On this date in our family history . . . the 18th day of June . . . in the year 1935 . . . which would have been her 53rd birthday . . . Emma Patience Muston nee Nettles was probably remembering with fondness the gathering on the previous Sentimental Sunday which was held in honor of her upcoming "natal day" . . . the report of that birthday celebration is copied below . . . this Emma is the paternal great-grandma of the Keeper of this family history blog (who is being held by Emma in the following heritage collage) . . .
The Rockdale Reporter and Messenger (Rockdale, Tex.), Vol. 63, No. 19, Ed. 1 Thursday, June 20, 1935
Cole Springs, June. 17. -- Mr. and Mrs. B. Hickman and children, of Austin, spent the week end with their parents, Mr. and Mrs. F.F. Moore, the occasion being the natal day of Mrs. Emma Muston. Her daughters entertained in her honor Sunday, June 16, at the Muston home.
The date falling upon Father's Day seemed fitting as Mrs. Muston has been both father and mother to her family. She was left a widow by the death of her husband with seven little girls, the youngest a tiny infant. By frugality and perseverance she has reared this family, giving them both school and social advantages. She is one of the fortunate mothers who enjoy the complete devotion of her children as they are constantly planning to make life fuller and sweeter for her. A beautiful cake decorated with fifty three candles, adorned the festal board, which contained an abundance of choice viands.
The children attending were:
Mr. and Mrs. Ben Beynolds of Houston were unable to attend.
Mrs. Muston's mother, Mrs. M.A. Nettles, a brother, J.A. Nettles, wife and daughter, Carrie Belle of Lexington, and Mr. John Taylor were the other guests who attended.
On this date in our family history . . . the 4th day of June . . . in the year 1675 . . . a baby girl is born in Massachusetts . . . the parents are Samuel Perley and Ruth Trumble . . . and their new daughter is named after her mother . . . this baby girl named Ruth is an 8th great-grandma to the Keeper of this family history blog . . .
Published 1906
On this date in our family history . . . the 22nd day of June . . . in the year 1675 . . . Richard Kimball dies in Ipswich, Essex County, Massachusetts . . . this Richard is a 10th great-grandpa to the Keeper of this family history blog . . . his death is recorded in the Vital Records of Ipswich, Massachusetts . . . and is mentioned as follows in the History of the Kimball Family . . .
. . . Having thus made his will (1674) he waited for the coming of the messenger who would sunder all earthly ties and take him on his eternal journey. The angel delayed not long his coming. On the twenty-second of the following June the earthly pilgrimage of Richard Kimball ended, and, aged more than eighty years, he joined the great majority. . . .
As of today, there is a new member of the Heavenly Western Swing dance band . . . he was known here on earth as Bill Dessens . . . and was a member of The River Road Boys . . . although my Mom had known him for years, I was privileged to meet Mr. Dessens for the first and only time just two years ago . . . on the 10th day of June . . . at the 2012 Rockdale Homecoming . . . as a member of the 1947 graduating class of Rockdale High School, Bill was in town for his 65th class reunion . . .
Click to enlarge
Photo of Bill and Vickie by Lucile Estell
Back in March of 2011 I purchased a packet of old letters in an online auction . . . my interest was piqued because the description said they were sent to Rockdale . . . which made them desirable (to me) as vintage items which could be scanned for use in digital scrapbook projects . . . the oldest letter is dated 1874 . . . which just happens to be the year of the birth of Rockdale . . .
No names were mentioned in the auction, so I did not know until the letters arrived in my mailbox what a treasure they were for one of Rockdale's early families (the Dessens) . . . I established contact with Bill Dessens, and we exchanged multiple emails regarding the letters . . . I sent scanned images of all of the letters to him . . . and was finally able to hand-deliver the originals to Bill on the 10th day of June in 2012 . . .
Bill Dessens and Vickie Everhart
and a package of old letters
Gemini generated watercolor of
photo originally taken by
Dr. Lucile Estell in 2012
Some of the letters were written in French . . . and Bill was hoping to find someone who could and would translate them for him . . . do not know if he was ever able to do that . . . he wanted to pay me . . . I declined the offer . . . but did say I would be delighted to receive a CD of their music . . . he graciously gave me two . . . they are a treasure . . . as was he . . .
R.I.P. Bill Dessens . . .
On this date in our family history . . . the 15th day of June . . . in the year 1762 . . . it is said that Jerusha Milliken is born in Cumberland County, Maine . . . her parents are Edward Milliken and Elizabeth Harmon . . . Jerusha grows up and marries Rufus Levi Merrill in 1781 . . . and they become the parents of multiple children, including Phineas Merrill . . . Jerusha is a 5th great-grandma to the Keeper of this family history blog . . .
On the 25th (yesterday) the Keeper of this family history blog was doing some work on Find-A-Grave regarding the Old City Cemetery in Rockdale, Milam County, Texas . . . two of the photos posted on Find-A-Grave during that work session are of the final resting place of a little girl with the name of Hattie R (1873-1875), Dau. of Wm. M. & E.V. Baines. . . .
As far as is currently known, there are no other Baines buried in this cemetery . . . and the parents were not listed as being buried elsewhere in Milam County . . . so, a search was begun for her family members . . .
The 1880 census quickly revealed that amongst the inhabitants of Rockdale as of June of that year were 37-year-old Wm. M. Baines, his 39-year-old wife, Elizabeth V. Baines, and an assortment of children . . . also in the same household were William's 33-year-old brother, Geo. W. Baines, and his 24-year-old wife, Cornelia . . .
Further research led to the fact that these Baines brothers are two of the sons of George Washington Baines, Sr. and his first wife, Melissa Ann Butler . . . this info wound up placing these Baines brothers in the waayyy distant branches of our family tree, where . . .
On this date, the 26th day of June, in the year 1881 . . . a baby girl is born in Collin County, Texas . . . she is the first of three children known to have been born to her parents, Joseph Wilson Baines (1846-1906) and Ruth Ament Huffman (1854-1936) . . . and they give her the name of Rebekah . . . Rebekah's father, Joseph, is a brother to the above named William and George . . . which makes Rebekah a first cousin to the little Hattie who is buried in the Old City Cemetery in Rockdale, Texas . . . Rebekah grows up to marry Samuel Ealy Johnson . . . and they are the parents of the 36th President of the United States . . . who is a 9th cousin twice removed to the Keeper of this family history blog . . .
A faded census page from 1870 bears the heading . . . Inhabitants in Greensburg Precinct, in the County of Green, State of Kentucky, enumerated by me on the 17th day of June, 1870. . . . on Line 15 is enumerated 55-year-old Mary Henry (nee Kirtley) . . . and under the heading "Profession, Occupation, or Trade" it is indicated that she "Sews & Knits" . . .
Mary is enumerated in the household of her only daughter, who is listed here as Ann B Owen . . . this "Sewer & Knitter" is known to have had two sons, William and Francis . . . her first-born son, William Paschal Henry (1836-1912), left Kentucky and wound up in Texas sometime before 1860, mayhaps by way of Missouri . . . it is believed that she never saw him again once he left Kentucky . . .
This William is a 2nd great-grandpa to the Keeper of this family history blog . . . he had settled in Milam County (in central Texas) before 1880 and remained in that area until his death in 1912, when he was laid to rest beside his wife at the Pleasant Grove (aka Murray) Cemetery . . .
The dates of death and burial locations of his parents, Thomas Henry and Mary Kirtley, remain unknown to us at this time . . .
See also . . . Henry-Kirtley Timeline . . .
On this date in our family history . . . the 28th day of June . . . in the year 1646 . . . a baby girl is born to John and Jane Clough in Massachusetts . . . this baby girl is given the name of Sarah . . . and would grow up to marry Daniel Merrill . . . this Sarah is a 9th great-grandma to the Keeper of this family history blog . . . FYI . . . clicking on the above image will take you to the full page in the book, The Genealogy of the descendants of John Clough of Salisbury, Massachusetts . . . where that entire book can be read online . . . or downloaded to your preferred reading device . . .
On this date in our family history . . . the 18th day of June . . . in the year 1860 . . . Timothy Barker is enumerated at the Keeper of a Boarding House in Biddeford, York County, Maine . . . this Timothy is a 3rd great-grandpa of the Keeper of this family history blog . . . also in the same household is his wife, Jerusha (my 3rd great-grandma) . . . and their married daughter, Jerusha, and her husband Atwood Frank Smith (my 2nd great-grandparents) . . . LUV the handwriting of the enumerator, Jere E. Lord, on this census page . . . possibly aka Jeremiah E. Lord who died in 1864 in Biddeford . . .
From the 28th September of 1840 until the 18th day of November 1851, Nicholas Adolphus Sterne kept a diary of his daily activities, which is a valuable source of information on the period of the Republic of Texas (1836-1846). The names of some of our kith 'n kin are scattered through these pages. . . .
Nacogdoches
Republic of Texas
1841 & 1842
Wednesday the 23d [of June 1841] cool Breze all day. Elisha Roberts passed trough here on his way home from Austin, heard of the Death of Mrs Debard, Jas Hall from crockett passed trough.
Thursday 23 [of June 1842] Cloudy and a little rain in the Evening-- Mr A. McDonald of Austin, arrived with his Lady, the youngest Daughter of E[l]isha Roberts Esqr of San Angustin County-- only married on the 15th inst-- Eastern mail arrived in the afternoon brought nothing at all at all
- Elisha Roberts = a 4th great-grandpa of the Keeper of this blog
- Jas Hall = James Madison Hall (1819-1866), who is the stepson as well as son-in-law of my 3rd great-grandma, Mahala Lee Sharp Hall nee Roberts (1816-1885)
- Mr. A. McDonald & his Lady = Alexander McDonald (ca. 1814-1852) and his new wife, Margaret S. Roberts (1822-1892), who is the youngest sister of my 3rd great-grandma, Mahala
On this date in our family history . . . the 18th day of June . . . in the year 1851 . . . Nicholas Adolphus Sterne (1801-1852) spends the night in the J.J. Hall household in Houston County, Texas . . .
The Mrs. Hall, aka Mahala Sharp Hall nee Roberts (1838-1885), is a 3rd great-grandma to the Keeper of this family history blog . . . and she was married to Joshua James Hall (ca. 1790 - ca. 1871) on the 12th day of February in 1851 in San Augustine County, Texas . . . Sterne wrote about this 18th day of June as follows . . .
Wednesday the 18th [of June 1851] left early, arrived at Crockett at noon, dined at my opponent's-- Col Long's, left after dinner in company with Judge Randolph a Candidate for the lower House for this, Trinity and Anderson Counties, went to Cook's mills where we parted, I went to Col J.J. Hall lately married to Mrs Sharp, lately, she was Miss Mahela Roberts whom I knew as a little girl-- stopped all night, and was treated, as a man generally is, treated at a true gentleman's House.
On this date in our family history . . . the 10th day of June . . . in the year 1871 . . . the name of my 3rd great-grandma, Elizabeth Lemaire Beale nee Waring, appears in a deed for 857 acres of land on the banks of the Trinity River in Liberty County, Texas . . .
All that certain lot, tract or parcel of land situated in Liberty County, Texas, and being out of and a part of the James Robeson League, Abstract #100, more particularly described as being 857 acres of land, being part of the upper or Northern half of the league of land, on the Trinity River bounded as follows:
BEGINNING at a corner, which is established south 1 E 625 varas, from the north line of said league, and 2258 varas west from the east line of said league said corner is a stake, from which a red oak 11 in. dia. mkd. X bears south 7 W 4-½ vrs. and a red oak 10 in. dia. mkd. X bears N 59-15 E 8 varas;
THENCE south 1 E 625 varas a stake in Menards prairie, from which an ash 6 in. dia. bears S 31 E 23-½ varas and another 10 in. dia. brs. N 83-45' W 60 varas, both marked X;
THENCE west along through the center of said league to the Trinity River;
THENCE up the river following its meanders to a point on said river at right angles with the first corner of this survey;
THENCE eastwardly parallel with the said lines of said league to the PLACE OF BEGINNING,
and being the same land described in a deed from C. L. Cleveland to Elizabeth A. Beale, deed dated June 10th, 1871, filed February 6th, 1901, and shown of record in Vol. W, page 427, Deed Records of Liberty County, Texas.
I definitely need to make a road-trip to Liberty County, Texas for further research on this Grandma Elizabeth!
On this date in our family history . . . the 8th day of June . . . in the year 1860 . . . Luke Bryan, Ass't. Marshal, is enumerating the citizens of the City of Liberty in Liberty County, Texas . . . and among those citizens are my 2nd great-grandma, Mary A. Lamire (aka Mary Alexandrien "Nellie" Sharp nee Lemaire), and her mother, Elizabeth Beale (aka Elizabeth Lemaire Beale nee Waring), as well as Nellie's three half-sisters, Lucy, Kate & Sue . . .
One hundred fifty years ago today . . . on the 7th day of June . . . in the year 1860 . . . Luke Bryan, Ass't. Marshal, was enumerating Slave Owners in Liberty County, Texas . . . including my 3rd great-grandma, Elizabeth Beale . . . aka Elizabeth Lemaire Beale nee Waring . . . who is shown as the Owner of one black female aged 23 and one black male 8 years of age . . . who were presumably living in the "Slave house" in Liberty which is indicated as belonging to Elizabeth . . .
On this date in our family history . . . the 27th day of June . . . in the year 1885 . . . Mahala Lee Sharp Hall nee Roberts dies on the Hall Plantation in Houston County, Texas . . . this Mahala is a 3rd great-grandma of the Keeper of this family history blog. . . .
Mahala Lee Roberts was born in Washington Parish, Louisiana on 3rd November 1816, the 7th of nine children born to Elisha Roberts (1774-1844) and Martha "Patsy" Gill (1781-1845), who had moved from Kentucky to Louisiana ca. 1811.
By the time Mahala was 10 years of age her family was living in the Ayish Bayou area of Coahuila y Tejas, where Mahala would grow up in a house that fronted on the public highway (El Camino Real / King's Highway) coming into Texas. The Elisha Roberts home was frequented by many overland travelers, and while known far and wide for its hospitality, there is also a record of a murder or two on Elisha's property -- ca. 1826 or 1827 -- when a Matthias Yokum and his brother-in-law, James Collier, were killed by a man reported to be named Charles Chandler.
During Mahala's teenage years, her father was elected as Alcalde of Ayish Bayou (1831), as well as being a delegate to the 1833 convention at San Felipe de Austin. During the Texas Revolution, this household furnished provisions, lodging and transportation for the revolutionary cause. Mahala was 19 years old at the time of the Battle of the Alamo (1836), and when Gen. Sam Houston was wounded at the Battle of San Jacinto shortly thereafter, he spent a part of his recovery period in the household of our Elisha.
On 22nd March 1838, a 21-year-old Mahala became the wife of John M. Sharp (age & further info unknown at this time). Their son -- Samuel Houston Sharp (1839-1885) -- was born the following year, followed by a daughter in 1840, and sometime after that birth, our John M. Sharp disappears from all records we have been able to research.
In 1844, Mahala's father dies, followed by the death of her sister, Elizabeth, in May of 1845, and then her Mother, Patsy, the following December -- just 9 days before Texas is annexed as the 28th state of the Union. In 1846, Mahala is listed on the tax list for San Augustine County, indicating she is head-of-household. In 1847 her sister, Anna, dies in Austin County.
On the 1850 Census for San Augustine County, Mahala is enumerated as living next door to Lt. Governor John A. Greer. In February of 1851, Mahala marries a much older Joshua James Hall, and they set up housekeeping on the Hall Plantation in Houston County, Texas.
. . . In 1850, he (J. J. Hall) married his third wife, Mahala Roberts Sharp, a widow who came to Houston County before 1835. She was the daughter of Elisha Roberts, an early Spanish Alcalde, of San Augustine, Texas. To this union were born two children, a daughter Roberta, born 25 May 1852, and a son, Horace was born 22 Sep 1854. Both of these children were born on the Elkhart Creek Plantation. Horace was called 'Toby' by the slaves. He was very close to these people and he always included them as his friends. Joshua and Mahala were very fond of dancing. They went into Crockett to dancing school. At their Plantation, they had balls for the benefit of the Confederacy. They were active Methodists in the early Methodist church of Crockett. . . . by Esther M. Biggers nee Hall (great-granddaughter of Joshua & Mahala)
Mahala's life between 1860 and 1866 is documented on a sometimes daily basis in the Civil War-era journal of her stepson and son-in-law, James Madison Hall (1819-1866), who had married Mahala and John's daughter, Margaret Sharp, in 1859. Mahala's son and my 2nd great-grandpa, Sam, marries Mary Alexandrien Lemaire in 1861, who dies in 1876. Mahala's 2nd husband dies sometime after the 1870 census, and her daughter, Margaret, dies ca. 1878.
Mahala is enumerated as the head-of-household on the Hall Plantation at the time of the 1880 census. Other family members in the household are her widowed son, Sam, and his 6 surviving children, including my great-grandma, Berta Mary (1873-1955). It is said that Sam as well as his youngest daughter, Willie, died ca. 1885, which is the same year Mahala died.
The deceased family members listed in the last two paragraphs are buried in the Hall Cemetery in Houston County, Texas, which has been designated by the State of Texas as an official historical cemetery.
FYI . . . I created the collage image of our Mahala by starting with a background paper designed by Robyn Gough. I then used Picasa to select that backround page, plus Mahala's photo, plus a brown backer for the photo, and created a new image using the collage feature. I then used Picasa to add Mahala's name as well as the floral frame (dingbat font) around Mahala's face.
On this date in 1930 . . . the 23rd day of June . . . Grandma Cain died in Tanglewood, Lee County, Texas . . . aka Susan / Susanna / Sushannah Cain nee Holland . . . she was born 08 December 1841 in Franklin County, Alabama . . . and she is a 2nd great-grandma to the Keeper of this family history blog . . . the burial location of Grandma Cain is marked with a simple homemade tombstone, which is shown on the left in the photo collage . . . on the right is Grandma Cain holding her great-grandson, James Oscar Beard (1918-1980) . . .
Rockdale Reporter. Thursday, June 26, 1930. Rural News. Tanglewood. June 23 -- Grandma Cain is very low at this writing. [Note . . .she actually died this date, Monday, June 23, 1930. See also: Thursday, July 10, 1930.]
Rockdale Reporter. Thursday, July 10, 1930. Rural News. Cole Springs. Grandma Cain passed away last Monday evening. She had been helpless and bed-ridden since last October. She was ready and anxious to take her departure. She knew in whom she believed, and she was not afraid to die. "Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints." Mrs. Cain was a native of Alabama. She was 88 years old the 8th of last December. She leaves one daughter, Mrs. J.M. Pounder of Tanglewood, and a host of grandchildren and great grandchildren to mourn her departure.
Texas Death Certificate. "Deceased was not attended by a Physician during her last sickness. Cause of Death from statements was dysentary. Dislocated hip from which she was confined to sick bed until her death."
"I.C. Shaffer, M.D., . . . am of the opinion that her ailments were results of dislocated hip in October 1929, & the immediate cause of her death was dysintiry."
I still have quite a few questions about this Sushannah. The genealogy info passed on to me by numerous family members said that Sushannah was married to Isaac Cosby Cain and that they had two children -- Thomas Sylvester Cain (1862-1920) and my great-grandma, Mary Susan Pounders nee Cain (1873-1950).
When I started doing my own research, I found Sushannah on the following census records --
- 1850 :: 8-year-old Susan Holland is enumerated in Franklin County, Alabama with her parents, Edward & Mary A. M. Holland
- 1860 :: 18-year-old Susan Cain is enumerated in Marion County, Alabama with her husband, Isaac Cain
- 1870 :: have not been able to locate Sushannah or Isaac or many of Susan's family members on any census records
- 1880 :: 48-year-old (?) Susan Cain is enumerated as a widow living in Belgreen, Franklin County, Alabama with her children, 18-year-old Thoms S. Cain & 7-year-old Mary S. Cain (my great-grandma)
- 1900 :: have not been able to locate Sushannah . . . she is NOT enumerated in Texas with either of her children and not enumerated in Alabama with her widowed mother or with any of her sisters . . . but family tradition says she came to Texas with her married daughter ca. 1896 . . .
- 1910 :: have not been able to locate Sushannah . . . not enumerated in Texas with either of her children
- 1920 :: have not been able to locate Sushannah . . . not enumerated in Texas with either of her children
- 1930 :: 88-year-old Susin Cain is enumerated in the household of her married daughter in Lee County, Texas
Susanna Cain's "Widow's Application for Confederate Pension" was dated 06 June 1930, less than two weeks before she died after being bedridden since October of 1929. In a cover letter (from the County Judge) which accompanied the application, W.F. Schlosshan observed that, ". . . she (Susannah) is very old ~ more than 88 years, and she was not able to furnish all the information in her application. . . ."
In said application it is alleged that Susannah stated that she was married to Isaac Cosby CAIN in 1858 in Franklin County, Alabama. It is also alleged that Susannah stated that her husband had died in 1865 in Alabama. In another part of the same application, it is stated that Isaac CAIN ". . . may have died before being discharged."
Online I found the following . . . Cain Isaack Company I Regiment 42 AL Hospital No.3 DOD 3/28/1863 Grave #951 . . . this Isaack Cain was buried in Vicksburg following his death during the time of the Vicksburg Campaign . . .
HOWEVER . . . IF this is Susannah's husband, "their" daughter, Mary Susan (CAIN) Pounders, was allegedly born 30 September 1873 in Franklin County, Alabama . . . about eight years after this Isaac is said to have died . . . and more than ten years after the death of the "Isaack Cain" at Vicksburg . . . I found Mary Susan on every census record beginning in 1880 . . . and they all support the ca. 1873 date of birth . . .
A letter dated 24 May 1930 from the War Department in Washington stated the following . . . "the records show that one Isaac Cain enlisted August 10, 1862, at Columbus, as private of Company I, 42d Alabama Infantry, C.S.A. . . . The company muster roll for September and October, 1862, . . . reports him absent, taken prisoner and paroled October 5, 1862 . . . another records shows that he was paroled at Bolivar, Tennessee, October 13, 1862 . . . no later record of him has been found. . . ."
Susannah's pension application was approved . . . on a husband that supposedly died during the war (1861-1865) . . . but it appears that the only payment that may have been made would have been after her death . . . when one of her grandsons made an Application for Mortuary Warrant. . . .
Old Rockdale postcard . . .
Main St. north from I & G. N. Depot, Rockdale, Texas
The postcard in the collage has been reproduced in multiple Rockdale publications . . . location / ownership / existence of original unknown . . .
According to a newspaper clipping from the files of my cousin, Peggy, a Henry family reunion was held at the old Hamilton homeplace in Rockdale, Milam County, Texas sometime in 1931. That yellowed and crumbling piece of paper recorded the following about the arrival of my 2nd great-grandpa, William Paschal Henry (1836-1912), and his family in the brand-new town of Rockdale, Milam County, Texas . . .
On Oct. 3, 1876, the Henrys arrived in Rockdale to visit a sister and family of Mrs. Henry's, it being Dr. and Mrs. M. F. Anthony, who at that time had the post office and drug store combined on the corner where the Wolf Hotel now stands.
That is the Hotel Wolf in the lower right corner of the above collage, with an arrow pointing to the same building on the old Rockdale postcard. The Hotel had gone out of business before 1935 when Rockdale's American Legion post purchased the building.
During World War II the building's second story was lopped off and its Main Street front was shortened and remodeled. A stage was added and the hall became the place to be for dances and music for almost 20 years. Rockdale Reporter, 06 Aug 1998
When I was in high school (the 60's), we frequently spent a portion of our weekend hours attending teen dances -- with real live bands! -- in the un-airconditioned bottom-half of this building. My parents were regular fixtures as chaperones at these events.
Directly across the street was McVoy's Grocery Store where my parents shopped weekly. Every Friday, my widowed Grandma, who never learned to drive, had her grocery list ready for Mom or Dad to take with them to McVoy's. There was a large wooden magazine rack near the front door where I would sit and read comic books while Mom checked out. Mr. Galbreath kept the produce stocked and freshly washed, and would give us pieces of fresh sugar cane to chew on. The meat market at McVoy's was where Mom bought steak cutlets for making her infamous chicken-fried steak with cream gravy which NONE of us have ever been able to replicate.
I was back on Main Street just this past weekend while in Rockdale for the 75th Annual Rockdale Homecoming as well as my Mom's 60th RHS Class Reunion, where I was flattered to be told by numerous people (who had known Mom since the 40s) that, "You look just like your Mom!"
At the Homecoming gathering, one lady said to me, "Aren't you the one who found the snake in the bedroom when you were babysitting Delaine?" That was also during high school in the 60s! I was babysitting for the local pharmacist in his home. The baby and I were sitting in the rocker / recliner in her nursery when I saw a snake come crawling in the room! I got out of the room with Delaine and shut the door (which wasn't much of a barrier since it had such a gap at the bottom) and called my trusty Dad at our home (no cell phones in those days). Dad was there immediately, but it took him a while to find and kill the poisonous copperhead -- it had crawled up into the coils under the rocker / recliner!
Before I left town, we (me & Mom & my sister) visited the Dan Kubiak exhibit at the I&GN Depot, and I also took a few photos of Joy Graham's Bit of History building on Cameron Avenue.
The journey back home to Main Street was nostalgic, while somehow filled with the sweet assurance that at Home we are not forgotten. These people knew me as a child. They knew my grandparents. And in some cases, their parents and grandparents knew my ancestors. And many of the families of Rockdale have somehow managed to climb into my family tree!
This 19th of June 2009 blogpost was prepared for Evelyn Yvonne Theriault's June edition of the Festival of Postcards . . . and was also submitted for Postcard Friendship Friday which was formerly hosted by Marie Reed.
Ariana Bratt wrote that,
"This is William Merrill
on the wagon where he suffered a fatal accident."
Ariana is a 4th cousin who descends from William Merrill's daughter, Lucy, who is a younger sister to my 2nd great-grandma, Phoebe, as well as to Elizabeth, who is the woman who raised Phoebe's daughter, Eva, as her own. Eva is my Mom's maternal grandma who helped take care of Mom and her brother during the first years of their lives following the death of their Mother. The two photos of William Merrill used in the above collage were shared by Ariana's mother, Dr. Susan Snow, of Maine. The upper left image is cropped from a poorly-done :( tombstone photo I took in 1998.
Biddeford Daily Journal. Biddeford, Maine, Friday Evening, June 17, 1898. William T. Merrill died Thursday at his residence at Pine Point, aged eighty-two years and two months. He was one of the oldest inhabitants of Scarboro. Four sons and four daughters survive him. The funeral will be held Sunday at 2 o'clock at his late residence.
Biddeford Daily Journal. Biddeford, Maine, Monday Evening, June 20, 1898. The funeral of William Merrill took place at his residence yesterday. Rev. Mr. Goodwin of Pine Point conducted the service and selections were sung by a quartet from Dunstan church. The attendance was large, and many beautiful flowers were given. The entertainment [sic] was at the Dunstan Corner cemetery.
Newburyport Transcript, June 24, 1898. Pine Point, Maine. Mr. Wm. Merrill who fell from his work cart Tuesday, the fourteenth, died at his home Thursday night. It was thought at first he had received no injury, but at midnight he grew worse and continued to fail until Thursday night when he passed away. Mr. Merrill was eighty-two years of age, an old and respected citizen. He leaves eight children to mourn his loss, four sons and four daughters. His funeral was Sunday. Mr. Merrill’s wife died about two years ago.
For tonight's Saturday Night Genealogy Fun, Randy Seaver -- my new-found distant cousin!* (clarify :: didn't just find HIM but did just find that we are related!) -- says that "Tonight's Genealogy Fun is to tell --
Which of your ancestors were alive in 1909? Where your ancestral families were living in 1909. What country, state, county, city/town, etc. Who was in the family at the time? Use the 1910 census as "close enough."
On the 6th day of June in the year 1909 . . . on my Dad's side of the family . . .
- His father, Jacob Edmund Forrest POUNDERS (1902-1957) -- who is one of twelve children -- is a month shy of his 7th birthday and living in Manor, Travis County, Texas with his parents, James Madison POUNDERS (1867-1942) and Mary Susan [CAIN?] POUNDERS (1873-1950). Also in the house in 1909 would have been these siblings -- Zula Rodoski (1889-1968), Margaret Darthula (1891-1963), James Thomas Luther (1893-1984), William Rufus Oscar (1895-1979), Anna Virilla (1896-1978), Minnie Ruth Estelle (1899-1976), Fannie Myrtle Lee (1904-1947) and Everett Franklin (1908-1910). Bernice (1913-1999) and Freddie Benjamin (1916-1987) came along later.
- The widowed mother of James Madison POUNDERS -- Nancy Virilla (QUINN) POUNDERS (1847-1930) -- is living in Franklin County, Alabama, with her married daughter, Annie (POUNDERS) GRISSOM and her husband, John Wesley, and three of their children -- Luther Wesley, Rutha and Eva.
- And while I have not been able to find the widowed mother of Mary Susan (CAIN?) POUNDERS on the 1910 Census, it is said that Susanna (HOLLAND) CAIN came to Texas ca. 1896 with her daughter and family and lived with them until her death in Texas in 1930.
- In 1909, Dad's mother -- Ima Lois (MUSTON) POUNDERS -- is only 3 years old and would have been living with her parents, Charley MUSTON (1882-1815) and Emma Patience (NETTLES) MUSTON (1882-1964), in Lee County, Texas. Ima is the 2nd of seven children -- all girls -- Erma Audrey (1904-1991), Ima Lois (1906-1999), Mollie Gertrude (1907-2002), Stella May (1909-2001), Nona Amy (1911-2002), Gladys Coreen (1913-2007), and Pauline Lucille (1915-2004).
- Charley's widowed father, William Alexander MUSTON (1854-1936), is living with his son in Lee County, Texas.
- Emma's widowed mother, Mary Annie (WEST) NETTLES (1852-1939), is also living in Lee County in 1909 -- with her unmarried son, William Edward Nettles (1874-1947).
On the 6th day of June in the year 1909 . . . on my Mom's side of the family . . .
- Her father, Robert E. HENRY (1905-1976), is living with his parents -- Edgar HENRY (1872-1950) and Berta Mary (SHARP) HENRY (1873-1955) just north of Rockdale in Milam County, Texas. Siblings in the household in 1909 would have included Rubie May (1895-1978), George Rettig (1897-1977), Frank (1899-1952), Milton Edgar (1902-1975), and Oscar Lee (1907-1981). Another brother will be born, and die, on 16 Sept 1909, followed by one more sister, Nellie Josephine, in 1912.
- Edgar's widowed father, William Paschal HENRY (1836-1912) is living with his son in Milam County.
- Berta's parents and grandparents are all dead by long before 1909.
- Mom's Mother -- Elizabeth Marilla (SMITH) HENRY (1912-1932) -- is not on the scene yet, but Elizabeth's parents -- Thomas Warren Alonzo SMITH (1866-1920) and Eva May BRACKETT (1874-1936) -- are living at 43 Prospect Street in Biddeford, Maine, where they operate a florist and landscaping business. They have one child in 1909 -- Thomas, Jr. (1904-1959).
- Thomas' parents are both dead by 1909, but Eva's adoptive parents -- Peter BRACKETT (1838-1927) and Elizabeth J. (MERRILL) BRACKETT (1841-1911) -- are renting at 74 Beach Street in Saco, Maine, while her birth mother -- Phoebe (MERRILL) MORSE TRIPP (1848-bef. 1930) -- is living in Gorham, Maine with another married daughter. The birth father will probably never be known.
*It does seem that Randy and I both descend from the same Aquila CHASE (1618-1670) and Anne WHEELER (1627-1687) -- Randy via their son, Thomas (1654-1733), and his wife, Rebecca Follansbee -- and me via their son, Aquila (1652-1720), and his wife, Esther BOND, whose daughter, Esther (1674-1751) married Daniel MERRILL (1670-1725), and they are 4th great-grandparents of the Phoebe MERRILL mentioned above, who is one of my 2nd great-grandmas.
