My 5th great grandfather, Peter Close, wrote his will on 27 June 1810 in Armagh, Mifflin County, Pennsylvania. When the 1810 census was taken, reportedly on 6 August 1810, Peter’s widow, Catherine, is enumerated as head of household. The first document in Peter’s probate file was filed on 14 August 1810. So, Peter Close apparently died between 17 June and early August 1810. I have transcribed Peter Close’s will, though I would appreciate any assistance with a few words I’m having difficulty with! (See the transcription at the end of this post and look for the question marks.) Ten people...
Anton and Mary (Reuter) Karbach (or Koerbach), my third great grandparents, immigrated from Germany to Ohio in about 1853. Although a passenger list has not been located, they probably arrived with their three oldest daughters: Mary Magdalena “Lena,” Margaret, and Katherina. In Ohio, Mary gave birth to at least four more children: Theresa, Christina, Karl/Charles, and Mary. According to the 1900 U.S. census, Mary Karbach had a total of ten children, so three of them probably died as infants or young children and their names and dates/places of birth are not known. Photo of Anton & Mary (Reuter) KOERBACH/KARBACH with...
In my last post, I shared how a Princess Anne County, Virginia, 1791 marriage record provided evidence that Willoughby Randolph’s wife, Franky, was likely the daughter of William Thornton. Another document I’ve discovered is the 1794 will of William Thornton of the same county. It lists his “daughter Franke Randolph” along with other children. This will provides additional evidence that William Thornton was Franky’s father. Lee County, Virginia, “Virginia, Wills and Probate Records, 1652-1983,” “Will Book, Vol. 2, 1795-1807,” will of William Thornton, signed 18 December 1794, page 3 [page numbering inconsistant]; database, image 307, ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 19...
Virginian Willoughby Randolph (1765-1822) mentions his wife, Franky, twice in his will. On many Ancestry.com trees, Franky’s maiden name is listed as Thornton and her father’s name as William Thornton. However, I have not found anyone who documents these relationships. Willoughby and Franky’s first child, William Randolph (my 4th great grandfather), was born on 4 November 1792 in Virginia. Willoughby and Franky were likely married around 1792. Ancestry.com > Virginia, Wills and Probate Records, 1652-1983 > Princess Anne County > Index to Wills and Marriages, 1754-1799 > image 2192, 1791 marriage of Willoughby Randolph and Frankey Cummings I found this...
I have written a lot about one of my immigrant ancestors, Joachim Peters. He and his wife, Henriette, left “Germany” in 1859 with their six children and emigrated to America. My dad recently noticed that Joachim, shown in the photo below, had a patch on his lapel. As he studied the photo of his great, great grandfather, Joachim became a “real person” in his eyes. Look into his eyes. Do you see the man who left behind everyone but his wife and children to find a better life in America? Photo of Joachim Peters (1815-1894) Here’s what my dad wrote:...
A few days ago I shared the cover and first page of the 1822 will of Willoughby Randolph of Lee County, Virginia. Here are the second and third pages, along with a transcription, which include additional names and places for me to research. [Note: In my transcription, I have put the names of people and relationships in bold print.] Lee County, Virginia, “Virginia, Wills and Probate Records, 1652-1983,” “Will Book, Vol. 3, 1800-1832,” will of Willoughby Randolph, signed 16 February 1822, unpaged, second page; database, image 74, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 8 March 2018). Lee County, Virginia, “Virginia, Wills and...
I’ve recently reached out to several fairly close DNA matches on Ancestry.com. One turned out to be a second cousin once removed. Our common ancestors are Josiah Randolph Coppenbarger (1844-1934) and Elizabeth (Bennett) Coppenbarger (1849-1914) who are my great, great grandparents and his great grandparents. We’ve been exchanging photos so both his family and mine have seen new Coppenbarger photos. I’m sharing the photos on my blog so other family members might discover them, too. Please get in touch with me if you’re related! You can leave a comment or email me at drleeds@sbcglobal.net ! PHOTOS FROM MY FAMILY (I...
When my Great Aunt Beulah first introduced me to genealogy twenty years ago, I was an eager student. While researching our Randolph family, I quickly discovered a tree which took our family back several generations. I excitedly showed her my work…and she explained that was NOT the right way to do genealogy. She taught me I couldn’t just accept unsourced information from other people’s trees. Instead, I needed to rely on actual documents. Lee County, Virginia, “Virginia, Wills and Probate Records, 1652-1983,” “Will Book, Vol. 3, 1800-1832,” will of Willoughby Randolph, signed 16 February 1822, unpaged, cover; database, image 73, Ancestry.com...
This post is based on Amy Johnson Crow’s “52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks” challenge. This week’s theme is: VALENTINE. On Valentine’s Day 1896, Louisa (Heuszel) Werther gave birth to her 11th child, a son. She and her husband, Emil Werther, named their son Walter Valentine Werther. [Emil’s sister, Guntherine (Werther) Peters, was my great, great grandmother.] Here are three images from his life: Signature from WWII draft card at Ancestry.com. The “i” in Valentine appears to be dotted with a heart! Photo labeled “Children of Frederick August Emil and Louise Matilda (Heuszel) Werther, Date Unknown” from files of Beulah (Peters)...
This post is based on Amy Johnson Crow’s “52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks” challenge. This week’s theme is: FAVORITE NAME. Jesse Lank Griffin (1834-1903) and Sarah Holmes (1834-1928) had at least eight children. Most of them had “normal” names: William, Richard, John, Martha, Nancy, Sally, Stephen. But, they also had one daughter with a fairly unusual name: Tennessee, whose nickname was Tennie. Find a Grave, memorial 27031200, digital image of Tennie L wife of Dot Bratton gravestone (Marshall Cemetery, Marshall, Searcy County, Arkansas), photo posted 14 May 2010 by Kim REA Mays. Tennessee was born on 20 July 1869 in...
