Tuesday, September 29, 2026

Emily and Lyle’s Story: Georgia Moves In, Late June 1918

 Here is the latest chapter in the story of the courtship and early married life and times of my maternal grandparents, Emily Auble and Lyle Carringer, who married in June 1918. The background information and the list of chapters of their life together are listed at the end of this post.  This is historical fiction with real people and real events, and is how it might have been.

And now we are up to 27 June 1918, and Georgia Auble, Emily's widowed mother, is moving in with Lyle and Emily.

I asked my AI Assistant Anthropic Claude to tell the story of Emily and Lyle about Georgia moving in and afterwards in late June 1918 (I offered helpful suggestions...).  

             (AI Google Notebook Infographic -- Georgia Moves In, Late June 1918)

Emily and Lyle's Story: Moving Georgia In, Late June 1918

Lyle’s liberty day on Thursday, 27 June 1918 was the day planned for moving Georgia’s “stuff” from First and Hawthorn into the house at 2064 Harrison Avenue. He made it to 30th Street on the trolley by 8 a.m. and Edgar and Davey were there with Austin.

Three of them -- Austin, Edgar, and Lyle — piled into the automobile and made their way toward First and Hawthorn, and Davey drove his own car, while Della and Abbie remained behind at 30th Street, the arrangement having sorted itself out without much discussion: the furniture-moving was men's work by tradition rather than necessity. Emily was at the Harrison Avenue house preparing for the additional furniture, kitchen items, and personal stuff.

Moving Georgia's Things

Georgia met them at the door with the particular efficiency of a woman who had been expecting exactly this and had already sorted the pieces to be moved from the pieces to remain. The bed frame from her room came apart with reasonable cooperation once Austin identified the right screws; the wardrobe proved heavier and more stubborn, requiring all four men and a certain amount of good-natured cursing from Edgar, who maintained throughout that the wardrobe had been built by someone with a personal grudge against movers.

"It came from Chicago," Georgia said, watching from the doorway with her arms folded, entirely unmoved by the men's struggles. "It has survived a great deal worse than your complaining, Edgar Carringer."

"I don't doubt it," Edgar said, wedging his shoulder beneath one corner. "I only wish it had grown lighter on the journey."

They loaded the automobiles in stages — the bed frame first, then a trunk of Georgia's remaining clothes and personal effects, then a small writing desk that Georgia said had belonged to her own husband and which she handled, when it came time to lift it, with rather more care than she'd shown the wardrobe, directing its placement in the automobile with unusual precision.

"That one goes in carefully," she said, and Austin, catching something in her tone, made certain it did.

Three trips between First and Hawthorn and Harrison Avenue saw the bulk of it moved by the time full dark had settled over the city — including Georgia's kitchen items and the last of the smaller boxes still waiting for a further trip before the thirtieth, but enough that the back bedroom at Harrison Avenue now held a bed and a wardrobe and a writing desk arranged, under Georgia's direction, in exactly the configuration she wanted before she'd even properly moved in.

"There," Georgia said, standing in the middle of her mostly-furnished room, looking satisfied. "That will do for tonight."

Austin wiped his forehead and surveyed the wardrobe's final position with the satisfaction of a job completed correctly. "It'll do for a good deal longer than tonight, I'd think."

"It will," Georgia agreed. "Thank you, Austin. And Edgar and Davey" She looked at Lyle last, and something in her expression softened slightly, the way it had softened at the wedding when she'd told Emily you'll do and meant considerably more by it than the words alone carried. "And thank you, Lyle. For the house. For all of it."

"You're part of the household now," Lyle said. "There's nothing to thank me for."

Georgia did not argue this, which from Georgia was its own form of agreement.

Austin and Davey drove everybody back to 2105 30th Street to have a quick dinner prepared by Della and Abbie. The dining room was fairly silent because they were tired. Lyle and Emily left soon after, taking the trolley and walking the final stretch to Harrison Avenue together, the June night warm and settled around them.

“Mother's room looked good," Emily said, as they walked. "Properly hers, already."

"She directed the whole operation from the doorway," Lyle said. "Four grown men and a wardrobe, entirely at her command."

"That sounds exactly right," Emily said, and laughed, and took his arm, and they walked the last two blocks home together — home now in the fullest sense, the house filling itself steadily with the furniture and the people who would make it, by month's end, entirely complete.

The Week

The week settled into a shape that Lyle recognized as the beginning of a pattern — the particular grammar of married life beginning to write itself into the calendar. Ten-hour days at the PX, the counter work now familiar enough that Lyle managed it with half his attention while the other half ran ahead to evening, to Harrison Avenue, to Emily's face when he came through the door. 

Marston's for Emily, six days as always, though she had privately begun negotiating in her mind — nothing decided yet, nothing said aloud even to Lyle — whether the accounting course Mrs. Hennessey's daughter had mentioned might be worth pursuing once the household had properly found its feet.

Georgia soon found the grocery store, drug store, sewing store, and other interesting places along Imperial Avenue near Harrison Street. When she was at home, she busied herself preparing the evening meal, working in the back garden, and meeting her new neighbors.

Evenings were new in a way that none of them had quite anticipated, even after eighteen months of imagining them. Dinner together with Georgia, prepared every night by Georgia with Emily helping, not just on a Liberty Thursday snatched from a week of separation. The dishes done together, more often than not, Emily washing and Lyle drying, an arrangement that emerged without discussion on the second night and simply continued because neither of them saw reason to change it.

Georgia usually retired soon after, writing letters at her desk in her room to her brothers and sisters, and reading books found over the years in bookstores from Chicago and San Diego.

Reading in the front room afterward, the lamp between Emily and Lyle, the particular quiet of two people who have run out of things that need saying and are simply glad of each other's presence.

"I keep waiting for it to feel less remarkable," Emily said on Friday evening, looking up from her book. "Just an ordinary Friday. And it still feels remarkable."

"I hope it always does," Lyle said. "Mother told me not to let marriage be the reason I stop noticing you. I'd like it if you kept noticing this too."

"I don't think I'll have much choice," Emily said. "You make it difficult not to notice."

By Saturday, the week's work had settled into something almost ordinary, and both of them found themselves, separately and without saying so to each other until later, looking forward to next Thursday — a full day together, the first since the honeymoon, before the Thursday tradition of 30th Street resumed its familiar shape.

To be continued...

==============================

Here is the Video Overview of this story by Google Gemini Notebook (also on my YouTube channel here):  

This is historical fiction based on the facts that are available for the life and family of my maternal grandparents, Lyle and Emily(Auble) Carringer.  It is based on my research, social history and society norms at the time and place, and it is likely realistic. It might have happened this way. 

Stay tuned for the next chapters in this family story.

                                                          ==========================

The AI-assisted biography of my maternal grandmother is in ABC Biography of #7 Emily Kemp (Auble) Carringer (1899-1977) of Illinois and California. I wrote a story about her life in 1916 in Ask AI: Describe Emily Auble's Life After the Death of Her Father In 1916.

The AI-assisted biography of my maternal grandfather is in ABC Biography of #6 Lyle Lawrence Carringer (1891-1976) of San Diego, California. I wrote a story about Lyle being a young working man in 1916 being teased about being boring in Lyle's Story: Finding Courage in 1916-1917.

Then I wrote more chapters of their life together:                   
==============================================

Links to my blog posts about using Artificial Intelligence are on my Randy's AI and Genealogy page.  Links to AI information and articles about Artificial Intelligence in Genealogy by other genealogists are on my AI and Genealogy Compendium page.

Copyright (c) 2026, Randall J. Seaver

The URL for this post is:  
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Seavers In the News-- 1900 Marriage of Frederick W. Seaver and Alma Bessie Richmond in Leminster, Mass.

  Here is this week's edition of "Seavers in the News" - a weekly feature from the historical newspapers about persons with the surname Seaver that are interesting, useful, mysterious, fun, macabre, or add information to my family tree database.

This week's entry is from the Fitchburg [Mass.] Daily Sentinel newspaper dated Friday, 22 June 1900, page 5, column 4 (in the "Leominster" columns):  

The transcription of the article is:

"There was a pretty home wedding at 42 Summer street, Thursday evening, the contracting parties being Miss Alma Bessie, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Richmond, and Frederick Seaver, both well known local people, who are popular among their many associates. The ceremony was performed by Rev. Frank Allan Brown of St. Mark's Episcopal Church and the service while simple was none the less impressive. As the couple entered the room the conventional wedding march was played by Mrs. G.J. Marcy. At the close of the ceremony Mr. and Mrs. Seaver received the congratulations of their friends and best wishes for future happiness, together with many gifts."

The source citation is:

"Leominster," Fitchburg [Mass.] Daily Sentinel newspaper, Friday, 22 June 1900, page 5, column 4, Alma Bessie Richmond and Frederick Seaver marriage announcement; imaged,  Ancestry.com    (https://www.ancestry.com : accessed 7 July 2021).

This announcement provides the names of the bride and groom, the bride's parents, the minister and the organist, the bride's residence, the marriage place and date (implied as 21 June 1900), and not much else.

Alma Bessie (Richmond) Seaver (1882-1962) was born 16 February 1882 in Killingly, Connecticut, the daughter of Thomas and Juliet (White) Richmond.  Frederick Walton Seaver (1876-1942) was born 9 October 1876 in Leominster, Massachusetts, the son of Frank Walton and Hattie (Hildreth) Seaver.  They married on 21 June 1900 in Leominster, Massachusetts.  They had seven children, six lived to adulthood.

Frederick Walton and Alma Bessie (Richmond) Seaver are my paternal grandparents, the parents of my father, Frederick Walton Seaver, Jr. (1911-1983).

                                  =============================================

The URL for this post is: 

Copyright (c) 2026, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.    Share it on Twitter, Facebook,  or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.  Please note that all comments are moderated, and may not appear immediately.

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Monday, September 28, 2026

Randy's Genealogy Pot-Pourri - Week Ending 27 September 2026

 Here are the highlights of my family history and genealogy related activities over the past week (ending Sunday, 27 September 2026). 

1)  Curated genealogy-related articles to keep myself and my readers updated on the genealogy world in:

2)  Transcribed the 1751 Deed of Benjamin and Rhoda Wing to Thomas Wilks in Plymouth County, Massachusetts Bay Colony for Amanuensis Monday with help from FamilySearch Full-Text Search.

3)  Wrote one Life Memoir for an ancestor, and posted it on Genea-Musings and  Substack:
4)  Requested free AI tools to tell me about these genealogy and family history subjects, and posted them on Genea-Musings and Substack: 
5)  Wrote an AI-assisted short story about my parents lives and romance on Genea-Musings and Substack:
6)  Wrote an AI-assisted short story about my maternal grandparents lives and romance on Genea-Musings and Substack:
7)  Housekeeping -- updated my Randy's AI and Genealogy page and added to the AI-assisted story  compendiums. Added a number of the recent Google Notebook Videos to my YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/@RandySeaver (now 492 videos).

8)  Searched for more records of ancestral families on Ancestry, FamilySearch and MyHeritage, downloaded record images to my digital file folders, and added research notes, events and sources to RootsMagic profiles.  My RootsMagic family tree now has 75,151 profiles (up 13 from last week)  and 148,179 source citations (up 23).  

9)  My AncestryDNA test now has 52,546 DNA matches (up 19 from last week) with 2,225 "close" matches (20 cM or more) today (up 2), with one new ThruLines.  Added Notes to no Matches, and added no new DNA match lines to RootsMagic. MyHeritageDNA test now has 14,985 DNA matches (up 16 from last week) for me, with 26 Theories of Family Relativity.  

10) Wrote 22 Genea-Musings blog posts last week (Sunday through Saturday), of which two were a press release. The most viewed post last week was Added and Updated Ancestry.com Record Collections - Week of 19 to 25 September 2026 with 966 views.  Genea-Musings had about 240,000 page views last week and over 712,000 views over the past month (lots of bots I think). 

11)  Real life events:  Visited Linda several days this past week at her memory care facility.  Went to the grocery store on Monday and Friday.  Went to the dermatologist and came away with one more biopsy wound. Finished reading The Dover Trunk Murder by Nathan Dylan Goodwin (excellent!) and started A Cold Heart by Jonathan Kellerman. Watched the Padres games - they were 4-2 this past week and finished the regular season at 91-71 with the 4th seed in the NL.  Watched the Chargers game and they lost 24-16 to the Buffalo Bills (so now 0-3).

NOTE:  I spent about 30 hours on these genealogy activities this week,  learned quite a bit, and had some genealogy fun!

                           =============================================

The URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2026/09/randys-genealogy-pot-pourri-week-ending_01367300604.html
 
Copyright (c) 2026, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post. Share it on X, Facebook, or Pinterest using the icons below. Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com. Please note that all comments are moderated and may not appear immediately.

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Henry Carringer's Pennsylvania Farm in Autumn 1850 -- Bringing in the Harvest

 My 3rd great-grandfaher Henry Carringer (1800-1879) had married Sarah Feather (1804-1848) in about 1825 and they had ten children by 1850. Henry's biography is in ABC Biography of #48 Henry Carringer (1800-1879) of Pennsylvania and Iowa based on my genealogical research.

I wrote A Day In the Life of Farmer Henry Carringer in the Spring of 1850 about plowing the fields before planting the crops.  Following that, I wrote Henry Carringer’s Pennsylvania Farm in Spring and Summer 1850 – Planting and Haying. Then I wrote Henry Carringer’s Pennsylvania Farm in Summer 1850 – Cultivating the Crops.

I wondered what Henry Carringer and his sons would do after cultivating the fields in 1850 - it is  harvest time?  My prompt to OpenAI ChatGPT5 was: "Please write a story about Henry and his boys bringing in the harvest in the autumn of 1850."     

(Google Gemini Notebook Infographic -Henry Carringer Brings In the Harvest in 1850)

Here is the ChatGPT5 story: 

Henry Carringer and His Boys

Bringing in the Harvest: Autumn 1850


Sandy Creek Township, Mercer County, Pennsylvania

The summer of 1850 had been a busy one on the Carringer farm.

Henry Carringer, approaching his fiftieth birthday, had spent the spring plowing and planting with his three sons—David Jackson, twenty-one; George, about seventeen; and Cornelius, fifteen. Through the summer, they had cultivated the corn, tended the growing crops, cut and stored hay, repaired fences, and watched the weather.

Now autumn was approaching. The fields were changing color. The grain was ripening, the corn was maturing, and the days were growing shorter.

Henry knew what that meant. Harvest time had arrived.

For a farmer, this was the season when months of labor either paid off or were lost. A good harvest meant food for the family, feed for the livestock, seed for the following spring, and perhaps a surplus to sell or trade.

A poor harvest could mean a difficult winter. Henry had no intention of wasting a single day of favorable weather.

The First Light of Harvest Day

Henry was awake before sunrise. The morning air was cool, and a light mist hung over the fields. He dressed, pulled on his boots, and went to the barn. The horses were waiting. He fed them hay and grain, checked their water, and inspected their legs and hooves. They had worked hard all summer, and they would be working hard again.

David Jackson soon joined him. "Looks like a good day for it, Father." "Let's hope it stays that way." George and Cornelius arrived shortly afterward. There was little need for explanation. Everyone knew what had to be done.

The grain was ready. The weather was favorable. And the family had a great deal of work ahead.

Bringing in the Grain

The wheat and other small grains were among the first crops to be harvested. In 1850, Henry could not simply climb onto a mechanical combine and drive through the field. His harvesting equipment depended upon horses, hand labor, and considerable physical effort.

One common method was to use a grain cradle, a scythe fitted with curved fingers that gathered the cut stalks into orderly bundles. A skilled worker could cut grain with a cradle much faster than with an ordinary scythe.

Henry had one. He examined the blade and made sure it was sharp. A dull blade made an already difficult job harder. David Jackson helped prepare the equipment while George and Cornelius gathered the tools and prepared to work behind him.

Henry stepped into the field.

The grain stood golden in the morning light. He raised the cradle and began swinging it through the stalks. The blade sliced through the stems. The cut grain fell together in a neat swath.

Swing. Step. Swing. Step. The rhythm was familiar. Henry had done this work many times before.

The Boys Follow Behind

As Henry cut the grain, David Jackson and George followed, gathering the stalks into bundles. These bundles were called sheaves. They were tied with straw or grain bands and stood upright in small groups or shocks to dry. Cornelius helped gather the cut stalks and carry them to the proper places.

The boys learned quickly that harvesting grain was not simply a matter of cutting it. The grain had to be handled carefully. If it was left lying in damp conditions, it could spoil. If it was stacked improperly, it might not dry adequately. If a storm arrived, the entire day's work could be jeopardized.

Henry kept an eye on the sky. A farmer could never forget the weather.

The Work of Cutting

By midmorning, the four Carringer men had settled into a steady rhythm. Henry worked with the cradle. David Jackson gathered and bound the sheaves. George helped arrange them into shocks. Cornelius carried bundles and cleared the cut ground.

They moved steadily across the field. The work was hot despite the cool morning. The grain scratched their arms and necks. Dust rose around their boots. The repeated motion of cutting and bending strained their backs and shoulders.

There was no machinery to relieve the labor. The horses helped with transportation, but the cutting and much of the handling were done by hand. At the end of each row, Henry straightened and looked back. Another strip of grain had been cut. Another portion of the crop was safely gathered. The field was gradually changing from a standing crop into a landscape of stubble and shocks.

A Necessary Pause

At midday, Henry called the boys to rest. They sat in the shade near the edge of the field and ate their meal. Perhaps there was bread, cold meat, cheese, and something to drink brought from the house. The food was plain, but the work had made them hungry.

David Jackson tretched his shoulders. George rubbed his hands. Cornelius looked across the field. "How much more?"

Henry glanced toward the remaining grain. "Plenty." The boys laughed. They knew their father was right. After a short rest, they returned to work.

The Weather Turns

Later in the afternoon, Henry noticed clouds gathering toward the west. He stopped cutting and studied the sky. The boys followed his gaze. "Think it'll rain?" "Could."

Henry knew that a farmer had to make decisions quickly. Grain that had been cut but not properly gathered could be damaged by rain. Sheaves needed time to dry, and wet grain could become moldy or deteriorate in storage. He decided to concentrate on getting the cut grain properly shocked.

The boys worked faster. David Jackson gathered the bundles. George helped arrange them. Cornelius carried the remaining sheaves.

The clouds moved closer. A few drops fell. Henry looked upward. "Let's get these finished." They worked until the immediate danger passed. Fortunately, the shower was brief.

The grain was left standing in shocks, where air could circulate around it and the sheaves could continue drying. The Carringers had won that small battle with the weather.

The Cornfield

As autumn advanced, attention turned increasingly to the corn. Corn was a different proposition from wheat or oats. The stalks were tall and sturdy, and the ears were protected by layers of husks. The crop had been planted in the spring, cultivated repeatedly through the summer, and watched carefully as the ears developed. Now it was ready to gather.

Henry walked into the field and examined the ears. He pulled back a husk and inspected the kernels. The grain was hardening. The ears were approaching maturity. It was time.

Gathering the Ears

The boys began breaking ears from the stalks. They pulled the ears free and removed enough husk to handle them, depending on how the corn would be stored. Some corn might be gathered and stored in the husk for later processing. Other ears could be husked more completely before being placed in storage. The work was repetitive. Reach. Pull. Twist. Drop. Move to the next stalk. The boys worked down the rows.

Henry moved among them, checking their progress and making sure the ears were gathered properly. The harvested corn was carried or hauled to the barn or another storage area. A wagon drawn by horses could transport substantial loads, but loading and unloading still required considerable manual labor.

David Jackson and George handled much of the hauling. Cornelius helped gather and load. Henry supervised the work and continued gathering ears himself.

The Corn Crib

The corn had to be stored where it could dry and remain protected. A well-ventilated corn crib allowed air to circulate around the ears.

The family would need corn for several purposes. It could be ground into meal for household use. It could be fed to livestock. It could be saved for seed. Any surplus might be sold or traded.

The corn was therefore more than a crop. It was an important part of the family's winter security.

As the crib filled, Henry could see the results of the spring's labor accumulating in a tangible form. Each ear represented a seed planted months earlier. Each load represented another day's work by the family.

The Threshing

The grain still had to be separated from the straw. Cutting and storing the sheaves did not complete the harvest. The wheat or oats had to be threshed to release the kernels from the heads.

In 1850, threshing could be accomplished by hand with a flail or by other methods involving animal power and specialized equipment. On a farm of Henry's size, threshing might require additional help from neighbors or a traveling threshing crew, depending upon the equipment available.

For a hand-threshing operation, the work was laborious. The sheaves were brought into a suitable area, and the grain was beaten or otherwise separated from the stalks. The kernels fell loose. The straw remained.

The grain then had to be cleaned of chaff and other debris, often by tossing it in the air so the wind could carry away the lighter material. The process was dusty, tiring, and time-consuming.

Henry and his sons would have had to coordinate the work carefully. The grain was valuable. They could not afford to lose much of it.

The Barn Fills

As the harvest progressed, the barn became increasingly important. The hay stored earlier in the summer occupied part of the mow. The grain and straw had to be handled and stored appropriately. The corn was being gathered into its storage area.

The farm was gradually accumulating the supplies needed to carry the family and livestock through the winter. Henry understood the significance of this. The barn was not merely a building. It was the family's reserve against the coming cold. It held the results of spring planting, summer cultivation, and autumn harvesting. A full barn meant that the family had a reasonable prospect of making it through winter without serious hardship.

The Last Loads

One afternoon, David Jackson brought the wagon toward the barn with another load of corn. George walked alongside the horses. Cornelius helped unload. Henry stood near the doorway, watching.

The work had been going on for weeks. The boys were tired. Henry was tired.

But the sight of the gathered crops gave them satisfaction. The fields were no longer filled with standing grain. The corn had been brought in. The remaining work was increasingly concerned with cleaning, storing, repairing, and preparing for winter.

Henry looked at his sons. "That's a good load." David Jackson smiled. "There's more tomorrow." "Yes," Henry replied. "There's always more tomorrow."

An Autumn Evening on the Carringer Farm

As the sun dropped behind the hills, Henry walked out toward the fields. The air was cooler now. The harvested ground lay quiet. The stubble caught the fading light. The cornfield was diminished, its ears gathered and stored. The barn and storage buildings held the evidence of months of labor.

Henry thought of his father, Martin, who had worked this land before him. He thought of the years he had spent building and maintaining the farm. He thought of Sarah, who had died in 1848, and the children who depended upon him.

David Jackson was twenty-one and increasingly capable of managing farm work. George was growing into a young man. Cornelius, only fifteen, was learning the responsibilities of a farmer.

The younger children would need food and clothing through the winter. Henry had to make the farm provide for them all. He could not control the weather. He could not guarantee that every crop would succeed. But he could work. And he could teach his sons to work. That was how the Carringer farm had survived. That was how it would continue.

The Harvest Is In

By the time the autumn work was finished, Henry and his sons had accomplished what they had set out to do. The grain had been cut and gathered. The corn had been harvested. The hay was stored. The livestock had feed for the coming winter.

There would still be chores to perform, tools to maintain, fences to repair, and preparations to make for the colder months. But the most urgent work of the growing season was behind them.

Henry could finally look across his farm and see the results. The spring plowing had become a crop. The spring planting had become food. The summer labor had become winter provisions. And the boys who had worked beside him were a little stronger, a little more experienced, and a little closer to becoming farmers in their own right.

The harvest of 1850 was more than the gathering of grain and corn. It was another year of the Carringer family's life on the land. And for Henry Carringer, that was the true measure of a successful harvest.

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

Author's note: This narrative is a reconstruction of a plausible 1850 harvest season in Mercer County, Pennsylvania. The specific crops, equipment, conversations, and events are illustrative. Henry's actual 1850 crop quantities and harvesting methods have not been established from an agricultural census or other farm record. The story deliberately ends with the harvest and preparations for winter rather than extending into the subsequent winter season.

================================

The AI Google NotebookLM Video Overview of this story is in (and on  my YouTube channel): 

This is historical fiction based on known events and social history in the lives of my ancestors -- it might have been this way. Henry and Sarah (Feather) Carringer are my 3rd great-grandparents through their son David Jackson "D.J." Carringer (1828-1902), and I have significant information about this family from the available records, but I know nothing about their day-to-day lives.

As always, I am amazed at what life was like in any place over 170 years ago. This description of Henry's farm activities life in 1850 Pennsylvania is interesting and so different from our current daily activities.

After I read these types of social history summaries, I wish that I could be a time traveler for one day to visit this Carringer family in 1850 Pennsylvania and witness their daily lives.  I'm glad that the general lifestyles and occupations are known from historical records and witness accounts.

==============================================

Links to my blog posts about using Artificial Intelligence are on my Randy's AI and Genealogy page.  Links to AI information and articles about Artificial Intelligence in Genealogy by other genealogists are on my AI and Genealogy Compendium page.

Copyright (c) 2026, Randall J. Seaver


Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Share it on X, Facebook, or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.  Note that all comments are moderated, so they may not appear immediately.

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Amanuensis Monday -- 1751 Deed of Benjamin Wing and John Wady Selling Land in Abington, Plymouth County, Massachusetts Bay Colony

This week's document for transcription is the 1751 Deed of Benjamin and Rhoda Wing of Dartmouth, Massachusetts, and John and Bethiah Wady, selling 25 acres of land in Abington, Massachusetts Bay Colony to Thomas Wilks of Hanover for £53 in lawful money.

a)  Plymouth County, Massachusetts, Deeds 1765-1767, Page 21, Image 33 of 582

The transcription of this deed (with help from FamilySearch Full-Text Search, with many errors corrected) is:

[Page 21, Starting at the top of the right-hand page of the image]

To all People to whom these Presents shall come Benjamin Wing & Rhoda his 
wife and John Wady & Bethiah his wife of the Town of Dartmouth in the County 
of Bristol in New England Sendeth Greeting. Know ye that we the said Ben-
jamin Wing & Rhoda his wife John Wady & Bethiah his wife for & in Consideration 
of fifty three Pounds six Shillings & eight Pence current lawful of the Province 
of the Massachusets Bay to us in hand paid before the Ensealing hereof by Thomas
Wilks of Hanover in the County of Plymouth & Province aforesaid Yeoman - The 
Receipt whereof we do hereby acknowledge & ourselves therewith fully satisfied &
paid Have given granted bargained sold conveyed & confirmed and by these 
Presents for our selves our Heirs Executors & administrator give grant bargain sell 
convey & confirm unto him the said Thomas Wilks his Heirs or assigns forever, A 
certain Tract of Land lying & being in Abington in the County of Plymouth 
by Estimation containing twenty five acres be it more or less and is bounded 
Beginning at the River that comes from French's Mill bounded Northerly on the
Land called the Hingham Shares in the west upon the land called the Young-
men's Shares in Abington Southerly upon the Land of John Rogers & Thomas Rogers 
and Easterly by the aforementioned River till it comes to the Corner Bounds
began at - To him the said Thomas Wilks his Heirs or assigns forever by Virtue of 
these Presents. To have & to hold the above bargained Prem be with att the 
Conveniencies Privileges appurtenances to the same belonging or in any wise ap-
pertaining to his & their only proper use Benefit & Behoof freely acquitting &
discharging all our Rights & Titles to said Lands and that we the said Benjamin 
Wing & Rhoda his wife John Wady & Bethiah his wife have in our selves good
& lawfull Right at this time to Dispose of the above bargained Premises in manner 
& form as aforesaid - Have hereby covenanted for our selves our heirs Executors Ad-
ministrators to & with the said Thomas Wilks his Heirs or assigns forever and against the 
Lawful Claims & Demands of all & every other Person claiming from by or under us 
either us will warrant & forever defend. In witness whereof we the said Benj'n Wing 
& Rhoda his wife John Wady & Bethiah his wife have hereunto let our Hands &
seals this twenty fifth Day of September Anno Domini one thousand Seven hundred & fifty one.
Signed Sealed & Deliv'd    Interlined before signed the words Abington in the County 
of Plymouth.
In presence of  Abigail Wing    } for ---------------------  {Benjamin Wing {seal}
                        Samuel Willis    }                                    { Rhoda Wing   {seal}
                        Mary Wood      } for ---------------------   {John Wady    {seal}
                        Samuel Willis  }                                      {Bethiah Wady  {seal}
Bristol ss. September 26 . 1757 Personally appeared the within mentioned Benja-
min Wing &  Rhoda his wife   John Wady & Bethiah his wife & acknowledged the within
written Instrument to be their act & Deed. Before me Sam'll Willis Just. Pacis.
Received October 29 1765 Recorded pr John Cotton Reg'r. 

The source citation for this deed is:

"Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States land records," Deed of Benjamin and Rhoda Wing and John and Bethiah Wady to Thomas Wilks,  executed 25 March 1751, recorded 29 October 1765; imaged, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89Z7-RHSK?view=fullText : accessed 29 August 2026), Image Group Number: 007450662, "Plymouth Deeds, 1765-1766, 1765-1767," page 21, image 33 of 582; original papers at Plymouth County (Massachusetts) Register of Deeds.

By this record it appears that Benjamin and Rhoda Wing, and John and Bethiah Wady, sold 25 acres of land in Abington, Massachusetts Bay Colony to Thomas Wilks for 53 pounds.  It is very likely that this land was bequeathed to Rhoda Wing and Bethiah Wady as daughters of Thomas and Bethia (Ewell) Rogers.  

Benjamin Wing (1698-1782) married (1) Content Tucker (1695-1739) in 1722 and they had five  children; he married (2) Rhoda Rogers (1713-1758) in 1739 and they had five children; (3) he married Mary Devol (1705-1798) in 1764 and they had no children.  Benjamin and Content (Tucker) Wing are my 6th great-grandparents through their daughter Abigail Wing (1734-1806) who married Jonathan White (1732-1804) in 1756.

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Read other transcriptions of records of my relatives and ancestors at Amanuensis Monday Posts.

NOTE: Genea-blogger John Newmark (who writes the excellent TransylvanianDutch blog) started a Monday blog theme years ago called "Amanuensis Monday." John offers this definition for "amanuensis:"

"A person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another."

The URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2026/09/amanuensis-monday-1751-deed-of-benjamin.html

Copyright (c) 2026, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post. Share your comments on X, Facebook, or Pinterest using the icons below. Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.  Note that all comments are moderated, and may not appear online immediately.

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Sunday, September 27, 2026

Best of the Genea-Blogs -- Week of 20 to 26 September 2026

 Scores of genealogy and family history bloggers write hundreds of posts every week about their research, their families, and their interests. I appreciate each one of them and their efforts.


My criteria for "Best of ..." are pretty simple - I pick posts that advance knowledge about genealogy and family history, address current genealogy issues, provide personal family history, are funny or are poignant. I don't list posts destined for most daily blog prompts or meme submissions (but I do include summaries of them), or my own posts.

Here are my picks for great reads from the genealogy blogs for this past week: 











Here are pick posts by other geneabloggers this week:

*  The Chiddicks Observer Edition 72 (21 September 2026] by Paul Chiddicks on Stories Behind the Records.

*  Friday’s Family History Finds [25 September 2026] by Linda Stufflebean on Empty Branches on the Family Tree.

* This week’s crème de la crème -- September 26, 2026 by Gail Dever on Genealogy a la Carte.

* GenStack [26 September 2026] by Robin Stewart on Genealogy Matters.

Readers are encouraged to go to the blogs listed above and read their articles, and add the blogs to your Favorites, Feedly, another RSS feed, or email if you like what you read. Please make a comment to them also - all bloggers appreciate feedback on what they write.

Did I miss a great genealogy blog post? Tell me! I currently am reading posts from over 900 genealogy bloggers using Feedly, but I still miss quite a few it seems.

Read past Best of the Genea-Blogs posts here.

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Copyright (c) 2026, Randall J. Seaver


Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post. Share it on X, Facebook, or Pinterest using the icons below. Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com. Please note that all comments are moderated and may not appear immediately.

Subscribe to receive a free daily email from Genea-Musings using www.Blogtrottr.com.
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