HOW MANY SURNAMES ON MY DATABASE?

A few weeks back Randy Seaver's topic for one of his Saturday Night Genealogy Fun Challenges was
How Many Surnames  In Your Family Tree Base?

It's taken me a few weeks to get around to it but here's mine. I have 31,041 people on my RootsMagic
database at present. I ran the Surname Statistics List report and came up with 86 pages, with 39
surnames per page for a total of 3361 surnames.

Here's the top 15 surnames. You'll notice that three of them are some variation of Ellingwood, My great grandmother came from the branch that used Ellingwood, but the spelling in colonial times was either
Ellinwood or Ellenwood. Most of the Ellenwoods are from a branch that emigrated to Canada before the Revolution,

The list also reflects the fact that much of my research the past few years was based on two Ellingwood genealogy books and one one book on Barker genealogy. One of the benefits of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge is that it is getting me to look further into other branches on my family tree.

LOOKING BACK 53 YEARS.....OUCH!

(First posted in 2008))



Ah, what can I say in my defense?

I was young, only 15 years old.

It was 1964 and American culture was still in need of some enlightenment.

And ok, I was dumb. And sexist.


I do not think this way today about women or presidential politics. Really.


But here, as it appeared in the June 1964 ABHIS, the literary magazine of Abington High School, is my first published poem.


MRS. SMITH
— OR —
WHATEVER
HAPPENED
TO RICHARD N.?

O’ Margaret Chase Smith, I admire your
gall,
But as president, do you think you can
carry the ball?
Do you think that the Senate will pass all
your bills
As they fight and holler up on Capitol Hill?
I admit, as a senator, they say you’re swell,
But as a president, only time will tell.
And Mrs. Smith, before you go,
There are a few things I’d like to know.
At the Geneva Conference, what about
there?
Would you keep “Nikki” waiting while you
set your hair?
But there’s one big question that troubles
me a lot!
Mrs. Smith, for a running mate, just who
have you got?
William West ‘66
As bad as that is, it's downright liberal next to the other piece entitled "To Arms!" which warned the men of Abington High School of the threat of women taking over the world.

I don't think I'll print that on here.

52 ANCESTORS IN 52 WEEKS 2016 WEEK 33: ABEL MOORE OF BOLTON, MA.

My 5x  great grandfather Abel Moore is one of my "mystery man" ancestors.  He's not listed in Ethel Stanwood Bolton's article SOME DESCENDANTS OF JOHN MOORE OF SUDBURY, MASS, as one of John Moore IV and Susannah (Willard) Moore's children. Luckily there is a record of his birth to them in the Bolton, Ma. vital records on the Early Vital Records of Massachusetts website,

So what I do know is this:Abel Moore was born in Bolton, Ma. on 17 Feb 1743 and was the youngest child in his family. He married Betty Whitcomb, likewise in Bolton, on 11 Jan 1764. I found records for three children all born in Bolton:
Abel 11Jan 1768.
Eunice 6Apr 1772
Stephen 11Mar 1777

Stephen, the youngest, is my 4x great grandfather.

Abel Moore died on 1 Apr 1777, which prompted me to check to see if he had died during the Revolutionary War.I found this entry in the ebook edition of Massachusetts soldiers and sailors of the revolutionary war. A compilation from the archives (Volume 10) online:

Moor, Abel, Bolton (also given Lancaster). Private, Capt. Benjamin Hastings's co.,
Col. Asa Whitcomb's regt.; muster roll dated Aug. 1, 1775; enlisted April 27,
1775; service, 3 mos. 12 days; also, company return dated Oct. 6, 1775; also,
return of men raised to serve in the Continental Army from Capt. Jonathan
Houghton's CO., as returned to Col. Josiah Whetney ; residence, Bolton; engaged
for town of Bolton; joined Capt. King's co.. Col. Marshal's regt.; term, 3 years;
also. Private, 1st co.. Col. Thomas Marshall's regt. ; Continental Army pay
accounts for service from Jan. 1, 1777, to April 1, 1777; residence, Lancaster;
reported died April 1, 1777; also, Capt. Samuel King's (2d) co.. Col. Marshall's
regt. ; subsistence allowed from date of enlistment, Dec. 26, 1776, to Feb. 21,
1777 ; credited with 57 days allowance ; subsistence also allowed for 11 days travel
on march from Boston to Bennington.-p140


He left no probate file. I'd thought there would at least be a document regarding guardianship of his three young children but I haven't found one as yet.

FINDMYPAST FRIDAY RECORDS COLLECTION RELEASES FOR 23 SEPTEMBER 2016

The Findmypast Fridays releases this week are a mix of over 1.7 million British and American records:

BRAND NEW RECORDS:

Cheshire Vital Records Browse 1500-1991

OVER 584,000 RECORDS  
Search by parish, event, or record type to browse through thousands of original bishop's transcripts, non-conformist registers, and parish registers from churches across the English county of Cheshire.


SEARCH THESE RECORDS »

 
The Shipwrecked Passenger Book: Sailing Westbound from Europe for the Americas 1817-1875
 
OVER 6 HUNDRED PAGES
Were any of your ancestors shipwrecked at sea? Uncover the harrowing details of 339 transatlantic shipwrecks between 1817 and 1875. This unique entry, authored by Frank A. Biebel, contains the records of many records of immigrants that you won't find anywhere else.


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Quintin Collections - United States Family Histories
OVER 930 THOUSAND  RECORDS
Discover your colonial ancestors with 3,926 family histories and genealogies from all 50 states and several locations overseas. These PDF records can be searched by publication year, title, county, and state, page number and additional key words.

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ADDITIONAL RECORDS FOR EXISTING SETS
The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record
New records: Volume 27, Issue 2: January 2016

Total records: 6,117 issues

Covering: The New York Genealogical and Biographical Society's (NYG&B) quarterly review
Discover: Authoritative articles on genealogical research techniques and resources

 
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The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record

New records: Volume 147, Issue 2: Summer 2016

Total records: 6,117 issues

Covering: Biographical sketches, family genealogies, transcriptions and abstracts, pedigree charts, local history, notices of life events, such as baptisms and marriages, society proceedings and notes
 
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Britain, School and University Register Books

New records: 5,148

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Covering: Thousands of schools across 41 counties in England and Wales

Discover: Your ancestors' school records, birth dates, admission years and the schools they attended
 
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United States, State & Local Histories
New records: 201,977

Total pages: 183,096
 
Covering: Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, Washington D.C., West Virginia, and Wisconsin

Discover: 332 digitized books of state and local histories

SEARCH THESE RECORDS

MY MORMON PIONEER RELATIVES

Back in July I received an email from FamilySearch telling me Pioneer Ancestors, by which they
meant Mormon pioneers. There was a link directing me to a webpage where I discovered 15 names
and the pioneer companies in which they journeyed west. I meant to do a blogpost about them back
in July, but then my old laptop began to die and the blogpost was forgotten while I purchased and
set up my new notebook computer.  

The other day I was going through older emails and found that pioneers email once more. Strictly
speaking, these 15 people are distant cousins. I recognized some familiar family names (Abbott, Bartlett,
Willard and York) but the rest are unfamiliar. None of them were already in my database, Still, it's
interesting to find out I have Mormon relatives.

Here's the list. Are any of them your relatives too, or did your ancestors travel west in the same companies? 

Brigham Young Company
Clarissa Alger 1830–1907
John Alger 1820–1897
Fanny Cummings 1835–1908

Daniel Spencer/Ira Eldredge Company
Benjamin Franklin Cummings 1821–1899
Alva Cummings  1832–1917
Rufus Abbott 1784–1879

William Snow/Joseph Young Company
Asa Bartlett York 1832–1920
Julia Ann York 1833–1931
Martha Eliza York 1849–1931
William Aaron Carter 1848–1926

Philip De La Mare Company
Alonzo Harrington LeBaron 1818–1891

John Wood Company
Ezra Carter Chase 1833–1903

James W. Cummings Company
James Willard Cummings 1819–1883

George A. Smith/Dan Jones Company
Martha Ann Appleby 1834–1855

Company Unknown
Samuel Brown 1801–1882

THE EIGHTH ANNUAL GREAT GENEALOGY POETRY CHALLENGE

It's time to start thinking about the Eighth Annual Great Genealogy Poetry
Challenge!

As in the past, I'll be posting the links to the submissions on Thanksgiving Day,
which this year falls on Thursday, November 24th. Deadline for submissions will be a week before, on Thursday, November 17th. That gives everyone nearly two months to find (or write) and share their poem or song. If you find one long before that deadline you can post it on your blog now, but don't forget to send me the link to it before November 17th!
   
These are the Challenge rules:

1. Find a poem by a  poet, famous or obscure, about the region
one of your ancestors lived in. It can be about an historical event, a
legend, a person, or even about some place (like a river)or a local
animal. It can even be a poem you or one of your ancestors have written.
0r, if you prefer, post the lyrics of a song or a link to a video of someone
performing the song.

2. Post the poem or song to your blog (remembering to cite the source
where you found it.).  If you wish to enter an older post, you may as long
as it has not appeared here in an earlier Poetry Challenge.

 3.Tell us how the subject of the poem or song relates to your ancestor's
home or life, or the area of the country where they lived.

4.Submit your post's link here to me by midnight Thursday, November 17th
and I'll publish all links to the entries on Thanksgiving Day, November 24th!

If  you submit a humorous poem or song that will be entered under the
"Willy Puckerbrush" division. Willy was the late geneablogger Terry
Thornton's alias for some humorous posts and comments.

There you have it. You have two months to find your poem and post it to your
blogs. I will be waiting to see what you all find and share!

FINDMYPAST FRIDAY RECORDS COLLECTION RELEASES FOR 16 SEPTEMBER 2016

The nearly 4.8 million Findmypast Friday record releases  for 16Sept include brand new Irish records plus additions to the Lincolnshire U.K. collections:

 
BRAND NEW RECORDS:

Original Will Registers 1858-1920
Over 181,000  records forming the largest collection of surviving wills for post-1858 Republic of Ireland. Explore the pages of wills to discover where your family lived, what assets they had, if it was left to relatives, and if anyone was left out due to a family feud.
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Ireland, Catholic Qualification & Convert Rolls 1701-1845
OVER 50,000 RECORDS
Lists of Catholics who swore loyalty to the crown or converted to Protestantism in order to qualify for certain rights such as owning property or running businesses due to the harsh Penal Laws of the 18th century.
SEARCH THESE RECORDS »


Ireland Merchant Navy Crew Lists 1863-1921
OVER 820,000 RECORDS
Indexed lists of men and women who served with the Merchant Navy that reveal detailed information for each crew member, where and when they were born, and details their life at sea. The lists not only cover Irish sailors but also include natives of Norway, Russia, Sweden, America and Germany, to name but a few.
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Ireland Valuation Office Books
OVER  2 MILLION RECORDS
Land and house surveys kept by the Valuation Office of Ireland. These books were preparatory to the Griffith’s Valuation and reveal where and when individuals rented or owned property and provide rare glimpses of life in pre-famine Ireland.
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Lincolnshire Baptisms
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Covering: Baptism in Lincolnshire between 1538 and 1911
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Lincolnshire Banns
New feature: Search by name, year, spouse’s name and location
Total records: 121,361
Covering: Banns read in Lincolnshire churches between 1538 and 1911
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Lincolnshire Marriages
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Total records: 933,866
Covering: More than 650 marriage places across Lincolnshire
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Lincolnshire Burials
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Total records: 1,492,441
Covering: 300 burial places across Lincolnshire
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Lincolnshire Parish Register Browse
Browse: 5,383 registers
Total number of records: 4,462,304
Covering: Parish churches right across Lincolnshire
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British Newspapers
Number of articles added: 1,656,252
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Covering: Brighton, Birmingham, Preston, Norwich, Durham and more
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52 ANCESTORS IN 52 WEEKS 2016 WEEK 32: JOHN MOORE 4TH OF BOLTON, MA.

In Week 32 of the 52 Ancestors challenge  I've come to the fourth and last ancestor named John Moore on my family tree. Once again my information comes from the article inVolume 57 of The New England Historical and Genealogical Register, titled SOME DESCENDANTS OF JOHN MOORE OF SUDBURY, MASS. by Ethel Stanwood Bolton:


22. John4 Moore (John3 John2 John1) married in Lunenburg, Mar. 19, 1723-4, Susanna, daughter of Henry and Dorcas Willard. He was baptized and owned the covenant in Lancaster, July 2, 173 2. In 1751 he is called of Bolton (Worcester Co. Deeds, Vol. 31, pp. 38, 39).
Children:

I. Samuel, b. Mar. 29, 1726, in Lancaster; m. Aug. 19, 1747, in Bolton, Zeresh Houghton, and
had issue.

II. Abigail, b. Aug. 12, 1728; m. Apr. 26, 1750, Rufus Houghton of Lancaster.

III. John, b. Jan. 3, 1730-1; m. Aug. 30, 1757, Unity Willard of Lunenburg, and had issue. He lived
in Bolton.

IV. Susanna, b. May 28, 1733; m. Nov. 24, 1759, Jonathan Houghton.

V. Abner, b. Sept. 28, 1736; m. Nov. 16, 1769, Elizabeth Hastings, in Bolton.
-p308 

It's interesting to see how closely the Moore, Willard and Houghton families were woven together, And, John's wife Susannah Willard is not only my 6x great grandmother through the Moore line, she is also my 6x half great grandaunt.Susanna's mother Dorcas Cutler was Henry Willard's second wife. Mary Larkin was his first, and their son Joseph is my 7x great grandfather through the Houghton's on m Dad's side of the family.


Unfortunately I haven't found a probate file so far for John 4th.

OVER THREE MILLION IRISH RECORDS FREE TO SEARCH FOREVER ON FINDMPAST

I received this press release from Findmypast today in my email:

                                               Over 3 Million historic Irish records
                                                       free forever to search online

 ·                    Four fascinating NAI collections spanning 220 years of Irish history (1701-1922)
                                                                        free to search forever
                                                                

·                          Released online for the  first time, the records will allow researchers to trace
                           their roots back to Pre-Famine Ireland and learn about the lives of their Irish
                                                                                    ancestors



Dublin, Ireland, September 15th 2016
Leading Family History website Findmypast, has today announced the online publication of more than 3 million historic Irish records released in association with the National Archives of Ireland and Family Search International. The release consists of a wide range of documents including original wills, lists of Catholics who swore loyalty to the crown or converted to Protestantism, land valuation records and merchant navy crew lists. The records date back to pre-famine Ireland and will be completely free to search forever.

Spanning over 220 years of Irish history from 1701 to 1922, the release is comprised of four highly valuable National Archives of Ireland collections including:

Original Will Registers 1858-1920 - over 181,000 records the largest collection of surviving wills for the post-1858 period for the Republic of Ireland. The registers allow researchers to explore the pages of wills to discover where their family lived, what assets they had, if it was left to relatives, and if anyone was left out due to a family feud.

Qualification and Convert Rolls 1701 – 1845 - lists of over 52,000 Catholics who swore loyalty to the crown or converted to Protestantism. During the harsh Penal Laws of the 18th century, Irish Catholics were restricted from owning property or running businesses. Many chose to either convert (at least legally) to the established Church or swear loyalty in front of a court in order to qualify for certain rights

Valuation Office books 1824-1856 – these land and house surveys kept by the Valuation Office of Ireland contain over 2 million names. The books that make up this collection were preparatory to the Griffith’s Valuation, and provide a comprehensive assessment of the rental value of Irish lands and property from the mid-1820s to the mid-1850s. The books reveal where and when individuals rented or owned property and provide rare glimpses of life in pre-famine Ireland

Merchant Navy Crew lists 1857-1922 - These indexed lists records the details of over 832,000 men and women who served with the Merchant Navy. The original lists were extensive and provided detailed information for each crew member, where and when they were born, and their life at sea. The lists not only cover Irish sailors but also include natives of Norway, Russia, Sweden, America and Germany, to name but a few

This is the first time these important National Archives of Ireland collections have been fully indexed with digitized images of the original papers linked online. All four collections are fully searchable, providing relatives and historians from all over the world with opportunities to discover more about their Irish heritage through documents that, until today, could only by accessed by visiting the Archive’s reading rooms in Dublin.

Findmypast is home to the most comprehensive online archive of Irish family history records with over 114 million documents published in partnership with The National Archives of Ireland, The National Archives UK, and a host of other local, county and national archives.

Brian Donovan, Head of Irish Records at Findmypast, comments:
“The records of the National Archives of Ireland are a central resource for Irish family history and we at Findmypast are once again delighted to be making them available and fully searchable to all online in partnership with our colleagues at Family Search. Moreover, we are once again releasing these records for free forever, just like we did with the pre-1901 census records or the Roman Catholic parish registers, making Irish genealogy that much easier and cheaper for all. It is a privilege to work with the records and team at the National Archives, and we look forward to further releases in the near future.”

Catriona Crowe, Head of Special Projects at the National Archives of Ireland, said:
The National Archives of Ireland has been to the forefront of genealogical democratisation, starting with the release free to access of the 1901 and 1911 censuses online, and followed by the material available on our genealogical website – http://genealogy.nationalarchives.ie/ We regard it as a fundamental principle that Irish people and people of Irish descent should have free access to their genealogical cultural heritage. Our partnership with Findmypast and FamilySearch has allowed us to continue to activate that principle, and we regard the partnership as an exemplary arrangement for access to important records with minimum cost to the State. It has been a harmonious partnership, where all involved gain benefit from the arrangement.

This latest release comprises a huge number of records, ranging from 17th century convert records to 19th century land records, shipping records and copies of wills which were destroyed in 1922. None of these records have been digitised or indexed before. They contain millions of names not available elsewhere. We know that they will be a great addition to the records already available to the millions interested in their Irish ancestry, and to the growing online scholarly archive on Irish history.
Our partnership with Findmypast and FamilySearch has allowed us to continue to activate that principle, and we regard the partnership as an exemplary arrangement for access to important records with minimum cost to the State. It has been a harmonious partnership, where all involved gain benefit from the arrangement.”

This latest release comprises a huge number of records, ranging from 17th century convert records to 19th century land records, shipping records and copies of wills which were destroyed in 1922. None of these records have been digitised or indexed before. They contain millions of names not available elsewhere. We know that they will be a great addition to the records already available to the millions interested in their Irish ancestry, and to the growing online scholarly archive on Irish history.”

 Find out more at: http://www.findmypast.com/irish-ancestors

2016 WEEK 31: JOHN MOORE 3RD OF LANCASTER & BOLTON MA. PT2

Compared to the files of his father and grandfather, the probate file of John Moore is practically a work of art, The handwriting on most of the documents is neat and easy to read. Here's the first page detailing how the estate will be divided  It shows John 3rd owned 13 properties covering 369 acres and valued at 624 pounds, 6 shillings and 6 pence. This includes the properties he had given his sons before his death  :

Worcester County, MA: Probate File Papers, 1731-1881. Online database. AmericanAncestors.org. New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2015. (From records supplied by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Archives.) CASE NUMBER: 41411 Page16

The estate inventory counted  9 pieces of land totaling  228 acres and worth  512 pounds, 10 shillings:

Worcester County, MA: Probate File Papers, 1731-1881. Online database. AmericanAncestors.org. New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2015. (From records supplied by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Archives.) CASE NUMBER: 41411 page 19

The thing that strikes me about the first three John Moores in my family tree is how land wealthy they all were. John Jr and John 3rd owned over 300 acres which really is a lot of land.

I'll eventually post a transcription of John 3rd's probate file.     

SEPTEMBER 11TH, 2001

((The majority of this post was first published on 11Sep 2008. I've
changed the ending to reflect that bin Laden was found.))


Sept 11th 2001
I was on my way to work at the Borders bookstore which opened
at 9:00. As usual I was listening to WBZ AM, the Boston news radio
station, and I was somewhere on Rte 37 in Braintree when the news
bulletin came about the first plane hitting the South Tower of the
World Trade Center in New York. At first I thought it was some
terrible accident as I listened to the report. I remember at one traffic
stop the light turned green and the first car in line didn't move right
away. Nobody honked their horn at the driver. They were all listening
to the news.

I was running a few minutes late already and so I was just pulling into
a parking space when news came at 9:02 of the second crash. Now I
and the rest of America knew the first crash had not been a mistake.
We were under attack. I went into the store and punched in, then
knocked on the Cash Office door. Linda, the office manager
at the time, was listening to the radio. Given that there had been a
previous attack on the Twin Towers by terrorists we realized this must
be another by the same group or another like it. We talked about it for
a few minutes but the store was about to open and I needed to be out
on the sales floor.

It was a surreal day. Linda would relay the news to the staff about the
collapse of the Towers and the other two planes crashing into the
Pentagon and the field in Pennsylvania. We heard that the planes had
come from our own Logan Airport and had many New Englanders
aboard them, which made it even harder to hear. One of the passengers
lived in my town of Abington. Work went on as it did for so many
other Americans that day even though our minds and hearts weren't
into doing our jobs.

That night when I got home the networks kept showing the same
images over and over of the planes crashing, the Towers falling and
of the people running ahead of the looming cloud. I was angry at
whoever had done this to so many innocent people, and I wanted
them caught and punished for it.

Today, it's a different world. September 11th changed it forever.

We no longer wait now for Osama bin Laden to be caught and punished.
Justice has been done.

But we still mourn, and we will never forget.

FINDMYPAST FRIDAY RECORDS COLLECTION RELEASES FOR 9 SEPTEMBER 2016

 Findmypast has added over 3.5 million records this week to its databases. They include:

BRAND NEW RECORDS:

London Post Office Directories 1842, 1851 and 1861 (Browse)
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Westminster, Poor Law and Parish Administration
1.7 MILLION RECORDS
Explore a variety of Westminster poor law records including bastardy papers, admissions, examinations, pauper records, valuations, work house records and more.
SEARCH THESE RECORDS »

City Of London, Gunmakers' Company Freedoms and Admissions, 1656-1936
5 THOUSAND RECORDS
Find out if your ancestor joined the Worshipful Company of Gunmakers with registers of freeman's admissions and lists of liverymen. Discover when they were admitted to the company, how they were admitted, and the name of the master they trained under.
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ADDITIONAL RECORDS FOR EXISTING SETS

Thames & Medway Baptisms
Number of records added: 15,442
Total records: 335,629
Covering: St Alphege Greenwich, St John's Wellington Street Woolwich and Cliffe at Hoo
Discover: Birth and baptism dates, residence and parents' names
SEARCH THESE RECORDS »

Thames & Medway Burials
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Total records: 186,389
Covering: St Alphege Greenwich and Cliffe at Hoo
Discover: Birth date, baptism date, location, parents' names and additional notes
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Westminster Burials
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Covering: Westminster municipal cemeteries
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London, Docklands and East End Baptisms, 1558-1933
Number of records added: 24,524
Total records: 668,310
Covering: St Mary, Whitechapel
Discover: Birth date, baptism date, parents' names, address and church address
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Covering: Pre-1812 (and mainly 1755) City burials
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Full disclosure: I am a member of the Findmypast Ambassador Program which includes a
complimentary one year world subscription to Findmypast and a Findmypast First membership.

52 ANCESTORS IN 52 WEEKS 2016 WEEK 31: JOHN MOORE 3RD OF LANCASTER & BOLTON MA. PT1

As I've said previously, I'm descended from three of John Moore Jr.'s children.

Lydia  is my 7x great grandmother through my Stow and Coburn lines, both of which I've discussed
as part of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks series.

Jonathan Moore is my 8x great grandfather through my Houghton ancestry, which I'll discuss in the
future.

And John Moore 3rd is my 7x great grandfather through my Moore and Barker lines .

I found this entry for John 3rd in an article in Volume 57 of The New England Historical and Genealogical Register, titled SOME DESCENDANTS OF JOHN MOORE OF   SUDBURY, MASS.
by Ethel Stanwood Bolton:

6. John* Moore (John,1 John1) was bom in Lancaster, Apr. 7, 1662.
He married first, Aug. 23, 1683, Mary, daughter of Job and Mary Whitcomb of Lancaster; and married second, in Concord, Jan. 1, 1697-8, Hasadiah, daughter of Jonas and Lydia Fairbank of Lan
caster. He was a large land owner in Lancaster, but during the later years of his life he deeded this land to his sons, and moved to Bolton, where he died in 1740. In 1732, he deeded fifty acres of
the south part of his farm to his eldest son John, in " Consideration of What Labour he hath Done on a piece of Land which I have Given to my Son Joshua Moor." This labor was building a house
and barn. He also gave him eighty acres at Wadaquadock Hill (Worcester Co. Deeds, Vol. 8, p. 143). The same year, he deeded land to his "Second son ffairbank Moor " (Worcester Co. Deeds, Vol. 7,
p. 366). His estate was administered by John Moor, Jr., and was valued at £624: 6: 6. This was divided between the widow Hasadiah, and the two daughters Hasadiah, wife of Andrew Mcllwain,
and Lydia, wife of Samuel Gibbs (Worcester Co. Probate, 41411).

 Children, perhaps all by second wife:
23. 1. John.*
28. 11. Fairbank.
34. 111. Joshua.
Iv. Hasadiah, m. Andrew Mcllwain.
v. Lydia, m. Apr. 6, 1732, Samuel Gibbs.
vl. Martha, who is given as a daughter of John Moore on the authority of Mansfield's History of the Kathan Family; m. Capt. John    Kathan of Dummerston, Vt., about 1727; d. In Dummerston, Sept. 22, 1766, aged about 62 years.
pp302-303

The New England Historical and Genealogical Register, Volume 57  Published by the Society, Boston Massachusetts 1903


It's interesting that John 3rd's first wife was Mary Whitcomb. There were many ties between the two families.

I'll briefly discuss John 3rd's probate file in another post.

To be continued.

52 ANCESTORS IN 52 WEEKS 2016 WEEK 30: JOHN MOORE JR OF SUDBURY AND LANCASTER MA. PT6

Some  final thoughts on the Probate File of my 8x great grandfather John Moore Jr:

- I've found the identity of the wife named Mary in the file. Here is an entry in the Lancaster, Ma. Marriages on the  Early Vital Records of MassachusettsFrom 1600 to 1850 website:
"John Moor & Mary Whitcomb, both of Lancaster,  were Marryed, August 23, 1683. "
This might be why one of the members of the Committee was David Whitcomb.

-I need to look up the record of John's purchase of the fatm from Richard West (no relation to me)

-John's daughter Lydia is my 7x great grandmother through her marriage to John Wetherbee, but she is referred to as "Lydia Winch" in the probate file. This led to the discovery that Lydia had married a second time after the death of her first husband. Frustratingly, every reference I've found online to this marriage doesn't give Mr. Winch's first name.

-Finally, the members of the committee that decided how to divide the land between John Moore Jr.'s  are also relared to me. Ephraim Wilder, John Houghton and Jonas Houghton are my cousins, and David Whitcomb is my 8x great grandfather.

I'll be moving on to John Moore 3rd in my next post for 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks.   

FINDMYPAST FRIDAY RECORDS COLLECTION RELEASES FOR 2 SEPTEMBER 2016

Findmypast released over 1.3 million records this week, including new British and American record
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ADDITIONAL RECORDS FOR EXISTING SETS:

New Zealand Birth Index
Number of records added: 19,164
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Covering: Nationwide births, 1840-1966
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FINDMYPAST'S NEW STARTER SUBSCRIPTION

I received this press release in yesterday's (Friday's) email. It sounds like a great deal!



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