George B. Wells and his family tragedy

George B. Wells was my father’s 1st cousin 3x removed. George was the son of Tabitha Wells, who was the sister of Joel Wells. Joel was my dad’s great-great grandfather.

George mentioned in his grandfather Matthew’s will from 1828. George would have been 7, and his mother had already died (perhaps in childbirth?). George was left 52 acres.

By 1848, George was in Buchanan, Missouri where he married Catharine Page on January 7, 1848. In the 1850 census, George and Catharine were living with their 2-year-old daughter Mary in Rush Township, Buchanan County, Missouri. In the 1855 Kansas State Census, there is a George B. Wells enumerated in the 15th district with his wife, C. F., and 3 daughters – M. A., L. J., and M. J. I believe this is George and his family even though the ages for George and Catharine don’t match up.

George and Catharine eventually had 4 daughters (Mary Ann, Louisa, Martha, and Alice) and 1 son (Benjamin). On October 10, 1870, George and his family were enumerated in Rush Township. George was listed as a common laborer with $100 in personal estate. He was 49. His wife Catharine was 40. Mary was out of the house, having married Winfrey Mitchell in April 1870. Louisa was 19. Martha was 16, while Alice was 14. Their son Benjamin was 11. Louisa married Thomas Cox, aged 18, later in the month of October. She was enumerated again with Thomas on November 11th. They were living next to her sister Mary and her husband Winfrey, also in Rush Township. Louisa and Thomas had 4 children during their short marriage: William (born September 1872), Charles (born May 1874), Edward (born 1876), and Georgia (born 1878).

Sadly, typhoid fever swept through the family in late 1879. George died December 23. His daughter Louisa died December 31. Catharine, George’s wife, died on January 3, 1880. His son-in-law Thomas Cox also died on January 3rd.

The Atchison (Kansas) Daily Champion, 1/4/1880, pg. 4

The Atchison (Kansas) Daily Globe, 1/5/1880, pg. 1

The four children of Thomas and Louisa were raised by different families around the area. In the 1880 census, William was living with their uncle William Cox, a doctor in Green Township, Worth County, Missouri. Charles was listed as the adopted son of G.G. and Emma Henderson in Iron Township, Missouri. Edward was listed as a boarder of George and Martha Newton in Rushville, Buchanan County, Missouri. They raised him and he took their last name. In 1880, Georgia was also living in Rushville, with her adopted parents Benjamin Culver, a doctor, and his wife Nancy.

Children of Thomas and Louisa (Wells) Cox, c1940
[From left: Georgia, Edward, Charles, and William]
_{contributed to Ancestry.com by user dlt3d}

William married Clara McNelly on January 9, 1903 in Council Bluffs, Iowa. They had three children. William died July 2, 1942 as a result of a farming accident. According to the Randolph (Nebraska) Times-Enterprise from July 9, 1942, he was injured on June 29th “when a steer, being led at the back of a wagon, upset the vehicle and it fell on him.”

Charles married Nora Wilson on September 24, 1895 in Buchanan County, Missouri. They had 9 children. Charles died February 12, 1952. Edward married Fannie Pulley on September 28, 1897. They had 7 children. Edward was a blacksmith. He died Setember 26, 1947. Georgia was married at least 4 times and had at least 2 children but none that survived. She died November 10, 1953.

I like to think Thomas and Louisa would be happy that their four children lived long lives and gave them many grandchildren.

Children

Left: Helen Moore, my great-grandmother’s sister, died at age 4

Another Randy Seaver/Genea-musings exercise! “Thinking about your direct ancestors back through 2nd great-grandparents – in other words, ancestors #2 to #31 on your pedigree chart – how many children did they have? How many lived long enough to marry? How many died before age 10?” So here’s mine:

• #2-3: R. Wells and M. Wilson – 3 sons, 1 daughter (3 married), 0 died before age 10
• #4-5: Edward Lee Wells (1905-1955) and Velma Irene Belknap (1913-1999) – 4 sons, 4 daughters (7 married), 0 died before age 10
• #6-7: Charles Thompson Wilson (1907-1989) and Helen Dorothy Oakes (1912-1988) – 1 son, 2 daughters (3 married), 0 died before age 10
• #8-9: Robert Luke Wells (1881-1919) and Nannie Jane Clark (1880-1969) – 4 sons, 1 daughter (5 married), 0 died before age 10
• #10-11: Earl E. Belknap (1895-1960) and Florence E. Bost (1896-1961) – 9 daughters, 1 son (9 married), 0 died before age 10
• #12-13: John A. Wilson (1874-1930) and Mary A. Thompson (1872-1940) – 7 sons, 3 daughters (7 married), 1 died before age 10
• #14-15: William Oakes (1888-1928) and Mae D. Moore (1892-1971) – 1 daughter (1 married), 0 died before age 10
• #16-17: James H. Wells (1840-1904) and Mary Ann Clark (1839-1894) – 5 daughters, 4 sons (8 married?), 0 died before age 10
• #18-19: Willis Clark (1834-?) and Sarah E. Wells (1838-1923) – 4 sons, 3 daughters
• #20-21: Arthur F. Belknap (1869-1955) and Martha Gisel (1869-1925) – 1 daughter, 4 sons (5 married), 0 died before age 10
• #22-23: William S. Bost (1859-1932) and Mary E. McCracken (1862-1911) – 4 daughters, 3 sons (5 married), 2 died before age 10
• #24-25: John Alford Wilson/Rustad (1833-1889) and Mary Ann Gibson (1837-1923) – 5 daughters, 3 sons (4 married?), 3 died before age 10
• #26-27: Archibald Thompson (1838-1931) and Elizabeth Dunning (1837-1912) – 9 sons, 2 daughters (6 married?), 3 died before age 10
• #28-29: Henry Ochs/Oakes (1846-1922) and Minnie Schroeder (1857-1936) – 2 sons, 2 daughters (4 married), 0 died before age 10
• #30-31: Fred L. Moore (1863-1924) and Mina Adell Bolt (1865-1942) – 3 daughters, 2 sons (3 married), 2 died before age 10

My Family in 1940

The following exercise was borrowed from a post from last year on Randy Seaver’s blog. Working on this exercise, I actually learned a few things about the 1940 census! I learned the circled x’s next to names mean that person is the one that answered the census-taker’s questions. Also, I noticed a column I had never paid attention to before – Number of hours worked during week of March 24-30, 1940.

The exercise:

1) Determine where your ancestral families were on 1 April 1940 – 80 years ago when the U.S. census was taken.
2)  List them, their family members, their birth years, and their residence location (as close as possible).  Do you have a photograph of their residence from about that time, and does the residence still exist?

*  On April 2, 1940,my father, Robert Wells (born 1939) resided at 17117 O’Connor Street in Allen Park, Michigan with his father, Edward Wells (born 1905), his mother Velma (nee Belknap, born 1913), and his three older sisters, Patricia (born 1934), Ruthann (born 1936), and Donna (born 1938). Edward was a stock chaser at an axle company. His salary was $1600 annually. He had worked 50 weeks in 1939 and 40 hours during the week of March 24-30, 1940. Velma answered the census questions. They owned the home, and it was valued at $1200. Here is a photo of that house today: 

17117 O’Connor

*  On April 8, 1940, my grandparents, Charles Wilson (born 1907) and Helen (nee Oakes, born 1912) resided at 2431 Bennett Street in Dearborn, Michigan, with their daughter Sally Ann (born 1934) and son Charles (born 1935). My mother, Mary, had not been born yet. In the census, Charles was listed as a truck driver at a creamery company, and his income was $2000 annually. He had worked 50 weeks in 1939 and 48 hours during the week of March 24-30, 1940. Helen was the one who answered the census questions. They owned their home, and it was valued at $4600. Here is the house in the 1950s:

2431 Bennett

*  On April 13, 1940, my great-grandmother, Mae Oakes Smiechowski Johnson (nee Moore, born 1892) and her 3^rd husband Alfred Johnson (born 1892) resided at 14810 Parkgrove, Detroit, Michigan, with Mae’s nephew, Harry Moore (born 1914). Mae was my grandmother Helen’s mother. Alfred and Mae owned the house (valued at $6000) and rented the upper flat out for $35 a month. Alfred was listed as an inspector of automobile parts, and his income was $2100 annually. He had worked 48 weeks in 1939 and 40 hours during the week of March 24-30, 1940. Alfred was the one who answered the census questions. Here is the house in 2007. It has since been torn down.

14810 Parkgrove (from Google Street View)

*  On April 19, 1940, my great-great grandmother, Mina Moore Thompson (nee Bolt, born 1865) and her 2^nd husband Bert Thompson (born 1879) resided at 23439 Michigan Avenue in Dearborn, Michigan. Mina, Mae’s mother, was the one that answered the census questions. Bert was a carpenter in building construction and worked 26 weeks in 1939. During the week of March 24-30, 1940, he worked 24 hours. His annual income was $800. They rented the house for $10/month. The house would have been located on the south side of Michigan Ave. near the corner of Outer Drive. It was torn down before 1956, when an office building was built there.

*  On April 16, 1940, my great-grandmother, Nannie Wells (nee Clark, born 1880) resided at 1087 Victoria Avenue in Lincoln Park, Michigan with her son Jesse. She rented the house for $30/month. Also living with her were two lodgers from Indiana named Fred and Boaz Duncan. Nannie was the mother of my grandfather Edward Wells. The house no longer stands but was located near Fort Street and Outer Drive.

*  On April 3, 1940, my great-grandparents, Earl Belknap (born 1895) and Florence (nee Bost, born 1896) resided at 1611 Electric Avenue in Lincoln Park, Michigan with their children Helen (born 1921), Arthur (born 1923), Betty (born 1927), Joyce (born 1931), Nancy (born 1934), Nadine (born 1936) and Shirley (born 1939). Earl and Florence were the parents of my grandmother Velma. I don’t have a picture, but it was located near Fort Street and Southfield Road. They rented for $20/month. Earl was a carpenter, earning $750 in income annually. He had worked 36 weeks in 1939.

*  On April 19, 1940, my great-great grandfather, Arthur Belknap (born 1869) was the father of Earl Belknap and resided at 35120 University in Nankin Township, Michigan (now in Westland, Michigan). He was living with his daughter Belva (born 1899) and her husband Alva Merillat and their children Bernetta (born 1928) and Ralph (born 1939). They rented the house for $20 a month. Here is a photo of the house from 2007:

35120 University

What was the No.1 song on the day…

This blog post comes from Randy Seaver’s suggestion for Saturday Night Genealogy Fun on November 16, 2019. He suggests looking at https://www.thisdayinmusic.com/birthday-no1/ and figuring out “the #1 song on the day you were born? Or on your birthday when you were 15? When you were 18? Or when you married? Or some other important date in your life.”

Here’s some dates in my life:

1. Day my parents married – July 16, 1960 – #1 in USA was “I’m Sorry” by Brenda Lee
2. My birthday – May 23, 1979 – #1 in USA was “Reunited” by Peaches & Herb
3. My 15th birthday – May 23, 1994 – #1 in USA was “I Swear” by All-4-One
4. My 18th birthday – May 23, 1997 – #1 in USA was “MMMBop” by Hanson
5. My 21st birthday – May 23, 2000 – #1 in USA was “Maria Maria” by Santana
6. My 30th birthday – May 23, 2009 – #1 in USA was “Boom Boom Pow” by Black Eyed Peas
7. Our wedding day – October 6, 2012 – #1 in USA was “One More Night” by Maroon 5
8. My 40th birthday – May 23, 2019 – #1 in USA was “Old Town Road” by Lil Nas X featuring Billy Ray Cyrus

#43 Automobiles

For transportation week, I’m posting some pictures of ancestors and their automobiles.

My husband’s paternal great-grandparents Leonard and Mayme (Kivi) Eklund on their wedding day in June 1931

My grandfather Charles T. Wilson, 1930s?

Belknap/Wells Family, c1945

Week 43 (Oct. 21-27): Transportation

#40 Farmers in my Tree

For Week 40 of #52Ancestors, the theme is “Harvest.” I decided to look and see how many of my great-great grandfathers (you have 8) were listed in the 1880 U.S. Federal Census/1881 Canadian Census with an occupation of “Farmer.”  Here we go:

1. James Wells – Farmer, aged 40, Horsepasture District, Henry Co., Virginia
2. Willis Clark – Dead
3. Arthur Belknap – aged 11 – his dad was a laborer in Dover, Fulton Co., Ohio
4. William Bost – Farm Laborer, aged 20, Marion Twp., Henry Co., Ohio
5. John Wilson – Farmer, aged 48, Howe Island, Frontenac, Ontario, Canada
6. Archibald Thompson – Sailor, aged 43, Amherst Island, Lennox & Addington, Ontario, Canada
7. Henry Ochs – Farmer, aged 34, Taylor, Wayne Co., Michigan
8. Fred Moore – Farm Laborer, aged 17, living with his grandmother in Stafford, Genesee Co., New York

So 1 of my g-g grandfathers was dead by 1880, 1 was only 11, 1 was a sailor, and the rest were farmers or farm laborers. Interesting stuff!

Archie Thompson, year unknown

#37 Mary Clark Wells

The theme this week is Mistakes. My great-great grandmother Mary (Clark) Wells was listed in the 1900 census in Horsepasture, Virginia even though she died in 1894. Now this is either a spooky mistake or my great-great grandfather’s wishful thinking. He was in the middle of a strange second marriage to a much younger woman who was also his son-in-law’s sister, and his new wife and their newborn daughter were living with her parents.

Mary Ann Clark was born December 20, 1839 to William Clark and Ann Martin in Henry County, Virginia. She was 10 years old in the 1850 census, living with her family, and attending school. In the 1860 census, she was 20 years old and living with her parents, younger siblings, and her grandmother. On September 2, 1864, she married James H. Wells in Henry County. By the 1870 census, they were living in Horsepasture Township and had 3 children – Susan, Mary, and William. James’ sister Eliza was also living with them with her 2 young children. In 1880, James and Mary were living in the same township, with 4 more children – James, Sarah, Lucy, and Martha. In 1881, they had my great-grandfather, Robert Luke Wells. Mary Ann died on December 29, 1894 of fever (according to the Death Register of Henry County, Virginia, Volume 11, 1875-1896, p. 162-163).

Tombstone of James H. and Mary A. Wells in Mount Hermon Church of the Brethren Cemetery, Bassett, Henry County, Virginia

Now is where things get a little strange. James and Mary’s daughter Martha married J. W. Koger on July 21, 1897. James re-married on February 22, 1898 – to J. W.’s sister Sallie. James was 57 and Sallie was 32. According to (spoiler alert!) divorce depositions, Sallie left James in July/August 1899. She gave birth to their daughter Maggie on February 13, 1900. On June 4, 1900, Sallie and Maggie were living with Sallie’s parents and her brother. Sallie was listed under her maiden name, Koger, while Maggie had the surname Wells. Meanwhile, on June 26, 1900, James and his (dead) wife Mary are listed with their sons Robert and Edward, and their daughter Martha, her husband, and her daughter.

1900 Federal Census listing James Wells and his deceased first wife Mary, as well as his son-in-law/brother-in-law James W. Koger

On April 16, 1901, James filed for divorce from Sallie on the grounds of desertion. The divorce was granted in June 1903. James Wells died March 6, 1904. Sallie lived until 1947 and their daughter Maggie lived until 1985.

The Bassett Historical Center in Bassett, Virginia was incredibly helpful in researching James and Mary Wells, sending me copies of vital records and divorce papers.

Week 37 (Sept. 9-15): Mistake

#25 Earliest Photos

I saw this idea from Amy’s review of Week 25: “Debi shared the earliest photos of various ancestors. (I like how she broke them down by maternal and paternal sides).” So I’m going to give it a try!

Maternal

My 3rd Great-Grandfather, William Dillon Bolt (1835-1901)

My 3rd Great-Grandmother, Mary J. (Everitt) Bolt (1837-1918)

 

My 2nd Great-Grandmother, Mina Adell (Bolt) Moore Thompson, (1866-1942)

My 2nd Great-Grandfather, Archibald Thompson (1838-1931)

My great-grandfather, John A. Wilson (1874-1930)

My great-grandmother, Mary (Thompson) Wilson (1872-1940)

My great-grandmother, Mae Dillon (Moore) Oakes Smiechowski Johnson (1892-1971)

My grandfather, Charles Wilson (1907-1989)

My grandmother, Helen Oakes (1912-1988) on her mother Mae’s lap

My mother

Paternal

My 3rd Great-Grandmother, Margaret (Rhost) Gisel (1848-1939)

My 2nd Great-Grandfather, Arthur Belknap (1869-1955)

My 2nd Great-Grandmother, Martha (Gisel) Belknap (1869-1925)

My 2nd Great-Grandfather, William S. Bost (1859-1932)

My Great-Grandmother, Nannie Jane (Clark) Wells (1880-1969)

My Great-Grandfather, Earl E. Belknap (1895-1960)

My Great-Grandmother, Florence E. Bost (1896-1961)

My grandfather, Edward L. Wells (1905-1955)

My grandmother, Velma Belknap (1913-1999)

My father

Week 25 (June 17-23): Earliest

#8 Edward Wells Family

Week 8 (February 18-24): Family Photo

Back row: Robert Wells, Patricia Wells Sherman, Edward Wells, Velma Belknap Wells, RuthAnn Wells Soper. Middle: Richard Wells, Donnalee Wells O’Brien, Daniel Wells, Janice Wells McEwen. Seated: Nancy Jane Clark Wells holding Cynthia Soper Reeck and Michael Wells. Photo taken in about April 1955

#5 Robert Luke Wells Burial Place

Photo added by Robert Libby at https://www.findagrave.com

One discovery I made on my visit about 15 years ago to the Allen County (Ind.) Public Library was the book “Follow the periwinkle: cemetery records of Henry County, Virginia” from the Henry County Historical Society.  Robert Luke Wells, my great-grandfather, died in 1919 of typhoid fever. From “Follow the periwinkle” I discovered he was buried in Pleasant Grove Christian Church Cemetery. From there I was able to find his tombstone (although his dates of birth and death are slightly wrong).

Week 5 (January 29-February 4): At the Library