52 Ancestors 2020 – 12 – Popular – Nathaniel Shipman

When I looked at the birthday calendar for this week to find someone who would fit the theme popular, I decided that this was not a popular week to be born, since there were only 5 names listed. The previous week had 11 individuals.

I chose Nathaniel Shipman because I did remember hearing about him when I was researching in the Shipman family. It appears that Nathaniel is rather popular with researchers who have posted family trees on Ancestry.com, since when I entered his name and birthdate in a search of public trees, I discovered he was listed in 331 trees.

The town records for Lyme, Connecticut, show that Nathaniel was born 21 Mar 1791 to Abner and Margery (Avery) Shipman. As 1 of 13 children, he had 10 brothers and 2 sisters. One of his brothers, Elisha, was my 4^th great-grandfather, so Nathaniel was my 4^th great-granduncle.

These records were published in the New England Historical and Genealogical Register.

Since he was born after the 1790 census, 1800 is the first one where we can try to identify which one of the “tick marks” he is. The entry for his father Abner at Lyme, Connecticut, has 2 marked in the under 10 column, but there should be 4, so I am not certain if Nathaniel is one of these or not.

Before 1810, Abner and some of his children moved to German Township, Chenango County, New York. It is not clear if Nathaniel went there or not. But it does appear that Nathaniel married Prudence Bogue before 1814 and they and their 2 oldest sons are on the 1820 census in Lyme, New London County, Connecticut.

Then before 1830 Nathaniel and his family moved west to Ashtabula County, Ohio. The 1830 census there for “N Chipman” in Rome Township includes 8 people, matching the ages for Nathaniel's family; he and his wife, 5 sons and 1 daughter: (John, Elias, Amos, Frederick, Isaac and Lois). Then the 1840 census finds Nathaniel and Prudence and the 2 youngest sons, Frederick and Isaac, in nearby Colebrook township. John and Amos were in their own households enumerated on the same page.

Finally in 1850 the census names all the members of the household. But, by this time only one son, Frederick, is still living with his parents. Nathaniel's occupation was shown as a shoemaker and he had real estate valued at $500. I have not yet been able to locate Nathaniel and Prudence in the 1860 census.

According to her tombstone as pictured on the Find A Grave website, Prudence died July 21, 1867, and was buried in North Colebrook Cemetery, at New Lyme, Ashtabula County, Ohio. On the 1870 census Nathaniel, listed as age 78, was living with his son Elias in Richmond Township, still in Ashtabula County. Nathaniel's oldest son, John, had moved to Upshur County, Virginia, before 1860. In 1863 that part of Virginia was included in the new state of West Virginia. While on a visit there in 1873, Nathaniel died at Buckhannon on June 5^th and was buried in Union Cemetery, Kedron, Upshur County, West Virginia.

Ancestor Birthday - Stephen Scovill[e] - 1706

The 20th of August 1706 was the date my 6th gt-grandfather Stephen Scovill[e], the son of Stephen & Sarah (Champion) Scovill[e], was born in the town of Lyme Connecticut as recorded in the Barbour Collection.

Sometime before 1729 Stephen moved to the town of Haddam Connecticut, which was just north of Lyme. It apparently was in the eastern section which became East Haddam in 1734 because the Barbour Collection listed East Haddam as the location of his marriage to Rebecca Millard 16 Jan 1729 (most likely 1728/29). It then listed 10 children born to Stephen and Rebecca.

A family history for the Scovells compiled by Jennie M. (Scoville) Holley and Homer Worthington Brainard in 1941 listed 11 children: Stephen, Samuel, Rebecca, Sarah, Timothy, Henry, Srah, Elizabeth, Hannah, Irene and Stephen.

You may have noticed that some of the names appeared twice. The first Sarah died at age 5 months, so the next daughter burn about 6 years later was also given the name Sarah. Sadly the 2nd Sarah died at age 7. The oldest son was named Stephen. He died unmarried at the age of 22. About 3 months after the older Stephen died, a baby boy was born into the family, the youngest child, and he was named Stephen. He turned out to be my 5th gt-grandfather.

I didn't find a copy of Stephen's original will, but the family history by Holley and Brainard gave a summary of the will. It was dated 13 Apr 1778 and proved at Colchester 7 Mar 1780. So probably Stephen died between those 2 dates.

Ancestor Birthday - January 11th - Margery Avery 1757-

When did Margery (Avery) Shipman die?

I believe I know when my 5th great-grandmother, Margery Avery, the daughter of Nathaniel Avery and Mary Wickwire, was born. Looking at the microfilm for the Lyme Connecticut town records I found her born 11 Jan 1757. She also is listed in the town records for Lyme when she married Abner Shipman on 20 Oct 1779. The birthdates for their 13 children are recorded in the Lyme records.

But when did Margery die? The website Find A Grave has a page for her, but without a death date. There is a photograph of a tombstone from Woodlawn Cemetery, Lincklaen, Chenango County, New York. It is a stone with both her husband Abner and her names. It has birth and death dates for him, but only a birthdate for her. The tombstone appears to be much newer than the 1832 death date for Abner, so may have been erected later by one of the descendants.

I've found Margery's birth, marriage and births of her children in 3 different published family histories: Avery, Wickwire and Shipman. None of them gives death information for her.

Maybe the US census could help give a clue. The census listings for Abner show a female of about the correct age in 1790 and 1800 in New London County, Connecticut and 1810 and 1820 in Chenango County, New York. So far I have not been able to locate either of them in the 1830 census. Thus I may use a death date of "after 1820" and continue looking.

See Margery on my website:http://www.joanneskelton.com/p96.htm#i2377