Friday, December 30, 2011

My Morgan Line

My Morgan line begins, actually also with an Allen and a brick wall. A Quaker brick wall is a bit odd, I think, since they are so well known for keeping great records.

My grandmother's grandmother was Emily, aka Emma A. Allen. It is said that Emma was born in Friendville, TN May 16, 1851 to the parents of Thomas Norris Allen and Elizabeth Morgan. I found Emma's name through some records of other researchers and relatives in Kansas who have been keeping records and having an annual family reunion for the Riggs family.
Emma was married to Joseph Hughes Riggs on December 19, 1872. Another date has been noted as the 12th, and not known which is correct. Emma and Joseph can be seen in a group photo I had posted previously . Here she is cropped from that photo:
Emily "Emma" A. Allen Riggs   

One source, an obit from the Chase County, Ks paper (noted in the files from the Riggs relatives), says she was born in 1852 and 12 years later came with her parents to KS where she lived the rest of her life with the exception of 8 years when she lived in MO.

Emma is with her family in 1860 in Blount County, TN and she is 9 years old. Her father is Thomas, mother is Elizabeth, and has siblings by the name Amanda, Julia, Edwin, Elizabeth, and Thomas. By the 1870 census they are in Toledo, Chase Co, KS, she is 19, her father is listed as Thomas N. Allen, (farmer) mother Elizabeth, and the only siblings in the home are Julia, Edwin, Elizabeth and Thomas. In the 1880 census she is married to Joseph Riggs, living in Fairplay, Marion Co, KS. Joseph is 31 (farmer) , Emma is 29, and they have 3 children already, including Lester, my gr grandfather, age 5(?). His name was actually Ernest Lester , but went by his middle name most of is life, seems to be a common practice in my family. 1885 has them in Cottonwood, Chase Co, 1895 and 1900 has them in Cedar, Chase Co.
1910 has them in Hazelwood, Webster, MO. Joseph is 61, Emma, 58, and two children ages 25 and 14 living with them there. Then 1920 and 1925 has them back in Toledo, Chase Co, KS. Their two children Lillis and Clifford still living with them, in the 1925 census Lillis and and Clifford are age 40 and 35 respectively.

My dad went to the local library and found Emma's death announcement for me on microfilm (Emporia Gazettte) and sent me a copy. I'm not exactly sure of the date of the paper, it didn't print out with the section, but there is an advertisement on the same page dated December 17, 1928. The  notice reads:
Mrs. Emma Riggs Dead
Mrs. Emma  Riggs, 77, who lived 7 miles north of Saffordville died at 11:30 o'clock this morning at the St. Mary's hospital. She had been suffering from severe burns received December 9th when she overturned a vessel of boiling water while working at her home. Funeral services  will be at 11 o'clock Wednesday morning at the Friend's church in Emporia. (unreadable) Mrs. Carnell, pastor of the Walnut Grove church, will conduct the (unreadable but hyphenated to next line so most likely "services"), assisted by Rev. R. E. Jackson, pastor of the Friends church. Internment will be in the Hillcrest Cemetery in Florence.

She is indeed buried in the Hillcrest Cemetery  in Florence, Marion County next to her husband who died before her (May of the same year). Their memorials are on Find A Grave. Her birth on her her tombstone says she was born May 16, 1851, Died December 17, 1928. According to the notes in the files I was given, another researcher had her birth as 1850. The notes also say that her obituary in the Chase County Leader News  say she was born in 1852, that they were married in 1872, and that she died of burns received when she overturned a vessel of boiling water while preparing to take a bath in her home on December 9th.
This reference was the first I had seen about Quaker roots. I didn't even know what "Friends church" meant, and had to look it up. But I knew exactly which hospital it was where she died, I was born in the same hospital. I also knew exactly which church her funeral was in, I remember going there as a very young child, and lived near it a couple times while growing up.  Here is a photo I took last summer of the church. We didn't get to go in, since it was closed when we went to visit.
First Friends Church in Emporia Kansas

In trying to learn more about Thomas Norris Allen,  I came across some articles about his son Thomas G. Allen. Seems he was quite prominent in Chase County, so it was more through him I found more about Thomas N. and his wife.
On Chase County Pages I found the two following pages on Thomas Norris Allen  and his son Thomas G. Allen .
Then I found this page on Scribd which lists names of people buried in a small Quaker cemetery in the area which lists Thomas and Elizabeth. I found it through this Research Page which has a link to a page with pictures of the cemetery, and Thomas and Elizabeth's graves. It also includes a biographical sketch of the Allens which I find very interesting and fun to read, and have added it to my files.

The main page also has a link for more about the Morgans and it links to the church where earlier family members attended and were buried in Iowa. 
 Essentially the biographical sketch describes how the Allens and Morgans lived in Eastern TN until the outbreak of the civil war. The Quakers were peaceable people and didn't go to war, so they left Tennessee when the war made it to their area, and they went to Iowa. Some stayed there, and some went on to Kansas. So some of my Morgan ancestors are buried in Ackworth, Iowa.

Elizabeth Morgan Allen  was born January 16, 1821 in Lost Creek, Jefferson, TN. She was the daughter of William Morgan and Catherine Peck. Elizabeth (also sometimes spelled Elisabeth) married Thomas N. Allen on April 27, 1839 in Lost Creek, Jefferson, TN. She died June 16, 1890, presumably in Chase County, Ks.

Here are the photos I took of hers and Thomas' graves and the cemetery when I visited them last year:
"Our Mother Elizabeth Allen died June 16, 1890 aged 69 yrs & 5mo" "Our Father Thomas N. Allen, died 1, mo. 11, d. 1875, aged 63 yrs, 11 ms, 15 ds."
Old Friends Cemetery as seen from the road, West of the Lyon/Chase County line on Road 180, North side.

Thomas and Elizabeth's graves just south of the big cedar tree in the cemetery. 

  I think I will stop here for this post and start the next one on the ancestors of Elizabeth.  In digging through my files for this post I found a clue on Thomas that I had missed before and I want to dig around some more.
  I found a Thomas Allen in the 1850 census in Blount County, TN. He is 40 years old then, and listed as a farmer, from TN. His wife Elizabeth is 30, and also listed as from TN, as are all the children (names all match the names in other census which Emily shows up in): Wm age 10, Amanda age 6, Julia age 4, and Edmund age 2 (other census he is listed as Edwin). Also in the household is listed a Sarah, age 74 and in the location column it says "no car" which I'm guessing to be North Carolina.
North Carolina makes sense, it's not far from Blount County, and it's also where the earlier Morgans lived before they show up in Tennessee. I have other Allen names further back connected with the Morgan family, But so far I haven't been able to find any connection for Thomas to them.

New Discovery, Ties with Daniel Boone

I got a new e-reader for Christmas, so now I can sit in my recliner with my dogs and read more. I have tons of books I've downloaded from Google Books, but it's been hard to balance a lap top with a lap full of Beagles, they are so snuggly. So with the new electronic reader, I downloaded some new books, and for whatever reason, I found a few about Daniel Boone that sounded like would be fun reading. Just a few pages in I saw something I had to look into. The book named Boone's mother, Sarah Morgan, and mentioned they were thought to have been Quaker. That's all I had to read. I left the comfort of my recliner and came back to my desk and looked into the ancestry of Daniel Boone for more details. I already know that the Morgan line on my maternal grandmother's side was Quaker. I visited the grave of one while I was back in Kansas last summer.
I did find what I was looking for, dug out my relationship chart and discovered that Daniel Boone is/was my 1st Cousin 8 times removed! It was more cool news to share with the family. Sarah Morgan's brother John was my 7th great grandfather, and Daniel Boone's Uncle. The discovery has actually helped me learn a bit more about the Morgan line and the Lloyd line.
Since this connection is on a line I have not shared here yet, and I have pretty much shared all I currently know on Grandpa's line, I think this is as good of a time as ever to share it here on my blog. I shared the information briefly on my facebook page, and already had a few friends say we are related! Even though I don't exactly know how, it makes the world seem that much smaller. I must say though, I had bigger expectations of finding that my husband was related to the Boones than myself, since his Kentucky roots are so much deeper. Who knows, maybe he is, I just don't know how yet. I did read that book some more, and saw that Wallen was one who accompanied Boone on one of his first trips into Kentucky. Wallen is one who I suspect may be an ancestor of my husband's, I have just had a very difficult time figuring out if it's true or not. That all depends on proving a marriage with an earlier ancestor, which may not be possible.
 So with all of that, I will post this, and begin the task of sharing my grandmother's ancestry, which means going back to Kansas (virtually) to get started.
Happy New Year to everyone. May the coming year be full of joy, discovery and friendships!

Monday, December 19, 2011

Robert B. Duncan 1810-1897

I found something new on the Duncans! I was going through some notes I took awhile back when looking through Smart Match results on My Heritage. I don't know why it took me so long to follow up on it, it must have sat in my files for months! But I saw it a week or so ago, and I decided to look into it. So far it looks pretty good.

Robert B. Duncan appears to have been the brother of my William Duncan. All the files and stories I had seen before named William's parents as Robert Duncan (from Scotland) and Lucy Boyles or Broyles. That was pretty much it. I had the clues they were from PA/NY. What I had seen so far indicated that William was born in Genesee County, NY. But I pretty much dead ended there. There were a few clues along the way that William had a couple brothers, but not much info on them either. Well, it appears that facts about William's father and grandfather have gotten mixed up in the passage of time.
In  the files that I had Smart Matches with was a list of names of William's brothers and sisters, it named his parents as Anna Boyles and Robert Duncan (born in PA) then went on to name the grandparents as Robert Duncan (born in Scotland) and Agnes Singleton. The files also listed 8 brothers and sisters for William!! The files didn't include much about William, I still don't have absolute proof that this William is the same as my William, but going by the parents names may be the best I get.

I started looking into the siblings of William to see if I can verify anything more and to gather more clues. I have found some really interesting things. William's brother (younger than William by about 2 years) became rather successful in Indiana, and I have uncovered a biography and a sketch  of Robert B. Duncan in the History of Indianapolis & Marion County Indiana. This is what it said. It was loaded with clues!


Robert B. Duncan is of Scotch descent, his grandfather, Robert Duncan, born in 1726, a native Scotchman, having emigrated to America in 1754, where he engaged in the pursuit of his trade, that of a tailor. He married Agnes Singleton, born in 1742, also of Scotch parentage, and had children, - Robert, James, John, and three daughters. Robert was born in Pennsylvania, Sept. 28, 1772 and during his youth resided in that State, after which he removed to Western New York and engaged in farming pursuits. He married Miss Anna Boyles, and had children, - James, Ester, William, Robert B., Margaret, John, Samuel, Jane and Annie. The death of Mrs. Duncan occurred in 1822, and that of Mr. Duncan Jan. 6, 1846. Their son Robert B. was born in Ontario County, N.Y., June 15, 1810, where the earliest seven years of his life were spent. In 1817 he removed to Ohio and settled near Sandusky, his residence until the spring of 1820, when the family emigrated to Connor’s Station, in the present Hamilton County, Ind., then an unsurveyed prairie. Various employments occupied the time here until 1824, when he became a resident of Pike township, Marion Co., and engaged in the pioneer labor of clearing ground and farming. The year 1827 found him a resident of Indianapolis, where he entered the county clerk’s office as deputy, and remained employed until March, 1834, when he was elected to the office of clerk of the county., and held the position for sixteen successive years. Mr. Duncan had meanwhile engaged in the study of law, and immediately, on the expiration of his official term in 1850, began his professional career, confining himself mainly to business associated with the Probate Court and to consultation. Mr. Duncan was early in his political career a Whig, and continued his relations with that party until later indorsement of the articles of the Republican platform. With the exception of his lengthy period of official life as county clerk, he has never accepted or sought office. He was reared in the stanch faith of the Scotch Presbyterian Church, and still adheres to that belief. Mr. Duncan was married in December, 1843, to Miss Mary E., daughter of Dr. John H. Sanders, of Indianapolis, to whom were born children, - John S. (a practicing lawyer), Robert P. (a manufacturer), Anna D. (wife of William T. Barbee of Lafayette, Ind.), and Nellie D. (wife of John R. Wilson, of Indianapolis). Mr. Duncan enjoys the distinction of being the oldest continuous resident of the county.
 

Transcribed from History of Indianapolis & Marion County Indiana by Berry Robinson Sulgrove. Illustrated. Printed in 1884 in Philadelphia by L.H. Everts & Co.

Other interesting facts I have found connected with Robert B. Duncan is through his wife Mary Elizabeth Sanders. I haven't looked into this very much, it was just a peek, but it seems pretty clear that the Sanders family was descended from Squire Boone, the brother of Daniel Boone. I don't know much about Elizabeth's father, yet, but for a short time their former home was used as the Governor's Mansion. Elizabeth had 4 sisters, the youngest was Jemima. Jemima was married to Dr. Richard J. Gatling (the inventor of the Gatling Gun). Just a tidbit I thought my sons would find interesting.


As for the other siblings, this is what I have so far. (everything is assumed approximate here, it's still being researched. I just want to get this info on the web and hope other researchers find it and contact me. So please, if any of these people are in your tree, anywhere, let me know! If you have any information that can help prove any of this or dispute it, please let me know!)

Children of Robert Duncan (1772-1846) and Anna (Lucy) Boyles (1777(?)-1822)


James Duncan- born 1804. It appears he married Mary Beck 10 Sept 1830.  
I found some will information that is unclear if it's for this James or the James, son of Robert and Agnes. I'll try to include that later.

Ester Duncan- born  Dec 20, 1806. Married 1) William Robinson. I found the name of one child of theirs so far, Frances A., who married a David Bovee.
Esther married 2) John McManis who was a vet of the war of 1812.
Esther was buried in Pine River Cemetery, Richland County, Wisconsin. A note on the records I found say she "died very suddenly while her daughter [Frances A. Bovee] was being buried.
It is recorded that William C. Robinson died May 19, 1842 in Indiana
John McManis is buried in the Bovee Cemetery in Richland County, Wisconsin. It is estimated that he died between 1880 and 1896.

*William Duncan- (my ancestor) born  October 14, 1808 in Genesee County, NY. Married 3 times 1) Amanda Hutsell (my ancestor), 2) Sarah Catherine Hines 3) Susan Trammell (also my ancestor). William reportedly died Jan 5, 1879, though I have yet to find record or grave.

Robert B. Duncan- (I believe B is for Boyles) born June 15, 1810 in Ontario County, NY. married Mary Elizabeth Sanders in December 1843. They had children: 1)John Sanders Duncan, a lawyer, 2) Robert P. Duncan a manufacturer, 3) Anna D. Duncan who married William T. Barbee of Lafyette IN., and 4) Nellie D. Duncan who married John R. Wilson of Indianapolis. Robert B. Duncan died 1897.

Margaret Duncan- born April 20, 1812. died January 12, 1888. She was married to Aaron Stearns Glidewell. I found her grave in Deep Springs Cemetery in Sullivan County, Missouri. They had at least one child, by the name of John T. Glidewell (1840-1902).

John Duncan- born March 31, 1814, died December 27, 1863. He married Amaretta Ridgeway. I found John's grave in Wilson Cemetery in Monon, White County, Indiana.

Samuel Brady Duncan- born March 4, 1816. died April 16, 1906.  I found this page with Samuel's obit and and this page with some family info, including names of children. Samuel was married to Elizabeth Hornbeck in 1843. Seems he went to Iowa in 1853 and lived in Winterset. It says he was buried in the Winterset Cemetery, but I'm not finding either on Find A Grave.

Anna B. Duncan- born 1820 and died 1911. She married Durfee Bovee in 1837. Durfee was the son of Elisha Bovee and Catherine (Durfee) Bovee. So far I have found two children of Anna and Durfee: 1) Elisha Bovee (1840-1913) who married Victoria Potter and 2) Samuel Durfee Bovee (1845-1923) who married Emily West. I found Samuel Durfee Bovee's grave on Find A Grave in the Oaksdale Cemetery, Whitman County, Washington.  I found record of Anna and Durfee Bovee's graves in the Bovee Cemetery in Orion Township, Richland County, Wisconsin.

(I peeked at all the internments of the Oaksdale Cemetery in Washington, and there is a bunch of Byrums which I am pretty sure are other descendants of my Byram ancestors on my dad's side of the tree. Many of the memorials were created by a lady I have cooresponded with already! Small world!) 

 Emily T. Duncan- born 1829. d. 1863. Married James L. Shaw.  I found Emily and James' graves in Pretty Prairie Cemetery in Battle Ground, Tippecanoe County, Indiana. Her memorial says she was the daughter of Robert and Hanna Duncan.


Robert Duncan and Agnes Singleton (grandparents of William Duncan, parents of the Robert Duncan who married Anna Boyles)

The History of Indianapolis, mentioned above, tells me that Robert, the grandfather of my William, was born in 1726 and was from Scotland. It says that his wife, Agnes Singleton was born in 1742 and was of Scotch parentage.


The files I found on My Heritage and it's also mentioned in the History of Indianapolis that Robert and Agnes had three sons and three daughters, but only the names of the sons have been mentioned. They are:
*1) Robert Duncan 1772-1846 married to Anna Boyles (also seen listed as Lucy Boyles and Hanna Boyles last name has also been listed as Broyles).
2) John S. Duncan 1786-1864 (not to be confused with Robert B. Duncan's son by the same name who became a lawyer in Indianapolis like his father) I found a Find A Grave page for a John S. Duncan at the Pleasant Hill Cemetery in Indianapolis, IN. The birth date is unknown, death date given as May 4, 1864.  John was married twice 1) Elizabeth 2) Maria (last name of either not yet known.)
3) James L. Duncan  no dates have yet been found on James. The My Heritage file had the same birth dates (June 15, 1786 in PA) and same death dates (May 4, 1864 Marion, Grant Indiana). I find it highly unlikely they were born on the same dates AND died on the same dates, so until I verify both, it is assumed it is a simple error in their files.  The wife of James is only listed as Elizabeth.
I did find a couple mentions in the History of Indianapolis of John and James Duncan, but it is not yet certain it is these two.


As for the will information mentioned above with James, son of Robert and Anna, here is what I found.
it says: (do they mean "son of Robert Duncan and Agnes Singelton"?
James Duncan, d. 1855 Marion Co. IN, uncle of Robert B. Duncan and son of Robert Duncan and Anna Boyles of Ontario Co. NY
Marion Co. IN Will Books
      C-90: James Duncan of City of Indianapolis, Marion Co. IN, feeble in body; to my daughter Elizabeth $100 out of residue of personal estate after debts if there be sufficient; and that her minority shall be no bar to her receiving and receipting the money, and if necessary, she shall receive so much of my real estate or the proceeds to make up the money; the remainder divided between my wife (unnamed) and all my children, including said Elizabeth, as the law directs. Appoint my nephew Robert B. Duncan exec. 22 Feb. 1855, /s/ James Duncan, wit. Mary E. Duncan, Robert B. Duncan. Proved 9 Jan. 1857. (FHL film 499,449, SLC 9/17/91)


Well. lots of digging and sorting to do. I do hope this draws in some responses from other descendants!  This has taken me all day to post, so I hope I haven't made any serious mistakes.