First Library Trip to Dallas Public Library (Week 5 – 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks)

Just less than 20 years ago, my friend Barbara mentioned that she was working on her family’s genealogy. She had one of the first versions of Family Tree Maker and showed me how it worked on her computer. She had notebooks full of research.

Within a year and a half, my mom had given me a few small boxes of old photos. We sat at her dining table going through each one and labeling them to the best of her knowledge. Around the same time, my sister-in-law – with some collaboration from a distant cousin as well as my father-in-law – had completed two family history books on my husband’s line. I talked to my friend more about this software program she had. Before too long, I had gotten a copy and was using it. Through dial-up, I was able to get on the internet. Cyndi’s List was the first “genealogy” website I found. At my local public library, I also found another website run by the Church of Latter Day Saints – FamilySearch before it was really called FamilySearch! Then the site mainly had family histories acquired by the church – no real census records or anything else.

I don’t remember how much longer after that it was that Barbara suggested she take me to the Dallas Public Library to the Genealogy section. She had been there many times so I wouldn’t feel like a complete newbie! We set a day, she picked me up, and made the trek just south of us into downtown Dallas.

Once we got to the 8th floor, Barbara helped me sign in and showed me the procedure for pulling microfilm as well as finding which one I needed via census index in the books. We found two empty microfilm readers and settled in for the day. First, I was struck by how many items there were on the shelves to look at. Second, I figured it was going to take me a long time even with the right microfilm roll to find what I was looking for. I had brought some blank census record research sheets that I had gotten out of my copy of “The Unpuzzling Your Past Workbook” by Emily Ann Croom in order to write down my findings. (I hadn’t planned to spend much on making copies of microfilm pages.)

I found a name on my matenal family line in one of the census indexes so I carefully retrieved the microfilm and threaded it through the reader. After going backward and forward a few times (a little too fast!), figuring out how to bring the image into focus at the size I wanted, I finally saw my great-great-grandmother’s name on the 1870 census record.

The image above is the first time I found Melissa (Malissa) Goul Blazer on any official record. I think I smiled the rest of the day! She was real. She was counted. And not only that but my great-grandmother Katie was the 6 year old living with her. I knew it was the right family because I was aware of the names of the other children. I was a little confused why Melissa’s husband wasn’t living with her (it would be many more years before I realized that Melissa was a young widow). Suddenly, there was a need for me to find others: other ancestors of mine. And that drive is still there – except with a more discerning eye. But that name written on the census record – that was probably the turning point in my family history research. And it all began with a trip to the library!

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Making Sense of the Census (52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks – Week 5)

My paternal grandmother’s mother Frances V Ogan has been a mystery due to the fact that there is nothing that reveals her parents. The family story suggested that she had been left on a doorstep as a baby. The first census that I was able to find for her in the early 2000s was the 1880 census because that particular one was free to view. Her parents were listed as born in Ohio so that gave me hope that she knew that information. As the years went by and access to other census records opened up for me, I soon discovered the first census taken after her birth in 1846.

In the 1850 census in the Evan and Susannah Ogan household is a person with the name of Francis Foster, age 3, and born in Ohio. The person is marked male. The adults in the household, both born in Virginia, were both aged 64 – too old to be the biological parents of young Francis. They were living in Rich Hill township of Muskingum county, Ohio.

In the 1860 census there is a 13 year old Frances Foster – this time listed as female – living in Cumberland township of Guernsey county, Ohio – a distance of almost 6 miles from Rich Hill township. Frances is living in the Evan and Susan Ogan household. The adults are both listed as 73 years old.

Ten years later in 1870, 23 year old Frances Ogan is still in Guernsey county residing at the Eagle Hotel in Cambridge township. She is listed as a cook born in Ohio. Susannah Ogan had died five years before, and Evan was back in Muskingum county living with his 56 year old son Peter’s family.

For awhile I tracked Evan’s and Susannah’s children to see if any could be Frances’ biological parent. Nothing seemed to fit. I keep coming back to the surname used in the first two censuses – Foster. Did Evan and Susannah know that her birth name was Frances Foster? Or did they give her that surname because she was a “foster’ child? And what do I make of the fact that Evan and Susannah seemed to move soon after the 1850 census to a neighboring county and then move back once Frances is deemed an “Ogan” and out on her own? Could this have been a case of Evan and Susannah taking in a neglected child and moving in order for any birth family not being able to  find them? Was Frances related to them through a nephew, niece, cousin or dear friend? What could possibly move two people who had raised many children and were empty-nesters to raise a very young child? I may never know the answers, but I’m forever grateful that Frances had two people who took care of her in order for her to go on and marry a widower with three children. My grandmother was the youngest girl of the eight children they went on to have together.

This is a post in the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge for Week 5. For more information or to sign up to participate (all free!!), check out Amy Johnson Crow’s post: 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks.

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Mining the Agricultural Census for Clues (31 Days to Better Genealogy, Day 3)

Amy Johnson Crow is hosting an online learning experience called “31 Days to Better Genealogy.” If you haven’t signed up for this, you can do so here. There is also a closed Facebook group that you can request to join after you sign up for the daily newsletter. You will receive a daily email and during the day, Amy posts a live video on the Facebook group. All members of the group are encouraged to work on the tip of the day, report their results, help and encourage each other.

Yesterday’s topic was “Explore Your Ancestor’s Occupation” and one of the items listed included looking at the Agriculture Census if your ancestor was a farmer. The ancestor I wanted to explore was my great-grandfather, James Emory House, born in May 1842 and died in October 1924. For most of his life he lived in Coshocton county, Ohio and indicated on the US Censuses that he was a farmer. His daughter – my grandmother’s sister – Julia Ann House had graduated high school (as did most of the eight children in the family), and when Julia married on Christmas Day in 1906, her dress was “white silk draped in chiffon.” Not only was it out of the ordinary for a family to afford to give their daughter a lavish wedding but to purchase a silk wedding dress for her. Those things indicated that James House had a substantial income.

I turned to the Non-Population Schedule in Agriculture for 1880. It showed that my great-grandfather owned 50 acres of improved land, 10 acres of woodlands with a total value of $2700. He owned two horses, 4 dairy cows, 5 other cattle, 8 swine, and 50 barnyard poultry. His chickens laid 200 dozen eggs in 1879. There were two acres in apple orchard with 50 fruit bearing trees and one acre in peach orchard with 40 fruit bearing trees. In 1879, five acres were grass mown and six acres of hay harvested. Crops included Indian corn – 4 acres/150 bushels; Oats – 2 acres/50 bushes; Wheat – 10 acres/170 bushels; and Irish potatoes – a quarter acre/20 bushels. Today, that $2700 would be close to $60,000.

This census provided me insight as to how well-to-do my great-grandfather and his family were back in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

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Last Piece of the Johnson/Kirkpatrick Puzzle

In the past, I have written several articles about Ellen Ora Johnson, her family with Christopher Columbus Moffitt, and how I believed she was the daughter of Jacob M Johnson and Nancy Kirkpatrick. Those articles can be found here: Moffitt Mystery, Moffitt Mystery Part 2, Moffitt Mystery Part 3, Update on Part 3 – Moffitt Mystery, and Mystery Monday – Jacob M Johnson and Nancy Kirkpatrick.

Several months ago, I ran across a news article on Newspapers.com from The Daily Republican (Rushville, Indiana) on page 3 of the January 25, 1908 edition. It read: “Mrs. Nancy Cook of Knightstown visited Earl Atkins and family part of last week.” That one sentence was exciting because it showed a connection between Nancy Kirkpatrick Johnson Cook and the daughter of Ellen Ora Johnson Moffitt. Mrs. Earl Atkins was Lena Moffitt, the second oldest daughter of C.C. Moffitt and Ellen Ora Johnson.

I also located a memorial on Find a Grave for Elva Moffitt Griffith (third oldest daughter of C.C. and Ellen) that included her obituary which referenced Elva as the daughter of “Christopher Columbus and Ellen Cook Moffitt.” There’s that “Cook” name again. I returned once more to what I had found about Nancy Kirkpatrick.

Nancy was reportedly born on July 10, 1844 in Indiana. That birth date is listed on her gravestone located in Center Church Cemetery in Mays, Rush county, Indiana. The marriage record for her and Jacob M Johnson gives a marriage date of January 21, 1858. If both of those dates are correct, Nancy was 13 1/2 years old when she married. That wasn’t unheard of during that era, but it does create reasonable doubt. I believe Nancy was at least 2 years older when she married. People did lie about their ages – or not really know what year they were born so it is possible. In the 1860 US Census of Union twp in Howard county, Indiana, the household included: Jacob Johnson age 26 (putting his birth year at 1833-1834), Nancy Johnson age 23 (putting her birth year at 1836-1837), and Mary age 1 (birth year of 1858-1859). My belief is the name “Mary” was verbalized as “Orey” but the enumerator heard “Mary” or the girl did not have a real name yet so she was listed as Mary. (Many times children of a year or younger may not have been given their life-long name just in case they didn’t survive infancy.)

I couldn’t locate either Jacob or Nancy in the 1870 census but by 1880, Nancy is married to Allison Cook (married in 1865) and living in Center twp of Rush county, Indiana. Nancy’s age is listed as 36 (putting birth year as 1843-1844). There are two daughters and one son in the household: daughter Ollie B Cook is age 13 (birth year about 1867); daughter Martha A Cook is 11 (birth year about 1868-1869), and son Joseph R Cook is 8 (birth year 1871-1872).

By March 1, 1885 the family had moved to Osage county, Kansas and are shown on the Kansas State Census. Nancy is age 40, Allie (Ollie?) B Cook is 18, Martha A Cook is 15, and Joseph R Cook is 12.

In the 1900 US Census of Wayne twp, Henry county, Indiana, the household only includes Allison and Nancy, ages 66 and 46 respectively. It looks like Nancy has not aged very much since the 1885 Kansas census! The information shows that the couple have been married 35 years and that Nancy had 5 children but only 3 were living.

In the 1910 US Census, Nancy is living with her son, Joseph R Cook, and his family on Jefferson Street in Knightstown, Indiana. She is listed as widowed, mother of 4 children but only 3 living. Somehow one child was forgotten in ten years.

Nancy Jane Kirkpatrick Johnson Cook died in Knightstown on September 23, 1914. The death record in the Henry county Health office in New Castle records her as 71 years old.

As for her first husband, and brother to my second great-grandfather, Jacob M Johnson, he disappears after the 1860 census. I did locate his death date as May 26, 1864. So Nancy was a widow when she married Allison Cook – as opposed to a dissolution of marriage.

That is quite a bit of information but there is still nothing that ties Ellen Ora as the daughter of Nancy and Jacob. Luckily, I came across someone who had posted that she was their daughter so I contacted them. I wanted to know if they assumed the relationship based on circumstantial evidence just as I did.

Recently, this person contacted me and said they did have the evidence and would snail mail it to me. Monday, it arrived and was a type written sheet of genealogy information. The person who it originated from was none other than Ellen Ora’s daughter, Bessie Pearl Moffitt Lukens Tanner. The same daughter who had corresponded with my grandparents!

Jacob Marion Johnson has a birth date of May 20, 1833 and a death date of May 25, 1864. Nancy Jane Kirkpatrick was born July 10, 1843 (again, I think Nancy’s birth date is a bit off) and died the day that I have listed. They married on January 21, 1858 and two daughters were born to them: Ellen Ory Johnson and Lucretia Ann Johnson. Lucretia was born December 27, 1861 and died May 8, 1863. She was named after Nancy’s mother, Lucretia Zion.

Nancy married Allison Cook on November 16, 1865 and had three children: Ollie Bell (born November 3, 1866 and died March 22, 1952), Martha Ann (born July 24, 1871 and died August 3, 1887 after marrying William Moffitt in July 1887), and Joseph Rankin Cook – named after Nancy’s father, Joseph Kirkpatrick (born August 24, 1871 and died March 17, 1957).

Publicly, I want to thank Virginia Moffitt for providing the much needed last piece of the puzzle!

(Image: Wikimedia Commons, used under Creative Commons)

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A New Blazer

The story picks up at the end of Common Sense Prevails for Estella Blazer to find that following Albert Hercules’ brutal attack on Stella and his indictment for attempted murder, the story goes cold. I presume that I would need to wade through files and records in person at the court house in Anderson, Indiana to sort out the aftermath. I don’t have any idea how long the man was in jail nor if he saw a trial.

What I do know is that Estella Blazer gave birth to a boy on June 8, 1884 in Madison county and named him William . . . Blazer (not Hercules)! I had to wonder why I missed that fact. Scanning through the censuses, I had found a family consisting of George and Amanda along with a grandson, Willie in 1900 – except the record is transcribed as Blayer – not Blazer (those pesky cursive z’s!). I had cast that census aside because even though the names of the adults fit, I couldn’t place Willie into the family. Now I can. In 1990, Willie was recorded as age 15. The family resided at 610 12th Street in Anderson (today, that is an empty yard).

In the snippet of the 1900 US Census¹, Willie’s parents are both listed as born in Indiana. Amanda reports that she is the mother of 4 children but only one is living. George indicates that both of his parents were born in Virginia.

I had already located Estella – she was lying in repose in Grove Lawn Cemetery in Pendleton. Her headstone reads

Estella
Wife of J T Dilts
Died
Oct 9 1886
Age

 

Her age is obscured by the ground. Her headstone is close to her two brothers who died as small children.

However the situation with Albert Hercules concluded, Stella went on to marry John Thomas Dilts born in November 1847 in Indiana. A marriage record shows that the couple married on Oct 16, 1885 in Anderson, Indiana. They weren’t even married for one year before she died. It is obvious that her parents, George and Amanda, took in their grandson and raised him after their daughter’s death. J T Dilts went on to marry again less than three years later to Martha Cox. He died on Aug 15, 1905 in Summitville, Indiana.

But what about William? Three years after the 1900 census was taken, George died from ingesting carbolic acid (see The Deaths of Blazers”) and three years after that, Amanda died. With tragedy swirling around William from the time of his conception, would he have a “happily ever after”?

Stay tuned . . .

(Image of Baby Shoes: “Classic Baby Shoes” from Wikimedia Commons, JD Hancock, Austin, Texas)

Source: 1.  (1900 U.S. Census, Madison County, Indiana, population schedule, Anderson Township, Anderson City, Ward 3 (pt), enumeration district 87, sheet 22-B, dwelling 480, family 491, Willie Blazer; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com/ : accessed 14 March 2016); citing National Archives microfilm publication T623, roll 386.)

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Wedding Wednesday – The “Ick” Factor

Tell me that if you didn’t see that in a newspaper that you wouldn’t immediately go “ick” and then read it. I was not looking for this article*** but it jumped out at me while I was reading something else about someone who is a collateral ancestor. The article is from The Call-Leader (Elwood, Indiana) printed on Thursday, June 29, 1916 on page 8. I found the newspaper on Newspapers.com https://www.newspapers.com/image/87580544 and saved it as a pdf on February 2, 2016.

The article mentions that 54-year-old, D W Hunt, married Lillian Lyda Young in Charleston, West Virginia. Hunt was a neighbor of the Young family, knew his intended since birth, and vowed that he would marry her some day. Have I said “ick” yet?

Don’t you wonder what was going through the minds of her parents – especially since it was “understood almost since her birth that Hunt was to have her for his bride”? Perhaps they were happy that their young daughter was so well loved (I hope that’s the right word!) and knew she would be well taken care of.

I sought out records to see what transpired after Hunt and his wife were married. First, I found the marriage record – yes, there it was in black and white – on FamilySearch.org (Citation: “West Virginia Marriages, 1780-1970,” database, FamilySearch(https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NMGL-44T : accessed 3 February 2016), D W Hunt and Lillian Lyda Young, 1916; citing Kanawha, , county clerks, West Virginia; FHL microfilm 521,721.). Clicking to the wvculture.org site, I found the digital image of the record. Sure enough, a D W Hunt married Lillian Lyda Young on May 14, 1916 in Villa, Kanawha, West Virginia with her mother’s consent. (On a side note: I also saw another marriage recorded for a 70-year-old groom and a 30-year-old bride.) It lists Hunt as a widower (so I guess he really didn’t wait, did he?).

In the 1920 US Census records (“United States Census, 1920,” database with images, FamilySearch(https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MNLQ-WG8 : accessed 3 February 2016), Daniel D Hunt, Aarons Fork, Kanawha, West Virginia, United States; citing sheet 6A, NARA microfilm publication T625 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.); FHL microfilm 1,821,957.), Daniel D Hunt is 58 years old (birth about 1862 in West Virginia) and Lillian L is 20 years old (birth about 1900 in West Virginia). Included in the household are Daniel’s two sons from his first marriage – Emmit age 16 and David age 14 – as well as the couple’s two children – Ruth age 2 1/2 and Hallie age 3 months.

I went back to the 1900 US Census to see if Lillian had already been born, and there she was living in Malden in Kanawha county at age 9 months. Besides her parents, David and Ellen, there were four other siblings (Pearl, Charles, Nellie and Alfred) all older than Lillian. Ellen died within the next year or so because in the 1910 US Census, Lillian is living with her father and her stepmother, Mary. David and Mary had been married for six years.

Daniel Webster Hunt is found in the 1900 Census with his first wife, Fanny, and four children: Mary, Daniel, Alice, and Jarrett. In the 1910 Census, besides he and his wife are the following children: Jarrett, Emmit, and David. So Daniel had children much older than Lillian – not unheard of – but makes one wonder what his oldest children, Mary, Daniel, Alice and Jarrett, thought when their father married a sixteen year old girl.

In 1930, Daniel and Lillian have added a son to their family – William. He was six years old. By 1940, their daughter Hallie Helen Hunt had married Woodrow Chandler and had a son, Jackie Lee, aged 1 (all living with the couple). Their son, William, was still residing with them. Interesting tidbit: the date of the enumeration was April 29, 1940. On another date – April 9, 1940, Daniel is enumerated at his oldest daughter’s home (Mary Coleman) as widowed. Yes, this is the same person via further research of records. Then the absolute kicker is that looking at Daniel’s headstone on Find a Grave (Memorial #51249810), his death date is April 9, 1940. Head scratching records – those are! And there is Lillian buried next to him – she died in 1962 (Find a Grave Memorial #51258652). In order to make sense of the two 1940 census sheets and the death date, my conclusion is that they really did follow the instructions which was to list who was living in the household on April 1, 1940 (not on the date of enumeration). Lillian is the person who answered the questions as indicated by the X marked next to her name. She listed herself as a widow but crossed it out and changed it to married – because she was married on April 1. In Mary’s household, there isn’t an X to indicate who answered the questions. Since her mother – Daniel’s first wife – was dead, that leaves me to believe that is the reason Daniel was listed as a widower – perhaps a Freudian slip, and they didn’t recognize Lillian as the current Mrs. Hunt?

Daniel’s will was probated on April 22, 1940 in which he named his fifth child, Emmitt Hunt, as executor. Within the contents of the will, Hunt made sure that his wife and their son, William, were well taken care of through land and mineral rights of several tracts of land. His other sons were given surface rights to land and all of the children – except for one – and a grandson were named as beneficiaries for objects, books, etc. His and Lillian’s daughter, Hallie Helen, was given only $1. Makes a person wonder what she did to irritate her father enough to basically cut her out of anything except by giving her the dollar, he knew that it wouldn’t be easy to contest because he didn’t “forget” about her.

On July 1, 1940 the appraisal of Daniel Hunt’s property was recorded in court with real estate at $2260; personal property at $65; totaling $2325.

That is the extent of information that I located on the couple. I didn’t delve into his children’s or their children’s lives. So, even though the newspaper article made everything seem pretty “icky,” it appeared that Daniel Hunt and Lillian Young remained together until his death, and he loved her enough to make sure that she had a comfortable life after he had passed.

 

***Disclaimer: Those mentioned in this blog post are not related to me.

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Clues to the Mystery of Clara – Howard Harold Day (Part 7)

In the previous installment, I introduced you to Clara Margaret Badger and Howard William Day’s daughter, Clara Marie Day. Clara Marie was the half-sister of Eva Johnson (my grandfather’s foster sister).

The second child born to Clara Badger and Howard Day was Howard Harold Day (predominantly called “Harold”). He arrived when his older sister, Clara Marie, was 21 days shy of her first birthday. After losing their mother at a very young age, he was also sent to live with Anne Chilian “Day” where he and his two siblings were located in the 1930 census in Beech Creek, Indiana.

Locating “Harold” in the 1940 census was a bit tricky. At some point prior to 1940, the father, Howard William Day, changed his surname to Daley – perhaps because on his WWI Registration Card there is a word at the bottom by his signature – “Deserter.” 

 

Via the name change from Day to Daley is how I was able to locate the oldest son of Clara and Howard. At eighteen years of age, “Harold” was living in the household of his father and step-mother, Ella (Garringer), in Chicago, Illinois. Their address was 920 N. Fairfield. The home is still standing today and Trulia.com explains that it is a multi-family property of two units with 2 baths and over 2800 square feet built in 1909. It has two stories and a basement.

Those living in the household included Howard William (Day) Daley’s son from his first marriage (Clara Badger was his third marriage) – Howard age 26 as well as his youngest son with Clara – Verle age 15.  Also living in the household were Howard and Ella Daley’s two sons, Robert age 8 and Donald age 2. All of the children were listed under the Daley surname. Howard (the Senior), Howard (the younger), and Ella all worked in the laundry and “Harold” (subject of this sketch) was a laborer.

 

Within the next year, “Harold” married Audine Adele Pyne, who was born and lived in California. The couple had four children. Daughter, Barbara J. Day, was born on April 28, 1944 in Alameda and died on October 3, 2012. Son, Lyle Howard Day, was born on July 22, 1952 also in Alameda. He died on February 24, 1990. The other children may still be living so no further information is provided.

“Harold” died in Los Angeles on November 28, 1975 and was buried at Rose Hills Memorial Park. His wife, Audine, remarried after Harold’s death. She passed away on February 13, 2000.

 

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Florus Allen House 1873-1941

Florus A House, my grand uncle (brother to my paternal grandmother), was born on April 21, 1873 in Guernsey county, Ohio to James Emory House and Frances Virginia Ogan – who were not yet married.  The marriage would take place one month later. Florus was named after his paternal grandfather (my 2nd great-grandfather).

At the age of fifteen, my grand uncle was very ill.  The “Semi-Weekly Age,” – a Coshocton county newspaper, reported in the April 20, 1888 edition that he was “on the sick list, with symptoms of lung fever.”  At the age of nineteen, he was picking apples at a neighbor’s farm and fell from the tree.  The “Coshocton Democratic Standard” reported in the October 21, 1892 edition that he “broke his fore arm and badly cut his face.”  When his oldest son was nineteen, they both were in a mining accident.  My father remembers that Florus had many facial scars from that accident.

On July 26, 1899, he married Emma Caroline Stacer, who was born on June 4, 1879. The couple bore 8 children: Harvey J House (born May 18, 1900), Gertrude M House (b. May 7, 1903), Mary H House (b. March 18, 1905), Ralph Frederick House (b. March 15, 1907), twins Wealtha Fay House and Welby James House (b. May 28, 1909), Dorthy E House (b. February 20, 1914), and Betty J House (b. private).

In the 1900 census, the couple and their son, Harvey, were living in Jackson township in the county of Coshocton. Florus indicated that his occupation was that of a coal miner, and that he and Emma had been married less than a year.

The family was living within the city limits of Coshocton at the time of the 1910 census.  Besides their son, Harvey, the family also included Gertrude, (Mary) Helen, Ralph, and Wealtha.  Her twin, Welby, had died less than two months after birth. He had been spina bifida. The July 12, 1909 edition of the “Coshocton Daily Times” mentioned that the baby “had been ill since his birth.”  He was buried at Prairie Chapel Cemetery.

The family stayed in Coshocton until between 1930 and 1935. The 1940 census showed that they were living in Tuscarawas township of the same county and had been there in 1935. Florus listed that he and his wife only had an 8th grade education (different than my grandmother and her sister who both graduated high school). They were members of the Coshocton Nazarene church.

In the spring of 1941, Florus had surgery for a double hernia. That was probably just the beginning of his troubles. Within six weeks, the “Coshocton Tribune” was reporting (July 2, 1941) that his condition was critical. Eight days later the same newspaper reported his death in the Cleveland Marine hospital.  He was 68 years old. His death certificate (image obtained from FamilySearch.org in the “Ohio Deaths, 1908-1953” database) lists his cause of death as “hypertrophy of prostate (about 1 year ago); pyelonephrtis, bilateral, chronic.”  The online article “Bilateral Emphysematous Pyelonephritis in a Patient with No Known Risk Factors” from “The Journal of the National Medical Association” explains that it is a “rare life-threatening infection” (Hart, Peter D., Vaseemuddin, Mohammad, Egiebor, Osbert; J Natl Med Assoc. 2007 February; 99(2): 179–181. 29 July 2013).

Funeral services for Florus were held at the Nazarene church, and he was buried at Prairie Chapel cemetery. His wife, Emma, survived him, dying fourteen years later, on December 12, 1965 in Akron, Ohio. She was buried next to him. It is believed that only one of his daughters is still living.

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Going Back to the Beginning

Of research on the Amore branch of my family – that is!  What do I know and what do I not know?  In order to get to a point where I might have a chance at breaking through a brick wall, I need to re-visit my notes and sources and analyze what is in them as well as “see” what it is I may have missed in the last fourteen years.

What I know: I have not been able to figure out who the parents are of my 2nd great-grandfather, William Amore. I do not know how old William was when he came from New York to Ohio. (Sounds more like things I don’t know!) But, as the saying goes: “you don’t know what you don’t know.” So at least I know a few things that I don’t know. Confused yet?

A couple of years after I started delving into family history, one of my cousins said that William was born in Troy / Albany area of New York. What documentation have I located to prove that?

The first census I found him in was the 1850 U.S. Census. He was enumerated living in the Thomas Buck household in Oxford township, Coshocton county, Ohio. His age was 22 and his place of birth was listed as Ohio. His profession was shoemaker and the value of his real estate was $200. Everyone in the household except for Thomas Buck was listed as born in Ohio – perhaps the enumerator just made a mistake – or someone else answered the question and not William (the enumerator used ditto marks). If William didn’t answer that question, who else would have known the value of his real estate?  For that matter, what real estate would he have owned if he was living in a household not his own?

William was married to Charlotte (my 2nd great-grandmother) by the 1860 U. S. Census and had four sons. They were living in Linton township – still in Coshocton county. William, age 33, is listed as born in Ohio again as well as everyone else. The enumerator did not write “Ohio” – just ditto marks (“) from a previous entry of “Ohio.” So there are two population schedules that list his birthplace as Ohio. His real estate value is $400 and his personal property value is $100.

By 1870, Charlotte has passed away and William has remarried Elizabeth. The family – minus 2 sons enumerated in 1860 as they have died – and with the addition of three more children are residing in Franklin township in Coshocton county. William, 42, lists his birthplace as New York, occupation Shoemaker, and no real estate amount is listed. However, $350 is listed as value of personal property. The column listing whether parents are of foreign birth is not checked (there are no checks in those columns on that page at all so it is unknown whether the enumerator asked that question). The difference noted between this census and the 1850 and 1860 censuses is the enumerator wrote out on each line the place of birth instead of relying on ditto marks.

William is 52 on the 1880 U. S. Census, still married to Elizabeth, and still living in Franklin township.  The two oldest sons, William Henry and George Washington, have left home; one son, Florus, has died; and two more daughters have been added to the family. William still lists his occupation as shoemaker and his birthplace as NY.  This is the first census that asks a location for the parents’ birthplace.  It shows William’s father as born in England and his mother as NY. The enumerator has written down the birthplaces instead of using ditto marks.

Unfortunately, there is no way to determine what William listed on the 1890 U.S. Census since it was destroyed, and he passed away in 1896. Documentation for his death comes from: an obituary printed in the Democratic Standard, Vol. XVII, No. 48, on the front page; and one in an unknown Coshocton newspaper. His gravestone also lists his death date and his age.

In later years, his children all listed his birthplace as New York. In the book “A Centennial History of Coshocton County. Ohio” by William J. Bahmer: George Washington Amore’s biography states “…his parents being William and Charlotte (Reed) Amore, the former a native of Troy, New York” (S.J. Clark Publishing Co., 1909, p. 160-161).

William Amore was married three times – his first wife, Frances Price, whom he married in September 1848, passed away in April 1850 – less than two years after being married. His second marriage to Charlotte Reed in May 1851 lasted until her death in October 1862 – almost eleven years. He married for the last time to Elizabeth Spencer in January 1863 – a mere three months after Charlotte died. They were married when he died. On the marriage documents (Digital images, FamilySearch.org,  "Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-1994,") there is not a listing for place of birth so those records do not add any information.

William’s grandson – my grandfather’s brother, Isaiah H Amore, wrote a letter to the editor of the the “Coshocton Tribune” that was published in it’s June 8, 1971 edition on the Opinion Page (accessed and downloaded digital image from NewspaperArchives.com). He begins by saying “Inasmuch as my grandfather, William Amore, was a mule-driver on the Erie Canal prior to 1850” which provides second-hand information about William’s occupation before 1850. Coshocton county is next to the Ohio and Erie Canal. Two rivers – the Walhonding and Tuscarawas merge there to form the Muskingum River (Wikipedia.com; Coshocton, Ohio). Reported on Ohio History Central (ohiohistorycentral.org), the Canal system brought more people into Coshocton in the 1820s and 1830s. The canal that eventually went from Lake Erie to the Ohio River was complete by 1833. Since there hasn’t been any documentation to prove or disprove William’s birth in New York, it is documented via his marriage to Frances Price, that William was living in Coshocton county in September 1848. If he was born in Troy, New York, his family could have made their way via the Hudson River north to Lake Erie, then along Lake Erie to Cuyahoga county in Northern Ohio, down the Ohio and Erie Canal to Coshocton county.

In the same publication as George Washington Amore’s biography, is a biography on Arnold Babcock. His parents were Abel Babcock and Jane Amore – both of New York. Unfortunately, not much is known about Jane. She died in 1845 (memorial #91891488 findagrave.com) and is buried in the Caton Cemetery in Coshocton. The memorial states that she was 30 years, 3 months and 7 days old making her born on January 15, 1815 – 13 years before William. If Jane was a younger sister of William’s father and she was born in New York, then William’s father could have been brought to the United States from England as a younger child with Jane being born after arriving in New York. Locating the Babcock family in New York in censuses prior to them arriving in Coshocton, might provide a clue – especially if they lived in the same vicinity as an Amore family. However, Jane may be a much older sister of William’s – possibly born of a different mother. Tidbit of information: William and Elizabeth’s oldest daughter was named Jane (and called Jennie much of her life).

There is an Enoch Amore found in the 1820 U.S. Census living in Wawarsing in Ulster county, New York. The household is enumerated as having 3 males under the age of 10, 1 male 45 and over, 1 female under 10, 1 female 26-45 and 1 female over 45 and one person involved in commerce. It can be deduced that Enoch Amore is the male age 45. There are three sons under the age of 10, one daughter under the age of 10. Enoch’s wife could be the female between 26 and 45 with his mother or mother-in-law over age 45 or his wife could be over 45 and a sister of one of them the female 26-45 (or an older daughter of Enoch’s from a previous marriage). Since William wasn’t born until 1828, he would not have been enumerated in this census. Needless to say, I have not been able to locate Enoch in the 1830 U.S. Census – the first census William would have been enumerated.

In the 1830 Census there is a William Amer indexed who is living in Albany, New York with one male under 5, 1 male 30-40 (presumably him), 1 female under 5, 1 female 5-10, and one female 20-30.

There is a Patty Amour listed in the 1840 U.S. Census living in Adams township of Coshocton county and living right next door to the Abel Babcock family. Enumerated in the Amour household are 1 male 10-15, 1 female 10-20, and one female 40-50. Presumably, Patty is the female aged 40-50. In 1840, William was 12 which would fit the male age 10-15. Living next door to the Babcock family could also provide a clue since Jane Amore was married by then to Abel.

The “Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-1994," index and images, FamilySearch indexes an image as Anny Ann Amore marrying Joseph Lime on May 2, 1843 in Fayette county, Ohio. Looking at the image, the first name looks more like Amy.

Another interesting piece of information comes from the fact that just across the county, another Amore family lived. Francis Amore and Charlotte Thiebaut – both born in France – and living in Coshocton by 1840. They also had a daughter named Jane. They were of the Catholic faith and descendants of William Amore were not Catholic. As long as memory serves, it has always been said that the two Amore families were not related. Saying they weren’t related doesn’t necessarily make it so though; however, like so much else, nothing has been proved or disproved.

What has been learned? Documentation consisting of the 1850, 1860, 1870, and 1880 U.S. Census records; three marriage records; two obituaries, and a burial indicate that at least from October 1848, William Amore resided in Coshocton county, Ohio. His occupation in each of those (above) census records was shoemaker. What is not known? The names and nationality of his parents, the exact location of his birth – it could be Ohio or New York; or if he was related to Enoch Amore, William Amer (could be a misspelling) or Patty Amour (another spelling issue).

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Mystery Monday – Jacob Marion Wilt

Jacob Marion Wilt is my great grand uncle. He is the oldest child born to my 2nd great-grandparents, Isreal Isaac Wilt and Christena Nash and oldest brother of my maternal great-grandfather, Joseph Napolean Wilt.  Jacob was born on February 21, 1858 in Indiana. On August 6, 1881 Jacob and Scena Gibson were married in Newcastle, Henry County, Indiana. They had a son, Russell Ray Wilt, born September 6, 1890 in Newcastle. The family is found in the 1900 Census living in Jefferson township in Henry County.  They reported that they had been married 18 years. By the 1910 Census, Russell was already out on his own.  Jacob and Scena were living in Sulphur Springs in Henry County.

And there begins the mystery.  It was reported by a distant cousin (Jacob is their great grand uncle also) that Jacob and Scena moved to California. I have not located either one – however, according to the 1920 Census, Russell is married to Ferna (LNU) with a young daughter, Thelma, and living in Modesto, California. In 1930 the Russell Ray Wilt family is in Oakland, California and in 1940 they have moved to Pierce County, Washington.

There is a Jacob Wilt listed in the 1920 and 1930 Censuses in San Bernadino, California – but his age is off by a couple of years and the listing for his father’s birth place is not Virginia. In the 1920 Census, that particular Jacob reports that he is divorced and in the 1930 Census, it shows he is widowed. I need to pinpoint the exact locations in the enumeration districts where both this Jacob and also Russell were living. If they are close by, then these two “different” Jacobs may just be one and the same. I haven’t located any further information on Scena (whose name has also been spelled Sena and Cena and mistakenly reported as Lena – depending on who was reading the writing!) nor on Russell’s wife, Ferna, or their daughter, Thelma. The Wilt branch of the family still living in and around New Castle, Indiana, didn’t seem to know any further information.

Sources: All Census information came from www.familysearch.org indexes.  Jacob and Scena’s marriage information came from the same website – the “Indiana Marriages, 1811-1959” database (digital image).

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