Am trying to fill in some gaps in family history - basically no-one knew anything about my mother's g-g-grandfather, Scott Steel (also written as Steele), but after gathering up some records it turns out he'd had children with a first wife (who died) then left County Antrim in Ireland for America in 1849 after having two more sons with a neighbour (they never married - one was my g-g-grandfather). Scott, a son Robert and daughter Isabella, ended up farming in Thompson, Jo Daviess, via New Diggins in Wisconsin. Other children either died during the crossing (Hugh) or disappear from all records (Peggy Ann, Martha and Glover - although an Irish-born Glover Steel of the right age is recorded in Macoupin in 1860). Robert married Canada-born Susana Bolton and had four children (John Thomas, Ellen Jane, Annetta and Alice Livoney) before Robert died c1869, before Scott himself died in 1870. Ellen may have married a John Roper in 1889 but otherwise I've no other information on these children.
Susana re-married to another Irish farmer John Russell and had three more sons (John, Robert and James). The second son named John may indicate the first had died young.
Isabella married a James White (from near her original home in Ireland) in New Diggings but ended up living near Apple River with some of his family. James died in 1875. They had several kids: William (d.1884), Ellen Jane (d.1878), John (d.1887), Esther, James (d.1920), Martha, Sarah and Andrew. Most are buried in West Ella cemetery with Isabella who died in 1882. Andrew moved to South Dakota and married a Louise Neuman and was Episcopalian (I've no idea of other religious affiliations - Scott appears to have been Presbyterian, the Whites and possibly the Russells were Catholic). James married a Sarah Beaton and had a son Andrew in Illinois, then and a daughter Sarah in Sacramento, California (he may have retired back to Jo Daviess). His son Andrew lived in Yuba, CA. The others, Esther, Martha and Sarah, I don't know much about.
I'm interested in hearing from anyone who finds something familiar in this story or who can fill out any of the blanks.