Day 101

Tonight I am in a fringe area of Roanoke, VA at a Ramada Inn that is hanging on to its two star by a thin thread. When I pulled around to the back and my room, a group of about 8 young men were hanging out on the balconies, some with their shirts off, all calling back and forth to each other. I asked them if they were going to give me any problems - they looked like a football team ready to celebrate. It turns out the are here from Arkansas for the Miss USA pageant and at least half are probably gay. I should be alright for one night.

The day started with pouring rain. I made my way back to the Augusta County Historical Society and finished the references from Tuesday. No new information. I then went around the block to the county circuit court. I made copies of James Robertson's will and estate inventory and Joseph and Elizabeth Kennedy's deed transfer for the New Providence church. There are many more deeds that could be copied but I have most of the information through Chaukley's abstracts.

A quick lunch and I headed south, back to the country area I covered yesterday. (I couldn't bear to take the freeway for 90 minutes. For anyone every taking this trip, US 11 and Hwy 252 between Staunton and Lexington are beautiful. ) I was intrigued by some of the land descriptions from the Kennedy family deeds and wanted to locate where the original home stood. I went looking for Kennedy's Mill Creek/Ott's Creek. It runs a course similar to Moffatt's Creed but a bit farther east. I turned off 252 at New Providence Church and headed cross country. Absolutely gorgeous hills, tree tunnels, and streams with no traffic and few homes. I ended up on Newport Road without knowing for sure which creek was the Kennedy's.

A few miles further south I saw a sign for Kennedy-Wade's mill, open to the public. I drove in and to my surprise, the mill was the one constructed by Joseph Kennedy in 1742 and IS STILL IN OPERATION! It is a grist mill for grinding flour. Kennedy sons and descendants operated the mill for 100 years before the Wade's purchased it in the 1800s. They owned it for 150 years before the current owner purchased the mill in 1991. Today, the mill produces an array of flour and baking mixtures all without preservatives. They run a small kitchen wares shop on the main floor. I ran up and down the stars taking photos of everything. So Excited. You can see the hand hewn beams with wooden pegs in the beam joints. The stone foundation was covered with plaster on the inside but visible in many areas. The original building was three stories but a 4th was added at some point, reason unknown. The Kennedy's stone house is gone but the mill is a fabulous find and made my day!

Day 100

This has been a day of contrasts. With a conference call scheduled at 11am, I decided to use the morning to do chores and invoicing. Those accomplished I found out at 11:15 that the call had been cancelled the day before but I wasn't notified. At this point, I knew I should head for the probate court but I just couldn't face that task. So - I headed south in the rain to find Moffatts Creek.

Joseph Kennedy came to the area in the 1730s. You have to picture him as a loud, boisterous, Irishman. The courts fined him twice for abusing the judge. He purchased several hundred acres of the Borden and Beverly land grants along Moffatts Creek and established a fulling mill. His sons worked the mill with him. Son John (our 5 g grandfather) must have been discontented early as he appears to have left for NC by about 1748. In general, many of the Scotch-Irish immigrants were unhappy with their land options. Virginia did not allow anyone to buy land beyond the headwaters of the creeks and rivers that drained into the Atlantic. The land beyond the mountains looked appealing and the Carolinas had no such restrictions. Between 1760 and 1770 1,000 Scotch-Irish from Augusta County left for the Carolinas. Our 6 g grandfather Joseph Kennedy followed son John in 1762. The tax court reported him as "returned no inhabitant."

I drove about 12 miles south of Staunton to Middlebrook and stopped at the library to look at a more local map. Nothing was available (this is a small library) but the volunteer knew just where the creek started - another 5 miles south parallel to the road. Sure enough, I found it and could visualize how lovely the area must have seemed to the Kennedy family - woods and open spaces. Another five miles south and there was the New Providence Presbyterian Church. Joseph and Elizabeth K. donated the land for the church in 1754. Yea - I was actually on the land occupied by our ancestors. Amazingly, this area looked much like what we saw in Paint Lick, KY - the Kennedy homestead of Joseph's grandson Thomas.

I then realized that while yesterday I went to Rockingham County (north) I should have gone to Rockbridge County (south). Off to Lexington! I arrived at the historical society at 2pm and was given free rein to look at anything. The librarian even left at 3 to get lunch and told me I was in charge. Every place is different!! Most of the original material is held at the archives at William and Lee College (2 blocks over). I may need to go there tomorrow afternoon. However, I found some good nuggets and got a much better picure of the development of this area of Virginia plus acquired a land grant map. An interesting side note - John Letcher (son of Giles and Hannah Hughes Letcher - 6 g grandparents on the Atkinson side and brother to our Steven Giles Letcher) moved from eastern VA to Rockbridge County and became prominent in the development of the area.

VMI is also located in Lexington. It is definitely at khaki-colored citadel!

Tonight I have spent 4 hours and think I finally have the Robertsons straightened out. Still have to do Robinsons but am making progress. Tomorrow I will be back at the Augusta Historical Society and may go to the probate court and fit in William and Lee plus drive to Roanoke????? I think I better head to bed.

Day 99

It has been a long day. My brain is befuddled with potential ancestors. I spent the morning in the Augusta County Historical Society in Staunton. The Executive Director and volunteers were very helpful and I will go back there on Thursday. I spent most of the morning and all this evening combing deeds, wills and other court transactions for Kennedys and Robertsons with some forays into Robinsons, Holts, and Stephenses. I think I have located the correct Joseph and John Kennedy before they moved to NC. I also think I found the right James and Alexander Robertsons. Both lines feed into the Letcher family and then to the Atkinsons. Tomorrow will be spent in the county courthouse hopefully getting copies of wills and deeds.

I spent this afternoon in the Rockingham County Historical Society (N of here 25 miles). They didn't have much material becauase the county was formed after our people had left. It did help me focus on the need (potentially) to go to Orange County - the county from which Augusta was formed. I will see if I have time.

All for tonight.

Days 97 and 98

Obviously I didn't get a blog written last night. Too many people in the motorhome and too much catching up.

Mom, Liz, a friend Caroline and I had a fun day yesterday. We headed south from Frankfort to Paint Lick, KY. This little village on the Paint Lick Creek and not far from Boonesborough was home to Gen. Thomas Kennedy (gggg grandfather). He had 15,000 acres on the bluffs above the creek and established a large plantation with 200 slaves. Although the three-story brick home is no longer there, we went in search of the old Paint Lick Presbyterian Church and cemetery. We found both and were lucky enough to walk directly to Kennedy's gravestone. He is buried with his first wife who fought off the Indians as they tried to burn the couple's first home outside Boonesborough. Agnes must have been well loved and respected. She died at age 41 and the couple's only child also died young (age 16) not long after. Thomas then married our gggg grandmother, Edna Withers, and they had four more children. Despite the fact that Thomas and Edna were married for at least 25 years, she does not appear to be buried at this site. In the photos below, Agnes' gravestone is in good shape but Thomas' is very worn (probably because it is a marble, horizontal tomb cover). Replacement stones have been erected at both sites in addition to the original stones.

Along the way we thoroughly enjoyed the rolling hills, horses and beautiful fences. Many individuals have also begun painting a quilt pattern above their barn door - rather than the Pennsylvania Dutch hex signs. We did U-turns, drives into the ditches, and stopping on hilltops in order to get photos.

From Paint Lick we drove east to Berea, KY, home to many artisans and Berea College. The college specializes in teaching young people practical arts and encouraging them in artistic endeavors. We had a great lunch and lots of fun shopping.

We finally staggered back to the motorhome about 7:30pm. We met up with Dee and Steve Thomson from Pullman, WA and Holly Hilliard and friend from Florida - all horse people - for evening snacks.

The horse group was up and out the door this morning at 7am. The first dressage ride was at the Kentucky Horse Park at 8:30! I took my time and left about 9am. It rained and was overcast for my whole drive across KY and WV. The WV mountains are very pretty - a tapestry of colors, wisps of fog and clouds - much like Scotland but with lots more vegetation. I made Staunton, VA about 5pm. Tomorrow - back to genealogy. I have an intense two weeks because we have a lot of people to track down.

A late Happy Birthday to my sister Ann who turned 40 yesterday. She kicks off the era of zeros for us girls with mom turning 80 in January, Liz turning 50 next fall and me hitting 60 the following spring. Let's hear it for wrinkles!!!!!

Day 96

The blog almost didn't happen tonight. I was getting no wireless signal at all, from the campground or from Verizon. I started the blog via my Blackberry - not pretty - and then tried more troubleshooting. Finally a message came up - very fancy language but the bottom line was - " Turn the computer internet switch on dummy." So we will now proceed with tonight's update.

I had a beautiful 7 hour drive through the hills of West Virginia and across Kentucky to Frankfort. It was fun to see signs for Rostover Township (where Edward DeHaven enlisted for the Revolutionary War) and Uniontown (birthplace of Moses Sutton) slide by as I made my way out of Pennsylvania. Entering KY, I almost drove off the road as I crossed the Licking River and saw the signs for Boonesborough.

Mom and Liz are in a nice RV park outside Frankfort, KY as are several friends from the Pullman, Montana, and northwest horsey set. It was great to see them and we had several hours to catch up. Everyone is now at the opening ceremonies for the World Equestrian Games. I opted to NOT pay for a very pricey ticket.

However, I did have the opportunity to spend ONE hour this afternoon at the KY Historical Society. Just enough to whet my appetite and be anxious to come back in a month. It is a lovely facility and the Kennedy surname file alone has five folders. Can't wait to start. Tonight while everyone is gone, I am surrounded by maps and old articles trying to trace down General Thomas Kennedy's grave - maybe a field trip tomorrow??? Wouldn't the horse people love a cemetery crawl??

Who knows. It is just good to see the faces I have lived with for the past 14 years. Can't wait to see Karl in NC in a few weeks. I am sure he is glad to see that we spelled his middle name correctly on his birth certificate with 2 Rs and 2 Ts (Sterrett). Of course with all the variation, almost any spelling would be correct. :-)

Day 95

Fiona, for once, headed for the local highway (US 30) rather than the interstate. I had a gorgeous drive from Chambersburg to Greensburg through the mountains (max 2600 ft in elevation - like going from Colorado Springs, to Woodland Park). The leaves were turning gorgeous reds and yellows and blowing crisply across the road. A true fall day.

I found the small Westmoreland County Historical Society by noon. After five hours, I had done lots of looking and reading but no real success. I was really hoping to find the marriage record between Rebecca Johnston and Edward DeHaven but no luck. The Presbyterians were very good at recording sins (e.g., swearing, expulsions from the church, out of wedlock children) but more casual about births, deaths, and marriages.

There were plenty of John Johnstons but not one that fit the parameters for Rebecca's father and no wills to investigate. There was a Solomon and an Isaac DeHaven in the neighborhood (who are probably cousins) but no Edward. Supposedly he enlisted for Revolutionary War service in this county, but no luck on that front either.

One snippet was some information on Sterretts. They were related by marriage to Daniel Boone. The local Sterretts were on their way to NC to join him in the 1770s so they too could go to KY. However, a large snow storm and the lovely countryside waylaid them and they decided to stay in PA. However, the connection between the families may provide a rationale for why our John Sterrett made his way to KY.

Speaking of which, I have decided to take the weekend and visit Mom and Liz. They are in Lexington, KY for the World Equestrian Games. The historical societies in Augusta County, VA are not open over the weekend so I am making a run to KY tomorrow, will visit with them on Sunday and head for VA on Monday. I can't pass up the opportunity when it is only a 6 hour drive. More tomorrow from KY.

Day 94

Today I was off to Carlisle, PA and the Cumberland County Historical Society. I was looking for information on the Sterrett family. The last grandfather we had was John Sterret (b. 1779) who married Sarah DeHaven.

The Historical Society had two large files on Sterretts. I am here to tell you that there are a lot of them and they spell the name Sterrett, Steret, Sterret, Sterett, Steritt........ However, I finally found the right strain. The greatest blessing was that John and Sarah had 7 children two of whom had the names Green and Baird. These are fairly distinctive so when I found a John born in the right year and married to Sarah D. Havens with 7 children including the two wild names, I figured I had the right group. John's parents are Alexander (d. 1786) and Mary (d. 1801) and granparents are Samuel Sterrett (d. Lancaster Co, 1776) and wife Margaret (died 1801 in Augusta Co, VA).

I missed getting Samuel's will in Lancaster County because I was uncertain which line was the correct one. However, I can send for it. Margaret's will should be in Augusta County and I am headed that way next week. Amazingly, Alexander and Mary both moved and then died in Franklin County, PA - and their records should be right here in Chambersburg. Their son John's birth record may also be here. I may have to ask brother John to get copies for me as I must head to Westmoreland County, PA in the morning (based on the hours and days open of the historical society).

Tomorrow in Westmoreland County I will be looking for Edward De Haven and his marriage record. I will also look for John Sterrett because he supposedly left the Franklin/Cumberland County to the area closer to Pittsburgh.

David and I had a great evening together while Muriel worked a PTA fundraiser.

Happy birthday to Ray! How could I possible have a 31 year old son???? His son Archer is crawling, pulling himself up, trying to stand, and "talking" up a storm. Sounds much like his father and uncles.

Day 93

It was a business day. Despite the lack of supporting and signed documents at the beginning of the day, I finished both grants and had them copied and to FedEx by 3:30. I also managed a few personal errands made easier because Muriel knew where to go for services.

Dinner was fun with David talking non-stop about Star Wars. About the time we were settling in for the evening, the ice maker exploded sending water all over the freezer, into the refrigerator section, under the stove, and down to the basement. Towels and quick thinking to the rescue, David, Muriel and I managed to clear the mess and shut off the valve. A repair person is definitely in the near future.

Mom and Liz are on the road to Kentucky and the World Equestrian Games. They are putting in 12 hour days with the motor home to get to Lexington by Thursday. My brother John is there attending a veterinary seminars so they are trying to connect before he heads back here to Chambersburg.

Tomorrow I head for Carlyle, PA for some work on the Sterrett family. Will let you know how the day goes. Now - off to see a Lego pyramid before David goes to bed.

Day 92

Tonight I am back in Chambersburg where I was near the beginning of this trip. The weather has changed from summer to fall but the welcome at John and Muriel's is always warm.

I left Philadelphia about 8am and, thanks to Dave's good directions drove the rural route to Lancaster. I spent about four hours at the county historical society tracing down tantalizing snippets on Kennedeys and Robinsons (part of the Atkinson line). Both families moved through the area and there are numerous "cousins" of both families who lived and stayed in the area. However, no luck nailing down the two individuals for whom I was searching.

Thanks to the knowledgeable research librarian, we did find the following:

1. The ship passenger list with Evert in den Hoffen from Muhlheim and his four children (see yesterday's blog). They arrived in Pennsylvania in 1700 on the Ausland-deutsche Sippenkunde (name of the ship).

The next two items are for Brad - enjoy and Happy Birthday!

2. The Revolutionary War pension application for General Thomas Kennedy. From it we learn that he grew up in Burke County (which narrows the search from early Rowen County) North Carolina . He entered service in NC in 1775 and was appointed Captain of Dragoons and served in this capacity for two tours of three months each. After his return home he was captured by Colonels Fanning and Elrod of the British army, was paroled and exchanged the next spring. He then served six months under General McDowell, was with Major Rutherford at Ramsour's Mill where he was wounded in the leg, spent another six months under General McDowell and was in the battles of Cane Creek and King's Mountain; and finally another six months where he was in battle a Hampton, SC. He applied for his pension in 1832 at age 76 and died four years later.

3. The Revolutionary War pension application for Joseph Kennedy - Thomas' brother. He enlisted in Jan/Feb 1777 and until October served as an Indian spy and Guard under Captain Daniel Boone. He was in engagements with the Indians near Boonesborough, KY in March and April 1777 during which he was wounded three times. He then went to Charlotte Co, NC in the fall of 1777 where he served 2 months as a substitute for his uncle Joseph Kennedy. He returned to Kentucky in the spring of 1779 and served as Indian spy and guard at Logan's Fort. In May/June of that year he enlisted in Capt. Hugh McGary's Co, joined General George Rogers Clarke at Post Vincennes and served another 2 months.

In the spring of 1780, at Kennedy's station, he was appointed ensign in his brother's (Capt. John Kennedy's) Company and was engaged in defending that Station and the surrounding country. In the summer of 1780 he joined Gen. George Rogers Clarke in his expedition against the Shawnee Indians. On Dec. 26, 1780 he was captured by the Indians at Cumberland Mountain and imprisoned in Fort Augusta, GA until it was taken in the summer of 1781. He continued to occasionally fight the Indians and in 1786 commanded a company again under Gen. Clarke. He was given his pension in 1832 at the age of 72.

Day 91

That great story I told you about the DeHavens last Friday - forget it. The man (PhD or not) who wrote the book in 1912 skated around a lot of details and settled on writing a nice fable rather than researching his information.

I arrived at the Montgomery County Historical Socity at 9:15 this morning. By 9:30, I had 6" of manila folders full of DeHaven materials to read. In the first packet was a five page dissertaion on why Mr. Ross's book was inadequate and undocumented. His information didn't align with tax records, probates, census data, or land deeds. Mr. Ross was correct in that DeHavens came to Montgomery County, PA and he spelled the name correctly but the loan to the US government came from a DeHaven brother-in-law (a Hughes) not from the modest DeHaven coffers. So here is the well-documented scoop (should have known the first attempt was too easy).

Everet in der Hoffan/Hoof came to Germantown, Philadelphia in 1698 from Mulheim/Ruhr - Northrhine/Westphalia. With him came his wife Elizabeth Schlphower (Lisebiet Schibbauerr) and four sons - Gehard, Herman, Peter, and William and dauhter Annecken. They came from the same town in Westphalia as the founder of Germantown. The in den Hoffs were farmers and laborers (cordwainers, weavers, tanners) of modest means. As the family learned English, the surname was variously spelled - In ten Hoffe, inden Hoven and finally, dropping the "in" - DeHaven. In 1710, Everet purchased land about 30 miles out in Whitpain township, Montgomery County and moved to the country.

Son Peter and his first wife Sidonia Levering had - yes - 12 children. The eldest was Edward. On many of the family charts, Edward is simply listed as "born 1712" and "settled in Kentucky" (the chart I saw last Friday and several more today). However, tax records have Edward living in Whitpain Township in 1760 with his wife Margaret and six children. I have eliminated other Edwards in the third generation. Gerhard had a son Edward but he died about the same time as his father and had no children. Herman also had a son Edward but Herman died in 1752 - five years before our Kentucky Edward was born so Herman's Edward would have been significantly too old to fit the known timeframe. I can find no Edwards at all in generation 4.

What I hope to find is that Edward (b. 1712) is the father of Edward (b. 1757 in PA) and is one of the six children noted on the tax rolls. (They were not listed in any document I read during my 7 hours.) I believe it is this Edward Jr. who (hopefully) moved to Westmoreland Co.,PA (my Thursday destination), married Rebecca Johnson/Johnston and move to Kentucky. More on the saga as the week progresses.

The photo is of the commemorative gravestone for Peter DeHaven (7 g grandfather - we hope). His grave and that of his 2nd wife are in the Broehm's Reformed Church Cemetery in Blue Bell, PA. The old gravestones are virtually impossible to read.

Day 90 - again

I don't know why I can't keep the days numbered correctly but here we are at #90 again.

More work on grants this morning and then we went to lunch with Louise's mother. She is delightful and her retirement center has a wonderful brunch with breakfast and hot supper items plus killer desserts. David spent significant time trying to tempt me with the chocolate chocolate cake/mousse confection, the apple pie with caramel and the individual chocolates. I had one chocolate and felt virtuous but another 5 minutes and I would have fought him with my fork for the apple pie. Besides food we had good conversation and much discussion about Pen State's new hockey team. I can see I need to invest more time in the sports realm. I am behind.

The afternoon, for me, was spent doing genealogical research. I think both the Sterretts and Kennedy's came from Scotland/Ireland to Pennsylvania before moving south west to the Shenandoah valley of Virginia. I hope to find more data this week. Since I am moving west, I will spend Tuesday and Wednesday nights with Muriel and David. John is off to Lexington, KY (as are mom and Liz) for the World Equestrian Games. I gave them a bye this year. :-)

Tomorrow - Montgomery and Buck counties.

Day 90

It truly was a spectacular fall day. The leaves are turning colors already and the temperature was in the 70s. David went off to opera rehearsals so Louise and I motored north to a wild flower sale and preserve to look at plants for their yard. She and David are so knowledgeable. They recognize the various strains and know just what is needed to attract butterflies, bees, and birds at various times of the year. I looked on and held plants while Louise made choices and discussed her plans with various naturalists. We then took a long walk through a woods of tall oaks, hickories, beeches and other trees I couldn't identify. Just perfect - now if I just didn't huff and puff going up hill!

A quick alfresco lunch and we were off to the Moravian Tile Works. This factory was founded 100+ years ago in Bucks County. Of course the rolling green countryside studded with horse farms and woodlands made the trip a delight. The tile factory was very interesting. Set in a poured concrete building in a Spanish cloister style, the factory retains the old methods of stamping and forming clay tiles. They have a wonderful "mosaic" style which actually resembles stain glass work except in clay to make medallions and pictures. Very nice and a bit pricey but they would add color to the outside of a home or against a plain wall. Home again and then the three of us headed for dinner at an Indian restaurant. Yummy food of which I ate too much.

This evening I finalized my plans for the next couple of days in Pennsylvania and then my route through Virginia over the next couple of weeks. I have a lot of territory to cover and a lot of people to find in the 1730-1800 time period. I will try to finish grants tomorrow so I can hit the ground running on Monday.

Day 89

I began my morning with an hour of grant writing and ended the afternoon on a conference call with a client standing in the middle of the sidewalk in downtown Philadelphia. In between I conquered the train system and spent six hours at the Pennsylvania Historical Society. Did you know it was constitution day? The society has one of six drafts of the US Constitution and it was on display. An unexpected bonus.

During the first hour I found the information I was looking for on Edward DeHaven (a 5 g grandfather on the Bowmer side). Jacob DeHaven came to the US between 1750 and 1755 with his 3 brothers - Edward, Samuel and Peter. (Gregor - this is for you) They came from the France-Germany border (probably Hugenots) and were wealthy vintners. According to one source, the DeHavens always had specie (paper money) in bags around the house. They owned large pieces of property as well as sailing vessels that operated between the American colonies and the West Indies. They established tanneries at various locations for making leather goods, bringing expert tanners from France to work for them.

Jacob, during the Revolutionary War, heeded the plea by General Washington for funds to provision the Continental Army. He lent the government $450,000 - about $4 million in current dollars. His brother Peter became a manufacturer of gun powder and provisioned the army as well as donating supplies and equipment. Both these brothers stayed in the Montgomery County area of Pennsylvania. Jacob had sons, one of which died in infancy and one who died in the Battle of Germantown. Peter was prolific and had 8 or more children.

Samuel moved to Virginia to raise his family. Edward moved to Kentucky but not before having the Edward DeHaven - the last name we had on our family chart. I still have to verify all the connections most of which I can't do until I get to Kentucky. I will head to Montgomery County Monday to see if they have any tidbits.

Day 88

The day was spent at the computer. One grant is 95% complete. The other about 65%. Making progress but budgets are always onerous.

This evening was spent sifting through genealogy trying to figure out the best way to tackle the obscure Pennsylvania information I have. As much as I would like to head to the countryside, I think my best bet is at the PA Historical Society. With Louise's help, I am armed with maps and schedules so I can tackle the train in the morning. By tomorrow night, hopefully I will be the veteran of another big city transit system and full of details on De Havens and Stephens relatives.

Meanwhile, today I had a lovely walk in the woods before breakfast and lunch in the sun on the back porch. Tomorrow - concrete and traffic - joy!.

Day 87

A quick update tonight. I left Red Bank this morning making my way to Philadelphia. Found a nice open parking lot at 11am so I could participate in a conference call for work. As I made my way south of Trenton, the land changed from rolling hills to flat tidal plains. Up and over a large bridge (at least it had high sides) and into Philadelphia about 1pm.

I actually found my way downtown to check out the Genealogical Society. The staff were very nice but could not provide much help. All their microfilm and files have been moved to the PA historical society. We all noticed that I don't have too many names or specific locations for Pennsylvania so it may be a bit of a lost cause. I will focus on the DeHavens and Stephens since I have some specifics on them. On the schedules is Montgomery County (just NW of here) and the Dave museum on Revolutionary War activities over the the next couple of days as well as the Historical Society.

Meanwhile, I took a walking tour of Germantown, enjoying the 18th century architecture and warm sun before heading to David and Louise Tukey's. They have a lovely home on 3/4 of land. The front of the house slopes to the street but the back of the house is the treasure. They have filled it with trees and shrubs adding to the large Chestnut already ensconced and made a wonderful city hideaway. It will be a very pleasant place to stay. Great conversations catching up with these cousins over dinner on the back porch.

Tomorrow I must work on grants. The blog is doomed to banality.

Day 86

Go Trenton! I had an easy drive from Red Bank to Trenton through horse country, past golf courses, and along winding roads with only the last 15 miles on the interstate. No tolls, no high bridges, a lovely river (the Delaware).

I easily found the NJ state archives. They are truly set up for visitors. The security people guide you to the elevators and point out the quickest way to get from one building to the next. The Archives staff are delightful women who are cheerful, up beat and ready to help or anticipate any concern. I was able to look through a lot of materials finally settling on copying the wills for Philip Cox Sr. and Jr., Moses Sutton (maybe our Moses Sutton's grandfather but I have to decipher the writing), and David Sutton (Moses' father). I hope these provide the documentation I need to verify the intergenerational lines.

I then found Julia Dodge Tukey's will. I was unable to find it at the Bergen County Surrogate's office last week. Her husband's (Stephen H.) will is very short and lacks detail. On the other hand, Julia's will names all 8 of her children, appoints her daughter Isabella as executor and guardian for the youngest son Roy, and details their various building lots in Ridgefield Park which Isabelle may sell as she sees fit. The probate records also includes a death certificate. In another microfilm record, I retrieved the marriage certificate for Armenia and James Tukey. An altogether satisfying day topped with realizing the parking garage next to the archives is free to visitors!!!

Tomorrow I head to Philadelphia to begin looking for Atkinson relations.

Day 85

Look at this - an early blog. First time in 85 days!

Tom and Carol's son Jonathan (age 27) took charge (and his mother's car) and drove me to NYC! We first retrieved my driver's license from the Bergen County Surrogate's office. Amazing how some of those high bridges aren't so bad when someone else is driving.

Then Jonathan tackled the heart of New York. Through the dreaded Lincoln Tunnel we went emerging into - Manhattan. Somehow I thought we were going straight to Brooklyn but then I have been geographically challenged this entire trip. We wound through the part of the theater district and ended up on the water. Now I know that Manhattan is an island but I just didn't expect for docks and waterways to appear before me at the end of a street. A left turn and down the length of the city we went. Quick glimpses of the Statue of Liberty and a long slow drive past ground zero. Very sobering especially given the 9th anniversary just this weekend.

Over a bridge and ramps and look - Brooklyn. Again, not what I expected. There are homes and neighborhoods. No tall buildings. People actually have a small community lifestyle within a large city. Any other time I have been to NYC, I never saw this side of living. We came to the Greenwood Cemetery, and came to the Greenwood Cemetery and kept going around the Greenwood Cemetery. Finally the main entrance complete with guard (see photo), kiosk for locating your relative by name or plot number, and printer to provide maps - to the correct section and then within the section. Jonathan, who is NOT directionally challenged, took us to the correct area. Up the hill we climbed and there were Stephen H and Julia Dodge Tukey, my gg grandparents. I think we now have photos of the all the direct line Tukey grave sites from my dad's generation back to the original John Tukey. Yeh!!

From Brooklyn, we crossed the Verrazano Bridge to Staten Island where we found Jonathan's favorite pizza place for lunch. Yum! We are now back in Red Bank in time for laundry, grant writing and preparing dinner (Tom and Carol are both working today). It has been another lovely day on the road. Tomorrow - the state archives in Trenton!

Day 84

Just a short blog tonight. I spent the day "at home." Tom and Carol ripped tile off the walls in the kitchen in preparation for some kitchen renovation. I paid bills, did as much grant work as possible given the lack of info from clients, and labeled photos from yesterday. Delicious dinner tonight using a recipe for pork roast courtesy of cousin Harold III. Then Jonathan arrived home from his week in Pennsylvania.

In the midst of all the Sutton and Cox data this afternoon, I found a really good article with lots of citations that helped clarify the Cox lineage. Bottom line, Coxes and Suttons intermarried several times and Susannah Cox (who married Moses Sutton and moved to PA and Ohio) was the granddaughter and great-great-granddaughter of Isaac Cox. Two different children of his from two different wives had progeny that married to produce Susannah. I don't know whether to be excited about having fewer details to put in the database or more concerned because we could all be mental defectives!

Jonathan and I are off to Brooklyn in the morning. He promises no bridges on the way to the cemetery

Day 83

Another beautiful day on the east coast with clear skies and bright sun as the country remembered 9/11. The local community was out in force at the park with police, fire trucks and families of all ages gathering.



I left Tom and Carol's about 9:30 making my way to Costco for replacement sunglasses and then on to Westfield, NJ, mom's childhood town. Westfield is charming. The downtown maintains the old store fronts while incorporating upscale shops. The neighborhoods are kid friendly with lovely homes - a great place to grow up. 713 Prospect Street is nicely maintained with colorful flowers out front. 540 Elm Street is a bit more overgrown. The vegetation makes taking a great photograph a challenge. I did knock on the door to ask permission to photograph the house but no one was home so I took pictures anyway.

While in Westfield, I stopped at Barnes and Noble to find a book with old area photographs. The store no longer carried the book but one in Edgewater did. I figured it couldn't be too far so I plugged the address into Fiona and we were off. The traffic wasn't heavy but the route was complicated. Fiona fired directions like a drill sergeant with a machine gun. Off exits onto thruways, under bypasses and onto ramps. I really don't like high bridges with low railings and nothing between you and the ground 70 feet below. But over we went moving ever closer to - Newark. The skyline from the top of bridges is lovely - but I really DON'T like those high bridges. Meanwhile, we are getting close to the Lincoln Tunnel exit. I figure I made a mistake, got off at ann exit, and Fiona whipped me into shape. Back towards the Lincoln tunnel I went. Now I don't know where Edgewater is but the Lincoln tunnel and NYC is not in the plan just for a book. Abandon ship! Turn off Fiona. Take any exit. And now I am GOING OVER ONE OF THOSE BRIDGES I REALLY HATE with a great view (ha!) of some river and the cranes and docks of Newark but I am headed west away from the Lincoln tunnel.

Of course without Fiona, I am on some two lane industrial road with trucks, large barricades, pots holes - hey, look at the cool cemetery - if I could just get through that construction site and the pigeons.... Well, maybe next time.

I finally pull into the parking lot at an Asian market and breathe. Fiona comes to life and I plug in the address of the Somerset County Historical Society. Wow - it will take an hour and 15 minutes to get there. 30 minutes later the exit for Westfield whizzes by. Hmmm - maybe I should have made a different choice about 2 hours ago. Finally, at 1:30 I arrive at a restored 1723 home in back of an industrial park next to a swamp (forgive me, marsh). I sign in at the front desk (unmanned) and go upstairs to great the 3 individuals who didn't even know I had come in. Collectively, their ages are more than 200 years but they are excited to see me as it breaks up their four hour stint (this is a twice a month effort). I let them know I am looking for Suttons and Coxes. They pull out books, read pamphlets, locate vertical files. Information is coming at me faster than I can photograph the pages. There is no time to read. Bottom line, I had 3 researchers working on our family for two hours. It was great. We now have moved those two lines from the mid-1700s to 1600 England sorting out cousins, brothers, and property. Interesting points:

• Philip Cox Sr. and Jr. were buried on their property with other family members. The mini-cemetery became forgotten in a field and their gravestones used as door stops and paving stones. About 30 years ago, the county purchased the old farm area and ignored historical information to create a new roadway extension. Philip Cox, Jr., was one of the township's first Road Commissioners, and is now buried beneath a road and the tombstones are amongst the missing.
• There were two branches of the Sutton family living in Somerset County at the same time. Thanks to some detailed research, we can sort them out and know which ones were our ancestors who moved to PA and Ohio. Interestingly, Suttons were Quakers who moved from Puritan-based Massachusetts in the 1600s and then disagreed on religion. One branch became Presbyterian, one became Baptist. I'm not sure which we are - not enough time to read all the documents.

As the library closed, I thanked the wonderful elders and headed back to Red Bank. Tom, bless his heart, helped me download the 100+ photos I had taken of the historical documents, clean them and then print them so I can piece together the family lines without having 16 files up on the computer screen.

I'll let you know if I find out anything new tomorrow.

Day 82

It is so nice being with Tom and Carol. They have a lovely home in Red Bank, NJ with 2/3 acre of land, deer in the backyard and a very comfy guest bed.

I drove back to Hackensack this morning . On the way north I had a glorious view of the NYC skyline - no smog just clear skies and beautiful buildings.

I then made my way to the Maple Grove Cemetery. The whole Mehrhof contingent was waiting. They are conveniently place between the two entrance gates right near the front. All three brothers - Nicholas, Peter, and Philip (all born in the 1830s in Germany) and their wives are buried here. A number of children are as well. The graves are well preserved and tended. Each brother has a large obelisk or monument. Next to Peter and his beloved wife Helen are the graves of our great-grandparents - James and Armenia Tukey. Yes, James IS here. The list of grave sites I have must have been compiled before he died. It is nice to have them together.

Leaving the cemetery, I drove to the Ridgefield Park Town Hall looking for vital records. No luck. Nothing is available since 9/11. I went on to the Bergen County Surrogate Court to look for probate records. This is a convoluted system in which you look up the docket number in a large index. You then request the Case number and after much effort and stern language from the clerk you receive a group of microfilm reels. The reels must be left on the appropriate table where you may access them one at a time, returning each one to a different basket after it has been scanned. In the scanning process, you locate the case record. Within each case are a series of documents - will, probate, petition, appraisals, guardianships, etc. Each of those documents comes with a volume letter or number and page number. When you have all the cases perused and have noted all the case documents you wish to see, the clerk's assistant staggers to the back to retrieve more microfilm. Again, you can only read the reels one at a time and must return them to the appropriate bin before starting the next one.

By this time, I figured I was only going to look at a couple of records. I found Stephen H. Tukey's will as well as Julia Tukey's and Nicholas Mehrhof''s. After reading through the records, I wanted to make copies of three of the documents. Oops - they forgot to tell me. I can't just request the copies, the beleaguered assistant clerk has to look at the microfilm records herself and count the pages, in case you had lost your mind squinting at the small screen and could no longer count to 3. With all paperwork complete, I went next door, paid my money to two more overworked individuals who assured me the copies will be mailed in 7-10 days. What should have been a one hour search took four plus I have no driver's license because they forgot to return it to me when I turned in all the microfilm. I have to go back on Monday. Oh well.

It was getting late in the afternoon. I made my way south to Little Ferry, trying to get close to where the old brickyards used to be. It is nearly impossible. The area is mostly industrial making it difficult to sneak around the chain link fences. After an hour, I gave up. I need to get a boat and look at the area from the river. Don't think that will happen.

The traffic headed out of the city was pretty reasonable given that I left the area at 4:30 on a Friday afternoon. Of course I did get myself into the express lane which shunted me 10 miles past Tom and Carol's but I was still back by 6pm. Carol made a wonderful dinner. Great conversation and now I am ready for bed. To Westfield tomorrow!

Day 81a

Here are the photos I wanted to publish last night. I am using Tom's internet which is much better than my Verizon which is struggling to connect.

 

On the map - note the Mehrhof property with the brickyard. To the north are the Mehrhof homes along the Hackensack River.

Day 81

What a fun day this was. I spent several hours working on a grant proposal and finally got to the Ridgewood library about 11:30. I found a map of the Little Ferry and Ridgefield areas from 1868 but Peter Mehrhof didn't buy the brickyard property until 1871. The research librarian and I then went to the storeroom for a 1912 map. There was the brickyard in Little Ferry with the Mehrhof houses lined up not too far away. This map should help me locate the brickyard site tomorrow when I head back that direction.

I then looked through a number of surname and vertical files but no luck on additional Tukey or Mehrhof information. However, opening a book on Ridgefield Park, I came across wonderful photos. There are several of the Mehrhof mansion and various groups of people who have familiar names. One photo is of the 4th of July organizing committee. Walter Townsend, (who married Zeo Mehrhof), Edward F. Tukey (brother of James Bradford) and Morton Brewster (who married Julie Tukey) were all featured. Then a great photo of junior and senior high students in 1891. Zeo Mehrhof (age 14), Edith Mehrhof (age 12), Arthur Tukey (age 11), Helen Ravekes (whose brother Oliver married Lucinda Mehrhof), and Mable Brewster (Morton's sister) are all there. These individuals are the brothers, sisters, and brothers and sisters-in-law of James and Armenia our great-grandparents. I even found a track team photo with Willoughby Chapman (who married Marion Tukey - grandpa's sister). Sorry for the lack of photos in this post - they are taking more than 30 min. to load so I will try again another day.

After all that excitement, I started in on an index of wills and probate records. No luck finding a will for Peter Mehrhof. However, I found Stephen H. Tukey's will in Bergen County because he lived in Ridgefield Park even though buried in Brooklyn. Then in Somerset County (further south), I found probate documents for Suttons and Coxes. These are early ancestors of the Suttons who moved from NJ to southwestern PA and then on to Ohio. I hope to make copies of the wills next week in Trenton. Now if I could only find where Davenports came from in NJ.....

Tomorrow - the cemetery!

Day 80

I left CT in the rain but the weather quickly cleared. I have to say I have been and continue to be nervous about driving the closer I come to NYC. The amount of traffic is fierce so I try to stay to smaller roads. To add to my nerves, I spent considerable time yesterday exploring various websites trying to find Mehrhof and Tukey graves. Understand that each county back here may have as many as 75-100 cemeteries so at least locating the correct cemeter, never mind the grave location within the cemetery, is fairly crucial. I had no luck finding the hoard of Mehrhofs I was searchin for. However, Stephen H. Tukey and his wife Julia Crie Dodge are buried in Brookly. I know I don't have the guts to drive into Brookly. I have to do some more thinking about the public transportation access. This morning between driving and having an unformed plan for my research caused me to get more and more tense. Finally, I just took a breath and gave the day over to the universe asking to be taken whereever I needed to be.

Within 5 minutes, I found myself in Pearl River, former home to Aunt Marion (Grandpa Tukey's sister) and Uncle Willoughby. Lois and I had looked up their address using census records but of course I couldn't find my notes. Best I could remember was that it was somewhere on Magnolia Street. Sure enough, as Fiona the GPS lady guided my towards New Jersy, I passed Magnolia Street on the way out of town. The universe was working!!

I arrived at the Ridgewood, NJ library around 10 am. The Bergen conty Genalogical Society is located there but the area is under renovation and everything was in storage (per the website). However to my delight, a genealogist was on duty today and could retrieve items from the locked areas. She led me to the local newspaper files recently indexed. I now have a stash of Mehrhof and Tukey items from 1897-1904 including weddings, 21st birthday parties and the death of Nicolas M Jr at age 42 due to heart failure - he weighed 400 pounds - YIKES!

The reference library then located cemetery records and - THERE WERE THE MEHRHOFs. Maple Grove Cemetery in hackensack (formerly NY Cemetery). This is where I hoped to find them but could find no listings online. There are at least 2 dozen relatives and I have their locations within the cemetery. GG Armenia Mehrhof Tukey is buried there althoug her husband James Bradford is not. I suspect he must be buried in St. Petersburg, FL. I will have to check. The librarian then informed me that this afternoon was the one day in the month that the Bergen County Historical Society was open for research. She provided a map and directions (it is located in the library at a private Catholic high school and college in Lodi, NJ). I never would have located the place without her.

I arrived there at 1:30 and spent the afternoon digging in vertical files and combing through old histories. Below is a great picture of the Mehrhof house and a photo of one of the 4 sailing vessels used to transport the more than 2 million bricks produced in the Mehrhof brickyard to market.

The researcher on duty even helped me figure our where to search for the old brickyard along the Hackensack River.

Three cheers for the universe and its uncanny ability to know what we need - provided we listen. Tomorrow is grant writing then back to the library for a few hours before heading to cousin Carol Schwartz's. I'll tackle the cemetery on Friday.

Day 79

Hello from Riverside, CT. I am in the lovely 115 year old home of Susan Morris - a 2nd cousin once removed on the Atkinson side. She and husband Robert graciously opened their home to the wandering one on top of providing temporary housing for their nephew Rich, his wonderful wife Melissa and two terrific kids Richie (age 5) and Paulina (age 2). We had fun with the kids this afternoon and then a delicious salmon dinner. We shared some family stories and caught up with each others' lives.

Tomorrow everyone is off early to work and school. I am off to beautiful downtown Hackensack, NJ to look for graves and old brickyards. Somewhere in there I need to do some grant writing as well. Enjoy your Wednesday!

Days 77 & 78

Sorry I missed the blog last night. I fell asleep and didn't feel like getting out of the covers at midnight.

Fall is fast approaching. I needed a sweatshirt for my walk this morning. The past two days have been mostly grant work oriented. I also did some shopping yesterday to augment my wardrobe. The changes in eating and exercise are paying off. Tonight I have been exploring the various ancestry lines that converge in New Jersey - Tukeys, Davenports, Suttons. Wednesday night I have to check on the Atkinson side and see who else started their American adventure in NJ. I will spend several days working in Bergen and Somerset counties and then further south.

Tomorrow I leave for Riverside, CT and an overnight visit with a 2nd cousin once removed on the Atkinson side. Should be fun to meet new relatives.

Day 76

The weather today was glorious. A strong breeze, no humidity, and bright sunshine. I spent the morning working on grants but by 12:30 I was OUTSIDE! I went to Stonington and found a nature preserve where I could walk on the beach, sit on rocks beside the ocean, and walk through the beach roses. A wonderful way to spend the afternoon. (I tried to upload a photo for you but no luck tonight.)


Genealogy was limited. The library closed early so I didn't get any research time but I couldn't bear to be inside anyway. The rest of the day was spent just enjoying myself. A bit of guilt in the name of ancestors - but not much. :-)

Day 75

The sky is leaking here in CT, as it has been most of the day. I am sure it is worse in NC. I hope Karl, Anne, Carl, Cathy and Rick are all surviving the wet and the wind from Earl.

This morning I decided to tour the seaport village of Mystic Seaport. I learned lots about ship building, being a cooper, and I am becoming knowlegable on the various types of houses and ships that made up our ancestors' lives between 1650 and 1900. One of the most interesting exhibit was the Whaler the Charles Morgan. It is in dry dock for 3 years being overhauled and refurbished. It is impressive to see the huge wooden ship out of water, walk through the area where they are making the masts and spars, and actually get a chance to go aboard and explore the Morgan while they work on her.

After leaving this outdoor exhibit, the rest of the day was spent doing errands, some window shopping and a movie. I just didn't want to go back to the hotel room. It was a relaxing day. Tomorrow I have to settle in and start some grant writing and do some setup for my research in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Hopefully, the rain will let up so I can do some more exploring.

Day 74

No sign of the hurricane but I have gas in the car and ice in the cooler. Somehow I doubt that I will need either to escape the wild waves. The air is full of humidity but the breezes are wonderful.

I left Stonington this morning at 7:30 and covered 3 states by 9:30. In the west you could only accomplish this at the 4-corners area. It took 15 minutes to get from CT to RI. Then 20 miles across RI, and then wander 20 miles through Massachusetts as I make my way down the peninsula to Little Compton, and finally back into RI. I went all the way down to the coast just to see the waves crashing and smell the open water. Then back to Little Compton (about 7 miles inland) to see the cemetery at the Congregational church.

Elisabeth Alden Pabodie's grave is easy to identify. The community erected an obelisk in 1882 and placed her small gravestone in one facet to protect and preserve it. Elisabeth died in 1717 at age 94. She did her best to populate this part of New England leaving hundreds of grandchildren and great grandchildren. Next to her was William Sr. who died in 1707 at age 88. Other gravestones included William Pabodie Jr who died in 1744 age 80. Also his first wife Judith Tilden and 2nd wife Elisabeth.

I then made my way back up the peninsula past Swansea and into Providence (Fiona goes into spasms in Providence - good thing I knew the route). I wanted to hit the beaches for a bit so made my way down another peninsula (going through CT, RI and MA again) to Misquamicut. I found an area where you could park for free, walk on the beach and enjoy the waves. Just perfect. I continue to be amazed that our ancestors a) came from England armed with faith and not a lot else and b) the next generation (Elisabeth Alden P was the first white female born in NE) got back in a boat and explored the coastline looking for new land. This was a much easier process by boat than land given the rugged coastline, estuaries, marshes and rivers, but how daunting to try and choose an optimal spot.

I got back in the car heading for more grave sites in N. Stonington, CT. These sites have caused me headaches. I was looking for the Crary-Peabody cemetery and the Great Plain cemetery. The directions say is 2.5 miles NE of the town center and .5 miles NW of the town center. I found some directions from 30 years ago but the roads are not labeled the same. To complicate things, N. Stonington had a huge flood a few months ago, washing out the bridge on Main Street, effectively cutting off my access to some of the roads in the obscure directions. After wandering around, searching one cemetery that wasn't the right one, I headed for the Town Clerk's office. Lo and behold, she was in today and I could reach her office located next to the abyss left by surging flood water. I got a map and sort of reasonable directions. Fiona and I finally found Crary-Peabody. It sits in a field on a working farm. All the fields are edged with rock walls and they continue over rolling hills for miles. I got permission from the owners to walk through their lanes to get to the graves. They graves are not well tended. I am grateful the cemetery is fenced off, there is a mowed path around the edge, and that the local historical society has recorded the inscriptions.

Sure enough there are tons of Peabodys. I found William Peabody III who died in 1778 (age 77), Thomas Peabody (age 87) and his wife Ruth (age 78). I also found Mary, wife of William Pabody. She died in 1756 at age 86, one of the oldest stones in the cemetery. I haven't connected her but she might be William Jr's 3rd wife Mary Morgan Starr and may have been living with William III and his wife Jerusha Starr (Mary's daughter) after William Jr. died. One of the most interesting graves in this cemetery is for Sirley, a William Peabody's horse who died in 1875 at age 30. I have included this photo for my mom.

I then followed the map to Wynassup Lake. According to probate records for Robert Coats Jr (1658-1724), his land grant included this lake and the surrounding countryside - 100s of acres. It is gorgeous and was inherited by William Coates (7 GG). Too bad not inherited by one of us!

Finally, as the sun was beginning to set, I made my way to Great Plain Cemetery. It is on an obscure gravel road across from a strip mall. You follow the road into and through the woods until you come to a sunny field on a hill. Many stones in this cemetery are in very poor shape. I found Hannah Bill Coates (d 1769-age 77) (notice that our early ancestors had an e in the name but had dropped it by about 1800). Her husband William Coates Sr's grave was not there but it easily could have crumbled given the state of many of the surrounding stones.

I was glad to get back to my hotel - a long day but very worthwhile. Lots of pictures that take up too much space to upload but you have seen enough gravestones through this blog that I won't worry that you are deprived. One last note - happy 12th birthday to my granddaughter Clancy and happy 80th birthday to uncle Carl.

Day 73

Today was a day to get an overview of the CT coast, Mystic and Stonington. I headed for the lovely waterfront, enjoying the blue sky and water. I toured the Stonington Lighthouse including the climb to the top of the tower (see photo for a non-smoggy look towards NY).






I then spent a few hours at the Stonington Historical Library. Nothing much new in the Coats or Peabody files, and much to my frustration, not too many listings for family members in local cemeteries. Where did they go? Also frustrating was the split records between Stonington and North Stonington. I think I may have to spend a day in Hartford searching vital records and probates. One piece of information did surface. John Coats Sr. (father of the John Coats in upstate New York) was born in Lebanon, CT and has another Peabody lurking in his past). Oh boy. We already have Peabodys marrying Peabodys before they get to the Coatses. Now they are marrying in again.

After a long conference call with clients, I went back to genealogy. Becauase the Peabody lines are so convoluted, I worked backward from nationally vetted genealogy on Mayflower descendants. And so the next chapter in "As the Stomach Turns" begins. Let's see if I can convey this mess simply.
Generation 1: John Alden and Priscilla Mullins (yes, of Mayflower fame) marry and
have 10 children.
Generation 2: Their eldest child, Elizabeth, married William Pabodie (Peabody). He was
born in England about 1620. She was born in Plymouth, MA in 1724/25.
Generation 3: Elizabeth (1) and William (1) give birth to William Jr. in 1664. William Jr.
married Judith Tildon in 1693. After Judith died, he married Elizabeth
Throope and then Mary Morgan Starr (remember that name).
Generation 4:
a. William Jr. and Judith begat William III. William III married Jerusha
Starr - his step sister by Mary Morgan Starr.
b. William Jr. and Judith also begat Elizabeth Peabody II. She married
Edward Gray.

Generation 5a: William III and Jerusha had Thomas (b. 1727) who married Ruth Babcock
(they actually have graves in N. Stonington!). They had 13 children.
5b. Elizabeth II and Edward Gray have Anstrace Gray.

Generation 6aa. Thomas and Ruth have William (I know) Peabody. Let's designate him
William IV.
6ab. Thomas and Ruth also give birth to Lucy Peabody.
6ba. Anstrace Gray married John Coats, Sr. and begat John Coats, Jr.

Generation 7aa. William IV married Rebecca Brown and begat William Peabody V.
7ab and 7ba. Lucy Peabody married John Coats Jr and has Ezra Peabody
Coats.

Generation 8aa. William Peabody V married Roxanna Burdick and they had Roxanna
Peabody.

Generation 9. Ezra Peabody Coats married Roxanna Peabody to produce George
Washington Coats who we all remember from 10 weeks ago in Michigan.

Generation 10. Emma Jane Coats married Eugene Davenport.

Generation 11. Margaret Davenport married Harold B. Tukey.

Generation 12. Loren, Lois and Ron Tukey

Generation 13. Me and all the cousins

Generation 14. Our children

Generation 15: Our grandchildren - for those of us who have gotten that far.

After all that - and let me tell you it took a lot of charts and paper to make sure I had it straight - I am headed for Rhode Island tomorrow. It seems all the Peabodys are buried in Little Compton. I know it is on the other side of the next state but since it's only an hour drive from here, I might as well risk the potential hurricane and get a few more shots for the family album. Stay tuned.