Mom's DAR Process - Francis Smalley - Documenting Generations 1 & 2

It's been a little over a month since mom submitted her application to the National Society for membership through our ancestor, Francis Smalley.  Hopefully the line will be approved.  She was helped by the ladies of the Kikthawenund Chapter and enjoyed going with me to the courthouses and cemeteries.  Thought I would share some of the information we discovered throughout this process.

I had created a Dropbox folder so that mom and the DAR ladies could access the information from any location.  This also helped me to keep my files better organized and pointed out where I needed to obtain more information.  Each generation was placed in a folder working forward from mom to Francis Smalley.  I liked this method so well that I intend to use this for future lines and with applications to other societies.

For the first generation, the birth certificate of mom and dad, as well as their marriage certificate was used.  The marriage certificate she submitted was one that was signed by the witnesses as well as the minister.


The birth certificate for mom was issued by the Madison County, Indiana Health Department as Certificate 46-E562, Book ICH15 Page 13.  No real surprises here.  Her parents were listed, but their places of birth were not given.  Before this process began, I did not have her actual birth certificate listed as a source in my database.

The birth certificate for dad was issued not by the county, which I expected, but by the city of Portland, Indiana.  The record was filed in Book 6 page 90.  It states that dad was the fourth child of his parents.  Before this process began, I did not have his actual birth certificate listed as a source in my database.

For the second generation, that of my grandparents, the birth and death certificate of William Lee Wright, the birth certificate of Bonnie May Lambertson and the death certificate of Bonnie Mae Wright and their marriage license were used as source information.

The birth certificate for William Lee Wright was issued by the Madison County, Indiana Health Department in Book H-11, page 91.  The certificate stated that he was born in Monroe Township [misspelled on certificate] and that both of his parents were born in Indiana.

William Lee Wright, birth certificate no. Book H-11, page 91 (1919), Madison County Health Department, Anderson, Indiana, USA.

The birth certificate for Bonnie May Lambertson was issued by the Madison County, Indiana Health Department in Book ICH9, page 64 # 315.  The certificate stated that she was born in the City of Elwood and that both of her parents were born in Indiana.  Her middle name was given as "May" on her birth certificate, though later in life she used the spelling "Mae" for her middle name.

Bonnie May Lambertson, birth certificate no. Book ICH9, page 64 # 315 (1924), Madison County Indiana Health Department, Anderson, Madison County, Indiana, USA.

The marriage license for William and Bonnie was filed in Madison County, Indiana as license number 66/255.  At this time, Bonnie was using the spelling of her middle name as "Mae".  William was residing at Rural Route 2 Alexandria and working as a factory worker, Bonnie was living at Rural Route 3 Elwood and unemployed.

William Lee Wright - Bonnie Mae Lambertson, marriage license no. 66/255 (1941), Madison County Clerk's Office, Anderson, Indiana, USA.

The death certificate for William Lee Wright was issued by the Madison County, Indiana Health Department in Book CH37 and filed 7/9/1973.  His date of death was July 9, 1973 at 12:44 a.m. at Community Hospital, Anderson, Indiana.  His age was 53.  The immediate cause was coronary occlusion and it was certified by Richard H. Shafer, MD of Alexandria, Indiana.  I have a vague memory of the night that he passed.

William Lee Wright, death certificate no. Book CH37 (1973), Madison County Health Department, Anderson, Indiana, USA.

The death certificate for Bonnie Mae Wright was issued by the Madison County, Indiana Health Department in Book H48, page 45 and filed April 10, 1984.  Her date of death was April 9, 1984 at 4:00 p.m. at R.R. # 4 Box 328.  Her age was 60.  The immediate cause was hypostatic punomia and myocardial weakness and it was certified by Richard H. Shafer, MD of Alexandria, Indiana.  I have many memories of grandma struggling with cancer and living with us before she passed.

Bonnie Mae Wright, death certificate no. Book H48, page 45 (1984), Madison County Board of Health, Anderson, Indiana, USA.

Working through this process has helped me to extract additional facts and information for my research.  Having the official documents to backup the facts was something that I should have done from the beginning of my research.  Working on these lineage society applications will be good for my overall research.

If you have any additional information or are connected to these families in any way, I would love to hear from you.

FTDNA Cousin Results

My two maternal first cousins recently tested at FamilyTreeDNA, and the above chart show the amount of DNA they share with me.

Cousin Kellie shares more DNA with me than her brother.  At 1204.82 cm, she is actually a little above the normal expected range for a first cousin.  Cousin James shares 1046.75 cm with me.

By comparison, great aunt Ruby shares 998.10 cm of shared DNA with me.

I am currently working on extracting the In Common With matches that Kellie and James have with me.  Any of these matches should match on either the Wright or the Lambertson side.

Likewise, by comparing their matches with myself and Ruby's matches, we can also narrow down those that match on the Lambertson or Davis side.  I'm hoping that their DNA is one more step towards solving the parentage of June Davis Gilliland Lambertson.

Exploratory Data Analysis : Daniel King (1820-1876)

Daniel King (1820-1876) was my maternal 3rd-great grandfather.  What follows is an exploratory analysis of the biographical data I have discovered about him.


1. Vital Records

     Daniel was born September 3, 1820¹.  The place of his birth has been given as either Tennessee², Ohio³, or Indiana⁴.  These inconsistencies in his place of birth are due to the fact this family moved around quite a bit, and will be addressed in a later post.

     1.1. Birth Certificate

          The State of Indiana did not require birth certificates at this time.

          1.1.1. Birth Notice in Newspaper

                If Daniel's birth was mentioned in a local newspaper, it has been lost to time.

          1.1.2. Bible Record

               I am not aware of any surviving Bible record of the King family that would record the birth of Daniel.  Will continue to reach out to extended family in hopes that one could be located.

          1.1.3. Baptismal Record

               I am not aware of any baptismal record for Daniel.  The King family were affiliated with the Methodist Episcopal faith.

          1.1.4. Adoption Record

               There is no indication that Daniel was adopted.

     1.2. Marriage License

          Daniel married Elizabeth Shaw on December 5, 1847 in Madison County, Indiana.  I do not have a source for this fact in my database.  The courthouse in Madison County, Indiana suffered a fire in 1880 and earlier marriage records were lost.

          1.2.1 Marriage Notice in Newspaper

               Will need to search contemporary newspaper accounts to see if mention was made of Daniel's nuptials.

          1.2.2. Anniversary Notice

               Daniel and Elizabeth's 25th wedding anniversary would have been December 5, 1872.  Will need to check contemporary newspaper accounts to see if any mention was made of an anniversary celebration.

          1.2.3. Divorce Decree

               There is no indication that Daniel and Elizabeth were ever divorced.

     1.3. Death Certificate

          Daniel died February 24, 1876 in Frankton, Madison County, Indiana¹, according to my database.  The State of Indiana did not require death certificates at this time.  

          1.3.1. Obituary in Newspaper

               Will need to seek out contemporary newspaper accounts to see if mention was made of Daniel's death.  Will add this to my "to-do" list for my next research trip.

          1.3.2. Funeral Home Records

               Will need to search the local historical society to see if they have records of funeral homes that might shed some light on Daniel's funeral.  Will add this to my list of "to-do" items for my next research trip.

          1.3.3. Tombstone Photograph

               Daniel's tombstone in the Howard Cemetery in Madison County, Indiana⁵ has been photographed.  A link to his memorial at FindAGrave is located here.

2. Census Records

     2.1. Federal Census Records

          2.1.1. 1870 Federal Census

               Daniel was enumerated as the head of household in Monroe Township, Madison County, Indiana³, as Daniel King, age 50, Farmer, born in Ohio.  He was a U.S. citizen.  The value of his real estate was $14,500 and his personal estate was $ 6,031.

          2.1.2. 1860 Federal Census

               Daniel was enumerated as the head of household in Monroe Township, Madison County, Indiana⁴, as Daniel King, age 39, Farmer, born in Indiana.  The value of his real estate was $ 4,000 and his personal estate was $ 1,375.

          2.1.3. 1850 Federal Census

               Daniel was enumerated as the head of household in Jackson Township, Madison County, Indiana², as Daniel King, age 29, farmer, born in Tennessee.  The value of his real estate was $ 400.

     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.

     2.3. Agricultural Census Records

          I have not yet investigated these types of census records to see what light they might shed on the King family.

3. Military Records

     3.1. Draft Registration

          I have not yet located any draft registration nor military service for Daniel.

     3.2. Pension Records

          Not applicable.

     3.3. Service Records

          Not applicable.

4. Land Records

     4.1. Deed Records

          Deed records need to be thoroughly searched in Madison County, Indiana to see what records might mention Daniel.  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 to my search.

5. Supplemental Records

     Supplemental records available for research on Daniel include city/county directories, court records and will and probate records.  Will add these to my list of "to-do" items for my next research trip.

Sources :

1. Sandra Freeman, "John William Wright - Ellen King family group sheet," compiled [n.d.] (Alexandria, Indiana).  Notes say information from Zelma Cooper and Gloria LeMaster
2. Daniel King household, 1850 U.S. census, population schedule, Jackson Township, Madison County, Indiana, dwelling 274, family 274; National Archives micropublication M432, roll 158, page 97.
3. Daniel King household, 1870 U.S. census, Madison County, Indiana, population schedule, Monroe Township, page 35, dwelling 255, family 249, National Archives micropublication M593, roll 336.
4. Daniel King household, 1860 U.S. census, Madison County, Indiana, population schedule, Monroe Township page 145, dwelling 1025, family 1023, National Archives micropublication M653, roll 277.
5. FindAGrave, Inc., FindAGrave (www.findagrave.com : accessed 20 March 2016), Daniel King tombstone.

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.