Census Sunday : Virgil Lee Wright household, 1940, Madison County, Indiana

My maternal great-grandfather, Virgil Lee Wright, was enumerated in the 1940 US census in Madison County, Indiana.  His address was a farm in Monroe Township, which the census indicated was valued at $4000.

1940 U.S. census, Madison County, Indiana, population schedule, Monroe Township, enumeration district (ED) 48-59, sheet 7A, household 135, ; digital images, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : accessed 4 January 2015); National Archives, Washington, D.C..

The family consisted of my great-grandfather, Virgil, aged 46, my great-grandmother, Muriel, aged 43, and three children : Clara, William and Barbara.  My great-grandmother, Muriel, was the source of the information given to the enumerator, indicated by the "x" next to her name.  Clara was listed as 24 years old, William was 21 years old and Barbara was 8 years old.

According to the census, the family was living in the same location in 1935, and all were born in Indiana.  Virgil and son William were working the farm, while Clara Ellen was working as a bookkeeper for the Aladdin factory, which at the time had a big presence in Alexandria.

One error in the record is that Barbara is listed as a daughter, but then is noted as being male in the record.

Census Sunday is a daily blogging prompt used by many genealogy bloggers to help them post content on their sites.

State & Federal census sheets are filled with information for genealogists. Both the population & non-population schedules give us insights into the lives of our ancestors. What have you found that is Surprising? Reassuring? Bewildering? Census Sunday is a daily blogging prompt suggested by Colleen Pasquale of Leaves and Branches.

Surname Saturday : Burpbee

The BURPBEE surname is in my maternal line.  The origins of the surname are English, though I have much more to research about this line.

Stories and history :

Ahnentafel # 3341 : Sarah Burpbee (1660-1729).  Sarah was born May 21, 1660 in Rowley, Essex County, Massachusetts.  She married Samuel Spofford (1653-1744) on December 4, 1676 in Rowley, Essex County, Massachusetts.  Samuel was born January 31, 1653 in Rowley, Essex County, Massachusetts.  They had at least one son.  Samuel died January 1, 1744 in Rowley, Essex County, Massachusetts.  Sarah died November 18, 1729 in Bradford, Essex County, Massachusetts.

Ahnentafel # 6682 : Thomas Burpbee (1639-1701).  Thomas was born September 3, 1639 in England.  He married Sarah Kelley (1641-1713) on April 15, 1659 in Rowley, Essex County, Massachusetts.  Sarah was born February 12, 1641 in Newbury, Essex County, Massachusetts.  They had at least one daughter.  Sarah died December 25, 1713 in Rowley, Essex County, Massachusetts.  Thomas died June 1, 1701 in Rowley, Essex County, Massachusetts.


Surname Saturday – create a post in which you discuss a surname and mention its origins, its geographical location(s) and how it fits into your genealogy research. Surname Saturday is an ongoing series at GeneaBloggers.

Tombstone Tuesday : Elizabeth (Wright) Jones

Elizabeth (Wright) Jones (1863-1882) is buried in the I.O.O.F. cemetery in Alexandria, Madison County, Indiana.  She was the wife of William Alpha Jones (c1858-1934) and the daughter of Joseph W. and Rebecca (Heaton) Wright.

Elizabeth was the mother of a daughter, Myrtle M. Jones.  Elizabeth died September 15, 1882, and may have died during childbirth.

Elizabeth was my maternal second great grandaunt. Elizabeth was born in 1863 in Brown County, Ohio.

Tombstone Tuesday – To participate in Tombstone Tuesday simply create a post which includes an image of a gravestone of one or more ancestors and it may also include a brief description of the image or the ancestor. This is an ongoing series at GeneaBloggers.