Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Tombstone Tuesday - The Parramores

I think I've made it my quest to photograph the graves of as many of my ancestors as I can find within a fairly short driving distance (for now).  Since I moved back to my home town last October, it's been nice to be able to visit the graves of the ones buried in Sunset Hill whenever I want to.  A few weeks ago, I searched out the Parramores. (Click on the images for a larger view.)

The Parramore plot, Section C-311, Sunset Hill Cemetery, Valdosta, Georgia

Noah Parramore and Susan Catherine Dasher are my paternal second great grandparents.  Their daughter Susan Parramore and Alexander Shaw Pendleton were my great grandparents.  

Noah Parramore, the husband of Susan Dasher.  He died on October 20, 1891.

Susan Catherine Dasher, the wife of Noah Parramore.  She died May 5, 1901.
Immediately to the left of Susan's grave is their son Herman D. Parramore who was murdered in Bradford, Florida, while being robbed on December 18, 1891 (see the December 19, 1891, issue of The Valdosta Daily Times).  He died just two months after his father.  He was working for my great grandfather Alexander Pendleton and was in Florida at the time to see some customers.

Herman D. Parramore, son of Noah and Susan Dasher Parramore

To the left of Herman's grave are two of Susan's sisters, Gertrude Dasher Paine and Georgia Dasher Smith:

Georgia Dasher Smith, the sister of Susan Dasher Parramore

Gertrude Dasher Paine, the sister of Susan Dasher Parramore.  My great grandmother Susan Parramore, daughter of Susan and Noah, named one of her daughters Gertrude. I wonder if it was for her Aunt Gertrude.
Immediately to the right of Noah Parramore is Susan's son Richard H. Howell from her first marriage to Richard H. Howell.  Son Richard was just 21 years old when he died.

Richard H. Howell, the son of Susan Dasher Parramore from her first marriage to Richard H. Howell. Their son died on November 4, 1875.

Next to Richard, on the right, is Susan and Noah's daughter Bessie.  She was only 19 years old when she died. My great grandmother Susan Parramore, Bessie's sister, called one of her daughters Bessie (short for Elizabeth).

The headstone of Bessie Parramore. It reads "Bessie Parramore, daughter of N. and S.C. Parramore, died Aug. 19, 1877, aged 19 years".  Unfortunately, this headstone has fallen off of its base.

In the forefront in the photograph of the Parramore plot (see above) are members of the John Parramore family.  John was another son of Noah and Susan Dasher Parramore and a brother of my great grandmother Susan Parramore.  The three slabs are Annie Parramore Blackburn (John's daughter), John Parramore, and Martha K. Parramore (John's wife).


Annie Parramore Blackburn, daughter of John and Martha K. Parramore.  She was born June 16, 1887, and died December 5, 1919.
John Parramore, son of Noah and Susan Dasher Parramore and brother of my great grandmother Susan Parramore.  He was born on January 9, 1856, and died October 2, 1918.

Martha K. Parramore, wife of John Parramore.  She was born September 6, 1856, and died on August 2, 1914.

The three standing headstones in front of Annie, John, and Martha Parramore are more of John and Martha's children.  The one furthest to the left is a double headstone for their young sons Frank and Herman.  The inscription is nearly illegible.  According to the Sunset Hill Cemetery interactive map, both of these boys died in 1900. I can just make out the number "4" in both of their inscriptions.  Did they die the same day?  Was it from an accident? I need to find out what happened.

Frank and Herman Parramore, sons of John and Martha K. Parramore.  Frank was born in 1888 and Herman in 1890.  It seems they died on the same day in 1900.

Next to young Frank and Herman, is their baby sister Susie who was only a few months old when she died.

Susie Parramore, baby daughter of John and Martha K. Parramore.  She was born on March 28, 1896, and died just a few months later in August.

On the other side of Susie is another young child of John and Martha's, Thompson Parramore. He must have been Susie's twin as he has the same birth date.  He died two years later in 1898.

Thompson Parramore, son of John and Martha K. Parramore and probably Susie's twin.

The Parramores certainly had their share of tragedy.  As I was writing this post and rereading the gravestones, I thought that I need to do some newspaper research to see if I can find out anything about some of these deaths! What happened to little Frank and Herman? Did John and daughter Annie die during the flu epidemic? I'd already run across an article about the murder of Herman D. Parramore in 1891 while I was researching the Pendletons in the Valdosta Times.

Over the years, my dad explained to me more than once that we were related to my Great Uncle Redden Parramore not just by marriage.  I could never remember how.  Uncle Redden was married to Dinah Roberts, one of my maternal grandmother Leona Roberts' sisters.  It wasn't until I started doing my own research that I finally got it! Noah and Susan were his grandparents!

Catherine

Sunday, July 28, 2013

U.S. Seamen’s Protection Certificates

In the November 27, 2011, Ancestry.com Weekly Discovery email newsletter, there was an article by Juliana Smith about U.S. Seamen’s Protection Certificates.  According to Ms. Smith, these were issued to American sailors in the late 18th and early 19th centuries to protect them from being removed from American ships and impressed into service by the British, which was one of the causes of the War of 1812.  Ancestry.com has certificates available for the years 1792-1868 for the ports of Bath, Maine; Portsmouth, New Hampshire; New Orleans, Louisiana, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  These certificates include a physical description of the sailor, when and where he was born, and the signature of a witness (possibly a relative) attesting to the truth of what is in the document.  Smith also points out that there are several African American sailors in the collection whose certificates would be very useful for researching African Americans during this time period due the scarcity of other records. [This post was originally published in December 2011. When I updated it in Windows Live Writer to “fix” the position of the images, it was posted again with today’s date—July 28, 2013—by mistake.]

Seamen’s Protection Certificate for William Liming
My maternal 2nd great grandfather William Liming was a sea captain and was born in Philadelphia around 1795 [1].  He died in Mt. Holly, New Jersey, on January 13, 1873 but is buried in Philadelphia at the Old Swedes Ground, Gloria Dei Church [2].  We haven’t been able to find out who his parents were, so I was not only hoping there was a seamen’s certificate for him but that a relative was the witness.  Below is a Seamen’s Protection Certificate that I found for a William Liming.
Wm Liming USSeamensProtectionCertificates
Below is a transcription of the above certificate.  The handwritten parts are in italics:
City of Philadelphia
Be it Known, that on the day of the date hereof, before me MICHAEL KEPPELE, Esquire, one of the Aldermen of the City of Philadelphia, Personally appeared William Liming – an American Seaman, aged nineteen years, or thereabouts, of the height of five feet seven and a half inches, has dark hair and brown complexion has a scar on the big toe on the right foot & likewise one on the left thigh—& one on the first finger on the left hand arising from a cut who being duly sworn according to Law, did on his solemn oath depose and say, that he is a native of Philadelphia in the County of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania and a Citizen of the United States of America.
s/n William Liming
AND at the same time appeared Uziell [?] Oliphant who being also duly sworn, did on his solemn oath depose and say that he is well acquainted with the above named William Liming and that the facts above stated are just and true, according to the best of his knowledge and belief.
SWORN as above, before me, this 20 day of May 1814 s/n Uzziel Oliphant
s/n Michael Keppele
The age of 19 would make this William’s birth year about 1795 which fits our William as well as the birth place of Philadelphia.  I’m surprised that they didn’t ask for eye color on the certificate.  Brown complexion?  Could that be from being outdoors on ships or in the shipyard or from his genetic heritage?  I don’t know who the witness Uzziel Oliphant is. It’s not a name I recognize from my research into the Limings, so I looked up a certificate for him, too.

Seamen’s Protection Certificate for Uzziel Oliphant
I found a certificate dated 1813 that I believe is for Mr. Oliphant as the signature looks similar to the one on William’s.  This helped verify the spelling of his first name as “Uzziel” as I had a bit of trouble deciphering it in William’s certificate. 
  Oliphant USSeamensProtectionCertificates
Mr. Oliphant’s certificate (to the left) does note his eye color (blue).  His witness was a Benjamin Johnston. Neither of these names are familiar to me.  Maybe these are sailors just vouching for each other as I found two other certificates (both dated 1810) that have Mr. Oliphant as the witness.  I found him in the 1810 Philadelphia census (took some searching as his name was indexed incorrectly on ancestry.com) [3].   His occupation is listed as stevedore.  That’s the first census record that I’ve seen from that time period that lists the occupation!  I found a death record for a “Uzibe” Oliphant on ancestry.com with a year of birth as 1775 which fits Uzziel Oliphant [4].  Date of death is May 6, 1819, in Philadelphia; he is buried at the First Reformed Dutch Church.  Ancestry.com has the Pennsylvania Vital Records Volumes I, II, and III online [5].  On page 646 of Vol. III,  there is a listing for Uzziel Oliphant with a death date of May 7, 1819, but with a question mark next to the passage “in his 11th year.”  It should probably say “in his 44th year.”  I haven’t found any other record for Mr. Oliphant nor have I been able to find a connection between him and William Liming.  (Note:  I found no Limings in the Pennsylvania Vital Records indexes.  Found a couple of Lemons/Lemmons, though, but could not make a connection to my Limings.  My aunt told me once that a couple of variations of Liming are Leming and Lemon. )

 Seamen’s Protection Certificates for Other Sailors Named Liming
I searched for just the last name of Liming to see who would pop up.  Below are a Seamen’s Protection Certificate dated 1796 for a John Liming born in New Jersey (no age listed), and one dated 1831 for a “Devilda” Liming age 21-22, born in Philadelphia.  (Through some searching on the web, it seems that “Devilda” might be “Dewilde”.)
John Liming USSeamensProtectionCertificates
Seamen’s Protection Certificate for John Liming

Devilda Liming USSeamensProtectionCertificates
Seamen’s Protection Certificate for Devilda or Dewilde Liming.  Note that the witness John Hamell claims to have known him since birth.

Conclusion
I’d like to think that the U.S. Seamen’s Protection Certificate above for William Liming is for our William, but so far I haven’t found anything to confirm this aside from the year and city of birth.  I’d like to know who Uzziel Oliphant is and what his relationship to William was (employer? relative? fellow sailor?).  I searched for a connection between William, John, and Devilda/Dewilde Liming and between John Hamell and Devilda/Dewilde but haven’t yet found any.  The name “William Liming” seems to be a fairly common family name in 18th and 19th century Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and Mt. Holly, New Jersey, and they may all be from the same clan.  All in all, while I didn’t find any clues as to our William Liming’s father, I did find the U.S. Seamen’s Protection Certificates fascinating to read, and I believe they would be very useful for family research!

Catherine
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[1] Ancestry.com. 1850 United States Federal Census. Southwark Ward 5, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Roll: M432_822; Page: 380A; Image: 286.
[2] Ancestry.com. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Death Certificates Index, 1803-1915, for William Liming. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.
[3] Ancestry.com. 1810 United States Federal Census. Philadelphia High Street Ward, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for Uzziel Oliphant; Roll: 55; Page: 155; Family History Number: 0193681; Image: 00021.
[4] Ancestry.com. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Death Certificates Index, 1803-1915, for Uzibe Oliphant. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.
[5] Pennsylvania Vital Records Volume III (Genealogical Publishing Company, n.d.??). Compilation of articles from The Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography (PMHB) and The Pennsylvania Genealogical Magazine (PGM).

Friday, July 26, 2013

The Search for Annie's Parents


My maternal second great grandmother Anna (or Annie as she was called) has languished in my family tree for ages without a maiden name or any parents or siblings.  Recently, when I was trying to find out more about her husband William Liming, I decided it was time that I looked for Annie's family.  

Now that my focus was Annie instead of her husband William, I went back to the census records to see if there were any clues about Annie's family.  When the 1870 Philadelphia census was taken, Annie, William, and two of their children--Henrietta and George--were living with Henrietta Simpson. The name Henrietta looked promising since that is also the name of Annie's daughter. Could Henrietta Simpson be a relative?  When I checked the 1880 Philadelphia census, Annie is again listed as part of Henrietta's household (William passed away in 1873), and she is listed as Henrietta's sister! Now I had the name of a sibling. (Click on the images below for larger views.)



The 1870 U.S. Census for Philadelphia showing Annie and William Liming living with Henrietta Simpson.[1]


1880 U.S. Census for Philadelphia for Henrietta Simpson and Annie Liming showing that Annie is listed as Henrietta's sister.[2]

I searched the historic newspapers on GenealogyBank.com and found what I thought might be a clue to Annie's maiden name. In her death notice in the January 7, 1889, issue of the Philadelphia Inquirer her middle initial is given as "M." Henrietta Simpson's death notice also gives her middle initial as "M."


Death notice for Annie M. Liming, Philadelphia Inquirer, 7 January 1889. [3]
  
Death notice for Henrietta M. Simpson, Philadelphia Inquirer, 17 April 1890.  [4]

My aunt mentioned to me a year or so ago that she'd been told that we are related somehow to Robert Morris, the Revolutionary War financier. Could Annie's and Henrietta's middle initials be for Morris?

I went to ancestry.com to search the Pennsylvania church records and found baptismal records for Annie and Henrietta. They were both baptized on the same day many years after they both had married, so they were listed by their married names. I doubt I would have found them so easily otherwise.  Both baptismal records have the parents noted as Joseph and Sarah Morris! (Click on each image below for a larger view.)

Baptismal Record for Anna Liming. It lists her parents as Joseph and Sarah Morris, her birth date as December 28, 1809, and baptismal date as January 26, 1870.[5]
Baptismal Record for Henrietta Simpson. It lists her parents as Joseph and Sarah Morris, her birth date as January 8, 1808, and her baptismal date as January 26, 1870.[6]

In the 1850 Philadelphia census for Henrietta and her husband William Simpson, Isabella Finlayson and her daughter also named Isabella Finlayson are living with them, as well as Annie Liming's daughter Henrietta.  I wonder if Isabella could be a sister, because Annie named one of her daughters Isabella (my great grandmother).


The 1850 Philadelphia census for William and Henrietta Simpson, Henrietta Liming, and Isabella Finlayson and her daughter also named Isabella Finlayson.[7]

Birthplaces for Annie and Henrietta are listed as New Jersey or Pennsylvania in census records. The 1880 census notes that their parents were born in New Jersey.  Isabella Finlayson's birthplace is listed as Scotland in the 1850 U.S. census (see above). I found a death notice for an Isabella M. Finlayson (see below).  This is probably the same person as above as I found her death certificate at familysearch.org which lists her birthplace as Scotland in 1803.  Unfortunately, Pennsylvania death certificates only list the parents if the deceased is a minor.

Death notice for Isabella M. Finlayson, Philadelphia Inquirer, 23 March 1868.  [8]

I looked at the naming patterns of Annie's children for clues.  I can guess where some of their names came from:  Sarah (after her mother?), Henrietta (probably after her sister), Isabella (after a sister?), and Joseph (after her father Joseph Morris?). Other children are William (probably after her husband), John, Anna (probably after herself), Helen, and George. Annie's son William named one of his daughters Annie Morris Liming (spelled Lyming in the index below). This could be another clue that Annie's maiden name was Morris.  It was not the maiden name of William's wife.

Index of birth record for Annie Morris Liming, daughter of William Liming and granddaughter of Annie M. Liming.[9]

Available evidence found thus far suggests that Annie's parents were Joseph and Sarah Morris, and Henrietta M. Simpson was Annie's sister.  I've not found anything yet about whether or not Isabella is another sibling. I also haven't found a connection to Revolutionary War financier Robert Morris.  I did find a Robert Morris family tree on ancestry.com that lists a daughter named Henrietta as one of his children, and that same tree lists one of Robert's brothers as Joseph who died in Pennsylvania in 1788. Could this Robert Morris line be from where the names of Annie's father Joseph and her sister Henrietta came? I'll continue my research on Annie, but the next thing I need to do is write up a research plan for Joseph Morris!

Catherine

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[1] 1870 U. S. census, Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania, population schedule, Philadelphia, p. 8, dwelling 61, family 69, Annie Liming, digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 13 May 2013), citing NARA microfilm publication M593.

[2] 1880 U. S. census, Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania, population schedule, Philadelphia, p. 3, dwelling 21, family 22, Annie Liming, digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 13 May 2013), citing NARA microfilm publication T9.

[3] "Died." Death notice for Annie M. Liming, Philadelphia Inquirer, 7 January 1889, online archives (www.genealogybank.com : accessed 12 December 2012), p. 3.

[4] Death notice for Henrietta M. Simpson, Philadelphia Inquirer, 17 April 1890, online archives (www.genealogybank.com: accessed 6 March 2013), p. 5.

[5] St. Andrews Episcopal Church (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania), Baptism, unnumbered page, Anna Liming, 26 January 1870; digital image, Pennsylvania Church and Town Records, 1708-1985 (www.ancestry.com : accessed 27 April 2013).

[6] St. Andrews Episcopal Church (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania), Baptism, unnumbered page, Henrietta Simpson, 26 January 1870; digital image, Pennsylvania Church and Town Records, 1708-1985 (www.ancestry.com : accessed 27 April 2013).

[7] 1850 U. S. census, Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania, population schedule, Philadelphia, p. 28, dwelling 133, family 187, Henrietta Simpson, digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 13 May 2013), citing NARA microfilm publication M432.

[8] Death notice for Isabella M. Finlayson, Philadelphia Inquirer, 23 March 1868, online archives (www.genealogybank.com: accessed 6 March 2013), p. 5. 

[9] "Pennsylvania, Philadelphia City Births, 1860-1906" index and images.  Database.  FamilySearch, (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/V1M5-MWC : accessed 13 May 2013). Annie Morris Lyming, 1873.

Sunday, July 21, 2013

Church Record Sunday - The Baptism of William L. Redles

A while ago, I was surprised to find that ancestry.com's Pennsylvania Church and Town Records 1708-1985 includes other states.  In this collection, I found a handwritten index record of my maternal grandfather William (Will) Liming Redles' baptism in the Trinity Episcopal Church in Mt. Holly, Burlington County, New Jersey. The other surprise was that he was baptized by his own father.


Above is the index of my grandfather's baptismal record dated March 16, 1874 (click on the images for a larger view).[1]  It names his parents, G. [George] Albert and Isabella L. [Liming] Redles. His sponsors were John and Jane [Myers] Redles and F. B. Levis. It gives his birth date, November 1, 1873.  He was baptized by his father who was the clergyman at Trinity Episcopal Church.

A Possible Clue to Some Questions

John and Jane Redles are Will's paternal grandparents, but I don't know the relationship between the Redles family and F. B. Levis.  Could he be related to Jane or Isabella? I only know Jane's maiden name but nothing about her parents or siblings. I know the names of Isabella's parents, siblings, maternal grandparents, and an aunt, but I don't yet know the names of any other aunts and uncles or the names of her paternal grandparents.  There is a Franklin B. Levis in Mt. Holly in the 1870 and 1880 U.S. censuses who was a lawyer, his wife's name was Rebecca, and he was a member of Trinity Episcopal Church.[2]  He could be a clue that I should pursue.

I've found a few records for my Redles and Liming ancestors in the Pennsylvania Church and Town Records, 1708-1985, that have given me some clues to questions I've been trying to answer. I love trying to solve mysteries!

Catherine

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[1]  Trinity Episcopal Church (Mt. Holly, New Jersey), Baptism, p. 143-144, William Liming Redles, 16 March 1874; digital image, Pennsylvania Church and Town Records, 1708-1985 (www.ancestry.com : accessed 14 February 2012).

[2]  1870 U. S. census, Burlington County, New Jersey, population schedule, Northampton Township, p. 60, dwelling 486, family 505, Franklin B. Levis, digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 21 July 2013), citing NARA microfilm publication M593.  
1880 U. S. census, Burlington County, New Jersey, population schedule, Northampton Township, p. 1, dwelling 5, family 5, Franklin B. Levis, digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 21 July 2013), citing NARA microfilm publication M593. Trinity Episcopal Church (Mt. Holly, New Jersey), Communicants, p. 281, Franklin B. Levis, 11 September 1859; digital image, Pennsylvania Church and Town Records, 1708-1985 (www.ancestry.com : accessed 21 July 2013).