Charlotte Poppa: Are You My Great Great Great Grandmother? (52 Ancestors #32)

Posted on by under 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge, Family History, Genealogy, Poppa Family, Reisenberg Family, Research Process

Charlotte “Lottie” Poppa is one of the ancestors that I’ve always been curious about.  Most of what I “know” about her is unproven.  When my grandma gave me a copy of her pedigree chart, she pointed Lottie out to me and said, “I couldn’t read the writing on the record, so it could be Poppa, Pappa, or Puppa.”

I don’t know what record she was referring to, she never named it or showed it to me.  I’m hoping a copy is still somewhere in one of the many fruit boxes containing all of my grandparents’ research.  I have been trying to research Lottie on my own, and she’s proven to be very difficult to locate.  According to the chart, Lottie was the mother of Louise Reisenberg.  Since Reisenberg is misspelled in a plethora of different ways, soundex search doesn’t always work.

Again, according to grandma’s chart, Lottie was married to Friedrich Reisenberg.  She was born on November 4, 1823 in Germany and died on October 20, 1907.  Presumably, Grandma got this information from the document(s) she mentioned to me.  Since I try very hard to only chart information for which I have sources, and pedigree charts don’t count, I use this as a guide for my research rather than proven dates.

I entered Charlotte Poppa into the form on FamilySearch.org and retried the search with various pieces of information each time.  I thought maybe I would come across a marriage record.  Surprisingly, Lottie Riesenburg turned up in the 1900 Census in Steuben County, Indiana.  She was living with her son-in-law, Kasper Shotts, and daughter, Amelia Shotts.  Fred Riesenburg was also listed.

I was surprised by this because I had heard the story of how Louise had come to America on her own.  I had never heard that her parents came over.  I looked at the immigration column and Fred and Lottie arrived in 1883, about a year after Louise.  I also looked at Lottie’s birth information to try to verify her birth.  She was born in November of 1823 in Germany.  The only trouble I have with this census information is that it says she has only one child.  She is living with her daughter, Amelia, so how then could Louise be her daughter?  To add more confusion, Amelia had a daughter named Bertha, and Louise had a daughter named Bertha Amelia.  I have seen in the census before where a person gave the number of children living with them instead of her actual number of children.  Perhaps this is a similar scenario, or, perhaps I simply have the wrong branch attached to my family tree.

I tried looking for the passenger list, but the only information that seemed to match did not have an original image attached.  I don’t trust indexes.  I may eventually end up ordering the film for this one.

My next step was to continue looking for census records.  She came over after 1880, there is no 1890, and I have her in 1900, so I moved on to 1910.  I couldn’t find her, so I switched tactics and looked for Fred.  I found him with Casper and Amelia Schott in Ottawa County, Ohio.  He is widowed.  This doesn’t give me much useful information for Lottie, but I now know she died between 1900 and 1910, so 1907 does fit.

At this point, I had enough information to search on Find A Grave.  I know she died between 1900 and 1910 in either Indiana or Ohio, but I still had to check all possible spellings of Reisenberg.  I finally found Charlotte Risenberg buried in Harris-Elmore Union Cemetery in Elmore, Ottawa County, Ohio.  She is linked to Friedrich Risenberg and Amelia Schott, so I know this is the one I was looking for.  Unfortunately, there is no photo and no other information.  I put in a photo request, but since no dates are listed, I’m guessing there either isn’t a stone or the stone is unreadable.

I did a search on Ancestry.com for family trees and also checked with some distant cousins, but nobody seems to have any information on Louise’s parents.  I am fairly certain Lottie is the person I’m looking for because Grandma was pretty meticulous when it came to genealogy, though not meticulous enough to cite sources, but I will continue to search for the link between Lottie and Louise.  In the meantime, this search has yielded a confirmation of Lottie’s birth information, an immigration year, and a lead on her death information.  I still want to know more, but at least I know more than I did a week ago.

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.

Leason Gilliland: The Elusive Leason (52 Ancestors #30)

Posted on by under 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge, Family History, Genealogy, Gilliland Family, Research Process

The Elusive Leason.  It sounds like a magician’s stage name or something.  Perhaps he should have been a magician.  When I think of ancestors who have been a challenge to research, several names come to mind, but none have been more challenging than Leason Gilliland.  I mentioned him once before.  He is the ancestor that my grandpa had said worked on a steamboat and was away from home all the time.  I have little idea where he came from and no idea where he ended up.  He just disappeared.

In the beginning, all I had was a name on a pedigree chart.  My grandparents had done some research, but I had no idea what it was or where it was.  Honestly, I was a teenager at the time and really didn’t care very much.  I just wanted the names.  As I got older and worked with my grandparents more, I began to understand the importance of documents and researching things for oneself.  The first piece of documentation that I found for Leason was the 1840 Census.  Being a pre-1850 census, it didn’t yield very much information.  What it did yield was Leason Gilliland (age 20-30), presumably a wife (age 20-30), and presumably two sons (both under 5).  He was employed in agriculture and living in Hardin County, Kentucky.1

Agriculture to steamboating seems like a big leap to me, but I can’t totally discount it.  The story was told to my grandpa by Leason’s daughter, Mary Elizabeth.  It seems to me that if anyone knew what became of Leason, his wife or children would.  And it would go a long way to explaining why he just disappeared.  I discussed this with a co-worker and she suggested that perhaps steamboating was more lucrative than farming at this particular time and place.

I looked for Leason and his family members on the 1850 Census.  I found that Zerelda Gilliland (31) and her children, Daniel (12), William (10), Ezra (8), and Mary (1), were living with Asa and Maria Loundsbury in New Albany, Indiana.2  I could not find Leason.  I looked at the clues I had from this record.  If Zerelda was 31 in 1850, she would have been 21 in 1840.  If Daniel was 12 and William was 10 in 1850, they both would have been under 5 in 1840.  The other children would not have been born yet.  This all fit.  Also, Zerelda and all of the children except for Mary were born in Kentucky.2  I was left with two questions here.  How did the Gillilands know Asa Loundsbury?  Did Leason die before 1850?

I researched Asa Loundsbury a little but could not find any obvious connection, so I moved on.  I knew from other research that Serilda Gilliland married John Bridges in 1857.3  I looked for Leason in the 1860 Census anyway, just in case they got divorced.  No luck there.  John Bridges’ household included Zerilda Bridges (39), Daniel Gilliland (20), William Gilliland (18), Ezra Gilliland (16), Mary Gilliland (10), and Sarah Gilliland (6).4  This was a surprise.  If Sarah Gilliland was born circa 1854, then Leason did not die before the 1850 Census.  Why wasn’t he listed?  Maybe he did hop a steamboat.  He must have died before 1857 though, for Serilda to have remarried.

With all of this census research, I still didn’t have any real proof that Leason was the husband of Serilda or the father of her children.  All of this was based on what Mary Elizabeth Gilliland told my grandpa.  While I was doing some more research on Ezra Gilliland, I managed to find his death record.  His parents were listed as Leason Gilliland and Cerelda Lone.5  I re-checked Mary Elizabeth’s death record, but her parents names were unknown by the informant.  I have been unsuccessful in locating death records for any of the other children.

With nowhere else to go moving forward, I decided to move backward.  I really had no way of knowing who Leason’s father might be since I don’t know when or where he died to begin to look for death records, obituaries, church records, or the like.  I took a wild leap on my break last week and searched for all Gillilands in Hardin County, Kentucky on the 1820 Census when Leason, theoretically, would have still been living at home.

The only Gilliland in Hardin County in 1820 was James Gilliland (age 26-44), presumably a wife (age 26-44), what appears to be a mother or mother-in-law (age 45 and over), and children: one male 16-18 and two males under 10, and one female 10-15 and two females under 10.6  In 1820, Leason would have been under 10.  Not proof, but a good lead.

I pursued this lead and looked for James Gilliland on the 1850 Census to see who else might be listed in his household.  For some reason, James was enumerated twice in 1850, once in August and once in October, both in Hardin County.  I guess they moved between these months.  They are enumerated first as the 228th family visited and then as the 549th family visited.  The problem I have here is that some of the ages are vastly different in the span of just two months.  What I do gather from these records is that James’ wife was Mary and a son, Thomas, was living with him or next door.7,8  Averaging the two enumerations, Thomas would have been born circa 1819, which means he would have been under 10 on the 1820 Census.

I knew we had some Kentucky books at work, so I checked the shelf and found two marriage record books for Hardin County, Kentucky in the early 1800s.  I looked for James Gilliland and Thomas Gilliland.  I found that James married Polly Morrison on October 4, 1808 and Thomas married Elizabeth LeMaster on June 30, 1838.9,10  James Gilliland gave consent for Thomas to be married, which would put Thomas under 18 in 1838.10  If he had been born in 1820, he could have been under 10 on the 1820 Census, 17 and almost 18 at the time of his marriage, and 30 years old on the 1850 Census.

I went home and told my dad about the new lead and what I had discovered.  He called me back in the room a little bit later because he had done some searching with the new information and stumbled across Steven Butler’s website, which includes an interesting little history on the James Gilliland family.

According to this, James’ daughters were Letitia (1810) and Sarah (1811), which would put them in the under 10 category in 1820.11  This didn’t match what I found on the 1830 and 1840 Census for James Gilliland and family, so I set to work with a pile of census pages and copies from the Hardin County marriage books and filled in a Family Group Census Grid for James Gilliland.  Luckily for me, most of James’ children were under age at the time of their marriage, which gave me a good idea of approximate birth dates to compare with the census records.  After checking records, doing some math, re-checking records, and re-checking my math, I finally came up with what I believe is an accurate account of the Gilliland family movements.

James Gilliland Census Grid

What is really exciting to me is that Leason fits the unnamed son’s criteria!  I can find no other evidence of possible parents for Leason and I can find no other evidence of a different son for James and Polly.  It’s still not definitive proof, but it’s better than the thread I had in the beginning.  I may never find any more on Leason Gilliland or his possible connection to the James Gilliland family, but I look forward to trying!

Sources

1.  Ancestry.com. 1840 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010.   Year: 1840; Census Place: Hardin, Kentucky; Roll: 113; Page: 30; Image: 65; Family History Library Film:0007827.

2.  Ancestry.com. 1850 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2009. Images reproduced by FamilySearch.  Year: 1850; Census Place: New Albany, Floyd, Indiana; Roll: M432_145; Page: 301A; Image: 14.

3.  Floyd County Clerk. Microfilm. Floyd County, Indiana Marriages Volume 4 (1857): p.485.  Accessed 09 Jan. 2015, Stuart Barth Wrege Indiana History Room.

4.  Ancestry.com. 1860 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2009. Images reproduced by FamilySearch.  Year: 1860; Census Place: New Albany Ward 6, Floyd, Indiana; Roll: M653_257; Page: 422; Image: 426; Family History Library Film: 803257.

5.  Floyd County Health Department. Microfilm. Floyd County, Indiana Deaths CH-33 (1920): p. 54, record 300.  Accessed 11 Feb. 2015, Stuart Barth Wrege Indiana History Room.

6.  Ancestry.com. 1820 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Images reproduced by FamilySearch.  Year: 1820; Census Place: Philadelphia, Hardin, Kentucky; NARA Roll: M33_23; Page: 8; Image: 15.

7.  “United States Census, 1850,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M657-T64 : accessed 17 December 2014), James Gillilan, Hardin county, Hardin, Kentucky, United States; citing family 228, NARA microfilm publication M432 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).

8.  “United States Census, 1850,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M65W-7XK : accessed 17 December 2014), James Gillelund, Hardin county, Hardin, Kentucky, United States; citing family 549, NARA microfilm publication M432 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).

9.  Jones, Mary Josephine., comp. Hardin County, Kentucky Marriages 1793 to 1829. Vine Grove, KY: Ancestral Trails Historical Society, 1996. Print. p. 12.

10.  Jones, Mary Josephine., comp. Hardin County, Kentucky Marriages 1830 to 1850. Vine Grove, KY: Ancestral Trails Historical Society, 1996. Print. p. 24.

11.  Butler, Steven. “Biographies: James Gilliland.” Steven Butler’s Family History Website. N.p., 11 Feb. 2011. Web. 18 July 2015.

Edward Von Allmen: Dairy Farmer By Day, Accordion Player By Night (52 Ancestors #29)

Posted on by under 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge, Family History, Genealogy, Photographs, Stories, Von Allmen Family

I have attended Von Allmen family reunions almost every year for as long as I can remember.  Growing up, these always included polka music.  In the earlier years, my great uncle played the accordion.  In later years, we listened to polka on tape or CD.  A few more recent reunions did not include any polka at all.  Grandma told me that her grandfather, Edward Von Allmen, had also played the accordion.

Edward was born on May 6, 1878 in Wilderswil, Switzerland.1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8  He was the eleventh of sixteen children born to Friedrich and Susannah (Stähli) Von Allmen.1,2,10  He came to America with his parents and siblings in 1883 on the S.S. Canada.10  Ed lived and worked on his father’s dairy farm in Floyd County, Indiana, and then went to live with and work for his brother, Peter, in Louisville, Kentucky.2

Edward and Louise Von Allmen

Edward and Louise (Seewer) Von Allmen, 1902.

Ed married Louise Seewer on October 29, 1902 in Louisville, Kentucky.9  They continued to live in Jefferson County, Kentucky, where Ed had his own dairy farm.3  Ed and Lousie had eight children.3,4,5,6  They eventually all moved to a farm in Lafayette Township, Floyd County, Indiana.5,6

Edward Von Allmen was apparently a musical man.  One of the family’s neighbors told me of their parties and music.  I’ve told this story before, but I think it bears repeating here.

The Von Allmens… they used to live right here on the corner, you know.  They were such wonderful singers. They used to have parties on the 4th of July and they’d go all night. They really knew how to celebrate, I tell you. They’d sing and dance and Ed would play the… what’s that called you play and squeeze between your hands… the accordion. Ed used to play the accordion. He played so well, it was really beautiful. And they’d just go all night. One time, they had all the neighbors over for a dance. Can you imagine? They had a dance in their house and Ed played the accordion. You don’t see anyone play the accordion anymore.

Von Allmen Family Crest, courtesy of Shirley Wolf, Von Allmen Family File, Stuart Barth Wrege Indiana History Room

Von Allmen Family Crest, courtesy of Shirley Wolf, Von Allmen Family File, Stuart Barth Wrege Indiana History Room

Sources

1.  Floyd County Health Department. Microfilm. Floyd County, Indiana Deaths (1951-1959): book h-12, p.51. Retrieved 15 Jul 2015 from Stuart Barth Wrege Indiana History Room.

2.  Ancestry.com. 1900 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004.  Year: 1900; Census Place: Louisville Ward 12, Jefferson, Kentucky; Roll: 533; Page: 1A; Enumeration District:0141; FHL microfilm: 1240533.

3.  Ancestry.com. 1910 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2006.  Year: 1910; Census Place: Albermarle, Jefferson, Kentucky; Roll: T624_483; Page: 16A; Enumeration District: 0026; FHL microfilm: 1374496.

4.  Ancestry.com. 1920 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2010. Images reproduced by FamilySearch.  Year: 1920; Census Place: New Albany, Floyd, Indiana; Roll: T625_429; Page: 5B; Enumeration District: 62; Image: 15.

5.  Ancestry.com. 1930 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2002.  Year: 1930; Census Place: Lafayette, Floyd, Indiana; Roll: 587; Page: 3A; Enumeration District: 0006; Image:626.0; FHL microfilm: 2340322.

6.  Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.  Year: 1940; Census Place: Lafayette, Floyd, Indiana; Roll: T627_1043; Page: 1A; Enumeration District: 22-6.

7.  Ancestry.com. U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005.  Registration State: Indiana; Registration County: Floyd; Roll: 1503798.

8.  Ancestry.com. U.S., World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010.  The National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; State Headquarters: Indiana.

9.  “Kentucky Marriages, 1785-1979,” database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F43W-8XC : accessed 15 July 2015), Edward Von Allmen and Louise Sewer, 29 Oct 1902; citing Louisville, Kentucky, reference ; FHL microfilm 826,072.

10.  Wolf, Shirley. “S.S. Canada Passenger List, March 1, 1883, LaHavre to New York.” Rpt. in Von Allmen Family File. Stuart Barth Wrege Indiana History Room. Print.

Elizabeth Walton: A Journey of a Thousand Miles… (52 Ancestors #28)

Posted on by under 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge, Family History, Genealogy, Gilbert Family, Peart Family, Walton Family

Elizabeth Walton is one of my ancestors who had been captured by Indians toward the end of the Revolutionary War.  I’ve already posted some details on this ordeal when I wrote about Elizabeth’s daughter, Rebecca, so I’ll try not to repeat myself here.  I will, however, highlight a few things that show just how much Elizabeth traveled in her lifetime.  She was apparently a woman of strong constitution.

Elizabeth Walton was born on May 27, 1725 in Byberry, Pennsylvania (now part of Philadelphia).  Her parents were Benjamin and Rebecca Walton.  She was the eldest of nine children.1,2  The family were Quakers, and there are some good records of the births of all of the Walton children.

On November 30, 1752, Elizabeth married Bryan Peart.1,3  He died just five years later.1,6  Elizabeth had three children with Bryan:  Benjamin (1753), Rebecca (1754-1757), and Thomas (1756).1,4,5

Elizabeth married Benjamin Gilbert on August 17, 1760.1,7  They had four children together:  Jesse (1761), Rebecca (1763), Abner (1766), and Elizabeth (1767).1,8

Benjamin had a home and grist mill in Byberry, and the family lived there until 1775, when Benjamin decided to move to the Pennsylvania frontier.  Benjamin, Elizabeth, and their children moved to a farm located on Mahoning Creek (about 4 miles west of Lehighton) in Penn Township, Northampton County, Pennsylvania.1

On the 25th Day of the 4th Month, 1780, the Gilbert family were taken captive by Indians and marched toward Fort Niagara.  Elizabeth was 55 at the time.  She was allowed to ride a horse some of the way, but most of the journey was on foot.  The family traveled approximately 300 miles to the Fort from their home.  It took them a month to get there.  Along the way, Elizabeth had been beaten several times, for not being able to keep up and to protect her children from receiving a beating.1

Shortly after arriving at the fort, Elizabeth, Benjamin, and their son Jesse were surrendered to Colonel Johnson, who was the Superintendent of Indiana Affairs.  Although they had been released, they stayed near the fort to try to secure the release of the other children.  They at last set off for Montreal by boat, about 350 miles away.  Elizabeth’s husband died along the way and was buried under an oak tree near Coteau-du-Lac, Quebec, Canada.  After the last child was released in 1782, the remaining family members traveled to Byberry.  This journey, of about 700 miles, was made by boat and wagon, and took five weeks to complete.1

Elizabeth stayed in Byberry with her family and did not return to the farm.  It was said that “in spite of the sorrows and hardships she had experienced, she still retained her cheerful disposition.”1

In 1791, Jesse and his wife and children moved to Fallowfield (about halfway between Philadelphia and Lancaster).  Elizabeth moved in with them.  She lived with Jesse until he moved to Lampeter.1

Walton, William. A Narrative of the Captivity and Sufferings of Benjamin Gilbert and His Family, Who Were Taken by the Indians in the Spring of 1780. Third Edition. Philadelphia: Printed by John Richards, 1848. pp. 174-175.

Walton, William. A Narrative of the Captivity and Sufferings of Benjamin Gilbert and His Family, Who Were Taken by the Indians in the Spring of 1780. Third Edition. Philadelphia: Printed by John Richards, 1848. pp. 174-175.

Sources

1.   Walton, William, and Frank H. Severance. “Memoirs of the Captives.” The Captivity and Sufferings of Benjamin Gilbert and His Family, 1780-83. Reprinted from the Original Edition of 1784. Cleveland: Burrows Brothers, 1904. Print.

2.  Ancestry.com.  U.S., Quaker Meeting Records, 1681-1935 (database on-line).  Provo, UT, USA:  Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014.  Pennsylvania, Montgomery, Abington Monthly Meeting, Minutes, 1629-1812.  p.77.

3.  Ancestry.com.  Pennsylvania, Marriage Records, 1700-1821 (database on-line).  Provo, UT, USA:  Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.  Swedes’ Church, Philadelphia, 1750-1810.  p.481.

4.  Ancestry.com.  U.S., Quaker Meeting Records, 1681-1935 (database on-line).  Provo, UT, USA:  Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014.  Pennsylvania, Montgomery, Abington Monthly Meeting, Births and Deaths, 1682-1809, Vol. 1.  p.67.

5.  Ancestry.com.  U.S., Quaker Meeting Records, 1681-1935 (database on-line).  Provo, UT, USA:  Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014.  Pennsylvania, Chester, New Garden Monthly Meeting, Births, 1684-1850/Births and Deaths, 1719-1839/Membership, 1797.  p.8.

6.  Ancestry.com.  U.S., Quaker Meeting Records, 1681-1935 (database on-line).  Provo, UT, USA:  Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014.  Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Byberry Monthly Meeting, Deaths, 1736-1791.  p.2.

7.  Ancestry.com.  Pennsylvania, Marriage Records, 1700-1821 (database on-line).  Provo, UT, USA:  Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.  Pennsylvania Marriage Licenses, Prior to 1790.  p.229.

8.  Ancestry.com.  U.S., Quaker Meeting Records, 1681-1935 (database on-line).  Provo, UT, USA:  Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014.  Pennsylvania, Montgomery, Abington Monthly Meeting, Men’s Minutes, 1774-1782, Vol. 5.  p.69.