Saturday Night Fun - Ancestral Name Numbers

Randy Seaver has handed me an easy way to get back to blogging with this week's Saturday Night Genealogy Fun challenge. Easy, but pretty depressing, were I a negative type of person. (Those who know me are guffawing. I am never the optimist.)

After similar posts made on geneablogs and social media, Randy suggested we calculate the percent of ancestors we've identified going back 10 generations. Luckily I'm in a glass is half-full mode and not too dismayed by my 14% total. Given that my father is a first generation American whose family is from the Carpathian Mountains, I'm pleased I broke the ten percent threshold.

I ran Legacy's Ancestor Book report for 10 generations and started counting. I'm golden through my 2nd great-grandparents, but then the numbers drop off. Precipitously.

In addition to my mystery Rusyns, I have all those lovely Southern ancestors. Ancestors who simply appear in Tennessee with only a few breadcrumbs to follow. Women recorded as Sarah, wife of great-grandpa so and so.  Smiths and Jameses living in the mountains of Virginia. Mountain people are hard to trace.

So 14% is where I am. I don't know if I'll ever get much further, but I've made some progress in the last 25 years. Future breakthroughs will be worth far more than whatever small percentage they add to the number.

Stephen Mahorney, 1827 Maryland - A Friend of Friends Friday

$50 REWARD
Ran Away from the subscriber, living about 40 miles west of Cumberland, Allegany co., Md. on the 16th inst., a Negro Man named STEPHEN; calls himself Stephen Mahorney. He is about 21 years old, about 5 foot 7 inches high, stout made, dark complexion, has a grum countenance & down look when spoken to. Had on when he went off a pair of grey cloth pantaloons, not much worn, a short brown country cloth coat, about half worn, which fits him very loose, shoes or bootees, of very strong leather, pegged and nailed with sparables, white yarn stockings, a country linen shirt, a good yellow striped summer jacket, and a half worn wool hat. He took with him a small black and white spotted Dog. He has no doubt made for Pennsylvania. The above reward will be given for securing him in jail so that I get him again, and all reasonable expenses paid if secured in the Cumberland, Frederick or Hagers-town Jail.
LEONARD SMITH.
April 26.       26-3w.

Leonard Smith is my husband's 2nd great-grandfather. A slave family named Mahawney, listed as belonging to Henry Mattingly, appear in Richard Koch's Western Maryland Catholics, 1819-1851. A cursory examination of census records showed no records for Stephen Mahorney, but the 1830 census includes a free colored Mahorney (or McHerney) family living south of Pittsburg, PA about 80 miles northwest of Smith's land in Maryland. In 1880 a 15 year old black male, Steven Mahorney, is enumerated in the Hagerstown, MD household of his grandfather Francis Nelson. This Steven is obviously not the same young man who fled more than 50 years earlier, but were I researching this man I would investigate a possible relationship.

Sources
     [Hagerstown, MD] Torch Light, "$50 Reward," 3 May 1827, p. 3, col. 3; digital images, GenealogyBank.com (accessed 7 Jul 2012), Historical Newspapers.
     Koch, Richard T., "Western Maryland Catholics, 1819-1851," database and images, Ancestry.com (accessed 7 Jul 2012); Register of Baptisms, p. 80, record for John Mahawney.
     1830 U.S. census, Allegheny, Pennsylvania, St. Clair, p. 209, line 15, Robt Mahorney; digital images, Ancestry.com (accessed 7 Jul 2012); citing NARA microfilm M19, roll 144. 
     1880 U.S. census, Washington, Maryland, Hagerstown, p. 66, Steven Mahorney; digital images, Ancestry.com (accessed 7 Jul 2012); citing NARA microfilm T9, roll 516.

Anonymous No More - Michael Pereksta - Tombstone Tuesday

Cast iron cross marking grave of Michael Pereksta

Last month I wrote about all the newspaper reports of unnamed "Hungarians" killed in slate mining accidents in the late 19th and early 20th century. I came across the articles while looking for information on Michael Pereksta, who was reported to be my grandmother's cousin.

Today I am, thanks to the kind assistance of the Slate Valley Museum and their volunteer extraordinaire John Jones, able to pinpoint the date and cause of his death, and to share photographs of his grave marker.

He did die in a mining accident as we'd been told. John found two small news articles in local papers reporting the accident, though again omitting his name.


I shall write more about his life, death and the help I received from John and the Slate Valley Museum, but today I focus on his burial at the Saint Peter and Paul Byzantine Catholic Cemetery in Granville, NY. 

Plaque attached to cross.

TU 

SPOCIVA

MICHAEL PEREKSTA

ZOMREL 12 JUNIA 1905,

30 ROKOV STARY

Here

Rests

Michael Pereksta

Died 12 June 1905,

Age 30 Years

John sent pictures illustrating the placement of the marker, its condition, as well as the above translation. He pointed out that it was near several other iron crosses, all sharing the same laurel wreath emblem near the base and speculated they had been provided by a burial society. I suspect he is correct. 

St. Peter and Paul Byzantine Catholic Cemetery, Granville, NY

Michael's cross is in the back, tilting strongly to the right, in the above picture.  If you look carefully you can see other crosses nearby.

Image Credits

The photographs were taken by John A. Jones and are published here with his permission. 

Mary Pereksta Kontir - Wordless Wednesday

My first cousin once removed, Mary Pereksta Kontir, daughter of John and Mary Pereksta of Clifton, NJ. 1928.

Holt-Allen Marriage, Nov 1823 - Amanuensis Monday

Thanks to John at Transylvanian Dutch who originated the Amanuensis Monday meme, providing a framework (and nudge) for transcribing family records, news clippings and other treasures.

This is another transcription of documents copied last summer at the Library of Virginia - two documents relating to the marriage of my 3rd great-grandparents Zebedie Holt and Eleanor Allen. 

Know all men by these presents: that we Zebedie Holt William Driskill are held and firmly bound unto James Pleasants Jun. Esquire, governor of Virginia, In the sum of one hundred and fifty dollars, to which payment null and truly to be made, to the governor or his successors in office, we bind ourselves, our heirs, executors, and administrators, Jointly and severally, firmly by these presents, sealed and dated this 2nd day of Nov 1823    The condition of this obligation is such, that whereas, there is a marriage shortly intended to _ad and solemnized, between the above bound Zebedie Holt & Eleanor Allen
If therefore, there be no lawful cause to obstruct the same, this obligation to __ void else, to remain in full force and virtue.
Witness                                                      his
Joseph Wilson                                Zebedie  X  Holt {seal}
                                                                mark
                                                      Wm Driskilll {seal}

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This is to certify to the Clerk of Campbell Court that he may issue license to Zebedie Holt to marry me I bing [sic] of lawful age and acting for myself
Test
Wm Driskill                                  Eleanor Allen

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Source
Campbell County, Virginia, Marriage Bonds & Consents, 1782-1853, Holt-Allen, 1823; LVA Campbell microfilm #44, items 227 & 227a.

Heirs and Slaves named in 1813 Will of William Yerby - Amanuensis Monday

Thanks to John at Transylvanian Dutch who originated the Amanuensis Monday meme, providing a framework (and nudge) for transcribing family records, news clippings and other treasures.

This is another transcription of a document copied last summer at the Library of Virginia - William Yerby's Lancaster County will dated 13 Mar 1813. While spelling and punctuation have been transcribed as accurately as possible, I have added space between the bequests to improve readability.

In the name of God Amen I William Yerby of Lancaster County and State of Virginia, In tolerable Health thanks be to God for the same and am desirous to set my house in order, as it is certain for all men once to die

First, I give my soul go God and my body to the Earth its original in hopes of a future resurection through the merits of Jesus Christ, my Redeemer

Secondly after all my Just debts and funeral expences be first paid It_ my will To dispose of my worldly Goods that God hath blessed me with as followeth,
To wit

Thirdly I give to my son Thomas Yerby the Plantation wherein he now lives and All my Land in Northumberland and Lancaster adjoining to the same Negroes to wit, Elijah, Mary ann her four youngest children Anthony Jesse Spencer Isaac, Hannah and Griffin and their future increase

Fourthly I give to my son Wm T Yerby the plantation whereon he now lives and all my land west of the road that leads from the Catton swamp to the Girls brige swamp, Negroes to wit, Solom___ Nelson, Cate, her four youngest children now in his possession Ephraim, Jane & Harry the plasterrer and their future increase, choice of a Bed and furniture one cow & Calf

Fifthly I give to my son Charles I Yerby my dwelling house and all my Land East of the road that leads from the Cabin swamp to the girls bridge swamp Negroes to wit, Richard Benjamin, Samuel, Lucy & Child, Charity, her three youngest children John and Chloe and their future increase, my still, Casks Barrels Tubs, apple mill his choice of a Horse Saddle and bridle Two choice Cows and Calves, yoke of oxen and all apparatures of the said oxen, choice of Sow and Pigs four choice hogs L___ and the appartures thereto belonging _ile my Gun_ ____ly

Sixthly I leave the [page 142] profits to my daughter margaret Towles Negroes to wit, moses or value sold to Richard Stephens for one hundred pounds. Rose her three youngest children now with her Frederick, Gilbert, nancy, Jason [difficult to read; James?], Jude and her child and her future increase one bed bed and furniture In case my Daughter Towles should have any more child lawfully begotten of her body It is my desire that my Grandson Henry W. Towles shall have one equal portion of all the property that I leave my aforesaid Daughter the income profits of when comes of age or marries with the aforesaid described children, In case my aforesaid daughter die without any such Issue It is then my desire that my Grandson Henry W. Towles to have and enjoy the whole of the property that I lent my Daughter Margaret, forever after her death

Seventhly Its my desire that all my Earthen ware __ink and China may be Equally divided between my Three Children William T Yerby Margaret Towles and Charles I Yerby Stock of Cattle sheep and Hogs

Eighthly [**] Its my ___ that the Hoes axes __ that my above named negroes Laborers with shall go with my children as my negroes them To

Ninthly I give my son Charles I Yerby the remains of my Household Goods & Kitchen Furniture that is not heretofore mentioned or may not hereafter by mentioned

Tenthly Its my desire that the balance of my Estate not heretofore mentioned or has not been bequeathed may be Equally divided between my four children Thomas Yerby William T Yerby Margaret Towles and Charles I Yerby

Eleventh If there is Two hundred Dollars in my house either in cash or bonds after my Just debts be paid I give the same to my Daughter Towles to go a the property named ---

Twelth Its my will and desire if either Thomas Yerby William T Yerby Margaret Towles brings forward any account against my Estate in any case what ever That my Exors hereafter named shall sell so much of the property named in this my will to the said child that my bring forward such a claim, as may be sufficient to discharge the claim

Thirteenth Its my will that all the property that I have heretofore Lent my Son Thomas Yerby Wm T Yerby Margaret Towles, I give it now to them ---

Fourteenth and Lastly I do nominate and ordain my Two beloved sons Thomas Yerby & Wm T Yerby Exors of this my last will and testament revoking all other will or wills heretofore made by me and acknowledging this to be my last will and testament In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and affixed my seal this the 13^th day of march 1813
Teste
__ Taylor                              William Yerby {Seal}
John Doggett
Wm Stott
Richard Cundiff
And this being done by way of a Codicil and in addition to my will Some years past Charles Ball made me a Deed of trust for three negroes [obscured line] [page 143] to pay for the aforesaid Charles Bell and named as his agent before and since that time I have paid for the aforesaid Charles Bell the full value of the property named in the Deed foresaidmentioned At the aforesaid Charles and his wife Catey's deaths the aforesaid property mentioned in the aforesaid Deed of trust is given to my son William T Yerby since that time the aforesaid Charles Bell thought that I was not as safe for the sums of money I had paid for him as I ought to be and wish to make me a Deed of Gift which was made, of the aforesaid property named in the Deed trust I have willed the aforesaid property to my children in my will In case either of my Children claims any more than I have mentioned in my will to them severally by account or any other way their claim or demand against my Estate or the property named in the Deed of trust from Charles Bell to William Yerby to secure him for money paid or that he might have to pay shall be taken out of the portion given the said Child in my will to them In witness to this my Codicil to my will I hereunto set my hand and affix my seal the 13^th day of march 1813

William Yerby {seal}

Teste
Wm Taylor
John Doggett
Wm Stott
Richd Cundiff
___
At a Court held for Lancaster County on the 20^th day of April 1813
This last will and testament and Codicil of William Yerby gent decd were proven according to law by the oath of John Doggett and Wm Stott two of the witnesses thereto and ordered to be recorded, and on the motion of Thomas Yerby one of the Exors in the said will named who made oath and together with John Doggett Samuel M. Shearman Joseph Carters Jr and James Towles his Securities entered into and acknowledged their bond in the penalty of twenty Thousand Dollars according to the law & certificate is granted him for obtaining probat thereof in due for and liberty is reserved to the other exor in the said will named to join in the probat thereof if he should think fit

teste

James Towles cl

Notes
** Very difficult to decipher. This item appears to have been squeezed in. Perhaps an error by clerk copying original record. 

This William Yerby is not my husband's direct ancestor William Yerby whose will was proven in Lancaster County [VA] 20 April 1786. Nor is he that William's son who died in Mississippi. He is assumed to be one of the two William Yerbys appearing in Lancaster County in the 1810 US Federal Census.

The son whose name was transcribed as Charles I Yerby could easily have been Charles J Yerby.

The swamps named in the will are new to me. I was not able to locate references to them in an admittedly cursory internet search.

Finally, I've grown somewhat inured to the descriptions of human slaves as property while transcribing the documents I copied from the Library of Virginia last summer. But the eighth bequest, including the tools used by the slaves in their labors, just as the oxen's yoke and horse's bridle were included, was jarring. Never has it been clearer what being legal property meant.

Source

     Lancaster, Virginia, Will Books, 28: 141, William Yerby, dated 13 Mar 1813; Library of Virginia, LVA Lancaster County Roll 21.  

New Sister - Wordless Wednesday

My grandmother, Iva Williams Sawyer, with her eldest daughter and my mother, Carolyn Sawyer, c. March 1929. This is the first picture we have of Mother.

Easter Basket Cloth - Wordless Wednesday

A gift from Pereksta cousins in Slovakia during our visit there in 1990. The cloth is put over the basket of Easter foods that is taken to the church on Holy Saturday to be blessed.

The Posterity Project - Follow Friday

A quick Follow Friday recommendation for those with Tennessee research interests - or those who love history and archives (pretty much covers all of us, no?).

Gordon Belt's (read his About Us entry to be wowed by his credentials) The Posterity Project is one of my must reads. I love his posts referring to my East Tennessee locales of interest, such as when he wrote about the Archives of Appalachia at East Tennessee State University recently.

I love his posts about current issues facing archives and archivists.

I love his posts about the Civil War and the resources available to explore its history and effects.

I could go on, but you get the point. Check it out. It's a fabulous resource and always a great read.

Tools of the Trade - Treasure Chest Thursday

I dug into a box of family artifacts the other day. Things I haven't yet photographed or figured out what to do with.

These glasses were such a find. I don't remember examining them before. They were my paternal grandfather's safety glasses when he was a leather cutter at Endicott-Johnson in Binghamton, NY. I love the hinged screen at the sides.

My family enjoyed looking at the glasses. We're a group of science nerds - some of us with years of experience wearing safety goggles or glasses. So it was easy to find a willing model.

Maria Lee Palmer Smith 1931 Obituary - Amanuensis Monday

Thanks to John at Transylvanian Dutch who originated the Amanuensis Monday meme, providing a framework (and nudge) for transcribing family records, news clippings and other treasures.

This is another transcription of a document from the papers of Maria Lee Palmer Smith (1844-1931), my husband's great-grandmother. It is her obituary, a newspaper clipping with no date or newspaper title, though a date is handwritten on the clipping. 

MRS. F.F. SMITH DIES AT HOSPITAL
               ______     [handwritten note: Feb 6th 1931]

Was Member of Prominent Virginia Family; Ill For Short Time
              ______

Mrs. Maria Lee Palmer Smith, wife of the late Dr. Francis Fenwick Smith, for many years an eminent physician of Western Maryland, died Sunday morning at 3 o'clock at the Frederick City hospital, where she was removed Friday evening, after suffering a stroke of paralysis. Of distinguished colonial ancestry, Mrs. Smith was born at the family seat, "Clifton," in Northumberland county, Virginia, on March 9, 1844. Her father was Col. James Armstead Palmer, a descendant of Nagethereza Palmer, Esq., a large Virginia landowner of colonial days. Her mother was Margaret Meredith from whose colonial ancestor the family had a grant of land in Virginia dating from 1655. Mrs. Smith's father, Col. Palmer, died while she and her brother were still children, and the family came to this city, and Mrs. Palmer entered her daughter in the Convent of the Visitation from which she was graduated in July 1861. From this time until her death, she was closely associated with and a devoted alumna of the convent and was emeritus for life of the Alumnae Association. While at school in Frederick the Palmer family always returned to their Virginia estate for the summer vacation and many were Mrs. Smith's experiences during the Civil War when her home place was one day in the hands of the Confederates and the next day occupied by Union soldiers. She had many thrilling adventures, one of the most interesting of which was when she ran the blockade.
Mrs. Smith married Dr. Francis Fenwick Smith and from this union five sons were born. They were Charles Leonard, Charles Francis, John Francis, William Meredith and Edward Joseph, of whom four grew to manhood. Dr. Smith, together with his brother, the late Dr. Charles Francis Smith, were exponents of the practice of medicine of a generation ago when the family physician was felt to be a true member of the family.
Her husband, Dr. F. F. Smith, died August 26, 1900, and after the marriage of her sons, Mrs. Smith sold the family home on East Second street and made her home with her son Dr. William M. Smith, College Park. Later she removed to No. 9, East Second street where she was stricken Friday night. She was a devoted member of St. John's Catholic church and an ardent member of Fitzhugh Lee Chapter, United Daughters of the Confederacy and one of the founders of the Frederick County Historical Society. She was historian for life of Fitzhugh Lee Chapter, U.D.C.
The funeral will take place from St. Johns' Catholic church Tuesday morning at 9:30 o'clock with interment in St. John's Catholic church cemetery. M. R. Etchison and Son, funeral directors.

Notes:
The handwritten date may be in error. Maria Lee Palmer Smith died Sunday, February 1, 1931. Assuming she was buried the following Tuesday, the notice would have appeared in one of the Sunday afternoon or Monday (Feb. 2 or 3, 1931) newspapers in Frederick, MD.

She was indeed descended from Nargaltherezer Palmer, though I'm not certain I would describe him has a large landowner by Virginia plantation standards. While I have yet to identify which ancestor received the 1655 land grant referenced, several of her mother's family lines were established in Virginia at that point.

Source: Newspaper Obituary of Mrs. F.F. Smith, Feb 1931; privately held by [withheld for privacy] Frederick, MD. Transcribed with permission. 

Porter and Ella Holt Conway - Wordless Wednesday

My great great-grandparents, Charles Turner Porter Conway (1828-1886) and his wife Ella (Eleanor) Holt Conway (1827-1895). They were born in Cocke County, TN and believed to have died and been buried there.

Anastazia Perekstová and Vasil Čokina - Tombstone Tuesday

These are the gravestones of my great-aunt Anastazia Perekstová, known as Nacia, and her husband Vasil Čokina. Nacia's stone gives dates of 1901-1974. Vasil's stone gives dates of 1891-1966.

The picture was taken when we visited Slovakia after the fall of the Berlin Wall. For the life of me I cannot remember which village they are buried in, nor was I smart enough to write it down. It is either Príslop or Uličské Krivé.

View 06767 Uličské Krivé in a larger map

Soldier Cousin - Wordless Wednesday

This photograph is labeled Juraj Pereksta and was mailed to my family in the United States from Czechoslovakia in 1959. My grandmother had two nephews named Juraj Pereksta. I believe this is the son of her brother, Pytor, rather than the son of her brother Vasil.

The photo is undated.  Should anyone have any input regarding the military uniform that might date this I'd be most grateful!

Juraj Pereksta Photograph; digital image, privately held by Susan Clark. 2006

1854 Medical School Graduation - Amanuensis Monday

Thanks to John at Transylvanian Dutch who originated the Amanuensis Monday meme, providing a framework (and nudge) for transcribing family records, news clippings and other treasures.

This is another transcription of a document from the papers of Maria Lee Palmer Smith (1844-1931), my husband's great-grandmother. It is a brief letter certifying the year of her late husband's graduation from medical school. Punctuation, format and spelling are retained from the original, though line breaks have been altered.

Jefferson Medical College

Office of the Dean                                 Aug 5 1909

Mrs. F F Smith

       Madame

       Dr. Francis F. Smith graduated in the year 1854

Yours etc

Ross V Patterson

Sub Dean

Notes: Jefferson Medical College was founded in 1824. It is now part of Thomas Jefferson University. According to the University's website "(a)n infirmary to treat the poor was opened in 1824, and by 1844, Jefferson was providing patient beds over a shop at 10th and Sansom Streets." In the years before Smith attended medical advances included the use of anesthesia (1846) and the hypodermic syringe (1851). Smith's class of 270 men was the largest graduated to that date. Speaking at their graduation was the great-grandson of Benjamin Franklin, Dr. Franklin Bache. 

While many of the men who graduated with Smith served in the Civil War, I have not found evidence that Smith was a military surgeon. However, he lived and practiced in Frederick, Maryland throughout the war and surely attended to soldiers wounded at the nearby battles - including Antietam. My mother-in-law speaks of her father (also a doctor) using his father's Civil War surgical tools to carve meat at their dining room table. 

Sources: 
Patterson, (Philadelphia, PA) to Maria L. Smith. Letter. 9 Aug 1909. Privately held. Frederick, MD. Published with permission. 


Frederick B. Wagner, Jr., MD and J. Woodrow Savacool, MD, editors, Thomas Jefferson University - A chronological history and alumni directory, 1824-1990 PDF, Jefferson Digital Commons (http:/www.jdc.jefferson.edu: accessed 13 Feb 2012), Part I: Jefferson Medical College 1846-1854 (pages 55-88).

Slaves Named in 1815 Will of John Turner - A Friend of Friends Friday

This is the part of a series of transcriptions and abstracts of records involving slaves that I copied at the Library of Virginia during the summer of 2011.  Nine slaves are bequeathed by name to the children of John Turner, who died in Fauquier County, VA between the 15th of May and the 26th of June, 1815. 

In the name of God Amen, the 16th day of May 1815. I John Turner of Fauquier County, being in perfect memory, praise be to Almighty God for the same, yet recalling to mind the uncertainty of this life and the certainty of death. I do make and appoint this my last will and testament in form following. I therefore commit my soul to Almighty God, which gave me it, and my body to the earth to be buried after a decent and christian like manner according to the discrition of my executors hereafter named and as touching my worldy estate which it hath pleased Almighty God to bless me with in this life. I give devise and dispose of them in manner and form following, Viz. I therefore order that all my just debts and burial charges be fully paid and Satisfied before any part thereof is taken out of the hands and possessions of my executors hereafter named. First I give and bequeath unto my beloved wife Elizabeth Turner all my real and personal Estate (after all) my just debts are paid during her natural life then to be divided in the manner and form following. I also give to my son Daniel Turner one negroe woman named Ruth. I also give to my Daughter Elizabeth Oliver, one negroe man named Jerry during her natural life then to belong to my grandson John Brown. I also give to my son John M. Turner one negroe named Lewis, one feather bed and one cow & Calf I also give to my Daughter Mary H. Turner one negroe woman named Mariah and ___ two children named Richard & Wilson and all the said Mariah's future increase and one feather bed one horse one Cow & Calf. I also give to my Daughter Hannah Smith, one negroe woman named Nancy & one named Susannah and there future increase to her during her natural life then to be equally divided among all her children. I also give to my Daughter Sally Brown one negroe Boy named Tom but to remain with my Daughter Mary H. Freeman until demanded and lastly all the residue of my real and personal Estate to be sold and the money equally divided among all my Children after all of my just debts are paid. I hereby appoint my friends Robert Green, Lewis Suddoth & Joseph Morgan my executors of this my last will and testament hereby revoking all other wills made by me. In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal the day and year above written in the thirty fifth line the words the residue was interlined before signed.

Signed, sealed, published }
and declared by the above }                 his
named John Turner to be }       John  X  Turner {seal}
his last will and testament }               mark
in the presence of us who have }
hereunto subscribed our names }
As witnesses in the presence of }
the testator.
 Joseph Boteler (sp?)
 John Suddoth
 Cosson B. May (sp?)

     At a Court held for Fauquier County the 26th day of June 1815 This will was proven by the oaths of Joseph Boteler, John Suddoth and Cosson B. Day witnesses thereto and ordered to be recorded and on the motion of Robt. Green Lewis Suddoth and Joseph Morgan the Executors therein named who together with John Suddoth, Geo Eastham Jr & Inman Horner their securities who entered into and acknowledged bond in the penalaty of four thousand dollars conditioned as the law directs a certificate is granted them for obtaining a probate thereof in due form.

              Teste Danl Withers CC

Notes: DNA tests suggest this Turner family is not related to the family of Edward Turner (d. 1805, Fauquier County), my 5th great-grandfather. This John Turner was also known as John Meridy Turner. For further information about this family see Gwen Boyer Bjorkman's The Descendants of John Meridy Turner (1747-1815) of Fauquier County, Virginia, (Bowie, MD: Heritage Books, 1995).

Source: Fauquier, Virginia, Will Books, 6: 123-4, John Turner; Library of Virginia, Fauquier Reel 33. 

Blasts from the Past - Tuesday's Tip

I've been on a newspaper binge since revisiting Old Fulton NY Postcards over the weekend while playing with Caroline Pointer's too addictive 48 Hour Genealogy Ephemera Challenge (seriously fun, by the way). One thing led to another and four days later I'm still obsessed with the Binghamton Press of the 1920's, 30's and 40's.

I found an article about the citizenship course my grandfather was taking on the same page as three stories about the repeal of Prohibition. Another article about a cousin's junior high graduation below a story about the Lindbergh kidnapping. Talk about historical context!

The best part, however, has been sharing some of the articles with my senior relatives. I'm blessed that my father, uncle and aunt who were growing up during those days are tech savy. I've emailed them copies of articles and been delighted with their responses. Phone calls, lengthy emails, quick thumbs ups and thank yous have been coming in. They have shared memories - or the lack thereof - sparked by virtual clippings of property transfers, school performances, wedding announcements or church dances. And they're asking for more! It's been a grand way to spark dialog.

So, today's tip - act as a virtual clipping service for your relatives. Don't inundate them - one or two a week is more than enough. You may learn far more than you imagined!

Photo Credit:  Some rights reserved by ancient history

A Grave Concern - Amanuensis Monday

Thanks to John at Transylvanian Dutch who originated the Amanuensis Monday meme, providing a framework (and nudge) for transcribing family records, news clippings and other treasures.

This is another transcription of a document from the papers of Maria Lee Palmer Smith (1844-1931), my husband's great-grandmother. It is a letter from the men acting as her uncle Thomas Meredith's executors addressed to Maria's mother, Margaret Meredith Palmer. Punctuation, format and spelling are retained from the original, though line breaks have been altered.

Baltimore 31st March 1854

Mrs Margaret M. Palmer

Frederick Md   Dear Madam

Your letter of  the 28th inst

has been received -

In reply  we would respectfully suggest, with your concurrence,

that Thursday the 20th April be fixed for the interment of the remains of your deceased husband.

As regards the remains of our most estimable friend Thomas

Meredith; as far as we can ascertain, we believe it is determining that they shall remain where they now are, in the vault of his brother in law Edward Jenkins.

If you should desire to be present, at the internment of 

the remains of your late husband, the day and hour may be fixed with you, after your arrival in Baltimore

                                                                 Very Respectfully

                                                                    Wm Kennedy          }        Executors

                                                                                                                       of

                                                                    MCourtney Jenkins  }   Thos. Meredith

Notes: This letter answered one question and posed so many more.  

The family has long wondered what happened to the gravestone of James Palmer who died in 1847. We assumed he, like most of his family, was buried at Clifton in Kilmarnock, VA even though there was no stone. 

One of my husband's cousins told me that Margaret's grave was "scanned" (I have no idea what technology was used) when the family put up a new marker to replace one that had eroded and that another, small unmarked grave was next to hers. They were hoping to find James' grave but decided the second grave was too small to be an adult. 

After discovering a handwritten family record in Maria's papers I believe the small grave may be that of Maria and James' stillborn daughter. But James was a mystery. 

From this letter, written a few months after her uncle Thomas Meredith's death, it seems James Palmer was buried in Baltimore in 1854 - more than six years after his death. 

I do not know which cemetery the executors were referring to (on the to do list), but I strongly suspect it was a Catholic cemetery. The first one I will check is the one associated with Baltimore's new cathedral - a project Meredith actively supported. I also suspect the reason Palmer was not buried in Virginia was that there was no Catholic church or cemetery near his home at the time of his death. 

Of course, the real question is where was James Palmer's body those six years? 

Source: Kennedy  & Jenkins, (Baltimore, MD) to Margaret M. Palmer. Letter. 31 Mar 1854. Privately held. Frederick, MD. Published with permission. 

The Ancestors' Geneameme

Jill over at Geniaus has come up with another meme (and coined a great word) for we geneajunkies. I am answering this one for both my family (M) and my husband's family (H), who've been the focus of much of my research. Thanks, Jill, for a providing this diversion. It sparked a couple questions I need to investigate further and some interesting contrasts.

The Ancestors' Geneameme

The list should be annotated in the following manner:
Things you have already done or found: bold face type
Things you would like to do or find: italicize (colour optional)
Things you haven’t done or found and don’t care to: plain type
You are encouraged to add extra comments in brackets after each item

Which of these apply to you?

1. Can name my 16 great-great-grandparents (M) (H)
2. Can name over 50 direct ancestors (M) (H) 
3. Have photographs or portraits of my 8 great-grandparents (M) Have 6 of 8, but still missing two of my European great-grandparents. (H) Have 6 of 8, but still missing one line. 
4. Have an ancestor who was married more than three times (M) Haven't found one in my family yet, but would love to! (H) His great-great grandmother Cansada Jones was married four times. 
5. Have an ancestor who was a bigamist (M) (H) Who wouldn't love to find this? We've got adulterers aplenty on both sides, but no evidence anyone tried to tie the knot twice at the same time. 
6. Met all four of my grandparents (H)
7. Met one or more of my great-grandparents (H) Definitely something to investigate. One great-grandmother died three years after he was born, but lived at such a distance they likely did not meet. 
8. Named a child after an ancestor All our children are named after ancestors. They carry the names of my paternal grandmother, my husband's paternal grandmother, one of my maternal great-grandmothers and, coincidently, one of my paternal great-great grandfathers (we did not know this when he was named). 
9. Bear an ancestor's given names (M) I was not named for ancestors, but do share my middle name, Elizabeth, with at least 3 ancestors. A 3rd great-grandmother was named Susannah. (H) My husband shares his middle name (an ancestor's surname) with his mother and great-grandmother and on back. 
10. Have an ancestor from Great Britain or Ireland (M) (H) Scads of them.
11. Have an ancestor from Asia (M) Autosomnal DNA analysis indicates Asian ancestry in my father's Eastern European family. 
12. Have an ancestor from Continental Europe (M) My paternal grandparents were born in Europe. My mother's family includes colonial German and French lines. (H) There are German and Swiss lines. 
13. Have an ancestor from Africa (H) His great-great grandmother said her grandfather was Haitian. 
14. Have an ancestor who was an agricultural labourer (M) (H) 
15. Have an ancestor who had large land holdings (M) (H)
16. Have an ancestor who was a holy man - minister, priest, rabbi (M) I come from a long line of Baptist ministers. My father's family includes many priests, though I've not found a direct ancestor yet. His surname, however, means priest or father. (H) At least one. His 7th great-grandfather was a minister in colonial Virginia. Many uncles, aunts and cousins were Roman Catholic priests and nuns. 
17. Have an ancestor who was a midwife (M) My great-great grandmother signed an affidavit that she was the midwife when most of her daughter's children were born. (H) I know the oft married Cansada Jones had a sister who acted as her midwife. I would like to know if Cansada acted as midwife when her sister's children were born.
18. Have an ancestor who was an author
19. Have an ancestor with the surname Smith, Murphy or Jones (M) I have a Smith 3rd great-grandmother. (H) No Murphys, yet. But his mother is a Smith and his father had Smith and Jones ancestors. 
20. Have an ancestor with the surname Wong, Kim, Suzuki or Ng
21. Have an ancestor with a surname beginning with X
22. Have an ancestor with a forename beginning with Z (M) A 3rd great-grandfather was named Zebidee. 
23. Have an ancestor born on 25th December
24. Have an ancestor born on New Year's Day
25. Have blue blood in your family lines (H) 
26. Have a parent who was born in a country different from my country of birth
27. Have a grandparent who was born in a country different from my country of birth (M) Two of the four were born in Eastern Europe. 
28. Can trace a direct family line back to the eighteenth century (M) (H)
29. Can trace a direct family line back to the seventeenth century or earlier (M) (H)
30. Have seen copies of the signatures of some of my great-grandparents (M) (H)
31. Have ancestors who signed their marriage certificate with an X (M) (H) Likely. I've found X signatures on deeds, but do not have marriage certificates for those ancestors.
32. Have a grandparent or earlier ancestor who went to university (M) (H) 
33. Have an ancestor who was convicted of a criminal offence (M) (H) There are a couple serious candidates on both sides for this one. 
34. Have an ancestor who was a victim of crime (M) Seems ghoulish to hope for, but it would be such fun to research. I have a great-something grandmother killed by Indians on the Virginia frontier, but that seems more an act of war than a criminal offense. (H) His grandfather lost most of his money when the town banker absconded with the bank's funds after the 1929 stock market crash. 
35. Have shared an ancestor's story online or in a magazine (M) I wrote about my grandmother here. (H) I wrote about his great-great grandmother here.
36. Have published a family history online or in print (Details please) (M) (H)
37. Have visited an ancestor's home from the 19th or earlier centuries (M) (H) 
38. Still have an ancestor's home from the 19th or earlier centuries in the family (M) Not in this country, but as of 1991 cousins in Slovakia still lived in a home we think was the one my grandmother grew up in. (H) My husband's cousins have preserved the 18th c. home his great-grandmother was born in. It's hard to imagine a greater contrast between two homes. The one in Slovakia had dirt floors, minimal plumbing and was set on a small plot of land in a remote village in the Carpathian mountains. It was a breathtakingly beautiful spot, but clearly impoverished. The one in Virginia is a meticulously preserved colonial home, complete with gardens, still part of a working farm, set on a hill with sweeping views toward the Chesapeake Bay. 
39. Have a family bible from the 19th Century (H) An early 19th c. Bible is in the family, though we do not own it. 
40. Have a pre-19th century family bible

Mary Stephenson Wyly - Tombstone Tuesday

SACRED

to the memory of 

MARY N. WYLY

Consort of 

SAMUEL ?. WYLY

Died March 7th 1851

Aged 31 years & 4 months

Mary Wyly is buried at Leesburg Presbyterian Church (Leesburg, TN) where her husband, the Rev. Samuel Wyly, preached.  She was my third great great-aunt. 

According to our McAdams Family Record she was born 7 Nov. 1819 and married Samuel G. Wyly on 28 Sep. 1841. She was the daughter of John and Eliza Cloyd Stephenson, who are buried down the road at Washington College.