On this date in our family history . . . the 21st day of May . . . in the year 1930 . . . Robert E. Henry, Jr. was born at 16A Parrott Street in Lynn, Essex County, Massachusetts . . . the page in this collage is from his baby book . . . it was filled in by his mother, Elizabeth Marilla Henry nee Smith (1912-1932), who is shown holding our Uncle Bob in the upper right corner . . .
Click on image to enlarge
On this date in our family history (according to the The Visitations of the County of Devon) . . . the 20th day of May . . . in the year 1574 . . . Honor Pyne nee Penfound dies in East Down, Devon, England . . . and is buried the next day at East Downe . . . this Honor is currently believed to the 13th great-grandma of the Keeper of this family history blog . . .
Regarding this date in our extended family history . . . the 16th day of May . . . in the year 1690 . . . it is recorded that The brave Lieut. Clark was no more. . . . They were fired upon, and before they could defend themselves, were fallen upon by the French and Indians, with their swords and tomahawks with so great slaughter that but few escaped, and they badly wounded. . . . at the time of his death Thaddeus is married to Elizabeth Mitton who is a sister to Mary Brackett nee Mitton . . . who is a 9th great-grandma to the Keeper of this family history blog . . . Elizabeth and Mary are daughters of Michael Mitton who at one time held Peaks Island . . .
On this date in our family history . . . the 15th day of May in the year 1731 . . . Sarah Nason Keys nee Jenkins appeared & acknowledged ye above [below] & within Instrumt to be her act & Deed . . . this document from York Deeds is the last known to mention our Sarah . . . no record has been found of her death . . . this Sarah is a 9th great-grandma to the Keeper of this family history blog . . .
On this date in our family history . . . the 10th day of May . . . in the year 1763 . . . according to the History of the Kimball Family . . . John Kimball dies in Boxford, Essex County, Massachusetts . . . it is unknown at this time where his remains were laid to rest . . .
This John Kimball is a 7th great-grandpa to the Keeper of this family history blog, as follows . . .
JOHN KIMBALL 1685-1763
&1705 ELIZABETH CHAPMAN
|
MEHITABLE KIMBALL †1797/
&1744 TIMOTHY BARKER 1720-1752
|
ASA BARKER 1748-1822
&1767 LUCY PORTER 1751-1822
|
JONATHAN BARKER 1785-1860
&ca 1805 MAHITABLE PORTER FARNUM 1785-1811
|
TIMOTHY BARKER 1809-1870/
&1831 JERUSHA LAKIN HOBBS 1810-/1870
|
JERUSHA MARILLA BARKER 1841-1899
&1857 ATWOOD FRANK SMITH 1837-1907
|
THOMAS WARREN ALONZO SMITH 1866-1920
&1894 EVA MAY BRACKETT 1874-1936
|
ELIZABETH MARILLA SMITH 1912-1932
&1929 ROBERT E HENRY 1905-1976
|
Keeper's Mom [living]
&1950 FORREST LEE POUNDERS 1927-1996
|
Keeper
On (or about) this date in our family history . . . the 2nd day of May . . . in the year 1713 . . . it is said that Joseph Anthony is born in New Kent County, Virginia . . . this Joseph is :-
- 2nd great-grandpa (via his daughter, Mary) of 16th Texas Governor Richard Hubbard (1832-1901)
- 2nd great-grandpa (via his son, Joseph as well as via his daughter, Agnes) of Mary Ann Penelope Cunningham nee Anthony (1835-1917) [her parents were 2nd cousins]
- 2nd great-grandpa (via his son, James) of Texas Lawyer and Congressman Edwin L. Antony (1852-1913), whose parents are 1st cousins once removed, and whose mother, Margaret (1833-1912), is the older sister of the following Josephine
- 2nd great-grandpa (via his son, James) to Josephine Wingfield Henry nee Davis (1843-1899), who is 2nd great-grandma to the Keeper of this family history blog
One of Joseph's grandsons is Dr. Milton Antony, Sr. (1789-1839), who founded the Medical College of Georgia, and whose son, Dr. Milton Antony, Jr. (1824-1885), marries the older sister of our Josephine and moves to Texas, where he is a Confederate Surgeon in Brazoria County before removing to Milam County, where he is a local physician and the 3rd postmaster in the new community of Rockdale ca. 1876.
For more information about our Joseph :-
On this date in our family history . . . the 27th day of April . . . in the year 1752 . . . 80-year-old Samuel Brackett dies in Berwick, York County, Maine . . . this Samuel is a 4th great-grandpa to Jerusha Marilla Smith nee Barker (1841-1899) . . . who is paternal grandma to Elizabeth Marilla Henry nee Smith (1912-1932) . . . who is the maternal grandma of the Keeper of this family history blog . . . and this Samuel Brackett is also a 1st cousin three times removed to Peter Brackett (1838-1927) . . . who is the adoptive father of Eva May Smith (1874-1936) . . . who is the mother of the above mentioned Elizabeth . . .
Samuel Brackett, the First in Berwick
In addition to the above, H.I. Brackett also wrote in his Brackett Genealogy (1907) that . . .
On the [Samuel Brackett, Jr.] farm [York County] is a family burying ground where are the graves of Samuel Brackett, Jr., and of his wives. At his grave is a well preserved headstone. In the yard are graves unmarked by stones, and these are thought to be the graves of Samuel, Sr., and of his wife, Elizabeth Botts.
On this date in our family history . . . the 20th day of April . . . in the year 1864 . . . William Thurston Merrill pens a letter to his daughter, Phoebe . . . at that time, William is sick in the U.S. Hospital at the New Orleans Barracks in Louisiana . . . and Phoebe is at home in Maine . . . this William is a great-grandpa, and Phoebe is the maternal grandma, of Elizabeth Marilla Henry nee Smith (1912-1932) . . . who is the maternal grandma of the Keeper of this family history blog . . . special thanks to our cousins, Ariana Bratt and Susan Snow, for sharing the following info regarding our William and his letter . . .
William Thurston Merrill went into the Civil War in 1861. He was a member of H Company 30th Volunteer Maine Regiment, which was engaged in Louisiana at Sabine Cross Road on April 8, 1864, Pleasant Hill on April 9, 1864, and Cane River Cross on April 23, 1864.
Williams's last battle was at Pleasant Hill, where 11 of his regiment were killed, 66 wounded and 71 missing. By the end of the war, his regiment lost 34 from wounds and 256 of disease. William, my (Ariana's) great-great-great grandfather, was one of those who escaped bullets and imprisonment to nearly die from disease.
William Thurston Merrill sent a letter to his family on April 20, 1864 as he lay in a hospital in New Orleans suffering from hepatitis at age 48. It is written with phonetic spelling which demonstrates that his hard life as a farmer left little time for formal schooling.
I now Seat myself to let you that I am hear and Best I found yet I have A nuf to eat and a good clean bed. I was in the Batle on the 9 and 10 at the plesent hill the hardest famr Battle yet the bulits flue Around my head like Hale Stones. We hed A March of 22 days was 400 Miles. We fell back toGrand dy chore red river. Was the gun boats loude. I hed the yellows and toock of dierre and one More man from Saco left on the 13 toock the boat for New Orleans I am gitting Smart
I hope you are all well. We left the riedg in line of battle. Have ben fiteen sens they ar havein A hard time. I think myself luckey to get Away and you may be so glad that bet like A fool I have rote once before tell Mouther to mind her calf done yet lousezy. Tell Daniel to plant all the potatoes he can and make the pig groe to 500 and fat the black cow. I will come home and help you eat it tell John I will rite to him soon tell if oald dick has so old me his farm And how kimpcy getting Along. I done want to foss is dog to bite my cows. You beter get tham in father pasture. You mite try the black cow and heffer A spell in the commons but loock out and have a pasture enny way. Daniel better help his grand father wat he can. I think he will fare the Beter. Kiss all the family for me so I must close new good by this from your father.
William Merrill
Direct to New orlons LA Barrecks US hospittle.
Now done give yourself No on car nie About me. I am doing fust rate. I come hear my 48 birthday [i.e., born April 4, 1816 so came there on April 4, 1864]
give my love to all the folks.
This is a snapshot in time . . . captured with my vintage Canon AE-1 . . . on Easter Sunday in 1986 . . . in the backyard of my childhood . . . starring my red-headed niece (left) . . . and my blue-eyed niece (right) . . . and Casper the dog . . . in this general area of that backyard is where many tubs of homemade vanilla ice cream were created . . . in the old wooden ice cream bucket . . . with the assistance of lots of manpower (and girl-power) . . . sure miss those backyard cook-outs . . . and tomatoes and new potatoes fresh from the garden . . . and ice-cold watermelons . . .
On this date in our family history . . . the 15th day of April . . . in the year 1647 . . . Prudence Blake is born in Gloucester, Essex County, Massachusetts . . . this Prudence is a sister to Rebekah Blake . . . both are daughters of George and Dorothy Blake . . . AND . . . Prudence AND Rebekah are BOTH 9th great-grandmas to the Keeper of this family history blog . . .
On this date in our family history . . . the 10th day of April . . . in the year 1634 . . . the Elizabeth sets sail from Ipswich, Suffolk, England, bound for New England . . . amongst those onboard are Richard Kimball and his family . . . this Richard is a 10th great-grandpa to the Keeper to this family history blog . . .
Richard Kemball came to this country in the ship Elizabeth, William Andrews, master, in 1634. He appears to have gone, soon after landing, to Watertown, Mass. . . . Richard is said on the shipping list to be thirty-nine years old, but he was probably somewhat older. He was, however, in the prime of life, and soon became a prominent and active man in the new settlement. . . . He was proclaimed freeman in 1635, May 6. Was a proprietor in 1636-7. Soon after this date he was invited to remove to Ipswich, where they were in need of a competent man to act as wheelwright to the new settlement. Here he spent the remainder of his days. . . . excerpt from History of the Kimball Family . . .
150 years ago today . . . in the year 1864 . . . in our family history . . . James M. Hall penned the following words in his Civil War-era Journal . . .
To day the boys are at work on the stables. Sam [Samuel Houston Sharp] rode my horse Ratler to Crockett and was conscripted and put into the army of the Confederacy Sans Serimonia. I let Sam have 100$ before he left for Crockett. Mother [Mahala Sharp Hall nee Roberts] and the children [Roberta and Toby] left for home. In the evening Mr. Thomas Sharp arrived from the wheat region with two loads of wheat which he left at the mill. He and Mr. Anderson remained with me for the night. I ground 51 bushels of corn. Weather changeable and cold, with a hard freeze at night.
This Sam is a 2nd great-grandpa to the Keeper
of this family history blog . . . and the history recorded in Hall's
Journal provides the only evidence we are aware of that our Sam
(apparently unwillingly) served in the Confederate Army . . .
150 years ago today . . . on this date in our family history . . . in Houston County, Texas . . . James Madison Hall writes about the arrest of Samuel Houston Sharp as well as himself . . . on charges of being liable to conscription . . . this Sam is a 2nd great-grandpa to the Keeper of this family history blog . . .
Friday, January 15th, 1864. To day the boys are still at work on the stables. In the evening while Sam & I were running the mills a file of soldiers rode up and arrested us and forthwith shut up my mills and marched us off to Crockett like common felons. when we reached Crockett we were imprisoned in the Court house and a guard mounted over us. We were not allowed any fire or food, neither were we permitted to converse with any person. So we were kept without any charge against us but upon mere suspicion that we were liable to conscription. So much for our boasted rights as Southern gentlemen and for the causes which led us to sever our connection with the old government. Had I been thus treated by the Yankees I could have borne it all without complaint for I could not have expected any thing else, but coming from those who ought to be our guardians instead of our oppressors comes exceedingly hard, and not well calculated to make good and true soldiers to the Confederacy. I predict that it is but the beginning of the reign of Military despotism and will brake down our once happy land of freedom. I was again discharged late in the night but how long before I am again arrested God only knows. Sam however was kept in close confinement all night. Weather clear & cold.
List of property appraised 31st dec 1846 By David O. Warren James Perkins and Jackson Randol -- and belonging to the estate of Elisha and Patsey Roberts --
MALES Candy, Spencer, Daniel, John, Shedrack, Bedney?, Charles, George, Washington, Bedford, Jerdin, Nathan, Nelson, Philip, Columbus, George, Martin, Burrel, Ceasar, Massaline, Elick?, James, Alfred, Charles, Dick, Carrol, Allen, Leonard
FEMALES Betsey, Rose & child Lewis, Linda Cole, Linda Payne, Rachel, Jenny & child Philip, Clara & child Mary, Caroline & child Dick, Mary, Celia, Elon, Virginia, Vina, Clara, Agg, Louisa & child, Nancy, Gelina
These names are being listed here with the hope that there are researchers who will be assisted in their journey to find their ancestors by the sharing of the names of these individuals . . . this list is made available thanks to the research efforts of Elisha and Patsy's great-great-granddaughter, Esther . . . thanks a bunch cousin Esther!
150 years ago today . . . on the 21st day of December . . . in the year 1863 . . . in Houston County, Texas . . . James Madison Hall writes in his Journal that he is choosing to record information on a daily basis (1860-1866) for the benefit of those that come after me, in order that they may see some of the benefits that war brings upon the Country and people . . .
On Christmas Day 1863, J.M. Hall will make reference to their Christmas jollification . . . and will state that all went off as merry as a marriage bell . . .
Meanwile, almost two thousand miles away, while listening to the church bells of Cambridge, Massachusetts toll out the glad tidings of Christmas Day . . . Henry Wadsworth Longfellow picks up his pen and writes the following words . . .
I heard the bells on Christmas day
Their old familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet the words repeat
Of peace on earth, good will to men.
And thought how, as the day had come,
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along the unbroken song
Of peace on earth, good will to men.
Till ringing, singing on its way
The world revolved from night to day,
A voice, a chime, a chant sublime
Of peace on earth, good will to men.
Then from each black, accursed mouth
The cannon thundered in the South,
And with the sound
The carols drowned
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!
It was as if an earthquake rent
The hearth-stones of a continent,
And made forlorn
The households born
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!
And in despair I bowed my head
“There is no peace on earth,” I said,
“For hate is strong and mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good will to men.”
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
“God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail
With peace on earth, good will to men.”
The following video gives a version of the story behind those words, as told by Edward K. Herrmann and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir . . .
See also . . .
P.S. Longfellow is my 5th cousin 6 times removed, i.e.,My 10th great-grandmother,Elizabeth (Burbage) Wiswall (abt.1610 - aft.1664),is his 4th great-grandmother.My 10th great-grandfather, Thomas Wiswall (bef.1601 - 1683),is his 4th great-grandfather.
On this date in our family history . . . the 19th day of December . . . in the year 1878 . . . Mary Olive and W.A. Muston are married in Crenshaw County in the State of Alabama . . . this Mary and William are 2nd great-grandparents of the Keeper of this family history blog . . . by 1890 they are in Texas and have had at least three sons . . . in June of that year it is adjudged that the said Mary E. Mustin is a Lunatic, and it is ordered by this court that she be conveyed to the Lunatic Asylum at Austin, County of Travis, for restraint and treatment . . . at least one more child would be born, a daughter, in January of 1893 . . . after that date, no further record has been found of our Mary Olive's existence . . .
Texas is the finest portion of the Globe
that has ever blessed my vision.
The above poetic statement was penned by Sam Houston in an 1833 letter to a cousin, shortly after Sam had crossed the Red River and stepped onto Texas soil for the first time, i.e. . . .
On December 2, 1832, an imposing figure stood on the north bank of Red River. His passport read: "General Sam Houston, a Citizen of the United States, thirty-eight years of age, six feet, two inches in stature, brown hair, and light complexion."
Sam would soon become a frequent visitor in the homes of some of the men later described by Alexander Horton as . . . some of the noblest men to be found in any county. They (were) generous, kind, honest and brave . . . Elisha Roberts* . . . Philip A. Sublett* . . . These were the most earliest settlers of East Texas. . . .
*This Elisha is a 4th great-grandpa to the Keeper of this family history blog . . . Sublett is married to Elisha's daughter, Easter Jane . . .
Before Sam left Tennessee, he served as a commander in the Tennessee volunteer militia of General Andrew Jackson during the War of 1812 . . . among those serving under Sam were the Parker brothers, Daniel and Isaac . . . by August of 1833, this Daniel and Isaac were members of a wagon train leaving Illinois, their destination being Texas . . . regarding the people on this wagon train (including a young girl known as Cynthia Ann), according to Glenn Frankel in his book, The Searchers, The Making of an American Legend . . .
In mid-November they reached the brown, placid Sabine River, bordered by pine trees as tall and erect as sentinels, and crossed over into Texas. They camped that first evening, November 12, 1833, near San Augustine, twenty miles deep inside their new promised land, just in time for one of the most awesome celestial events in human history.
On the Night the Stars Fell, the heavens blazed with shooting stars as large as moons trailing clouds of bluish light like divine afterthoughts. Although well past midnight, the bright burning sky illuminated the wide, awestruck faces of the pilgrims as if it were high noon. . . .
As it happens, during the year the stars rained all over the sky, Grandpa Elisha and a large assortment of his kith 'n kin lived near San Augustine, just about Twenty miles deep inside their new promised land . . . i.e., just east of San Augustine and about 20 miles west of the Sabine River . . . so it is quite possible this group of travelers actually camped on land owned and / or occupied by some of our Roberts kith or kin . . .
Meanwhile, in another part of Texas in 1833 . . . a family by the name of O'Docharty is residing in San Patricio County during this year of the Plenty Stars Winter . . . as the years passed and their lives on this earth came to an end, many of these family members were laid to rest in the Old Cemetery on the Hill (FYI, it is believed by some that our Elisha's son-in-law, Bryant Daughtry, might be buried in the same cemetery) . . . the matriarch of the O'Docharty family was Susanna, who was tall and slender with a shock of red hair . . . it has been said of her that she accurately predicted her own death . . . the following is a portion of what is referred to as her epitaph . . . it is from a collection of stories handed down through generations by oral tradition . . .
And now I lie with them upon this hill
Mingling with Texas earth as seasons come and go.
Chilling northers bend grasses almost to the ground;
Low-hung clouds are misty blankets
Dropping days of rain upon the earth.
Then wild flowers make sweet the air in spring;
At dawn birds chirp and trill as if to wake us,
But we lie immutable, insensible to summer heat and winter cold . . .
While we lie here a segment of a forgotten colony.
Here I lie beside my own --
A hundred springs have come and gone
Since first I lay upon this lonely hill. . . .
This blogpost was researched and prepared specifically for The Fifth Annual Great Genealogy Poetry Challenge over at cousin Bill's blog which is known as . . . West in New England . . .
On this date in our family history . . . the 11th day of November . . . in the year 1791 . . . a baby girl is born in Cumberland County, Maine . . . her parents, Thomas Thurston and Lucy Fenderson, decide to call her Lucy . . . this Lucy is a 4th great-grandma to the Keeper of this family history blog . . .
Mrs. Silence J. Soule penned the following words . . . I have observed that old people live much in the past. As I grow older I find myself turning oftener to the days in the old home. I hear the patter and the prattle of childish feet and voice ; light step of youth and maid; sober footfall and serious word of man and matron; the slowing step and failing voice of age. All, all are gone! I alone am left of . . .
The dear home faces whereupon
The fitful firelight paled and shone.
Henceforward, listen as I will,
The voices of that hearth are still.
How strange it seems with so much gone
Of life and love to still live on.
These few lines of poetry were adapted by cousin Silence from
Snow-Bound
by
John Greenleaf Whittier
The version linked here is dedicated as follows . . .
To the Memory of the household it describes :
On this date in our family history . . . the 3rd day of November . . . in the year 1816 . . . Mahala Lee Roberts is born in Washington Parish, Louisiana . . . she is the 7th of nine children known to have been born to Elisha Roberts and Patsy Gill . . .
By 1830, Mahala is living in San Augustine County, Texas with her parents and siblings . . . in 1833 her father signs his name to a document establishing the town of San Augustine . . . in 1836 Mahala marries John M. Sharp in San Augustine County . . . and at least two children will be born to them . . . Samuel Houston Sharp and Margaret Sharp . . . John Sharp is presumed to have died before 1846 . . .
In 1851, Mahala marries Joshua James Hall in San Augustine County . . . and they have at least two children . . . Roberta Hall and Toby Hall . . .
On Mahala's 53rd birthday . . . the 3rd day of November . . . in the year 1869 . . . Mahala's granddaughter, Margaret Elizabeth Sharp, is born in Liberty County, Texas . . . another two years later . . . on the 3rd day of November . . . in the year 1871 . . . another granddaughter, Ida Mae Sharp, is born in Houston County, Texas . . . Mahala would live to share another thirteen birthdays with these two granddaughters before her death in June of 1885 . . .
We are blessed to have access to a portrait of our Mahala . . . as well as photos of some of her grandchildren . . . the little one in the collage is a four-year-old version of the Keeper of this family history blog . . . in the arms of her great-grandma, Berta Mary . . . Mahala was grandma to Berta Mary . . . and is a 3rd great-grandma to the four-year-old in the photo . . .
A hundred-year-old photograph
stares out from a frame.
And if you look real close you'll see
our eyes are just the same.
I never met them face-to-face
but I still know them well
From the stories my dear grandma would tell.
They're my Guardian Angels
and I know they can see,
Every step I take they're watching over me.
I might not know where I'm going
but I'm sure where I come from.
They're my Guardian Angels
and I'm their special one.
A hundred-year-old photograph
stares out from a frame.
And if you look real close you'll see
our eyes are just the same.
This blogpost containing poetry as well as song lyrics was researched and prepared specifically for The Fifth Annual Great Genealogy Poetry Challenge over at cousin Bill's blog which is known as . . . West in New England . . .
