My 4th great grandfather, Adam Close, wrote his will on February 1st, 1865. He stated he wanted his debts and “funded expenses” to be taken care of, and then he proceeded to give money to his heirs. He bequeathed five dollars to each of his daughters: Catharine intermarried with M P Crosthwaite, Julia Ann intermarried with John W. McClintock, Jane relict of David W. McKay, and Harriet intermarried with Doctor John W. Riddle. And then he gives five dollars to his “son, James M Close (if living).” From Adam Close’s Will in Mercer County, Pennsylvania 1865 When I first came...
For centuries children have worked to help their families. They have helped their parents farm, run stores, and do other businesses. But, during the American Industrial Revolution, many children went to work in the mills and mines. They would often work up to twelve hours a day, seven days a week, at dangerous and even deadly jobs. In Pennsylvania, in the later 1800s, both mindsets and laws were changing to protect children. Work hours were decreased and children were required to attend school for a certain number of months a year. Minimum ages were set in place for certain types...
My Vincent ancestors moved from Essex County, New Jersey to Northumberland County, Pennsylvania in the mid to late 1700s. During the Revolutionary War, they were at Fort Freeland when it was attacked by the British and their Indian allies in 1779. The women, children, and elderly men were set free, but the able-bodied men were marched to Canada as prisoners. In 1876, The Columbian published a series of articles titled “History of Columbia County.” The fourth part of this series was published on January 28th and told about the capture of Fort Freeland. Part of the article tells about Bethuel...
“His main occupation was a carpenter and cabinet maker finisher. He went to carpenter school in Wichita KS and helped build the first sky-scraper, the Schweiter Building at Douglas and Main.” [Beulah (Peters) Brewer, daughter of Emil Wilhelm Peters, in her genealogy notes] When I read those sentences, I wanted to learn more about this “first sky-scraper” in Wichita that my great grandfather helped to build. Emil must have been very proud of this building to have told this story to his daughter and for it to be one of the few things she wrote down about him. So, what...
The name “Kansas” first appeared on maps in 1854 when the Territory of Nebraska was divided and the southern portion became “Kansas” under the Nebraska-Kansas Act. In May of the following year, 1855, Henry Bennett (my 3rd great grandfather) and his family arrived from Missouri and settled in the Allen County area shortly before it was named. 1855 first edition of Colton’s map of Nebraska and Kansas Territories (image from Wikipedia) This is the same year Henry Bennett and his family moved to Kansas Territory The First Settlers of Allen County Few white settlers reached this county before the Bennett...
(Thanks to Amy Johnson Crow at “No Story Too Small” for creating “52 Ancestors” where we can share our ancestors stories, one week at a time.) Thomas B Whitwell, my 5th great grandfather, wasn’t even a year old when he was legally declared an orphan. I say “legally” because we are uncertain as to whether his mother was still living or not. But, the law stated that he was an orphan if his father died. So, Thomas and his older brother, Robert, were orphans. What happened to orphans in the 1770’s in Virginia? They’d be legally “bound out” to a...
My grandmother told the story of her grandfather, Reuben H Ward, a Methodist minister who was murdered. She said he was on the Tennessee River going to preach and someone murdered him and then threw his body overboard. Several years ago, I came across a newspaper article that another researcher had found about this tragic event. It not only affirmed my grandmother’s story, but it also added some crucial information: Reuben’s body was found weeks later many miles down river a man named Charlie Ledbetter was charged with his murder the “evidence was not sufficient to convict” Ledbetter Tonight, I...
I’m excited to be participating in this year’s “52 Ancestor Challenge” from “No Story Too Small.” Our ancestors are more than names, dates, & places. They lived and breathed; married and had children; celebrated births and grieved deaths. For the most part, our ancestors suffered more loss than we do. Wives often died in childbirth. Children often died while still children. Life was harsher. I’ve had very few deaths which were close to me. I lost my best childhood friend when I was 17, but I hadn’t seen her in years. I lost my grandmother about 10 years ago, but...
