Saturday, October 3, 2015

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun -- Your Best Genealogy Day Ever

Calling all Genea-Musings Fans: 

 It's Saturday Night again - 
time for some more Genealogy Fun!!



Here is your assignment if you choose to play along (cue the Mission Impossible music, please!):

1) What was you very "Best Genealogy Day Ever?"  It ight be the day you solved a thorny research problem, or spent the day at a repository and came away with more records than you could imagine, or the day you met a cousin or visited an ancestral home.


2)  Tell us in your own blog post, in a comment to this blog post, or in a Facebook or Google+ post.  Be sure to drop a comment to this post if you write your own blog post and link to it.

Here's mine:

I pondered this question, and it's hard to pick one day.  After 27 years, I've forgotten many of the "best days" in repositories.

The one that sticks in my mind was 14 August 1999 - in Voss, Norway.  We were on our Scandinavian vacation (Sweden, Finland, Norway), and visited Voss, the ancestral town of Linda's Leland ancestors.  Some background:

Linda's brother had done quite a bit of Leland family history and had visited the Liland farm near Voss in Norway back in 1980. To prepare for our vacation, I tried to find Linda's Norwegian ancestral families and had some luck - I used the Voss bygdebok (farm book) and Voss Parish Registers at the FHC to trace her families back into the 1600's before we went. 

The Voss scenery is breathtaking. There is a long lake, mountains all around, many rivers and streams, very green in the summer, and very white in the winter (it is a ski resort then).  We arrived on 13 August after a six hour train trip through the mountains from Oslo.

One of my message board friends had been to Voss the year before, and recommended that I contact Bjorg Liland, who was related by marriage to the Liland farm families. We called the first night, and Bjorg graciously offered to drive us around the lake the next day. Voss is at the east end of the lake, and Liland farm is at the west end of the lake.  We visited Gjelle farm, Midtun farm, Molster farm and Liland farm, all ancestral farms. At Liland farm, Bjorg had arranged to talk to the family, compare genealogy notes and have a snack there - it was quite enjoyable, although the Liland ladies didn't speak English, but Bjorg translated. 



Linda (second from left) with the Liland farm ladies and Bjorg (far right)

On the way back to our hotel, we stopped at Molster farm, which was where Linda's ancestors lived just before they left for Wisconsin in 1855. It is now a "living history museum" vintage 1855, with docents in each room, and a small artifacts room. I enjoyed it tremendously, especially the food cooked in the kitchen.

Needless to say, we really appreciated Bjorg's efforts on our behalf and we treated her to a nice dinner at the Park Liland Hotel in downtown Voss (she used to work there). 


This was a memorable day of experiencing family history.  The best benefit of all was that Linda really enjoyed this part of our vacation - and we have been taking genealogy vacations ever since.

The URL for this post is:   http://www.geneamusings.com/2015/10/saturday-night-genealogy-fun-your-best.html

Copyright (c) 2015, 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.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.




Surname Saturday -- LOKER (England to colonial Massachusetts)

It's Surname Saturday, and I'm "counting down" my Ancestral Name List each week.  


I am in the 8th great-grandmothers and I'm up to Ancestor #1161 who is Mary LOKER (1653-1735) 
[Note: the earlier great-grandmothers and 8th great-grandfathers have been covered in earlier posts].

My ancestral line back through three generations of this LOKER family line is:


1. Randall J. Seaver

2. Frederick Walton Seaver (1911-1983)
3. Betty Virginia Carringer (1919-2002)

4. Frederick Walton Seaver (1876-1942)
5. Alma Bessie Richmond (1882-1962)

8. Frank Walton Seaver (1852-1922)
9. Hattie Louise Hildreth (1857-1920)


18.  Edward Hildreth (1831-1899)
19.  Sophia Newton (1834-1923)

36.  Zavhariah Hildreth (1783-1857)
37.  Hannah Sawtell (1789-1857)

72.  Zachariah Hildreth (1754-1828)
73.  Elizabeth Keyes (1759-1793)

144.  Zachariah Hildreth (1728-1784)
145.  Elizabeth Prescott (1734-1812)

290.  Jonas Prescott (1703-1784)
291.  Elizabeth Harwood (1701-1739)

580.  Jonas Prescott (1678-1750)
581.  Thankful Wheeler (1682-1716)

1160.  Jonas Prescott, born June 1648 in Groton, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States; died 31 December 1723 in Groton, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States.  He was the son of 2320. John Prescott and 2321. Mary Gawkroger.  He married 14 December 1672 in Lancaster, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States.
1161.  Mary Loker, born 28 September 1653 in Sudbury, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States; died 28 October 1735 in Groton, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States.  

Children of Jonas Prescott and Mary Loker are:
*  Mary Prescott (1674-1735), married 1695 Benjamin Farnsworth (1667-1733).
*  Elizabeth Prescott (1676-1744), married 1695 Eleazer Green (1672-1731).
*  Jonas Prescott (1678-1750), married 1699 Thankful Wheeler (1682-1716).
*  Nathaniel Prescott (1680-1681).
*  Dorothy Prescott (1682-1722), married 1700 John Varnum (1676-1716).
*  James Prescott (1684-1704).
*  Sarah Prescott (1686-1716), married 1705 John Longley (1683-1750).
*  Abigail Prescott (1688-1751), married 1711 James Parker (1686-1748).
*  Martha Prescott (1690-1774), married 1714 Shubael Hobart (1682-1764).
*  Susannah Prescott (1691-1771), married 1722 William Lawrence (1697-1764).
*  Deborah Prescott (1694-1723), married 1714 Samuel Parker (1682-1724).
*  Benjamin Prescott (1696-1738), married 1718 Abigail Oliver (1697-1765).

2322.  John Loker, born about 1608 in Probably Bures St. Mary, Suffolk, England; died 1653 in Sudbury, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States.  He married about 1650 in Sudbury, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States.
2323.  Mary Draper, born about 1625 in England; died after 1697 in Sudbury, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States.

Children of John Loker and Mary Draper are:
*  John Loker (1650-1719), married 1673 Sarah Rice (1655-1703).
*  Mary Loker (1653-1735), married 1672 Jonas Prescott (1648-1723).

4644.  Henry Loker, born before 07 February 1577 in Bures St. Mary, Essex, England; died before 15 April 1631 in Bures St. Mary, Essex, England.  He was the son of 9288. Robert Riddlesdale alias Loker and 9289. Lucy.  He married about 1605 in probably Bures St. Mary, Suffolk, England.
4645.  Elizabeth, born about 1586 in England; died 18 May 1648 in Sudbury, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States.

Children of Henry Loker and Elizabeth are:
*  Henry Loker (1605-1688), married 1647 Hannah Brewer (1615-1679).
*  John Loker (1608-1653), married 1650 Mary Draper (1625-1697).
*  Bridget Loker (1613-1685), married (1) 1644 Robert Davis (1608-1655); (2) 1655 Thomas King (1600-1676).
*  Anne Loker (1616-1697), married 1636 Richard Newton (1600-1701).

Information about this Loker family was obtained from:

1)  Douglas Richardson, The Riddlesdale Alias Loker Family of Bures Saint Mary, Suffolk, England and Sudbury, Massachusetts, New England Historic Genealogical Register, volume 143, number 4, (October 1989).

2)  John Brooks Threlfall, 50 Great Migration Colonists to New England (Madison, Wis.: published by author, 1990)

3)  Mary Lovering Holman, Ancestry of Col. John Harrington Stevens and his wife Frances Helen Miller (Concord NH : Rumford Press, 1948)

4)  Joan S. Guilford, The Ancestry of Dr. J.P. Guilford (N.p. : Sheridan Psychological Services, Inc., 1990).

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2015/10/surname-saturday-loker-england-to.html

Copyright (c) 2015, 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.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.


Friday, October 2, 2015

FamilySearch Introduces Searching on Largest Genealogy Websites - Post 3: Searching on Findmypast.com

On the FamilySearch Blog recently, Matt Wright wrote New Feature: Search Genealogy Records on the World's Largest Sites. 

On each profile in the FamilySearch Family Tree there is a box with links to FamilySearch, Ancestry, Findmypast and MyHeritage:


I wanted to see how this feature works, so I am going to use one of my tree persons, John Nicholas Brocke (1855-1938) (FSID L416-YCP) to see what records are found by each website.

I reviewed the search results on each site in:


 FamilySearch Introduces Searching on Largest Genealogy Websites - Post 1: FamilySearch Matches(30 September 2015)


*  FamilySearch Introduces Searching on Largest Genealogy Websites - Post 2: Searching on Ancestry.com (1 October 2015)

1)  Here are the John Nicholas Brocke search results on Findmypast.com:



The search parameters transferred from FamilySearch included:

*  First names =  John Nicholas (with name variants)
*  Last name = Brocke (no name variants)
*  Birth year = 1955 (plus/minus 2 years)
*  Where = World
*  Location = Michigan

The default search from FamilySearch found only one match - for J. Nicholas Brocke in the 1870 U.S. Census.

2)  I removed the name "John" from the search but kept all other search terms the same, and there were 5 matches:


The five matches were:

#1:  1900 U.S. Census (for Nicholas Brocke)
#2:  1930 U.S. Census (for Nicholas Brocke)
#3:  1920 U.S. Census (for Nickolas Brocke)
#4:  1910 U.S. Census (for Niokales Brocke)
#5:  1870 U.S. Census (for J. Nicholas Brocke)

This search did not find a birth record, a baptism record, a marriage record, a death record, a burial record, or an 1880 U.S. Census record for Nicholas Brocke.

Obviously, any search depends on the information put into the search fields and the name variations used in the search algorithms, and the available record collections on the website.  There may be other records for this person on FamilySearch that have different name spellings, different birth information, etc.


I do think that FamilySearch should use last name name variants, and search for a death date and place, if known, on Findmypast.com in order to be comparable to the FamilySearch and Ancestry.com searches.

3)  I will review the search results for MyHeritage in the next post in this series.

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2015/10/familysearch-introduces-searching-on_2.html

Copyright (c) 2015, 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.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.



52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Week 92: #112 Johannes Able (1758-1818)

Amy Johnson Crow suggested a weekly blog theme of "52 Ancestors" in her blog post Challenge:  52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks on the No Story Too Small blog.  I am extending this theme in 2015 to 104 Ancestors in 104 Weeks. Here is my ancestor biography for week #92:

Johannes Able (about 1758-1818) is #112 on my Ahnentafel list, my 4th great-grandfather, who married #113 Sophia Trimmer (about 1755 - before 1811) in 1777.

I am descended through:

* their son, #56 John Auble (1780-1831), who married #57  Anna Row (1787-1860) in 1804, 

*  their son, #28 David Auble (1817-1894), who married #29 Sarah G. Knapp (1818-after 1900) in 1844.
*  their son #14 Charles Auble (1849-1916), who married #15 Georgianna Kemp (1868-1952) in 1898.
*  their daughter #7 Emily Kemp Auble (1899-1977) who married #6 Lyle Lawrence Carringer in 1918.
*  their daughter, #3 Betty Virginia Carringer (1919-2002), who married #2 Frederick Walton Seaver (1911-1983) in 1942.
*  their son, #1 Randall J. Seaver (1943-....)

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

1)  PERSON (with source citations as indicated in brackets):


*  Name:                  Johannes Able[1–2]   
*  Alternate Name:  John Able[3]
*  Alternate Name:  John Abel[4]    
*  Alternate Name:  Johannes Abel[5]

*  Sex:                    Male   

*  Father:               Michael Able (1719-1791)   
* Mother:              Christina  (1730-1804)   
  
2)  INDIVIDUAL EVENTS (with source citations as indicated in brackets):
  
*  Birth:                about 1758, Roxbury, Morris, New Jersey, United States[1]   
*  Death:               before 16 April 1818 (before about age 60), Byram, Sussex, New Jersey, United States[3]   
*  Probate:           16 April 1818 (about age 60), Inventory filed, Byram, Sussex, New Jersey, United States[3]    
  
3)  SHARED EVENTS (with source citations as indicated in brackets):
  
*  Spouse 1:          Sophia Trimmer (about 1755 - before 1811)   
*  Marriage 1:       30 January 1777 (about age 19), Oldwick, Hunterdon, New Jersey, United States[1,4]   
*  Child 1:             Anna Maria Able (1778-    )   
*  Child 2:             John Auble (1780-1831)   
*  Child 3:             Anna Maria Able (1784-    )   
*  Child 4:             David Able (1787-1858)   
*  Child 5:             Elisabeth Able (1789-    )   
*  Child 6:             George Able (1793-1870)   
*  Child 7:             Jacob Able (1796-1837)   

*  Spouse 2:          Mary Cripps (about 1762 - before 1818)   
*  Marriage 2:       17 April 1811 (about age 53), New Germantown, Hunterdon, New Jersey, United States[1]   

*  Spouse 3           Catherine  (about 1780 - 1847)   
*  Marriage 3:       before 1818 (before about age 60), Sussex, New Jersey, United States   
  
4)  NOTES (with source citations as indicated in brackets):   

The data on this family was obtained from the books The Able Aubles by Juanita Hayer Crampton[1] and Early Germans in New Jersey by Chambers[2].

Very little is known about this Johannes/John Abel/Able/Auble family.  They apparently lived near New Germantown, Hunterdon, New Jersey.

Johannes/John Abel/Able/Auble was born in about 1758 to Michael and Christina (--?--) Able/Abel, probably in Roxbury, Morris County, New Jersey[1].  

He apparently was married three times:

1)  to Sophia Trimmer (born about 1755, died before 1811) in 1777, who was the mother of his seven children between 1778 and 1796.
2)  to widow Mary Cripps (born about 1762, died before 1818) in 1811, who died before 1818.
3)  to Catherine --?--,  who was the administrator of his estate..

The marriage record of John Abel to Sophia Trimmer in the Zion Lutheran Church records say[4]:

"[1777] John Abel & Sophia Trimmer, Jan. 30"

Zion Lutheran Church birth and baptism records (New Germantown, New Jersey) for the children of Johannes/John and Sophia (Trimmer) Abel/Able/Auble were found in:

Ben Van D. Fisher, "Records of the Corporation of Zion in New Germantown in West Jersey - Births and Baptisms," Genealogical Magazine of New Jersey, Volumes XXX to XXXIII (1900-1903)[5].  The Zion Lutheran Church records are also found in the IGI index.

There are a number of John Able's in the early tax lists of northern New Jersey, but none in Hunterdon County.  There was one in Roxbury township, Morris County, New Jersey in 1793.  In 1814, a John Auble was taxed in Chester, Morris County, New Jersey, along with a John Auble Jr.[1]

No census records for 1790 to 1820 are available for New Jersey.

The Inventory of the estate of John Able of Byram, New Jersey was taken on 14 April 1818 and was appraised by David Casterline and William Seeh.  The inventory totaled about $310.  It was submitted to the Sussex County Surrogate's Court at Newton on 15 May 1818 by Catherine Auble and EJosiah Munson, administrators of the estate[3].

5)  SOURCES
 
1. Juanita Hayter Crampton, The Able Aubles (Utica, Kentucky: Mcdowell Publications, 1987), page 33, John Able sketch; digital image, FamilySearch Books (https://books.familysearch.org/ : accessed 27 June 2014).

2. Theodore Frelinghuysen Chambers, The Early Germans of New Jersey: their history, churches, and genealogies (Baltimore, Md.: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1982), page 227, Abel family sketch; digital images, FamilySearch Books (https://books.familysearch.org/ : accessed 12 June 2014).

3. "New Jersey, Probate Records, 1678-1980," digital images,  FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/), Sussex County, "Inventories 1808-1819 vol A-C," Volume C, pages 178-181 (images 552-553 of 643), John Able inventory, 1818.

4. Norman C. Wittwer and D. A. Sinclair, "Marriage Records of the Zion Lutheran Church at Oldwick," Genealogical Magazine of New Jersey, Volume XL, page 10, John Abel and Sophia Trimmer entry, 1777.


5. Ben Van D. Fisher, "Records of the Corporation of Zion in New Germantown in West Jersey - Births and Baptisms," Genealogical Magazine of New Jersey, Volumes XXX to XXXIII (1900-1903), page 36, Johannes Abel, born 1780, son of Johannes and Sophia Abel.


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The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2015/10/52-ancestors-in-52-weeks-week-92-112.html

Copyright (c) 2015, 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.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.