The Waters Family of 1880 Patten, Maine

Posted on February 27, 2020 by Don Taylor

Blanchard Project
Utterstrom/Chase/Waters

By Don Taylor

Photo of Don Taylor with cat Nasi.During my ancestor sketch for Sadie Walters, I learned that Patten, Kennebec County, Maine, was settled about 1828 and incorporated in 1841. Sadie was born in 1887 in Patten, Maine and her parents were born in Patten as well. So, I wondered, just when did Sadie’s people come to Patten.  Sadie’s parents were William G. Waters and Laura M. Swett.

I decided to look first at the Waters of Patten, Maine, as they appear in the 1880 Census records.

1880 Population Schedule

A search of the 1880 Census for “Waters” in Patten, Maine, had 12 results in four-family units:

  1. George Waters, Age 67 – Widower – Farmer
    1. Daughter – Elen M. Waters, Age 40
    2. Son – Willie G. Waters, Age 22 – works on a farm.
  2. Samuel Waters, age 65 – Farmer
    1. Wife – Frances E. Waters, age 41
    2. Daughter – Emily Waters, age 14 – Attended School.
    3. Adopted Daughter – Mary I. Waters, age 24 – Teacher.
  3. William Waters, Age 60 – Farmer
    1. Wife – Olive T. Waters, Age 33
    2. Daughter – Alice M. Waters, Age 10 – Attended School.
    3. Son – William L Waters, Age 8 – Attended School.
    4. Niece – Emily A Rowe, Age 19 – Teacher
    5. Nephew – George E Rowe, Age 23 – Teacher
  4. Eunice W. Waters, Age 64 – Mother of Lonsen Grant.
    1. (Son) – Lonsen Grant, Age 37, farmer

Willie G. Waters is clearly the William G. Waters that I have in my records and Sadie A. Water’s father, who was born in January 1858. Thanks to the 1880 Census, I’ve learned that William’s father was George Waters, born c. 1813 and Willie G. had a much older sister, Elen, who was 18 years older, born about 1840.

George Waters Family entry in the 1880 Census.

I find it very interesting that George, Samuel, and William Waters are all in the 60s, all were born in Maine, and all of there parents were born in Maine. So, I suspect that the three are brothers.  A look at earlier census records may provide a clearer look and either confirm or rebuke that hypothesis.

Non-population Schedules

The 1880 Agricultural Census Schedule lists the farm information regarding each of the Waters’ farms.

George had 100 acres of land, 60 of which was tilled. In 1879, he had two horses, three milch (milk) cows, 18 sheep from which he got 100 pounds of fleece, and 20 chickens. He had 5 acres in oats, 3 acres in wheat, 1 acre of potatoes, 2 acres of apple trees. Altogether, George’s farm was valued at $1,539.

Samuel and William’s farms were slightly larger at 150 acres and valued at $1,775 and $1,780, respectively.

Future Actions

  • Next – Review the 1870 Census records.
  • Research property records for the Waters of Paten, Maine.

Sources:

  • 1880 Census, Lonsen M. Grant (Head) – Patten, Penobscot, Maine – Eunice W. Waters (Mother). 1880; Census Place: Patten, Penobscot, Maine; Roll: 485; Page: 386A; Enumeration District: 001.
  • 1880 Census, George Waters – Patten, Penobscot, Maine. 1880; Census Place: Patten, Penobscot, Maine; Roll: 485; Page: 385D; Enumeration District: 001.
  • 1880 Census, Samuel Waters – Patten, Penobscot, Maine. 1880; Census Place: Patten, Penobscot, Maine; Roll: 485; Page: 383D; Enumeration District: 001.
  • 1880 Census, William Waters – Patten, Penobscot, Maine. 1880; Census Place: Patten, Penobscot, Maine; Roll: 485; Page: 384A; Enumeration District: 001.
  • 1880 U.S. census, “Agricultural Census Schedule”, George Waters, Patten, Penobscot, Maine, OS Page 15, Line 4. 1880; Census Place: Patten, Penobscot, Maine; Archive Collection Number: 15-156; Roll: 15; Page: 15; Line: 4; Schedule Type: Agriculture
  • 1880 U.S. census, “Agricultural Census Schedule”, Samuel Waters, Patten, Penobscot, Maine, OS Page 11, Line 5. 1880; Census Place: Patten, Penobscot, Maine; Archive Collection Number: 15-156; Roll: 15; Page: 11; Line: 5; Schedule Type: Agriculture.
  • 1880 U.S. census, “Agricultural Census Schedule”, William Waters, Patten, Penobscot Maine, OS Page 11, Line 7. 1880; Census Place: Patten, Penobscot, Maine; Archive Collection Number: 15-156; Roll: 15; Page: 11; Line: 7; Schedule Type: Agriculture.
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The Butterfield Bible – Part 2 – Marriages

Posted on February 23, 2020 by Don Taylor

I recently received a copy of the “Butterfield Bible” from a friend who asked that I share its contents with the “Genealogy World.”  The bible is an 1889 edition that appears to have originally been owned by Daisy E. Butterfield of Marseilles, Illinois, who put her name inside the front cover in 1889.  Sarah “Daisy” Butterfield was born 20 February 1879, so she would have been 10-years-old in 1889.  The section between the Old and New Testaments includes “Family Record” sheets for Marriages, Births, and Deaths. This is a transcript of the “Marriages.” Besides the entries in the Bible, there is an additional paper with 2½  pages of marriages.

Marriages

Marriages entered in the Bible 

  • Marriages

    A. Butterfield & Sarah Drackley – Nov 1st 1860 – Manlius Twp.[i] Ills.

  • Fannie Butterfield & Lewis M. Eddy – Dec 27 1881 – Marseilles, Ills.
  • Alice M. Butterfield & Fred. M. Eichelberger – June 29, 1887 – Marseilles, Ills.
  • Lois A. Butterfield & Melvin R, Parr – Feb. 17, 1892 – Ottawa, Ills.
  • Louis A Butterfield & Edith Zimmerman – Feb 12, 1901 – Manlius Twp. Ills.
  • Josephine Eddy – James B. Wideman – Nov. 26, 1903 – Chicago, Ills.
  • Sarah E. Butterfield & Walter F. Larrabee – Dec 20, 1904 – Seneca, Ills.
  • Louis E. Larrabee & Marion Wiggin – Oct 9, 1930 – Scarborough, ME[ii]
  • Stephen Harris Larrabee & Hannah Isabel Latimer – Nov 16 – 1935 – In Buenos Aires, Argentina[iii]

There is only one page of marriages in the book, however, there is a separate sheet of paper that contains a continued sheet of Marriages. It says:

Family Record – Continued – Marriages (front)

  • Blanche Eddy & Hugh Herbert Britton – Chicago – Feb. 27, 1914.
  • Hazel Eddy & John William Lindner – Chicago – Feb 27, 1914.
  • Fannie Eddy & Richard Wade Webster – Marseilles, Ills. – March 2, 1915.
  • Katherine Sarah Butterfield & Floyd E. Roberts – Chicago, Ills. (no date entered)
  • Emma Lou Butterfield & Donald W Zimm- – Seneca, Ills. – June 1930.
  • Louis E Larrabee – Marion Wiggin – Scarboro Beach, Me. – Oct 9, 1930.
  • Stephen Harris Larrabee & Hanna Isabel Latimer – Buenos Aires, Argentina, So. Am – Nov 10, 1935.

Family Record – Continued – Marriages (Inside left)

  • Elenore Wideman & John Evan Picton – Aug. 2nd 1924
  • Blanche Wideman & Fred B. Scott – Aug 6, 1925.
  • Leola Eichelber & George Hobsow – Dec 23, 1908.
  • Phiranda A Butterfield (Phillip( & Mary Hustava – July 18, 1931.
  • Albert Will Butterfield & Cathleen Stady – June 12 – 1938 – Cairo, Ills
  • Richard Wade Webster, Jr. & Mildred Wahl (no date provided)
  • Rita Sarah Webster (Fanny Eddy Webster) & Jack Hiatt (no date provided)
  • Robert Arthur Webster & Jean Marie Russeth – June 10th, 1944 – Nerstrand, Minnesota

Family Record – Continued – Marriages (Inside right)

  • Lean E. Britton & Emil C. Seidel (dau Blanche Eddy Britton) – June 27, 1940 – Dubuque, Iowa.
  • Russell Laurin Butterfield & Mrs. Bernice Carr (son Louis A Butterfield) – Jan 16, 1943 – LaSalle, Ills.
  • Leola Eichelberger Hobson & Edwin W. Schaub – Jan 1943 – in Calif.
  • Robert Arthur Webster and

Endnotes

[i] There are two Manlius Townships in Illinois. One is in Bureau County and the other is in LaSalle County. One is about 60 miles west of Marseilles, Illinois and the other is about six miles east of Marseilles. I presume the Manlius Township mentioned here is the one in LaSalle County.

[ii] The marriage of Louis Larrabee to Marion Wiggin is repeated on continuation sheet 1 (front).

[iii] The marriage of Stephen Larrabee to Hannah Latimer is repeated on continuation sheet 1 (front).

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Minerva Kenrick, Mrs. Kimball, and two other photos

Posted on February 21, 2020 by Don Taylor

Photo Friday

I only had a chance to look at four photos this week. I’m sure I identified one of them. One of the images I believe I’ve identified, and one is a complete unknown. The last photo is a location, probably in North Yarmouth.

Family Search

“Minerva Kenrick” is the photo of a woman probably in her late 30s to early 50s. She appears to be wearing some kind of funky hat. My review indicated there were two people in Maine named Minerva Kenrick.

  • 1850 – The first Minerva Kenrick, born about 1809, is the apparent wife of Francis Kenrick living in China, Kennebec County.
  • 1860 – A Minerva Kenrick, born about 1808, is the apparent wife of Francis Kenrick residing in Fairfield, Somerset County.
  • 1870 – A Minerva Kendrick, born about 1810, is the apparent mother of Edward Kenrick living in Waterville, Kennebec County.
  • 1875 – Minerva Crowell Kenrick, born December 6, 1808, died August 19, 1875, in Waterville, Kennebec County, and was buried in Pine Grove Cemetery.

—–

Minerva Kenrick

Minerva Kenrick

  • 1900 – A second Minerva Kenrick was born in March 1872; she appears as a boarder in Portland, Cumberland County in 1900.
  • 1910 – A Minerva born about 1871, is the head of a household including her mother (Mary), ten nurses and six domestics in Portland, Cumberland County.
  • 1920 – a Minerva, born about 1873, appears as a boarder in Portland, Cumberland County.
  • 1922 – Minerva Kenrick, born in 1872, died on January 18, 1922, in Portland, Cumberland County.
  • 1922 – Minerva Kenrick, born February 18, 1871, died January 18, 1922, in Portland and was buried at Pine Grove Cemetery, Waterville, Kennebec County.

Clearly, there were two Minerva Kenrick’s in Maine. One lived long before this photo was taken. The other died at 50 during the early 1920s. This photo most assuredly is the second Minerva Kendrick (1871-1922), who appears to have never married.

Dead Fred

Mrs. Kimball - Mrs. Kendall's mother“Mrs. Kimball – Mrs. Kendall’s mother” is a photo of a woman on a couch with a chair nearby.  The picture is “artsy,” having been taken from very low, below table height.

I didn’t find anything in Family Search, but a search on Ancestry led to my suspicion that the photo is of Sarah M (Parker) Kimball (1834-1900), whose daughter, Susan married Edgar Kendall in 1896 in Milford, Hillsborough County, New Hampshire. It fits that this could be a photo of Sarah between 1896 and her death in 1900.

Other

Unknown - April 21, '06 - Lived in No. Berwick“Unknown – April 21, ’06 – lived in No. Berwick” is a photo of an unnamed woman.  I sent an email (with digital image) to the North Berwick Historical Society to see if someone there might be able to identify the individual.

 

Places

Wecustigo Valley Farm“Wescustigo Valley Farm” – The barn has a sign indicating 1872. My internet research suggests that this might be located in North Yarmouth. I emailed them to confirm.

 

Final Note

If you are related to any of these families and can help precisely identify them, I’d love to hear from you.

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Adding History to my Stories.

Posted on February 18, 2020 by Don Taylor

General Help
By Don Taylor

Photo of Don Taylor with cat Nasi.I was recently asked about my organizational methods for writing family histories and family sketches. To add life to my family sketches, I like to add historical occurrences during critical times in an ancestor’s life. For example, I found it interesting to know that the month before I was born, North Korea invaded South Korea. That was the beginning of the Korean War and President Harry S. Truman ordered US Forces into the conflict as my mother was traveling to Oregon to give birth to me.

As I add historical events to my ancestor’s stories, I try to focus on several critical events in a person’s life, so that I can understand what is going on around them and how that might have affected them, their parents, or their children. I consider birth, graduation, marriage, death of a spouse, and death as particularly significant.

To facilitate investigating historical events during a person’s life, I use browser (Chrome) bookmarks to facilitate my learning about those events. I have about a dozen bookmarks; some are date-based, some are location-based. Depending upon the ancestor, when they lived and where they lived, I may use any or all of them.

As an example, I’m looking at the events of my fifth great-grandmother, Mercy (Gay) Sanford.

    • Mercy was born in 1761 in Sharon, Litchfield County, Connecticut.
    • She married Ezra Clugston Sanford in 1786 in Sharon, Litchfield County, Connecticut.
    • Ezra died in July 1813 in Pownal, Bennington County, Vermont.
    • She died in 1841 in Byron, Genesee County, New York.

So, what can I learn about the events that may have affected Mercy’s life?

Our Timelines

One of my favorite sites for this is www.OurTimeLines.Com. On the left is a menu and a selection for “Timeline.” Enter the person’s name, birth year, and death year then click [Generate Timeline!]

Quickly the timeline let me know that King George III (Hanover) was king when she was born and the Revolution had to play a significant role in her early life experiences. Shortly after her marriage, the Constitutional Congress approved the Constitution. In 1813, when Ezra died, the War of 1812 was well underway. When she died in 1841, John Tyler was president.

Wikipedia

My second favorite site for this type of inquiry is Wikipedia. Just go to www.wikipedia.org and enter the year of interest.  In the case of 1761, I learned that on November 7th, the New London Harbor Light was first lit. Sharon is over 100 miles away from New London, so I suspect the lighting of the lighthouse was not a significant event for the Gay family, but it might have been. In 1786, Connecticut ceded the land west of the Western Reserve, which is now part of Ohio. 1813 was a year that was all about the war. Did Ezra die in or because of the war?  That is a new research area. Next, still on Wikipedia, I’d look quickly at the history of various towns where Mercy lived. Byron was incorporated from part of the town of Bergen in 1820. That lets me know that there probably wasn’t an actual move when Mercy was in Bergen in 1820 and Byron in 1830.

Chronicling America

Chronicling America can often be useful. Sadly, their archive begins in 1789, so Mercy’s early life won’t be there. In her later life, she lived in such small towns there doesn’t seem to be any papers from where Mercy lived archived on Chronicling America.

On This Day

Another fun site to look for items of history is www.OnThisDay.Com. Enter a year, and learn lots of things that were going on. I noticed that the US Congress chose the dollar as the monetary unit for the USA in 1786, when Mercy married, and Mexico declared independence from Spain in November 1813 the year Ezra died.

Family Tree Maker Timeline

Typically, I use Family Tree Maker looking at facts; however, there is also a tab to use Family Tree Maker in the “Timeline” mode. On that page, there is an option to add “Family Events” and to include “Historical Events.” That way you may see what happened during an individual’s life. I can incorporate bits of these informative events into my sketch of Mercy’s life sketch. The Family Tree Maker Timeline mode also allows you to add your own events. That is handy because when I find an event that affected the family, I can add it to the historical timeline for future use and it will show for everyone in their timeline.

Adding little snippets of general history can make your family’s story much more interesting.

In this case, I learned several facts, any of which I can incorporate into my story of Mercy’s life. These facts include:

    • 1754-1763 – French and Indian War underway.
    • 1761 – King George III (Hanover) was king of England.
    • 1761 – I learned that on November 7th, the New London Harbor Light was first lit.
    • 1786 – Connecticut ceded the land west of the Western Reserve, which is now part of Ohio.
    • 1786 – US Congress chose the dollar as the monetary unit
    • 1787 – The Constitutional Congress approved the Constitution.
    • 1813 – War of 1812 was well underway.
    • 1813 – Mexico declared independence from Spain in November.
    • 1820 – Byron was incorporated from part of Bergen.
    • 1841 – John Tyler was president.
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The Butterfield Bible – Part 1 – Births

Posted on February 16, 2020 by Don Taylor

Cover of the Daisy Butterfield Bible

I recently received a copy of the “Butterfield Bible” from a friend who asked that I share its contents in the “Genealogy World.”  The bible is an 1889 edition that appears to have originally been owned by Daisy E. Butterfield of Marseilles, Illinois, who put her name inside the front cover in 1889.  The section between the Old and New Testaments includes “Family Record” sheets for Marriages, Births, and Deaths. This is a transcript of the “Births.” Besides the entries in the Bible, there is an additional sheet of births.

Births – 1st Page of Births

  • Daisy Butterfield Bible – Births, Page 1

    A. Butterfield – Oct 19, 1840

  • Sarah Drackley Butterfield – Aug 10, 1938
  • Fannie Butterfield (Eddy) – Oct 20, 1863
  • Alice Butterfield (Eichelbeger) – Oct 20, 1867
  • Lottie Butterfield – Oct 13, 1865
  • Lois A. Butterfield (Parre) – Dec 4, 1870
  • Charles Butterfield – Jun 24, 1872
  • Louis A Butterfield – Jul 23, 1877
  • Sarah E Butterfield (Larrabee) – Feb 20, 1879
  • Josephine Eddy (Wideman) – Sep 27, 1882
  • Blanche Eddy (Britto) – Aug 29, 1884
  • Hazel Eddy (Lindren) – Oct 25, 1886
  • Fannie Eddy (Webster) – Dec 26, 1888
  • Leola E. Eichelberger (Hobson) – Sep 5, 1890
  • Leora Marle – Jun 8, 1898
  • Russell L. Butterfield – Apr 24, 1902
  • A. Butterfield II – Aug 18, 1903
  • Kathyrn Sarah Butterfield – May 25, 1905
  • Dorothy Eleanor Wideman – Aug 22, 1905 – Woodstock Ills.

2nd Page of Births

  • Blanche Evelyn Wideman – Dec 13, 1906

    image of the Daisy Butterfield Bible - Births - Page 2

    Daisy Butterfield Bible – Births 2

  • Albert William Butterfield – Apr 4, 1908
  • Stephen Harris Larrabee – July 18, 1907
  • Louis Edwin Larrabee – Sept 28, 1909
  • James Eddy Wideman – Feb 8, 1911 – Woodstock, Ills
  • Emma Lou Butterfield – Apr 5th 1913
  • William Wideman Jr.-
  • Richard Wade Webster – June 20, 1916
  • Sarah Rita Webster – Dec 27, 1917
  • Robert Arthur Webster – Dec 23, 1922
  • Jean Britton-
  • James Eddy Wideman – Feb 8, 1911
  • John Widerman-
  • John W. Widerman – Marion, Ohio – June 27, 1921
  • Richard Evan Picton (Eleanor Widerman) – Sept 29, 1925
  • Barbara Ann Scott (Blanche Widerman) – Aug 25, 1926
  • Donald Edward Larrabee – Sept 25, 1931
  • Donald Walter Zinn Jr. – Apr 4, 1932
  • 8ÂĽ lb. – Deborah Ellen Larrabee in Buenos Aires, Argentina, South America. – Thurs. Eve Sept 29, 1938
  • 7 lbs 2½ oz – Thomas Louis Roberts – Dec 7, 1938 @ 9.15 P.M.
  • Barbara Lynn Butterfield – July 21, 1939 – Sycamore, Ills – 7 – 5
  • Bruce Augustus Butterfield – Nov 10, 1940

There are 11 additional entries that I’ve decided not to transcribe because of privacy concerns. All relate to individuals born since 1940. Family Search does not appear to have Birth Records for individuals born in Illinois after 1940, so I won’t transcribe these entries here.

Three of them are included in the attached graphic and the remaining entries are on a separate sheet (not included here) that was folded in the BMD section of the bible.

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