Ancestor Unbirthday - Abt 1751 - Elias Marsh

Yesterday, October 7th, I wrote about Joseph Marsh, who was the father of Elias Marsh, my 4th gt-grandfather. On September 7th, I wrote about Elias Marsh the son of today's Elias and on June 20th I wrote about Martha FitzRandolph, his wife, and on June 21st I wrote about their children. So I have gone most of the way all around this Elias so today he gets his own post.

In his father's will it named Elias as the oldest son. Since Joseph's first marriage to Martha Webster was 22 Aug 1750, it is probable that Elias was born sometime in 1751. As I wrote in his wife's post Elias and Martha FitzRandolph were married around 1777 in New Jersey. There was an Elias Marsh on the tax list for Woodbridge in Middlesex County New Jersey in 1779 and in 1787.

According to a FitzRandolph family history their family moved to Columbiana County, Ohio around 1804. They are shown in the Quaker records of the Salem Monthly Meeting in Columbiana County being received on certificate from the Rahway and Plainfield Meeting in New Jersey in 1806.

There was an Elias Marsh on the tax list in Columbiana County in 1809 and 1810. The FitzRandolph family history stated that Elias died in 1820. From some estate records in Columbiana County it showed that administrators were appointed in December of 1820 for Elias Marsh: Martha Marsh [probably his wife] and Elias Marsh [probably his son].

Ancestor Birthday - Oct 7 - Joseph Marsh 1730 - 1783

Joseph Marsh, one of my 5th gt-grandfathers, was a New Jersey ancestor. He was born there 7 Oct 1730 to Samuel and Mary Marsh. Some researchers have identified Mary's maiden name as Shotwell, but I haven't found the evidence to verify that. 

Quaker records from the Rahway & Plainfield Monthly Meeting as displayed on the Ancesstry.com website showed Joseph as 1 of 5 children of Samuel and Mary. There were probably more children.

Joseph married a fellow Quaker, Martha Webster on 22 Aug 1750 in Woodbridge, a part of the Rahway and Plainfield Monthly Meeting.  This downloaded record appears to be copied from an earlier record due to the style of the handwriting. Several of the witnesses were from the Shotwell family, which may indicate that Joseph's mother was a Shotwell. However, the Shotwells seem to have been active in the Quaker ccommunity there so it would not be surprising that some of them were at the wedding.

Most researchers agree that Joseph was married 2 more times, 2nd to Hope Moore and 3rd to Mary Copeland. I have not found these marriage records.  An abstract of his will written in 1776 named his eldest son Elias, 4 more sons: Daniel, Enoch, Robert and Joseph, and 3 daughters: Sarah, Elizabeth and Jane. It stated that daughters and sons were under age and that Daniel was the son of Hope, a former wife. His wife when he wrote the will was named Mary.  Some researchers show his death date as June 1783 since the will was proved 23 Jun 1783. 

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.

Ancestor Birthday - March 31st - Elizabeth Moores 1734 - 1817

On February 3rd I wrote about Reuben FitzRandolph, who was the husband of Elizabeth Moores. They are my 5th great-grandparents. Neither of them have much information on their person pages on my website.

Looking further at Elizabeth I can see things that made me happy and sad about her. I was happy when a fellow researcher provided me with copies from the family history, Ancestors and Descendants of Lewis Ross Freeman with related families by Patty Barthell Myers. I was glad because it included Elizabeth with 3 generations of her Moores ancestors.

But I was sad when I read about her life. At first it wasn't sad. Elizabeth was born 31 Mar 1734 to John and Mary (Brittain) Moores in Woodbridge, New Jersey. On her 20th birthday in 1754 she married Reuben FitzRandolph. Here is a timeline for about the next 15 years for her children.

• 1754 John is born
• 1757 Frances is born
• 1758 Martha is born
• 1760 Frances died
• 1761 Mary is born
• 1763 Mary died
• 1764 Reuben is born
• 1765 John died
• 1766 Elizabeth is born
• 1767 Elizabeth died

So in that length of time, six children had been born and four died, so Elizabeth had only two surviving children.

It was probably after the beginning of the Revolutionary War that her one surviving daughter Martha, my 4th great-grandmother, married Elias Marsh around 1777. I have not found any more information about her son Reuben, other than he was apparently still alive when his father died in 1784. Elizabeth, Martha and Reuben shared the inheritance. I have not seen any record that Elizabeth remarried.

The family history states that Elizabeth died 17 Mar 1817 at New Garden, Ohio. This was just 2 weeks short of her 83rd birthday. She probably was with her daughter and family who had moved to Ohio in 1806 and eventually were members of the Quaker New Garden Monthly Meeting in Columbiana County, Ohio. So maybe the latter years of Elizabeth's life were not so unhappy.

Ancestor Birthday - February 3rd - Reuben Fitzrandolph 1733/34-1784

Reuben Fitzrandolph, my 5th great-grandfather, is one of those ancestors on my website with just the barest amount of information; birth, death, marriage and names of children. Most of this information comes from a family history: The Descendants of Edward Fitz Randolph and Elizabeth Blossom 1630-1950, by Louise Aymar Christian and Howard Stelle Fitz Randolph, published in 1950.

He was born at Blazing Star in Middlesex County, New Jersey, on 3 Feb 1733/34, the son of Jacob Fitzrandolph. Jacob apparently married a cousin Mary, but that seems to be after the birth of Reuben. Reuben married Elizabeth Moores at Woodbridge 31 Mar 1754. They had six children, four of whom died while young. Reuben's will named a wife Elizabeth, a son Reuben and a daughter Martha who had married Elias Marsh. Martha is my 4th great-grandmother. Apparently he wrote his will on 6 Aug 1784, before his death on 18 Aug 1784. The will was proved 7 May 1785.

He had died before the first U.S. census in 1790, but that didn't make much difference because the 1790 census for New Jersey no longer exists.

By looking at the dates you can see that Reuben lived during the time of the Revolutionary War. In the past, as least two women have joined the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) as his descendants. Both claimed he was captain of the 2nd regiment, one saying in Monmouth County N.J. and the other Middlesex County N.J. The family history I've used gives no comment about any military service for him. So I need to do more research about this.

An interesting fact about Reuben is related in the family history. He "was the founder of the Blazing Star ferry from Rahway Neck, N.J., to Staten Island, N.Y." His will indicates he was then living on Staten Island. The location on Staten Island formerly called Blazing Star is now known as Rossville. So far, he is my only ancestor who established a ferry line.