Ancestor Alley

Elisha Boucher, Loving Father

2011-12-18T00:01:00.000-08:00

Elisha Boucher was born in Clay County (now Laurel County and home of the Colonel Sanders Cafe), Kentucky (A) on 18 December 1821. His parents were William and Mary Anna Gray Boucher. William was from Virginia. In 1830, he was listed on the census for London Post Office, Kentucky. Since the Wilderness Road passed directly through London, it was a gathering place for homes, stores, churches, the post office, and a local blacksmith shop.

1830 was the year Congress passed the Indian Removal Act authorizing the federal government to relocate the Indian tribes, moving them west of the Mississippi into the designated Indian Territory in Oklahoma and parts of Kansas and Nebraska. In the fall and winter of 1838-39, Cherokees of the Tennessee River area were marched to their new location along a 1200-mile route appropriately called the Trail of Tears, or in their language, "nunna-da-ul-tsun-yi," translated, "the place where they cried." In Meigs County, Tennessee, some traveled by riverboat or steamboat, and avoided the dreaded Trail of Tears.

When the Cherokee lands became available for settlement, William took advantage of the opportunity. On the 1840 census, he and his family were living in Meigs County, Tennessee (B). They may have traveled down the Wilderness Road and through the Cumberland Gap, their wagons loaded with their possessions. William's sister, Elizabeth, and her husband, Joseph McSpadden, were also living along the Tennessee. At the time, Elisha was nineteen, Gadi was sixteen, Nancy was thirteen, Kiziah was eleven, Robert was eight, John was six, and Temperance was just four.

Elisha married Hester McClanahan on 6 Nov 1845, probably in Meigs County or a nearby county in Tennessee. They had four children- Anna Jane, born 23 August 1846; William Robert, born 21 February 1848; Amanda Malvina born August 1852; and Samuel White, born 22 April 1854. Samuel is our ancestor.

In 1850, Elisha and Hester were living next door to his parents, William and Anna. It is interesting that he named his first two children Anna Jane and William. On the 1860 Limestone, Meigs County census, Elisha was still living next door to William. Elisha's personal property was valued at $375, while William had property worth $2000 and personal property of $942. It appears that William owned the land and they worked together to farm it. Since elementary education began in Meigs County in the 1830's the children had the advantage of a basic education. Religion was either Methodist or Baptist, and the Bouchers favored the Methodists.

Elisha served in the Union Army during the Civil War. He was a corporal of Captain James L. Duncan's Company, Fifth Regiment of the Tennessee Infantry Volunteers. He enrolled on 1 April 1862 and was discharged on 11 May 1865 at Nashville, Tennessee. His papers list his birthplace as Laurel County, Kentucky. He was five feet nine inches tall and had a fair complexion, blue eyes, and dark hair. He was a farmer when he enrolled in the military. Elisha's brothers also enlisted. Elisha was not a young man, but a family man in his middle years, who had to leave his home and family to serve.

When the war ended, Meigs County was like a desert wasteland. Being on the Tennessee River, both armies had marched back and forth regularly, using up all the resources available. Farms were vacant, lands uncultivated, and large numbers of families left to find a better place to live. Even the fences were gone, having provided firewood for camping troops.What the Bouchers had, were their men back, all of them.

On 24 February 1867, Elisha's daughter Anna Jane, married Joseph Romine in Bradley County, next door to Meigs County. He was also a native of Meigs County.

On 26 April 1870, Elisha deeded 135 acres of land in Meigs County to Robert Boucher. Then he took his family who were still living at home and joined a wagon train to Missouri. They started their trip on May 2nd. Along the way, he wrote letters to his children in Tennessee, telling them of the trip and encouraging them to also move to Missouri so that the family could remain together. He had a good team and wagon, and the resources, probably from the sale of his land, to pay the necessary fees and costs along the way. Their destination was Howell County, Missouri, where Joseph and Hannah McClanahan Bracket lived. Hannah was a sister of his wife, Hester. One such letter was written on 15 May from Sumner County, Tennessee and is included here. Punctuation and capitalization have been added for easier reading, but the spelling is as he wrote it.

Dear son and daughter, with pleasur I take the present opportunity of writing you a few lines to let you know that we are well at present, hoping these few lines may reach you and find you all well and doing well. We started the 2nd day of May. We have been hindered some on the way. There is 7 waggons in our train. Miller has 4 and George Russel one, Martin Turner one and me one. We are 9 miles past Galiton on the Red River road. My expences has been more than I expected. Turnpikage cost me 25 cts evry 5 mile. I paid 435 turnpikes, feed for my team cost about 125 cts per day, beside the family. We travel from 14 to 18 miles a day. The fore part of las week was very wet. We got our thing wet. We are resting to day and suning our things that is wet.
Well I want you to write us and direct your letter to Joseph Brackett, West Plains PO, Howel Co, Misouri so we can hear from you as soon as we get there. We expect to stop in Howel Co and look at the country. If we like and can get land to suit us we will stop there. If not we will go further.
Well Jo, I want you and Jane to not go to any expence to fix for housekeeing untell you find out how things is in Misouri. If I like in MO I want you to come. Billy will come. Harry and Manda says they will come next fall. I want all my children together where I can see them once more. That is one cause of my sellout and move. It is ahard toil on me and Hetty.
We have 2 good yoke of young steers and a good waggon. We are getting along tollerable well. Will rest evry Sunday if we can get feed for our stock so we can stay. I wrote to Mandy last Sunday.
Well Jane, your mother is taking a great toil on herself to try to get to her children. Says she don't know how she can stand it tell fall and not see you and the children and Billy, but I don't see any chance for her to see you before fall. I will not have money enough to bear my expence further than Misouri. I will write to you when I get to MO and I will tell you what I think that country.
If I have no bad luck and you want to come to us I will come after you with my waggon. I have a good cover and tent cloth so we can sleep dry of a wet night. Write soon as you get this. I want to hear from you as soon as we get to Jo Bracket's. So I must close for this time. I have to write a letter to Billy to day.
Elisha & Hester Boucher to Jo & A. J. Romines-
Show this to Fate and Frank."

Elisha died on 14 March 1871 in Missouri. On the 1876 state census, his wife, Hester, was living with her son, Samuel. All of their children did come to Missouri. Joseph and Anna Jane Romine had six children and eventually settled in Willow Springs, Howell, Missouri. Amanda and Harrison Hickman, who were neighbors in Tennessee, married on 20 March 1870 in Missouri. They were living near Hester on the 1876 census in Texas County, Missouri (C). They had a large family of nine children and settled in Crawford County, Missouri.

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William married Alberta Moore on 17 March 1878 in Texas County and they had three children. And Samuel married Rossea Whitlock on 27 May 1877, also in Texas County. She was a divorced woman with a daughter named Pearl. They had three sons, one of them our ancestor, Arthur; and also ended up in Willow Springs. So Elisha had his wish to have all of his children around him. As did Hester, who died on 23 May 1879. Of his four children, three named a son Elisha.

Joseph Sealy of Chudleigh

2011-12-12T00:10:00.000-08:00

This is taken from the 1851 census for Chudleigh, Devonsire, England,

Joseph Sealey, head, married, 73, Chelsea pensioner, born Chudleigh, Devon; Elizabeth, wife, age 79, born at Hennock; William Bolt, son-in-law, age 52, house servant, born Powderham; Sarah Bolt, daughter, age 51, dressmaker, born Chudleigh; John Sealy Bolt, grandson, unmarried, age 25, journeyman carpenter, born Chudleigh; Mary Ann Bolt, granddaughter, unmarried, age 16, at home, born Chudleigh; William Bolt, grandson, age 11, scholar, born Chudleigh.

Census records like this are a treasure because they tie people together. From this record we learn where Joseph and his wife, Elizabeth were born. That is helpful for further research. We also find out about his daughter, Sarah, and her family. There are three generations living together in this household! Their address was 15 Culver Street.

Parish records tell us that Joseph was born 12 December 1779 and christened on 10 January 1780. His parents were Philip and Grace Sealy. He had at least one sibling, a sister named Betty. While we don't know when he died, we do know that it was after the 1851 census. Since Sarah was born in 1800, we can estimate Joseph and Elizabeth's marriage at 1799. Not having an actual marriage record, we do not know her maiden name. It is likely they were married at her home of Hennock, but it could also have been at Chudleigh, it being a "thriving metropolis." The distance between these two places is a staggering 3.5 miles, Hennock being on the west side of the River Teign, and Chudleigh on the east. Hennock is a small moorland village, recorded in the Domesday Book, and situated just inside the SE edge of the Dartmoor National Park, with tremendous views over the rolling countryside. Chudleigh was featured in an earlier post in September.

John Pinder

2011-11-26T00:01:00.000-08:00

Our last known November birthday is that of John Pinder, the son of Joseph Pinder and Ann Ryel. His christening took place at Doncaster, Yorkshire, England on 26 November 1788, just a little over a year after his parents were married, also at Doncaster. He had a younger brother and sister, Noah and Mary.

On 31 October 1808, he married Jane Butter or Butler. Together they raised a large family at Doncaster, where all of the children were christened. They were John, Joseph, Thomas, Sarah, Sarah, Norah, George and Harriett. There was another John Pinder at Doncaster with a wife named Jane, but with a different surname. It could be the same Jane, or not. This needs to be sorted out.

And that's all we know. If you look at other postings for Yorkshire, you can get a feel for the area and its beauty.

Matthew Gourd of Liskeard in Cornwall

2011-11-17T00:01:00.000-08:00

Liskeard (Cornish: Lys Kerwyd or Lyskerrys), pronounced Lis-KARD, is an old stannery (tin mining) and market town, lying at the head of the River Looe Valley. This description is found at Cornwall-online, "To the north west of Liskeard lies the windswept uplands of Bodmin Moor, a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The moors, shrouded in mist and mystery, hold abundant clues for those who want to delve into the past - burial chambers and holy wells, giant stones and Bronze Age settlements, decayed mine-workings and disused quarries. When you visit the moors you are retreading the footsteps of Neolithic man, of Cornish Kings, and of the thousands of miners who once worked the area." Liskeard was granted its market charter by Richard, Earl of Cornwall (brother of Henry III) in 1240. It was an ancient place long before Matthew Gourd, the son of Sampson and his wife, Jane Calloway, was christened on 17 November 1758. There is still a traditional weekly market in Liskeard today.

Matthew married Elizabeth Parker on 1 April 1779 at Christow, Devonshire, England, her birthplace. Their marriage record states, "Mathew Gourd of the Burrough of Liskeard in the County of Cornwall Gardiner & Elizabeth Parker of this Parish Spinster were married in this Church by Licence this first day of April 1779 by me William Hill Curate." Matthew and Elizabeth both signed the record. Witnesses were Richard Parker, Elizabeth Balle and William Roleston.

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Christow is located 54 miles NE of Liskeard, and on the other side of the Dartmoor area, now a National Park. When I look at the map, I wonder, "Which way did they go?" Did they go north or south around the area, or straight through, which would have decreased the distance they had to travel, but may have been a more difficult trip.

Matthew and Elizabeth had a large family that included Mary, William, Betsey, Sampson, John Parker, Matthew, Matthew, and Jane. All of the children were christened at Liskeard, where the family made their home, except the last two. Matthew and Jane were christened at Linkinhorne, just nine miles NE of Liskeard. Linkinhorne has a very nice parish history site. There is a medieval church at Linkinhorne. There are also some ancient wall paintings of "The Seven Works of Mercy," considered to be some of the best. There is also a nice introduction to English Medieval Wall Painting. They don't have anything to do with Matthew and Elizabeth unless you consider that they may have been interested in them, because they would have been interesting then, as well as now.

As stated in his marriage record, Matthew made his living as a gardener. Matthew's son, John Parker, is our ancestor.

Joel Shirley Locke, Sign Painter

2011-11-04T00:01:00.000-07:00

Joel Shirley Locke was born in Minneapolis, Hennepin, Minnesota on 4 November 1886. He was named Joel after his grandfather, but his family called him Shirley. His parents were Charles L. Locke and Mittie Alice B. Duffy. He had an older brother, John Henry, who was about two when he was born. When Joel was two years old, his only sister, Jessie Alice, was born. She lived just one year. Then in 1891, Marion Damon was born. The family lived at Annandale in Wright County, Minnesota at the time. In 1899 when Joel was thirteen, his mother died in Minneapolis. On the 1900 census he was a student at the Minnesota State Training School at Red Wing, Goodhue, Minnesota. It was about 54 miles SE of Minneapolis, where his father lived and worked. That may have been a difficult time for him, having lost his mother and being away from home.

Joel married Dorothy Alice Procter on 19 February 1919. He was 32 years old and fourteen years older than Dorothy. They lived in Portland, Oregon, and drove the bridge across the Columbia River to Vancouver, Clark, Washington to be married. They had two sons while living in Portland, Ray and David. The photo of Joel and Dorothy with Ray was taken in 1920 at Multnomah Falls. In about 1924, Joel and Dorothy divorced. Joel took Ray, the older of the two boys and not yet five years old, and moved to Tacoma, Pierce, Washington. David stayed in Portland with his mother.

In the above photo, Ray is sitting in the car. Notice the logo for "Locke and Keys Signs" on the side of the vehicle. The photo at the right shows three generations--C. L. Locke (Joel's father), Ray, and Joel. Double click on the photo for a better look.

In 1925 Joel married briefly, and it must have been a mistake from the beginning. The marriage was so short that Ray didn't even know about it. On the 1930 census Joel was 42 years old and living in a boarding house in Tacoma. He was a sign painter. Ray, aged ten, was living in another boarding house with a widow named May Greenleaf, who took care of him. It being during the Great Depression, times could be difficult. At one point Joel went to California to try to get work in Long Beach. While he was there, they had an earthquake. It was so upsetting to him that he returned to Tacoma and stayed there. As an adult, Ray remembered that when times were good, their needs were met; but when Joel was out of work, they suffered. Joel did his best to provide for Ray. This is a good look at father and son together. It was just the two of them for many years.

Joel married Ruth Elinor Anderson on 5 January 1933 in Port Orchard, Kitsap, Washington. It was her first marriage. They had one son, Daniel, in 1934.

Each summer Joel took his boys to eastern Washington to Soap Lake. That was something everyone enjoyed. He loved his children, and kept an album of their times together. This is Ray, Dan, and David together on one of their Soap Lake vacations. The handwriting is Joel's.

This picture shows Joel, at the right, when he was older. He is with his son, Ray, who is my father. Joel died on 22 January 1943 in Tacoma. He is buried in the Old Tacoma Cemetery.

The Many Lives of Dorothy

2011-10-31T00:01:00.000-07:00

My grandmother, Dorothy Procter, was small, with dark hair and eyes. She lived in Portland, Oregon when I was a girl and we visited her regularly. The rest of her family always remarked that I looked just like her. I am not so sure about that, except for the small and dark part. In their British way, they called her Dor-o-thy, in three separate syllables. It seems as though her life was lived in separate sections or phases, hence the title of this memory of her.

This is a picture of where her family lived in 1900. I am told that it would have been a very nice home at the time. She was born in York, Yorkshire, England on 31 October 1900 to John Procter and Emily Gourd, his wife. York has an interesting history extending back to Roman times, and Yorkshire is considered to be the "greenest" area in England. It is an area of beautiful landscapes, castles and abbeys, and was an independent Viking kingdom for a time; all of these things giving it a rich and interesting history. Since Dorothy was born in 1900, that part was over by the time she arrived on the scene. To see some photos of the city of York, click here.

Dorothy's family immigrated to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada sometime between 1909 and 1913. In addition to Dorothy, the children at that time were Walter, Percy, Gert, Cecil, and Berniece. While the family was living in Canada, Doug was born in 1913. Shortly after that they moved to Portland, Multnomah, Oregon, where her father worked as a printer. Her sister, Evelyn Maud was born there in 1915. They certainly picked beautiful places to live. This is a picture of Dorothy, Gert, and Berniece (Lu) with their mother, Emily.

Dorothy married Joel Shirley Locke on 19 February 1919. They crossed the Columbia River to Vancouver, Clark, Washington to be married. He was fourteen years older than his new wife. They had two sons, Ray and David, while living in Portland. Ray, my father, is our ancestor.

In about 1924, Joel and Dorothy divorced. Ray moved to Tacoma, Pierce, Washington with his father and David stayed in Portland with his mother. This is a picture of Dorothy with her mother and David.

She sent pictures to Ray and wrote notes on the back of them. It is hard to see since it was written in pencil, but it shows her handwriting, and also something she did to maintain contact with her son.

Dorothy was briefly married to Ralph Lucas. She next married Earl Moses, to whom she was married for fifteen years. Earl was eleven years older than Dorothy. In this photo Dorothy and Earl, at the right, are with her sister, Gert, and her husband, Frank Lamb.

In her later years, Dorothy married Dwight Skaggs, who I knew as Little Grandpa. I think they were married by 1950. He was very good to her, particularly at the end of her life when she was sick. She was an alcoholic who died from complications associated with that.

Each Christmas she sent us a pair of knitted gloves. I remember her sitting on her couch with blankets wrapped around her legs. They lived at Milwaukee, outside of Portland. And there we are, my brother and me, with our "Little Grandma." She died on 9 January 1955.

Mary Potbury of Powderham

2011-10-29T00:01:00.000-07:00

Powderham has an interesting history, complete with a castle, and was mentioned in the Domesday Book. The Devon Library has a nice map and description of Powderham.

On 29 October 1769, Mary Northam Potbury, "base child" of Sarah, was baptized. The significance of this entry is that Mary was illegitimate. Her mother was 32 years old when she was born and no record of a marriage for her mother has been found. She was born at Powderham, Devon, England. She married William Bolt there on 4 October 1797. They remained in Powderham where they had four children named William, Thomas, Ann and Martha. William is our ancestor.

Mary grew up in the shadow of this castle. Castle owners, the Courtenay family of her time, had a large family of 13 girls and one son. It is unlikely that Mary had contact with this family, whose life is so well documented, unlike her own. In fact, we know more about the castle than we do about Mary!

Mary Jane Robbins

2011-10-27T15:06:00.000-07:00

Mary Jane was born 15 Oct 1827/1829 in Ohio or New Jersey, depending on which record you choose to use as a source. It's probably a toss up since she could have been born in New Jersey and grown up in Ohio, or her parents were from New Jersey and she was born after their move to Ohio.

Many of the Robbins people who lived in that area were from New Jersey. You would think that would make the job easier, but that's not the case. When I found a Robbins will listing a daughter named Jane Lock, I was thrilled, thinking I had found my girl with her parents. Nevertheless, I persisted in investigating since there was also an Alvis Lock married to a Jane. You know what happened. I proved that that Jane was the Jane who was married to Alvis. And I still don't know who Mary Jane's parents are.

She married William F. Lock on 19 August 1947 in Randolph County, Indiana, which is at the Indiana-Ohio border, making it more difficult to search for records since both states have to be considered.

In August of 1850, the little family, including their two baby daughters, was living in Somers, Preble, Ohio, about forty miles SE of Randolph County. This census enumeration explains Sarah Caroline's birthplace of Ohio. All of the other children were born in Randolph County, Indiana. Finding this particular census opens the possibility that Mary Jane's family was from Preble County. Levi Lock, who was living with them, does not appear again, so he remains a mystery at this time. He is a clue, waiting to be discovered.
William F. Lock, age 23, M, laborer, NC; Mary, age 19, F, NJ; Margaret, age 1, F, IN; Sarah, age 4/12, F, OH; Levi Lock, age 17, M, IN.

By November, they were back in Randolph County and were living in Greens Fork, the township located in the most SE corner of the county.

William F. Lock, age 21, M, wagon maker, NC; Mary A. Lock, age 21, F, OH; Margaret Lock, age 2, F, IN; Caroline Lock, age 5/12, F, IN.

In 1860, the family had grown again, and they were living in Washington, just five miles west of Greens Fork.

William F. Lock, age 32, M, blacksmith, /$100, NC; Mary J. Lock, age 32, F, NJ; Margaret A. Lock, age 12, F, IN; Sarah C. Lock, age 10, F, IN; Alvis M. Lock, age 8, M, IN; Joel J. Lock, age 4, M, IN; Charles H. Lock, age 2, M, IN.

Sometimes you wonder why people said what they said to census enumerators. They lied about all kinds of things, or were careless in their responses. The enumerators were also a mixed group, some being meticulous in their entries, and others hurrying along and making mistakes. Did Mary Jane list her birthplace as Ohio in 1850 because she had most recently come from there? When in Ohio did she say New Jersey because that's where her family lived previously? Who knows! Who knows!

By 1870, their family was complete, and several of the children had already left home. They were still living in Washington.

Wm. F. Locke, age 49, M, blacksmith, $150/50, NC; Mary J. Locke, age 38, F, W, keeps house, NJ; Joel J. Locke, age 13, M, IN; Charles M. Locke, age 11, M, IN; William F. Locke, age 8, M, IN; Sherman Locke, age 5, M, IN; Minna Locke, age 3, F, IN.

Mary Jane died on 14 November 1872 and was buried at New Liberty Cemetery in Lynn. Since they stayed in the same area for the entire life of their marriage, we have a picture of them every ten years. What we do not have is personal information about Mary Jane. We do not know her parents' names, her brothers and sisters, what she liked to do with her time, or even how she looked. We know her as a wife and as a mother. She was the mother of eight children and her household would have reflected that. They were not wealthy people, so she probably did all of her own housework while raising her children. Thus, her short life was a busy one.

The Pinder Procter Connection

2011-10-13T00:01:00.000-07:00

If you look for Yorkshire histories at the left, you will see that there is a nice description of Doncaster and a good map of the places Sarah Pinder lived under the posting for her husband, John Procter, who she married on 6 September 1841 at Rotherham, a good place to go to be married because of its many churches.

John Pinder and his wife, Jane Butter, are credited with two daughters named Sarah. This normally happened when the older child died and the parents used the name again when another child of the same gender was born. In this case, the two Sarah's ages are two years apart. The first was christened on 13 October 1819, and the second on 24 January 1821, both at Doncaster. Normally, one would assume that the first Sarah was deceased. In this case, the Sarah who married John Procter was 32 years old on the 1851 census for Doncaster, setting her birth at 1819. Both of the christening dates were extracted from church records by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. There could actually be two Sarahs or just one, with different christening dates recorded. One could be a correction. Or, these two girls could have had different names, but one was recorded incorrectly. We cannot know. But we do know when Sarah Pinder married John Procter and that she is a grandmother for us. And we further know that she was the daughter of her parents, John and Jane.

Sarah's married life matches that of her husband as follows--

On 6 September 1841, John married Sarah Pinder, the daughter of John Pinder and Jane Butler, his wife. They married at Rotherham, located about thirteen miles SW of Doncaster. That would have been a big trip for them. Their first son, Henry, was born in 1842 at Cantley, which is about three miles east of Doncaster. John is our grandfather, six generations back for my children. Their five other children were born at Doncaster, where they made their home for the rest of their lives. Their four girls were M. (name unknown), Jane, Mary Ann, and Lucy. Their last child was John, born in 1859, which is about the time Sarah died, perhaps in childbirth.

Sarah, if she was born in 1819, would have been about 40 years old when she died. She had a relatively short life, proving once again, that childbearing was a perilous business in earlier times.

Bennett Murray of Fredericktown, Missouri

2011-10-05T00:01:00.000-07:00

I devoted many research years to Bennett Murray. It was complicated by the existence of several other men of the same name. One, in particular, lived in an adjoining county and was about the same age as our Bennett. His descendants had a story about his parentage. It was that his father "crossed the river" and married his mother. Then he "went back across the river" to his own people and did not return. So his mother named him Bennett Murray after his father. This implies that Bennett Murray was also his father's name. I've never found anything to indicate the reality of this story, nor do I have any reason to doubt it either. These two Bennett Murrays could even be half brothers in the whole scheme of things; or they could be cousins. Since I have had no luck in locating Bennett's father, it remains a mystery waiting to be solved.

According to Lota Murray Campbell's family Bible, our Bennett Murray was born 5 October 1820 in Fredericktown, Madison, Missouri. Missouri was acquired from the French in 1803 through the Louisiana Purchase. Missouri became a territory in 1812 and a state in 1821, so this was truly the frontier at the time. Sometime in the 1950's, Lota Murray Campbell received a letter from another branch of the family who wanted to exchange information. Unfortunately, that never happened and the letter didn't have anything in it to identify this family. Family tradition is that he was from a large family of brothers who were divided in their loyalties at the time of the Civil War. It is unfortunate that we do not have an 1820 census for Missouri. It might have helped us sort these people out. The state of Missouri has a nice historical timeline.

Bennett's Volunteer Enlistment into the Civil War contained many facts pertinent to his life. It was made at Rolla, Phelps, Missouri on the 6th day of August in 1862. He stated that he was forty years old and a farmer. He was five feet eleven inches tall and had gray eyes and dark hair. He was a man in his forties who was leaving his family to fight a war; not for choice, but for duty.

When he applied for his pension in 1898, he listed his marriages on the application. He was first married to Mary J. Barnes in Madison County, he said 1840. The day book of the Reverend Elias White sets the date at 8 June 1845. She died the next year. Mary Jane was the daughter of Samuel and Mary Barnes from North Carolina.

Bennett's second marriage was to Susan Perkins, and he noted that she died November, 1845, also in Madison County. In actuality, their marriage was recorded in Washington County, Missouri on 6 July 1848. Their daughter Sarah A. Murray, was born 4 November 1850. It is obvious that Susan died from complications related to the birth of their daughter. Efforts to locate Bennett on the 1850 census have not been successful. There is one possibility for Susan's parents, but it is also uncertain at this time.

At this point, Bennett was a young father who had lost two wives to death, and now had a small baby daughter. It appears he had his share of grief. His third marriage was to Olive Wood. His pension papers list the date of 10 January 1846, with a notation that she died in July, 1882. That cannot be right since Sarah was born in 1850 and Olive, age 17, was living with her parents on the 1850 census. This date has also been adjusted to accommodate other information available to us. The accepted date of their marriage is 10 January 1851, just after Susan's death. Bennett gets credit for remembering the day correctly, and the year has been adjusted based on the birth of Sarah and the 1850 census enumeration for Olive.

Bennett and Olive raised a large family of boys in addition to baby Sarah. Our ancestor, John Lewis, born 13 June 1854, was the oldest. His brothers were Francis Marion, James Henry, Bennett, Thomas Franklin, William Elisha and Ora. All of the boys were born in Missouri, except James Henry, who was born in Arkansas. That's interesting because there were Murrays living in Arkansas with similar family names. It may be that they were with some of their extended family at the time since tradition says some of them were in Arkansas, and their Missouri home was not farm from the border between Missouri and Arkansas.

In 1859 Bennett purchased land in Dent County, Missouri, about 85 miles west of their home town of Fredericktown. That is where his family lived during the Civil War. As was mentioned previously, Bennett enlisted in the Union Army on 6 August 1862. His military service was outlined by Herbert Campbell. He was enrolled at Benton Barracks, near St. Louis, Missouri, in Captain Joe Davis' Company on 20 October of that same year. He was paid $2 premium and $25 enlistment bounty. He served most of the time in Company C, 32nd Regiment, Missouri Infantry, and in Company D, Consolidated Battalion, 31st and 32nd Missouri Infantry. Bennett's regiment was in General Sherman's YAZOO Expedition from 22 December 1862 to 3 January, and in the assault and capture of Fort Hindeman, Arkansas Post, January 10-11. Bennett's regiment moved to Young's Point, Madison County, Louisiana about 15 miles from Vicksburg, Warren, Mississippi, and across the Mississippi River, with the Army of the Tennessee.

Bennett left camp on 20 March 1863, and apparently went home to see Bennett, Jr., who was born on January 25th of that year, and to help with the spring planting. He was placed on the Desertion List to the Provost General, dated 21 April 1863. He was arrested in May and taken to the Provost Marshall in Rolla, Missouri. From there he was sent to St. Louis, Missouri in the charge of Lt. White's Provost Guard on June 22nd. He returned to Company C, operating around Jackson, Hinds, Mississippi, and was with the Army on the Tennessee on 9 July. He was charged with desertion, "did desert said service on or about the 20 March 1863 at or near Youngs Point, Louisiana and remained absent from his command until on or about the 17th July 1863, at which time he voluntarily rejoined his command. Since which time he has been a good and obedient soldier," but was not court martialed until 1865. As was often the case, men would leave their duty to go home to take care of family business and then return to their service.

Bennett's regiment had nearly twenty times as many casualties from disease as from combat. This was undoubtedly due to lack of knowledge of proper sanitation and living and fighting along rivers and swamps. Bennett was admitted to USA Hospital Steamer, Charles McDougall on 5 September 1863 from Vicksburg with an intestinal fever. He was transferred 8 September to Overton USA General Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee with atrophy of the testicles. On 19 September, he was again transferred to USA Hospital Steamer, Memphis with mumps. On 23 September, he was transferred to the USA General Hospital, Jefferson barracks, near St. Louis, Missouri with a lame back. He returned to duty on 30 November. He was sick again on 22 December at Bridgeport, Alabama and admitted to Cumberland USA General Hospital in Nashville, Tennessee on 23 December 1863. The complaint was rheumatism, with an added diagnosis on inflamed bronchi. Following all of this illness, he was furloughed from 12 February to 14 March. He was then transferred to Brown USA General Hospital, Louisville, Kentucky on 15 April, with a diagnosis of chronic rheumatism. He was detailed to Ward 9 on 21 May, and returned to duty 8 October 1864.

After Bennett's return to duty, his regiment was in the operation against Confederate General Hood in northern Georgia and Alabama until 3 November. Due to losses, the 32nd Regiment was consolidated to a battalion of three companies and further consolidated with three companies, the 31st Missouri Infantry as consolidated Battalion 31st and 32nd Missouri Infantry. General Sherman instructed the army's surgeons to examine every man with a history of illness to be sure they would be able to make it all the way to Savannah, Georgia. No man was retained who was not capable of the long march. No one anticipated that the route would be to our nation's Capitol, over 1000 miles, and would require over six months. They crossed mountains, rivers, and swamps and fought numerous battles in General Sherman's March to the Sea, and in operations in the Carolinas and Virginia against Confederate General J. E. Johnston. (General Robert E. Lee surrendered 27,800 Confederate troops to General U. S. Grant at Appomattox Court House on 9 April.) General Johnston surrendered 31,200 troops to General Sherman on 18 April 1865, at Durham Station, North Carolina, ending the last major organized military resistance. (General E. K. Smith surrendered about 3000 west of the Mississippi on 26 May.) The Consolidated Battalion 31-32 regiment marched to Washington D. C. via Richmond, Virginia, (the Confederacy capitol until 2 April) from 29 April to 20 May. They marched in the Grand Review up Pennsylvania Avenue on 24 May 1864. They were moved to Louisville, Kentucky and redesignated the 32nd Missouri Infantry on 20 June.

Bennett was court martialed for desertion from March to July 1863 and punished with loss of pay for the period absent and pay was stopped for transportation in the amount of $11.50. An Act of Congress, approved on 5 July 1884, removed all unauthorized absence charges against soldiers who subsequently had good records. First Lieutenant Beverly A. David of Company C had entered on Bennett's charges that Bennett had voluntarily rejoined his command, "since which time he has been a good and obediant soldier." Bennett was mustered out of Company D, 32rd Regiment, Missouri Infantry on 18 July 1865 at Louisville, Kentucky. Pay due Bennett was $21. (for 20 1/2 months less the court martial) plus $75. for increased enlistment bounty which was approved during the war.

Bennett returned to his nearly destitute (due to military and guerrilla operations in the area) family in Norman, Dent, Missouri. His eldest son John L., later described Bennett as being covered with bandages because he healed slowly. He said they only had a cup of turnip seeds to plant the next spring. They farmed for several years before moving to Short Bend township. In 1880, Bennett and Olive were living in Short Bend, Dent, Missouri. James, Bennett, Thomas, Elisha and Orin were still living at home at the time. He listed his occupation as "collier" and his parents' birth states as being North Carolina. Olive died 3 July 1880 and is buried at the Sligo Cemetery, Sligo, Dent, Missouri.

There are two other marriage records for Bennett. He married Margaret McCoy on 5 November 1882. He married Millie Taff on 20 July 1884, both in Dent County. I have not done any research on these two events.

When he applied for his pension, he made his declaration on 17 October 1891. He was a resident of Licking, Texas, Missouri. He stated that he was honorably discharged at St. Louis on 22 July 1865. "He is now totally unable to earn a support by reason of disease of the eyes, disease of back result fallin of the mumps and disease of the heart. That said disabilities are not due to his vicious habits and are to the best of his knowledge and belief permanent." S. A. Mitchell and Josiah Bradford appeared to vouch for him at that time. The original declaration for his pension stated that he contracted mumps while serving at Vicksburg. His application approval was delayed for over twelve years because he had stated he became ill in July 1863. The legal reviewer recommended disapproval because he determined that the mumps was contracted during his period of desertion. Subsequently, medical records showed that the mumps was contracted in September, almost two months after his return. With his application finally approved, Bennett received for his service $12. a month, which was to be retroactive to 22 October 1891.

Leta Murray Boucher's memories of Bennett were when he was an old man and lived with their family for a time. He chewed tobacco and she had the unsavory job of washing his beard. She also remembered him listening for the children and taking his cane and trying to trip them when they ran past him. She made a face when she told about it. He also enjoyed shocking family members with his colorful language.

Bennett died on 25 March 1902 at Birchtree, Shannon, Missouri. The following appears in the Birch Tree Free Record on Friday, 28 March 1902- "Bennett Murray, commonly known as Grandpa Murray, died in Birch Tree at the home of his son, Bennett Murray Jr., last Tuesday and was laid to rest in the Baptist Cemetery, Wednesday. He was born in Tennessee and came to Fredericktown, Missouri in an early day, where he married Miss Ollie Wood, with whom he lived till death parted them, some twenty years ago. He was a professed Christian and a member of the Baptist church. He was a Union soldier and served his country faithfully for three years and four months, as a private soldier in Company C, 32 Missouri Volunteers. He was in his 83rd year and had been blind an invalid for several years. He leaves six sons and one daughter do mourn his departure."

Rossea Whitlock

2011-10-01T00:01:00.000-07:00

Rossea was the third child of George W. and Nancy Ann Whitlock. She was born on 1 October 1841, according to the Whitlock Family Bible. Her birthplace was not recorded next to the date, but was probably Indiana. It was listed as Ohio on the 1850 and 1860 census. After that, every census said it was Indiana. Since her step-mother was born in Ohio, this could explain the first two census references to Ohio. In 1840, Rossie's father was enumerated on the census at Sullivan County, Indiana. That's the place that has my vote. On later census records, other Whitlocks lived at Fairbanks (A). It is at the north of the county and next to the Wabash River that separates Indiana from Illinois.

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Her two older siblings were Abiah and Robert. When she was two years old Frances joined the little family. When Rossea was just five years old, her mother died on 2 November 1846. She would have naturally depended on her older sister Abiah, who was nine years old, to care for her at the death of their mother. Sadly, Abiah died on 15 March 1847, leaving the little family without a mother or a big sister. They were living at Canton, Fulton, Illinois (B) at the time. Canton is about 225 miles NW of Rossea's birthplace in Sullivan County, Indiana, and not far from the larger city of Peoria. Mother and daughter were buried next to each other at the Greenwood Cemetery in Canton. This must have been a difficult time for them.

Rossea's father provided another mother for the family shortly after that when he married Catherine Hilton on 12 September 1847. She appears as the mother of this family on the 1850 census, and if we did not have other sources, we would not know about Nancy Ann, the children's birth mother. They were living at Canton, and as you can see, George was a blacksmith with a fair amount of assets for the time.

Geo. W. Whitlock, age 35, M, blacksmith, $2000, VA; Catherine Whitlock, age 26, F, OH; Robert B. Whitlock, age 10, M, IN; Rossea H. Whitlock, age 8, F, OH; Frances E. Whitlock, age 6, F, IN.

On the 1860 census 18 year old Rossea was enumerated in the household of Hepalong Whitman. She could have worked there during the day, or been living with the family. She didn't marry until 23 February 1872, when she and Horatio Wellington traveled west 163 miles to Schuyler County, Missouri (C) and were married. Her husband was the brother of her sister Frances' husband, Horace. Their daughter, Pearl, was born that same year at Texas County, Missouri (D) where her parents now lived. The marriage didn't work out and by 1876, she was living with her parents and her daughter. Their neighbors were the Boucher family who came from Tennessee to Missouri in 1870.

Rossie married Samuel Boucher on 27 May 1877 in Texas County. She was 12 years older than her new husband. On the 1880 census they were living in Pierce, Texas, Missouri next door to her father, George Whitlock.

Sam Boucher, married, W, age 30, TN, farmer, TN, TN; Rossea, W, F, age 36, wife, housekeeper, IN, KY, IN; Luther, W, M, age 3, son, MO, TN, IN; Arthur, W, M, age 6/12, born Jan., son, MO, TN, IN.

Their three sons--Luther, Arthur, and Edward were each born two years apart beginning in 1878. Edward only lived for three years. By the time Edward died in 1885, the family had moved south 12 miles to Hutton Valley, Howell, Missouri.

Samuel died in 1897 at a cousin's home in what is now Chelsea County, Oklahoma, then Cherokee Lands. By this time Rossea and the boys had moved another five miles into the little town of Willow Springs, Howell, Missouri where the boys attended school. Rossie was listed there on the 1900 census.

Rossie Bousher, head, W, F, born Oct 1841, age 58, widow, 4 children/3 living, IN, KY, KY, farm; Luther Bousher, son, W, M, born Feb 1880, age 20, single, MO, TN, IN, painter.

Luther was actually in Wyoming at the time working as a carpenter, and the son at home was Arthur. In about 1903, Art got a job with the Northern Pacific Railroad. A year later his intended, Leta Murray, took the train from Willow Springs to Washington to marry him, and Rossea came with her. She spent most of the rest of her life living with Art and Leta in Washington. At the time of the 1920 census she was boarding with Maggie Harrison, in Spokane where Art and Leta lived. She was probably not at home because Leta was pregnant.

Rossea died on 11 August 1922 while visiting at the home of her son, Luther, at Grants Pass, Josephine, Oregon. It is sad to recount that she did not want to make that visit and was afraid she would die if she left home. Unfortunately, Leta, who was 41 years old, was pregnant and had a little toddler named Betty (Grandma Locke to us) to care for as well. So Rossea traveled to Oregon for six weeks while Leta had her baby, named William (Uncle Bill to us). When she got to Luther's house, she would not eat. She never did make the return trip back home to Spokane. It is also unfortunate that there is not a single photo of Rossea. It would have been nice to put these events together with a face.

Ann Pyne, 1790-1858

2011-09-17T00:01:00.000-07:00

Ann Pyne was christened on 17 September 1790 at Topsham, Devon, England. Her parents were James and Elizabeth Pyne. At the age of 20, she married John Parker Gourd on 3 May 1810, also at Topsham. A native Celtic settlement, Topsham became a Roman port in the 1st century AD. It was designated a town by royal charter in 1300, and is now officially a suburb of Exeter. St. Margaret's Church in Topsham, dates back to the 10th century. It has been reconstructed several times in its original location as granted in 937 by King Athelstan, who gave "a parcel of land, i.e. a manse, which the vulgar called Toppesham, to the monastery Church of St. Mary and St. Peter in Exeter, for the cure of his soul, to have in eternal freedom so long as the Christian Church shall endure." It is a very picturesque place.

The family moved around a bit before settling in Chudleigh. Elizabeth was born at Christow in 1811 and John Parker at Broad Clyst in 1814. Mary Ann, Ann Jane, William James, Emma Maria, and William Soper were all born at Chudleigh. This is the same Chudleigh of the previous post for the Sealy family. In spite of their moves, they were never more than twelve miles from their original home of Topsham. The 1841 census enumeration listed the family.

John Gourd, age 50, smith; Ann, age 50; Mary, age 20, milliner; Emma, age 15, James, age 15, William, age 10.

William, their youngest child, is our ancestor. In 1851, they were listed again. By that time, the children had all left home.

John Parker Gourd, head, married, age 62, blacksmith, born Liskeard, Cornwall; Ann, wife, married, age 60, born Topsham, Devon.

Ann died 12 October 1858 at Torquay, Devon, England. It was their farthest distance from home, about 24 miles, and on the coast. Torquay is situated in an area known as the English Riviera because of its beaches and mild climate. It is likely they moved there to live with their daughter, Emma, in their old age. Ann's husband was enumerated on the 1861 census.

Living at 92 Lower Union St with Thomas Duke, head, married, age 36, tailor master, born Chudleigh; Emma M. Duke, wife, age 34, born Chudleigh- John Gourd, father-in-law, widower, age 72, smith, Liskeard.

Again in 1871, John was living with his daughter. He spent 20 years without the company of his wife, Ann; and that is a very long time.

Living at 5 Morboro Road w/Emma Duke- John P. Gourd, blacksmith, lodger, age 82, born Liskeard.

Halvor Thoreson, "husmand" at Ottem

2011-09-10T00:01:00.000-07:00

Halvor was born on 10 September 1843 at Ottem, Sunndal, More-Romsdal, Norway. He was christened on October 10th of the same year. He was the illegitimate child of Randi Pedersdatter Ottem and Thore Olsen Hagen. He was his father's third illegitimate child with different persons, and his mother's first.
Halvor married Randi Knudsdatter on 21 May 1865 at Sunndal, More-Romsdal, Norway. She was also an illegitimate child. Halvor did not own the farm Ottem himself, but lived at a place called Ottem-lokken, which belonged to Ottem, also sometimes called Aakerlokken. He was a "husmand" or a cottager. All of their children were born at the Ottem farm. Together they had a large family of 12 children. Several of them came to the United States where they took the Ottem surname. In 1900, Randi was a widow at Sunndal, so we know that he died before 1900.

Chudleigh and the Sealy Family

2011-09-05T00:01:00.000-07:00

Chudleigh is a small town in Devon, England, located between the towns of Newton Abbott and about 10 miles from Exeter, which is noted for its cathedrals and its rich history. At the end of the Teign valley and at the foot of the Haldon hills, it is very close to the edge of Dartmoor with its many acres of untamed countryside. It is also a comfortable drive to the coast and is on the main road from Exeter to Plymouth. This makes it a good place to stay while visiting in Devon! Ah, another place to visit!

Ciedda's leah was a small, agricultural village, and already 300-400 years old when it became the property of the Church after the Norman Conquest. The first parish church was dedicated in 1259 and Edward the Second granted a Charter for markets and livestock fairs, in 1309, and Chudleigh became a wool market town.

Being an ancient place, it is easy to imagine a quaint and historic village filled with charming cottages and medieval architecture. In 1807, which was a year of drought, the town suffered from a devastating fire that began in a bakery and was carried everywhere by the wind. Since most of the town had thatched roofs, when the fire finished its work there was just a church and seven houses left standing. Sarah Sealy, who was born on 5 September 1800, would have been six years old at the time. Imagine the panic that must have ensued as people struggled to save their belongings, and to keep the fire from spreading. It was a tragedy for everyone that changed the face of Chudleigh forever. There is still St. Martin's church from the 14th century, and an old grammar school next to it. You can click here to see a drawing of an 18th century street in Chudleigh.

This house, which dates back to the 1600's, must be one of the homes that made it through the fire. It looks like a totally charming place to stay while visiting! The Devon Guide has a nice map, pictures, and a good description of things to see nearby.

Getting back to Sarah Sealy,on 14 September 1800, she was christened at Chudleigh. Her parents were Joseph and Elizabeth Sealy. He was born in Chudleigh, as were his parents, and Elizabeth was from Hennock, 4 1/2 miles west, and in today's Dartmoor National Park. More photos here.

Sarah married William Bolt. Their children were John Sealy, Mary Jane, and William. Our ancestor is Mary Jane. They were listed on the 1851 census as follows--

Joseph Sealey, head, married, 73, Chelsea pensioner, born Chudleigh, Devon; Elizabeth, wife, age 79, born at Hennock; William Bolt, son-in-law, age 52, house servant, born Powderham; Sarah Bolt, daughter, age 51, dressmaker, born Chudleigh; John Sealy Bolt, grandson, unmarried, age 25, journeyman carpenter, born Chudleigh; Mary Ann Bolt, granddaughter, unmarried, age 16, at home, born Chudleigh; William Bolt, grandson, age 11, scholar, born Chudleigh.

Their address was 15 Culver Street and you can read about how Culver Street was affected by the fire of 1807 at that link. From this census entry we can know that Sarah's parents lived to be elderly and had the comfort of having their daughter and grandchildren with them in their home, at least for a time. If we wanted to know more about it, we could check another census or two!

William F. Locke

2011-09-01T00:01:00.000-07:00

William F. Locke was born in North Carolina, probably in Guilford County. Census records put the year at 1829, although his daughter, in a biography in E. Tucker's book, The History of Randolph County, Indiana, sets his birth at 1 September 1820. According to his death certificate, his parents were Joel Locke and his wife, Jane or Jensy May, who were married in Rockingham County, North Carolina on 14 February 1822. They had a large family of seven, possibly eight, sons and a daughter. William married Mary Jane Robbins on 19 August 1847, in Randolph County, Indiana.

William F. served in the Civil War for the Union Army, and was a Private in Company C, 8th Indiana Infantry. His company left Indianapolis on 10 September 10 1861. He was discharged 29 April 1863 with wounds. He was a corporal in Company E of the 69th Indiana Infantry at the time.

He was a wagonmaker and blacksmith by trade. The famous poem by Longfellow is indicative of the type of work and effort required. The blacksmith was a necessary part of any community and performed an important task.

The Village Blacksmith
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Under a spreading chestnut-tree
The village smithy stands;
The smith, a mighty man is he,
With large and sinewy hands;
And the muscles of his brawny arms
Are strong as iron bands.

His hair is crisp, and black, and long,
His face is like the tan;
His brow is wet with honest sweat,
He earns whate'er he can,
And looks the whole world in the face,
For he owes not any man.

Week in, week out, from morn till night,
You can hear his bellows blow;
You can hear him swing his heavy sledge,
With measured beat and slow,
Like a sexton ringing the village bell,
When the evening sun is low.

And children coming home from school
Look in at the open door;
They love to see the flaming forge,
And hear the bellows roar,
And catch the burning sparks that fly
Like chaff from a threshing-floor.

He goes on Sunday to the church,
And sits among his boys;
He hears the parson pray and preach,
He hears his daughter's voice,
Singing in the village choir,

It sounds to him like her mother's voice,
Singing in Paradise!
He needs must think of her once more,
How in the grave she lies;
And with his haul, rough hand he wipes
A tear out of his eyes.

Toiling,--rejoicing,--sorrowing,
Onward through life he goes;
Each morning sees some task begin,
Each evening sees it close
Something attempted, something done,
Has earned a night's repose.

Thanks, thanks to thee, my worthy friend,
For the lesson thou hast taught!
Thus at the flaming forge of life
Our fortunes must be wrought;
Thus on its sounding anvil shaped
Each burning deed and thought.

While living in Washington, Randolph, Indiana, William and Mary Jane had the following children-- Margaret A., Sarah Caroline, Alvis M., Joel Joseph, Charles L., William F., Sherman, and Minna. They were enumerated on the census for Washington in 1850, 1860 and 1870. Wouldn't we just love to know what those middle initials stand for, particularly for William, whose middle initial was always present with his name in the records. This was probably to distinguish him from his uncle, also a William.

It appears that Mary Jane was deceased by 1873, since William then married Margaret Heaston on 31 January 1873, in Randolph County. According to Quaker records, William was disfellowshipped shortly after that, "William F. Lock complained of for refusing to fulfill a marriage contract and leaving the country without settling his outward affairs. "Disowned" on 13 January 1875. This is an interesting development, and obviously something was wrong with his marriage to Margaret Heaston and when the church attempted to discipline him, he left the county. In Tucker's book, Lockes are listed as "religious people." Many of the people who settled in Randolph County were Quakers, and many of them came from North Carolina to escape the slave situation there.

He then married Barthena Bright on 28 March 1875 in Randolph County. She was the sister of a fellow soldier in the Civil War, James N. Bright. On the 1880 Census, he and Barthena were living in Perry, Clay, Indiana. Only Minna was still living at home. He and Barthena had two children together, Luella and Benjamin. The census is confusing in that some of the information is inaccurate. William was admitted as a member of Nelson Trusler Post, No. 60, G.A.R., at Winchester, Randolph, Indiana on 21June 1882. Apparently he solved whatever difficulties he had when he left Randolph County.

By 1900, Barthena was living with her daughter at White River, Randolph, Indiana, and listed her status as "widow," William having died on 19 February 1893.

A Randolph County obituary-
LOCKE William F. - An old soldier d. at his home 5 mi. N.W. of Winch. last Sun., Feb. 19, 1893, ae 72y, bur New Liberty Cem. near Lynn. He m. Mary Jane Robbins Apr. 19, 1847 and 2nd. Margaret Heaston Jan. 31, 1873. He had a family. Note: His military Rec. lists Wm. F. enlisted Apr. 24, 1861 and July 8, 1862. He was a blacksmith by trade. He was in the 8 Ind. Reg. 69th Vol. lnf.

Olette Vignes

2011-08-26T10:29:00.000-07:00

Recently, I received some new information about Olette Vignes. It was exciting to find some of the missing pieces to what we already had, and because of that, I retired her old birthday post and am adding this new one.

Olette Olsdatter Vingnaes or Vignes, as it was spelled on her death certificate, was born on 26 August 1863 at Ostre-Toten (East-Toten), Oppland, Norway. Her parents were Ole Jensen and Elene Marie Olsdatter, who were married at Ostre-Toten on 25 April 1848. She had three brothers who were Ole, Nils and Bernt. This family is listed on the 1865 census for Ostre Toten. As you may guess, they lived at the farm called Vingnaes.

There is also a record of their emigration on 26 June 1881. On the 1900 census for Holt, Marshall, Minnesota she indicated that she immigrated in 1881 and spoke and wrote in English. The 1881 immigration date is just one year too late for the 1880 census, and since the 1890 census was destroyed by a fire, the 1900 census is the first opportunity to locate her in a family setting.

On 27 May 1885, she married Thore O. Dovre in Minneota, Cottonwood, Minnesota, a poetic sounding place. As it says on Google, "Minneota, Minnesota, it's the place I want to go tah." They didn't stay, although their first son, Oscar Alfred, was born there. They returned to Holt in Marshall County, Minnesota. Their family was a large family of ten children. They were Oscar, Ole Hjalmer, Ella Magdalene, John Edwin, Marie Alvidia, Alma Ovidia, Selma Juline, Nora Augusta, Theodore, and Harold.

By the time of the 1910 census they had been married for 24 years. Their oldest son, Oscar Alfred had died in 1894, so there were nine living children. Two local school teachers boarded with them. Thore was a farmer. They were still dry farming in Holt on the 1920 census. Ella, who was 31 and not married, lived with them along with the younger children; Nora, Theodore, and Harald.

Olette died on 8 June 1922 at Holt, leaving her husband, Thore, a widower. She is the last of the August Norwegian birthdays.

Ole Hjalmer Dovre, Traveling Man

2011-08-24T00:01:00.000-07:00

Ole Hjalmer Dovre was born on 24 August 1887 at Crystal, Pembina, North Dakota, which is located in the most NE corner of North Dakota, adjacent to Minnesota. His parents were Thore O. Dovre and Olette Wigness. He was born just two days before his mother's 24th birthday. He had one older brother, Oscar Alfred, who was not yet two years old. The family continued to grow until there were ten children. In 1894, when there were just five children in the family his older brother died, and he became the oldest child.

On the 1900 census the family was living at Holt, Marshall, Minnesota. He was enumerated with his father as Hjalmer O., age 12, and born in August 1887 in North Dakota. His parents were both born in Norway.

Then on 29 December 1909, Ole married Gunda Baashus at Fordville, Grand Forks, North Dakota. Theodore Leonard, their first child, was born at Fordville. George, Gladys and Hillard were born at Holt. Their last daughter, Donna, was born nearby at Middle River. On the 1920 census the family was living at Holt, where Ole rented and did farming.

According to Dolores Dovre, Ole worked on the Alaska Highway, which was completed in 1943. The Highway ran between Dawson Creek, British Columbia and Delta Junction, Alaska. When he came home there wasn't any work in Minnesota. Then he went to Hawaii for 18 months to work. During these times Gunda and Donna stayed in Thief River Falls. Ole was in Hawaii when Gale Dovre was born in 1945. During that time, he saved enough money to buy a service station in Snohomish, Washington. Ole and Gunda moved to Snohomish, Snohomish, Washington where they lived until Ole's death on 23 June 1964.

Randi Knudsdatter

2011-08-15T00:01:00.000-07:00

Randi was born on 15 August 1839 at Fale,Sunndal, Møre-Romsdal, Norway. She was the daughter of Knud Andersen Gravem and Marit Jorgensdatter Toske. She was christened on September 8th of the same year at Sunndal. Her parents were not married. She was her father's third illegitimate child and her mother's second with the same father. A record of their later marriage has not been found.

Møre-Romsdal is a county in the northernmost part of Western Norway that borders Oppland and other counties. Sunndal is the largest community in Møre-Romsdal, stretching from the fjord into the Dovre Mountains. It is an area of dramatic beauty as shown by this photo of Vinnufossen. Interestingly, Sunndal's police department has a sister-city in the USA, which is Issaquah, Washington!

On 21 May 1865, Randi married Halvor Thorsen Ottem at Sunndal. Halvor did not own the Ottem farm himself, but lived at a place called Ottem-lokken, which belonged to Ottem, and is sometimes called Aakerlokken. He was a "husmand" or a cottager. All of their children were born at the Ottem farm. They raised a large family of twelve, several of whom immigrated to America. When they arrived, this family used the farm name of Ottem as their surname. It may be that they hoped to improve their situation by coming to America.

Sometime before 1900, Halvor died. On the 1900 census Randi was a widow and her son, Martinus was living at home with her in Sunndal. He was a tailor. Another son, Lars was also living at home. So while we do not have death dates for Halvor or Randi, we know that he died before 1900 and she died after that time.

Anne Bendixdatter

2011-08-09T00:01:00.001-07:00

Anne Bendixdatter was born on 9 August 1772 at Skrautval, Nord Aurdal, Oppland, Norway. Her father was Bendix Olsen and her mother was Astrid Knudsdatter. She was the oldest in a family of seven children. On 14 October 1790, she married Knut Knutsen Gigstad. Together they farmed the Gigstad Farm in Skrautval from 1822 until 1848. They had a large family of eleven children, our ancestor being their daughter, Siri.

McCabe and Moloy

2011-08-09T00:01:00.000-07:00

The McCabe name first appears in Ireland in reference to soldiers of Hebridean origin in about 1358. These men came into Ireland from Scotland, having a Scandinavian heritage of Norse connections. The usage of the battle-axe, the characteristic galloglach weapon until the sixteenth century was a result of their Scandinavian background. They were galloglasses or mercenaries.

Caba is an Irish word for cap, hood, or helmet, and the name McCabe or MacCabe means the son of the helmeted one. The motto on the earliest coat of arms which has been attributed to the MacCabe family is "aut vincere aut mori" which means "either conquer or die." People who have the surname McCabe or MacCabe are descended from the galloglas soldiers mentioned above. Since these galloglas were "the son of the helmeted one" it is likely that all McCabes are not necessarily related to one another. (Taken from The Descendants of James McCabe and Ann Pettigrew, by Allen E. Marble, Past President and Fellow of the Royal Nova Scotia Historical Society. Published in Bostom in 1986 by the New England Historic Genealogical Society. Copied from the book at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah in June 2005.)

Our earliest known McCabe ancestor, Francis McCabe, was born in Longford County, Ireland in 1826. His wife Mary Moloy, was born in County Leitrim in about 1825. Longford and Leitrim counties share a common border at the south end of Leitrim, and the north of Longford. The north and west parts of Leitrim were once part of the old Gaelic kingdom of Breifne, which was ruled by the O'Rourkes who were mentioned in Mr. Marble's account as being the employers of the galloglasses who came to be known by the McCabe surname and became their own sept in the area.

Francis and Mary married there, and had their first two children there. Mary Ann was born in 1848, and Elizabeth in 1850. Then in about 1851, they moved their little family to Yorkshire in England. Both of these Irish counties were badly affected by the potato famine or "Great Famine" of 1845-1847. Many people died, and many others emigrated to other places. According to statistics, these two counties, whose populations were both well over 100,000 before the famine, now contain only about 30,000 people each.

A search of the Index to Griffith’s Valuation of Ireland 1848-1864 was performed at the Family History Library in June 2005. The McCabes seemed to live almost exclusively in these two counties of Longford and Leitrim. Certain parishes had many McCabes. Of note, were Francis McCabe of Cloone and Mohill and Francis McCabe Jr. of Cloone, both places located in Leitrim and on the border with Longford. Since our ancestor was also named Francis, it is possible that they were related, or that the younger Francis was actually our ancestor, living in Leitrim prior to his move to England.

We first find Francis and Mary living in Doncaster, York, England on the 1861 census. They were living at Milner’s Yard and Francis was a laborer. They remained at that residence for twenty years, being listed there on the 1871 and 1881 census enumerations also. It was not until the 1881 census that Francis and Mary listed their counties of birth in Ireland. In 1881, Francis and his son Francis, both agricultural laborers, were out of work.

Their son, John, was born in 1852 at Bentley, York, England. The others were all born at Doncaster. They were Catherine in 1856, Ann in 1857, Margaret in 1860, and Francis, a son, in 1863.

On 11 May 1865, Mary Ann married Henry Procter at Doncaster. Elizabeth married Alexander King on 16 November 1866 at Bo’Ness, West Lothian, Scotland, where they made their home. John also married about that time to a girl named Mary and settled in Doncaster. The marriages of the other children are not known.

Francis, who went by Frank, died sometime between April and June, 1891 at Doncaster. On the 1891 census Mary is 67 years old and living at 13 Milner’s Yard. She is listed as the head of her household. Two year later, Mary died between January and March of 1893.

August is for Norwegians

2011-08-07T00:01:00.000-07:00

In August we celebrate a number of birthdays of our Norwegian ancestors. Lars Olsen Baashus is the first. In Norway, children took their father's name as their surname. The farm name was added to show where they resided. When they came to America, some of them retained their father's name as their surname, and some used the farm name.

Lars Olsen Baashus (pronounced Baa-soo-s) was born 7 August 1855 in Ringsaker, Hedmark, Norway. Ringsaker, named for an old farm, is a farming area, containing the largest and oldest farms in Norway.It is situated on the east side of the lake Mjøsa, which is Norway's largest lake, and one of the deepest lakes in Europe. Ringsaker was first mentioned in written records in about 882 and has an interesting history.

Lars' father was Ole Guldbransen Riser, and his mother was Pernille Olsdatter Prastqvarn. We don't know about his childhood or his family because it has not been researched. We do know that he married Gina Matiasen on 7 November 1879 in Ringsaker. They were the parents of eleven children. Our ancestor, Gunda, was the sixth in the family and the only one of her siblings who made the trip to America. The family corresponded with her through letters and Gunda made at least one visit back to Norway.

Ringsaker Kirke was constructed before 1150, and was dedicated to St. Olav (king of Norway from 1015-1028). It was enlarged in the mid-1200's to its present size. There are several local churches, so we cannot know whether this was the church used by this family, but it is the oldest in the area.

Lars died on 20 August 1931 at Hamar, Hedmark, Norway, which is just south of Ringsaker, also on the shores of lake Mjøsa. The distance between Ringsaker and Hamar is 29 miles. It's always interesting to see just how far people travel in their lives.

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Randi "Rose" Ottem

2011-07-26T00:01:00.000-07:00

Randi Ottem was born Randi Halvorsdatter at Sunndal, Møre og Romsdal, Norway. Sunndal stretches all the way from the fjord into the Dovre Mountains. Its beautiful scenery includes Innerdal, Norway's loveliest mountain valley, and Åmoten, a gorge where several waterfalls meet. Mountain valleys are the home to wild reindeer and musk oxen. The Old Norse form of the name was Sunndalr. The first element is sunnr which means "southern" and the last element is dalr which means "valley" or "dale". Before 1870, the name was written Sunddalen; during the period from 1870-1917, it was spelled Sundalen; and since 1918, it has been spelled Sunndal.

Randi's father was Halvor Thoreson, and her mother's name was Randi Knudsdatter. Randi was born at the Ottem farm, from which the family surname of Ottem was derived when the family came to America. She was born on 26 July 1869, and christened on 22 August 1869. Randi was the fifth child in a very large family of twelve. Many of them left Norway to make homes in the United States. Her youngest daughter, Dolores, said,

She just talked about life. It was hard because they didn’t have anything. In the spring she went out into the mountains in Norway with the cattle and spent her summer there. They made cheese. I don’t know how they did it. Her oldest brother came to this country and settled in Grand Forks, North Dakota. And when he saved enough money, he sent for her. She was nineteen. She came for a better life, like they all did. She came to Grand Forks. She was three weeks crossing the ocean, and seasick all the way. She crossed the North Sea, and her parents were with her until she got on the boat, because her mother said, “I’d rather follow you to your grave.” That was an awful send off. She never went back to Norway. When she died in 1953, there weren’t too many people who were flying back and forth. She didn’t know anyone on the ship. They came into Ellis Island and then took the train to Grand Forks. And she had those old Norwegian clothes. She said her brother took her down all the railroad tracks and back alleys until he could get her some decent clothes. They told her oranges were supposed to be healthful, so she had a big bag of oranges on the ship. As long as she lived, she wouldn’t taste an orange on a bet. Then, I don’t know what she did. She went to work in a hotel as a maid of some kind. Then she got a job at the University of North Dakota. She was a dining room gal. I suppose she had friends. Then she met Dad. She came in 1888 and Clarence was born in 1892, so somewhere along the line, she must have been here a couple year years before she met Dad.

On 10 December 1891, Randi married Ole Christenson at Grand Forks, Grand Forks, North Dakota. At that point, her life was entwined with his as they raised their large family of ten children, and made their home in Minnesota at Holt. More can be learned about Randi by reading "From Norway to Minnesota" which was posted just before her own post, on 11 August. Her wedding picture is posted there.

Of her life after Ole died, her youngest daughter, Dolores said,

We moved to the little house at Johnson’s place in about 1937. I finished attending school when I was 13. I would have had to board and room somewhere, and there wasn’t any money in those days. So, I left the farm when I was twenty, when the boys got married and Mom and I moved into our new little house. It was a little north of Holt. When Lawrence and Rudy got married, we had to do something. Mabel insisted that they were going to build a house for Mom on their farm and she was going to take care of Mom. She was very adamant about that. We built a little house and I went to work in town. Mom kept house and cooked; and of course, we were right by Carl and Mabel. But Mabel died when Jim was five days old.

Jim, Dolores' son, was born in 1941. I remember Dolores saying that Grandma Randi turned her grief over daughter Mabel's death toward Jim, who she rocked and held for the first months of his life. Jim always told a story about pouring buttermilk on his breakfast cereal by mistake and not wanting to eat it. Grandma ate that cereal rather than see it be wasted.

Dolores also remembered when Grandma Randi came to live with them.

She came to live with us in 1950 and lived with use for three years. She had continued living in that small house. The girls, Mabel’s girls, were all married and gone and it was just Carl and Forest, and they were out in the fields all the time, and she was so alone there. She was about 82. Actually, the house was mine. It was my money that I got from the sale of the cattle when we left the farm that bought the house, so we sold the house and she moved in with us. It was fun having her live with us. It was fun. She and George (Dolores' husband) got along so well. I think he thought more of her than he did his own Mom. And of course, the kids enjoyed her. She liked Jim and Gale, so it wasn’t a problem. It was a happy time. She was a very Christian lady, quiet, and she didn’t interfere with anybody else, and did her own thing. She liked to have flowers. She used to work in the yard, even at our place. She helped with all the work, even at our place, because she was well until the last few months she lived.

Randi died on 13 May 1953 at Thief River Falls, Pennington, Minnesota. She was loved and cherished by her family, which is a tribute to her gentle, sweet nature.

Tore Olsen of Ranum and Dovre

2011-07-18T09:42:00.000-07:00

Thore or Tore was christened on 18 July 1790 at Nord Aurdal, Oppland, Norway. His parents were Ole Olsen Ranum and Ane Toresdatter. He was their third child. On 16 November 1817 he married Siri Knudsdatter Gigstad, the widow of Knut Gulbrandson, who farmed the Dovre farm. Along with the farm, Siri brought a year old son to the marriage.

Archives reports state that Tore fought in the war against Sweden in 1814. It also notes that Siri died sometime between 1850-1851, leaving Tore with nine children. The oldest son, Ole, who is our ancestor, had by that time, taken over the gaard. The other five boys and two of the girls went to America to secure a better future. At least one of them took the surname Thorson in the United States.

From Norway to Minnesota

2011-07-11T04:00:00.000-07:00

Mo i Rana is located at the head of Ranifjord, just south of the Arctic circle on the southern side of the Saltfjellet mountains with the Svartisen glacier, Norway's second largest glacier. The river Ranelva meets the Ranifjord in Mo i Rana. Mo is so close to the Arctic circle that parts of the sun can be seen on the horizon from early June to early July, and there is no darkness from mid-May to the beginning of August. The climate is moderated by the Gulf Stream, which follows the coast of Norway north. The name Mo comes from an old farm and is taken from the Norse Móar which means sand or grass lowland. Rana is probably also Norse, meaning quick or fast, and refers to the fast water flow in the fjord nearby. The town was an old trade center in Helgeland and farmers have lived in the area since the Iron Age.

Ole Andreas Christenson was the eleventh child of twelve in his family. He was born 11 July 1857 at his father's farm, Reginaardsli, Mo i Rana, Nordland, Norway. His parents were Christen Nilsen and Hendricha Eliasdatter.

Ole was christened on 27 September 1857. This little kirke is the oldest building in Mo. It was built in 1734. Like many younger sons of large families, Ole immigrated to America to make his fortune. His declaration of intention to become a citizen of the United States was dated 2 November 1886.

Ole married Randi Ottem on 10 December 1891 at Grand Forks, Grand Forks, North Dakota. They both listed Grand Forks as their place of residence. She listed her name as Rosie Ottem. Witnesses were Asa Erickson and Angus Jakobson. Clarence, their first child, was born at Grand Forks.

Sometime after that, the family moved to Marshall County, Minnesota. Family information says they lived at Holt, where all of the children were born. He listed Newfolden as his residence on his Naturalization papers. The two places are very near to one another. Their second child, Reuben, was born 16 January 1894 and died 27 October 1895. He died just after his sister Reubena was born on 22 October 1895. She lived until 7 September 1896. Seven other children were born to them, making a total of ten.

On the 1900 census, the family was living in Holt. Ole and Rose had been married for nine years and had three children, with two deceased. Clarence was eight, Nora two, and Mabel was eight months old. Ole's occupation was a carpenter and he was employed the entire census year. Both Ole and Randi could read, write and speak English. They owned their own home and it was free of a mortgage at the time. It would appear that Ole was successful in bettering his lot in life by coming to America.

Ole's Petition for Naturalization was filed in Marshall County, Minnesota on 1 February 1910, 26 years after his original declaration. It said, "My full name is Ole Andreas Christenson. My place of residence is Newfolden, Marshall, Minnesota. My occupation is carpenter. I was born on the 11th day of July 1858 at Moe, Norway. I emigrated to the United States from Chrstiania, Norway, on or about the 25th day of May 1881 and arrived at the port of Baltimore, in the United States on the vessel not known. I declared my intention to become a citizen of the United States on the 22nd day of November 1886 in Crookston, Minnesota, Polk County. I am married. My wife's name is Randine Christenson (ne Ottem). She was born in Sundal, Norway, and now resides at Newfolden, Marshall, Minnesota. I have seven children, as follows- Clarence Helmer, May 11, 1892, Grand Forks, North Dakota; Nora Adelia, July 7, 1897, Marshall, Minnesota; Mabel Ruth, September 30, 1899, Marshall, Minnesota; Oscar Arthur, October 27, 1901, Marshall, Minnesota; Rudi Melvin, October 22, 1903, Marshall, Minnesota; Mortel Gea, April 20, 1908, Marshall, Minnesota. All reside with parents at Newfolden, Marshall, Minnesota." Ole neglected to list another child, Lawrence Palmer, who was born 20 January 1906. Dolores Irene, the youngest, was not born until 4 December 1916. Ole took his Oath of Allegiance on 28 June 1910 and the family became citizens of the United States of America.

Ole's daughter Dolores said of his death, "I remember it very vividly because he died at home. He had asthma and heart trouble. That was back in 1929. It was way out in the country and you didn’t see the doctor very often. He was very ill one whole winter and then when summer came he was able to get out of bed and he was up for the summer. And then when fall came, of course, it took over again. I remember, and I think about it now, sitting on his bed in the evening. He always wanted me to sing, “Nearer My God to Thee.” And I did it. I remember well, the afternoon he died. It was such a blizzard. It was the 11th of January, and they couldn’t come and get him until the next day, so we kept him in the bedroom overnight. I have a lot of good memories of my father because we were very, very close. I was probably closer to my Dad because my Mom worked outside on the farm so much, and Dad was not well so he was with me. I remember all the little old Norwegian songs he taught me. He never really talked about his childhood, not like Mom did. They spoke broken English, and we always talked Norwegian at home. I sing those crazy songs to myself every once in a while. He called me Tula. "

Ole died on 11 January 1929. He did not have a Social Security number. His parents' names were not known to his informant. His death certificate lists his place of death as East Valley Township, and his usual residence as Holt.

Siri Knutsdatter Gigstad

2011-07-05T03:03:00.000-07:00

Siri Knutsdatter was christened on 5 July 1795 at Nord-Aurdal, Oppland, Norway which is a part of the traditional district of Valdres in central, southern Norway. Oppland is one of two fylke that does not border the sea. It is an area of mountains with two valleys, one of them being Valdres. Nord-Aurdal is in the western part of Oppland county. Their primary occupation is raising cattle and sheep.

Siri's parents were Knut Knutsen and Anne Bendixdatter. She was born on the Gigstad farm, as was her father. On 28 October 1815, she married her husband, Knut, who died a year later, leaving her a widow at the young age of 21, and with a young son, also named Knut. She married again on 16 Nov 1817, to Tore Olsen and they took over the Dovre property. There they raised a large family of nine children. Siri died in about 1850.

William Bolt, Father and Son

2011-07-05T00:01:00.000-07:00

William Bolt, the father, was baptized on 5 July 1772, and William Bolt, the son, was baptized on 28 July 1799, when his father was 27 years old. Both were born at Powderham, Devonshire, England. The most notable characteristic of Powderham is a castle, appropriately called Powderham Castle. It was built between 1390 and 1420 by Sir Philip Courtenay. The site of the castle is an ancient deer park beside Exe Estuary (photo compliments of Exe Estuary Management Partnership). It is one of those places a person must see if visiting Devonshire, and is part of the greater Exeter area. Exeter is the capitol of Devon, has its own cathedral, and is historically ancient, predating the Romans.

As for the William Bolts, we don't know a lot about them. The father was the son of Anne Bolt. His baptism record notes, "William Bolt, base son of Ann Bolt, baptized." In other words, his mother was unmarried. Anne married Edward West on 30 Jan 1775, when William was two and a half years old and provided him with a large family of ten brothers and sisters. He married Mary Northam Potbury on 4 October 1797 at Powderham. They had four known children named William, Thomas, Ann, and Martha.

William, the son, married Sarah Sealy in about 1825. Since Sarah was from Chudleigh, they were probably married there. Their known children are John Sealy, Mary Jane, and William. They were all born at Chudleigh. Chudleigh is a staggering 9.5 miles inland from Powderham.

The Short Life of John S. Duffy

2011-07-01T01:00:00.000-07:00

John S. Duffy was born in Luzerne, Luzerne, Pennsylvania, in July of 1843, the son of Peter F. and Bridget Duffy, who were from Ireland. He had a brother named Andrew who was born in 1841. Since Andrew was born in Ireland, and John was born in Pensylvania, it appears that the family left Ireland for the United States sometime between 1841 and 1843.

The Duffy family was enumerated on the 1850-1860 census for Luzerne County, which is located in NE Pennsylvania. Then sometime between the 1860 census and 1862, they moved to Minnesota, where John's father gave permission for his marriage to Alice Louise Madden since John was not 21. They were married on 17 March 1862 at Lakeville, Dakota, Minnesota. He listed his place of residence as Rosemount and hers was Burnsville. They were married by James Peet, a Minister of the Gospel.

There is a map of the area where they lived in the May posting, "From Ireland to Minnesota" which is about John's wife's family. Lakeville Township was organized in 1858 and named for its proximity to Prairie Lake (now Lake Marion), one of the largest lakes in Dakota County. These small communities were within ten miles of each other, and were relatively new at the time.

John was a soldier in Company G, Second Regiment of the Minnesota Calvary during the Civil War. His pension papers state that he was 5 feet 8 inches tall, with a fair complexion, gray eyes and black hair. He enlisted on 2 November 1863 and was discharged on 29 December 1865. He held the rank of sergeant. Since there is no picture of John, it's nice to have this brief description of him.

John and Alice had three children- Mittie Alice was born 19 February 1864 at Fort Snelling, Hennepin, Minnesota. Horace J. was born in 1868. And the youngest, Gertrude Susan was born on 12 November 1870 at Hastings, Dakota, Minnesota.

John was killed while working on a train run between Hastings and St. Paul, Minnesota on 22 March 1872. An obituary was published on 30 January 1873 in the Farmington Press. It said, "HORRIBLE ACCIDENT.--The Gazette says that J. S. Duffy, of Hastings, who has been for some time employed as a brakeman on the Lake Superior R. R., fell from the train near St. Paul on Thursday and was cut to pieces in the most horrible manner, the remains being strewed along the track for nearly half a mile. He was a steady, industrious man, about thirty years of age, and leaves a wife and three children in needy circumstances." Did they have to be so graphic? What a tragedy for Alice and their children. To find out more, visit the 14 May posting, "From Ireland to Minnesota."

Visit the Lake Superior Railroad Museum here--
http://www.lsrm.org/Home/Home.asp

Esther E. Thornton

2011-06-30T07:00:00.000-07:00

Esther was born 30 Jun 1858 at Licking, Texas, Missouri. Her parents were William and Lucy Thornton. She was a year old on the 1860 census, and by the 1870 census, her father was dead and she was living with her mother and her brother, John. In October of 1870 her mother married John Gray. Esther married John L. Murray on 10 August 1878 in Dent County, Missouri.

Her oldest son, William, did not survive. He is listed on the 1880 census as being a year old. Leta Lavina was born in 1881 in Salem, Missouri. Lota Esther was born in 1885 in Fort Worth, Texas. Nelle Agness was born in 1887 in Alvarado, Texas. Johnnie was born in 1890 in Willow Springs, Missouri. Sometime in between these births another child was born who did not survive. Nelle wrote that her name was Mollie. I have placed her in the family with a birth estimated as 1883.

Esther is buried in the Old Baptist Cemetery in Willow Springs with her son Johnnie next to her. Johnnie was born 11 February 1890. Esther's tombstone lists her birthdate and her age as 32 years 7 months and 18 days. If that is correct, she died on 17 February 1891. Lota's Bible lists her death as 18 February 1890. Leta always said she died on Valentine's Day. The girls were very young when their mother passed away. Whatever the date of her death, she was mourned for and missed.

J. L. Murray, 1854-1951

2011-06-13T08:00:00.000-07:00

One of the things John Lewis Murray will be remembered for is a long life. He was born in Fredricktown, Madison, Missouri on 13 June 1854. He was the oldest son of the seven sons of Bennett and Olive Wood Murray. On 10 August 1878 he married Esther E. Thornton in Dent County, Missouri.

Of her grandfather, Betty Locke said, "Grandpa in his early years had a trait that some of the Murrays I later knew also had. They loved to trade. To buy and sell was all right, but nothing was quite as good as making a trade. I suppose always trying to get the best of the deal was a challenge." Needless to say, the family moved around as he bought and sold homes and businesses. Given his many pursuits, he must have been resourceful and versatile, with a sense of adventure and an innate optimism that allowed him to continue to plan and dream.

Betty said, "In Missouri, Grandpa owned a livery stable. He was never a farmer, always a business man. When he bought the livery stable, that was the end of his buying and selling. Once on the way home from traveling, Mother (Leta) stopped off in Willow Springs to visit old friends. She said as the train was coming to town, it passed an old building being torn down. It had been attached to another old building. On the outside wall of the standing building, in very faded painted letters were the words J. L. Murray, Livery Stable."

John and Esther had three daughters who survived to adulthood--Lota, Nelle, and Leta. Three other children did not live past childhood. In February of 1890, with the birth of her last child, Esther also died. John, a father of three little girls, then married America Lovan in June of the same year. Mec, as she was called, belonged to a large Willow Springs family. Leta always said she was good to the three girls and saw they had the things girls need. In 1901 they adopted Fred.

Leta remembered going with her father on one of his ventures. He was restoring a house, and her job was to cook for him. He had biscuits and gravy every morning, and she hated making the biscuits. She also remembered being in the back of a wagon when she was small and watching him talk to the Indians while they were traveling to Texas on a wagon train. Most of the time the family lived in Willow Springs.

By 1906, John L. and America had made the move to Tacoma, Washington. He ran a real estate and employment office for a time. On December 6, 1909, John and America had a baby boy who was stillborn. Harold Lewis Murray, John's last and America's only child was born on January 30, 1911 in Tacoma.

When the 1910 census was taken, John L. was living in Snohomish, north of Seattle, where he had a drayage business. According to Dale Boucher, it was the Northern Pacific Transfer and Livery Stable, and it was located in downtown Everett across the street from the city hall, and next door to the fire department. He remembered that the fire engines were pulled by horses and he and his brother Russell "got quite a kick out of watching the horses exercise. They were all big dapples grey percheons and they were turned out to exercise twice a day. They were just turned loose by themselves and would make a trip around the block and back to the fire hall. They had a small dog who went with them and rode on the big rump of one of the horses. Granddad's livery drays would meet the passenger boats down at the public dock to pick up freight."

Betty remembered, "I don't think Grandpa and Grandma lived in Tacoma very long. They moved on to Seattle and Grandpa bought a grocery store. He made a comfortable living, but then was talked into selling the store and putting the money into an old apartment house. At that time he must have been almost seventy and would take advice from no one. He bought it, or rather put all of his money into the apartment house. Grandpa didn't have it very long until he was swindled out of everything. I remember that apartment house well. I must have been about four years old. We were living in Spokane and had gone to Seattle to visit. Grandpa and Grandma had a small apartment and so our family slept in one of the vacant apartments. Mother and I were together. During the night something kept bothering us. Finally Mother turned on the lights to see was was wrong. The bed was alive with little bed bugs. They scurried in all directions. I don't think I will ever forget it.

"After Grandpa lost everything, Mother went to Seattle and moved them to Spokane where we were living. She found them a place to live near us. I always knew him as an old, old man." He died at the age of ninety-six years, nine months, and four days on 17 March 1951.

Emily Gourd Procter

2011-06-06T07:30:00.000-07:00

The last time I saw my great-grandmother, Emily Procter, she was living in a little apartment in Portland, Oregon. Her daughter, my father's Aunt Gert, took good care of her. She had that charming English accent that I love and was just a tiny little woman. This picture is the last time we visited her sometime in 1967, which the year she died on December 9th. She was 95 years old in this picture, and still doing very well. My brother, Richard, was home visiting from the Navy. I am standing behind him next to my mother, Betty, and Aunt Gert. My father, Ray, is sitting just behind her. The thing I remember most about that visit is that she spoke of her husband with tears in her eyes and said, "I miss him so much!"

This was taken when Emily was younger. She married John Procter on 19 January 1890 at Doncaster. She was the mother of eight children. Six of them were born in England, one in Vancouver, British Columbia, and her last daughter in Portland, Oregon in 1915.

Here is a good picture of Emily with her daughters, Dorothy (my grandmother), Gert, and Berniece, who we all called Aunt Lou. The last daughter, Evelyn, died when she was just seven years old. The boys were Walter, Percy, Cecil, and Douglas. Aren't those good English names! She lost Walter during World War I (1915), when he was killed in Turkey. Walter's full name was Walter William Gourd Procter, so he was named for Emily's father.

And finally, Emily's birth information--She was born on 6 June 1872 in Balby, which is very near Doncaster, York, England (see previous post). Her parents William Soper Gourd and Mary Jane Bolt Gourd, were from Devonshire, but since he worked for the railroad, they moved north to Doncaster. She was the youngest of their three surviving children. Having moved north, and since her father worked for the railroad, they no doubt made visits south to Devonshire to visit family there. I don't really know very much about her childhood, but have good memories of visiting her home as a child myself, and sitting on her porch on her large porch swing while the adults talked and visited.

John Procter's Small World

2011-05-27T13:29:00.000-07:00

1819 was the year the first bicycles appeared on the streets of New York City, the first steam propelled vessel crossed the Atlantic Ocean, Thomas Blanchard patented the lathe, and the first whaling ship arrived in Hawaii. On May 27th, in Campsall, York, England, John Procter was christened. He was born at nearby Norton, also his father’s birthplace. On August 1st of that same year, it appears that he was also christened in Knottingly, which was his mother, Martha’s birthplace. The distance between Campsall (A) and Knottingly (B) is about ten miles. Although the world was expanding, John’s life was lived within a twenty mile radius of his birthplace.

John’s mother’s maiden name was Collins, which may not endear her to some of the Jane Austen fans in our family. John was the oldest of eight children. His siblings were George and William, born at Owston (C); Ann and Mary, born at Ferry Fryston (D); and David and Sarah, born at Doncaster (E). Once the family settled in Doncaster, they were there to stay.

On 6 September 1841, John married Sarah Pinder, the daughter of John Pinder and Jane Butler, his wife. They married at Rotherham (F), located about thirteen miles SW of Doncaster. That would have been a big trip for them. Their first son, Henry, was born in 1842 at Cantley (G), which is about three miles east of Doncaster (E). John is our grandfather, six generations back for my children. Their five other children were born at Doncaster, where they made their home for the rest of their lives. Their four girls were M. (name unknown), Jane, Mary Ann, and Lucy. Their last child was John, born in 1859, which is about the time Sarah died, perhaps in childbirth.

John worked first as a hat maker, then as a drayman, eventually settling on the lumber business. On 14 November 1865 at Doncaster, John married again, to Jane Adams and gained two step-children, William and Elizabeth. He remained a resident of Doncaster until his death in 1883.

Sampson Gourd, Gardener of Liskeard

2011-05-20T00:01:00.000-07:00

Sampson Gourd was the sixth child of John Gourd and his wife, Radigan Pearce. They may have lived at Linkinhorne, Cornwall, England; or at Liskeard, 8 miles south, where he was christened on 20 May 1722. In fact, all of their big events occurred at Liskeard, which is situated at the head of the Looe Valley and south of the Bodmin Moor area. It has a history as a market town and was one of the four original Stannary towns. The market charter was granted by Richard, Earl of Cornwall (brother of Henry III) in 1240.

On 11 November 1746, Sampson married Martha Batten. They had four children together; and Martha died just after the birth of their last child, Sarah, and was buried on 4 February 1754. In October of that same year, he married Jane Calloway, who was born in about 1733. Nothing is known of her parents at this time. They added three more children to the family, the youngest being Matthew, our ancestor.

Sampson worked as a gardener. In 1753, his father, John, also a gardener, filed a complaint against Sampson and his brother. Apparently he needed financial help from them. Looking at Sampson's marriage dates, and his first wife's death in 1754, this may have been a difficult time for Sampson.

Complaint by John Gourd of Liskeard, gardener, being poor, old, blind and impotent and unable to work, that his sons John of Helston and Sampson of Liskeard, gardeners, do not contribute to his relief ordered that John contributes 1s. 6d. and Sampson 6d., weekly, to their father's relief and maintenance.

The Cornwall Poll Books list Sampson Gourd in 1774 and he was the only Gourd listed. These Poll books recorded the names of everyone in Cornwall who voted at Parliamentary elections. The qualifying criteria for the right to vote were based on the value of ones holdings, but as the century progressed this was relaxed to include leaseholds etc. Another limiting factor was the distance that had to be travelled to the appointed place for recording ones vote. Sampson's land was listed as being in Linkinhorne.

Sampson was buried on 8 May 1777, having lived in and around Liskeard all his life. Three years later, his wife, Jane was buried on 19 January 1780.

The Gourds--William Soper and Mary Jane Bolt

2011-05-15T00:01:00.000-07:00

William Soper Gourd, the son of John Parker Gourd and his wife, Anne Pyne, was born on 15 May 1831 at Chudleigh, Devon, England, a small town located between the larger towns of Newton Abbott and Exeter. William was the youngest of seven children, the last five having been born at Chudleigh. On the 1841 census for Chudleigh, William was ten years old and living with his parents. His father was a blacksmith. Ten years later, William also listed his occupation as "smith" and he was still living with his father at Chudleigh.

On 4 February 1856 William married Mary Jane Bolt, the daughter of William and Sarah Sealy Bolt. Mary Jane was also Chudleigh-born in about 1835. They were married at Newton Abbott, about seven miles S of Chudleigh. Their married life can be followed through census records and railway destinations. Great Western Railways chose Newton Abbot as the location for its locomotive and carriage repairs in the mid 1800's.

On the 1861 census they were living in St. Davids Exeter, 11.5 miles N of Chudleigh, at 3 Bystock Cottage. They had two children, Mary Ann, and their second daughter, Louisa Jane. William was working as an engine hand. This painting, by William Spreat, depicts the Exeter St. Davids station built in 1844. By 1860, there was a central railway station and several different rail companies in Exeter. Since William chose a career with the railway, it was a good place to work. He had an opportunity to move from time to time, and by 1871, they were living in Nottingham at East Retford, which is about 20 miles from Doncaster, in Yorkshire.

Doncaster is 263 miles N of Chudleigh, and that was a big move for them because it took them away from family and their ties in Devonshire. By that time their children Louisa Jane, twins William Henry and Ernest Albert, and John Parker, had all been born and died. It is possible that their decision to move involved a new start away from so many sorrowful memories in Devonshire. Being with the railway, it could also have just been work-related. Doncaster was a large industrial area, and the Great Northern Railway Locomotive and Carriage Building Works moved there in 1853 and was its largest employer at the time. It was a natural place to find work with the railways.

Emma was born in Doncaster in 1868 and died that same year. Then, Emily was born on 6 June 1872, and she survived. On the 1881 census, William and Mary Jane were living in Doncaster, and he was an engine driver. That same year, their older daughter, Mary Ann, married John Naylor. Mary Jane lived to see Emily marry John Procter on 9 January 1890, but died later that year, leaving William a widower. Still an engine driver on the 1891 census, William was 59 years old and living alone.

By 1901, William had moved to the village of Huntington, about 45 miles N of Doncaster, near the city of York. York was also a railway center and is the home of the National Railway Museum. William lived until 21 March 1917. He is buried at All Saints Churchyard in Huntington, Yorkshire, England, which is where he died. William's move from the south of England in Devonshire, to the north of England in Yorkshire, made it possible for our southern Gourd ancestors to meet our northern Procter ancestors. And we can thank our cousin, Linda Nelson, who still lives in Huntington, for these wonderful photos.

From Ireland to Minnesota

2011-05-12T00:01:00.000-07:00

Mary Comerfoot Madden and her daughter Alice Louise Madden Duffy Brown were both born in May. Their story begins in Ireland and is the story of a family leaving its homeland to make a new life in America, as did many others.

According to her death certificate, Mary was born on 12 May 1814 in Ireland to Edward Comerfoot and his wife Mary Lanigan. There she married Walter Madden, and had her first child, Richard. As far as we can tell, Mary was about five years older than her husband, Walter. We don’t know where in Ireland they lived; but we do know that they came to America on the Junius, which left from Liverpool and docked in New York. Passenger lists tell us that Walter was 30 years old, Mary was 25, and Richard was five years old. Alice Louise, their daughter, made a statement regarding her birth and said that she was “born on the high seas en route from Ireland.” According to her notarized statement, she was born on 19 May 1843. Since the ship record date is 1 June 1846, and Alice is listed as an “infant” on the rosters, there is a bit of a discrepancy between what Alice stated and the original records. But we can still safely say that she was just a baby at the time.

If they were typical Irish immigrants, they were like the millions of others who left Ireland due to the potato famine that decimated that country between 1845 and 1850. They were fortunate to leave before things got worse in Ireland, and were thus spared some of the suffering that occurred. Many left Ireland starving and penniless. Their steerage tickets would have been considerable for a small family such as theirs; but even so, they were together and able to make the trip. Conditions for many Irish immigrants arriving in U. S. at the time weren’t much better than what they had in Ireland. They endured crowded shanty towns and discrimination. Employers often used “No Irish Need Apply” signs. Women could work as domestics, stereotyped as “Biddies,” short for Bridget. Men could work as servants or unskilled laborers. Harper’s Weekly, the most popular magazine of the day, ran cartoons lampooning the Irish, and conveying how just unwelcome the Irish were. They were blamed for crime and immorality.

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It does not appear that the Maddens endured many of these difficulties themselves. After arriving in America, the family moved around a bit. If they spent time in New York City(A), they didn’t stay there long. They were fortunate to have the means to move away from the crowded conditions and limited work opportunities immigrants faced in a large city. Ellen and Mary were born in Connecticut. Then the family settled in Blackstone, Worcester, Massachusetts (B), incorporated in 1845, where they were listed on the 1850 census. It is located approximately 40 miles southwest of Boston, just north of the Rhode Island border and situated in the Blackstone River Valley. The town became an important transportation center with the 1828 opening of the Blackstone Canal, and later served as an important railroad hub connecting Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Current residents describe it as “quaint, friendly and historical.” Walter found work as a gigger. Bridget and James were born during their time in Massachusetts.

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By 1861, the family had moved again; this time to Minnesota, where Elisy, Thomas, and William were born. On the 1870 census, they could be found in what would be their permanent home in Glendale, Scott, Minnesota where Walter was a farmer. Glendale, now a part of Savage (A), is located on the south bank of the Minnesota River, and is about 15 miles S-SE of downtown Minneapolis. Once again the family chose to avoid a large city environment in favor of a smaller, more rural community. It says something about them and their success in their new country that they were able to travel to a more comfortable, rural environment. This particular area was a gathering place for Irish immigrants, and it was where they chose to own land and make a life for themselves. They would have found friendship and people like themselves there.

Soon after their move to Minnesota, Alice married John S. Duffy on 17 March 1862, at Lakeville, Dakota, Minnesota(C). He listed his place of residence as being Rosemount (named after a village in Ireland)(D), and she listed hers as Burnsville (an Irish farming community)(B). They were married by James Peet, a Minister of the Gospel. Since John was not twenty-one, his father, Peter Duffy, gave verbal permission for him to marry. The map provides a good look at how close these little towns were to each other. Lakeville, Burnsville, and Rosemount are all about ten miles apart. The distance between Savage and Hastings is about 40 miles.

John was a soldier with the Minnesota Calvary during the Civil War. He enlisted on 2 November 1863 and was discharged on 29 December 1865. He held the rank of sergeant. Alice and John had three children--Mittie Alice, their first child and our grandmother, was born during their time at Ft. Snelling, Hennepin, Minnesota. Her birthdate was 19 February 1864. Their second child was Horace J., was born in 1868. Gertrude Susan was the last child born to this family on 12 November 1870 at Hastings, Dakota, Minnesota (E).

Unfortunately, John was killed while operating a Northern Pacific train between Hastings and St. Paul, Minnesota on 24 January 1873. This was a terrible tragedy for the little family, and Alice only 29 years old. The Farmington Press reported it as follows,

HORRIBLE ACCIDENT--The Gazette says that J. S. Duffy, of Hastings, who has been for some time employed as a brakeman on the Lake Superior R. R., fell from the train near St. Paul on Thursday and was cut to pieces in the most horrible manner, the remains being strewed along the track for nearly half a mile. He was a steady, industrious man, about thirty years of age, and leaves a wife and three children in needy circumstances.

Alice remarried quickly, to Thomas G. Brown on 12 June 1873 in Faribault, Rice, Minnesota. They were married by a Catholic priest. He brought two sons to the marriage, John and Thomas. They had one daughter together, Mary A., who was born 17 April 1874 at Northfield, Rice, Minnesota. On the 1880 census, the family was living in Minneapolis where Mr. Brown was a carpenter and builder. A year later, Alice’s father, Walter Madden, died; leaving Alice’s mother Mary, a widow. She remained in Glendale, living with a son and later, his widow. Mary died on 12 Jul 1905 in Glendale. She and Walter were buried in St. Peter’s Cemetery in Credit River, Scott, Minnesota. On the 1900 census Alice and her family were living in St. Louis Park in Hennepin County, so she was still within traveling distance of the family home in Glendale.

In their old age, Alice and her husband lived with her daughter, Gertie and her husband Henry Scheyer in Puyallup, Pierce, Washington. He died on 7 January 1918, leaving Alice a widow for the second time. She lived until 3 February 1924. They were buried in the Sumner Cemetery in Sumner, Pierce, Washington.

John and Radigan Gourd of Cornwall

2011-04-25T00:01:00.000-07:00

Radigan Pearce married John Gourd on 25 April 1711 in Liskeard, Cornwall, England. She and John had six children, all in Liskeard, so she spent her entire married life there. She was buried on 28 October 1750, also in Liskeard, at the age of about 70. John was a gardener, who on 9 Jan 1753, filed a complaint against two of his sons as follows, “Complaint by John Gourd of Liskeard, gardener, being poor, old, blind and impotent and unable to work; that his sons John of Helston and Sampson of Liskeard, gardeners, do not contribute to his relief ordered that John contributes 1s. 6d. and Sampson 6d., weekly, to their father's relief and maintenance.” From this we know that one of his sons lived in Helston, which is near Stithians. These two places are about 50 miles from Liskeard, but the Helston reference ties Radigan to both places through her son. In Stithians, there is a christening on 4 May 1688 for a Radigan Pearce. The parents were Nicholas and Katherine and they had a large family. If our Radigan is their daughter, she was the youngest and eighth child. John didn't die until after his complaint of 1753, so he outlived his wife. We really don't know anything of his birth or his parents.

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By looking at the map we can see the locations of the three places mentioned; Liskeard, Stithians, and Helston.

Liskeard, the farthest north and the place Radigan spent her married life, is an ancient stannary and market town located in SE Cornwall, near the resort towns of Looe and Polperro. It lies above the Looe river valley and about 14 miles W of the River Tamar, with the Cornish coast to the south, and Bodmin Moor to the north. Liskeard has original Victorian shop fronts, a Guild Hall, a Clock Tower and a Town Hall. Stuart House, another old building, was named after Charles I who spent six nights there in 1644 during the Civil War.

The church, St. Martin’s, is the second largest in Cornwall, and is built on the site of the former Norman church, the oldest parts dating back to the 15th century. Always an important market town and originally called Liscarret, Liskeard was one of the holdings of the Count of Mortain when recorded in the Domesday Book. At that time it consisted of a market, a mill, and 250 sheep. It received its first charter in 1240 from Richard, Earl of Cornwall, who was the brother of Henry III and held Launceston Castle at the time. There are lovely photographs of the area. See http://www.viewsofcornwall.com/viewphotoplace/100/

Stithians (also known as St Stythians) is a small village and civil parish in the Kerrier district of Cornwall. It lies in the center of the triangle bounded by Redruth, Helston, and Falmouth. Its population (2001) is 2,004. The parish is mainly agricultural, located south of the Gwennap mining area and north of the quarrying areas of Rame and Longdowns. The River Kennall runs through the parish and in the 19th century, this river worked a number of flour mills, machinery at a foundry, and a paper mill.

There is a parish church dedicated to St. Stythian (a saint of uncertain origins), and there are references to the parish in the 13th and 14th centuries. There has been a church on the site since the 6th century but the oldest part of the current church is 14th century, with the tower being added in the 15th century. John Wesley visited Stithians in 1744-50 and brought Methodism to the parish. To read the entire description, please see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stithians

Nearby is Helston, referred to as the residence of John Gourd, the son, in his father’s complaint. In 2001 the town celebrated the 800th anniversary of the granting of its Charter, making it the second oldest town in Cornwall. King John granted the charter in 1201, making it a free borough town having certain privileges such as the right to its own court. In the Domesday Book it is referred to as Henliston. Its name is derived from hen lis, which means “old court” in Cornish, denoting it as a Saxon manor. Helston has always been associated with mining, and was a coinage town during the reign of Edward I.

It is famous for the annual Furry Dance or Flora Dance, said to originate from the medieval period. For more information, go to http://www.helston-online.co.uk/Welcome.html

Samuel White Boucher

2011-04-24T00:01:00.000-07:00

Samuel White Boucher was the youngest of four children born to Elisha and Hester McClanahan Boucher. He was born in Meigs County, Tennessee on 22 April 1854. He is listed with his parents on the 1860 Limestone, Meigs, Tennessee census. His siblings were Anna Jane who was born on 23 August 1846, William Robert, born 21 February 1848; and Amanda Malvina, who was born on 20 August 1852.

In 1870, Elisha and Hester moved to Missouri. Samuel’s sisters, Anna Jane and Amanda, were married by that time. Since Samuel was just 16, he made the move with his parents. His brother William, who was 22, did not move until later. His father told of the trip to Missouri in a letter written to Anna Jane which is included in his history.

When they arrived in Missouri, the family settled in Texas county. All of Samuel's siblings also relocated so that the family could be together, as his parents had wished. On the 1876 census for Texas County, they are shown as follows- William K. Boucher, G. W. Whitlock, Rose & Purley Wellington, Hester & Sam Boucher, Haisen & Amanda Hickman w/children, William, Elish, George W. (all under 10). By this time, Samuel's father had passed away and he and his mother were living together. As can be seen, George W. Whitlock and his family were also living in Texas County at the time, as was George's daughter Rossea, listed as Rose Wellington on the census, with her daughter, Pearl. Rossea was divorced from her first husband, Horatio. On 27 May 1877. Rossea and Samuel were married in Texas County, Missouri. She was 13 years older than Samuel.

Sam and Rossie had three sons. Luther was born on 22 April 1878 in Clear Springs, Texas, Missouri. Arthur was born on 12 February 1880, also in Clear Springs. On the 1880 census the family lived in Pierce, Texas, Missouri next door to Rossea's father George and his second wife, Catherine Whitlock; and also Sam's brother, William R. Boucher. Edward, their youngest, was born 26 March 1882 and died 30 October 1885. By the time of his death, the family had moved to Hutton Valley, Howell, Missouri.

At some point in their marriage, Samuel went out west. He died in 1897 at the home of a cousin in Chelsa, Rogers, Oklahoma. It was called Indian Lands at the time. He was only 43 years old when he died.

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April 20th Is a Special Day

2011-04-20T07:48:00.000-07:00

It is the day my mother was born, in 1921. It is also the day she married my father, in 1941. She has been gone for one year now, and today I am remembering her.

Betty lived in Spokane until she was about ten when the family moved to Tacoma. The move was difficult for her because she was a quiet girl. Her parents bought a home at 43rd and Bell Street in Tacoma, and she attended Stewart Junior High School. In 1938 she graduated from Lincoln High School. She was very active in Rainbow and loved to dance.

She spent a year studying at Pacific Lutheran College before deciding that it wasn't what she wanted. She attended business school and began her long business career where she was very successful for a woman of her generation. As she said, she worked when all the other mothers were at home.

During World War II, she worked in Tacoma, as did her friends. They got a half day off on Saturday. While the men were away, they saved their money and purchased crystal, china and other items. They also spent a lot of time taking photos to send overseas to their husbands, so we have a lot of nice pictures of her. By the time my father returned from the war, Mom had purchased the home next door to her parents on Bell Street. After that, her brother bought a new home on 84th and B Street. She and Ray bought the home next to them, and my grandparents built their retirement home. And that's where we lived for the first fifteen years of my life.

I remember, as a little girl, Dad driving her to work when it was still dark. My brother and I dozed during these rides. I always loved driving by the statues at Wright Park. I remember listening to the radio play "Teddy Bear's Picnic" and "Mr. Sandman" during those rides. She worked for Flett Dairy at that time. From there, she went on to have a long career in retailing as an office manager. In my youthful eyes, she always looked perfect. When I think of her, I see a woman wearing a charcoal wool dress with pretty jewelry, hair in place and make-up immaculate. That was my mother most of the time.

At home, my father was sometimes with us since he worked different shifts at the Post Office. He was a good cook and did a lot of the cooking. When they were both gone, Grandma was always next door. Her kitchen window faced our house, and all I had to do was knock on the window and she would come over. After school, I spent many happy hours visiting with her while she sat in her rocking chair (it now sits in my house) and crocheted or did embroidery. Grandpa always sat in his big rocker and listened to baseball and news and smoked his pipe.

At the end of her career, Mom worked for a mobile home company. She was able to purchase a very nice mobile home complete with all new furniture for cost. This opportunity corresponded with my father's heart problems, so they sold their home and moved into a senior park where she made friends and enjoyed walking her dog and visiting. She retired and spent many years enjoying her retirement. Eventually they sold out and rented because they didn't want to maintain a home. They moved to Puyallup and lived near me. This picture was taken when they had been married for fifty years.

Dad died in 1995, which means that Mom was a widow for fifteen years. She spent most of that time living with us in a little apartment we finished for her in our downstairs area. Now it is my little apartment. Mom always had a fear of being alone in her old age. Being with us provided her with that comfort of knowing she was not alone. She loved her grandchildren and told everyone she met about them. She baked the birthday cakes, because she wanted to be remembered. She was sometimes called the "candy Grandma" because she had so much candy sitting around. It was a trial for the moms who brought their children to visit (my daughters) because she provided the children with little bags and a scoop to scoop up candy to take home. She also bought soda pop if she knew someone had a particular flavor in mind.

Being something of a recluse, she didn't go out a lot, and seemed content to be home with her routine. It made it difficult as she grew older. When anyone offered to do something for her, her standard response was, "Judie will do it." After she gave up her car because she was "starting to make mistakes," I spent many years driving her to her errands and doctor appointments. She could fill a week better than anyone I know. When we would get to the end and I thought I might be finished, she would start telling me what she wanted to do "next time."

Her two years on Hospice were difficult for her because her world was shrinking; and for me, because I had to shoulder whatever she gave up. Eventually we moved her upstairs where she could see the coming and going of the household and visit with her Hospice "friends" who were a wonderful blessing to us.

Mom was deaf, which was difficult for her. She had some paralysis from a stroke. She could not walk and spent her life in a bed. In spite of those things, she had no pain, and was comfortable physically. At the end of her life, she was still ordering me around, talking a mile a minute with her visitors, and waiting to be ninety. Today she is ninety. I picture her visiting with her loved ones, laughing and happy as she was when she was young and beautiful.

Henry and Mary Ann McCabe Procter

2011-04-17T00:01:00.000-07:00

Many years ago, my father received a letter from Alfred Procter of 8 Sheppard Road, Balby, Doncaster, England. He said, "I am what remains of the Procter-McCabe brood of 14. . . and not one president."

Alfred's father was Henry Procter, born at Cantley (4 miles E of Doncaster), Yorkshire, England on 17 April 1842. His parents were John Procter and his wife, Sarah Pinder. He was the oldest of six children. Beginning in 1851, Henry was enumerated on the Doncaster, Yorkshire, England census. Doncaster is a large town with Roman origins. In 1831, there were 10,000 people living there. The railroad reached Doncaster in 1849. By 1853, the Great Northern Railway moved its engine building works to Doncaster, and became the town's main employer. It became an industrial center due to its transportation, particularly waterways; and the presence of a huge underground deep seam coal reserve. An infirmary was built in 1853. The streets were lighted with gas beginning in 1827. The first free public library opened in 1869. This was the world as Henry Procter knew it. In 1851, Henry was eight years old and living with his father. In 1861, he was 18 years old and working as a servant for Henry Stevenson.

On 11 May 1865, Henry married Mary Ann McCabe at Doncaster. Mary Ann was the daughter of Francis McCabe and his wife, Mary Moloy, who lived at 1 Milner's Yard, Doncaster. Francis was born in Longford, Ireland, and Mary was born in Leitrim. Their first two daughters, Mary Ann and Elizabeth, were also born in Ireland; Mary Ann in about 1848, and Elizabeth in 1850. It is an easy guess that it was either at Longford or Leitrim. The third child, John, born in about 1852, was born in Yorkshire, as were Catherine, Ann, Margaret, and Francis. John was born at Bentley (2 miles N of Doncaster), and the rest of the family was born at Doncaster. So sometime between Elizabeth's birth in 1850 and John's birth in 1852, the McCabe family moved from Ireland to Yorkshire, England.

Henry and Mary Ann were living at 6 Priest's Yard on the 1871 census and Henry was working as a coal dealer. Their John, was two years old, and baby Henry was just three months old. By 1881 they had moved to 7 Wright's Court, and Henry listed his occupation as "coal porter." Their family included John, Ada, Alice, and David. Finally, on the 1891 census, they were living at St. George's, Wheatley. The children at home at the time were Ada, Alice, David, Fred, Frank, and Alfred. This was the last census showing Henry as head of household.

Mary Ann was living at 12 St. Mary's Crescent at Wheatley (44 miles NW of Doncaster) in 1901. Alfred, David, Frank, and Fred were living with their mother. She worked as a laundress. To be a widow of 49 years who did wash for a living would be a hard thing. I hope that big family of hers helped her to manage.

While the census records show brief glimpses of this family over time, they do not give the full picture. With only census records, we would have to be content to identify only eight of Henry and Mary Ann's children. Alfred said there were fourteen, and that means six are missing. For a long time I didn't do anything about this problem. Then, one fall I decided to try to find them and started ordering birth certificates.

At Crane Yard, Doncaster, on 16 June 1865, Emily, a girl
At Robinson's Row, Dockin Hill, Doncaster, on 4 July 1867, George, a boy
At Doncaster, John, born 26 December 1868, from our family records
At Priest's Yard, French Gate, Doncaster, on 29 December 1870, Henry, a boy
At French Gate, Doncaster, on 30 October 1873, Jane, a girl
At Wright's Court, High Street, Doncaster, on 25 August 1874, Alice, a girl
At Wright's Court, High Street, Doncaster, on 27 August 1875, Ada, a girl
At Wright's Court, High Street, Doncaster, on 11 October 1879, David, a boy
At Wright's Court, High Street, Doncaster, on 5 January 1881, Fanny, a girl
At Wright's Court, High Street, Doncaster, on 1 September 1882, Percy, a boy
At Wright's Court, High Street, Doncaster, on 5 November 1885, Frank, a boy
At Wright's Court, High Street, Doncaster, on 6 July 1884, Fred, a boy
From Alfred's letter, "I was born in 1887, December 10th."

You can see that Emily was born just a month after they were married. She died in 1866. That left them childless. George arrived in 1866, but he died in 1867. Once again, they were childless. It wasn't until our ancestor, John, was born in 1868 that their home finally became the family place it was to become. After John, Henry arrived in 1870 and died in 1871. They were back to just John, but Mary Ann's arms weren't empty as before. They lost five children to infant death. That seems like a lot, but in earlier times it was more common. Their home began to fill up as they added Jane, Alice, Ada, and David. Fanny was born and died in 1881. A year later, they lost Percy the same way. After Percy, they had Frank, Fred, and Alfred. There is still one child missing from this picture, and I hope we find that little person.

Henry obviously died sometime after the 1891 census and before the 1901 census. A certificate would tell us the date. And Mary Ann died sometime after the 1901 census. According to Alfred's letter, which was written in 1965, all of the brothers and sisters of this family were deceased except for him. It goes without saying that the Procter McCabe posterity is a large one. Our ancestor, John, came to the United States (See John Procter, 26 December posting), but the rest of the family remained in the British Isles. I have not followed any of their trails to know who they married or what they did with their lives.

George W. and Nancy Ann Whitlock

2011-04-06T00:01:00.000-07:00

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George W. Whitlock was born on 6 April 1815. On the 1850 census he said that he was born in Virginia, but by the 1880 census, he listed his birthplace as being in Kentucky, with his parents having been born in Virginia. His birthdate is recorded in the Whitlock Family Bible, along with others of his family.

I believe that his father was Robert Whitlock, who was living in Sullivan County, Indiana in 1830. At that time, he had two boys between the ages of ten and fifteen, and also two between the ages of fifteen and twenty. George was fifteen in 1830, so he fits into the family. In 1840, we find George on the census, still in Sullivan County, Indiana, as a married man with a small family consisting of himself, his wife, and two young children.

The same Robert Whitlock who was in Indiana in 1830, was in Simpson County, Kentucky in 1820, when George would have been just five years old. Simpson County was formed in 1819 from Warren County, where Robert was listed on the 1810 census for the area. Robert Whitlock had a large family that included five sons. In 1820, three of them were under the age of ten, as was George. Based on these findings, it is fairly safe to assume that George W. Whitlock was born in Warren County, Kentucky (A) and that Robert Whitlock was his father.

George's first wife was Nancy Ann, whose maiden name is unknown to us. She is also listed in the Family Bible. She was born on 19 April 1820, so she was five years younger than her husband. She was possibly born in Sullivan County, Indiana (B). They were married on 19 June 1836. and since they were listed on the 1840 census in Sullivan County, that is probably where they were married. He was 21 years old and she was just 16.

George and Nancy Ann had four children. Abiah, a girl, was born on 19 July 1837 in Indiana. Robert Burns was born on 27 September 1839, also in Indiana. They would have been born in Sullivan County. Rossea was born on 1 October 1841. On the 1880 census she listed Indiana as her birthplace, but an earlier census showed Ohio. The youngest daughter, Frances Eastes, was born on 6 September 1843 in Indiana.

Sometime between 1840 and 1846, the family moved to Illinois. While Sullivan County shared its western border with Illinois, this was not a short move, but took them to Canton, 238 miles NW of their Indiana home. On 2 November 1846, Nancy died in Canton, Fulton, Illinois (C), at the age of 26. Her oldest daughter Abiah, who was ten, followed her on 15 March 1847. They were both buried in the Greenwood Cemetery in Canton.

George was now a widower with a small family. He married Catherine Hilton on 12 September 1847 in Fulton County, Illinois. Catherine was born on 24 April 1819 in Ohio. Her parents were from Maine. She was 28 years old when she married George and became the mother of his little family. It is easy to imagine that she filled a very important place in their home since Nancy had died so recently. They did not have any children together. We can feel fortunate to have a record of this marriage since the Sullivan County courthouse was burned in 1850, destroying all of the county records.

George was a blacksmith. He must have been successful because his real property was valued at $2000 on the 1850 census. He was living in Canton at the time and remained there through the 1860 census. Longfellow's poem is descriptive of the life of a blacksmith. It was hard work that required strength. Everyone needed a blacksmith from time to time.

The Village Blacksmith
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Under a spreading chestnut-tree
The village smithy stands;
The smith, a mighty man is he,
With large and sinewy hands;
And the muscles of his brawny arms
Are strong as iron bands.

His hair is crisp, and black, and long,
His face is like the tan;
His brow is wet with honest sweat,
He earns whate'er he can,
And looks the whole world in the face,
For he owes not any man.

Week in, week out, from morn till night,
You can hear his bellows blow;
You can hear him swing his heavy sledge,
With measured beat and slow,
Like a sexton ringing the village bell,
When the evening sun is low.

And children coming home from school
Look in at the open door;
They love to see the flaming forge,
And hear the bellows roar,
And catch the burning sparks that fly
Like chaff from a threshing-floor.

He goes on Sunday to the church,
And sits among his boys;
He hears the parson pray and preach,
He hears his daughter's voice,
Singing in the village choir,
And it makes his heart rejoice.

It sounds to him like her mother's voice,
Singing in Paradise!
He needs must think of her once more,
How in the grave she lies;
And with his haul, rough hand he wipes
A tear out of his eyes.

Toiling,--rejoicing,--sorrowing,
Onward through life he goes;
Each morning sees some task begin,
Each evening sees it close
Something attempted, something done,
Has earned a night's repose.

Thanks, thanks to thee, my worthy friend,
For the lesson thou hast taught!
Thus at the flaming forge of life
Our fortunes must be wrought;
Thus on its sounding anvil shaped
Each burning deed and thought.

In 1860, the Wellington family was living at nearby Buckheart. also in Fulton County. On 21 July 1867 Frances Eastes, the youngest Whitlock daughter, married Horace Wellington in Fulton County. Soon after, Rossea married Horatio Wellington, Horace's brother, on 23 February 1872. They were married in Schuyler County, Missouri, located in the northern part of that state and west of Fulton County where they lived. No further information has been found on their brother Robert.

By the 1870 census, George and Catherine had moved to Pierce, Texas, Missouri (D). George was 55 at the time and still a blacksmith. On the 1880 census they were still living in Pierce. George listed his occupation as "farmer" on this census, possibly meaning that he was retired from blacksmithing. On the census enumeration, their granddaughter, Pearl Wellington, was living with them or visiting. She was eight years old. George's daughter, Rossea, having been divorced from Horatio, had by that time remarried to Samuel Boucher on 27 May 1877. They were also living there at the time.

George’s grandson, Arthur Boucher, in a letter to Cecil Boucher, his brother Luther’s son, wrote, “G. W. Whitlock used to live with us . . . Never saw any of my grandparents except George W. Whitlock, my grandfather. What became of the big butcher knife Grandfather made to skin buffaloes with during the gold strike in California that he never got to use?” Since Cecil had the knife, it remains with that branch of the family. However, Cecil sent the family Bible to me.

Catherine died first on 24 October 1885 at the age of 66. George followed her on 28 August 1886. He was 71 years old. They are buried at the Bethel Cemetery in Carroll, Texas, Missouri.

Elizabeth Parker and Mathew Gourd

2011-04-01T00:01:00.000-07:00

"Mathew Gourd of the Burrough of Liskeard in the County of Cornwall Gardiner & Elizabeth Parker of this Parish Spinster were married in this Church by Licence this first day of April 1779 by me William Hill Curate" Matthew and Elizabeth both signed; Witnesses were Richard Parker, Elizabeth Balle and William Roleston. From cousin Linda Nelson in England, "Next I looked to see if I could find a baptism at Christow for Elizabeth. There were very few records for Parker but this is a possibility--Baptism of Elizabeth, daughter of Richard and Mary Parker, 14 May 1754, born 25 April." Until we find out something more about Elizabeth, she is our end-of-the-line person. This christening seems to be a good possibility, particularly since Richard Parker was a witness to her marriage.

Christow is located in Devonshire, east of Cornwall in the SW corner of England. Photo thanks to www.visitdevon.co.uk for this lovely photo of Christow.

After their marriage in Christow (B), Matthew and Elizabeth returned to his home of Liskeard (A), 55 miles SW of Christow, where they raised a large family. Six of their children were christened at Liskeard, and two at Linkinhorne. Their children were Mary, William, Betsey, Sampson, John Parker, Matthew, Matthew, and Jane. The older Matthew lived less than a month. John Parker is our ancestor. Linkinhorne is a distance of 8.8 miles north of Liskeard.

View Larger Map

See also Matthew Gourd, 17 November.

Hester A. McClanahan

2011-03-27T00:01:00.000-07:00

There is so much that we don't know about Hester, whose family called her Hetty. Thanks to an old Bible record, we do know that she was born on 27 March 1824, in Tennessee. We also know she had a sister named Hannah who was born in about 1818, also in Tennessee. There is one very good possibility for her parents, but no documentation to substantiate it except that she lived near them, so they are nameless for now.

There is an interesting history of Meigs County, Tennessee here. Organized in 1836, Meigs County is in the middle of the Tennessee Valley and lies along the Tennessee River, which makes up its western border. In the south, it is divided by the Hiwassee River. The Bouchers and the McClanahans lived near the Hiwassee River. This area belonged to the Cherokee Nation and was not available for settlement until 1836. It is the scene of the tragic Trail of Tears that displaced this people from their ancestral home.

Image credit for Trail of Tears by Robert Lindneux, 1942, to the Granger Collection, New York.

Hester and Elisha Boucher were married on 6 March 1845, probably in Meigs County or a nearby county in Tennessee. They had four children: Anna Jane, born 23 August 1846; William Robert, born 21 February 1848; Amanda Malvina born August 1852; and Samuel White, born 22 April 1854. Samuel is our ancestor.

Our first encounter with Hester is on the 1850 U. S. Census for Meigs County, Tennessee, as the wife of Elisha Boucher. The other McClanahan families living in the area were Mason and John, who were probably brothers to Hester and Hannah. In 1850, Elisha and Hester were living next door to his parents, William and Anna. It is interesting that he named his first two children Anna Jane and William. On the 1860 Limestone, Meigs County census, Elisha was still living next door to William. Elisha's personal property was valued at $375, while William had property worth $2000 and personal property of $942. It appears that William owned the land and they worked together to farm it.

They were still living in Meigs County during the Civil War. Tennessee seceded from the Union in 1861, although East Tennessee where they lived, did not favor the decision. There were few slaveholders in their area. Many men from Meigs County, like Elisha Boucher, enlisted in the Union Army. Elisha served from 1862 to 1865. Meigs County was not the scene of any battles, but it was the route used by both armies as they moved back and forth. Since it was located along the Tennessee River, and the river with its steamboats was important to the war, there was always an army marching through and camping in the area. Elisha's decision left Hester to care for the family and their home. It was a difficult time in that county, and when the war was over, the land was worth nothing, having been trampled down by both armies, every available piece of wood used for camp fires and not much of value remaining. The good news was that Elisha returned home to his family when the war was over.

On 24 February 1867, daughter Anna Jane married Joseph Romine in Bradley County, adjacent to Meigs County. Amanda and Harrison Hickman married on 20 March 1870. Harrison was from Bradley County.

Like many other Meigs County families who struggled after the Civil War, the Bouchers decided to move west. On 26 April 1870, Elisha deeded 135 acres of land in Meigs County to Robert Boucher. Then he took his family who were still living at home and joined a wagon train to Missouri. They started their trip on May 2nd. Along the way, he wrote letters to his children in Tennessee, telling them of the trip and encouraging them to also move to Missouri so that the family could remain together. He had a good team and wagon, and the resources, probably from the sale of his land, to pay the necessary fees and costs along the way. Their destination was Howell County, Missouri, where Joseph and Hannah McClanahan Bracket lived. One such letter was written on 15 May 1870 from Sumner County, Tennessee and is included here. Punctuation and capitalization have been added for easier reading, but the spelling is as he wrote it.

Dear son and daughter, with pleasur I take the present opportunity of writing you a few lines to let you know that we are well at present, hoping these few lines may reach you and find you all well and doing well. We started the 2nd day of May. We have been hindered some on the way. There is 7 waggons in our train. Miller has 4 and George Russel one, Martin Turner one and me one. We are 9 miles past Galiton on the Red River road. My expences has been more than I expected. Turnpikage cost me 25 cts evry 5 mile. I paid 435 turnpikes, feed for my team cost about 125 cts per day, beside the family. We travel from 14 to 18 miles a day. The fore part of las week was very wet. We got our thing wet. We are resting to day and suning our things that is wet.
Well I want you to write us and direct your letter to Joseph Brackett, West Plains PO, Howel Co, Misouri so we can hear from you as soon as we get there. We expect to stop in Howel Co and look at the country. If we like and can get land to suit us we will stop there. If not we will go further.
Well Jo, I want you and Jane to not go to any expence to fix for housekeeing untell you find out how things is in Misouri. If I like in MO I want you to come. Billy will come. Harry and Manda says they will come next fall. I want all my children together where I can see them once more. That is one cause of my sellout and move. It is ahard toil on me and Hetty.
We have 2 good yoke of young steers and a good waggon. We are getting along tollerable well. Will rest evry Sunday if we can get feed for our stock so we can stay. I wrote to Mandy last Sunday.
Well Jane, your mother is taking a great toil on herself to try to get to her children. Says she don't know how she can stand it tell fall and not see you and the children and Billy, but I don't see any chance for her to see you before fall. I will not have money enough to bear my expence further than Misouri. I will write to you when I get to MO and I will tell you what I think that country.
If I have no bad luck and you want to come to us I will come after you with my waggon. I have a good cover and tent cloth so we can sleep dry of a wet night. Write soon as you get this. I want to hear from you as soon as we get to Jo Bracket's. So I must close for this time. I have to write a letter to Billy to day.
Elisha & Hester Boucher to Jo & A. J. Romines-
Show this to Fate and Frank.

On the 1876 state census for Texas County, in South Central Missouri, Hester was living with her son, Samuel. Elisha got his family to Missouri, where he died on 14 March 1871. All of their children had come to Missouri as well. Joseph and Anna Jane Romine had six children and eventually settled in Willow Springs, Howell, Missouri. Amanda and Harrison Hickman were also near Hester on the 1876 census for Texas County. They had a large family of nine children and settled in Crawford County, Missouri. Samuel married Rossea Whitlock Wellington on 27 May 1877 in Texas County where she lived with her father, George Whitlock. She was a divorced woman with a daughter named Pearl. They had three sons together, one who died; and they also ended up in Willow Springs. Samuel and Rossea are our ancestors. William married Alberta Moore on 17 March 1878 and they had three children.

Hester lived to see all her children married. She died on 23 May 1879. Both she and her husband were Methodists all their lives.

Charles L. Locke

2011-03-12T00:01:00.000-08:00

This photo was taken at Tacoma, Pierce, Washington in about 1921. Charles L. Locke is holding his grandson, Ray, and standing next to his own son, Joel.

Charles L. Locke's life began on 12 March 1858 at Lynn, Randolph, Indiana. His parents were William F. Locke and his wife, Mary Jane Robbins. He was the fifth child in a family of eight children. He is listed on the census records for 1860 and 1870 with his parents, at Washington, Randolph, Indiana. Randolph County is located on the east border of the state next to Ohio.

Ellendale, founded in 1882, was the county seat for the new Dickey county that was organized in 1881 in the Dakota Territory. On 15 April 1883, Charles L. Locke married Mittie Duffy at Ellendale. Their marriage certificate lists his name as Carl L. Locke of Ellendale; hers, Miss Mittie A. B. Duffy of Ellendale. Dakota Territory was at the end of the "Dakota Boom" of the 1870's. Much of this growth was due to the expansion of railroads, especially the Northern Pacific Railroad whose main offices were in Minnesota. Wheat was the main crop in the Dakota Territory. During the 1880's as the price of wheat dropped and the area experienced a drought, the economy declined. It is possible that C. L. and Mittie thought to re-locate and then changed their minds and returned to Minneapolis.

Their children were John Henry, born 6 January 1884 and Joel Shirley, born on 4 November 1886; both at Minneapolis, Hennepin, Minnesota. Their next child, a girl named Jessie Alice, was born on 11 November 1888, and died on 9 December 1889 at Minneapolis. A newspaper article of the time said,

"The youngest and only daughter of Mr. and Mrs. C. L. Locke passed away on Monday evening, December 9, 1889, after a short illness. This being the first death in the family, it comes doubly hard and they have the sympathy of their many friends in this hour of trial. The link is severed and the chain is broken but God's will be done. Dec. 18th." (Corinna Cream)

In Minneapolis City Directories, C. L. Locke first appeared in 1880/1881, "Carl Locke, painter, b 1212 6th Ave N." It was the same for 1881/1882. In 1882/1883, he was listed as, "Carl L. Locke, letter carrier, b 629 N 13th." In 1883/1884, "Carl Lock, laborer, b Jackson N 3rd Ave NE." There was no entry for 1884/1885. In 1885/1886, 'C. L. Locke, millwright, r 3200 Hennepin Ave." In 1886-1887, "Carl L. Locke, clk PO, r 3200 Hennepin Ave." In 1888/1889, "C. L. Locke, health inspector eighth ward, r 3207 Holmes Ave." There were no entries after 1890. It appears that he did a little bit of everything, but was always employed during those years.

C. L. Locke was a Mason. "Brother Charles L. Locke petitioned Khurum Lodge No. 112 A. F. & A. M. for membership and was elected to receive his Degrees in Masonry. This he did, being Initiated an Entered Apprentice on April 13, 1888, Passed to the Fellow Craft Degree on May 4th, 1888; and Raised to the Degree of a Master Mason on May 18, 1888. On the date of his Master Mason Degree he made the following entry in our Lodge Register- C. L. Locke (his signature), age 30 year, born at Millwright, Indiana, Present residence, Minneapolis, Minnesota."

On 10 January 1891, C. L. and Mittie had a third son, Marion Damon, born at Annandale, Wright, Minnesota. Wright County was the home of Mittie's sister, Gert, who had her first child there just four months before Mittie gave birth to Marion. Annandale is about sixty miles NW of Minneapolis.

On 10 November 1894, C. L. received a letter from the Republican Campaign Committee, "In behalf of the Republican Campaign Committee I wish to thank you for the effective speeches which you made at various Republican Meetings, held in this City and County, during the past Campaign, and for your unselfish efforts in behalf of the success of our Party." From this little letter we know that he was a Republican and that he actively supported his political party.

Tragedy struck the family on 27 September 1899, when Mittie died of pulmonary tuberculosis at the young age of 36. She died at home at 811 West 31st Street. She had been sick for about four months, and had lived in Minneapolis all of her life. She was buried at Oak Hill Cemetery, Richfield, Hennepin, Minnesota. In the Minneapolis Tribune on 28 September 1899, page 11,

"LOCKE--In this city, September 27, 1899, Mrs. Charles L. Locke, aged 36 years. Funeral Friday at 2 p.m. from residence, 411 Thirty-first Street West."

C. L. was still living in Minneapolis on the 1900 census--

Chas. L. Locke, lodger, W, M, born Mar 1858, age 42, widow, born in Indiana, father born in North Carolina, mother born in New Jersey, contractor & builder.

John, his oldest son, age 16, was living with Gertie and her husband, Henry Scheyer at Corinna, Wright, Minnesota. John was handicapped, and spent a good part of his life living with Gertie. Joel, age 12 and our ancestor, was at the Minnesota State Training School at Goodhue, Red Wing, Minnesota, about 54 miles SE of Minneapolis. We can assume that Marion, the youngest, was also living with family elsewhere. It had to be a difficult time for the family, being split up like they were. In all his later years, he never remarried.

By 1910, C. L. had made the move to the west coast. He was living in West Roseburg, Douglas, Oregon, and working as a painter. In 1920, he was living with his son, Joel, in Portland, Multnomah, Oregon. He is pictured with Joel's two young sons, our ancestor Ray, and baby David. On the 1930 U. S. Census, he was living next door to another son, Marion, at Eugene, Lane, Oregon.

Charles L. Locke died at Eugene, on 28 April 1941. He was 83 years old. His usual occupation on the death certificate was listed as sign painter and paper hanger. The information was taken from the Lane county public welfare records. He was buried at Mt. Calvary Cemetery. "Funeral services for Charles L. Locke will be held from the St. Mary's Catholic Church Friday at 8 a.m. with interment in the Mt. Calvary Cemetery. The Veatch Chapel is in charge."

Leta of the Laughing Blue Eyes

2011-03-08T00:01:00.000-08:00

Leta Lavina Murray was born on 8 March 1881 at Salem, Dent, Missouri. Her parents were John Lewis Murray and Esther E. Thornton. Her father was an iron miner in Salem.

Leta had an older brother named William who was born in 1879, and did not live long. After Leta's birth, there were two other girls born to the family; Lota Esther who was born 12 January 1885 at Fort Worth, Tarrant, Texas; and Nelle Agness who was also born in Texas on 17 August 1887, in Alvarado, Johnson County. She also had two other siblings who did not survive named Mollie and Johnnie. Betty remembered, "I never really knew Aunt Lota. She and Mother had a falling out when I was very small and never saw or spoke to each other again. Aunt Nelle I knew quite well. She was a happy-go-lucky, fun-loving, frivolous member of the family. She was that way all of her life. My mother was the hard-working, practical one. She and Nelle loved each other dearly."

In About 1888, the family moved to Willow Springs, Howell, Missouri. Leta remembered being in a wagon train and peeking out of the back of the wagon to see the men talking with Indians. Esther died just after Johnnie was born, and they were both buried in the Old Baptist Cemetery in Willow Springs. In a letter, Nelle said that the three babies were all buried next to Esther, but we only found Johnnie there.

Leta was just nine years old when her mother died, leaving her father with three little girls to raise. As the oldest, the burden of the home fell upon her. That might be why she became the "practical" one. Her father remarried quickly on 25 June 1890, to America Lovan, in Willow Springs. "Mec", as she was called, was from a large Willow Springs family. She was was 32 years old when she married John and took on the family of three little girls. Leta said about her that she made them work around the house, but she was good to them and saw to it that they had the things that girls wanted and needed. This is a family photo of John L. and America taken in about 1903, with Fred sitting between them. Fred was adopted by the family. From left to right, the girls are Lota, Nelle, and Leta.

On the 1900 census, they were temporarily living on a farm in Clinton, Douglas County, but returned to Willow Springs after that. Leta's father liked to buy and sell. He was a trader. He'd buy an old house and move his family in and when it was just getting nice, he'd sell it. Leta remembered going with him on one job that was away from home. She was his cook while he was away. When she agreed to marry Art, she told him that she wouldn't make "biscuit" as she called it. She said she'd had to make biscuits for her father each day for breakfast and hated it. She remembered going to the market to purchase "a bit of pork and a bit of beef" to make the breakfast.

Leta graduated from high school in Willow Springs. One of her classmates was her future husband, Arthur Boucher. Leta is the girl at the lower left, and Arthur is at the left of the back row.

After she graduated from high school Leta taught school in Willow Springs. A teaching contract of hers states that she was a "legally qualified public school teacher", for which she was paid $30 per month. She thought teaching was a noble profession and encouraged her children and her grandchildren to be teachers. In her later life, Leta had problems with her feet; she had bunions. She always attributed it to boots she wore that were too small. She walked to school in them one whole winter.

In a letter to the editor in the Willow Springs paper that was written 13 April 1962 this appeared, "the fourth grade was Miss Leta Murray, who had the brightest, blue laughing eyes and a sweet smile (when we were good)." Leta was about five feet tall.

In 1903, Leta became engaged to be married to Arthur Boucher. Someone told her that it was a mistake because they didn't think he would live long. They would be surprised to know how long he lived! Art traveled to Tacoma, Washington to work on the Northern Pacific Railroad. Leta arrived a year later by train, with his mother, Rossea. Art and Leta were married at Tacoma, Pierce, Washington on 20 April 1904.

Back home in Willow Springs, Missouri, this appeared in the local newspaper--

Cards came this week announcing the marriage of Mr. Arthur Boucher and Miss Leta Murray, at Tacoma, Washington, Wednesday, April 20th. When Miss Leta went to Washington we knew what the next word from her would be, but we waited for the official announcement before mentioning it, and that did not come until this week. Mr. Boucher has been away from our vicinity for several years, holding a good position, but he still has many friends here and always will have. Miss Murray has been in our midst most of her life, and was a friend to old and young. She has been a successful teacher in our public school for the past two years and probably would have been the coming year had she not desired a change in occupation. We join with friends in extending congratulations and best wishes to the happy couple so many miles away.

Art and Leta set up housekeeping in Tacoma, with his mother Rossea, who spent about 17 years in their home. Their first three children were close together in age. They were Wanda Erma, born on 17 January 1905; Russell Murray, born 5 November 1906; and Dale Vern, born on 9 September 1908. They were all born in Tacoma. Tragedy struck the little family on 10 April 1913, when Wanda died suddenly. About Wanda, Betty said, "The family had taken a trip back to Missouri for a visit. Although they had no relatives back there (Mother's family had all moved west), they had many friends who they had grown up with and with whom they corresponded all of their lives. I never met any of them but the names were familiar to me. I suppose that is those days people did not travel as much as they do today. It was more difficult. On the return trip from Missouri, Wanda became ill on the train. She died shortly after they got home of tubercular meningitis. My mother always told me that Wanda was such a good child; almost too good. I know that Dad worshipped her and he grieved for her for many years. I was never told much about Wanda. I suppose it was because Mother and Dad didn't want to be reminded. Mother did tell me that I took Wanda's place with Dad. There were no other girls in the family. Just Wanda and myself."

The family moved to Spokane when Art received a transfer. Then, after many years, Betty Jane was born on 20 April 1921, Leta's wedding anniversary. Sixteen months later on 21 August 1922, Bill joined the family, and it was complete. Both children were born at home in Spokane, at 2924 Standard. They sent Grandma Rossie to stay with Art's brother, Luther, until Bill arrived. She never returned to the family, having died at Luther's house.

In the summer the family drove their Model T Ford. The rest of the year they rode the street car. Art would put the car "up on blocks" for the winter. Art had a big garden and Leta kept chickens.

In 1931, they returned to Tacoma to live. They bought a house at 4332 South Bell Street and lived there for many years. During World War II, Betty bought the house next door to them. When the war was over, she and her husband Ray built a house next door to her brother Bill and his wife, Frankie. Art bought the lot next door to Betty and built a one bedroom retirement home for them. The address was 8422 East B Street. It had a long hallway that was covered with snapshots of family and loved ones. Their kitchen was yellow and contained a large, black wood stove that made the best toast in the world. Leta also had a wringer washer machine in her small laundry room off the kitchen. She still kept chickens and they had a large vegetable garden. Leta was particularly proud of her azalea plant in her front yard. Our yard and hers ran together.

In their later years, Art sat in his rocking chair with his feet up, pipe in his mouth, hat on his head, listening to the radio. Leta sat in her little rocking chair and did embroidery or made crocheted rugs from old clothing. Art wasn't much for going places, but Leta had her social outings and rode the bus. Leta would take the bus to town to attend church socials and to shop. Sometimes she would take one of her grandchildren with her. The highlight of the trip was a stop at the soda fountain at Woolworth's. When it was my turn, I always had a chocolate soda for the price of a quarter. Then we would ride the bus home. She always said that if we weren't good, she would pinch us to remind us. But I don't remember ever receiving a "pinch".

All of the children on our little dead end road called her Grandma. She was the grandma for the whole street. The children would all come to the back door and she would pass out sugar lumps. Her small front yard had a little patio made of cement squares which we girls used to play hopscotch. In later years when she no longer raised chickens, she donated half of her shed to us for a play house.

Because my mother worked, having Leta and Art next door was an important part of my life. If we needed anything, we knocked on our window and she would see us from her kitchen window and come over. When school was out at the end of the day, her house was my first stop, where I spent happy hours talking to her while she did her hand work. When I practiced my piano playing she would sit and listen with her hands folded and a smile on her face as though she enjoyed what I played. It was usually hymns.

Leta taught me to memorize scriptures. When I weeded a flower bed for her and she paid me a dime, she always included an extra penny for me to give to the Lord. I realized, as an adult, that she taught me to pay tithing. She was a good, Christian woman. She wanted all of her granddaughters to be school teachers and encouraged us to gain a good education. She was a strong personality who said what she thought.

On 20 April 1954, Art and Leta celebrated their Fiftieth Wedding Anniversary. All of their family gathered together to honor them at a reception held at the Plymouth Congregational Church where the family attended church together.

When Art died in 1967, Leta lived with her daughter, Betty, for about nine months. She was grieving. Then one day she got on the bus and went to town. She found a place for herself in a retirement complex and moved back out on her own. Her natural independence came to the surface.

Leta remembered when the first car came to Tacoma. She remembered driving up to Mt. Rainier and having to wait while the allowed number of cars drove to Paradise and back. She bought an old treadle sewing machine from a man who had three on the back of a wagon. She told us not to slouch because it looked terrible to be a bent over little old lady. She stood as straight as a stick, making use of every bit of her five feet. And she always wore shoes with a thick high heel, probably to give herself as much height as possible. She always wore dresses, and many of them she made herself.

We remember her sayings like, "a fool and his money are soon parted," "chickens come home to roost, " "a penny saved is a penny earned," and one I tried to live by, "learn to keep still." She always said, "hush," and never anything that might sound rude, like "shut up." If we forgot what we were going to say, she said "it must have been a lie." About doing hand work on Sunday, "sew a stitch on Sunday and pick it out with your nose on Monday." She said to never say a bad thing about a girl or boy. She deplored waste, having lived carefully all of her life. She encouraged us to remember the children in Korea when we didn't want to finish our food. She even sifted her garden soil to get the rocks out and waste not a grain of precious dirt. She was strong and good, a true matriarch in every sense of the word.

This four generation photo was taken in 1971 when Leta was 90 years old, probably at Thanksgiving. She is pictured with her daughter Betty, granddaughter Judie, and great-granddaughter Amber. In the last year of her life, Leta lived in a nursing home and didn't like it at all. As a strong-willed, always independent woman, she resented losing the freedom to do what she wanted; but she needed the help she got there. She died on 4 January 1973 at the age of 92, and just two months before celebrating another birthday. She was the pivotal person of my childhood, and I gained much of my attitudes and goals from listening to her. For me, she was everything wonderful.

Mittie Duffy, Mrs. C. L. Locke

2011-02-19T00:01:00.000-08:00

Mittie Alice B. Duffy was born at Fort Snelling, Hennepin, Minnesota on 19 February 1864. Ft. Snelling is located on a bluff at the confluence of the Mississippi and Minnesota Rivers, and is on the outskirts of Minneapolis. This painting shows the Fort in 1844. Mittie's father spent time there as a sergeant for the Union Army during the Civil War, which explains why she was born there.

Mittie was the first child of her parents, John S. Duffy and Alice Louise Madden. When she was four years old, her brother, Horace, joined the family. Her sister, Gertrude Susan, was born when she was six. When she was nine, her father was killed in a tragic accident while working for the railroad. He died in January, and in June of the same year, 1873, her mother married Thomas Gordon Brown. Thomas brought two sons to the new marriage. A year later, Mary was born. On the 1880 Minneapolis U. S. census, the family was listed as follows:

Thomas Brown, W, M, age 45, married, carpenter & builder, PA, PA, PA;
Alice, W, F, age 38, wife, keeping house, Ireland, Ireland, Ireland;
Duffy, Mittie, F, W, age 16, daughter, at school, MN, PA, IRE;
Duffy,Horace, M, W, age 12, son, at school, MN, PA, IRE;
Duffy, Gertie, F, W, age 9, daughter, at school, MN,PA, IRE;
Brown, John, M, W, age 12, son, at school, MN, PA, IRE;
Brown, Thomas, M, W, age 10, son, at school, MN, PA, IRE;
Brown, Mary, W, F, age 5, daughter, MN, PA, IRE.

Three years later, on 15 April 1883, Mittie married Charles L. Locke at Ellendale, Dickey, Dakota Territory. Ellendale is about 400 miles NW of Minneapolis, and on the North Dakota/South Dakota border. It was founded in 1882, so it was a very new town at the time. The Northern Pacific Railroad moved west from Minnesota to the Dakotas during the 1870's. It is likely that their time in Ellendale involved a train ride, which would have been quite an adventure for them. Their marriage certificate lists his name as Carl L. Locke of Ellendale; hers, Miss Mittie A. B. Duffy of Ellendale.

Whatever their reason for being in Dakota Territory, their children were all born in Minnesota. It may be that the economic difficulties of the Dakotas in the 1880's due to a decline in wheat prices, changed their plans and they returned to Minnesota. John Henry was born 6 January 1884 and Joel Shirley, on 4 November 1886; both at Minneapolis. Then they had a girl named Jessie Alice on 11 November 1888 who died on 9 December 1889 also at Minneapolis. A newspaper article of the time said,

"The youngest and only daughter of Mr. and Mrs. C. L. Locke passed away on Monday evening, December 9, 1889, after a short illness. This being the first death in the family, it comes doubly hard and they have the sympathy of their many friends in this hour of trial. The link is severed and the chain is broken but God's will be done. Dec. 18th." (Corinna Cream)

On 10 January 1891, C. L. and Mittie had a third son, Marion Damon, born at Annandale, Wright, Minnesota. Wright County was the home of Mittie's sister, Gert, who had her first child there just four months before Mittie gave birth to Marion. Annandale is about sixty miles NW of Minneapolis and more rural in nature.

Tragedy struck the family on 27 September 1899, when Mittie died of pulmonary tuberculosis. She was just 36 years old. She died at home at 811 West 31st Street. In the Minneapolis Tribune on September 28, 1899, page 11, "LOCKE--In this city, September 27, 1899, Mrs. Charles L. Locke, aged 36 years. Funeral Friday at 2 p.m. from residence, 411 Thirty-first Street West." Her obituary said,

Alice B. Locke, wife of Charles L. Locke, residence 811 W 31st St, died Wednesday afternoon at 4:40, Sep 27th, after a four months' illness of tuberculosis. She was born 19 Feb 1864 at Fort Snelling and always resided in the city of Minneapolis. She was an active member of Plymouth Chapter No. 19 O. E. S. Funeral services will be held at the house on Friday, Sep 29th at 2:00 p.m." Another said, "Mrs. Charles L. Locke, residing at 811 31st St W, died last evening of tuberculosis, after an illness extending over a period of four months. Mrs. Locke was well known in Minneapolis, having been born at Fort Snelling, the daughter of Sgt. John S. Duffy, Co. G, and resided here all her life. She was a member of the Order Eastern Star and in Plymouth Chapter has held the office of Ruth two terms. She leaves a husband and three sons. The funeral will take place from the residence Friday afternoon at 2:00.

To those who extended sympathy, her husband wrote, "To my friends: God bless you always and in the hour of affliction give you loving, tender hearts and hands of ministration. -- C. L. Locke, 2 Oct 1899." Mittie was buried at Oak Hill Cemetery in Richfield.

Thanks to D. Vangsness for this photo.

Olive Wood, A Missouri Pioneer

2011-02-17T00:01:00.000-08:00

This is a drawing of Olive Wood, who married Bennett Murray. I always wonder, when I see old photos and drawings, why they didn't smile. It was a serious business having your likeness captured. If Olive had smiled, you would be able to see the way her eyes crinkled and how her face lit up. Instead, she appears somber.

Olive was oldest child of Jesse Wood and his wife, Anna Henderson. She was born in Fredericktown, Madison, Missouri on February 17th. An old Bible entry sets the year at 1830, but on the 1850 census she was only 17 years old. He parents had a large family of nine children. Fredericktown is located in the NE foothills of the Ozarks. Jesse was a miner, a common occupation in that area.

Olive married Bennett Murray, a widower. He had a baby girl named Sarah who was born in 1850. They were married on 10 January 1851. Olive was Bennett's third wife, the first two having died young, probably with complications from pregnancy. She and Bennett had seven sons. Our ancestor, John Lewis, was the oldest of those sons. All of the boys were born in Missouri except one, who was born in Arkansas. The map shows the relationship of these places to the Mississippi River, Missouri's eastern boundary, and to Arkansas, at its southern boundary.

In 1859, Bennett bought land in Dent County, Missouri (B), about 92 miles west of Fredericktown (A). Bennett served in the Union Army during the Civil War, leaving Olive home to raise the boys by herself. During that time, he made at least one trip home to put in crops and see the family. By the 1880 census, the boys were all grown and gone from home. Olive died that year on July 3rd.

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A Quiet Man

2011-02-12T00:01:00.000-08:00

Arthur Boucher was a quiet man who didn't argue, complain, or talk too much. He began life in Texas County, Missouri, the son of Samuel Boucher and Rossea Whitlock. It was Rossea's second marriage; Art had a half sister named Pearl, and two brothers, Luther and Edward. Edward did not live long. Art was born in 12 February 1880. He was a handsome man, about six feet tall and slender, with dark wavy hair and brown eyes. As an older man, he was bald and wore glasses, but was still a handsome man.

Art grew up in Willow Springs, Howell, Missouri. He went to school with several cousins, and his future wife, Leta Lavina Murray. Leta remembered the first time she saw Art. He was standing in front of the stove in the school room. It was February 12th. He looked at her and said, "Two great men were born today, me and Abraham Lincoln."

He finished high school and went to work for the Santa Fe Railroad. In 1903, he and Luther moved to Tacoma, Pierce, Washington, where he worked for the Northern Pacific Railroad. A year later, Leta took the train to Tacoma where they were married on 20 April 1904. Art's mother, Rossea, traveled with Leta and lived with them for the first 17 years of their marriage.

Art had a long career with the Northern Pacific. When he retired, he had worked for 32 years without being absent for a single day's pay. He spent 43 years working for railroads, 41 years with the NP. He started at the South Tacoma paint shops in July, 1903. and was transferred to the store department at South Tacoma in 1907. In September 1916, he went to the position of chief clerk to the division storekeeper at Spokane. Then in 1922 he was transerred to the division accounting office in Spokane. Lastly, in 1932 he was transferred to the district accounting office in Tacoma, where he worked up to the time of his retirement.

Art and Leta had five chilren. Wanda was born in 1905, Russell in 1906, and Dale in 1908; all in Tacoma. Tragedy struck the little family on 10 April 10 1913, when Wanda died suddenly. About Wanda, Betty said, "The family had taken a trip back to Missouri for a visit. Although they had no relatives back there, Mother's family had all moved west, they had many friends who they had grown up with and with whom they corresponded all of their lives. On the return trip from Missouri, Wanda became ill on the train. She died shortly after they got home of tubercular meningitis. My mother always told me that Wanda was such a good child; almost too good. I know that Dad worshipped her and he grieved for her for many years. I was never told much about Wanda. I suppose it was because Mother and Dad didn't want to be reminded. Mother did tell me that I took Wanda's place with Dad. There were no other girls in the family; just Wanda and myself."

After Art was transferred to Spokane, Betty was born in 1921, and Bill in 1922. That must have been something of a shock for parents in their forties. Betty and Bill were both born at home, 2924 Standard, in Spokane. Art owned a Model T Ford in Spokane, which they drove in the summer. Art "put it up on blocks" in the winter and they rode the street car. Art had a big garden and Leta kept chickens. He was an avid fisherman.

In 1931, they returned to Tacoma and bought a house at 4332 South Bell Street, where they lived for many years. During World War II, Betty bought the house next door to them. When the war was over, Betty and Ray built a house at 8418 East B Street, next door to her brother Bill and his wife, Frankie. So Art bought the lot next door to Betty and built a one bedroom retirement home for them. Their address was 8422 East B Street.

The house had a long hallway that was covered with snapshots of family and loved ones. Their kitchen was yelllow and contained a large, black wood stove that made the best toast in the world. Leta also had a wringer washer machine in her small laundry room off the kitchen. They still kept chickens and they had a large vegetable garden. A bulletin board next to the back door contained sayings and clippings of items of interest. One poem, in particular, always caught my attention. It said--

It doesn't do to do much talkin',
When you're mad enough to choke.
For the word that hits the hardest,
Is the word that's never spoke.
Let the other fella do the talkin',
'Till the storm has rolled away.
Then he'll do a heap a thinkin',
'Bout the things you didn't say.

In their later years, Art sat in his rocking chair with his feet up, pipe in his mouth, hat on his head, listening to the radio. He enjoyed baseball. The picture over his rocker was a needlepoint Russell made for their 50th wedding anniversary of their family tree with their children and grandchildren represented on the branches of the tree. Leta sat in her little rocking chair and did embroidery or made crocheted rugs from old clothing. Art wasn't much for going places, but Leta had her social outings and rode the bus since they did not own a car. Every afternoon he would get up from his chair and walk to the mail box for the mail. And that was as far as he went.

On 20 April 1954, Art and Leta celebrated their Fiftieth Wedding Anniversary. All of their family gathered together to honor them at a reception held at the Plymouth Congregational Church where the family attended church together.

Art's most singular trait was that he was a quiet man. His daughter, Betty said that if he didn't like something you never knew it because he didn't say. He had a little sign next to his chair that said, "Ve get too soon oldt undt too late schmart." As his granddaughter, I remember drinking buttermilk with him. It's how I learned to love buttermilk. On birthdays my mother would purchase two cans of pipe tobacco, one of Velvet and one of Granger, which he mixed together. That was what we always got him.

When he was old, the doctor told him to quit smoking, so he did. He started eating potato chips and chocolates. Then they told him to give those up too. I always thought he died because there just wasn't anything left he could do. I thought it would not have hurt to let him enjoy his candy and chips.

Art died on February 24, 1967. He was eighty-seven years old.

John Parker Gourd

2011-01-02T08:09:00.000-08:00

John Parker Gourd was first christened at home on 15 August 1788. Perhaps he was a sickly baby and his parents, Matthew and Betsey weren't sure he would survive. By the time of his public christening on 2 January 1789, it appears they were satisfied he was going to be a healthy boy. His middle name was taken from his mother's maiden name of Parker. He was the fifth of a family of eight children, and only one did not survive. They lived at Liskeard, Cornwall, England (A), which was mentioned in earlier Cornwall posts.

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On 3 May 1810, John married Ann Pyne in her home town of Topsham, Devonshire, England, which is located near the cathedral town of Exeter (B) on the east side of the River Exe estuary. Topsham was made a town by royal charter in 1300, and is the location of an earlier Celtic settlement. It was a port city during Roman times, and is noted for its sheltered harbor. Topsham is 63 miles NE of Liskeard and across what is now the Dartmoor National Park. John was a blacksmith by trade, and the family moved around a bit, though never far.

By 1819, they settled in Chudleigh, Devonshire, where they raised their family. Our ancestor is their son William Soper Gourd, the youngest of seven children. John was enumerated on the 1841 and 1851 census records in Chudleigh. Chudleigh (C) is about twelve miles SW of Topsham, closer to Dartmoor National Park. Earlier Devonshire posts can give more information about Chudleigh and its "great" fire.

In 1858, Ann died, and on the 1861 census, John was living with his daughter, Emma and her husband Thomas Duke at Torquay, just 13 miles south of Chudleigh. Like all of these small places, Torquay has an interesting history. He lived with them for the most of the rest of his life. John died on 24 February 1878 at Combe Lane, West Teignmouth, Devonshire, England. He was 89 years old, and his son, John, was present at his death.

It strikes me that John Parker Gourd was surrounded by beauty his entire life. If you look at these pictures, you can see nature's loveliness everywhere you look. I think of his work as a blacksmith and wonder how often his smithing took him to ships rather than to horses and wagons.

A Life in Pictures

2010-12-27T00:01:00.000-08:00

Ray Lee Locke was born 27 December 1919 at Portland, Multnomah, Oregon.

He was raised by his father, Joel Shirley Locke in Tacoma, Pierce, Washington. His mother, Dorothy Alice Procter, lived in Portland. His parents divorced when he was about five years old.

As a young person, Ray was popular and active in school events at Lincoln High School in Tacoma. He didn't like to dance, but he was a great roller skater. There used to be a photo of him on skates. He was holding a girl by her ankles and swinging her around. Too bad we can't find that picture. We will have to make do with the motorcycle photo.

He is the "big eye" person in our family tree. Ray had black hair and brown eyes. He was just five feet four inches tall.

Ray married Betty Jane Boucher on 20 April 1941 at Kent, King, Washington. They were married by a minister friend of Ray's. He was always active in church groups as well as at school.

Ray worked at the shipyards for a time, but eventually enlisted in the Army during World War II. He served in the Philippines, and in Japan.

When Ray returned home, he worked for the Post Office, first as a clerk, and then as a supervisor and route manager. He loved animals and always had a dog or two. He is with his father in this picture.

Ray and Betty had two children, Judith and Richard. This photo was taken in 1957.
It was an important year because the family joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. This particular Thanksgiving, the missionaries who taught our family were guests for dinner. Ray and Betty learned about the church because two missionaries stopped by the house. Normally, they would not have found them home, but Judy and Dick were having their tonsils removed, so they were home that day. That was the beginning of several months association with the Elders. As a family, we were all baptized on 1 June 1957.

This picture was taken in 1959 when the family drove to Salt Lake City, Utah to attend the temple and be united as an eternal family. It was a big trip, and an important one.

Ray was a get it done kind of person, very organized. He was always busy. He had a sharp wit and a good sense of humor. He built an upstairs on our home, and lost his thumb doing it. He kept the house and yard in immaculate condition. He enjoyed reading and loved cars; his was pristine. I remember, as a girl, listening for rattles while he drove. He couldn't stand rattles; I still listen. He looked forward to the Seattle Seafair and the hydroplane races each year. He loved the speed.

When he was older, he thought his age gave him license to say what he thought, which he often did. He could be abrasive. Ray had two bypass surgeries. At the time of the second surgery, he said that if he could gain another good ten years from it, that would be good. If he couldn't, he would rather just not wake up. And that's what he got. The surgery was a success, but the patient did not revive. Ray died on 16 March 1995, in Tacoma. I felt like I ought to be able to walk into another room and ask, "So, how was it?" But I could not.

When he died, I felt peaceful and good about him and his life. On the Monday before his death, he came home from his walk and said he needed to see the doctor. After that, things moved along until the surgery. It was the same surgeon as before, and when he came into the waiting room, he cried. Before entering the hospital, Dad ran down to church to do a couple of chores. He was the executive secretary of the Singles Ward. He left nothing undone, and so he died, all assignments complete. That was like him to finish everything up before leaving.

John Procter of Yorkshire and Oregon

2010-12-26T00:01:00.000-08:00

John Procter was born on 26 December 1868 at Doncaster, Yorkshire, England. His parents were Henry Procter and Mary Ann McCabe. They had a large family, and John was the oldest surviving child. Emily and George, born before him, only lived a few months. Altogether, there were fourteen children born to this family. John was the only one who left England. There is still one unidentified child for this family.

John and Emily Gourd were married at Doncaster on 19 January 1890. He was a printer by trade, and always made a good living. They lived in at least six houses during a ten year period before leaving England. Although they would not be considered anything special now, they were new and very nice at the time. All of these houses are located within a very small area of York, and within the same parish.

John and Emily had a large family. Their children were Walter, Percy, Gert, Dorothy, Cecil, Berniece (called Lu), Doug, and Evelyn Maud. Dorothy is our ancestor. Everyone was born in Doncaster except for Doug, who was born in 1913 in Vancouver, British Columbia; and Maud, who was born in 1915 in Portland, Multnomah, Oregon. In August of the same year, their oldest son, Walter, was killed on the Gallipoli Peninsula, Turkey, during World War I. He was a soldier in the Australian Imperial Forces. They lost their youngest daughter in 1922, leaving them with six remaining children. Seated in this photo are Percy, Emily and John, Gert, and Dorothy; standing behind are Cecil, Berniece (Lu), and Doug.

John was an avid golfer. He was a stern man, who, in his later years could be called "a sweet old man." He possessed a charming nature. As a child, I remember visiting at their home. The adults visited and we children sat outside on their porch in the big porch swing that looked like a couch with a canopy. Great-grandfather John believe that children should be seen and not heard, so it was a quiet time visiting at their house.

John died on 23 April 1953 in Portland, Multnomah, Oregon. In 1967, when our family (Locke) visited Emily, his wife, she said, with tears in her eyes, that she still missed him so very much.

Olette Wigness

2010-08-26T00:01:00.000-07:00

Olette Wigness was born in Norway. Her birthdate was 26 August 1863. Her parents were Ole and Ella. These facts were taken from her death certificate, where her parents surname was spelled "Vignes." Her son, Harold, said it should be spelled "Wigness.". Unfortunately, efforts to locate her parents have not met with success. On the 1900 census for Holt, Marshall, Minnesota she indicated that she immigrated in 1881 and spoke and wrote in English. The 1881 immigration date is just one year too late for the 1880 census, and since the 1890 census was destroyed by a fire, the 1900 census is the first opportunity to locate her in a family setting.

On 27 May 1885, she married Thore O. Dovre in Minneota, Cottonwood, Minnesota, a poetic sounding place. As it says on Google, "Minneota, Minnesota, it's the place I want to go tah." They didn't stay, although their first son, Oscar Alfred, was born there. They returned to Holt. Their family was a large family of ten children. They were Oscar, Ole Hjalmer, Ella Magdalene, John Edwin, Marie Alvidia, Alma Ovidia, Selma Juline, Nora Augusta, Theodore, and Harold.

By the time of the 1910 census they had been married for 24 years. Their oldest son, Oscar Alfred had died in 1894, so there were nine living children. Two local school teachers boarded with them. Thore was a farmer. They were still dry farming in Holt on the 1920 census. Ella, who was 31 and not married, lived with them along with the younger children; Nora, Theodore, and Harald.

Olette died on 8 June 1922 at Holt, leaving her husband, Thore, a widower. She is the last of the August Norwegian birthdays.

Beautiful Betty, 1921-2010

2010-02-15T07:16:00.000-08:00

Betty Jane Boucher Locke died quietly at the home of her daughter on 15 February 2010 at 8:00 a.m. She had been on Hospice for two years. Betty was 88 years old. She was buried beside her husband, Ray Locke, who died in 1995. They are buried at the Sumner Cemetery in Sumner, Washington. Since her birthday is in April, her life will be remembered with a small history at that time.

Lynn, Randolph, Indiana

2009-03-12T20:51:00.000-07:00

Until my son brought these photos home to me, I didn't know that Mary Jane was buried next to her husband, William F. Lock. Her tombstone is lying on the ground and is difficult to read. She died 14 November 1872. He died 19 February 1893. Fortunately for us, he had a death certificate that named his parents, Joel and Jane Lock. I wish we knew as much about Mary Jane's parents.

Double click on the photos to get a better look.

England 1066

2008-10-20T11:48:00.000-07:00

You can read up on the Bayeux Tapestry before watching the video. I think it's an amazing piece of history that changed the lives of everyone, including our ancestors. And the stitchery is pretty amazing as well!

What is this?

2008-09-04T07:30:00.000-07:00

I've been working hard at finding something new for William F. Locke in the hope that I might connect him to his father, whose name I don't know; but who I hope is Hezekiah. Last night I found a new census for William in Preble County, Ohio. This isn't too surprising since Preble is located just across the IN-OH border from Randolph County. The thing is, I already have an 1850 census for William and Mary Jane. Well, it appears that they were in Preble County in August, and by November they were back in Randolph County, Indiana. The census enumerator caught them twice! So this seems to prove that Sarah, their second daughter, was actually born in Ohio. There was a 17-year old named Levi living with them in Ohio, and they were living next door to Edmund Lock. How do these two fit into my ever-changing picture? Edmund was the last person I had in mind to be a brother to William. What to do, what to do!

Internet Surname Database for Lock or Locke

2008-07-13T07:30:00.000-07:00

Lock or Locke is a wonderful name. Composed of five letters, it is neat and concise, and it's the name Judie used until she got married. George's great grandmother also answered to the name of Locke, Catherine Locke, to be exact. While Judie's Lockes lived in Indiana, and North Carolina before that, George's Lockes were firmly rooted in Northumberland on the border between Scotland and England. That particular border being a very dangerous place, many of the border people moved to Ireland and earned the name of "Scots-Irish" when they came to America where they were a fiercely independent group; still a border people, only in America they provided the border, or buffer, between the colonies and the Indians. Since many of Judie's ancestors came from this group, there may be more than one shared surname if you could follow the elusive ancestor trail back far enough in time.

Religiously, George's ancestors were dissenters from the established church in England, while Judie's were Quakers. Judie's came to America early (time unknown) and being Quakers, probably for religious reasons. George's also came for religious reasons, but not until Catherine came as a convert to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints at the late date of 1922. She came with her daughter and son-in-law, as a widow.

Looking at the posted picture of Robert Locke on Glerkd Alley, one can see his wavy hair, which, if a common trait, could have been the source of his surname. Judie's Locke's could not lay claim to wavy hair, or some would say, much hair at all! Her ancestors looked more like the strong nosed philosopher, John Locke.

Here is a sample of the information found at the Internet Surname Database with a link added to the list at the left:

This interesting surname is of Anglo-Saxon origin, and has three distinct possible sources. Firstly, it may be a metonymic occupational name for a locksmith, from the Olde English pre 7th Century "loc", lock, fastening. The name may also be topographical from residence near an enclosure, a place that could be locked, from the Middle English "loke", a development of the Olde English "loca" The Middle English "loke" was used especially of a barrier on a river, which could be opened and closed at will, and, by extensions, of a bridge. The surname may thus also have been a metonymic occupational name for a lock- keeper. Finally, Locke may have originated as a nickname for someone with curly hair, from the Olde English "loc(c)", Old High German "loc", a lock (of hair). Early examples of the surname include: William de Lok, (Berkshire, 1230); William Lock, (Oxfordshire, 1273); and Robert Atteloke, (Cambridgeshire, 1300). Among the recordings of the name in London Church Registers are the christening of Joan, daughter of Mychaell Lock, at St. Giles' Cripplegate, on April 25th 1568, and the marriage of Robert Lock and Mary Baker on October 22nd 1572, at St. Dunstan's, Stepney. William Lock was an early emigrant to the American colonies, leaving London on the "Planter" in March 1634 bound for the Virginia Colony of New England. The first recorded spelling of the family name is believed to be that of Leuric Loc. This was dated 1130, in the "Pipe Rolls" of Warwickshire, during the reign of King Henry 1st of England, known as "The Lion of Justice", 1100 - 1135. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was sometimes known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries surnames in every country have continued to "develop", often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

© Copyright: Name Orgin Research www.surnamedb.com 1980 - 2007

Mother's Day

2008-05-11T17:28:00.000-07:00

Grandpa was a Mason, and Grandma belonged to Eastern Star, the women's group; so Mom was a Rainbow girl. There were a lot of dances for the kids, and Mom went to all of them. I think it was a big social outlet during high school in the 1930's. She loved to dance and she was good at it. She could also do a perfect cartwheel. I can remember her doing them out on the lawn when I was a girl.

This was taken after she finished high school. She was such a pretty girl. She and her friends spent a lot of time together while their husbands were overseas during World War II. One of the things they did was take photos to send to the guys.

Mom is 87 years old now and she only weighs sixty pounds. She has had a stroke and is paralyzed on one side. She is deaf. What she does still have is a family who loves her, and good memories of a life well lived. And she has the hope of a happy reunion with loved ones in the near future. Today is a good day to remember the pretty girl who is my mother.

The Domesday Book

2008-05-07T09:01:00.000-07:00

I could write something about the Domesday Book, but it would be redundant since there is wonderful information available about it. It was commissioned in 1085 by William the Conqueror, who invaded England in 1066 and became its king. He rewarded his supporters, who were French, with land and power, leaving only a few of the resident Anglo-Saxon nobility with holdings. There were 13,418 settlements in the English counties, and he needed to know what was there. The book recorded the value of land and who held what. It provides a picture of what life was like in the 11th century. The original Domesday Book is held by the National Archives in London. Here are a couple of good sources if you would like to know more. Genealogically speaking, the book is a treasure.

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/domesday/
They call the book "Britain's finest treasure" and "the foundation document of the National Archives." This site has wonderful photos of the book, 11th century tapestries, and other artifacts; also a Domesday glossary, bibliography, and Latin tutorials for beginners and advanced level. There are two exhibitions, "Discover Domesday" and "World of Domesday." They offer several different searches, including by place and name. They even note that the name may have a Biblical context referring to Doomsday when Christ has the final word of judgment. In its time, the Domesday Book had the final word. The logo you see is theirs. Everything else is for sale, such as books, photos, etc.

http://www.domesdaybook.co.uk/
They also tell about life in the 11th century. There is a nice picture of William and a time line of his life. There is a list of landowners with short descriptions, which is very interesting if your family history extends back to nobility. For instance, the Count of Mortain, who is mentioned in Radigan's little history is listed. He was half-brother to William, and the largest landholder in the country after the king. There is also a glossary. You can find a nice interactive map with links to listings of the places found in the book. Another great feature is the origin of place names from the Roman, Celtic, Saxon, and Viking. A timeline tells about world events during this time. It appears that this is still a work in progress and there will be even more.

This is a special place

2008-04-24T12:57:00.000-07:00

Today it occurred to me that if my friend Cheryl can make a special place for her dolls, I can make a special place for my favorite pastime, which is family history. I think I will do it!