Ancestor Birthday - September 7 - Elias Marsh 1788 - 1871

My 3rd gt-grandfather, Elias Marsh, was born 7 Sep 1788 in Woodbridge, Middlesex County, New Jersey, the son of Elias and Martha (FitzRandolph) Marsh. From the post I made on 21 Jun 2017 about the children of his parents, I concluded that Elias was the 2nd child of 7.

Their family moved to Ohio in 1806 as indicated in the Quaker records of Salem Monthly Meeting in Columbiana County. It was in 1810 that Elias married his 1st wife, Edith Townsend, who was the mother of all his known children. Since there are not census records for 1790 or 1800 for most of New Jersey nor for 1810 for most of Ohio, the first census record for Elias is in 1820. I believe he is listed in Columbiana County in Hanover Township as Elias Marsh, age 26-45, with 1 female age 26-45, 2 females under 10 and 3 males under 10. These children correspond well with his known children: Robert b.1811, Martha b.1812, William b.1817, Lydia b.1818 and Jesse b.1820.

Apparently Elias was considered a member of the New Garden Monthly Meeting in Columbiana County, when it was formed in 1808. Then in 1822 Elias, Edith and their 5 children transferred to Sandy Spring Monthly Meeting, still in Columbiana County. While there 3 more children were born: Sabina b.1823 (my 2nd gt-grandmother), Fanny b.1827, and Joseph b.1830.

In 1834 the family moved to Indiana. Elias received 80 acres from cash entry in Brandywine Township in Hancock County Indiana in 1835. Apparently he moved to Blue River Township in the same county in 1837 as the U.S. records show he purchased 280 acres there. A local history for that township stated that Elias erected a tile factory on his land.

Elias became a widower when his wife Edith died 5 Aug 1837, as recorded in the minutes of the Walnut Ridge Monthly Meeting. It also recorded Elias' 2nd marriage 24 Apr 1839 to widow Elizabeth (Hawkins) Boyd. She died about 1844 or 45 and Elias married for a 3rd time to another widow, Margaret (Reynard) Osborn. His son, Jesse, married Margaret's daughter Catherine, and the 1850 census shows Elias, now age 63, and Margaret living in the household of Jesse and Catherine and their children. Elias again became a widower in 1866 when Margaret died. He and Margaret were living alone on the 1860 census and he was by himself on the 1870 census.

Elias died 9 Feb 1871 and was buried at Westland Friends Church Cemetery, in Hancock County, Indiana.

Quaker Cousins - Elias T. Marsh - 1848 - 1926

Walnut Ridge Monthly Meeting, Rush County, Indiana

Again I plan to post about some of my great-grandfather Nathan Elias Albertson's first cousins (my first cousins three times removed.) I posted about cousins from his father's side in the early part of May 2017. Now I want to post about cousins from his mother's side of the family.

Elias T. Marsh was the son of Jesse and Catherine (Osborn) Marsh. Jesse was a brother of Sabina (Marsh) Albertson. Catherine was a step-sister to Jesse, since her widowed mother Margaret married his widowed father Elias. Apparently Elias T. was named for his grandfather, Elias Marsh and his great-grandfather, Elias Marsh. Elias T. had a first cousin named Elias J. Marsh (son of William and Martha (Chappell) Marsh who was born a little over a year before Elias T. You also can notice that my great-grandfather shares the name Elias as his middle name.

Elias T. was born 5 Jan 1848 in Hancock County, Indiana. When the census of 1850 was taken on the 22nd of July in Blue River Township in Hancock County, Elias was enumerated as Elias Thomas Marsh, age 2, in the household of Jesse and Catherine. Also in the household was his 9 month old sister Margaret and his grandparents Elias and Margaret. I wonder if they had a problem knowing which Elias they were talking about. But that problem would have gone away in about 1855 when Jesse and his family moved to Hardin County Iowa.

When they took the 1860 census there in July, Jesse and Catherine's household now included 5 children: Elias, Margaret, George, Mary and John. Jesse's sister Sabina and her family lived next door. Nathan Elias was about a year younger than Elias and 3 years older than George, plus Nathan Elias had 2 younger brothers, William and Jesse. I wonder if these boys who were siblings and cousins found activities to do together.

When Elias T. was almost 19, on 15 Dec 1866, he married Fanny Lavina Hickman. Sometime between 1880 and 1900 Elias and Fanny and their children moved to Adams County, Iowa. They lived there until Fanny died in 1924 and Elias died 26 Mar 1926. They were both buried in Forest Hill Cemetery in Adams County.