Bryant - Fletcher Namesake

Cousin Charlie Fletcher told me that he was named after our mutual great uncle Charles Bryant. Charles Bryant was a "dapper" fellow according to Charlie Fletcher. I have written about him in a couple of blog entries here.

There is no denying the genetic relationship, even two generations apart. Aunt Teeny just this week sent me a photo that I had never seen before of Charlie Bryant sitting in a chair in the backyard. The resemblance to his namesake is stunning.

Two "dapper" fellows: Charles Bryant, b. 1859, and Charles Fletcher, b. 1926

Allens and Bacons of Kentucky and Virginia

A professional genealogist suggested that I trace my Allen ancestry back to Virginia by building on the Allen family known to have lived in Kentucky. I have exhausted all research on the Allens of Kentucky without finding the one I am looking for... that is, John Watson Allen.

Here is what I know:

1. Augustus D. Allen, born in 1859 in Hancock County, Illinois, is verified as my maternal great grandfather. 
2. Augustus' father is Robert Scott Allen, born 1797 in Virginia, also a verified fact.
3. In brief bio in The History of Hancock County, Rose Nash Spitler claims that "casual research" into her family history revealed that John Watson Allen was the father of Robert Scott Allen, her grandfather. Rose did not know much about her birth family - she was a foster child from a young age. In this biography, Rose claims that according to family lore, John Watson Allen was a childhood playmate to the famous Revolutionary War hero, Ethan Allen. Unverified.
4. Robert Scott Allen lived in Covington, Kenton County, Kentucky, before moving to Illinois. He married a Elizabeth Highlands from Ohio, just across the river. Kenton County is adjacent to Mason County.
5. There is a John Allen, Baptist clergyman, who lived in Mason County in 1850. He lived with a family named Bacon. He is the right age to be Robert Scott Allen's father.

One thing I have learned is that "family lore" is not always reliable. However, even if the stories are obviously wrong, the details are often merely a slight distortion of the facts. In other words, the truth is there, you just have to know how to interpret it.  I have come to the conclusion that the Revolutionary War hero who played with John Watson Allen as a child was actually probably John "Jack" Jouett, who also came from Virginia and lived near the Allens in Kentucky toward the end of his life.  

Today I have had a break-through of sorts. I still have not connected all the dots, but have made some promising discoveries. I started out by writing out a research question. (The quality of one's research is determined by how well the question is written): 

"Is John (Watson) Allen, the father of Robert Scott Allen, the same person as John Allen, Baptist clergyman, who lived in Mason County, KY in 1850 with the Bacon family?"

 In the 1850 U. S. Census for Mason County, KY, John Allen, age 81, lived with Elizabeth Collier Bacon, age 61 (widow of John Glenn Bacon), and two of her children:  John Glenn Bacon, Jr. age 23, and Tyree Lydall Bacon, age 19. Also living with them was a man named George Heft, who appears to be a farmhand. This was a puzzling discovery - there seemed to be no familial relationship between John Allen and the Bacons or to the Colliers. But the name "Lydall Bacon" hit me like a ton of bricks! Definitely an old Virginia family name.

The first step of my research strateby was to trace John Glenn Bacon back to Virginia and see if I could find an Allen connection. Bingo! Here is a partial tree showing the relationships (Roman numerals represent the generations):

I.  John Bacon (1675-1742) m. Susanna Parke (1688-1778) of New Kent County, Virginia
                                         
II. Lydall Bacon (1717-1775) m. Mary Ann Allen (1726-1816) of New Kent County
                                                                             
III. Lucy Bacon (1744-1826) m. Charles Allen (1744-1775) of Lunenburg County, Va.
      Sarah Bacon (1753-1796)  m. Col. John Glenn (1752-1799) of Charlotte County, Va.        
      Langston Bacon (1746-1831) m. Mary Anne Glenn (1749-1823) of Charlotte/Lunenburg

IV. John Glenn Bacon (1782-1846), son of Langston Bacon, m. Elizabeth Collier (1789-1870) of Charlotte County, Virginia; moved to Mason County, Kentucky before 1840.
   
John Allen, clergyman, lived with this last Generation IV family in Mason County, Kentucky. He would be of the same generation as III. above. I checked, and Charles Allen did not have a brother named John, so there must be another Allen-Bacon connection somewhere.

The coolest thing about these discoveries is the fact that I recently visited St. Peters Church in New Kent County and had taken a photo of a memorial gravestone for the Bacon family.

Generation I:  John Bacon and wife Susanna Parke.
This stone reveals two more generations before them.
George Bacon was the original immigrant who came over from London.

The next step in my research strategy was to find a connection to John "Jack" Jouett. Since the Glenn family had multiple connections with the Bacons, I started there. Here is the partial tree showing what I found:

I. James Glenn, Jr (1664-1747) m. Mourning Winn (1668-1750)

II. Tyree Glenn (1704-1763) (son of James) m. Mary Roe
     Mourning Glenn (1702-1755) (dau. of James) m. Col. Robert Harris

III. Mary Anne Glenn (1748-1823) (dau. of Tyree) m. Langston Bacon (1746-1831)
      Mourning Glenn Harris (1732-1805) (dau. of Robert) m. John "Jack" Jouett (1730-1802)

IV. John Glenn Bacon (1782-1846) (son of Langston) m. Elizabeth Collier
      Mary Anne Mourning Jouett (1765-1833) (dau. of Jack) m. Thomas Allin (another Allen connection!)

V. "Tyree Lydall Bacon", born 1830 in Mason County, KY, was a son of John Glenn Bacon and Elizabeth Collier, his name connecting both families' histories back to Virginia.
                                                                                             
Again, John Allen would be of Generation III, the same as Jack Jouett. The "family lore" that Rose related may hold some truth! Now if I can just find out how John Allen is related to all these folks, especially to Elizabeth Collier Bacon. I also need to verify that this John Allen is actually my 3X great grandfather.

Letter from Ida to Bluke Jr.

Cousin Terry sent me a copy of a letter she found in some old family papers. It was a letter from Ida Rene Abbott to her nephew Blucher Fletcher, Jr in 1909. It took some time to transcribe the letter, and there are still a few words missing, but here it is:

September 2nd 1909

Dear Bluke,
Your letter received and glad to hear from you. I know you have found it lonely, no one but yourself in the house. Where did sister go. She didn’t want me that is sure. I wrote and told her to let me know what Sunday she was [in] Norfolk, and I would go down for the day. So she got off and didn’t say a word. Yes, Bluke, we will be glad to have you any time. All you got to do is say what Sunday you will come and we willl meet you at the depot. Would love to see you. Write and tell us when you will come. Bring your lady friend along. Will make .... plan for you as possible. It is $1.50 round trip just for the day. Come and stay a week and go back the next Sunday. It is fine up here. You will not want to go back any more. I am going to look for a letter saying that you will come. Love to sister and Bluke and receive a large share for yourself. Let me hear from you at once. Your loving aunt, Ida Abbott

My questions... What caused the estrangement between sisters? Bluke would have been about 19 years old - who was his "lady friend?"

To appreciate what it took to decipher this letter, here is the original:

1205 Flobert Drive, Part One 1959-1965

When I was five years old and my mother was pregnant with my sister, my parents had a modest brick home built in Princess Anne County, way out in the country, far outside the city where my father worked and where my grandparents lived. The development, called Bellamy Manor, was owned by the Bellamy family. It was only a partially cleared property. The part of the development behind the manor house was called "the Hill." You either lived on the Hill or in the Woods. We lived in the Woods. Most of the Kempsville area around Bellamy Manor was farmland. There was a strong Mennonite population in Kempsville and much of the farmland was devoted to dairy cows.

After the Bellamy property was developed, the big white Manor house remained, facing Kempsville Road, until the "new" library was built around 1988. You can still see the ancient trees behind the library that give away the original location of the house.

A History of the Kempsville Library

The Kempsville Area Library is built on the site of the historic "Bellamy Manor" Plantation, circa 1715-1959. The 9.7 acres of land was sold to the City of Virginia Beach in 1967 for $50,000. On April 29, 1969 the Kempsville Area Library first opened its doors. Appropriately, the event took place during National Library Week. The building was 6,000 square feet and opened with a collection of 7,000 volumes to serve a population of 20,000 in the Kempsville area. At that time, the Kempsville Area Library was the fourth branch of the Virginia Beach Public Library System. As the Kempsville population grew, so did the business at the library. The year 1984 brought 239,400 visits to the Kempsville Area Library alone! By 1985, the library was serving a population of more than 65,000 and housed a collection of 53,000 volumes. By August 1986, plans for a new library building came to fruition. The original library building would become the Fourth Precinct police station. The community participated in planning the new building. A survey of library users helped determine the features that the residents felt were important. Ground Breaking ceremonies were held on October 20, 1988. The construction of the building began almost immediately and its entire outside structure was completed in just a matter of months! In January 1990 the new Kempsville Area Library opened, ready and eager to serve the residents of Kempsville!

http://www.superpages.com/bp/virginia-beach-va/kempsville-area-library-L0137952191.htm

My first memories of Bellamy Manor

There were no proper roads the first year or so, just ruts in the grassy lanes cut into the heavy woods. Some of the roads further back in the woods had no houses built on them yet and were great places to hike.

The woods smelled heavily of wild creatures - to this day the scent is distinct in my memory. And rattlesnakes galore! We killed many rattlesnakes in our first years in the Woods. I almost stepped on a coiled rattlesnake while playing tag in the Downs' yard. I heard the rattling and thought it was the water spigot. I looked down and screamed for help. Mrs. Edge rushed over with a 22 shot gun and blew it away right at my feet.

Old Mr. Bellamy came around in his big white car through the development periodically. He knew all of the residents and spoke to the children as he rode by. He told one child, "you've grown two ax handles since I last saw you!" At Halloween, everyone knew there were candied apples handed out at the manor house.

There were only a few houses back then on that quarter mile stretch called Flobert Drive. We were near the end of the street (the "turn around").  Our house was the third house in a row next to the Edges and Downs'. Our lot sizes were near a half acre. We had about fifty trees in our yard. The Gaskins family lived in a big house in the middle of three fenced in lots about halfway down the road. They had a horse, and also had a pony-sized black German Shepherd named "Mount" who charged menacingly at everyone who dared to go down the street.  The Watson family lived on the corner at the entrance to Flobert Drive. Our bus stop was at the foot of their driveway. Their oldest daughter Priscilla was our babysitter.

Hunters were used to letting their dogs loose in the woods to run. Mr. Jones would drive his pack of baying hounds to the end of our street and release them. He'd come back some time later to pick them up. His dogs were named after U. S. Presidents; invariably, Truman would be left behind and Mr. Jones would have to come pick him up the next day from our front porch.

Sometimes we would find cows or horses wandering in our yard. We'd have to call the owners to come get them. Once when my mother was hanging out clothes, a fox ran under the clothesline followed shortly thereafter by hounds and a hunter on horseback.

My best and only friend was the next door neighbor, also named Teresa. She introduced me to things I had never known, such as cussing and sex (on a very limited scale) and eating animals that were killed in the woods. Her mother had a heart as big as the moon, but could cuss like a sailor and didn't care who heard. They also had whiskey in the house and tobacco. Once she made homemade root beer that accidentally fermented and made all the neighborhood kids drunk. The Edges had their house built toward the front of their lot so there was a huge plot in the back for a garden and grape vines. I learned to shell butter beans and have grape skin fights. I also learned to be more physically daring - Teresa would swing as high as the sky and fly off into a hill-sized dirt pile. We made forts out of hay bales and played there all day. The Edges had a nasty dog named Jigger who bit everyone. Back then, getting bit by Jigger was just part of a normal day. My cousin Calvin biked his newspaper route with Jigger attached to one leg.

As more folks moved into the neighborhood, my circle of friends grew. We all knew each other and were in each others' homes as much as our own. As long as I came home when the cowbell rang, my mother didn't care where I was and never had to worry. My cousins moved into Bellamy Manor four streets away and within easy walking distance. Kids rode their bikes long distances from home - there were no restrictions or boundaries. The "big ditch" on the other side of the Edges' house was the pathway to our friends' homes on all the other streets that ran parallel in the "Woods." We had our secret forts in the woods. We were outside all day long. There was no such thing as air-conditioning so being outdoors was preferable to the stifling house.

... more later...

3319 Brest Avenue

Due to lack of any remarkable research findings to report, I will take this opportunity to share some personal memories of early childhood.

My parents were only 22 and 24 when I was born. Their first home was on Brest Avenue in Norfolk. We lived there until just before my sister was born. I was five years old. Here is the house today... the crepe myrtles and shrubs were not there in 1959. There also appears to be an addition on the back of the house that wasn't there.

3319 Brest Avenue, Norfolk Va.
Google Maps, December 2016

I have few but very distinct memories of being in this little house...

Sitting at the kitchen table and discussing possible names for my new kitten. I was probably only two or three years old. Apparently, my mind was only on the food because we named the cat Applesauce.

Breaking my leg falling out of the high chair.

Running crying from the kitchen into the bedroom and into my dad's arms (oddly, I associate this vivid moment with breaking my leg but that does not make sense).

Getting a new dog, a beagle named Butch (wonder what happened to Applesauce?).

The mimosa tree in the backyard, in whose shade we lived and moved in the summertime. I remember having a good sized wading pool where all the neighborhood kids came to swim. My July birthday parties were held at a picnic table under that tree.

My friend David who had a prosthetic leg. He had to take it off to swim in my pool.

My friend (Karen I think) who lived across the street and had a mean dog on a chain in her backyard.

The detached garage that my dad built. I don't remember much about the process of building it, but I do remember clearly what it looked like. If you look closely at the photo above, you can catch a glimpse of it.

Santa Claus (a neighbor dressed up) visiting us in our home and scaring me to death.

A Christmas gift - a large robotic gorilla which came with a cork gun. If you could hit the gorilla in the chest with a cork, it would give a frightening roar and flash its green eyes and start moving menacingly toward you. The thing scared me to death! Isn't it just like my dad to come up with a gift like this for a little girl.

The neighborhood bully who told a group of us younger ones about the "bloody bones" in the window of the creepy house on the corner and scared me to death.

I was a timid child.

My friend Rexanne who lived around the corner (the other way from the creepy house) who shared my same exact birthday. We love to connect about that fact to this day. Coincidentally, she was friends with my future spouse in high school.

My cousins living on the next block (Argonne Avenue). I ran away once and called to my Uncle Sonny to help me cross the street. I don't remember this, but my mother says she was very upset with me.

Sitting in front of the TV every Saturday morning in the living room, patiently watching the test pattern until cartoons came on at 7:30.

I have other memories, such as visiting my grandparents during these early years, but this is the sum total of my memories about living in the house on Brest Avenue.

John Adam Zaun, German Immigrant

John Adam Zaun was born on September 12, 1840, in Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. He is my 2X great grandfather in my direct paternal line.

At age 27, "Adam" left Germany, likely to avoid being drafted in the Prussian Army. He immigrated to America in 1867. Peter and Barbara Wellner and their daughter Elizabeth arrived at or about the same time, maybe even on the same ship. 

"Adam Soun" married Elizabeth Wellner on October 25, 1868, in Dumbarton, Virginia. They became naturalized citizens in 1873 (per 1930 Census). Adam and Elizabeth had four children: Louise Sophie in 1876, John Adam in 1879, Henry Phillip in 1884, and Charlie Wellner in 1886.

There are some inconsistencies. On their marriage certificate, Adam's parents are named as George and Elizabeth Soun in the "same household." There is no mention of his parents on any other document, no other indication that they immigrated to America. On the marriage record, Adam's birth year is given as 1844, which is inconsistent with other records. On Elizabeth's death certificate, her son John Adam, gave her middle initial as "B." He did not know who her parents were.

According to the Richmond City Directory, Adam and Elizabeth lived at 1116 W. Main Street in 1874. Adam's occupation was "paver." Later, his occupation, according to sources, was "farming" on a "Truck Farm." By 1900 they were living on Staples Mills Road. Their son Henry lived with them; their daughter Louise Duckhardt lived next door. According to the 1920 census, Adam, Elizabeth, and Henry lived and worked on a "home farm" on Hungary Road, which today runs parallel to E. Parham between interstate highways 95 and 64.

John Adam Zaun died of heart problems at age 82 on December 26, 1922, at his home in Dumbarton, Virginia. He was buried in Bethlehem Baptist Church Cemetery on Penick Road. 

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Genealogy Resources: Death Certificates

Ancestry.com occasionally adds a whole new database to their vast collection of sources. When this happens it is like Christmas for a genealogy hound!  About a year ago, the entire collection of Virginia death certificates was added. I attached as many as I could find to my family tree.

Death certificates list the official cause of death and contributing factors. They also name the parents and birthplaces (though sometimes the informant gets this information wrong). Though it might seem morbid, I scrutinized every one of these certificates looking for individuals' "stories," and I was certainly not disappointed. I found out how my Uncle Jimmy supposedly killed himself ... he shot himself in the abdomen with a shotgun. What on earth!? That just doesn't make sense to me. How does one even accomplish something like that? Pull the trigger with your big toe? My imagination was busy coming up with alternate theories; for instance, I know from firsthand experience that his 2nd wife, Margaret, was crazy. I wouldn't be surprised if she shot him.

Today, I discovered that all the death certificates for that state of Missouri from 1910-1965 have been released. My great grandfather's certificate was in that database. According to his death certificate, the cause of death was "shock due to prostectomy." So sad! Such a terrible way for a strong, healthy, handsome 69-year old man to go.

Note how much personal information can be obtained from a document like this. It is a real treasure!

Dillingham Blvd

If you read my last post, you know that my relatives helped to dismantle the Jamestown Exposition homes at Sewells Point. Some of the homes were saved and  became part of what is known as "Admirals' Row" on the Naval Base.

Naturally, I wanted to know more about these homes, so I googled them. To my surprise, I discovered that the famous homes are on "Dillingham Boulevard," named after Admiral A. C. Dillingham.

Part of Admirals Row on Dillingham Blvd.
PilotOnline.com

Whoosh! Mind blown... I contacted the Dillingham family expert (in England) and learned that I am descended from the New England Dillinghams and so is Adm. A. C. Dillingham. The Admiral is my cousin. And an important road is named after him in my own hometown.

Jamestown Exposition of 1907 historical site
http://www.virginiaplaces.org/parktour/jamestownexposition.html

Rear Admiral Albert Caldwell Dillingham

Terry, Terry, and Charlie

Where do I begin... so much I have learned today! I invited cousin Charlie Fletcher and his daughter Terry over for lunch today. The idea was that I would share what I have learned about the Bryant family history, and ask some of the burning questions that I hoped Charlie could answer. Charlie is an impressively sharp 91 year old, full of stories about his life and about family.

They arrived at 10:30 a.m. We talked for about two hours before we even thought about having lunch! Conversation went off on many tangents (listed below) which I will explain later in this post.

• The Jamestown Exposition of 1907 on Seawells Farm
• Ocean View
• Asbury Park
• Civil War
• Blackwater
• investment properties

After lunch we got on the computer and I invited Terry to view and contribute to my family tree on Ancestry. We looked at some of the photos, stories, and documentation that I have collected for each ancestor. Then we looked at maps online to learn where the Bryant and Fletcher family farms were located in Blackwater. Though it was already 3:00 in the afternoon by this time, we decided to get in the car and drive out to Blackwater to see the land firsthand.

As we thought, the memories ingrained in Charlie's brain led us to all the places he remembered from childhood. Even though the landscape is dramatically changed, he "felt" that we should turn or veer right there... he knew the names of every family property we passed. We turned off of Blackwater Road onto S. Head of River Road, a small segment of road that probably used to be part of Blackwater Road. We stopped where Charlie thought the Bryant family farm should have been. We pulled in a driveway next to a couple of modern barn buildings. A neat row of ancient cypress trees up to the main road gave a clue that an old driveway had been there. I got out of the car and talked with a girl who was putting horses away in the barn. Her last name was Ehrinzeller and she had only owned the property for a few years. She bought the farm from the daughter of the Wright family (of the Lake Wright Hotel) and had no idea of its history. But Charlie was sure it was the right place. The "old Cox place" was right next door.

UPDATE 9/20/21: Recently I sat down and wrote down a timeline of Bryant family history. I discovered that Charlie Fletcher was not born until after his family moved to Ocean View in Norfolk, so he could not have had childhood memories of the family farms in Blackwater. This put a good part of my research into question! After studying the original deed to the Bryant farm, I learned that it was actually located on the other side of the Cox farm, across Head of River Road. 

Note to my children: This farm, once owned by my 2X great grandfather, is at one end of Head of River Road. At the other end of Head of River Road is the farm where your paternal great grandmother, Mae Kelly, was born. 

Then we drove up the road to Pungo Ferry Road, where the Fletcher Farm had once been. "Pungo Ferry Road ran right through the middle of grandfather's strawberry field," recalls Charlie. The Davis Grainery, next to the original house, was once on a piece of property owned by the Fletchers. We took pictures of where the house once stood, but the only remaining evidence was an old tree (see picture below).

The big old tree stood in front of the Fletcher house, which burned down.
Sadly, the tree fell not long after this photo was taken.

Further down Blackwater Road was the Baptist Church, where we thought we might find some family graves. We were specifically looking for the graves of Eley and Margaret Bryant. Charlie said that his grandfather, Blucher, was the first elder of the Blackwater Baptist Church so we thought we'd check out the cemetery there. We looked at all the oldest gravestones, but no luck. There was a Margrett Jane Fletcher - no idea who she was. But it was a pleasant adventure into Pungo history.

Blackwater Baptist Church

From Findagrave.com:
Margaret Jane was married, first to George A. Gilbert
in about 1880, and second, to Malachi G. Fletcher
in about 1903 (this was Malachi's third marriage).

We stopped at the Blackwater Trading Post, originally owned by the Cox family, where we ran into a native of Blackwater who shared some stories with Charlie. Then we drove down to the Mill Dam Stream where Murray's sawmill had once been. Both families are related to the Fletchers by marriage. Blucher Fletcher was married twice before he married Addie. A daughter from a previous marriage was married to Mr. Murray. Their son, Edgar, lived and worked on the farm with Blucher and Addie (1910 Census). Blucher, Jr.'s step-sister, Margaret, married into the Cox family ("Sis Mag") who owned the farm next to the Bryants. 

Terry and her father, Charlie.

Side stories: 

Sis Mag's adopted son Horace Cox, who worked for Kline Chevrolet, was killed by muggers. 

Margaret's sister Penelope was married to Dr. Murray and lived in the gray house at Boush and 21st Street. 

Now, back to the random topics of conversation from this morning. 

Blucher Fletcher, Sr., purchased 8 lots for $25 each in Ocean View and created a "mini-farm" at Willoughby Heights off 1st View. Blucher built houses on Peachtree Street out of cypress from his farm land in Blackwater. The first house (9337 Peachtree) was divided into apartments and several generations lived under one roof. I believe my grandfather, Ernie Zaun, lived with them for a short time when he first moved to Norfolk from Richmond. The second house (9327 Peachtree) was Addie's "dream house."  Both houses are still standing. Charlie was born on Peachtree Street, and his daughter, Terry, was born in another house on Peachtree Street.

9337 Peachtree Street

9327 Peachtree Street, Ocean View, Norfolk, Va.

Blucher Jr. and his son Phillip (Charlie's father) left the farm and got work dismantling the houses on Sewells Point. These homes had been built on the former Sewells Farm by the 13 colonial states for the Jamestown Exposition of 1907*, and the Navy wanted to tear them down and use the land for barracks. [The houses were all moved to one street and became known as Admirals Row].

Charlie remembers his uncle Charlie Bryant (his namesake) visiting their home on Peachtree Street in his chauffeured car. Charlie Bryant's wife Mariah was a wealthy widow who owned several hotels on the beach in Asbury Park in New Jersey. He also remembers visiting my grandparents, Jack and Ernie Zaun, in their home on Mason's Creek Road. The house is still there (cream with two rails). [Note: I can find no evidence of my grandparents living on Mason Creek Rd].

Charlie still has the money that was in the pocket of his great grandfather Blucher when he signed up to go to war. Blucher had described to Addie how he hid behind trees during battle and watched the bark fly off. 

Charlie's aunt Ruth had a mental disability from Scarlet Fever. 

One of Audrey's children was badly scarred on her face from an accident near Charlottesville when Charlie Page was driving. Charlie Fletcher had wanted to ride in the car with his fun uncle Charlie but his mother wouldn't let him.

There was once a streetcar to Ocean View at the Princess Anne County line. Van's Cottages were at the end of the line. Charlie delivered newspapers in this area as a boy. He invested in many properties that were hugely profitable in Ocean View and Virginia Beach, including "Little Williamsburg." [I am trying to find information on these properties].

*The "Norfolk 100" were men who built funds to bring the Jamestown Exposition to Norfolk instead of to Richmond.

Facebook Post on Family Reunion

I am all warm and fuzzy inside! This weekend we are getting together for a family reunion on the farm. When I say "we" I mean all my children, my sister and her children, and also my first, second, third, and even all the far "removed" cousins on my dad's side of the family. It will be a day of outdoor fun under big white tents, with a country music band, and lots and lots of stories, hugs, and laughter. There will be a "memory table" for those who have gone before us. I feel so blessed that my extended family kin have always been as close to me as brothers and sisters. I do not take for granted that I grew up knowing all of these people who share random bits of my DNA. And that red hair gene pops up in every family group, even the beards of my sons! The patriarchs and matriarchs of the family have always kept all the relatives close. Reminds me of the definition of "Home" - when you go there, they have to feed you. When I go there, I am home.

This picture shows two of the oldest living relatives in the Abbott/Bryant family: Teeny Vaughan (far right), granddaughter of Ida Rene Bryant Abbott; and Charlie Fletcher (3rd from left), grandson of Ida's twin sister, Addie Bryant Fletcher.  Also shown are Charlie's daughter Terry (another redhead) and her husband Jim.

Postscript:  The reunion was everything I could have hoped for. All of my boys were there and it was a perfect October day. Finally got the Fletchers up there to visit, though traffic held me up and I missed most of their time there. (We plan to do lunch soon). The music was unexpectedly good - the band played all of our favorites from "O, Brother Where Art Thou." The little one - Charlotte - had a great time dancing with her Papa. Rode with the girls, Charlotte and Mila, on a tractor ride around the farm. I got to connect with Johnny Lukhard's family and make plans to keep in touch online with Misti. I took a bag of carrots and apple for the horse, so he and the goat got a lot of attention. I was able to get a photo and a good visit with all of Robin's girls. Made lunch plans (and paint party plans!) with cousin Laura. Got good news about Anna's cancer situation. Was able to smooch on cousin Peggy and marvel at her resemblance to my Mamaw. The picnic was fun - great food and conversation. an all-around wonderful day full of memories and love.

Detective work: recent discoveries

My family tree is pretty solidly developed through my 2 X great grandparents on every branch, which is amazing! But on a couple of lines, I have hit a wall. I  started taking genealogy classes at the public library hoping to break through some of those walls. My new-found skills have actually turned up some enlightening nuggets of information.

While in class last week, I was browsing and half-listening while the instructor modeled a research example using census documents. The instructor explained an unusual feature of the 1930 census where the "age at first marriage" was given. I was in the back of the class, browsing my own family in the census when I came across an item for my great grandmother Ida Rene Bryant... in the 1930 Census, her "age at first marriage" was 16! I had only just recently discovered the shocking fact that she had been married at 19 to Lewellen Eley. Now I find that she had another marriage before that! That makes a possible fifth marriage for her. Her descendants only knew about two marriages.

Ida Rene Bryant's marriages
age 16 - ?? ??
age 19 - Lewellen Eley (divorced or annulled)
age ?? - ?? Williams (widowed)
age 26 - William Butler (widowed)
age 37 - George Abbott (my great grandfather)

Other dead ends that are driving me crazy:

Robert Scott Allen
Another brick wall is in the Allen line, my mother's maternal side. I have not been able to get past my 2 X great grandfather Robert Scott Allen. I believe his parents are John Allen and Rebecca Scott, but can't prove it with unimpeachable sources. I did find new information about Rebecca Scott, though, in her father's will.  Her parents are not who I thought they were. It was a case where two pairs of siblings married the same family. Her father and mother died when she was young and there is not much documentation about them.

John Dillingham and Calvin V. Crofford
The problem of John Dillingham's parentage is the subject of debate and speculation among his descendants on both sides of the ocean. My family lore says he was born in Wales and came to Indiana from Connecticut. Some say he was born in Providence, RI. His daughter Anna married Calvin Crofford (Crawford), but the Crawfords are a dead end as well.

George James Powell
My Nannie's grandfather. I believe he died after the war in 1865. I cannot find any documentation of his parents, though there are many connections with other Powells having the same unusual names, such as "Littleton" and "Bell". The Powells have a long history in Henrico and Accomack Counties.

These aren't the only brick walls in my research, but are the ones I am most anxious to resolve.

Littleton, Schuyler County, Illinois 1872

The study of maps has definitely been helpful with genealogy research. Sometimes physical distance or proximity can make sense of a puzzling story. It can also offer new names and information to pursue.

Today I found an early map of Littleton, Illinois that brought together two different branches of my family tree.

Among the first settlers of Littleton were Orlando Marcus Bosworth, my 2X great grandfather, and Richard Pierce Applegate, my 3X great grandfather. Richard's daughter Eliza married Orlando. I also noticed that there are two Crawfords on this map. I don't know how they are connected to us, but I will certainly investigate! 

me < Virginia < Teresa Allen < Eva Bosworth < Eliza Applegate and Orlando Bosworth

Findagrave - Eva L. Allen

This weekend is Findagrave weekend. People all over the country will gather in cemeteries to photograph and document graves. Findagrave.com has been one of the most helpful resources in my genealogy research. Profiles are searchable by name and by cemetery. Sometimes the information in these profiles is extensive! One can submit a request to have a gravestone photographed and documented by someone local to a particular cemetery. I have posted a few profiles online myself.

The most amazing discovery on findagrave for me was the gravestone of my great grandmother, Eva L. Allen - a simple engraved brick. She was buried among hundreds in the hospital cemetery of a mental institution in Oklahoma. The gravestone was uncovered in 1998 as the cemetery was cleaned up. Until the moment I found her profile on findagrave, no one in the family had any clue what had become of Eva; her daughter died without ever knowing. It was certainly an emotional discovery. It also opened up other questions about her - why was she in a mental hospital? Why was she listed as "widow" when her husband was still alive?

I ponder these things every day without really getting anywhere. Last night, it occurred to me that I should contact the person who posted Eva's profile on findagrave. Turns out he is a really nice, helpful, genealogy-obsessed fellow! He got her information from a survey of the hospital cemetery and from census data. He was able to give me some perspective on the time that she lived. For instance, he said that often a woman who was divorced would list herself as a "widow" because of the shame. I had not thought of that but it makes perfect sense. He also told me that only the folks with no family to claim them were buried in that cemetery.

All of this fits with what I have learned about her life. My mind fills in the sad details as I try to imagine what might have happened:

Eva was married to Augustus Allen in 1886. Around 1893, after their only daughter Ethelyn was born, they left their families in Illinois and moved just across the river to Kiokuk, Iowa, where Augustus worked as a mercantile clerk. They moved to Wichita, Kansas in 1900, taking Eva's mother, Eliza Bosworth, with them. There was a huge real estate boom going on in Kansas at that time. Augustus emerged as an ambitious real estate businessman, and he became something of a celebrity. Seems like every move he made was written about in the Wichita newspapers.

Eva's brother, Richard Bosworth, and his wife and family also moved to Wichita around the same time. Unfortunately, their mother Eliza died shortly thereafter.  The two families got together socially; a 1903 Wichita newspaper describes a birthday party for Augustus where the Bosworths were present. My grandmother Ethelyn was ten years old at that time, so she must have been close to her four Bosworth cousins.

Something happened in 1903 or 1904.  Eva is listed in the 1904 Wichita City Directory as the "widow" of A. D. Allen. I don't know why I didn't think of this until now, but a divorce would be a logical explanation. This must have been around the time that my grandmother was sent to boarding school in Paris, Texas, almost 300 miles away. Eva would not have been able to support her daughter on her own. I don't know why her brother, Richard Bosworth, did not step in and help, but records indicate that he died before 1910 so perhaps he was ill. Augustus was a proud man - maybe he enjoyed being able to afford to send his daughter to boarding school.

The Old Fort Supply Mental Hospital opened in Woodward, Oklahoma in 1908. There are stories online about the wagon trains going to the hospital that year. Woodward was about a day's ride from Wichita...less than 150 miles. I am assuming that Eva was among the first patients there.  She is listed on the 1910 Census there as an inmate with status as "widow." She died in 1911.

My question now... where was Eva from 1904 to 1908? I wondered if she stayed with her brother, but she is not listed in his household in the 1905 Kansas census, and their addresses were not the same in the City Directory. What was her life like without husband and daughter? She must have been aware of Augustus' new marriage and his growing real estate business. I can't imagine how devastating a divorce and separation from her ten year old daughter must have been. The highly publicized birthday party that she gave for Augustus in March 1903 may have been a last, desperate attempt to please him..?

I have to say, I am less inclined to think of Augustus as a bad guy.  I guess divorce is easier to understand than lies and abandonment though there is very little emotional difference. It also explains why he was legally able to remarry in 1905. I wonder what made him send his daughter so far away - did he need to get her away from her mother for some reason? Augustus probably visited Ethelyn in 1910.  Newspapers tell of his trip to Texas, and my grandmother recalled this visit.  Why didn't he tell her about her mother? She was 17 years old and would have been able to understand by then. I guess there was shame all around... divorce, mental illness*... he did not want her to have that stigma.

So Eva died in 1911 - a "widow" with no family to claim her. Her mother and brother were dead. There was no contact with her extended family in Illinois. Augustus, her (ex)husband, had a new life. Her only daughter was unaware of her existence.

*UPDATE Sept. 25, 2021: I just found a photo on ancestry.com of Eva’s brother and his family. As I added the photo to each ancestry profile, other hints popped up, including the death certificates for two of his five children. I looked at the cause of death…both died of tuberculosis. I also observed that her brother and three of his children died within three years, from 1907 to 1910. I think I can assume, then, that all four family members died of tuberculosis. Since Eva was divorced by 1904, she probably remained close to her brother and his family in Wichita. It is not a far leap to assume that she died of tuberculosis as well.

Oh, dear Ida

Boy, my great grandmother Ida had some secrets! Some time ago, I was surprised to uncover her marriage license to William Butler where she was listed as Ida Rena Williams, a widow. Who was this Williams guy and why did she never mention him to her children? Was her son Earl actually the son of Williams since he was born three years before her marriage to Butler?

When I attended a genealogy event at the public library, I had a professional genealogist help me search for information about her marriage to Williams. They could not find anything more than I did. A librarian called me today and conducted a more indepth interview. She promised to keep searching.

Tonight, I decided to try searching Southhampton County marriage records online (didn't I do this before?) and there she was! An 1887 marriage license for Ida and a man named Lewellen P. Eley. What!??? No doubt this is our Ida... born in 1868 to parents Eley and Margaret Bryant.

Southhampton County Marriage Book 6, 1886-1890, p. 184

I am flabbergasted. No wonder I was having trouble finding her marriage record to Williams - her last name wasn't Bryant when she married him! Even my great grandfather, apparently now her 4th husband, did not know her complete history. This changes the angle of my research. Stay tuned!

Postscript: At a class at the public library on October 12, I learned how to discern information in the 1930 U. S. Census and got another surprise. The 1930 census tells the age at which each person was FIRST married. Ida was 1st married at age 16! So this marriage to Lewellen Eley must have been her SECOND marriage. That makes FIVE marriages! 

Branching Out

Until now, all of my research has been conducted from my home computer. It is incredible how far I have gotten with online resources, but I have been at an impasse for some time now. Time to branch out! (pun intended)

So, I signed up for some genealogy classes at the public library. The library's collection includes many great resources for ancestry research. They are currently offering classes and tours of their genealogy collection and have experts on hand to guide individuals in their research.  They have programs that I have never even heard of, such as Heritage Quest and WestLawNext. Now that I am retired, I can take full advantage of such resources.

Tonight is "Moonlight Madness," an after hours workshop from 7 - 11 p.m.  Today I will compile and organize my research since someone else may be looking at it and judging me!

Board Certification

On my retirement agenda: become a board certified genealogist.

I investigated the process. One has to develop a portfolio showing the research process for a particular genealogy problem (someone else's family, not mine). The portfolio has to include all sources, research logs, written analyses, and sound conclusions based on verified proof. All steps in the process must meet with the guidelines in the standards handbook. The portfolio is examined by a panel of judges, and either it passes or it doesn't. And all of this costs money! There are application fees and submission fees and re-submission fees if it doesn't pass the first time.

Right now, it strikes me as too much work! The process is not unlike the process to become a board certified teacher. That was a year-long project, equivalent to getting a masters degree. So much time, effort, and money. I am just not sure that's the direction I want my retirement to take. If I could work on a problem in my own family tree, it might be worth it.

If I ever decide to become a professional genealogist, I will revisit it, but in the meantime, I will continue to refine my skills on my own family tree.

Day trip to Gloucester and New Kent County

Warner Hall and St. Peters Church were the #1 destinations on my ancestry bucket list. My friend Laura also wanted to visit Gloucester and discover the places where her ancestors lived and were buried. So we decided to combine our visits and take a day trip together. It was a great day! The weather was beautiful, and though we only had time to hit the highlights of such a broad tour in one day, we accomplished a lot toward our research.

Laura's ancestors go deep into Virginia history. Her father's family, the Seawells, are a well-known name in Gloucester.  We found Seawell's Ordinary (or Seawell's Publick House), Seawell Ave, and the town of Ordinary. Her ancestors certainly mingled socially with my ancestors, the Warners, of nearby Warner Hall.  George Washington stopped by Seawell's Ordinary when he visited his grandparents at Warner Hall.

Seawells Ordinary - it is said that
Geo. Washington and Lafayette planned
their attack on Cornwall here in the tavern room.

Next stop was Abingdon Church Cemetery, where we met a delightful lady who helped us with tips and directions. This lady was talking with a tall, skinny fellow named Jimmy (who looked just like my friend Jimmy Harris) who told us proudly that he was a two-time pancreas cancer survivor. Such characters added so much color to our travels!

Laura's direct ancestors were buried in the beautiful and very old Abingdon Church Cemetery.

Abingdon Church

A singe butterfly appeared to guide us
everywhere we went.

I had also read that some of Laura's ancestors were buried at Ware Church Cemetery just down the road. The church was beautiful and old, just like Abingdon Church, but the Cemetery was much larger. We split up and walked around the cemetery looking at names until we lost sight of each other. I finally got in the car and drove around looking at names on gravestones from the car window. After about 45 minutes or so, we were about to give up. We decided to go into the rectory to ask for assistance. The young assistant rector was at work at his desk, but he stopped what he was doing to help us. He copy/pasted a list of the Seawells, and then add a map of the churchyard showing where they were buried. Then he joined us in our search!

At Ware Church Cemetery

Off to Warner Hall... miles of country road into the middle of nowhere. We finally came upon the white rail fence and entrance gate. It was just breathtaking and so grand! No one else in sight.

Entering the drive up to Warner Hall.

The Inn at Warner Hall.

A girl at the desk said that we could look around wherever we wanted. We explored some of the rooms inside the house, and then went out through the sunroom to the graveyard. There in this quiet, peaceful place were the graves of George Washington's grandparents and my ancestors - Augustine and Mildred Reade Warner, and John and Elizabeth Warner Lewis.

Standing at the foot of Augustine Warner's grave. He is George Washington's grandfather,
and also the ancestor of Queen Elizabeth of England. She calls Warner Hall her American home.

Next stop St. Peter's Church in New Kent County.  I was hoping to find graves of my Allen and Lewis ancestors, but had made no appointment for an official tour. At the very least, I wanted to see the church in a new light, since finding out that my ancestors are on the church registry there.  We did not find Allen or Lewis graves, but did find a memorial to the Bacon and Lydal families who were later connected with the Allens.

I am standing in front of St. Peters Church, New Kent County

"This stone witnesseth to the lives of good upright people identified with St. Peter's Parish for more than 125 years from its foundation in 1684. Col. George Lydal died 1705, Capt. Edmund Bacon and his wife Ann Lydal, John Bacon and his wife Susanna Parke, Samuel Bugg and his wife Sarah Bacon, Sherwood Bugg born July 8, 1720."

St. Peters Church is still an active place of worship; however, the feeling of history is rich. It is said that George and Martha Washington were married here.

St Peters was used as a camp during the Civil War.

We ended our journey by visiting with actual LIVING relatives! My Old Church cousins were mostly all home, along with dogs and horse and goat.

Cousin Barry and Bully

Interconnected

So excited to find yet another way that our family lines have criss-crossed... Uncle Herman's brother Basil Lukhard married Edith Powell whose father Harry was my Nannie Zaun's brother!


My paternal grandmother is Jacqueline Abbott

Jacqueline Abbott m. Ernest Earl Zaun

Ernest was the son of Georgia Powell

Georgia Powell had a brother Harry Powell

Jacqueline Abbott's sister was Miriam Abbott

Miriam Abbott m. Herman L. Lukhard

Herman had a brother named Basil

Basil Lukhard m. Edith Powell

Edith was the daughter of Harry Powell


I discovered this while on the phone with Teeny (Herman Lukhard's daughter)... there are so many more stories to glean from living members of the family! There will be a memorial table at the big family reunion in October and a family tree will be displayed.

UFO (Unidentified Family Origin)

Part of the lure of genealogy is getting caught up in the detective work, piecing together clues to create a story. I am greedy for information, old pictures, whatever I can get my hands on!

Last weekend I came across many old photos at Teeny's and took pictures of them with my phone. Some folks we were able to identify; but there were others, even whole families, that stumped us. Here are some of the mystery portraits:

This is an aunt Mollie (?) that Teeny used to believe was her claim to Native American blood.
It turned out that this relative never had children.

These are Lukhard great grandparents... I'm sure I have them on my tree, but don't know exactly which ancestors they are. Possibly Thomas and Mary Louise Bagby.

Unknown family

Very cool family but a total mystery.

I would have removed the cellophane but this portrait would have turned to dust.
No idea who this is, but believed to be a Lukhard.

I have no idea who looks at this blog but if by chance someone sees this who can help, please comment!

Aaron Burr, 1756-1836

The story goes that the Austin's are descendants of the family of Aaron Burr. I decided to try to confirm that today.

Michael David Austin's great grandmother was Lillian Burr. I have followed her direct line back to 1625 in Fairfield, Connecticut, to a man named Jehu Burr, with details as follow:

• Jehu is Michael David Austin's 8X great grandfather.
• Jehu was the father of Daniel Burr (Mike's 7X great grandfather). 
• Daniel was the father of Rev. Aaron Burr, whose son Aaron is the infamous man who killed Alexander Hamilton.

That makes Mike a 1st cousin 7X removed from Aaron Burr.

On the Austin Side: Samuel Williamson, Confederate (Mahone's Brigade)

Michael David Austin's 2x great grandfather (Grace Drumwright Austin's maternal grandfather)

The following copied from Findagrave.com:

Samuel Williamson Samuel Williamson, a well known and very highly esteemed citizen, passed away this morning at 4:15 o'clock at his home on Windsor Avenue, after several weeks of severe illness, in his 78th year. He had resided in Norfolk 30 years. Mr. Williamson was a Confederate veteran. In the war between the states he enlisted in Company F, 41st Virginia infantry, Mahone's brigade. He participated in a number of engagements,[...]and in an action at Burgess Mill on October 28, 1864, he was taken prisoner and carried to Point Lookout, where he was held until the Confederate forces surrendered in 1865, at Appomattox Courthouse. In 1868 Mr. Williamson was married to Miss Martha Wright[...]. Mr. Williamson has for a number of years been an active member of the Park Avenue Baptist Church[...]. —The Norfolk Ledger-Dispatch, (Thurs.) Oct. 16, 1919 _____________________________________________________ SAMUEL WILLIAMSON DIES AT HOME HERE Native of Princess Anne Was Veteran With Gallant Record Samuel Williamson, one of Norfolk's most widely known citizens, died at his home, 715 Windsor Avenue, yesterday morning at 4:15 o'clock. He was 78 years of age. Mr. Williamson met with a severe accident several months ago, which greatly impaired his health. During his last illness he was confined to his room. Mr. Williamson was born in Princess Anne County, May 14, 1842. He served through the Civil War as a Confederate soldier, having enlisted in the Fourth Virginia infantry. He served in the following battles during that war: second battle of Manassas, Spottsylvania Court House, Cold Harbor, Fredericksburg, Wilderness, Petersburg, Hatcher's Run, Crater, Gettysburg. He was taken prisoner at Burgess Mill on October 28, 1864, and held until the Confederate army surrendered in 1865. He is survived by his wife, who before their marriage was Miss Martha Wright, of Princess Anne County; six children, S. B. Williamson, George Williamson, Mrs. Annie L. Shipp, Mrs. C. E. Drumwright, and Miss Florence Williamson, of Norfolk, and Mrs. D. L. Watson, of Washington, D.C.; a number of grandchildren and great-grandchildren; two brothers, John T. Williamson and H. J. Williamson, and one sister, Miss Mary E. Williamson, all of Norfolk. The funeral will take place this afternoon at 3:30 o'clock at the residence, 715 Windsor Avenue, Rev. J. T. Riddick officiating. Burial will be in Elmwood. —The Virginian-Pilot & Norfolk Landmark, (Fri.) Oct. 17, 1919 _____________________________________________________ Funeral of Mr. Williamson The funeral of Samuel Williamson took place this afternoon at his late residence, 715 Windsor Avenue, and was largely attended. The service was conducted by Rev. J. T. Riddick, of the Park Avenue Baptist Church. There were many floral offerings. The burial was in Elmwood, the pallbearers being: W. T. Owens and J. T. Hargraves, Confederate veterans, and W. L. Jackson, L. B. Acree, E. S. Philhower, N. C. Taylor. —The Norfolk Ledger-Dispatch, (Fri.) Oct. 17, 1919 _____________________________________________________ (Obits supplied by C. E. Bailey) Family links:  Spouse:   Martha Francis Wright Williamson (1845 - 1928)*  Children:   Annie L Shipp (1870 - 1936)*   Mamie Susan Williamson Drumwright (1878 - 1951)*   Florence V Williamson (1881 - 1971)* *Calculated relationship

Burial: Elmwood Cemetery Norfolk Norfolk City Virginia, USA Plot: Section ELM EXT, Block 22, Lot 1, Space 1W

Created by: C. E. Bailey Record added: Sep 16, 2012 Find A Grave Memorial# 97226812

Counting the Generations

Top ten math facts from my family tree:

1. My children were born just before 2000 (GenY/Millennials).
2. My grandparents were born around 1900 (the Greatest Generation). 
3. My 3X great-grandparents were born around 1800 (Westward Migration).
4. My 6X great-grandparents were born around 1700 (the Colonial period).
5. My 10X great grandparents were born around 1600 (the 1st generation to America).
6. I have 4 grandparents, 8 great-grandparents, etc., continue the math...
7. Only 3 of my great-grandparents were alive in my lifetime (all on paternal side).
8. Continuing the math... I have 4,096 10X great-grandparents! 
9. To date, I have discovered all 16 of my 3X great-grandparents, and only 34 (< 1%) of my 10X great-grandparents.
10. I have traced 5/16 of my 3X great-parents' ancestries back to at least 1600.

Generation Names:
My 2X great-grandparents fought in the Civil War.

My great-grandparents lived during the post-Civil War era and the Great Migration.

My grandparents experienced the Great Depression & WWII in adulthood.

My parents are the Silent Generation - they experienced WWII in childhood and the Civil Rights Movement as adults. They were patriotic traditionalists. They worked hard and kept quiet. Children should be seen and not heard. (study.com: The Silent Generation: Definition, Characteristics & Facts).

I am a Babyboomer/Hippie - the modern "counter-culture" generation. I experienced the end of the Cold War, space exploration, the rise of technology and mass media, and the beginning of the Information Age.

My children live in the age of  Digital Globalization and the War on Terror.  It is incredible how the world has changed so much in just a few generations.

Eley Bryant

The Bryants settled in Virginia in the 1600's.  Eley Bryant married Margaret Cobb whose family were also early settlers in southeastern Virginia. Bryant and Cobb are still common names in Southampton County.

Bio from Hardesty's Encyclopedia:

ELEY BRYANT—son of Jacob and Tempie (Owens) Bryant, was born in Southampton county, March 6, 1829. In this county, May 16, 1858, he married Margaret Cobb, and the birth and death record of their children is: Charlie F. born February 18, 1859; Jacob F. born Jane 8, 1860, died June 5, 1861; Mary E., born December 6, 1862; William T., March 29, 1867; Addie and Ida K.[sic], March 2, 1868; Gattie J., June 14, 1870; Maggie, born October 21, 1880, died in October, 1881. William and Evie (Wallace) Cobb are the parents of the wife of Mr. Bryant, and she was born in Southampton county. In 1861 Mr. Bryant enlisted in Company H, 41st Virginia Infantry, and he was made prisoner in 1864, and sent to Point Lookout, where he was held till after the close of the war, when he was paroled. He is engaged in farming, and his post office address is Delawares, Southampton county, Virginia.

Hardesty's Historical and Geographical Encyclopedia, Special Virginia Edition, Southampton County Personal Histories, 1885, from the collection of the Suffolk Public Library System, Suffolk, Va.

According to the Bryant family Bible, Eley and Margaret were married on May 19, 1858. This photo was taken before Eley died in 1895 in Princess Anne County.

The photo above from this family Bible belongs to the Weismantel family in New Jersey.

Southampton County

The Bryants were illiterate farmers, owning land on the east side of the Nottoway River, according to the 1860 U. S. Census. They had nine children, three of whom died as infants:

• Charles F. Bryant, 1859-
• Jacob Fenton Bryant, 1860-61
• Mary Eliza Bryant, 1862-
• William Thomas Bryant, 1867-1932
• Ida Rene Bryant, 1868-1933
• Ariadne Bryant, 1868-1948
• Gattie Jane Bryant, 1870-
• Margaret Bryant, 1880-81
• Fenton Bryant, 1886-87

[Notes on Eley's children: Siblings William and Ida married half-siblings, Bonnie and George Abbott, who were from Fort Lee, NJ, where Charles worked as a piano dealer (the Abbott family built pianos - coincidence?). Eley and Margaret later moved to Princess Anne County. Their farm was near Addie and Blucher Fletchers' in the Blackwater area. William and Bonnie were married in 1900 and lived in Blackwater with Margaret until 1900, then moved back to NJ. Ida's husband (?) Williams was probably from Princess Anne County. Ida and George Abbott were married and made their home in Richmond.

Civil War POW

Eley enlisted in the Confederate Army on March 15, 1862, and joined Virginia Regiment 41, Company H. He was captured on October 31, 1864 near Petersburg and imprisoned at Point Lookout, Maryland, the largest Union POW camp (now a state park). He was exchanged on March 28, 1865.

[Note: Eley's daughter "Addie" was married in 1889 to Blucher Fletcher from Camden County, NC, who had also been a Civil War POW. Addie's twin, Ida Rene, the widow of a man named Williams, married William Butler (another POW) in Princess Anne County in 1895. Both Blucher and William Butler were considerably older than Addie and Ida. Sources explain that marrying older men was common at that time due to the shortage of young men after the war.]

Point Lookout, Maryland 
www.somdhorsetrails.smadc.com

Confederate POWs at Point Lookout
www.wadehamptoncamp.org

Eley's signature on a military record

Princess Anne County

Eley was a plantation owner in Franklin until 1886.  He and Margaret then moved to "Land of Promise Plantation" in Blackwater (now part of Virginia Beach) which they purchased in 1888. There Eley grew cotton, tobacco, and peanuts. He died in 1895. Margaret is listed as a widow and "Head of Household" in the 1900 U. S. Census, Pungo District, Princess Anne County.

Three questions:

1) Where exactly is "Land of Promise Plantation?" [FOUND! present day property: southeast corner of Head of River Rd. and Blackwater Rd.]

2) Why did Eley decide to leave his farm in Franklin? [deed stolen? depleted soil? land grant?]

3) What is the identity of Ida's [3rd?] husband, last name Williams?

Eley Bryant > Ida Rene Abbott > Jacqueline Abbott Zaun > John Beverly Zaun > me.