Genea-Musings

Friday, July 29, 2016

2.5 Million Crime Records Released This Findmypast Friday, 29 July 2016

Findmypast provided this update for this week's new databases:

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2.5 Million Crime Records Released This Findmypast Friday

This week’s Findmypast Friday marks the release of over 2.5 million historic crime records in association with The National Archives. The release marks the final installment of the Crime, Prisons and Punishment collection, the largest searchable database of English and Welsh crime and punishment records available online, containing over 5.5 million records.

England & Wales, Crime, Prisons & Punishment, 1770-1935 Phase 3

New Series added to the collection include:

* PCOM 4: Home Office and Prison Commission: Female Licences - notes of licences to female convicts and in some cases, transfer papers. Each file can include a photograph (from 1871 onward), letters or notes from the prisoner, a Medical History sheet, reports of misconduct whilst in prison, the court of conviction, details of crime and of previous crimes.
* HO 26: Home Office: Criminal Registers, Middlesex - registers of all persons charged with indictable offences showing the results of the trials, the sentences in case of conviction, and dates of execution of persons sentence to death; some of the registers contain personal information respecting the prisoners.
* HO 27: Home Office: Criminal Registers, England and Wales - registers of all persons in England and Wales charged with indictable offences showing the results of the trials, the sentences in case of conviction, and dates of execution of persons sentence to death; some of the registers contain personal information respecting the prisoners.

Additional records have also been added to:

* HO 8: Home Office: Convict Hulks, Convict Prisons and Criminal Lunatic Asylums: Quarterly Returns of Prisoners 1824-1876
* HO 47: Home Office: Judges’ Reports on Criminals 1784-1830
* HO 140: Home Office: calendar of prisoners
* PCOM 2: Home Office and Prison Commission: prison records
* PCOM 3: Home Office and Prison Commission: Male Licences 1853-1887

England & Wales, Crime, Prisons & Punishment, 1770-1935 – Browse

Browse over 3,417 volumes of English and Welsh crime records held by The National Archives. The browse function allows you explore individual documents in their entirety including volumes of criminal calendars, prisoner registers, male and female prison licenses and more. Descriptions of each of the series included are available at the bottom of the search page.

Britain, Chronicles of Crime or the New Newgate Calendar, vols I & II, pub 1841

The Newgate Calendar contains more than 81,000 records that packed with fascinating tales of arson, murder, piracy, embezzlement, conspiracy, and treason. The records consist of a “series of memoirs and anecdotes of notorious characters who have outraged the laws of Great Britain from the earliest period” up to 1841.

Tasmania Convict records 1800-1893

Search more than 81,000 records to discover whether your ancestor transported to Van Diemen’s Land as a convict between 1800 and 1893. This varied collection contains records from over 20 different sources held by the Tasmanian Archive and Heritage Office.

Irish Newspapers

1,041,492 articles from two brand new titles have been added to our collection of historic Irish newspapers.

* Belfast Telegraph - 944,404 articles covering 1871 - 1881, 1886 - 1892, 1897 - 1899, 1903 – 1909
* Cork Constitution - 97,088 articles covering 1890 - 1891

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The URL for this post is: http://www.geneamusings.com/2016/07/25-million-crime-records-released-this.html

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 135: #180 Simon Wade (1731-after 1800)

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 #135:

Simon Wade (1731-after 1800) is #180 on my Ahnentafel list, my 5th great-grandfather, who married #181 Deborah Tracy (1731-after 1800) in about 1763.

I am descended through:

* their son #90 Simon Wade (1767-1857) who married #91 Phebe Horton (1772-after 1920) before 1790.

* their daughter #45 Miranda Wade (1804-1850) who married #44 Jonathan White (1805-1850) in 1823.

* their son #22 Henry Arnold White (1824-1885), who married #23 Amy Frances Oatley (1826-1864)

* their daughter #11 Julie E. White (1848-1913), who married #10 Thomas Richmond (1848-1917) in 1868.

* their daughter #5 Alma Bessie Richmond (1882-1962), who married #4 Frederick Walton Seaver (1876-1942) 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-....)

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

* Name: Simon Wade[1–10]
* Sex: Male

* Father: Nathaniel Wade (1708-1754)
* Mother: Ruth Hawkins (1710-1789)

2) INDIVIDUAL EVENTS (with source citations as indicated in brackets):

* Birth: 11 December 1731 Scituate, Providence, Rhode Island, United States[1,2,4,9–10]
* Distribution:   1754 (about age 23), heir of Nathaniel Wade; Scituate, Providence, Rhode Island, United States[5]
* Census: 1774 (about age 43), Scituate, Providence, Rhode Island, United States[6]
* Census:   1 June 1790 (age 58), Foster, Providence, Rhode Island, United States[7]
* Census:   1 June 1800 (age 68), Foster, Providence, Rhode Island, United States[8]
* Death: after 1800 (after about age 69), probably Foster, Providence, Rhode Island, United States

3) SHARED EVENTS (with source citations as indicated in brackets):

* Spouse 1: Deborah Tracy (1730-1800)
* Marriage 1:   before 1763 (before about age 32), probably Providence, Providence, Rhode Island, United States[1,10]
* Child 1: Levi Wade (1765- )
* Child 2: Simon Wade (1767-1857)
* Child 3: Nehemiah Wade (1769-1836)
* Child 4: Gideon Wade (1771- )
* Child 5: Mary Wade (1773-1812)
* Child 6: Molly Wade (1775- )
* Child 7: Deborah Wade (1777- )

4) NOTES (with source citations as indicated in brackets):

The book by William R. Cutter, Genealogies and Family History of the State of Connecticut (New York, Lewis Historical Publishing Company, 1911), Volume IV, provides some information on this family on page 2125[1]:

"(V) Simon (2), son of Nathaniel (2) Wade, was born at Scituate, Rhode Island, December 11, 1731. He was living in Foster, Rhode Island in 1774, and had two males over sixteen and two under that age, two females over sixteen and two under. He was still living in Foster in 1790, according to the first federal census, and had three females in his family. He married Deborah Tracy. Children: Levi, was of Foster in 1790; Simon, mentioned below; Nehemiah, married Huldah Hopkins at Foster and was living there in 1790; Gideon, was in Foster in 1790; Ruth, married Captain William Hawkis; Molly, married a Paine; Deborah, married a Williams."

The source of this information is probably Simon's great-grandson, Henry Lawton Wade, who was the main subject of this biographical article.

Simon Wade was the eldest of six children born to Nathaniel and Ruth (Hawkins) Wade between 1731 and 1746. They were all listed in the Scituate, Rhode Island town records[2]. The record for Simon Wade says:

"WADE, Simon, of Nathaniel and Ruth, Dec. 11, 1731"

Simon Wade was an heir and the co-executor for the estate of his father, Nathaniel Wade, who died in Scituate in 1754. He, with his brothers Dudley and John, was to receive the remaining part of them oney from the sale of Nathaniel Wade's land, and the remainder of the 300 pounds set aside for Ruth (Hawkins) Wade's use[5].

Simon Wade married Deborah Tracy, daughter of John and Mary (Hawkins) Tracy in about 1763[1,10]. They had at least seven children between about 1765 and about 1780, with none of the births recorded in a town record in Scituate or Foster.

In the 1774 Rhode Island Military Census, the Simon Wade household in Scituate had these entries[6]:

* 2 white males above age 16 (certainly Simon Wade, and perhaps one of his brothers?)
* 2 white males under age 16 (probably two of the four males born before 1774)
* 2 white females above age 16 (certainly wife Deborah Wade, and perhaps a sister or mother of Simon or Deborah)
* 2 white females under age 16 (perhaps two of the daughters)

The record for Simon Wade Sr. in the 1790 United States Census for Foster, Rhode Island indicates[7]:

* 1 Male over age 45 (certainly Simon Wade (1731-????))
* 1 Female over age 45 (almost certainly his wife, Deborah (Tracy) Wade (1731-????))

In the 1800 U.S. Census, the Simon Wade household entry in Foster, Providence County, Rhode Island includes[8]:

* 1 male over age 45 (certainly Simon Wade)
* 1 female, aged 10 to 16 (perhaps one of the younger daughters, although the youngest known would have been age 23)
* 1 female, over age 45 (certainly Deborah (Tracy) Wade

Simon Wade is in the 1800 United States Census record, but is not in the 1810 or 1820 U.S. Census records. There is no death record or burial record for him in Foster or the surrounding towns in Providence County.

There are no probate records for Simon Wade in the Foster or Glocester town probate records.

5) SOURCES

1. William R. Cutter et al, editors, Genealogies and Family History of the State of Connecticut: A Record of the Achievements of Her People in the Making of a Commonwealth and the Founding of a Nation, Volume IV (New York, N.Y.: Lewis Historical Publishing Company, 1911), page 2125; digital images, Google, Google Books (http://books.google.com : accessed ; Simon Wade sketch.

2. "Rhode Island, Vital Records Extracts, 1636-1899," indexed database and digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com), Volume 3, "Providence County Births, Marriages and Deaths," page 50 (image 146 of 473), Simon Wade entry.

3. James N. Arnold, Vital record of Rhode Island, 1636-1850 a family register for the people; Volume 3: Providence County (Glocester, Burrillville, Scituate, Foster, Cumberland, Smithfield) (Providence, R.I.: Narragansett Historical Society, 1891-1912), Scituate, Simon Wade birth entry.

4. "Rhode Island, Births and Christenings, 1600-1914," indexed database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org), Simon Wade entry.

5. "Probate and Civil Records, 1731-1886 (Scituate, Rhode Island)," on 6 FHL US/CAN microfilm reels, citing manuscript records at town hall, Scituate, Rhode Island, Volume 1, pages 231-235, Nathaniel Wade estate records, accessed on FHL Microfilm 0,941,155.

6. "Rhode Island Census, 1774," indexed database, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com), Scituate, Providence County, Rhode Island, page 126, Simon Wade entry.

7. 1790 United States Federal Census, Providence County, Rhode Island, Foster town, Page 283 (penned, top of page), Simon Wade household; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com), citing National Archives Microfilm Publication M637, Roll 10.

8. 1800 United States Federal Census, Providence County, Rhode Island, Cumberland town, Page 152 (penned, top right), Simon Wade household; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com), citing National Archives Microfilm Publication M32, Roll 45.

9. James N. Arnold, Vital record of Rhode Island, 1636-1850 a family register for the people; Volume 3: Providence County (Glocester, Burrillville, Scituate, Foster, Cumberland, Smithfield).

10. Marston Watson, Royal Families: Americans of Royal and Noble Ancestry: Volume One: Governor Thomas Dudley and Descendants Through Five Generations, Second Edition ( Baltimore, Md. : Genealogical Publishing Company, 2005), page 213.

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The URL for this post is: http://www.geneamusings.com/2016/07/52-ancestors-week-135-180-simon-wade.html

Thursday, July 28, 2016

Short Course Videos Added to Ancestry Academy

I received this press notice today from Ancestry Academy:

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Short Course Videos Added to Ancestry Academy

Ancestry Academy started something new. We published the first five videos in a new series written by our team of Academy experts and presented by outside talent. This is an exciting and different format from our previous long course structure.

The new courses are brief, but targeted, and more like the lessons within each of our full courses. Check out the new shorter courses here, where the topics include:

* Pre-1850 Censuses
* 1850 Census: An Introduction
* 1880 Census: An Overview
* 1890 Census: Where is It?
* Introduction to the 1940 Census

Another recent change is that there are now very short, focused tutorials hosted directly on Person Profile pages and in other areas of Ancestry. Look for the "Tutorials" button when it appears in the lower right corner of the page. This links you directly to videos pertinent to that page, as well as to other content we think you might be interested in. The tutorials are also available under Getting Started on the Academy Home Page.

If you bookmark the Recently Added page and use it as your jumping off point each time you visit the site, you'll always see what's been published most recently. If you want to keep on top of our new Short Course Videos, you can bookmark them as well for faster access.

At this point on Ancestry Academy, there are at least 55 expert-led courses, plus 23 one-minute tutorials and the new Short Course Videos—with more of all in the pipeline! So there's a lot of great content to explore. We're pretty sure you'll learn something new.

Take Ancestry Academy on the go with our newly updated mobile apps
The Ancestry Academy apps let you watch all courses and videos from your Android or iOS mobile device. Just install the app on your device and log in to access all your favorite videos.

Download the mobile app here.

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The URL for this post is: http://www.geneamusings.com/2016/07/short-course-videos-added-to-ancestry.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.

Treasure Chest Thursday - Post 324: Birth Record of Simon Wade (1731-after 1800)

It's Treasure Chest Thursday - time to look in my digital image files to see what treasures I can find for my family history and genealogy musings.

The treasure today is the birth record for Simon Wade (1731-after 1800), son of Nathaniel and Ruth (Hawkins) Wade, in Scituate, Rhode Island:

The Wade entries:

The extracted information from this record for the children of Nathaniel and Ruth (Hawkins) Wade:

* 3-113 WADE, Simon, of Nathaniel and Ruth, Dec. 11, 1731

* 3-113 WADE, Dudley, Dec. 1, 1734

* 3-113 WADE, Mary, Dec. 10, 1736

* 3-113 WADE, Ruth, Aug. 28, 1740

* 3-141 WADE, Deborah, May 23, 1744

* 3-141 WADE, John, Jan. 1, 1746

The source citation for this record is:

"Rhode Island, Vital Records Extracts, 1636-1899," indexed database and digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com), Volume 3, "Providence County Births, Marriages and Deaths," page 50 (image 146 of 473), Simon Wade birth entry.

The record above is from the published book that is in the Ancestry.com digital book collection. The numbers (e.g., 3-113) refer to the pages in the original Scituate town record volume, so 3-113 is Volume 3, page 113. I have not found those yet, but I'm pretty sure that they are on FHL microfilm.

The same information is in several other indexes and compiled genealogies.

This record is a Derivative Source (since the Original Source is the handwritten town record book), with Primary Information and Direct Evidence for the birth of Simon Wade to his parents.

Simon Wade (1731-after 1800) married Deborah Tracy (1731-after 1800), and they are my fifth great-grandparents. I descend through their son, Simon Wade (1767-1857).

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The URL for this post is: http://www.geneamusings.com/2016/07/treasure-chest-thursday-post-324-birth.html

Copyright (c) 2016, Randall J. Seaver

Wednesday, July 27, 2016

Seavers in the Newspapers - William A. Seaver's Will in 1883

I had some free time today, so I went searching for Seaver folks in the historical newspaper collections on GenealogyBank. An interesting article was this one titled "William A. Seaver's Will" in the New York Herald newspaper, dated 15 February 1883, on page 8. Here is the screen shot of the GenealogyBank article:

The image of the article is:

The transcription of this article (not the actual will) is:

WILLIAM A. SEAVER's WILL
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The will of the late William A. Seaver, editor of
Harper's Drawer, was filed yesterday in the Surro-
gate's Court at White Plains. The estate is situ-
ated at Mount Vernon, Westchester county, and is
estimated to be worth about $200,000. The will is
dated November 6, 1882, and appoints the Metro-
politan Trust Company as executor. It provides
for the disposition of the estate as follows: -- To the
widow, Mrs. Harriet Seaver, is bequeathed all the
furniture, works of art, library, horses and car-
riages and other personal property. The executors
are directed to sell all the real estate and apply the
proceeds thereof to her benefit during her life. At
her death, in addition to an annual income which
is guaranteed to the decedent's brother David
from the date of the probate of the will, and
amounting to $1,200, he is to have the benefit of the
the proceeds of $50,000, which sum is to be invested for
that purpose. To his brother's children, John W.,
Ella M., and Charlotte L. Seaver, the income on
$15,000 each is to be paid; to James E. Seaver and
Ella Spencer, children of his brother James E.
Seaver, the interest upon the earnings of $10,000 is
to be paid. Olive M. Seaver, widow of his brother
Lucas, is to receive the income upon $10,000; Mary
M. Brady, daughter of Judge John R. Brady, is to
receive the income upon $5,000. The income of
$10,000 is set apart for Charles B. Seaver. Nelson
G. Rogers and Rev. James Belles are to receive the
earnings of $1,000. For the purpose of erecting a
monument the sum of $2,000 is set apart. The
residuary legatees are John W. Seaver, Ella M.
Seaver and Charlotte L. Seaver.

The source citation for this newspaper article is:

New York [N.Y.] Herald newspaper, digital image, GenealogyBank (http://www.genealogybank.com), Thursday, 15 February 1883, page 8, "William A. Seaver's Will" article.

My RootsMagic database has thisi nformation about this man: William Augustus Seaver (1815-1883) was the son of William and Naomi (McCleary) Seaver, born in Albany, New York and died in Mount Vernon, New York. He married Harriet Hull (1817-1898) in 1836, and had three children - William Hull Seaver (1837-1866), Harriet Langhorne Seaver (1839-1842), and Elliott Seaver (1849-1851).

Since all three of his children died before he did without issue, William A. Seaver's heirs-at-law became his siblings (and their heirs). He had six siblings, but only David Seaver (1833-1892) was still alive when William A. Seaver wrote his will. The children of his other siblings - his nieces and nephews - included:

* John W., Ella M. and Charlotte L. Seaver were children of Daniel McCleary Seaver (1816-1862) and Charlotte Ann Bennett (1835-1915).
* James E. Seaver and Ella Spencer were children of James Everett Seaver (1821-1853) and Nancy Keith Follett (1824-1892).
* Charles B. Seaver is a son of Daniel McCleary Seaver (1816-1862) and Esther Mary Bassett (1817-1841).
* His brother Lucas Seaver's wife Olive M. Seaver is mentioned, but their son Lucas Seaver is not mentioned.

I don't know who Mary M. Brady, Nelson G. Rogers and Rev. James Belles are - perhaps they are close family friends, business colleagues of William, or relatives of Harriet (Hull) Seaver.

The way I read this, the principal money for each legatee was to be invested and they were to receive the annual proceeds from the investment. I don't know what became of the principal - was it left to the heirs of the legatees, or did it revert back to William A. Seaver's heirs? This is a newspaper article, and not the original will, which may explain the legacies accurately. I haven't searched for the actual will yet in the Ancestry.com or FamilySearch New York Probate databases.

This was fun - it's always nice to see a wealthy Seaver family. As with other families, a wealthy man with no living children can be a real benefit to the nieces and nephews!

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The URL for this post is: http://www.geneamusings.com/2016/07/seavers-in-newspapers-william-seavers.html

NGS 2010 Conference Photos #1 -- Post 423 for (Not So) Wordless Wednesday

I'm posting old (and sometimes new) family photographs from my collection on Wednesdays, but they won't be wordless posts like others do - I am incapable of having a wordless post.

Here are some of the most precious (to me) images from my Seaver/Leland photograph collection:

After our Australia - New Zealnd - Fiji trip in March 2010 for our 40th wedding anniversary, we spent five days in Salt Lake City at the end of April 2010 at the National Genealogical Society conference. Here are some of my photographs from the week:

1) My friend, the late Finn Hansen, whom I talked to every time I visited Salt Lake City, took this photo of me at the computer area in the Exhibit Hall. I've used it in my own publicity ever since, with his permission. Thank you, Finn!

2) One evening, Linda and I walked a few blocks and had dinner with Lisa Alzo and Donna Pointkouski:

3) In the Exhibit Hall, I took a photo with Tim Firkowski and Alvie Davidson:

4) I love this picture of my good friends, Tom Kemp and Leland Meitzler:

5) Ron Arons was selling his Criminal Records book this year - I love seeing Ron at conferences - he always dresses so well!

I will share more from this conference in the coming weeks.

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The URL for this post is: http://www.geneamusings.com/2016/07/ngs-2010-conference-photos-1-post-423.html

Tuesday, July 26, 2016

RootsWeb Mailing Lists are Not Accessible. Why?

I was demonstrating how to use the RootsWeb message boards and mailing lists in my OASIS adult education "Beginning Computer Genealogy" class on Monday, and could not get into the Mailing List page to subscribe or browse the archives.

When I checked it again today, I still could not get into the Mailing Lists. I could see the available lists, but when I clicked on one to subscribe, I got the error message again (and again and again - I checked about 10 mailing lists just to be sure).

Here is the opening page when I click on the Mailing Lists tab on the Rootsweb main page:

I put "seaver" in the field for "Find a mailing list" and got this result:

And I got it many more times also for other mailing lists.

What has happened here? Is Ancestry.com aware of this failure on Rootsweb? Did they just move the mailing lists somewhere else or delete the whole database?

As always, this may be happening to only me - could other users please check this for me?

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The URL for this post is: http://www.geneamusings.com/2016/07/rootsweb-mailing-lists-are-not.html

Treasure Chest Tuesday - James A. Smith 1902 Michigan Death Certificate

Yes, I know it's supposed to be Treasure Chest Thursday, but I can't help it - I want to share some of the records that I (and others) have found in my/their repository and online searches for my ancestral families.

This week's Treasure is the 1902 Death Certificate for James A. Smith (1833-1902) in Detroit, Wayne County, Michigan:

Information extracted from this death record includes:

* City: Detroit; * County: Wayne; * No.: 389 Cass Ave.
* Full Name: James A. Smith * Date of Death: 4 - 5 - 1902
* Sex: Male; * Color: White; * Marital Status: Married
* If married, age at (first) marriage: 32 years * Age: 69 years 0 months 0 days
* Parent of 2 children of whom 2 are living * Date of Birth: 1833
* Occupation: Traveling Salesman * Birthplace: Massachusetts
* Name of Father: Jas. Smith * Birthplace of Father: Mass.
* Maiden Name of Mother: Elizabeth Dill * Birthplace of Mother: Mass.
* Date of Burial: Apr 7 1902 * Place of burial: Woodmen
* Signature of Undertaker: Wm R Hamilton * Address of Undertaker: Detroit
* Informant: Mrs. Jas. A. Smith * Address: 389 Cass Ave.
* Cause of Death: Heart Disease

The source citation for this record is:

"Death Records, 1897-1920," online database, Seeking Michigan (http://seekingmichigan.org/), Transcript of Certificate of Death, Wayne County, 1902, No. 1448, James A. Smith entry (http://seekingmichigan.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/singleitem/collection/p129401coll7/id/488832/rec/6).

James A. Smith is the son of my third great-grandparents, Alpheus and Elizabeth (Dill) Smith, and the brother of my 2nd great-grandmother Lucretia Smith (1828-1884). He married Annie Eliza Stewart in 1864, and they had two daughters, Annie Lucretia Smith (1864-????) and Grace Louisa Smith (1866-1959). The two daughters are my first cousin three times removed.

The only obvious error in this record is the name of the father - it should be Alpheus Smith, not James Smith. The informant surely had never met her father-in-law and may have forgotten or not known his name.

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The URL for this post is: http://www.geneamusings.com/2016/07/treasure-chest-tuesday-james-smith-1902.html

Pages

Friday, July 29, 2016

Thursday, July 28, 2016

Wednesday, July 27, 2016

Tuesday, July 26, 2016