederick was built during the French and Indian War. We don't know for sure that the Moon family went here during the attacks that the Indians made during those years, but it's possible, since much of Shenandoah, or at least the women and children, evacuated during that time period. And of course, the Moons were Quakers, so they would likely not have been willing to fight. Regardless of whether the Moons stayed in their home or left for a safer location, they would have lived through interesting times. Thomas was one of at least six children born to his parents, and they would all have worked hard to feed the family.
I've found no mention, yet, of the Moons during the Revolutionary War but this time the danger would have come from the British and the native Americans. This area was hit hard and repeatedly, and again, it is easy to think that the family would have evacuated to safer areas. It would be interesting to know whether their cabins or homes were burned, crops lost, etc. If it didn't happen to the Moons, it happened to many of their neighbors.
We don't know when or where Thomas met his wife, Jean Grey, but they were married June 1, 1780 in what was now Berkeley County, but still Virginia. He was 24 years old and had a right to marry anyone he chose; or did he? Three times his Quaker church family tried to talk to him and three times they got nowhere. He was bound and determined to marry his "hireling teacher", but may have later admitted his error because he is still referred to as a Quaker in a history of Fayette County. Jean was from Scotland and it is not likely she would have converted to the Quaker faith. She was likely Presbyterian in belief. I would love to find more about this "hireling teacher", as this is the first thing I've learned about her other than her vital statistics. We can guess that Jean had a decent education, at least for the time and location, and wonder about Thomas's education, also.
Thomas and Jean had at least nine children together. Jean died in 1804 in Berkeley County, Virginia, and Thomas remarried at the same location to Lydia Job in 1806. He is found in the census records of Berkeley County in 1810 but apparently moved to Fayette County, Ohio, later that year and is in the tax records of Fayette County, Ohio in 1814. Fayette County at this time was quite sparsely settled and he would have contended with wolves, panthers, and probably bear as well as the snakes which gave name to the creek he lived on. In the 1820 census, he is in Green Township, Fayette County, with two of his sons listed separately but as neighbors. Thomas and Lydia settled on Rattlesnake Creek and according to a History of Fayette County written by R.S. Dills, owned 1100 acres of land, some of it in Highland County. He had the first flour mill and saw mill in the county, and also ran a distillery which was apparently a popular "resort". He was a trustee of the township and held other positions of "public trust". Lydia died sometime before he married Amy or Annie Ellis in 1819.
Thomas's will was probated in 1824. He had already given gifts to his three daughters but gave his personal property to them to be divided equally, and left each of his sons tracts of land. I didn't see a mention of Amy in the will, so perhaps she had died earlier.
Who knew that Thomas Moon had such stories to tell us? I'd love to learn more, such as whether his children were Quakers, and whether his childhood home, or his home where he spent the first 30 years of adult life, were destroyed. Was he ever in fear for his life, during either of the wars in Virginia? Did he speak with the Quaker "thee" and "thou"? What would he think was his greatest accomplishment?
The line of descent is:
Thomas Moon-Jean Grey
Margaret Moon-Owen T Reese
Eliza Matilda Reese-Samuel Goodnight Dunham
Margaret Catherine Dunham-Harvey Aldridge
Cleo Aldridge-Wilbur Beeks
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
Thomas Moon was the son of Jacob and Jane Rees Moon. He was born October 11, 1756 near what is now Arden, Berkeley, West Virginia, in the Shenandoah Valley. At that time, it was part of Frederick County, Virginia. The area is in that tiny hook between Maryland and West Virginia, and Arden is 160 miles from Fort Frederick, near Hagerstown, Md. Fort Frederick was built during the French and Indian War. We don't know for sure that the Moon family went here during the attacks that the Indians made during those years, but it's possible, since much of Shenandoah, or at least the women and children, evacuated during that time period. And of course, the Moons were Quakers, so they would likely not have been willing to fight. Regardless of whether the Moons stayed in their home or left for a safer location, they would have lived through interesting times. Thomas was one of at least six children born to his parents, and they would all have worked hard to feed the family.
I've found no mention, yet, of the Moons during the Revolutionary War but this time the danger would have come from the British and the native Americans. This area was hit hard and repeatedly, and again, it is easy to think that the family would have evacuated to safer areas. It would be interesting to know whether their cabins or homes were burned, crops lost, etc. If it didn't happen to the Moons, it happened to many of their neighbors.
We don't know when or where Thomas met his wife, Jean Grey, but they were married June 1, 1780 in what was now Berkeley County, but still Virginia. He was 24 years old and had a right to marry anyone he chose; or did he? Three times his Quaker church family tried to talk to him and three times they got nowhere. He was bound and determined to marry his "hireling teacher", but may have later admitted his error because he is still referred to as a Quaker in a history of Fayette County. Jean was from Scotland and it is not likely she would have converted to the Quaker faith. She was likely Presbyterian in belief. I would love to find more about this "hireling teacher", as this is the first thing I've learned about her other than her vital statistics. We can guess that Jean had a decent education, at least for the time and location, and wonder about Thomas's education, also.
Thomas and Jean had at least nine children together. Jean died in 1804 in Berkeley County, Virginia, and Thomas remarried at the same location to Lydia Job in 1806. He is found in the census records of Berkeley County in 1810 but apparently moved to Fayette County, Ohio, later that year and is in the tax records of Fayette County, Ohio in 1814. Fayette County at this time was quite sparsely settled and he would have contended with wolves, panthers, and probably bear as well as the snakes which gave name to the creek he lived on. In the 1820 census, he is in Green Township, Fayette County, with two of his sons listed separately but as neighbors. Thomas and Lydia settled on Rattlesnake Creek and according to a History of Fayette County written by R.S. Dills, owned 1100 acres of land, some of it in Highland County. He had the first flour mill and saw mill in the county, and also ran a distillery which was apparently a popular "resort". He was a trustee of the township and held other positions of "public trust". Lydia died sometime before he married Amy or Annie Ellis in 1819.
Thomas's will was probated in 1824. He had already given gifts to his three daughters but gave his personal property to them to be divided equally, and left each of his sons tracts of land. I didn't see a mention of Amy in the will, so perhaps she had died earlier.
Who knew that Thomas Moon had such stories to tell us? I'd love to learn more, such as whether his children were Quakers, and whether his childhood home, or his home where he spent the first 30 years of adult life, were destroyed. Was he ever in fear for his life, during either of the wars in Virginia? Did he speak with the Quaker "thee" and "thou"? What would he think was his greatest accomplishment?
The line of descent is:
Thomas Moon-Jean Grey
Margaret Moon-Owen T Reese
Eliza Matilda Reese-Samuel Goodnight Dunham
Margaret Catherine Dunham-Harvey Aldridge
Cleo Aldridge-Wilbur Beeks
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
Monday, December 24, 2018
Beeks and Harshbarger Christmas, 1918
Christmas 100 years ago...What was it like for those family members who were alive then? In many ways, we can only guess whether they had a bountiful Christmas or were lucky to get (or give) an apple or orange. But we do know they had family...Boy, did they have family!
We can only begin to imagine Christmas Day in 1918 for Wilbur Beeks. He was in Russia, and had been since early August, as part of what was supposed to be a second front against Germany but ended up being part of the Russian revolution. By now, he had mostly recovered from his wounds received September 27, and was operating with his unit again. We can only hope they had some pause for a Christmas celebration. Wilbur's wife of a little over four years, Cleo Aldridge Beeks, had a little bundle of joy to enjoy at Christmas. After having buried two babies, one in 1915 and one in 1916, Kenneth Eugene Beeks was having his first Christmas (he would have only one more) and enjoying the day as much as a baby of almost six months can.
Cleo would have had her choice of places to celebrate. I don't know where she was living then. She may have lived in Andrews, as that is where the birth record for Kenneth states,. If so, she could have been living the life of a single Mom while Wilbur was away. Or she could have been living with her parents, Harvey and Margaret Catherine Dunham Aldridge. Harvey was 65 and his wife was 60. In 1920, the Aldridges were living on Berry Street in Andrews, and Harvey was a laborer at the lumberyard. The Aldridges were already raising two grandchildren, but probably would have had room for a daughter and grandson, too, if needed. There were six surviving Aldridge children including Cleo, so the family gathering, wherever it was held, would have included many Aldridge grandchildren, nieces and nephews to Cleo. Maybe she didn't have enough time to really miss her husband that day.
Or she may have been staying with, or at least visiting, the home of her in-laws. John, 51, and Elizabeth Wise Beeks, 48, that day. In 1920, they were living on Main Street in Andrews, and he was a section man on the interurban line. Two of their children, Charity and Chester (Bud) were living with them, as was David Wise, Elizabeth's father, who was 81 years old. And there was another Beeks family member to visit, Mary Wise Beeks, Wilbur's grandmother, the widow of William Beeks. She was 78 years old, but lived in a home she owned on East Washington Street in Lagro. Her son Martin lived with her. Mary and William had several children, some still living, so presumably there was a large Beeks Christmas celebration somewhere.
One other thing about the Beeks Christmas celebration: Cleo herself turned 22 on Christmas of 1918.
The Harshbargers in Whitley County also had lots and lots of family. Grover Harshbarger by now was mostly recovered from the bout with "Spanish influenza" that had knocked him for a loop and out of the military earlier that year. He may have been living with his father then, but by 1920 he was living with his sister Maud, her husband, daughter, son in law, grandchild, and at least two other lodgers, relationship not determined although another of the 'lodgers" had the surname Harshbarger. Grover was a logger at a saw mill. Both his parents, Emanuel and Clara Ellen Harter Harshbarger were still living. listed as in the same household, in Thorn Creek, Whitley County, Indiana. (This was significant because there had been an earlier divorce action and I never found whether or not it was withdrawn, Apparently it was.) Emanuel was 64 and Clara was 61. They had at least three other children still living, so if they hosted a Harshbarger family Christmas the farmhouse they lived in would have been crowded.
Goldie Withers was 17 and single, likely living with her parents, William H and Della Kemery Withers. Her sister Sue, three years older, was married but probably came home for Christmas. By 1920, both girls were gone, but 1918 would have been a family year. Della's parents were still alive and in Whitley County, too, and they have a large family. Adam, 72, and Nancy Fanny Buchtel Kemery, also 72, were farmers in Columbia Township, Whitley County. They had two adult children living with them in 1920, but others were grown and away from home so there were likely grandchildren at the Kemery household that day, too.
All of the families I've visited here had good support systems. In the case of Cleo Aldridge Beeks, that was probably needed and she learned her lessons well, as she cared for many aging relatives during her lifetime. But Christmas 1918 for all would have been a time of hope, with the war (except for Wilbur and the thousands of others still fighting in Russia) over. And one other thing-Christmas Day 1918 brought just a little bit of snow to northern Indiana, .6 of an inch but enough to qualify for a "White Christmas".
We can only begin to imagine Christmas Day in 1918 for Wilbur Beeks. He was in Russia, and had been since early August, as part of what was supposed to be a second front against Germany but ended up being part of the Russian revolution. By now, he had mostly recovered from his wounds received September 27, and was operating with his unit again. We can only hope they had some pause for a Christmas celebration. Wilbur's wife of a little over four years, Cleo Aldridge Beeks, had a little bundle of joy to enjoy at Christmas. After having buried two babies, one in 1915 and one in 1916, Kenneth Eugene Beeks was having his first Christmas (he would have only one more) and enjoying the day as much as a baby of almost six months can.
Cleo would have had her choice of places to celebrate. I don't know where she was living then. She may have lived in Andrews, as that is where the birth record for Kenneth states,. If so, she could have been living the life of a single Mom while Wilbur was away. Or she could have been living with her parents, Harvey and Margaret Catherine Dunham Aldridge. Harvey was 65 and his wife was 60. In 1920, the Aldridges were living on Berry Street in Andrews, and Harvey was a laborer at the lumberyard. The Aldridges were already raising two grandchildren, but probably would have had room for a daughter and grandson, too, if needed. There were six surviving Aldridge children including Cleo, so the family gathering, wherever it was held, would have included many Aldridge grandchildren, nieces and nephews to Cleo. Maybe she didn't have enough time to really miss her husband that day.
Or she may have been staying with, or at least visiting, the home of her in-laws. John, 51, and Elizabeth Wise Beeks, 48, that day. In 1920, they were living on Main Street in Andrews, and he was a section man on the interurban line. Two of their children, Charity and Chester (Bud) were living with them, as was David Wise, Elizabeth's father, who was 81 years old. And there was another Beeks family member to visit, Mary Wise Beeks, Wilbur's grandmother, the widow of William Beeks. She was 78 years old, but lived in a home she owned on East Washington Street in Lagro. Her son Martin lived with her. Mary and William had several children, some still living, so presumably there was a large Beeks Christmas celebration somewhere.
One other thing about the Beeks Christmas celebration: Cleo herself turned 22 on Christmas of 1918.
The Harshbargers in Whitley County also had lots and lots of family. Grover Harshbarger by now was mostly recovered from the bout with "Spanish influenza" that had knocked him for a loop and out of the military earlier that year. He may have been living with his father then, but by 1920 he was living with his sister Maud, her husband, daughter, son in law, grandchild, and at least two other lodgers, relationship not determined although another of the 'lodgers" had the surname Harshbarger. Grover was a logger at a saw mill. Both his parents, Emanuel and Clara Ellen Harter Harshbarger were still living. listed as in the same household, in Thorn Creek, Whitley County, Indiana. (This was significant because there had been an earlier divorce action and I never found whether or not it was withdrawn, Apparently it was.) Emanuel was 64 and Clara was 61. They had at least three other children still living, so if they hosted a Harshbarger family Christmas the farmhouse they lived in would have been crowded.
Goldie Withers was 17 and single, likely living with her parents, William H and Della Kemery Withers. Her sister Sue, three years older, was married but probably came home for Christmas. By 1920, both girls were gone, but 1918 would have been a family year. Della's parents were still alive and in Whitley County, too, and they have a large family. Adam, 72, and Nancy Fanny Buchtel Kemery, also 72, were farmers in Columbia Township, Whitley County. They had two adult children living with them in 1920, but others were grown and away from home so there were likely grandchildren at the Kemery household that day, too.
All of the families I've visited here had good support systems. In the case of Cleo Aldridge Beeks, that was probably needed and she learned her lessons well, as she cared for many aging relatives during her lifetime. But Christmas 1918 for all would have been a time of hope, with the war (except for Wilbur and the thousands of others still fighting in Russia) over. And one other thing-Christmas Day 1918 brought just a little bit of snow to northern Indiana, .6 of an inch but enough to qualify for a "White Christmas".
Tuesday, October 9, 2018
Beeks line: Mary Smith Dunham, one feisty lady
It's been awhile since I've had anything to say about any of the Beeks ancestors. But I came across one sentence about one lady that I think is noteworthy. Actually, finding anything about a woman in the 18th century is noteworthy, as for the most part women are hidden in their husband's identity. Ah, but what is husband dies at a young age? Remarriage was the norm, but sometimes a widow chose a different road.
Mary Smith was the daughter of Shubael and Prudence Fitzrandolph Smith. (The Fitzrandolph family traces back to English and Scottish royalty but that is a story for sometime in the future, if I decide to expand the scope of this blog.) She was born December 27, 1717, probably in Woodbridge, Middlesex County, New Jersey. She was one of eleven children, and that's about what I know of her childhood. I would love to know her religion, but I don't know that at this time.
Mary married Jonathan Dunham (sometimes spelled Donham), the son of Benjamin Dunham and Mary Rolph, probably in 1737 although I haven't pinned that date down yet. Their first son was born at the end of 1738, and they had five additional children. Unfortunately, Jonathan died in 1748, although I've not yet found records that mention a cause of death. This left Mary with 6 children under the age of 15. What's a widow to do?
Well, what she did not do was marry again. We are given a clue as to what she may have done because her name is found (along with some other people by the name of Fitzrandolph and Dunham) on a petition to the New Jersey House stating that the rate for housing soldiers had been 5 shillings, 4 pence but had been reduced to 4 shillings, and the petitioners asked that it be increased to the original level.
This was during the French and Indian War. Woodbridge may have been close enough to the frontier that the citizens felt threatened, and apparently at least a few soldiers were stationed there or near there to protect civilians. My strong suspicion is that Mary ran a boarding house or inn to support her family. That would explain why some of her late husband's relatives would have signed the same petition. They wanted her to be able to support herself, so they would not be obliged to do so.
I've not learned whether the petition was successful or not. I don't know what Mary looked like, whether she was short or tall, plain or attractive, but I can imagine the determination in her mind and body that showed her a way to support her family without re-marrying. Signing a petition to the state was not a common thing for a woman to do. I think she was a feisty lady.
Mary died in 1791. Her will, written in 1784, disposed of mostly personal property, but she made cash bequests to two sons. Samuel, the Beeks ancestor (and also Barack Obama's ancestor) was absent from home and if he did not return within ten years, his son Jacob was to receive 10 pounds with the remainder of Samuel's share to be divided among her three children. It's possible that Samuel was already in what became West Virginia at that time, making a life for himself and his several children.
One other detail. One of her sons, Asher, was a Tory and fought on the British side in the Revolutionary war. Daniel Dunham followed the same path. He may or may not be Mary's son. Her birth date is given as 1717 and Daniel's as 1730. I suspect Daniel belongs to another Dunham, or might just possibly be Jonathan's from an earlier relationship. He would have been family of some kind, however. Asher seems to have returned to New Jersey by the time Mary wrote her will. Samuel may have stayed away because his were not Tory views.
That's what is known about Mary, plus I've thrown in some speculation that may or may not be accurate (that she ran an inn or boarding house of some sort). I like Mary. I admire her spunk and her grit that allowed her to raise five children without the benefit of a husband. I like that she was willing to sign a petition. I like that she wanted Samuel to return home, as most parents would. I just like Mary, and I hope you do, too.
The line of descent is:
Jonathan Dunham-Mary Smith
Samuel Dunham-Hannah probably Ruble
Jacob Dunham-Catherine Goodnight
Samuel G. Dunham-Eliza Matilda Reese
Margaret Catherine Dunham-Harvey Aldridge
Gretta Cleo Aldridge-Wilbur Beeks
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
Mary Smith was the daughter of Shubael and Prudence Fitzrandolph Smith. (The Fitzrandolph family traces back to English and Scottish royalty but that is a story for sometime in the future, if I decide to expand the scope of this blog.) She was born December 27, 1717, probably in Woodbridge, Middlesex County, New Jersey. She was one of eleven children, and that's about what I know of her childhood. I would love to know her religion, but I don't know that at this time.
Mary married Jonathan Dunham (sometimes spelled Donham), the son of Benjamin Dunham and Mary Rolph, probably in 1737 although I haven't pinned that date down yet. Their first son was born at the end of 1738, and they had five additional children. Unfortunately, Jonathan died in 1748, although I've not yet found records that mention a cause of death. This left Mary with 6 children under the age of 15. What's a widow to do?
Well, what she did not do was marry again. We are given a clue as to what she may have done because her name is found (along with some other people by the name of Fitzrandolph and Dunham) on a petition to the New Jersey House stating that the rate for housing soldiers had been 5 shillings, 4 pence but had been reduced to 4 shillings, and the petitioners asked that it be increased to the original level.
This was during the French and Indian War. Woodbridge may have been close enough to the frontier that the citizens felt threatened, and apparently at least a few soldiers were stationed there or near there to protect civilians. My strong suspicion is that Mary ran a boarding house or inn to support her family. That would explain why some of her late husband's relatives would have signed the same petition. They wanted her to be able to support herself, so they would not be obliged to do so.
I've not learned whether the petition was successful or not. I don't know what Mary looked like, whether she was short or tall, plain or attractive, but I can imagine the determination in her mind and body that showed her a way to support her family without re-marrying. Signing a petition to the state was not a common thing for a woman to do. I think she was a feisty lady.
Mary died in 1791. Her will, written in 1784, disposed of mostly personal property, but she made cash bequests to two sons. Samuel, the Beeks ancestor (and also Barack Obama's ancestor) was absent from home and if he did not return within ten years, his son Jacob was to receive 10 pounds with the remainder of Samuel's share to be divided among her three children. It's possible that Samuel was already in what became West Virginia at that time, making a life for himself and his several children.
One other detail. One of her sons, Asher, was a Tory and fought on the British side in the Revolutionary war. Daniel Dunham followed the same path. He may or may not be Mary's son. Her birth date is given as 1717 and Daniel's as 1730. I suspect Daniel belongs to another Dunham, or might just possibly be Jonathan's from an earlier relationship. He would have been family of some kind, however. Asher seems to have returned to New Jersey by the time Mary wrote her will. Samuel may have stayed away because his were not Tory views.
That's what is known about Mary, plus I've thrown in some speculation that may or may not be accurate (that she ran an inn or boarding house of some sort). I like Mary. I admire her spunk and her grit that allowed her to raise five children without the benefit of a husband. I like that she was willing to sign a petition. I like that she wanted Samuel to return home, as most parents would. I just like Mary, and I hope you do, too.
The line of descent is:
Jonathan Dunham-Mary Smith
Samuel Dunham-Hannah probably Ruble
Jacob Dunham-Catherine Goodnight
Samuel G. Dunham-Eliza Matilda Reese
Margaret Catherine Dunham-Harvey Aldridge
Gretta Cleo Aldridge-Wilbur Beeks
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
Tuesday, December 26, 2017
Beeks line: Family Christmas, 1917 What was it like?
Christmas for the Beeks (and Aldridge) families, one hundred years ago, may not have been the wild extravaganza that many families are (almost) able to provide today. But Christmas, after Jesus, if about family, andthe Aldridges and Beeks provided lots of family, even back then.
Wilbur and Cleo Beeks were the people I thought about when I started considering this post. They were almost newlyweds, with no children, yet. I think they still lived in Wabash county because that's where Wilbur was drafted from, a few months into 1918. Wilbur's parents, John and Elizabeth Wise Beeks, were still living, as were Wilbur's paternal grandmother, Mary Wise, and maternal grandfather, David Wise. All those Wise's can be pretty confusing, but I'm sure the family knew them as much by first name as by family name.
William Beeks and Mary Wise had had 10 children, and I only have a death date for one of them. So Aunt Sarah and Aunt Rachel and Uncle George, and so on may have been at family gatherings of the Beeks family. John Beeks and Elizabeth Wise and three children, and I think both Chester (Bud) and Charity were in the area, also. I haven't tried to trace children for these aunts and uncles but it's a safe bet that at least some of them had children.
On the Aldridge side, Cleo's only direct ancestors living were her parents, Harvey and Margaret Catherine Dunham Aldridge. However, at least five of Harvey's siblings were living, and there may have been Dunham siblings, also. Cleo had five or possibly six siblings who were living at the time, mostly spread out between Huntington County and Tipton County. Also Harvey and Margaret were raising two of their grandchildren, who would have been part of any Christmas celebration.
I wish I knew how many, if any, of these families owned automobiles in 1917. If they didn't own automobiles, it might have been difficult for some of the family members to get together, especially since Christmas Day in 1917 was rather cool. It was fair and 35 degrees for a high according to the Fort Wayne Journal, which would not have been ideal weather for a horse and buggy ride, at least not a long ride. And family members who came, or went, as far as Kempton probably would not have gone and come back the same day. . Because of these long distances, it may have been just as difficult to schedule holiday gatherings then as it is now, with our busy calendars and "exes" that have to be worked around.
I wonder what the family did for entertainment, in the days before smart phones and television and even radio. I know Cleo sang well. Did other family members sing, and did the entire group join in singing the Christmas carols we still love so much? Was sledding or ice skating a part of their day? I'm positive that food was a large part of the day, and possibly liquid refreshment, also, at least for some of the men.
Maybe there were family disagreements, and maybe there were things that the family just didn't talk about, but it seems likely that in 1918, the family would look back and realize what a good Christmas they had in 1917. In 1918, Wilbur was fighting in Russia, Bud was just getting home from the war, and I'm sure there were other family members who were also affected by World War I Also the flu epidemic of 1918 was still to come, and there were other challenges as well.
In retrospect, it seems that Christmas 1917 would have been a very good year.
I'd love to hear from family members who can tell us more about Christmas in 1917. There must be family stories floating around and I'd love to hear them!
Wilbur and Cleo Beeks were the people I thought about when I started considering this post. They were almost newlyweds, with no children, yet. I think they still lived in Wabash county because that's where Wilbur was drafted from, a few months into 1918. Wilbur's parents, John and Elizabeth Wise Beeks, were still living, as were Wilbur's paternal grandmother, Mary Wise, and maternal grandfather, David Wise. All those Wise's can be pretty confusing, but I'm sure the family knew them as much by first name as by family name.
William Beeks and Mary Wise had had 10 children, and I only have a death date for one of them. So Aunt Sarah and Aunt Rachel and Uncle George, and so on may have been at family gatherings of the Beeks family. John Beeks and Elizabeth Wise and three children, and I think both Chester (Bud) and Charity were in the area, also. I haven't tried to trace children for these aunts and uncles but it's a safe bet that at least some of them had children.
On the Aldridge side, Cleo's only direct ancestors living were her parents, Harvey and Margaret Catherine Dunham Aldridge. However, at least five of Harvey's siblings were living, and there may have been Dunham siblings, also. Cleo had five or possibly six siblings who were living at the time, mostly spread out between Huntington County and Tipton County. Also Harvey and Margaret were raising two of their grandchildren, who would have been part of any Christmas celebration.
I wish I knew how many, if any, of these families owned automobiles in 1917. If they didn't own automobiles, it might have been difficult for some of the family members to get together, especially since Christmas Day in 1917 was rather cool. It was fair and 35 degrees for a high according to the Fort Wayne Journal, which would not have been ideal weather for a horse and buggy ride, at least not a long ride. And family members who came, or went, as far as Kempton probably would not have gone and come back the same day. . Because of these long distances, it may have been just as difficult to schedule holiday gatherings then as it is now, with our busy calendars and "exes" that have to be worked around.
I wonder what the family did for entertainment, in the days before smart phones and television and even radio. I know Cleo sang well. Did other family members sing, and did the entire group join in singing the Christmas carols we still love so much? Was sledding or ice skating a part of their day? I'm positive that food was a large part of the day, and possibly liquid refreshment, also, at least for some of the men.
Maybe there were family disagreements, and maybe there were things that the family just didn't talk about, but it seems likely that in 1918, the family would look back and realize what a good Christmas they had in 1917. In 1918, Wilbur was fighting in Russia, Bud was just getting home from the war, and I'm sure there were other family members who were also affected by World War I Also the flu epidemic of 1918 was still to come, and there were other challenges as well.
In retrospect, it seems that Christmas 1917 would have been a very good year.
I'd love to hear from family members who can tell us more about Christmas in 1917. There must be family stories floating around and I'd love to hear them!
Tuesday, December 12, 2017
Beeks line: Christopher Beeks, Immigrant
How did I miss writing about Christopher, who as far as we know now is the immigrant ancestor in the Beeks line? If this is a repeat post, I do apologize but neither my hand written list nor my search function is turning up a post about him. Maybe I was waiting to try to pin down more details about him. As it is, there is too much of his life that is still a mystery, but since I am winding down on this process of writing about the immigrants in the Beeks family, it's possibly now or never.
We don't know much about Christopher's early life. He is traditionally given a birth date of 1756 and it's said he lived in either Leicestershire or Lancastershire in England, born of parents yet undiscovered. We don't really know if either of these locations is correct, but the first thing we do know of him is that he was in trouble-big trouble.
Life in England in 1770 was, shall we say, difficult. Jobs were lacking, education was lacking, food was lacking and law enforcement was lacking. George III was already King of England, but he was not a forceful nor a temperate king, and his officials were, for the most part, out to get what they could for themselves, with no compassion at all for the poor. We don't know what Christopher's family situation was, but at 14 he was out on his own, just as many of his contemporaries were. Christopher had the bad luck to be caught, or at least accused and found guilty, of "assault on highway". This was from Manchester, Lancashire, England, but doesn't necessarily mean that's where his home was, as young men (and he was young, just about 14 at this time).
Some say he was sentenced to death by hanging and then reprieved, to be sent to America as an indentured servant, a dumping ground for "criminals" for either 7 or 14 years, again, depending on the source. I have yet to find records of his master, or for that matter, of the ship he came on.
When the Revolutionary War broke out, Christopher was quite happy to side with the American colonists who wanted their freedom. He enlisted in March of 1777 and served for at least three years in various Virginia Regiments, primarily the 8th and then the 12th. There is evidence that the unit he served with went through that hard winter at Valley Forge, and I haven't yet found anything that says he was furloughed during that time (the next winter, 1778, yes, he was furloughed for part of that time, but not the 1777-78 winter). So we can believe that he was there during that difficult winter, that he would have had ample chances to have seen George Washington, and that he survived the winter in good enough shape to continue soldiering.
We know that he served three years because in 1783 he was given a land warrant for 100 acres of land, and that is the amount of land that privates received for three years of service. Christopher didn't hold onto this land, though, because there was some problem with the tax collector not recording the taxes due and so Christopher, along with several others, lost their land. We don't know for sure where he lived when the war started, nor where he settled after the war.
We do know he married Catherine Barnes, who was the daughter of John Barnes and possibly Elizabeth, and we know they lived in western Virginia, variously listed as Augusta and then Berkeley County. They had at least ten children together, with the first known birth date of 1787, so perhaps they married in 1785 or 1786. No record has yet been located of this event, to the best of my knowledge. By 1790, he was running a pub or tavern and was soon in debt. He is found in various counties in Virginia until about 1811, when the family went to Xenia, Greene County, Ohio. His widow remarried in September of 1814 so Christopher had died before then. Catherine's children would have been teenagers and older at this point, so perhaps they no longer lived at home.
This is as much as we know about Christopher. He had a rough start in life and it appears that economically, he suffered for that through most of his life. He struggled to support his ten children, he lost his land and his business, and he may have had life long physical problems because of his time in the service of his new country. It's easy to feel sorry for Christopher. But we should also feel proud. He loved his new country well enough to fight for it for three years, and continued, in other ways, the struggle to give his children a better start in life than he had He must have felt joy that his children would not have to commit crimes in order to eat, and that they had the freedom to go wherever on this continent they wanted to go. Christopher Beeks, thank you for your service and for all the sacrifices you made!
The line of descent is:
Christopher Beeks-Catherine Barnes
William Beeks-Mary Elizabeth Nimerick
John Beeks-Polly Carter
William Beeks-Mary Wise
John Beeks-Elizabeth Wise
Wilbur Beeks-Cleo Aldridge
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
We don't know much about Christopher's early life. He is traditionally given a birth date of 1756 and it's said he lived in either Leicestershire or Lancastershire in England, born of parents yet undiscovered. We don't really know if either of these locations is correct, but the first thing we do know of him is that he was in trouble-big trouble.
Life in England in 1770 was, shall we say, difficult. Jobs were lacking, education was lacking, food was lacking and law enforcement was lacking. George III was already King of England, but he was not a forceful nor a temperate king, and his officials were, for the most part, out to get what they could for themselves, with no compassion at all for the poor. We don't know what Christopher's family situation was, but at 14 he was out on his own, just as many of his contemporaries were. Christopher had the bad luck to be caught, or at least accused and found guilty, of "assault on highway". This was from Manchester, Lancashire, England, but doesn't necessarily mean that's where his home was, as young men (and he was young, just about 14 at this time).
Some say he was sentenced to death by hanging and then reprieved, to be sent to America as an indentured servant, a dumping ground for "criminals" for either 7 or 14 years, again, depending on the source. I have yet to find records of his master, or for that matter, of the ship he came on.
When the Revolutionary War broke out, Christopher was quite happy to side with the American colonists who wanted their freedom. He enlisted in March of 1777 and served for at least three years in various Virginia Regiments, primarily the 8th and then the 12th. There is evidence that the unit he served with went through that hard winter at Valley Forge, and I haven't yet found anything that says he was furloughed during that time (the next winter, 1778, yes, he was furloughed for part of that time, but not the 1777-78 winter). So we can believe that he was there during that difficult winter, that he would have had ample chances to have seen George Washington, and that he survived the winter in good enough shape to continue soldiering.
We know that he served three years because in 1783 he was given a land warrant for 100 acres of land, and that is the amount of land that privates received for three years of service. Christopher didn't hold onto this land, though, because there was some problem with the tax collector not recording the taxes due and so Christopher, along with several others, lost their land. We don't know for sure where he lived when the war started, nor where he settled after the war.
We do know he married Catherine Barnes, who was the daughter of John Barnes and possibly Elizabeth, and we know they lived in western Virginia, variously listed as Augusta and then Berkeley County. They had at least ten children together, with the first known birth date of 1787, so perhaps they married in 1785 or 1786. No record has yet been located of this event, to the best of my knowledge. By 1790, he was running a pub or tavern and was soon in debt. He is found in various counties in Virginia until about 1811, when the family went to Xenia, Greene County, Ohio. His widow remarried in September of 1814 so Christopher had died before then. Catherine's children would have been teenagers and older at this point, so perhaps they no longer lived at home.
This is as much as we know about Christopher. He had a rough start in life and it appears that economically, he suffered for that through most of his life. He struggled to support his ten children, he lost his land and his business, and he may have had life long physical problems because of his time in the service of his new country. It's easy to feel sorry for Christopher. But we should also feel proud. He loved his new country well enough to fight for it for three years, and continued, in other ways, the struggle to give his children a better start in life than he had He must have felt joy that his children would not have to commit crimes in order to eat, and that they had the freedom to go wherever on this continent they wanted to go. Christopher Beeks, thank you for your service and for all the sacrifices you made!
The line of descent is:
Christopher Beeks-Catherine Barnes
William Beeks-Mary Elizabeth Nimerick
John Beeks-Polly Carter
William Beeks-Mary Wise
John Beeks-Elizabeth Wise
Wilbur Beeks-Cleo Aldridge
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
Tuesday, November 28, 2017
Beeks line: Who are all these people?
While researching for a possible book in the future, I came across this newspaper article. I am intrigued by it because I don't know all the names featured-yet. However, they all seem to have some connection to the Aldridge family, however, distant, and therefore they would be part of the Beeks family history, too
Here is the article,from the Huntington Herald Press of August 28, 1951, written by "Miss Barbara Beeks", Andrews correspondent:
"Meet at Park
A family gathering was held at the Memorial park Sunday in honor of Mr. and Mrs. Sam Aldridge and Frances and Madeline Dunn, and Mr. and Mrs. Glenn Aldridge of Midland, Mich. Those present were Mr. and Mrs. Herman Harrell and son of Lagro, Mr. and Mrs. Clyde Osborn and family, Mr. and Mrs. Frank Aldridge and son Bill, Mr. and Mrs. Wilbur Beeks and family, Mr. and Mrs. Clyde Harrell and son of Lagro, Mr. and Mrs. Norman Beeks of Wabash, Mrs. Bonnie Clements, Mrs. Sherll Clements, Sr.;, Mr. and Mrs. Howard Urschel of Bippus, Mr. and Mrs. Cleveland Harshbarger and family, Mrs. Lucile Gressley and family of Walkerton, Mr. and Mrs. Clarence Keefer and son, Mr. and Mrs. Floren Kreider and family of South Whitley, Mr. and Mrs. George Inyeart and daughter of Liberty Mills, Mr. and Mrs. Phillip Aldridge and family, Mr. and Mrs. Herbert Harrell and son, Mr. and Mrs. Sam Aldridge and daughter, Mr. and Mrs. Glenn Aldridge and Madeline Dunn."
Of course some of these people can be readily identified. Mr. and Mrs. Wilbur Beeks and family would have included Donald, Barbara and Vicky. Others of their children and grandchildren in this list would be Anna Mae (Beeks) Osborn and children David, Diana and probably Ron (don't have his birth date) Norman Beeks, Bonnie (Beeks) Clements, Mary (Beeks) Harshbarger and children John and Roger.
Frank Aldridge and Sam Aldridge were sons of Harvey and Margaret Catherine Dunham Aldridge, so they would be siblings of Cleo Aldridge Beeks. I will have to do some more digging to figure out the rest of these connections, and to get them properly documented, but I'm pretty sure they all have a connection to one or another of the Aldridges. If someone could help me out here, I'll be glad to post updates to this post so everyone can be properly identified. Meanwhile, this will be a fun spare time project for me1
Here is the article,from the Huntington Herald Press of August 28, 1951, written by "Miss Barbara Beeks", Andrews correspondent:
"Meet at Park
A family gathering was held at the Memorial park Sunday in honor of Mr. and Mrs. Sam Aldridge and Frances and Madeline Dunn, and Mr. and Mrs. Glenn Aldridge of Midland, Mich. Those present were Mr. and Mrs. Herman Harrell and son of Lagro, Mr. and Mrs. Clyde Osborn and family, Mr. and Mrs. Frank Aldridge and son Bill, Mr. and Mrs. Wilbur Beeks and family, Mr. and Mrs. Clyde Harrell and son of Lagro, Mr. and Mrs. Norman Beeks of Wabash, Mrs. Bonnie Clements, Mrs. Sherll Clements, Sr.;, Mr. and Mrs. Howard Urschel of Bippus, Mr. and Mrs. Cleveland Harshbarger and family, Mrs. Lucile Gressley and family of Walkerton, Mr. and Mrs. Clarence Keefer and son, Mr. and Mrs. Floren Kreider and family of South Whitley, Mr. and Mrs. George Inyeart and daughter of Liberty Mills, Mr. and Mrs. Phillip Aldridge and family, Mr. and Mrs. Herbert Harrell and son, Mr. and Mrs. Sam Aldridge and daughter, Mr. and Mrs. Glenn Aldridge and Madeline Dunn."
Of course some of these people can be readily identified. Mr. and Mrs. Wilbur Beeks and family would have included Donald, Barbara and Vicky. Others of their children and grandchildren in this list would be Anna Mae (Beeks) Osborn and children David, Diana and probably Ron (don't have his birth date) Norman Beeks, Bonnie (Beeks) Clements, Mary (Beeks) Harshbarger and children John and Roger.
Frank Aldridge and Sam Aldridge were sons of Harvey and Margaret Catherine Dunham Aldridge, so they would be siblings of Cleo Aldridge Beeks. I will have to do some more digging to figure out the rest of these connections, and to get them properly documented, but I'm pretty sure they all have a connection to one or another of the Aldridges. If someone could help me out here, I'll be glad to post updates to this post so everyone can be properly identified. Meanwhile, this will be a fun spare time project for me1
Tuesday, October 17, 2017
Beeks line: Done with the Aldridge family?
I thought I'd make a list of all my dead ends/brick walls/opportunities to find for the Beeks family, and I started with Cleo Aldridge. That list along gives me over 50 names to work, just for people here in the US or who may have come to America, since for some of these people I have no date or location for a death and their children were definitely here . Some are first names only, or unknown wives of so and so. Their roots are in England, France, Germany, The Netherlands, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and perhaps other places. Some were born as recently as 1797, many of the Germans were born in the first half of the 1700's, and some go back to the earliest colonial times.
Better genealogists, with more money or/and time than I have, have worked diligently to find these people. That doesn't mean that I won't be successful on any of these remaining folks, but it does mean that new records will have to be made available, or I will have to learn more about existing old records, before I can make much progress, and before I can write any more posts in this line.
This post, then, is a salute to the following people in the line of Gretta Cleo Aldridge Beeks, the anonymous people who made America, who lived good lives and raised the generations that raised the generation that eventually settled in Andrews, Indiana. In no particular order, they are:
Anna, wife of Solomon Rees
Hugh Humphriey 1670-1748
Elizabeth Lowry, wife of Hugh Humphrey
Mary McMillan 1650-1699, wife of Evan ap Owen
Philip Price died about 1720
Elinor Lloyd, wife of David Rees
Thomas Scattergood 1600-1697
Elinor Peers, wife of Samuel Burgess
Catherine Anne Kynge, wife of William Edward Moone
Mary Taylor, 1675-1772 wife of Thomas Butterfield
John Butterfield and wife
Elinor Lewis, wife of Price Rhys
Maria Salame, wife of Anthony Hallman born about 1675
William Booth, father of Charles Booth born about 1655???
Agnes Jevan, wife of Samuel Jones
Randall Malin 1649-1730 and Elizabeth his wife
Gerdrew, wife of George Jacob possibly born about 1680
Hans Peter (Von) Rubel 1684-1750 and Anna Katrina Mueller
Patience Wooten 1622-1710 wife of John Walter
William Holloway 1586-1655 and unknown wife
wife of George Allen, possibly Katherine Watts but maybe not
Thomas Smith, father of the John Smith who married Susanna Hinckley Did he come to America?
Elizabeth Trull, 1585-1666, wife of John Pers
Elspeth, wife of John Thomas Bloomfield
Jeremiah Folsom, probably my most wanted of all on this list about 1797 to about 1831
Elizabeth, 1752-1836 wife of John William Teague
Peter Tague 1725-1797 and wife Elizabeth
Stryntje Jacobs 1620-1699
Francois Sohier 1595-1663
Elizabeth Drabbe, 1660-1724 wife of Joost De Baun
Jason Wheeler 1765-1843 and Patience, his wife, also very high on my most wanted list.
Parnell Lakin, 1705-1761, wife of George III Fee
Rebecca Parnell 1636-1715, wife of George I Fee
Rebecca wife of William Jump born about 1635???
George Fee born 1650
wife of William Lee was she Ann Granger? possibly born about 1675
William Lee also possibly born about 1675
Elizabeth Soper, 1747-1815, wife of Jacob Aldridge
Eleanor Watkins 1715-1761, wife of John Aldridge
Mary wife of John Purdy. possibly born about 1657
Nicholas Aldridge and wife Margaret, born about 1629-1632
Whew! To look at this list, you would think that I've not found much at all on the Aldridge family. Nothing could be further from the truth. I've written many posts about this family and have been delighted to learn about all of them. But a true blue family historian always wants more! I will keep this list and work on it from time to time. Maybe there are answers out there that I haven't yet found. If so, I will be posting more brief sketches, as I find them.
Better genealogists, with more money or/and time than I have, have worked diligently to find these people. That doesn't mean that I won't be successful on any of these remaining folks, but it does mean that new records will have to be made available, or I will have to learn more about existing old records, before I can make much progress, and before I can write any more posts in this line.
This post, then, is a salute to the following people in the line of Gretta Cleo Aldridge Beeks, the anonymous people who made America, who lived good lives and raised the generations that raised the generation that eventually settled in Andrews, Indiana. In no particular order, they are:
Anna, wife of Solomon Rees
Hugh Humphriey 1670-1748
Elizabeth Lowry, wife of Hugh Humphrey
Mary McMillan 1650-1699, wife of Evan ap Owen
Philip Price died about 1720
Elinor Lloyd, wife of David Rees
Thomas Scattergood 1600-1697
Elinor Peers, wife of Samuel Burgess
Catherine Anne Kynge, wife of William Edward Moone
Mary Taylor, 1675-1772 wife of Thomas Butterfield
John Butterfield and wife
Elinor Lewis, wife of Price Rhys
Maria Salame, wife of Anthony Hallman born about 1675
William Booth, father of Charles Booth born about 1655???
Agnes Jevan, wife of Samuel Jones
Randall Malin 1649-1730 and Elizabeth his wife
Gerdrew, wife of George Jacob possibly born about 1680
Hans Peter (Von) Rubel 1684-1750 and Anna Katrina Mueller
Patience Wooten 1622-1710 wife of John Walter
William Holloway 1586-1655 and unknown wife
wife of George Allen, possibly Katherine Watts but maybe not
Thomas Smith, father of the John Smith who married Susanna Hinckley Did he come to America?
Elizabeth Trull, 1585-1666, wife of John Pers
Elspeth, wife of John Thomas Bloomfield
Jeremiah Folsom, probably my most wanted of all on this list about 1797 to about 1831
Elizabeth, 1752-1836 wife of John William Teague
Peter Tague 1725-1797 and wife Elizabeth
Stryntje Jacobs 1620-1699
Francois Sohier 1595-1663
Elizabeth Drabbe, 1660-1724 wife of Joost De Baun
Jason Wheeler 1765-1843 and Patience, his wife, also very high on my most wanted list.
Parnell Lakin, 1705-1761, wife of George III Fee
Rebecca Parnell 1636-1715, wife of George I Fee
Rebecca wife of William Jump born about 1635???
George Fee born 1650
wife of William Lee was she Ann Granger? possibly born about 1675
William Lee also possibly born about 1675
Elizabeth Soper, 1747-1815, wife of Jacob Aldridge
Eleanor Watkins 1715-1761, wife of John Aldridge
Mary wife of John Purdy. possibly born about 1657
Nicholas Aldridge and wife Margaret, born about 1629-1632
Whew! To look at this list, you would think that I've not found much at all on the Aldridge family. Nothing could be further from the truth. I've written many posts about this family and have been delighted to learn about all of them. But a true blue family historian always wants more! I will keep this list and work on it from time to time. Maybe there are answers out there that I haven't yet found. If so, I will be posting more brief sketches, as I find them.
Tuesday, October 3, 2017
Beeks line: Thomas Page 1595-1676
I'm going to do a dangerous thing here, and write a little bit about an ancestor who hasn't been researched much. At least, he hasn't been researched enough for the genealogy world to come to a consensus about who he is.
Still, he's a good reminder that the Beeks family is made up of so many different kinds of people, who came from so many different places and so many different walks of life . Since there are still brick walls there may yet be more surprises for this family. Today I'm writing about Thomas Page, who was born about 1595 in England and died March 10, 1676 in Rappahannock County. I do have notes in my files as to the possible identity of his parents, but I am not sure enough about them to list them here. Likewise, I have a name for a wife but she was about 30 years younger than he was so while it's possible that his wife was Elizabeth Allen, she surely would not have been his first wife since daughter Mary was born just 6 years after Elizabeth. I've found a reference that says his wife was Elizabeth Finch Allen, and was born in 1607, but again, I'm not finding the documents or supporting evidence.
What we do think we know about Thomas is that he came to America in 1650. THe record I'm looking at sas he was "granted" land several times. Only one of those times was the number of acres a nice, even number that would indicate possibly he had head rights for bringing 12 persons from home, or elsewhere, to work in the colony. Also one listing includes 600 acres but is dated 12 plus years after Thomas died. Either this land went to a different Thomas Page, or it could be that it was a delayed entry kind of thing. The land he acquired included a parcel of 281 1/2 acres on the south side of Rappa River, another 600 acres on the south side of Rappahannock River, another 3075 acres in the same general location, and then 783 acres, and finally a second entry for 600 acres. His will is said to be missing so we don't know how he disposed of it, or what other assets he may have had.
I have found reference to him as a colonel but I'm not sure what the basis for that is. His death date is given as March 10, 1676 in Rappahannock County, and that's as much as most of the genealogy world seems to know about Thomas. We know from earlier reading that if this is one Thomas Page who owned all this land, he must have been a tobacco farmer and probably a fairly well to do man at that. The strong suspicion is that he would have had slaves or indentured servants, or both, to work the fields. His home may have been fairly substantial, for the time and place, and he would most likely have belonged to the Church of England, like most of his neighbors.
Thomas's heritage interests me, and the heritage he left his family is interesting, too. Virginia planters were not at all common in the Beeks family, especially those who had a military rank like "Colonel". I hope we can find more information about him!
The line of descent is believed to be
Thomas Page-Elizabeth
Mary Page-Valentine Allen
William Allen-Mary Hunt
Francis Allen-Peter Lehew
William Lehew-Hannah
Mary Lehew-William Featheringill
Elizabeth Featheringill-George Botkin
Charity Botkin-Jackson Wise
Mary Wise-William Beeks
John Beeks-Eliabeth Wise
Wilbur Beeks-Cleo Aldridge
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
Still, he's a good reminder that the Beeks family is made up of so many different kinds of people, who came from so many different places and so many different walks of life . Since there are still brick walls there may yet be more surprises for this family. Today I'm writing about Thomas Page, who was born about 1595 in England and died March 10, 1676 in Rappahannock County. I do have notes in my files as to the possible identity of his parents, but I am not sure enough about them to list them here. Likewise, I have a name for a wife but she was about 30 years younger than he was so while it's possible that his wife was Elizabeth Allen, she surely would not have been his first wife since daughter Mary was born just 6 years after Elizabeth. I've found a reference that says his wife was Elizabeth Finch Allen, and was born in 1607, but again, I'm not finding the documents or supporting evidence.
What we do think we know about Thomas is that he came to America in 1650. THe record I'm looking at sas he was "granted" land several times. Only one of those times was the number of acres a nice, even number that would indicate possibly he had head rights for bringing 12 persons from home, or elsewhere, to work in the colony. Also one listing includes 600 acres but is dated 12 plus years after Thomas died. Either this land went to a different Thomas Page, or it could be that it was a delayed entry kind of thing. The land he acquired included a parcel of 281 1/2 acres on the south side of Rappa River, another 600 acres on the south side of Rappahannock River, another 3075 acres in the same general location, and then 783 acres, and finally a second entry for 600 acres. His will is said to be missing so we don't know how he disposed of it, or what other assets he may have had.
I have found reference to him as a colonel but I'm not sure what the basis for that is. His death date is given as March 10, 1676 in Rappahannock County, and that's as much as most of the genealogy world seems to know about Thomas. We know from earlier reading that if this is one Thomas Page who owned all this land, he must have been a tobacco farmer and probably a fairly well to do man at that. The strong suspicion is that he would have had slaves or indentured servants, or both, to work the fields. His home may have been fairly substantial, for the time and place, and he would most likely have belonged to the Church of England, like most of his neighbors.
Thomas's heritage interests me, and the heritage he left his family is interesting, too. Virginia planters were not at all common in the Beeks family, especially those who had a military rank like "Colonel". I hope we can find more information about him!
The line of descent is believed to be
Thomas Page-Elizabeth
Mary Page-Valentine Allen
William Allen-Mary Hunt
Francis Allen-Peter Lehew
William Lehew-Hannah
Mary Lehew-William Featheringill
Elizabeth Featheringill-George Botkin
Charity Botkin-Jackson Wise
Mary Wise-William Beeks
John Beeks-Eliabeth Wise
Wilbur Beeks-Cleo Aldridge
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
Tuesday, September 19, 2017
Beeks line: Hugh Donaghe, dates unclear, Immigrant
Hugh Dunaghe or Donaho is the last Beeks ancestor I have on the family tree. I hope I can find more ancestors to write about, and I hope I can find more about this man than I have right now. The information I have is sketchy, but interesting.
As you might guess, Hugh's last name, Donaghe, or Donaho, seems to indicate an Irish origin. The sketchy and undocumented information that I have says that Hugh was born about 1680, In Kilkeel, County Down, Ireland . Kilkeel is a small town on the east coast of Northern Ireland, and their principal industry is fishing. I'm not sure whether that fits with what is known about our Hugh, but of course there would have been other occupations, too, for someone had to feed and clothe the fishermen of the time.
He is believed to have married someone named Elizabeth about 1700, possibly in Chester County, Pennsylvania, about 1700, shortly before his father John died in 1705. The location for John's death is given as Virginia, but again, that seems very sketchy. The only child of Hugh and Elizabeth that I can locate is Dianna, who married Thomas Hicklin in about 1723. So Dianna would have been born about the turn of the 18th century.
I suspect that Hugh and Elizabeth had at least one other child, a son named Hugh. There are records in Augusta County, Virginia referring to a Hugh Donague, and that Hugh died in 1773. I suspect that this record is not for our Hugh, and I suspect that military records for Thomas and Charles Donaho, as early as the 1740s in Virginia, may also belong to sons or other relatives of this man.
Land records as late as 1774 mention Hugh. If this is our Hugh, he had land, 277 acres on "the south side of the North RIver of Shando". It's possible that the deed wasn't filed until after Hugh's death, because up to that point there had been no need to file a deed. There is also a record of Hugh witnessing a land deed several years after our Hugh's death, so it seems that whether or not they were father and son, they were surely two different people. Perhaps our Hugh never made it to the Shenandoah Valley.
That is as much information or speculation as I have for Hugh. It certainly isn't much to go on but because the Beeks family doesn't have much known Irish ancestry, I thought it was worthwhile to at least mention the man. Perhaps there are more records waiting to be found, and if we are lucky enough to find them, I'll post them at a later date.
The line of descent is
Hugh Donaghe-Elizabeth
Dianna Donaghe-Thomas Hicklin
Dinah or Delilah Hicklin- James Bodkin
George Bodkin-Elizabeth "Fannie" Featheringill
Charity Botkin-Jackson Wise
Mary Wise-William Beeks
John Beeks-Elizabeth Wise
Wilbur Beeks-Cleo Aldridge
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
As you might guess, Hugh's last name, Donaghe, or Donaho, seems to indicate an Irish origin. The sketchy and undocumented information that I have says that Hugh was born about 1680, In Kilkeel, County Down, Ireland . Kilkeel is a small town on the east coast of Northern Ireland, and their principal industry is fishing. I'm not sure whether that fits with what is known about our Hugh, but of course there would have been other occupations, too, for someone had to feed and clothe the fishermen of the time.
He is believed to have married someone named Elizabeth about 1700, possibly in Chester County, Pennsylvania, about 1700, shortly before his father John died in 1705. The location for John's death is given as Virginia, but again, that seems very sketchy. The only child of Hugh and Elizabeth that I can locate is Dianna, who married Thomas Hicklin in about 1723. So Dianna would have been born about the turn of the 18th century.
I suspect that Hugh and Elizabeth had at least one other child, a son named Hugh. There are records in Augusta County, Virginia referring to a Hugh Donague, and that Hugh died in 1773. I suspect that this record is not for our Hugh, and I suspect that military records for Thomas and Charles Donaho, as early as the 1740s in Virginia, may also belong to sons or other relatives of this man.
Land records as late as 1774 mention Hugh. If this is our Hugh, he had land, 277 acres on "the south side of the North RIver of Shando". It's possible that the deed wasn't filed until after Hugh's death, because up to that point there had been no need to file a deed. There is also a record of Hugh witnessing a land deed several years after our Hugh's death, so it seems that whether or not they were father and son, they were surely two different people. Perhaps our Hugh never made it to the Shenandoah Valley.
That is as much information or speculation as I have for Hugh. It certainly isn't much to go on but because the Beeks family doesn't have much known Irish ancestry, I thought it was worthwhile to at least mention the man. Perhaps there are more records waiting to be found, and if we are lucky enough to find them, I'll post them at a later date.
The line of descent is
Hugh Donaghe-Elizabeth
Dianna Donaghe-Thomas Hicklin
Dinah or Delilah Hicklin- James Bodkin
George Bodkin-Elizabeth "Fannie" Featheringill
Charity Botkin-Jackson Wise
Mary Wise-William Beeks
John Beeks-Elizabeth Wise
Wilbur Beeks-Cleo Aldridge
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
Tuesday, September 5, 2017
Beeks line: Samuel Dunham 1742-1824
I thought I'd break my self imposed rule of writing only about immigrants and proven war veterans in this blog. Since I'm running out of Beeks names, I'm looking now for people who left enough of a record that we can at least catch a glimpse of them, through the family forest and the mists of time. Samuel Dunham is such a man.
We don't know as much about Samuel as we'd like to know, of course. He seems to have been a moderately successful, salt of the earth kind of man, the kind who pays his taxes and raises his family. There are hints of parts of his life in records, so we'll have to be happy with that until more information is known.
Samuel was born in Woodbridge, N.J. on May 11, 1742. His parents were Jonathan and Mary Smith Dunham. He had five siblings, all born between 1738 and 1742, so he wouldn't have lacked for chores to do nor for playmates, if there was time for such a thing. He don't know whether he could read or write, but it's reasonable to believe he had at least a rudimentary education, and perhaps more than that. His family was well known in the Woodbridge community.
We have difficulty following Samuel's move to the west, but we know it happened. He is believed to have married Hannah Ruble, daughter of David and Sarah Malin Ruble, about 1772. This family lived in Washington County, Pennsylvania and it is likely that Samuel was living or at least working in the vicinity then. He would have been about 30 years old, give or take, since we don't have an exact marriage date yet.
The Revolutionary War was about to break out, and we don't know how this impacted Samuel. He is not found on the Tax List for Berkeley County, now West Virginia, in 1777. He may have been there at least to scout out a future home, but this was a hot area for battles with the native Americans, who were armed and encouraged by the British. Perhaps they patiently waited in Pennsylvania, or even Maryland, for a chance to move on. If Samuel did live in the area during this time period, we can wonder what his role was in the War. I've not been able to find him listed as a soldier either on Fold 3 or the DAR, but that doesn't mean he didn't serve. He may well have been in a state militia unit, protecting his family and others in a guardhouse or "fort", for there were many such structures and someone his age on the frontier would have been expected to serve.
Between 1778 and 1783 Samuel and his family moved to Back Creek Valley, in what was then Virginia. Looking at images found on Google, it was and still is a beautiful area, although home and land prices there are higher than in Indiana. Most of what I've read of this area says that the Scots-Irish and the Germans settled this area, so it would be interesting to find out how and why this part of the country beckoned to Samuel.
I'm showing a total of 11 children for Samuel and Hannah, although other sources list "only" nine. At any rate, even the oldest children were young when they moved, and several were born in what was then Virginia. David Dunham has done research, showing that the couple had at least 80 grandchildren, and some of their descendants are still living in the immediate area, to the ninth generation.
Samuel Dunham was a Baptist, and presumably Sarah was, too, or at least that's what she became after her marriage. I've not found the particular congregation he attended, but there are some churches in the Back Creek area that might have been active during Samuel's life. Samuel died February 18, 1824 on his 611 acre farm, and Hannah died about two years later, possibly in Butler County, Ohio.
If Samuel left a will, I haven't found it yet. It isn't known where he was buried. Many records from this time period were burned during the Civil War, or otherwise destroyed, so we may never be able to answer some of these questions. Or, the answers may pop up tomorrow, because we never know...
The line of descent is:
Samuel Dunham-Hannah Ruble
Jacob Dunham-Catherine Goodnight
Samuel Goodnight Dunham-Eliza Matilda Reese
Margaret Catherine Dunham-Harvey Aldridge
Cleo Aldridge-Wilbur Beeks
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
We don't know as much about Samuel as we'd like to know, of course. He seems to have been a moderately successful, salt of the earth kind of man, the kind who pays his taxes and raises his family. There are hints of parts of his life in records, so we'll have to be happy with that until more information is known.
Samuel was born in Woodbridge, N.J. on May 11, 1742. His parents were Jonathan and Mary Smith Dunham. He had five siblings, all born between 1738 and 1742, so he wouldn't have lacked for chores to do nor for playmates, if there was time for such a thing. He don't know whether he could read or write, but it's reasonable to believe he had at least a rudimentary education, and perhaps more than that. His family was well known in the Woodbridge community.
We have difficulty following Samuel's move to the west, but we know it happened. He is believed to have married Hannah Ruble, daughter of David and Sarah Malin Ruble, about 1772. This family lived in Washington County, Pennsylvania and it is likely that Samuel was living or at least working in the vicinity then. He would have been about 30 years old, give or take, since we don't have an exact marriage date yet.
The Revolutionary War was about to break out, and we don't know how this impacted Samuel. He is not found on the Tax List for Berkeley County, now West Virginia, in 1777. He may have been there at least to scout out a future home, but this was a hot area for battles with the native Americans, who were armed and encouraged by the British. Perhaps they patiently waited in Pennsylvania, or even Maryland, for a chance to move on. If Samuel did live in the area during this time period, we can wonder what his role was in the War. I've not been able to find him listed as a soldier either on Fold 3 or the DAR, but that doesn't mean he didn't serve. He may well have been in a state militia unit, protecting his family and others in a guardhouse or "fort", for there were many such structures and someone his age on the frontier would have been expected to serve.
Between 1778 and 1783 Samuel and his family moved to Back Creek Valley, in what was then Virginia. Looking at images found on Google, it was and still is a beautiful area, although home and land prices there are higher than in Indiana. Most of what I've read of this area says that the Scots-Irish and the Germans settled this area, so it would be interesting to find out how and why this part of the country beckoned to Samuel.
I'm showing a total of 11 children for Samuel and Hannah, although other sources list "only" nine. At any rate, even the oldest children were young when they moved, and several were born in what was then Virginia. David Dunham has done research, showing that the couple had at least 80 grandchildren, and some of their descendants are still living in the immediate area, to the ninth generation.
Samuel Dunham was a Baptist, and presumably Sarah was, too, or at least that's what she became after her marriage. I've not found the particular congregation he attended, but there are some churches in the Back Creek area that might have been active during Samuel's life. Samuel died February 18, 1824 on his 611 acre farm, and Hannah died about two years later, possibly in Butler County, Ohio.
If Samuel left a will, I haven't found it yet. It isn't known where he was buried. Many records from this time period were burned during the Civil War, or otherwise destroyed, so we may never be able to answer some of these questions. Or, the answers may pop up tomorrow, because we never know...
The line of descent is:
Samuel Dunham-Hannah Ruble
Jacob Dunham-Catherine Goodnight
Samuel Goodnight Dunham-Eliza Matilda Reese
Margaret Catherine Dunham-Harvey Aldridge
Cleo Aldridge-Wilbur Beeks
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
Tuesday, August 22, 2017
Beeks line: Henry (Heinrich) Harshbarger, Immigrant
I put the Heinrich in the title of this blog post so it would attract your attention. That was his name when he was born in about 1740 in Eppstein, Germany, but by the time of his death in 1788 he had traveled to the New World, seen the Revolutionary War, and gone from Pennsylvania to the Shenandoah Valley.
I'm not sure who Henry's parents were. Many sites list them as Christian and Caroline Funk Harshbarger but I think they were a little too young to be Jacob's parents. A more likely candidate would be Jacob and Maria Catherine (maiden name unknown), who were born about 1698 and 1699 respectively. This is not documented, or at least I don't have the documentation, so please be cautious about totally discarding Christian and Caroline or adding Jacob and Maria Catherine from or to your tree. His parents really are unknown.
However, Eppstein, Germany is not unknown. It is only a few miles from Wiesbaden, and the pictures on Google of the old part of the city show a typical medieval town, absolutely breathtaking in its beauty. We don't know what kind of life Heinrich would have had there. He is said to have been a Mennonite. Eppstein became Protestant during the Reformation, but that doesn't mean the Mennonites were treated well. Most areas of Germany relegated them to day labor type jobs, and taxed them heavily. They were, for the most part, marginalized and they found leaving the area the only way they could practice their faith and build a better life for their families. Heinrich married Elizabeth Stauffer, daughter of Johannes Stauffer, who was born about 1740. Judging from the birth dates of their children, the marriage probably took place in about 1764. The Stauffer family was also Mennonite.
Heinrich didn't come to America until 1768, although Christian and two of his brothers, Jacob and Caspar, had arrived in 1749. Perhaps Heinrich stayed behind to care for an ailing parent, or perhaps the family fortune had been used to send the three older brothers to Pennsylvania and it took a while for Heinrich to earn his own way. He is believed to have settled first in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania and then in Frederick County, Maryland, where he bought land in 1774 and sold it in 1785, before finally going to Shenandoah Valley, Virginia. This was a common migration route for the Germans at the time. We don't know if he sold his land and moved, or if he moved and then sold his land. It appears that Elizabeth may have died about 1782. Henry married Barbara, the widow of Jacob Pence on December 30, 1785 in Shenandoah County. .
He left a will that was written in German, and appears to omit his three oldest children (who may have received land or money earlier). Barbara's will mentions Mary Harshbarger, who had married Henry's son Jacob in 1786. They were step-siblings when they married.
So to the very rich Beeks heritage of early Massachusetts settlers, Welsh Quakers, early Dutch settlers, Scots-Irish, and French Huguenots, we now add German and (probably) Swiss Mennonites. It's quite a family!
The line of descent is:
Henry Harshbarger-Elizabeth Stauffer
Jacob Harshbarger-Mary Pence
Elizabeth Harshbarger-Jacob Wise
Jackson Wise-Charity Botkin
Mary Wise-William Beeks
John Beeks-Elizabeth Wise
Wilbur Beeks-Cleo Aldridge
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Note: As far as I can determine, the line of Cleveland Harshbarger and the line of Henry Harshbarger don't connect, at least as far back as 1650. But since both families apparently come from the same small village in Switzerland, there is probably a connection back further than that.
I'm not sure who Henry's parents were. Many sites list them as Christian and Caroline Funk Harshbarger but I think they were a little too young to be Jacob's parents. A more likely candidate would be Jacob and Maria Catherine (maiden name unknown), who were born about 1698 and 1699 respectively. This is not documented, or at least I don't have the documentation, so please be cautious about totally discarding Christian and Caroline or adding Jacob and Maria Catherine from or to your tree. His parents really are unknown.
However, Eppstein, Germany is not unknown. It is only a few miles from Wiesbaden, and the pictures on Google of the old part of the city show a typical medieval town, absolutely breathtaking in its beauty. We don't know what kind of life Heinrich would have had there. He is said to have been a Mennonite. Eppstein became Protestant during the Reformation, but that doesn't mean the Mennonites were treated well. Most areas of Germany relegated them to day labor type jobs, and taxed them heavily. They were, for the most part, marginalized and they found leaving the area the only way they could practice their faith and build a better life for their families. Heinrich married Elizabeth Stauffer, daughter of Johannes Stauffer, who was born about 1740. Judging from the birth dates of their children, the marriage probably took place in about 1764. The Stauffer family was also Mennonite.
Heinrich didn't come to America until 1768, although Christian and two of his brothers, Jacob and Caspar, had arrived in 1749. Perhaps Heinrich stayed behind to care for an ailing parent, or perhaps the family fortune had been used to send the three older brothers to Pennsylvania and it took a while for Heinrich to earn his own way. He is believed to have settled first in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania and then in Frederick County, Maryland, where he bought land in 1774 and sold it in 1785, before finally going to Shenandoah Valley, Virginia. This was a common migration route for the Germans at the time. We don't know if he sold his land and moved, or if he moved and then sold his land. It appears that Elizabeth may have died about 1782. Henry married Barbara, the widow of Jacob Pence on December 30, 1785 in Shenandoah County. .
He left a will that was written in German, and appears to omit his three oldest children (who may have received land or money earlier). Barbara's will mentions Mary Harshbarger, who had married Henry's son Jacob in 1786. They were step-siblings when they married.
So to the very rich Beeks heritage of early Massachusetts settlers, Welsh Quakers, early Dutch settlers, Scots-Irish, and French Huguenots, we now add German and (probably) Swiss Mennonites. It's quite a family!
The line of descent is:
Henry Harshbarger-Elizabeth Stauffer
Jacob Harshbarger-Mary Pence
Elizabeth Harshbarger-Jacob Wise
Jackson Wise-Charity Botkin
Mary Wise-William Beeks
John Beeks-Elizabeth Wise
Wilbur Beeks-Cleo Aldridge
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Note: As far as I can determine, the line of Cleveland Harshbarger and the line of Henry Harshbarger don't connect, at least as far back as 1650. But since both families apparently come from the same small village in Switzerland, there is probably a connection back further than that.
Tuesday, August 8, 2017
Beeks line: Johann Jacob Bentz 1727-1778
I've been trying to learn about Jacob Bentz or Pence, and the first thing I learned is that there are a lot of men by the name of Jacob Bentz or Pence in the same locations and the same time frame. So I'm going to go mainly by what I've found in other's people's research. I hope they have figured it out correctly!
Bentz families were in Philadelphia by at least 1727. I haven't found anything that ties our family to any of the earlier arrivals, but the possibility exists that they are relatives, at least some of them. Our Jacob was baptized December 8,1727 in the Reformed Church at Iggelheim, Pfalz, Bayern in what became Germany. He was the son of Johann George and Anna Barbara Bullinger Bentz. Iggelheim appears to be a village in southwest Germany, not far from other areas where our German families emigrated. It is a town that suffered serious loss in the Thirty Years War and was probably still struggling to recover as the Bentz family made the decision to move to America.
Jacob's father, Georg, and at least two of his brothers traveled together on the ship Phoenix, which landed in Philadelphia September 15, 1749. (I am not writing this post about Georg because there is no record of him after his arrival here. We know he was a shoemaker by trade. It's possible that he lived with one of his sons but it is believed he didn't survive long in the New World. Many seem to think he died in 1749, but I've seen no proof of that.)
Jacob settled in the Hawksbill area of the Shenandoah Valley. We're not sure just when he arrived there. There are military records for a Jacob Pence who served in 1757 in Captain Hog's Company of Rangers. Our Jacob would have been of the right age to be this Jacob. We know our Jacob called himself Jacob Pence, and that is the name used in the records. So possibly our Jacob had military service in the French and Indian War, although none of the sites I'm looking at it have claimed military service for Jacob.
One tree I've seen gives his wife a name, Christine Barbara Willrett. There is no documentation, but it says they married in 1756. If this is true, then there must have been a first wife, for three sons were born before this marriage. I've also seen a marriage date of "about 1745". I'd love to hear from someone who knows more about Jacob and can give some insight about his wife or wives.
We do know he had ten children, and that Jacob didn't leave the Shenandoah Valley after he arrived there. He died on or before October 29, 1778 in Shenandoah County, Virginia. As a typical German in this area, he would have farmed and perhaps had a "side trade", but that is all I really can say about the life he led here. He was working too hard to leave paper records, apparently.
That's not a lot of information for a blog post, but it gives us something of a feel for the man and his life. We can say beyond a doubt that he worked hard, and that he defended his adopted country, whether he was the Jacob Pence who saw in Captain Hog's company, or whether he stayed home to protect his family. He's another of the mostly unrecognized men whose pioneer work led to our country's formation. Thank you, Jacob Pence!
The line of descent is:
Jacob Pence-Barbara
Mary Pence-Jacob Harshbarger
Elizabeth Harshbarger-Jacob Wise
Jackson Wise-Charity Botkin
Mary Wise-William Beeks
John Beeks-Elizabeth Wise
Wilbur Beeks-Cleo Aldridge
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
Bentz families were in Philadelphia by at least 1727. I haven't found anything that ties our family to any of the earlier arrivals, but the possibility exists that they are relatives, at least some of them. Our Jacob was baptized December 8,1727 in the Reformed Church at Iggelheim, Pfalz, Bayern in what became Germany. He was the son of Johann George and Anna Barbara Bullinger Bentz. Iggelheim appears to be a village in southwest Germany, not far from other areas where our German families emigrated. It is a town that suffered serious loss in the Thirty Years War and was probably still struggling to recover as the Bentz family made the decision to move to America.
Jacob's father, Georg, and at least two of his brothers traveled together on the ship Phoenix, which landed in Philadelphia September 15, 1749. (I am not writing this post about Georg because there is no record of him after his arrival here. We know he was a shoemaker by trade. It's possible that he lived with one of his sons but it is believed he didn't survive long in the New World. Many seem to think he died in 1749, but I've seen no proof of that.)
Jacob settled in the Hawksbill area of the Shenandoah Valley. We're not sure just when he arrived there. There are military records for a Jacob Pence who served in 1757 in Captain Hog's Company of Rangers. Our Jacob would have been of the right age to be this Jacob. We know our Jacob called himself Jacob Pence, and that is the name used in the records. So possibly our Jacob had military service in the French and Indian War, although none of the sites I'm looking at it have claimed military service for Jacob.
One tree I've seen gives his wife a name, Christine Barbara Willrett. There is no documentation, but it says they married in 1756. If this is true, then there must have been a first wife, for three sons were born before this marriage. I've also seen a marriage date of "about 1745". I'd love to hear from someone who knows more about Jacob and can give some insight about his wife or wives.
We do know he had ten children, and that Jacob didn't leave the Shenandoah Valley after he arrived there. He died on or before October 29, 1778 in Shenandoah County, Virginia. As a typical German in this area, he would have farmed and perhaps had a "side trade", but that is all I really can say about the life he led here. He was working too hard to leave paper records, apparently.
That's not a lot of information for a blog post, but it gives us something of a feel for the man and his life. We can say beyond a doubt that he worked hard, and that he defended his adopted country, whether he was the Jacob Pence who saw in Captain Hog's company, or whether he stayed home to protect his family. He's another of the mostly unrecognized men whose pioneer work led to our country's formation. Thank you, Jacob Pence!
The line of descent is:
Jacob Pence-Barbara
Mary Pence-Jacob Harshbarger
Elizabeth Harshbarger-Jacob Wise
Jackson Wise-Charity Botkin
Mary Wise-William Beeks
John Beeks-Elizabeth Wise
Wilbur Beeks-Cleo Aldridge
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
Tuesday, July 11, 2017
Beeks line: John Gurney 1603-1663 Immigrant
It's fun to take a name that's on the family tree and try to place him in time and space, to think for a few minutes about his life and to realize that once again there are more questions than answers. John Gurney is such a person. Not much is known about him but I do want to give credit to the RootsWeb World Connect Project called "Genealogies of Families of Brantree, Quincy, Weymouth, Randolph, Holbrook, Mass. & Others". I'd located maybe 20% of this information on my own, so it would have been slim pickings indeed for a post if I hadn't found this source.
As nearly as is known, John Gurney was born about 1603, since he gave a court deposition in 1652/53 saying he was 50 years old or thereabouts. There is a John Gurney who was baptized at Stewkley, Buckinghamshire, England on February 21, 1603 and it is likely that this is our John. If so, his father's name was also John, but that is as much family background as I have at present. If this John Gurney is ours, then he came from an area identified as "Non-conformist" and he may have been a Puritan. The church there is very old, dating to the twelfth century, so it is possible that generations on Gurneys worshipped there. At present, we can't state that with any certainty.
I can't find documentation, but John was supposedly married to a woman named Mary, most likely in England. He may have been an indentured servant but the dates don't match for the most commonly quoted master. At any rate, either at home or in Massachusetts he learned the tailor trade. He is reported as being in Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1636, but it's possible he arrived earlier. His children have birth dates of from about 1628 to about 1640, which is puzzling to have so many "abouts" unless the family was moving frequently.
We know that he was a tenant of rented land owned by Captain William Tyng in Brantree in 1653, which was 45 acres of upland and marsh. As mentioned ealier, he was a tailer and lived within Braintree, with a house and five acres of land, until he sold it in 1661 to Richard Thayer.
John's wife Mary died September 20, 1661 and just a few weeks later he married Grizell Fletcher Jewell Griggs Kibbee. It was his second marriage and her fourth. It's only speculation but perhaps he was already in poor health. To put a good face on it, Grizell seems to have bettered herself with each marriage, and she would have one final marriage soon after John died. (I wonder if people then talked, or whispered, about a woman with five marriages. Two marriages were common, three were somewhat frequent, four were occasional, but five? Really?)
I've found no record of John being admitted as a freeman, and no record of church or civic involvement. John may have been a man determined to keep his head down and just to concentrate on raising his family. When he died, he left an inventory valued at 55 pounds, 14 shillings, and 6 pence. He also had a long list of debts, so it is likely that there wasn't much left for the widow or his children to inherit. Son John did get lands in Mendon, which is where our John had intended to move before his last illness.
This is a summary of the information I've been able to locate about John Gurney. It's the unrecognized people who helped build America, and for that reason, I'm happy to introduce you briefly to John Gurney, immigrant and nation builder.
The line of descent is:
John Gurney-Mary
Mary Gurney-Daniel Shedd
Elizabeth Shedd-Daniel Pierce
Elizabeth Pierce-Samuel Smith
Shubael Smith-Prudence Fitzrandolph
Mary Smith-Jonathan Dunham
Samuel Dunnah-Hannah Ruble
Jacob Dunham-Catherine Goodnight
Samuel G Dunham-Eliza Matilda Reese
Margaret Catherine Dunham-Harvey Aldridge
Cleo Aldridge-Wilbur Beeks
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
As nearly as is known, John Gurney was born about 1603, since he gave a court deposition in 1652/53 saying he was 50 years old or thereabouts. There is a John Gurney who was baptized at Stewkley, Buckinghamshire, England on February 21, 1603 and it is likely that this is our John. If so, his father's name was also John, but that is as much family background as I have at present. If this John Gurney is ours, then he came from an area identified as "Non-conformist" and he may have been a Puritan. The church there is very old, dating to the twelfth century, so it is possible that generations on Gurneys worshipped there. At present, we can't state that with any certainty.
I can't find documentation, but John was supposedly married to a woman named Mary, most likely in England. He may have been an indentured servant but the dates don't match for the most commonly quoted master. At any rate, either at home or in Massachusetts he learned the tailor trade. He is reported as being in Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1636, but it's possible he arrived earlier. His children have birth dates of from about 1628 to about 1640, which is puzzling to have so many "abouts" unless the family was moving frequently.
We know that he was a tenant of rented land owned by Captain William Tyng in Brantree in 1653, which was 45 acres of upland and marsh. As mentioned ealier, he was a tailer and lived within Braintree, with a house and five acres of land, until he sold it in 1661 to Richard Thayer.
John's wife Mary died September 20, 1661 and just a few weeks later he married Grizell Fletcher Jewell Griggs Kibbee. It was his second marriage and her fourth. It's only speculation but perhaps he was already in poor health. To put a good face on it, Grizell seems to have bettered herself with each marriage, and she would have one final marriage soon after John died. (I wonder if people then talked, or whispered, about a woman with five marriages. Two marriages were common, three were somewhat frequent, four were occasional, but five? Really?)
I've found no record of John being admitted as a freeman, and no record of church or civic involvement. John may have been a man determined to keep his head down and just to concentrate on raising his family. When he died, he left an inventory valued at 55 pounds, 14 shillings, and 6 pence. He also had a long list of debts, so it is likely that there wasn't much left for the widow or his children to inherit. Son John did get lands in Mendon, which is where our John had intended to move before his last illness.
This is a summary of the information I've been able to locate about John Gurney. It's the unrecognized people who helped build America, and for that reason, I'm happy to introduce you briefly to John Gurney, immigrant and nation builder.
The line of descent is:
John Gurney-Mary
Mary Gurney-Daniel Shedd
Elizabeth Shedd-Daniel Pierce
Elizabeth Pierce-Samuel Smith
Shubael Smith-Prudence Fitzrandolph
Mary Smith-Jonathan Dunham
Samuel Dunnah-Hannah Ruble
Jacob Dunham-Catherine Goodnight
Samuel G Dunham-Eliza Matilda Reese
Margaret Catherine Dunham-Harvey Aldridge
Cleo Aldridge-Wilbur Beeks
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
Tuesday, June 27, 2017
Beeks line: Gilles de Mandeville 1626-1701 Immigrant
You may not be able to guess from the name that this is another ancestor from what is now The Netherlands. That's because it seems that there is no one "correct" way to write his name. Some list him as Aegidius, some as Giles Jensen, some as Yellis, and I'm not sure that the Mandeville surname really "sticks", although he has parents and grandparents all the way back to 1525 who also have been given that surname. I'm going to call him Gilles because that's easier for me, but yet reminds me this is not an Englishman.
Gilles was born in 166 in Veluwe, Gelderland, the Netherlands in 1626, the son of Rev.Jan Michealse and Trintgen Wilma Van Harderwijk Mandeville. Oh, he may have been born in France and baptized in Doesburk, Geldeland, the Netherlands. I think he was likely born in the Netherlands, unless the information about his parent's birthplace is incorrect. The first think we really know about Gilles is that he, his wife Elsje Pieterse Hendricks, and four children sailed on the "de Trouw", to New Amsterdam, supposedly traveling with Peter Stuyvesant. That makes a nice story, the Stuyvesant connection, but I'm not sure that Stuyvesant had gone anywhere so that he would have been returning in 1659. (I could be wrong about that, of course, and it is likely that the families knew each other. I just don't find anything that says Stuyvesant had gone to the Netherlands in 1658-59. He seems to have been in New Amsterdam the whole time.)
He paid the way of himself and his family so he was not a poor man. He is associated with several pieces of land at Long Island, atNew Amersfoort and New Amsterdam, and when the English took over the Dutch colony, he was on a tax list for New York in 1676.He also had a farm at Flatbush and 30 acres at Greenwich. The main estate, the farm o Manhattan Island, was in what is now Greenwich Village. Gilles and Elsje were members of the Dutch Reformed Church in New York.
In his will, written in September of 1696 and proven May 22, 1701, he left all of his estate during Elsje's widowhood. His farm in Queens county, near Hempstead, with houses, barns,etc he left to his oldest son Hendrick,. The farm at Greenwich was to be sold to the highest bidder and the proceeds divided among his six adult children. The final execution probably didn't take long, as Elsje herself made her will the same date that Gilles' will was proven.
Gilles appears to have been a hard-working man with a good business sense, and enough money to get started in his new life in the New Netherlands. If he actually lived in all the places that he had land, he could almost be considered a real estate developer. I wonder what he would think of his most lasting "development", Greenwich Village, and its property values now!
The line of descent is:
Gilles de Mandeville-Elsje Hendricks
Gerritje Mandeville-Jan Pieterse Meet
Maretje Meete-Peter Demarest
Lea Demarest-Samuel David Demarest
Sarah Demarest-Benjamin Slot
William (Slot) Lock-Elizabeth Teague
Sally Lock-Jeremiah Folsom
Leah Folsom-Darlington Aldridge
Harvey Aldridge-Margaret Catherine Dunham
Cleo Aldridge-Wilbur Beeks
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
Gilles was born in 166 in Veluwe, Gelderland, the Netherlands in 1626, the son of Rev.Jan Michealse and Trintgen Wilma Van Harderwijk Mandeville. Oh, he may have been born in France and baptized in Doesburk, Geldeland, the Netherlands. I think he was likely born in the Netherlands, unless the information about his parent's birthplace is incorrect. The first think we really know about Gilles is that he, his wife Elsje Pieterse Hendricks, and four children sailed on the "de Trouw", to New Amsterdam, supposedly traveling with Peter Stuyvesant. That makes a nice story, the Stuyvesant connection, but I'm not sure that Stuyvesant had gone anywhere so that he would have been returning in 1659. (I could be wrong about that, of course, and it is likely that the families knew each other. I just don't find anything that says Stuyvesant had gone to the Netherlands in 1658-59. He seems to have been in New Amsterdam the whole time.)
He paid the way of himself and his family so he was not a poor man. He is associated with several pieces of land at Long Island, atNew Amersfoort and New Amsterdam, and when the English took over the Dutch colony, he was on a tax list for New York in 1676.He also had a farm at Flatbush and 30 acres at Greenwich. The main estate, the farm o Manhattan Island, was in what is now Greenwich Village. Gilles and Elsje were members of the Dutch Reformed Church in New York.
In his will, written in September of 1696 and proven May 22, 1701, he left all of his estate during Elsje's widowhood. His farm in Queens county, near Hempstead, with houses, barns,etc he left to his oldest son Hendrick,. The farm at Greenwich was to be sold to the highest bidder and the proceeds divided among his six adult children. The final execution probably didn't take long, as Elsje herself made her will the same date that Gilles' will was proven.
Gilles appears to have been a hard-working man with a good business sense, and enough money to get started in his new life in the New Netherlands. If he actually lived in all the places that he had land, he could almost be considered a real estate developer. I wonder what he would think of his most lasting "development", Greenwich Village, and its property values now!
The line of descent is:
Gilles de Mandeville-Elsje Hendricks
Gerritje Mandeville-Jan Pieterse Meet
Maretje Meete-Peter Demarest
Lea Demarest-Samuel David Demarest
Sarah Demarest-Benjamin Slot
William (Slot) Lock-Elizabeth Teague
Sally Lock-Jeremiah Folsom
Leah Folsom-Darlington Aldridge
Harvey Aldridge-Margaret Catherine Dunham
Cleo Aldridge-Wilbur Beeks
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants
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