Tag Archives: Jefferson County

Elizabeth Barnes Salisbury Bevis

Posted on by under Browning Family, Documents, Family History, Genealogy, Marriage, Research Process, Salisbury Family

I finally decided to sit down and work with the clues I had for Ossian Salisbury.  Just to recap, these clues are:

  • First name appears variously as Ocean, Oceanna, Ossian, OssiaAnn, and Osia Ann.
  • Surname appears variously as Salisbury, Saulsberry, Sauelsbury, Sausberry, Stansberry, Landsbury, Lounsbury, and Browning (her married name).
  • She was born in Illinois.
  • She married in 1852, at the age of 17 (which places her birth around 1835).
  • She was married in Kentucky to Daniel Browning.
  • Her mother was Elizabeth Burns or Barnes.
  • Her step-father’s name was Bevis.

Since I have recently begun ordering film from FamilySearch.org, I thought I would start by ordering the film for the record that gives her mother’s name.  When I put the film number in, the website informed me that there were already digital images online for that roll.  I thought to myself, that’s funny, since there are no images attached to the record.  So, I clicked the link provided for the digital images and searched for the page that the index had cited.  There it was!

Marriage register showing Ocean's mother cropped

From Jefferson County, Kentucky Reference Book 5, p. 153.

I looked first for Elizabeth’s name.  It looks like Barnes to me, but I can see where someone could get Burns.  In this record, Daniel Browning married Ocean Stansberry (or maybe Stausberry) on June 30, 1852.  Her mother, Elizabeth Barnes, gave consent.  Consent was proved by Lewis Browning (Daniel’s father).1

I looked for any records of an Elizabeth Barnes or Burns who married a Salisbury or a Stansberry, to no avail.  I only knew that Elizabeth gave birth in Illinois in about 1835.2  Using those details, nothing turned up.  It’s very possible, that they had been married much longer or in a different state or country.  Or, maybe they were never married.

I shifted focus to the step-father.  I had the name Bevis.3  Not knowing if this was a first name or surname, I tried both with Elizabeth Barnes, Burns, Salisbury, and Stansberry.  I found that an Eli Bavis married an Elizabeth Saulsbury in Clark County, Illinois in 1838.4  Thank God for soundex!  I kept searching on FamilySearch for Eli Bavis, but turned up nothing new, so I moved my search over to Ancestry.

Here, I found the same marriage citation, but when I clicked it, it suggested two census records for me to look at.  The first showed Eli Bavis in Clark County, Illinois in 1840.5  It was just an index record, so I couldn’t see family members and age groups.  The second was the 1850 Census.  This one was taken in Jefferson County, Kentucky.  Eli and Elizabeth Bevis lived here with their five small children, Lydia, Jane, Susan, Levi, and Bloony.6  Ossian wasn’t listed.  Since this was two years before her wedding, she should have been about 15 and living at home.  Perhaps she worked as a servant in another household, but I have been unable to find her thus far.

I wish I had turned up information on her father, but I’m satisfied for now to know who Bevis is and to confirm her mother’s name.

Sources

  1. “Kentucky Marriages, 1785-1979,” index, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/F438-JWR : accessed 29 Nov 2014), Daniel Browning and Ocean Stansberry, 30 Jun 1852; citing Jefferson County, Kentucky, reference bk 5 p 153; FHL microfilm 482707.
  2. Ancestry.com. Kentucky, Marriage Records, 1852-1914 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007.  Kentucky. Kentucky Birth, Marriage and Death Records – Microfilm (1852-1910). Microfilm rolls #994027-994058. Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives, Frankfort, Kentucky.
  3. De La Montange, Marie. Letter to Sanford Wiseheart. 12 Feb. 1938. MS. New Albany, Indiana.
  4. “Illinois, County Marriages, 1810-1934”, database, FamilySearch(https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X2P6-BQQ : accessed 24 January 2016), Eli Bavis and Elizabeth Saulsbury, 1838.
  5. Ancestry.com. Illinois, Compiled Census and Census Substitutes Index, 1810-1890 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 1999.  Jackson, Ron V., Accelerated Indexing Systems, comp.. Illinois Census, 1810-1890. Compiled and digitized by Mr. Jackson and AIS from microfilmed schedules of the U.S. Federal Decennial Census, territorial/state censuses, and/or census substitutes.
  6. 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: District 1, Jefferson, Kentucky; Roll: M432_205; Page: 188B; Image: 381.

Mary Wiseheart Jacobs and the Move to Illinois

Posted on by under Family History, Genealogy, Jacobs Family, Research Process, Wiseheart Family

According to family tradition, Price Jacobs died in Jefferson County, Kentucky sometime before 1850 and his widow and children moved to Illinois, where they had Wiseheart family.  I spent some time trying to track the family movements to see what might be true.  I’m hoping this will narrow down a death date and location for Price.

I began with 1840, since Price would have still been living then.  I found him in Jefferson County, Kentucky with a wife, four sons, and a daughter.  I also noticed that he was living near Harmon Wiseheart (and a few Gillilands) at this time.1

I couldn’t find Price or his family in Kentucky in 1850.  I did find Mary C. Jacobs, with children John A., James H., Ellen, Samuel, and Peter, living in Columbus, Adams County, Illinois.2  The ages are all correct to be the same family from 1840.  A James Wisehart is living several houses down from her.3

Mary married John Carson in 1852.4  In 1860, John Carson is living with Mary, Henry, and Rebecca in Columbus, Adams County, Illinois.5

In 1870, Mary Jacobs is living with Milton K. Johnson and family in Burton, Adams County, Illinois.6  Mary’s daughter, Ellen, married Milton K. Johnson in 1855.7  Presumably, John Carson died sometime between 1860 and 1870.

Mary is still living with Milton and Ellen in 1880 in Burton, Adams County, Illinois, where she is listed as mother-in-law of Milton.8

I couldn’t find any information for Mary after the 1880 Census, other than her FindAGrave memorial.  According to that, she died in 1887 in Adams County, Illinois.9

It’s entirely possible that she moved to Illinois to be near family, but it’s strange since she had family living much closer to her in Jefferson County, Kentucky.

Sources

  1. Ancestry.com. 1840 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Images reproduced by FamilySearch.  Year: 1840; Census Place: Jefferson, Kentucky; Roll: 115; Page: 154; Image: 312; Family History Library Film: 0007828.
  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: Columbus, Adams, Illinois; Roll: M432_97; Page: 51B; Image: 108.
  3. 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: Columbus, Adams, Illinois; Roll: M432_97; Page: 50B; Image: 106.
  4. “Illinois, County Marriages, 1810-1934”, database, FamilySearch(https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X2T7-5QS : accessed 21 January 2016), John Carson and Mary Jacobs, 1852.
  5. 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: Columbus, Adams, Illinois; Roll: M653_155; Page: 607; Image: 263; Family History Library Film: 803155.
  6. Ancestry.com. 1870 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2009. Images reproduced by FamilySearch.  Year: 1870; Census Place: Burton, Adams, Illinois; Roll: M593_186; Page: 16B; Image: 41; Family History Library Film: 545685.
  7. “Illinois, County Marriages, 1810-1934”, database, FamilySearch(https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X2T8-6HQ : accessed 21 January 2016), Milton K Johnson and Ellen Jacobs, 1855.
  8. Ancestry.com and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 1880 United States Federal Census[database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2010. 1880 U.S. Census Index provided by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints © Copyright 1999 Intellectual Reserve, Inc.  Year: 1880; Census Place: Burton, Adams, Illinois; Roll: 174; Family History Film: 1254174; Page: 23B; Enumeration District: 002; Image: 0048.
  9. “Mary Catherine Wiseheart Jacobs (1808 – 1887).” Find A Grave. R. Dennis Jacobs, 21 May 2014. Web. 19 Jan. 2016. Find A Grave Memorial# 130137820.

 

Mary Catherine and America Christina

Posted on by under Documents, Family History, Genealogy, Jacobs Family, Marriage, Research Process, Wiseheart Family

A distant cousin contacted me recently to see if I had any idea what happened to Price Jacobs.  I looked through my records and I don’t have much on him.  Now, I’m one of those people that can’t stand an unsolved mystery, so it’s been bugging me.  I haven’t been very concerned with Price, as he’s a collateral for me, but now I would like to know what happened to him.  Of course, this means researching more than just his death.

My grandparents’ pedigree chart lists Price as having married Mary Catherine Wiseheart, so I started there.  It turns out, their marriage is a little bit confusing.  I first looked on Ancestry to see what I could turn up.  I found a record for Price Jacobs and Mary E. Wiseheart, married on December 29, 1825 in Jefferson County, Kentucky.1  Then, I found a record for Price Jacobs and Christena Wisehart, married on August 13, 1827 in Shelby County, Kentucky.2  According to my grandparents’ information, Mary Catherine had a sister named America Christina.

I considered the possibility that Mary Catherine died and Price remarried to her sister, but based on their children’s ages, that just isn’t possible.  I managed to find an image of the written consent given by John Wiseheart.  He does indeed give permission for Christena to marry.

Christina Wisehart permission to marry

Consent in writing for Christena Wisehart to marry Price Jacobs, given by John Wisehart. August 13, 1827.

I decided to look for America’s marriage, thinking that might shed some light on things.  I found that she married Peter Shrote, Jr. on December 20, 1834 in Jefferson County, Kentucky.3  I then looked up the record for Price in the same book series.  It showed that he and Mary Catherine applied for a license, with John’s consent, on December 29, 1825, but there is not marriage date.4  Possibly, Price and Mary Catherine married two years later in Shelby County, but I still have no idea why the consent says Christena.  Perhaps John was confused.

I’m hoping to come across something that will clear this all up as I continue to research Price Jacobs and family.

Sources

  1. Dodd, Jordan. Kentucky Marriages, 1802-1850 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 1997.
  2. “Kentucky, County Marriages, 1797-1954”, database with images, FamilySearch(https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QKJ9-21QC : accessed 13 January 2016), Price Jacobs and Christena Wisehart, 1827.
  3. The Filson Club, Incorporated. Jefferson County, Virginia-Kentucky, Early Marriages. Vol. 2. Owensboro, KY: McDowell Publications, 1980. Print.p. 113.
  4. The Filson Club, Incorporated. Jefferson County, Virginia-Kentucky, Early Marriages. Vol. 1. Owensboro, KY: McDowell Publications, 1980. Print.p. 189.

Viola Browning: The Traveler (52 Ancestors #47)

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

This week’s ancestor isn’t in my direct line.  She’s my half third great aunt, my third great grandfather’s daughter from his second marriage.  I took an interest in her simply because of an interesting document I came across.

As I was going through one of my grandparents’ boxes of papers, I found a stack with surnames I didn’t recognize:  Hite, Dell, Ringold, Orr.  I hate it when I can’t connect people, so I set to work.  My first clue was a death record for Viola Browning Hite Dell, the daughter of Daniel Browning and “unknown.”

Daniel’s wife, Ossian, has always been a mystery.  Thinking that Viola might lead me to more information on Ossian made me want to continue to pursue this lead.  The next document was a copy of a passport with a photo.  This was the first time I had come across a non-traditional source and I was very excited.  The copy is poor, but I was able to make out the information.

Browning, Viola - Passport

Passport for Viola Browning Hite, 1920.

Further research revealed that Viola was not Ossian’s daughter, but Daniel’s daughter with his second wife, Nancy Catherine Ringold.1  This was a clue as to what happened to Ossian and when.  I followed that lead, and then I came back to Viola.  I wondered what else I could find on her.

Melvina Viola Browning was born on August 22, 1878 in Jefferson County, Kentucky.1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,12,13  Her parents were Daniel and Nancy Catherine (Ringold) Browning.1,13  Viola married William Marders Hite in 1898.2,3,4  They had one daughter together, Clara M.2,3  William died on March 3, 1917 of myocarditis.4

In March of 1920, Viola applied for a passport, with the purpose of traveling to Holland.6  She received her passport the next week and did go to Holland.7  Viola returned from Rotterdam in June of 1920 on the S.S. Noordam.8

Passenger Ships and Images, N Noordam 1902-1923

S.S. Noordam

New York, Passenger Lists, 1820-1957, Roll T715, 1897-1957 2001-3000 Roll 2785

Passenger list for S.S. Noordam, 9 June 1920.

Some time after her return, Viola moved in with her daughter and son-in-law, Clara and Luther Wetherby.9  By 1940, she was living on her own again and had taken in a boarder.10

Shortly after that, Viola moved to Florida.  She married James W. Dell in Pinellas County, Florida in 1949.11  Viola died on November 12, 1963 in St. Petersburg, Florida.  She was buried in Pleasant Grove Baptist Church Cemetery in Pleasant Grove, Kentucky.13

Sources

  1. Ancestry.com. 1880 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004.  Year: 1880; Census Place: Boston, Jefferson, Kentucky; Page: 4D; Enumeration District:0089.
  2. Ancestry.com. 1900 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004.  Year: 1900; Census Place: Middletown, Jefferson, Kentucky; Roll: 533; Page: 11A; Enumeration District:0147; 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: Anchorage, Jefferson, Kentucky; Roll: T624_483; Page: 5B; Enumeration District:0001; FHL microfilm: 1374496.
  4. Ancestry.com. Kentucky, Death Records, 1852-1963 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007.
  5. 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: Middletown, Jefferson, Kentucky; Roll: T625_577; Page: 4A; Enumeration District:7; Image: 663.
  6. Ancestry.com. U.S. Passport Applications, 1795-1925 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2007.  National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); Washington D.C.; NARA Series: Passport Applications, January 2, 1906 – March 31, 1925; Roll #: 1120; Volume #: Roll 1120 – Certificates: 1500-1875, 26 Mar 1920-26 Mar 1920.
  7. Passport. 26 Mar. 1920. Viola Browning Hite. Copy in My Possession, New Albany, Indiana.
  8. Ancestry.com. New York, Passenger Lists, 1820-1957 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010.Year: 1920; Arrival: New York, New York; Microfilm Serial: T715, 1897-1957; Microfilm Roll: Roll 2785; Line:12; Page Number: 49.
  9. Ancestry.com. 1930 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2002.  Year: 1930; Census Place: District 1, Jefferson, Kentucky; Roll: 752; Page: 10A; Enumeration District: 0184; Image: 212.0; FHL microfilm: 2340487.
  10. Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.  Year: 1940; Census Place: Jefferson, Kentucky; Roll: T627_1320; Page: 9A; Enumeration District: 56-15.
  11. Ancestry.com.  Florida Marriage Indexes, 1822-1875 and 1927-2001 [database on-line].  Provo, UT, USA:  Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2006.
  12. Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015.
  13. Florida Office of Vital Statistics. Certificate of Death. 13 Nov. 1963. Viola Browning Hite Dell. Copy in My Possession, New Albany, Indiana.

 

John Wiseheart: Which John Are You? (52 Ancestors #40)

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

I’ve been trying to source the Wiseheart line on the pedigree chart that my grandma gave me.  It’s been very difficult.  I can get it back to my third great grandfather, but proving his connection to the man that I believe is his father is, so far, impossible.  The pedigree chart says that my fourth great grandfather is John Wiseheart (1775-1837), who was married to Catharine Razor (1787-1850).  John was born in Pennsylvania.1

Here’s where my biggest problem comes in.  There were two John Wisehearts (or Wisehart) born in Pennsylvania in 1775, at least.  But of the the two I’ve come across, is he John, son of John, son of John, or John, son of Hans Nicholas, son of Henrich?  The only thing I’ve been able to find for John Wiseheart and Catherine Razor is a marriage record, which does not give his father’s name.

The only thing I have been able to find about John is that he married Catharine Razor in Jefferson County, Kentucky on October 9, 1798.1,2,3  According to the transcription on Ancestry.com, Catharine was born in 1787, which would have made her eleven years old.1  Now, this isn’t totally unheard of, but it seems highly unlikely to me, as the print index done by The Filson Historical Society does not list consent given.  That would have been a requirement for an eleven-year-old.  Having read some old handwriting myself, I think it’s far more likely that a 6 looked like an 8 or a 1 looked like a 7, or some combination thereof.  John Razor was the bondsman.3  Perhaps trying to find John Razor and Catharine Razor on a record together will yield some information.

In the end, all I really know about John Wiseheart is that his wedding anniversary is in two days.

Sources

  1. Yates Publishing. U.S. and International Marriage Records, 1560-1900 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004.  Source number: 4178.015; Source type: Family group sheet, FGSE, listed as parents; Number of Pages: 1.
  2. Dodd, Jordan. Kentucky Marriages, 1802-1850 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 1997.
  3. Dawson, Nelson L., ed. Jefferson County, Virginia-Kentucky, Early Marriages, Book I, 1781-July, 1826. Owensboro, KY: Cook-McDowell Publications, 1980. Print. p. 32.