Clark of Lowell, Massachusetts -- Tombstone Tuesday

Andrew J. Clark

1823  --  1875

Elizabeth S. Clark

1826  --  1901

George W. Clark

1846  --  1846

Lowell Cemetery, Lowell, Massachusetts

Brick Walls of My Readers on Surname Saturday

Permission given to use clip art by Bio Organics

Over the years, I have received hundreds of requests for help, I would say half of them I am able to help, which brings quite a bit of satisfaction. However, the others, if after my suggestions don't pan out, the person is usually left with a brick wall. This past week, I received two such requests and suddenly thought, why not post their letters. I have my own Brick Walls on a blog post, why not post theirs. I'll either use their entire letter or parts of it with pertinent information. If anybody has information on these unknown people, please write me and I will put you in touch with the appropriate person.

In addition, if anybody wants to write a piece on their brickwall, please do. Just send them to me, and I'll post here. This will be like a query board. Let's see what happens.

#1 "Hello Barbara,

It is me again. I had contacted you concerning the Lowrey / Grinnell Families and your help was so wonderful. I have followed your blogs ever since and find them so interesting. Again, thank you for all of your work!

Well, in reading the last few weeks, I noticed your connection to Momence, Illinois and the Hess family of the region. I've hit a stone wall with my great-great-great grandfather Andrew G. Hess who lived in  Iroquois County Illinois (near Momence). He was supposedly born in 1830 in Pennsylvania although I found in the 1860 Census his birthplace was listed "unknown". He was a drayman and married Sarah Sapp (born 1836 in Illinois, the daughter of Asa and Allie (Thomas) Sapp. Her nickname was Sallie.) The couple had children Ally (1854), Phebe (1856), LAVINA SEREPTA -my line (1859), twins Calvin and Benjamin (1866), Samuel (1868) and Andrew E. (1871). Andrew was buried in Oak Hill Cemetery when he died in Watseka, Illinois July 13, 1884( Find-a-Grave) but no mention of Sallie's burial there. 

I was just wondering if in your years vast research, if you ever came across mention of him, his parents or his family? Hess is a very popular name since a whole German part of the  country seems to have used this but the geographical location of the family and the early date of living in the same area may be coincidental  or they may actually tie in somewhere to the Scramlin - Hess Family that you have researched.

Thanks again for all your efforts!

Sincerely,

Bill"

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#2 "Hi Barbara,

I have started researching my Westover genealogy. My father was Orville Francis Westover (1915-1992). My grandfather was Thomas Francis Westover (born in NY in April 1885 or 1887). My great-grandfather was Stephen Westover. According to the 1900 Census, he was living in Oneonta, Ostego, NY. He was born in Canada in October 1857. He had been married to Josephine Shortsleeve Westover (nickname "Rina"?) for 22 years. Josephine was born in May 1861 in New York. Their children are Thomas, May, Della, Harry, Arthur, Roy, and Reva.There is one other child that I don't know the name of. Both Thomas and Stephen were boilermakers for the railroad and the family moved frequently.

I am wondering if this Stephen Westover might be the Stephen that is on your family tree (born 1859 in Canada, son of Orange Westover). Do you have any suggestions on how to figure out if these are the same people?

Thanks for your help!
Nancy Westover S."
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Do You Know?

How long does it take FindAGrave to add a million grave records into their site?

By my calculation it is now taking just a little over 3 weeks. I base this on my visual viewing of their site, since I am on it almost every day. The weeks between December 7 and January 1 took a little bit longer to reach the million mark, due to holiday activities. I say by August 15th they will hit the 100,000,000 mark. What do you think? (I now think June 5th.)

In November, I wrote, Have You Looked Lately? a short piece about FindAGrave. For each new figure, I updated my blog to reflect the stats.

** While I was working with FindAGrave today, December 7, 2012, the total went to 91 million  grave records.

** The total is now 92 million grave records as of January 1, 2013!

** The total is now 93 million grave records as of January 22, 2013!

** The total is now 94 million grave records as of February 13, 2013!

** The total is now 95 million grave records as of March 4, 2013!

** The total is now 96 million grave records as of March 24, 2013!

** The total is now 97 million grave records as of April 11, 2013!

** The total is now 98 million grave records as of April 26, 2013!

Want to go to a Family Reunion?

At this time of year, many people are planning on attending a family reunion or having their own family gathering, large or small. What if you are a rather new genealogist and would like to see if there is a family association for your favorite ancestor or surname? You could do a few things

1. Ask some of your contacts who share the same surname

2. Do a Google search

3. Check on Facebook to see if there is a group with your surname.

4. Contact a local Historical Society or Library in the area of your ancestor to see if they know about upcoming reunions, and if they don't know, ask if they will give you the name of their favorite most helpful genealogist's name.

5. See if the name appears in the Directory of Family Associations, as shown below. I noticed it is sold at Amazon, but you might be able to get it at your local library, like I did. The second photo is an example of a page. If you are interested, it's worth checking this book out.

And, if you do go to a reunion, don't forget to bring your business cards, they could be handmade or professionally printed, using your own photos. See mine HERE.

Charnley of Lowell, Massachusetts -- Tombstone Tuesday

Lowell Cemetery, Lowell, Massachusetts

Thomas Charnley 1781  --  1866	Sally Charnley 1789  --  1871
Matthew Charnley 1814  --  1843	Sarah Charnley 1828  --  1896
George O. Wickers 1826  --  1909	Margaret C. Wickers 1830  --  1923

James Charnley 1817  --  1896	Marinda F. Charnley 1822  --  1857
Matthew Charnley 1848  --  1855	George F. Charnley 1850  --  1855
John C. V. Halven 1829  --  1849

Prentice of Cambridge, Massachusetts -- Surname Saturday

Old Burying Ground, Harvard Square, Cambridge, MA

The Prentice line is another old Massachusetts line of mine. The emigrant ancestor, Henry Prentice was my 8th great-grandfather. As usual, my direct lines are in All Caps and in green. If you would like sources, please contact me.


Old Burying Ground (see my post with additional photos)
Harvard Square, Cambridge, Massachusetts

Click on link to see cemetery stones of Henry's child, my direct line, Solomon and his wife.

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Generation No. 1

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1.	HENRY PRENTICE died 9 JUN 1654 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. He married JOANE AFT 13 MAY 1643 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. She died AFT 1662. He married Elizabeth. She died 13 MAY 1643 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts.
	Children of HENRY PRENTICE and JOANE were: + 2   i. Mary PRENTICE was born 25 NOV 1644 in Boston, Suffolk Co., Massachusetts, and died 20 SEP 1699 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. + 3   ii. SOLOMON PRENTICE was born 23 SEP 1646 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, and died 24 JUL 1719 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. 4   iii. Abiah PRENTICE was born 22 MAY 1648 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, and died BEF DEC 1713. 5   iv. Sarah PRENTICE was born ABT 1649. She married John WOODWARD. 6   v. Samuel PRENTICE was born 3 AUG 1650 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, and died AFT 31 DEC 1713. + 7   vi. Henry PRENTICE was born ABT 1651 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, and died AFT 31 DEC 1713.

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Generation No. 2

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2.	Mary PRENTICE (HENRY PRENTICE1) was born 25 NOV 1644 in Boston, Suffolk Co., Massachusetts, and died 20 SEP 1699 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. She married Nathaniel HANCOCK 8 MAR 1664 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, son of Nathaniel HANCOCK and Joan. He was born 18 DEC 1639 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, and died 12 APR 1719.
	Children of Mary PRENTICE and Nathaniel HANCOCK were: 8   i. Nathaniel HANCOCK was born 28 FEB 1665, and died 20 JUL 1665. 9   ii. Mary HANCOCK was born BEF 13 MAY 1666. 10   iii. Sarah HANCOCK was born 23 AUG 1667. 11   iv. Nathaniel HANCOCK was born 27 OCT 1668. 12   v. Abigail HANCOCK was born 20 DEC 1669. 13   vi. John HANCOCK was born 1671, and died 5 DEC 1752. 14   vii. Ann HANCOCK was born 1672, and died 1672. 15   viii. Abigail HANCOCK was born 1672, and died 1672. 16   ix. Samuel HANCOCK was born 2 JAN 1674. 17   x. Abigail HANCOCK was born 23 AUG 1675. 18   xi. Elizabeth HANCOCK was born 26 AUG 1677. 19   xii. Ebenezer HANCOCK was born 10 MAR 1681. 20   xiii. Joseph HANCOCK was born 28 APR 1683.

3.	SOLOMON PRENTICE (HENRY PRENTICE1) was born 23 SEP 1646 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, and died 24 JUL 1719 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. He was buried in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. He married HEPHZIBAH DUNTON BEF 1678 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. She was born ABT 1653, and died 15 JAN 1742 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. She was buried in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. He married Elizabeth BEF 1674 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts.
	Children of SOLOMON PRENTICE and HEPHZIBAH DUNTON were: + 21   i. Solomon PRENTICE was born 1673 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, and died 25 JUL 1758 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. + 22   ii. Thomas PRENTICE was born 9 JUN 1674 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, and died 7 DEC 1709 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. + 23   iii. MARY PRENTICE was born 4 JAN 1679 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, and died 28 JAN 1742 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. 24   iv. Stephen PRENTICE was born 1 JUN 1681 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, and died AFT 19 MAR 1761. He married Faith FROST 8 JUL 1708 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, daughter of James FROST and Hannah w\o James FROST. She died 23 JAN 1741. He married Lydia PRENTICE 10 NOV 1743. 25   v. Elizabeth PRENTICE was born 20 JUL 1684 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, and died 14 MAY 1727. 26   vi. Nathaniel PRENTICE was born 20 JUL 1684 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, and died 18 SEP 1688 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. + 27   vii. Nathaniel PRENTICE was born 18 OCT 1689 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, and died 24 OCT 1723 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. 28   viii. Henry PRENTICE was born ABT 1693 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, and died 18 DEC 1778 in Holliston, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. He married Elizabeth RAND 18 SEP 1718, daughter of William RAND. She was born in of Charlestown, Massachusetts, and died 13 MAR 1749. He married Elizabeth HALEY 8 NOV 1749. She was born in of Boston, and died 7 APR 1775. 29   ix. Samuel PRENTICE was born 12 JUN 1698 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. Child of SOLOMON PRENTICE and Elizabeth was: + 21   i. Solomon PRENTICE was born 1673 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, and died 25 JUL 1758 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts.

7.	Henry PRENTICE (HENRY PRENTICE1) was born ABT 1651 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, and died AFT 31 DEC 1713. He married Mary GOVE 2 APR 1682 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, daughter of John GROVE.
	Children of Henry PRENTICE and Mary GOVE were: 30   i. John PRENTICE was born 6 MAR 1683. 31   ii. Mary PRENTICE was born 11 JAN 1685, and died 2 MAY 1685. 32   iii. Mary PRENTICE was born 4 JAN 1686, and died 11 MAR 1686 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. 33   iv. Hannah PRENTICE was born 19 JAN 1687, and died 3 JUN 1687 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. 34   v. Jonathan PRENTICE was born 4 APR 1688, and died 1 MAY 1688 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. 35   vi. Sarah PRENTICE was born 6 APR 1689, and died 31 MAY 1689. 36   vii. Tabitha PRENTICE was born BEF 18 AUG 1697. 37   viii. Nathaniel PRENTICE was born BEF 11 DEC 1698. 38   ix. Jacob PRENTICE was born 18 AUG 1700, and died 28 FEB 1701. 39   x. Susanna PRENTICE was born 29 MAR 1703.

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Generation No. 3

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21.	Solomon PRENTICE (SOLOMON PRENTICE2, HENRY PRENTICE1) was born 1673 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, and died 25 JUL 1758 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. He married Lydia.
	Children of Solomon PRENTICE and Lydia were: 40   i. Ruth PRENTICE was born 31 OCT 1700 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, and died AFT 1760. 41   ii. Lydia PRENTICE was born 8 MAR 1702 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, and died AFT 1758. She married John COOPER 6 APR 1721. She married Thomas KIDDER 8 APR 1725. He died AFT 1758. 42   iii. Solomon PRENTICE was born 11 MAY 1705 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. 43   iv. Samuel PRENTICE was born 5 MAY 1707 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. 44   v. Joanna PRENTICE was born 5 FEB 1710 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, and died 25 NOV 1772 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. She married Samuel COOK 31 MAR 1726. 45   vi. Ebenezer PRENTICE was born 27 MAY 1712 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. 46   vii. Sarah PRENTICE was born 11 MAR 1715 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, and died AFT 1758. She married Jonathan COOPER 25 OCT 1732. He died AFT 1758.

22.	Thomas PRENTICE (SOLOMON PRENTICE2, HENRY PRENTICE1) was born 9 JUN 1674 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, and died 7 DEC 1709 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. He was buried in Old Burying Ground. Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. He married Maria RUSSELL 23 DEC 1696. She died 1 MAY 1701. He married Mary BATSON 6 NOV 1701. She was born in of Boston, and died 2 MAR 1760 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts.
	Children of Thomas PRENTICE and Maria RUSSELL were: 47   i. Thomas PRENTICE was born BEF 21 NOV 1697, and died young. 48   ii. Mary PRENTICE was born BEF 2 APR 1699. Children of Thomas PRENTICE and Mary BATSON were: 49   i. Elizabeth PRENTICE was born 22 AUG 1700. 50   ii. Thomas PRENTICE was born 9 NOV 1702. 51   iii. John PRENTICE was born 3 NOV 1703. 52   iv. Henry PRENTICE was born 25 NOV 1706. 53   v. William PRENTICE was born 24 JUL 1708. + 54   vi. Hepzibah PRENTICE was born 29 OCT 1709.

23.	MARY PRENTICE (SOLOMON PRENTICE2, HENRY PRENTICE1) was born 4 JAN 1679 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, and died 28 JAN 1742 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. She was buried in Old Burying Ground. Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. She married BENJAMIN BALCH 4 JAN 1712 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, son of FREEBORN BALCH and MIRIAM MOULTON. He was born 17 APR 1688 in Beverly, Essex Co., Massachusetts, and died 28 JAN 1741.
	Children of MARY PRENTICE and BENJAMIN BALCH were: + 55   i. THOMAS BALCH was born 17 OCT 1711 in Charlestown, Suffolk Co., Massachusetts, and died 8 JAN 1774 in Dedham, Norfolk Co., Massachusetts. 56   ii. Mary BALCH was born 14 JUN 1714 in Charlestown, Suffolk Co., Massachusetts, and died 29 APR 1782 in New Ipswich, New Hampshire. She married Isaac BROWN 19 APR 1738 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts.

27.	Nathaniel PRENTICE (SOLOMON PRENTICE2, HENRY PRENTICE1) was born 18 OCT 1689 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts, and died 24 OCT 1723 in Cambridge, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. He married Hannah WYETH ABT 1712.
	Children of Nathaniel PRENTICE and Hannah WYETH were: 57   i. Jonas PRENTICE was born 25 APR 1713. 58   ii. Nathaniel PRENTICE was born MAY 1715. 59   iii. Hannah PRENTICE was born 16 DEC 1716. 60   iv. Tabitha PRENTICE was born 30 AUG 1718. 61   v. Solomon PRENTICE was born 31 JAN 1721.

Growing up in Lexington, Massachusetts

When I began my 4th fourth grade at the Adams School in Lexington, Massachusetts, I knew nothing of my new town's history.  My parents moved there from two previous towns in Connecticut, and from my first fourth grade in California.  I consider Lexington to be my favorite town of all the places I've lived.

Many of us have ancestors who fought in the Revolutionary War, as well as ancestors who were born in Lexington. I've several who fought in the War and were born there, and even my "brick wall" person, John Adams was in Lexington at the time of the war.

During several of my school years, our local history played an important part in our learning. My early classes took field trips down the street to see and learn about what happened. My Girl Scout troop planted flowering bulbs in the fall at some of the historic homes, and the church we attended was the tall one at the Lexington green.

Every April 19th, my Girl Scout troop marched in the Lexington Patriot's Day parade, there were two parades, I marched in the one at 7 AM! Of course, being much younger, I didn't mind, but sometimes it was cold. My mother was ecstatic about one 2 PM parade, when Sen. John F. Kennedy marched. I remember her pointing him out, but I thought, "who is he?" Both the 7 AM and 2 PM parades marched just two blocks from my house, and it was a very big deal. Many years after we moved, my mother always went back on that date to see it and visit with old friends. She even did that on the day she died, on her return trip home from Lexington. And whenever I returned for visits from Virginia, I always visited Lexington. Even now, I take this 30 minute trip frequently.

For eight years, I was in the Lexington school system, until my 11th grade, then we moved again. During my 8th grade, our class got to rename our junior high school, as there was another junior high being built. It had to have a patriotic name. I can't remember what I wrote about and why I chose the name, but the two winners were Diamond and Muzzy, so there were new names for each of the schools.  Many years later, Muzzy Jr. High became condos. Always changing, but then, nothing looks changed. It is a beautiful town, see photos below.

The town, April 11, 2010.

Lexington Green

Cary Memorial Library

Afternoon parade, ca. 1960. I saw JFK march in one of these parades. 

Years after we moved, I had to show a boyfriend where I lived!

The house, photo was taken three years ago.

The post was originally posted on April 18, 2010.

Hamilton Cemetery, Hamilton, Massachusetts -- Tombstone Tuesday

FindAGrave site of Hamilton Cemetery

Hamilton Cemetery (states Searchable Cemetery Database (COMING SOON)!

Other photos from the Cemetery.

The Soldiers, the Runners and the Tourists

April is a busy month in Lexington and Boston. Instead of writing about the reasons, I'll show you in photos.

The famous swan boats begin operating in Boston.

State capitol gets visited a lot.

Boston Marathon Finish Line. Lots of runners, lots of tourists.
I was there last year and  saw a relative finish the race.

About 27,000 runners signed up to run the race on April 18, 2011.

Lexington photos taken two weeks ago, during a rehearsal for the "Battle of Lexington."
Lots of tourists show up for this too.

Originally posted 

Monday, April 18, 2011

Found after 7 Years and 100 Years (Continued)

The experienced genealogists know from my previous post, Found after 7 Years and 100 Years that there was much more research to be done regarding finding information on John Scramlin, the adopted boy. Since that post, I spent much of one afternoon trying to track down where I could get help explaining the legal notice which appeared in the Santa Fe New Mexican newspaper Feb. 9, 1978. I was led on a wild goose chase, 4 helpful people tried to connect me with the right person at the First Judicial District Court. At last, I had Jill, since she was the one who could help me. Within minutes, she found the record, his probate. Yes, the probate! After giving her the information and asking a few meek questions as I held my breath, were, can I get a copy? Yes. How much are the pages? Each page was .25. The next day I called, and I was told she had printed the 32 pages and it came to $11.55 (she was certain I wanted them). I had to get a money order, and send a self-addressed stamped envelope. All easy, the worst part was the waiting for the record. I love doing business in New Mexico.

I called my cousin and shared this with her. My imagination went wild. Why would a state ward have a 32 pg. probate. Jill, the employee told me she thought if John, the adopted son, was in her family she would want the papers. So naturally, I thought he must have murdered his father, not his natural, nor his adoptive, but his step-father. Of course, that is why he was in the hospital. Finally, when my envelope arrived, I couldn't even open it, it was so tight, picture 32 pages in a #10 envelope, taped on 3 sides, and with a large stamp saying postage due, I owed $1.66.

After going through the nicely typed pages, I discovered a few interesting things. The state of New Mexico wanted to be reimbursed for John's care for 40 years, because he had an estate of $12,981. He was hospitalized from 1934 to 1974...40 years, and it took three years to get to probate. There were no known heirs. (He had a living sister and quite a few nephews and nieces.) John died August 11, 1974, there was no will, personal property valued at $1,751 and real property valued at $6,000. I learned where John's property (2 lots) on Candelario Street was, and looked up the site on Google Earth. The month following his death, his home was rented for two years at $25 per month. John's two lots were sold for $12,100 to Albert Gonzales and John Tena of Santa Fe.

Upon further investigation, I found discovered his step-father, William G. Hockman, was the father of three sons, Marvin Hockman, Edward Hockman and Albert Hockman. His adopted son, John Scramlin was the same age as Edward. There are things I don't know, like where did John receive his money to buy the lots, did his step-father die and leave him some money? But one thing I do know, is, he didn't kill his step-father.