Category Archives: Wiseheart Family

William H. Wiseheart: It’s Easy as AB…H (52 Ancestors #31)

Posted on by under 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge, Family History, Genealogy, Military, Photographs, Wiseheart Family

Often, I have to remind myself to broaden my scope when I research my ancestors.  I think this is the first time I’ve had to consciously narrow my scope.  Grandpa used to tell me about his grandfather, William Henry Wiseheart.  Most often, the stories would be about the Civil War or chair-making.  Whatever the story, he was always “William H.”  Even now, when I talk about him with my dad or my uncle, I have to be sure to refer to him as William H., because that is the name everyone is familiar with.

As I began researching, I looked for all William Wisehearts in the area.  After all, Wiseheart is a fairly uncommon name.  I started in what I call a “gathering mode,” wherein I find documents and save them for future perusal.  I had intended to write about William H. a few weeks ago, but another ancestor called to me and I ended up putting him off.  However, while I was initially preparing to write about him, I realized that some of the documents I had saved were for a different William Wiseheart.  He is probably still related, but not the one I’m working on at the moment.

How did I realize I had two different William Wisehearts?  The Report of the Adjutant General of the State of Indiana.  There are two William Wisehearts listed:  William Wiseheart who mustered in on August 19, 1862 and William H. Wiseheart of Fredonia, Indiana who mustered in on August 18, 1862 and was promoted to Corporal.1

William H. was the one I wanted, so I looked at that entry some more.  He enlisted in Company F, Indiana 71st Infantry Regiment.  This helped me narrow down which military records I needed.  After he was promoted, he transferred to Company F, Indiana 6th Cavalry Regiment.1,2  His pension card, which also lists his wife, shows both regiments.3  William H. mustered out on June 17, 1865 in Pulaski, Tennessee.1,2

I had heard from my grandpa that before William H. married my great great grandmother, he had married Sarah Myers.  I wanted to know more about this, so I started collecting non-military resources to learn about his life.

William Henry Wiseheart was born on November 14, 1833, in Kentucky, to parents Harman and Jemima (Jacobs) Wiseheart.4,5,15  In 1860, he lived with L. Blankenbaker and family in Shelby County, Kentucky, where he worked as an apprentice plow stacker (this last word is difficult to read, but that’s what it looks like).6  He then enlisted in the army in 1862.1,2

William H. married Sarah Myers on March 10,1865.  They had four children, that I know of.4

  • Jacob H. (08 Feb 1866 – 08 Feb 1866)4
  • Emma A. (14 Oct 1868 – 14 Oct 1868)4
  • Catherine A. “Kitty” or “Katie” (29 Dec 1869 – 9 Jun 1915)4,7
  • Infant son (26 Jun 1872 – 21 Aug 1872)4

Sarah died on August 1, 1872.4  Since her death was so close to the birth of her son, I’m thinking she probably died of complications from childbirth.

William Henry and Frances Lydia (Browning) Wiseheart, circa 1900.

William Henry and Frances Lydia (Browning) Wiseheart, circa 1900.

William H. married Frances Lydia Browning on May 10, 1876.4,11  They had twelve children, but I’ve only been able to account for nine.9

  • Daniel Signal (14 Jan 1877 – 23 Nov 1956)4,8,9
  • Mary Elizabeth (4 Feb 1878 – 15 Dec 1965)4,8
  • Rosey H. (18 Apr 1879 – 15 Oct 1902)4,8
  • Infant daughter (20 May 1880 – 20 May 1880)4
  • Infant son (22 Mar 1881 – 25 Mar 1881)4
  • Infant daughter (4 Mar 1882 – 14 Mar 1882)4,12
  • Chace Dudley (27 Dec 1883 – 30 Dec 1883)4
  • Joseph M. (4 Mar 1886 – 10 Mar 1959)4,9,10
  • Sanford Wesley (30 Oct 1890 – 25 Mar 1966)4,9,10

I have heard that Sanford Wesley, my great grandfather, had a twin who was stillborn, but I have not yet found any evidence of it.

At various points in his life, William H. had been a wagon maker, chair maker, and general wood worker.7,8,9,10,15  He was also a member of the Sanderson Post No. 191, Grand Army of the Republic.13,14  I looked for him and found him in the member book in the archive where I work.  He is on the same page as Francis Rakestraw, whose granddaughter later married William H.’s son, Sanford.  That may be how they met.

William H. Wiseheart died on May 28, 1910 of cardiac asthma.  He was buried in New Albany National Cemetery (or Soldiers National Cemetery) in New Albany, Indiana.4,14,15,16

Tombstone of Corporal William Henry Wiseheart, New Albany National Cemetery. Photograph taken by Melissa Wiseheart, 1 September 2014.

Tombstone of Corporal William Henry Wiseheart, New Albany National Cemetery. Photograph taken by Melissa Wiseheart, 1 September 2014.

Sources

  1.  Terrell, W.H.H. Report of the Adjutant General of the State of Indiana. Volume 6. Indianapolis: Samuel M Douglass, 1866. 148-149. Print.
  2. Historical Data Systems, comp..  U.S. Civil War Soldier Records and Profiles (database on-line).  Provo, UT, USA:  Ancestry.com Operations Inc., 2009.  Accessed 30 Apr 2011.
  3. “United States General Index to Pension Files, 1861-1934,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QJD5-ZD5S : accessed 27 April 2011), William H Wiseheart, 1910; citing Indiana, United States, NARA microfilm publication T288 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.); FHL microfilm .
  4. Transcription of the William H. Wiseheart Family Bible.
  5. 1850 United States Federal Census. Ancestry.com, 2009. Web. 19 Mar. 2015. 1st District, Jefferson, Kentucky. p.? (smudged). Family #619, lines 22-28.
  6. 1860 United States Federal Census. Ancestry.com, 2009. Web. 4 Aug. 2015. 1st District, Shelby, Kentucky. p.161. Family #72, lines 14-25.
  7. 1870 United States Federal Census. Ancestry.com, 2009. Web. 9 Jun. 2015. Washington, Owen, Indiana. p.6. Family #54, lines 32-34.
  8. 1880 United States Federal Census. Ancestry.com, 2009. Web. 3 Jun. 2015. Boston Precinct, Jefferson, Kentucky. p.2B. Family #18, lines 45-50.
  9. 1900 United States Federal Census. Ancestry.com, 2009. Web. 7 Mar. 2011. New Albany, Floyd, Indiana. p.5B. Family #108, lines 70-74.
  10. 1910 United States Federal Census. Ancestry.com, 2009. Web. 7 Mar. 2011. New Albany, Floyd, Indiana. p.16B. Family #339, lines 85-88.
  11. “Kentucky Marriages, 1785-1979,” index, FamilySearch(https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F4QC-G98 : accessed 9 June 2015).  Wm. H. and Fannie Browning, 10 May 1876; citing Long Run, Jefferson, Kentucky, reference Bk11, P257, L10; FHL microfilm 482,712.
  12. “Kentucky Deaths and Burials, 1843-1970,” database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FWP2-7MS : accessed 5 August 2015:.  W Wiseheart in entry for Wiseheart, 14 Mar 1882; citing reference bk 5 p 209 no 41; FHL microfilm 209,702.
  13. Roll of Members W. L. Sanderson. Post No. 191. G. A. R., box 1, Grand Army of the Republic Records, 1889-1931, IR MSS 160, New Albany-Floyd County Public Library, Stuart B. Wrege Indiana History Room.
  14. “Deaths (Obituaries)” New Albany Evening Tribune 30 May 1910, Monday ed.: 1. Print. column 7.  Accessed 04 Feb. 2015, Stuart Barth Wrege Indiana History Room.
  15. Floyd County Health Department. Microfilm. Floyd County, Indiana Deaths (1901-1910): book CH-21, p.98. Retrieved 18 Feb 2015 from Stuart Barth Wrege Indiana History Room.
  16. National Cemetery Administration.  U.S. Veterans Gravesites, ca. 1775-2006 (database on-line).  Provo, UT, USA : Ancestry.com Operations Inc., 2006.  Accessed 30 April 2011.

Mildred Springer: A Life of Loss (52 Ancestors #24)

Posted on by under 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge, Family History, Genealogy, Springer Family, Wiseheart Family

My family and I are fortunate to have a number of family heirlooms.  We owe a debt for those heirlooms to my great grandmother, Mildred Gertrude (Springer) Wiseheart.  She wasn’t quite in the category of a hoarder, but she saved a lot of things.  I think this is because she suffered a lot of loss in her lifetime and holding onto mementos of her loved ones was the best way she knew to keep them with her.  I’m going to write her story as a timeline, to allow for better visualization.  I know how hard it can be to keep a bunch of dates straight in your head.

1892

Mildred Gertrude Springer, circa 1892.

Mildred Gertrude Springer, circa 1892.

Mildred was born on November 20th in New Albany, Indiana to parents Frank and Zerilda Eleanora “Ella” (Rakestraw) Springer.1  She and her mother were both very ill at the time of her birth.2

1893

Frank Springer left for the World’s Fair in Chicago and allegedly did not come back.3  (Mildred received almost monthly correspondence from him between 1904 and 1918, possibly even later, and he did come back for visits periodically).  Ella was extremely ill and was considered to be an invalid.2,4

1894

Mildred was adopted by her grandparents, Francis Marion and Mary Elizabeth (Gilliland) Rakestraw.4  Just two and a half weeks later, on June 13th, her mother died of consumption.5

1900

Mildred Gertrude Springer, circa 1900.

Mildred Gertrude Springer, circa 1900.

Mildred was living with her grandparents, her Uncle Willie, and her cousins, Charlie and William.6  This seems to have been the normal living arrangement for the family, as Willie was unmarried for most of the time between 1890 and 1910.

1910

Mildred was living with her grandparents and cousins.7  Willie had moved to Illinois.  At some point during the year, Charlie went to live with Willie.

1911

Francis Marion Rakestraw died, leaving Mary Elizabeth, his wife, Mildred Springer (age 18), and William Rakestraw (age 16).8

1918

Mary Elizabeth and Mildred moved to 811 West 8th Street in New Albany, Indiana.9  William moved to Louisville, Kentucky.  Mary Elizabeth and Mildred became friends with Sanford “Sandy” Wiseheart, who lived down the street at 922.  When Sandy went to France to fight, they corresponded.

1920

George William

George William “Willie” Rakestraw and Mildred Gertrude Springer, circa 1920.

Mildred was still living with Mary Elizabeth on West 8th Street until she and Sandy were married on May 5th.10,11

1921

Mildred gave birth to her first child, Mildred Lorena Wiseheart, on May 9th.12

1923

Mildred gave birth to her second child, Sanford William “Bud” Wiseheart, on May 30th.12

1925

Mildred gave birth to her third child.12

1928

Mildred gave birth to her fourth child.12

1930

Sandy, Mildred and family were living on County Line Road in Clark County, Indiana.12  Mildred gave birth to her fifth child, James Roscoe “Jimmy” Wiseheart, on November 13th.13

1932

Jimmy died of pneumonia on December 12th.13

1934

Mildred gave birth to her sixth child, Mary Katherine Wiseheart, on October 3rd.14

1936

Mary Katherine drowned in the neighbor’s fish pond on July 9th.14

1940

Sandy, Mildred and family were again living at 922 West 8th Street in New Albany, Indiana.15

1944

Mildred had no idea where her father was, or if he was even still living.16

1951

Mildred died on November 3rd of cancer of the gallbladder.1

I’d like to end with what my grandfather, Mildred’s son, said about her:

She had a, I don’t know what you call it, maybe call it a vivid imagination, but she, sometimes at night, she’d take a flashlight and be lookin’ around and she’d say, ‘There’s somebody out there,’ and once a while she’d say, ‘I smell a real strong gag, they’re smoking something.’ And my dad, he’d blow up. I was the only one left at home, the others had all gotten married young and so she was always, like she’d save the last bananer or something and say, ‘Buddy, I saved that for you, that’s the last one.’ And two or three different times she’d say, ‘Buddy, do you think your daddy’s plottin’ against me to have me put away,’ or something. I said, ‘Oh, Mom, he wouldn’t do nothing like that,’ and then I get out walking with him on a job and he’d say, ‘I don’t know what the hell I’m gonna do, I’m afraid I’m gonna have to put your mother away.’ I’d say, ‘Oh, Pap, she ain’t that bad,’ and it was like that for three or four years. Course he blamed it on her father, Frank Springer. I think his problem started when his wife Eleanora died. She was twenty-eight. My mother was two years old when her mother died, so Frank Springer became a wanderer. He’d just wander around and people said there was something wrong with him mentally. And she always had that kind of reflection since people find an excuse to say he was mentally unbalanced and they sort of thought that my mom inherited that. It wasn’t really that way.  My mother was an intelligent person and she could draw and was pretty good in artwork and stuff, she just didn’t go anywhere and associate with people.

Sources

1. Floyd County Health Department. Floyd County, Indiana Death Records. Vol. H-12. p. 10. Microfilm.  Accessed 4 Aug 2014, Stuart Barth Wrege Indiana History Room.

2. Springer, Frank. Letter to Ella Springer. 4 Dec. 1892. MS. New Albany, Indiana.

3. Paoli News 22 Nov. 1893: 3. NewspaperArchive.com. Web. 27 Dec. 2014.

4.  New Albany Daily Ledger 26 May 1894, Saturday Evening ed.: 5. Print.column 3.

5.  “Deaths (Obituary).” New Albany Evening Tribune 14 June 1894, Thursday ed.: 4. Print. column 2.

6.  1900 United States Federal Census (database-online). Ancestry.com, 2009. Web. 07 Mar. 2011. New Albany, Floyd, Indiana. p. 9B.

7.  1910 United States Federal Census (database-online). Ancestry.com, 2009. Web. 07 Mar. 2011. New Albany, Floyd, Indiana. p. 14A.

8.  Floyd County Health Department. Floyd County, Indiana Death Records. Vol. CH-22. p. 17. Microfilm.  Accessed 4 Aug 2014, Stuart Barth Wrege Indiana History Room.

9.  Caron, C.K. Caron’s Directory of the City of New Albany for 1919-20. New Albany, IN: C.K. Caron, 1919. 297. Print.

10.  1920 United States Federal Census (database-online). Ancestry.com, 2009. Web. 24 Sep. 2014. New Albany, Floyd, Indiana. p. 11A.

11.  Floyd County Clerk. Floyd County, Indiana Marriages. Vol. 20. p. 375. Microfilm.  Accessed 12 Aug 2014, Stuart Barth Wrege Indiana History Room.

12.  1930 United States Federal Census (database-online). Ancestry.com, 2009. Web. 07 Mar. 2011. Silver Creek, Clark, Indiana. p. 14B.

13.  Clark County Health Department.  Clark County, Indiana Death Records. Roll 20, Book 2, p.11.  Microfilm. Jeffersonville Township Public Library.

14.  Floyd County Health Department. Floyd County, Indiana Death Records. Vol. CH-37. p. 97. Microfilm.  Accessed 25 Jan 2015, Stuart Barth Wrege Indiana History Room.

15.  1940 United States Federal Census (database-online). Ancestry.com, 2009. Web. 28 Jul. 2014. New Albany, Floyd, Indiana. p. 10B.

16.  Wiseheart, Mildred, Letter, 1944.  MS.  New Albany, Indiana.

Frances Lydia Browning: An Unconventional Proposal (52 Ancestors #23)

Posted on by under 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge, Browning Family, Documents, Family History, Genealogy, Photographs, Wiseheart Family

This week, I’ve decided to focus on an ancestor who received an unconventional, though probably not uncommon in those days, marriage proposal.  The two parties involved are my great great grandparents, Frances Lydia “Fannie” Browning and William Henry Wiseheart.  Before I get into the proposal, I’ll briefly go over their backgrounds.

Fannie was born on June 14, 1853, in Kentucky, to Daniel and Ossiann (Salisbury) Browning.1  Ossiann died when Fannie was about twelve.2,3,4  Daniel remarried, to Nancy Catherine Ringold, in 1865.3

While a 16-year-old Fannie was still living at home with her father and stepmother, in Long Run, Kentucky, a 37-year-old WilliamWiseheart was living with his wife, Sarah (Myers), and six month old daughter, Kitty, in Washington, Indiana.4,5  William’s wife died circa 1872, leaving William to care for a young daughter on his own.  William also had a disability from a Civil War injury.  He ended up in Kentucky.5,6  Presumably, he moved back there to seek the assistance of family.

Shortly after moving back to Kentucky, he met Fannie Browning.  I often wonder how they met.  Maybe they were neighbors.  Maybe they attended the same church.  Maybe one of William’s family members knew Fannie somehow and set them up.  Whatever happened, Fannie received a letter from William that I refer to as a proposal.  In it, he describes his feelings for Fannie and talks about taking her “out of trouble.”  He then closes with “I remain your intended companion until death.”  It may not be an outright proposal, but it is certainly a letter of intent.

Letter, William H. Wiseheart to Frances Browning, 20 Apr 1876, p. 1 Letter, William H. Wiseheart to Frances Browning, 20 Apr 1876, p. 2 Letter, William H. Wiseheart to Frances Browning, 20 Apr 1876, p. 3

What is really interesting to me is that this letter dated April 20, 1876 indicates that William would not be able to marry Fannie until June of 1877, however, they did marry not quite one month later on May 10th in Long Run, Kentucky.6  Perhaps his circumstances improved.  Perhaps her circumstances worsened.

Another thing I had wondered about over the years was the age difference between William and Fannie.  He was 42 and she was 23 when they married.  Knowing that William had a young child and Fannie had some sort of “trouble” explains that, I think, aside from a fairly large age difference being a somewhat common phenomenon in that day and age.

Fannie and William had ten children of their own, of which two were stillbirths, two died after three days, one died after eleven days, and the other five survived to adulthood.  The surviving children were Daniel Signal (1877), Mary Elizabeth (ca 1878), Rosey or Rosa H. (1879), Joseph Martin (1886), and Sanford Wesley (1890).7,8,9

Fannie died of chronic valvular heart disease on December 4, 1920, at the age of 67.1

Frances Lydia Browning

Frances Lydia Browning

Sources

1.  Floyd County Health Department. “Frances Wiseheart.” Floyd County, Indiana Death Records. Vol. CH-33. 55. Microfilm.  Accessed 5 January 2015 at the Stuart Barth Wrege Indiana History Room.

2.  1860 United States Federal Census. Ancestry.com, 2009. Web. 7 Mar. 2011. 2nd District (Long Run), Jefferson, Kentucky. p.101. Family #706, lines 10-14.

3.  “Indiana Marriages, 1811-2007,” index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KFZ5-1MZ : accessed 9 June 2015), Daniel Browning and Nancy C Ringo, 20 Sep 1865; citing , Scott, Indiana, county clerk offices, Indiana; FHL microfilm 549,440.

4.  1870 United States Federal Census. Ancestry.com, 2009. Web. 30 Dec. 2014. Boston Precinct (Long Run), Jefferson, Kentucky. p.11. Family #62, lines 2-9.

5.  1870 United States Federal Census. Ancestry.com, 2009. Web. 9 Jun. 2015. Washington, Owen, Indiana. p.6. Family #54, lines 32-34.

6.  “Kentucky Marriages, 1785-1979,” index, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F4QC-G98 : accessed 9 June 2015).  Wm. H. and Fannie Browning, 10 May 1876; citing Long Run, Jefferson, Kentucky, reference Bk11, P257, L10; FHL microfilm 482,712.

7.  1880 United States Federal Census. Ancestry.com, 2009. Web. 3 Jun. 2015. Boston Precinct, Jefferson, Kentucky. p.2B. Family #18, lines 45-50.

8.  1900 United States Federal Census. Ancestry.com, 2009. Web. 7 Mar. 2011. New Albany, Floyd, Indiana. p.5B. Family #108, lines 70-74.

9.  1910 United States Federal Census. Ancestry.com, 2009. Web. 7 Mar. 2011. New Albany, Floyd, Indiana. p.16B. Family #339, lines 85-88.

Sanford Wiseheart: Wise, Resourceful, and Industrious (52 Ancestors #09)

Posted on by under 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge, Family History, Genealogy, Military, Photographs, Stories, Wiseheart Family

“Pap used to say, ‘If you can’t find work, make work.'”  These are words I frequently heard from my grandpa about his father.

Sanford Wesley “Sandy” Wiseheart was born on October 30, 1890 in Elizabeth, Indiana to parents William Henry and Frances Lydia “Fannie” (Browning) Wiseheart.  In the 1910 Census, he was still living with his parents.  He was a peddler working on his own account and owned his own wagon.  Grandpa told me that when his dad was younger he used to buy things in town and load them up on a wagon and sell them at a slight profit to the people who couldn’t make it into town.

In 1917, Sandy filled out a Draft Registration Card.  His occupation was “driver for David Brubeck.”  According to the 1917 New Albany City Directory, David Brubeck was the owner of Brubeck Ice Cream Company.  About a month later, on Sandy’s marriage application with his first wife, his occupation is listed as paper hanger, that is one who hangs wallpaper.

In August of 1918, Sandy went to France and served in the occupation of Privenelle Sector, west of Moselle (Second Army Offensive).

Sanford Wesley Wiseheart (ca. 1914)

Sanford Wesley Wiseheart (ca. 1918)

While there, he was a medical transporter in Field Hospital 22.  He frequently wrote to his mother and to his friend, Mildred Springer.  One such letter contained the following:

if you could of saw what I have over here you would learn that there is no use to worry about anything we must just keep a brave heart and meet our trouble half way for we cannot change what must be.

Sandy married Mildred Gertrude Springer, his second marriage, on May 5, 1920 in Floyd County, Indiana.  Here, Sandy’s occupation was “transfer business,” which is delivery service.  On the 1930 Census, he was a salesman of medicines and toiletries.

Grandpa also told me that during the 1937 flood, Sandy and one of his friends borrowed a neighbor’s rowboat and took hay around to the stranded cows.

The 1940 Census lists Sandy as being a general contractor, working on his own account, who repairs and builds homes.  In 1941, he bought a farm and the family raised crops and chickens as well.

Sandy Wiseheart on the farm.

Sanford Wiseheart on the farm.

Sandy wasn’t afraid of hard work, and he did whatever job was necessary and available in order to provide for his family.

Wiseheart, Sanford - business card

James Roscoe Wiseheart: One Little Shoe

Posted on by under Death, Family History, Genealogy, Wiseheart Family

James Roscoe Wiseheart was born to parents Sanford Wesley and Mildred Gertrude (Springer) Wiseheart on November 13, 1930.  He had two older sisters and two older brothers, one of whom was my grandfather.  The family lived in Clark County, Indiana at the time.  Jimmy didn’t live long and I know very little about him.  Grandpa said that Jimmy was given his middle name, Roscoe, after his father’s good friend, Roscoe Treece.  Jimmy died at the age of two from convulsions due to a fever that was brought on by lobar pneumonia.¹  He was the first of two Wiseheart children to die young.  The other was Mary Katherine, who was born after Jimmy died.

Recently, as my dad, my uncle and I were going trough the Rakestraw trunk, we came across a photograph of Jimmy in his coffin (which I will not post) and one little shoe that had been found in the potato patch just four months after his death.  How heartbreaking it must’ve been to find the shoe, and how precious.

The note that had been tucked into the shoe.

The note that had been tucked into the shoe.

Jimmy's shoe.

Jimmy’s shoe.

2015-02-22 12.46.49

1.  Clark County, Indiana Deaths, Roll 20, Book 2, p.11, Jeffersonville Township Public Library.