One of the benefits of using Ancestry DNA for Genetic Testing is their vast database. Because there are so many people in their system, you are much more likely to have a DNA match. Sure enough, it happened again. This time, a previously unknown person, Debra contacted me via Ancestry Messages with the simple message, “My DNA results says that you are my 1st cousin.”
Oh my, here we go again.
I clicked on View the Match, then clicked on the little “Info icon” to see how much DNA we shared. Debra and I share 621 centimorgans across 25 segments. According to the chart I use, that amount of shared DNA put us in an overlapping range of first cousin and first cousin one removed. I then clicked on “Shared Matches” and saw that she also matched with my Roberts half-siblings. Because I can view my half-sister’s matches, I looked at her results and saw that she and Debra share 893 centimorgans of DNA across 37 segments. Solidly in the first cousin range. For sure, Debra is a first cousin and now I knew that we share a common grandparent on my paternal side.
My grandparents, Bert Allen Roberts and Essie Pansy Barnes, had five children. The amount of DNA shared was not enough for Debra to be my half-sibling, so that ruled out my biological father, Hugh Eugene Roberts, from being involved. In subsequent messages, she indicated she knew who her mother was, so that eliminated Pansy and Helen, leaving only two potential sources for her to be a first cousin – Uncle Bert and Uncle John. Between the two, Uncle Bert was, by far, the likely candidate.
Bert Allen Roberts, Jr. and two unknown women, c. 1947.
Then, Debra let us know that her sister told her that her father’s name was Bert, but never knew his last name. Debra also sent a photo of Bert, her supposed father, from the late 1940s. My half-brother Tom knew Bert and was able to identify Uncle Bert from the picture. Mystery solved!
So, welcome cousin Debra Edwards to the growing Roberts clan. I am so pleased you were able to identify who your father is after so many years.
So far, DNA test results have led to my learning about:
Note: I wish Family Tree Maker had a better way to indicate offspring producing relationships. Creating a “spouse” and then set the relationship set to “Friend” or set to “Other” is cumbersome at best but doesn’t describe the relationship. Sigh….
Researching the Vinson/Vincent line of Halifax, North Carolina
Howell-Darling-2017 Research
Howell/Vinson/Vincent Line
By Don Taylor
Getting to know ancestors that lived before 1850 is always difficult. The census records before 1880 do not include relationships and census records before 1850 only include the name of the head of the household. Because of that, it is really difficult to know all the names and to learn all the relationships. It isn’t a wall, but certainly researching families before 1850 can feel like a closed road. For me, my wife’s third great-grandfather, Burkett Vinson is such a person. He shows up once in the 1840 Census with a small household of five individuals. After a frustrating time trying to find more about him, I decided to do a name/location study regarding his surname in his location. Such a study can help associate people into relationships and can help reduce errors.
Using Family Search, I searched the 1850 Census for surname Vinson in Halifax, North Carolina. The system returned six results from two families. Both were new to my research:
Littleberry Vinson, Age 34, his apparent wife, an apparent daughter, Laura, and an apparent son Robert.[i]
Robert Vinson, Age 30, and his apparent wife, Martha.[ii]
Next, I enter the information into my software, (I currently use Family Tree Maker 3.1.) documenting my sources very carefully.
Besides the obvious family units I’ve discovered, it was also interesting to learn many of the little nuances of the individual’s lives. For example, Littleberry Vinson distinguished himself in testing at Brinkleyville Academy in 1831[iii]. He became a lawyer. Then, in 1840, he toasted vice presidential candidate John Tyler for devotion to Republican principals and support of the Constitution. That article’s use of “Esqr.” confirms that Littleberry was a lawyer. His toast suggests his political affiliation indicating that Littleberry Vinson was likely a Whig.[iv] (Harrison and Tyler ran on a Whig party ticket. Also, today’s Republican Party wasn’t established until 1854.)
Unfortunately, my experience researching this family is that Vincent and Vinson were used interchangeably depending upon the ear of the person hearing the name. Sadly, a search for “Vincent” yielded another 13 results and three new previously unknown households.
John Vincent, Age 32, with his apparent wife, Leonora, and three daughters, Virginia, Elizabeth, and Susan. Also in the household is a 30-year-ood Eliza Beasley. (These were my wife’s ancestor family. John is my wife’s 2nd great-grandfather and Susan is her great-grandmother.) [v]
Elizabeth Vincent, Age 64 with a 25-year-old Nancy Vincent in the household. (This would be the wife and daughter of the deceased Burkett Vinson.)[vi]
New Households:
Michael Vincent, age 27, his apparent wife and an apparent son, Walter.[vii]
James Vincent, Age 19 & John Vincent, Age 16[viii]
Of course, all the “apparent” relationships above are guesses. I’ll add that, because of the ages, I’ll guess that James and John (ages 19 & 16) were brothers.
Next, I need to expand upon these Vincent families and understand how they fit into the larger picture.
I always enjoy a fresh, new, project. Jumping in and documenting a new tree getting to know new ancestors is my idea of fun. My client knew very little about her maternal line, so I began looking closely at her grandfather. Certainly, I have more research to do for Harvey Nelson, however, this is a good start. Harvey was a wandering soul. Born in Wisconsin to Danish immigrants, he moved and bounced around quite a bit in his youth. Finally, he settled down in Southern California, but still moved throughout the area living in Los Angeles, Orange, and San Diego counties.
Cassel Project 2017 – Ancestor #6
List of Grandparents
Grandfather: Harvey Nelson
1st Great-grandfather: Lars Nelson
Harvey Nelson (1891-1974)
Harvey (NMN) Nelson was born on 19 April 1891 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin[i]. We know he had at least five older siblings — four brothers and a sister. His parents were Lars P. Nelson and Nicoline “Lena” Larsen. Lars and Lena were born in Denmark, married in 1872, and immigrated to the United States in 1873.
Chris born in 1874 in Pennsylvania.
Ann Elizabeth born in 1878 in Wisconsin.
Theodore “Ted” born in 1882 in Wisconsin.
Emil (or Amiel) born in 1884 in Wisconsin.
Arthur born in 1887 in Wisconsin.
He certainly had another sibling whose birth and death occurred before 1900.
It is unclear if he had one or two more siblings. He may have had a sister, Hortense and possibly brother, R.C Nelson.
Sometime between 1891 and 1900, the family relocated to Hastings, Adams County, Nebraska. They lived at 321 Kansas Ave.[ii] Today, Realtor.com indicates the house at that address was built in 1920 so there does not appear to be a photo of the family homestead in Nebraska.
I am not sure where Harvey Nelson was during the 1910 Census. There are several Harvey Nelsons who were living in boarding houses around the country, but there are none that are clearly Harvey.
The Great War
When the Great War draft occurred in June 1917, Harvey was living at 1732 ½ Derby, Portland, Oregon. He was single, 5 feet, 9 inches tall, medium build, slightly bald, light hair, and had blue eyes[iii].
U.S.S. Mongolia covered with soldiers
Harvey enlisted in the Navy on 10 Oct 1917[iv] and served aboard the U.S.S. Mongolia. The S.S. Mongolia was launched on 25 July 1903 as a 616 foot, 13,369 ton, passenger/cargo liner. In March 1917, the Mongolia was chartered as an Army transport and received a self-defense armament of three 6-inch/40 caliber (150 mm) guns which were manned by U.S. Navy gun crews. It was the first American vessel to encounter, and drive off, German submarines after the US’s entry into World War I.
On 27 April 1918, the US Navy requisitioned the vessel, reconfigured her for greater troop capacity, and commissioned her on 8 May as USS Mongolia (ID-1615). She completed twelve turnarounds at an average duration of 34 days and transporting over 33,000 passengers, before being decommissioned on 11 Sept 1919. Harvey Nelson was on board during this time.
U.S.S Mongolia – First American ship to sink a German U-Boat after the US entered the war.
Harvey wrote a letter to his sister, Mrs. William Binderup of 6320 East 44th Street, Portland, OR in July of 1918 and said:
“The new German submarine is 318 feet long and has eight-inch guns. They don’t travel alone anymore, but go in squads. They get a range on a ship then they take a chance on getting hit. It is hell when you see a bunch of four or five of them come up and you don’t know from one minute to the next how long you can float. But, we made the trip fine and dandy and are still floating. We have good gun crews, the best in the navy. We had target practice going over and every gun got four shots out of five good square hits. We worked like a lot of Trojans going over, had 4000 men and they all got sick and had a rotten time of it for a while. They were mostly drafted men. Coming back, however, we had it fine.[v]”
U.S.S. Mongolia 10 April 1919
Harvey was released from Military duty on 20 August 1919. Three months later (Nov 1919), he applied for a marriage license to marry Florence Hanson.
Marriage:
It wasn’t until 17 March 1920 that Harvey and Florence (or Flora) Hansen tied the knot. Both were living in Long Beach, California. Harvey worked as a steelworker.
The young couple lived throughout southern California for the rest of their lives. Laguna Beach in 1930[vi], Los Angeles in 1940[vii], Corona Del Mar in 1942[viii], San Diego in 1960[ix], and Encino in 1974. Harvey worked as a painter through much of his adult life.
Harvey Nelson died on 22 December, 1974 in San Diego, California. I have not been successful in finding funeral information regarding Harvey, so far.
Endnotes
[i] Los Angeles, California, Ralph Thomas Cassel – Rosalie Elizabeth Nelson – 18 Sep 1942. “California, County Marriages, 18501952,” database with images,: 28 November 2014), FHL microfilm 2,114,963. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K8VT-K9C.; Family [ii] 1900 Census, Family Search, Lars P Nelson – Hastings, Adams, Nebraska – ED 12, Sheet 2A. Line 1 – Accessed 2 June 2-17. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M3BN-DGD. [iii] U.S., World War I Dra Registration Cards, 1917-1918, Ancestry.Com, Harvey Nelson – Birthdate: 19 Apr 1891. See: U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918 – Harvey Nelson.pdf. https://Ancestry.com. [iv] U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850-2010, Ancestry.Com, Harvey Nelson – Birthdate 19 Apr 1891 – No Image. https://Ancestry.com. [v] Oregon Daily Journal (Portland, OR), 1918-07-09 – Page 5 – Harvey Nelson. Story at bottom of 1st column. https://Newspapers.com. [vi] 1930 Census (FS), Family Search, Harvey Nelson – Laguna Beach, Orange, California – ED 30-47, Sheet 6B. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XCDK-CWL. [vii] 1940 Census (FS), Family Search, 1940 Census – Harvey Nelson – Los Angeles, California. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K9HL-VR1. [viii] U.S., World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942, Ancestry.Com, Harvey Nelson. Residence 1942 – Corona Del Mar, California. https://Ancestry.com. [ix] 1960-08-25- Ann Elizabeth (Nelson) Powers – Obit.pdf., Press Democrat, Santa Rosa, California (Newspapers.Com).
There are new people every week using “We’re Related” so I thought I’d take another look at the three of my wife’s new matches. My wife’s two closest matches were Winston Churchill and Bill Gates, both supposed 8th cousins. At 9th cousins, there were several matches that I had seen before when was looking at my famous cousins. It was exciting to see my wife had similar relatives to me. If my wife and I share the same cousin then she and I must also be related. I had looked at my relationship with Stephen King before and determined my relationship to him was unlikely, so I decided to look at my wife’s relationship with Walt Disney, whom I had determined was at least possible before.
Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill is certainly one of the best-known politicians of the last century. He was Prime Minister of Great Britain from 1940 to 1945 and again Prime Minister from 1951 until 1955. He is also, potentially my wife’s 7th cousin, once removed.
I have confirmed Sally Ann Munsell as an ancestor, and I concur that Timothy and John are likely Sally Ann’s father and grandfather respectively. I haven’t found any information about John Munsell’s parents yet. However, I suspect that the relationship is likely.
Bill Gates
Bill Gates
William Henry Gates III, is, according to Wikipedia, the richest man in the world, worth about $87 Billion. “We’re Related” suggests that he is my wife’s 7th cousin, once removed. Again, this relationship follows the Darling line.
I have confirmed Abner Darling (Sr.) as an ancestor, and I concur that his mother was Mary Hakes and his grandmother was Anna Billings. I haven’t found information about Anna Billings’ parents yet. However, I suspect that the relationship is very likely.
Walt Disney
Walter Elias Disney is a great film producer and fun maker. His creations of Disneyland and Disney World are the template for theme parks.
According to “We’re Related,” the relationship of my wife to Walt Disney is an 8th cousin, once removed. The relationship follows her Darling line:
I have confirmed Sally Ann Munsell as an ancestor, and I concur that her mother was Elisheba Smith. However, I haven’t found information about a Chadwick line for Elisheba. I judge that the relationship to be Possible.
Don Taylor
According to “We’re Related,” my lineage to (8th cousin, twice removed) Walt Disney follows a Roberts/Blackwell/Harris/Brown line to the supposed common ancestor of Benjamin Brown. I’d be a lot more comfortable that my wife and I are related if we ended up at the same supposed common ancestor, or at least see a common surname. With us coming from two entirely different directions I suspect that one (or both) of the supposed lines to Walt Disney is incorrect. As such, I judge the relationship of my connection to my wife through a common ancestor of Walt Disney to be possible but improbable.
“We’re Related” is fun and I enjoy looking at possibilities. It makes me think about key relationships in my tree and provides clues for further research. Ancestry appears to have improved its algorithms as none of the matches this time were unlikely or impossible. I enjoy the application.
Mom and I on the roof of the bakery; the Rum River is in background
There was probably no place we ever lived that was a cool as our place in Anoka. First of all, it was upstairs of a bakery, so we woke up most mornings (6 days a week) to the smell of freshly baking bread. Our apartment was smaller than the bakery downstairs so we a large flat roof area we could go out on and be outside when we wanted to. Also, out back was parking. Today, the building is gone and is a parking area for “Walker on the River” apartments.
Next door to our apartment was a vacant lot and next to it was a bar. (Today, it is Atlas Staffing.) We didn’t have a television, but my grandmother used to bring me along to the bar which did have one. I remember the awe of seeing the Tournament of Roses Parade in color at the bar. My recollection is that it was the first nationally televised, live, color television program. The bar was packed in anticipation of the Rose Bowl also being telecast.
Next door to us on the other side was a small, neighborhood drug store. I don’t have a lot of regrets in my life, but probably my biggest regret did start in Anoka at that drug store. In those days, both my mother and grandmother smoked (though my mom didn’t inhale). It was common for an adult to write a note allowing a kid to purchase cigarettes for them. Mom and Grandma wrote notes so often that the Drugstore didn’t question me if I asked to buy cigarettes without a note and just said it was for my mom or my grandma. As long as I bought Winston, they didn’t think anything of it. Sadly, that is when I began smoking. I then smoked most of the time for the next forty years. (Although as Mark Twain said, “Giving up smoking is the easiest thing in the world. I know because I’ve done it thousands of times.”) I quit for about ten years then started up again and smoked for another eight years. I quit smoking again last August (2016) but I still really miss it.
Stone “fort” in Rum River
It was only a few hundred feet to the Rum River. The river was a great place for a 7-year old to play (albeit dangerous). There were these old stone buildings that acted as forts. I wasn’t allowed to play amongst them by myself, and I was supposed to always have a buddy with me, but… They were so much fun to play in and around. I stayed away from the river side and didn’t hang out there when the river was up. It appears that only one of them remains today. The internet suggests that the stone buildings were part of a house, but I always thought they were footings for the first bridge across the Rum River. In either event, they were a lot of fun.
One of the worst experiences in my life also occurred in Anoka. Things were always financially tight in our house. But my mother somehow found the where-with-all to buy me a brand-new bicycle for my 8th birthday. Of course, I rode it all over – around town and down to the Mississippi River, about a half a mile away. Then, after having the bike for only ten days, I failed to follow my mother’s directions; I didn’t lock it up. Sure enough, it was stolen. I was devastated; my mom was so disappointed in me. The bike theft was reported to the police, and we went to the police station a couple times to see if it was in their recovered items, but it was never seen. I don’t believe I have ever had another brand-new bicycle.
Franklin Elementary c. 1958
Another great feature of living in Anoka was school. Franklin Elementary School was about two blocks along Main Street from where we lived. Although Franklin Elementary was an old school, it had a modern addition that was only five years old, or so, when I attended. So, it seemed like a new school to me. My classroom and the gym were in the new section.
I’m not sure why we moved from Anoka to Fridley. I know that my mother worked as a “nurse’s aide” at the Anoka State Hospital both when we lived in Anoka and after we moved to Fridley in August 1958. The Anoka State Hospital was a huge facility and deeply disturbing. My mother never talked with me about her time working at the hospital. Years later, she did speak with my wife somewhat about her experiences. Apparently, there were several babies with extreme brain abnormalities. My mother used to hold them and cuddle them to give them peace during her off time. My mom told my wife that sometimes she felt guilty that she didn’t come home right away to take care of me, but she knew that these babies needed her so much more than I did. This story reminds me of what a wonderful, caring person my mother is and that she never spoke of it speaks volumes about her humility.
One of the benefits of using Ancestry DNA for Genetic Testing is their vast database. Because there are so many people in their system, you are much more likely to have a DNA match. Sure enough, it happened again. This time, a previously unknown person, Debra contacted me via Ancestry Messages with the simple message, “My DNA results says that you are my 1st cousin.”
