Significant events in American history that touched our family

1620 Mayflower

We are descended from at least six of the original Mayflower passengers. Through the Abbott-Whitfield-Godfrey families, we are descended from Stephen Hopkins and his daughter Constance. Through the Allen-Bosworth families, we are descended from John Howland who married Elizabeth Tilley, and Elizabeth's parents, John and Joan Tilley. There may also be an ancestral connection to William Brewster, but I haven't been able to confirm.

1624-1664 New Amsterdam established, founded by the Dutch West India Company-family stories prove to be exaggerated.

Dutch settlers establish a colony, purchasing Manhattan from the Indigenous people and determining the layout and identity of the region. A wall was built across lower Manhattan under Dutch Governor Stuyvesant, the last of the Dutch Governors before New Amsterdam was taken over by the British. Family lore says that the original Wandell settlers had a farm on the site of what is now Wall Street and helped to build the wall, but the dates are difficult to reconcile. Johannes Wandell didn't arrive in New York until the 1700s. Another family story boasts that when the pilgrims set foot on Plymouth Rock, the Stillwells were there to sell them hot dogs! (a reference to them settling in Gravesend which became Coney Island). This is impossible as Nicholas Stilwell wasn't even there until 1645, 25 years after the pilgrims came.

1628 Augustine Warner arrives in Virginia, brought by Adam Thoroughgood. 

Augustine and his wife Mary Townley were the grandparents of George Washington. They are also ancestors of Queen Elizabeth II, Meriwether Lewis, Robert E. Lee, and George Patton. Augustine was a prominent planter and politician. His grave is at Warner Hall in Gloucester, Virginia. Queen Elizabeth visited the home of her "American Cousins" when she came to America. We are direct descendants of him through his son Augustine II and Mildred Reade (whose father was Governor of Virginia) and their daughter Elizabeth, who married John Lewis. John and Elizabeth's son Colonel Charles Lilburn Lewis sold Chemokins plantation in Hanover County and moved to Goochland. Their offspring were connected to the Randolph and Jefferson families of Virginia. This is not a genealogical link, but a cool coincidence:  Herman Lukhard who married my great aunt Miriam Abbott worked at Chemokins as a teenager - 300 years later!

1636 Providence, Rhode Island founded by Roger Williams

Roger Williams came to America with his new wife Mary Barnard from London, England in 1631. The young clergyman was welcomed to the new colony in Boston by Governor Winthrop. He would not join the congregation at Boston because of their support of the Church of England. As a Separatist he joined the pilgrims at Plymouth. There he befriended the natives and wrote a book about their language. During heated controversary about the King giving away native lands, he fled in exile to the Narragansett country of what later became Rhode Island. He founded the first Baptist Church in America. We have a double descendancy from Roger Williams through his son Daniel and his daughter Mary.

1644 Indian uprising in Virginia; Opecancanough captured.

Nicholas Stillwell fled to Holland from England due to religious persecution and became a soldier for Queen Elizabeth (Queen of Bohemia, The Winter Queen). He married the Queen's lady in waiting, Abigail Hopton in 1630. By 1635, he owned a house and plantation on the "east side of West Creek" (now Felgate's Creek) on the York River in Virginia on the site of the current U. S. Naval Weapons Station. He served in the military in Virginia and aided Governor Claiborne in MD in conflicts with natives. He was instrumental in the defeat of Powhatan Chief Opecancanough in 1644. 

1645 Gravesend charter, Dutch Colony founded by Lady Deborah Moody

Nicholas Stillwell abandoned his plantation and moved to NY closer to the Dutch settlers. He obtained acreage in the Dutch Colony of Gravesend, near the present-day location of Coney Island. 

1659-1663 First and Second Esopas Wars - Indians vs Dutch, New Amsterdam

Nicholas Stillwell, an experienced Indian fighter, served as lieutenant and commander of the expedition again Indians for Governor Stuyvesant. 

1720 Hanover County established, breaking away from New Kent

Robert Allen was the last of the Allens to be born in Hanover before the family began to migrate from to Mecklenburg and Lunenburg Counties in Southside Virginia and to North Carolina. His wife was Elizabeth Young Stokes. Both died in Grandville, NC.

1737 Wall Street developing as a center of trade and commerce.

Johannes Wandell arrived from Holland in 1737. The Wandell family was instrumental in establishing and building New Amsterdam. They became wealthy and well-connected through their shipping business on the Hudson River. Our surnames Wandell, Haight, Stillwell, Hall, Allen, King, and Connable are among the notable names in early New York City. 

1772 Gaspee Affair, RI, Sons of Liberty

Capt. Samuel Godfrey met with the rest the Sons of Liberty at Joseph Sabin's tavern in Providence RI to plan a secret attack on the British ship, the Gaspee, at night. They successfully carried out the attack and set the ship afire. Note: this predated the 1773 Boston Tea Party.

1776 Revolutionary War

1777-78 Continental Army at Valley Forge

Johannes Wandell served as quartermaster under George Washington. According to family lore, he supplied a wagon load of shoes for the soldiers at Valley Forge from his plantation in NY, made by his slaves, from leather that he supplied. Washington personally signed his army discharge papers which are currently held in storage at Washington Headquarters museum in Newburgh NY.

1779 Loyalist Frederick Philipse III arrested for treason and vast land holdings seized. 

Our ancestor, William Haight, was one of many sharecroppers on the estate of Frederick Philipse. When Philipse was exiled back to England, William was able to purchase some of the land. This land is now part of Philipsburg, near Ossining NY. William's hospitality is mentioned in the journal of Deborah Sampson, who disguised herself as a man to fight in the Revolutionary War. 

1781 Jack Jouett’s ride; Jefferson warned. 

1780-1820 Post-War movement west (land)

Charles Wesley Wandell wrote a letter to his sister, Miriam Olivia Hall that he was glad to hear she was coming out west by railroad and covered wagon. 

1803 Louisiana Purchase

1804-1806 Lewis and Clark expedition

1813 War of 1812

1830 Book of Mormon published

1850 American Bible Union is established, breaking away from the American Bible Society and developing a new translation of the Bible. 

1862 Homestead Act

1861-1865 Civil War

1871 Railroad tracks across the Red River; Fargo

1874 Custer’s Expedition to the Black Hills; Gold discovered

1874 Grasshopper/Locust plague

1876 Battle of Little Bighorn

1877 U. S. violates the 1868 Fort Laramie agreement, seizing Lakota and Dakota lands

1883 Railroad connects Danville to Franklin to Norfolk

1885 Iowa State fair, Des Moines.

1888 Railroad extended to Jerusalem from Petersburg

1889 Ghost Dances

1890 Wounded Knee

1896-1916 Sisters Of Mercy establish hospital and nurses training school in Paris, Texas

1899 Railroad extended from Norfolk to Munden Point

1900 Land Rush in Kansas; TB outbreak in Wichita

1908 Old Fort Supply in Woodward, Oklahoma opens as a mental hospital

1912 Saint Joseph orphanage burns down in Wichita Kansas

1916 fire in Paris Texas; Saint Joseph Hospital is spared

1929 Stock Market Crash; Great Depression

1939-45 WWII

FINALLY FOUND THEM! …NOT.

I have just had the most astounding revelation…a major AHA! moment, right here in my bed in the wee hours of the morning! I’ve suddenly, unexpectedly discovered something that has solved one of the most intriguing mysteries of all my years of ancestry research. 

My insomniac self was just now scrolling through some previous posts on my “Teresa’s Family Tree” page on Facebook. I came across this MAP showing the Bryant family farm on Blackwater Road in Virginia Beach. In that particular post I had casually noted my curiosity about the number “11” at the corner of the Bryant property on Blackwater Road. I had even circled it in RED! Oh, Lordy. ELEVEN?!!! REALLY?!! Silly, silly me. Ridiculous, stupid, blind, silly me. What if that is NOT the number “11,” but is actually the markings for the long-sought, elusive GRAVE SITES for my great-great grandparents, the Bryant’s?!! 

Eureka! Bingo! Ding, ding, ding! I’ve been searching for so long and THERE IT WAS RIGHT IN FRONT OF MY FACE. I’ve had this map for years. YEARS! This is BIG news! HUGE! What an exciting discovery! How could I have missed that? Eley and Margaret have finally been FOUND! 

So… what now? Do I notify someone?

DISAPPOINTING UPDATE: And… disappointing to find out that I was wrong. It is the number 11 after all and not the grave markings. However, this has led to a potential resource for finally resolving this question. The Virginia Department of Historic Resources. Their mission is to preserve and protect landmarks and historic spots such as cemeteries and family burial grounds.

Family Artifacts - who will take them when I die?

I have a collection of documents and other artifacts from our family dating back in history to at the least the 1800s. Carpentry and lumberyard tools, Masonic pins, watches, jewelry, books, Homestead papers, and many other vintage items need to be identified and assessed, and most importantly decisions made as to who will take responsibility for them when I am gone. I've thought of creating a photobook of them all, which would be a fairly easy project. But who will take the actual artifacts themselves?

Then there is the awareness that my sister has an equal amount of such memorabilia in her possession. 

I'm getting close to corralling everything. I hope to catalog it all somehow and then educate my sons about the entire collection. Maybe attach a letter of instruction. If my sons don't wish to inherit the items, perhaps my niece and nephews would be interested.

As obsessive as my mother was, there is information she missed sharing with us about some things. She left us a whole bin of random memorabilia with an attached note that said, KEEP FOREVER. It was sad to go through the items in that bin and have no idea what they meant to her. 

This and That: random discoveries that I have yet to process.

 In no particular order:

New information! There was a Catholic orphanage in Wichita, established in the 1880s that burned down in 1912. It was possibly established to handle the number of orphans created by the tuberculosis pandemic.This is likely where my orphan grandmother was raised rather than an orphanage in Paris, Texas, as I have believed up to now. Evidence proves that she did go to boarding school and nurses training in Paris, Texas, but probably as a young adult, not as a child.

A birth announcement in a Kansas newspaper tells of a baby girl born to Mr. and Mrs. A.D. Allen of Wichita in 1911. Did my grandmother have a half sister that she never knew about? Note to self: there was another A. D. Allen in Wichita at that time who owned a shoe store.

Discovered a volume of the complete works of Shakespeare published in 1852 that traveled with my pioneer ancestors to the west in a covered wagon, according to family lore. An inscription says, “H. Wandell, Chicago, 1856.” I have not been able to identify H. Wandell. 

I ordered a large family photo of the Powell family of Henrico. Efforts to match ages and dates have not been entirely successful. Two persons, an old man, and a young man that could be my father’s twin, cannot be identified. My best guess is that they are a brother and nephew of my great great grandfather Jefferson Monroe Powell. Another family photo of a picnic at Afton Mountain has several people that cannot be identified. One older woman, sitting in the middle of the family group could possibly be Jefferson Powell‘s mother, Mary Ellen Stevens Powell. It will take some work to find proof.

Mary Ellen Stevens was married to George James Powell, a POW from the Civil War. His gravestone shows the name George Littleton Powell. Where did the Littleton name come from? Who are George’s parents? 

Burning questions:

The Bryant family used the name Fenton multiple times. Fenton is a common name in other southside Virginia families. Where did that name come from?

Of course, there’s the question of Eley and Margaret Bryant’s graves The graves were still being maintained according to a letter from Charlie Bryant to Bluke Fletcher in 1926, but the property in Blackwater was no longer owned by the family.

Elizabeth Judd… When did she die and where is she buried? Was she the acclaimed doctor from family lore? See her daughter Marie Louise Powell’s obituary.

Joining a genealogy group

A post showed up on my Facebook feed a few weeks ago promoting a genealogy event in my area hosted by a local genealogy group that I didn't even know existed. They appear to be a very organized and enthusiastic group. I attended the event online and it was so helpful. It was about how to organize and preserve ancestry records and materials for posterity. It was exactly the boost I needed to move forward with my research, as I had become paralyzed by the enormous amount of material I've gathered in my years of research.

I sent in my dues and registration and received so much information about resources available through the group. I'm excited to begin exploring. They requested a brief bio of me as a new member, and a description of my research goals for their quarterly newsletter. This may be a way to get further help with finally locating the graves of my great great grandparents.

So here goes:

Thank you for welcoming me to your group and for introducing me to so many new local ancestry resources. I'm excited to meet everyone, and hopeful that this will give me the boost I need to move forward in my research. I have questions springing from my local research that I'm hoping to resolve. If you enjoy solving mysteries, please read my story!

I grew up in the Kempsville area of Virginia Beach and have lived locally all of my life. My parents and grandparents lived in the area as well as many 1st cousins on both sides of my family. I was interested in our family tree when I was as young as twelve years old, and I created a beautiful family tree poster which I still have. My mother was a member of DAR and wrote many letters back and forth to distant cousins in her lifetime, but it wasn't until around 2012 - after my four sons were grown and on their own - that I started working on my own research. 

Prior to my research, I didn't think we had deep roots in Tidewater Virginia. We were aware of distant cousins here in Virginia Beach, but we were told that a long ago "rift" caused an estrangement in the family that affected subsequent generations. My father knew about The Rift, as we called it, but didn't know what caused it; neither did my grandmother. Extended family in Richmond also knew about it. As a child, I always wondered why we would travel to Richmond to visit family but never visited relatives in our own hometown. My sister and I, as adults, ultimately developed a close relationship with these hometown cousins. They were as mystified about The Rift as we were.

I finally had a breakthrough about three years ago. Since 2012, I have been writing a blog about my research journey (www.descenddance.blogspot.com). Through my blog, I connected with a distant cousin in New Jersey, Matt, who happened to be doing his professional genealogy certification project on our mutual g-g-grandmother, Margaret Bryant. He was using my blog as a resource for his project. We met in person in 2022 and began working together on our research. 

My newfound cousin Matt came across a thick file in the Library of Virginia's archives containing documents about a lawsuit brought against Margaret by her own daughter, Addie. He also found newspaper articles about Margaret's death from "apoplexy" (stroke) in 1908 which occurred on a train trip from Richmond to Norfolk, as the 70-year-old widow was on her way to Norfolk to respond to the lawsuit. It is reasonable to conclude that her stroke was indirectly caused by the court case. This would certainly be a plausible explanation for the major rift in the family between Addie and her three living siblings! Mystery solved! My formerly estranged Virginia Beach cousins are descended from Addie; I am descended from Addie's twin sister, Ida.

Of course, answers only lead to more questions. My great-great grandparents, Eley and Margaret Bryant, were from families who had lived in Southampton County since colonial times. For economic reasons, they moved to Princess Anne County around 1885 to what they called "Land of Promise Plantation" (not associated with the present farm by that name). A visit to the courthouse in Virginia Beach helped us to identify the location of this property - 40 acres at the intersection of Blackwater and Head of River Roads. Shortly afterward, their daughter Addie and her husband purchased land on both sides of Pungo Ferry Road where it intersected with Blackwater.  

When Eley unexpectedly died in 1895, Margaret did not report his death. If she had, she would have been legally required to sell the farm and divide the proceeds with her children. Instead, she moved to Richmond to live with her daughter Ida (Addie's twin) and continued to take in rent from the farm and income from the sale of lumber from the property. In 1908, Addie sued her mother Margaret for her rightful portion of her father's inheritance; after Margaret's death in 1908, the farm was sold. Addie received her share, 1/4 of $117.31. 

My first quest: The newspaper articles mention that Margaret's body was sent for burial to "Hickory Ground," a train station at the Norfolk County end of Head of River Road. My burning question is, where are Eley and Margaret buried? A 1926 letter from her son Charles indicates that their graves are together and were being cared for by family. Since Margaret buried Eley secretly, I am assuming they were both buried on the farm at Blackwater and Head of River Roads. However, I knocked on the door of the current owner of the property, and she stated that she had walked every inch of that land and there are no graves. I am thinking they have to be there somewhere under the soybeans. My next move will be to go to the courthouse to find the 1909 deed of sale and see if there are graves marked on the plat. 

My second quest: I discovered that my great grandmother, Ida Rene Bryant (Addie's twin) was married at least five times (big surprise, we only knew of two). On her marriage record to William Butler in 1895, she is named as "Ida Rena Williams, widow." I have been trying to find out the identity of her deceased husband by the last name Williams. This is important because Ida's son Earl Butler was born in 1892, but she didn't marry William Butler until 1895. Who was Earl's biological father, Williams or Butler?  The Bryant farm in Blackwater was close to the Williams family... was someone in that family married to Ida? I have not been able to find any record of that marriage or death. 

This is just one branch of my family tree, but it is the only branch with history in Virginia Beach. I hope someone reading this will have a brilliant idea for where to find the answers to my questions!

Putting it all together

My bucket list includes writing a book. In my mind, this could not be accomplished until my life was in order and stability achieved. Finally, in retirement, in my forever home, with all crises managed, I am able to start working on compiling our family stories into a book.

It's hard! Just determining the organization of information is a huge challenge. A chronological account is way too complex and daunting. Stand-alone stories seem disjointed and lack meaningful relationship connections. I've pondered this for a very long time - years in fact. And one day, it just came to me. I will organize all of our stories and information by categories, with interesting chapter titles and catchy opening lines. 

Here are the categories I've settled on so far. I will keep adding to this list as this concept congeals in my mind. It's a sorting game! I'll try to fit all of our best stories into the chapters where they fit best. It's amazing how my research seems to fit neatly into categories like this:

Cemeteries (final resting places): surprisingly, the source some of the most exciting revelations.

Immigrants: who were the first in our lines of descent to come to America?

Notables and other colorful characters: the well-known folks and standouts in our ancestry.

Emotional Moments: the research findings that brought tears and excitement over the past decade.

Slices of Time: capturing the big picture across all branches of our family tree at certain historically important times.

Family Connections to Virginia Beach History

My parents moved to Princess Anne County from Norfolk in 1959. In my early childhood, our address was Princess Anne County. Until 1963, the town of Virginia Beach existed only on a strip of land at the oceanfront - a quaint cottage village compared to today's bustling commercial tourist destination. When we went to the "beach" it was a pilgrimage from our home in "the county." We parked in the sand and ate picnic lunch from the trunk of our car. 

My father's parents resided in Norfolk, leaving their families and their home in Richmond during the Depression. My mother's parents had moved to Norfolk from "out west" in the 1940s. Though both sets of grandparents lived nearby, I always knew our family was not originally from the area. 

I was lucky to grow up in the "town" of Kempsville. As an early settler in one of the first suburban housing developments in Kempsville, there was a sense of belonging that still holds strong. Back then, there were still plenty of farms and undeveloped land all around us and miles of desolate country roads. We ate fresh produce from farm markets, much of which we picked ourselves. We had milk delivered from the nearby dairy farm. I share common memories with hundreds of neighbors and classmates who all stay connected to Kempsville in one way or another.

Dr. Fletcher was the only dentist in the area. His office in Kempsville was a small brick building behind the fire station in Kempsville. Dad said he was our cousin. Curious! I have written before about "the rift" between my great grandmother and her twin sister so I won't repeat, but I learned eventually about my distant relatives in Virginia Beach. It was surprising and satisfying to learn that my 2X great grandparents were once farmers in the Blackwater area of Virginia Beach. My dad never even knew about this connection. My grandmother never mentioned it.

I am completely invested in the history of Virginia Beach, having worked for the city all of my life. 

Then, I happened to marry into an old "county" family. I heard all the familiar names from the old Princess Anne County days... Waterfield, Flanagan, Whitehurst, Malbon, Mansfield, Henley, Cox, Kellam... these names are still active in Virginia Beach social and cultural life. In my quest to find the graves of my great great grandparents, I became immersed in the history of the area. I discovered that the old names from the county are intertwined with my own family. 

For years I've been drawn to the story of Grace Sherwood, the Witch of Pungo - Virginia Beach's cultural icon. She has become especially significant to me for several reasons:

• My uncle's parents lived at the very end of Witchduck Road at the presumed spot where Grace was ducked. For many years, our family celebrated Easter on the bank of the Lynnhaven River at that place. 
• Also, my father's parents lived in a house on Witchduck Road when I was 4 or 5 years old.
• Grace Sherwood's house and farm were on Muddy Creek Road in Pungo where my parents once considered purchasing land.
• As a teenager, I visited the home of Louisa Venable Kyle who wrote the children's book, The Witch of Pungo. 
• My ex-spouse's uncle drew the portrait on which the Grace Sherwood statue was based...the likeness was actually that of a family member. The statue stands at the corner of Witchduck Road and Independence Blvd. 

I just finished reading the newest, definitive work about The Witch of Pungo, by Scott Moore. So interesting to read about all the names and places that have been familiar to me all of my life. 

Miriam "Teeny" Lukhard Vaughan, 1933-2023

 I just updated her information in my Ancestry tree, closing out another story of a life well-lived.

My whole life has been anchored by my dad's cousins on the farm in Old Church (Mechanicsville, VA).  Aunt Teeny was my touchstone, my favorite relative. I have boxes of cards and letters that she sent through the years, and I'm sure she has the same from me. I visited her regularly, especially after my dad died. She was the connection that helped to keep his memory and his love for family alive. When her daughter Robin died two years after my dad, I became a connection for her to Robin. 

At age 7, I was delivered by my parents to the farm to stay for two weeks with Aunt Teeny and Uncle Kenneth and their three children in their tiny home next to the "Big House." The house had once been a slave cabin I was told. Robin, who was a year younger than me, was my 2nd cousin, my playmate and companion. We slept in a bunk bed in her room. After that first year, the Vaughan family lived in a darling cottage-type house that was built for Teeny on another part of the farm. (The old cabin was moved and Uncle Junior, Teeny's brother, lived there until he died, and it was sold out of the family.)

I remember having moments of homesickness that first year, but farm life was so magical to me. To this day I can recall the smells, the crunching of straw and tall grass underfoot, the bugs, the variety of animals, the close proximity of family, the plentiful and hearty food, and most of all, the freedom to roam and explore all day, virtually without (noticeable) supervision. We had the run of the property -  the Big House, the pastures, barns, chicken coops, sheds, fields, orchards, woods and ponds. Later, we would saddle up our rides (at first, the donkey for me, pony for Robin; then graduated to pony for me and horse for Robin; then horses for both of us). There were so many memorable adventures. Through all of this, my Aunt Teeny wrapped us up in a warmth that enfolded us like one of her colorful, soft, handmade quilts. She was as comfortable as an old pair of slippers.

As I got older, the visits were less often, but I made sure to take friends to the farm whenever I could during college. I knew that we would always be greeted with open arms, food, fun, and laughter. It was fuel for my soul. 

I could go to her whenever I needed unconditional love and affection. Hugs and expressions of love in our family were uninhibited and filled up my heart. Near the end of her days, I tried to give back the love she had so generously given me all my life. I took food and special photo albums that I made for her. 

Holly and I drove up to visit her three days before she passed. She was heavily sedated and incoherent, but she knew we were there. We held her hand and told stories and visited with each other. Occasionally she would try to say something, but we couldn't understand her. She asked a question: ".... exciting....?" Mostly she would dream and smile sweetly, perhaps seeing something that we could not imagine. Holly and Sharlyn worked together to change her out of her soiled nightgown; after they re-dressed her and situated her in the bed, Sharlyn said, "Nanny, we're all done!" Relieved after the struggle, Teeny responded clearly, "yay-y-y!" 

We will hear that echoing in our heads for the rest of our lives. "Yay-y-y!" 

Searching for Burial Site (Margaret and Eley Bryant)

Since we strongly suspected that Margaret and Eley were buried on the family farm in Princess Anne County, the next logical step in our search was to find the current owner of the Bryant farmland. We found her! She is a 90-year old woman who lives in a modest ranch home across Blackwater Road from the property. Her name is Doris (family name, Frost), and she was born in the original farmhouse which had been located across the street (our family's home?) where there is now a barn owned by another family. 

Here is how we found her:

Cousin Terry invited three of us, including my sister and a mutual friend, to meet her for breakfast on Monday, Sept. 25, 2023 at the Redhead Bay Cafe very near the location of the old Fletcher farm in Pungo. The mutual friend is a member of the Princess Anne Historical Society, and she had a particular interest in the history of lumber mills in the County. After breakfast Terry suggested we go for a ride and see the family properties that had taken so much effort to find three years ago. 

We first drove across the Pungo Ferry bridge toward Blackwater Road, pointing out the Fletcher property. Turning left on Blackwater, we saw the old Blackwater Store and the pond where the lumber mill must have been. Heading back in the other direction, I pointed out the 40+ acres that was once the Bryant farm, now all soybean fields. 

A man was out in his front yard across the road. His house and fields took up the triangle at the corner of Blackwater and Head of River Roads where Blackwater Road had once been straightened. We got out of the car and approached him. He wasn't friendly at first. He even challenged the story we told him. But then his wife (?) came out and she was more interested in helping us. They told us that "Doris" is the current owner of the property and lives right across Blackwater Road... and... look! She's home right now, waiting for a ride to go somewhere. Hurry and catch her! 

We drove immediately to Doris' house and got out of the car. The front door was open and Doris came right out. She soon warmed up to us and told us about being born in the old farmhouse there. She pointed directly across the road to where a barn now stands. Learning the location of the house was significant in that we realized the Bryant property had been divided sometime after 1908. We explained that we were searching for graves. She assured us that she has walked every inch of that property and there are no graves. We thanked her and told her that she had saved us a lot of trouble and satisfied our curiosity. 

I remember seeing the name "Frost" on an old map. Next step is to follow up on that lead. 

NEW DEVELOPMENTS:  Here we are more than a YEAR later! November 2024!

Matt discovered that Ancestry added the death registries for Virginia, and he found Portsmouth 1900-1908. There was Margaret, on May 18, 1908, age 73, dau. of Wm Cobb and Evelyn Wallace, burial permit #1401, Snelling & Knight Undertaker, place of burial Hickory Grove (Ground?). 

There is no cemetery by that name in Portsmouth, Chesapeake, or Va. Beach. The invoices from Margaret's death and burial indicate that her body was transported from Portsmouth to Blackwater for "services and burial." Blackwater in Virginia Beach is very close to the Hickory area of Chesapeake. There is currently a voting district in Chesapeake called Hickory Grove. It was all part of Norfolk County in that time period. The closest match on FindaGrave was Pleasant Grove cemetery in Hickory. 

On Wednesday, November 6, Holly, Clayton, and I set out for Hickory in Chesapeake. We stomped around several cemeteries looking at old grave markers. No luck. Clayton called Hickory UMC (formerly "Hickory Ground Methodist" we later learned) and spoke with a staff member there about the church history. No cemetery there.

Matt suggested that I try going through the individual cemetery records in Family Search or checking the collections in local libraries. I went through the probate record with a fine-toothed comb, and so did Holly. We didn't come up with anything helpful except that the body was taken to Blackwater by train. I researched the train system at the time and found that there were railways that ran close to Blackwater and Hickory.

On Halloween, the "Norfolk County Historical Society of Chesapeake, Virginia" posted a photo of a cemetery on Facebook. I made a comment on the post about looking for my ancestor, and on November 25, I received a reply from a volunteer with the organization offering assistance! After a few emails back and forth, now two more researchers are taking on the challenge. 

One of the researchers, Suzy, wanted to know the address of the Bryant farm. That was not an easy question! The farm's original property line had been changed due to the straightening of Blackwater Road. The original house was gone, and part of the property (where the house had stood) was sold out of the family. The best I could figure out is that the property's address became Head of River Road (3101?), as it was now cut off from Blackwater Rd. I sent her copies of the map with the property marked, and the current owner's house circled. I also sent her the property description from the probate documents. 

Suzy sent copies of Margaret's obituary (which I already have) and told me that according to the newspaper, she was buried in Blackwater. I then sent her the Portsmouth death register that indicated the cemetery, "Hickory [Grove?]". She then brought in another researcher to interpret the handwriting on the record, believing it to say "Ground," not Grove. I found a 1911 map showing the railways, and sure enough, one of the stations, the closest to Blackwater, was called Hickory Ground. 

Searching through South Norfolk/Chesapeake documents online revealed that Hickory Elementary was once called Hickory Ground Elementary, and that Hickory UMC (in front of the school) was called Hickory Ground Methodist Church. As I mentioned before, Clayton had already called the church and learned that there was no cemetery there. 

Suzy sent an email today (Dec. 2, 2024) saying that "Kay" had searched all of the deeds and found nothing. She suggested I call or go to Virginia Beach and search the deeds at the courthouse. There are no gravemarkers listed in Chesapeake for Margaret and Eley, according to a book that I can purchase for $20. She said that it was most likely that they are buried on their property. We may just have to accept that conclusion. I made a joking comment about their graves being covered by soybeans. She said that is often the case. Often farmers have no regard for graves on their property. They find many graves in soybean fields.

There is a corner of the Bryant farm property that is still forested. The owner says she has walked every square foot of the land, but could they be in that little wooded section? Or maybe they were buried near the house, in which case, it would be on property that belongs to the family that lives in the little triangle of land that got cut off by the road straightening.

Next steps: the deed room at VB courthouse. Try to find W. E. Charlton who performed the services at burial. Also, look up burial permit #1401 (per Portsmouth death register). 

My thoughts about W. E. Charlton... according to a receipt in Margaret's funeral papers, he was paid $7 for "services at burial." We have been thinking he was a clergyman of some sort who performed services. No person by that name came up in any records, including Ancestry. However, now that we have come to believe she was buried on the farm, we think he might have been a local laborer who dug the grave for them. Interesting sidenote: the receipt was written in elegant handwriting. 

Also, as Charles Bryant stated in a 1924 letter to Bluke, "I must find someone to take care of Mothers and Fathers graves." This strongly indicates a private cemetery. If Margaret and Eley were buried on the farm, it would make sense that the 1908 deed at the time of sale would show the location of the graves. The farm was sold to J. F. Cox on November 16, 1908. That deed of sale should show the house, and hopefully, the graves.

Could this be the very train that brought Margaret's body to Blackwater in 1908? 

Personal note: it was such a relief to identify Hickory Ground (instead of Hickory Grove), and to learn confirm that Margaret's body was taken to Blackwater in [what is now] Virginia Beach. There were some very puzzling coincidences that almost made me give up. There is a Blackwater River and a Hickory Grove Church in Isle of Wight County, both near the Bryant/Cobb ancestral home. And, to complicate things more, I searched in Glen Allen in Richmond, near Ida's home where Margaret had been living for several years. There is a Hickory Grove church there as well. It was hard to figure out which direction the family would have taken. At last, we have narrowed the search to the farm in Virginia Beach. 

Another personal note: on Charles Bryant's birth record, his mother Margaret is listed as "Peggy." 

Unrelated question: in transcribing Charles' 1924 letter to Bluke on Ancestry, I noticed that he mentions visiting Uncle Sam in Virginia. Who could that be? Answering one question always leads to ten more.

Update: Dec. 18, 2024 

On a Facebook page, "Abandoned Places in Virginia," a comment (from someone I know!) suggested contacting the City of Virginia Beach Historial Preservation person. I sent an email explaining my quest and am awaiting reply. 

Family Historian

"We are all what we've come from. Sometimes that's comfortable with other people and sometimes it's not."

~Miriam Vaughan, 2013

I think my life has been pretty cool so far. I've had my ups and downs but overall, it's been good. Some remarkable things stand out: 

As a young girl, I had wonderful summer experiences on my family's farm. I rode a horseback all over the countryside with my cousin; one memorable hot day, I rode right into the pond on a playful horse. My idea of big fun! I met entertainment celebrities because of my father's job. I was a contestant in a beauty pageant. I crewed on sailboats that won trophies in regattas. I traveled to Europe by myself. I've flown into the bottom of the Grand Canyon by helicopter. I climbed to the top floor of the Hancock Building in Chicago.

Professionally, I had a successful 25-year career as an elementary school librarian, receiving the top honor of Teacher of the Year and achieving National Board Certification. I created a college-level curriculum from scratch and taught a university class of 100 students while managing six Teacher Assistants. I wrote three articles that were published in professional magazines. I've become a professional artist in retirement, selling paintings in gift shops, instructing classes, and even having an art piece displayed in a museum exhibit.

Spiritually, I've taught adult Bible classes for more than thirty years. I've laid hands on a U.S. Congressman and prayed for him. I've performed solos and played guitar in a traveling singing group, and directed a church choir for several years. My faith is the wind beneath my wings. 

Personally, I raised four amazing boys, pouring myself into them and giving them every possible opportunity to find their place in the world. I have several true blue close friendships, some dating back to my youth, when most people are lucky to have one or two. I belong to several fun and stimulating social groups that keep my calendar full. I made some terrible mistakes and did some embarrassing things in my life, and I live with regrets, but manage to shake off the self-castigation most of the time. 

Financially, I've always lived frugally but have never wanted for anything.

Certainly many in this present day have better lives and greater adventures than I have. Many have faced greater adversities. I am not particularly adventurous or brave. My experiences in total represent a highly privileged and fairly trouble-free life. 

There is an awareness that has changed me - the awareness that the ridiculously easy life that I have is in shocking contrast to the lives and experiences of the generations before me. I have an easy life because of them. Their ambitions, sacrifices, bravery, and struggles built the foundation on which I rest my lazy, pampered bones.

When I began pursuing my family genealogy in earnest in 2012, I knew very little of my family's history beyond my grandparents. I had some vague memories of bits and pieces of family lore. I was lucky enough to have four living grandparents, and was born into a close-knit extended family. I even knew one set of great-grandparents and visited them regularly. 

Many in my family were storytellers. I often wish I had listened better! From them I learned that any personal experience can be fodder for a hilarious story, no matter how humiliating or upsetting it was for the subject. I took my turn being the mortified subject. There was lots of laughter and these stories often grew as details were embellished over time. My father was a fisherman. Tall tales were the nature of things.

In my early teens, I was able to interview my father's paternal grandmother about her parents and siblings and I created a primitive family tree on poster board, which I still have. Beyond that, my interest in genealogy was fleeting. I had a life to live and better things to do! My eyes glazed over with boredom when my mother tried to get me interested in stories about relatives that I had never heard of and had no interest in knowing. 

My mother was of the generation that had to research genealogy the hard way. She wrote letters to organizations, and sent inquiries to government agencies. She connected with distant cousins and exchanged long, detailed letters sharing photos, documents, and other information. She even visited distant relatives on the other side of the country. She could only focus on her paternal side, however, and her findings were quite limited. Her information had breadth but not depth.

My mother's paternal family was easy to trace, as both my grandfather and his mother, a prolific writer, were passionate about preserving and sharing family history. My mother's maternal side, however was in shadow. Her birth and parentage were completely unknown. My maternal grandmother was raised as an orphan in Texas and knew almost nothing about her parents. Some of what she did know was in error. 

My father's family, by contrast, was a large, loving, and affectionate group, extending to 3rd cousins and beyond. I was lucky to be as close to 2nd and 3rd cousins as I was to my 1st cousins. I heard all the family names and knew most of them. I was close to many of my great aunts and uncles. There weren't many unanswered questions about my paternal heritage... 

...that is, until I started digging. 

New Jersey and Virginia - full circle

Today the NJ and VA cousins came together on the farm in Old Church, Virginia. 

Matt - the great grandson of William Bryant and Bonnie Abbott - drove down from NJ for a genealogy conference in Richmond, and the chance to get together with a matriarch of the Virginia faction of the family was too good to pass up. I, Teresa - the great granddaughter of George Abbott and Ida Rene Bryant - arranged the visit and brought lunch. 

The three of us, Matt, me, and "Teeny" (Miriam - granddaughter of George and Ida), spent the afternoon sharing family lore, pictures, and recollections. Though, memory loss was somewhat of a barrier to reliable information, I believe there were some insights gained from our visit. 

Teeny recalled a memorable visit to New Jersey when she was in high school. As a real southern belle, she was a novelty attraction for her northern cousins. The more they made over her, the more southern she became, and her cheerleader type personality became exaggerated. She claims the New Jersey girls were all mad over the attention she drew from the boys, and she just reveled in it. It was the first time she experienced such personal power. 

She remembers that at least one of the boy cousins came to Virginia to visit her after that, but can't remember names or details. Matt remembers his aunt Mary telling about going down to Virginia where she visited one of the family grocery stores. She must have visited the Lukhards in Richmond, probably in the 1950's, who were heading up a household of multiple families at the time, including George Abbott and Earl Butler and family.  

Matt showed us old photos of his family members, in particular his father Lawrence, and his "Nan," Margaret Bryant Weismantel. Margaret was the daughter of William and Bonnie Bryant. Matt told stories about the tumultuous relationships between William and Bonnie. William evidently caused a great deal of trouble for the family. He was an alcoholic who finally ended his days in an institution. Bonnie threatened to bury him in the midst of all the Abbotts in the cemetery family plot so that he could be tormented for eternity (which she did). 

There was another story about someone in the Virginia family stealing the Bryants' valuable colonial patent for growing peanuts out of William's luggage on a visit to Virginia. Maybe he sold it. Or it might have been one of the Butler boys who took it. Anyway, as a result, the New Jersey family did not have a great impression of the Virginia folks. 

We told Teeny about some of the things we had learned in our research. I'm sure Teeny does not remember any of it, but it was entertaining at the moment! I reminded her about the framed photo of the Episcopal church she had given me - how I had discovered it was a postcard send from Matt's great grandmother Bonnie to her sister May. I gave the postcard to Matt. We found another framed postcard on Teeny shelf, but the people pictured on it were not identified. There was another photo of a family in front of an old home in Richmond, also not identified. I took photos of them for future research.

We told stories about Aunt Miriam, as she was our link to the Abbotts and Bryants. Miriam never knew what drastic thing Herman was going to introduce into their lives. She just adapted to whatever he wanted. We talked about the alcoholics in the family, how as kids we just thought our family was crazy and fun. We also talked about George "Gramp," and how on his deathbed he had asked Teeny to name Barry after his father Whitfield Barry Abbott  - and he didn't even know she was pregnant much less that it was a boy! 

We talked about the animals. We told how Uncle Herman would try to raise his own supply of food for the grocery store. Those ventures did not work out - the turkeys all suffocated in the back of the truck by piling up in one end. The hogs were sent to slaughter, accidentally including Robin's pet pig. Farm life was hard work. I recalled seeing Junior work out in the fields at night, driving the tractor around with the headlights on after working all day in the store. 

We talked about Uncle Herman's love of real estate. He had owned several different properties on the Potomac and Rappahannock Rivers. There were always lots of family members gathered in these homes, which he generously shared with all of us. This discussion led to telling Matt about Tangier Island, which he had not heard of before. 

We ended our visit with a tour of the farm. We left Teeny's at about 3:00 without thinking of taking a single photo. 

PS Barry told me that he has a photo of Whitfield Barry Abbott. He will send me a copy of it. He also told me about a mix up regarding the family plot at Forest Lawn Cemetery. Apparently people aren't buried where they're supposed to be. There should be an empty plot, but they don't know which one it is. 

Vera Louise Austin, b. March 30, 2023

Now I have motivation to continue with my genealogy research in earnest!  Vera was born last week and has totally stolen my heart.

She will have a pretty complete family tree from her father's ancestry. Now I will also extend my research on her mother's side. 

What a precious little DNA package she is! ;) 

"Vera" was chosen by her parents because they simply liked the name. It is unique - not heard of very often these days. "Louise" came from a song that was special to her parents; also, it has a French origin which her father likes.

She is already showing her personality. She is strong, determined, and active (prominent traits from both parents). She has a generous amount of brown hair (again, from both parents). Long toes and fingers. 

Flashback to 1988:

On February 17, 1988, Dr. Frederick Wirth, a nationally-known neonatologist, did Jonathan's newborn exam in my presence and spent a lot of time explaining everything from head to toe. He sat and rocked Jonathan in the corner of my hospital room for 45 minutes, marveling at Jonathan's perceptiveness about his surroundings. I watched and listened from my bed as the doctor narrated his impressions of my baby. He noted that Jonathan is quiet, alert, controls himself well (disciplined), very visual (stripes in the curtain, etc.).

Dr. Wirth declared himself very "impressed" with Jonathan and offered to do the Brazelton Infant Personality Assessment Test at 2 and 4 weeks for Jonathan for free! (Dr. Wirth had worked with Dr. T. Barry Brazelton, who created the assessment and was considered the "Dr. Spock" of my generation). I welcomed the idea of doing something different - something I hadn't experienced before - with this third child.

Dr. Wirth's advice after the Personality Test:

Jonathan is strong-willed and determined. His energy must be intentionally guided in positive directions. 

Reduce stimuli during fretful periods. Use quieting techniques, trying them in this order - hold one hand, hold both hands, swaddle baby tightly, roll onto tummy and rub or pat back, use a pacifier; pick up and hold on shoulder; hold and rub back or pat bottom. Use only one stimulus at a time - his nervous system is discharging and can't handle more than one added sensation. 

Treat baby as an intelligent, sensitive human being!

I think there was a letter from Dr. Wirth, but will take some time to find it.

Review and Clean Up

I have exchanged emails with 21 different cousins from 2012 to the present. They have all been delightful  to work with. A few of them have continued to check in periodically, and a couple of them have become true close family. Many of the early questions in our email discussions have been answered. It is gratifying to see the progress we've made since the beginning. 

As I combed through over ten years of emails, I took notes and followed up on some of them with new replies. Since yesterday, I've received a large number of responses with new information.

One of them (JR) is a relative of the Powell family. He was inspired by the new information I discovered about our 3X great grandfather who fought in the Civil War, George James Powell. He dug in and, in a blast of emails today, sent back new findings of his own. We will put our heads together to add new records to our family tree. 

This research "hobby" has greatly enriched my life and my sense of place in the world.

Elizabeth McDonald Gray Judd, 1822-??? - Fake News!

Newspapers can be wrong! Who knew? It was reported in Connecticut, New York, and Boston newspapers that my 3X great grandmother committed suicide after a scandalous divorce and separation from her children. The articles about the suicide fit the dates and places in my ggg grandmother's life, but apparently it was a case of mistaken identity. It was a different Mrs. Judd who committed suicide - a Mrs. J. A. Judd. A cousin who contacted me through Ancestry provided this mind blowing new evidence.

The Boston, Connecticut, and New York newspapers had to print retractions. 

I did wonder when I first read of the suicide about some of the facts that didn't fit. The Mrs. Judd who committed suicide was a milliner. and she killed herself in a back room in her shop. My ggg grandmother was a journalist and writer for the NY Times. Couldn't imagine her changing careers to make hats.

I'm still trying to figure out what this all means. Obviously, it means I have the wrong death date for my ggg grandmother. So what became of her after her divorce? 

Piano Factory, Fort Lee - found!

It was disappointing to read in a book on Fort Lee that the Abbott & Sons Piano Factory had been razed. Matt and I discovered its historic location on our visit to Fort Lee; a bank building is presently on the site of the original factory building. The Port Authority is on the spot where the later brick factory stood. We found photos of both piano factory buildings in some of the materials we discovered.

A photo of the original Abbott & Sons Piano Factory
from a book on Fort Lee that we found in the
Ridgewood Public Library.

Abbott & Sons Piano Factory, the later brick building 
that was next to the original wood sided building.

Then we learned that the original building had been MOVED to Main Street! Using Google Maps and Google Earth along with clues from our new sources, I began a mission to find it. I traveled virtually up and down Main Street. At first, I was looking for the newer brick building, not imagining that the original white sided building would be the one that was saved. Then I spotted it. It was unmistakable. There was the familiar roof peeking above the facade of a Chinese restaurant at 214 Main Street. 

The familiar roof line of the original piano factory
building peeking over the restaurant.

From behind the restaurant on the corner of Main Street and Gerome Avenue

The current name of the business

The view from Google Earth

Aerial photo from the book, Fort Lee, by Lucille Bertram.
You can see the original piano factory building on the corner at Lemoine Avenue.
The brick factory building is at the center of the photo.

Future Plans

My family tree has been developed as far - or farther than - I could have ever dreamed. It is time to halt  trying to build my tree, and to begin carefully verifying every person and fact that I have entered into it. There are some unanswered questions that I will continue to seek to answer. I will go back through all of my emails and online contacts to identify loose ends. 

I have enough information to begin putting together a book for my family.

Update: My retirement dreams are becoming reality! Next month I am moving into a beach condo, which will mean a drastic reduction in material possessions as well as social responsibilities. I will have abundant  unburdened TIME to work on my Ancestry goals. Finally, I can redirect my energies from the care and maintenance of possessions to the legacy projects that my heart longs to do. It means more time for reflection and self care. 

I am grateful to family members who are supportive and helpful in this process. Moral support from family and friends is EVERYTHING.

Fort Lee, Ellis Island, Philadelphia - check!

It is on my bucket list to visit as many places associated with our family history as I can. One of those places was Fort Lee, New Jersey. Other nearby locations on my list: Ellis Island, Staten Island (or anywhere in NY City- never been), Philadelphia (history tour), Asbury Park, Middletown (founders). Some of these items were checked off this week! 

My grandmother, Jacqueline Abbott Zaun, was born in Richmond, Virginia, but her father, George Wright Abbott, was born in Fort Lee, New Jersey. Jacqueline’s mother, Ida Rene Bryant, married George Abbott in 1904, and they resided in Richmond. Ida’s brother William Bryant was already married to George’s half-sister Bonnie Abbott; they moved back to Fort Lee in 1900 after living for several years in Princess Anne County, Virginia, with William's parents, Eley and Margaret Bryant. 

The Abbotts of Fort Lee were a well known, respected family. The original immigrant from England, John Abbott, was my third great grandfather. John came to America with four brothers: William, James, Nathaniel, and Abiel, and they built a successful piano manufacturing business in Fort Lee. James’ son John was the first mayor of Fort Lee. Sadly, William Bryant did not represent the Virginia family very well. The Abbotts did not look upon their Virginia relatives favorably. Three generations later, Matt and I have effectively reunited the New Jersey and Virginia families. Full circle!

[See blog post about the Abbott Piano Factory: https://descenddance.blogspot.com/2014/05/abbott-sons-piano-factory-fort-lee-nj.html]

A memorable visit with cousin Matt in New Jersey answered some nagging questions and helped to provide context. We started sharing ancestry information right away! Matt discovered a mug shot (?!!) of his grandfather Lawrence Weismantel among my materials from Ray Eggers (Ray's letters and documents sent to Miriam Lukhard were entrusted to me by Aunt Teeny). Matt called his father to ask about the photo. We had a hilarious video chat with Matt's dad:

Videochat Interview

Sample conversation:

Ted Nussbickle ("He was a good man, Uncle Ted" "He bought me chocolate cigars"), 

"Aunt Leonie," Leonie Abbott Nussbickle ("She was a pain in the ass") and her daughter,

Doris Nussbickle (per Matt's mom: "she married a guy at the horse track"; "she and Aunt Mary were close"), William Bryant ("gentleman who had wounds on his legs"), 

"Uncle Bobby" (Bobby Bryant, "they would come there for dinner...and sleigh riding") and "Uncle Buddy." (Roger Bryant) 

Matt: You remember when "Nanny" (Margaret Bryant Weismantel) would talk about her grandfather as a peanut farmer, right? 

Dad: No. 

Matt: that was Eley Bryant...he fought in the Civil War.

Random comment: "My family is so screwed up, if you put them all in a box and shook it all up...I don't know what would happen." 

When Matt clarified the facts about some of his father's memories, he replied, "I'm started to get worried you're gonna tell me how many times I go to the bathroom."

We also had a videochat with Aunt Teeny (Miriam Vaughan, daughter of Miriam Abbott Lukhard), and her son David. Aunt Teeny remembered visiting her cousins in New Jersey as a teenager and being the "bell of the ball." She said that the more they fawned over her southern accent, the more southern she became! She couldn't remember names, but said some of the boy cousins later came to Virginia to visit.

How I am related to Matt:

Two Abbott siblings married two Bryant siblings. 

I am the great-granddaughter of George and Ida; Matt is the great-grandson of William and Bonnie. 

Whitfield Barrie Abbott is our common NJ ancestor

(the son and only child of immigrant John Abbott, pianomaker, and his wife Sarah Godfrey).

[See my blog post about Whitfield Barrie Abbott: https://descenddance.blogspot.com/2018/03/whitfield-barrie-abbott-1844-1889.html]

Ellis Island

Matt surprised me with a behind the scenes tour of Ellis Island. The majesty of the place and the weight of history was just overwhelming. We spent a good bit of time outside, enjoying the view of the Statue of Liberty and the panoramic view of lower Manhattan. 

Edgewater Cemetery (Vreeland Cemetery)

We found the cemetery in the middle of a congested area of town. The walled cemetery had once been surrounded by an Alcoa Plant. We parked in a busy shopping center lot across the street and risked our lives to get across the road. A sign on the gate told us to call the police non emergency number, and we were instructed to wait for someone to bring us the key. We stood at the gate in the cold for a half hour admiring the Manhattan skyline across the Hudson River. Finally, a Supervisor from the Department of Public Works named Tom Quinton showed up in a white city vehicle and let us in the cemetery. He knew exactly where the Abbott family plot was located and took us right there. We found Whitfield Abbott's tall monument, then saw James Abbott and William Abbott's headstones. After a frustrating search for certain other graves we knew had to be there (Sarah, John C.), Tom decided to go back to his office and bring us the file containing the list of interments and plot numbers. We were able to identify the graves' we were looking for, but there were no headstones (see listing of family members buried here at the bottom of this post). Whitfield was buried with his first wife, Gertrude, while his 2nd wife Sarah was buried at the back of the cemetery all alone. There was an entire Abbott plot with no headstones, but several Abbotts were buried there according to the records. We noted graves for family names Heft, Schlosser, and Beucler scattered amidst the Abbott graves.

Edgewater Cemetery inhabitants' view of the Hudson River and Manhattan

Church of the Good Shepherd

We drove through the Palisades Park area, and up Palisades Avenue to the church. The church secretary let us into the very old sanctuary, but we soon realized that this "newer" part of the old church was built after our family attended there. The original tiny chapel was now a day care center, and little preschoolers were asleep all over the floor. The entrance of the original chapel had been on Parker Avenue, but the steeple had been removed and a new entrance made on Palisades Avenue. The new entrance faces the buildings across the street where Whitfield Barrie Abbott lived (I believe he owned the two adjacent lots at 1585 & 1589 Palisades Avenue), and where his children, including my great grandfather George was born. At least one of Whitfield's children was baptized there, Bonnie Abbott (her baptismal certificate is on Ancestry). The stained glass windows in the church were donated by church members including the Beuclers and the Hefts (names from the cemetery). I later learned that one of the Abbotts married a Beucler (I knew I had seen the name somewhere!)

The smaller chapel to the left is the original church.

Ridgewood Public Library

Driving up Lemoine Avenue on our way out of town, we passed the site of the piano factory near the foot of the George Washington Bridge. There is a bank on the corner where the original factory had been, and the old Port Authority building is where the larger brick piano factory had been. It was about a 20-minute drive to Ridgewood where the public library was supposed to have an excellent genealogy collection. The librarian at the front desk, however, seemed clueless when we asked her about it. She directed us upstairs where we saw a sign in letters a foot high: "Bolger Heritage Center." (How could she miss that?) The door was locked. A young man let us in, and we began searching for the Fort Lee section. The collection was interesting, but we found it difficult to search much of their materials. 

We found one amazing book that made the trip to the library worthwhile: Fort Lee, by Lucille Bertram for the Fort Lee Historical Society, in the "Images of America" series. There were quite a few references to the Abbott family in the book, so I went on Amazon and ordered it for Matt. Images and information in the book revealed the answers to some of our questions. We believe that our Sylvia Abbott provided much of the material about the Abbotts to the Fort Lee Historical Society. 

Information in the book included:

Schlosser's Hotel (image) - "Fort Lee's mayor [i.e. John C. Abbott] and council met there until the 1920's."  There is a Schlosser Street in Fort Lee and Schlosser graves in Edgewater cemetery near the Abbott graves.

Abbott Piano Factory (image) - "The Abbott Piano Factory was located on the west side of Lemoine Avenue near what is now the Bridge Plaza. James Abbott, an English immigrant, founded this piano-action company c. 1870. In 1912 he employed 50 men and 25 women and was a major employer in Fort Lee. The Abbott family, one of the early Fort Lee settlers, resided on Lemoine Avenue for nearly a century."

The newer piano factory was a brick building behind this house.
[This building was moved to Main Street and is still there].

Mayor John C. Abbott (image) - the mayor and his council. "On March 29, 1904, Fort Lee officially broke from Ridgefield Township and formed its own government. In May of that year, the citizens of the borough elected their first borough council Mayor John C. Abbott..." (et. al.). [John C. Abbott, Sr. was the son of James Abbott, one of the four brothers who immigrated from England.]

Church of the Good Shepherd (image) - "In 1885, an Episcopal congregation moved into an abandoned church known as 'the estate' on Parker Avenue...The Gothic Revival building has been extensively renovated, with its entrance now on Palisade Avenue. A tower has also been added." [Note: the 'estate' was owned by the Moore family and includes the property that is now the Fort Lee Memorial Park. The original house, built by Judge Moore in 1922, is now the Fort Lee Museum run by the Fort Lee Historical Society. This building was closed for renovations when we were there.]

Bergen County Historic Sites Survey 1980-1981 (image of the Allen House) - "One of the other significant homes was the pre-Civil War Abbott home on Lemoine Avenue. Both the Abbott and Allen houses were razed soon after the Sites Survey was published."

The George Washington Bridge at its Fort Lee terminus (image) - the Abbott Piano Factory can been seen clearly in this aerial view. 

 

                   The Abbott Piano Factory is in the top right quadrant of this photo - original photo and close up. 
          The building that I have marked "Abbott House" was actually the original piano factory building
         that is now located behind 214 Main Street. (see photos at the bottom of this post).

Abbott Boulevard (image) - "In August 1909, after Palisade was incorporated into the borough, the borough council changed the name to Abbott Boulevard to honor Fort Lee's first mayor, John C. Abbott."

Outside the Heritage room at the library, there was a huge wall map of Bergen Counties that explained why the location of the Abbott Hotel was described in the U.S. Census as being in Hackensack. Hackensack at the time included a much larger area that encompassed Fort Lee and Coytesville. "J. Abbott" is shown on the map just north of the fort area. 

Hackensack County in 1861.
"J. Abbott" is on the map above the words "Fort Lee."

Some library searches were fruitless - no obituaries in the newspaper microfilm reels, except for a brief mention of Whitfield Abbott's funeral in the Bergen County Democrat: 

"The funeral of Wm. B. Abbott was held on Thursday. He had been ailing for some time. Mr. Abbott was for quite a long period principal of the Coytesville school."

There were promising materials held in various file cabinets, such as files on prominent family names in Fort Lee, but they were locked and the librarian could not find the keys. 

"Come back next week," she says.

Barrymore Film Center

Back to Fort Lee for a tour of the Barrymore Film Center museum. This was not directly related to our family history research, but was fascinating to learn about the film industry that was burgeoning in Fort Lee at the time that our family was there. I watched a silent movie that was filmed in Fort Lee which was known as the "Hollywood of the East Coast." 

Philadelphia

We spent a whole day in Philadelphia, hitting the top few items on my bucket list. I did a tour of Independence Hall, and viewed the Liberty bell from outside the glass enclosure. We walked down to Christ Church and had a guided tour. Then walked a few blocks away to the Christ Church Cemetery, where Benjamin Franklin and other signers of the Declaration of Independence were laid to rest. Of course, we stopped and had a Philly cheesesteak at Sonny's. The afternoon was spent at the Barnes Museum of Art. The collection of one man - Albert C. Barnes - was moved in its entirety to this modern building and set up in rooms exactly as he had them set up in his home. In addition to its main galleries, there were 18 rooms full of some of the most important works of art in the world. The uniqueness of this collection is singular in its juxtaposition of his vast assortment of antique hinges which were strategically arranged on the walls with the artwork.  

Preparation for research:

Here are the questions I had prepared for collaboration with cousin Matt, and some of the answers I learned during and after the trip to Fort Lee:

Q: What was Whitfield Abbott's home address on Palisades Avenue?

A: 1589 Palisades Avenue - His home was directly across the street from the Church of the Good Shepherd; there is now a bank on that lot, built in 1905 (a year after Sarah's death. Whitfield also owned the lot at 1585, now a dental office building.

A land map of the historic area of Fort Lee. Whitfield Barrie Abbott's property on Palisades Avenue
is marked,as is James Abbott's property just down the street.

Q: How does Stephen Hopkins (Mayflower) fit into our family tree?
A: through the Godfrey family. There is probably a second connection to Stephen Hopkins as well.

Q: What did the C stand for in John Abbott's name? Conway, after his mother in England?
A: Did not resolve this one. In some sources, his middle initial was "L." In his will, it appears to be the letter "C." James Abbott's son was named John Coyte Abbott. Coyte was James' wife's family name. 

Q: It was "James Abbott and Sons" by 1891; when did John Abbott bow out?
A: One source mentioned that he got out of the business at age 26. John Abbott owned the "hotel" where many of the piano factory employees lived. The Abbott House was located on Lemoine Avenue.

Q: Where did the name "Lemoine" come from? (Lemoine Avenue). Who/what was Abbott Blvd. named for?
A: James Abbott married Eliza Lemoine; William Abbott married Susan Ann Lemoine. Lemoine was a prominent family in Fort Lee. Abbott Blvd was named for the first mayor of Fort Lee, John Coyte Abbott, son of James Lemoine Abbott, Sr.

Q: Where did the name Fenton originate? (Southampton County)
A:

Q: What is the story about a probate dispute over William Cobb's probate 14 years after his death?
A:

Q: Where is the home of Charles and Maria Bryant?
A; I found several specific addresses for them and for their businesses in Asbury Park, Ocean Grove, and Newark. We did not have time to look for them, but most buildings are long gone anyway.

Q: Charles' death certificate?
A:

Q: Where was Charles between 1880 and 1908?
A:

Q: Is the Charles Bryant in the Richmond newspaper article the same piano dealer listed in the NJ city directory? (11/30/1911). 
A: According to the city directory, Charles lived in NJ as early as 1909. Ida was living in Richmond, so Charles did have a connection there. Perhaps he was living near Ida before he moved to NJ..?

Q: Where are Eley and Margaret buried? They are buried together. In Charles Bryant's letter to Bluke, 1924, he wrote: "I must see if I can't get someone to look after Father and Mother's graves," indicating that they were not buried in a formal cemetery.
A: Their graves are not marked, but we assume they are buried on the land at the corner of Blackwater and Head of River Roads in Princess Anne County, now a soybean field. It may not be possible to locate their exact burial sites.

Q: Explain the errors in William Bryant's death certificate (William Thomas Bryant, son of Eley and Margaret Bryant in Southampton, Virginia, NOT "Peter" and "Margaret Garttom" as on his death certificate).
A: William died in a poorhouse in Newark, NJ. He was an alcoholic booted out of the house by his wife Bonnie. He was despised by the Abbott family and buried in their cemetery plot for spite (so they hound him for eternity). The information on the death certificate may have been recorded by a staff person at the poorhouse based on ineffective communication from William.

Q: Are these our family?
Eli Bryant, Nottoway Co, slave owner
A: probably not.

William J. Cobb, E. Nottoway River, 1860 slave schedule
A: 

Q: What is story about the lost deed? lost patent?
A: According to the "NJ" family lore, someone in the "Virginia" family (i.e. the Bryants) stole the deed to the original Southampton land grant out of William T. Bryant's luggage. The patent refers to a peanut patent, unknown story.

Postscript:

In the Bergen County Historic Sites Inventory, 1980-1981, it shows that the original Abbott & Sons Piano Factory building was moved just after the sites survey was done. The building is now located behind 214 Main Street in Fort Lee. 

214 Main Street

The original piano factory building today, behind 214 Main Street.

DPW record of Abbott family burials at Edgewater.
Photo of Tom Quinton's burials list obtained from Matt Weismantel.

DPW record of Bryant family burials at Edgewater.
Photo of Tom Quinton's burials list, obtained from Matt Weismantel.