Which Mary Was the Mother of Benjamin Albertson?

Yesterday I wrote about my 5th great-grandfather, Benjamin Albertson and his two wives named Mary. I believe that Benjamin married Mary Small in 1760, then married a second time to Mary Wyatt in 1769. I had come to this conclusion a number of years ago and asked for a second opinion from Raymond Winslow, a well-respected North Carolina researcher. He agreed it appeared probable. But then he noted that to determine which Mary was my ancestor, I needed to try to find when my 4th great-grandfather, Benjamin Albertson, was born. Was he born before or after 1769?

Of course the births of the children of Benjamin and Mary (both of them) are not recorded in the Quaker records. So using the suggestion of Mr. Winslow, I researched the 1800 to 1830 censuses for Perquimans County North Carolina to try to discover the approximate date for Benjamin's birth.

I located a Benjamin Albertson that I believe was my 4th gt-grandfather in the 1800, 1810 and 1820 censuses. When his son was married in 1824 it stated his father was deceased, so he was not in 1830. Since those censuses do not give an age, but a range, my calculations have to be an approximate. These are the results:

1800 -- age 16-26 = birthdate 1774 - 1784

1810 -- age 26-45 = birthdate 1765 - 1784

1820 -- age 26-45 = birthdate 1775 - 1794

Using all these censuses together it indicates he was born between 1775 and 1784. Therefore he would have been born after 1769 and his mother was Mary Wyatt. I do have one more clue to substantiate this belief. One of Benjamin's grandsons was named Nathan Wyatt Albertson.

But what about Benjamin's brothers and sisters. How do they fit? I will try to write about that tomorrow.

More Questions About Benjamin Albertson 1739 - 1800

Yesterday I wrote about my 5th great-grandfather, Benjamin Albertson and his date of birth. He has seemed to give me more problems about his records.

I noted that the records at the Quaker Suttons Creek Monthly Meeting include this section about Benjamin and his wife's birth and death.

You will notice that his wife's name was shown as Mary Albertson. Now I need to find out what her maiden name was. So I should be able to check the marriage records and find the answer to this question. But Benjamin didn't want to cooperate with me.

In Hinshaw's Encyclopedia of American Quaker Genealogy, in the section for Perquimans Monthly Meeting, pg 34, I found the following entries in the Albertson section:

1760, 2, 6. Benjamin rmt Mary Small.

1769, 3, 1. Benjamin rmt Mary Wyatt.

Going to the section for neighboring Pasquotank Monthly Meeting, pg 127, I found this:

1766, 11,19. Benjamin, of Peruqimans MM, rmt Sarah Nixon.

Well, how many Benjamin Albertsons were there in that area in that time period? Checking the families I discovered that Aaron and Ann (Gilbert) Albertson had a son named Benjamin (my ancestor) and William and Sarah (Pritchard) Albertson had a son named Benjamin. Aaron and William were brothers and these 2 Benjamins were cousins. I could find just the 2 men named Benjamin.

We can see from the Sutton Creek record that our Benjamin's wife was a Mary. His will probated in Nov 1800 lists his wife as Mary. His cousin's will was probated in May 1802 with no wife named. But Sutton Creek records show that Sarah the wife of Benjamin died in the 8th month of 1801.

The will of Jacob Wyatt of Perquimans County was probated July 1788 and he names a daughter as Mary, wife of Benjamin Albertson. Since this was after the marriage of 1769 it seems evident to me that my Benjamin first married Mary Small in 1760 and she probably died and he married second to Mary Wyatt in 1769 and she is the one who is shown in the above record from Suttons Creek.

Now the question is, when was my ancestor, Benjamin's son Benjamin, born? I need to try to find the answer to this so I can see which Mary was my ancestor. I will try to give an answer to that question tomorrow.

Ancestor Birthday - July 29th - Benjamin Albertson 1739 - 1800

I must confess that my 5th great-grandfather, Benjamin Albertson has been giving me problems about the correct date of his birth. The change in the calendar in 1752 and the Quaker use of numbers rather than names for months has given me a challenge.

In the Quaker Perquimans Monthly Meeting records I found the following birth record for he and his siblings, the children of Aaron and Ann (Gilbert) Albertson.

He was the youngest child and this seems to say he was born on the 18th of the 5th month in 1739. Since this was before the calendar change, that would make the month July.

Then after he died the records at the Quaker Suttons Creek Monthly Meeting included this section about Benjamin and his wife's birth and death.

Here it states he was born the 29th of the 7th month 1739 old stile. Since this was written after the calendar change in 1752 it seems to indicate he was born on the 29th of the 7th month which would have been September under the "old style."

So he was born either on the 18th or 29th and either in the 5th month (July) or 7th month (September). It more probable that the Perquimans Monthly Meeting records were written first, since Suttons Creek Monthly Meeting was not divided from Perquimans until 1794. So because of that maybe I should choose July and believe the Suttons Creek clerk got confused. But then which day is correct, 18th or 29th. Notice there are 11 days difference. Look at a representation of the calendar for September in 1752 when the new calendar took effect.

In order to get the calendar back in sync 11 days were omitted. Maybe the clerk tried to account for that or maybe it was Benjamin. Maybe he was following the lead of the president. The story has been reported that George Washington was born 11 Feb 1731, but after the calendar change his birthday was celebrated on the 22nd of February.

So if I choose the Perquimans record for the month (July) and use the later day (29th) that would make today when I celebrate his birthday.

My Diamond Aged Ancestors

My Diamond Aged Ancestors

As I celebrated my 75th birthday a few years ago I was interested in which of my ancestors also had lived to at least 75 years old. The diamond is the gem associated with a 75th anniversary, so I have chosen it to remember these ancestors. Following is a listing of the ancestors through my 3rd gt-grandparents that I have identified as living at least 75 years. I am using the maiden names for the women.

Name	Relationship	Birth	Death	Age at Death
Lester Oran Albertson	father	1907	2004	96
Florence Edna Bond	grandmother	1891	1979	87
Lafayette Pierce Smalley	gt-grandfather	1858	1946	87
Rosa Ella Shipman	gt-grandmother	1863	1954	90
Ludwig Falk	gt-grandfather	1815	1899	83
Benjamin Albertson	2nd gt-grandfather	1826	1908	82
Rebecca Hartley	2nd gt-grandmother	1818	1908	89
Joshua Rodney Shipman	2nd gt-grandfather	1840	1918	78
Solomon Bond	2nd gt-grandfather	1819	1900	80
Huldah Hayes	2nd gt-grandmother	1827	1903	76
Commodore Perry O'Neal	2nd gt-grandfather	1835	1919	84
Nathan Albertson	3rd gt-grandfather	1801	1883	82
Phariby Nicholson	3rd gt-grandmother	1803	1888	85
Elias Marsh	3rd gt-grandfather	1788	1871	82
Isaac Hockett	3rd gt-grandfather	1791	1872	81
Thomas Hartley	3rd gt-grandfather	1767	1843	75
Elizabeth Eakins	3rd gt-grandmother	1802	1881	79
Joseph Lester Shipman	3rd gt-grandfather	1807	1893	86
Sarah Chastain	3rd gt-grandmother	1797	1875	77
William Logsdon England	3rd gt-grandfather	1802	1893	91

If you check the chart you can see there are 20 diamond ages ancestors listed: 13 men and 7 women. You can count and see that 5 were in their 70's, 12 in their 80's, and 3 in their 90's.

Treasured Memories From the Past -- Visiting My Grandma

When I was little, my grandparents lived on the same farm we did. So to visit Grandma, I just had to cross the yard and open the gate. Here is a picture that was taken over 70 years ago when I was going to visit her. This was my grandmother, Lucie (Smalley) Albertson, who was born 5 Aug 1886. Next week that will be 131 years ago. It is interesting to think of all the history that has transpired since she was born. I should have asked her more questions.

Adams County Cousins - Zola Clair Hemphill

Zola Clair Hemphill was one of my great-grandfather, Lafayette Pierce "Lafe" Smalley's first cousins, who are my 1st cousins 3 times removed. She was the daughter of William C. and Emma (Shields) Hemphill. William was one of Lafe's mother's younger brothers. William was born the same year that his father died, 1847. His mother was the head of the household in 1850, William's 25 year old half-brother, David, was listed as a farmer. In 1860, after his mother had remarried, William was living with his uncle, J. C. Milligan and their family.

Apparently William served in the Civil War as he has a military grave marker, showing that he had been a Private in Company B of the 1st Missouri Cavalry. In 1867 there was a William C. Hemphill, a 1st Lieutenant in the 4th U.S. Cavalry based at Camp Hatch in Rio Concho, Texas. By 1888 William was in Warren County Illinois where he married Emma Shields, who was about 20 years younger than him. Illinois was where Zola, their oldest daughter, was born 10 Mar 1888. By 1895 the family had increased to 3 children and they were living in Marshall County Kansas. Zola had gained 3 more siblings by 1900 and by then they were in Logan County Oklahoma.

The 23rd of December 1908 was the date for Zola's marriage to Carl (William C) Owens in Payne County Oklahoma. They were living at Perkins in Payne County for the 1910 census where William's occupation was machinist. They had one baby son but he died before the year was over. When the next census was taken in 1920 they were still living in Perkins and William was working as a cotton buyer. By then there were 5 children in the family.

They moved within the next 10 years and were living in Hominy, Osage County Oklahoma for the 1930 census. They were renting their house on N Katy Street for $12 per month and did not have a radio. William was now working as a mechanic at a cotton gin and there were 4 children still at home. Only the youngest son was still in the household in Hominy for the 1940 census. William was working as a laborer doing odd jobs.

William C. Owens died 16 Aug 1953 and was buried at A. J. Powell Memorial Cemetery in Hominy Osage County Oklahoma. Zola was buried next to William after her death 28 Aug 1974.

Adams County Cousins - John Hamilton Spurgeon

Today is another of my great-grandfather, Lafayette Pierce "Lafe" Smalley's first cousins, who are my 1st cousins 3 times removed. However John Hamilton Spurgeon was not only Lafes 1st cousin on the Hemphill side (Lafe's mother), but he was Lafe's 2nd cousin on his Smalley side (Lafe's father.) So John is also my 2nd cousin 3 times removed. That would make any descendants of his show more shared DNA than a regular 1st cousin once removed. However that won't apply in this case because my research shows John Hamilton Spurgeon as a single man during his life. But he did have some siblings who would have those same relationships.

John was born 19 Oct 1867 in Adams County Ohio to James Morris and Elizabeth Rebecca (Hemphill) Spurgeon. I was able to find John on 6 censuses. He was only 2 years old in 1870 in the household of his parents with 2 older sisters and 1 younger brother in Meigs Township in Adams County. Sadly his father died in 1873 when John would have been about 5 or 6 years old. On the 1880 census he and 1 sister were in the household of Albert Gerslin and his family in Bryd Township in neighboring Brown County. Both of the Spurgeon children were listed as cousin.

In 1900 John was the head of household, now age 32, and back in Meigs Township in Adams County. His mother was living with him and 2 Plummer children, an 8 year old nephew and a 6 year old niece. He was listed as a farmer living on an owned farm, free of mortgage. Ten years later in 1910 his mother is still in his household plus the niece was now listed as adopted.

The 1920 census lists the location as Jacksonville and the farm as rented. Again his mother was living with him and now they have a 21 year old young woman who was working as a housekeeper for them. It was in 1927 that John's mother died, then in the 1930 census he was still single and living alone. I appreciate the fact that it seems that John provided a home for his widowed mother for a number of years. John died 17 May 1934 and was buried in Tranquility Cemetery in Adams County.

Adams County Cousins - Harrison Monroe Hamilton

 I am going to try again and write about some of my great-grandfather, Lafayette Pierce "Lafe" Smalley's first cousins, who are my 1st cousins 3 times removed. This time they will be from his mother's side of the family. This first name, Harrison Monroe Hamilton, may sound familiar since I already wrote about his cousin Mary Elizabeth Hamilton. This can get confusing because Mary Elizabeth's father, William J. Hamilton, and Harrison's father, John C. Hamilton, were 1st cousins, so Mary Elizabeth and Harrison Monroe were 2nd cousins to each other, but they each were also 1st cousins to Lafe, one from each side of his family.

confused

Harrison was born in Adams County Ohio 21 Oct 1857 to John Campbell and Nancy Jane (Hemphill) Hamilton. Nancy was about 1 1/2 years older than Lafe's mother, Rachel. Nancy had married John in 1855. John was a step-brother to Nancy, since his widower father had married Nancy's widowed mother. Did I mention that this family can get confusing?                                     

Harrison was the 2nd child and oldest son in a family of 11 children. In the 1860, 1870 and 1880 censuses the he was living with his parents in Oliver Township, in Adams County. In 1870 he was marked as attending school and in 1880 he was working on the farm.

It was within the next year that he married Anna Eliza Green, as their oldest daughter Roxie or Robie or Ronie was born in Aug 1881 according to the 1900 census. However if you want to talk about confusing just look at Harrison, or Harry M. Hamilton as he was listed there, on the 1900 census in Franklin Township, Adams County, Ohio. He was listed as age 24, it should have been 42, and born in Oct 1875, when it really was 1857. But it did say he had been married 19 years, which is rather remarkable if he was only 24 years old. His oldest daughter was marked as a son and his 5th child who was a son was marked as a daughter. I was able to find his children in later censuses and confirmed their correct gender. His wife was shown as Lida E. I expect that was a variation from her middle name. Later censuses and her gravestone show her name as Anna E.

Harrison died 6 Jan 1908 and was buried in Locust Grove Cemetery, Peebles, Adams County, Ohio. Anna was listed on the 1910 census still in Franklin Township with her 3 youngest sons, Monroe, John and Edgar. In 1920 she was living with the youngest son, Charles Edgar and his wife Zora and young son John in Sheridan Wyoming. I haven't found her in 1930, but in the 1940 census she was living with her oldest daughter, Robie, or Roxie, Taylor and her family in Dayton, Ohio. Anna died a few years later 20 Jan 1942 and was buried next to Harrison in Locust Grove Cemetery.

Treasured Memories From the Past--My Church Sent Me Birthday Cards

When I was a baby I was enrolled in the Cradle Roll where my parents attended church, the Halsey Christian Church in Halsey, Oregon. Then on my 1st, 2nd and 3rd birthdays, birthday cards came in the mail for me. Looking back I discovered that it was the wife of my Dad's cousin who sent out the cards. Later she became my 4th grade teacher at school.

Where Were My Ancestors? - 1850 Census

This will be the last post in this series, since before 1850 the census did not list everyone, but only the head of household, so many of my ancestors (wives and children) were not listed by name.

Yesterday there were 35 ancestors found on the 1860 census (plus 3 were not found) and today there are 42, plus 2 not found . Only 1 of my gt-grandparents was found on the 1850 census, the others were either not born yet or the 2 who were still in Europe.

This map shows where my ancestors were in 1850. It has gained from yesterday for the total number of locations, now up to 17. Of these, 6 are the same and there are 11 different ones. Now there are 6 states represented, Iowa has 6 different counties, Indiana has 5 different counties, and Ohio has 3 different counties. So Connecticut, Missouri and Illinois just have 1 county each. When the counties are close together it is hard to mark them so you can see the different place. If you have questions, get out your maps and atlases and look them up.

Here is chart with their names (women's maiden names), locations (County and State) and their relationship to me. Since our number of ancestors doubles for each generation, the chart gets longer.

1850 Census

Name	County	State	Relationship
Nathan E. Albertson	Hamilton	Indiana	gt-grandfather
Benjamin Albertson	Hamilton	Indiana	gt-gt-grandfather
Sabina Marsh	Hamilton	Indiana	gt-gt-grandmother
Francis Hockett	Lee	Iowa	gt-gt-grandfather
Rebecca Hartley	Lee	Iowa	gt-gt-grandmother
John W. Smalley	Adams	Ohio	gt-gt-grandfather
Rachel A. Hemphill	Adams	Ohio	gt-gt-grandmother
Joshua R. Shipman	Ashtabula	Ohio	gt-gt-grandfather
Lucy J. Chase	Litchfield	Connecticut	gt-gt-grandmother
Solomon Bond	Marion	Iowa	gt-gt-grandfather
Huldah Hayes	Marion	Iowa	gt-gt-grandmother
C. Perry O'Neal	Bartholomew	Indiana	gt-gt-grandfather
Margaret J England	Davis	Iowa	gt-gt-grandmother
Nathan Albertson	Not Found		3rd gt-grandfather
Phariby Nicholson	Not Found		3rd gt-grandmother
Elias Marsh	Hancock	Indiana	3rd gt-grandfather
Isaac Hockett	Henry	Iowa	3rd gt-grandfather
William Smalley	Adams	Ohio	3rd gt-grandfather
Elizabeth Eakins	Adams	Ohio	3rd gt-grandmother
Elizabeth Milligan	Adams	Ohio	3rd gt-grandmother
Joseph L. Shipman	Ashtabula	Ohio	3rd gt-grandfather
Mary Carey	Ashtabula	Ohio	3rd gt-grandmother
Timothy Chase	Litchfield	Connecticut	3rd gt-grandfather
Lucy I Howe	Litchfield	Connecticut	3rd gt-grandmother
John Bond	Mahaska	Iowa	3rd gt-grandfather
Sarah Chastain	Mahaska	Iowa	3rd gt-grandmother
Seth Hayes	Jefferson	Iowa	3rd gt-grandfather
Lydia Jewett	Jefferson	Iowa	3rd gt-grandmother
Sarah Lollar	Bartholomew	Indiana	3rd gt-grandmother
William L England	Davis	Iowa	3rd gt-grandfather
Mary Walker	Davis	Iowa	3rd gt-grandmother
Peninah Parker	Rush	Indiana	4th gt-grandmother
Elizabeth Smith	Adams	Ohio	4th gt-grandmother
John Eakins	Adams	Ohio	4th gt-grandfather
Nancy Patton	Adams	Ohio	4th gt-grandmother
Elisha Shipman	Lake	Ohio	4th gt-grandfather
Catherine	Lake	Ohio	4th gt-grandmother
Ichabod Howe	Litchfield	Connecticut	4th gt-grandfather
Solomon Bond	Mahaska	Iowa	4th gt-grandfather
George Chastain	Washington	Indiana	4th gt-grandfather
Rebecca Staton	Washington	Indiana	4th gt-grandmother
Joseph England	Callaway	Missouri	4th gt-grandfather
Mary Reed	Callaway	Missouri	4th gt-grandmother
Rachel	Greene	Illinois	4th gt-grandmother

Where Were My Ancestors? - 1860 Census

Today is 1860's turn. Yesterday there were 31 ancestors found on the 1870 census and today there are 38. 4 of the new listings are another generation back, 4th gt-grandparents.

This map shows where my ancestors were in 1860. It has gained from yesterday for the total number, now up to 12. Of these, 4 are the same and there are 8 different ones. Now there are 7 states represented, Ohio has 3 different counties, Oregon has 2 different counties, Iowa has 2 different counties and Indiana has 2 different counties. So Connecticut, Michigan and Wisconsin just have 1 county each.

Here is chart with their names (women's maiden names), locations (County and State) and their relationship to me. Since our number of ancestors doubles for each generation, the chart gets longer.

1860 Census

Name	County	State	Relationship
Nathan E. Albertson	Hardin	Iowa	gt-grandfather
Mary M. Hockett	Not Found		gt-grandmother
Lafayette P. Smalley	Adams	Ohio	gt-grandfather
Ludwig Falk	Grant	Wisconsin	gt-grandfather
Anna L. Boehm	Grant	Wisconsin	gt-grandmother
John H. Bond	Linn	Oregon	gt-grandfather
Mary A O'Neal	Davis	Iowa	gt-grandmother
Benjamin Albertson	Hardin	Iowa	gt-gt-grandfather
Sabina Marsh	Hardin	Iowa	gt-gt-grandmother
Francis Hockett	Not Found		gt-gt-grandfather
Rebecca Hartley	Not Found		gt-gt-grandmother
John W. Smalley	Adams	Ohio	gt-gt-grandfather
Rachel A. Hemphill	Adams	Ohio	gt-gt-grandmother
Joshua R. Shipman	Berrien	Michigan	gt-gt-grandfather
Lucy J. Chase	Berrien	Michigan	gt-gt-grandmother
Solomon Bond	Linn	Oregon	gt-gt-grandfather
Huldah Hayes	Linn	Oregon	gt-gt-grandmother
C. Perry O'Neal	Davis	Iowa	gt-gt-grandfather
Margaret J England	Davis	Iowa	gt-gt-grandmother
Nathan Albertson	Hardin	Iowa	3rd gt-grandfather
Phariby Nicholson	Hardin	Iowa	3rd gt-grandmother
Elias Marsh	Hancock	Indiana	3rd gt-grandfather
Isaac Hockett	Hardin	Iowa	3rd gt-grandfather
Elizabeth Eakins	Adams	Ohio	3rd gt-grandmother
Elizabeth Milligan	Adams	Ohio	3rd gt-grandmother
Joseph L. Shipman	Ashtabula	Ohio	3rd gt-grandfather
Timothy Chase	Lake	Ohio	3rd gt-grandfather
Lucy I Howe	Lake	Ohio	3rd gt-grandmother
John Bond	Marion	Oregon	3rd gt-grandfather
Sarah Chastain	Marion	Oregon	3rd gt-grandmother
Seth Hayes	Linn	Oregon	3rd gt-grandfather
Lydia Jewett	Linn	Oregon	3rd gt-grandmother
William L England	Davis	Iowa	3rd gt-grandfather
Mary Walker	Davis	Iowa	3rd gt-grandmother
Nancy Patton	Adams	Ohio	4th gt-grandmother
Elisha Shipman	New London	Connecticut	4th gt-grandfather
Catherine	New London	Connecticut	4th gt-grandmother
Rebecca Staton	Washington	Indiana	4th gt-grandmother

Where Were My Ancestors? - 1870 Census

We are now back to 1870. Yesterday there were 27 ancestors found on the 1880 census and today there are 31. These 4 newly listed had died between 1870 and 1880.

This map shows where my ancestors were in 1870. It has gained 2 from yesterday for the total number, now up to 10, 5 are the same and there are 5 different ones. Now there are 8 states represented, Ohio has 2 different counties and California also has 2 different counties.

Here is chart with their names (women's maiden names), locations (County and State) and their relationship to me. Since our number of ancestors doubles for each generation, the chart gets longer.

1870 Census

Name	County	State	Relationship
Nathan E. Albertson	Hardin	Iowa	gt-grandfather
Mary M. Hockett	Hardin	Iowa	gt-grandmother
Lafayette P. Smalley	Clinton	Ohio	gt-grandfather
Rosa E. Shipman	Mercer	Illinois	gt-grandmother
Ludwig Falk	Iowa	Wisconsin	gt-grandfather
Anna L. Boehm	Iowa	Wisconsin	gt-grandmother
John H. Bond	Linn	Oregon	gt-grandfather
Mary A O'Neal	Sonoma	California	gt-grandmother
Benjamin Albertson	Hardin	Iowa	gt-gt-grandfather
Sabina Marsh	Hardin	Iowa	gt-gt-grandmother
Francis Hockett	Hardin	Iowa	gt-gt-grandfather
Rebecca Hartley	Hardin	Iowa	gt-gt-grandmother
John W. Smalley	Clinton	Ohio	gt-gt-grandfather
Rachel A. Hemphill	Clinton	Ohio	gt-gt-grandmother
Joshua R. Shipman	Mercer	Illinois	gt-gt-grandfather
Lucy J. Chase	Mercer	Illinois	gt-gt-grandmother
Solomon Bond	Linn	Oregon	gt-gt-grandfather
Huldah Hayes	Linn	Oregon	gt-gt-grandmother
C. Perry O'Neal	Sonoma	California	gt-gt-grandfather
Margaret J England	Sonoma	California	gt-gt-grandmother
Nathan Albertson	Hardin	Iowa	3rd gt-grandfather
Phariby Nicholson	Hardin	Iowa	3rd gt-grandmother
Elias Marsh	Hancock	Indiana	3rd gt-grandfather
Isaac Hockett	Hardin	Iowa	3rd gt-grandfather
Elizabeth Eakins	Adams	Ohio	3rd gt-grandmother
Elizabeth Milligan	Adams	Ohio	3rd gt-grandmother
Joseph L. Shipman	Tuscola	Michigan	3rd gt-grandfather
Timothy Chase	Mercer	Illinois	3rd gt-grandfather
Lucy I Howe	Mercer	Illinois	3rd gt-grandmother
William L England	Lake	California	3rd gt-grandfather
Mary Walker	Lake	California	3rd gt-grandmother