My Family

I created this blog to keep track of my family history research. I do most of my research online.

The Francis name is my husband's which was originally Francisco from Sao Miguel, Azores, Portugal. He also has ancestors from Sweden and England. So far, I have found that my family has come from Italy, England, French Canada, Scotland, and Ulster Ireland (Scotch Irish).

I have also taken a DNA test, which shows mostly Italian, but also England and France.

Thursday, March 24, 2011

freeman french

Freeman French is one of those ancestors that would have been nice to find a diary of his daily life. (actually, finding one for every ancestor would be nice too). Freeman lived during an interesting time in American history; I would love to know what he thought about everything going on around him at this time.

Freeman is my 4th great grandfather. He was born April 24, 1801 in Hingham, MA to Nathaniel French and Sarah Chubbuck. He seems to have grown up in South Hingham, where he was the middle child, having two older brothers and two younger sisters. His father was a packetman working at the Hingham packet station in Boston. (note 1)

Freeman was about 24 years old when he had his first son, Henry Freeman French in September of 1825, still living in Hingham. The date is interesting, as he did not marry Joanna until December of 1826, again in Hingham. If these dates are correct, I am sure it was difficult to have a child before marriage. It is nice to see that they stuck it out together though, and continued to have a large family of at least 8 children.

Freeman and his family lived in Hingham until at least 1830, when he is located in the census in Abington. By 1841, when he and his wife Joanna had their 5th child, Lydia, he had moved his family to South Scituate. Maybe he was struggling to find a place of their own, moving from Hingham to Abington to South Scituate. They seem to have settled in South Scituate, which eventually became Norwell in 1888. South Scituate is very close to South Hingham, where he grew up. Maybe he felt the need to be closer to his mother as she was getting older. Freeman's father died in 1819, but it looks like his mother died in April of 1843 (note 2).

Freeman not only moved his family a couple of times, but he also had a couple of professions; changing back and forth between shoemaker and farm laborer (note 3). I am not sure how common this was, but it does seem strange to me that he did not have a consistent profession. His property value as listed in the censuses is usually lower than others around him; it does seem they may have struggled a bit. He still supported his children though, even after they were married and had children of their own. The 1850 census shows his daughter, Joanna, and her husband and child living with them. Also in 1850, his son Henry and his wife are living with them. Their son Benjamin is still living with them at the age of 36 in the 1880 census. Freeman also opened his house to someone outside of his family in 1880. In the census there is a John Gurney, a 27 year old shoe finisher, living with them. Maybe he was a boarder to bring in a little extra money, or maybe Freeman was just helping him out. Regardless, the household never seems to be a lonely one. I tend to think of Freeman as a welcoming and friendly man; a happy person even though he may have been struggling a little financially.

Since Freeman is listed in the 1880 Census as living in South Scituate, I looked up the historical land ownership map on ancestry for this area. I found him near Accord Pond, bordering the town of Rockland.




Freeman was alive during many changes in American history. Around the 1830's in Massachusetts, there was a stirring of feelings rising against slavery. In 1831, The first abolitionist newspaper, The Liberator, was published in Boston by William Lloyd Garrison. Freeman's daughter, Lydia (my 3rd great-grandmother), actually married into a family, the Cowings, which had ties to the abolitionists and Garrison (note 4). Perhaps it was a philosophy also held by the French Family. Freeman was about 59 years old when the Civil War broke out, therefore he did not fight in the war. His family, as most Massachusetts families, supported the cause though with at least one of his sons, Benjamin, enlisting at the age of 18, with the 39th regiment. Benjamin received a disability discharge only a couple of months after enlisting in 1862, and applied for a pension in 1885 (note 5). Freeman also had three nephews give their lives in the Civil War, 2 as prisoners. (note 6)

Technology was also changing the world; especially in 1876, with Alexander Graham Bell demonstrating the first telephone in Boston. I do not know if Freeman actually ever saw a telephone before he died, but he most likely did not have one in his home. I wonder what he thought about the invention and all the changes that were occurring during his lifetime.

Freeman lived 88 years, dying on March 2, 1889 in Norwell, about 2 years after his wife Joanna died. During his life, he was probably close to his children, as they did not move far from home. He unfortunately had to see three of his daughters die in their 20s; some of them had children of their own. He was fortunate enough to know at least 12 grandchildren; unfortunate to have 4 of these grandchildren die; 3 in infancy, one at the age of 10.

I wrote a blog post about Freeman's wife Joanna, noting that they were probably buried at the Liberty Plains Cemetery in South Hingham as that was the closest cemetery to their home. I did finally get a chance to go to Liberty Plain Cemetery. Luckily it was not too large to walk through, and I was able to find the gravestones of both Freeman and his wife. The three daughters that died at young ages; Sarah, Mary, and Pamelia, are buried near them. I was happy to find them all together.



notes:
1. Bouvé, Thomas T, Edward T. Bouvé, John D. Long, Walter L. Bouvé, Francis H. Lincoln, George Lincoln, Edmund Hersey, Fearing Burr, and Charles W. S. Seymour. History of the Town of Hingham, Massachusetts. Hingham: Pub. by the town, 1893. (vol 2; page 237)
2. death date for a sarah french, aged 74, in 1843 in south hingham - matches approximate birth date of sarah chubbuck (freeman's mother)
3. 1840 - agriculture; 1850 - shoemaker; 1860 - farm laborer; 1870 - shoemaker; 1880 - past laborer
4. Lydia's husband's great aunts (Susan, Sarah and Maria Cowing) had involvement in the abolitionist movement - wrote about them in a post here.
5. Benjamin W. French. Historical Data Systems, comp.. American Civil War Soldiers [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 1999.
6. Freeman's brother Nathaniel had three sons that died in the civil war, Nathaniel, Henry and Charles, the latter two as prisoners. Information from The History of Hingham book from note 1, (vol. 2, page 238)

to do list:
1. any probate records for father Nathaniel or mother Sarah? probate for Freeman? (UPDATE: Plymouth County Probate is online at familysearch - none listed for Freeman or his mother Sarah; probate for wife Joanna written about here, and father Nathaniel will be posted soon.)
2. any land records for Nathaniel, Sarah and Freeman

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

samuel raymond and sylvia dunham

My 5th great grandfather, Samuel Raymond, married Sylvia Dunham on May 21, 1798 in Middleborough, MA (note 1). This date is recorded in the Town of Middleboro Vital Records Index: 1649 - 1945, on the Middleborough's Public Library Digital Library section. The Vital Records of Middleborough, as published on americanancestors.org, states that their marriage took place on either April 21, 1798 or May 21, 1798. I am not sure which date is accurate, I would have to look at the original records. On the May 21st entry, the top entry on that page states "A list of marriages solemnized by Rev. Joseph Barker", who was from the First Congregational Church of Middleboro, Massachusetts. Information on this church is included in the book First Church in Middleborough, Mass., which is available on ancestry.com. There is also a discussion of different sections of Middleborough and other churches on page 63 of this book. Oddly, I did not find Sylvia or Samuel's names on the catalog of members in the First Church from this book on ancestry (note 2).

The record of their marriage states Samuel and Sylvia were both of Middleborough, so they were at least living in Middleborough before they were married; but I am not sure if they were born in the town. I also do not know how old they were when they were married as I have not been able to locate birth records for either one (note 3). They probably remained in Middleborough throughout their married life as all of their children have birth records from the town, as recorded on the americanancestors.org database and the Index on the Middleborough public library's website. The first child I found a record for was Sarah, born in 1801. The couple continued to have 8 more children, for a total of at least 9 by 1819. The records only show one child who died in childhood, Lewis, at almost two years old in 1817.

Since Samuel and Sylvia were married in 1798, I looked in the 1800 census for them in the town of Middleborough. There are two Samuel Raymond's listed on the same page. The first Samuel Raymond has 1 male and 1 female between 16-25 and one male and one female 45 or over. This couple would probably be too old to be Samuel and Sylvia (note 4). The other Samuel Raymond has a 2 notation after his name, which would correspond to our Samuel's marriage record as the 2nd (note 5). In this household there are 2 females under 10 and 1 male and 1 female between the ages of 26-44. The latter family matches Samuel and Sylvia better, as it is possible that they had two children by the time the 1800 census was taken in August, 1800. I do not see any birth records in the Middleborough records for children of Samuel and Sylvia before their daughter Sarah in 1801, but it is possible these births were not recorded. Some genealogy books have Samuel and Sylvia with an oldest daughter Priscilla (note 6). There is not another Samuel Raymond in the Middleborough town records having children after 1785, which makes it even more likely that this family is Samuel and Sylvia in Middleborough. I cannot really gather where they are living in Middleborough, as the order of enumeration of the 1800 Middleborough census is strange; mostly alphabetical within groups. The groups themselves are not arranged alphabetically though, so perhaps they are by areas of the town.

I did not find Samuel and Sylvia in the 1810 census for Middleborough, so I broadened my search for all Samuel Raymond's in Plymouth County. One did show up in Wareham, a town right next to Middleborough. At first I did not think this would be their family, but after looking at the household it does seem to match up. There are 4 males under 10 (Zephania, John, Edson and Samuel), 1 male 26-44 (Samuel), 1 female under 10 (Sarah), 1 female 10-15 (Priscilla), and 1 female 26-44 (Sylvia). The other older daughter from the 1800 census would also have been between the ages of 10-15, but not enumerated. She may have died by 1810, as she would have been too young to marry. I do find it strange that Samuel and Sylvia's family is living in Wareham, perhaps they lived on the Middleborough/Wareham line or maybe the moved to the town of Wareham. I looked in the vital records for Wareham to see if there was a Samuel Raymond having children during this time to make sure I did not have the wrong Samuel, and there does not seem to be another one in this town. I also looked at the 1800 census for Wareham, and again there is no Samuel Raymond. It is likely that this is Samuel and Sylvia. The 1810 Census for Wareham does not seem to be alphabetical, which gives us a better idea of who Samuel's neighbors were. He is enumerated near Joshua Raymond, Amos Raymond, and another Raymond (illegible), all with young children. If they were all living on the same farm or near each other, perhaps they were brothers.

The only military action that Middleborough saw during Samuel's adult life was the War of 1812. The book, The History of the Town of Middleboro, Massachusetts, has a great excerpt (p 158) about how this war affected the town of Middleborough, and probably reflects how Samuel viewed the war.



This book also contains a list of Middleborough men that were enlisted in companies for the War of 1812; Samuel Raymond is not one of them. The only Raymond listed was a Zenas Raymond, I am not sure of his relation to Samuel, if any. There is also a Calvin Dunham, perhaps a relation to Sylvia.

By the 1820 census, Samuel and Sylvia seem to be back in Middleborough. There are 10 people living in the household, 3 males under 10 (Eleazer, Benjamin, Samuel), 1 male 10-15 (Edson), 1 male 16-18 (John), males 16-25 (Zephania), 1 male over 45 (Samuel), 1 female under 10 (Sylvia), 1 female 16-25 (Sarah), and 1 female 45 and over (Sylvia). The oldest daughter from the 1800 and 1810 censuses, probably Priscilla, is most likely married by 1820 and not listed with the family. This family is again enumerated next to Joshua Raymond and Amos Raymond's family, indicating this is most likely the same family in 1810 in Wareham, probably on the same land. Maybe the enumerator made a mistake and they were in fact in Middleborough in 1810, not Wareham; or maybe the census was simply filed incorrectly. Further down the page, I do see a Jonathan Dunham, perhaps a relation to Sylvia. Other than that, I do not see many Dunhams enumerated in the same area as Samuel and Sylvia, most likely they are living on land from Samuel's family (note 7). I have not yet seen any connections to Sylvia's family.

Samuel and Sylvia are still in Middleborough in the 1830 census. The household contains 2 males 10-14 (Eleazer and Benjamin), 2 males 20-29 (prob. Edson and Samuel), 1 male 60-69 (Samuel), and 1 female 50-59 (Sylvia). Many of their children are older and married now and have their own homes. I did find their oldest son Zephania living in Plymouth with his new family. The other Raymonds are not on the same page as Samuel any longer, but there are two Alden Raymond's. Joshua and Amos Raymond are on the next page, along with a Levi Raymond. Either they are not living as close to each other as before or some of the censuses were not enumerated in land order. I will need to check some deed transactions for Middleborough to see if there were any land changes for these Raymonds.

Their family decreased in size by the 1840 census in Middleborough, with all but one child leaving their household. There is only 1 male 20-29 (probably Eleazer), 1 male 70-79 (Samuel), and 1 female 70-79 (Sylvia). Samuel is again enumerated next to Joshua and Amos Raymond, and also a Samuel Jr. Raymond, most likely their son. There is also a John Raymond on the same page, again probably Samuel and Sylvia's son. Their son Edson seems to be living a couple of towns over in Weymouth. I did not see a Benjamin Raymond in Massachusetts that would match their son, but it looks like he married in Abington in 1841 (note 8). Their daughter Sarah is probably married to Bradley Gay, living in Middlebrough. Their oldest daughter, Priscilla, died in 1832, but her widow, Benjamin Glasur, and therefore Samuel and Sylvia's grandchildren, are living in Middleborough also. I also did not find their oldest son Zephania Raymond in Massachusetts, however there is an Ellis Raymond living in Middleborough, perhaps he went by his middle name sometimes. Their daughter Sylvia Raymond and her husband James McConney are living in Taunton (note 9) (they are living in Abington by 1850). So it seems most of their children did not wander too far from home by 1840, with at least 2, maybe 3 sons and probably 2 daughters still living in Middleborough, and the rest in surrounding towns. I am sure Samuel and Sylvia were busy with their lives and did not travel to see their family members outside of Middleborough much, but hopefully they spent some time together.

Samuel must have died before 1850 as he is not listed in the census. His wife, Sylvia, is living with her son Edson and his family in Weymouth. This is the first US Census that enumerated every person in the household, so it is very exciting to see Sylvia's name recorded for the first time. Samuel and Sylvia lived in Middleborough together for at least 47 years (note 10). I have not found a burial location for Samuel and Sylvia. I would think that they would be buried in Middleborough, as that is where they spent their life. However; they are not listed in the book, Old Cemeteries of Southeastern Massachusetts (note 11), which has transcriptions for the cemeteries in Middleborough. The only family member I could find a burial record for in this book is Priscilla Raymond Glasur (if in fact she is their daughter). Priscilla is buried in Middleborough Green Cemetery. I will have to visit this cemetery to at least see Priscilla's grave, and hopefully find some other family members.

notes :

Without looking at land records, which I do not have access to online, the best guess for locating where in Middleborough Sylvia and Samuel Raymond may have lived is to look at where their children are living. There is a 1879 map of Middleborough on ancestry, so I looked to see if there were any descendants of Samuel and Sylvia living in Middleborough at this time. The only two I could find in the 1880 Census are their son John Raymond and their grandchild Charles Gay (Sarah's son). Perhaps either one of them is living on land handed down to them from Samuel and Sylvia. I did find a J. Raymond living on Rocky Meadow St. in Middleborough, as shown in the map below, a little below 1/2 way down, to the right of the center. (Thanks to Mark on ThinkGenealogy Blog for finding the zoom.it tool used on the map). I also placed a modern Google map under the 1879 Middleborough map.





View Larger Map



more notes:
1. The marriage record states Sylvia's last name as Dunham, but some of the death records of her children state her last name as Shaw. Shaw is also Eleazer's middle name.
2. First Church Members on the Middleborogh genealogy web page
3. On the 1850 census Sylvia's age would have her born around 1778, however estimating from the 1800-1840 census information, their ages would be as follows : Samuel between 1766-1770; Sylvia between 1771-1774.
4. A Samuel Raymond and Joanna have 9 births recorded in the Middleborough town records from 1768-1785 (from the Digital Library index to Middleborough's vital records on the Middleborough Public Library), which would make their two youngest children 15 and 18 (both boys) in the 1800 census, and their next youngest girl born in 1777, age 23 in 1800. Most likely this is the family enumerated above Samuel 2nd. Probably not Samuel's father as their son Samuel dies in 1795 - interesting that our Samuel is listed as the 2nd, maybe this is his uncle.
5. This index states Samuel Raymond is a 2nd, however the Raymond genealogoy books state his father is Joshua. Maybe 2nd refers to him being the younger Samuel in town.
6. The book, Genealogies of the Raymond families of New England, 1630-1 to 1886:... discussed Samuel and Sylvia's family on page 135, which states their eldest daughter was Priscilla who married Benjamin Glasur in 1819 in Middleborough. Priscilla Glasur dies in 1832 in Middleborough. This book does not mention another older daughter.
7. 1798 direct tax lists these brothers on father Joshua's land
8. Benjamin is living in Abington in the 1850 Census, same town as his sister Syliva Raymond McConney. Benjamin moved his family (wife Almira and 5 children) to Le Roy, Minnesota in 1860 Census, perhaps after his mother Sylvia died. I wrote another post about a Raymond/McConney family that were also in the 1860 Le Roy Minnesota Census. (Benjamin is the Uncle of Winslow Raymond who went to Minnesota in the earlier post) The Raymond Genealogy book, page 136, states Benjamin took his family out west and died around 1869 in Ohio; however he is found again in Minnesota with his family in the 1870 Census.
9. Sylvia and James Mcconihe household in 1840 Taunton 1 male 30-39 (james), 3 females under 5 (Sarah, Susan, ?), 4 females 5-9 (Lavina, Lucretia, Louisa, Sylvia), 1 female 20-29 (Sylvia) - very likely this is Sylvia's family - how many james mcconney's that have this many children so young - they had a set of twins which added to the number of young children.
10. I estimated Samuel's death as 1845, as there is a death record for a Samuel Raymond in Middleborough for 1845, in the index for the digital collection on the Middleborough Public Library. Sylvia died after 1850-1860 - could not find her in the 1860 census. She may have died in 1859 - a death record for a female Raymond without age or parental information who dies of Typhoid Fever in 1859 in Middleborough.
11. Moore, Diane L, Old Cemeteries of Southeastern Massachusetts: An Alphabetic Index.

TO DO :
1. look up Raymonds and Dunhams in Plymouth County deeds
2. go to Middleborough Green cemetery and locate Priscilla Raymond Glazier gravesite and see if other Raymonds are buried near her UPDATE: see post here
3. see if Samuel or Sylvia Raymond left any probate records
4. find the shaw/ellis/harlow connection to this family UPDATE: further information here