In the last post, I mention Ancestry.com's excellent collection entitled, "Missouri Marriages 1805-2002." As I tried it out, I may have come across an indirect lead to my elusive ancestor, Sarah Gilbert.
The only matters of record that I have ever found concerning Sarah Gilbert are her 1867 marriage to Ezekiel Johnson in Clay County, Missouri, and her residence with her husband and children in Kansas City on the 1880 census. Other than those things, Sarah Gilbert is a phantom. There is no one alive today who knew her or saw her. There are not even any hearsay stories about her, except the persistent and unsupported rumor that she was an Indian. That's it; that's all.
Based on the fact that she seems to have disappeared after the 1880 census, I have surmised that she may have died sometime after 1880. No children appear to have been born to her after 1880.
Today, as I checked out the new Missouri marriages collection on Ancestry.com, I came across an 1885 marriage in Jackson County (Kansas City) between Ezekiel Johnson and one Rena Neal. If this is the same Ezekiel Johnson who married Sarah Gilbert, this may lend some credence to the notion that Sarah Gilbert died sometime after 1880. More investigation need on this, but it could be an indirect lead to Sarah Gilbert.
Showing posts with label Gilbert. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gilbert. Show all posts
Friday, April 18, 2008
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Where Were They in 1808?
Awhile ago, the challenge issued by Lisa was to describe where one's ancestors were in 1908. I blogged about that here. Now the topic is where one's ancestors were in 1808. Many bloggers have written about this already; I'm just getting caught up.
1808 was a signal year for some of my families. That was the year that Congress banned the Atlantic slave trade from the United States. The U.S. Constitution of 1789 had provided in Article I, section 9:
This somewhat obtuse sentence was one of the several compromises in the Constitution on the issue of slavery. The importation of slaves could not be banned by Congress for two decades after the Constitutional Convention. Note that states were free to ban slavery at any time; and several had done so prior to 1808.
Manson: Charlotte Manson, the likely first ancestor born in America, was probably still with her Scots-Irish parents in South Carolina or northern Georgia. We have not yet discovered her parents' names.
Gines: I have no information about the Gines family that goes back to 1808. I do know that they likely came from the Carolinas.
Bowie: James Bowie, free man of color, is believed to have been born in the 1790's in Catahoula Parish, Louisiana, and probably was living there in 1808.
Brayboy: William Brayboy was born into slavery in South Carolina in the 1790's. I do not know where in South Carolina.
Johnson/Carpenter: Benjamin Carpenter had been born in 1745 in Gloucester, New Jersey. In 1808, he and his wife, Elizabeth McFarland Hughes, lived in Harrison County, Virginia (now in West Virginia). Their son William, grandfather of Ezekiel Johnson, was born in Harrison County in 1790.
LeJay: I am reasonably certain that my LeJay ancestors were held in bondage in South Carolina in 1808. They were most likely in the eastern part of South Carolina.
Birdsong: John Birdsong III and his wife, Elizabeth Latimer, had moved to Oglethorpe County, Georgia, by 1808.
Sanford: The earliest known ancestor in this family, William Sanford, was born into slavery in Virginia in 1809.
Bryant, Long, Gilbert, Martin: I have no information on these families in 1808.
1808 was a signal year for some of my families. That was the year that Congress banned the Atlantic slave trade from the United States. The U.S. Constitution of 1789 had provided in Article I, section 9:
The migration or importation of such persons as any of the states now existing shall think proper to admit, shall not be prohibited by the Congress prior to the year one thousand eight hundred and eight, but a tax or duty may be imposed on such importation, not exceeding ten dollars for each person.
This somewhat obtuse sentence was one of the several compromises in the Constitution on the issue of slavery. The importation of slaves could not be banned by Congress for two decades after the Constitutional Convention. Note that states were free to ban slavery at any time; and several had done so prior to 1808.
Manson: Charlotte Manson, the likely first ancestor born in America, was probably still with her Scots-Irish parents in South Carolina or northern Georgia. We have not yet discovered her parents' names.
Gines: I have no information about the Gines family that goes back to 1808. I do know that they likely came from the Carolinas.
Bowie: James Bowie, free man of color, is believed to have been born in the 1790's in Catahoula Parish, Louisiana, and probably was living there in 1808.
Brayboy: William Brayboy was born into slavery in South Carolina in the 1790's. I do not know where in South Carolina.
Johnson/Carpenter: Benjamin Carpenter had been born in 1745 in Gloucester, New Jersey. In 1808, he and his wife, Elizabeth McFarland Hughes, lived in Harrison County, Virginia (now in West Virginia). Their son William, grandfather of Ezekiel Johnson, was born in Harrison County in 1790.
LeJay: I am reasonably certain that my LeJay ancestors were held in bondage in South Carolina in 1808. They were most likely in the eastern part of South Carolina.
Birdsong: John Birdsong III and his wife, Elizabeth Latimer, had moved to Oglethorpe County, Georgia, by 1808.
Sanford: The earliest known ancestor in this family, William Sanford, was born into slavery in Virginia in 1809.
Bryant, Long, Gilbert, Martin: I have no information on these families in 1808.
Tuesday, January 08, 2008
Where Was Your Family in 1908?
Lisa, who has the energy to write several interesting blogs, posed the question, "Where was your family in 1908?" on, appropriately enough, her 100 Years in America blog.
A century ago, neither of my paternal grandparents had been born yet, although one, my grandmother Jessie Beatrice Bowie, was just a year away. Her parents, my great-grandparents, Hattie Bryant and Elias Bowie, Sr., had recently met and were living in San Antonio, Texas. Hattie's and Elias' parents were also in Texas. Guy Bryant and Maria Martin lived in Rockport, Aransas County, Texas, in 1908. Guy was a butcher. John Wesley Bowie and Amanda McCray made their home in the east Texas town of Longview in Gregg County. They lived at 114 Morgan Street and 63 year old John did "odd jobs."
My other paternal great-grandparents, Otis Manson and Bettie Sanford, lived on a farm near Rockdale, Milam County, Texas. My great-great-grandmother, Matilda Manson, lived near them. Bettie's father, Billie Sanford, a 98 year old former slave, was still alive, also in Milam County. Billie would live to be 106 years old.
My maternal grandfather, Eddie Gines, was 10 years old and lived with his parents, Richard William Gines and Sylvia LeJay, at 1540 Ashton Street, Shreveport, Louisiana. Great-grandpa Dick was a fireman at Shreveport's electric powerhouse. I know nothing of Dick's parents. Sylvia's parents were Lewis LeJay and Syntrilla Brayboy. By 1908, Lewis had probably passed away. Syntrilla, however, still lived in De Soto Parish, Louisiana, not far from where she had been held in slavery.
My maternal grandmother, Annie Florida Corrine Long, was six years old and lived with her parents, James William Long and Mary Elizabeth Johnson. Their house was at 2711 Wyoming Street, on the west side of Kansas City, Missouri. Great-grandpa James was a Baptist preacher and in 1908 was the pastor at Kansas City's Sunrise Baptist Church. His parents, Richard and Pauline Long, were deceased. My great-great-grandfather, Zeke Johnson, was still alive and well in Kansas City. My great-great-grandmother, Sarah Gilbert, may have been alive in 1908, but this is not certain. Zeke's father, Dan Carpenter, was alive at age 83, in Clay County, Missouri, just north of Kansas City. He died at age 95. There is some evidence that Zeke's mother, Harriet Mitchell, was alive and living in Johnson County, Kansas, but this is not certain. She would be about 83 years old as well.
In 1908, none of these ancestors could have foreseen me and life as it is today.
A century ago, neither of my paternal grandparents had been born yet, although one, my grandmother Jessie Beatrice Bowie, was just a year away. Her parents, my great-grandparents, Hattie Bryant and Elias Bowie, Sr., had recently met and were living in San Antonio, Texas. Hattie's and Elias' parents were also in Texas. Guy Bryant and Maria Martin lived in Rockport, Aransas County, Texas, in 1908. Guy was a butcher. John Wesley Bowie and Amanda McCray made their home in the east Texas town of Longview in Gregg County. They lived at 114 Morgan Street and 63 year old John did "odd jobs."
My other paternal great-grandparents, Otis Manson and Bettie Sanford, lived on a farm near Rockdale, Milam County, Texas. My great-great-grandmother, Matilda Manson, lived near them. Bettie's father, Billie Sanford, a 98 year old former slave, was still alive, also in Milam County. Billie would live to be 106 years old.
My maternal grandfather, Eddie Gines, was 10 years old and lived with his parents, Richard William Gines and Sylvia LeJay, at 1540 Ashton Street, Shreveport, Louisiana. Great-grandpa Dick was a fireman at Shreveport's electric powerhouse. I know nothing of Dick's parents. Sylvia's parents were Lewis LeJay and Syntrilla Brayboy. By 1908, Lewis had probably passed away. Syntrilla, however, still lived in De Soto Parish, Louisiana, not far from where she had been held in slavery.
My maternal grandmother, Annie Florida Corrine Long, was six years old and lived with her parents, James William Long and Mary Elizabeth Johnson. Their house was at 2711 Wyoming Street, on the west side of Kansas City, Missouri. Great-grandpa James was a Baptist preacher and in 1908 was the pastor at Kansas City's Sunrise Baptist Church. His parents, Richard and Pauline Long, were deceased. My great-great-grandfather, Zeke Johnson, was still alive and well in Kansas City. My great-great-grandmother, Sarah Gilbert, may have been alive in 1908, but this is not certain. Zeke's father, Dan Carpenter, was alive at age 83, in Clay County, Missouri, just north of Kansas City. He died at age 95. There is some evidence that Zeke's mother, Harriet Mitchell, was alive and living in Johnson County, Kansas, but this is not certain. She would be about 83 years old as well.
In 1908, none of these ancestors could have foreseen me and life as it is today.
Monday, October 29, 2007
The Elusive Sarah Gilbert
I've blogged quite a lot about Sarah Gilbert Johnson, wife of Ezekiel Johnson, and my great-great-grandmother. She appears in the marriage records of Clay County, Missouri, at the time of her marriage to Grandpa Zeke and in the 1880 census for Kansas City, Missouri. Then she appears of record no more.
I've been over and over the available materials. Indeed, a key purpose of my big research trip to Missouri this past summer was to find more on Sarah Gilbert. I found nothing new. I talked to several cousins descended from Zeke and Sarah Johnson, but none knew anything about Sarah.
Here's what I know about her: she and Zeke Johnson were married in Clay County, Missouri, on September 5, 1867. On the 1880 census, her age is given as 31. If that's true, she would have been born in about 1849. Her children are listed as Henry, 11; Mary, 10; Richard, 8; Ambrose, 6; Robert, 4; and Mattie, 1. I've since discovered that Mary (my great-grandmother) was in fact the oldest and not Henry. "Ambrose" was actually named Amos. I have death certificates for Mary, Richard, Amos, and Robert. Of Henry and Mattie, I know nothing beyond the 1880 census data. [Actually, the problem with Henry is that "Henry Johnson" is such a common name. I have identified some records that are "possibly" the "right" Henry Johnson].
Grandpa Zeke died in 1933. But in 1920, he was living with Richard and listed as widowed. So Sarah must have died before 1920. Noting that there seems to be no death certificate for her in Missouri's excellent 1910-1956 death certificate database, one might surmise that she died before 1910. This is a situation in which an 1890 census would be a great help. Her last child seems to be Mattie, born in 1879. She would have been just thirty years old. Perhaps then she died between 1880 and 1920.
There is one other strange thing that appears concerning Sarah Gilbert Johnson. There is a death certificate for one Robert Franklin Johnson who died on May 17, 1955. One might presume that this would be Sarah and Zeke's son, Robert, who according to the 1880 census, was born in about 1876. But the birth date on the death certificate is November 23, 1891. And the mother's maiden name is given as "Sarah Agnes Lewis."
The place of death on the Robert Franklin Johnson death certificate is given as "2444 Chestnut Avenue" in Kansas City, Missouri. On May 17, 1955, that house would have been occupied by my great aunt Rosetta Bell Long, and perhaps my grandmother, Annie Florida Corrine Long and her daughter, my aunt Delorise Gines. Rosie and Flo Long were sisters and the granddaughters of Zeke and Sarah. In May, 1955, Grandma Flo would have been 53 years old, and Aunt Rosie would have been 55 years old. And indeed, the informant is stated to be "Rose Long" of 2444 Chestnut Avenue.
But why did Aunt Rosie get Robert's birth date wrong by 15 years? And who is "Sarah Agnes Lewis"?
Yesterday, Lorine McGinnis Schulze blogged about the potential inaccuracies of primary records. She gives the (actual) example of a 17 year old informant who may have been confused by the questions asked by the official making out a death certificate. But Aunt Rosie was a mature, educated and experienced woman. How could she have made these mistakes?
The week before Robert Franklin Johnson died, my grandfather, William Edward Gines died. Could Aunt Rosie confused some of his information with that of her uncle? The informant on my grandfather's death certificate was "Harry Gines" [most likely his brother Henry]. Harry got everything right. My grandfather was born on August 10, 1898, and his mother was Sylvia LeJay [which is misspelled "LaJay" on the death certificate]. None of this information is similar to Robert's.
So what happened here? How did Sarah Gilbert manage to elude me once more?
I've been over and over the available materials. Indeed, a key purpose of my big research trip to Missouri this past summer was to find more on Sarah Gilbert. I found nothing new. I talked to several cousins descended from Zeke and Sarah Johnson, but none knew anything about Sarah.
Here's what I know about her: she and Zeke Johnson were married in Clay County, Missouri, on September 5, 1867. On the 1880 census, her age is given as 31. If that's true, she would have been born in about 1849. Her children are listed as Henry, 11; Mary, 10; Richard, 8; Ambrose, 6; Robert, 4; and Mattie, 1. I've since discovered that Mary (my great-grandmother) was in fact the oldest and not Henry. "Ambrose" was actually named Amos. I have death certificates for Mary, Richard, Amos, and Robert. Of Henry and Mattie, I know nothing beyond the 1880 census data. [Actually, the problem with Henry is that "Henry Johnson" is such a common name. I have identified some records that are "possibly" the "right" Henry Johnson].
Grandpa Zeke died in 1933. But in 1920, he was living with Richard and listed as widowed. So Sarah must have died before 1920. Noting that there seems to be no death certificate for her in Missouri's excellent 1910-1956 death certificate database, one might surmise that she died before 1910. This is a situation in which an 1890 census would be a great help. Her last child seems to be Mattie, born in 1879. She would have been just thirty years old. Perhaps then she died between 1880 and 1920.
There is one other strange thing that appears concerning Sarah Gilbert Johnson. There is a death certificate for one Robert Franklin Johnson who died on May 17, 1955. One might presume that this would be Sarah and Zeke's son, Robert, who according to the 1880 census, was born in about 1876. But the birth date on the death certificate is November 23, 1891. And the mother's maiden name is given as "Sarah Agnes Lewis."
The place of death on the Robert Franklin Johnson death certificate is given as "2444 Chestnut Avenue" in Kansas City, Missouri. On May 17, 1955, that house would have been occupied by my great aunt Rosetta Bell Long, and perhaps my grandmother, Annie Florida Corrine Long and her daughter, my aunt Delorise Gines. Rosie and Flo Long were sisters and the granddaughters of Zeke and Sarah. In May, 1955, Grandma Flo would have been 53 years old, and Aunt Rosie would have been 55 years old. And indeed, the informant is stated to be "Rose Long" of 2444 Chestnut Avenue.
But why did Aunt Rosie get Robert's birth date wrong by 15 years? And who is "Sarah Agnes Lewis"?
Yesterday, Lorine McGinnis Schulze blogged about the potential inaccuracies of primary records. She gives the (actual) example of a 17 year old informant who may have been confused by the questions asked by the official making out a death certificate. But Aunt Rosie was a mature, educated and experienced woman. How could she have made these mistakes?
The week before Robert Franklin Johnson died, my grandfather, William Edward Gines died. Could Aunt Rosie confused some of his information with that of her uncle? The informant on my grandfather's death certificate was "Harry Gines" [most likely his brother Henry]. Harry got everything right. My grandfather was born on August 10, 1898, and his mother was Sylvia LeJay [which is misspelled "LaJay" on the death certificate]. None of this information is similar to Robert's.
So what happened here? How did Sarah Gilbert manage to elude me once more?
Saturday, September 01, 2007
Confirming & Debunking Family Myths, Legends and Lore
I have a host of family legends that I have not been able to entirely confirm or debunk.
Legend #1: My gg-grandmother, Sarah Gilbert Johnson, was an Indian. I haven't found any evidence that she was, mainly because I've found no evidence of her except an entry in the Clay County (Mo.) marriage records and one census record. Family members say that her daughter, Mary Elizabeth Johnson, who died in 1946, said her mother was an Indian. Living family members who knew Mary Elizabeth Johnson say she had "Native American features" and wore her hair in two long braids until the day she died.
The "Grandma Was An Indian" legend exists in many families for many complicated reasons. It turns out to be false more often than true. But who knows in the case of Sarah Gilbert Johnson?
Legend #2: Somebody named "Carl" in my father's Georgia family tree was Jewish. I've found no evidence of this, though my father keeps asking if I have. One of my father's uncles was named Carl. He was not Jewish to the best of my knowledge,. In one version of the story, this person came to Georgia from Florida. Now, I am missing at least two male ancestors in that branch of the family, both of whom were likely Caucasian.
The "Grandpa Was A Jew" legend crops up rarely, but occasionally in ostensibly non-Jewish families. Slightly more frequently, for complicated reasons, the fact that Grandpa was Jewish may be hidden.
Legend #3: My great-grand father, Richard Gines, was French, or spoke French. Although I've found no evidence of this, there is a plausible reason that people believe this. He was born in Louisiana and he married Sylvia LeJay, whose surname is French. Curiously, no one ever says that she was French, though this might make some sense.
Legend #4: I'm related to Sir Patrick Manson(1844-1922), the Scottish physician who was the first specialist in tropical medicine. While possible, I doubt that this is true. I started this "legend" myself when I was in high school. Why? I don't know.
Legend #5: One of my father's aunts left Texas to return to Georgia to find "the rest" (i.e., "the white people") of her family. When she got to Georgia, she found the "family," knocked on their door, and was rudely dismissed. She went to Atlanta and was never heard from again. Not true. The aunt in question likely was Julia Matilda Manson (1900-1912). She died of tuberculosis at age twelve. [Citation: Milam County Death Records, Vol. I, Milam County Genealogical Society, 1998]. This may have gotten started as a way to explain to her siblings and other folks her untimely death ("she ran away to Georgia and we never heard from her again").
Legend #6: One of my mother's aunts, Mary Beatrice Long, died when she fell into a lake and drowned while on a church picnic. Not true. Mary B. Long died on May 6, 1921, of tuberculosis. She was sixteen years old. [Citation: Death Certificate No. 12145, Mary Beatrice Long, Missouri State Board of Health, 1921; available from Missouri State Archives website at
http://sos.mo.gov/archives/resources/deathcertificates/]. Again, the far-fetched story may have been a tale to explain an untimely death. The several family members from whom I first heard this story now claim they don't remember telling it.
The biggest myth in the family is one I've written about before. I've dressed it up again for the next post.
Legend #1: My gg-grandmother, Sarah Gilbert Johnson, was an Indian. I haven't found any evidence that she was, mainly because I've found no evidence of her except an entry in the Clay County (Mo.) marriage records and one census record. Family members say that her daughter, Mary Elizabeth Johnson, who died in 1946, said her mother was an Indian. Living family members who knew Mary Elizabeth Johnson say she had "Native American features" and wore her hair in two long braids until the day she died.
The "Grandma Was An Indian" legend exists in many families for many complicated reasons. It turns out to be false more often than true. But who knows in the case of Sarah Gilbert Johnson?
Legend #2: Somebody named "Carl" in my father's Georgia family tree was Jewish. I've found no evidence of this, though my father keeps asking if I have. One of my father's uncles was named Carl. He was not Jewish to the best of my knowledge,. In one version of the story, this person came to Georgia from Florida. Now, I am missing at least two male ancestors in that branch of the family, both of whom were likely Caucasian.
The "Grandpa Was A Jew" legend crops up rarely, but occasionally in ostensibly non-Jewish families. Slightly more frequently, for complicated reasons, the fact that Grandpa was Jewish may be hidden.
Legend #3: My great-grand father, Richard Gines, was French, or spoke French. Although I've found no evidence of this, there is a plausible reason that people believe this. He was born in Louisiana and he married Sylvia LeJay, whose surname is French. Curiously, no one ever says that she was French, though this might make some sense.
Legend #4: I'm related to Sir Patrick Manson(1844-1922), the Scottish physician who was the first specialist in tropical medicine. While possible, I doubt that this is true. I started this "legend" myself when I was in high school. Why? I don't know.
Legend #5: One of my father's aunts left Texas to return to Georgia to find "the rest" (i.e., "the white people") of her family. When she got to Georgia, she found the "family," knocked on their door, and was rudely dismissed. She went to Atlanta and was never heard from again. Not true. The aunt in question likely was Julia Matilda Manson (1900-1912). She died of tuberculosis at age twelve. [Citation: Milam County Death Records, Vol. I, Milam County Genealogical Society, 1998]. This may have gotten started as a way to explain to her siblings and other folks her untimely death ("she ran away to Georgia and we never heard from her again").
Legend #6: One of my mother's aunts, Mary Beatrice Long, died when she fell into a lake and drowned while on a church picnic. Not true. Mary B. Long died on May 6, 1921, of tuberculosis. She was sixteen years old. [Citation: Death Certificate No. 12145, Mary Beatrice Long, Missouri State Board of Health, 1921; available from Missouri State Archives website at
http://sos.mo.gov/archives/resources/deathcertificates/]. Again, the far-fetched story may have been a tale to explain an untimely death. The several family members from whom I first heard this story now claim they don't remember telling it.
The biggest myth in the family is one I've written about before. I've dressed it up again for the next post.
Saturday, August 11, 2007
Once Again, "There Are No Easy Cases in Genealogy"
A key objective of the trip to Missouri had been to further identify Sarah Gilbert Johnson, the presumed wife of my great-great-grandfather Ezekiel Johnson. Unfortunately, I made no progress at all on this issue and it continues to frustrate me. I would have to say that this is my leading research objective right now.
So I had begun to write a post called "A Research Trip Failure," this afternoon when, as these things will, something unforeseen occurred. To understand where I am now (since this afternoon) on Sarah Gilbert Johnson, we have retrace my steps on this relative's history.
Perhaps 45 years ago, my mother told me that her grandmother's mother was an Indian. My mother did not know her great-grandmother's name or anything else about her. I didn't really think any more about the matter for the next four decades. About four years ago, my mother's sister, my Aunt Delorise Gines, published a family history calendar which identified our Indian forebear as "Sarah Gibson." At that point, I took up my current interest in genealogy.
I searched for sometime for "Sarah Gibson" without success. Then one day, I came across the Clay County (Mo.) marriage records for 1867. There, "Ezekil" Johnson and Sarah Gilbert were listed as being married on September 5, 1867. I then focused on the surname Gilbert. I could not find a Sarah Gilbert who really matched the person I believed I was looking for. I came across Ezekiel Johnson's death certificate and it listed Sarah Gilbert as his predeceased spouse. Gradually, over the years, I learned the names of some of Zeke and Sarah's children. I acquired some of their death certificates which also listed Sarah Gilbert as their mother. I became comfortable with the surname "Gilbert."
Nonetheless, I still could not find any individual information on Sarah Gilbert. I found a family in Clay County that conceivably could be her siblings, but the probative evidence was thin. Then, most recently, I found a family in Kansas that, again, conceivably, could be her parents. There are some reasonable theories and assumptions that support this idea, but again, the probative evidence is skimpy.
So my idea was that being on the ground in Missouri might be useful to this pursuit. For a number of reasons, it did not prove useful. Morosely, I began to write the story of my failure. Then I thought, let's take one last shot at this. I began to go through the Missouri Death Certificate Index to examine every person who could be Sarah Gilbert Johnson and every person who could be one of her children.
I came across a death certificate for one Robert Franklin Johnson who died in Kansas City in May, 1955. This man had been born in 1893. I almost skipped over him because I had already (I thought) positively identified a Robert Johnson, born 1876, as the son of Zeke and Sarah. What brought me up short was the address on the death certificate: 2444 Chestnut Avenue. At various times, my grandmother, my great-aunts, my mother and some of her siblings all had lived in that block of Chestnut Avenue. I knew 2444 as the house of my great-aunt Rosie [Rosetta Bell Long,1898-1994].
Looking closer at the death certificate, I noted that Rose Long was listed as the informant. Aunt Rosie would surely know the right information. The father's name was given as "Ezekell" Johnson and the mother's name was given as . . . Sarah Agnes Lewis!
I immediately called Aunt Dee. She said she recalled that "Uncle Rob" had lived in Aunt Rosie's house for awhile and had died there--about a week after her father had died. But she had never heard the name "Lewis" in our family tree.
With this strange turn of events, I went to work looking for plausible Lewises in the census records. And there, things got weirder! In the 1860 census for Wyandotte County, Kansas (the present-day Kansas City, Kansas), there is a 35 year-old Jane Lewis living with 22 year old Eliza Grezinger and 2 year old Sarah Lewis. Both Jane and Eliza are said to have been born in Ohio; Sarah is a native of Kansas. Then the shocker: both Eliza and Sarah are listed as Indians!
I can't find this people anywhere else so far. We know that this Sarah is too young to be the wife of Zeke Johnson.
So am I onto something new or on another wild goose chase?
There are no easy cases . . . .
So I had begun to write a post called "A Research Trip Failure," this afternoon when, as these things will, something unforeseen occurred. To understand where I am now (since this afternoon) on Sarah Gilbert Johnson, we have retrace my steps on this relative's history.
Perhaps 45 years ago, my mother told me that her grandmother's mother was an Indian. My mother did not know her great-grandmother's name or anything else about her. I didn't really think any more about the matter for the next four decades. About four years ago, my mother's sister, my Aunt Delorise Gines, published a family history calendar which identified our Indian forebear as "Sarah Gibson." At that point, I took up my current interest in genealogy.
I searched for sometime for "Sarah Gibson" without success. Then one day, I came across the Clay County (Mo.) marriage records for 1867. There, "Ezekil" Johnson and Sarah Gilbert were listed as being married on September 5, 1867. I then focused on the surname Gilbert. I could not find a Sarah Gilbert who really matched the person I believed I was looking for. I came across Ezekiel Johnson's death certificate and it listed Sarah Gilbert as his predeceased spouse. Gradually, over the years, I learned the names of some of Zeke and Sarah's children. I acquired some of their death certificates which also listed Sarah Gilbert as their mother. I became comfortable with the surname "Gilbert."
Nonetheless, I still could not find any individual information on Sarah Gilbert. I found a family in Clay County that conceivably could be her siblings, but the probative evidence was thin. Then, most recently, I found a family in Kansas that, again, conceivably, could be her parents. There are some reasonable theories and assumptions that support this idea, but again, the probative evidence is skimpy.
So my idea was that being on the ground in Missouri might be useful to this pursuit. For a number of reasons, it did not prove useful. Morosely, I began to write the story of my failure. Then I thought, let's take one last shot at this. I began to go through the Missouri Death Certificate Index to examine every person who could be Sarah Gilbert Johnson and every person who could be one of her children.
I came across a death certificate for one Robert Franklin Johnson who died in Kansas City in May, 1955. This man had been born in 1893. I almost skipped over him because I had already (I thought) positively identified a Robert Johnson, born 1876, as the son of Zeke and Sarah. What brought me up short was the address on the death certificate: 2444 Chestnut Avenue. At various times, my grandmother, my great-aunts, my mother and some of her siblings all had lived in that block of Chestnut Avenue. I knew 2444 as the house of my great-aunt Rosie [Rosetta Bell Long,1898-1994].
Looking closer at the death certificate, I noted that Rose Long was listed as the informant. Aunt Rosie would surely know the right information. The father's name was given as "Ezekell" Johnson and the mother's name was given as . . . Sarah Agnes Lewis!
I immediately called Aunt Dee. She said she recalled that "Uncle Rob" had lived in Aunt Rosie's house for awhile and had died there--about a week after her father had died. But she had never heard the name "Lewis" in our family tree.
With this strange turn of events, I went to work looking for plausible Lewises in the census records. And there, things got weirder! In the 1860 census for Wyandotte County, Kansas (the present-day Kansas City, Kansas), there is a 35 year-old Jane Lewis living with 22 year old Eliza Grezinger and 2 year old Sarah Lewis. Both Jane and Eliza are said to have been born in Ohio; Sarah is a native of Kansas. Then the shocker: both Eliza and Sarah are listed as Indians!
I can't find this people anywhere else so far. We know that this Sarah is too young to be the wife of Zeke Johnson.
So am I onto something new or on another wild goose chase?
There are no easy cases . . . .
Saturday, March 31, 2007
Sarah Gilbert Johnson: A Trip to Kansas, A Step Forward
One of the most elusive of all my ancestors is Sarah Gilbert Johnson. Here's what I know about her: according to the marriage records of Clay County, Missouri, she married Ezekiel Johnson in September 1867. She appears only in the 1880 census of Jackson County [Kansas City], Missouri. There her age is given as 31 years old. Her birthplace is said to be Missouri. It appears that her father's birthplace originally was written down as "U.S." and then stricken through and corrected to read "Mo." Her mother's birthplace is listed as "U.S."
The 1920 census of Jackson County describes Zeke Johnson as widowed, so Sarah apparently died before 1920. I can't find a death certificate for her in the excellent Missouri State Archives.
For awhile, I knew so little about her that I believed her surname was "Gibson." I asked Aunt Delorise about her and she said, "I don't know . . . that's back when someone was an Indian." The story has circulated for decades in the family that Sarah Gilbert was an Indian. That's never been substantiated in any way.
In trying to find Sarah Gilbert Johnson, I've concentrated on Clay County, Missouri. There are several reasons for this. First, that's where she was married. Second, her husband Ezekiel Johnson lived for awhile.
Clay County was a complex place to reside in the mid-1800's. It was known as "Little Dixie" because a lot of Southerners lived there with slaves. Many of these people came from Kentucky, which may explain why the county was named for Kentucky Congressman Henry Clay. There seems to have been a virtual "sister county" relationship between Clay County, Missouri, and Mason County, Kentucky. Just to the southwest of Clay County, across the Missouri River, is Wyandotte County, Kansas (which under a unified government, is now also Kansas City, Kansas.)
Kansas was not a slave territory--indeed, Kansas was a hotbed of abolitionist activity. Slaves were known to escape Missouri by simply wading a cross the Missouri river. So perhaps it would make sense to look for Sarah Gilbert's original family in Kansas.
First, however, a couple of preliminary matters: I think for the purpose of this research, we should assume that Sarah Gilbert was not an Indian. And I think before we cross the river, we should check the slave schedules for Missouri.
The 1850 slave schedule show just one Gilbert in northwest Missouri. That's Abel Gilbert of Weston, Platte County, Missouri. Platte County is adjacent to Clay County on the north and also is just across the Missouri from Kansas. Abel Gilbert has one slave, an 18 year old female. We note this fact; we also casually note that Abel is from Kentucky's wife's name is Hannah. We now move on to Kansas.
On the 1880 census in Wyandotte County, we find William Gilbert, age 52; his wife, Hannah, age 55; and their daughter, Magdalen, age 10. William and Hannah are from Kentucky.
On the 1900 census in Wyandotte County, Hannah Gilbert is the head of a household; William seems to have passed away during the intervening two decades. Hannah is described as widowed at age 67; she is said to be fro Missouri. She lives with a daughter, Mary Perkins, who is 49 years old, and two boarders, Charles Frye and Rada Frye, whose father is said to be from Kentucky.
The 1895 Kansas state census shows Kentucky-born Hannah Gilbert, 65 years old. The 1905 Kansas state census enumerated Hannah Gilbert, 73, from Kentucky, with Mary Perkins, 48.
The other Kansas state censuses tell an interesting tale:
1865
Peace Gilbert 38 M M Labor Ky
Hannah " 38 F B Domest. Ky
Mary F. " 14 F B Mo
Lourella " 13 F B "
Anna " 2 F B "
1875
Wm Gilbert 60 M B Labor Ky Mo (where from to Kansas
Hannah J do 60 F " do
WH do 28 M " Laborer do
Mary Perkins 21 F " servant do
MA Gilbert 7 " " Kansas
Maggie do 3 " ' do
Mimi Read 94 " " Kentucky Kentucky
I'm inclined to believe that Hannah Gilbert was born around 1832 0r 1833. In any event, she would have been old enough to have been Sarah Gilbert's mother. I think we have a good working hypothesis that this may be Sarah Gilbert's original family. The rest of the hypothesis is that the family came to Missouri with slaveowners from Kentucky and at some point, made their way to Kansas from northwest Missouri.
But where is Sarah Gilbert herself? Well, by the time of the 1870 federal census, she was married to Ezekiel Johnson. By the time of the 1865 Kansas state census, she may have been living with the Johnson family in Missouri.
In any event, this is a step forward; now let's work with the hypothesis and see where we get.
UPDATE (4/1/07, 6:35 am PDT): I've just examined the 1870 census and found the family discussed above listed as "Gelbert." The family is enumerated as follows:
Isaac Gelbert, 53, Laborer, Kentucky
Hannah J., 58, Keeping house, Kentucky
Mary Perkins, 20, Cook, Kentucky
Luella Gelbert, 19, Servant, Missouri
Elbella, 5, Kansas
Minta Ann, 1, Kansas
The family in 1870 is found in Quindaro, Kansas. According to historian and law professor Harriet C. Frazier, Quindaro was "a haven for runaway slaves from places such as Platte County, Missouri." Runaway and Freed Missouri Slaves and Those Who Helped Them, 1783-1865 (McFarland & C0., 2004), p. 147. Professor Frazier also notes that Quindaro, once a town of 5,000 persons, hosted a stop on the Underground Railroad. Runaway and Freed Missouri Slaves, at 176. Today, Quindaro has been overtaken by the city of Kansas City, Kansas. In her book, Professor Frazier includes a photograph of a statue of John Brown at 27th and Sewell streets in the section of Kansas City, Kansas, that once was Quindaro.
The 1920 census of Jackson County describes Zeke Johnson as widowed, so Sarah apparently died before 1920. I can't find a death certificate for her in the excellent Missouri State Archives.
For awhile, I knew so little about her that I believed her surname was "Gibson." I asked Aunt Delorise about her and she said, "I don't know . . . that's back when someone was an Indian." The story has circulated for decades in the family that Sarah Gilbert was an Indian. That's never been substantiated in any way.
In trying to find Sarah Gilbert Johnson, I've concentrated on Clay County, Missouri. There are several reasons for this. First, that's where she was married. Second, her husband Ezekiel Johnson lived for awhile.
Clay County was a complex place to reside in the mid-1800's. It was known as "Little Dixie" because a lot of Southerners lived there with slaves. Many of these people came from Kentucky, which may explain why the county was named for Kentucky Congressman Henry Clay. There seems to have been a virtual "sister county" relationship between Clay County, Missouri, and Mason County, Kentucky. Just to the southwest of Clay County, across the Missouri River, is Wyandotte County, Kansas (which under a unified government, is now also Kansas City, Kansas.)
Kansas was not a slave territory--indeed, Kansas was a hotbed of abolitionist activity. Slaves were known to escape Missouri by simply wading a cross the Missouri river. So perhaps it would make sense to look for Sarah Gilbert's original family in Kansas.
First, however, a couple of preliminary matters: I think for the purpose of this research, we should assume that Sarah Gilbert was not an Indian. And I think before we cross the river, we should check the slave schedules for Missouri.
The 1850 slave schedule show just one Gilbert in northwest Missouri. That's Abel Gilbert of Weston, Platte County, Missouri. Platte County is adjacent to Clay County on the north and also is just across the Missouri from Kansas. Abel Gilbert has one slave, an 18 year old female. We note this fact; we also casually note that Abel is from Kentucky's wife's name is Hannah. We now move on to Kansas.
On the 1880 census in Wyandotte County, we find William Gilbert, age 52; his wife, Hannah, age 55; and their daughter, Magdalen, age 10. William and Hannah are from Kentucky.
On the 1900 census in Wyandotte County, Hannah Gilbert is the head of a household; William seems to have passed away during the intervening two decades. Hannah is described as widowed at age 67; she is said to be fro Missouri. She lives with a daughter, Mary Perkins, who is 49 years old, and two boarders, Charles Frye and Rada Frye, whose father is said to be from Kentucky.
The 1895 Kansas state census shows Kentucky-born Hannah Gilbert, 65 years old. The 1905 Kansas state census enumerated Hannah Gilbert, 73, from Kentucky, with Mary Perkins, 48.
The other Kansas state censuses tell an interesting tale:
1865
Peace Gilbert 38 M M Labor Ky
Hannah " 38 F B Domest. Ky
Mary F. " 14 F B Mo
Lourella " 13 F B "
Anna " 2 F B "
1875
Wm Gilbert 60 M B Labor Ky Mo (where from to Kansas
Hannah J do 60 F " do
WH do 28 M " Laborer do
Mary Perkins 21 F " servant do
MA Gilbert 7 " " Kansas
Maggie do 3 " ' do
Mimi Read 94 " " Kentucky Kentucky
I'm inclined to believe that Hannah Gilbert was born around 1832 0r 1833. In any event, she would have been old enough to have been Sarah Gilbert's mother. I think we have a good working hypothesis that this may be Sarah Gilbert's original family. The rest of the hypothesis is that the family came to Missouri with slaveowners from Kentucky and at some point, made their way to Kansas from northwest Missouri.
But where is Sarah Gilbert herself? Well, by the time of the 1870 federal census, she was married to Ezekiel Johnson. By the time of the 1865 Kansas state census, she may have been living with the Johnson family in Missouri.
In any event, this is a step forward; now let's work with the hypothesis and see where we get.
UPDATE (4/1/07, 6:35 am PDT): I've just examined the 1870 census and found the family discussed above listed as "Gelbert." The family is enumerated as follows:
Isaac Gelbert, 53, Laborer, Kentucky
Hannah J., 58, Keeping house, Kentucky
Mary Perkins, 20, Cook, Kentucky
Luella Gelbert, 19, Servant, Missouri
Elbella, 5, Kansas
Minta Ann, 1, Kansas
The family in 1870 is found in Quindaro, Kansas. According to historian and law professor Harriet C. Frazier, Quindaro was "a haven for runaway slaves from places such as Platte County, Missouri." Runaway and Freed Missouri Slaves and Those Who Helped Them, 1783-1865 (McFarland & C0., 2004), p. 147. Professor Frazier also notes that Quindaro, once a town of 5,000 persons, hosted a stop on the Underground Railroad. Runaway and Freed Missouri Slaves, at 176. Today, Quindaro has been overtaken by the city of Kansas City, Kansas. In her book, Professor Frazier includes a photograph of a statue of John Brown at 27th and Sewell streets in the section of Kansas City, Kansas, that once was Quindaro.
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