Hampshire - Family History & Genealogy Message Board

Early Northampton records: re Alfred Beaudry, Maria Cullen

EdOConnor66 — 2009-11-04 17:59:22Z

My great great grandparents were married in Northampton on January 29, 1865. Although the marriage occurred in Northampton, the actual Church record is located in Holyoke. Records weren't kept at St. Mary's until 1866.

That marriage record is the earliest indication which I've found for either of my great great grandparents, Alfred Beaudry/Budri/Budrey and Maria Cullen. Alfred came from Quebec while Maria came from Ireland.

Are there any records or residential listings for Northampton which are earlier than January 1865 ? Both listed Northampton as their residence at the time of the marriage and I'm trying to determine when each of them came to Northampton, if possible.

Re: Joel Fairfield

donnasud56 — 2009-10-19 06:26:15Z

My records show that Joel Lee Fairfield was the son of Levi Fairfield and Anna/Susanna Lee. Anna/Susanna died in childbirth the day Joel was born.

Re: Looking for info on McKenna family & children 1887-1895 - Northampton

kinsalecrew — 2009-10-16 19:09:17Z

Hi William

I believe some of my family who originated at Glannagilliagh went to northampton....have you come upon the Johnstons....Myles Denis, John, samuel, Moll, ...or hannah Mccarthy..

thanks

Myles

Samuel Preston & Heman Downing Homes In South Hadley Book

aahorner — 2009-10-15 22:34:11Z

Recently I was able to buy the "Old Homes of South Hadley" book from an online bookseller. This book was published in 1976 by the South Hadley Historical Society and I'm sure it's out of print. It features text and black and white photographs (printed onto cream toned paper)of most if not all of the homes of South Hadley, including addresses and original owners.

I live in California and won't be going to South Hadley again any time soon. The book shows the Samuel Preston house at 129 College Street. Does anyone know if that house is still there? I tried to find it on Google Maps, but it looks like it isn't there.

The Heman Downing house at 135 College Street is also pictured. It looks like this house is still there, or was when Google Maps drove by. Does anyone know anything more about the Heman Downing house?

Heman Downing couldn't have owned it long. He was born in 1810 and left for Illinois (Bureau County first, then Carroll County) in 1835. The text in the book states that Jonathan Dwight sold it to Heman Downing in 1832, and Heman bought a small strip of land to the north side from Samuel Preston, who was his uncle (it doesn't say that). DOes anyone know anything about Heman Downing's adult life in South Hadley? I don't show him marrying until he married Rachel Holbrook in Princeton, Bureau County around 1836. But if he brought property in 1832, at the age of 22, I have to wonder if he was also married.

This book doesn't have an index, and I have only skimmed through it, but I couldn't find any photos that look like Abner Downing's home. This house was still standing in 1916, and probably in the early 1950s. We were by it in the early 1950s and maybe even the mid-50s. I have a photo of it somewhere which I can try to dredge up. I don't have an address and only remember it being on a main street of South Hadley. But I was a child at the time.

I am a direct descendant of Samuel Preston (born 1790), who also left South Hadley for Bureau County, Illinois in 1835 and moved to Carroll County, Illinois in 1836. His son Samuel Preston (born in 1818) married Sarah Ann Garrett and one of their daughters was Ellen Eliza Preston. Samuel Preston's sister, Emerancia Preston, married Abner Downing; they were the parents of Heman and Sumner Downing, among others. Sumner Downing's son Harvey Loomer Downing married Ellen Eliza Preston in Carroll County, Illinois. Harvey Loomer Downing and Ellen Eliza Preston were my great-grandparents.

Alice Horner

Re: Seeking the parents of Jane and Annie Taylor

noyes193 — 2009-10-11 22:26:45Z

NEHGS vital for Pelham
1763 int. James Taylor and Abaih Moor May 7,
1796 James Taylor husband Albia Mar.24

1794 marriage int. Pelham
Anne Taylor and Iroa Shirtleff June 23
Alfred and Ann Taylor had many chidren
1835 Feb.15 Mary Ann
1837 Carolina Augusta

Seeking the parents of Jane and Annie Taylor

LGolden1 — 2009-10-11 02:33:51Z

I am seeking the parents of my 5th-great-grandmother, Jane Taylor and her sister, Annie. Jane married John Carver Shurtleff about 1792, and Annie married his brother, Troas, on 18 Jul 1794 in Pelham, Mass. Benoni Shurtleff, the father of John and Troas, was living in Pelham in the 1790 Federal Census, and the Census identified two heads of household named Taylor living that year in Pelham, viz., James Taylor and Thos. Taylor, Jun.

Ichabod Adams 1788 (MA) to 1853 (Ohio)

sagieseler1 — 2009-10-03 01:11:47Z

Seeking information about the parents and possible siblings of Ichabod Adams born, 20 Jul 1788. We can find no information as to where he was born other than in Massachusetts. He is a possible son of a William Adams and a possible brother of a Samuel Adams. Ichabod married first Polly Willis. Their intention was filed in 1815 in Belchertown, Hampshire County, Massachusetts, and both are listed as of Belchertown. There is no record of their marriage in Belchertown. Polly died in Belchertown giving birth to a daughter, Polly, in 1817. Ichabod was drafted into Capt. Gilbert's Co., Massachusetts Militia, in Enfield, Hampshire Co., Massachusetts, in 1814 and he served 3 months in service during the War of 1812. Ichabod was not found on any Massachusetts census. He emigrated to Ohio probably in 1819 and he is found in Thompson, Geauga County, Ohio, in 1820 and 1830 and in Madison, Lake County, Ohio, in 1840 and 1866. There are no William Adams in Belchertown on the 1790 Federal census. There is a William Adams in Belchertown 1800 and 1810. There are 2 William Adams on the 1790 census for Berkshire County -- 1 in Alford and 1 in Bethlehem. There also is a William Adams in Bethlehem, Berkshire County, Massachusetts in 1800 bit none in 1810. The town of Bethlehem apparently in now part of the town of Otis, Berkshire, Massachusetts. There are no William Adams in Berkshire in 1820 and only 1 in Hampshire -- this one is in Enfield. I could find no record of Ichabod's birth in Otis Town Records that are available online to 1850, nor any record of marriages of William, Ichabod, or Samuel. Does anyone have information about these individuals?

thayer-hurlburt-wood-atchinson

muckquashem — 2009-10-01 23:14:07Z

Looking to collaborate with researchers of this line THAYER-HURLBURT-WOOD-ATCHINSON of Massachusetts,Vermont and CT.

John Burdick Stone obit (1863-1932), farmer in Worthington

m1chellestone — 2009-09-16 01:13:14Z

Just received this death notice from the Forbes Library in Northampton; it appeared in the February [16?], 1932 Daily Hampshire Gazette:

Worthington

Feb. 15.—John B. Stone, 69, who was taken to Cooley Dickinson hospital [Northampton] suffering from the effects of a shock about ten days ago, died Saturday afternoon at 2 o’clock [13 February 1932]. Burial was Monday [15 February 1932] at 2 o’clock at the North cemetery [Worthington]. Rev. J. Herbert officiated.

Thanks to all who helped me find out where this relative died and is buried! I am so grateful.

Palmer Family Hampshire Co 1752 maybe ard Norwich

normaroberts — 2009-09-12 13:35:54Z

My ancestor Susanna Palmer was born 1752.Chesterfield history says Susannah was of Murrayfield, which later became Chester, Hampden Co., MA but was originally in Hampshire Co., MA.LDS shows Susannah Palmer born March 22 1752 Palmer, Hampden, MA.Hampden Co., formed in 1812 from Hampshire, County.

NEHGS vitals to 1850 Mass
Chester 1771 Susanah Palmer and Samuel Buck of Chesterfield, int. Jan 8, 1771
Worthington 1779 Lucy ch.of Samuel and Susannah Buck Oct. 25,1779
1775 Mary Buck d.of Samuel July 6, 1775

Research is pointing toward David Palmer and Hannah Lawrence being her parents, but what I have seen they were from Norwich Connecticut, but could they have been v=from Norwich, Hampshire Co., MA???

I have seen a Deborah Palmer and her husband Darius Webb around Norwich, MA

Any help appreciated.

Re: Ruth A. STONE REED NEVINS (1899-?)

m1chellestone — 2009-09-08 21:12:47Z

This is GREAT! Thanks so much for finding this for me. It opens up a lot of new things and people to search. Much obliged!

Re: Ruth A. STONE REED NEVINS (1899-?)

noyes193 — 2009-09-08 14:45:50Z

The only thing I found was in the Springfield directory's
`931 Winfred Nevins (Ruth R.) 161 Daviston battery service
1933 living at 25 Haumont Terr/

1941 Winfred Nevins Ruth R. mach. E.Hartford 49 Manhattan
1949 Winfred M. Ruth R. Nevins maintenance man G and BMF mfg.Co. h. 81 Daviston
This is all Springfield and is the last yr available on line.It does not seem that she worked up until then
Tina

Ruth A. STONE REED NEVINS (1899-?)

m1chellestone — 2009-09-07 13:52:22Z

Greetings,

I am trying to find out whatever happened to my (newly-discovered) first-cousin-twice-removed. She was born 1 January 1899 in Hampshire Co. (probably Worthington or Cummington), and was the daughter of farmer John Burdick STONE and Jennie L. REED Stone. Her parents were divorced c. 1901-1903, after which her mother legally changed her surname to REED. Ruth lived with her mother and maiden aunt running a boarding house in Greenwich, Mass. at least until her mother died there in 1913 of tuberculosis. When her father died (in Worthington?) 13 February 1932, she was mentioned in the probate documents (May 1932) as Ruth R. NEVINS, his only heir and next of kin, living at 16 Davison St., Springfield, Mass. I have not been able to find anything further on her in censuses, at Ancestry.com, Rootsweb, WorldConnect, familysearh.org, or by Googling.

Would be very grateful for any help or suggestions. Will be happy to share info.

Michelle Stone

James-5 & Dorothy (WHITMARSH) DYER of Plainfield

Perry_Streeter — 2009-09-07 03:20:40Z

Last month, I had the pleasure of conducting some research in Berkshire
County, Massachusetts on the ancestry of Allen-6 and Dorothy (DYER) MINER
who were married at Cummington, Hampshire County, Massachusetts in 1794 and
ultimately settled in Greenwood, Steuben County, New York (where I reside).
In the process, I discovered a lot of "new" information on their parents:

Jonathan Ransford-5 MINER (Jonathan-4, Thomas-3, Manassah-2, Thomas-1) of
Windsor, Berkshire County, Massachusetts who married Esther-5 ALLYN
(Samuel-4, Robert-3, John-2, Robert-1).

James-5 DYER (Joseph-4, William-3, Christopher-2, William-1) of Plainfield,
Hampshire Co., MA who married Dorothy-5 WHITMARSH (Ezra4-3, John1-2).

This "new" information includes important corrections and additions to the
following sources (in chronological order):

Lora Altine Woodbury Underhill, Descendants of Edward Small [Cambridge,
Massachusetts: Privately Printed at The Riverside Press; 1910]

The Groton Avery Clan [Cleveland, Ohio; 1912]

John Augustus Miner, Thomas Minor, Descendants 1608-1981 [Trevett, Maine;
1981]

To access my updated MINER & DYER documentation, please click on the
following links.

http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~streeter/miner.pdf

http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~streeter/dyer.pdf

Further additions and corrections will be greatly appreciated!

Perry

Perry Streeter (perry@streeter.com)
www.perry.streeter.com

Re: Ware Center Cemetery?

dukedaisy — 2009-09-04 13:17:24Z

There are several more locations in Ware other than those mentioned already. There is a catholic cemetery located on/off South St., Ware, Ma. There is another church located I believe on West St., Ware, Ma. (as coming into town from Palmer area)There is another big cemetery located off of Rt. 9 just on the outskirts of Ware, heading towards Belchertown. (this is another one besides the one already told you down below) Name skips me right now, but have relatives there and many old stones there too. Hope this helps some. I'd suggest for you to stop in at Ware's townhall and they should be able to provide you with all the names and locations of all the cemeteries in Ware, Ma.

Re: Lynch, and or Sienkewicz from Easthampton and Florence

noyes193 — 2009-08-26 02:20:34Z

Sept.7,1910 Northampton marriage
James W. Doyle 31 22 Edwards Sq. clerk b. Bolton parents John and Elizabeth Waid
Ella V. Joyce 28 24 Locust St. stenographer b. Northampton parents Peter and Margaret E. Smith

Dec. 7, 1913 Northampton
Bernard Joseph Doyle parents James W. and Ella V. Joyce 39 Summer St. clerk father b. Bolton mother Northampton
Tina

Re: Seeking info on John Burdick Stone (1863-?), farmer in Worthington

m1chellestone — 2009-08-25 11:48:57Z

This is an astonishing amount of work you have done, a tour de force, and an amazing pile of info you've found for me! I will answer you fully by email, but here I just want to express my deepest gratitude for your having gone far beyond any call of duty! I just can't thank you enough.

Re: Seeking info on John Burdick Stone (1863-?), farmer in Worthington

EWWeber — 2009-08-24 23:30:43Z

According to his probate file (Box 499, file 23 in the Hampshire County Registry of Probate), John Burdick Stone died intestate on Feb. 13, 1932, in Worthington or perhaps in Northampton, MA (where there was a hospital). One town clerk or the other should be able to provide a death certificate, and a death notice may also have appeared in the Daily Hampshire Gazette, printed in Northampton. His last residence was in Worthington.

On April 30, 1932 the Town of Worthington, acting as a creditor owed money by Stone, filed a petition asking that Wells W. Magargal of Worthington be appointed administrator on Stone's estate. That petition was granted on May 17, 1932. It named Ruth R. Nevins, his daughter, then of 16 Davison St., Springfield, MA, as Stone's only heir-at-law and next of kin. When the estate was inventoried, it was found to consist of $2.50 in cash and an interest in the estate of an Everlyn C. Handy of Newark, NJ, the value of which interest was estimated to be $200, for a total personal estate of $202.50. Stone owned no real estate at the time of his death, and had no personal belongings of any value.

The administrator's first and final account of the estate, filed in 1933, recorded payments to the undertaker of $156, the gravedigger $7, notary's fees $1, "transportation of deceased to Northampton" by Magargal $6, administrator's services $20, out-of-pocket expenses $6.90, and a shortfall in the actual value of the Handy legacy, or whatever it was, of $5.60 (the earlier estimate of its value had been a little high), for a total of $202.50, matching the total of the inventory. Ruth had received nothing from her father's paltry estate.

In Box 318, file 59 at the Probate Registry, I found that on October 8, 1900, Jennie L. Stone, being separated from John B. Stone, petitioned the Probate Court to be appointed the legal guardian of her daughter Ruth. This was, according to the probate registry staff I talked to about it, quite an unusual request for a still-married mother to make. There is no record of the reason for it or the way it was discussed in court. On May 7, 1901 the petition was dismissed, again without any comment or details appearing in the record.

On August 10, 1903 Jennie Reed petitioned in behalf of Ruth Stone for Ruth's name to be changed to Ruth Reed, her parents having been divorced "on the ground of the gross habits of intoxication of the said John Burdick Stone." It was noted in the petition that the divorce decree in Superior Court had allowed Jennie Stone to resume using her maiden name, Jennie L. Reed. The petition for Ruth's name change was allowed on October 6, 1903. Ruth was said in the petition to be living with Jennie, and to have resided since the divorce decree in Cummington (just north of Worthington) and in Meriden, CT.

The divorce, which evidently occurred between 5/7/1901 and 8/10/1903, is not on record at the probate registry, but a record is probably on file at the Hampshire County Superior Court Clerk's office, also in Northampton. I didn't go there, and I don't know why the divorce decree was issued in Superior Court instead of Probate Court.

Downstairs at the Registry of Deeds, I found the following transactions recorded:

Book 503, p. 19. Oct. 2, 1897: J. Perry Cady of Worthington for $200 to John B. Stone of Worthington, one parcel in Cummington and Worthington on the Peru town line containing 140 acres +/-, one in Peru containing 50 A. +/-, and one in Cummington containing 60 A. +/-. Subject to a $700 mortgage held by William Cady of West Brookfield, MA.

Book 533, p. 189. March 20, 1900: Heirs of John Clark Reed of Cummington (including Jennie Reed Stone and husband John B. Stone) to Emory L. Reed, parcels of 109, 62 and 8 A. +/-. This was land in which Jennie held an inherited but undivided interest in common with the other heirs. They were disposing of their undivided interests for cash.

Book 693, p. 77. A similar conveyance by the heirs to Luther Trow of Cummington, involving 3/4 of an acre in Cummington.

Book 574, p. 89. Sep. 2, 1903: John B. Stone, by deputy sheriff's auction, to Jennie L. Reed of Greenwich, MA for $375, the 140 A. and 60 A. parcels that had been conveyed to Stone in 503-19 above.

Book 654, p. 331. May 11, 1910: Jennie L. Reed of Greenwich to Jared J. Stearns for $700, the mortgage deed for the 140, 50, and 60 acre parcels purchased by John B. Stone in 1897.

Book 655, p. 7. Also May 11, 1910: Jennie L. Reed to Jared Stearns for $1.00, the three parcels themselves.

I don't understand exactly what went on here with title to the land John Stone bought in 1897. Clearly he didn't keep up his mortgage or his marital obligations, and whether it was by divorce decree or by auction or a combination of the two, Jennie got the land and held it until 1910, when she was living far away and finally decided she had no further use for it. What it had been used for, and by whom, during the seven years of her absentee ownership is not recorded.

By a very odd fluke, it happens that about nine years ago, I represented a land conservation trust in negotiating the gift of a conservation easement on a 100-acre parcel of land very near where the boundaries of Worthington, Cummington and Peru come together. Some of the land we protected (in Worthington and Cummington) may have been part of the old Stone farm. The immediate area is all woodland now, containing a scattered handful of houses, two or three dating back at least to 1850 or 1860 and one of them much older. There are also a few old cellarholes where other houses once stood. Somewhere within a quarter or a half mile of that town boundary corner is the place where the Stones lived during their short, unhappy marriage - and where Ruth was born to them on January 1, 1899, according to her mother's unsuccessful guardianship petition.

If you'd like photocopies of any of the documents I've mentioned, they can be requested (as specifically as possible, of course) from the Registry of Probate at 413-586-8500, the Registry of Deeds at 413-584-3637, the Superior Court Clerk at 413-584-5810, the Town Clerk of Worthington at 413-238-5577, and the City Clerk of Northampton, 413-587-1224. I have no idea how long any of those offices might take to supply copies by mail, or what they would charge. I live in Williamsburg, about halfway between Northampton and Worthington, and I combined today's research with other errands in town. I didn't spend any money I wasn't going to spend anyway, but I've put about three hours in, and that's as much as I can do without asking for payment.

Re: Plainfield Hotel

MHStowell — 2009-08-04 10:10:54Z

I recently did a presentation to the Plainfield Historical Society on the East Hollow neighborhood that existed in Plainfield in the Bow St./East St. area. A few current residents remember being told that there was a hotel of some sort there. I have been unable to get documentation on it. My family lived near-by from 1788-1850 before moving to Ohio.

Plainfield Hotel

MHStowell — 2009-07-31 21:37:16Z

Looking for information about a hotel that was in Plainfield on the corner of East St. and Bow St. Original owner may have been Merritt Jones. Folks from Northampton would visit and was known for its croquet field.

Re: Towns of Hampshire County

sudown — 2009-07-20 10:29:52Z

Hampshire county towns; not in the list, most are villages.
Florence, Leeds, Longmeadow, Prescott, S. Hadley Falls, S. Worthington, Southwick.

Amherst
Belchertown
Chesterfield
Cummington
Easthampton
Enfield
Goshen
Granby
Greenwich
Hadley
Hatfield
Huntington
Middlefield
Northampton
Pelham
Plainfield
South Hadley
Southampton
Ware
Westhampton
Williamsburg
Worthington

Seeking info on John Burdick Stone (1863-?), farmer in Worthington

m1chellestone — 2009-08-22 13:00:57Z

Hi all,

I am trying to find out the death and burial info for my g-grandfather's brother, John Burdick Stone. Son of Ward N. Stone and Mary E. Ackert Ascha Stone of Peru, Mass., he was a farmer and a general laborer doing odd jobs in Worthington from circa 1898 through the 1930 census (when he was 66 and living alone). He married Jennie L. REED 23 Feb. 1898, but by the 1910 census was divorced. (Did they have a daughter named Ruth A. STONE, birthdate unknown, or was that Jennie's child by a previous marriage on the 1900 census?).

Can't find anything online at Ancestry.com, Familysearch.org, NewspaperARCHIVES, or by Googling. I live over 1,000 miles from Worthington. How best to determine where and when he died, where he was buried, and more about the divorce and possible children?

Many thanks,
Michelle

Re: Seeking info on John Burdick Stone (1863-?), farmer in Worthington

m1chellestone — 2009-08-23 18:57:43Z

Thank-you so much for checking on this! It is so generous of you to take the time. I appreciate it very much.

--Michelle

Re: Seeking info on John Burdick Stone (1863-?), farmer in Worthington

m1chellestone — 2009-08-23 18:56:36Z

Thank-you so much! This is very interesting, and I very much appreciate all you've found. Will be excited to see what you might find in the registries. It is so kind of you!

--Michelle

Lynch, and or Sienkewicz from Easthampton and Florence

BarbaraNelson57 — 2009-08-21 16:03:35Z

Iam looking for Monica J Lynch and Maureen A Sienkewicz of Florence. They are the daughters of the Late Robert W Doyle and his wife Mary E Dehey(spleeling?)

They had an uncle Bernard Joseph Doyle (Dec 7 1913 to Jan 14 1990. He was born in Ma, and died in San Francisco)
My late aunt was into genealogy too, and when she died, left paper work with Bernard J name on it along with that of his parents, and sibblings? I have yet to find a connection between the Doyle and or Joyce families and my O'Donnell's, Bradley's, Lynch, Sweeney, DiRocco, Tuffli, Nelson's, Kotarski' etc.
My grandparents were Patrick Bradley and Mary Ann O'Donnell both born in Carndonagh Co Donegal. Both immigrated to USA, to Boston, met, here I think, married on April 17 1902 at St Peter's in Dorhcester, and lived in Malden, Peabody, before finally settling in Salem Ma. They died in Salem Patrcik in 1931, and Mary in Nov 1958.

I would like to find any connections, there must be one, otherwise his name wouldn't be on the information.
Someday someone, I hope will see this, and know, the answer or know how to find the answer, I don't at this point beyound posting messages.

Thank you for any help at all with any of this.

Barbara

Towns of Hampshire County

BarbaraNelson57 — 2009-07-20 10:28:07Z

I need a complete list of all towns/cities that make up Hampshire County. Please try to give complete list.

Thank you
Barbara

Re: Mark and Dimmis Hinckley

rodeorog — 2009-07-22 10:25:53Z

Thank you very much for youre help, Roger

Re: Gillen in Florence Village/Northampton, Hampshire, Massachusetts 1860-1900

CarlislesDad — 2009-06-24 03:22:19Z

Dear Tina, ¶My apologies for being so long in acknowledging your response to my posting. ¶Some of the information you provided is information I already have, but I genuinely appreciate your taking the time to look up the data and compile it in a response. It was very generous of you. ¶The Gillen family and especially Ellen Ryan Gillen are an on-going challenge. ¶Thank you again for the information you shared. ¶Sincerely, /s/ G. Redman/CarlislesDad

Re: Gillen in Florence Village/Northampton, Hampshire, Massachusetts 1860-1900

CarlislesDad — 2009-06-24 03:14:54Z

Dear Mr. Weber, ¶Many thanks to you (and to your wife) for your response to my posting. ¶Unfortunately, I have no additional information on the Ryans in Williamsburg. Ellen Ryan Gillen remains a family mystery, and I only learned of her Williamsburg connection and her father's name, James, when I obtained a copy of the marriage license between her and Thomas Gillen. (I just finished reading IN THE SHADOW OF THE DAM and was hoping to find some Ryan--and Gillen--information in it. None was there; however, I certainly enjoyed the book.) ¶Thank you again very much your response. /s/ G. Redman/CarlislesDad

Re: Lapan and Greenough, Easthampton 1800s

noyes193 — 2009-06-23 14:29:04Z

sorry sbout the mix up fireman is the occupation of the father and farmer also.
Tina

Re: Lapan and Greenough, Easthampton 1800s

noyes193 — 2009-06-28 00:51:47Z

I was wonder if you knew who Rose Lapan married? My grandfathers brother married a woman named Rose. They are in the Easthampton census for 1920-30 she would have been b. abt. 1902 in Ma. she was 28 in 1930 children Donald, Eva,Alice and Gertrude. Henry Young the husbands name.
Tina

Re: Lapan and Greenough, Easthampton 1800s

noyes193 — 2009-07-07 00:38:31Z

It was just a shot in the dark. JUst trying to find a maiden name.
Thanks for the effort
Tina

Re: Seeking info on John Burdick Stone (1863-?), farmer in Worthington

noyes193 — 2009-08-23 16:20:51Z

I searched NEHGS vitals for Ma. for a birth record for Ruth Stone. I could not find one, if she was 11 in 1910 I assumed she would have been b. abt.1899 give or takee a few yrs. John and Jennie's marriage record stated 1st marriage for each so she would be there dau.
Tina

Re: Seeking info on John Burdick Stone (1863-?), farmer in Worthington

EWWeber — 2009-08-23 13:40:54Z

Hi, Michelle. The 1910 census for Greenwich, Mass., a town no longer in existence today that was about 30-35 miles east of Worthington, showed Jennie L. Reed, 43 and divorced, living with her sister Marie A., 54 and single, and her (Jennie's) daughter Ruth, 11. Ruth's age suggests that she was John Burdick Stone's daughter, but she and her mother had apparently discarded his surname. The sisters kept a boarding house and had, at that time, two boarders. Both sisters had been born in Mass., as had their father; their mother had been born in NY. Jennie had borne two children, but only Ruth was then living.

There may be a record of John and Jennie's divorce at the Hampshire County Registry of Probate in Northampton. Jennie's and Ruth's name change, if it was made official, may also be recorded there. And if John and/or Jennie died in Hampshire County, there may be records of the disposition of their estates in that registry. Such records would probably give dates and places of death and much other useful information.

Downstairs in the same Northampton building is the Registry of Deeds, where land records for Hampshire County are kept. If John or Jennie ever owned real estate in Worthington or Greenwich, the deeds should be recorded there. I'll have a quick look in both registries sometime this week and let you know what I find.

Re: Plainfield Hotel

EWWeber — 2009-08-04 03:11:53Z

The map of Plainfield in the 1873 Beers Atlas of Hampshire County shows the home of "M. Jones" on the northwest corner of the four-corners intersection of East and Bow Streets. It is not identified as a hotel, and M. Jones does not appear in the brief local business directory in the corner of the map. But it's entirely possible that Jones took in paying guests; many farm households in the region supplemented their income that way.

"M. Jones" also appeared in the same location on the 1856 and 1860 Walling wall maps of Hampshire County.

This is as much as I can tell you about the hotel. What is your interest in it?

Re: Seeking info on John Burdick Stone (1863-?), farmer in Worthington

EWWeber — 2009-08-24 23:23:38Z

According to his probate file (Box 499, file 23 in the Hampshire County Registry of Probate), John Burdick Stone died intestate on Feb. 13, 1932, in Worthington or perhaps in Northampton, MA (where there was a hospital). One town clerk or the other should be able to provide a death certificate, and a death notice may also have appeared in the Daily Hampshire Gazette, printed in Northampton. His last residence was in Worthington.

On April 30, 1932 the Town of Worthington, acting as a creditor owed money by Stone, filed a petition asking that Wells W. Magargal of Worthington be appointed administrator on Stone's estate. That petition was granted on May 17, 1932. It named Ruth R. Nevins, his daughter, then of 16 Davison St., Springfield, MA, as Stone's only heir-at-law and next of kin. When the estate was inventoried, it was found to consist of $2.50 in cash and an interest in the estate of an Everlyn C. Handy of Newark, NJ, the value of which interest was estimated to be $200, for a total personal estate of $202.50. Stone owned no real estate at the time of his death, and had no personal belongings of any value.

The administrator's first and final account of the estate, filed in 1933, recorded payments to the undertaker of $156, the gravedigger $7, notary's fees $1, "transportation of deceased to Northampton" by Magargal $6, administrator's services $20, out-of-pocket expenses $6.90, and a shortfall in the actual value of the Handy legacy, or whatever it was, of $5.60 (the earlier estimate of its value had been a little high), for a total of $202.50, matching the total of the inventory. Ruth had received nothing from her father's paltry estate.

In Box 318, file 59 at the Probate Registry, I found that on October 8, 1900, Jennie L. Stone, being separated from John B. Stone, petitioned the Probate Court to be appointed the legal guardian of her daughter Ruth. This was, according to the probate registry staff I talked to about it, quite an unusual request for a still-married mother to make. There is no record of the reason for it or the way it was discussed in court. On May 7, 1901 the petition was dismissed, again without any comment or details appearing in the record.

On August 10, 1903 Jennie Reed petitioned in behalf of Ruth Stone for Ruth's name to be changed to Ruth Reed, her parents having been divorced "on the ground of the gross habits of intoxication of the said John Burdick Stone." It was noted in the petition that the divorce decree in Superior Court had allowed Jennie Stone to resume using her maiden name, Jennie L. Reed. The petition for Ruth's name change was allowed on October 6, 1903. Ruth was said in the petition to be living with Jennie, and to have resided since the divorce decree in Cummington (just north of Worthington) and in Meriden, CT.

The divorce, which evidently occurred between 5/7/1901 and 8/10/1903, is not on record at the probate registry, but a record is probably on file at the Hampshire County Superior Court Clerk's office, also in Northampton. I didn't go there, and I don't know why the divorce decree was issued in Superior Court instead of Probate Court.

Downstairs at the Registry of Deeds, I found the following transactions recorded:

Book 503, p. 19. Oct. 2, 1897: J. Perry Cady of Worthington for $200 to John B. Stone of Worthington, one parcel in Cummington and Worthington on the Peru town line containing 140 acres +/-, one in Peru containing 50 A. +/-, and one in Cummington containing 60 A. +/-. Subject to a $700 mortgage held by William Cady of West Brookfield, MA.

Book 533, p. 189. March 20, 1900: Heirs of John Clark Reed of Cummington (including Jennie Reed Stone and husband John B. Stone) to Emory L. Reed, parcels of 109, 62 and 8 A. +/-. This was land in which Jennie held an inherited but undivided interest in common with the other heirs. They were disposing of their undivided interests for cash.

Book 693, p. 77. A similar conveyance by the heirs to Luther Trow of Cummington, involving 3/4 of an acre in Cummington.

Book 574, p. 89. Sep. 2, 1903: John B. Stone, by deputy sheriff's auction, to Jennie L. Reed of Greenwich, MA for $375, the 140 A. and 60 A. parcels that had been conveyed to Stone in 503-19 above.

Book 654, p. 331. May 11, 1910: Jennie L. Reed of Greenwich to Jared J. Stearns for $700, the mortgage deed for the 140, 50, and 60 acre parcels purchased by John B. Stone in 1897.

Book 655, p. 7. Also May 11, 1910: Jennie L. Reed to Jared Stearns for $1.00, the three parcels themselves.

I don't understand exactly what went on here with title to the land John Stone bought in 1897. Clearly he didn't keep up his mortgage or his marital obligations, and whether it was by divorce decree or by auction or a combination of the two, Jennie got the land and held it until 1910, when she was living far away and finally decided she had no further use for it. What it had been used for, and by whom, during the seven years of her absentee ownership is not recorded.

By a very odd fluke, it happens that about nine years ago, I represented a land conservation trust in negotiating the gift of a conservation easement on a 100-acre parcel of land very near where the boundaries of Worthington, Cummington and Peru come together. Some of the land we protected (in Worthington and Cummington) may even have been part of the old Stone farm. The immediate area is all woodland now, containing a scattered handful of houses, two or three dating back at least to 1850 or 1860 and one of them much older. There are also a few old cellarholes where other houses once stood. Somewhere within a quarter or a half mile of that town boundary corner is the place where the Stones lived during their short, unhappy marriage - and where Ruth was born to them on January 1, 1899, according to her mother's unsuccessful guardianship petition.

If you'd like photocopies of any of the documents I've mentioned, they can be requested (as specifically as possible, of course) from the Registry of Probate at 413-586-8500, the Registry of Deeds at 413-584-3637, the Superior Court Clerk at 413-584-5810, the Town Clerk of Worthington at 413-238-5577, and the City Clerk of Northampton, 413-587-1224. I have no idea how long any of those offices might take to supply copies by mail, or what they would charge. I live in Williamsburg, about halfway between Northampton and Worthington, and I combined today's research with other errands in town. I didn't spend any money I wasn't going to spend anyway, but I've put about three hours in, and that's as much as I can do without asking for payment.

Re: Towns of Hampshire County

EWWeber — 2009-07-29 18:44:26Z

The former towns of Enfield, Greenwich and Prescott no longer exist in any form; they were legislated out of existence in the 1930s before being flooded by the Quabbin Reservoir, which supplies water to the Boston area. Longmeadow and Southwick are in Hampden County, not Hampshire County. Florence and Leeds are villages or neighborhoods in Northampton. South Hadley Falls and South Worthington are neighborhoods/villages in South Hadley and Worthington. There are dozens of other villages, former villages, and named neighborhoods in present-day Hampshire County towns, in addition to the ones named above.

http://www.sec.state.ma.us/ele/elecct/cctidx.htm

Re: Lapan and Greenough, Easthampton 1800s

kllapan — 2009-07-06 16:36:38Z

I don't have much information about the siblings of my direct relatives but I did not find any Rose Lapans.
Sorry I couldn't be more helpful.

Re: Lapan and Greenough, Easthampton 1800s

kllapan — 2009-06-23 14:43:03Z

This is a lot of great information, thank you very much.

I especially like Elizabeth "Lizzie" Desforges's name since it reminds me of Madame Defarge in "A Tale of Two Cities". But I guess that’s neither here nor there.

Do you know who the Lapan wives were with Abenaki lineage? And is all of this information from the ancestory.com records? I have a free account so I don’t get access to the good stuff.

Thanks,
Kaylin

Re: Lapan and Greenough, Easthampton 1800s

kllapan — 2009-06-23 14:00:00Z

I'm so excited I get to build onto my tree, but I have a few questions if you don't mind. What does the word "fireeman" after "George Fredrick Lapan" mean? And his sister Emma, is "Farmer" her married name? Also do you know which sibling was born where?

Thanks for sharing the information.

Re: Lapan and Greenough, Easthampton 1800s

kllapan — 2009-06-23 18:30:14Z

So George Lapan's father was a fireman? That's neat, all I knew is that he was a farmer.
Farmer by day, firefighter by night.
Very cool.

PRATT, James b. 1763 Ware, Hampshire Co.,MASS

ZippyBarnhill — 2009-08-23 06:22:14Z

Does anyone know of the Revolutionary War Unit Information of those serving from Ware, Hampshire Co., MA? Ancestor served in MA and moved to Pawlet, VT where he received his pension. Thanks a bunch.

Re: John Warner 1616-1692 of Hadley, Hampshire, MA

jeanparker17 — 2009-08-18 15:36:49Z

Hi I am related to Warners--Do you have the line of John Warner b1616 & Margaret Early of Boxted England- Hadley Hampshire.Looking for Daniel Warner and Mirtillo Warner.
Possibly Daniel was a brother of Thomas?Thank you Jean

Re: Lapan and Greenough, Easthampton 1800s

Leno77 — 2009-06-23 16:25:25Z

Kaylin,

I believe one of Peter's brothers - Thomas - had great grandkids who married into the St-Francis and Lampman families. This wasn't until 1940 to 1950 or later. I think some people claim that any french name who lived in Swanton, Vermont married into the Abenaki but I'm not sure that really is correct or didn't marry into the Abenaki until much, much later - ie 40s and 50s.

Most of my research is from parish records in Quebec. Those records are now on Ancestry.com as part of their World subscription but I found them at my local French Library.

Re: Lapan and Greenough, Easthampton 1800s

Leno77 — 2009-06-20 17:56:46Z

Peter Lapan was born 13 Jun 1821 in Marieville, Quebec as Pierre Gaboriault. The full name was Gaboriault dit Lapalme (french canadians tended to have two names.) In the US he used Lapan, an anglized version of Lapalme but was Lapalme when he went back to Quebec. Sometimes the name became Lapanne or Lapine. Some of his children were baptised in Dunham, Quebec and they used the name Gabriaut there but Lapan in Georgia, VT where they were born. They were not trying to hide Abenaki connections - I actually have not found any Abenaki connections in the Lapan/Gaboriau(lt)/Lapalme lines but there are indications that some of the Vermont Lapan's wives may have had Abenaki connections. Peter married Henriette "Sophronia" Bonneau about 1853. Peter's father was Laurent Lapan (born Pierre Laurent Gaboriault in St Mathias in 1784, married to Elizabeth "Lizzie" Desforges on 24 Aug 1819 in St Hyancinthe, Quebec.

Re: Birth 1896 Ware

mmbutts1 — 2009-06-18 00:47:07Z

Wonderful!

Thank you for all the 'Furfey' info!!

Margaret

Re: Marriage 1892

mmbutts1 — 2009-06-18 00:45:08Z

Tina

this info helped my other info about Charlotte - the one with her father born in Roxville CT!

Thank you very much for all the help!
Margaret

Re: Turphey(Furfey) birth 1894

mmbutts1 — 2009-06-18 00:40:49Z

Great - thanks
Margaret

Re: Old newspaper clippings for Western MA 1800's - 1950's

NevCoCalGal — 2009-07-19 21:59:47Z

Hello,

Hoping to find any information about the family of Myron D. Cooley. Myron served during the Civil War with the 52nd Mass Vol. Inf., Co. K. He may have been born circa 1846 or '47. He had a brother, Erving (or Irving) and parents Dennis and Minerva (Moore) Cooley who were located in 1860 and '70 in Hatfield, Hampshire Co., Mass.

Something must have happened to Myron's mother, Minerva, between 1870 and '80 as his father, Dennis later married Rosilla (Howes), being shown with her on the 1880 census. The family is reported to have re-located sometime later to Springfield.

Would anyone happen to know anything about this family and if Dennis may have been a son of Lemuel and Esther Cooley who were located on the 1870 census as living basically next door. Other possible relatives may have been Lysander; Eleazer (or Ebenezer?) and Leander Cooley who also appear on the same 1870 census page in Hatfield, Hampshire Co., Massachusetts.

Thank you for any help you might be able to provide.

Seeking information on James Patterson b abt. 1843

gailmoore78 — 2009-07-06 19:54:18Z

James Patterson, born abt 1843 in Massachusetts, m. 19 April 1861 in Springvale, Columbia, Wisconsin. d 04 May 1913 in New York. I have found info that makes me believe his parents were from Ireland. But I do not have any information on parent’s names or James sibling?
Marie Ursula Jennings, b 11 Oct. 1838 in Portage, Wisconsin. d 04 May 1913 in ? They had 8 children.
THE INDIAN CONNECTION COULD BE ON EITHER SURNAME? PATTERSON OR JENNINGS? Any information would be appreciated or hints on how to follow the trail into an Indian connection?