Saturday, October 24, 2015

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun -- What Were You Doing in 1985?

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) Since this was Back to the Future week, I have a related challenge:  Do you recall what you were doing in 1985?  Family, school, work, hobbies, technology, genealogy, vacations, etc?


2)  Tell us in a blog post of your own, in a comment on this blog, or in a Facebook or Google+ post.

Here's mine:

I was age 42 in 1985, with a wife and two pre-teen girls, living in Chula Vista, and climbing the promotion ladder at work.  Life was busy, and I had no thoughts about genealogy and family history at the time.  I did have a hobby.  Here are more details:

*  I married schoolteacher Linda in 1970, and we had Lori in 1974 and Tami in 1976.  The girls were busy at their school in Chula Vista, both were in a GATE program and excelling.  Linda taught algebra and geometry at the school as a volunteer parent, and she was involved in PTA and Girl Scouts with the girls.  The girls played softball in the spring.

*  I was promoted to Chief of Aerodynamics at Rohr Industries in 1985, and had a staff of about eight engineers to work on all of the aircraft programs at Rohr.  I hired one or two graduates every year to support the growing business at Rohr.  In 1985, we had just won the V2500 nacelle contract with IAE and I made several trips to Derby in England.  We also had a contact with Airbus on the A320 aircraft, and I made several trips with others to Paris and Toulouse in France.  Each trip involved a series of engineering presentations to our customers on a range of issues, including aerodynamics.  The trips were exhilarating, fun and technically challenging.  We usually had a day or two of sightseeing on our own, and evening meals with the customers.

*  My hobby at this time was medium wave radio DXing and propagation.  I was somewhat of an expert in the radio clubs on propagation, and many DXers were expanding their knowledge in propagation and applying it to their listening.  I kept logs of signal strengths of distant stations (i.e., Japan, Australia, Tahiti, occasionally Senegal) heard on my HQ-180 receiver, and searched for more distant and rarer medium wave stations in the early morning (best from midnight to sunrise).  I ordered government reports, and created BASIC programs on my IBM PC to predict signal strengths from theory to compare with my measurements.  I also had a FORTRAN program to predict radio wave paths on the IBM computer at work.  

*  I bought an IBM PC with two 64K floppy drives in early 1983, and wrote small BASIC programs to help with the propagation analysis.  I wrote articles in Microsoft Works on propagation and my listening results, and submitted them to the bulletins produced by the two hobby clubs I was a member of.  

*  I had no thought of genealogy research yet, although we had visited my father's brother and three sisters and many cousins in 1982 in Massachusetts.  My father died in May 1983 and I realized that I really didn't know much about his life.

*  I think that our 1985 summer vacation (because the girls were in school) was to Hawaii.  We visited Oahu, Maui and Hawaii during the 1980s, and the girls loved the snorkeling, the beaches, the shopping, the sightseeing, etc.  On one of our trips when the girls were young, we were on Hawaii and went to a park near a surfing beach.  A Hawaiian lady was there making leis for her husband's political campaign, and she taught Lori and Tami how to make a lei and they had a great time.  

What did you do in 1985?

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2015/10/saturday-night-genealogy-fun-what-were.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 - LEARNED (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 #1167 who is Mary Learned  (1647-????) 
[Note: the earlier great-grandmothers and 8th great-grandfathers have been covered in earlier posts].

My ancestral line back through three generations of this Learned 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)

582.  Nathaniel Harwood (1669-1751)
583.  Mary Barron (1673-1758)

1166.  Moses Barron, born 01 March 1643 in Watertown, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States; died 25 April 1699 in Chelmsford, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States.  He was the son of 2332. Ellis Barron and 2333. Grace.  He married before 1669 in probably Chelmsford, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States.
1167.  Mary Learned, born 07 August 1647 in Woburn, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States.

Children of Moses Barron and Mary Learned are:
*  Moses Barron (1669-1719), married 1698 Mary Bunker (1668-1741).
*  Isaac Barron (1671-1739), married 1694 Sarah Goodwin (1675-1721).
*  Mary Barron (1673-1758), married 1695 Nathaniel Harwood (1669-1751).
*  John Barron (1677-1678).
*  Samuel Barron (1679-1751), married (1) 1705 Mary Stearns (1684-1743); (2) 1744 Sarah Fassett (1689-1754).
*  Elliseus Barron (1682-1715), married (1) 1705 Mary Andrews (1680-1706); (2) 1709 Deborah (1684-????).
*  William Barron (1685-????), married (1) 1710 Sarah Morse (1692-1721); (2) 1724 Thankful Holbrook (1705-1746).  .
*  Joseph Barron (1688-1759).

2334.  Isaac Learned, born before 25 February 1624 in Bermondsey, Surrey, England; died 29 November 1657 in Chelmsford, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States.  He married 09 July 1646 in Woburn, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States.
2335.  Mary Stearns, born before 06 January 1627 in Nayland, Suffolk, England; died 08 January 1664 in Chelmsford, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States.  She was the daughter of 4670. Isaac Stearns and 4671. Mary Barker.

Children of Isaac Learned and Mary Stearns are:
*  Mary Learned (1647-????), married 1669 Moses Barron (1643-1699).
*  Hannah Learned (1649->????), married 1666 Joseph Farwell (1641-1722).
*  William Learned (1650-1684).
*  Sarah Learned (1653-1695), married 1683 Jonathan Barrett (1654-1743).
*  Isaac Learned (1655-1737), married 1679 Sarah Bigelow (1659-1694).
*  Benoni Learned (1657-1738), married (1) 1680 Mary Fanning (1657-1688); (2) 1688 Sarah Wright (1655-1737).

4668.  William Learned, born about 1580 in England; died 01 March 1646 in Woburn, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States.  He married 22 April 1606 in Southwark, Surrey, England.
4669.  Goodith Gilman, born about 1586 in England; died before 1645 in Woburn, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States.

Children of William Learned and Goodith Gilman are:
*  Sarah Learned (1607-1652), married (1) 1624 Thomas Ewer (1592-1638); (2) 1639 Thomas Lothrop (1613-1707).
*  Bethia Learned (1612-????)
*  Mary Learned (1615-1625).
*  Abigail Learned (1618-????)
*  Elizabeth Learned (1621-1683), married 1642 John Hall (1602-1696).
*  Isaac Learned (1624-1657), married 1646 Mary Stearns (1627-1664).

Information about these Learned families was obtained from:

Dean Crawford Smith, edited by Melinde Lutz Sanborn, The Ancestry of Eva Belle Kempton, 1878-1908, Part IV: The Ancestry of Linda Anne Powers, 1839-1879 (Boston, Mass.: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2000), page 433.

Eugenia Learned James and William Law Learned, The Learned Family in America (St. Louis, Mo. : Setco Print Co., 1967)

Joan S.GuilfordThe Ancestry of Dr. J.P. Guilford (Orange, Calif. : Sheridan Psychological Services, Inc., 1990), Volume 1, page 531. 


Robert Charles Anderson, The Great Migration Begins (Boston MA. : New England Historical Genealogical Society, 1995), Volume II, pages 1164-1165.

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2015/10/surname-saturday-learned-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 23, 2015

Savings on "New York Family History Research Guide and Gazetteer"

I received this information from the New York Genealogical & Biographical Society today:

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

Save on your purchase of the essential reference that every New York researcher needs

The New York Genealogical and Biographical Society is offering free U.S. shipping (a $10 savings) on its monumental book, the New York Family History Research Guide and Gazetteer.

Since its highly anticipated publication in January 2015, the New York Family History Research Guide and Gazetteer has garnered widespread praise and quickly sold out its first print run.  The comprehensive, 856-page book has become the de facto textbook for New York genealogical research.

Diane Rapaport in the September issue of the NGSQ calls the book “. . . the biggest and best ever guide to New York research. Everything a researcher would want to know about researching New York’s sixty-two counties, and the boroughs of New York City, is now in one comprehensive, encyclopedic, easy-to-use manual.”

Henry Hoff, editor of the New England Historical and Genealogical Register, declared "This is a volume that every library and New York researcher should have, and indeed must have."

And the New York Times described the book as "an overdue handbook for serious researchers," "an enlightening and eclectic chronological tour of four centuries of New York benchmarks and record-keeping," and "an authoritative, fact-filled beginner's resource."

The Federation of Genealogical Societies recently presented the NYG&B with an Award of Merit in recognition of distinguished work in family history for this publication.

From now until November 30, U.S. shipping and handling (regularly $10) is free for all in the NYG&B online store, phone, and mail orders when you use the discount Code "BOOKSHIP." The same code will give a $10 discount on shipping for international orders.

Full details about the book—including an Annotated Table of Contents—are on the website at www.NewYorkFamilyHistory.org.

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


52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Week 95: #115 Mary (Smith) Row (1751-1842)

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 #95:

Mary (Smith) Row (1751-1842) is #115 on my Ahnentafel list, my 4th great-grandmother, who married #114 Philip Row (1753-1817) in 1772.

I am descended through:

* their daughter, Anna Row (1787-1860) who married #56 John Auble (1780-1831) 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:                    Mary Smith[1]   
*  Alternate Name:    Mary Row[1-2]

*  Sex:                       Female   
  
2)  INDIVIDUAL EVENTS (with source citations as indicated in brackets):
  
*  Birth:                     about November 1750, probably New Jersey, United States[1]
*  Pension:                4 February 1840 (about age 89), Declaration of Mary Row, widow of Philip Row; Hunterdon, New Jersey, United States[1]   
*  Death:                   1842 (about age 92), Hunterdon, New Jersey, United States[2]
*  Pension:                1 March 1849 (about age 98), pension granted; Hunterdon, New Jersey, United States[2]   
   
3)  SHARED EVENTS (with source citations as indicated in brackets):    

*  Spouse #1:            Philip Row (1752-1817)   
*  Marriage 1:          9 July 1772 (about age 21), probably Hunterdon, New Jersey, United States[1]
*  Child 1:                Mary Row (1773-    )   
*  Child 2:                Elisabetha Row (1776-    )   
*  Child 3:                John Jacob Row (1779-    )   
*  Child 4:                Peter Row (1782-    )   
*  Child 5:                William Row (1785-    )   
*  Child 6:                Anna Row (1787-1860)   
*  Child 7:                Phillip Johannes Row (1791-1874)   
*  Child 8:                Johannes Row (1795-    )   
  
4)  NOTES (with source citations as indicated in brackets):                

The parents, birth date, and birth place of Mary (or Maria) Smith are not known with certainty.  She probably was born in New Jersey.  She may have been of German ancestry.

Everything I know about Mary (Smith) Row was obtained from the Revolutionary War Pension File affidavit included in her Widow's Pension File W2350.  The affidavit says[1]:

Philip Row was a Revolutionary War soldier in the New Jersey Line. His widow applied for a pension on 4 February 1840 in Morris County NJ. The application states she was 85 or 86 in 1840, and that the soldier married Mary Smith 9 July 1772 at which time the soldier was age of 19 years 7 months and she was age 21 years 8 months and their first child Mary was born 19 July 1773. Phillip lived in Hunterdon County NJ at enlistment and the widow lived there when she applied in Morris County NJ. Phillip died 9 January 1817, and a son Phillip Rowe made affidavit 5 March 1850 from Morris County NJ and stated he was the only surviving son of the deceased widow who died some 7 years prior to 1 March 1849 when Congress finally issued a pension certificate in her name, in 1850 the surviving children were the son Phillip and two daughters (Revolutionary War Pension File W2350).

Philip and Mary (Smth) Row had eight children born between 1773 and about 1796, all in Hunterdon County, New Jersey.   Five of them (John Jacob, Elisabetha, William, Philipp and Johannes) were baptized and recorded in the Zion Lutheran Church in Oldwick to parents Philip and Maria Rau. 

The widow's declaration, in order to obtain the benefit of the 5th section of the Act of Congress of the 4th July 1836, reads[1]:

"State of New Jersey, County of Morris,

"On this 4th day of February, 1840, personally appeared before the subscriber, a Judge of the Superior Court of Common Pleas of said County of Morris, Mary Row, aged 85 or 86 years, a resident of Tewksbury township in the County of Hunterdon, believed by me to be a woman of truth & unblemished character, & who from age & bodily infirmity, I certify is unable to attend Court at the Court house, who being first duly sworn according to law, doth on her oath render the following Declaration in order to obtain the benefit of the provision made by the act of Congress passed July 4th 1836:

"I am the widow of Philip Row, who was a Militia soldier in the war of the Revolution & performed militia duties as I verily believe in every year of said war from its beginning to its end. He was at first a private soldier & lived in the bounds of Captain Godfrey Reinhardts Company, under whose command as Captain or as Major, most of his Militia duties were performed. He also belonged to Colonel Mehelm's Regiment of the Hunterdon Militia when home he often mentioned as well as the names of Colonel Frelingheusen & Colonel Seely, General Winds & General Dickinson, under whom he served at various times & places. It is not in my power to mention but a very few of the Services of my said husband, but some of his duties I have heard him speak of, as well as of some of the battles in which he was engaged. I have hear him tell of the battles of Millstone, of Monmouth & Springfield, in all of which I believe he was engaged. In the early part of the war, he carried his Rifle as a private, & on the promotion of Captain Reinhardt as Major, my husband was promoted to be an Ensign as I believe & afterward to be a Lieutenant. He had a suit of Regimentals which he wore when he went on duty as an officer c Blue Coat faced with Red, & an Epaulette on his Shoulder. I do not know what became of his commission, nor do I know that he ever recd a discharge in writing. I have often prepared his knapsack with provisions, & fitted him off with clothes & ammunition & he would be absent from home sometimes a month & sometime longer on militia duty, leaving me with our Children to provide for, & the farm to manage in his absence as well as I was able. Sometimes on claims (?) his absence would not exceed two & three weeks. The Comp??? was classed, & one class was called for a month, when it would be relieved by another taking its place, & when there was great danger from the Enemy, the whole would be ordered out. His officers I believe are all dead, & most of his comrades. I know of but two of them living, viz: William Young & John Blane, who served with my husband, whose testimony is hereto annexed, as the only evidence I can produce of his service in the war, upon which I claim a pension from the United States.

"My husband performed a months duty under Captain Reinhardt at ar??? (botch) in July 1776 & under Col. Mahelm & Genl Dickinson. He performed a ????s [blotch) Militia service at Elizabeth town, under the same officers in August 76. He performed a month service under Lt. Cramer ar Raritan in October & November 76, & at Elizabeth town, following Genl Washington's retreat through Jersey from elizabeth town to N. Brunswick. He performed a month service at Trenton, N. Brunswick & its neighborhood, under Captain Emmam. The two last mentioned towns, altho as expected to be about a month in each, yet I have from conversation with John Blane, that the service was very unjust, & the Militia, with my husband was detained on duty not less than 6 weeks in each town, & I respectfully claim that period of service in each of the two last mentioned towns. The last town was in the winter, Jany 77 & February. He performed a month's duty with Capt, Reinhardt Col. Meholm, & Genl Dickinson at Millstone in the winter season, with the Somerset troops under Col. Frelinghausen & Col. Nelson & Genl Dickinson, when them was a battle with the enemy at Van Eps mills. My husband once pointed out the spot to me, when this battle was fought, as we were rideing toward N. Brunswick.

"He performed another tour of Militia of a month duration at Crane's point near Elizabeth town in the fall season, under Capt. Reid & Major Reinhardt, Col. Puly & Genl Dickinson. On this occasion it is my belief, that he acted as Ensign in the Col. Read being chosen Captain in Major Reinhardts place & my husband as Ensign. I have heard him tell of crossing in the night from Elizabeth town to Staten Island & having a fight with the Enemy on the Island. I also remember him to speak of losing his gun flint in the action, & stopping to put another in its place, & to load his Rifle. Whilst doing this behind a Corn crib, the enemy were close upon him, & as he came to join his comrades he fired his gun at them, & their shot flew thick around him.

"He performed another tour of a month's Militia duty at Freehold & English town at the time of Monmouth battle, in which I believe he was engaged personally, & in which I believe he was an Ensign or a Lieutenant. I cannot say certainly which. The first part of this month was spent at Trenton, performing guard duty.

"He performed a month's Militia service in December near Springfield, in 1776, under Capt. Reinhardt, & with him was engaged in the Springfield battle at that time, Gen? Hear? commanding the Militia. He performed a month's Militia service in March 77, in Reinhardt's company, near ??ibble town, before the Enemy evacuated N. Brunswick & Amboy. The two towns last mentioned. I learn from conversation with William Young, a comrade of his, although I have heard my husband often speak of the Springfield battle, & the battles of Short hills & Ash Swamp, in which he was engaged, as I believe. He was out on public duty, both as a private & an officer, on many other occasions beside those before mentioned. Some of them were on claim, & some were regular monthly tours, which I cannot particularize, having no memorandums & my memory being frail. I am reminded of another tour which he performed near the close of the war, in February or March 1780, or 1781, when the Pennsylvania troops revolted & the Militia was called out to intercept them in the neighborhood of Pluckemun. For this & the other Services of my said husband in defense of his Country, I respectfully claim such a pension as under the Laws of congress I may be entitled to incur, believing that he has faithfully performed not less than 10 months service for which I ask a pension.

"I was married to the said Philip Row by Reverend Frederick Dellicker on the 9th July 1772, & my first child Mary was born July 19th one year & 10 days after my marriage. I do not know of any Church or Parish record of my marriage but have in my possession a leaf, which my husband kept in his family German bible, whilst he lived & upon which leaf he had written in the German language with his own hand, the date of our marriage as well as his age at that time & my own age. Since his death, a School master in our neighborhood, whose name was John Beammer (?), & who understood German & English, has written on the same side of said leaf a translation into English which reads thus, viz: "1772. Philip Row was married to Mary Smith on the 9th of July, then I was 19 years and 7 months old, and Mary Smith was 21 years and 8 months old." This paper, I herewith send to the pension office, & it is in the handwriting of my said husband, who could not write in the English language at all. His books of account were all kept in German, & said John Beammer (?) assisted in settling said books & all his affairs, because he understood the German language. This is the only evidence I possess of my marriage.

"My husband, the aforesaid Philip Row lived in Hunterdon County in Tewksbury township when he entered upon his Militia duties in the war of the Revolution, where I now live, & where he lived till his death. It is not more than half a mile from the line which divides Hunterdon from Morris County, & the reason why my Declaration is taken in Morris County is because Judge Smith, who is my near neighbour, is better known to me & lives nearer to me than any one of the Judges of Hunterdon County. I am also so blind that I cannot distinguis one neighbour from another except by the voice & I am much too infirm from age & its weaknesses to travel to any Court house & especially to Hunterdon Court which is distant 20 miles.

"My husband, the aforesaid Philip Row, died at our dwelling in Tewksbury, Hunterdon Co on the 9th of June, Domini 1817 & I have remained his widow to this day, as will appear by reference & proof hereto annexed.

"Sworn to & subscribed at Washington township, Morris County on the 4th day of February Domini 1840.
                                                                         her
                                                                 Mary X Row
                                                                       mark

"Before me Joseph Smith one of
the Judges of the Court of Common
Pleas of Morris County."

Mary (Smith) Row probably died in 1842 in Hunterdon County, New Jersey.  Her son, Phillip Row, submitted an affidavit on 5 January 1850 to the Pension Commissioners stating that[2]:

"I am the only surviving son of Philip Row, dec'd an officer in the War of the Revolution, & who performed much services, as may be ascertained by the testimony of two respectable witnesses, whose depositions are on file in the Pension Office.  My father died before the pension law was passed, & my mother, Mary Row, filed her Declaration under the Widow's pension law of July 4th 1836, which was rejected or suspended by the Comm. of Pensions for several years, & finally this claim was admitted by granting her a pension of twenty dollars per annum, the certificate bearing date March 1st 1849, after she had been dead nearly 7 years, leaving 2 daughters & myself her only sons."

No burial location or gravestone has been found for Mary (Smith) Row to date.

5)  SOURCES
 
1. "Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Appkication Files,"  online database with digital images, Fold3.com (http://www.Fold3.com) : accessed 12 December 2007), New Jersey, Revolutionary War Pension File W 2350, images 4-7 of 48, Declaration of Mary Row, 4 February 1840; original data in National Archives Publication M804, Washington, DC.


2. "Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Appkication Files,"  Fold3.com, New Jersey, Revolutionary War Pension File W 2350, image 21-22 of 48, letter of Philip Row, 1850; original data in National Archives Publication M804, Washington, DC.


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

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2015/10/52-ancestors-in-52-weeks-week-95-115.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.