On this date in our family history . . . the 30th day of August . . . in the year 1830 . . . America J Fears becomes the bride of Milton Grant Davis . . . this America and Milton are 3rd great-grandparents of the Keeper of this family history blog . . . the record of their marriage shown in this collage was found in Georgia's Virtual Vault . . .
Research note . . . Many branches of this family have it in their records that *James* was her middle name, however, no contemporary record has been found showing what the *J* actually stands for.
On this date in our extended family history . . . the 10th day of August . . . in the year 1876 . . . the pending death of Jay Olive is reported in the Weekly Democratic Statesman (Austin, Tex.), Vol. 5, No. 52, Ed. 1 Thursday, August 10, 1876 . . . this Jay Olive is a 3rd cousin four times removed to the Keeper of this family history blog . . .
Austin, Texas. A letter received in this city Thursday from Post Oak Island says that on the night of August 1, a party of fifteen or twenty men attacked the Olive brothers on their ranch. Besides the three brothers there were three white men and two negroes. Jay Olive was shot in the body in twenty-two places, and it is thought he will die. Prince [sic] Olive was shot in the hip; and a man named Butler several times in the leg and hip. Bill Wells, one of the negroes, was shot twice in the head. The raiders got $750 from the house, and then forced one of the negroes to burn it. The trouble is said to have grown out of the Crow and Turner tragedy, which occurred in that neighborhood some six months since.
The Olives are engaged largely in the raising of stock, and have suffered severely for a long time at the hands of horse and cattle thieves. Several months ago they gave out that they would kill any one they found skinning their cattle or riding their horses, and not long after that old man Crow and a suspicious character named Turner were killed in the woods near McDade while skinning a beef with the Olive brand. Crow had a son who had served one or more terms in the penitentiary, and he accused the Olives of killing his father, and threatened to revenge his death. Since that time it is said he has been at the head of a band of roughs and desperadoes, and this crowd is suspected of committing the horrible tragedy perpetrated on the Olive brothers and their employees on the night of August 1. The Olive brothers are said to be upright men, and they have many warm friends in the vicinity of where they live, and that further trouble and bloodshed will follow is quite probable. What action the Governor and the authorities will take, we cannot say, but certainly the affair calls for hearty and rigid work. Life and property is not safe in Texas, and there is no use of any one asserting it is.
On this date in our extended family history . . . the 21st day of July . . . in the year 1882 . . . Captain Enoch Snow dies at Blue Point, Scarborough, Cumberland County, Maine . . . the name of Cap'n Enoch Snow has been immortalized in a Twentieth Century-Fox movie entitled "Carousel." . . . was filmed in the locale of the present F.H. Snow Canning Company in Maine,and tells of the life and loves around a Maine fishing village. . . . This fall (1956) the lovable Cap'n Snow will become familiar to all through Snow's Chowder promotion of this seafaring character as their trademark. . . . we spent time with his 2nd great-granddaughter when we visited in Maine in the autumn of 2011 . . . she is a fount of information about our shared family history . . . and she was gracious enough to take us to a small family burial ground we would not have found without her assistance . . . her beloved father, Harold Forest Snow, is a 2nd cousin twice removed to the Keeper of this family history blog . . .
On this date in our family history . . . the 20th day of July . . . in the year 1869 . . . Wm. N. Valentine sits down in Oktibbeha County, Mississippi to pen a few words to his Dear and well beloved Children now in Texas . . . in said letter he makes note of the fact that . . . Now the matter is not Exactly fixt up by us yet as I really have not as yet solde out but that will only operate in this way if anything should happen that I do not sell John will Remane one year longer and make a crop and during the year prepare and winde up my affairs that we may leave un dun and next winter he and his wife for this will take place if we under stand by him go on stay but if the Land is solde or not land Meary your mother Jo Thomas and Molly West will cum as soon as my Bisnez is wound up Wm and John and Jo Thomas will starte as Early as they can git of theri crop I will stay and close out all of the unsetled Bisnez and then well will go by steam . . . this Molly West, aka Mary Annie Nettles nee West, is a great-grandma of the Keeper of this family history blog . . .
On this date in our family history . . . the 20th day of July . . . in the year 1530 . . it is written that George Pyne / Pine of Devonshire dies . . . this George is currently believed to be a 15th great-grandpa to the Keeper of this family history blog . . .
Chart from The Visitations of the County of Devon (Google eBooks) . . .
On this date in our family history . . . the 12th day of July in the year 1717 . . . the will of the late Daniel Merrill is probated in Essex County, Massachusetts . . . this Daniel is a 9th great-grandpa to the Keeper of this family history blog . . . the will itself is transcribed in full in A Merrill Memorial which was published in a very limited edition in 1928 by Samuel Merrill (1855-1932) . . . this Samuel is a fifth cousin five times removed to the Keeper of this blog . . . a different publication has the following to say regarding said Daniel . . .
Genealogical and Family History of the State of Maine, Volume 3
(Google eBook)
Henry Sweetser Burrage, Albert Roscoe Stubbs
Lewis historical publishing Company, 1909 - Maine
- Sergeant Daniel, fourth son of Nathaniel and Susanna (Jordan) Merrill, was born in Newbury, August 20, 1642,
- and was admitted freeman, May 7, 1684.
- March 22, 1677, Moses Pilsbury and Daniel Merrill were chosen fence viewers "at the farter end" of the town of Newbury.
- In 1665, Daniel Merrill was one of those who were called upon and did take the oath of allegiance to the King, in a modified form.
- His name again appears among those who took the oath "as it is by law established within the Kingdom of England," in 1678.
- In the "Invoyes" of August, 1688, Daniel Merrill's list enumerates two heads (persons); two houses: twelve acres plow lands; two horses; two oxen; five cows; eight younger cattle; thirty sheep and six hogs; showing him to have been in very comfortable circumstances.
- In 1689 he was chosen "Way Warden."
- He was admitted to Newbury church in 1681, and to the Salisbury church later.
- He died June 27, 1717, in Salisbury.
- His will, made May 10, was probated July 12, 1717. In it his wife Sarah is mentioned, and "cousin" Thomas Merrill, to whom he gave land in Haverhill.
- Daniel Merrill married (first) May 14, 1667, in Newbury, Sarah Clough, who was born June 28, 1646, and died March 18, 1706, at Salisbury, Massachusetts.
- He married (second) May 29, 1708, Sarah, who was born October 14, 1650, in Salisbury, daughter of Abraham and Sarah (Clement) Morrill, and widow of Philip Rowell and of one Siphorus Page. They had Daniel, John, Sarah, Ruth, Moses, Martha and Stephen.
On this date in our family history . . . the 9th day of July . . . in the year 1889 . . . Wm. P. Henry of Milam County, Texas sold and conveyed the rights to about four acres of his land . . . located about four miles north of Rockdale . . . to the San Antonio & Aransas Pass Railway Company . . . this William Paschal Henry is a 2nd great-grandpa to the Keeper of this family history blog . . .
Know all men by these presents, that I, W.P. Henry of the County of Milam and State aforesaid for and in consideration of the sum of One Dollar to me in hand paid by the San Antonio & Aransas Pass Railway Company the receipt of which is hereby acknowledged, have granted sold and conveyed and by these presents do grant sell convey and deliver unto the said San Antonio & Aransas Pass Railway Company of the County of Bexar and State of Texas that certain tract piece or parcel of land lying and being in the State of Texas and County of Milam and described as follows to wit. A Strip of land ? feet in width and about 1200 feet in length over and across my land on the T. J. Chambers Survey said strip of land to embrace ? feet on each side of the center of track of the S.A.&A.P....on the plans on file in the Office of the Engineer of said Company containing about 4 acres more or less. To have and to hold the above described premises together with all and singular the rights and appurtenances thereto belonging unto the said San Antonio & Aransas Pass Railway Company, its successors and assigns forever. And I do hereby bind my heirs executors and administrators to warrant and forever defend all and singular the said premises unto the San Antonio & Aransas Pass Railway Company its successors and assigns against every person whomsoever lawfully claiming or to claim the same or any part thereof.
Witness my hand at this 9th day of July A.D. 1889.
Signed "Wm. P. Henry"
Original 1891 documents from Volume 27, pages 149 and 150 of the Milam County Records as found in the Milam County Courthouse in Cameron, Milam County, Texas . . . 1891 map from Portal to Texas History . . .
On or about this date in our family history . . . the 7th (or the 17th) day of July . . . in the year 1687 . . . a baby girl is born to Mary Stevens and John Barker . . . they give her the name of Joanna . . . and the birth is recorded as the 7th in the Vital Records of Andover, Massachusetts . . . but . . . the Genealogical and Family History of the State of Maine (1909) . . . as well as the Barker Genealogy (1927) by Elizabeth Frye Barker . . . both give Joanna's date of birth as the 17th day of July . . . this Joanna Barker grows up to marry John Farnum . . . and they are 7th great-grandparents of the Keeper of this family history blog . . .
On this date in our family history . . . Edward Milliken, eighth son of John [Milliken] and Elizabeth Alger, was baptized at the Brattle Street church, Boston, Mass., July 6, 1706, and settled in Scarborough (District of Maine), on the Dunstan lands, in 1729. . . . this Edward is a 7th great-grandpa of the Keeper of this family history blog . . .
History of the families Millingas and Millanges of Saxony and Normandy, comprising genealogies and biographies of their posterity surnamed Milliken, Millikin, Millikan, Millican, Milligan, Mulliken and Mullikin, A.D. 800 - A.D. 1907. Containing names of thirty thousand persons, with copious notes on intermarried and collateral families, and abstracts of early land grants, wills, and other documents. Embellished with portraits, coats-of-arms, and views of family seats. Compiled by Rev. Gideon Tibbetts Ridson, Sr. Kezar Falls, Maine. Author of "Early Settlers of Harrison, Me.," "Burbank Genealogy," "Hamblens of Beech Hill," "The Ancient Ryedales," and "Saco Valley Settlement and Families." Knowledge of an Honorable Ancestry should be an Incentive to Noble Conduct. Journal Press, Lewison, Me. Published by the Author (1907)
One hundred years ago . . . in July of 1913 . . . aging veterans of the war between the states were gathered on a hallowed battlefield in Adams County, Pennsylvania . . . amongst those survivors were representatives of the 5th Maine . . . and one of those regal gentlemen was Peter Brackett, the youngest of thirteen children said to have been born to William Brackett, a veteran of the Revolutionary War . . . the originals of the photos in this collage are from Peter's photos . . . and they were last known to be in the possession of some of his kinfolk in Lynn, Massachusetts . . .
In 1913, the State of Maine offered to pay the expenses and arrange transportation to Gettysburg and back for any Maine resident who had participated in the battle in 1863 and who wanted to attend the 50-year reunion . . . it is known that he attended, so mayhaps this veteran of the 5th Maine, Peter Brackett, accepted Maine's assistance in making that sentimental journey . . .
In this photo, Peter Brackett (1838-1927) is standing in the yard of the home he shared with the family of Eva Mae Smith nee Brackett (1874-1936) . . . this Eva was known as Grammie Smith to the Mother of the Keeper of this family history blog . . . and she was raised as the daughter of Peter and Lizzie (Merrill) Brackett . . . click on Eva's name in this paragraph to read the rest of the story about her connection to this Peter Brackett, who, as it turns out, is also a 3rd great-grandson of the same Anthony Brackett who is the 10th great-grandpa of 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 May . . . in the year 1694 . . . Joseph Merrill is born in Newbury, Essex County, Massachusetts . . . his parents are Daniel Merrill (1671-1725) and Esther Chase (1674-1751) . . . and his birth can be found recorded in Massachusetts, Town and Vital Records, 1620-1988 . . . the pages in the collage are from that database . . . this Joseph is a 7th great-grandpa to the Keeper of this family history blog . . .
On this date in our family history . . . the 14th day of May . . . in the year 1667 . . . Elizabeth Frost marries William Gowen in Kittery, York County, Maine . . . this William Gowen (sometimes called Smith) is one of the Scottish prisoners captured in the Battle of Dunbar and exiled to America . . . and this Elizabeth and Williams are 9th great-grandparents of the Keeper of this family history blog . . .
On this date in our extended family history . . . the 12th day of May . . . in the year 1902 . . . the following news items were published in various Texas newspapers . . . the deceased, John H. Connell, is a 1st cousin four times removed to the Keeper of this family history blog . . .
Dallas Morning News, May 12, 1902. Bell County Killing. . . . Special to The News. Belton, Tex., May 11. -- John H. Connell, one of the oldest and most highly respected citizens of this city, died last night from the effects of a knife cut. The knife struck him in the left arm, severing an artery and passing on out almost to the hollow about the heart. His son, John Connell, was arrested, and is now in jail.
JOHN H. CONNELL DEAD
Of wounds Which Were Inflicted by His Son.
Belton, Texas, May 11. -- Mr. John H. Connell died from his wounds last night at 10 o'clock.
This is the most deplorable tragedy that ever occurred in this community. The facts leading to the sad affair as they can be gathered are that the father and son had gotten into a dispute over some trivial matter when the son gave his father the lie, whereupon he slapped him in the face. The son at once drew his knife and cut his father in the arm between the shoulder and elbow, severing the brachial artery which caused so much loss of blood before medical aid could be had that death was inevitable.
Mr. Connell served throughout the war as a Confederate soldier and was conspicuous for his daring and bravery. He leaves a wife, three sons, two daughters, and many relatives to mourn his death. He will be laid to rest at 4:30 o'clock this afternoon in the North Belton cemetery. Funeral services conducted by Dr. H.A. Bouslard.
- The Houston Daily Post (Houston, Tex.), Vol. XVIIITH YEAR, No. 38, Ed. 1, Monday, May 12, 1902
- Shiner Gazette. (Shiner, Tex.), Vol. 9, No. 49, Ed. 1, Wednesday, May 14, 1902
On this date in our family history . . . the 8th day of May . . . in the year 1721 . . . Rebekah Eams nee Blake dies in Boxford, Massachusetts . . . and is laid to rest in the Mount Vernon Cemetery . . . In the witchcraft excitement of 1692 Mrs. Rebecca Eames was accused, tried and condemned to death, but after being imprisoned for 7 months in Salem jail she was released and lived some 20 years thereafter. . . . this Rebekah is a 9th great-grandma to the Keeper of this family history blog . . . as well as a 9th great-grand-aunt . . .
Note . . . the photo of Rebekah's headstone is courtesy of findagrave contributor, Bill Boyington . . .
On this date in our family history . . . the 5th day of May . . . in the year 1572 . . . John Pine / Pyne is laid to rest at East Downe in the Barnstaple district of Devon, England . . . he is about 38 years of age . . . and he is the 13th great-grandpa of the Keeper of this family history blog . . .
Chart from
(Google eBooks)
Mrs. J. W. Snyder Buried at Georgetown.
Georgetown, April 18. -- Funeral services were held here Tuesday for Mrs. Catherine Jane Coffee Snyder, 84, pioneer resident of this city, who died at the home of her daughter, Mrs. Chas. A. Wilcox, in Austin. She is survived by three sons, C.T. Snyder of Douglas, Wyo.; T.A. Snyder of Harrison, Neb.; D.F. Snyder of Port Arthur; three daughters, Mrs. C.A. Wilcox of Austin; Mrs. D.T. Simons of Fort Worth and Mrs. Dalley Whitcomb of Corsicana. The Bartlett Tribune and News, April 20, 1928
The above mentioned Catherine . . . aka Kate . . . became the bride of John Wesley Snyder on the 7th day of April 1867 . . . Capt. Snyder, with his brothers, Dudley and Tom Snyder, was in the live stock business in Texas many years, accumulating a large fortune . . . the former site of the J.W. Snyder home is now occupied by Southwestern University's fine-arts building in Georgetown, Williamson County, Texas.
This Kate is the daughter of Col. John T. Coffee and his 2nd wife, Catherine Grace Hunt (1827-1844) . . . following the deaths of his first three wives, Col. Coffee married my widowed 1st cousin (four times removed), Eunice Margaret Amelia Vontress nee Allen . . . she had one surviving child (out of three) from her first marriage . . . and he had a total of seven children from his previous marriages . . . and then John and Eunice had (at least) five more children together.
