Mattie Tolbert Found at Last!

A couple of weeks ago, I made what was probably my most exciting discovery since I started researching my family history in 1997.  I finally discovered what had become of my grandmother, Mattie Tolbert.  She was my mother's mother, and I have written a little about the mystery associated with her in the past, first of all in an entry from 2009 HERE, and then later I mentioned her in my mother's biography which you can read HERE.

Honestly, I had pretty much decided that it would be impossible to find her.  My cousin, Anita, told me that Mattie's brother, Henry Tolbert, used to say that he knew where she was buried, but that he died suddenly in a car accident without ever telling anyone.  Another cousin told me at a family reunion in 2001 that many people in the family believed that Mattie's husband George had murdered her and got away with it.  I get the feeling that Mattie didn't want to be found.

Back in March, I was searching Newspapers.com and came across the following obituary for my great-grandmother, Rhoda (Webb) Tolbert Wilson.  In it, her daughter Mattie is called "Mrs. Mattie Talbert of Paint Bank, Va."  Well, that got my attention because it seemed to indicate that Mattie was still living in 1960 when her mother died and that Rhoda had been in touch with her.

I started wondering if I could use that snippet of information to find Mattie.  First of all, I found that Paint Bank is an unincorporated place in Craig County, Virginia.  That led me to a page called Craig County, VA-Cemetery Listings.  When I searched for the name Mattie from the search link, I found a transcript of a cemetery that listed:

ANDERSON, Mattie H. 28 Aug 1897 - 25 Sep 1965 (Obit Has Mattie Haven)

That transcript can be seen at:  http://files.usgwarchives.net/va/craig/cemeteries/bryan.txt

Another listing for that cemetery can be seen at: http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~vacraig/paint-bank-community-cemetery-2014.htm which also includes photographs.

I haven't tracked down a copy of the obituary yet.  I was encouraged by the fact that this Mattie's middle name was "Haven".  Some handwritten papers I've seen in the past looked like her name was "Haner" but I could see how sloppy handwriting might mean that Haven would look like Haner.  Another "coincidence" was Mattie Anderson's birthday.  If you read my mother's bio, you'll see that she never knew when she was really born, but she celebrated her birthday on August 28.  What could make more sense than that my mother's grandfather, Mattie's father, would give my mom the same birthday as her own mother?

My next step was going to be to try to send for a copy of Mattie Anderson's death certificate.  The state of Virginia only allows close family members to request a copy, and since I couldn't know how much information would be on Mrs. Anderson's death certificate even if I did have the right person, I wasn't sure whether they would send it to me.  And wouldn't you know, my own financial status was a little iffy during that time, so I was waiting until I felt I could justify the $12 fee for what might be a wild goose chase.  I had even had to let my paid Ancestry account lapse soon after, so I wasn't following closely what new databases they were adding.  When I saw a posting somewhere that the state of Virginia had made their death certificates available on Ancestry, I did a search for Mattie Anderson and saw a possible match.  I shared the search results on a Facebook genealogy group that I belong to, and a wonderful person looked at it for me and sent me this information:

Name:	Mattie Haven Anderson [Mattie Haven Tolbert]
Gender:	Female
Race:	White
Age at Death:	68
Birth Date:	28 Aug 1897
Death Date:	25 Sep 1965
Death Place:	Clifton Forge, Virginia, USA
Registration Date:	28 Sep 1965
Father:	William Tolbert
Mother:	Rodie Ann Webb
Spouse:	Lonnie Pearl Anderson
Certificate Number:	1965024346
Military Status:	none

 I was stunned!  It really was her!

I have since renewed my paid account.  You can see the death certificate image at:

Click here

I had also found an entry for Mattie Haven Anderson on Find a Grave which the kind contributor transferred to my control.  It has been very satisfying for me to be able to connect Mattie to her children's memorials and to see the photograph of her gravestone that's posted there.  In July, I plan to drive up to Paint Bank to visit Grandma Mattie's grave in person and I hope I can find a local library where I can search for a copy of her obituary.  I will be sure to post photos when I go! 

Do you know the Sharp family of Cambria Co, PA?

I work at a used bookstore in Cary, NC.  The two photographs below were found in a used book on our shelves.  I would love to find the family of these people. I don't know if they are related to each other, but I suspect that they are from the same roll of film.  There's no writing on either one of them, but one has the number 25 stamped on the back and the other is stamped 26.

 

It was pretty easy to track down whose grave this is.  It has been entered on Find a Grave.  I contacted the man who created the memorials for Joseph and Anna Sharp, but unfortunately, he's not a relative and hasn't researched the family.  After I scanned the photos, I went ahead and uploaded the gravestone photo to both of the memorials, making it clear that I did not take these photographs and mentioned that I'm hoping to get the photos to people who will appreciate them!

It's hard to tell if this photograph was accidentally taken at an angle or if the house sits on a hill.  If it was taken in Cambria County, PA, where the Sharps are buried, then I'd guess that it's on a slope.  What do you think?  Do those clothes look like the 40s to you?  Please contact me if you think you know who these people are!

#52Ancestors Week 15: Where was Mary Elizabeth (Wolfe) McDaid really born?

For week 15 of 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks, I want to touch on the mystery of where my 2nd great-grandmother, Mary Elizabeth (Wolfe) McDaid was born in 1837.  While I am fairly certain that I know now, when I was first researching my family history, she confused me!

I first found her in the 1880 Census for West Finley Twp of Washington County, PA.  She was called Elizabeth and it listed her place of birth as Pennsylvania.  That seemed logical, most of my father's side of the family had been born in PA and lived there all their lives.  I went back ten years to 1870 and found the McDaid family in the same place, but at that time, they listed her birthplace as Ohio and she was called Mary E. McDaid.  So, my first thought was that my g-g-grandfather Samuel McDaid had been married twice.  Once again, I went back ten years to 1860 and found Samuel and "Elizabeth" McDaid.  Her place of birth was once again Ohio.  This led me to believe it was the same woman in all three of those census records and that whoever provided information to the enumerator in 1880 didn't know where she was born. 

Because my grandma had filled out my dad's side of the family in the family tree chart in my mom's Bible, I knew that Mary Elizabeth McDaid's maiden name had been Wolfe, so it was relatively easy to find 13 year old "Elizabeth Woolf" in the 1850 Census when she had lived with her parents Luther and Nancy in Morris Twp, Greene County, PA.  Imagine my surprise when her birthplace was once again listed as "PA." With the 1890 Census unavailable, I next searched for her in the 1900 Census and found "Mary E. McDaid", a widow, living in West Finley with her daughter, Margaret Sprowls and Baby Sprowls.  Again, her birthplace was listed as Pennsylvania, and I found the same thing in 1910.  By then, I was beginning to think that the two census records that said she was born in Ohio were anomalies of some kind.  

About that time, I got in touch with my 3rd cousin, Marilyn (McDaid) Varilone, who was also a 2nd g-granddaughter of Samuel and Mary Elizabeth McDaid.  She shared her family tree with me.  I was surprised to see that she had g-g-grandma's place of birth listed as Mount Vernon, NY!  I had never seen any evidence that these people had been in New York, but I wondered if Mount Vernon might be a clue.  There is a Mount Vernon in Knox County, Ohio.  A search of records for that county indicated that there were people named Wolfe living there and that it seemed possible that a man named Daniel Wolfe of that county was the brother of Mary's father, Luther.  Perhaps Mary Elizabeth Wolfe's parents lived for a short time in the same area?

While I have not found a primary source for Mary Elizabeth (Wolfe) McDaid's birth, in the early 2000s, I was researching Delayed Birth Certificates for my family members on microfilm at the Family History Library when I came across one for Margaret McDaid Sprowls who was the daughter of Samuel and Mary and the sister of my great-grandmother, May (McDaid) Atkinson.  One of the pieces of information required on the form was her mother's place of birth.  On it, Margaret had entered "Mount Vernon, Ohio."  And while I realize that Margaret Sprowls could have been mistaken about where her mother was born, until I have further information, I'm going to take her at her word!

Mary Elizabeth McDaid and her husband were buried with many of their family members in West Finley Cemetery.  Take a moment to visit her memorial on Find a Grave by clicking on the photo on the left!

#52Ancestors Week 14: May (McDaid) Atkinson

Time to fill you in on another of my 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks.  Can you believe this is the 14th week of 2014 already? 

Until 2008, I had no idea what my paternal great-grandma Atkinson looked like.  Luckily, I have a nice cousin who scanned the photos his mom has of her and he emailed them to me! She was obviously very young in this picture.  Her full name was Lilly May (McDaid) Atkinson, but she seemed to have always gone by May.  Even her gravestone is engraved "May L. Atkinson."

She was the daughter of Samuel and Mary E. (Wolfe) McDaid.  She was 28 years old when she married in 1898 and her husband, George Atkinson was 11 years older than she was.  Her first two children, my Pappap, Charles and his sister, Esther, were born early in their marriage, and then she had one more son in 1915 who was named George McDaid Atkinson. 

For a long time, I wasn't especially interested in May Atkinson.  According to what my Mom--who never met her--had heard, she was the mother-in-law from Hell and was the cause of some rocky times in my grandparents' marriage.  I don't remember Pappap ever talking about his mother, but Grandma told me once that May didn't want them to get married...in fact, according to Grandma, Pappap's mother already had someone else picked out for him to marry.  So I imagine it was a blow to her when they got their way and were married in 1926.  But I heard this story long before I was interested in my family history.  It's funny how things you learn about a person you never knew can taint your opinion of that person.  Wouldn't it be interesting to know May's side of that story?

This photograph must have been taken sometime before 1920...May Atkinson with son George, husband George, son Charles, daughter Esther, and an unknown girl.

 

#52Ancestors Week 11: Christopher Wolfe

It's Week 11!

This week I'm writing about my 4th great-grandfather, Christopher Wolfe.  He was probably born in Morris County, NJ in about 1767 and moved to southwest Pennsylvania in about 1800.  I haven't researched his ancestry myself, but when planning this blog entry, I remembered an email that was sent to me way back in the year 2000 that mentioned that his father was probably George WOLF (b.10 Aug 1737 d.16 Sep 1789) whose father was Johaan Augustus WOLF (b.Abt 1712 d.Aft 1759).  More info is available at: Wolf family of NJ which was copied directly from the email I was sent.  I'm not sure what all the abbreviations for the locations meant, but if you have questions, I'd be happy to make a guess. 

Christopher Wolfe died sometime in  April 1847 and he was buried in the Upper Ten Mile Presbyterian Church Cemetery.  Luckily, his gravestone had been transcribed at sometime in the past because, as you can see, his marker is disintegrating.  One cemetery transcription can be found at: Upper Ten Mile Cemetery Prosperity, Washington County, Pennsylvania.  Clicking on the photo to the left will take you to his memorial on FindaGrave.com.  You may also notice the military flag next to his grave.  I have seen information that Christopher Wolfe fought in the American Revolution.  He would have been about 16 years old when it ended in 1783 and I have not researched whether that might be likely or not.  I have searched the DAR records and they do not list any men named Christopher Wolfe in their database.

Christopher Wolfe was married twice.  His first wife was a woman named Phebe whose last name is unknown to me, although I have seen her listed in some trees on the Internet as Phoebe Douglas.  She was my ancestor, the mother of my 3rd great grandfather, Luther Wolfe.  After she died in 1813, Christopher married again, this time to a woman named Elizabeth Smith.  It seems to have been a rocky marriage, at least at the beginning.  My evidence for that is the following notice which I found transcribed on page 47, in Abstracts of the Washington Reporter; January 1, 1817 to February 6, 1820. 

From the Washington Reporter, Monday, Sept 22, 1817

Caution.  The subscriber is under the painful necessity of cautioning the public against trusting his wife Elizabeth Wolfe, late Elizabeth Smith, of Morris Township.  She had previous to this time absented herself and threatened to involve me in debt and to get as much on my credit as possible, whether she stood in need of it or not.  Notwithstanding her improper conduct I looked over it and restored her to my house and protection - but now finding that nothing else will do, I am compelled to publish to the world that I shall refuse to pay any debts she may contract in future unless compelled by law, especially while she continues in her present unlawful and unbecoming course. /s/ Christopher Wolfe, Morris township.

As far as I know, Christopher and Elizabeth Wolfe were together until he died.  In his will, he mentioned her with the sentence:  

I will that my wife Elisabeth have a comfortable support at the Expense of my Estate as long as she remains my widow with liberty of remaining in the house where I now live.

#52Ancestors Week 10: Charles Edgar Fife

I've made it to week 10 of the 52 ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge!

Charles Edgar Fife with his daughter, Rowene, my grandma.

I never met any of my great-grandparents.  Charles Edgar Fife was my grandma's father.  I wish I had taken the time to find out more about all of the family members of my grandparents and if you're lucky enough to be able to ask your grandparents questions about their families, I hope you will take the opportunity to do that!  

Charles was born in 1874.  His father, John Calvin Fife, died in a horrible accident while helping to build a bridge in 1879.  I wonder if he remembered his father at all?  His mother, Mary (McConnell) Fife never remarried, essentially raising four children as a single mother.  How did that affect Charles Fife as he was growing up?  The Fife family was relatively prominent in Upper St. Clair PA where he was born, but the fact that his mother was advertising a sale of household items in the paper on the same day that her husband's obituary appeared in the paper makes me think that there probably wasn't much money. 

Charles E. Fife seemed to work at many jobs in his life.  In the 1910 Census, he was listed as working for a gas company; in 1920, he was listed as working for a tin plate mill.  His obituary, in 1941, said he was a machinist at the Carnegie-Illinois Company.  He owned a house on Smithfield St in Canonsburg, PA, and last I knew, that house still belongs to my Dad's cousin. 

He can be seen in this photo; I believe he's the person 4th from the left.

Written on the back of this photo is:

• Mr & Mrs WH Dunlap
• Mr & Mrs CE Fife
• Mr & Mrs John Schaufele
• Mrs. F. L. Bell (Callie) & Rowene Fife
• Canonsburg Water Dam 1920 

Please take time to visit his Find a Grave Memorial

#52Ancestors Week 9: My Pappap, Charles William Atkinson!

I think it's hardest for me to write about the people I knew and loved.  For week 9 of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge, I'm going to try to tell you about my grandfather, Charles William Atkinson.  I'm a bit surprised to realize that I haven't written about him before.  I hope I can do him justice, and if I get anything wrong, I hope my family members will correct me!

This pattern is called "Moss Rose"

Grandpap worked at the Canonsburg Pottery. Most in our family are still interested in where our dishes  are made.  My sister says that you can tell an Atkinson because we always turn our plates over to see if there's a pottery mark!  I bought an almost complete set of china made at Canonsburg Pottery several years ago on eBay and while our place is too small for a full china hutch, you can see how I display a few pieces to the right.  A while back, the Jefferson College Historical Society posted a wonderful history of the pottery on their website which disappeared several years ago.  I saved a copy of the entire article along with the photos they posted and while writing this entry, I was inspired to ask for permission to repost that story.  I'll let you know if I hear back from them!

Pappap always seemed so dignified to me. The photo to the left is how I remember him most of the time, but he couldn't have always been so serious.  To the right is a wonderful picture of him with his brother George McDaid Atkinson who was 15 years younger than he was.  Grandpap was the son of Andrew and May (McDaid) Atkinson. He also had a sister named Esther Lillian Atkinson.  He grew up in West Finley Twp, a rural area near the West Virginia state line in Washington County, PA.  

Another more light-hearted photo of him
is this one with my dad, Jim Atkinson

Pappap loved roses and his backyard was full of the rosebushes he grew.  That's why this is my all-time favorite photograph of him.  That's me in his arms in the summer of 1959!  My mom always said I was Pappap's girl from my earliest days!

A short biography and more photographs can be seen on his Find a Grave Memorial.  He left us suddenly in the summer of 1987.  My dad and my brother were on vacation at the time and they were staying at his house.  One morning, Dad went up to check on him because he was usually an early riser.  He found Pappap lying on the edge of his bed, dressed for the day as if he had sat down to put his shoes on and had just fallen back dead.  I hope I can go like that someday. 

#52Ancestors Week 7: James P. Skiles

I've made it to the 7th week of 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks.  I've come to realize that I tend to be a lazy blogger and that's something I have to improve on.  I've been avoiding writing about some of my more complicated ancestors because I don't have the documents and other information I need close at hand and since I want to do a thorough job, I'm saving them for a date in the future.  Unfortunately, this means that you all are only getting to read about the ancestors who I know the least about.  Several years ago, I bought a version of Adobe Acrobat with the intention of scanning and organizing all my photocopies and written notes into PDF documents.  Writing about my ancestors makes it painfully obvious to me that I need to quit putting off that project! I have papers everywhere that need to be organized!

And in the meantime, I'm sharing another lazy blog post on my 3rd g-grandfather, James P. Skiles. James was born about 1815, and he lived his whole life in Pennsylvania, probably in Peters Twp of Washington County where he was found in the census throughout his adult life.  Who were his parents, though?  I keep hoping to be able to connect him to Gideon Skiles and to Gideon's son and grandson, both named Samuel, who seem to be the Skiles family members living closest to James.  Gideon and his descendants are buried at Oak Spring Cemetery in Canonsburg, PA, and there was a short article in the Beers Project at the Chartiers.com website mentioning their Skiles family which has been transcribed HERE!

James P. Skiles was a wagonmaker and a blacksmith.  His wife's maiden name was Martha Hair (or perhaps it was spelled Hare).  He was my grandmother's great-grandfather.  He and his family were Presbyterians, and he was buried in the cemetery for Center Presbyterian Church in Peters Twp, and you can click on the photo of his gravestone to look at his Find a Grave memorial. 

James P. Skiles also left a will.  Below is what it said.  I find it interesting that he thought family photographs were important enough to mention specifically and I think that we have that in common!  I'd also be interested in knowing what happened to the pictures of his daughters Mary Anne and Rachel.

Will of James P. Skiles

(Willbook 14, FHL US/CAN Film 1318308)

I James P. Skiles of Thompsonville in the County of Washington and State of Pennsylvania, do _____ and declare my last will and testament to be as follows, viz:  I bequeath to my wife Martha all my household goods, out of which she is to give to my son Ebenezer our bedstead, one featherbed and bedding therefor.

I bequeath to my daughter Rebecca the picture now in her possession of my deceased daughter Mary Anne.

I bequeath to my daughter Martha the picture of my deceased daughter Rachel now in the possession of Wm J. Wallace.

I will that my executor sell and convey in such manner and upon such terms as to him shall seem best, all my real estate and that the proceeds thereof, and of my personal property not specifically bequeathed be applied first in payment of my debts and funeral expenses, and that the residue after payment thereof be invested by him during the life of my wife in National State or Municipal bonds, or on first mortgage or real estate that the net income therefrom be paid to her for and during her life and that at her death the principal be divided among my children then living, or hereunto born of my children who are or shall be dead, Such children to take together such share as their parent would have taken if living.  In case my wife shall elect to claim to have any part of my of my estate set apart to her by virtue of any statute allowing an exemption in her favor she shall take nothing under this will.

In case any legatee under this will shall present any claim against my estate, he or she so claiming shall receive nothing under my will but shall be excluded and not counted in the distribution.

I do hereby appoint Wm. J. Wallace to be my executor of this my last will and testament.

James P. Skiles {L.S.}

Signed sealed and declared in the presence of us in in the presence of each other and at his request this twenty fourth day of July one thousand eight and eighty-three.

George Guinn
H. D. Gilkison

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
Washington County S.S.

Be it remembered.  That upon this 5th day of February 1885 before me John F. Cooper, Register for the Probate of Wills and granting Letters of Administration within and for said county came Geo. Guinn and H. D. Gilkeson the subscribing witnesses to the foregoing attached will of James P. Skiles deceased who after being duly qualified according to law depose and say :  That they were present at the execution of said will saw the testator sign the same, heard him publish it as and for his last will and testament; that they at his request, in his presence and in the presence of each other subscribed their names thereto as witnesses.

Sworn and subscribed before
John F. Cooper
Register

George Guinn
H. D. Gilkeson

And now Feb 5, 1885;  It being adjudged that the said will has been duly proved;  it is admitted to probate and letters issued to Wm J. Wallace in said testament named who was qualified by

John F. Cooper
Register

#52Ancestors Week 5: Charles McConnell

I've made it to week 5 of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge.  Be sure to take a look at what other people are writing.  You can see the list of recaps HERE! 

This week, I've chosen Charles McConnell, my 3rd great-grandfather and, as far as I know, my most recent immigrant ancestor.  According to the information on his gravestone, he was born in County Donegal Ireland in 1800, he came to America in 1820, and he died on Christmas Day in 1871.  

I first found him in the census for Upper St Clair, Pennsylvania, for 1850 as a single man living in the household of John Morrow.  By 1860, Charles was married to John Morrow's daughter, Ann Jane and they had two daughters, Mary F. (my g-g-grandmother, Mary Frances) and Sarah C.  John Morrow also lived with the family as well as three other people whose connection to the family I have not yet determined.  Their names were George McConnell (whose name I originally recorded as Gerry because the census taker's handwriting was difficult to read), Anna McConnell, and Samuel Corti (or perhaps "Corle" which was how his name has been transcribed on Ancestry.com).  They were all born in Ireland.  At first I theorized that George and Anna were possibly children from a previous marriage of Charles.  Once I discovered that Charles McConnell immigrated in 1820, that seemed unlikely, so perhaps they were his cousins or his niece and nephew.  

Charles and Ann Jane McConnell are buried at Fawcett Methodist Church Cemetery in Bridgeville, PA.  A George McConnell is buried in the same small graveyard.  I found this interesting because my research indicated that most of my family on my dad's side were Presbyterians.  My grandma, her parents and siblings were all associated with the First Methodist Church in Canonsburg, PA, and my grandfather joined that church after he married Grandma.  Charles and Ann Jane were my grandmother's great-grandparents.  This could explain why my father grew up belonging to the Methodist church.

#52Ancestors Week 4: Lydia (Lafferty) Skiles

I'm very grateful to Amy Johnson Crow who challenged everyone to write about 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks.  She has really given me a reason to push myself to write at least one blog entry every week this year!  I can see myself accomplishing this goal and I encourage anyone reading this to play along!  I'm also going to make an effort to read other people's blogs and make comments.  It's important to give and receive feedback.

Lydia Lafftery Skiles is a real mystery to me.  I'm not sure when she was born, and I have no idea who her parents were.  My dad once told me that he had always heard she was an orphan.  She was one of his maternal great-grandmothers.

The earliest record I've found for her was the 1860 Census.  She was living with Joseph and Jane (Gilkeson) Denniston in Peters Twp of Washington County, Pennsylvania, and they claimed that she was 12 years old at that time.  When she was listed in the 1870 Census, she was living alone with Jane Denniston and her age was given as 26 years old.  By 1880, she was married to James H. Skiles.  They lived in North Strabane, PA, she was 29 years old, and she and James were already the parents of three children.  Obviously, there was some confusion about exactly how old she was.  

I have searched, page by page, through the Orphan Court Records for both Washington and Allegheny Counties of Pennsylvania that are available on microfilm at the Family History Library for any hint I could find about her birth family with no luck.  I have so many questions.  Were the Dennistons related to her, or did she merely work for them as a domestic servant as the 1870 census indicated? 

In 1904, Lydia Skiles died from lung problems.  Her obituary appeared on the front page of the Canonsburg (PA) Herald on July 28, 1904.  It says she was "in the 55th year of her age" which seems to indicate that she was born around 1849.  This is what it said:

Lydia L.  Skiles -- On Monday night, July 25, at her home on East Pike Street, Mrs. Lydia L.  Skiles died of lung trouble in the 55th year of her age.

She is survived by her husband, Jas.  H.  Skiles and the following children: Mrs. C.  Fife, Mrs. H. Bowers, Alice and Maude.  The funeral services were held in the First M.  E.  Church on Wednesday at 1 p.m.  Interment was in the Center Presbyterian Cemetery.

Lydia was buried at Center Church Cemetery in Peters Twp.  There are no markers there for her or her husband, James, but I have assumed that they were buried in an empty space near James H. Skiles' parents, James P. and Martha (Hair/Hare) Skiles.  Joseph and Jane Denniston are also buried in the same cemetery.

A cousin once told me that Lydia and James used to have markers on their graves but that my great uncle claimed that he visited the cemetery once many years ago and found the stones in a rubbish pile and because he didn't speak up, they were lost.  That's a little difficult to believe.  Uncle Selwyn was known for his jokes and tall tales. 

Click on the photo to view Lydia Skiles' memorial on Find a Grave.

#52Ancestors Week 3: Sarah (Combs) Webb

Once again, thanks to Amy Johnson Crow for her great idea to write about 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks! 

This week I wanted to share the story of my maternal great-great-grandma, Sarah Ann (Combs) Webb.  I wish I had more than a basic outline of her details because I feel certain that her life was very difficult.  It would have been interesting to hear her describe it in her own words.

Born about 1840 in southwestern Virginia, "Sally's" parents were Newell and Frances (Beamer) Combs.  On July 20, 1855, she married John J. Webb in Carroll County, VA.  She gave birth to four children while he was alive.  After the South seceded from the Union in 1860, John Webb joined Co. I of the 13th Virginia Infantry, fighting for the Confederacy.  At first I assumed that John Webb was my ancestor and that he had fathered my great-grandmother, Rhoda (Webb) Tolbert, after he had returned from the war.  However, I was disappointed to learn that John Webb was taken prisoner and died of typhoid at the Federal Prison Camp at Camp Chase near Columbus, Ohio on May 2, 1865.  Since Rhoda Webb was born in October of 1866, it seems unlikely that John J. Webb was her father.

Sarah Webb bore 9 children after her husband died, but she never remarried.  A distant cousin, Freddie Spradlin, mentioned in an email that when he looked at the original birth records for her children at the court house in Carroll County, VA, he found notes from a person he called a "helpful" clerk (quotes added by Freddie) noting that her husband had died in the Civil War. 

I haven't been able to locate burial places for most of my ancestors on my mother's side of the family and I have assumed that their graves were unmarked.  I was very excited to find Sarah listed on Find a Grave HERE. Her memorial had been created by a volunteer who was able to visit  Cruise Cemetery in Carroll County where Sarah is buried. In October of 2013, I was able to visit her grave myself and took many photos, including the one I've posted here.  It seems likely that this marker was placed long after she died.  I find it interesting that only the first three of her children are mentioned on the stone, although another of her children, Fair Lillian (Webb) Nester is buried nearby. There is also no date of death engraved.  I have been unable to determine exactly when Sarah Webb died.  She was still living when the 1900 Census was taken, but she was not enumerated in the census for 1910.  She probably passed away sometime between those years, but since many of my ancestors seem to have hidden from the census taker, I'm not assuming that is true.

Tombstone Tuesday: Susannah (Faris) Atkinson

Yes, it's been a very long time since I've touched this blog, and I can think of no way to ease back into it than by creating a Tombstone Tuesday entry!
You are looking at photos of the gravestone of my 3rd great grandmother, Susannah (Faris) Atkinson, daughter of William and Susannah (Curtis) Faris and wife of George Atkinson. They were taken in 1999 with a film camera.My husband and I were able to visit the cemetery because he was doing some work in Columbus, OH at the time. When we got there, we couldn't find the grave right away, but I did find some of Susannah's relatives near a fallen gravestone. I became convinced that the fallen stone was the one we wanted, so John and I propped it up with pieces of the base and found that I was right! This was one of my earliest graving expeditions, so I was very excited! Poor John, though, was not so much. There was poison ivy under the marker and it was soon obvious that John should have been wearing gloves. I'll always be grateful for his help and I hope he felt like it was worth it!













You can visit Susannah's memorial on Find a Grave.

71st Carnival of Genealogy: Local History

I've certainly been neglecting this blog and I hope to do better in the future!

Now for my entry for the 71st edition of the Carnival of Genealogy:

The topic for the next edition of the Carnival of Genealogy is: Local History! As genealogists, we are used to tracing our ancestors and the history of the places they lived. But not all of us live where our ancestors did - do we take the time to see the history all around us? Use some of your investigative skills to research the house, street, or town/city where YOU live. Write about an interesting person, place, or event of local history. The deadline for submissions is May 1st. This edition of the COG will be hosted by Donna at What's Past is Prologue.

Back in March, I was out at Oakwood Cemetery in Raleigh to fulfill three Find a Grave photo requests. The family name was Bagley, and when I found the graves, I realized that this family was important to the history of this state. In the family plot was the grave of Jonathan Worth, a governor of North Carolina during Reconstruction, and the Bagleys were the family of his daughter, Adelaide Worth Bagley. You can see the grouping to the right showing Gov. Worth's grave behind those of his grandson on the left and his daughter and son-in-law's on the right. This piece of obscure local history concerns the grandson whose name was Worth Bagley.



This photo shows the back of Worth Bagley's gravestone which tells of his service in the Spanish-American War. He was the first officer killed, and the only line officer of the Navy to die in that war. He was 24 years old. I snapped some photos and didn't think much about the family for a while.

However, fate seemed to want me to know more about Worth Bagley. During the first week of April, my husband and I were walking on the grounds of the NC State Capitol looking at the memorials and other historical markers there when I came across the statue in the photograph to the right. You guessed it, that's Worth Bagley, probably as he looked when his family last saw him. The inscription on the base reads:

Worth Bagley
ENSIGN USN
FIRST FALLEN
1898

I imagine that the heartbreak they must have felt in losing such a promising young man and their pride that he gave his life for his country led them to do whatever it took to make sure that he would always be remembered!

Click on their names to see the memorials for Ensign Bagley and Governor Worth on Find a Grave.

Tombstone Tuesday: Mary Fife

This is the gravestone of my great-great grandmother, Mary Frances (McConnell) Fife. She is buried with her husband at Bethel Presbyterian Church Cemetery in Bethel Park, Pennsylvania. Her husband's family were early members of the church from the 1770s, and I believe her mother's Morrow family may have been also, although I haven't found a connection, YET, between Mary's grandfather, John Morrow and the many Morrows buried at Bethel Cemetery. Mary's father, Charles, was an immigrant from County Donegal Ireland, making him my most recent immigrant ancestor. You can see my entry about his tombstone here.

This stone reads:

Mary F.
Wife of
John Calvin Fife
Born Nov 6, 1851
Died Feb 24, 1917

Mary's husband, John Calvin Fife, died young, and you can read about him HERE. As I mentioned in the post I wrote about Calvin Fife, Mary was left alone with 3 very young children and a fourth on the way, daughter Calvin (called Callie) who was born about 3 months after her father had died. The day his obituary appeared in the newspaper, there was also the following classified ad at the bottom of the same page:

PUBLIC SALE.
The undersigned will sell at the late residence of Calvin Fife, at the corner of Green and College Streets, Canonsburg.
Saturday, November 22d, 1879
Two good work Horses, 1 spring Colt, 1 two-horse Wagon, set work Harness, Collars, Bridles, set of double Buggy Harness, Plow, Harrow, double Shovel Plow, 1 single Shovel Plow, 1 barrel of Vinegar, 1 barrel of Salt, 1 riding Saddle, Double Tree, Coal Shovel, Kitchen Furniture and numerous other articles not mentioned.

Sale to commence at 1 o'clock, p. m. A credit of 6 months will be given.
Mrs. Mary F. Fife.

I've always thought it was admirable, although very sad, too, that g-g-grandma would be thinking about the practical realities of life so soon after her husband died. She never remarried, so she must have found a way to support herself. In her later years, the census listed her as a nurse.

A legacy passed down from Mary and her family was her religion. When I first started researching, I found that my dad's side of the family were almost all members of the Presbyterian Church, so I wondered how my grandparents came to be members of the First United Methodist Church in Canonsburg, PA. When I discovered that Mary's parents were buried at Fawcett Methodist Church Cemetery, I found my answer. While Mary was buried with her husband with his family in the Presbyterian cemetery, she, along with her children and grandchildren, attended a church of the same denomination as her parents. My grandfather, raised in the Presbyterian Church, joined the Methodist Church when he and Grandma got married. He served as a church administrator in his later years, as did grandma's brother, Raymond Fife, who grew up going to the Methodist Church. Much later, my brother and I were baptized in that church.

The Graveyard Rabbit: New Carnival on the Block

Announced on Jan 31 at The Graveyard Rabbit: New Carnival on the Block:

The topic for the premier edition of this carnival is "exceptional finds." Share with us those rare and unique cemeteries, gravestones, monuments, memorials, inscriptions, etc. Send one, send two; it's up to you! Submissions are due on February 25. And hey, bring a friend! Let's make this the best carnival debut in history!

I've been putting off writing this article because I couldn't decide what to share. I'm afraid I have already written articles about my most exceptional finds that relate to my own family, so I'm going to take this opportunity to write about a grave I found which does not belong to a family member. Now I know that "I" didn't actually discover this grave, that other people realized where he was buried, but when I visited the Mentor Avenue Cemetery in Lake County, Ohio, I was surprised to find a large zinc marker for Jonathan Goldsmith. Perhaps, unless your grew up in North East Ohio or if you are some kind of architecture expert, you may not know who he was, but since I DID grow up there, I recognized the name right away! He was a well-known architect and builder in the part of Ohio that used to be called "The Connecticut Western Reserve".

A few years ago while visiting my mom in Painesville, she and I were driving along Mentor Avenue and for the first time, I saw a cemetery in a spot that I only remembered as an overgrown field. My mom told me that someone had made it a project to clean it up, making it visible for the first time in decades! It's hard to imagine that such a thing could remain unknown for so long along such a busy road. The cemetery is now usually referred to as Mentor Avenue Cemetery, but has been called Painesville Twp Cemetery, Blish Cemetery, and Nye Road Cemetery at different times. Many Lake County pioneer families are represented there, and you can see some history and a full transcript on a page from the Lake County Genealogical Society (Ohio) Projects Site. In 2006, after I began submitting photographs to Find a Grave, I talked my mom into spending an afternoon there with me exploring and taking pictures. That's when I found Mr. Goldsmith's grave marker.

I decided to submit his information to Find a Grave and I thought he needed more than just the bare biography that I could create from the information on his grave and from my own memory, so I looked for biographical sources on the internet that I could use to compose something original without much success, but luckily, I found an out-of-print book on eBay called Jonathan Goldsmith, pioneer master builder in the Western Reserve by Elizabeth Hitchcock that I was able to get for a reasonable price. It became my main source in writing a biography for him on Find a Grave which I am also republishing below. I hope you find it interesting! I also hope you'll also take a few minutes to visit his memorial that I created there. It contains more pictures, including a famous example of his work at Jonathan Goldsmith.

Master Builder, Architect. Jonathan Goldsmith was considered a pioneer in the Greek Revival Style of architecture, and he was also known for creating buildings in the Federal style. Originally apprenticed to a shoemaker in his native Connecticut, he bought out his apprenticeship four years early and apprenticed himself to a carpenter-joiner.

In 1805, he went into business for himself, first in Hebron, CT, and later in Hinsdale, MA. In 1808, he married Abigail Jones, and in 1811, he, his wife and their two eldest children followed many of Mrs. Goldsmith's family members to Painesville, OH. At first, he was only able to find work as a cobbler, and when the War of 1812 broke out, he volunteered for service. After returning home, he went on to become a well-known architect and builder in the area of Ohio once known as the Connecticut Western Reserve.

Goldsmith's buildings include 30 homes and commercial buildings in Painesville, another handful around Lake County, and 10 houses in Cleveland. Many still exist today, although many more have been demolished. The front doorway of one of those razed homes, known as the Isaac Gillet House, has been exhibited at the Cleveland Museum of Art. His drawings were also included in an exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum's titled "The Greek Revival in the United States" in 1943. His work is better documented than many other 19th century builders due to the efforts of his daughter Lucia, who preserved his drawings and other manuscripts. Many of his personal and professional papers are stored at the Western Reserve Historical Society in Cleveland.

He was also known as a mechanic and farmer, and he is credited with inventing a multiple plow. While visiting his son, Gillett Goldsmith, who lived in Bexar County, TX, he obtained a patent from the Republic of Texas on May 7, 1840. In later years, Goldsmith suffered financial setbacks resulting in his selling his home, which he had built himself in 1818, as well as 86 acres of land. His final building project was the creation of a smaller house, later known as "Ingleside" where he lived until his death. The home was purchased in 1911 by the Lake County Agricultural Society as part of a parcel of 36 acres that is now the Lake County Fairgrounds. It was destroyed by fire in 1929. Jonathan Goldsmith was buried in the Painesville Twp Cemetery (now known as the Mentor Avenue Cemetery), located less than a mile from his home.

Tombstone Tuesday: Josias Brown

This is the gravestone of my 5th great grandfather, Josias Brown. I first learned of him in 1997 when I made contact with a distant cousin whose main interest was in finding as much information about Josias' descendants as she could. My family filled in some blanks for her because I am descended from Josias Brown's daughter, Margaret (Brown) Atkinson.

I wasn't happy with the quality of the photographs I took that day at Peters Run Cemetery (AKA Old Tent Cemetery), especially the ones of the graves of Josias and his wife, Hannah (Mitchell) Brown. I guess that means I'll have to go back!

It took me years to find this cemetery. I think I first looked for it in the summer of 1998, driving back and forth several times along Peters Run Road outside Wheeling WV, a very curvy, 4.7 mile long road lined with thick trees that has a surprising amount of traffic, which made it impossible for me to drive along as slowly as I wanted to. I went back a few years later with my husband along and still couldn't find it. Finally, in 2006, someone was able to give me a general location for the cemetery, and in the summer of 2007 I finally found it! The people who own the property were very nice! They've been working on restoring the graveyard, and they gave me printouts of a cemetery reading done by the DAR back in the 50s or 60s. They also showed me two gravestones there that they had recently unearthed. The names of those two people never appeared on any previous transcript and they were hopeful that they would continue to find buried gravestones.

You can see more about Josias Brown and his family HERE, and you can visit his virtual grave on Find a Grave.

(Nearly) Wordless Wednesday

Men of the family, from a gathering in the early 60s. They were sitting on the glider on the front porch of my grandparents' house in Houston, PA.

All but Tom Jackson have passed away, their names link to their Find a Grave pages.











Front (l to r): Great Uncle Selwyn Fife, Great Uncle Raymond Fife, cousin Tom Jackson

Back (l to r): Uncle Eddie Champ, Uncle David Atkinson, and Pappap (Charles Atkinson).

Tombstone Tuesday: Batte Peterson Clark

This is the gravestone of my husband's great-grandfather, Batte Peterson Clark, Jr. John and I visited this grave at Fairlawn Cemetery in the fall of 2005. We planned a trip to Dallas for John's 25 year high school reunion, and I talked him into adding a few extra days so we could drive up into Oklahoma to look for his family graves. It was a fun and fruitful trip to a part of Oklahoma that I had never visited before.

B. P. Clark has a family legend attached to him, and so far, I haven't found anything to confirm or disprove the following story that I found in some notes made by John's Uncle Terrence who passed down some of his genealogy research to his family.

My grandfather Clark

Batt Peterson, 4th child of Batte and Mary Clark, born in 1855, when about 16 years of age rode out of Alabama to La [Louisiana] to avenge the murder of his brother... He rode from there into La. soon afterwards the body of the man who killed Albert his brother was found behind a stump on a La road. Batt Clark never did say that he killed the fellow, but he did say enough to his son Albert to make him believe that the fellow was trying to waylay his papa as he had his papa's brother. Grandmother Watts always said that Batt killed the fellow and then road into Panola County, Texas. In those days one could commit a crime in La and get into Texas and be safe from the law.

Batte Peterson Clark was born in Alabama, lived in Texas for much of his adult life, and spent his final years in the area around Comanche, OK. His entry in my database can be seen HERE, and you can also visit his entry on Find a Grave.

Tombstone Tuesday: John Calvin Fife

This is the grave of my g-g-grandfather, John Calvin Fife. You may be able to see that he died young, at age 33 on November 14, 1879. He was killed in an accident while he was working on building a bridge. He and one other man were killed.

It had to have been a real struggle for his widow, Mary Frances (McConnell) Fife. She was only 28, the mother of three children and pregnant with her 4th. She never remarried and supported herself as a nurse.

When her 4th child was born in February 1880, although the baby was a girl, Mary named her Calvin after her dead father. She was called Callie.

Calvin Fife was buried at Bethel Presbyterian Church Cemetery in Bethel Park, PA. Six generations of my Fife ancestors are buried there. The church's history website mentions the Fife family being associated with them from the beginning.

The sentiment engraved at the bottom of his stone is particularly touching. It reads:

Death is certain, the hour unseen.

An article that appeared in the local newspaper at the time of his death describes the accident in especially gruesome details. The paper, which was a weekly, published his obituary the next week, along with a paid notice of a public sale being held by Mary Fife. It makes me sad that she had to deal with the practical details of having to support herself and her children at a traumatic time like that. Below are transcripts of the articles from the newspaper.

From the Canonsburg Herald, Canonsburg PA, Friday Nov. 14, 1879.

_______________
Terrible Accident
Fall of a Bridge near Canonsburg-- Samuel Cochran killed-- Calvin Fife Fatally Injured-- Five others Badly Injured and Several Slightly Hurt--Aid for the Sufferers.
_______________

One of the most heart-rending local accidents which has fallen to our sad duty to chronicle, happened on Friday afternoon last. For some time past workmen have been engaged upon a new bridge over Chartiers Creek, for J. V. H. Cook, at his coal works a short distance above the railroad station at this place.

The bridge is a private one, and is to be used for running the cars from the mines on the south side of the creek to the platform on the north side. The bridge is a frame truss, 72 feet long, 9 feet wide and nine feet high, outside measure. The height of the floor to the creek is about 10 feet. John T. Roberts had the contract for the woodwork, and had the framework all complete for raising into position on last Friday morning. A solid scaffold on tressles (sic) had been constructed, and during the forenoon the eastern frame was safely put into position. This was secured by guy ropes attached to the top of the frame at each end, and tied to stakes in the ground a few rods away on each side. In the afternoon the frame for the west side was put together on the scaffold and at half past two o'clock, twenty-eight men mounted the platform to put the frame into position. The miners had been summoned from their work and a number of neighbors had collected together to assist. Mr. Roberts, the contractor, believed everything to be safe, and as every man's aid was needed, he took a position with the others to give a lift.

The heavy frame was steadily lifted, but when it was nearing it's upright position, a projecting chord caught one of the guy ropes holding the first frame, unnoticed, and the great pressure was sufficient to cause the opposite ropes to give way and cause the first raised frame to fall inwards, and in an instant the second fell back, the one directly upon the other. When the first side began to move someone gave a warning shout, and all who could, to save themselves from being crushed, sprang through the openings of the frame to the ground and creek below. In a few remarkable cases, persons were so situated that the framework fell over and around them and left them standing untouched. Frank Coleman was left standing in an opening, which appeared scarcely large enough to allow his body to pass. Mr. Cook, himself-- suddenly aware that something was wrong--turned his head as the frame passed over him. This act saved him from being carried down with the timbers.

As soon as the men could recover themselves, a sickening spectacle presented itself, four men lay crushed and mangled beneath the heavy structure. They were Samuel Cochran, John T. Roberts, Calvin Fife, and Christopher Patterson.

Several men at work upon the new railroad abutments nearby, rushed to the spot, and assisted those not disabled in extricating the injured men. The killed and wounded were the following:

• Samuel Cochran, chest crushed, died in a few minutes after he was removed from the wreck.
• Calvin Fife, lower part of the body badly crushed. Kidneys injured. He cannot recover.
• John T. Roberts, both legs broken, below the knees, and one broken above, three ribs and jaw broken. Has suffered much but will likely recover.
• Christopher Patterson, colored, right leg broken above the ankle, and the left above the knee.
• Aaron Henderson, Sr., colored, knocked off the bridge and badly hurt on his face and side.
• Vance Donaldson, son of John Donaldson, three bones broken in his foot.
• William Dungee, colored, knee cap dislocated.

Besides these several others were slightly hurt by receiving bruises and flesh wounds. Allen Thompson was struck in the back as he jumped from the bridge. Joseph Neill was struck upon the shoulder.

As soon as the wounded were extricated from their horrible positions, messengers were dispatched for physicians, Drs. Alexander, Donaldson, and Bane, and many citizens promptly hurried to the scene, and did all in their power to give relief to the sufferers. Spring wagons were brought and stretchers were made and each carried to his home. The procession, with the dead and some of the wounded in wagons and others carried upon stretchers , as it came into town, formed one of the saddest spectacles we have seen in many a day. The three physicians, together with Dr. Barnet, and later in the evening, Dr. Lacock, gave what surgical attention was needed as rapidly as the several cases could be attended to. Dr. Dickson was absent from home at the time. The citizens did all in their power to render needed assistance.

Nothing has happened in this community for a long time that has cast so great a gloom over the people, or brought out so great an expression of sympathy. Nearly all are men of families who would suffer for want of necessities and comforts, without aid from some source.

At the request of a number of citizens the Town Council held a meeting on Saturday morning to devise some means to secure pecuniary relief fro the injured men and their families. John Chambers, Sr., was appointed Treasurer, and W. R. McConnell, Wm. Martin, and W. S. Callahan a committee to disburse contributions where and when needed. W. R. Campbell, C. M. Greer and D. C. Houston were appointed a committee to solicit contributions. To this call for aid the people of the town and vicinity have responded liberally.
***************************************************

From the Canonsburg Herald, Friday Nov. 21, 1879

_______________________
The Second Victim.--Calvin Fife, one of the persons injured at the late bridge disaster, died from the effects of his injuries, on last Friday evening. He received the most assiduous medical attention, but nothing could avert the fatal result. Mr. Fife was in the 34th year of his age, and leaves a wife and three small children to mourn his loss. His funeral took place on last Sunday from his late residence at the corner of Green and College Streets. Short services were held at Bethel Church in Allegheny County whither his remains were taken to be interred. Many persons accompanied the procession.

****************************************************
Also from the same paper listed under DIED:

FIFE.-- In Canonsburg, Pa., on Friday evening Nov. 14, 1879, John Calvin Fife, aged 33 years and nine months.

****************************************************
Just below, listed under new advertisements:

PUBLIC SALE.
The undersigned will sell at the late residence of Calvin Fife, at the corner of Green and College Streets, Canonsburg.
Saturday, November 22d, 1879

Two good work Horses, 1 spring Colt, 1 two-horse Wagon, set work Harness, Collars, Bridles, set of double Buggy Harness, Plow, Harrow, double Shovel Plow, 1 single Shovel Plow, 1 barrel of Vinegar, 1 barrel of Salt, 1 riding Saddle, Double Tree, Coal Shovel, Kitchen Furniture and numerous other articles not mentioned.
Sale to commence at 1 o'clock, p. m. A credit of 6 months will be given.
Mrs. Mary F. Fife.