As mentioned previously, one of my projects has been to create locality guides for places where my ancestors lived to aid in finding resources.
On my maternal side, Madison County, Indiana is a place my family has been since its early days.
The United States acquired the land that became Madison County from the Native Americans in the 1809 Treaty of Fort Wayne, and by the 1818 Treaty of St. Marys, considerably more territory became the property of the government. The county was formed 4 January 1823 from lands governed by the Delaware New Purchase.
Madison County was named for James Madison, 4th President of the United States.
County Seat : Anderson
Largest City : Anderson
Record Loss : 1880
A link to the locality guide that I've been working on is here. Any suggestions or additions to additional resources will be appreciated.
Some of the surnames and when they arrived (approximately) in Madison County:
Trying to gather information on more recent generations and helping to share family memories, photos and stay connected - I created a Facebook group page for descendants of my paternal 2nd-great grandparents, John William Wright and Ellen King.
John William Wright (b. 21 Feb 1860 Brown Co., OH; d. 5 Jun 1945 Monroe Twp., Madison Co., IN) & Ellen King (b. 24 Aug 1868 Frankton, Madison Co., IN; d. 24 Dec 1913 Monroe Twp., Madison Co., IN) were married 13 May 1888 in Madison Co., IN. They were the parents of the following children: Virgil Lee (1894-1972) m. Edna Muriel Pierce Chester Arthur "Mike" (1896-1955) m(1) Erma Violet Hayes; m(2) Mayme Lawson
John married secondly to Margaret Lewis on 13 May 1922 in Madison Co., IN. No children.
Descendants of John William Wright & Ellen King
Private group · 13 members
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Descendants of John William Wright (1860-1945) & Ellen King (1868-1913).
The sixth ancestor in 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks project is my maternal great-grandmother, Edna Muriel "Peach" (Pierce) Wright (1897-1968). She was known by her nickname of "Peach", presumably given to her by her father. As I've researched her life, it's been relatively easy to document the major milestones of her life. Previously, I've written about the facts of her life in an Exploratory Datapost. The stories that have been passed down have given a picture of a farm wife who was strong-willed and enjoyed everything from gardening to watching wrestling on television.
Peach with huge cabbage
Grandma Peach was also a diabetic. Being a diabetic means a restricted diet, and especially back in the 1950s it must have been interesting to manage. According to my mother, Peach used to carry her own food when she went anywhere. Peach's concerns about her health and the health of others in the family caused some strange behavior. One story that was passed down from her grandchildren was that she used to test the boy's urine to measure blood sugar levels before allowing them an ice cream treat. Sweets were limited in the house, but Grandpa Virgil did manage to keep chocolate covered ice cream bars in the freezer, so he could sneak them without Peach finding out. Being a diabetic himself, this was a no-no. Some incidents of what might seem like peculiar behavior by Grandma Peach are actually grounded in her life experiences. While lifestyle and diet can contribute to diabetes, there are also genetic factors. Peach's mother had died of diabetic coma in 1906 (at age 37) when Peach was just 9 years old. I'm sure that the loss of her mother to the disease weighed on her mind as she later dealt with her own diabetes and that of her husband, Virgil. I've tracked some mentions of her being in the hospital at various times, shortly before her death, but treatment reasons were not generally mentioned in the hospital notes. She died at Community Hospital in Anderson, Madison County, Indiana on March 3, 1968. The official cause of death was pulmonary edema and congestive heart failure, but a contributing cause listed was diabetes melittus.
Edna Muriel Wright, death certificate, 1968
The 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge was created by Amy Johnson Crow of No Story Too Small blog. The premise is to write once a week about a specific ancestor - whether it be a story, a biography, a photograph or a research problem.
The second ancestor in my 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks project is my maternal grandmother, Bonnie Mae (Lambertson) Wright. Bonnie was born 18 February 1924 in Elwood, Madison County, Indiana at home at 1906 North F Street. Her parents were Clemon Beals & June Kirk (Gilliland) Lambertson. She was the third child of four and the oldest daughter. Though her birth certificate clearly gives her middle name as "May", Bonnie used the alternative spelling "Mae" during her adult life. I've found no evidence of a legal change, it was apparently a stylistic choice.
Ruby & Bonnie
Bonnie grew up in the house she was born which was just south of Callaway Park and the pool. Bonnie and her brothers & sisters all spent a lot of time there working as lifeguards. City directories show that they were living in that house through 1938. In the 1939-40 period the family moved from Elwood to near Greentown in Howard County. Bonnie's grandparents, Charles & Pearl (Beals) Lambertson were living near Greentown and that is likely why the move. In an interview with Bonnie's sister, Ruby, she mentioned that her dad liked to have space for a garden, as the new place had 3 acres.
1938 freshman photo
The family moved back to Elwood, and Bonnie graduated from Elwood High School in 1941. The story I was told was that during the time she moved to Greentown, she took classes that put her ahead when she returned to Elwood and she was able to graduate in 1941, rather than 1942. A newspaper story from 1938 mentioned a Halloween party that Bonnie attended with her future husband, Bill Wright. I do not know if that was the first time that they met, but aunt Ruby told me that she would double date with her future husband, Bob. Bonnie and Bill were married on 7 June 1941 in Elwood at the First Baptist Church by Rev. Sage. Shortly afterward, they moved to Alexandria where Bill's family was from. At the time of their marriage, Bill was a factory worker and Bonnie had to have parental consent to get married, as she was only 17. Her first child, my uncle was born in the spring of 1942 when they were living at 610 West Broadway in Alexandria. The war was on and my grandpa enlisted together with my great-uncle Bob on 19 January 1944 in the U.S. Army, determined to become pilots. A heart murmur kept grandpa from becoming a pilot, and instead he became a radio instructor. One of my first genealogy interviews when I was a teenager was listening to grandma tell me about all of the various Army bases that she travelled to with grandpa with my uncle in tow. I need to track down the notes, but I seem to remember her saying one time in Biloxi they were scared - must have been a fight between locals and servicemen or something. Grandpa was always state-side during the war, and after his discharge he returned home and was soon employed at the local post office and Bonnie settled into being a housewife. By the winter of 1946, they were a family of four when my mother arrived.
Bonnie and Bill were socially active in events in small town Alexandria with groups such as the Elks, the First Christian Church and school parent committees. By the time I came along, Bonnie was 44 years old, and I was her second grandson. She lost my grandfather 5 years later, becoming a widow at 49. I cannot imagine how painful that loss must have been. One of the ways she dealt with grief was the therapy of doll making. Bonnie made a Raggedy Ann doll for her niece Vicki for a graduation gift. When Ruby took it to Guide Lamp in Anderson to show it off, people started putting in orders to have Bonnie make one for their kids and for nursing homes.
The dolls were 25 inches and each strand of hair was tied on by hand so that when the dolls were washed they wouldn't come apart. She made an estimated 500 of the dolls. Bonnie enjoyed making dolls and couldn't stand to see a doll without clothes. She loved to sew and would make matching clothes for my mother and her dolls when she was a girl. My mom still has examples of her handiwork.
As a youngster, I spent more time with Grandma Bonnie than my other grandmother because she lived closer. I can remember going shopping into downtown Alexandria at stores such as Danner's and going to the bakery to get one of their famous caramel rolls. I remember walking over to her house after playing baseball at the Babe Ruth diamonds and hanging out. One story I remember was that she had a case of Bloody Mary Mix that she didn't want me to tell anyone about because she didn't want them to think she was a drinker.
One time she made me popcorn and I complained that it didn't have any butter on it. She promptly went to the kitchen and brought back one of those squeeze bottles of butter and coated that popcorn so much so that it wasn't edible. I learned a lesson that day not to complain.
When I started working on genealogy, I interviewed her about her family history for my Boy Scout merit badge. She told me what she could about her heritage, and got me started on tracking down the mysteries on her mother's side of the family.
When I was a sophomore in high school, she became really sick with cancer. I went with my mom & grandma to many of her visits at the Bluffton clinic. She eventually became so ill that she had to move in with us.
Bonnie died 9 April 1984 at our house at R.R. 4 Box 328, which was rural Monroe Township, Madison County, Indiana. I remember her passing like it was yesterday, though it was over 30 years ago.
I was glad I was able to spend some time with her asking her about her relatives. I wish I could show her some of the things I've found that she probably didn't know about her heritage. The 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge was created by Amy Johnson Crow of No Story Too Small blog. The premise is to write once a week about a specific ancestor – whether it be a story, a biography, a photograph or a research problem.
The first ancestor in my 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks project is my maternal grandfather, William Lee "Johnny Bill" Wright (1919-1973). Bill was born 1 December 1919 in Monroe Township, Madison County, Indiana, just south of Alexandria. His parents were Virgil Lee & Edna Muriel (Pierce) Wright. He was the only son and the middle of three children. Though his birth certificate clearly states his name was William Lee, he was known as "Johnny Bill" to family and friends. His first name is shared by his maternal grandfather, and his middle name was shared by his father. His paternal grandfather was named John William. In the 1920 census, he was enumerated as "John W.E.". Bill was raised on the family farm and was active in agricultural pursuits. Newspaper articles from the Alexandria Times-Tribune indicate he was a member of 4-H and raised gilts. The family farm was the same one where I was raised, though by then it had ceased to be an active animal-farm.
In 1934, Bill was certified to attend high school after completing schooling in the Monroe Township schools through the eighth grade. He would attend high school in Alexandria. While in high school, Bill was a member of Future Farmers of America (FFA) and 4-H, continuing to participate in agricultural activities such as corn shows, visiting stockyards and husking bees. He became a member of the executive committee of FFA and was awarded prizes at the county fair.
Bill graduated from Alexandria High School in 1938 and continued to engage in agricultural pursuits. At the time of the 1940 census, he was still living with his parents, with his occupation listed as farmer. I imagine he assumed he would continue in the family farm, but other forces were at work that would soon put him on a different path. A newspaper story from 1938 mentioned at Halloween party that Bill attended with his future wife, Bonnie Lambertson. I don't know if that was the first time they met but I do know that Bill's mother didn't approve of the match. I had previously blogged about how my great-grandmother had already picked out the girl for him. Bill and Bonnie were married on 7 June 1941 in Elwood, Madison County, Indiana at the First Baptist Church where Bonnie's family attended. I believe that for a short time, they set up house in Elwood, but it wasn't long before they were back in Alexandria.
My uncle Terry was born in the spring of 1942, the same week that Bill's parents purchased the home at 610 West Broadway in Alexandria that would be Bill and Bonnie's home for the rest of their lives. Though Bill & Bonnie made the payments on the house, this purchase caused some consternation with Bill's older sister, as she thought her parents had a house bought for Bill and Bonnie. Bill was working as an armature winder at Delco Remy in Anderson before going into the military.
Even with a young baby at home, there was a war on and Bill was determined to sign up. He and my-great uncle Bob Walsh enlisted in the U.S. Army together on 19 January 1944. Supposedly, Bill's mother was so upset at this that she tried to get enlistment rescinded, even writing Congressmen to get him out.
Bill served in the U.S. Army Air Corps as a LORAN mechanic & instructor. LORAN is short for long range navigation. He wanted to be a pilot, but a heart murmur kept him from being one. The story Bonnie told me was that at each post, they would find the murmur and he would be under observation for a period. I found a newspaper mention of him being sent from a radio school in Racine, Wisconsin to Chanute Field in Rantoul, Illinois. Bonnie told me of time in Biloxi, Mississippi as well. Both Bonnie and my uncle Terry travelled with Bill at each assignment. Bill was discharged 27 April 1946 from the separation center at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. He returned home to Alexandria, Indiana. According to his separation paperwork, he applied for an Indiana service bonus.
Shortly after returning, he began working at the Alexandria Post Office, where he worked the rest of his life. Local tidbits mentioned in the Alexandria Times-Tribune mention "Johnny Bill" at the post office and his quips of humor. He was known for doing crossword puzzles and reading the dictionary. He was an avid fisherman, who often took the family to Lake Tippecanoe and later Silver Lake. I didn't pick up the fishing gene, but my brother did, and still has some of Bill's equipment.
During this post-war period, Bill was active in the local Elks and the American Legion. My mom came along, and Bill was active with the parents of Clarke Elementary and later the high school. In 1962, he helped host the meeting of the local 3070 of Postal Clerks and was active in community affairs.
By the time I came along, Bill was 49 years old. I was his second grandson. However, I don't really have too many memories of him. One memory I have is of me & mom walking on the sidewalk in town and grandpa coming down the street in his pickup truck and taking us to his place. Another memory I have is that he liked to keep Pringle's potato chips at his house hidden in a nail barrel that had been converted into a table. Bill died of a coronary occlusion on 9 July 1973 at Community Hospital in Anderson, Madison County, Indiana. He was 53 years old. According to his death certificate, he died at 12:44 a.m. I have a vague memory of that happening, mostly feelings of panic, perhaps I heard the phone calls discussing what happened. At the time of his death, I was four years old.
I wish I would have been able to know him. I'm left to reading newspaper tidbits and stories passed on from others in order to get a picture of who he was.
The 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge was created by Amy Johnson Crow of No Story Too Smallblog.The premise is to write once a week about a specific ancestor – whether it be a story, a biography, a photograph or a research problem.
December has been a busy month of celebrations and milestones for my family. Not only do we have Christmas coming soon, but we celebrated my mom's birthday, my stepdaughter's birthday and my parents 50th anniversary. We took my parents out to an anniversary dinner a few weeks ago and it was a good celebration as they had all three of their kids there and most of their grandchildren. Dad & mom recounted the stories of how they met and dad surprised mom with an upgraded replacement engagement ring. Apparently, she had lost the original years ago and it had never been replaced. It was an emotional time and mom was so surprised and happy.
Mom and dad were married December 7, 1967 in Muncie, Indiana. From the Muncie Star of November 26, 1967:
Muncie Teacher to Wed OrdLeMaster of Portland
The engagement of Miss Gloria Jean Wright to Ord Weldon LeMaster is announced by her parents, Mr. and Mrs. William Wright, Alexandria. Mr. LeMaster is the son of Ord W. LeMaster, Portland.
Miss Wright is a graduate of Alexandria-Monroe High School and received a B.S. degree in elementary education from Ball State University. She is a third grade teacher at Roosevelt Elementary in Muncie.
Mr. LeMaster is a graduate of Portland High School and Ball State, where he received a B.S. degree in history and geography. Attending Ball State graduate school, he is a history teacher at Dunkirk High School.
It was good to be able to celebrate this milestone with my parents.
Spent last weekend with my mom on a trip to the Brown County, Ohio area where her Wright and Wardlow families originated. My plan was to visit the Brown County Genealogical Society library in Georgetown and if possible, visit a couple of family cemeteries.
The trip to Georgetown is about three hours and we left early in the morning with plenty of time to spare before the museum opened at noon. Not knowing how long I might need at the museum, I hoped to see if we could locate the Wardlow and Wright cemeteries in Washington Township, Brown County, Ohio and see what shape they were in.
Both of these pioneer cemeteries are already posted on FindAGrave, so I had already seen the tombstones of the family, but I wanted to get a feel for the area. Looking on topographical maps, I programmed by Google Maps to take us straight to the Wardlow cemetery first, where my 4th-great grandfather, John Wright (1814-1890) was buried.
As we came into Ohio and were nearing our destination, I saw the sign for historic Williamsburg and we made a slight detour to check it out. I knew that our Wright family had been in Williamsburg from some of the early deeds in Clermont County.
Driving around, we found Harmony Hill, where William Lytle had his home and land office. He was an early surveyor and settler in the area. Their museum wasn't opened yet, but we took a few pictures and planned to come back if we had time.
We headed towards the Wardlow cemetery first, which I knew was near Sardinia and with the GPS we were able to get into the general area. Then it became a game of watching the road for the cemetery. We found a few roads that had familiar names, including Wardlow Road, which we turned down and found an abandoned house that looked like it was not somewhere we wanted to be stuck.
We didn't find the cemetery until mom pulled it up on her phone and Google maps was telling us to turn on "Cemetery Road", except the road didn't have a sign. There was man outside at the house next door, so we stopped and verified that the cemetery was down that gravel road. He told us we should be ok to go down there, but did tell us that the owner might come down and see what we were doing.
We headed down the gravel road to the cemetery, went through the gate, and began to look for the graves of John & Anna (Wardlow) Wright. We found them pretty easily, as their marker was one of the tallest in the cemetery, and the only Wright buried there. I was able to get a couple of good photographs of mom with the markers and took some video. We were there just before noon, so the shadow effect on the marker wasn't the best.
Mom next to inscription for John Wright
Mom next to inscription for Anna (Wardlow) Wright
Just as we were leaving the cemetery, a lady came up on a Gator and asked us what we were doing. Fortunately, she could tell we weren't there to cause trouble, and I gave her one of my genealogy calling cards and explained our relationship to the Wardlow clan. She was not a Wardlow, but her sorority sister, who lived across the road, was a Wardlow descendant and the owner of the property. Unfortunately, she wasn't home, but her friend was able to tell us a bit about the land and the history of the place. Seems they had to take down the "Cemetery Road" sign as they were having too many people 'partying' and dumping trash, etc. on the property and the cemetery. Such a shame because the property was so peaceful.
I was able to take a brief video of the cemetery that will give you a feel for the place. A nice final resting place for my ancestors.
We spent some time talking and the lady showed us a tour of the Wardlow barn, which had been on the property since 1805. The barn had been moved from its original spot closer to the road, and obviously had been refurbished, but some of the original hand-hewn beams were present. We signed our names on the wall of the barn, where other guests had done.
We were invited to come back by later in the day, but explained that we were heading to Georgetown to the museum, and depending on how our day went, we might not be able to visit. We mentioned that we were also going to see if we could find the George Wright cemetery, which we also knew was on private property, and she was familiar with it and able to give directions. Apparently, enough of our distant cousins have visited in the past and had asked for the same directions. We headed down the road and around to try to locate the Wright cemetery, again using GPS. Fortunately, I had already checked it out on Google maps with a satellite view, so when I saw the property that I was sure it was near, we were able to stop. Once again, we were fortunate as the owner of the property was home and was willing to talk to us about the family plot. She was not a Wright descendant, but told us a story about how when they bought the property some 30 years prior, an old woman came knocking on their door and told them they would be cursed if they didn't restore the iron fence around the Wright family plot! She said there were a lot of snakes back there, and that her husband would be home shortly and that he could take us back. Her son actually came by after a few minutes, and was gracious to take us back to the woods where the family plot was in his Gator. As we walked back through the woods and the deer trail, it was obvious that very few people had been back there in some time. The son told us that one of the markers had disappeared and was across the creek and on another property now. We were able to find George Wright and his son Samuel's tombstone standing upright. Samuel's was broken and leaning against a tree. Mom was clearing some leaves and found Elizabeth's tombstone laying down and partially buried. We did not find the marker for Rebecca, Samuel's wife. The iron fencing was partially visible though the brush.
George Wright (1780-1853)
Samuel P. Wright (1816-1859)
Elizabeth (Robins) Wright (1781-1857)
Condition of Elizabeth's stone
How the cemetery looks in the woods
We were so thankful for the kindness of these strangers who now owned the family farms of our ancestors and were willing to allow us to view their final resting places. After later looking at the maps of the pieces of land, it appears that the George Wright farm and the Wardlow farm butted up against each other in a triangle type pattern - which helps explain why George's son, John, married the neighbor girl - a Wardlow. It was just getting close to noon, and we'd already had an outstandingly productive day. Not knowing how long we'd need to be at the museum, I was taking a chance by looking for the cemeteries early and was able to strike pay dirt. These visits made the trip worthwhile. We went into Georgetown and visited the Brown County museum and spent some time looking through their vertical family files. Searching the Wright family file, I found a copy of a letter that I had written to them back in 1990!
It is good to know that they keep materials! I will have to send some updated research notes to them to add for future researchers. I was able to make a few copies of some of the files on the Wright, Wardlow and other families I knew of in Brown County. Being my first time at the museum, my research plan was not as well thought out as I would have liked. Now that I have a lay of the land, I will be able to plan a return trip and do more digging. On our way back towards Indiana, we stopped back in Williamsburg at Harmony Hill and spoke with their museum folks and the Clermont County Historical Society as well. I purchased a book on the Virginia Military District land grants that contained some information on Robert Wright, and picked up some materials for future research.
While at Harmony Hill, I mentioned that our John Wright was an early settler in Williamsburg with William Lytle, and the lady mentioned that the local cemetery had a marker to all of the Revolutionary War veterans. Not knowing for sure that John was a veteran, nor knowing where he was buried, we took a chance and went to the cemetery on our way out of town. We searched the old section but didn't find any markers that had the Wright name. We did find the marker placed by the local SAR, that did not list any family names of ours as veterans buried there.
Not only did I have a good time researching mom's family history with her, but visited some beautiful areas of southwest Ohio. I'm already planning to make a return trip to do more research.
George Wright appears in the 1850 census of Washington Township, Brown County, Ohio in dwelling 1556, family 1561. The census lists George as a 69 year-old farmer, born in Pennsylvania, along with his wife, Elizabeth, age 68, also born in Pennsylvania. In focusing on his FAN (Friends, Associates & Neighbors) club, I’ve looked into the neighboring ten households before and ten households afterwards to ensure that I’m covering all of his close neighbors. What I’ve discovered is that, as expected, many of these families are inter-connected through marriage and have been part of the same network for several years. In this analysis, I started with George’s household and then moved to through the ten households prior before picking up and working on the ten households after his enumeration. Living in the same household as George and his wife, Elizabeth, are four other Wrights, including Samuel P., age 33, farmer, born in Ohio. This is George’s known son. [His middle name was Pangburn, a potential clue to another family relationship.] Samuel’s wife, Rebecca R., age 24, born in Ohio and their two children: Elizabeth S., aged 4, born in Ohio and George H., age 2, born in Ohio complete the household. Next door is the family in dwelling 1555, family 1560 headed by John Wright, age 35, farmer, born in Ohio. This is also George’s known son. John’s wife, Anne, age 34, born in Ohio and their five children : Elizabeth J., age 14, born in Ohio; Joseph, age 12, born in Ohio; Nancy, age 9, born in Ohio; Mary, age 7, born in Ohio and Maxamelia, age 4, born in Ohio complete the household. [These names all match the 1883 sketch of John Wright’s family in the History of Brown County, Ohio. I descend from John’s son, Joseph.] The family in dwelling 1554, family 1559 is headed by John Robbins, age 52, farmer, born in Pennsylvania. Living in the household are Mary, age 23, born in Ohio; William, age 20, born in Ohio; Elizabeth, age 19, born in Ohio; Sarah, age 17, born in Ohio; George, age 14, born in Ohio; Cecilia, age 12, born in Ohio; Amos, age 6, born in Ohio; and Lydia, age 4, born in Ohio. [Could this be a brother to George's wife, Elizabeth Robins/Robbins?] The family in dwelling 1553, family 1558 is headed by William P. Hindman, age 24, born in Ohio. Living in the household are Amanda, age 25, born in Ohio and Caroline A., age 2, born in Ohio. The family in dwelling 1552, family 1557 is headed by Allen Hendrixson, age 33, farmer, born in Kentucky. Living in the household are Sarah, age 30, born in Ohio; Elizabeth, age 9, born in Ohio; George, age 8, born in Ohio; William M., age 5, born in Ohio; Nancy, age 2, born in Ohio and Susana, age 6 months, born in Ohio. [Allen Hendrixson married Sarah Ann Wright on October 24, 1839 in Brown County, Ohio. Sarah was the daughter of George and Elizabeth (Robins) Wright] The family in dwelling 1551, family 1556 is headed by William Hindman, age 62, farmer, born in Kentucky. Living in the household are Nancy, age 58, born in Pennsylvania; William, age 7, born in Indiana; as well as Martha J. Huggins, age 32, born in Ohio; Vilena Huggins, age 8, born in Ohio; and Eveline Davis, age 15, born in Ohio. The family in dwelling 1550, family 1555 is headed by Mary Robins, age 50, born in Ohio. Living in the household are John, carpenter, age 26, born in Ohio; Josiah, carpenter, age 25, born in Ohio; Samuel, carpenter, age 19, born in Ohio; Lucinda, age 17, born in Ohio and William M., farmer, age 15, born in Ohio. The family in dwelling 1549, family 1554 is headed by Jonathan W. Riley, age 26, miller, born in Ohio. Living in the household are Olive, age 29, born in Ohio; John O., age 4, born in Illinois and Rosella, age 2, born in Ohio. The family in dwelling 1548, family 1553 is headed by John W. Riley, age 60, miller, born in North Carolina. Living in the household are Sarah, age 58, born in Kentucky; Elizabeth, age 24, born in Ohio and Thirza, age 17, born in Ohio. The family in dwelling 1547, family 1552 is headed by Thomas Purdy, age 28, farmer, born in Pennsylvania. Living in the household are Lucinda, age 24, born in Ohio, and William T., age 2, born in Ohio. The family in dwelling 1546, family 1551 is headed by William Wilson, age 50, farmer, born in Virginia. Living in the household are Sarah, age 49, born in Pennsylvania; Elizabeth, age 22, born in Ohio; Sarah A., age 16, born in Ohio; Martin, age 14, born in Ohio; Josiah, age 9, born in Ohio and Letty J., age 7, born in Ohio. This ends the enumeration of the ten households prior to George Wright in Washington Township, Brown County, Ohio in the 1850 census. Next I will focus on the ten households afterwards. The family in dwelling 1557, family 1562 is headed by John T. Reeves, age 38, farmer, born in Ohio. Living in the household are Eliza, age 39, born in Ohio; Frances, age 19, born in Ohio; William R., age 16, born in Ohio; Rebecca, age 14, born in Ohio; John R., age 7, born in Ohio; Daniel Smith, age 19, laborer, born in Ohio and Sybil Jacobs, age 81, born in Virginia. [John T. Reeves married Elizabeth Jacobs, daughter of William & Sybil (Little) Jacobs - another branch of my family.] The family in dwelling 1558, family 1563 is headed by James Calvin, age 39, farmer, born in Ohio. Living in the household are Matilda, age 30, born Ohio; David, age 12, born in Ohio; Mary J., age 8, born in Ohio; Christena, age 6, born in Ohio; Martha J., age 4, born in Ohio and John T., age 2, born in Ohio. The family in dwelling 1559, family 1564 is headed by Jane Calvin, age 66, born in Virginia. Living in the household are Albert, age 32, farmer, born in Ohio; Robert, age 30, farmer, born in Ohio; Luther, age 28, farmer, born in Ohio and Jane, age 26, born in Ohio. [Believe this is the Jane Wardlow who married Joseph Calvin January 12, 1805 in Clermont County, Ohio. Jane was the daughter of Robert & Janet (Downey) Wardlow.] The family in dwelling 1560, family 1565 is headed by Morris Vance, age 33, farmer, born in Ohio. Living in the household are Nancy, age 33, born in Ohio; Margaret, age 10, born in Ohio; Jane, age 9, born in Ohio; James H.P., age 5, born in Ohio; John, age 3, born in Ohio; Joseph, age 1, born in Ohio and Abraham S., aged 1 month born in Ohio. [Morris Vance married Nancy Calvin, daughter of Joseph & Jane (Wardlow) Calvin.] The family in dwelling 1561, family 1566 is headed by Margaret Wardlow, age 44, born in North Carolina. Living in the household are Elizabeth J., age 17, born in Ohio; Catherine S., age 14, born in Ohio; Jacob W., age 12, born in Ohio; Margaret, age 9, born in Ohio; James, age 7, born in Ohio and Thomas G., age 3, born in Ohio. [Believe this is Margaret (Hoss) Wardlow, who married Philander Wardlow on December 26, 1822 in Brown County, Ohio. He died August 25, 1847 and was the son of William and Isabel (Nesbit) Wardlow.] The family in dwelling 1562, family 1567 is headed by Matilda Wardlow, age 30, born in Ohio. Living in the household is Isabella, age 70, born in Virginia and David, age 17, born in Ohio. [Believe this is Matilda, daughter of William and Isabel (Nesbit) Wardlow.] The family in dwelling 1563, family 1568 is headed by Ellis M. Dye, age 41, farmer, born in Ohio. Living in the household are Margaret, age 38, born in Ohio; Sarah J., age 16, born in Ohio; James H., age 14, born in Ohio; Matilda A., age 12, born in Ohio; David G., age 9, born in Ohio; Noah E., age 7, born in Ohio; Mary A., age 5, born in Ohio; Mary A., age 5, born in Ohio; John R., age 3, born in Ohio and Henry P., age 1, born in Ohio. The family in dwelling 1564, family 1569 is headed by Patrick Vance, age 43, farmer, born in Ohio. Living in the household is Rebecca, age 43, born in Ohio; Ruth, age 20, born in Ohio; John, age 18, born in Ohio; Elizabeth, age 16, born in Ohio; David, age 12, born in Ohio; Daniel, age 10, born in Ohio; McKea, age 8, born in Ohio; William W., age 5, born in Ohio and Jesse H., age 2, born in Ohio. The family in dwelling 1565, family 1570 is headed by William Vance, age 46, farmer, born in Kentucky. Living in the household is Margaret J., age 25, born in Ohio; Joseph C., age 23, farmer, born in Ohio; Lydia A.M., age 19, born in Ohio; Mary M., age 17, born in Ohio; Sysena, age 15, born in Ohio; Sophrona, age 12, born in Ohio; William H.H., age 10, born in Ohio; Thomas C.H., age 6, born in Ohio; Lafayette S., age 4, born in Ohio; and Hanson L.P., age 1, born in Ohio. The family in dwelling 1566, dwelling 1571 is headed by Hysom Moler, age 34, farmer, born in Kentucky. Living in the household is Nancy A., age 27, born in Ohio; Thomas S., age 8, born in Ohio; James L., age 6, born in Ohio; Matilda A., aged 3, born in Ohio; Henry H., age 1, born in Ohio and Margaret, age 16, born in Ohio. I will be adding these names and family members to my spreadsheet of George's FAN club and begin searching for additional clues that might tie them to George, either through marriage or land records. If you have any connection or are related to any of these families, I would love to hear from you.
It has been awhile,but
I am working again on the Wright lines in Clermont/Brown Counties, Ohio.
I'm truly doing a
'do-over' on the information I have and am focusing on the FAN club (Friends,
Neighbors, Associates) of my George Wright (1780-1853) in order to shore up the
connections and understand the relationships between all of the various
families. I've created a spreadsheet to track the connected families, and
would like your input.
If
you recall, George Wright (1780-1853), was purported to be a son of John &
Sarah (Fleming) Wright. This John is believed to have a brother Robert
Wright, who was a Revolutionary War soldier and married to Catherine Applegate.
George
Wright is my target ancestor because he is the furthest direct ancestor that I
can tie my Wright line to through documented evidence and not just family group
sheets and conjecture.
While I have seen
information put out on the web and through family group sheets connecting these
Wrights to Cambridge, Massachusetts and then on into Scotland, I am
re-evaluating and looking for more solid ground to stake that claim.
I have the wills of
both George Wright (1780-1853) and Robert Wright (1757-1840) out of Brown
County, as well as some land documents and have been extracting names of
witnesses, etc. in order to try to tie out the family connections. In future posts, I plan to examine these
individuals and how they are connected to the Wrights.
Through land records,
I know that George Wright's mother was named Sarah, but so far have not found a
"smoking gun" that gives her maiden name as Fleming. I'm hoping
through an analysis of neighbors and associates I can better track the movement
of these families and locate the information.
I hope that this
analysis likewise sheds some light on the connections (if any) between these
Wrights and the other Wrights in the area.
I’ve thrown out a post
on a couple of Facebook message boards for Clermont and Brown counties, hoping
that some other researchers would have some information as well.
If you have any additional
information or are related to these families, I would love to hear from you.
Sorting through some pictures I took at a visit to the Alexandria-Monroe Historical Society, I thought I would share them here. The society has a nice collection of old local photos. I'm looking forward to its re-opening in the spring so I can get back there and do more research. This first photo was taken in 1954 and shows my uncle Terry, as a young Boy Scout at the new Marie Thurston Elementary school.
In the society's military room, this photograph of my maternal great-uncle, John M. High, who served on the USS Oklahoma at Pearl Harbor, was found:
Another photo in the military room was of my maternal great-aunt, Clara Ellen (Wright) High, who served with the WAVES during World War II:
Another photo I found while browsing at the museum was of my maternal great grandaunt, Geneva Ruth (Aldridge) Pierce when she was a little girl:
These types of wonderful photos are great finds at local historical societies. I'm looking forward to returning to see what other gems I can add to my family history.
Joseph W. Wright (1838-1919) was my maternal third great grandfather. What follows is an exploratory analysis of the biographical data I have discovered about him. 1. Vital Records Joseph was born in April of 1838 in Brown County, Ohio1, 2. 1.1. Birth Certificate The State of Ohio did not require birth certificates at the time of Joseph's birth. Statewide recording of births started in 1867. 1.1.1. Birth Notice in Newspaper If Joseph's birth was mentioned in a newspaper, I've not yet located it. Will need to check with state and local archives to see if they have any local newspapers from the time period. 1.1.2. Bible Record I am not aware of any surviving Wright family Bible that mentions Joseph. Will continue to reach out to extended family in hopes that one can be located. 1.1.3. Baptismal Record I'm not aware of any baptismal record record for Joseph. I'm not aware of the church affiliation of the Wright family at this time. 1.1.4. Adoption Record There is no indication that Joseph was adopted. 1.2. Marriage License Joseph married Rebecca Heaton on November 1, 1857 in Schuyler County, Missouri3. They had moved with Rebecca's parents to Liberty Township, Schuyler County, Missouri along with other families from Brown County, Ohio. Joseph married Dortha Palmer on April 11, 1891 in Madison County, Indiana4. 1.2.1 Marriage Notice in Newspaper I have not yet searched available newspapers from the time period to see if Joseph and Rebecca's or Joseph and Dortha's nuptials were mentioned. 1.2.2. Anniversary Notice I have not yet searched available newspapers from the time period to see if mention was made of Joseph and Rebecca's anniversaries, either. Their 25th wedding anniversary would have been November 1, 1882. Rebecca passed away before their 50th. Will add this to my list of "to-do" items for my next research trip. 1.2.3. Divorce Decree There is no indication that a divorce ever occurred, and a recent search of court records during the time period did not turn up a divorce record. 1.3. Death Certificate
Joseph died September 16, 1919 in Monroe Township, Madison County, Indiana5 of organic heart over inflation. 1.3.1. Obituary in Newspaper Joseph's obituary appeared in the September 16, 1919 edition of the Alexandria Times-Tribune in Alexandria, Indiana6. 1.3.2. Funeral Home Records Will need to search records of the local historical society to see if they have any records of funeral homes that might pertain to Joseph. Will add this to my list of "to-do" items for my next research trip. 1.3.3. Tombstone Photograph Joseph's tombstone in the I.O.O.F. cemetery in Alexandria, Indiana has been photographed7. A link to his memorial page at FindAGrave can be found here. 2. Census Records 2.1. Federal Census Records 2.1.1. 1910 Federal Census On April 20, 1910, Joseph was enumerated as head of household in Monroe Township, Madison County, Indiana8, as Joseph Wright, male, white, Farmer, age 72. He was married for the 2nd time for 19 years. He was born in Ohio, as were both of his parents. He could read and write and spoke English and owned his home free of mortgage. 2.1.2. 1900 Federal Census On June 27, 1900, Joseph was enumerated as head of household in Monroe Township, Madison County, Indiana9, as Joseph Wright, male, white, Farmer, age 62, born April 1838. He was born in Ohio, as were both of his parents. He could read and write ans spoke English and owned his home free of mortgage. 2.1.3. 1880 Federal Census On June 18, 1880, Joseph was enumerated as head of household in Monroe Township, Madison County, Indiana10, as Joseph Wright, male, white, Farmer, age 50. He was born in Ohio, as were both of his parents. 2.1.4. 1870 Federal Census On September 13, 1870, Joseph was enumerated as head of household in Monroe Township, Madison County, Indiana11, as Joseph Wright, male, white, Farmer, age 33. The value of his real estate was $3000, and his personal estate was valued at $639. He was born in Ohio, and was a U.S. citizen. 2.1.5. 1860 Federal Census On June 28, 1860, Joseph was enumerated as head of household in Washington Township, Brown County, Ohio12, as Joseph Wright, male, Farmer, age 22, born in Ohio. 2.1.6. 1850 Federal Census On September 18, 1850, Joseph was enumerated in the John Wright household in Washington Township, Brown County, Ohio13, as Joseph Wright, age 12, male, born in Ohio. He had attended school within the year. 2.2. State Census Records The State of Indiana conducted census in 1853, 1857, 1871, 1877, 1883, 1889, 1901, 1913, 1919 and 1931. These, however, were merely for the purposes of legislative apportionment. No state census records in Ohio are known to exist. 2.3. Agricultural Census Records I have not yet investigated these types of records to see what light they might shed on the Wright farm. 3. Military Records 3.1. Draft Registration No draft record has yet to be located for Joseph. Searches in Brown County, Ohio, where he was residing in 1860 census have not yielded positive results. 3.2. Pension Records I am not aware of any military service by Joseph that would have made him eligible to receive a pension. 3.3. Service Records No military service has been discovered for Joseph, though he would have been at the proper age to have served during the Civil War. No mention of Civil War service was made in his obituary, and there is no known tradition of Civil War service. How he managed to not serve during the war is a mystery that needs further research. 4. Land Records
4.1. Deed Records Deed records need to be thoroughly searched in Madison County, Indiana, Brown County, Ohio and Schuyler County, Missouri to see what records mention Joseph. Will add this to my list of "to-do" items for my next research trip. 4.2. Plat map / county map Plat maps of Madison County, Indiana will need to be searched to see what information can be gleaned that might be relevant for my search. 5. Supplemental Records Supplemental records to research for Joseph include city/county directories, court records and will and probate records. Will add this to my list of "to-do" items for my next research trip. Sources: 1. Joseph Wright household, 1900 U.S. census, population schedule, Monroe Township, Madison County, Indiana, ED 96, SD 8, sheet 22A, dwelling 411, family 445; National Archives micropublication T623, roll 386, page 39. 2. Ancestry.com. Indiana, Death Certificates, 1899-2011 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc, 2015. Original data : Indiana State Board of Health. Death Certificates, 1900-2011. Microfilm. Indiana Archives and Records Administration, Indianapolis, Indiana. 3. Ancestry.com. Missouri, Marriage Records, 1805-2002 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2007. Original data : Missouri Marriage Records. Jefferson City, MO, USA: Missouri State Archives. Microfilm. 4. Joseph Wright - Dortha Palmer marriage license (1891), Madison County Clerk's Office, Anderson, Indiana, USA. 5. Ancestry.com. Indiana, Death Certificates, 1899-2011 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015. Original data: Indiana State Board of Health. Death Certificates, 1900–2011. Microfilm. Indiana Archives and Records Administration, Indianapolis, Indiana.,Joseph Wright, 9-16-1919, Madison County, Indiana. 6. Joseph Wright obituary, Alexandria Times Tribune, Alexandria, Indiana, USA, September 16, 1919, page 1, page 1. 7. FindAGrave, Inc., FindAGrave.com (www.findagrave.com : accessed 14 November 2016), Joseph W. Wright memorial. 8. Joseph Wright household, 1910 U.S. census, population schedule, Monroe Twp., Madison Co., IN, ED 109, SD 8, sheet 2B, dwelling 40, family 40; National Archives micropublication T624, roll 364., Page 168. 9. Joseph Wright household, 1900 U.S. census, population schedule, Monroe Twp., Madison Co., IN, ED 96, SD 8, sheet 22A, dwelling 411, family 445; National Archives micropublication T623, roll 386., Page 39. 10. Joseph Wright household, 1880 U.S. census, population schedule, Monroe Twp., Madison Co., IN, ED 21, SD 3, Page 39, dwelling 329, family 330; National Archives micropublication T9, roll 293., Page 106. 11.Joseph Wright household, 1870 U.S. census, population schedule, Monroe Twp., Madison Co., IN, Page 38, Alexandria P.O., dwelling 275, family 270; National Archives micropublication M593, roll 336., Page 210. 12. Joseph Wright household, 1860 U.S. census, population schedule, Washington Twp., Brown Co., OH, Sardinia P.O., dwelling 360, family 360; National Archives micropublication M653, roll 938., Page 25. 13. John Wright household, 1850 U.S. census, population schedule, Washington Township, Brown County, Ohio, USA, dwelling 1555, family 1560; National Archives micropublication M432, roll 662. This post was developed as part of the series relating to Building My 2011 Research Template, an attempt to systematically document and source the details of my ancestors' lives. Comments regarding this template and the conclusions drawn in this article are welcomed.
