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Saturday, January 2, 2016

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun (SNGF) -- Best Find of 2015, and Research Challenge for 2016

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



Your mission, should you decide to accept it (cue the Mission Impossible! music) is to:


1)  What was your best research achievement in 2015?  Tell us - show us a document, or tell us a story, or display a photograph.  Brag a bit!  You've earned it!

2)  We all have elusive ancestors.  What research problem do you want to work on in 2016?  Tell us where you want to research and what you hope to find.

3)  Put the answers in your own blog post, in a comment to this blog post, or in a Facebook or Google+ post.  

Here's mine:


I wrote about my best ancestral discoveries in 2015 in My Best Ancestral Genea-Discoveries of 2015 so I won't repeat them here.  There was no real BIG discovery - no new ancestral line, no breakthrough on a brickwall ancestor.  The ones listed in the post fall into the category of enriching my family history by finding probate, land, military, newspaper, church, and vital records for my ancestral families.  

For 2016, I anticipate doing much of the same, both online and at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City in February.  In the process, I may get a breakthrough on a brickwall ancestor, or perhaps another researcher will find my blog posts and be able to extend one or more lines. 

I don't anticipate being able to travel much to do onsite research in 2016 due to my and Linda's health and mobility limitations.  I want to return to Massachusetts again to do onsite research, especially at the NEHGS and in local libraries, historical societies and cemeteries.  I want to go to southern Ontario again to do onsite research on my Kemp and related lines.  I also want to visit northern New Jersey to try to find information about my Auble and Knapp and related lines.  

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2016/01/saturday-night-genealogy-fun-sngf-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.  Share it on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Surname Saturday - GORTON (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 #1191 who is Alice GORTON (1652-1712) 
[Note: the earlier great-grandmothers and 8th great-grandfathers have been covered in earlier posts].

My ancestral line back through two generations of this GORTON 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)

74.  Josiah Sawtell (1768-1847)
75.  Hannah Smith (1768-1824)

148.  Ephraim Sawtell (1738-1800)
149.  Abigail Stone (1736-1800)

296.  Hezekiah Sawtell (1703-1779)
297.  Joanna Wilson (1701-1786)

594.  John Wilson (1672-1717)
595.  Elizabeth Foster (1673-1742)

1190.  Joseph Foster, born 28 March 1650 in Weymouth, Norfolk, Massachusetts, United States; died 04 December 1721 in Billerica, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States.  He was the son of 2380. Thomas Foster and 2381. Elizabeth Whitmore.  He married 11 December 1672 in Billerica, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States.
1191.  Alice Gorton, born before 08 March 1652 in Roxbury, Suffolk, Massachusetts, United States; died 17 May 1712 in Billerica, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States.  

Children of Joseph Foster and Alice Gorton are:
*  Elizabeth Foster (1673-1742), married 1694 John Wilson (1672-1717).
*  Joseph Foster (1678-1678).
*  Thomas Foster (1681-????), married 1706 Hephzabeth Sawtell (1689-????)
*  Sarah Foster (1683-1683).
*  John Foster (1685-1685).

2382.  John Gorton, born about 1610 in England; died before 19 October 1676 in Roxbury, Suffolk, Massachusetts, United States.  He married about 1636 in probably Roxbury, Suffolk, Massachusetts, United States.
2383.  Mary, born about 1612 in England; died in probably Roxbury, Suffolk, Massachusetts, United States.

Children of John Gorton and Mary are:
*  Mary Gorton (1636-1636).
*  Mary Gorton (1641-????).
*  Sarah Gorton (1644-????).
*  Hannah Gorton (1646-1670).
*  Mary Gorton (1648-1703), married 1665 Daniel Marshcroft (1637-1703).
*  Alice Gorton (1652-1712), married 1672 Joseph Foster (1650-1721).
*  Elizabeth Gorton (1654-1654).
*  John Gorton (1656-1668).
*  Abraham Gorton (1659-????), married 1683 Mary Sumner (1664-????).

Information about this Gorton family was obtained from:

*  Henry Whittemore, Genealogical Guide to the Early Settlers of America, with a Brief History of Those of the First Generation (Baltimore, Md. : Genealogical Publishing Company, 1967); page 217, John Gorton sketch. 

*  Massachusetts town vital record books.

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2016/01/surname-saturday-gorton-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.  Share it on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Friday, January 1, 2016

My Genealogy Database Statistics Update - 1 January 2016

I last updated my Genea-Musings readers on the "numbers" in my genealogy database in Genealogy Database Statistics Update - 1 January 2015 (and before that in Genealogy Database Statistics Update - 1 January 2014.)  I was curious to see how much progress I had made in the last 12 months.

Here is the family tree database summary from RootsMagic on 1 January 2016:




Here are the "numbers" from 1 January 2016 in my RootsMagic database (with increases from 2015):

*  45,389 persons (+ 1,403)
*  18,170 families  (+ 498)
*  144,622 events  (+ 8,196)
*  8,862 places (+ 1,025)  
*  1,312 sources (+ 177)
*  68,295 citations (+ 10,512)
*  1,124 Multi-media Items (+ 53)

*  3,047 2,888 Multimedia links (+159)


In the past 12 months, I've averaged adding 22 events and 29 source citations a day.  I've been trying to work at least an hour in the evening (since baseball season ended) adding sources to the database, although vacations and the holidays intervene.  Consequently, I've  managed to improve my  citations/person from 131.37% to 150.46%, and my Citations/Events from 42.35% to 47.22%.  Obviously, I don't have a citation for every event, and in some cases I have more than one citation for an event.  At that rate, to reach 100% in citations/events will take about 20 more years!  

I added over 1,400 persons to my database in 2015, some in my son-in-law's Lincoln and Lowell lines, and also from further research on my ancestral families.  Some additions are the result of systematically "mining" online databases (notably vital records and newspaper records) using MyHeritage Record Matches, and Ancestry.com Hints (1920, 1930 and 1940 census records).  I also mine 
new Ancestry and FamilySearch databases for my one-name study surnames, and add content and source citations.  I am  intentionally finding additional information (dates, places) for persons in the database in the U.S. census records and American Ancestors databases.  I have deleted many persons in peripheral lines for whom I have no data - most of them living persons gleaned from GEDCOMs received from distant cousins long ago. I have also corrected some relationship and date errors found while working on the database. 

Doing the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge in 2015, along with deciding to start with my great-grandparents and doing it by ancestor chart numbers, has greatly improved the events, source citations and notes for the ancestors I wrote about.  I finished the 4th great-grandparents and am starting on the fifth great-grandparents this year, doing them in ahnentafel number order.


My trip to the Family History Library in February adds more ancestral records to enrich my database - recently they have been probate records and land deed records for my ancestors found on FHL microfilm.  I am also mining the probate and land records now available on Ancestry.com, FamilySearch and AmericanAncestors on a regular basis.

I last updated my ancestral Ancestry Member Tree (AMT) on Ancestry.com in August 2014 with the latest tree information, and will update it again sometime in 2016.  I do not attach "shaky leaf Hints" to that Ancestry Member Tree because I know that it will be replaced eventually.  I do attach selected records to my RootsMagic database manually and those will upload to a new Ancestry Member Tree if I GEDCOM it to Family Tree Maker and then upload it to a Ancestry Member Tree..  I will lose this capability in 2017.


There are only so many hours in my genealogy day - usually 10 to 12 hours, but often only 6 to 8 hours.  I spend one to three hours each day reading blog posts and answering emails, one to three hours writing blog posts, an hour or two doing online research, one to three hours adding content and sources to the database, and the balance doing society support tasks, creating presentations, watching Hangouts and webinars, or working on other projects.  My genealogy life is varied, and definitely not boring (I gave up doing boring genealogy things like extended client research, or going  often to libraries and archives - with some exceptions!). 

My conclusion is:  I'm still actively improving my database in both quantity and quality, but still have a long way to go to have a "fully sourced and accurate" family tree.  It's better than it was, and can still be improved.  It is a lifelong task, I think!  




Copyright (c) 2016, 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, Google+ or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.


Genealogy Industry Benchmark Numbers for 1 January 2016

I'm still a "numbers guy" and like to try to keep track of various numbers in the genealogy world. So this is a list of genealogy numbers as of 1 January 2016 (see the last four year's numbers at Genealogy Industry Benchmark Numbers for 1 January 2015Genealogy Industry Benchmark Numbers for 1 January 20141 January 2013 Benchmark Numbers, and 1 January 2012 Benchmark Numbers).

1) http://www.Ancestry.com (various, $$)

*  about 2.243 million paying subscribers (2015: 2.125 million; 2014: 2.175 million; 2013: about 2.0 million; 2012: about 1.7 million)
* 32,467 Databases in the Card Catalog (2015: 32,529; 2014: 31,477; 2013: 31,322; 2012: 30,482; 2011: 30,006)
*  about 70 million family trees with over 6 billion profiles (2015: 60 million trees, over 6 billion profiles; 2014:  55 million trees, over 5 billion profiles; 2013: 29 million trees, over 3 billion profiles)
* 2,147,483,647 persons in Public Member Trees (2015: same as 2014; 2014; same as 2013; 2013: 2,147,483,647; 2012: 1,838,295,985; 2011: 
1,263,587,509)
* 1,193,868,492 persons in Private Member Trees (2015; 1,060,127,515; 2014:  824,470,052; 2013: 619,560,089; 2012: 448,817,254; 2011: 308,674,051)

Note:  The Public Member Trees number has not been updated since 2013.

2) www.FamilySearch.org (various, free)

* 2,054 Historical Record Collections online (2015: 2019; 2014: 1699; 2013: 1,413; 2012: 1,000; 2011: 519)
* 82,874 Research Wiki articles (2015: 82,120; 2014: 75,809; 2013: 70,171; 2012: 65,815; 2011: 46,002)
* 639 Research Courses (by skill level) (2015: 674; 2014: 450; 2013: 432; 2012: 252; 2011: 109)

*  110 million indexed records added in 2015

*  5.31 billion indexed names
*  about 1.1 billion profiles in FamilySearch Family Tree. (2015: 1.1 billion; 2014: 1.0 billion)
*  9.0 million family photos in FamilySearch Family Tree (2015: 4.9 million; 2013: 1.8 million)

Note:  FamilySearch does not provide public information about some numbers.

3) http://www.Fold3.com (records, $$)

*   469 titles of original documents (counted) (2015: 445; 2014:  434)
*   468,250,775 total records (2015: 437,779,797; 2014: 426,351,717)4) http://www.Archives.com/ (records, $$)


* 321  databases (2015: 508; 2014: 456; 2013: 321; 2012: 268; 2011: 140)
* over 4.3 billion  records (2015: over 4 billion; 2014: 2.6 billion; 2013: over 2.5 billion; 2012: over 1.5 billion; 2011: 1,158,738,805)

5) www.MyHeritage.com (separate trees, $$)


*  6.362 billion historical records
*   1.666 billion individuals in MyHeritage family trees (2015: 1.412 billion; 2014: over 1.5 billion; 2013: 1.5 billion; 2012: 906,702,547; 2011: 645,780,280)


6) www.WorldVitalRecords.com (records, $$)

*  about 21,675 collections (2015: 22,810; 2014: 23,210; 2013: 22,336; 2012: 28,700)
*  more than 4.2 billion names (2015: same as 2015, 2014: over 4.2 billion; 2013: over 4.2 billion; 2012: 4.2 billion)
* over 158 million record images (2015: same as 2014; 2014: over 158 million; 2013: over 158 million; 2012: 158 million)
*  over 100 million newspaper pages (2015: same as 2014; 2014: over 100 million; 2013: over 100 million; 2012: 100 million)


7) http://www.AmericanAncestors.org (records, $$)

* 441 online collections (2015: almost 400)
*  ??? million records (2015: more than 247 million)

8) www.Rootsweb.Ancestry.com (free)

* 782,758,954 persons in WorldConnect family trees (2015: 751,736,012; 2014:  723,773,068; 2013: 698,798,164; 2012: 667,438,708; 2011: 630,984,813 )
* 443,388 WorldConnect databases (2015: 442,391; 2014: 440,417; 2013: 437,989; 2012: 434,729; 2011: 430,030)
* 320,506,958 records in FreeBMD database (2015: 309,880,224; 2014: 297,879,501; 2013: 282,193,587; 2012: 266,785,174; 2011: 195,536,463)


9) www.FindMyPast.com (records, $$)

* over 2.0 billion family history records (2015: over 2.0 billion; 2014: 1.6 billion; 2013: about 750 million; 2012: about 750 million)
*  796 United Kingdom/Ireland databases (2015: 581; 2014: 450)
*  318 Australasia databases (2015: 269; 2014: 276)

*  655 U.S.A. databases (2015: 558; 2014: 45)

10)  www.Mocavo.com (records, $$)

*  423,718 Databases (2015: 423,803; 2014: about 175,000)

11) www.CyndisList.com (links, free)

* 333,949 genealogy links (2015: 295,359; 2014:  329,378; 2013: 325,819; 2012: 309,467; 2011: 291,330)


12) www.Linkpendium.com (links, free) 

*  10,400,108 genealogy links (2015: 10,377,437; 2014: 10,212,253; 2013: 10,049,723; 2012: 9,948,990; 2011: 9,239,987)

13)  www.FindAGrave.com (records, free):

*  over 138 million grave records (2015: over 121 million; 2014:  over 110 million; 2013:  over 91 million; 2012: over 73 million)

14)  www.BillionGraves.com (records, free):

*  over 18,2 million grave records (2015: 10.3 million; 2014: over 5.3 million)

15) www.GenealogyBank.com (records, $$)

* over 7,000 newspapers (2015: 0ver 6,500' 2014: over 6,500; 2013:  over 6,400; 2012: 5,800; 2011: 4,600)
* over 1.929 billion records (2015: over 1.727 billion; 2014: over 1.528 billion; 2013: over 1.365 billion; 2012: over 1 billion; 2011: 700 million)

 228 million obituaries (2015: 215 million; 2014: 215 million)

16)  http://ChroniclingAmerica.loc.gov/ (records, free):

*  10,292,163 newspaper pages available (2015: 8,831,604; 2014: 6,673,511; 2013: 5,206,652; 2012: 4,540,417)

17)  http://www.Newspapers.com (records, $$)

*  Over 3,714 US newspapers (2015: over 3,400; 2014: over 200)

18)  www.NewspaperARCHIVE.com (records, $$):

*  Over 7,395 newspapers (2015: over 6,200; 2014: over 5,000)

19) www.Geni.com (shared tree, $$)

*  almost 7 million users (2015: almost 7 million; 2014: almost 7 million; 2013: almost 7 million; 2012: almost 6 million)
* 153.9 million profiles in family trees (2015: 144.1 million; 2014: NNN million; 2013: over 100 million; 2012: over 100 million)
*  99.0 million profiles in Geni's World Family Tree (2015: 83.1 million; 2014: over 70 million; 2013: over 65 million; 2012: 60,629,166)


20) www.WeRelate.org wiki (shared tree, free)

* over 2.692 million persons in family tree (2015: over 2.655 million; 2014: over 2.3 million; 2013: over 2.3 million; 2012: over 2 million)

21)  www.WikiTree.com wiki (shared tree, free)

*  288,943 WikiTreers (2015: 233,297; 2014:  over 80,000; 2013: 57,000; 2012: 43,000)
*  11,268,773 profiles (2015: 8,835,233; 2014:  over 5.3 million; 2013: 4.2 million; 2012: 2.9 million)




22)  www.GeneaNet.org (separate trees, $$)

*  2 million members (2015: over 2 million; 2014:  2 million)
*  Over 400 million profiles in online family trees (2015: over 1.9 billion; 2014: over 650 million)

23)  www.OneGreatFamily.com (shared tree, $$)

*  Over 190 million entries

24)  www.FamilyTreeDNA.com (DNA, $$):

*  ??? DNA test results (2015: 707,017; 2014: 663,523; 2013: 401,057)

25)  www.23andme.com (DNA, $$):

*   over 1 million genotyped customers (2015: over 750,000; 2014: about 500,000)

I obtained those numbers from publicly available information on the websites.  Several sites have not updated their numbers, or have hidden the numbers.

There are many free and subscription websites that do not publish easily findable numbers.

What other websites and what other numbers should I be benchmarking? Are some of the numbers wrong? Please tell me in Comments and I will edit the list above!

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2016/01/genealogy-industry-benchmark-numbers.html


Copyright (c) 2016, 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, Google+ or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

52 Ancestors - Week 105: #128 Norman Seaver (1734-1787)

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 2016 to 156 Ancestors in 156 Weeks. Here is my ancestor biography for week #105:

Norman Seaver (1734-1787) is #128 on my Ahnentafel list, my 5th great-grandfather, who married #129 Sarah Read (1736-1809) in 1755.


I am descended through:

*  their son, Benjamin Seaver (1757-1816), who married #65 Martha Whitney (1764-1832) in 1783.*  their son, #32 Benjamin Seaver (1791-1825), who married  #33 Abigail Gates (1797-1867) in 1817.
*  their son, #16 Isaac Seaver (1823-1901), who married #17 Lucretia Townsend Smith (1828-1884) in 1852.
*  their son, #8 Frank Walton Seaver (1852-1922), who married #9 Hattie Louise Hildreth (1847-1920) in 1874. 
*  their son, #4 Frederick Walton Seaver (1876-1942), who married Alma Bessie richmond (1882-1962) in 1900.
* their son, #2 Frederick Walton Seaver (1911-1983), who married #3 Betty Virginia Carringer (1919-2002) in 1942.
*  their son, #1 Randall J. Seaver (1943-....)

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

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


*  Name:                Norman Seaver[1–8]
*  Alternate Name:  Norman Sever[9–19]   
*  Sex:                    Male   

*  Father:               Robert Seaver (1702-1752)   
*  Mother:             Eunice Rayment (1707-1772)   
  
2)  INDIVIDUAL EVENTS (with source citations as indicated in brackets):
  
*  Birth:                about 1734, Framingham, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States[1,2,6]   
*  Deed:               15 September 1760 (about age 26), bought 100 acres of land in Shrewsbury from Edward Raymond for 120 pounds; Shrewsbury, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States[3]   
*  Miscellaneous: 1761–1771 (about age 27–about 37), List of children born in Shrewsbury, Mass.; Shrewsbury, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States[8]   
*  Deed:               14 January 1769 (about age 35), sold 15 acres of land in Shrewsbury, at the northeast corner of Maldin farm, to Isaac Temple for 15 pounds; Shrewsbury, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States[4]   
*  Deed:               8 April 1772 (about age 38), bought 1 acre in Shrewsbury from Thomas Andrews for 2 pounds; Shrewsbury, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States[9]   
*  Deed:              22 April 1772 (about age 38), sold land in Shrewsbury to Abel Osgood on 22 April 1772 for 200 pounds, 13 shillings, 4 pence; Shrewsbury, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States[10]
*  Deed:              12 May 1773 (about age 39), bought 127 acres of land in the northerly part of Westminster from Heman Kendall; Westminster, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States[11]    
*  Miscellaneous: 1774–1780 (about age 40–about 46), List of children born in Westminster, Mass.; Westminster, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States[12]   
*  Military:           19 April 1775 (about age 41), Sergeant in Noah Miles Company; Westminster, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States[13]   
*  Deed:               5 July 1776 (about age 42), sold 5 acres 100 rods of land in the northerly part of Westminster to Joseph Spaulding for 10 pounds; Westminster, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States[14]   
*  Deed:              5 August 1777 (about age 43), bought 5 acres and 100 rods of land in the northerly part of Westminster from Joseph Spaulding for 10 pounds; Westminster, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States[15]   
*  Deed:              25 November 1782 (about age 48), bought land in the northerly  part of Westminster from Thomas Farnsworth of Westminster for 18 pounds; Westminster, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States[16]   
*  Deed:             8 March 1784 (about age 50), sold about 3/4 acre of land in the Beech Hill meadow in the northeasterly part of Westminster to Amos Gates for 2 pounds, 5 shillings ; Westminster, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States[5]   
*  Death:           31 July 1787 (about age 53), Westminster, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States[6]   
*  Burial:         August 1787 (about age 53), Woodside Cemetery, Westminster, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States[7]   
*  Probate:      25 September 1787 (about age 53) Letter of administration; Worcester, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States[17]   
     
3)  SHARED EVENTS (with source citations as indicated in brackets):
  
*  Spouse 1:       Sarah Read (1736-1809)   
*  Marriage 1:    14 March 1755 (about age 21), Sudbury, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States[18–19]   

*  Child 1:         Eunice Seaver (1755-1810)   
*  Child 2:         Benjamin Seaver (1757-1816)   
*  Child 3:         Sarah "Sally" Seaver (1759-1833)   
*  Child 4:         Joseph Seaver (1761-    )   
*  Child 5:         Isaac Seaver (1763-    )   
*  Child 6:         Ethan Seaver (1765-1823)   
*  Child 7:         Daniel Seaver (1767-1850)   
*  Child 8:         Heman Seaver (1769-1835)   
*  Child 9:         Luther Seaver (1771-    )   
*  Child 10:       Relief "Leafe" Seaver (1774-1795)   
*  Child 11:       Asahel Reed Seaver (1775-1849)   
*  Child 12:       Faitha Seaver (1777-1864)   
*  Child 13:       Lucinda Seaver (1780-1844)    
  
4)  NOTES (with source citations as indicated in brackets):   

There are two short biographies of Norman Seaver in the Massachusetts genealogy literature:

1)  William Cutter's New England Families, Genealogical and Memorial[2]:

"(V) Lieutenant Norman Seaver, son of Robert Seaver, was born in 1734 or 1735, according to his tombstone, whether at Framingham or Sudbury. He seems to have come to Narragansett No. 2 with his father and money was paid to him for work for the proprietors in 1751.  He returned to Sudbury after his father's death and lived there a few years, then moving to Shrewsbury, now Boylston.  Early in 1773 probably, he returned to Westminster (Narragansett No. 2), where he bought lots No. 76 and 122.  This land was occupied for years by his grandson Isaac, and was situated between Prospect and Beech Hills.  He served in the Revolution as lieutenant in Captain Ebenezer Belknap's company, Colonel Nathaniel Wade's regiment, July 25, 1778 to January 1, 1779, Rhode Island.  He served from Westminster as sergeant in Captain Noah Miles' company, Colonel John Whitcomb's regiment, April 19, 1775; ensign in Captain Francis Wilson's company, Colonel Danforth Keyes regiment, 1777; finally as first lieutenant in Captain Belknap's company.  He was a carpenter by trade, and had the contract for part of the work on the second meeting house of Westminster.  During the '"raising,' July 31, 1787, he fell from the frame and received injuries which resulted in his death almost immediately.  He married, at Sudbury, March 14, 1754, Sarah, daughter of Jacob and Experience Reed, and she died in 1808.  Children:  Eunice, born May 3, 1755; Benjamin, April 21, 1757; Sarah, January, 1759; Joseph, March 13, 1761; Isaac, February 18, 1763; Ethan, September 21, 1765; Daniel, June 28, 1767; Heman, mentioned below; Luther, April 13, 1771; Relief, September 25, 1774; Asahel R., October 2, 1775; Faithful, August 2, 1777; Lucinda, March 23, 1780."

2)  William Heywood's History of Westminster, Massachusetts[1]:

Almost all of the information about Norman Seaver in this book is included in the Cutter biographical sketch.  Both books have Sarah (Read) Seaver's father's name wrong - it was Isaac Read, not Jacob Read.

There are no birth records in Sudbury or Framingham for Norman Seaver, son of Robert and Eunice (Rayment) Seaver[1-2].  He was their third son.

The marriage record of Norman Seaver and Sarah Reed is in both the Sudbury and Wayland town records[18-19].  The Sudbury record says:

"Norman Sever & Sarah Read both of Sudbury were Married atSudbury March 14^th 1755  ??  Israel Loring"

Norman and Sarah (Read) Seaver had thirteen children, and all but Joseph lived to adulthood[1-2].  The first three children of Norman and Sarah (Read) Seaver were born and recorded in Sudbury, the next six were born and recorded in Shrewsbury[8], and the last four children were born and recorded in Westminster[12].

Norman Seaver, husbandman of Sudbury, bought 100 acres of land in Shrewsbury for 120 pounds on 15 September 1760 from Edward Raymond of Shrewsbury[3].

Norman Seaver of Shrewsbury sold 15 acres of land in Shrewsbury, at the northeast corner of Maldin farm, on 14 January 1769 to Isaac Temple of Shrewsbury for 15 pounds[4].  The land was bounded by land of Isaac Temple (east and west) and Norman Seaver (north and south).

Norman Sever, yeoman of Shrewsbury, bought 1 acre in Shrewsbury on 8 April 1772 for 2 pounds from Thomas Andrews, gentleman of Shrewsbury[7]. The land was a triangular piece, bounded by land of  Norman Sever, Thomas Andrews and Philip Munroe.

Norman Sever, yeoman of Shrewsbury, sold land in Shrewsbury to Abel Osgood of Rutland on 22 April 1772 for 200 pounds, 13 shillings, 4 pence[10].

Norman Sever, yeoman of Westminster, bought 127 acres of land in the northerly part of Westminster from Heman Kendall, yeoman of Lancaster, on 12 May 1773[11];  It included 2/3 of lot 76, lot 125, part of lot 65, and another 3rd division lot;  this land bounded land of Edward Jackson, Amos Gates, Joseph Spaulding, Asa Taylor and Wheeler.

Norman Sever, yeoman of the county of Worcester, sold 5 acres 100 rods of land in the northerly part of Westminster to Joseph Spaulding, housewright of Westminster, for 10 pounds on 5 July 1776[14].  The land was taken from the southeast corner of the Second Division lot No. 250, and was bounded by a maple tree, stakes and stones, and land of Joseph Spaulding.

He also bought a different 5 acres and 100 rods of land in the northerly part of Westminster from Joseph Spaulding for 10 pounds[15]. The land was bounded by stakes and stones.

Norman Sever, yeoman of Shrewsbury, bought land in the northerly  part of Westminster from Thomas Farnsworth of Westminster for 18 pounds on 25 December 1782[16].

Norman Seaver, gentleman of Westminster, sold about 3/4 acre of land in the Beech Hill meadow in the northeasterly part of Westminster to Amos Gates for 2 pounds, 5 shillings on 8 March 1784[5].  The land was in the southwest corner of meadow number 40, and was bounded by lot 41, land of Norman Seaver and Amos Gates.

Norman Seaver, and several of his sons, served in the Revolutionary War[13].  He was a Sergeant in Captain Noah Miles company which marched on the alarm of April 19, 1775 to Cambridge and joined Colonel John Whitcomb's regiment there for eleven and one half days of service.  He was reported as not having enlisted into the army.  He served as an Ensign in Captain Francis Willson's company in Colonel Danforth Keyes regiment from June 27 to July 27, 1777, with the roll dated Providence;  he served in the same company and regiment from December 1, 1777 to January 3, 1778, with the roll dated Providence.  As a First Lieutenant in Captain Ebenezer Belknap's company in Colonel Nathaniel Wade's regiment, he was engaged on April 1, 1778 and discharged January 3, 1779, serving in Rhode Island.  Muster rolls dated North Kingston, Rhode Island were taken on November 6 and December 1, 1778, and muster rolls at East Greenwich, Rhode Island were dated September 28, November 6, November 10, December 1, and December 30, 1778, with his term to expire on January 1, 1779. Several other Westminster men, sons of Norman Seaver, who served in the Revolutionary War were Benjamin, Joseph, and Isaac Seaver.  In addition, Norman's brothers, Moses Seaver and Samuel Seaver of Westminster, served.

Norman Seaver may have been commissioned as Captain of the Militia after the Revolutionary War ended, since he is styled Captain on his death record and on his gravesite in Woodside Cemetery in Westminster.

Norman Seaver is listed as the holder of Pew No. 2 on the lower floor near the wall of the Second Meetinghouse.  The pew cost between $31 to $66.

Norman Seaver was a carpenter by trade.  He took a contract for enclosing and shingling on the second meetinghouse of the town. During the raising of the building on 31 July 1787 he fell from the frame receiving fatal injuries[1-2].

The death record of Norman Seaver in the Westminster Vital Records book[6], says:

"SEAVER, Capt. Norman, July 31, 1787, in 53d year. G.S. 1 (Revolutionary Marker)"

Norman Seaver is buried in Woodside Cemetery in Westminster on the far west edge of the cemetery[7].  The inscription on the slate gravestone says:


In memory
Cap. Norman Seaver
who Deceased July
31st 1787
in the 53rd year
of his age

A Sons of the American Revolution emblem and American flag are adjacent to  his gravestone.

Norman Seaver, gentleman of Westminster, died intestate[17].  His probate docket (Worcester County Probate Records, Probate Packet 52,914) includes the following documents:

*  On 25 September 1787, Widow Sarah Sever was appointed administratrix of the estate, and bond in the amount of 2000 pounds was given by William Edgell, and Josiah Puffer, sureties.

*  On 28 September 1787 a Warrant of Appraisal was given for an inventory to be taken. 

*  On 21 October 1788, the Account Balance of 150 pounds 19 shillings was allowed.

*  On 21 October 1788, a Warrant for partition of the estate was issued to William Edgell, Josiah Puffer and Edward Jackson.  They found the home place with buildings and land comprised 106 acres lying in Westminster.  An additional 3 acres were held in common with Timothy Heywood, Samuel Miller, and William Murdock, all of Westminster.  

*  In 1791, the inventory was recorded, with Real estate appraised at 215 pounds and personal estate appraised at 159 pounds,19 shillings and 9 pence.  The real estate included the 106 acre house lot with buildings (212 pounds) and a piece of land in common with Timothy Heywood and Samuel ??? and William Murdock (3 pounds).

*  On 3 January 1792, the Account balance of 3 pounds, 13 shillings and 9 pence was allowed and distribution to the heirs was ordered.  Heirs named in the distribution are:

** widow Sarah Seaver (1/3 dower right)
**  son Benjamin Sever (2/3 real estate + double portion)
**  son Isaac Sever,
**  son Ethan Sever,
**  son Daniel Sever,
**  son Heman Sever,
**  son Luther Sever,
**  son Asel Sever,
**  daughter Eunice Whitney (wife of Elisha Whitney)
** daughter Sarah Cutter (wife of Josiah Cutter),
** daughter Relief Sever,
** daughter Faithfull Sever,
** daughter Lucinda Sever

In the distribution, son Benjamin Sever was awarded his double portion of 22 pounds and was ordered to pay the other children their equal share of 11 pounds each. 

*  On 3 January 1792, Sarah Seaver was appointed guardian for daughters Feathe and Lucenden Seaver, while Samuel Gerrish was appointed guardian for Asel and Relief Seaver. 

5)  SOURCES:
 
1. William Sweetzer Heywood,  History of Westminster, Massachusetts:  (first named Narragansett no. 2) from the date of the original grant of the township to the present time, 1728-1893 ; with a biographic -genealogical register of its principal families  (Lowell, Mass. : Vox Populi Press, 1893), page 865, Norman Seaver sketch.

2. William Richard Cutter (compiler), New England Families, Genealogical and Memorial, Volume 1 (New York City :  Lewis Historical Publishing Company, 1913), page 221, Norman Seaver sketch .

3. Worcester County, Mass. Registrar of  Deeds, "Worcester County (Mass.) Deeds (1722-1866) and Index to Deeds (1731-1889)", Volume 47, Page 97, recorded 2 May 1762, FHL Microfilm US/CAN 0,843,179.

4. Worcester County, Mass. Registrar of  Deeds, "Worcester County (Mass.) Deeds (1722-1866) and Index to Deeds (1731-1889)", Volume 72, Page 84, recorded 8 December 1773, FHL Microfilm US/CAN 0,843,358.

5. Worcester County, Mass. Registrar of  Deeds, "Worcester County (Mass.) Deeds (1722-1866) and Index to Deeds (1731-1889)", Volume 91. Page 476, recorded 8 July 1784, FHL Microfilm US/CAN 0,843,366.

6. Systematic History Fund, Vital Records of Westminster, Massachusetts, to the End of the Year 1849 (Worcester, Mass.: F.P. Rice, 1908), Deaths, page 247: Capt. Norman Seaver entry.

7. Jim Tipton, indexed database, Find A Grave (http://www.findagrave.com), Woodside Cemetery, Westminster, Mass., Capt. Norman Seaver memorial #92014664.

8. Massachusetts, Town and Vital Records, 1620-1988, digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com), "Shrewsbury Births, Marriages and Deaths,"  page 86 (penned, image 89 of 1764), Births of children of Norman and Sarah Seaver birth entry, 1761-1771.

9. Worcester County, Mass. Registrar of  Deeds, "Worcester County (Mass.) Deeds (1722-1866) and Index to Deeds (1731-1889)", Volume 77, Page 47, recorded 3 May 1777, FHL Microfilm US/CAN 0,843,360.

10. Worcester County, Mass. Registrar of  Deeds, "Worcester County (Mass.) Deeds (1722-1866) and Index to Deeds (1731-1889)", Volume 87, Page 158, recorded 10 December 1782, FHL Microfilm US/CAN 0,843,364.

11. Worcester County, Mass. Registrar of  Deeds, "Worcester County (Mass.) Deeds (1722-1866) and Index to Deeds (1731-1889)", Volume 74, Page 142, recorded 12 August 1774, FHL Microfilm US/CAN 0,843,359.

12. Massachusetts, Town Records, 1620-1988, digital images, Ancestry.com, "Westminster Births, Marriages and Deaths,"  page 38 (penned, image 116 of 1195), Family of Norman and Sarah Sever, 1774-1780.

13. Massachusetts, Secretary of the Commonwealth, Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors of the Revolutionary War (Boston, Mass. : Wright & Potter Printing, 1896-1908), Volume XIII, Page 1006, Norman Sever, Westminster, entry.

14. Worcester County, Mass. Registrar of  Deeds, "Worcester County (Mass.) Deeds (1722-1866) and Index to Deeds (1731-1889)", Volume 77. Page 35, recorded 28 April 1777, FHL Microfilm US/CAN 0,843,560.

15. Worcester County, Mass. Registrar of  Deeds, "Worcester County (Mass.) Deeds (1722-1866) and Index to Deeds (1731-1889)", Volume 76, Page 148, recorded 5 August 1777, FHL Microfilm US/CAN 0,843,360.

16. Worcester County, Mass. Registrar of  Deeds, "Worcester County (Mass.) Deeds (1722-1866) and Index to Deeds (1731-1889)", Volume 87, Page 228, recorded 7 February 1783, FHL Microfilm US/CAN 0,843,364.

17. "Worcester County, Massachusetts Probate Court Records" (Worcester County Probate Courthouse, Worcester, Mass.), Probate Packet #52,914, Norman Sever (1787) estate (also in Worcester County Probate Records, Volume 179, page 530, accessed on FHL Microfilm 0,860,627), letter of administration granted to Sarah Sever.

18. "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1627-2001," digital images, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org); "Sudbury Births, Marriages, Deaths, 1663-1829, Vol. 4," page 192 (stamped, image 102 of 142), Norman Sever and Sarah Read marriage entry.


19. Vital Records of Sudbury, Massachusetts to the year 1850 (Boston, Mass. : New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1903), Marriages, page 265, Norman Sever and Sarah Reed entry.


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