Susannah (North) Martin - hanged at Salem in 1692

Susannah, daughter of Richard North and Joan Bartram, was baptized at Olney (Buckinghamshire) ENG on 30 September 1620. Her father was a landowner in Salisbury (Essex) MA as early as 1640.

On 11 August 1646, in Salisbury, Susannah married George Martin, who was born in Romsey (Hampshire) ENG in 1618. He had immigrated to America c1639 and settled in Salisbury, where he plied his trade as a blacksmith. He died there before 23 November 1686. George's name is on the Memorial to the First Settlers of Amesbury, 1654 at the site of the old Golgotha Burial Ground in Amesbury (Essex).

George and his first wife, Hannah, who died in 1646, had a daughter Hannah, born in 1643. George and Susannah had 8 children, born 1647-1667:  Richard, George, John, Hester, Jane, Abigail, William and Samuel.

According to David W. Hoyt's Old Families of Salisbury and Amesbury (p. 240, footnote), Susannah was "a short, active woman, wearing a hood and scarf, plump and well developed in her figure, of remarkable personal neatness" and one who "scorned to be drabbled."

Witch Trials Memorial - 2004

In April 1692 Susannah was arrested for witchcraft and examined the following month. Among the charges against her was that "she went from Amesbury to Newbury on foot in a 'dirty season' without getting her clothing wet." During her trial in Salem (Essex) on 29 June 1692, Susannah, accused of "sundry acts of witchcraft," proclaimed her innocence and laughed defiantly at her accusers. She was found guilty and was hanged with others in Salem on 19 July 1692.  Her burial place was never divulged. She and 18 others executed in 1692 are commemorated, however, in Salem's Witch Trials Memorial adjacent to Salem's oldest burying ground.  There is a stone bench for each of them.

On 31 October 2001, the acting governor of Massachusetts signed into law a bill officially exonerating Susannah Martin and four others.  The rest of the "witches" had been exonerated years earlier.

For more about Susannah and the witchcraft trials, see Enders A. Robinson's Salem Witchcraft and Hawthorne's House of the Seven Gables (Bowie MD: Heritage Books, Inc.,1992) and The Tryal of Susanna Martin, Executed July 19, 1692 (Salem MA: The Nova Anglia Co., n.d.).

Photo of Susannah (North) Martin's memorial from Buffalogen's photo collection

From Buffalogen's photo collection - 3

 
Broadway School No. 41
Jefferson near Sycamore
Buffalo, New York
1911

Ruth Ottilia Steinagle - 2nd row, 3rd from left

Ora Evans and his father, Moses Evans

Evans monument, Cork Cemetery, 1988

    Ora Evans, son of Moses Evans, allegedly was born in North Adams (Berkshire) MA in April 1760 and died in Lake County OH in 1845.  The Evans monument in Cork Cemetery in Harpersfield (Ashtabula) OH, erected after the death of Ora Jr. in 1871, is inscribed:  “In Memory of/ Ora Evans/ 1760-1845./ Jemima/ His wife.”
    There is some surprisingly detailed information in print about Ora and his service during the American Revolution.  According to the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) chapter that collected much of the information, as well as several other accounts, all unsourced:
    “At the time of the ‘Lexington Alarm’ in April 1775, father and son responded, going to the relief of Boston.”  Furthermore, they served throughout the war as ‘minute-men,’ lastly at the Battle of Harlem Heights.  Ora’s mother, who lived to be 108 years old, followed the army as a nurse and, so tradition relates, one time carried dispatches from General Washington.
    Why weren’t such significant military deeds officially recorded somewhere?  Neither Moses nor Ora is listed in the annals of the Lexington Alarm, the lists of Minute Men, Massachusetts’ Revolutionary War records, and New York in the Revolution.  No record has been found of Ora’s birth in 1760 in North Adams, or elsewhere.  And, wouldn’t you think that someone who lived to be 108 years old would be mentioned in a local history?
 

Ora Evans birth record, Warwick MA

   A candidate for Ora’s father is Moses Evans (born 17 March 1721 in Franklin County MA), who married in Northfield (Franklin) 1746 Chloe Doolittle (born 4 May 1730 in Northfield).  Recorded by the Warwick (Franklin) Town Clerk was the entry:  “Ora Evans, son to Moses Evans and Chloe Evans was born February the 20 - 1767.”  However, in 1775, this son would have been only eight years old, probably too young to have engaged in much military activity.

     Moses’ military service, if any, is unknown.  He died in Hinsdale (Cheshire) NH in 1807.  A photograph of the gravestone of Chloe D. Evans, who died on 23 January 1812 at 83 years of age (born circa 1729 ) has been linked to the Find A Grave memorial for Chloe Doolittle Evans, spouse of Moses Evans.  She allegedly died in Hartland (Windsor) VT, but the cemetery where the photo was taken is not identified.
    In 1811 someone named Chloe Evans went to Lake County (then Geauga County) OH from Genesee County NY, as did Ora Evans and his wife, Jemima Button.  Could Chloe have been Moses’ widow and Ora’s mother?
     Since nothing written about Ora and his parents, except the birth of a son Ora to a Moses Evans, has been verified so far, it seems reasonable to think that Ora WAS born in 1767, son of Moses and Chloe, and all the undocumented information about patriotic service is inaccurate.  Despite the lack of verifiable records of service, however, the SAR has recognized both Moses and Ora as Revolutionary patriots and at least two men have joined the SAR as descendants of Moses.

Sources:
    New Connecticut Chapter DAR, Painesville, Ohio, compiler, “Ora Evans, 1760-1845,” A Record of the Revolutionary Soldiers Buried in Lake County, Ohio (Painesville, Ohio:  Lake County Historical Society, n.d.), pp. 23-24.
    “Moses Evans,” memorial 47940482, and "Chloe D. Evans," memorial 47941322, Find A Grave (accessed 8 March 2014).
    Genealogical Committee of Western Reserve Historical Society,  Genealogical Data Relating to Women in the Western Reserve Before 1840 (Cleveland: WRHS, 1976), pp. 79, 589.
    Massachusetts, Town Clerks, "Town Records, 1627-2001," Franklin County, Warwick, Births, marriages, deaths 1740-1849, vol. 1, p. 6, Ora Evans birth; digital image, FamilySearch (accessed 15 April 2014), image 6/158. 

Evans monument from Buffalogen's photo collection

From Buffalogen's photo collection - 2

Who are they?

The children may be descendants of John Rupp (1830-1883) and his wife, Genovefa Sutter (1830-1903), of Buffalo, N.Y.
 

Cabinet cards by Wm. Wunsch, The Pan American Photo-grapher, 24 Military Road, near Amherst St.), Buffalo, N.Y.

Robert Bartley and his Civil War tentmates

    Robert Bartley’s daughter talked many times about his service in the Civil War (on the Union side).  She said he enlisted in the Navy, serving on the Western World, and after his discharge in 1863 enlisted in the 39th Maine Volunteers (Infantry).  He and his infantry tentmates were photographed in December 1864.  Pictured are Capt. Francis Frye (upper left), Sergeant Arthur Hinckley (upper right), Charles Williams (lower left), and Robert Bartley (lower right).   
    There has been quite a bit written about the Western World and its battles, and Robert received a pension for three years service in the Navy, mostly on this ship.  In his Declaration for Pension, he stated that he had also served in the 1st Maine Sharp Shooters Volunteers for eight months, and his obituary mentioned his service with the 39th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment.  I have been unable to find any record of his service in either Maine unit. 
    Robert’s daughter noted on the back of the photo that Francis Frye, a tall Maine man, was U .S. Consul to Honolulu after the war; Sergeant Hinckley, stoutish and jolly looking, was killed in action, possible at the Battle of Seven Oaks in Virginia, by a piece of shell that lodged in his heart after passing through Robert’s upper arm; and Charles Williams “was said to have deserted from the Army.”  Robert (1843-1924) was from New York City.  He married, fathered eight children, and worked as a shipping clerk.
    I have been unable to determine the unit these men were in and to verify the comments about Robert's comrades.  Maine’s “Civil War Soldiers and Sailors Card Index, 1861-1865,” does not include anyone who could be one of these men, save for Charles A. Williams from Auburn, who enlisted in Augusta 29 December 1864 in Company D, C.G. Infantry, and deserted 12 January 1865.  That he is the man in the photograph has not been proved.
    Does anyone have information about the soldiers in the photo? 

Sources:
    “Maine, Civil War military rolls, Maine Volunteers, 1861-1865,” index and digital images, FamilySearch
    Robert Bartley’s pension file
Photograph from Buffalogen’s collection

From Buffalogen's photo collection - 1

Who are they?

On the back:  "Clara - Alice - Owen - Florence."  

The children may be descendants of John Rupp (1830-1883) and his wife, Genovefa Sutter (1830-1903), of Buffalo, New York.

Cabinet card by Landsheft Artistic Photographer, 193 E. Genesee St., Buffalo, N.Y. This business was active in the 1890s, and perhaps earlier and later.

Timothy and Margaret (Donovan) Kiley from County Cork, Ireland

1850 NYC, Ward 7, Dw 315/Fam 648

    For more than forty years, I had no reason to question the 1850 census that reported Anne (born c.1838), Elizabeth (born c.1840), and Timothy (born c.1841), children of Timothy and Margaret (Donovan) Kiley of New York City, were born in N.Y.  Despite diligent searches for a 1840 census record, a city directory listing, a passenger list, and a naturalization record, nothing was found for the Kileys until 1850.     

    Not too long ago, my third cousin, a descendant of the Kileys’ youngest child, provided a record that refuted the census information. Eliza Keily,daughter of Tim Keily and Margt Donovan of Ring, was baptized in the Parish Church of Clonakilty, County Cork, on 25 April 1840 with sponsors John Baze and Eliza Baze.  That this was undoubtedly the correct family is substantiated by my  grandmother’s note; she wrote that Margaret Donovan’s “mother’s brother or grandfather was Capt. Theodore Bayse.”  Elizabeth died in NYC in June 1889 at age 49.  Her death certificate says she was born there.  It also says her father was John Kiley!
     On record in the same parish church is the baptism on 5 June 1839 of Tim Kehely, son of Tim Kehely and Margt Donovan of Ring, with one sponsor, Mary Baze.  He might be Elizabeth's brother, Timothy, who was said by my grandmother to have died unmarried from the effects of a long imprisonment during the Civil War.  His death record has not been found, and his birth date  is known only from one census record.
    No record of baptism was found for Anne Kiley, whose given name was said by my grandmother to be Honorah (she was recorded as Honora on the 1850 census).  Although her ages on the 1850 and 1860 censuses (12 and 22) suggest she was born in 1838, her ages in 1870 and 1880 (29 and 39) and her age at death in 1899 (58)  indicate she was born in 1841.  She, therefore, might have been born in the U.S.

1860 NYC, Ward 7, Dw 187/Fam 805

    The baptism on 21 January 1810 of Tim Keily, son of Jms Keily and Mary Driscol, residence not given, with sponsors Micl Mahony and Brget Mahony, is probably that of the immigrant Timothy Kiley, whose mother was said by the writer’s grandmother to be Honorah O’Driscoll.  Despite the difference in the given names, it is not outside the realm of possibility that Honorah was Mary Honorah.  Timothy Kiley’s birth, as reported in U.S. census records, agrees, more or less, with the birth of Tim Keily.
    A final record, that of the baptism on 28 December 1835 of Eliza Bage, daughter of Tim Bage and Mary Connor of Ring, with sponsors John Connor and Margt Donovan, provides another link between Margaret Donovan and the Bage, Base, Bayse, Baze family.
    What about Timothy’s wife?  Margt Donovan, daughter of Tim Donovan and Bat Bare (residence not recorded), was baptized on 16 November 1810, with sponsors Dan Murry and Mary Brien.  The surname Bare could be read as Base.  Was she the one?  To date, no marriage record has been found and Margaret's identity is uncertain.

    The Kileys were in New York City in August 1843 when their fourth and fifth children (twins) were baptized.  Why they were not listed in city directories between then and 1850 is puzzling.
    Was Timothy the eldest child and Anne the third? 
    When did the Kiley family immigrate to America? 

Sources:
Burial record for Anne Combs
Church records, Irish Genealogy (http://churchrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/churchrecords/)
Death certificate for Elizabeth (Kiley) Johnson
U.S. census records
Census images from Ancestry.com, 3 April 2014

Who was Rev. Thomas B. Bryant of Prince George County, Virginia?

    Thomas B. Bryant was born between 1777 and 1778, where and to whom is unknown,  although some sources claim he hailed from Raleigh (Wake) North Carolina.  He died in Prince George County and his gravestone in the Waverly Burying Ground, now vanished, was inscribed:
        In/ Memory of/ Rev. Thos. B. Bryant/ Died March 31, 1841/ in the 63rd year of his age./ For more than 39 years he/ was a follower of Christ./ And for more than 23 years/ a parish minister of his/ word in the Methodist/ Episcopal Church./ ‘Mark the perfect man/ and behold the up right/ for the end/ of that man is peace.’/ Psalms 37-37.
    Thomas’ wife was Sarah Womack, probably daughter of John Womack of Prince George County.  Her gravestone was inscribed:
        In/ Memory of/ Mrs. Sarah/ wife of/ Rev. T. B. Bryant,/ Born Sept. 28, 1779/ Died Dec. 9, 1822/ Blessed are the pure/ in heart for they/ shall see God.
    According to the Virginia Historical Inventory, Thomas’ estate, Waverly, had been in the Bryant family for over 100 years and Thomas had been born there.  The site of the homestead was near Pool Run Road and Blackwater Creek, with the family graveyard a short distance from the house.  It was on this property that Thomas had his cooper shop, used during the week, and a meeting house, used on Sundays and the first home of Mount Sinai Methodist Church, which he founded.  In addition to his trade as a cooper and his religious and educational undertakings, Thomas was surveyor for Prince George County from early 1800 until about 12 June 1838, the date of his last recorded survey.
    Land records and land tax records indicate that the Womack family originally owned the Waverly property, which probably came into Thomas’ hands at the time of his marriage.  Thus, it is unlikely Thomas was born there.  Few land records survive for the late 1700s and early 1800s; however, Thomas was first taxed on land in 1805, when he had a total of 377 acres.  A survey was made March 1842 of the plantation called Waverly, containing 291 acres, belonging to the estate of Thomas B. Bryant. 
    There were no Bryants listed in the early personal property tax records, save for Michael Bryant in 1788 and 1789, until Thomas appeared in 1799, charged with one white male over sixteen (himself) and no slaves or horses.  Had Waverly belonged to the Bryant family at that time, Thomas surely would have had personal property, if only a horse.
    Thomas was the father of eight children born between 1802 and 1817: Mary Rebecca (William Henry Harrison); Dr. Alexander (Aduella P. Norville); John Harrison (Pauline M. Garland); William (Emily C.); Rebecca (William Smith), Eliza Ann (Edward Archer Marks); Elizabeth S.; and Henry T. (Mary L. Marks).
    Does anyone know more about Rev. Thomas B. Bryant and his wife, Sarah Womack?
   What happened to the records of Mount Sinai Methodist Church?

Sources:
    Batte, R. Bolling Batte papers, The Library of Virginia, Accession no. 35360
    “Bryant Graveyard” and “Waverly Homesite,” WPA, Virginia Historical Inventory, 1937
    “Mount Sinai Sunday School,” news item, The Intelligencer & Petersburg Commercial Advertiser, 10 June 1828, p. 2, col. 1
    Hening & Munford, “Marks and wife, &c. against Bryant and wife,” Reports of Cases Argued and Determined in the  Supreme Court of Appeals of Virginia,” 14VA, 1911
    Prince George County VA, deed books
    Prince George County VA, land tax lists
    Prince George County VA, personal property tax lists
    Prince George County VA, surveyor’s records
    US census records
    Miscellaneous records 
Signature of T.B. Bryant from survey for Estate of Col. William Harrison, Virginia State Library, Accession no. 1724.