Tag Archives: William Henry Wiseheart

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.

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.