The Family of William Williamson

William Williamson is buried in the Middle Intervale Cemetery in Bethel, Maine. He is related to my 4X great-grandfather, John Williamson, and most likely they were brothers. The fact that they are immigrants from Manorhamilton, County Leitrim, Ireland and that there are other William Williamsons living in the area make it difficult to establish the relationship with certainty. It seems likely that they arrived in this country in the 1820s, well before the potato famine that began in the 1840s. William and John were shoemakers who travelled from house to house, making shoes for the entire family. William Williamson moved to the Sunday River section of Newry, across the Androscoggin River from Middle Intervale. 

William Williamson married second Eliza (Elizabeth) Stuart/Stewart. She was considerably younger. Her memorial on Findagrave lists her birthdate as 1816 and in census records her age varies but is most consistent with 1810. After the 1860 census they appear in separate households and she is buried in the Sunday River Cemetery in Newry.  She spent her final days with her son, Richard and he lived with his nephew, Dr. William Williamson in 1870 and his brother, John in 1880. 

William Williamson's family constructed from census records: 

1. John (age 30 in 1850 census; not living with William and Eliza in 1860, I haven't found records after 1850). He must be from a prior marriage because he's only 10 years younger than Eliza. 
2. Mary J. (age 24 in 1850 census; not living with William & Eliza in 1860; I haven't found records after 1850) She is probably also from a prior marriage as Eliza would have been 16 when she was born. 
3. Sarah (age 18 in 1850 census; not living with William & Eliza in 1860; I haven't found records after 1850). I believe she may be the first child of William and Eliza based on the six year gap between Mary J. and Sarah and the more frequent births after her. 
4. Margaret (age 16 in 1850; 26 in 1860; not living with William or Eliza in 1870; I haven't found records after 1860) 
5. Rebecca (age 12 in 1850; not living with William & Eliza in 1860; I haven't found records after 1850)
6. William Henry (called Henry age 9 in 1850; called William H. age 19 in 1860; In 1863, William is registered as eligible for the draft in Newry, Maine. In 1870, there is a William H. living in Gorham, N.H. at a hotel and farming with a wife, Jennie, who was a pastry cook. This may or may not be the same William Henry Williamson.)
7. Maria (age 6 in 1850; called Mariah age 16 in 1860; I haven't found any records after 1860)
8. Richard (age 3 in 1850; age 13 in 1860; age 22 in 1870 living with Eliza; is head of household that includes his mother, Eliza in 1880). He is buried in the Sunday River Cemetery. Findagrave has his birthday as June 1, 1847 and his death date as August 8, 1923. He is buried in the Sunday River Cemetery. 
9. Thomas S. (age 11 in 1860) Findagrave lists his birth as June 1850 and death as January 17, 1869. He is buried in the Sunday River Cemetery. 
10. George (age 6 in 1860; age 17 in 1870 living with Eliza, according the The Bethel Journals, there is gravestone in Sunday River Cemetery for a George D. who died January 30, 1927; I haven't found any records after 1870). 
11. Albert (age 5 in 1860; age 14 in 1870 living with Eliza, age 24 in 1880 and working as a druggist in Norway, Maine). In the 1900 census, he is still living in Norway with a wife, Helen, who is 18 years younger. Maine marriage records show her name was Helen Augusta Tufts. Albert died February 22, 1911 and is buried in Pine Grove Cemetery in Norway, Maine. Findagrave gives his date of birth as June 27, 1855. 

The Bethel Journals - Williamson Family - some information conflicts with original records. 

Some of my other Williamson blog posts

Luck of the Irish

Celebrating an Centenarian - John Williamson, William's brother (probably)

What's Your Story, John Williamson?  - Trying to figure out the immigration of the family

The Williamson Divorce - The Dr. William Williamson with whom William (of this post) lived in 1870. 

Mystery Guy - 52 Ancestors #30

First, I found a newspaper article about a relative who died from his injuries after he was struck by a car. That sent me on a quest to find out more about this relative and I ended up with as many questions as I found answers. In other words, a pretty typical day in the life of a genealogist.

Lewiston Sun Journal, July 11, 1940, accessed on Google News Archive

Guy Morrison Cotton was my 1st cousin, 3 times removed. He was born on February 14, 1888 and died on July 11, 1940, the son of William F. "Frank" & Deborah J. "Jennie" (Lamb) Cotton. He was a teamster, a shoemaker, a member of the National Guard, a servant, and a farm laborer. He married an older widowed woman, Inez (Kenerson/Kennison) Goodwin, on March 20, 1913. Guy's occupation is listed as shoemaker. Tracing this couple through the records in very interesting. Inez was married previously to James Goodwin, who died on April 30, 1911. They appear in the 1900 census and her birthdate is given as May 1866. However, the marriage record between Guy & Inez lists her age as 40 (born about 1873) and he was 25. Since Inez shows up with her parents in the 1870 census, it would seem that she was shaving off a few years when she stated her age for her marriage license in 1913. James and Inez had one adopted daughter, Etta. Guy and Inez have no children as she was about 47 when they married.

So how does a 47-year-old widow end up married to a 25-year-old young man? There must be a story here. Their marriage record makes it look like she's only 15 years older than him, rather than the actual age difference of 22 years.

From marriage record - Note the bride's stated age and Guy's occupation

1900 Census shows Inez (Enez) listed with her first husband and her correct birth date - May 1866

In 1900, Guy is 12 and living in Oxford, Maine with Charles & Lilian Brown. They are only 21 and 17 and he is listed as the brother of the head of household. His parents are renting in the same building with his 14-year-old sister, Florence. My guess is that they were all living together and the census taker recorded Guy with his brother-in-law as head of household. His uncle (my great-great-grandfather), Francis Llewellyn Cotton is living next door in a home he owns. My great-grandfather, Ray Everett Cotton, son of Francis Llewellyn, is the same age as Guy and I imagine that they would have gone to school together.

In 1910, there is no trace of the family in the census. In 1920, Guy and Inez are living with his parents in Paris, Maine. George is 32 and Inez lists her age as 52 (closer to the truth but still shaving off a couple of years). Guy is listed as not working but Inez is a "laborer" and Guy's parents are listed as "farmer" for his father and "laborer" for his mother. There is no sign of any other family nearby but a granddaughter is listed, Dorothy Brown, age 1. She is likely the daughter of Guy's sister Lilian and her husband, Charles.

Where is Guy and/or his parents in 1910? Where are Charles and Lilian Brown in 1920? Lilian is not listed among his surviving relatives in the news article about this death. Is Dorothy being raised by her grandparents or her aunt and uncle, Inez and Guy? Since all the other adults worked, was Guy the caretaker for Dorothy? That seems quite unusual for the time.

In 1930, Guy is listed as singe, living in Northumberland, New Hampshire, and a servant in the household of Ernest Tillaltson (pretty sure the transcription is wrong). Also in the household are Ernest's wife, Gadriella (possibly Gabriella) 56, sons Paul 31 and Blanchard 22, daughters Florence 20, and Barbara 18.

So what happened to Inez? Why is he not listed as a widower if she is deceased? Who is this Tillaltson family and what work does Guy do as their servant?

Guy served in the military. His draft registration card indicates that he works as a teamster but was out of work at that time. In addition, he has six years of service in the National Guard and his application for a military headstone indicates that he enlisted in the 331st Guard and Fire Company on July 29, 1918 and was honorably discharged on January 8, 1919. The war ended on November 11, 1918 and he never was deployed overseas.

Physical description from Guy's draft registration card

Guy's work experience from his draft registration card

Guy's military experience from his draft registration card

On July 11, 1940, the Lewiston Sun Journal, reported the death of Guy Cotton after he was struck by a car. Although the age is not correct, the parents and other relatives are those of Guy Morrison Cotton, born in 1888. That means he was 68, not 40, when he died.

Guy's cousin, Ray Everett Cotton, was my great-grandfather.
Fern Lyndell Cotton - my grandmother.

Live Long - 100 Years Old & Died Suddenly! - 52 Ancestors #16

John Beal is one of my long-lived ancestors. I have many ancestors who lived into their nineties, including a number I was fortunate to know during my lifetime. I had three great-grandparents for most of my life, as well as a number of great-aunts and great-uncles.

John was a Great Migration immigrant. His occupation is listed as shoemaker. He came to America with his large family (5 sons, 3 daughters) and two servants. He died April 1, 1688 at the age of 100. Below are various accounts of his death. The facts that he is said to have died "suddenly" and was found in his dooryard indicate to me that he was in pretty good health until he died. 

The Pioneers of Massachusetts

Samuel Sewall's Diary

History of the Town of Hingham

Massachusetts Town and Vital Records, 1620-1988

John & Nazareth (Hobart) Beal
Samuel & Martha (Beal) Dunham
Samuel & Mary (Harlow) Dunham
Ebenezer & Abigail (Smith) Dunham
John & Mary (Thomas) Dunham
James & Cynthia (Packard) Dunham
James & Mary "Sally" (Houghton) Dunham
Asa Freeman & Florilla (Dunham) Ellingwood
George Albert & Nina King (Ellingwood) Gibbs
Ray Everett & Annie Florilla (Gibbs) Cotton
Fern Lyndell Cotton - my grandmother

An Immigrant's Story - Fearless Females Series

Rebecca Williamson came from Ireland in 1821 with her father, John, mother, Ann, and brother, William. She was born in Manorhamilton, Ireland in January 1814. The family settled in the part of Bethel, Maine, known as Middle Intervale. Her father and his brother were shoe makers but her father became a farmer during his time in Bethel. Her brother, William, attended Bowdoin College and became a doctor. I don't have any immigration documents or photos of her or her family. The sketch of her father, in The History of Bethel, Formerly Sudbury, Canada, Oxford County, Maine, 1768-1890, by William B. Lapham, says that John never became a naturalized citizen of the United States. 

Rebecca married a neighbor, Elias Mellen Carter. Their first child was born in 1838 so the marriage is presumed to have taken place shortly before then. Elias was the son of Dr. Timothy & Frances (Freeland) Carter and was born September 11, 1811. He and Rebecca took over the family home known as the Brick End House. Dr. Timothy Carter was the first doctor in Bethel. 

Brick End House & Rebecca Williamson (Carter) Bailey on left with an unidentified woman on the right. Rebecca Williamson (Carter) Bailey was the great-granddaughter of Rebecca Williamson, the Irish immigrant.

Elias & Rebecca had a large family of eleven children, seen in the 1860 census below. Daughter Frances Ann, age 20 was already out of the household, but the other ten children were Augustus Mellen, age 19; Mary Elizabeth, age 16; William Lawson, age 15; Timothy Cullen, age 13; Emily Jane, age 11; Julia Elizabeth, age 10; Sarah Lily (listed as Lily S.), age 8; twins John Herbert and Helen Louise, age 6; and Anna Grace, age 3. 

1860 Census page 1

1860 Census page 2

However, in 1861, the family lost 5 daughters, between September 13th and September 30th, to diphtheria. Emily & Julia died on September 13th, Helen on September 20th, (Sarah) Lily on September 26th, and Anna on September 30th. The 1870 census shows the much smaller family. Rebecca also lost her mother in 1861 and son, Augustus went off to fight in the Civil War the next year. Fortunately, he survived the war and became the next to inhabit the family home. 

Rebecca was widowed later that year. Elias died on November 17, 1880. In the 1900 census, Rebecca is living with her recently widowed son, Augustus and his two children, Edward age 25 and Frances age 21. Augustus has also taken in his sister, Mary (Carter) Wiley and her son, William. 

Rebecca died on April 2, 1906 of cancer of the scalp. 

My line of descent from Rebecca is through her son, Augustus, to his son, Edward. My grandfather, Thomas Richard Carter, was the second son of Edward. The only daughter of Edward was named after his grandmother, Rebecca Williamson (Carter) Bailey. 

Tragedy Strikes - The story of the five daughters who died in 1861. 

Thank you to Lisa Alzo, author of The Accidental Genealogist, for providing 31 prompts celebrating Women's History Month. This is her 6th year and she has some great resources (with some discounts) for finding one's female ancestors. 

Celebrating A Centenarian - 52 Ancestors #11

John Williamson, from The History of Bethel, formerly Sudbury, Canada, Maine, 1768-1890, by William B. Lapham, 1891. 

Pages 155-156

John Williamson was born in Manor Hamilton, Ireland, either in seventeen hundred and eighty-six or eighty-seven. He celebrated the hundredth anniversary of his birth in eighteen hundred and eighty-six. He came to Bethel in eighteen hundred and twenty-one with his wife and children, and settled in Bethel. He was a shoemaker by trade, but followed farming after he came to Bethel. He was a lover of nature 

and of the land he cultivated. He was well educated and well versed in ancient history. He was never naturalized, having a strong attachment for England and her institutions, especially the established church of which he was a faithful member. He was also much attached to the land of his adoption and its free institutions. 

He was a great student of the Bible, which was his constant companion, and of which he had committed to memory many chapters. He was a very interesting man socially and otherwise, and his conversation was always entertaining and instructive. His wife, whose maiden name was Ann McClure, passed on many years before him, and during his later years, he was tenderly cared for by his daughter, Mrs. Elias M. Carter and her sons. They anticipated his every want, accomplished everything that loving hearts could suggest and willing hands perform to make his last years happy, and smooth the way to the bank of the dark river." 

John & Ann (McClure) Williamson

Rebecca Williamson m. Elias Mellen Carter

Augustus Mellen Carter

Edward Mellen Carter

Thomas Richard Carter - my grandfather

Previous Posts about the family: 

Tracking the Williamsons

The Williamson Divorce
St. Patrick's Day 2013
My Irish Roots
What's Your Story, John Williamson?

Surname Saturday - Bernard Capen

Bernard (or Barnard) Capen was a shoemaker who came to America in 1633 from Dorchester, Dorsetshire, England. He took the oath of a freeman on May 25, 1636. In some old records his names is written as Barnard and his surname is recorded as "Gapin." His stated age at his death on November 8, 1638 was 76 which would put his birth about 1562. He married Joan Purchase on May 31, 1596. She was the daughter of Oliver Purchase and one of four Purchase siblings who emigrated to the American colonies.

Photo courtesy of Don Blauvelt - posted at Findagrave

There is an article about the Barnard Capen house on the Dorchester Atheneaum site. It tells the history of the house which was restored in 1909 and seems to have been dismantled and moved twice. I couldn't find anything about the current status of that house. However, the parsonage house of Rev. Joseph Capen, son of John and grandson of Bernard, is located in Topsfield, Massachusetts and is on the National Register of Historic Places. Rev. Joseph was my 8th great-uncle.

Parson Capen House - photo from Wikipedia

Two of Bernard Capen's descendants are President Calvin Coolidge and President Ulysses S. Grant.

President Calvin Coolidge - photo from Wikipedia
He is my 8th cousin, twice removed

President Ulysses S. Grant
He is my 7th cousin, 4 times removed

Children:

1. James was born about 1598 and is called a "scrivener" in his will. 
2. Ruth was born on August 7, 1600 and there is no further record of her.
3. Susanna was born on April 11, 1602 and married twice. On April 14, 1624, she married William Rockwell and on May 29, 1645 she became the second wife of Matthew Grant. 
4. Dorothy was born about 1608 and she married Nicholas Upsall on January 17, 1630 at the Holy Trinity Church in Dorchester, Dorsetshire, England. 
5. Elizabeth was born about 1610 and she married Thomas Swift on October 18, 1630 in the same church as Dorothy. 
6. John was born January 12, 1612. He married twice. On October 20, 1637, he married Redegon Clap and on September 20, 1647, he married Mary Bass. In 1680, John served on the jury for the witchcraft trial of Elizabeth Morse of Newbury. She was found guilty but given a reprieve and released to her husband. She was not allowed to travel more than a few yards from her house unless accompanied by a minister. 
7. Honor was born about 1616 and she married William Hannum. 

Line of Descent

John Capen m. Mary Bass
James Capen 1654-1718 m. Hannah Lawrence
James Capen born 1683 m. Elizabeth Call
James Capen 1709/10-1763 m. Sarah Pinson
Thomas Capen born 1739 m. Mary Wyman
Thomas Capen 1762-1808 m. Mary Abbott
Timothy Capen born 1793 m. Sarah K. Abbott
Edward Abbott Capen 1839-1930 m. Mary Jane Abbott - First cousins, once removed - See below
Fannie May Capen born 1878 m. Edward Mellen Carter
Thomas Richard Carter - my grandfather

Sister of Timothy Capen - Deborah Capen born 1796 m. William Ackley
Sarah Ackley born 1820 m. John Abbott
Mary Jane Abbott - same as above

Sources:
The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England 1620-1633, Volumes I-III. (Online database: American Ancestors.org, New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2010), (Originally Published as: New England Historic Genealogical Society. Robert Charles Anderson, The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England 1620-1633, Volumes I-III, 3 vols., 1995).
Findagrave
Dorchester Atheneum
Wikipedia

What's your story, John Williamson?

I really wish I had more information about my ancestor, John Williamson (1787-1887). He came from Ireland but doesn't seem to be Irish. He is said to have come in 1821, well before the flood of immigrants caused by the potato famine. Apparently, he loved England and was a member of the Church of England. It seems especially difficult to find Protestant records in Ireland. He lived to be 100 years old! What an accomplishment! He outlived two wives, Ann McClure Williamson (1789-1861) who immigrated with him and Jane (1795-1872). All are buried in the family plot in the Middle Intervale Cemetery. His daughter, Rebecca, married my third great grandfather, Elias Mellen Carter. That is how my family intersected with the Williamsons. We (the family) know his first wife was Ann McClure. Relatives named for this branch of the family include my great aunt, Rebecca Williamson Carter and my first cousin once removed, Ann McClure Carter.


It would appear that his brother, William, came with him and settled in Newry. They were both shoemakers. John turned to farming when he settled in Bethel, Maine. He is profiled in Lapham's History of Bethel as a prominent citizen. Lapham calls him "a lover of nature", "well educated" and "well versed in ancient history." John is also described as a very devout man who carried his Bible with him and had memorized large portions of it. Lapham describes him as social and interesting, both "entertaining and instructive." In the later years of his life he lived with his daughter, Rebecca and son-in-law, Elias Mellen Carter. 


If you came from Ireland, why did you love England? Your name is more English than Irish so how did you come to live in Manorhamilton, Ireland? Did you leave behind relatives in Ireland? Since both you and your brother were shoemakers, do you come from a long line of shoemakers? 

Middle Intervale Cemetery

Rebecca Williamson Carter Bailey - my great aunt

Source: Lapham, Howard B. "History of Bethel:." Google Books. Google.com. Web. 03 Mar. 2012. <http://books.google.com/ebooks/reader?id=4vUgAQAAMAAJ>.