Sources for William Lister – Part 3 of 3 – Ancestry Sources.

Roberts Project
Roberts-Barnes-Lister Line
By Don Taylor

After I’ve reviewed and double-checked the Family Search sources, I review the sources other people have cited on Ancestry as the basis for facts they have found. Again, do I agree? Do the sources fit the right person. Are there conflicts that I should address?

William Lister is found in 58 Ancestry public trees. If a tree indicates a spouse for him, the trees suggest Nancy Strain or Leah Adkins. Either spouse is okay, as I believe he was married to both. However, the trees have several different potential parents for William. William & Mary and Nimrod & Mary are most common. Some trees suggest William Nimrod Lister as William’s father. Although interesting to see, I’m interested in the sources others have that might point to those names and provide the basis for other facts.

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Looking carefully at the Ancestry sources for William Lister, I found:

1830 Census

William Lister, home in Deerfield, Ross County, Ohio.

I previously looked at this entry as my William Lister (1793-1848). (See William Lister & the 1830 Census.)

1840 Census

I looked at William Lister (1793-1848) in the 1840 Census previously. (See William Lister & the 1830 Census.) I failed to find William in Pickaway County in the 1840 Census and possibly found him in Ross County. I did look carefully at the neighbors near him in the 1830 Census Pickaway County William Lister and looked for them in the 1840 Census. I found seven of the ten closest individuals. Looking at their 1840 neighbors, none of them appear to be a William Lister misspelled or misindexed. I don’t believe the William Lister in Pickaway County in 1830 was enumerated in Pickaway County during the 1840 Census.

Indiana, U.S., Death Certificates, 1899-2011

Death Certificate 22067 – William Marcus Lister

I reviewed this record with the Family Search source citations.

Ohio Marriages, 1800-1958

William Sister [Lister] & Nancy Strain Married on 17 June 1822.

This is the same source I have for their marriage. The link to the record on Ancestry is here.

Ohio Marriages, 1800-1958

William Lister & Lea Adkins Married on 23 April 1846. This is the same record I found earlier. On Ancestry, it is available here.

Ohio, U.S., Soldier Grave Registrations, 1804-1958

Indicates William Lister was born in 1793. He enlisted on 30 August 1812 and was discharged on 9 October 1812. His Rank was Private in the Army. He died in 1848 and was buried in New Holland Cemetery, Perry, Pickaway County, Ohio. This record didn’t add any new information or facts for me; however, it does provide a link to the original document on Fold3, which I will download and assess the next time I renew my Fold3 membership.

Find-a-Grave

William Lister’s Find-a-Grave Memorial #38330408[i] includes two photos of his marker. I had this information previously.

 

Roster of Ohio soldiers in the War of 1812

William Lister – Private.

The Roll of Capt. Alexander Robinson’s Company (From Ross County) indicated that William Lister served from 30 August until 9 October 1812, and he was from Pickaway county:

….Privates….

Lister, William

War of 1812 Pension Application Files Index, 1812-1815

William Lister

The record provides pension numbers (SC #3871 & SO # 7572) and information that he was also in Capt. Geo Yocums Co. of the Ohio Militia.

Reconciliation

	My Records	Ancestry
Birth	1793 Maryland	1793 – Pickaway Co.
Father	Unknown	William, Nimrod, or “William Nimrod”
Mother	Unknown	Mary
Son		James Alfred

I didn’t find any evidence regarding William’s parents in any of the sources. There were references to someone “finding something on the Internet” back in 2000. However, in reading the thread, I didn’t see anything that provided evidence for that finding. Additionally, none of the researchers using Ancestry Public Trees provided a source for William’s parents’ names either.

Conclusion (Part 3)

After reviewing the sources cited on Ancestry:

1. 1. William’s birth date and location. I’m confident that William Lister was born in 1793 in Maryland. I am not confident regarding his parents’ names.
   2. I still doubt that William had a son James Alfred.
      1. In 1822, William’s wife Nancy would have been 15 years old, suggesting she would have been 14 when James Alfred was conceived.
      2. Alternately, William Lister could have had an earlier wife. I haven’t seen evidence of that in any other records.
      3. It is uncommon for a person to have two children with the same given name.

It is possible but unlikely that William had a wife before Nancy. If I find any evidence of his having has such a wife, I’ll add James Alfred to the mix.

1. 3. I am convinced that William Marcus Lister was born on 2 August 1832 in Pickaway County, Ohio.

I feel comfortable writing a sketch regarding William Lister’s life with the additional research I’ve done.

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Endnotes

[i] Find a Grave, Find a Grave, William Lister, Pvt – 1793-1848. Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/38330408/william-lister: accessed 17 February 2022), memorial page for Pvt William Lister (1793–20 Nov 1848), Find a Grave Memorial ID 38330408, citing New Holland Cemetery, New Holland, Pickaway County, Ohio, USA ; Maintained by Dave M (contributor 46499754).