52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Week #51 theme is  "Perseverance". 

My siblings and cousins can tell you that one of my genealogy traits is "Perseverance".  In fact I think I've been accused of being like a "dog on a bone".  When we first began our ancestral search in the 1970s, all I had to go on were family rumors and a few names and dates in a sketchy tree. This was before internet, and grandparents were gone, so my research began in libraries... checking out old family and county histories and viewing microfilms and microfiches. I also, wrote lots of letters and discovered that you had to send SASEs to get replies.  Gerry's grandpa printed a little family history booklet which was a great start. He even "commissioned" Gerry to carry on his work, which we did, once we moved from Oklahoma to Georgia.  I bought the "Handybook for Genealogists" to study the formation of counties, and a huge fold out pedigree chart which could go on and on into the past generations.  So proud when I could conquer one more generation or branch.  

Over the years, and with the help of siblings and cousins, and the internet, we have gone a long way with our discoveries.   We have traveled to the locations where these ancestors lived, some as far back as the 1600s. And best of all, we met online and in person, many cousins we never knew of, and have been able as a group to collect photos, letters, and stories.   

There are still new discoveries to be made, but we will do it... with Perseverance .

KIDNAPPING AND RECOVERY

posted by Christy Griffin Thomas, a descendant of Canada Waite

 Between 1675 and 1678, a confederation of Indians led by King Philip (Metacom) waged war against the New England colonists. The goal was to stop the expansion of colonial settlements into Indian territory. King Philip's War, as it is known, took place throughout the New England colonies (RI, CT, MA, NH, VT, ME). The Indians had been successful during the first two years, forcing colonists out of small remote towns, essentially capturing all of Rhode Island, burning Providence and Springfield, and even attacking Plymouth Plantation on the coast. Eventually, the colonists' greater numbers and ability to buy supplies from England caused the tide to turn. King Philip's War was one of the most deadly in American history with about 5% of the entire population (colonist and Indian) being killed. One long lasting effect of the war was the formation of the colonial militia - the Minute Men who 100 years later fought the British at Lexington and Concord. Benjamin Waite (or Wait) and his wife Martha lived in Hatfield, MA. Benjamin was a Sergeant in the militia.

On September 19, 1677, a band of Indians attacked Hatfield, MA while most of the men were gathering crops. The Indians killed many but carried off 17 people, including Martha Waite. The Indians intended to trade the captives for arms and food to officials in New York or Canada (both of which disliked the New England colonies). At the time of her capture, Martha was pregnant and had three children at home ranging from 3 to 6 years old. The children were not taken in the raid. A few days after the raid, Benjamin Waite and Stephen Jennings left Hatfield to follow the Indians and free their wives.

The Indians and their captives initially walked from central Massachusetts to Albany in upstate NY.   New York Gov. Andros refused to meet with the Indians and sent them on their way. When Waite and Jennings arrived in Albany, Gov. Andros had them imprisoned as potential troublemakers. Eventually they were released. Benjamin Waite continued to follow the Indians. At some point, Jennings returned to Hatfield. The Indians and their captives then walked to Quebec City arriving in December or January. The French officials reluctantly swapped a small amount of supplies for the captives.

After the journey, Martha Waite gave birth to a daughter whom she named Canada. Benjamin Waite arrived in Quebec sometime later and negotiated the release of his wife and daughter. They returned to Hatfield in the spring or summer of 1678. * It is about 500 miles from Hatfield to Albany to Quebec. Martha and Benjamin walked the entire distance during fall and winter weather. Martha was pregnant for most of the journey and carrying a newborn baby for the rest. * Canada Waite was obviously a healthy baby. She died at 71 having outlived all but one of her seven brothers and sisters. *

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In the Pease genealogy, Benjamin and Martha are grandparents. Canada is an aunt. Benjamin was in the Falls Fight and, in 1678, went to Canada to recover his family and others who had been captive there. He is often referred to as the "Hero of the Connecticut Valley". He was killed in the attack on Deerfield the 29th of February 1703/4, his body stripped and mutilated. Husband of Martha Leonard Waite, married at Hartford, CT on Jun 8,1670. Son of Thomas Waite and Eleanor ?Paine? Waite of Portsmouth, RI.

The Canada babes--- The two babes born in Canada were females. One was a daughter of Benjamin Waite born January 1678 the other a daughter of Stephen Jennings born March 14 1678. To commemorate the captivity in Canada, Waite's child was named Canada and Jennings child Captivity and these names they ever retained. . 'History of the Town of Whately, Mass'

 

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks.  Week #49 theme is "New Horizons".

As our families arrived on the Atlantic Coast, some as early as the 1640s, they must have been anxiously waiting for the view of the new land on the horizon. They were so brave and ready for new experiences. 

Choosing just one of these many early families, I would like to chronicle our Frost family through more than two centuries of seeking "New Horizons."  The immigrant John Frost, our 9th great grandfather, was born 1614 in England. He came first to New York with his father, John, and then to New Haven CT by 1660s.  His son, John, married Mercy Paine there, and was the father of our 7th gt grandfather, Samuel Frost.  (We will find the surname of Paine again in this family line.)  But first, three generations of "Grandpa Samuels" lived in and around New Haven. They would have lived through the struggles of clearing lands and surviving the elements of a new world, including the French and Indian Wars.   Then in 1754, our 4th gt grandfather, Isaac Frost, was born.  His father fought in the Revolutionary War, and they saw the new nation on the horizon.

Soon after the war, a Connecticut investment company made plans to populate the Western Reserve which would include the new city of Cleveland, Ohio.  Isaac and his family would be among the first to make this venture.  In fact, we believe that one of Isaac's sons, Elias, surveyed the plats for the city of Cleveland. Another son, Johnson LymanFrost, our 3rd Gt Grandfather, married Oriana Paine, daughter of Seth Paine (see, I told you that name would show up again). Oriana Paine Frost was the first teacher in the Brecksville, OH area, and her name shows up in streets and institutions. Oriana’s mother, Hannah Nash Paine, descended from a most interesting line including Canada Waite, born in captivity in Canada when her mother was kidnapped by Indians.

Old Isaac, and sons, Elias, and Lyman helped establish the town of Olmstead, OH.  The Frost name is still seen in the area. But even further horizons beckoned, and in 1820, Johnson Lyman and family are found in St. Clair, Michigan. Both Elias and Lyman had studied medicine, and although Lyman was not a doctor, he used his knowledge to assist a doctor there. Then in 1830, he and his family, including our 2 Gt Grandfather; Elias Carlos Frost, have moved further into the frontier to Lacon County Illinois, near Peoria.  As a side note here, while in Lacon County, the Frosts lived about a mile from the Graves family who went west as part of the Donner party.  New horizons were difficult if not impossible to conquer for many in that era.

When the wilds of Iowa opened for settlement, Lyman, whose wife had died in Illinois, took his children, and traveled to Iowa City.  As we look back, it had been 200 years since the first Frost immigrants had arrived in North America, and they had lived in 6 states, always moving westward.  Iowa in the 1840s was a new frontier, with forts and Indian confrontations. Many settlers came with very little furniture and belongings, as they had to travel by wagons pulled by oxen. But Iowa City grew up quickly into an area of businesses, a militia, and academics. The University and debating societies were established by 1847.

It was in Iowa City that our Frosts, Herringtons, Shafers, and McGills came together through marriage. In the 70s, Elias and family, including daughter, Eva, who married Daniel McGill, moved on to the western part of the state. Our grandma, Harriett “Hattie” McGill, and her siblings were born in Audubon County.  According to family lore, farming was difficult due to the weather and the plague of locusts or grasshoppers.  And at one point, the general store in Audubon County, owned by Elias (also called Carlos) was robbed by the "Crooked Creek Gang".

The brother-in-law of Elias (D.P. McGill's foster father), Daniel Shafer, had helped to survey the state line of Nebraska; so Elias and Lucinda, along with the elderly Lyman, moved on to Stuart, Nebraska.  Lyman died there according to the family Bible. His life alone had stretched from Connecticut to Nebraska, and his very interesting personality has been recorded... another story.

After a few years near Keya Paha County, Elias and family moved on west again, to Chadron, Dawes County, Nebraska, around 1888.  The McGills, still in Iowa, headed for the newly opened territory of Oklahoma, with Daniel making the Run of 1889. And Elias also moved his family to Oklahoma, where they lived and died in Perry, Noble County. 

Many descendants and relatives of these Frost families followed their dreams even further west in the U.S.   Their stories include California during the gold rush days and later years, as well as other states. We have so many families who made similar treks, but this is an example of the pioneer spirit…seeking New Horizons.

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks.  Week # 48 is "Overlooked".

My "overlooked" item was a scrapbook, probably begun at Christmas 1880, when it was presented to Bonny Lotta Vaughn, a six year old girl, in St. Louis Missouri.  Bonny was not kin to our family, and died of dipthiria, when she was only 9 or 10 years old.  But her mother, Margie Downer Vaughn, began filling every page completely with poems and news items cut from newspapers of the day.  Margie continued to do so after her husband died, and she married my husband's great grandfather, John McCool, in 1894.  Margie was John's second wife and may not have gotten on well with his children by his first marriage.  But she carried the scrapbook with her to homes in Kansas, Nebraska, and Colorado,  inserting clippings about John and his family members when events took place in their area. She even pasted the obituary of John's first wife, which we had never seen.  All the while, she filled every nook and cranny with poetry found in newspapers until the book was thick and aging.  Both John and Margie passed away in Colorado, so I have no idea how the scrapbook ended up with John's grand daughter, Mildred, in Oklahoma City.  Mildred was one of my husband's favorite aunts, and we found the scrapbook in a box in her home, along with a couple of very old Bibles and some letters.  I don't think she ever turned over the pages in the book or she would have found items about family members.  (Maybe because it belonged to "that step mother".)  So after it was overlooked in her home,  it was overlooked, still in a box,  in a cabinet in our home.  But nearly 100 years after Margie's death, her scrapbook is no longer overlooked.  We have digitized  many of the pages to share with interested persons found on line, found the gravesite of her only child Lotta Vaughn on Find A Grave, and still the scrapbook waits in a box for its next life. 

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks.  Week #47 Theme is "Wrong Side of the Law".

I always like to follow "down line" from my direct ancestors' siblings. Their stories often give insight into the whole family and their lifestyles and migrations.  In the family of my paternal great grandmother, having migrated in the late 1800s  from Iowa to Nebraska to Oklahoma Territory, I followed her siblings into the rough frontier areas.  Her father, Elias Frost's, general store in Audubon Co,  Iowa was robbed by The Crooked Creek Gang, a well known "wild bunch" that held up stores and saloons.  By the time lands were opened for homesteading in Oklahoma Territory, the Frost family and several adult children claimed lands there.  One grandson, a cousin to my gt grandmother, Eva Frost McGill, is found to be married to Anna Emmaline McDoulet, in Perry, Oklahoma.  Further searching uncovered the fact that Anna (also called Emma) had been the infamous "Cattle Annie" (at left in photo.)  From her late teens in NE Oklahoma and SE Kansas, Cattle Annie and her cohort, Jennie "Little Britches" Stevens, were outlaws who ran with the Doolin Gang, and on their own, selling whiskey to Osage Indians, stealing horses and warning the gangs when the law came too close.  She dressed like a man, packed a pistol on her hip, and was reputed to be a crack shot.   The duo roamed and terrorized the area for about 3 years before they were captured by U.S. Marshals and sentenced to a correctional institution in Massachusetts.   She returned to Oklahoma after her incarceration and married my Frost relative in 1901. They had 2 sons, who were probably raised by their grandmother, as Anna went off to join one of the Wild West Shows.   She and Mr. Frost were divorced about 1909 and she married an Okla.City businessman the next year.  She had evidently turned her wild life around and settled down as a church-going, book keeper in later life.  Not surprisingly, there was never mention of this branch of the family in my lifetime, although the marriage would have taken place a couple of counties away when my grandma and her siblings were about the same age. We have been in correspondence with one of Annie's descendants who lived in California and knew her as a fun loving grandmother.

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Week # 42 theme is "Lost".

As we build our family trees, we try to find and add the census records for every direct ancestor, looking at all the household members and neighbors too. But in searching for my Grandpa, Charley,  in 1900,  I do not find him.  Another LOST relative.  By 1906 he married my Grandma in Oklahoma, and we have seen the marriage certificate. Someone had passed along a comment that "Charley went off and worked at a livery stable somewhere."  I believe he was saving up $ to get married and to buy land from a relative who homesteaded in Oklahoma.  So, a few years later, we were following the lives of a previous generation.  An uncle of Charley had gone to Colorado a few years earlier,  and a cousin went to the gold fields of Central City, Colorado.  (Sounds like a good place to save up $$ for coming marriage, huh?) The 1900 census for Cousin Ed, shows him in Central City as a "Hack Man".   Could that be like  a livery stable?  I think that my Grandpa Charley was not LOST at all but was caught between census records, and  had indeed "gone off and worked at a livery stable", before coming back to get married.  Among the unidentified pictures collected over time, we found this one which we thought was Cousin Ed with his children and pups.  Sure enough, a distant cousin identified the picture as his relative who was Edgar from Colorado.  So besides finding our "Lost" Grandpa, we found Cousin Ed, who wasn't lost at all.

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks.  Week #37 theme is Highs and Lows.  

This week, I was looking at old photos for inspiration.  The first one that fit the theme was one of my dad and his two brothers, as teens, playing around for the camera, about 1923 or so. Left to right, Jiggs and Dan, with Chick on their shoulders. Wonder why two are dressed up, ties and all, very serious....  and one in overalls.  I think they made their own fun and antics, mischief too. 

It was a tradition to line up the kids in stairstep order.  Here is an old one, probably taken in 1920 or so. Left to Right:  Bob Griffin, Jack Griffin, Chick Griffin, Jiggs Griffin, and my daddy , Dan Griffin. Little Bob's mother had died in the flu epidemic, and he came to live with the Ira Griffin family, so Jack gained a new little brother. 

More stairstep photos of the 3 brothers.  

Woops.  In their early 20s, looks like Chick, the youngest, grew taller than the other brothers.  

But at the gathering of all their children ... 1st cousins at Grandma's in 1951 or 52...  we got back to the tradition.  L-R: Lynda Griffin, Daneille Griffin, Warren Griffin, Gaye Griffin, Christy Griffin, Janelle Griffin, Diane Griffin, Jimmy Griffin. 

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks.  Week #36 theme is Exploration.

There are many ways to explore in genealogy searching: Online records, libraries, other people’s trees, newspapers, or in person. We have prepared by doing all of the above, and then headed out, off the beaten path, to visit the locations where our ancestors lived. So far, we have visited more than 25 locations in Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas, Arkansas, Tennessee, Kentucky, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Rhode Island, Connecticut, and New York. We took many, many photographs along the way and my husband has even painted watercolors of some locations. 

There are so many photographs, that I need to choose just one family line for this post. You will see where we explored our Griffin line, starting with John Griffin, immigrant from Wales, who arrived in Connecticut about 1640. We visited Granby and Simsbury, where roads, farms and even shopping centers bear the Griffin name. The photo below is a current day sheep farm on the original land called Griffin’s Farmstead. Of course the structure was not there in 1640.  John's son, Thomas, was born on that property, in 1658. 

Thomas Griffin was the father of Benoni Griffin,Sr.,  born 1714. His mill was located at The Falls, on the Farmington River, in Simsbury, CT. It was formerly owned by his grandfather, John Griffin. We found the Farmington River, but couldn't see The Falls. 

Although other siblings stayed in Connecticut, Benoni Griffin, jr. acquired a grant in Virginia, about 1784.  He settled in the area of Bath County, which is now Arbovale, West Virginia. The photo is of the view he would have seen of the Greenbrier River valley. 

 

His son Jonathan married Rachel Sharp and lived on Stony Creek, which is near the present city of Marlinton, West Virginia. We explored the area, still known as the Griffin land. Photo is of the working  farm there. 

After the Civil War, Jonathan’s son William and family migrated (by way of stops in Iowa and Missouri) to live in Montgomery County Kansas. Their homestead in current photo is still called Griffin Hill, and down the hill is the land belonging to William’s son, Samuel, my Gt.Grandfather.  This is where my Grandfather Charley Griffin was born, and probably road his horse up that trail to his Grandfather's home. 

In 1889, when land was opened in Oklahoma Territory, a claim was staked in William’s name, by his youngest son, Pete Griffin.  A few years later, Samuel’s widow, Lizzie, brought her family to that same property, west of Edmond, and homesteaded. Charley and his siblings helped to farm the land, near Waterloo Road and Portland.  Photo is of hay bales, as the land is still agricultural, although near one of the fastest growing cities in Oklahoma. 

Charley married Hattie McGill (of another 89er family) and for a time they farmed near Ahpeatone, in Cotton County OK.  My father, Dan Griffin, shared his boyhood memories of living in Cotton County, and fun with his brothers. We believe this is the house they lived in.

 The last photo is the house where Charley and family lived in Edmond, Oklahoma, where our own family memories include porch swings, marking our heights on the door frame, fun with cousins, celebrating Christmas and Fourth of July, and more. 

   

 

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. Week # 35.

I would like to share the story of a special memory among my cousins.

I had made a geocities site which chronicled the immigration stories we knew of our Terry family. This site was found in an online search, by a man (Mike) who knew he had Terry names in his family, but had been separated from his paternal family as an infant. He did have a little info about his grandparents, but no knowledge of where to search. He was grasping at any straws, and sent me an email.

I was able to connect Mike with a myfamily dot com group, which a bunch of Terry cousins had formed. As we helped him search, he was welcomed as a family member although we had no known common ancestors. We found that he lived in the city where many of the cousins had grown up and we had a lot in common. Through Ancestry we were able to give him some leads as to his Terry ancestors and he took the ball from there. When we had a family reunion, he was there, introducing us to his immediate family. In fact, some of us became "blood brothers and sisters" in a little ceremony. Over a period of years of communicating, he was able to find out more about his father and was able to visit his grave. About that time, Mike shared with us that he was so happy to have been able to pass his family info on to his children and grand children, as he was undergoing cancer treatment and possibly in the last stages of the disease.

We continued our correspondence even as he was at home in hospice, sharing stories and pictures that his family would read to him. Ultimately he passed away at home, and the family contacted our group. A few of the group of extended "family" were able to attend the services, representing all those of us who were scattered all over the country.

We still think of Mike and remember that even while we were helping him with his ancestral search, he was helping us to learn to reach out and love a stranger who became a "blood brother."

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks.  Week #32  Theme - At the Library.

Libraries are BIG in my life.  The first experience... I wasn't even there.  We children had the measles and our mom went to the college library nearby and brought home books to read to us... Tom Sawyer, Uncle Wiggly,  Adventures of Billy Whiskers.  This was about 1947 or so.  A couple of years later we stayed in another town for the summer... a town with a real library, storytime and all (yes, the storytime where one time my little sister didn't wear her underwear).  I was almost 7 and devoured all the series books I could find.... Little House, Wizard of Oz, Raggedy Ann and Andy.  In 5th grade I got to be librarian for our grade and discovered Nancy Drew.  When we moved to a city with a Carnegie Library, we were regulars...4 kids carrying home stacks of books, then as teens, doing our research papers, etc.  As a young mother, I used the Book Mobile in the parking lot of the Safeway...quick in and out with a few paperbacks each shopping trip.  

Then I began my family searching and I can't count the genealogy  libraries we visited... city, county, state, national archives.  At least a dozen states in person, and more by correspondence.  I  viewed microfilms, microfiche, even a stereopticon.  Used card catalogs in drawers, old newspapers clamped together, shelf after shelf of DAR records, county histories. We were even admitted into a backroom in a West Virginia county courthouse where the librarians let us turn the pages of original county records from early 1800s. 

Now I benefit from online libraries for genealogy and am thankful for those who contribute their documents and trees so that all can glean more info.  County libraries are my go to for recreational reading... 63 fiction books read so far in 2022.   And all this may have led to the choice of careers for my daughter, who is an elementary librarian (now called media specialist,)  passing on the love to hundreds of children. 

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks.  Week #33  Theme - Service

This theme could generate all sorts of posts ... military, helpful people, civil or community service. But I immediately thought of Gerry's Gt Grandmother Lucy May Hayward, who was, according to family lore, a Harvey Girl...serving as a waitress or hostess at the famous Fred Harvey Restaurants of the west.   As I search her history, Lucy May was born in 1856 in Christian County, Illinois, daughter of Robert Hayward and America Indiana Leigh.   Lucy's father and mother had both died by the time she was 11 years old, and she was taken in to the home of her older married sister, Nancy Hayward Johnson, during the Civil War.  After the war, Lucy followed her brothers who moved to Kansas.  She was not married until 1881 in Montgomery Co, KS.  So there could have been a period of time that she may have worked for the Harvey Chain of hotels which had sprung up along the Santa Fe Railroad depots, beginning in Topeka, Kansas.  We only know that Lucy's descendants passed along the "story" that she had been a Harvey Girl.

Fred Harvey had a vision to build excellent hotels and dining halls along the route of the Santa Fe railroads.  He put out ads asking for single young women to apply as servers. The women would be housed, properly dressed (usually in black dresses with white aprons) and trained to serve efficiently, but in a pleasant manner (the train stops were not long, and on a tight schedule).  I have read a couple of books about the Harvey Girls.   "Diary of a Waitress" by Carolyn Meyer is a teen fiction novel set in the latter days (1920s) of the Harvey House restaurants in Arizona.  Another is "The Harvey Girls - Women Who Opened the West"  by Lesley Poling-Kempes,  a thorough history of this unique venture.

A fun movie "The Harvey Girls" starring Judy Garland (1946) is very loosely based on the Harvey hotels and the very respectable waitresses, as opposed to the women of the town saloon.  Several other MGM names will be found, including Angela Lansbury, as well as the great song "The Atchison Topeka and the Santa Fe".   And NO, this is not a photo of Gerry's Gt Grandmother, Lucy.  But Judy Garland made a cute Harvey Girl.

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Week #31 Theme - Help.   

Genealogists/ Family Researchers  are known for generosity and willingness to help others. 

Here is the long story of a helper who went the extra mile to help with our McGill Family research. We knew from Bible and baptism records that Gt Grandfather, Daniel Patrick McGill, had a sister, Bridget Jane, about 9 yrs. older than he was.  Daniel and his siblings were orphaned a few years earlier. Bridget Jane was in one census in Iowa after they came from Canada, age 14, living with brother, John. S. McGill, in 1860, Lura, Cass County, Iowa. Then she was never found in records again, although we searched all available. In Daniel's Bible she wrote, "Study well the lessons taught in this book. They will be worth more to you, my brother, than though I gave you the whole world.  From your sister, Jane.  Grove City, Iowa, Jan. 23, 1864."   Bridget Jane would have been 18 at that writing.  Very touching, but we  never heard about her after that date. 

Finally I searched "Find a Grave" for Iowa and found a grave in Wiota Cemetery, Cass Co. Iowa, for a Bridget McGill, but the  transcribed information said "wife of..." then the transcriber could not read the rest of the inscription.  The photo showed that it was all blackened with moss and age. I knew that if she had married, Bridget's surname wouldn't be McGill, so I wrote to the volunteer  in Iowa who had taken the pictures of the graves. I told her the possibility of our Bridget, but that no one could make out any words. Wiota was a cemetery that was near to where Grove City was once located.  I live in the Atlanta GA area and have never had a chance to visit Iowa. 

So my new long distance friend went to the cemetery three times, over a period of weeks, cleaning and transcribing what she could from the stone.  Sadly, it was broken, but she propped it in place for photographs.  I'm showing the pictures of her progress, before, middle, and after.  She has now posted them to  Find a Grave, and my story there memorializes "our lost girl" Bridget.  Rather than "wife of ..." we found she was daughter of  P & M McGill (Patrick and Mary).

Transcription:  Bridget J. dau of P & M McGill   Died Oct. 31, 1868  Aged 22 Y. 6 M.

Her brothers, Daniel and John would have chosen and had the stone inscribed. If not for a kind lady who volunteered to help, we would never have known about this memorial and we now have the correct information on our 2 Gt Aunt, Bridget Jane, at Find a Grave.

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks.  Week # 29 theme is Fun Facts. 

While life span is not necessarily "fun" unless you are still enjoying your own life... I've been calculating the life spans of my ancestors. My hubby does NOT think these are "fun" facts as we are nearing the years mentioned below.  Here are a few facts I've gleaned.

Using my parents and grand parents... Average life span 85 years.  Females - 84 years, Males - 86 years.

Using my parents, grand parents and great grand parents... Average life span 81.5 years.  Females - 87 years, Males - 76 years. Seeing a big drop here for males.

Using my parents, grand parents, great grand parents, and 2 Great grand parents... Average life span 71.5 years.  Females - 74 years, Males 68.8 years. Ave. span has dropped by 10 years in every group.

In summary, people are living longer in recent generations, probably because of medical care availability. Among Great Grandparents, one Gt Grandfather was a Union soldier who came home with some lung problems, dying at age 51.  A couple of other males died in their 60s, one of sudden heart attack. So they brought down the male average for that group.

In the group including the 2GT grands, there was a young couple who died at ages 20 and 17.  The young man brought home an illness from the Civil War and passed it to his young wife. These and a couple of women who died in their 40s made a difference in the averages for that group.

I am thankful that I know enough about each of their lives that they are not just statistics, but loved ones that I can keep  in memory.

 John Griffin Narrative.... not documented although several books have this info

Born in Wales,   Sergeant John Griffin, a Naval officer, went first to England, where he changed his name from Griffith to Griffin, the English version.   He immigrated to America in 1635 along with his older brother, Edward.

John sailed from England, August 24 aboard the ship, CONSTANCE, en route to Virginia. 

Link to Ship's Passenger List.

http://www.olivetreegenealogy.com/ships/tova_constance1635.shtml

He was in the employ of Capt. Claiborne, the Secretary of the Virginia Colonies.   He owned three square miles of land (l, 920 acres) in Virginia.

He worked with the Indians of Virginia.   He could speak English and Welsh, and record has it that he was able to converse with the Indians also.

In June, 1638 when Lord Baltimore of Maryland ordered an attack on the Virginia Islands of Kent and Palmer, John and Edward were on a ship that was captured.   They escaped by ship and left Virginia.   John went to Connecticut and his brother, Edward, went to the Dutch Colony of Amsterdam (New York).

John’s name appears in New Haven CT records in 1642 when he was enrolled in the militia.   In 1643 he was fined a few pence for not having his arms in shape. He took the oath of fidelity at New Haven on July 1, 1644.

He removed to Windsor, marrying there, in 1647, Anna Bancroft of Windsor, and appearing in the Windsor records in August, 1659.   John and Anna (Bancroft) were among the first settlers from Windsor to move to Simsbury where he was a Representative for some years.

Simsbury, CT (Indian name, Massacoe) was settled about 1647.  The first Indian deed was given to John Griffin, 1648, recorded in the town of Windsor.

The shipping industry had a great need for tar and pitch for the ships.   John having been on ships realized this, and having located a great source of pine trees began to manufacture tar and pitch.   He had joined with Michael Humphrey in the manufacture of tar and turpentine in the pine forest of Massaco and Salmon Brook.   The tar, used by the British Navy, promised fortunes for both of them.

About 1646, the tar kilns of John Griffin were set afire by Indians.   Somehow John found out that the name of the Indian responsible was Manahannoose, a local Algonquin who was tired of English encroachment.   Manahannoose was captured, and according to a new law was ordered to be a servant of Mr. Griffin,   or shipped off in return for enslaved Africans, or to pay 100 Pounds.

To prevent this from happening, his village deeded the area of Windsor known as Massaco to John Griffin.   Although technically illegal for John to accept this deed, he probably looked at it as a promising business venture and took advantage of it.   Thirteen years later, (probably after removing the tar and pitch) John turned his deed over to the colony.

In 1663 a grant of 200 acres was made to John Griffin in consideration for taking the land from the Indians and “that he was the first that perfected the art of making pitch and tar in those parts --The land was to be taken up where he can find it between Massaco and Waranoake, whereof there may be forty acres of meadow, if it be there to be had, and be not prejudicial to a plantation, and not granted."

This was later known as "Griffin's Lordship or Griffin’s Hardship" and today there are roads and areas with the name of Griffin. 

John Griffin is considered to be the first settler of Simsbury and Granby.   He represented Simsbury in the General Assembly from 1670-74.   He was a prominent and successful businessman and pioneer, but that was not all. He also had a lighter side.   In 1655 he was fined 20 pounds on a complaint of "riotous conduct of John Griffin, John Bancroft and Jacob Drake."

His estate inventory of August 23, 1681 included about three square miles of land, or about 1,920 acres.  We don’t have a copy of his will, but one of his daughters, Abigail Griffin Segar, received one cow.

Abigail Griffin Segar and husband Richard died within weeks of each other leaving 3 children.

Their household inventory included:  tallow, bees wax for candles, earthen dishes, bowls, a pewter cup and 2 pewter spoons, 2 glass bottles, a meal sieve, an old iron pot, iron kettle, and a frying pan.  Furniture: 1 bed, chest, box, 1 blanket & a “civerland” (coverlet).  No chairs or table. No plow, axe, hoe, or saw.  One cow had been Abigail’s inheritance from John, Lord Griffin’s estate.  They had looms and wove to barter and rent of tools (not many households had looms or spun cloth).  They had land and house of 26 acres total and 10 acres marsh.

There was not much schooling as all children had to work.  The Segar children had to sell their land.  Another son in law, Wilcoxson, had more tools and books, guns (Mindwell Griffin was his wife), spinning wheel, furniture and 150 acres of good land. But he died at age 47.  

 (Some of this information was copied for Ella Griffin Spooner who was seeking information to enable her   to join DAR)   Facts also taken from FAMILY TREE MAKER, ancestors of Lydia Carrington Payne and Ancestors of Mary Frances.   More information came from Kathy Griffin Hughes.

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. Week #  27 theme - Extended Family

Great Great Grandfather, William Griffin

Through Bible and Census Records, we found that our 2 Gt Grandparents, William Griffin and Elizabeth M. Rodgers Griffin, had 14 children of record.

Joseph N. Griffin, Samuel Young Griffin, James M. Griffin, Levi Julius Griffin, Adam Bland Griffin, Andrew Watts Griffin, Sarah Ann "Sally" Griffin, Robert O. Griffin, Adonijah Harris "Nije" Griffin, William F Griffin, John Luther Griffin, Rachel J. Griffin, Alpheus R. Griffin, and Peter Charles Griffin.

My 1st and 2nd cousins thru Samuel Y. Griffin and Lizzie Terry were mostly known or "known of".  Many of us were corresponding on a private group and sharing memories. Besides the Griffins, we also followed Lizzie Terry's family, as much as we could learn.  But we started to become curious about those 14 Gt Gt Uncles and Aunts, thus discovering our extended family.  AND WE DID IT ! 

We began to try to track at least one cousin descended from each of  those listed, and correspond to share what we had learned.  Five of the 14 did not live to have descendants.  James and Levi died in Union Service.  Three died while the family lived in West Virginia... Joseph, age 21,  Robert O. age 11, and baby Alpheus, only one year old.   Rachel J. age 12, must have died while the family traveled west; we have found no info.  Peter Charles, the youngest, never married, but took care of the homestead and his widowed mother when they came to Oklahoma as '89ers. He also remembered his nieces and nephews in his will.

Starting with Samuel and Lizzie, we found and contacted cousins from their Griffin and Terry families, even naming our group after Lizzie. Precious photos from these families were shared. The photo above is Gt Gt Grandfather William Griffin, 1812 - 1889.

Going down the list, we are now in correspondence with several descendants of Adam B. Griffin, Andrew W. Griffin, Sally Griffin McNutt, Adonijah H. Griffin, and William F. Griffin. Some have become life long friends.

Finding anyone from John Luther Griffin was more difficult.  John L. became a teacher and moved his family to Colorado and then California and Washington. But he was buried in Colorado. Finally a google search (not Find a Grave or Ancestry) led us to an obituary attached to the cemetery site in Boulder, Colorado.  It was very informative and was signed by a grand daughter, Jan Griffin Leaf, who lived in Washington.  We were able to correspond with Jan for many years until her death. She shared many, many pictures including the one of William above. And at her death, she willed me her huge photo album, as she had no descendants. 

In the family of Lizzie Terry Griffin, we became acquainted with those who descend from all but one of her siblings. Still working on that one remaining.

Now I'm ready to do the same with one generation further back.  Have already gotten a good start.  How's that for extending our family?

 

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Week # 26 Theme - Identity

The word Identity would normally make me think of an individual discovery, but my entry is for a whole family line. When I was growing up, my father, Dan Griffin, in Oklahoma, would say "Our Griffin family is NOT the Virginia Griffins."  It stuck in my mind and when I began genealogy searching, I kept it as a clue.  My knowledge of his Griffin family stopped with my Gt Grandfather, Samuel Young Griffin, who was a Union Veteran and died in Kansas, where he had homesteaded.  As we traced his heritage, and the "Identity" of this family, we found his father and grandfather in an area of Virginia that would become West Virginia.  But Daddy said we were NOT the Virginia Griffins.  Further research showed that our Griffin ancestors came from Connecticut before claiming land in Bath/ Pocahontas County in West Virginia.  Before Connecticut, our immigrant Griffin came from Wales in the 1600s.  I believe that family tradition had passed along the "Not Virginia Griffins" because Virginians would have been Southern sympathizers.  The area of our family was in a Union area. Some families even being split by their loyalties.  My father and grandfather knew of the Union Veteran, Samuel Griffin, and wanted to carry on that conviction.  I am proud of that identity and those who carried it.  The Griffin name is still being passed along in given names of many descendants.

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Week # 25 Theme  :   Broken Branch

One Broken Branch is in Gerry's Burris tree.  I have written before about the various spellings of my husband's maternal surname of Burris (Buris, Burrows, Burroughs, Burrous, etc).  When we started to build his tree, we knew that his Great Grandfather was Mathew Burris, probably born in Missouri.  Much searching of census records located a Mathew Barrows, of the correct age, in 1870 in the home of a Bathan family in Osage, Benton, Arkansas.  I put that on the back burner because of spelling and location (although it later became true). Then in an 1860 Arkansas census, I found Mathew Buris in the home of Josiah and Elizabeth Buris.  This seemed to give us another generation, so we started working on the history of Josiah Buris (various spellings). Google searches gave us some postings of old letters which told us that Josiah (or sometimes Jessiah) had at least 4 wives... one left him widowed, others he left and may not have married at all in one case.   Another letter/ story supposed that he came to Arkansas on the Trail of Tears although he was not Native American (not true).  Mystery man.... just showed up in Arkansas, 1840, having been born in Tennessee.  Before 1850, family members were not listed in census records. So we hit a brick wall as to his parentage.

Until DNA came along.  Gerry had his DNA tested on Ancestry, which gives you a long list of matches, many of which have trees attached.  Among these matches were quite a few people with the various spellings of Burris in their trees, and ancestors located in Tennessee and Arkansas.  As we followed their trees, we seemed to find that Gerry had DNA matches descended from Anthony Burrows 1770-1822. Josiah was born in 1825, so not a son of Anthony.  But the will of Anthony Burrows showed several sons who might be of age to be father of Josiah.  By process of elimination (for instance, some families went to Alabama or Mississippi at the time that Josiah was born... so eliminated) we found a son of Anthony named William who could definitely be the connection.  However, there is no proof to this possibility.  There are some coincidences, and  maybe I can visit a courthouse in Fayette Co TN where this William lived and died, but the only lead for now, is the DNA.

Thus, Gerry's branch is broken between Josiah and Anthony, although we feel that William is the proof we need.  I won't be posting William on Gerry's tree until we find proof.  Photo is of Anthony's land, Pear Place,  granted in 1806, still called Burrows Cove in Grundy County, Tennessee. 

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Week #24   theme-  Popular Name

I'm squeaking in my contribution at the last minute for this week, as I couldn't find anyone with a popular name. Then it hit me during a restless night of no sleep... my tree is FILLED with the name Elizabeth. So it is popular within the direct ancestry of our family.  I'll just follow one paternal branch, back to France 1642, Elizabeth Beauchamp, possibly named for Elisabeth, Princess of France.  Beauchamp was  mother of immigrant Peter Rucker (b. 1660 Germany).  Peter had a mother, wife,  mother in law,  daughter , and a grand daughter (latter is direct line) named Elizabeth.   The grand daughter, Elizabeth Offill Jackson, (1732 Spotsylvania Co., VA), had a son, Drury Jackson, who married Elizabeth Bryan(t).  Their daughter Elizabeth Jackson married Mr. James Rodgers and became my 3Gt Grandmother.  She died young, leaving many children, among them my 2 Gt. Grandmother Elizabeth M. Rodgers.  James Rodgers brought his family over the mountain range in Virginia to settle in the area of Buckeye, which would become Pocahontas Co, West Virginia. 

At this point, my family members may recognize some of the names, since we are getting closer to our known history.  Elizabeth M. Rodgers married William Griffin and had 12 boys and 2 girls... no Elizabeth !   But after the Civil War, when they again moved west, settling in Kansas, their son Samuel Young Griffin chose an Elizabeth for a bride...  Elizabeth Ann "Lizzie" Terry... my Gt Grandparents. 

This is where the line of "Elizabeths" stops in my family.  Lizzie and Sam had a baby girl who only lived a few months, the twin sister of my Grandpa Charlie. Her name was Mata E. Griffin.  Nowhere is her middle name found... so far.  But I'm going to believe that it is Elizabeth, for her mother and grandmother (and on and on) 💗.  

There are versions which pop up through out our trees... Eliza, Beth, Betsy, Bess, etc.   Reminds me of a Mother Goose rhyme/ riddle.

"Elizabeth, Elspeth, Betsy and Bess, All went together to seek a bird's nest. 

They found a nest with  five eggs in, They all took one and left four in."

😊

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Week #22 Theme - Conflict

My husband is a history buff.  While I research the history of both our families, he catches me up on what was happening in those years and locations.  Often we then take trips to the areas where family lived and learn more about them at history centers and libraries.  When we traveled through Alabama and Mississippi, we found that his paternal 3Gt. Grandfather, John Oliver Davis, a merchant from Tallapoosa Co, Alabama, had fought with the 37th Infantry at the second Battle of Corinth, Mississippi, Oct. 3-4 1862.  He had been elected First Lieutenant following the organization of the 37th Regiment, but had been promoted to Captain in the ensuing months.  At the 2nd Battle of Corinth, Captain Davis, age 40,  was wounded, seriously enough that he returned home and then resigned from service.  His daughter, Martha Lavonia (Vonie) Davis married Alonzo C. Bosworth, a young Confederate soldier,  who came home from the war after battles in Virginia and at Gettysburg. He was a sergeant with Company D of the Alabama 14th Infantry.  I will write more about this couple in the future.

Meanwhile in service to the Union was another of Gerry's ancestors, Gt Grandfather John McCool, born in Pennsylvania. His family had migrated to the frontier of Iowa, where John signed on as a private, with the Iowa Second Infantry, Co. B of Scott County.  McCool's regiment fought  alongside about 50,000 men under General U.S. Grant at Ft. Donelson, on the Cumberland River,  not far from Nashville, TN. The victory made Grant a national hero, and allowed the Union to push deeper into the heart of the Confederacy.  The 2nd Iowa was then involved at Shiloh (Pittsburgh Landing) and advanced on to the town of Corinth, Mississippi. Two railroads intersected in the downtown of Corinth... the Memphis / Charleston Railroad, running east and west, and the Mobile / Ohio Railroad, running north and south. These were necessary for moving supplies and had been under control of the Confederacy.  A Union victory there assured that the North could use Corinth and her railroads in relative safety for much of the remainder of the war.  However, there were thousands of dead and wounded on each side.   

I have found a map which shows the locations of regiments from both armies.  Within a few blocks of each other, in downtown Corinth, were McCool's 2nd Iowa Regiment of the Union, and Captain John O. Davis' 37th Alabama Regiment of the Confederacy. Blue is Union, Red is Confederate. I have marked these two in gold.   These men didn't hate each other, but they loved their homes and families, and stood to defend them.  Generations later, after the conflict of that battle was forgotten by descendants, the men are remembered as showing courage and loyalty, each to his own cause.

 

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Week #21 theme - Yearbook

Since it's time to honor graduates, here are a few yearbook photos of family members found in the 1932 "Bronze Book" of Central State Teachers' College, Edmond, Oklahoma.  (Now the University of Central Oklahoma.)  My sister, Christy Griffin Thomas,  has possession of several of the yearbooks for that era.  She found these for us to post and there are MANY more to be sure.  Top to bottom:  My father, Dan Griffin of Edmond, OK. Member of Arena Club and formerly of the Men's Glee Club. Arena Club was a debating society, which also held an annual Barn Dance. Although my father and mother were in the same graduating class, he was 4 years older... taking alternate years to work and attend college. His specialty/ major was Industrial Arts and everyone took Education classes. 

Our mother, Bess Avera, of Oklahoma City, OK.  She had attended Okla. College for Women in Chickasha before transferring to Central. She was a member of YWCA, Glee Club (2nd Soprano) and a group called W. A. A. (could be Women's Athletic Association). After graduation, she worked as a book keeper for Bell Telephone in Oklahoma City. 

Below  is my dad's first cousin, Dorothy Mann, of Edmond. She was a teacher and librarian and eventually came back to the University of Central Oklahoma, where she
developed and chaired the library science program for teachers. 

We also found a page with my Dad's brother, Charles (Chick) Griffin at top, and Dad, Dan Griffin, at bottom.  Don't know who is the fellow in the middle.  This may have been on the membership page for the Arena Club. 

Just for fun, here is a page called Circus. They must have had a great time with this event for silliness and costumes. We don't see any familiar faces in this crowd but imagining the lively atmosphere on campus. 

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Week #20 theme, Textiles.

May I introduce you to our Gt Aunt Mamie (Mary Lucinda McGill). Notice her beautiful blouse. She may have made it herself, as well as those of her sisters , since she was shown to be a dressmaker in 1900 Census. The McGill family had traveled by covered wagon from Iowa to the newly opening land in Oklahoma in 1889.  By 1910, she had left her rural home in Edmond Oklahoma, to live in the big town of Oklahoma City and work at the five story, marble-floored  Mellon Department Store as a milliner.  

We have found an advertisement from the Mellon Store which states:

Just received from the most authoritative producers of millinery styles, a shipment of hats in the new vogues for early  fall street and afternoon wear.

The new styles are strikingly beautiful and diversity is shown in models, large shapes and small shapes. The Watteau or ageless model  is a very novel one, having a flat round crown and an unusually shaped mushroom brim. Other styles find their inspiration from the ages of Louis XV.

Velvets, hatters' plush silk, and felt are the foundations, with folds, aigrettes, paradise feathers and other plumage as trimmings.

We now have very smart styles at prices ranging from $5.00 - $15.00.

The Mellon Company

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

I believe that Mamie was hired to reproduce those new styles  for the ladies of the city.  In later years she was a milliner at John A. Brown's department store, also in downtown Oklahoma City. She never married and lived in a boarding house where we would visit her.  She dressed stylishly, similar to Chanel styles, in linen dresses or suits, with strings of beads. She dyed her hair auburn all her life. 

These pictures are from a trip she made to California to visit a sister and some cousins.  You can see her ivory linen traveling dress with hat, shoes, hose and gloves to match, even though she and her niece, Evana, were up close and personal with an ostrich.  The second photo was made at the beach during that visit... about 1930.  This family scene carries out the theme of Textiles because of the variety of clothing. (Aunt Mamie is in black with sun glasses.) Makes me grin to see all this bunch dressed up  At The Beach !!!

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Week #19 theme is Food and Drink.  

We were always told that our maternal Grand Daddy, R. E. (Dick) Avera, had a candy store in Frederick Oklahoma.  His only child, Bess, our mom, even told us that the name of his store was the Queen Bess. This week in a newspaper dot com search for Frederick Oklahoma, I found this 1929 ad. So now we know that the name of the store was Candyland and he served food and drinks, and ice cream, at the soda fountain, as well as the candies he made himself on big marble slabs.  Queen Bess was one type of candy he made. Oddly, my mom didn't like chocolate much, but in later years he always presented family members with Whitman's Sampler candy boxes. And we often keep up that tradition today. 

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks.  Week #15 Theme - How Do You Spell That?

My husband's grandfather was Jordon Burris (sometimes seen as Jordan). He lived in Oklahoma most of his life, but was born in Missouri.  His father, Mathew, born in Arkansas was listed as Burris, Buris, Barrows, Burrows.  Let's go back another generation. Mathew's father (husband's 2Gt Grandfather) was Josiah Burris, Burrows, Buris, Burroughs.  Not only did he have several name spellings, but he also had several wives... 4 different women, one of whom he married more than once, and another whom he may not have officially married at all.  From these many wives, he had at least 23 children.  It seems that the children could choose the spelling of their surname as they grew up.  So when we track down cousins as we build down the family tree, descendants with various spellings have no idea that they are related to each other.   Through DNA we have found a probable 4Gt Grandfather, Anthony Burrows, of Tennessee. His land in eastern Tennessee is still called Burrows Cove, even though no descendants are living there now.  

We have much to learn about this line of ancestors, but from now on we will go armed... with plenty of various spellings in our notebooks.

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. Week # 14 Theme - Check it Out.

Straying a little from the theme of "Check it Out".  Having just checked out our family's census record for 1950, I thought this was appropriate for this week.  This is a picture of my immediate family on Palm Sunday of 1950.  A rare photo of all the family together, as my Dad was always the camera man. We are standing in front of my grandparents' home in Edmond, OK.  In the photo:  Bess and Dan Griffin, baby Jim Griffin, I am in the center, with Christy on my left, Janelle in front.  Note that all 3 of us girls are wearing plaid... so "checks"... right? 

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. Week 13 theme - Sisters.   

These are the 5 McGill girls circa 1900, Edmond OK. My Grandma Hattie and her sisters. Top: Mary Lucinda (Mamie), b. 1876, and Kitty Lela b. 1890. Center: Eliza Amelia, b. 1878. Bottom: Carrie Gladys, b. 1884, and Harriett Emily, b. 1880 (Hattie... my paternal Grandma).

I believe they all were seamstresses and may have made their dress-up blouses. Eliza and Hattie married two of the Griffin boys, who lived about two farms away. We grew up learning that those of us descended from their families were "double cousins". The McGill and Griffin families were '89ers... claiming free land in the Oklahoma Land Run and settling west of Edmond OK. I knew all these lovely ladies and wish I had asked them about their pioneer lives, especially about their grandmother, Lucinda Herrington Frost, who is my "brick wall ancestor". They would have grown up knowing her through their childhood and teen years. Lots to learn about the history of the McGill and Griffin pioneer families.