Chatterton Family Bible- Heirloom Reunion

I am a sucker for old family bibles.  I have seen several at estate sales and I have purchased them in the hopes of reuniting them with someone who will treasure and preserve them for future generations.  Before I send them to their new home, I take the time to preserve the images and publish them.

I created dozens of images for the two bibles which can be accessed on Google Drive at the following link:

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1u26iToat5BnvqvhCuI7TbYyWBvIdq8Mm

The two bibles were recently purchased at an estate sale as follows:

Friday/Saturday, March 16/17, 2018, 9am to 3pm

2622 Orleans Dr, Seabrook, Texas  77586

Lake Cove Harbour Subdivision located near TX-146 & Repsdorph Rd

According to the Harris County Texas Appraisal District the 2018 owner of record for this address is:

KNUTSON JULIA
2622 ORLEANS DR
SEABROOK TX 77586-3379

Julia is or was a widow whose maiden name was Chatterton.  She is the daughter of Harley Herschel Chatterton and Laura Helen Park.  Harley was the son of Hiram Lincoln Chatterton and Amanda May Harmon.  Amanda's sister, married a man named John Lawrence Baum. They appear to have had no heirs. The Baum Family Bible contains family record data and photographs for an Ohio family who were the ancestors of John Lawrence Baum.  I will provide more details on the Baum family in a future blog post.

Here are further details on the Chatterton bible:

IMG_2246 and 2247 show the cover of the Chatterton family bible.  The spine is embossed with the initials H.L. Chatterton so it is most likely that Hiram was the Mr. Chatterton that had the bible rebound. The front cover says Old Family Bible. The Bible was published by G. & C. Merriam in 1846.

The Bible measures about 8.5 x 11 x 3 inches and weighs 6 pounds and 3 ounces.

The Chatterton family Bible was rebound by Hiram Lincoln Chatterton
before he died in Peterson, Iowa in 1937. His name is on the spine of the book.

Images were created for the most interesting pages in the bibles starting with IMG_2187 to IMG_2304.  All of the images can be viewed at the following link: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1u26iToat5BnvqvhCuI7TbYyWBvIdq8Mm

The Chatterton Bible was published by G. & C. Merriam in 1846.

Several of the images relate to pressings, clippings and papers that were interspersed in the pages of the bibles.  Most of the loose papers are family records in a variety of handwriting styles. Several references to bible verses were also found on loose papers but they were not copied.

The Chatterton Family resided in New York before migrating to Jones County, Iowa before 1870.

IMG_2248 of the Chatterton Bible was found inside the cover page with the following inscription:

Property of Wm. H.H. Chatterton; This bible was left at the Wm. H.H. Chatterton home many years ago by a stranger traveling on foot until he should call for it but the stranger never returned. In due time Mr. Chatterton had the book rebound. This was written by Mrs. H.L. Chatterton [Amanda May Harmon], April 15, 1940. 

Hiram L. Chatterton died 1937 in Peterson, Clay County, Iowa and Mrs. Chatterton died in 1943 also in Peterson.  They were married in O'Brien County, Iowa in 1896. The father of Hiram was Wm. H.H. Chatterton and he migrated from New York to Jones County, Iowa before 1870.

Hiram L. Chatterton Family Record which appears to be in the handwriting of Mrs. H.L. Chatterton (Amanda May Harmon).

Jennie Josephine Chatterton was married to James Neel Cook on September 5, 1922.
The Patriot newspaper was published in Peterson, Iowa

H.L. Chatterton at age 15, wrote a series of family records for the Humphrey family in 1876 which were placed inside of the bible.  Several other family records were also inserted in the bible. None of the pre-printed family record pages had any entries.  It appears that the bible was used as the place to archive all of the loose family record pages.

Hilah Edsall Smith (1823-1888) was the mother of Hiram Lincoln Chatterton. Hilah was first married to Joseph Humphrey, Jr. 1814-1849 and they had two daughters, Alice P. Humphrey born 1846 and Josephine Smith Humphrey born 1849. The widowed mother, Hilah E. Smith Humphrey married W.H.H. Chatterton on 9 Sep 1854 in Addison, Vermont. Hiram Chatterton invested considerable effort into recording the family records of the Humphrey family.  Most of the family records feature persons that were related to Hilah Edsall Smith.

This Humphrey Family Record states that it was written by H.L. Chatterton, June 24, 1876 when he was 15 years old. There were several pages that were obviously in the same handwriting, on the same type of paper and with an embossed character in the upper margin which leads one to believe that they were all written in 1876.  Children born after 1876 are omitted.

Ashbel Humphrey Family Record.

SURNAMES: Chatterton, Brown, Richards, Humphrey, Harmon, Cook, Powell, Smith, Allen, Johnson, Leach, Locklin, Taylor, Rawson, King, Byrns, Finegan, Grogan, Goodman, Lombard, Laplant, Pierce, Thornton, Shaw, Welch, Wilson, Hodgeman, and Foote.

In the family tree I created entitled Chatterton and Baum Family Bibles, I attached the images to galleries for the persons. I included more details about the images in the galleries in this family tree. It is a public tree so feel free to attach the images to your tree, if they relate to your family.

https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/tree/120092641

The Chatterton family bible has been donated to an archive in Iowa. If you are interested in seeing the Chatterton Family Bible, in person please contact the Clay County Heritage Center as follows:

Clay County Heritage Center, 7 Grand Avenue,
Spencer, Iowa 51301, 712-262-3304
Email: parkermuseum@smunet.net
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/claycountyheritage/
http://www.parkermuseum.org/clay-county-heritage-center

"Gabbs Gabfest" Profiles Heritage Resources

Family and Home Information Sources Checklist

Have you heard the term:  Attic Archaeology? Sometimes it is amazing what we find in our attics, closets and file cabinets and those of our extended families.  Attic Archaeology is a method to search and obtain family records that exist in your own archive and those of your family members. The checklist above is a good way to get started on "Attic Archaeology." Oftentimes you will find letters, diaries and genealogical documents which give us a window into our collective past.

I am attempting to scan all of my paper files and I ran across a paper that I wrote for a graduate level class in Historic Preservation at the University of Nevada, Reno in 1995. My interest in "Historic Preservation" and "Heritage Resources" developed in the 1990's as a way to merge my interest in genealogy with my career in building management.  My training in Historic Preservation has helped me to take a scholarly approach to my genealogical research and inspired me to be a "curator" of the buildings that I managed.

Our professor gave us an assignment to write a newspaper article on heritage resources for the fictional local newspaper of Gabbs, Nevada, the "Gabbs Gabfest." This term paper says a lot about my views of historic preservation. It explains what motivates me to preserve family history about everyday people rather than just preserving the history of the rich and famous.  Many of the statements in this essay are surprisingly still very current after 22 years.

Gabbs Gabfest, Fall 1995Heritage Resources Preservation in the Twenty First CenturyBy Nick Cimino, "Cultural Affairs Editor"

This story is about you ... and me ... and our ancestors ... and the ships they sailed on ... and the halls where they used to meet...and the house where an American hero lived ... and the songs they used to sing ... and the church where they worshiped ... and the pipes which held their tobacco. It's about long ago and not so long ago--big things and little things and all the things that make us what we are today.

Our heritage is something inherited from our cultural past: no judgement of good or bad is made. Heritage resources are the things that make up that past. Heritage resources include both natural and cultural resources. The preservation of heritage resources includes a wide range of activities. Efforts to preserve natural areas like the Grand Canyon from air pollution and saving a family Bible can fit under the term "heritage resources preservation." The United Nations World Heritage List is comprised of a vast array of sites from the natural and built environment: the Taj Mahal, the Grand Canyon, the city of Quito, Ecuador, Mesa Verde in Colorado, and the Great Wall of China. The initial focus of heritage resources was on buildings but it has broadened to included places of association. The U.S. federal government has a long list of cultural resources under its care.

The great majority are archaeological sites. Over 25,000 such sites have been identified in the state of Nevada. This number only represents about 10% of the potential total of cultural resource sites in the state.

The term historic means an inheritance from the past that carries a definite connotation of value or importance or fame. Historic resources can be defined locally or nationally or internationally. We are motivated to preserve those things that establish our identity. Who are we? How will we know it is us, without our past.

The first successful effort to preserve a vestige of the early history of the United States came in 1813 when the State of Pennsylvania proposed selling the Old State House in Philadelphia, now known as Independence Hall. A group of petitioners was successful in winning a temporary stay of execution for the obsolete State House based on its role as the birthplace of our nation. Three years later the City of Philadelphia acquired the hall and the surrounding square for $70,000 after the state had proposed to sell it off for building lots. At the same time it was being preserved, Independence Hall lost its wing buildings to make room for new ''fireproof" buildings. A workman was authorized to remove the historic woodwork from the Assembly Room. The visit of Lafayette in 1824 was the occasion that marked the end of the period of neglect for Independence Hall.
In the 1820's and 1830's several private individuals became interested in historic sites. Monticello and Fort Ticonderoga were examples of sites being held by private individuals who secured them from vandalism and further decay.

Citizen groups were beginning to form in the 1840's but encountered problems raising sufficient funds to acquire historic sites. The legislature of New York was persuaded to preserve George Washington's headquarters in Newburgh, New York in 1850. Two major preservation victories occurred in 1856. The Hermitage, home of Andrew Jackson, was purchased by the state of Tennessee. A private group, the Carpenters’ Company of Philadelphia, was the owner of Carpenters' Hall, which was the site of the first meeting of the First Continental Congress in 1774. Recognizing the importance of their historic meeting place, the carpenters voted in April of 1856 to renovate their hall, taking care ''to preserve, as much as possible, every feature in said HaIl as it now exists indicative of its original finish." The City of Philadelphia tried to buy the hall from the carpenters but they preferred to hold the building "as a sacred trust committed to us by our predecessors."

The seminal event in American historic preservation was the acquisition of Mount Vernon by a private group known as the Mount Vernon Ladies Association of the Union. Nineteenth century Americans regarded Washington as a great liberator. He was revered like a Greek god and his home had become a patriotic mecca. The organizer and publicist of the Mount Vernon preservation movement was Ann Pamela Cunningham. She was a small frail spinster who came from an upcountry South Carolina plantation called Rosemont. She was supported in her effort by Edward Everett, of Massachusetts, former Senator and well-known orator. Their efforts for acquisition began in the decade immediately preceding the Civil War.

Cunningham and Everett called upon the patriotism of a nation to preserve the home of its greatest hero. But it was Cunningham who overcame the greatest obstacle facing the preservationist group. John Washington, the owner of Mount Vernon, had established a price of $200,000 for the property. He had raised objections to the terms of the Virginia charter for the Mount Vernon's Ladies' Association. Cunningham was instrumental in gaining the cooperation of John Washington.

She also contributed her administrative skill and energy to the fund raising effort. Through vice regents representing various states, the Association appealed to the American people in a campaign to raise the funds needed to acquire Mount Vernon. The association was formed to be a "national" association and it managed to survive throughout the period of the Civil War.

The Mount Vernon Ladies' Association was the first national historic preservation organization and is the oldest women's patriotic society in the United States. Its pioneering efforts in the field of preservation set an important precedent. Many historic homes were preserved following the Mt. Vernon model but none became a greater shrine for the nation. "Second only to Mt. Vernon" became a rallying cry for the preservation movements that followed.

Historic buildings, sites and landscapes have intrinsic value for their aesthetic and educational benefits. To know who we are we must know who we were. The appreciation of material culture has grown in direct proportion to the industrialization of our society. In this era of mass production and homogenization of culture, we have lost contact with the prototype in art and architecture. The poster shop has replaced the gallery. The uniformity of the tract houses blur the senses. Old buildings have character and ornamentation and beauty that has been lost in buildings of more recent vintage. The original article has a delightful ability to inform, entertain and amuse. By better understanding the people of the past, we can only achieve a better understanding of ourselves. The philosophical principles that structure and give form to the historic preservation movement are stated as follows in the goal of the National Trust for Historic Preservation: we must save things from the past that have cultural and historical value in order to instill in the American people a full appreciation of their legacy and heritage.

Historic preservation is concerned with a variety of sub-fields that support, enhance and compliment its purposes. Prehistoric archaeology is usually considered under the broader umbrellas of heritage resources or culture resource management. The sites of archaeological resources present unique challenges to the historic preservationist. The resources at the site must be protected from the natural and human pressures such as erosion and decay, foot traffic and vandalism. Sites and ruins require continuing maintenance to prevent their total destruction.

Historical archaeology plays a major supporting role for historic preservation. It adds a historical context to preservation of buildings and sites since it is truly the study of material culture in historical perspective. Underwater archaeology compliments and cross fertilizes land based archaeology. Sunken ships can be perfectly dated time capsules of material culture. By combining the archaeological and historical records, the methods and theories of both fields can be tested.

Maritime preservation is a sub-field of increasing interest in the United States. Americans have taken a personal interest in the preservation of ships. Most of our immigrant ancestors came in ships. Replicas of the Mayflower and restored taIl ships fascinate many visitors. Naval vessels like the U.S.S. Constitution and cruise ships like the Queen Mary have become popular exhibits. Our seafaring past is chronicled in the dozens of maritime parks that have sprung up across the country.

Historic preservation is committed to the care, management, preservation and interpretation of the things of the past. Historic buildings, ships, trains, and gardens frequently become museums. Museology is an interrelated field to historic preservation on several fronts. James Marston Fitch in his book on historic preservation has called for those interested in the field to apply the methods of the museum curator to the management of the built world. A curator is a researcher, an educator and a custodian of their collection.

Outdoor architectural museums have been created to preserve buildings from the encroachments of urban development or to collect representative styles in one location. Examples of outdoor museums are Henry Ford's Greenfield Village in Dearborn, Michigan; Electra Webb's Shelburne Village near Burlington, Vermont; and Old Sturbridge Village in Massachusetts. Several of these types ofmusewns have recently evolved based on the display of replicas or duplicates. Old Salem in Massachusetts, new Salem in Illinois, and Plimoth Plantation in Massachusetts are representative examples of outdoor musewns that seek to recreate every aspect of the material culture based on research and scholarship that replicates period processes and lifestyles.

The historic house museum has been the forerunner of the historic preservation movement. Usually associated with some famous person or historical event, there are hundreds of these museums throughout the United States. These houses are enormously popular. Mount Vernon is the classic example. It is open to the public every day of the year. More than fifty million have toured the estate in the years since the Mount Vernon Ladies Association took charge. Since 1950, annual visitation has rarely fallen below one million. The main deficiency given contemporary attitudes towards a more inclusive approach to history has been the elitist, upper class bias of their interpretation, educational programs and publications. Mount Vernon has prepared a supplemental brochure on slavery and the slave burial ground in recognition of this deficiency.

Aside from merely presenting single objects in display cases, museums have sought to create historic rooms which display decorative arts, furnishings and implements. These rooms are often the product of demolition of historic buildings. Due to the destructive nature of this type of display, museums will only accept historic buildings or rooms when there is no possibility for them to remain on their original sites.

Museums provide a storehouse of artifacts that support the studies of historic preservation and historic archaeology. Museum collections of ceramics, metalwork and glassware can be compared to similar archaeological finds. Museums also have many items that the archaeologist rarely has access to such as leather, paper, fabric and wood. Museums have developed a vast body of expertise on restoration and preservation of material objects which must be applied to the field of historic preservation.

Other sub-fields of historic preservation include industrial archaeology, commercial and transportation archaeology. These fields are committed to the study and preservation of the various elements of industry, commerce and transportation. Industrial buildings and equipment have been the subject of preservation efforts. Factories and warehouses of every sort have been preserved or adaptively reused. Canneries, chocolate factories, mines, piers, stamp mills, and wineries are all examples of industrial preservation. A review of points of interest in California and Nevada shows twenty eight exhibits or collections of vehicles including cars, trains, cable cars, stagecoaches and wagons not to mention the aviation exhibits. Commercial archeology has developed in countless fields of commerce. Some of the more popular collections have centered on the American fascination with the automobile. Everything from diners to service stations, to neon signs to movie theaters is studied in commercial archaeology.

All of these sub-fields are committed to achieving a full appreciation of our cultural and historical heritage. The legacy of the past is prologue to our future. These studies are dedicated to helping people find their place in time.
Only recently have professionals become involved in historic preservation. The movement has historically been fueled by the energy of volunteers and amateurs. The opportunities abound for local citizens to become productively involved in preservation. Every aspect of historic preservation involves tasks that are suitable for volunteers. A docent is a volunteer that agrees to lead tours through museums or historical districts. Historical groups are always looking for volunteers to do research, catalog, file, or answer phones. Archaeologists often need volunteers on digs. Old buildings need constant maintenance. Funds are always needed to acquire and maintain historic resources. Every element of the past is crying for your voice to support its preservation. Public education and political action for preservation require lots of helpers.

Both government and private agencies are involved in preservation on the state and national levels. The Mount Vernon Ladies Association was the first private group to become involved in preservation. Hundreds of other private groups are involved either directly or peripherally with preservation. For example, Monticello is owned and operated by the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation, Inc., a private nonprofit organization formed in 1923 to purchase, preserve and maintain Monticello as a national monument to Thomas Jefferson. The premier private group on the national level is the National Trust for Historic Preservation in the United States. Other active national groups are the National Council for Historic Sites and Buildings and the American Institute of Architects. Federal agencies include the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, the National Park Service, and the Office of Technology Assessment. The U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management as stewards of the public lands, have offices that focus on cultural resource management.

The Nevada Department of Museums, Library and Arts has several offices under its jurisdiction which are involved in historic preservation. The State Office of Historic Preservation is the lead agency and is supported by the State Council on the Arts and the State Library and Archives.

The Museum and History Division is headquartered in the Old Carson City Mint building which is their principal museum. The Nevada Historical Society in Reno and the State Railroad Museum in Carson City are also active in preservation efforts. The Nevada Humanities Committee is a private group that has funneled private and federal monies to historical activities.

The State Parks Division is responsible for a variety of historic, cultural and archeological sites including the Berlin-Ichthyosaur State Park. This 1,127-acre park is located 23 miles east of Gabbs via State Route 844. The park has fossils of reptiles that once swam the ancient ocean covering Nevada 225 million years ago. The ghost town of Berlin which dates to the late nineteenth century is also within the park boundaries. Interpretive signs outline self-guiding tours among the town's 13 preserved buildings.

Guided tours of the townsite are offered Friday through Monday at 10,2 and 4, Memorial Day through Labor Day. The park is open 24 hours (weather permitting); it may be inaccessible in winter. Guided tours of the Ichthyosaur Fossil Shelter are also given. Admission to the park is free and guided tours cost one dollar. For more information call the park office at (702) 964-2440.
Here in Gabbs, the oldest buildings are of the World War II era so not much has been done in historic preservation yet. There are a few older buildings over in Ione but the best local historic attraction is Berlin. The Gabbs Community Library has a small local history collection. For more information on library services call (702) 285-2686. The Nye County seat in Tonopah, seventy six miles south of Gabbs, is host to the Central Nevada Museum. The history of the area is depicted through displays dealing with American Indians, settlements, boomtowns, railroads and mining. The grounds contain heavy industrial and mining equipment .. For museum hours and information call (702) 482-9676. Nye County offices in Tonopah can provide assistance with land, court and historical records relating to buildings and sites in the Gabbs area.

Several books and magazines can be consulted to learn more about heritage and historic preservation. A textbook used by colleges and universities throughout the United States is Historic Preservation by James Marston Fitch. An expert on architectural history and historic preservation, Fitch is Director Emeritus of the Historic Preservation Program of the Graduate School of Architecture and Planning at Columbia University. His writings have helped to shape and inspire the American ethic of preservation. Charles B. Hosmer, Jr. is the author of a series of volumes which profile the history of the preservation movement in the United States. His first book published in 1965 covers the period before Williamsburg and the second, published in 1981 is entitled Preservation Comes of Age: from Williamsburg to the National Trust. The National Trust has published dozens of titles on the subject and in addition cooperates in publishing The Historic Preservation Yearbook which profiles the progress of conservation and restoration of historic buildings and sites. The periodic journal, Historic Preservation, is published by the National Council for Historic Sites and Buildings. Other joumals and magazines that cover historic preservation topics are Architectural Forum, Architectural Record, Colonial Homes, American Heritage, and House Beautiful.

The future of heritage resources preservation will take the field in new directions. The new emphasis in American cultural studies is to broaden the perspectives to include multiculturalism, feminism and the history of groups which have previously been under represented. This country has been intolerant of the diversity of traditional customs and lifestyles of immigrants, Afro-Americans and native Americans. For many years a major goal in the United States was the ''melting pot" philosophy. The idea was to ''melt'' all cultures into a new American lifestyle. What we failed to realize was the strength of each heritage.

Historic preservation has too often been associated with an elitist, white Anglo-Saxon Protestant world view. Historic preservation has not been embraced as enthusiastically by these under-represented groups because the social elites which have been glorified by history have been anti-heroes to the underprivileged groups. Historical preservation must seek to be more inclusive of working class values and everyday life. It must preserve examples of the commoner as well as the noble. Americans need to learn an appreciation for all cultures that have woven together to form the fabric of American society.
Historic neighborhoods became minority and ethnic neighborhoods as they increased in age and fell out of fashion. Historic preservation with its emphasis on physical renewal has tended to displace the resident populations. The "gentrification" of neighborhoods has transposed the slums and the ghettos instead of eliminating them. The United States has only begun to explore the new levels of socio-cultural engineering which will be required in the twenty first century.

A new emphasis of historic preservation will be to include vernacular architecture and folk culture from the United States and throughout the world. Scientific examination of folk and primitive building techniques will be necessary to develop the study of the theories and practices of the past and for protection of the forms that make up this artistic heritage. Preservation is an infant science in developing nations. The citizens of the developing world have found that their own indigenous past is the best resource for building their artistic and cultural future. Western preservationists will be called to support this resource with their science and technology. They will also be called to support this view in the foreign policies of their respective nations.

James Fitch claims in the closing chapter of his textbook that "every independent nation in the world today is committed at least in principle, to the theory that the protection of the national artistic and historic heritage is a responsibility of the state." Fitch wrote this comment before the recent assaults began on the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, National Public Radio, and the National Endowment for the Arts. The new emphasis on "reinventing government" and privatization of public services raises new questions for the preservationist concerning the role of government in curatorial management of our cultural resources. Federal deficits and state tax limitations have sharply curtailed the ability of governments to enter into bold new initiatives. These factors combined with the need for multicultural emphasis and sensitivity to indigenous populations in historic districts will require a new approach towards citizen participation. It will not be enough to have the support of a vocal minority or the moneyed elite. Preservationists will have to produce a much broader base of support in the twenty first century.

A Baby Book from 1910

Three generations of baby books
The pink one is mine born 1954, the white one is my mom's, Jill Mayne born 1935 and the blue one belonged to my grandmother, Elaine Coffman.

Do you have a baby book?  How about your parents or grandparents?  I am fortunate to have in my possession, three generations of baby books.  The oldest one belonged to my grandmother, Elaine Blanche Coffman, 1910-2010.  This book is over 100 years old and is a treasure.  My grandmother was born in New York City on August 29, 1910.  Here are a few of the images from the 1910 book.

Elaine Coffman's Baby Book, 1910, Cover image

List of gifts received for Elaine Coffman in August and September of 1910 in New York City. 

I guess you could call the people on this list of gifts, my grandmother's "FAN" club.  Genealogists use the acronym FAN for family/friends, associates and neighbors.  I recognize a few of the names in the "FAN" club. The list was written by Elaine's mother, Mae Blanche Moss 1882-1963. Elaine's father was Ernest Ellsworth Coffman 1879-1934. Ernest and Mae were married in Oakland, California in 1907 and they moved to New York in 1908. My great-grandmother and my grandmother have similar handwriting.   Aunt Grace would be Grace May King 1885-1968, the wife of Otis Coffman.  Otis was Ernest's brother.  "Grand Ma Coffman" is Harriet Ketcham, wife of Archibald Coffman. Viola N. Hughes is Ernest's sister and aunt of Elaine.

The friends bear further scrutiny.  No surname is given for Paul and Helen so they are difficult to trace.  George Larkin and Miss J. McAllister are perhaps a couple.  There are several men named George Larkin in the 1910 census so it is hard to determine which one would match.

Thomas W. Gleason gave a pair of pink booties.  There was a Thomas W. Gleason, age 34 who would have been about the same age as my great grandfather, Ernest Coffman in the 1910 census of Manhattan.. Mr. Gleason immigrated from Ireland in 1886.  He was living at 325 Spring Street in Ward 8 of Manhattan at the time of my grandmother's birth.  He was a supervisor of stevedores on the New York dock based on the 1910 and 1920 census records.

Ernest E. Coffman, wife Mae and mother Harriet residing on West 138th Street, New York

The 1910 census shows eighteen families residing at 108 West 138th Street, Manhattan where Ernest, Mae and Harriet Coffman are residing on 16 April 1910.  Grandma Mae wrote 110 West 138 Street, New York as the place of birth for Elaine.  It is possible that the census taker neglected to write the the address when he arrived at that address so some of those eighteen families were probably at 110. When the census was taken in April 1910, Mae was pregnant and Harriet, Ernest's mother, was presumably there to help with the housekeeping when the baby came.  The building number was cut off in the photograph below but it does not appear to be 108 or 110. My guess would be 141.  None of the residents on West 138th appear to be on the list of gift givers.

In the 1911-12 New York City Directory, Ernest E. Coffman had an office address of 17 E 125th. That building number also does not seem to be a match with this photograph.  But I must say that it is an interesting looking building wherever it is.  And that hat that Grandma Mae is wearing is quite distinctive.

Mae Moss Coffman about 1910 in New York City with daughter, Elaine in baby carriage.
There is a little dog at her feet which does not appear to be on a leash.

Elaine's first outing appears to have been September 13, 1910.  Then on December 4, 1910, "Elaine had her first ride in the subway and street cars to Brooklyn and enjoyed her outing very much." Perhaps the photograph was taken in Brooklyn. She was three months and five days old on December 4, 1910.  Would Grandma Mae have taken the baby carriage on the subway and street cars?

Then on Wednesday, December 7, 1910, "Elaine had her first ride in the snow down to 125th Street." Perhaps that ride in the snow was to visit daddy at his office at 17 West 125th Street.  Ernest Coffman was working as a manager for the Gas Governor Company.

Google Street view of the building at 17 West 125th Street, New York

Wikipedia offers the following historical perspective on West 125 Street:

"125th Street is a two-way street that runs east–west in the New York City borough of Manhattan, from First Avenue on the east to Marginal Street, ... along the Hudson River in the west. It is often considered to be the "Main Street" of Harlem, and is co-named Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard.
Notable buildings along 125th Street include the Apollo Theater, the Adam Clayton Powell Jr. State Office Building, the Hotel Theresa, the Studio Museum in Harlem, the Mount Morris Bank Building, the Harlem Children's Zone, the Church of St. Joseph of the Holy Family, and the former West End Theatre, now home to the La Gree Baptist Church."

These pictures from Elaine's baby book probably show the house where the Coffmans resided in Edgewater, New Jersey.
Elaine is being held by her father, Ernest Coffman.
The little dog is in the previous picture too.

The New York City Directory of 1913 shows Ernest Coffman residing in Edgewater, New Jersey but the address is not given.  Elaine's sister, Vivian was born in Edgewater on January 24, 1916.  There used to be a ferry that ran across the Hudson River from Edgewater to the foot of West 125th Street.  Wikipedia has the following image of the ferry which has Edgewater inscribed on it.

Edgewater-125th Street ferryboat that crossed the Hudson River. SOURCE: Wikipedia.

The playmate, Ward Gleason, may have been the son of Thomas W. Gleason on the list of gifts.

First words "Da Da" were spoken on the first of March 1911.

This looks like a Fourth of July picture with Elaine Coffman on the pony.

This baby book is now over one hundred years old.  Future blog posts will cover the next two generations.

Correspondence for Family History- An Essential Art

Family history correspondence has been one of the most useful things that I have done in my genealogical journey.  If you can find family members that have an interest in family history, it really pays to write them a query.  I wrote last week of my correspondence with my cousin, Margaret Arthur of Ocala, Florida and the discoveries related to photos in my family albums.

Aline Cavanagh Mayne 1902-1995, the saint of my family history.

My correspondence with my maternal grandfather's sister, Aline Mayne Cavanagh in the early 1990's is what made those discoveries possible.  I kept copies of the letters between Aline and myself and digitized them last week.  I am attempting to get rid of some of the paper I have accumulated but I have to admit to being a bit sentimental about these letters and may hang on to the originals a while longer.  My letters included accounts of some interesting events in my life that I had forgotten about.  For example here is a summary of my trip to Ottawa, Canada:

August 4, 1990

Dear Aline, 

This summer has been very busy for us. I went to Ottawa, Canada in the first part of July and was there for the Canada Day celebrations. The Queen was there and I watched her from less than ten feet away as she reviewed the troops in front of the Parliament Buildings. It was an emotional time because the Canadians are experiencing such strife due to the Quebec separatist movement. The Queen put out a plea for unity but I think it fell on deaf ears in Quebec.

Ottawa was a beautiful city. I rented a bicycle and explored the landmarks and the bike paths along the many waterways . While I was there I did some research on my wife's side of the family, the Fitzpatricks.

Turns out that they were American loyalists who emigrated to Canada after the Revolutionary war. They settled along the St. Lawrence River near a town called Cornwall. Her great grandfather moved to Colorado and homesteaded some land on the western slope of the Rockies and founded the town of Collbran, Colorado.

A useful tool that I used in my letter to Aline was the following survey form:

MAYNE FAMILY HISTORY
March 16, 1990
Please fill out as much as you can recall. Don't worry if you don't have answers. I would prefer that you just say that you don't know and return this sheet as soon as possible.
1. What were the names of your father's brothers and sisters?
2. What were the names of your mother's siblings?
3. Do you recall the names of your great grandparents?
4. Did your grandfather have a brother named Daniel?
5. If so was he married to a woman named Alice?
6. Please write down the names of any of your cousins?
7. How were these cousins related?
8. Please write down addresses for any living relatives.
9. Do you know where any of the relatives above are buried?

Her return letter which was dated one week after the date on my survey provided me with some very interesting family details:

Dear Nicholas,

It was good to hear from you.  I was so sorry to have lost contact with your mother [Jill Mayne 1935-2005] for so long.  I will be glad to help you find information on the Mayne family.  I can recall many things that might be helpful.

I never saw my grandparents Mayne who lived in Frederick, Maryland but I do remember when my father [Rev. Joseph Hanson Mayne 1849-1938] went to the funeral of his father [David Mayne 1921-1910].  I must have been 8 or 10 at the time [Aline was born in 1902].

However, we did visit my Uncle Frank and Aunt Fanny in Frederick after we came to Wilmington. [Aline and her husband, Elvin Cavanagh arrived in Wilmington, Delaware about 1931. Uncle Frank was also known as David Francis Mayne 1852-1941.  Aunt Fannie was also known as Fannie May Bopst 1859-1950.]

Frank had raised fruit and vegetables for the Baltimore market.  Had no children- collected rocking chairs, left most of his considerable fortune to the United Brethren church in Frederick.

Uncle Frank and Aunt Fannie Mayne on the porch of their house at 237 Dill Avenue, in Frederick, Maryland.  This picture was probably taken by Aline Mayne Cavanagh or her husband, Elvin Cavanagh in the 1930s.  They appear to be using part of their rocking chair collection.

This letter went on to provide me biographical information on her siblings and names and contact information for her nieces and nephews. Aline provided me with so many notes, letters, newspaper clippings, photographs and memories that I considered her a saint of our family history.  This extract from one of my letters to her explains the depth of my feelings for her:

October 15, 1990

Dear Aline:

Thanks for your letter of 10 October. The U.S. Mail is a wonderful thing but letter writing seems to be a lost art. I love to write now but resisted for so long. My computer has been an aid in that regard. I hope you don't mind the typed format. My genealogy instructor suggests that we write all our letters to relatives by hand. My hand can't keep up with my mind though. Not that I am lightning fast at the key board but I it is still much faster than hand written. My letter writing style says a lot about me as a person. I like to do everything the fastest and easiest way possible.

As far as your hand writing is concerned, I think you are too modest. The arthritis is not apparent to me. You have lovely handwriting, very readable. Do you correspond with others? I am sure they will agree with me. If it is uncomfortable for you to write at times you might consider sending me a tape recording. Do you have a cassette tape recorder? I will send you some tapes if you would like.

I have enclosed a copy of your father's list of church appointments. I don't recognize the names of all the churches or charges so if you could give me the names of the towns it would help me in tracking any records in the individual church archives. I think your father was a fascinating fellow and I would like to write his biography. The civil war stories would be very compelling if you can remember any more details. Despite all the trappings of progress, the American people are still very much the way they were. Instead of soldiers foraging for food in the countryside, it is the homeless foraging for food in city alleys.

I have enclosed a guideline on how to record your personal history. It says "oral" history but that is strictly optional. If you prefer to write it down that would be just as good. There are lots of questions on these sheets, so don't get overwhelmed. The main reason for so many questions is to show you that there are many interesting things that have happened in your life. I think you are a very unique and talented woman. God has blessed you with many gifts in your life. I ask that you share those by writing or recording your personal history.

Our church is celebrating All Saints Day by placing pictures of the saints in our lives on the altar. Our pastor spoke about her father who was an excellent example of service and devotion in her life. She asked me to speak last Sunday about the research I have been doing on our family history and to discuss one of our family saints. I immediately thought of your father and had resolved to talk about his long years of service to the church.

When I started to organize my thoughts about him and about my love of genealogy, I realized that the person I most wanted to recognize was you. I began looking through the accumulation of letters, notes and pictures that you had saved, and realized what a tremendous service you had done for the family in preserving those mementos of the past. Your pictures are on the altar now. After my talk I had one of the parishioners come up and say "hi, cousin". His name is Jim Wolfenden and he is a descendant of the Mayne family too! He talked about his brother attending some of the Mayne Family reunions in Frederick.

Well anyway, I hope you will consider writing down some of your memories. Even just a few pages would be appreciated.

Aline responded with a nice long letter about growing up in the various parsonages where her father served as a United Brethren minister.  One of her most vivid memories was of the Dayton flood:

... We lived at Lockington [Ohio] at the time of the famous Dayton flood.  Fortunately we lived high above the river so we were not affected by it as we watched houses and trees etc. float down the river. David [her brother] was in Dayton working at National Cash Register Company earning money for college.  He found refuge on the top of the Railway Depot. Canned goods i.e. tomatoes, applesauce, etc. floated by so the folks grabbed them and lived on them until the water subsided.

I hope these little excerpts will inspire you to write down some of your own memories and share them with your family.  When your memory is exhausted, start writing letters or emails to your family members and genealogical cousins to explore their collection of family memories and heirlooms.  Scan your old letters and photos and attach them to ancestor profiles in your online family trees.

If you would like to read the entire series of letters between me and Aline, you can download a copy at this hyperlink.

Finding a Maiden Name: Clues in Family Archives

The clues that we find in oral histories, notes on pictures and family bible records are essential pieces of the jigsaw puzzle that we call family history. Your family members whether they are immediate family or distant cousins have been archiving bits of information such as papers, heirlooms and photographs for centuries.  You must do your best to find these clues.

Family historians must collect, archive and catalog all of these pieces of evidence and compare them with other genealogical records to piece together the puzzle.   Writing up the story at every phase of the process is essential for a genealogist whether they are a professional or a hobbyist.

Write down the stories that you heard about your ancestors.  Then interview or send a written query to everyone you can find that is related to that ancestor through kinship or association. Share the stories with your family and anyone else who is willing to preserve them whether it be an individual, a library, an archive or a website.

Aline Mayne Cavanagh 1902-1995
This picture was taken in front of the Methodist Country Home in Wilmington, Delaware in 1990.

My grandfather's sister, Aline Mayne Cavanagh, shared her family photo and letter collection with me in 1990.  She allowed me to take it home to Reno, Nevada, make copies and return it to her by mail.  

Ann Bamford Nevin 1804-1879 and her grand daughter, Anna Elizabeth Banford Mayne 1860-1938. The girl is Aline's mother and the old lady also known as "Grandma Nevin" is her great grandmother who apparently was visiting her daughter's family near Cincinnati from her home in Schuyler County, Missouri. Taken at J.P. Ball's Photographic Gallery, on 4th St. between Main & Walnut Streets, Cincinnati, Ohio about 1867. Date is estimated based on an estimate of Anna E. Banford's age at 7.  It would be interesting to see if Mr. Ball was listed in the Cincinnati City Directory around that time.

One of the pictures was labeled Aunt Margaret Bryant, Grandma Nevin's sister.   Another was labeled Will Banford, Billaire.  I was able to discover the maiden name of both Grandma Nevin and her sister, Aunt Margaret Bryant, by sharing these photos with a Bamford descendant who I discovered was a distant cousin, Margaret Arthur of Ocala, Florida.

Margaret Bamford Bryans 1817-1887
Taken by Brown, 1222 Market Street, Wheeling, West Virginia. Labeled as Aunt Margaret Bryant, Grandma Nevin's sister. This photo was in the collection of Aline Mayne Cavanagh, my grand aunt and was copied in 1990.

Ms. Arthur had the proof that her ancestor, Margaret Bryans (also known as Bryant and Bryan) was born a Bamford in the Ramult Townland of County Fermanagh.  Here is the story in her own words:

"Bless the gods of genealogy! I despaired of ever seeing a photo of my ggg-grandmother! She has the same jaw as that of her daughter, Mary. And Will! The resemblance is remarkable!

 I believe that the young man is William of Bohattan, b. 1840--he looks to be about 25 in the photo, doesn't he?--son of William of Ramult, b. 1805, Margaret's brother.

Bellaire is in Belmont County, Ohio, just across the river from Wheeling, where his father settled. William's brother, Charles Fitzgerald Bamford, also settled in Bellaire and had a huge family.

Yeah, searching my Irish roots, I started with my mom's memories of her gg-mother, Mary Bryans Wiedebusche She believed she came from Ireland about 1850. Well, my initial searches found her born in Canada, along with a slew of brothers and sisters. Then I went looking for information about Mary's parents, where they came from and how and when they got to Canada.

Turns out Mom had Mary Bryans's MOTHER's Bible! There wasn't much in there (turns out Margaret Bamford couldn't write), and it leaves me with an irritating mystery. But it gave me the townland where Margaret was born--Ramult. Census fragments from 1821 of Ramult, in Fermanagh, show the entire Bamford family.

The Bible gave only three birth and death dates, those of William I Bryans, Margret Bryans, and a daughter, Maggie Brynes.

When I found Joseph Bamford in Belmont County, Ohio, I also found his brother, William, across the river in Wheeling, WV. I realized then that this was why William Bryans uprooted his family from Canada in 1865 and relocated to Moundsville.  If you go to the 1850 census of Belmont County, you will find living with Joseph one Thomas Navin with his wife Ann and a 4-year-old Magdalina, born in Ireland."

The fact that a picture of Grandma Nevin's sister was passed down in our family labeled Aunt Margaret Bryant and the fact that Margaret Bryant's maiden name was Bamford, helps us to conclude that Grandma Nevin was the Ann Bamford who is enumerated in the 1821 census of the Townland of Ramult.  

1821 Census Record of Ramult Townland, County Fermanagh
Family of Alexander and Jane Bamford is listed.
Several of these children settled in Missouri, Ohio and West Virginia.

Margaret Arthur helped to establish that the picture of Will Bamford of Bellaire, Ohio was a nephew of Grandma Nevin or Niven as it is spelled on her gravestone.

Will Bamford, Bellaire, Ohio - Estimated Date 1865
This photo was in the collection of Aline Mayne Cavanagh, my grand aunt. She allowed me to borrow it and make a copy in 1990. The back was marked: "Will Banford, Billaire" [sic] She resided in Wilmington, Delaware until her death in 1995. The original is in the possession of one of her descendants, hopefully.

The other piece that helps to support the connection between the Bamfords and the Nevins is the 1850 census record which shows them living together in the household of Joseph Bamford in Belmont County, Ohio.  

1850 Census Pultney Township, Belmont County, Ohio showing the family of Thomas and Ann Nevin residing with Ann's brother, Joseph Bamford.  Joseph Bamford is listed on the bottom of the preceding page.

Margaret Arthur had questioned the connection because the September 1850 census record shows Magdalina as age 4 which conflicts with the May 1850 passenger list for the Wolfville which shows Magdalina as "inft" which is presumably an abbreviation for infant.  If you look at the 1860 census of the Nevins in Schuyler County, Missouri you will see that Magdalina is listed as 14 which would coincide with the age of 4 in the 1850 census.  So it appears that the age of Magdalina on the passenger list was inaccurate.  One mystery that remains is the location of the other daughters in the 1850 census.

Passenger List of the Ship Wolfville arriving in New York harbor 23 May 1850. Passengers include Thomas Nevin and his wife, "Annie" nee Ann Bamford and their daughters, Jane, Mary, Margaret and Magdaline.

The story that has emerged by assembling all of these puzzles pieces tells of the process of chain migration from Ulster.  A large extended family of Bamfords and Nevins all immigrated from County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland.  Their descendants are now scattered across Ireland, the U.K.,  the U.S., Canada, Australia and South Africa.

Hidden Heirlooms in my Closet

One of my often repeated bits of advice is to look for family history clues in your own closet.  One way to achieve that is digitize what you have in your family heirloom collection.  I recently discovered that I had my mom's original birth and marriage certificates in an envelope that I saved from her personal belongings.  What amazed me is that I do not ever recall seeing her original hospital birth certificate.

My mother's birth certificate from Franklin Hospital San Francisco

The little footprints are the cutest!  The family history part of the certificate is very informative.  I have all of this information from oral history and other documents but it is fun to see it all recorded so thoroughly.

Mom had stuffed several other documents in the same envelope.  It is interesting to compare the hospital certificate with the information recorded by the State of California.

State Issued Birth Certificate

The most striking thing is that my grandfather's occupation is clearly stated as Mortician for N. Gray & Company.  The other notable fact that I found a bit odd was that the birth certificate recorded that silver nitrate had been put into the baby's eyes.  Apparently this was a requirement of California law that physicians put the silver nitrate solution in the baby's eyes and record it on the birth certificate.

Receipt for the State Issued Birth Certificate

Mom even saved the receipt for the birth certificate which she requested in 2001. This is actually interesting to note and it gives her residence address at that date.

Divorce Final Judgement

Mom also saved her divorce decree in the same envelope with her two birth certificates.  She went back to her maiden name, Jill Anna Mayne after the divorce.

Stamp of the Clerk of the Superior Court

Based on the date, she probably gathered all of these documents together to file for Social Security when she reached age 66 in 2001.  It is always helpful to scan both sides of documents and photographs because the backs often contain useful information.

My new commitment is to scan, photograph and preserve all of these documents and heirlooms that I have acquired over the course of my 27 years of family history research.  It is a bit daunting for me but is better than seeing it all thrown out after I am gone.  I advise you to do the same. Preserve the information hidden in your closets for the future generations and to share with your family today!