Wordless Wednesday: Seeking Hidden Kin in Ohio

Searching old newspapers is a passion of mine.  At least, this activity ranks high on a rainy day or when I stumble across new evidence of a family member.

For years, I have been involved in the Pittsburgh Old Newspaper Project where a dedicated group of volunteers has been reading old newspapers for deaths, marriages, and divorces.  To date, we have indexed and placed over 100,000 deaths online.  The information can be so very useful since the Commonwealth of PA did not start requiring statewide death certs until 1906.  Even then, I have been successful in finding post 1906 death certs and then finding more information in the death notice.

Just today, I have turned my attention to the neighboring state of Ohio.  So many early residents of western PA migrated west after the land was open for American expansion all those many years ago.

Logic now says it's time to wander around Ohio with the locations I know and see what I can find in print to support what I think I know.  A great place to start is Ohio Memory.

Ohio Memory has been diligently working on getting tons of old Ohio information online.  The counties shaded in blue above indicate some digitization of the newspapers has started.  When clicking on the site, you may be directed to Chronicling America.  Chronicling America has long been a favorite place for me to spend many hours looking for those elusive kin. Spend time there as well if you have kin in the area.

Ahh, genealogy.  Gotta run and immerse myself in seeking the hidden past in Ohio.  I'll be wordless the rest of the day as I drink coffee and read and read.....

Sources:
Ohio Memory, http://www.ohiohistoryhost.org/ohiomemory/newspapers.
Chronicling America, http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84028745/issues/

©2016 ASEldredge

Tuesday Tip: I'll Have English Will with a Twist of Land, Please

Following land ownership is not as easy as we today think it is.  Typically, if land is owned at the time of death, a description of it can be found in the will or probate records.  I have used this way of following the land in early America. However, there is a twist across the pond.

In old England, depending on what time frame one is searching, it can be downright difficult, if not impossible to trace land ownership.  In early England, all land was thought to belong to the Crown.  That slowly evolved to leases and titles.

Now for the twist of the day.

I have been diligently searching for land ownership in old Portsea, Hampshire, England, from the 1740-1800 time frame.

Apparently, all wills were probated by the church before 1858.  There are some indexes online, but you really have to research which of them might be the best place to look. The courts were organized in a hierarchy, which really boggles my mind.  Just the names of some of the courts sound foreign to my mind....Archdeaconry, Commissary, Prerogative, and so on.

The National Archives site has a great "how to" section to read.  They even offer a live chat for quick pointers.  I haven't tried this yet, but I may as I wander around hopelessly confused.  Looking at the National Archives site, I do find a 1763 will for James HILL, Mariner of Portsea.  I really need to see the will in the hopes of a land mention.

Another tidbit crossed my path today as I search for land.  In the Portsmouth Museums and Records Service which has been cataloged by the National Archives, this is seen:

Ahh genealogy. Pour me up another will with land.  Just can't get enough!


Source:
http://www3.hants.gov.uk/archives
http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/help-with-your-research/research-guides/wills-or-administrations-before-1858/

©2016 ASEldredge

Monday Mystery: Did Tollervey Marry Simmons in Jolly Old England?

Genealogy.  It really is one big mystery to be unraveled through time.  It can take years to try and discover the proof to what I think I know.

Looking at some old records again (ok, maybe for the 100th time), I still wonder about the tenements old Grandpa John inherited from his mama who died--  well we don't know when.  We do know he had the land in his 1794 will.

The things we three family researchers think we know:

John SIMMONS married Katherine CHEESEMAN around 1736 in Hampshire, England.

They have either four or five children.  If it is indeed five, then the first one appears to be deceased by 1736.  Maybe the boy belonged to them-- maybe not.  Since I haven't found out more about the definitive of the parents, I will ignore him for now.  Ignore, not forget.

The first known legit child, we think, is John SIMMONS who was christened 1736 in the only church on the island of Portsea, St Mary's.  

The second legit child, we think, is William SIMMONS who is c. around 1737 in the same parish church.

The next two children are girls--  one dying as a young toddler, and the other hasn't been followed.  

Of interest in this mystery is William.  He may have married Elizabeth TOLLERVEY.  At least, some people have them married, but with no proof noted.

According to the Hampshire Burial Records, William is buried in Portsea in February 1831.

Now to the biggest mystery of the day.  Remember John, the alleged first legit child?  His 1794 will in New York mentions land in Hanover Row, Portsea, Hampshire, England.  Did William also own this land with him?  To whom did the land belong in the first place?  Was it land of the father who allegedly dies c. 1742 or the land of the stepfather, James HILL?  Does William, who was buried in February 1831, have living blood grandchildren around to help with the mystery?

More information on the Portsea of old as it pertains to this quest can be read here.

Ahh, genealogy. Jolly old England might hold the answers.  Want to send me to find out?

©2016 ASEldredge

Friday Faces of the Past: Whisper Those Pee Dee River Names in the 1844 SC Militia

Cruising along the waters of the Great Pee Dee River in South Carolina has been a journey.  Gone are the plantations of old.  Gone are many memories.

Found today, however, is the 32nd South Carolina Regiment of 1844. Wait... 1844?  That seems a little early to be getting ready for the Civil War, or the War of Northern Aggression.  Or is it?  This 1844 petition signed by the Marion area men is a new find for me.  The petition signers ask for a dedicated muster ground for their battalion rendezvous so they can minimize crossing the Pee Dee River.  The location suggested is on the southwest side of the river.  What was cool was seeing the almost four pages of names that started jumping off the page, kind of like fish jumping just waiting to be caught.  Grandpas, uncles, cousins--  they are all there with their neighbors.

Why was there such a big militia at the ready in 1844?  Back up a few years in our nation's history and think of John C CALHOUN and his opposition to the Federal Government and its 1832 Tariff Act. South Carolina threatened to secede if the Federal Government enforced the tariff as the state saw it as a way to bring the south to obedience. Hmmmm... sounds familiar.

In 1832, South Carolina adopted the Ordinance of Nullification, as a formal protest, and to see if the Federal Government would honor the principle of states' rights. The next month the Federal Government issued a warning to South Carolina and passed the Force Bill which authorized use of force to collect those nasty tariffs.

At the same time period in 1832-33, South Carolina revamped its militia. Thus the birth of the 32nd Regiment South Carolina Militia which was mostly made of Marion men.  The men met every two months for drills.  There was no pay for service.  This practice continued up to the time that South Carolina actually did secede from the Union, some thirty years later.

Interesting tidbits emerge and help me to understand more of my country's past.  Reading the history means just so much now then when it did in school.

Ahh, genealogy, let me count those names on the 1844 petition.  And let me see how many I share blood with--- POSTON, GIBBBS, COX, FINKLEA, SINGLETARY.  Time to hit those genealogy files to confirm more names!

Sources:
Rice, William. A Digested Index of the Statute Law of South Carolina, from the earliest period to the year 1836, inclusive. https://books.google.com/books?id=16JXAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA209&lpg=PA209&dq=1832+south+carolina+militia+laws&source=bl&ots=PDq4lIAtyp&sig=VxqGVPTe2INwpr2d2fXyfe5TtOM&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj9rrPYxL7NAhWGVyYKHTSsCHQQ6AEIKTAC#v=onepage&q=1832%20south%20carolina%20militia%20laws&f=false
Sellers, W W. History of Marion County. South Carolina, from its earliest times to the present, 1901.
SC Department of Archives and History, Petitions to the General Assembly S165015 http://www.archivesindex.sc.gov/onlinearchives/Thumbnails.aspx?recordId=257881
http://www.britannica.com/topic/nullification-crisis
http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h333.html

©2016 ASEldredge

Those Places Thursday: Wettest Spot in the Nation is Western Pennsylvania

Wettest?  No, no, not the weather.  Twas called the wettest spot in the nation during Prohibition.

Reading articles from the past are so enlightening on the subject which was greatly debated during its time.  Transcriptions of some of the articles have been completed and can be seen on the Pittsburgh Old Newspapers Project site.

Whether or not you have your roots in Western PA, these articles provide a glimpse in to our country's past- complete with raids, arrests, headless bodies, scandals, murders and more.  Included in the articles are lots of names of Pittsburgh area residents who ran afoul of the law of the day.

Just one example is found over a number of days starting with the Apr 2, 1930 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette article:

HEADLESS BODY OF GANGSTERS' VICTIM FOUND
Jammed Into Barrel and Rolled Over Hillside
Racketeers' Vengeance
Murder Makes 51st Killing in 51 Months in City, 78th in County.

Pittsburgh racket killers chalked up their fifty-first murder in 51 months in defense of their concessions yesterday. It brings the total of racket murders in Allegheny county to 78 for the same period.
The headless, mutilated body of the latest gang victim was found packed in a barrel along Grine run, Penn township, shortly before 5 o'clock last night.
County detectives, familiar with racket feuds declared last night that the barrel murder likely was in retaliation for the recent killing of Sam Monastero, corn sugar baron, garroted with his own necktie and left dead in his automobile along Jacks Run. Sam's killing followed by a few months the slaying of his brother Steve Monastero, king of the moonshine racket, who was credited with being the moving force behind more than a score of racket killings.

Head Is Missing
The head of the fifty-first victim is missing. The slayers ruthlessly slashed strips of flesh from the arm and shoulder of the dead man which detectives believed bore a tattoo mark, in order to hamper identification. The body was nude so that no telltale piece of clothing might aid detectives in establishing identity.
An examination showed that he had put up a furious struggle to save himself. Practically his entire body was discolored with bruises. The head was severed about an inch above the shoulders.

Slain In City.
The man, an Italian about 30 years old, 5 feet 5 inches tall, and weighting about 130 po9unds, was apparently slain in the city, detectives said. Aside from the newspapers, on which finger prints may be found, detectives admitted they were without a tangible clue. One of the papers was of Monday, this week.
The corpse was taken to where it was found either late Monday night or early yesterday, it was learned. It was seen by Mrs. H. E. Damp, who resides a short distance away, at 6:30 o'clock yesterday morning. Mrs. Damp said she mentioned to her 11-year-old son that the barrel could be used for kindling and asked him to get it. However, the son neglected to do so.

Rolled From Road.
Thomas Kirk, 22, of 318 Forty-Fifth street, who was taking a short cut through the wooded section on his way home made the discovery.........

Read more about the thriller case and its final solution.


Ahh, genealogy.  Just keep reading about the past and how wild those places which we hold near and dear could be. 

Sources:
https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=67VhAAAAIBAJ&sjid=v2gDAAAAIBAJ&pg=4399,1675718&dq=steve+monastero&hl=en
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~paallent/page15/page15.html

©2016 ASEldredge

Wordless Wednesday: 1926 Miami Hurricane Dead

The Pittsburgh Press posted a revised listing of the dead after a hurricane hit land in Florida in 1926.

This hurricane is commonly known as the Great Miami Hurricane.  At a time when Miami and Dade County were experiencing a land boom, the hurricane wrought great devastation to the area and to the local economy.

Close to 400 people are known to have perished in the storm.

Ahh, genealogy.  Looking for names in the sands of time gone past.

Source:

Pittsburgh Press, September 21, 1926

http://www.srh.noaa.gov/mfl/?n=miami_hurricane

©2016 ASEldredge

Can I Have a Tombstone Tuesday?

The life of a family mystery seeker.  Always looking, sometimes finding....

Could I have found the final resting place of William HAMILTON. the first husband?

I have known that my 2g aunt was married twice. You see, her niece told me so.  First, to a William HAMILTON who the 1880 census tells us he was age 67, thus his birth year is about 1813.  The 1880 census also tells us William and Martha HAMILTON are living in Sewickly, Allegheny PA.

Martha is the much younger second (assumed) wife.

This William HAMILTON (1813-1893) is buried at the Blackburn United Methodist Church Cemetery in Sewickly, Allegheny, PA, with his first ( I am assuming here) wife, Mary STEVENS (1818-1871).

Is this the right William HAMILTON?  Circumstantial right now, but the 1860 census has Martha living with her mother in the same general little area as William and his family. Picture this:  William's wife dies in 1871.  Martha and her William are married by the 1880 census.

This William dies in 1893, conveniently after the birth of Martha's niece in 1891.  This niece is named for her Aunt Martha HAMILTON since Martha had no children of her own.

Martha's next appearance is in 1901 when she remarries Daniel BULFORD (1839-1909) after the 1897 death of his first wife, Margaret.

The perplexing question is: Is this the right William HAMILTON? Or is there another one tucked away in Allegheny County?

Ahh, genealogy.  Always hoping the final answer is one stone away.


Sources:
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=75772545

©2016 ASEldredge