#45 - Suzanne Poulain, French immigrant

Time for me to admit to being French

One of the reasons you don’t research part of your family tree is because it might be “off-putting.” It was unavoidable, I had to face it: some of my mother’s ancestors were French.

My 9^th   great grandparents were Louis Poulain and Margueritte Daniel of Heillecourt, France.

Louis Poulain

Louis Poulain was born in 1610 in Heillecourt, Meurthe-et-Moselle, Lorraine, France. 

Heillecourt is due south of Luxembourg, not far from Germany, in the province of Nancy, France. 

Marriage

Louis Poulain married Margueritte Daniel on September 10, 1640, in Heillecourt.

Margueritte Daniel 

Louis’ wife, Margueritte Daniel,  was born in 1615 in Heillecourt, France. When she married Louis Poulain, she was 5 years younger than he.

Death: Margueritte Daniel Poulain died on September 10, 1647, in France at the age of 32.
Her daughter was about 3 at the time. I’m not sure if Louis remarried.

Daughter:

Suzanne [Susanna] Poulain – Louis Poulain & Margueritte Daniel’s daughter, my 8^th great grandmother. And yes, she was born in France.

Birth -Suzanne Poulain was born about 1644 in St Germain-en-laye, France, which is slightly NE of Paris, and a good distance from her parent's origin in Heillecourt (now part of Lorriane) in the west. 

Move to Jersey - Susanna (and likely her father or a husband) moved to Jersey, the Channel Islands. Jersey is the largest of the Channel Islands (England), located off the coast of France.

Susanna lived there before leaving for the colonies.  She may have learned English—or liked English—for Jersey was owned by the British, but likely there was a good amount of French and English spoken there. 

The Colonies & NEW Jersey- Susanna sailed to the N. American Colonies on “The Philip,” which sailed from Exeter, England, and arrived in the colonies in 1665, she was 21.

I’m assuming she was accompanied by someone. If not her father, then perhaps a husband who died en route, or after arrival.

So Susanna arrived in the New World in 1665/1666. She lived in New Jersey, (possibly with her father?) until she wed Richard Skinner. 

Records tell me her father, Louis Poulian, died in Monmouth County, New Jersey.

Susanna Poulain and Richard Skinner

Susanna wed Richard Skinner in 1666 in Elizabethtown, Union County, New Jersey (recorded by Sec of East Jersey).

To marry someone with such an English name as Richard Skinner, she likely had at least rudimentary grasp of English.

Children
Susanna Poulain and Richard Skinner had six children.
I am descended from one of their sons named Richard Skinner (to see the relationship, read the end of post).

Death - Susanna died about 1714 in New Jersey, around 70.

Jersey-New Jersey: What’s the Connection?

Is it co-incidence that she had lived on Jersey and then moved to New Jersey? Maybe, but probably not.  The Jersey historians say many people felt New Jersey was suitable place to migrate to.

There was relationship between the Island and the US state of New Jersey which has its roots in the English Civil War.

During that time, King Charles II took refuge in Jersey, as exiled King of England (remember Cromwell?).

The Island of Jersey's loyalty was rewarded when he gave some land in the Americas to Sir George Carteret of Jersey. Subsequently, Sir George Carteret named that part of the colonies “New Jersey.”

Where do the French fit into my mother’s tree? 

  How the French Poulains enter the tree:

Susanna Poulain—Richard Skinner

their son: Richard Skinner M Sarah Moore

....their daughter: Rachel Skinner M  Benjamin .......Webster

.....their son: Joseph Webster M Rebecca Kester

......their daughter: Ruth Webster M William ............Griffith

........their daughter: Susannah Griffith M

.......................Edwin Comly Tyson

           All of their children:

~Isaac Griffith Tyson 1833 – 1913

~Rachel Griffith Tyson 1836 – 1874

~Charles John Tyson 1838 – 1906

~Ruth Anna Tyson 1840 – 1913

~Rebecca Webster Tyson 1842 – 1923

#44- Sharing Information. Perhaps this will break down a Brick Wall?

 Adoption & Death and a Cross-Country Move, a Give-Away

This post will be different from the rest. It’s about sharing historical records or photographs that have fallen into your hands and what I’ve done with them.
Through the years I was lucky (?) enough to be handed photos and research, stories, newspaper clippings to help complete the family tree. 

It is by no means done, nor was all the research or conclusions I found accurate, usually part of a story. And, I’m always finding inaccuracies and or clarifying what  I know. I’m always adding to it.
In the process, I’ve found “collateral” records and photos: people who would be considered related but neither myself nor my husband is directly descended from.
What I have chosen to do with them is make my online tree PUBLIC tree, then to put the collateral information in the tree. 
 I have taken the time to add any photos that I have.
Why? Perhaps a descendant, despairing of a “brick wall”will stumble over the photos and information I have—and it will be helpful to them.

Below are two cases I have posted to my public tree of people who we are collaterally related to.

Case #1 is an adopted son; case #2 is an uncle, a brother, a husband and a father who left a family behind. The family eventually moved from the East Coast to the West Coast.
Case 1 - Adoption
Fletcher Blois Astels
Son of Mary Catherine Caroline McGee and Fletcher Tennyson Blois
Relationship to my husband:
His paternal grandfather (John McGee Johnson)’s half-brother
Bio -facts
•    Born 17 June 1888 New Carlisle, Bonaventure, Gaspe,  Que., Canada
•    Adoption 1889 abt Age: 1
•    Adopted by James Thomas Astles and Elizabeth (Crawford)
•    Renamed surname to Astels.
•    Marriage to Margaret Mullins in 1914 in Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada
•    Died in 1950 in Carlton,  Ottowa, Ontario
•    Fletcher is buried at Beechwood Cemetery, Section 19, ......Plot 329
......Name on headstone
......Fletcher Astels
.....Birth 1888 - New Carlisle, Ontario, Canada
.....Death 1950 - Canada

Who is Fletcher Blois Astels?
His biological parents: 
Mary Catherine Caroline McGee was Fletcher's mother, and Fletcher Tennyson Blois was his father.
Fletcher was born on 17 June 1888 in Canada as Fletcher Blois McGee. Fletcher has several half-siblings.

How is he related to my husband?
Fletcher’s half-brother, John McGee Johnson, is my husband's paternal grandfather.
His mother, Mary Catherine Caroline McGee moved to Boston, Mass, USA after Fletcher was born, leaving him in care of her sister.
 
Fletcher’s Family
Fletcher was adopted by the James and Elizabeth (Crawford) Astels (who, it is believed, were distant relatives of the McGee family).
- Research from Ronald Johnson, researched in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
What did Fletcher’s biological mother do after he was Adopted?
Mary Caroline Catherine McGee moved to Boston to live with an uncle, John Duncan McGee, who had been living in Boston for many years, and was working as a riveter.

Mary Caroline Catherine McGee met John Johnson in Boston and they married (though I haven’t found records for that).
The son she had with John Johnson was my husband’s grandfather, John McGee Johnson.

As  a postscript, my husband’s relatives tell me his grandfather (John McGee Johnson) was staying with his half-brother Fletcher Astels at the time he met his wife-to-be, (my husband’s grandmother), Minnie May Marion Kendall.

Mary Catherine Caroline McGee’s Timeline
Born 5 Feb 1863 in Hopetown, Bonaventure, Gaspe, Quebec, Canada
Baptised - 1863 Hopetown, Québec
Lived - 1871 - Bonaventure, Quebec, Canada
Gave birth to
Fletcher Blois Astels, 17 Jun 1888 in New Carlisle, Bonaventure, Gaspe, Que., Canada  
Fletcher adopted by James Thomas Astles and Elizabeth (Crawford)
Moved to USA c 1888 – Arrived in Boston to live with father’s brother, John Duncan McGee (Everett, Mass)
Married (?)  immigrant John Johnson (Sweden or Norway) about 1892 (?) in Boston, Massachusetts
Gave birth to:
John McGee Johnson, 25 Aug 1894, Boston, Massachusetts (my husband's grandfather)
Said to have been widowed 1895
Residences
- Everett City, Massachusetts
- Medway, Massachusetts
- (1920) Winchester, New Hampshire
- 1926 Keene, NH
Died at 73 years old in 1936, in Keene, New Hampshire
-----------------------------------

SOURCES:
~Kendall family records
~ Johnson Family Collection
~  Ancestry (international)
~ Find-a-Grave
~ Family sources:
 Phil Miner and Ronald Johnson

Case 2  Widowhood and Cross-country Move
 
Grove Graham Bancroft, husband, father, and brother
Son of Peter Sanford Bancroft and Isabella (“Bella”) Brinker
Relationship to me:
Grove Bancroft is the brother of my maternal great-grandmother (my mother’s father’s mother), Flora G. Bancroft [Tilton]

Grove’s sister, my great grandmother, Flora G. Bancroft (Tilton) held on to photos of him and his daughter (her niece) after Grove died fairly young. I found that there was a sad story behind his life.

I pulled out a box of old photos and found in my great grandmother's handwriting "My brother, Grove Graham Bancroft" in an elderly script. Grove had died young, leaving a family behind, always tragic.

I checked the records: it dawned on me that this was indeed a cruel blow to his siblings, Flora and Earl and his father Peter S. Bancroft for they had lost also their mother/wife, Bella Brinker when she was still a young mother. 

Their wife & mother Bella Brinker [Bancroft] died when Grove  was 5 years old and, Grove died when his daughter (and only child) was 7 years old.  His death was an echo of their mother's death.

A Picture Says It All and Talks Me Into Looking Deeper

It wasn’t just the story that caught my attention, I was also captivated by the photos.  Although they may standard fare of that period, I think catch a genuineness of expression in his daughter’s face that is rare in photos of this era. 

Grove G Bancroft & daughter Irene

Grove Bancroft and daughter Irene

I hunted down his widow and child’s journey, after his death and here is what I discovered: 

Etta Bowman [Bancroft], Widow of Grove Graham Bancroft

Grove’s widow Etta B. Bowman was born in 1870 in Pennsylvania and was living in 1880 (about 10 years old) in Saltsburgh, Indiana, Pennsylvania.   

The census says her father was a Pennsylvanian and her mother was from Ohio.  After her marriage, she and Grove lived in Butler, PA with Irene, their only daughter.

Grove died in 1899. She shows up in the 1900 census in Butler, PA.  Etta was a “member in full connection” of the First United Methodist Church in Butler in 1904 (she was 34).

Etta Bowman Bancroft Moves West

1910: By 1910, (she would be 41), Etta and Irene had moved to South Hood River, Hood River, Oregon. 

There they lived with her father Joseph Bowman, Etta’s married sister, husband and her sister’s son: 

Minnie [Bowman Howarth, George Howarth and  son Vogelay(?) Vogeley(?) Howarth. 

Vogeley Howarth was a year older than his cousin Irene Bancroft. The census says they were farming.

1920: But 10 years later, in 1920, (Etta was 50), she was in Portland, Oregon. Etta and her sister Minnie were managing a hotel (Minnie was assisting her, Etta is called the manager). By then both Etta and sister Minnie are widows.

1921: Etta never made the next census: Grove’s widow, Irene’s mother, Etta Bowman [Bancroft] died in 1921 in December in her 51^st year in Portland, Oregon.

 

What Happened To Grove & Etta’s Daughter Irene Bancroft?

Their daughter Irene Bancroft married Leonard Knowles Armstrong when she was 18 in 1910 in Hood River, Oregon.

By 1920 Irene and her husband were living in Barrett, Hood River, Oregon.

However, the 1925 records place the Irene and Leonard in Portland, Oregon (whether she was there in 1921 at her mother’s death, I don’t know). 

Moving On
1930: Within 5 years Irene Bancroft [Armstrong] and her husband Leonard were living in San Francisco, California.

Another Move: 

Irene Bancroft Armstrong's  death records say she was living in San Jose, CA in 1972, the year she died.

What Else?
I have nothing else about Grove’s daughter & my great grandmother’s niece: 

The trail trickles to an end with the married adult Irene and her husband Leonard Armstrong in California.

Perhaps there was more to tell—and some descendant will stumble across the photos either here or on my  online tree and rejoice in finding them.

Facts About the Bancrofts from Peter & Bella to Irene

Children of Peter Sanford Bancroft and Isabella Brinker:
1 Flora Gertrude Bancroft (1867- 1949) my great grandmother
2 Earl D Bancroft (1868-1927)
3 Grove Graham Bancroft (1869-1899)

Grove & His Family:
Grove Graham Bancroft,  Irene Bancroft’s father:
Birth 1869 in  Crawford County, Pennsylvania
Lived:   
 - 1870 Woodcock, Crawford, Pennsylvania
-  1880 Age: 11
    Butler, Butler, Pennsylvania, United States
Marriage  to Etta B Bowman (1870-1921)
    27 Oct 1891 at age: 22
    Butler, Butler, Pennsylvania
Lived:
    1899 -1900 (Age: 30)
Died in 1899 Age: 30 in Allegheny City,* [now part of Pittsburgh] Pennsylvania
Buried in Butler, Butler County, Pennsylvania, USA

Irene Bancroft
Daughter of Grove Graham Bancroft and Etta B Bowman
Born 1892 Butler, Butler, Pennsylvania
Married Leonard Knowles Armstrong in 1910 in Hood River, Oregon.
Lived:
1920 - Barrett, Hood River, Oregon.
1925 - Portland, Oregon
1930 - San Francisco, California, that would be 1930.
1972 - San Jose, California
Died: 1972 in San Jose, California

Irene Bancroft & Leonard K. Armstrong’s Children:
Unknown

SOURCES:
~ Butler Library, genealogical room
~ Margaret B Walmer Collection of Bancroft papers and information left by Flora Bancroft
~ Ancestry

#43 - The Amazing Gilpin Family: From Manor to Cave

The Amazing Gilpin Story

How am I related to the Gilpins?  Here is a quick look: Gilpin --> Cook--> Griest -->Tyson-->my mother
Here’s a more detailed version:

Found in the book, “History of Chester County, Pennsylvania, with Genealogical and Biographical Sketches Volume 2,by J. Smith Futhey and Gilbert Cope, is this sketch of the Gilpin family history:

"The ancestry of this family can be traced in a direct line to Richard De Guylpin, who in the year 1206, during the reign of King John, became  the owner of the manor of Kentmere, which was bestowed upon him by the baron of Kendal for deeds of prowess, and as the name indicates, are of Norman extraction.”

also found there is this about Joseph Gilpin:

"Joseph Gilpin of Dorchester in the County of Oxfordship, son of Thomas Gilpin of Warborough in the same count, tallow-chandler and Joan his wife was married 1691 to Hannah daughter of ? and Alice Glover of county of Southhampton.


They came to Penn in 1695 and settled on a tract of land in Birmingham township in Chester (now Delaware) County which had been given to Hannah his wife by an uncle as a marriage present.


Their first dwelling was a cave on the side of a hill, such as was frequently used by the early settlers until better structures could be provided.

Some years thereafter he erected a frame dwelling house. He resided there the remainder of his life. He died in 1739 at the age of 75 years, leaving 15 children, and 45 grandchildren."

The names and births of his children:
 1 Hannah Gilpin b 1692  M William Seal
 2 Samuel Gilpin M Jane Parker
 3 Rachel Gilpin 1695 M J Peirce
 4 Ruth Gilpin 1697 M Joseph Mendenhall
 5 Lydia Gilpin 1698 M William Dean
 7 Ann Gilpin 1702 M Joseph Miller
 8 Joseph Gilpin 1703  M Mary Caldwell
*9 Sarah Gilpin 1706 M Peter Cook
 10 George Gilpin 1708  M Ruth Caldwell
 11 Isaac Gilpin  1709 M Mary Painter
 12 Moses Gilpin 1711 M Ann Buffington
 13 Alice Gilpin 1714 M Richard Eavenson
 14 Mary Gilpin 1716 M Philip Taylor
 15 Esther Gilpin 1718 M Samuel Painter

  What?  The Lord of the Manor, the Gilipin Family, go from living in a MANOR HOUSE to living in a CAVE?  Yup, from hero to zero; from Kentmere hall to a mere hole in the earth.

Kentmere Hall, Gilpin's ancestral home

How did they go from the manor to America?

It began with his father, Thomas Gilpin. Joseph Gilpin’s father, Thomas married Joan Bartholomew and had three sons, Joseph, Isaac and Thomas and a daughter Rachel.

Thomas (senior) was an officer in the army (Cromwell’s).  It was after the battle of Worcester in 1651 joined the Society of Friends.

Thomas, though he had been on the winning side, presumably became sickened by fighting against his own countrymen, joined the Society of Friends (and signaled himself a pacifist in so doing).

The Amazing Gilpin Story
The Gilpin family who left England to live in Pennsylvania: Joseph Gilpin, Hannah (Glover) and their two small children.

Thomas's Son, Joseph Gilpin
Mentioned above, in1664 Thomas’ wife Joan had a son, my ancestor, Joseph.
His father Thomas had suffered persecution as a Friend and had been jailed.

Possibly worse, his parents, Thomas and Joan Gilpin lost almost everything, even the crops from the fields on his farm. He and his family were
................""left with not a pot in which to boil their food.”

Their son Joseph was born in the middle of persecution and would possibly wished to live far away from persecution Quakers experienced in England.

Son Joseph Gets a Break

Thomas and Joan's son Joseph married Hannah Glover in 1691.

Joseph's wife was Hannah Glover and Hannah's uncle, William Lambel/Lambol of Reading, had purchased 625 acres of land in the Delaware Valley near Newcastle on Delaware in the American colonies.

Joseph & Hannah's break came when Uncle Lambol gave 100 acres of this land to them (allegedly as a wedding present?).

Emigration
Having land in the colonies made immigration to Pennsylvania attractive to Joseph and Hannah.

But by the time they were ready to migrate, they were already a family.

The first two children were born in England before their emigration: Daughter Hannah Gilpin was born in December 1692 and son Samuel was born in April 1694.

The Gilpin family emigrated to the colonies in 1695: Joseph, Hannah (Glover) Gilpin and their 3 year old and a 1 year old infant.

Welcome to the New World?

The Gilpin’s grandson Isaac Glover Glipin wrote of his own account of his father’s and grandparents’ life in the new world:

In 1695 Joseph Gilpin, weaver, and his wife, Hannah Glover Gilpin, arrived from Dorchester, Oxfordshire with their two children.            

They left the ship at Newcastle and were guided inland [on foot] by the Indians to the land where they were to settle  near Birmingham township, Chester County (now Philadelphia).

This was their introduction to the new world. 

Hannah's uncle, William Lamboll of Reading had given them 100 acres which of the total 625 acres he had bought from Penn.                                   
The Indians told them they must build near a spring.

However, they spent the winter in a cave  [In the cave] Hannah had their third child.  Rachel was born.

Cave Sweet Cave
How long did they live in the cave?

The Gilpin family lived in the cave for 5 years and while they were still living in the cave, their family grew by two: Rachel (as mentioned), and Ruth in 1697.

"Joseph was busy clearing his land (of trees) and at the same time a small house and barn were constructed. The house was later destroyed in a fire."
"Joseph then built a frame house a few hundred yards to the westward, it was built two stories high, 16 feet by 18 feet, a superb edifice for the time.”

Washington did Not Sleep Here
Of their house:

Of the house the Gilpins eventually built (yes, they left the cave), Bob Cooke writes:
“Architects and historians now believe that the frame part of this house, first section built, was Joseph's original dwelling.
They consider it ‘probably the oldest frame house in the Delaware Valley - one of the few remaining examples of an English type frame house covered with clapboards, typical of the seventeenth century. - Most of the present clapboards are hand-split and shaved red oak.’
It may have been enlarged by Joseph - (let us hope so, since he had fifteen children!) - and later by his son Joseph, Jr. and his grandson Gideon.

Gideon owned the place during the Battle of the Brandywine, when Lafayette was his overnight guest. The situation was probably arranged by Gideon's first cousin, Colonel George Gilpin, aide to Washington, who was disowned by Concord Meeting. Lafayette stopped again in 1824 and paid his respects to old Gideon.

And it is in Lafayette’s honor, rather than the Gilpin family, that this house has been restored, suitably furnished.”

He adds:
“Historians now agree that this was Joseph's original home, right on the Baltimore Pike, originally called the Chester-to-Nottingham Road.”

Their Children
Joseph and Hannah had 15 children:

Born in England:
Hannah Gilpin  1693 -1746 – born in England
Samuel Gilpin  1694-1767 – born in England
Born in the cave in Pennsylvania:
Rachel Gilpin   1696- 1776 – born in the cave
Ruth Gilpin    1697- 1758- born in the cave
Lydia Gilpin  1699- 1750
Thomas Gilpin  1700-1766
Ann Gilpin  1702-1759
Joseph Gilpin, Jr.  1704-1792
* Sarah Gilpin  1706-1783 –my ancestor
George Gilpin 1708-1773
Isaac Gilpin  1710-1745
Moses Gilpin  1711- ?
Alice Gilpin   1714-?
Mary Gilpin  1716-1806
Esther Gilpin 1717-1795

Life at the Gilpin's Home

Here is more from grandson Isaac Glover Gilpin account of his father’s and grandparents’ life:

There were a number of Indian wigwams on the farm of Joseph Gilpin, and the account we have is-that they all lived together in perfect harmony.

Joseph Gilpin's house was seldom clear of the Indians who frequently slept there, perhaps a dozen or more at a time - men, women and children, all peaceably and much friendship.

The children of Joseph Gilpin give very pleasant and interesting accounts of their sports and games with Indian boys, of their shooting with them for days at a time with bows and arrows, there was no quarreling or fighting.

The Gilpins as friends--and as Friends

Joseph Gilpin's hospitality was likewise extended in equal measure to all newly arrived emigrants, quite in contrast to his own reception the night after landing.

As he was so well known there great numbers of families on coming over, came to his house, where they were kindly received and entertained week after week.

As an evidence of this writer, who was an inmate of Joseph's family-knew that he killed

upwards of 30 hogs and 7 or 8 [?] in the fall season and the meat was all duly   and frugally consumed by the next harvest. 

and, Hannah Glover Gilpin

was the best of housewives, and superior to most in intellect and friendly conduct.

Thomas Chalkey (1675-1741), the celebrated Quaker preacher who traveled extensively in the colonies for the Friends makes the following note in his journal
[in 1740]

Lodged at the widow Gilpin’s, who’s husband, Joseph Gilpin, was lately deceased; there was true Christian Love and friendship between us for above fifty years.
When first I saw Joseph in Pennsylvania, he lived in a cave in the earth, where we enjoyed each others company in the love and fear of God.
This friend had fifteen children, who he lived to see brought up to the states of men and women, and all but two married well and to his mind.

As stated in Chalkley's journal, of the fifteen Gilpin children all but two had, prior to the father's death, in 1739, "married well and to his mind."

The youngest son [Joseph] and the youngest daughter, [Esther] married shortly afterwards.

Longevity
Despite the deprivations, the family was healthy

The Gilipin family has been called a “remarkable case of longevity,” in that only one of the 15 children died under the age of 60 years.

Common for the period, families lost one or more children to childhood illnesses and/or accidents, yet remarkably all the Gilpins grew to adulthood.

At the time of mother Hannah Gilipin’s death in 1757, there were 12 children, 62 grandchildren and nearly as many great grandchildren, 133 living descendants in all. (Frank William Leach, 1908)

Helps & Sources:
"The North American Philadelphia, Sunday, May 24, 1908,  Page 1
"The Philadelphia of Our Ancestors -- Old Philadelphia Families" by Frank W Leach, 1908

History of Chester County, Pennsylvania, with Genealogical and Biographical Sketches, Volume 2,by J. Smith Futhey and Gilbert Cope,  Republished by Heritage Books, MD 2007; Originally published by Louis H Everts, Philadelphia, 1881
Quaker Date Book 1961
J. Painter. 1870
Albert Cook Myers 
R. L. Cooke, Jr.     R. L. Cooke, III   
Bob Cooke
Wikipedia (Kentmere Hall photo)

#42 - Abington Meeting, PA John Cadwalader from Wales, Quaker Minister, Missionary

John Cadwalader 

Husband of Mary Cassel 

Relationship to me: 8th great grandfather; 

father of Jane Cadwalader (who married Robert Comly)

John Cadwallader

• Birth 1676 in Montgomeryshire, Wales   
• Death Sep 1742 in Tortola, Virgin Islands 

 Children of John and Mary (Cassel) Cadwalader: 
1 Sarah, born 1702, m. John Bond
2 John, born 19 Jun 1703, m. Elizabeth Hinkson 19 Jun 1728, he died 15 Mar 1785 
3 Abraham, born circa 1705, remained unmarried
4 Jane, born 1707, m. Robert Comly circa 1727, died 1755
5 Isaac, born 1709, m. Mary Roberts, he died 1739
6 Mary, born 1711, m. Benjamin Eaton
7 Jacob, born 1713, m. Magdalen Conrad, he died 1779
8 Martha, born 1716, m. Ellis Roberts 
9 Joseph, born 16 Nov 1717 m. Mary Williams (Gwynedd MM), d.1789 Fayette Co PA 
10 Benjamin, born 1720, m. Grace Comly 1742, died 1753 

Biography: "John Cadwalader became an accepted minister of the Society of Friends at an early age, and traveled extensively in that service, visiting Great Britain in 1721. 

He made long journeys to all parts of the colonies in America on horseback, and the great number of certificates returned to his meeting testify to the appreciation of his service in the cause of Truth in the Carolinas and other distant parts.

In 1742 he made a religious journey to the West Indies, his certificate being dated 5th mo. 20, 1742. 
A later minute of the Abington Meeting shows that he reached the Island of Tortola, 9th mo. 4, 1742, in company with John Estaugh, of Haddonfield, New Jersey, and that he died there on the 26th of the same month, Estaugh dying a few days later. 

By a curious coincidence, Thomas Chalkley, the eminent English minister of the Society who had been John Cadwallader's companion in many notable journeys, had ended his Gospel labors on the same island about two years earlier, and all three graves are represented in a painting hanging in the library of Swarthmore College."
 - From the "Encyclopedia of Pennsylvania Biography, Vol. IV," by John W. Jordan, LL.D., New York, Lewis Historical Publishing Company, 1915, page 1223. 

Notes from the Minutes of the Abington (PA) Monthly Meeting: 

• 1716 - John Cadwallader was appointed to visit families on a religious visit to New England. 
• 1719 - Certificate to Barbadoes [sic] but did not go at this time 
• 1721 - Certificate to visit Great Britain 
• 1724 - Certificate to visit Long Island 
• 1732 - Certificate to visit Great Britain and Ireland (See Irish Quakers in the area) 
• 1740 - Certificate to visit Virginia and North Carolina 
• 1742 - Certificate to visit the Island of Tortola in the West Indies.

The following memorial to John Cadwallader was submitted by the Abington MM to the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting in 1758.

Our Friend John Cadwallader of Horsham, was convinced of the Principles of Truth when young; had a gift in the ministry bestowed on him in which he was serviceable; underwent many deep baptizing seasons, by which it is believed he was in good degree an over-comer. 
He travelled much in the exercise of his gift, having visited his Brethren in Truth's service in most, or all, the parts of this continent where Friends reside; and crossed the Seas twice to Europe on the same account; and once to the Island of Barbados; and good accounts and credentials were upon all occasions, communicated to this Monthly Meeting of his acceptable service; and was also serviceable amongst us in the Meetings of Discipline. 
His last visit was to the Island of Tortola in company with our worthy Friend, John Estaugh, deceased. 
He was taken indisposed on his passage thither before he landed, yet proceeded on the service he went up for the satisfaction of Friends there, but his distemper increasing upon him. 
He departed this life in Peace, on said Island of Tortola, on the 26th of the 9th month, 1742, as by accounts sent hither by Friends of said Island; aged near 66 years.

John Caldwalader’s Will: 
"I John Cadwalader of Warminster in the County of Bucks, and Province of Pennsylvania, Being about to go on a Religious visit to the Island of Tortola, tho in my Declining years yet of a sound mind, memory, and understanding, thought good to make and Ordain this my last will and Testament in manner hereafter Expressed, That is to say, first of all I will that all my Just Debts and Funeral Expenses be fully paid and Discharged. 
Item - I give and bequeath unto my dear wife Margaret all the household goods which she brought with her at time of our marriage. The one Gray horse, and one cow, and also all the Bonds that is now lodged in her hand, in lieu and in full recompence for all Third, Dowers, and Demands, whatsoever, to my Estate Goods, and Chattels; and to live in the house we now live in during her widowhood. 
Item - I give and bequeath unto my Daughter-in-law, Mary Cadwalader the sum of five pounds Lawful money of the said Province. 
Item - I give and bequeath unto my grandson Isaac Cadwalader the sum of five pounds of the like money. But in case my Said grandson should die in his minority, my will is that the said five pounds be equally divided between his surviving Brothers and Sisters, the children of his Deceased father. 
Item - I give and bequeath all the residue of my Estate, Goods, and Chattels nothing Excepted Save the Afore mentioned Legacies to be Equally Distributed between my children Viz. John, Jacob, Joseph, Benjamin, Sarah, Jane, Mary and Martha, and my Son Isaac's children whom I would to have an Equal Share with one of my aforesaid Children, to be Equally Divided among them, And my will further is that in case my said daughter Mary the wife of Benjamin Eaton should remove with her said husband to live anywhere out of this Province that her share or Division of My Estate as aforesaid be not paid unto her, but I do hereby Order the same to be Equally Divided between aforesaid Children and son Isaac's Children all to have between them and Equal share of one of my said Children anything herein contained not withstanding. 
Item - I give unto my son Benjamin the remainder of John Bryan's Time or Apprenticeship willing my son to fulfill his Indenture and to teach or cause to be taught the Trade my said Son follows anything herein before Contained notwithstanding. 

I do hereby Constitute and Appoint my son Jacob Cadwalader and son-in-law John Bond to be joint and Co-Executors of this my last will and Testament. 
Also I Do Nominate and appoint my friend George Lewis and John Evans to be Overseers of this my Last will and Testament to see the same Accomplished. 
Finally I do hereby revoke and make void all former and other will and Testament by me heretofore made or declared to be made Either by word of mouth or writing validing and Confirming this only to be my Last in which whereof I have hereinto set my hand and Seal the Thirtieth day of the Seventh month Anno Dom 1742. 
Signed Sealed Published and Declared by the Testator as his Last will in the Presence of us and hereunto Subscribed Witnesses: 
Jno Evans 
 Rowland Evans 
John Cadwalader 
Proved June 20, 1743 
Then personally appeared John Evans and Rowland Evans the witnesses to the foregoing will and on their solemn affirmation according to Law do declare they saw and heard John Cadwalader the Testator above named Sign and Institute and Declare same will to be his last will and testament and that at the time thereof He was of sound mind memory and understanding to the best of their knowledge.” 

 Source: http://montgomery.pa-roots.com/Biographies/JohnCadwalader.

Cadwalader and Comly

Note:
There are two men named John Cadwalader, who were about the same age, immigrated from Wales at the same time, were members of the Society of Friends, and settled in Pennsylvania, and the data for both men sometimes get mixed together. 

“My” John Cadwalder traveled widely in the Quaker ministry, married Mary Cassel (Cassell/Kassel) and died on Tortola Island in the British Virgin Islands. 

The other was a “teaching assistant in a school making 20 pounds for half a year.
When his teaching partner left he was asked to manage the school and shortly thereafter was granted 50 pounds per year. In 1702 he gave notice of leaving the school, but in 1703 he was still there.” 

#41-Geography, farms and religion: Reynear Tyson and Family

Geography, family, farms & religion

The records of the early American colony reflect my ancestors' disposition to

1. marry people they know from their own area 
2. buy land then remain there working it 
3. carry on naming patterns of their family traditions
4. stick to a geographic area 
5. stick to the religion they were brought up in. The countries they fled often required them to join the State religion. This was an earned freedom they cherished.

A large number of my early ancestors in Pennsylvania and Delaware River area were Quakers (Friends). 
And when I check the records there are a dizzying number of repeated names in the same Meeting, in the same geographic area. 
Here is an example:
A quick glance at Abington Friends Meeting Records show 2 events  in one year, and 1 event in the subsequent year and the family name “Tyson” is mentioned in all three of the records.  
My question is: are these Tysons my direct ancestors, or lateral, or even un-related Tysons? 
The example, 
Abington Meeting records shows

1. John Kirk, husband of Sarah Tyson,  died in 1759
2. 1759 was also the year that a John Tyson was married with Hannah Cleaver. 
3. Immediately following the above marriage, but in the next year (1760), records show a Priscilla (Naylor) Tyson  died.

Answer:  
You're lucky--it took me two days to verify that I’m directly descended from all of them: 
John Kirk, 
Sarah Tyson, 
John Tyson, 
Hannah Cleaver, 
another John Tyson, 
and Priscilla Naylor. 
They were all either a 7th great grandparent and 8th great grandparent.
Yet all this was fairly straightforward for this year (1760) Abington was keeping good records and in English, and many of the families had been settled for decades. 

However, once you push back to the late 1600s (1680s) to about 1700, the stories are more murky.

 

January's Ancestor: Reiner /Reyner Tyson & Family
This first post, January’s post, is about Reiner/Reyner Tyson and his family.
I chose him because he is well-documented. 
Note on research on Reiner Tyson:
I am happy that in his case for my aunt Margaret B Walmer’s extensive and well-documented research. Included also is some research conducted by my grandmother's brother Don Tyson. I have gone over Margaret's and Don's research and their sources.
 (Margaret Walmer was a genealogist who has published books by Heritage Books.)
In this particular post, I don't need her published books but am using her detailed notes, some typed and some handwritten. 

To Mardy, I offer another post-humous “kudos! well done!”
I (again) thank my cousin Sam Walmer for scanning her papers.