Sentimental Sunday - A Very Belated Tribute

My mother told me about 20 years ago, that Margaret, my 1st cousin once removed, was very involved in our family genealogy.  The letter shown, was from Margaret to me at the time I was beginning to do research on my Canadian line. What a sweet letter and I received a nice packet of information.  But..I never wrote back!  (I believe her writing is quite readable, so I am not transcribing it.)


It wasn't until the early winter of 1998 that I contacted her by phone, only to hear her tell me that she was moving into a retirement home soon, and had donated all her genealogy material and old family possessions to the Missisquoi Historical Society (Quebec, Canada).  I was pretty upset with myself for not keeping up with the correspondence and also for not visiting her.  Winter came and went, then in the summer, a friend from my genealogy club went to Brome, Sutton, Canada to visit her, on my behalf.  Several months later, my husband and I made the trip and by then, it wasn't the time to discuss genealogy!  She passed a way 1 1/2 yrs. after my visit.  This was a valuable lesson to learn.  Don't wait, don't put off and any of those other don'ts when it comes to people.  I can't wait to chat with her when I get to heaven; I think we will be best buddies.


From The Loyalist Gazette, "At this meeting a memorial tribute was paid to the late Margaret Doherty Ellis, a founding member of our Branch, who passed away on 11 March 2001. She was a descendant of Loyalist Andrew Ten Eyck, one of the original land grantees in the Township of Dunham, the first township to be granted in the Eastern Townships of Quebec in 1796. She will be greatly missed and always remembered by our Branch."

ERASTUS CROSS was Murdered

Erastus CROSS was discussed a bit in Tuesday's blog and images of his two tombstones were shown.

From the St. Albans Daily Messenger newspaper dated June 19, 1856 is the following:


"Melancholy Affair
A sad affair occurred in Franklin on Monday last which resulted in the death of Mr. Erastus Cross. It appears that Mr. Cross, while milking, was accosted by a Frenchman (the name we have been unable to learn) with whom he had an unsettled account, who demanded an instant settlement. Mr. Cross refused to settle then, and after some words had passed between them told the Frenchman to be off or he would throw the milking stool at him. The Frenchman immediately seized a club and dealt Mr. Cross a violent blow on the head which caused his death almost instantly. When the Frenchman saw what he had done, he manifested much sorrow, declaring that he did not intend to kill Mr. Cross. He gave himself up without resistance, and is lodged in jail."

Erastus CROSS was born abt. August 02, 1804 in Windham, Windham Co., Connecticut, married Louisa Maria LAMKIN on October 14, 1827 at Highgate, Franklin Co., Vermont.  They had nine children.  My interest in him stems from the fact that he was a sibling of my direct line, Lucy.  Lucy CROSS married William JAQUAYS, and he is one of my "brick walls."  Erastus Cross was my 4th great-uncle.

One hundred years after the below letter was written, there were three women named Barbara who found each other online because we were working on the same line, the CROSS line, at the same time.  There were also two Martha's interested and adding all that they could.  Barbara R. has the original letter, and we all got copies to transcribe. Whenever we emailed one another, we always had to use our last initial, it was hectic trying to remember who wrote what.

Transcribing this letter and trying to figure out who the people were was one of my top ten highlights in my genealogy research capers.  The women mentioned in the below letter lived in Canada, and were on a mission to confront the man who killed Erastus CROSS.  I love the last line in the letter, where Stella wrote, "Burn up this letter."  So glad nobody listened.  (Note:  The all caps were put in by us, as a way to catch the names, so I decided to leave them in.)
Letter from Stella Cross RILEY to her brother, Herbert Nelson CROSS, October 30, 1899.

"Dear brother,
Mother said you wanted me to write about grandfather death etc. I could not write any sooner as mother has had a severe cold and been quite sick. She calls it the grip and I guess it is. She has not been able to do much, consequently I have had it to do. I was sick in bed two days myself and between us we have had a miserable time. I’ve had a glorious time dewey day and we have had to pay for it. I knew better than to do what I did but the rest danced around in such an excited state that I caught the fever. It was funny to see Aunt HELEN. Every one gathered there and she informed each one that she was afraid her food would not last but it did. KATE told me that her mother was certainly crazy and Aunt HELEN says KATE is. I suppose mother told you all about it, so I won’t repeat. I had a very pleasant time while I was in Enosburg [Vermont] only the weather was very unpleasant, only a few pleasant days. LUCY and I went to Franklin [Vermont]one day, visited a Mrs. HILL (own cousin to father) and called on a Mrs. SOULES another cousin. Mrs. HILL is a nice appearing woman of about sixty I should say. Her mother and our grandfather were brother and sister. She told me grandfather (ERASTUS) was as handsome man as she ever see. Tall, well built, and dignified in appearance. From her I also learned that they were “well to do” the first years of their married life but after that law suit grandfather got in to (you remember father telling about it, he lost all the money he had saved,) he was discontented and moved from place to place in hopes to get rich too fast. She said he was respected wherever he lived but just as soon as he got to doing well would go somewhere else. While in Franklin I went to the house where they lived a long time, a pretty brick house. I also visited the Academy where father went to school. We stayed with Mrs. HILL all night and the next day after we had made many arrangements for the recital we started for home, stopping en route to the place where grandfather was killed. The woman living there allowed us to go over the house and we went in to the room where he was laid out. It is a pretty farm and a large one, it is about five miles from Enosburg on the road to Franklin. We next drove a short distance to where NELSON MARCO lived but did not find him at home. However I was determined to see him, so for days we planned to go again but every day it was rainy and cloudy. LUCY went all over town to get some one had a camera to go with me so we could take his picture and finally we got a young fellow and the day before I started for home we drove out there and was fortunate enough to find him out in the yard. We stopped and asked him to direct us to Franklin. He did not look at all as I expected he would, I had an idea he looked ugly, but on the contrary he was a pleasant looking well preserved old man. I should say he was past 75. After a few minutes conversation, in which he was all smiles, I asked him pointing to the farm where grandfather was killed, who lived there, he told us, then I said “who owns the place? he replied, “Mr. BEATTY old Mr. BEATTY, he owns lots of farms or he did once. I hear he giveim all to he boys.” I looked at him closely and in awful tones (so Lucy said) remarked. Then that is the place where ERASTUS CROSS was killed! The smiles died away from his face and in their place was such a frightened look wild expression that LUCY gave me a warning look. He stammered tried make an attempt to speak three times and finally succeeded in saying, “Mr. BEATHE, he owns that farm, you know Mr. BEATHE, he lives in Enosburg, he lived over there a good many years ago, he” “Seeing you lived here so long, I interrupted you must of know Mr. Cross, the man who was murdered over there, didn’t you? A[h] that he muttered something but we could not understand what it was but that he was greatly distressed, was very evident. he was slowly backing to the house so I continued. My name is CROSS and I am ERASTUS CROSS’S granddaughter. With out any exaggeration he turned as pale as death, his hands moved from his face to the fence where he was leaning in a painfully nervous manner as he gasped out. You must mean a great-granddaughter. “No.” I said, granddaughter. He again moved toward his house stopped and said, “seeing you been so bold?” to ask me questions I going to ask you if you know what has become of ALBERT CROSS.” Of course I told him he was dead and that I was his daughter. I also told him that grandmother was queer after she see her husband killed and finally went crazy and died. We thought we would make it as interesting for him as we could. I was going to tell him we knew who he was, but the old man looked so I hadn’t the courage so I just said that we are going down to the place of the murder and find out all we can and drove away.

LUCY didn’t say a word. Said she didn’t dare to. The fellow took a snap shot of him but LUCY has not written me whether it was a success or not. He also took a picture of the house (grandfather’s) and I don’t see why she hasn’t sent it. The house where MARCO lives (all alone) is very small, poor house. We took down some of his conversation. But he talked broken, same thing as Greenwood does only not as much so. They say is afraid of strangers and that he won’t go out the BEATTY farm after dark. He has a daughter living in St. Albans, she married a Mr. WOOD. He, MARCO, is spoken of as a man with an ugly temper.

We had a pleasant call on Mr. BEATTY and he seemed glad to have met me. I took down his story and send to you, also a copy of the life of E. CROSS and I want you to return them. I am going to write them over again when I get time. This Mr. BEATTY is rich and respected. He does not seem to want to say much about the trial, but he did say that DAN WHITE was paid quite a sum of money to testify as he did. You see the body was removed before the coroner got there, so he could tell what he pleased. SANFORD HALL said his father was paid for testifying that grandfather was a quarrelsome man, and hard to get along with. That law suit he got in to was brought up against him. I also learned that the State Attorney did not seem to take very much interest in the case. Father was the only child who was there at the time (except Nelson, who was a very young boy) who could be of any assistance and for some reason he didn’t do anything about it. There were witnesses who testified that MARCO said he would “kill CROSS if he asked him for his pay.” You know he owed grandfather, Aunt ELIZA said that he drawed his wood for him to keep him from freezing the winter before and was mad because grandfather wanted his pay. Here is another story I heard. There were two rich farmers in the vicinity, a Mr. HAMMOND and this Mr. BEATTY, the former did not like Mr. B. and tried all he could to hurt him. He advised grandfather not to go on his farm, said he would get into trouble if he did, etc., etc. After he did take the farm, he done everything he could to bother him. Aunt H. said all of them had lived there a year. Mr. HAMMOND came over one night and asked for g.father if he was going to stay another year. G. father told him that he was, that he liked Mr. B. and that he had treated him square.” “Well,” said H. “if you stay here you will be sorry.” A. HALL heard this conversation. MARCO lived on this man farm and he, MARCO had told that Mr. H. had told him not to pay CROSS. Not to work for him. The people up there seem to think that the murder was the result of this enmity between HAMMOND & BEATTY. It seems that H. was greatly rejoiced when “Mr. B [‘s] word about the position of the body“ did not go with the jury. To sum it all up, DAN WHITE swore that he heard the quarrel, see grandfather take up the milking stool run after MARCO and just as he was going to strike him, he took up the sledge stake and struck the fatal blow. Mr. BEATTY told that WHITE had told him the same night of the murder that M. hit him as he turned leave him and that the position of the body as he found it confirmed this. Grandfather had been sick for a week or more and had not been able to do much work. Grandmother tried not to have him milk that night and he said he would just milk the kicking cow because WHALE? couldn’t and then come in and go to bed. The day I was to give my recital Aunt ELIZA went with me and we stayed with Mrs. HILL and Mrs. SOULS three days. One afternoon Mrs. SOULS’ son drove me to Pigeon Hill and I visited grandfather’s grave. He is buried in his sister’s lot. They have a good monument. One thing seems strange to me, grandfather was a Mason and they were going to bury him, pay all expenses and had even got the grave dug in Franklin when father and MRS. WELLS, grandfather’s sister, objected and insisted that he be buried in Pigeon Hill. Father would not let the Masons bury him because of something had had to do with the lawsuit years before. Mrs. SOULS said you promised to send her one of your pictures when you was there and that she wanted you to send one now. I am going up to Enosburg in Jan. if nothing happens to get up a entertainment and give a recital for the Ladies Improvement Society. If you want one of MARCO pictures let me know.

I am getting subscriptions for a paper (will send Francis a copy and if I can get 33 names, I can get a bed. Mother is all excited and she is going to ask a few to take it. The relatives are responding and I guess we can get the required number of names. Would you just as soon ask the man in the office if he will take it for his wife. Some are going to give us two subscriptions. You must take it. It is only 25 a year. You can tell the man that the club is being raised by a friend. I intended to have copied this letter, but I haven’t got the time. I guess it is rather mixed for I have been writing it for the last three days. The children have been here and all has bothered, Mother is quite a little better tonight. She is greatly interested in this Vanderbilt will. One would think to hear her ask me question that I was a second Depew in the family. I forgot to say that grandmother has got a pretty monument Uncle JUDSON, NELSON and grandfather names are on it. At Mrs. SOULS I see a brass candle stick that JOSEPH CROSS’ g.father used to have, also a chair he used to have. Mrs. S. says when she is dead I can have the candlestick. It is bed time. Mother is reading David Harum and hasn’t been to sleep this eve. Guess she is not going to live?? Lovingly, STELLA
Burn up this letter.
[Sunday?] I heard just now that David Anderson was just alive."

Note:  I realize the letter is hard to follow (and it is long, 10 pages), but since it gave me much pleasure transcribing it and placing the people, I wanted to share it.  And, maybe somebody else in blog land shares this ancestry.

My Favorite Historical Society is on a Stamp!

After posting my blog about the Revolutionary War Red Coat worn by my ancestor recently, I received an email from a Canadian friend and this wonderful photo of a brand new Canadian stamp, issued January 11th.  It is a picture of the Missisquoi Historical Society, in Stanbridge East, Quebec, Canada.  She knew I would be thrilled.  Additional photos of the stamp are at their site  (scroll down).  Since this is a new web page, it wasn't up the day I posted my above blog  yesterday...things move fast.


I love this Society for three reasons:

First, it houses collections of my ancestors, not only for display but in research material. It is where I went to get help from the wonderful archivist, Judy Antle one day.  Second, it is so beautiful an area, you want to move there immediately, especially if you have ancestors from that area.  Third, the staff is very friendly and helpful, and the ones who were there in 1999 are still there.  Anybody who has ancestors in The Eastern Townships will want to visit this Museum and spend time in the Archives.  This area is just over the Vermont border, and fortunately, I can get there in about six hours.  My grandmother grew up there, so my mother visited often as a child to see her grandparents.  I, in turn, went up as a child to visit my great aunts, and other relatives.


Not wanting to leave out my first cousin, once removed, who was the archivist at the above Society for a number of years.  She wrote many articles, and some about our ancestors.  She deserves an entire blog dedicated to her.


After the visit to the Archives, my husband and I were armed with maps indicating cemeteries.  This may be hard to believe, but I found all 22 cemetery stones of my direct ancestors!

Additional information.  In January 2013, CBS did a news segment on our 21st President Chester Alan Arthur and obtained proof that he was indeed born in the Bedford, Missisquoi, Quebec. Both the curator, Heather Darch, and archivist, Judy Antle*) were shown in the clip as well as the storage area of the Missisquoi Museum! You may view that show HERE. (http://www.cbc.ca/player/News/TV+Shows/The+National/ID/2327674096/)

Photo of Judy Antle prior to her March 2015 death.

The United States is south of the the Google name.T

.TT

Revolutionary War Red Coat worn by my Ancestor

This coat was worn by my Loyalist ancestor, is on display at

The Missisquoi Museum in Stanbridge, Quebec.

Photo courtesy of the Missisquoi Historical Society

UPDATE: May 28, 2016. The coat is off-site being repaired. Please read this post as it pertains to more recent information about the coat, see HERE.

Charles Ten Eyck, my great-grandfather, wearing the coat.

He died August 26, 1909  in Dunham, Missisquoi Co., Quebec, Canada.

Tombstone Tuesday - Another Reason to Like Find-A-Grave

My photo (above), ca 2000 taken at Grove St. Cemetery, New Haven, Connecticut.

The new photo by Rob, with plaque

I always ask permission to use another's photo, I tell them the purpose, and once permission is granted, I send them the link to my blog.  On my Tombstone, Tuesday post of December 22, 2009, see Tuesday Tombstone - James Bishop, you really couldn't read what was written.  The monument was so old, but since I had a map with his plot marked, I knew it was his, plus I could read a little of the inscription.

After I copied my photo into my genealogy software and published that blog, I then went to  Find-A-Grave.  Once at the site, I checked to see if there was already a picture of the Bishop monument, and if not, I would submit mine.  Talk about luck. I now saw the same cemetery monument with an engraved plaque at the base!  I was thrilled.  Rob graciously let me copy his photo.  See FindAGrave site with the James Bishop tombstone to view that page.

Moral is not a bad idea to often check your ancestor's graves at FindAGrave sites to see if additional photos have been posted.  And, always read the messages left.  I have found distant cousins that way.

Tombstone Tuesday - Erastus Cross and two cemetery markers

 Erastus Cross was murdered and his name is on two different cemetery stones. Is that unusual, perhaps not, but to be in two countries, the United States and Canada, perhaps so.

One cemetery is in Enosburgh Falls, Vermont, see Find A Grave.  (I don't have permission to post the photo here.)


The second is at Pigeon Hill Cemetery in St. Armand, Missisquoi Co., Quebec, Canada.  I don't know the distance between the two, went to the Pigeon Hill Cemetery in August 1999 and was rather surprised to see Erastus's name on the Cross monument.

From newspaper issue of June 21, 1856, Free Press, Burlington, Vt.  "DEATH BY VIOLENCE -- a dispatch from Swanton informs us that Erastus Cross, was killed in Franklin, VT. Monday, by a Frenchman, who struck him with a club, killing him instantly."


Both cemeteries are near the border of Canada and Vermont, but I don't know the distance.

Erastus Cross was my fourth great-granduncle.

Seeing Nahant, Massachusetts

A cold January day in Nahant, Massachusetts.
Boston is in the distance.

Nahant, Essex Co., Massachusetts

Nahant Library (above)

The Historical Society shares office space with several other businesses, in this old school building.

Boston (above)

Nahant is outlined in pink.

A Suicide or a Murder? What Do You Think?

The death certificate of my great grandfather YATES A. ADAMS shows the kind of information I wish I didn't have to read or believe. The fact that I have read the word "suicide" many times over the past 11 years doesn't help ease the pain and wonder. He has been a mystery to me because I have no family records, photos, or stories about him. I have always liked his name, Yates, I think it is unique (imagine if it was John Adams). My soon-to-be grandfather, Clarence F. Poole, was the informant and that is why there was so little personal information (he was dating my grandmother, and they married a year later).

At the time of his death, Yates was living and working in St. Louis, Missouri. His wife and daughter were living in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The death certificate stated he was "out of employment."

His only child, Marjorie Anderson Adams was about 26. Yates had two sisters for whom I have little information, and a brother, John Anderson Adams, for whom I have a wealth of information and a good story for the future. Yates was born in August 1860 possibly at Batavia, Genesee Co., New York. A little more on Yates, he married Sarah Belle Farmer on October 20, 1887, in Battle Creek, Michigan at the home of her father. Per the 1910 census, Yates, his wife, and his daughter were living in Detroit, Michigan.

The newspaper article, written a few days after the death certificate preparation, had differing bits of information.

1. Instead of suicide, the paper states, "His Death Remains a Deep Mystery" (not just a plain mystery, but a deep one).

2. Yates "was found in the basement of the L. M. Rumsey Manufacturing company, by whom he was employed." The death certificate stated he was unemployed. Late at night, at his company of employment, he was writing letters, "in a happy frame of mine" and was planning on meeting somebody in New York City. Yates apparently was asked to resign, but he was still at the company.  If he was writing personal letters and was happy, why would he shoot himself?

According to the newspaper writer, "the supposition is" Yates was shot by a thief. That is what I want to believe. Also research further to see if there is a conclusion. Was the thief ever caught?

From: St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Mar. 7, 1917.

"MAN FOUND DEAD

FROM SHOT WHERE

HE LOST POSITION

Revolver Near Body of Y. A. Adams, Manager,

at Rumsey Olive Street Store.

Yates A. Adams, 56 years old, who was notified the first of the month that his services would no longer be required as manager of the display room of the L. M. Rumsey Manufacturing Co., 3554 Olive Street, was found dead in the basement under the office at 12:15 o'clock this morning. There was a bullet wound in his right temple and nearby lay a revolver.

A few minutes earlier a private watchman had seen him sitting at a desk in the office writing letters. In the typewriter was an unfinished letter to friends in San Antonio, in which Adams complained that he had laid plans to make a great showing for himself, but lost his position before he had an opportunity to display his ability. He had held the job for seven months. Four pennies was the only money found in his possession.

Before leaving the desk, Adams had removed his spectacles and laid them beside the typewriter. His coat and hat still hung on a hook, and the lights in the office remained burning. The police were convinced that he was not attacked, because the outer doors of the basement were fastened, the gate of the yard in the rear was locked, and there were no footprints in the soft earth.

The watchman, making his rounds at midnight, asked Adams how much longer he would be there and was answered that he had only one more letter to finish. Finding on his return that Adams had disappeared, the watchman called policemen, who discovered the body.

At Adams' rooming house, 4345 Westminster Place, it was learned that he had a daughter, Miss Marjorie A. Adams, a student at Ann Arbor, Mich."

* "CAUSE OF DEATH STILL UNKNOWN. (handwritten "Mar. 10-1917"). Funeral services for late Yates Adams will be held at 2:30 Saturday. Just how the former Battle Creek man came to his death remains a deep mystery.

Funeral services for the late Yates Adams, whose death occurred in St. Louis Wednesday, will be held at Hebble's chapel Saturday afternoon at 2:30 o'clock. Rev. Thornton Anthony Mills of the First Congregational church will be in charge and committal will be made in Oak Hill cemetery. The body was brought to this city today, arriving at noon on the Michigan Central railway. Mrs. Adams and her daughter Miss Marjorie arrived this morning from Ann Arbor.

Much mystery seems to surround the death of Mr. Adams, whose lifeless body was found in the basement of the L. M. Rumsey Manufacturing Company, by whom he was employed, by the night watchman, Patrick Harnett. Harnett told the police he had seen Adams in the lighted display rooms about 10:30 and in reply to a query Adams explained he had some letters to write.

When the watchman came back there at a little after midnight the rooms were dark but the door to the basement was open, and going down the stairs, he found the body of Adams with a bullet hole through the right temple. A revolver lay several feet away containing two empty and two loaded cartridges. The door leading to the alley, which had been locked during the day to keep out thieves who had been stealing brass was ajar about six inches. The supposition is that Adams, upon hearing sounds in the basement, had switched off the lights in the showroom and crept down thinking to apprehend the thieves.

Powder marks were plainly visible about the temple through which the bullet had passed. An unfinished letter in his typewriter evidenced the fact that Mr. Adams had been in a particularly happy frame of mind with his writing. The letter was addressed to Truman S. Foote, Hotel Elton Waterbury, Conn., and stated that Adams would meet him at the Manhattan New York City when he would have a deal to tell him. Reference was made, to a little party which he had been asked in September. Then the letter ended abruptly.

The secretary of the company made the statement that Adams had been asked to resign on March 1 when the Standard Sanitary Manufacturing company was to take over the concern. Only one cent was found in the dead man's pocket along with an identification card from the Commercial Travelers' Life Insurance company and a bill from Dr. C. B. Renoe for $10. The Insurance policy paid on February 28 was due April 1.

Mr. Adams left Battle Creek (can't read) years ago. Prior to his going he was in the plumbing business on South Jefferson Avenue, first in company with the late A. F. Bock and alone. He was a member of the Athelstan club and had many friends throughout the city."

From the Willard Library, Battle Creek, Michigan, Coller Collection 1.261. From: The Battle Creek Moon Journal 9 March 1917 page 12 columns 3 and 4. Thanks to Brenda Leyndyke.

The photo of wife, Sarah Belle Farmer Adams, wife of Yates, is the second from the left. On the back of this picture is written "my dear mother, Sarah Belle Adams, with the girls who lived with her (she had a rooming house) in Ann Arbor, Michigan--1918" --Marjorie Poole (the year Marjorie married my grandfather).

Can't Get to a Conference?

In the recent National Genealogical Society's (NGS) magazine there is an article which really caught my eye. It was the President's message and she suggested that if you can't get to a conference or if you want to hear a lecture, why not purchase a copy of the lecture on a CD. However, I think the price is pretty steep at $12 per CD. Reading her article reminded me of the NGS conference I attended in Providence, Rhode Island in 2000. There were many lectures I missed, because I was attending another one at the same time. So, I ordered a set of 12 cassettes for about $99 and came home with the neat package of recorded lectures I chose. It took a good year or two before I ever opened it up to listen to the first cassette. And it was probably because of a long distance road trip we were on.  As my husband and I casually listened to one, the speaker mentioned my ancestor! I almost died, and when I got home, I emailed her to see if my ancestor was related to her. The lecturer was Brenda Dougall Merriman, the topic was "The World's Friendliest Border, 1766 - 1866." She replied back, and no, we weren't related, darn. What she was discussing in the lecture were some of the Canadian records, one being my ancestor's Declaration of Aliens, 1794.

The tapes and now CDs can prove to be educational as well as surprising. But what if you can't afford $12 per CD?


I was aware that the New England Historical Genealogical Library (NEHGS) houses the syllabus for each year the NGS had a national conference. I think most people would love to attend an annual conference, but due to other constraints, they just can't. Well, I can't afford $12 for each lecture, especially if I want to hear a lot of them. The other day, while at NEHGS, I did the next best thing, I copied the lecture pages in the syllabus, five lectures to read about, four from a very well known speaker. Total cost about $3.50.


I still have the syllabus to the 2000 conference lecture, mentioned above. However, if I hadn’t heard the lecture I wouldn’t have known that my ancestor, Andries Ten Eyck was mentioned. So, it pays to hear the lecture, but if you just can’t swing the $12, then try to copy some of the syllabus pages.

Surname Saturday - Westover

My 5th great-grandfather, Moses WESTOVER was both a Loyalist and a Revolutionary War Patriot.  WESTOVER is one of my favorite surnames because of the number of connections I have made through this name, their traceable history and it is one of two surnames that I follow the entire line.


The Westover line has a very long history.  Jonas Westover from England, married November 19, 1663 in Windsor, Connecticut and there is quite a bit of information on this line.  However, my more direct line left Connecticut around 1735 for western Massachusetts, then on to Quebec.


My Westover names on RootsWeb total over 900.  My direct lines are in All Caps.  For my American and Canadian ancestor, mentioned above, I have 18 sources for Moses Westover.  I even have a Google alert on the name Westover + obituary.  However, I am not actively searching for more information on this family, but will analyze anything that drops in my lap.  Over the years, about 25 people have contacted me and information was exchanged.


In future blogs, I will provide more information, including cemetery stone photos.


Note: Since this early post, I have written quite a few posts pertaining to the Westover line, including a will.