52 Ancestors 2020 – 19 – Service – Gideon Hockett

I found Gideon Hockett in the database at Ancestry.com: U.S., Register of Civil, Military, and Naval Service, 1863-1959. Since this included the word “Service” and his birthday was during this week, I decided that he would fit in this category.

His Civil Service took place in Sherman County, Kansas, as postmaster for LaBlanche. This 1897 map found on the Library of Congress website indicates where LaBlanche was located.

Gideon was my great-granduncle, an older brother of my great-grandmother, Mary Magdalene (Hockett) Albertson. Gideon was the son of Francis and Rebecca (Hartley) Hockett.

His parents moved from Randolph County, Indiana, in 1838 to Salem area in Henry County, Iowa Territory. It was there that Gideon was born on 6 May 1841. So he was a little boy when Iowa attained statehood in 1846, It was a few years later when the family moved to the neighboring county, Lee County, Iowa, and Gideon was included with them in the 1850 census as a 9 year old boy who had attended school within that year. I have searched, but been unable to find their family in the 1860 census, but he is on the 1856 Iowa State census, indexed by Ancestry as Gedicon Hocket, age 15.

It was in 1863 when Gideon moved with his family to Hardin County, Iowa. He and Mary Harris were married  in Hardin County and by the 1870 census the family was living in Liberty Township, Marshall County, Iowa, with their 4 children: Virgil, Mary, Gideon and Francis. Again Ancestry was creative in their indexing as he was listed as Gedeon. But on the 1880 census the family had moved back to Grant Township in Hardin County and by now there are 5 more children: James, Dorah, Tula, Julia and Anna, making a total of 9. The 1880 census included an agricultural schedule and Gideon was listed as owner of 80 acres tilled ground, 14 acres of permanent meadows or pasture and 41 acres unimproved ground. Some of his crops that year included 10 tons of hay, 800 bushels of Indian corn, 400 bushels oats, 275 bushels of wheat, 40 bushels of Irish potatoes and 150 gallons of molasses made from sorghum. He had 2 horses, 3 milch cows, 3 calves, 3 swine and 10 poultry plus a 1 acre apple orchard.

“Gidson Hockett” was enumerated on the 1885 Iowa state census, still in Grant Township in Hardin County. There is 1 more child, Charles, so it makes a total of 10 children in their family. Their oldest child and the 3 youngest were born in Hardin County and the others born in Marshall County. This census shows his location as Township 86, Range 21, Section 1, the Southwest ¼.

But the family chose to move again and Gideon and family went to Sherman County Kansas where he settled a homestead claim of 160 acres. His patent was issued on 20 Jul 1892 for the southeast ¼ of section 7, Township 10 South, Range 41 West.  This was about a mile west of his brother-in-law, my great-grandfather, Nathan E. Albertson.

Using the Library of Congress website for historic newspapers, I could read about Gideon in the Goodland Republic. Goodland was the county seat for Sherman County. Most of the items about Gideon were in the LaBlanche section. If you look for LaBlanche on a modern road map, you will be disappointed because it is no longer shown. There was a post office there from 1886 to 1901. It was in this last part of its existence that Gideon had his “civil service.” He was appointed in February of 1901 and the post office was discontinued in September of the same year so he served a little over 6 months. A newspaper article of 15 Mar 1901 gives the following information:

“It is understood that Gideon Hockett will be postmaster at LaBlache. In that case the postoffice will be located about six miles southwest of the present location, the present postmaster, Charles Olson, having sold the building and claim to Jake Horton, who will occupy the same as soon as vacated.”

I was able to find a copy of a 1887 atlas on the David Rumsey Map Collection which showed LaBlanche. It was in the northwest ¼ of the northwest ¼ of Section 35, Township 9 South, Range 41 West. Mapping it against Gideon's homestead you can see that they were about 6 miles apart.

I really enjoyed the notice in the newspaper on 11 Aug 1905 where they reported that Gideon was in Goodland with a wagon load of turnips, onions and other garden produce.

I was sad to read the obituary for Gideon's wife in May 1916. It stated that for 8 years she had been a patient, helpless invalid. But it also said that she had been carefully attended by her faithful husband. This is the kind of service we can admire. Gideon lived another 8 years and died 16 July 1924 at the county farm. Both Mary and Gideon were buried at Kanorado Cemetery in Sherman County.

52 Ancestors 2020 – 18 – Where There's a Will– Mary “Polly” (Bond) Lemaster

I started to write about Mary for the past two weeks' themes, but decided I wanted to do Aunt Hannah and Uncle Charles instead. I discovered that Mary did make a will so I could write about her for this topic, even if her birthday was in the wrong week.

Mary, who often used the common nickname “Polly”, was my 3^rd great-grandaunt. She was the daughter of Solomon and Anna (Allen) Bond and a younger sister of my 3^rd great-grandfather, John Bond.

Mary was born 17 Apr 1802 in Kentucky. This was most likely Henry County, because her father Solomon (of Shelby County) purchased land in Henry County in 1801.

I suspect that she was the 16 to 25 year old female in Solomon's household in the 1820 census because her marriage to Wesley Lemaster in Henry County, Kentucky, did not take place until 27 Oct 1820. Then she would be the 20 to 29 year old in the household of Wesley Lemasters on the 1830 census in Henry County.

I have not yet located them on the 1840 census, but they were still in Henry County in 1850. Wesley was a 58 year old farmer and Mary was 48 and the real estate value was $10,000. The slave schedule showed they owned 4 slaves, 3 males: age 65, 37, 26 and 1 female age 32. It was 17 Mar 1858 when Wesley died and Mary became a widow.

Sometime before the 1860 census, her brother William with his wife Elizabeth and daughters Nancy and Mary moved into her household. This census showed that William had real estate valued at $5000 while Mary had $4800 plus personal property of $7000. This personal property would be most likely the 3 slaves shown on the slave schedule. They may be a family as there was a male age 50, a female age 42 and another female age 1. Both Mary and William showed their occupation as farmer and the household also included a 22 year old laborer born in Holland.

When Mary/Polly died, she was buried at Hendronsville Cemetery located on Lake Jericho Road, Pendleton, Henry County, Kentucky. Find A Grave lists Mary's death as 12 Mar 1879, but she is listed on the 1880 Mortality Schedule in the Jericho Mag. District as Pollie Lemaster, a widow, dying in Mar from consumption. However her will was proved at the April term in 1879. This indicates that the 1879 date is probably correct.

But since the theme is about wills and I stated she had a will, lets look at that.

Mary, using the name Polly Lamaster, wrote her will in June of 1876, 3 years before her death. Since she had no children, I was interested to see who she would designate as her heirs. The first person she listed was “Margaret Estes of color, who has lived with me for more than forty years.” Margaret was to receive the house and 4 ½ acres of land in Jericho where Polly lived and the furniture for her life. Polly specified that it was to be “free from the control of her husband or any other person.” Then Polly also made a bequest to Margaret of $300. After Margaret died, the house and land, or their proceeds, were to go to Margaret's two grandchildren: Margaret Belle Reed and James W Reed. Polly also specified that Margaret Belle would get the “high bedstead, one feather bed, four pillows, one bolster and a sufficiency of other bedclothes to furnish the bed and keep her warm.” James was to get the other large Bedstead and items to keep him warm.

Then Polly made a bequest to Lewis Estes, Margaret's husband, of $100 and all the remaining furniture after Margaret died. Also he could stay in the house if he so desired.

Then Polly made more bequests. She left Wesly Tanner the family Bible and $500. She didn't forget her family who had lived with her in 1860, although her brother William had died the previous year. She left money to William's widow and daughters Mary and Nancy and then the balance of her estate was to be divided between the four daughters, her nieces, Elizabeth Turner, Sarah Bain [sic], Nancy Graham and Mary Bond.

But that wasn't the end of Polly's will making, as she did a codicil the next year in June 1876. She had to revoke the bequest to Wesly Tanner since he had died in the meantime. She gave the family Bible to Mary Bond and more money. She also raised the amount of money to go to “Margaret Estes of color” to $500.

All of this raised the question in my mind, who was Margaret Estes? If she had lived with Mary/Polly for 40 years she must be one of those enumerated on the slave schedule. There was 1 female in 1850, age 32, and a female in 1860, age 42. Then the Civil War and emancipation happened. I haven't been able to locate Mary/Polly in 1870, but I did find Margaret. She was listed as Margaret Estes age 53 with Lewis and an 11 year old daughter Anna, living in Jericho, Henry County, Kentucky. She was listed as Margaret Reed, age 62, on the 1880 census in Jericho with Luis Estes and apparently her grandchildren Elizabeth age 5 and James age 4 and Jacob Reed age 25, a widower.

Margaret's occupation was servant, so I hope that she had benefited from the bequest in Mary/Polly's will.

52 Ancestors 2020 – 17 – Land – Charles Bond

Charles Bond did own land. His obituary in 1912 noted that he was living on the “old home place owned by his father a mile northeast of Halsey.” It was the same farm where he had been born in 1860. This photo taken about 1909, shared with me by my cousin Robert Bond, shows Charles' home.

Charles was the executor for his mother's will when she died in 1903. The inventory of her estate noted that she had 160 acres as her half of their Donation Land Claim, but they excluded 2 acres on the east side previously sold and also “18 acres where the buildings stand on said premises heretofore sold to C. S. Bond.”

Charles Seth Bond, my great-granduncle, was born on 23 April 1860 in Linn County, Oregon, the son of Solomon and Huldah (Hayes) Bond, my 2^nd great-grandparents. I wrote about his older sister Susan 3 weeks ago and explained that where the family lived was called Pine Precinct on the 1860 census and Peoria Precinct on the 1870 census. Charles just made it onto the 1860 census being marked as age 2/12, but was age 10 for the next census. The town of Halsey was formed after the Oregon and California Railroad was built on the western edge of the Bond property in 1871. I can think that Charles, at age 11, would have enjoyed watching the building of the railroad. When the 1880 census was taken Charles was 20 years old, single, and his occupation was farmer.

It was four years later, 21 Sep 1884, when Charles changed his marital status as he married Minnie Gourley. I find it interesting that about 10 years later, Minnie's sister Ada married Charles' nephew, Edwin Cummings. Can you imagine their children trying to figure out their relationship? For Minnie and Charles did have 2 children. Bessie was born in 1886 and Lela in 1894. So their family was enumerated on the 1900 census, living with Charles' mother Huldah. His father had died in 1899. Also in the household in 1900 was Minnie's younger brother George.

This family photo, also shared by Robert Bond, was probably taken about 1904.

The family was enumerated on the 1910 census, Bessie and Lela were now 23 and 16. The household again contained other relatives, this time Clarice Gourley, a niece, and Charles' widowed oldest sister, Lydia (Bond) Clark. This is the last time I find them all together as Charles died in 1912 and Minnie in 1913.

It was 23 Sep 1912 when Charles died. His cause of death is rather confusing. A family history stated that he was killed by a normally friendly bull in the pasture on his farm. His death certificate showed the cause of death as apoplexy. An obituary in an Albany newspaper stated that “his death was due to the rupture of a blood vessel produced from over-exertion while working on his farm.” A Eugene newspaper gave the following account: “Chas. Bond....died yesterday as the result of an injury sustained while working in his hog pen. While holding one of the porkers his left arm and hand were severely wrenched and a physician was called. Mr. Bond's injuries were not thought serious at first.….but a few minutes later he expired. It is supposed that a blood vessel was ruptured or else the shock may have caused heart failure.” For whatever reason, Charles died and was buried in the Halsey Pioneer Cemetery.

Although he died in 1912, he was listed in a 1913 Linn County, Oregon, directory on the tax list. It showed he owned property at Halsey valued at $5505. So again I say Charles did own land.