America 250 My Massachusetts Revolutionary War Ancestor Israel Alden Update

 

Israel Alden

In November 2021 I wrote a blog entitled The Military Service of Israel Alden.  Five years later I used the information I had already discovered and wanted to see if I could learn more about Israel’s military service.

Isreal Alden is my maternal 6^th great grandfather and the great great grandson of Mayflower passengers John and Priscilla (Mullins) Alden.  He was born in 1748 in Tolland, Connecticut to Noah and Joanna (Vaughn) Alden.  Israel was the second of nine children born to the couple.  Israel moved his family to Tyringham, Berkshire County, Massachusetts in the late 1760s which is why he would have served in the Massachusetts Milita and not the Connecticut Militia.  Israel was 27 in 1775 as the War began.

The following newly located information confirms the information previously found in a book/online about Massachusetts Soldiers in the Revolutionary War:

Israel served in a Massachusetts militia regiment raised for the Saratoga Campaign of 1777. The regiment (often called Ashley’s Berkshire County Militia) was mobilized to reinforce the Northern Army against British General John Burgoyne. It marched north in September 1777 to join the American forces gathering under General Horatio Gates in New York. His service of roughly 30 days was a typical amount for the Saratoga militia service he was involved with. 

When I first researched Israel and his military service, I never quite understand the dates of his enlistment/discharge.  If I look at Israel’s dates of service and further research his regiment and what was happening at the time the dates begin to make a lot more sense:

Enlisted: 19 September 1777 - Israel served in Colonel John Ashley’s Regiment which joined the army on or about 19 September 1777, the same day as the First Battle of Saratoga (Freeman’s Farm).  While there is no record of specifically what Israel’s duties were they probably included helping reinforce American numbers, building fortifications and defensive works, guarding positions or supply lines, and encircling Burgoyne and his troops.  Military reinforcements like this company were critical in convincing the British they were surrounded.  On October 8^th, Burgoyne retreated to Saratoga and by October 13^th he asked for terms of surrender.

Discharged: 16 October 1777 -British General Burgoyne officially “surrendered” 17 October 1777.  As part of the “Convention of Saratoga” (formal agreement that ended the Battle of Saratoga).  Burgoyne refused to accept an unconditional surrender, which he felt would dishonor his King and country.  General Gates, eager to wrap up the campaign before British reinforcements could arrive from New York City, agreed to remarkably lenient terms which explicitly stated that the British were capitulating (cease to resist an opponent) under a "convention" rather than a formal, humiliating military surrender and that Burgoyne’s army was to be sent back to England and each soldier was required to pledge not to serve again in the war against the colonies.  

The Saratoga Campaign is widely considered the turning point of the American Revolution because Burgoyne’s surrender led directly to French alliance with the United States.  So even a short militia enlistment like Israel’s contributed to a decisive strategic victory.  Israel was a soldier that served in a very important battle of the Revolutionary War.  I would classify Israel, like his father Noah, as a "Patriot" of the American Revolution!  Isreal would live another 34 years after the end of the Revolutionary War.

Note: 14 June 1777 the Continental Congress passed the First Flag Resolution just three months before the Battle of Saratoga.  The Resolution stated that the flag of the United States would consist of thirteen alternating red and white stripes, and a blue field with thirteen alternating stars.  There were no illustrations to accompany the description which led to a variety of flags being flown.  The flag that flew over the Battle of Saratoga was believed to be the Trumbull Pattern Flag:

If you have any corrections or additions or stories to share, I look forward to hearing them.

Enjoy the journey,

Debby

Finally...Question Answered! Where do the Remains of Carrie Terry Warner Actually Reside? (Part 2)

 The Ledger

(click on images to enlarge)

Waiting is never an easy thing to do when you know a particular record could hold the answer to a question you are just unable to let go of and you need to wait to see that record.  In Where do the Remains of Carrie Terry Warner Actually Reside? (Part 1) a review was made of all known information about where my paternal great grandmother Carrie Terry Warner was buried and about the family story.  I learned about old ledgers that existed at my cousin's tombstone business from the previous owner.  I hoped these records might hold answers to my nagging question.

The day had finally come and here the ledgers were in front of me.  Finally being able to see and hold the ledgers was so exciting!  My cousin had marked pages he thought I'd be interested in so it was time to see if they actually did hold the answer I was looking for.

The first thing to always look for is an index:

Reminder:  When you are looking at an Index be sure you understand how the Index is set up. While names are all "W" names, they were added as services were ordered.  The names are not listed alphabetically.

The following entry is dated June 15, 1915.   Page 348

OK, the question I had about Carrie having a headstone is now answered!  There was a headstone and this is what it was to look like, it was to be made out of blue marble and cost $12.00.  The date the headstone was ordered is now known and the bill was to go to Carrie & John's eldest son Terry, who at the time resided in Watermill, NY.  Why was the bill being sent to him instead of his father John? I have no idea.  Perhaps Terry was in charge of taking care of this for John and his brothers?  (Terry would have been 22 years old, married and a father at the time.)  I also know that the headstone was for the Baiting Hollow Cemetery which is where Carrie was buried after her death in 1910.  

With additional searching another entry was located.  Be careful!  As I reviewed the pages in the Index I found that the listing is not always under the name of the person that died.  Sometimes the listing is under the name of the person who ordered or paid for the service, in this case Carrie's husband John.  That definitely changes my searching method for future entries.

The following entry is dated June 4, 1910.  Page 236

This is the order for Carrie's funeral.  Wow!  I did not know until this 'find' that the business that was in charge of the headstones was also in charge of the funeral, etc.  

Transcription:

To Silver gray half couch casket and chestnut box for Carrie T. Warner dec'd.

Laying out & Embalming body

Use of chairs

White dress

Hearse

Attendance w/funeral

Pillow of flowers word Mother

(images made using Copilot)

What a wealth of information about my great grandmother's funeral.  Carrie was buried in a new white dress, they used a hearse, the cost in 1910 was $167.00 and there was a pillow of flowers with the word Mother from her six sons.  Again, my heart breaks when I think about my paternal grandfather who was only five years old when this was happening.

But there was still no answer to the question -Where do Carrie's remains actually reside?  Hmm...  Well, I am so grateful for what I have learned but this did not answer that gnawing question.

While I was looking at the ledgers I decided to look for Carrie's husband (my great grandfather) John's funeral and perhaps the headstone that is at the Aquebogue Cemetery. John's funeral was listed.

The following entry is dated June 23, 1920:

Transcription of highlighted area:

Opening grave

Moving body of wife deceased

WOW!! After all these years.  Finally, there is the answer I have been searching for!  Carrie's remains were removed from the Baiting Hollow Cemetery and moved to the Aquebogue Cemetery.  Payment would not have been made had they been unable to move her.  The story I had heard was partially true...her body was moved to the cemetery alongside her husband.

The order for the headstone that is in the Aquebogue Cemetery was also located.  

The following entry is dated October 10, 1921

Payment for the stone was made by Carrie & John's son J. Wesley Warner.  At this time John Wesley was 31 years old and married.  Perhaps he was the spokesman for the brothers?

Whatever happened to Carrie's original headstone in the Baiting Hollow Cemetery?  I have no idea.  Did one of the sons take it after she was moved to the Aquebogue Cemetery? Perhaps.  Was the headstone recycled somehow or just discarded?  I have no idea but I do wonder about this.

The journey to find the answer to my nagging question about where actually my paternal great grandmother is buried has taken many years with several interesting twists and turns.  Looking beyond the commonly found records, often available online, is not always easy to do but if you take the time to search, it's amazing to see what you may find.  Constantly asking people in the area about records has led me to finding records I never would have thought to ask for or that I would be even able to locate.  There are so many records out there that we don't even know exist.  As genealogists we should pursue getting these lesser known records scanned and saved for other researchers and future generations.  If you have any suggestions on who to contact at FamilySearch, Ancestry, My Heritage, or anywhere else, please let me know.

If you have any corrections or additions or stories to share, I look forward to hearing them.

Enjoy the journey,

Debby

Where do the Remains of Carrie Terry Warner Actually Reside? (Part 1)

(photo done using ChatGPT)

As genealogist we have questions about our ancestors and we search for the answers.  When the answers come, we are happy and we move on to the next question to answer.  Every once in a while, we have questions we just can’t seem to find the answer to.  The question may continue to gnaw at us even though we know there probably never will be an answer.  Why is it that there are some questions that we just can’t let go of?  We know realistically that there is so much about our ancestors we will never know but there is that one question that we just can’t let go of!  Well, I had such an experience but finally found the answer in the most unusual place.  What a sense of relief to finally find the answer to a question that others may never care about but for some unknown reason was very important to me.  This was a question about my paternal great grandmother Carrie Terry Warner that I just couldn’t let go of.  Where is Carrie’s final resting place?  

Known facts:

• Carrie's husband John purchased a cemetery plot on 4 Jun 1902 in the Baiting Hollow Cemetery, Baiting Hollow, New York.  

• Carrie Terry Warner (my paternal great grandmother) passed away suddenly on 2 Jun 1910 of Apoplexy.
• According to one of Carrie’s obituaries she was buried on 5 Jun 1902 in the Baiting Hollow Cemetery.

• A few years after Carrie passed her husband moved to a nearby area, Aquebogue, with the younger boys until his passing ten years later in June 1920.  There is a cemetery stone in the Aquebogue Cemetery with John and Carrie’s names on it.  But a genealogist knows that a cemetery stone doesn’t necessarily mean someone was buried there.  After all, Carrie died ten years earlier and was buried in the Baiting Hollow Cemetery.

in Aquebogue Cemetery

I have walked the cemetery at Baiting Hollow for years in search of Carrie’s burial spot.  In researching the records for the cemetery, I found the records for the older part of the cemetery are gone and Suffolk County maps are not available for the older section of the cemetery either.  After reading Carrie’s Letters (see tab marked Carrie’s Letters) over and over as I compiled the book of her letters, I could never accept the fact that her husband John did not put a headstone for his beloved wife at the Baiting Hollow cemetery.  So, I continued to search.  One day when discussing this with a cousin (also a great grandchild of Carrie’s) I heard a family story.  The story was that John wanted to have Carrie’s body moved to the Aquebogue Cemetery, close to where he lived, but when they went to move her coffin there was nothing left to move.  I just couldn't let this end without confirmation so I continued to research.  Family stories may not be exactly true but usually there is at least a thread of truth in the story that has been passed down.  Could a body/coffin be moved in the early 1900s, if so, what did it take?  I learned there would have to be a court order even then.  So, I searched and still found nothing…until recently.

Another cousin of mine (also a great grandchild of Carrie’s) happens to own a local tombstone business in the town I grew up in and where my paternal ancestral line lived for hundreds of years.  While we were talking one day about the business, he happened to mention that he had found old ledgers at the business, upstairs in an attic, left from the previous owner’s time.  He said along with orders for tombstones there were drawings of tombstones.  WOW!! I’m sure you can imagine my excitement about the value of such ledgers for genealogical reasons.  Imagine some of the old tombstones that are unreadable.  Perhaps in these ledgers there would be the answers to reading old tombstones.  Could I possibly learn anything about my ancestors from these ledgers?

Yes, it can be difficult to be a cousin of mine when I am on a mission and I think they might be able to help me.  I asked my cousin if I could look at the ledgers because I had some family questions I was hoping to find the answers to.  I tried to be very patient waiting for him to have the time to get the ledgers down when I was in town and allow me to see them.  Finally, the day came when he said he had pulled some of the ledgers for me and he found some things (and he marked the pages even) he thought I’d be interested in.  And oh, my goodness what a find!  

More to follow in Part 2 of this story.  See tab on Home page marked Carrie’s Letters for additional stories about Carrie.

If you have any corrections or additions or stories to share, I look forward to hearing them.

Enjoy the journey,

Debby

The Birth of Nathaniel Warner

Often, if you are lucky when researching your ancestors in the 1600s, you can find an index that contains the birth dates of your ancestor but I always prefer to find the original record.  No matter how careful people are in transcribing from the original record to create the index there is still the possibility of errors or additional information that was not transcribed.

Recently I was able to locate the original birth record of my paternal 6^th great grandfather Nathaniel Warner. 

 

(click on image to enlarge)

Hatfield [Hampshire County, Massachusetts Bay Colony] Births 

Transcription:  

Nathaniel son of Lieutenant Daniel Warner and Martha his wife born 15 October 1690

 

Nathaniel was born to Daniel Warner and his second wife Martha Boltwood.  Daniel and his first wife Mary Whiting are believed to have had 6 children before her death.  Daniel and his second wife Martha Boltwood are believed to have had 11 children.  Nathaniel was the last child believed born to Daniel and Martha, the 17^th child born to Daniel.

Nathaniel’s father died two years after his birth.  His mother lived another 20 years after his birth.  I wonder...what lead Nathaniel to make his way from Hatfield, Massachusetts to Southold, New York?

If you have any corrections or additions or stories to share, I look forward to hearing them.

Enjoy the journey,

Debby

      Suffolk County Historical Society

300 West Main Street

Riverhead, New York

Registration

 

Carrie's Letters A Glimpse into Rural Family Life 

Baiting Hollow, NY

A box of long-forgotten letters written by a young woman, mainly to her sister, provides an intimate insight into her life as she studies to be a teacher, becomes the wife of a farmer, then the mother of six sons before her untimely death at the age of 48.  You will get to know Carrie, her thoughts, sense of humor, and views of the world around her.  The addition of detailed sidebars containing connections of family members, along with newspaper accounts of events referred to in the letters offers an amazing glimpse into rural family life from 1880-1910.

For additional posts and information click Tab Carrie’s Letters

Hope to see you there,

If you have any corrections or additions or stories to share, I look forward to hearing them.

Enjoy the journey,

Debby

Terry Family Reunion

Genealogists enjoy finding out all they can about the family that came before them.  Another great part of genealogy is finding and connecting with ‘cousins’ whether they are first cousins we’ve never met or, 2^nd or 3^rd cousins.  This year I had the amazing privilege of meeting a large group of my ‘Terry’ Family cousins at a reunion in upstate New York.

Probably about 10 years ago while I was working on Carrie’s Letters (see tab Carrie’s Letters) I became obsessed with finding the descendants of the siblings of my paternal great grandmother Carrie (Terry) Warner.  Carrie was the daughter of Gilbert and Almeda(Robinson) Terry of Peconic, Suffolk County, New York.  The children born to Gilbert and Almeda were Carrie, Forrest, Ella, Millard and an infant daughter.  The infant daughter never appeared to have been named since she only lived a few weeks.  Millard died suddenly of apoplexy at age 11.  I knew Forrest and Ella had children, so, I went on a mission to find them.  Carrie had written most of the letters to her sister Ella but also spoke of her brother Forrest.  Forrest came several times in the summer when he was out of school to help on Carrie and John’s farm in Baiting Hollow, New York.  While reading the letters I also obtained confirmation of my suspicion that my grandfather, Olin Forrest Warner, had been named after his uncle Forrest.

First, I looked for the descants of Forrest and Ella through online family trees and then DNA matches.  After much searching I found Theresa who was a granddaughter of Forrest Terry.  An email was carefully crafted explaining that I believed we were related through her grandfather Forrest Terry and my great grandmother Carrie Terry, Forrest’s sister.  Then the hopeful reply came and I couldn’t wait to open and read it   only to hear Theresa say that she was sorry but she didn’t believe we were related because Forrest only had one sister named Ella.  I sent her a copy of a census report that listed Gilbert Terry, wife Almeda and children Carrie, Forrest, Ella and Millard.  Today we still joke about this initial email exchange. Because Carrie died so young and tragically she was not talked about by her siblings as their families grew.  Life goes on.  I know my grandfather and brothers kept in touch for a while (see post Discovering the Purpose of a Group Photo) but…life goes on.  They married and had families and as the generations continued, family lost touch.  But now I had found a connection to Forrest.  Theresa and I keep in touch and when I am in Florida I try to visit. 

Theresa had told me about a family reunion with her Terry cousins in upstate New York each year and said if I could ever come that would be great.  The timing never seemed to work until this year.  Finally, on Saturday, July 16, 2022 everything aligned and I was in the right area at the right time and was able to attend the Terry Family reunion.  What an amazing time this was!  For over four hours I was able to meet so many of my ‘cousins’ and their families.  I was able to soak up stories about their families and growing up a ‘Terry’.  I was able to gain information about their descendants and make connections on several DNA matches I have.  Harley (my furry companion) even had a good time with several of the dogs that were there.

Grandchildren of Forrest Terry and myself

click on image to enlarge

Grandchildren, spouses and Great grandchildren of Forrest Terry

After the party, on my way to my stop for the night, there was a huge double rainbow.  

What a great end to a wonderful day!  Hope to see everyone next year.

Remember whether you are connected by blood or are just related by heart to take time to be together and enjoy that time.

If you have any corrections or additions or stories to share, I look forward to hearing them.

Enjoy the journey,

Debby

40th Anniversary Celebration

My parental grandfather, Olin Warner, Sr. was the 5^th of 6 boys born to Carrie (Terry) and John B. Warner. My grandfather was only five years old when his mother, Carrie (Terry) Warner died suddenly and it was only 10 years later that his father, John B. Warner passed away.  My grandfather at the age of 15 then went to live with his older brother John Wesley and wife Alice (Aldrich) Warner. Olin and Wesley, and later with their wives, continued a close bond.

Alice (Aldrich) and John Wesley Warner

My paternal grandmother, Agnes (King) Warner was known for the lists she kept.  Whether she was getting ready for Christmas or planning a 40^th Anniversary party you can be sure Grandma had a list going.  Several years ago while visiting my cousin Diane in Colorado she shared with me a small green leather notebook of my grandmother’s.  While enjoying my grandmother’s familiar handwriting and looking through the notebook I found a variety of lists, recipes, etc. One of the lists that caught my eye was the following:

click on image to enlarge

How exciting to find this list of information for the 40^th anniversary celebration of Alice and Wesley Warner from 1958!  Alice and Wesley were married on 9 November 1918 and made their home in Riverhead, New York. 

This was a typical list of my grandmother’s.  Grandma was obviously in charge of planning the party and she listed everything out to the smallest detail.  It’s so interesting to see the menu and the cost of the party back in 1958.  McCabes was a stationary store in the town of Riverhead, so, I am guessing that was for purchasing the invitations.  There were also flowers and hmm…prizes. I am guessing that the ‘clock’ was the anniversary gift for the happy couple.

 I do have some questions though:

• what was the ‘Hall’ where the party was held?
• is this a complete list of those who actually attended?
• was the party actually held on the 8^th of November instead of the 9^th, their anniversary?

Thinking about the details of this list got me to wondering, if, like so many other events in my grandparent’s lives, was this recorded in the local newspaper?  Growing up I remember that on Monday mornings the local reporter, Laura Rodgers, for the area where we lived would call my grandmother and ask what the family had done over the last week.  Was there anything to record in the newspaper?  I am so grateful today, as I search for family information to fill in the daily lives of my ancestors, that so much was recorded in the local newspapers.  Was this event recorded there also?  Could the newspaper account answer some of my questions and give me more details of this event?

When searching for old newspapers for Suffolk County, New York my first stop is usually the free online newspapers through New York Historic Newspapers.  The newspapers I was looking for in Suffolk County only go as far as 1940.   So, that didn’t work.  While visiting Riverhead, New York this summer I decided to see what I could find in the local newspapers for 1958.  Surely the local newspaper had copies somewhere?  The current local newspaper, The Riverhead News-Review, directed me to a nearby library (Mattituck-Laurel Library) where I found out they only had a few years and not the one I was looking for.  Disappointing!  A second call to the local newspaper told me they were in the process of digitizing all their editions so they had nothing available at the newspaper office but directed me to the Riverhead Free Library where they should have the microfilms of the years I was looking for.  A trip to the library finally yielded the microfilm for 1958.  Yea, success for step one!  Then I began searching for the newspapers for November and December 1958.  I was sure I would find something under the ‘Riverhead’ news section since my great Uncle and Aunt lived there.  I searched through several weeks and kept thinking Grandma, don’t let me down.  The party HAS to be in the paper.  Finally, I found the article I was searching for as a general article in The News Review, Thursday, November 13, 1958 edition on page 9:

Transcription:

J W Warners Observe 40^th

Mr. and Mrs. J Wesley Warner of Riverhead were pleasantly surprised by their friends, neighbors and relatives on Saturday evening, Nov 8, at the Aquebogue Congregational Church dining room. The occasion was in honor of their 40^th wedding anniversary.

A buffet supper was served climaxed by the “bride and groom” cutting a beautiful wedding cake.

Mr and Mrs Warner were the recipients of numerous lovely and useful gifts.

Present were Rev and Mrs Robert Samuelson, Mr and Mrs Abe Denholz, Mrs Berger, Mr and Mrs Robinson Goodale, Mr and Mrs Robert Dillilngham Sr, Mr and Mrs Lawrence Hulse, Mr and Mrs Roscoe Palmer, Mr and Mrs Halsey Penny, Mr and Mrs Henry Vail, Mr and Mrs William Vail, Mr and Mrs Raymond Young, Mr and Mrs William Young, Mr and Mrs Horace K. Hallock, Mrs Hulda Diamond, Mrs Milie Downs, Mrs Roswell Corwin, Mrs Florrie Mammen, Mrs Ted Breiling, Mrs. Addison Whitman Sr, Mrs Robert Guy Sr, Mrs Iona Wright, Mr and Mrs Milton Warner Sr, Mr and Mrs Hollis Warner, Mr and Mrs Olin Warner Sr, Mr and Mrs Olin Warner Jr and Mr and Mrs Allen Farrell.

We don’t often get to know how our ancestors celebrated this type of occasion or who our ancestors’ friends were or who would have been at a party like this.

What fun to look back in time and see what was done, say for an anniversary party, in 1958.  As for my questions I now know:

• the “Hall” that was rented was at the Aquebogue Congregational Church
• the party was on a Saturday night (8^th) and wasn’t on their actual anniversary on the 9^th.   Renting of a church ‘Hall’ would make sense that the party was on Saturday night instead of Sunday.
• the clock was one of many gifts given

The newspaper article gives a little more information but is very close to the account found in my grandmother’s list.  What fun to add the newspaper article to my grandmother’s list.  This helps the event become alive for me and I feel like an observer of the 40^th anniversary party.

If I had been able to search for this online it would have been difficult to find without just using the word 'Warner' and searching through pages and pages of findings.  I would never have thought to look for ‘J W Warner’.  A good reminder not to limit yourself when searching in online databases.

Was the picture above found amongst my grandparent’s photos a picture of Alice & Wesley from this party?  I have no way of knowing.  It could have been.  What a handsome couple! Alice and Wesley never had any children, so, I am honored to remember them here today. 

Happy Anniversary Alice and Wesley!

If you have any corrections or additions or stories to share, I look forward to hearing them.

Enjoy the journey,

Debby

Military Service of Israel Alden

 

American Musket from the Revolutionary War

In the Spring when I was researching the life of Israel Alden (my maternal 6th great grandfather) I learned he also served in the Revolutionary War.  Israel Alden is the great-great grandson of John & Priscilla Alden of the Mayflower.   (See post The Life of Israel Alden)  This led me to wonder what I could find out about his Revolutionary War service?

From the Massachusetts, U.S. , Soldiers and Sailors in the Revolutionary War page 108:

From these records of Israel's service I know that he was a Private and served from 19 September 1777 until 16 October 1777.  Israel served for a total of 28 days.   What happened during this time period of the War?  What was Stillwater?  Hmm, he served for only a month.  

First, I looked for information on Paterson's brigade:

• Patterson’s Brigade was organized in Cambridge, Massachusetts in April 1775.  The Regiment became part of the Continental Army in June 1775 then after several changes was also designated as the 15^th Continental Regiment and the 1^st Massachusetts Regiment in 1777.

Next, I wanted to learn about "Stillwater" and the War:

• “Stillwater” is a village southwest of Saratoga and part of the Battle of Saratoga occurred here.  So, Israel was a soldier at the Battle of Saratoga.

Being a little rusty on my Revolutionary War battles I needed to learn more about the Battle of Saratoga:

• The Campaign of Saratoga (14 June – 17 October 1777) was an attempt by the British to gain military control of the strategically important Hudson River valley.  The campaign ended with the surrender of the British army and was an enormous morale boost for the Colony and convinced France to enter the war in alliance with America.  WOW, Israel was part of a very important battle during the Revolutionary War.  Now I want to visit the battlefield to experience and learn more about the battle.

This Summer I had the opportunity to visit the battlefield which is now maintained as part of the Saratoga National Historical Park:

Listening to the Ranger talks and reviewing the displays I was surprised to learn how much of the land had been cleared of trees by the early settlers. It was also interesting to find out that frequently men served for short periods such as Israel did because they had farms to get back to, etc.  These soldiers brought whatever weapons they owned and used them in battle.  I also learned that there is Battle Historian for the Saratoga Battle.  I contacted him to ask questions about the battle and to see if there is any additional information about Israel.  As of this time, I have not received a reply.

Did Israel receive a pension for his service?  I’ve heard that some soldiers received land grants as payment.  Could that have been why Israel decided to move to Windsor, NY as other soldiers did?

• In the book Binghampton It’s Settlement, Growth and Development Lawyer states, ”Under a law of congress passed March 18, 1818, pensions were provided to be paid to those soldiers of the Revolution who had served in the regular or United States army, and they alone were entitled to its benefits, to the exclusion of the militia or state troops, whose service in many cases was fully as meritorious and hazardous as that of their more favored fellows.  The injustice or at least the discriminating provisions of the act were so manifest that the whole body of troops, both regulars and militiamen, were loud in their denunciation of them, yet more than twelve years passed before congress remedied the wrong.” 

Since Israel served for such a short time and after searching and searching for records, I was unable to find a record for a pension or a land grant.

What an interesting journey this was!  I was able to learn more about an important battle in our Country's history and learn that my ancestor was a farmer who became part of this important battle.  I was able to stand and view the areas Israel may have looked over and fought on.  Being able to actually "be" where your ancestor was 244 years ago is just amazing.  I always learn more when I can be at the location and talk to others who have done such extensive research about an event my ancestor was part of.

If you have any corrections or additions or stories to share I look forward to hearing them.

Enjoy the journey,
Debby

Seven Generations of Photos

     Does having a picture of your ancestor change the way you look at their life story?  While I am researching I am always hopeful that I will find photos of my ancestors, unfortunately, I rarely find them.  I can tell their stories with the facts I can find but I still want the photos.  So, I keep searching.

     This Summer I was amazed at the number of photos on my Robinson and Terry lines that were found at my cousin's house.  Rebecca has bins of things that belonged to her great-grandmother Ella Terry Billard.  When we got together this Summer, while I was visiting, I was astounded at the number of photos we found and how old they were.  Working with these photos I am learning so many new things about the family.  One of the first things I realized is that these are the oldest photos I have ever been able to see!  As I thought about this I also realized I have seven generations of photos with this find.  Photos from my son all the way back to Stephen Robinson (3x great grandfather) which was taken no later then 1871.  As you look at the generations of photos, what family resemblances do you see among the photos?  What else do you notice in the photos?

(click on image to enlarge)

I wonder if Caroline's closed "smile" was due to a lack of teeth? I wonder if there was a permanent photographer in the Riverhead area in the 1860s and 70s?  What was the occasion for the photos taken of Stephen and Caroline?  What was the occasion for Almeda's photo?  I believe Carrie's photo was taken in New York City during her time in college (1880-2).  My grandfather's picture was taken from a family photo probably taken in the 1940s.  My father's picture was taken at my second marriage in 2012.  Mine was taken in 2018 when I received my General Society of Mayflower Descendants certificate and my son's was his senior picture in college.  (Be sure to click on the bold names above if you'd like to find out about the life stories of the people in the photos.)

Seeing a picture of my ancestor really brings them to life for me.  I may have many facts about them but actually seeing what they looked like definitely makes them "real" for me.  How about for you?  What an amazing find this was!

If you have any corrections or additions or stories to share I look forward to hearing them.

Enjoy the journey,
Debby

PUBLISHED Carrie’s Letters: A Glimpse Into Rural Family Life Baiting Hollow, NY (1880-1910)

Over ten years ago my father showed me a shoebox of letters written by my paternal great-grandmother Carrie (Terry) Warner. Carrie was a woman I really knew nothing about except that she died suddenly when my grandfather was barely five years old. Thus began an amazing journey to make the letters available for others to read. (See tab on blog entitled Carrie’s Letters for additional stories)

At the beginning of this journey the task seemed rather straightforward: scan and transcribe the letters in to a digital format so that others could read them. And that’s exactly what I did. My father and I scanned all the pages of all the letters and I began transcribing them. Many of the letters had unnumbered multiple pages in them. The letters had been folded in envelopes for over 100 years and creases sometimes made the letters difficult to decipher. I used Microsoft Word and did a separate file for each letter. In some of the letters the writing had become rather light. In several of the letters Carrie wrote vertically and then horizontally across the pages. Carrie also wrote in the margins, across the top space of the letter and sometimes around the edges of the letter. Some of the letters took hours or even days to transcribe. But, I was so grateful to have these letters!

As I transcribed and read the letters I realized I had no idea who some of the people were that she was talking about. Who was Aunt Em or Aunt Carrie, Sizzie, etc.? I needed to figure out who the people were that Carrie was talking about to better understand what she was saying to her parents and her sister Ella. Realizing that more detail was needed I tried to figure out the best way to add that information without distracting from the story in the letters. Sidebars seemed like the best way to add the needed information. Somewhere along the way I heard about a program by Adobe called inDesign was the best place to put the transcribed letters to make it easier for others to read. Thank goodness for my son who was able to help me set up the program with the margins, sidebars and headings I would need for the letters. Now the research began. Thanks to Jill Morelli

Once Genealogists begin researching anything it is VERY difficult to stop that research. My husband frequently reminded me that at some point I had to stop or I’d NEVER finish this and get the pages published for others to read. This became like a 5,000 piece puzzle just sitting there waiting to be put together. How could I just leave it? When was there the right place to say…OK, I’m done? Each time I went back over pages I would figure out who someone else was that Carrie talked about. I also started an Index for the letters. Who were all these people and why were they important enough for her to mention in her letters? Once I started looking at who married whom, women’s maiden names, etc. the letters made a lot more sense. Years passed, I was working full time and we all know life gets busy. I kept saying that when I retired this project would get my full attention and I would complete it. Retirement arrived in June 2020.

The last four months I have devoted the majority of my time to completing this project. A final edit and the comparison of the 2^nd full edition of the letters to the digital format was completed. Hours were spent to complete a listing of the over 600 people mentioned in the letters and/or in the sidebars. Notes were made as to who the people were and who they were connected to. Justine Warner Wells book entitled The Descendants of Daniel Jr. & Eleanor Howell Warner of Baiting Hollow LI, NY and the Warner Ancestors in England and America was an enormous asset. This helped me keep several generations of the family straight as Carrie told me about the family in her letters. I also used free online digital newspapers. Whether Carrie talked about the Train Depot Robbery or the death of a local person, the newspapers added more details. Since news was traveling by word of mouth back then I was also interested in how closely the story she told matched the accounts in the local newspapers. When Carrie talked of someone’s death or marriage, a little research helped me figure out who exactly she was referring to. Sometimes only first names were used. If I could find other clues in the letters, I might have even been able to determine a last name. I believe through the letters I was even able to date a picture the family has of the Mill in Peconic that Carrie’s father Gilbert ran for many years and even determine who took the picture.

So, the research is done, now what? Several years ago I attended a seminar given by Jill Morelli entitled “Just Do It! Self-Publishing Your Family History at the Southern California Genealogy Jamboree. (See Blog post Southern California Genealogy Jamboree 2018-Thursday) I came away believing ‘I can do it-publish Carrie’s Letters’ and actually wrote that on my notes. Silly me thought that getting the letters transcribed and with sidebars was all I needed to do, the hardest part. Well, trying to complete the information in the program was very time consuming. From this part forward I always felt that I was operating at a level that was just beyond my realm of knowledge. There were countless long phone calls to fix errors in the file. Hours spent trying to understand the new vocabulary of this program and how to work within its limits. Overwhelming, to say the least. I took a chance and reached out to Jill who was so encouraging and helpful. Hopefully, I can encourage someone else as she encouraged me.  She also advised me to print a sample book of a few pages to see how things looked.

Then a printing company needed to be determined. A cover design needed to be developed. My son graciously worked with me to design an amazing cover! Oh, but just having a cover design then led to a new program to make an entire book cover. More new vocabulary and things to learn. While doing things digitally is very convenient you frequently cannot pick up the phone and talk to a person any more. They might email and answer your question but several times when I asked a specific question I was directed to their general resource articles to search for my answer. So frustrating!  What were the costs involved, etc. The book has an 11x8.5 inch page size to allow for the sidebars next to the actual letter.  The book has over 100 letters and is over 300 pages including an Index of about 20 pages that includes notes on relationships.  The process was daunting! Yes, this is doable online and easier than I’m sure it was 50 years ago but still a very high learning curve.

Last week I was able to upload everything needed to be able to print the first 25 hardcover books! YEA!!! Big sigh of relief. I also pushed my luck and successful uploaded a file and cover for a digital eBook version. Now others can learn about Carrie, her husband John, their six sons and about the community they lived in. If you have ancestors that lived in the Baiting Hollow/Riverhead area from 1880-1910 then your ancestors might be mentioned. Maybe, like me, you’re just interested in seeing what life was like back then for a young woman as she studied to be a teacher, then became a wife and mother. The letters definitely tell about everyday life then, from getting ice at the ice house to make ice cream, putting in a windmill, building a barn, killing livestock for food or sale, growing crops and flowers, and even the latest gossip about who was dating who in the area.

Hardcover copies will be donated to the local libraries, Town Historian’s Office, and Suffolk County Historical Society for those researching in the area. If you’d like your own copy to read, the hardcover, can be ordered through CarriesLettersBook@gmail.com. The online version should be available soon where you would normally purchase eBooks.

My Dad received the first copy and I was able to watch him open the box and view the book via FaceTime.  How exciting!!

I know, without a doubt, that this is the most important genealogical project that I will ever do. I am so grateful to all who have helped me accomplish this and who have encouraged me along the way. I couldn't have done it without all of you.  This truly was a group effort!

If you have any corrections or additions or stories to share I look forward to hearing them.

Enjoy the journey,
Debby