Uncertain

Recent advances in autosomal DNA research have broken down a lot of old "brick walls" for genealogists.  But, in my case, it has also created new mysteries.  One of them is the paternity of my 3xgreat grandfather John Jackson.

There were already several questions marks about John before DNA results entered the fray.

First, was his birth date.  Different census records give conflicting ages.  They best I can say is he was born some time between 1805 and 1810.  

Second, is his birth location.  The 1850 and 1870 census enumerations indicate he was born in New Jersey, but the 1860 schedule says Ireland.

Third, I have no idea when or where he died.  He disappears after being listed as a day laborer in Princeton, New Jersey, in 1870.

Examination of DNA clusters over the last year or so yielded several matches between known descendants of this mysterious John Jackson and the descendants of a Caroline (Jackson) Provost.  

Research by Caroline's descendants says she was born about 1812 in New Jersey.  She married 31 December 1831 in Middlesex County, New Jersey, to Frederick Provost (1809-1876) and moved to the vicinity of Rochester, New York.  Later, about the time of the Civil War, they left New York to settle in Michigan.  Caroline died in Detroit on 13 June 1899.

Centimorgan comparisons combined with this information leads me to believe Caroline was John's younger sister.  But, I have not been able to confirm this theory with documentation . . . add this one to the pile of "further research needed!"

#52Ancestors

Tombstone

This image of a tombstone in the middle of Shelby Farms Park in Memphis, Tennessee, was taken in 2005, and appears on the park's Wikipedia page.

It was erected in 1891 in memory of my great aunt Martha S. (Twyford) Mann and her husband Robert, who died within a few weeks of one another that winter.

A google search led me to this 2008 article about the stone, with clues on how to locate it.  And, last year, I attempted just that.

The thing is, Shelby Farms is the largest urban park in the country.  With 4,500 acres, it is five times the size of New York City's Central Park.

The bottom line, we spent the better part of a warm May day hiking through the park's woodiest, most remote section on our mission to find the stone.  But, despite the clues provided, our search was fruitless.

I think part of the problem was in the time of year.  We were searching in late spring, when the foliage in the woods was at its fullest.  The photo was evidently taken during the winter, when all that foliage had gone dormant and left the stone more visible from the hiking path.

Nonetheless, the hike is one I will never forget.  It was hot, and it took longer than we anticipated.   But, we saw some unparalleled natural beauty and enjoyed encounters with several deer.  And, because of that, I will always think fondly of this long gone great aunt and great uncle.

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Travel

If you're like me, the ongoing pandemic has had you under quarantine for the better part of two months.

One of the many disappointments associated with this situation is this is usually the time of year that I undertake a "Genealogy Vacation."  It's been a tradition for me and my mom to take the week before Mother's Day to take a road trip to one of the places where our ancestors lived.  We were going to go to Mississippi and Louisiana this year, but we cancelled those plans for obvious reasons . . .

Anyway, it's kind of cool that this week's blogging prompt is "Travel."  It has me reminiscing about all the place we have seen over the years:

2009 - NGS Family History Conference in Raleigh, North Carolina; with a side trip to Guilford Courthouse National Military Park to walk the battlefield where my ancestor William Jones was killed in battle during the American Revolution.  Unfortunately, it rained that entire day, so we had to stick to the visitor center . . .

2010 - cancelled at last minute, can't remember why . . .

2011 - NGS Family History Conference in Charleston, South Carolina.  We took the train up from Orlando, and were met at the station by friends who had driven up earlier in the day.  It was great having friends there with a car, because we were able to visit the Battery at our own pace.  I was able to see the French Huguenot church where my ancestor Rev. Francis L'Escot was pastor during the colonial era.

2012 - NGS Family History Conference in Cincinnati, Ohio.  We stayed across the state line in Lawrenceburg, Indiana, where we indulged in a little riverboat gambling and enjoyed resort accommodations.  The bonus was my Revolutionary War patriot ancestor Job Judd is buried in a cemetery in the nearby village of Bright, so we were able to pay our respects.  Then, we literally went chasing after a red solo cup thru the woods to discover his wife Mary (Andrews) Judd's final resting place along the Underground Railroad Trail.  I may have to dedicate a separate post on the red solo cup thing . . .

2013 - Cancelled due to my change of jobs, although we did make a quick run down to Palm Beach where I had to attend a work conference.   My aunt went with us, and we had a great time playing tourist after I got out of the conference.

2014 - NGS Family History Conference in Richmond, Virginia.  We spent a day in nearby Petersburg before making our way to the conference, took some great pictures of the old trading post established by my ancestor Peter Jones.  Our hotel in Richmond was having air conditioning "issues," so we shortened our stay.  But, we did have a great time visiting the conference exhibitors, the Tredegar iron works, and an Irish pub that served up some amazing curry chicken.  The next day we drove over to Campbell County, where my Morgan ancestors lived before the War Between the States; and had an especially great time touring Patrick Henry's "Red Hill" estate.  But, we were dismayed to find NO HOTEL ROOMS available in nearby Lynchburg, due to multiple college graduations.  So, we had to drive 100 miles down the road to Roanoke to find accommodations.  This unexpected detour led us to exploring the town of Floyd, where my great uncle William Morgan lived.  What a treasure trove of family history we discovered there.  That day will definitely require a separate blog post.

2015 - Alabama & Georgia, to visit various sites associated with my great grandmother's ancestors.  (Surnames: Arnett, Bonner, Hendricks, and Rushton.)  It was on this trip that I visited the remote cemetery detailed in a post earlier this year.  On our way back to Florida, we took a side trip to Andersonville National Historical Site, a very moving experience.

2016 - NGS Family History Conference in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.  An abbreviated trip, since it was basically in our back yard.  But, we did stay in a great hotel right at the yacht club, and were within easy walking distance of the convention center.  So, we were really able to spend time visiting with the conference exhibitors.  A fun time, but no real family connections to the area.

2017 - NGS Family History Conference in Raleigh, North Carolina.  We had already visited this convention center back in 2009, so the visit to the exhibitors hall was abbreviated.  Then we took a quick jaunt over to Salem to visit the Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts.  I was able to see an 18th century portrait of my Huguenot ancestor Frances (L'Escot) Villepontoux, furniture made by some of my Macy relatives, and pottery by my Rushton family.  That evening, we made our way to Monroe, North Carolina, birthplace of my great grandmother Sarah (Cox) Morgan.  And, the next day, we spent time locating some family cemeteries--some successfully, and one not so successfully.  This will require a separate blog post, too . . .

2018 - Gettysburg National Military Park in Pennsylvania.  I had ancestors who fought on both sides of the field, and was able to retrace their footsteps.  We found the locals here to be very friendly, and were glad we followed their dining suggestions and other tips.  From there, we drove over to Jersey City, New Jersey, where my mom's cousin Mary Jo led a gaggle of Norton descendants on a walking tour of the old neighborhood.  It was an amazing experience!

2019 - Elvis Country and More.  We made it to Tupelo, Mississippi, birthplace of The King, on the first leg of this trip.  It was a challenge, because our AC conked out around Birmingham.  Fortunately, it was working the next day, and we had no issues as we made our way to Oxford, Mississippi, to pay respect to William Faulkner.  From there, it was a quick drive up to Memphis, Tennessee, but we stayed just east of the city in Germantown, where my Macy and Twyford relatives lived before the War Between the States.  There we discovered Shelby Farms Park and spent the better part of the next day hiking through its beautiful acreage in a (fruitless) search for a long lost tombstone. The next morning, we visited the headquarters of the Tennessee Genealogical Society and enjoyed the amazing hospitality of the volunteer staff, who dug up a lot of great records for us.  Next up on our itinerary was Shiloh National Military Park, which we discovered was pleasantly devoid of all the touristy glitz of Gettysburg.

And, that brings us to the present sad state of affairs.  No road trip this year.

But, we do have Richmond, Virginia, on the radar for May 2021 . .

#52Ancestors

Service

One might expect this week's writing prompt of "service" would result in a post about an ancestor who served in the military.  But, for some reason, my immediate reaction was to blog about my maternal ancestor Elizabeth (Gallagher) Lynch who was "in service" in metropolitan London in the early 1840s.

Elizabeth was born about 1815 to James and Mary Gallagher of County Mayo, Ireland.  Her parents were "spalpeens," poor laborers who migrated throughout Britain in search of employment.  The family were attracted to Westminster, England, by the 1820s, and lived in the cramped housing offered on Adam and Eve Court (between Oxford Street and Eastcastle.)

On 3 February1839, Elizabeth married another poor Irish laborer named Michael Lynch at the old Trinity Church in Marylebone.  (Sadly, the church fell into disuse a century later, and is now operated as a secular "events venue.")  Soon after the nuptials, though, Michael left Elizabeth to go to New York, promising to send for her and their infant daughter Mary Ann as soon as he could save enough money to pay for their passage.

Until she could follow her husband to the United States, Elizabeth had to find some income to feed both herself and the child.  So, she left the baby with her parents on Adam and Eve Court, and took a position "in service to" Lady Maria King, widow of Vice Admiral Sir Richard King, Baronet.

According to the 1841 British census enumeration, Lady Maria lived at fashionable Park Crescent with her three daughters Maria, Fanny, and Elizabeth.  Her sons were either away at boarding school or serving in the Royal Navy.  They were supported by a staff of six domestic servants.  William Isaacs was the butler, supported by footman William Moffatt.  Besides Elizabeth, there were three other female servants: Harriet Ruban, Mary Wickham, and Eliza Barber; but, it is unclear what their particular roles were in the household.

I like to imagine Elizabeth in charge of the youngest King daughter Elizabeth, taking her to play in the private park fronting the crescent.  Perhaps they utilized the pedestrian tunnel under busy Marylebone Road to access the larger Park Square, or Regent's Park to the north.  But, it is more likely that her "service" experience was more drudgery.

Either way, Elizabeth was reunited with her husband Michael just a few years later.  Their second daughter Margaret was born in Brooklyn in 1844.  Two more children quickly followed: James in 1847, and my great great grandmother Elizabeth in 1850.

Unfortunately, Michael drowned in a tragic accident, leaving the family destitute.  But, that story has already been told in a prior post.  (See "Disaster.")

My bucket list includes a commitment to visit Elizabeth's old neighborhood, to walk through Adam and Eve Court; see Trinity Church and nearby Park Crescent; and meander through Regent's Park.  One day . . . 

#52Ancestors