Riches in Discovery! Nina and Albert Hall

In my research on my great grandmother Ada C. [Hall] Crofford, I have often wondered where her siblings, Nina and Albert, were as they were not listed with the family on the 1870 U. S. Census.  Nina and Albert would be my grandfather's aunt and uncle. Both were born in Michigan. Ada had an older brother Benjamin F., born in 1855 in Oswego,NY (New York State Census), but I am assuming he died in childhood.

Today, I hit upon a gold mine of sources about the lives of both Nina and Albert. I am still wading through all of the information, but couldn't wait to tell about this exciting break through! Both siblings were born around the time of the Civil War, between 1859 and 1862. Nina was born in 1859, according to census documents. Albert was probably conceived before his father joined the army in September 1861. The family endured extreme hardship during Andrew's year-long absence in 1861-1862, nearly starving to death and wearing nothing but rags. It is hard to imagine how Miriam Olivia held her family together with two infants to care for during that time.

Brief summary of what I already knew:  In 1860, the Halls were living in Marquette, Michigan. At the 1870 Census, the Halls lived in Delton, Michigan, where Andrew worked at the Furnace (an ore refinery). By 1871, they were among the first settlers in Fargo, ND. (Ada wrote about this time in Fargo, but never mentioned her younger siblings). They moved south to Fort Lincoln for a year in 1876, and went from there by wagon train to South Dakota. They are all listed together on the 1880 Census in Bear Butte, South Dakota.

New Information! and Pictures!

Nina Caroline Hall was born around 1859 in Marquette, Michigan. At the 1860 Census, she was 6 months old. [She is not listed with the family in the 1870 Census]. In 1880, she was 21 years old and living with her family in Bear Butte, SD. Nina married William Nathan Curington in 1892 at age 30. They had four children: Albert, Ruth, Stanley, and Eva. She was "widowed" by 1930, and went to live with her daughter Ruth in Florida where she died sometime after 1940. The information about her marriage gets fuzzy after 1915; William N. Curington, her husband, may not have died until 1948, also claiming to be widowed. It may take me a while to straighten out this conflicting information.  

Albert, called "Ed," married an Indian girl from the Cheyenne (Sioux) tribe named Mary Amiotte in 1897. After they married, they lived with her family on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. They had five children: Walter, Steven, William, Alice, and Alfred. Albert died in 1942, and was buried on the reservation.

Walter, Mary, Steven, Ed, William (front), and Alice

Robert Scott Allen, 1797-1864

My great great grandfather, Robert Scott Allen, is the genealogical end of the trail in tracing back the Allen family. He was born in Virginia, and it appears that he died in Illinois during the Civil War. His life is a perfect picture of the pioneer spirit in America.

According to several sources, Robert Allen's father was John Allen, or possibly John Watson Allen, and his mother was Rebekkah "Becky" Scott, both from Virginia. In this reconstruction of his life, I hope to clarify my thinking and develop better questions for further research.

To find out what I learned about Robert Allen's father John Allen, please CLICK HERE.

Augustus D. Allen, son of Robert S. Allen and father of my grandmother, Teresa Allen
Augustus was born in Illinois in 1859, the youngest of nine children. His parents were Robert S. Allen of Virginia and Elizabeth Heylands of Ohio. Robert and Elizabeth Allen lived in Kentucky for many years before moving to Hancock, Illinois where Augustus was born. Summary of evidence of parentage:

• 1860 U. S. Census, Hancock, Illinois - parents Robert S., b. Va, and Elizabeth Allen, b. Ohio.
• 1870 U. S. Census, Hancock, Illinois - mother, Elizabeth Allen, 54, b. Ohio living with John W. Allen
• 1883 Illinois Marriage License - parents, Robert S. Allen (deceased) and Elis [sic] House.
• 1900 U. S. Census, Wichita, Kansas - parents both born in Kentucky* 
• 1910 U. S. Census, Wichita, Kansas - parents both born in Kentucky* 
• 1910 History of Wichita and Sedgwick County, Kansas - born in 1865 in Hancock, Illinois; "parents died when he was small."**

*The misinformation about Kentucky is understandable. Robert and Elizabeth were married in Kentucky and had their first seven children there. Augustus may not have known their actual birthplace. Ironically, his brother Harrison tells the census taker that both parents were born in Virginia.
** Augustus married a younger woman after he divorced my great grandmother Eva - possibly lied about his age? It is not true that both of his parents died - there is evidence that his mother Elizabeth was alive until 1895, but no indication that he ever saw her again after he moved to Wichita. 

Robert Scott Allen
Robert Scott Allen was born in 1797 in Lunenburg, County, Virginia. He moved to Kentucky, along with many others from Southside Virginia. He married Elizabeth Heylands (Highlands, Hilen) in 1834. Elizabeth was from Hamilton County, Ohio which is just across the river from Robert's home in Covington, Kentucky. Timeline and summary of sources:

• 1797 - Thomas/Steinhauser & Associated Family Genealogy (unverified source***) - Robert Scott Allen, born May 28, 1797 in Lunenburg, County, Virginia. Father: John Watson Allen; mother: Rebecca Scott, born November 25, 1795.
• 1797 - Historical Encyclopedia of Illinois, Volume 2 - Robert Scott Allen, born May 28, 1797. His father was John Watson Allen
• 1797 - Findagrave.com - Robert S. Allen, father of Harrison Perry Allen - born May 28, 1797 in Lunenburg County, Va. 
• 1812 - Historical Encyclopedia of Illinois, Volume 2 - Robert Scott Allen served in the war as a young boy (again, family lore).
• 1833 - Thomas/Steinhauser & Associated Family Genealogy (unverified source***) - Robert Scott Allen married Elizabeth Hilen, born 1815 (?) in PA (?) on Aug. 2, 1833 (?).    
• 1834 Hamilton County Marriage Records - Robert S. Allen and Elizabeth Heylands were married in Hamilton, Ohio by a Justice of the Peace on August 2, 1834 (ages not given, but Robert should have been about 37 and Elizabeth, about 26 - 29 years old).  
• 1850 U. S. Census, Kenton, Covington Ward, Kentucky - Robert S. Allen, 54, carpenter, born in Virginia; Elizabeth, 37, born in Ohio, Mardissa, 15, John/James (twins), 13, Sarah, 10, Rebecca, 8, Jacob (6).
• 1855 Illinois State Census, 1825-1865 Walker, Hancock County, Illinois - Robert S. Allen; one male under age ten (Augustus), three males under age 20 (John, James, Jacob), one male age 60-70 (Robert); two females age 10-20 (Sarah, Rebecca) , one female age 20-40 (Mardicia). Total in household=8; 2 in the militia. (Where was Elizabeth? She should have been about 42.)
• 1860 U. S. Census, Walker Township, Hancock County, Illinois - Robert S. Allen, 64, farmer, born in Virginia; Elizabeth, 45 (She should be 47. Is this a different Elizabeth?), born in Ohio, James/John, 23, born in KY, Sarah, 20, born in KY, Jacob, 16, born in KY, Harrison P., 8, born in Illinois, Augustus, 1, born in Illinois.
• 1864 Thomas/Steinhauser & Associated Family Genealogy (unverified source***) - Robert Scott Allen, died October 16, 1864 at Tioga, Hancock County, Illinois. Burial at Buckeye Schoolhouse, Tioga, Hancock County, Illinois.
• 1864 - Findagrave.com - died October 16 in Tioga, Hancock County, Illinois.
• 1864 - Illinois Infantry Roster - Robert Allen, enlisted in Springfield, d. 13 Sep 1864 in Memphis. (death date does not match other records which gives death date as 16 Oct 1864 - not positive this is our Robert S. Allen).
• 1864 U. S., Civil War Pension Index: General Index to Pension Files, 1861-1934 - Nov. 17, 1864 - Elizabeth J. (?) Allen, widow, Robert S. Allen, P.114, Illinois Infantry.
• 1865 Illinois, State Census Collection, 1825-1865 - Elisabeth Allen - one person under 10 (Augustus); one person between 10 and 20 (Harrison); two between 20 and 30 (Jacob, Rebecca); one between 40 and 50 (Elizabeth).  (Robert presumed deceased)
• 1870 U. S. Census, Hancock County, Illinois - Elizabeth, age 54 (should be 57?), born in Ohio, living with John W. and younger brothers.
• 1895 - Findagrave.com - Elizabeth A. Highland Allen, mother of Harrison Perry Allen - born 1815 in Ohio, died 1895 in Illinois. (Confirmation of this birthdate would have made her 29 years old at her marriage date).
• 1918 - Missouri Death Certificate, Harrison Perry Crawford Allen (brother of Augustus) - parents: Robert S. Allen and Elizabeth Hilen.

***Thomas/Steinhauser & Associated Family Genealogy -  I attempted to contact the researcher Jim Thomas but got no response. His information is not to be considered reliable until I can learn of his sources.

Note: Walker Township had two villages:  Tioga and Breckenridge. Tioga was established in 1855 on the former Mormon site, Yelrome (Morley Town). 

CAUTION:
There is another man named "Robert S. Allen" in Montgomery County, Illinois, who also received a land grant for service in 1854 around the same time that our Allen family moved to Hancock County. This other Robert S. Allen left a will dated in the 1890's, proving that he is could not be our Robert Scott Allen (d. 1864). Here is the land grant information for this other Robert S. Allen:

• 1854 Illinois, Public Land Purchase Records, 1813-1909, v. 340, p. 151 - Robert S. Allen - Sep. 29, 1854 - 40 acres ($5.20 @ .13/acre), township 08N, range 04W, meridian 3  (Montgomery County). 

I cannot find any record of a land grant for Robert S. Allen in Hancock County. I have exhausted the online records and scoured every landowner map I could find from the 1850's. I found a David Allen who owned property in the northwestern part of Walker Township, but it is nowhere near Tioga where Robert S. Allen lived.

Teresa Allen - new info!

Found a couple of new sources of information on Ancestry this evening! They might seem to be inconsequential, but they changed an assumption that I had made about my grandmother, Teresa Allen. I thought she lived in Chicago before she met my grandfather. Turns out she lived in Waukegan...in fact, she lived on the very street where she later lived as a married woman and mother. 

The two sources were the 1922 and 1925 city directories for Waukegan. Teresa M. Allen lived on Sherman Avenue in 1922, and on Washington Street in 1925. 

These sources also confirmed what my mother told me, that her mother Teresa worked for a Dr. E. B. Jolley, and ear nose and throat doctor in Waukegan. In 1922 she was his "assistant." In 1925, the directory used the abbreviation "sten" meaning possibly stenographer.

So exciting to find new bits of information after such a long dry spell in my research.