ONE WEEK TO GO...

before voting closes for Family Tree Magazine's "Top 40 Genealogy
Blogs". You can cast your vote for the genealogy blogs you feel
deserve the honor here. footnoteMaven has thoughtfully provided
a list of links to each of the nominees and you can use that to help
make a decision if need be.

And if you should decide to vote for "West in New England" in
the Personal/Family category, I thank you.

And thanks once more to those whose votes got me into this next
stage of the competition!

MY ANCESTOR THE KNAVE4 ?

John Stevens’ involvement in the struggle between Thomas Chandler and Job Tyler began in the fall of 1667 and he had difficulties right from the start: “Complaint of John Stevens: that when he attached cattle taken by execution from Thomas Chandler and in the possession of Col. Crowne, the latter abused him, saying that he would make him an example for all the constables in New England for attaching cattle in the highway, etc. One Post of Oborne drove them away, etc. John Stevens, constable, aged about twenty-eight years, deposed that after he attached the cattle of Job Tyler and recovered them, they came to a stand. Post, son-in-law of Tyler, who was with Col. Crowne, asked him why he did not attach the cattle when they were in the yard, etc.” (Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, Massachusetts Vol 3 Nov 1667 p470) Now this Col. Crowne had been chosen by Job Tyler as one of the three arbitrators of the dispute with Chandler, so his action here was as a supporter of Tyler. But there’s nothing further in the entry about the particulars of this latest incident. Those came the following spring in March, 1668: "Job Tyler v. Thomas Chandler. Review. Special verdict found: that there was a bond of arbitration wherein both agreed to choose two men, and if they did not agree then a third was to be chosen; that two of the men did agree but the third did not; if two agreed and the agreement ended the case, they found for defendant, if not, for plaintiff. Court gave judgment for defendant.* *Writ, dated Mar. 16, 1667-8, signed by Robert Lord, for the court, and served by John Fry, constable of Andover. George Abbut, sr., surety on bond. Copy of writ, dated 27 : 3 : 1667, and copy of Ipswich court record, dated Sept. 24, 1667, made Oct. 15, 1667, by Robert Lord, cleric. Copy of award of the arbitrators, Edward Denison and Isaac Johnson, copy of letter from Joseph Aldregh, copy of agreement between plaintiff and defendant, and copy of depositions of John Chandler and William Cleaves, made Mar. 30, 1668, by Robert Lord, cleric. Richard Post of Woburn, aged about forty years, deposed that the marshal general called at his house, 24 : 6 : 1667, to have him go to Andiver to levy the execution. Chandler said that his land was made over to Mr. Brown of Salem. The day following, the marshal being obliged to return home on account of the council sitting, gave deponent an order to take the oxen and cows and deliver them to Job Tiler, which he did. But the marshal declared to Chandler before Col. Crowne that the cattle must go to Roxbury upon Chandler's charge before being delivered to Tiler. Then they all went homeward as far as Shawshin river and deponent was left with the cattle. When Col. Crowne returned, he said that he was to take the cattle, and when they reached Samuel Blanchard's house, Chandler and one Stevens, constable, came running after them and took the cattle by force, notwithstanding the fact that he read his deputation publicly to them, etc. William Crowne, aged about fifty years, deposed. Sworn, 11:8: 1667, before Simon Willard. William Park testified that he went with Job Tiller to John Chandler's house upon Mar. 1, 1665, etc. Joseph Alderegh, aged about thirty-two years, testified that Chandler came to him with the summons on Sept. 21 or 22, 1667, as "certanly as I can recken wth out an Almanake," and told said Chandler that Job Tiler did not live there then, for deponent had asked him to remove from his house because he needed the room which he used for corn. "I tould Chandeler he had noe famyly heere nor certaine place of aboade but lay some tyme at one, some tymes an other," but thought he had gone to Roxbury to his wife, etc. Sworn, 27 : 1 : 1668, before Elea. Lusher, assistant. 

(Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, Massachusetts Vol 4 Mar 1668 p1-2) 

 I have to admit I was a bit puzzled by this at first. It appears that the cattle were originally Job Tyler’s taken as surety for the court case by Thomas Chandler. I think they were then returned to Tyler, but he again lost his case in court and were once more supposed to be given to Chandler, which is when the confrontation took place between John Stevens and Col Crowne. I’m also puzzled as to why the marshal general wanted the livestock driven down to Roxbury. Does “Chandler’s charge” mean at his expense? And just what was this marshal general’s name and how had he become involved in this mess? Perhaps this was some circuitous form of revenge on Chandler by some enemies? Lastly, Joseph Alderegh(Aldridge?) stately made me grin when I first read it. A proto-Yankee farmer with a need for an almanac! This last incident seems to have been the straw that broke the camel’s back, as I’ll discuss in the final post of this series.

MY ANCESTOR THE KNAVE 3 ?

The dispute between Thomas Chandler and Job Tyler would run its course over
a period of ten years. In 1665 the judgment was made against Job Tyler that he
had to pay 6 pounds and tack the placard on the meetinghouse with his apologies
for slandering Thomas Chandler. I'd thought that was the end of the case until
this past weekend when I found more court records.

Apparently Tyler didn't pay the 6 pounds and that led to Thomas Chandler's
next action in September of 1668 in the Essex County courts:

"Tho. Chandlour v. Job Tyler. Debt. Plaintiff made oath that he left a summons
at the house of John Alldridge, where defendant had lived seven weeks. Verdict for
plaintiff.

Writ: Ens. Thomas Chandler v. Job Tylar; debt; dated 27 :3 : 1667; signed by
Simon Bradstreete, for the court; and served by John Stavens, constable of Andover,
by attachment of two oxen, two cows and five acres of land of defendant.

Copy of Salem court record of 28 :9 :1665, concerning the same parties, made
by Hillyard Veren,§ cleric.

Thomas Chandler's bill of cost, for going to Quinopeg about 140 miles from
Andover out and in to serve warrant, Hi., etc., total, 4li. 6s. 4d.

Agreement, dated Oct. 29, 1665, between Thomas Chander of Andover and
Job Tiler of Roxbury, to leave the settlement of their differences to arbitration,
the former choosing Worshipful Mr. Bradstreet of Andover and the latter
Col. Crone; in case Mr. Bradstreet refused to serve, Mr. Edward Dennison
of Roxbury was to be chosen, with Capt. Johnson of Roxbury as third man, etc.
Wit: Phillip Curtis and Joshua Lamb, who made oath before Anthony Stoddard,
commissioner.

Letter dated Mendon, Sept. 23, 1667, signed by Joseph Aldregh, stating that he
did not know where to find Tyler and that he had not been at his house.

Job Tyler testified that he never saw the warrant which Thomas Chandler sent
him. Sworn, 21 : 7 :1667, before Richard Parker,f commissioner.

William Cleaves, aged about thirty-two years, deposed that he went with his
brother Thomas Chandler and heard the latter tell Tyler to pay the debt to
John Chandler, etc. Sworn in Boston, Sept. 21, 1667, before Edward Tyng,
commissioner.

John Chandler, aged about thirty-three years, deposed that he went with his
brother Thomas Chandler, etc. Also that he had never received the money.
Sworn in Boston, Sept. 21, 1667, before Edward Tyng, commissioner.

Award of the arbitrators, Edward Denisonf and Isaac Johnson,f dated Jan. 26,
1665, who ordered that Job Tiler should nail up or fasten upon the posts in
Andevour and Roxbury meeting houses in a plain legible hand, there to remain
fourteen days. Also that whereas no fine can be sufficient for the reparation
of a man's name, and considering Job's poverty and necessities, they judge that
he should pay the costs, 6li.; and for saying that Chandler was a base, lying,
cheating knave and had gotten his estate by cheating, and had cheated him out of 100li.,
he was to make public acknowledgment. Sworn by the arbitrators, 17 :7 :1667, before
Anthony Stoddard, commissioner (Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of
Essex County, Massachusetts Vol II Vol 3 sept 1667 pp442-443)


So now one of my other ancestors, John Stevens, was about to become involved in
this feud and in a way one might not expect in Puritan New England.

There was about to be a jurisdictional dispute.

To be continued...
.

MY ANCESTOR THE KNAVE 2 ?

Awhile back I posted "My Ancestor the Knave?" which contained Sara Loring
Bailey's account of an incident involving my ancestor Thomas Chandler, his
apprentice Hopestill Tyler, and Job Tyler, Hopestill's father. In brief, Job
Tyler had apprenticed his son to Chandler to learn the blacksmith's trade, then
for some reason wanted to nullify the contract. Tyler stole the documents and destroyed
them, but then Chandler sued and won back his apprentice. A series of legal battles
between Tyler and the Chandlers, culminating in a ruling ordering Tyler to publicly
apologize for slandering Chandler's good name.

Recently I found the court record transcriptions of that first case as well for several of
the subsequent ones, all of which I will post here to my blog. Here's the first case
file. Notice the description of how the Tylers stole the indenturement papers:

"June 1662

Thomas Chandler v. Job Tyler. For taking away his apprentice Hope Tyler, and detaining
him out of his service. Verdict for plaintiff, the boy to be restored to his master.J

Writ, dated June 15, 1662, signed by Daniel Denison, for the court, and served by Robert
Lord, marshal of Ipswich, by attachment of a calf and six swine of defendant.

Search warrant, dated June 23, 1662, issued by Daniel Deniison, to the constables of
Ipswich or Wenham, for the apprehension of " Hope Tiler a youth of about 13 yeares
of age, who is run away from his Mr Thomas Chandler of Andouer who as I am
informed is entertained by Richard Coy," and to bring him to the court at Salem, if
sitting, or before said Denison to be proceeded with according to law. Theophilus Wilson, constable of Ipswich, on June 23, 1662, appointed Robert Lord, sr., his deputy.

Thomas Chandler's bill of charges, 31i. 7s.

Nathan Parker, aged about forty years, testified that about four years since, Job Tiler and
Thomas Chandler desired deponent to make a writing to bind Hope Tiler, son of Job,
apprentice to Thomas Chandler, which he did according to his best skill. This writing,
Mr. Bradstreet afterward saw and perused and adjudged it to be good and firm. The
term of years mentioned was nine years and a half and said Chandler was to teach him
the trade of a blacksmith, to read the Bible and to write so far as to be able to keep a book
so as to serve his turn or to keep a book for his trade, and to allow him meat, drink,
washing, lodging and clothes. Deponent was to keep said writing safely, which he did for about three years, and Job Tiler often asked deponent to let him have it, but he refused, because it was agreed by both parties that deponent should keep it. Finally Moses Tiler
came with John Godfrey to deponent's house, as his maid servant and children told him,
when deponent, his wife and his maid were not in the house, and sent the elder of the
children out of doors. As the younger child told deponent when he returned, they took
the writing down, which he had stuck up between the joists and the boards of the
chamber, and the child thought they burned it in the fire. And when deponent returned,
he feared the writing was lost, because he certainly knew it to have been there when he
went out of the house about an hour or two before, as he had taken it from his pocket
when he came from Mr. Bradstreete's. He had also warned his children not to meddle
with it, which he verily believed they could not, for he himself was forced to stand up
in a chair to raise up the board to put it under. The elder boy before he was sent out of
doors by said Moses, saw said Tiler and Godfrey look up to the place where the writing
stuck and he told them that they must not meddle with the writing for their father had charged them not to do so. Deponent had never seen the writing since, and asking said
Tiler and Godfrey for it, they did not deny that they had taken it down, but said they
did not have it and did not know where it was, etc. Sworn, June 16, 1662, before
Daniel Denison.


Georg Abbott, aged about fifty years, deposed. Sworn in court.


Wiliam Balard, aged about forty-five years, deposed that about six weeks since, the house
of Job Tyler being burned, he gave said Tyler's wife leave to come with her family for a t
ime and live at his house. Her husband at that time was not at home. She accordingly did
so and there remained to this date.

John Godfre deposed that he saw Moses Tyler, Goodwife Tyler being there also, take down
the indenture in Nathan Parker's house. Deponent went with them to their farm, and Moses
said to him, " Godfre I haue got my Brothers indentuers and nowe lat Chandler don what
he can wee will take away hope frome him and that night I see the indentuer by moes
burned in the sight of his father and then he said now father you may take away hop when
you will from Chandler and lat him proue a righting if he can and thay gratly Tryemped."
Sworn in court."- (Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County,
Massachusetts Vol II pp404-405)


Job Tyler seems to have been an argumentative man. He would be involved in more
legal disputes and ironically enough many of them were with the same John Godfrey
who been involved in getting the papers from Mr. Parker's house. That would culminate
during the Witch Trials some 25 years later.

And as we'll see, there would also be more court appearances in the ongoing dispute
with Thomas Chandler.

ACK!

It appears Elaine my computer may be heading for a crash. One of my
younger coworkers who is wise in the ways of these matters says
it sounds like the motherboard. I shall not speak of that which I
said at that news. I'd have to wash my mouth out with soap.

So I've been busily backing up files onto my flashdrive, and last
night I did my monthly back up of this blog to it's mirror over
on Wordpress. Other than that, not much else I can do but hunker down
and hope Elaine holds out as long as possible.

Two quick reminders just in case she crashes sooner rather than later :

Don't forget to post your entry into the "Great American Local Poem " meme.
You still have a month before the Nov 22 deadline.

They say that absence makes the heart grow fonder. Say, did you vote for
the 40 Best Genealogy Blogs yet over at FamilyTree?

OK, meanwhile, I keep chugging along for as long as Elaine holds up!

STUFF...GENEALOGY STUFF THAT IS.

That's what I have.

Stuff.

A lot of it.

I mean that in a good way. I'm incredibly lucky to have found so much information
online about my New England ancestors, especially this past year. And I keep finding more!
I bookmark websites, copy documents and excerpts, then write about what I've found and
publish it here to the blog and finally add it to my genealogy programs. At times I tell myself
I need to stop looking and analyze what I already have; other times I remind myself that I'm
61 years old and I don't have forever so I need to find everything I can now while I still can.
And there's so much "stuff" out there I want to share with my family and friends.

I guess I'll keep on going the way I have been for now. It's a good problem to have though!

ANDOVER, MASSACHUSETTS IN 1692

I've found the online version of one of the maps in Elinor Abbot's book
about Andover. It's part of the University of Virginia's website on the
Salem Witch trials, but it's very useful to anyone tracing family who lived in
Andover at that period. I recommend using the frame version and then
enlarging it to the large size. You can zoom in one click on the map and
see the names on the map and consult the list in the left hand frame for the
names of which family members lived in which houses.

Although this map shows Andover in 1692, nearly fifty years after the founding
of the town, it illustrates Ms. Abbot's point of how the town spread out from
it's center. It also shows how some of my ancestors who came from the same
part of England(mainly the southwestern area of England) settled to the south
end of town while my other ancestor Richard Barker, who came from elsewhere
in England, settled to the north. In fact if you look on the map across Merrimack
River from the Shawshin Fields, you see the house of Robert Swan in the town of
Haverhill. Eventually my ancestor Jonathan Barker would marry Nancy Swan.

Check out some of the other links from the main page of the website for images of
documents from the witchtrials!

THE OLD OAKEN BUCKET: A GREAT AMERICAN LOCAL POEM

The Old Oaken Bucket
by Samuel Woodworth

How dear to this heart are the scenes of my childhood,
When fond recollections present them to view!
The orchard, the meadow, the deep-tangled wild wood,
And every loved spot which my infancy knew;
The wide-spreading pond, and the mill which stood by it,
The bridge and the rock where the cataract fell;
The cot of my father, the dairy house nigh it,
And e'en the rude bucket which hung in the well;
The old oaken bucket, the iron-bound bucket,
The moss-cover'd bucket, which hung in the well.

That moss-cover'd vessel I hail as a treasure;
For often, at noon, when return'd from the field,
I found it the source of an exquisite pleasure,
The purest and sweetest that Nature can yield.
How ardent I seized it, with hands that were glowing!
And quick to the white-pebbled bottom it fell;
Then soon, with the emblem of truth overflowing,
And dripping with coolness, it rose from the well;
The old oaken bucket, the iron-bound bucket,
The moss-cover'd bucket arose from the well.

How sweet from the green mossy brim to receive it,
As poised on the curb it inclined to my lips !
Not a full blushing goblet could tempt me to leave it,
Though fill'd with the nectar that Jupiter sips.
And now, far removed from the loved situation,
The tear of regret will intrusively swell,
As fancy reverts to my father's plantation,
And sighs for the bucket which hangs in the well;
The old oaken bucket, the iron-bound bucket,
The moss-cover'd bucket, which hangs in the well.


Samuel Woodworth was born in Scituate Massachusetts in 1784
and the house and well he wrote about in the poem are still
standing and maintained by the Scituate Historical Society.
The town is about 10 miles from Abington where I live and I've
occasionally driven by the homestead. You can read more about it
at the SHS website here.

ANDOVER MASSACHUSETTS:THE FAULKNER LIST

In her book Our Company Increases Apace: History, Language and Social Identity in
early Colonial Andover Massachusetts, distant cousin Elinor Abbot includes an image and
a transcription of a document known as the Faulkner List, which is a list of men who
were "free houlders" in Andover. These were colonists who were not servants and could
own land and build an estate for their heirs to inherit. I'm guessing that the term might be a
shortening of "free landholder".

I wrote a short post back in January of this year about the terms "Covenant" and "Freeman".
In her transcription of the Faulkner List Ms Abbot italicized the names of those men who
were the "Covenanters", the original founders of Andover. Among the names is that of
Edward Faulkner who was the first Andover town clerk and whose handwriting is believed
to be that on the list. I've added asterisks after the names of those men who are my
ancestors:

" house
The order of all the freed ^ holders
in order as they came to town:

Mr. Bradstreet
John Osgood
Joseph Parker
Richard Barker*
John Stevens*
Nicholas Holt*
Benjamin Woodbridge
John Fry
Edmond Faulkner
Robert Barnard
Daniel Poor*
Nathan Parker
Henry Jaques
John Aslett (or Aslebe)
Richard Blacke(Black)
William Ballard*
John Lovejoy*
Thomas Poore
George Abbott*
John Russe
Andrew Allen
Andrew Foster
Thomas Chandler*"

At some point the "house" was inserted to reflect possibly a change in how the right to vote
was established.

You might recognize some of my ancestor's names from previous posts. You'll be seeing
more about them as I explore the relations between the families that continued in some
cases from Andover, Massachusetts up into Oxford County, Maine.

Source:
Abbot, Elinor, Our Company Increases Apace: History, Language, and
Social Identity in Early Colonial Andover, Massachusetts.
(Dallas, Texas: SIL International, 2007) pp20-21

FARRELL JANE (COFFMAN) STEWART

Back when I first joined Facebook the first two cousins I met there were Zac
Anderson and Farrell Stewart. They are both descended from Leonidas West,
the younger brother of my ancestor Jonathan Phelps West. I received word
today from Zac that Farrell had passed away at home last Wednesday, Oct 14th.

Farrell was already interested in genealogy and had been one of the founders
of the Yellowstone Genealogy Forum . During the brief time I knew her
I got the chance to send her some of the things I'd found about our shared
Ames ancestry. She in turn shared her knowledge of the Keller line with Zac,
(Leonidas West had married Valora Abbott. Their daughter Clarinda Britton West
married Frank L. Keller from whom Zac and Farrell are descended.) and had
years ago corresponded with my Aunt Dorothy about family genealogy.


Her obituary can be read here at the Billings Gazette website.

She was a kind and gracious lady and my condolences go out to her children
and grandchildren.

THE DISAPPEARING STONE OF READING, MASSACHUSETTS

Back earlier this year when I was researching accounts of my ancestors' experiences
in the New England Indian wars I came across an interesting story about some of
my Sawyer relatives. It concerned, of all things, a legend about a disappearing
stone! I bookmarked it to come back to later, or so I thought, because when I
was ready to post about it here I found I'd not saved the site location.

I began googling for the story once more but had no luck. Periodically
I'd renew the search but failed and I'd finally almost come to believe that the
story about a disappearing stone had disappeared itself! But tonight I finally
got lucky!

So here's a story of brothers John and Benjamin Sawyer, my fellow descendants
from Thomas Sawyer and Mary(Marie) Prescott:


"John was a builder, and when he was putting up a house for Charles Buck asked
Benjamin to help him find a big flat stone for the hearth, probably. They found a
stone which by splitting would serve, but left it for another that served without
splitting. Soon afterward, when another such stone was needed for another new
house. John searched for the stone and to his surprise it had disappeared.
Benjamin was sure he could find it, but he also failed in his search. Soon the
stone reappeared, however, in the very spot where it had been first discovered.
The superstitious explained the mystery of the stone that came and went, and the
public came to believe that the stone marked hidden treasure. It was supposed
that the ghostly guards who had to watch over the treasure got tired of their job
occasionally and hid away the stone. At any rate, enough credence was given to
the story of enchantment to cause many parties to dig for the fabled treasure,
and the stories of their experiences add an interesting chapter to the town history."

- Cutter, William Richard, ed. Historic Homes and Places and Genealogical
and Personal Memoirs Relating to the Families of Middlesex County,
Massachusetts, Vol3 (New York, New York, Lewis Historical Publishing Co.
1908) p.1377

Benjamin Sawyer lived from 1762 to 1843 and this is the only mention I've
found anywhere of hidden treasure and a magical disappearing stone in Reading.
Middlesex, Ma. It is strongly reminiscent of the folktales of England, I think.

If you're up around Reading some day, look for a stone suddenly appearing in
a field and you might find some buried treasure!

GRAVE CONCERNS IN FORT SUMTER COUNTY :RESOLUTION!

I can't believe I hadn't posted this already. Great news from George
Geder on the fate of the Lake Panasoffkee Cemetery!

The Sumter County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously
against relocating the old cemetery which holds the remains
of African Americans and Native Americans. It is now designated
an historical site.

George provided a link to a story with more information.

A happy outcome, and thank you, George, for bringing this situation
to the attention of the geneablogging community!

WHY I'M NOT IN A GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY

The deadline for the next edition of the Carnival of Genealogy is about 45 minutes
away and I'm still trying to come up with a piece on "My Favorite Genealogy
Society." The reason it's been so difficult is that I've been a member of only one society,
the New England Historic Genealogical Society, and I haven't renewed my membership
since it expired last summer. As much as I enjoy its website and its publications, I can't
justify the cost of yearly membership when I might only visit the NEHGS building
once or twice a year. This might horrify some of my geneablogging friends but I've
learned more about my family from Google Books than I have from the NEGHS.

The closest local genealogical society is the South Shore Genealogical Society
which meets two towns over in Hanover on the second Saturday of the month from
September to June. Unfortunately the meetings are at 1:30pm in the afternoon
when I'm at work in the bookstore.

I'd like to have the time and financial stability to be an active contributing member
of a genealogical society but the harsh reality is that I work retail. I work on Saturdays
and many nights when I get out of work I just want to go home and relax. Perhaps
in another five years when I reach full retirement age I'll be able to take an active
part in a society. I strongly suspect that I am not alone in having to look at it this way.

Until then, I'll be making the occasional visit to the NEHGS.

BOYS' NIGHT OUT

The transcriptions for the Essex County court session in Ipswich, Ma for Sept 13th,
1649 include the following tidbits:

"Thomas Cooke to be whipped or fined for his abuse of the ministry and magistrates,
and going into the woods at unseasonable time of night, carrying fire and liquors
with him. Wit: Richard Lowle and Danyell Thirston."

The brief description of the case against Thomas Cooke give the particulars
as to the "abuse of the ministry" :

"Thomas Cooke presented for saying Mr. Norton taught what was false, and also for
reproaching the ordinance of baptism, saying that if he had children he would not
have them so played the fools withal. Wit: Mr. Bartholomew and Joseph Medcalf.
Willm. Varney bound for him."

Infant baptisms were a hotly debated topic in Puritan New England and given the
lack of tolerance for opposing religious beliefs at the time the penalty could have been
much worse. More light is shed on the rest of the charges against Thomas Cooke by
by the next case record:

"Joseph Fowlar, Tho. Scott, John Kemball and Thomas Kemball admonished [for going
into the woods at an unseasonable time of the night, and carrying fire and liquor with them.
— Waste Book.]"

The details?

"Joseph Fowler, Thomas Cook, Thomas Scott and two of the sons of Richard Kimball
presented for going into the woods, shouting and singing, taking fire and liquors with
them, all being at unseasonable time in the night, and occasioning their wives and
some others to go out and search therein. Wit: Nathaniel S_______ and Danyell
K______."

Now I'm a descendant of Thomas Kimball through his daughter Priscilla who married my
8x grear grandfather John Eames(Ames) so this of course attracted my attention. I thought
a bit over the incident these past few days, toying with the idea that perhaps Thomas Cook
had been holding meetings of those who shared his religious beliefs and concealing them
under the disguise of some drinking party in the woods. But then I had a better thought:

Sometimes, to quote a worn cliche, it is what it is!

So I'm going to go with the simple explanation on this one: Thomas Cook, the Kimball
brothers and the others snuck out in the woods, built a campfire and passed a jug around
until their wives tracked them down and herded them back to hearth and home.

It might not have great historical significance but the image in my mind of chastened
husbands makes me chuckle!

THE GREAT AMERICAN LOCAL POEM GENEALOGY CHALLENGE!

Recently I've posted two local poems:

"Ipswich Town" by James Appleton Morgan

and

"Another 'Tea Rebellion' " by Holman Day.

In the mid to late 19th century every region of America boasted of one or
more poets whose works reflected local history and folklore. Chances are that our
had read some of those poems during the course of their lives.

So, my challenge to my readers is this:

1. Find a poem by a local poet, famous or obscure, from 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.

2. Post the poem to your blog (remembering to cite the source where you found it.)

3. Did it inspire you to research the subject of the poem and how it relates to your
ancestor?

4.Submit your post's link here to me by November 22nd and I'll publish all the entries
on Thanksgiving Day!

So there you have it. There's over a month until the deadline so there's plenty of time
for a Google search for poems. I'm looking forward to a great selection of American
poetry!

THAT WAS THE WEEK THAT WAS...

I'm in one of those occasional periods when I've run out of "juice" so I'm
being lazy today as far as genealogy goes. I've had a pretty busy week
posting and looking back I have a few thoughts I'd meant to include in a few
posts but forgot for one reason or another.

"Ipswich Town" -I remember when I was a kid that the Boston Globe had a
page in the back of their Sunday Magazine supplement with poetry and quotations.
I read "The Face on the Barroom Floor" there. I'm not sure when they stopped
running that page, but seeing poems like "Ipswich Town" reminded me of it.

"Where The Sun Don't Shine" and "Grave Concerns in Sumter County, Florida"-
These sort of stories just infuriate me. It's bad enough we have punks with so little
decency that they damage or destroy gravestones for fun. But perhaps they draw
inspiration by the way cemeteries are allowed to fall into disrepair and become
overgrown with weeds, or ticketed to be relocated in the name of progress. After
all, it's only dead bodies, right? What difference does it make? (I'm being sarcastic
there.)

Finally, "Another 'Tea Rebellion' " brought back a memory of my maternal grandmother
Aggie who died 52 years ago today. It wasn't just Yankees who liked to drink their
tea off a saucer. Irish Catholic Aggie did too, and also liked to eat peas off a knife!

SATURDAY NIGHT GENEALOGY FUN: SATISFACTION

It's Saturday Night Genealogy Fun over at Randy Seaver's Genea-Musings
and here's this week's challenge:

For today's SNGF, if you choose to participate (cue the Mission Impossible music!),
please:

1) Tell us about one (or more) "Satisfying Genealogy Moments" from your family
history and genealogy research. What was it, and how did it make you feel? You
can make a Top Ten list if you want to!

2) Write your own blog post, or make a comment on this post, or make a comment
on Facebook, and tell us about your "moment in time."


So here's mine

1) This has to be when Aunt Dot gave me the West Family Bible last year. The only
thing that could ever top it would be finally breaking down the John Cutter West
brickwall or finding evidence of my Mom's family in Ireland.

2) The visit to Maine this year where I attended the Ellingwood Family Reunion
and especially visiting the graves of John Cutter West, Asa and Florilla Ellingwood,
and James Dunham and Sally Houghton.

3) Discovering online images of the Revolutionary War Pension Request files for
nine. ancestors.

4) Making contact with fellow Barker descendants Nancy Downey and Howard
Kaeplin who helped fill in some blanks in my Barker research.

5) Discovering online transcriptions of correspondence between the Massachusetts
Bay Colony Council and ancestor Simon Willard.

6) Discovering online transcriptions of correspondence between the Massachusetts
Bay Colony Council and ancestor Jeremiah Swain.

7) Discovering online transcriptions of Essex County Quarterly Court case records
involving many of my ancestors who lived in Essex County.

Visiting those gravesites, seeing that family bible and those records, all brought home to
me how long my family has been here in New England. It's given me a greater interest
and appreciation for it's history.

By the way, four of these have happened this year so it's been a very good year for me!

ANOTHER "TEA REBELLION"

Here's another regional New England poem from the early 20th century.
This is from "Pine Tree Ballads" by Holman Day:

ANOTHER " TEA REBELLION "

When Mis' Augusty Nichols joined the Tufts
Minerva Club,
She polished up on manners and she then com-
menced to rub
At the hide of Mister Nichols who, while not
exactly rude,
Was hardly calculated for a howling sort of
dude.
Now when Augusty Nichols got to see how
style was run,
You bet she went for Nichols and she dressed
him down like fun;
And the thing in all his actions that she couldn't
bear to see
Was to have him fill his saucer and go whoof-
ling up his tea.

After more'n a month of stewing;—making
mis'able his life,
She taught him not to shovel all his vittles
with his knife.
And after more'n a volume of pretty spicy talk
She got him in the hang of eating pie with
just his fork.
She trained him so's he didn't slop the vittles
round his plate,
She plagued him till he wouldn't sit in shirt-
sleeves when he ate,
And then she tried her Waterloo, with faith in
high degree
That she could revolutionize his way of drink-
ing tea.

He drank it as his father always quaffed the
cheering cup,
He poured it in his saucer, raised the brimming
puddle up
And gathered in the liquid with a loud re-
sounding " Swoof "
That now at last inspired Mrs. Nichols' fierce
reproof.
But here was where the victim—ah, here was
where the worm
Arose and fairly scared her by the vigor of his
squirm,

—Sat down his steaming saucer and with a
dangerous light
A-gleaming in his visage, he upbore a Yan-
kee's right.
From the days of Boston's party up to now I
think you'll see
That a Yankee's independent when you bother
with his tea.

" Consarn your schoolmarm notions," thun-
dered Mrs. Nichols' spouse,
" You've kept a'dingin' at me till I'm meechin
round the house.
I've swallered that and t'other for I didn't like
to row
But ye ain't a-going to boss me in the thing
ye've tackled now.
I'm durned if I'll be scalded all the time I'm
being stung
So I'll cool my tea, Mis' Nichols, while ye jab
me with your tongue."
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ** * *
There are rights ye cannot smother, tyrants,
whoso'er ye be,
And the good, New England Yankee 's mighty
touchy, sir, on tea.

Day, Holman Pine Tree Ballads : Rhymed Stories of Unplaned Human Natur'
Up In Maine (Boston, Ma., Small , Maynard & Co 1902) pp225-227

GRAVE CONCERNS IN SUMTER COUNTY FLORIDA PT 2

I emailed my concern about the planned movement of the Lake
Panasoffkee Cemetery to an official with the Sumter County
government and received a one line reply, to whit:

"The living are a higher priority and thank you for your input"

I'm hoping that if enough of us send emails to the County
Commission and comment on the story in the Fort Sumter
newspaper we might make them rethink that.

You can find email addresses for the county officials at their
website here.

You can comment on the story here at the Sumter County Times
website here.

Please do it as quickly as you can. If they've already outlined
the unmarked graves with orange paint,work is probably
going to start soon.

Thank you.

GRAVE CONCERNS IN SUMTER COUNTY, FLORIDA

George Geder has alerted the genealogical community about another disturbing
case of a cemetery being sacrificed in the name of "progress". The Lake
Panasoffkee Cemetery in Sumter County, Florida is to be moved even though
the developer in the original land deal has decided to build their project in
Georgia instead.

Now the cemetery is a small one with what is now believed to be 50 graves of
African Americans and Seminole Indians. According to an article you can read
here from the Sumter County Times, County Admistrator Bradley Arnold
"said the gravesite is a family cemetery. When asked what criteria were used to
establish Panasoffkee as a “family cemetery,” Arnold stated “the county holds
title to the property.”

The reason for the move is "The cemetery is close to being in the middle of an
industrial area that is encroaching on the present site. We are moving it.”
The Sumter County Historical Society and relatives and descendants of those
buried at the Lake Panasoffkee site have protested the move but the County
seems determined to go ahead with it anyway.

A quick search of Wikipedia revealed that Sumter County is in a mainly rural
area of Florida that has experienced an upsurge recently due, ironically, to the
arrival of a rather large senior citizen retirement community.

It seems to be a trend lately that sites such as these are being sacrificed in the
name of progress, that a people's heritage and local history mean nothing compared
to increasing the tax revenues in town and county coffers. Recently there is
the case of an Indian mound in Oxford, Alabama being used to provide landfill
for the construction of a Sam's Club. According to the Mayor of Oxford:
"We want to take care of people's remains," Smith said. "That can be moved.
What it's going to be is more prettier than it is today."

Right. A Sam's Club is a "more prettier" thing.

The trouble is, many of these sites are cemeteries of Indians and African Americans
who in earlier times either were not allowed to be buried in town or church cemeteries
or who preferred to be buried on ancestral lands according to their cultures' rites and
beliefs. Often they were buried in out of the way places to prevent desecration.

And now ironically the land they were buried in has become valuable and they face
removal to another place.

As genealogists and family historians, we should do what we can to help the Sumter
County Historical Society convince the County Commission that there are some things
more valuable than progress. The website for the Sumter County Government is here
and there are email addresses for Mr. Arnold and the County Commissioners. You
can also make comments to the story at the Sumter County Times website as well as
vote on a poll on the subject. Perhaps some of the other Southern state historical and
genealogical societies can help the Sumter County Historical Society get the word out
to the citizenry?

Folks, you might think it's no big deal. But as time goes on, more and more of us are
going to be facing this sort of situation as businesses look to expand and local
governments look for ways to attract tax revenue.

We need to start taking a stand now before it's our families whose graves are being
moved.