Barney/Daney Brown is my third great-grandfather on my mother’s paternal line. I have not found much Barney or his life. In fact, I have only found him in two census records, which is barely enough to prove even his existence. But, this is what I think I know.
c. 1813 – Born in New Hampshire.
c. 1840 – Married Mary C. (Unknown).
c. 1842 – Son, William Henry born in Michigan.
c. 1845 – Son, Myron O. born in Michigan.
1850 – Lived near Seline, Washtenaw County, Michigan
c. 1852 – Daughter, Alice C. born in Michigan.
c. 1855 – Don, David V. born in Michigan.
1860 – Lived near Seline, Washtenaw County, Michigan
c. 1865 – Died (Probably near Saline, Washtenaw County, Michigan
Discussion
According to the 1850 and the 1860 Censuses, Barney was 36 and 46 years-old respectively which indicates he was born in 1813 or 1814. Both censuses show that he was born in New Hampshire. Several other researchers suggest that his father was Odell Brown, and his mother’s name was Jane, however, I have not managed to confirm those names. Also, some researchers indicate that he had a brother, David, who was born about 1810.
In the 1850 Census he is named Barney; in the 1860 Census, he is called Daney. This name change leads to some confusion, which is why I call him Barney/Daney. When I find additional documentation, I will correct the name as appropriate.
I know nothing of his childhood, other than he apparently had an older brother.
I have been unsuccessful finding Barney in the 1840 Census. It is likely he was living with his family in New Hampshire, Michigan, or somewhere in between. The 1840 Census only names the heads of households, so if Barney/Daney was living with his father or another person, the 26-year-old would not be listed.
He appears to have left New Hampshire and located in Michigan sometime before 1842 because his oldest son was born in Michigan.
He appears to have married Mary C. (Unknown) about 1840. This marriage is based solely on my knowing his oldest known son, William Henry Brown, being born in 1842. It is not clear if he married Mary C. before he located to Michigan after he settled in Saline, Michigan, or elsewhere.
Barney/Daney and Jane appear to have had four children.[1]
They are:
William Henry Brown (1842-?)
Myron O. Brown (1845-?)
Alice C. Brown (1852-?)
David V. Brown (1855)
In 1850, Barney was living with his wife, Mary, and two children, William Henry and Myron O. Brown in Saline, Washtenaw County, Michigan as a farmer[2].
In 1860, Barney was living with his wife, Mary, and four children, Henry W., Myron O., Alice C., and David V. Brown in Saline, Washtenaw County, Michigan as a farmer.[3] Living with the Browns was a Melvina Miller, age 17 who was a domestic and also attended school.[4]
I have been unsuccessful finding Barney in the 1870 Census. I did find his wife in the 1870 census living as a widow with Henry & Ann Davidson in Saline, Washtenaw County, Michigan. Because of that, I believe that Barney/Daney died sometime between 1860 and 1870.
I have been unsuccessful finding Barney’s burial location.
Further Actions:
Determine Barney/Daney’s preferred name, also the date and place of his birth.
Determine Barney/Daney’s date and place of death.
Determine Barney/Daney’s location during the 1820, 1830, and 1840 Censuses.
Follow the other children through the censuses.
Confirm that Odell and Jane Brown were his parents.
Determine Barney/Daney’s wife maiden name.
List of Greats
Arthur Durwood Brown
William Henry Brown Barney/Daney Brown
Odell Brown?????
ENDNOTES
[1] The 1860 Census, Population Schedule, does not include family relationships. Consequently, identifying the relationships as parents/children from those records is speculative. William H and Myron O lived with Barney & Mary during the 1850 Census. “Henry W.” and the other children lived with Daney & Mary during the 1860 Census.
One of my wife’s nieces lives here in Scarborough. On her house, she has a sign which reads, “On This Site in 1897 Nothing Happened.” I know her home was built in the 1980s, as was most of her neighborhood, which is nestled between Pleasant Hill and Higgins Beach. When I first saw the sign, I thought, “well, maybe nothing happened on her property, but I’ll bet something happened in the area.”
Sure enough, on August 11, 1897, there was great excitement in Scarborough. During the day before, it was wicked foggy. One observer said it looked as if “the space between earth and sky was filled with gray-white cotton.”[i] During the night it just got worse. About two o’clock in the morning, there were loud crashes and curdling noises coming from the water. I’ll bet, they were loud enough you probably could hear them through the thick fog two miles away at my niece’s property. When the fog cleared in the morning, it was clear that a ship had run aground.
Howard W. Middleton appeared very low in the water while she was aground Photo: Scarborough Historical Society
The Howard W. Middleton, a three-masted schooner had run aground on a ledge near Higgins Beach. It contained 894 tons of Pennsylvania coal headed for Portland. All the crew members made it safely to shore. Tug boats from Portland tried to get it off the rocks to no avail.[ii] Most of the cargo was saved, although it is said that some of the locals salvaged enough coal for themselves to last them through three winters.
Remnants of Howard W. Middleton shipwreck
Photo by Rich Bard (CC BY-ND 2.0)
The following month a storm drove the wreck further inland onto Higgins Beach where some of the remains can be seen 119 years later during low tides.
It may be that nothing happened at my wife’s niece’s property in 1897, but certainly there was a lot of excitement in her neighborhood that year surrounding the sinking of the Howard W. Middleton.
Bio – Clora Dell Scott Roberts Adams (1883-1945)
Clora Dell Scott Roberts Adams Photo from the Chris H. Bailey family photo collection.
Clora Dell Scott is my great-grandmother on my newly found Roberts line. Because “O”s can look like “A”s when written various records, as you will see, sometimes records provide her name as Clora and sometimes Clara. These name differences are confusing because she has an older sister named Clara. Luckily, Clora’s middle name of Dell is in contrast to her sister’s middle initial of “M.”
Birth
Clora was born on 6 February 1883 in Goode, Franklin County, Illinois.[1] Like many women, she doesn’t age quite as quickly as the calendar.
In 1908, on her marriage license to Hosea Adams, she indicated a birth date of 6 Feb 1884.[2]
In 1920 Census, she states her age as 35, also inferring the birth year of 1884.[3]
In 1936, on her Social Security Application, she indicated a birth date of 6 Feb 1889.[4] (In the 53 years to 1936 she only aged 47 years.)
She was the second child of Samuel Vaden Scott and Amanda Jane Haley. Her older sister, Clara, was born in 1879. We know that she had another sister, Laura born in 1888. She also had another sibling born, probably about 1885 or 1886 who died as an infant. Her sibling’s death was the first of many tragedies in her life.
Mother’s Death
Clora was only six-years-old when her mother died in 1889. Her father married Lavina A. Shockley three years later. Samuel and Lavina had six children; Alma, Elmer, Amanda, Lillie Flossie and William giving Clora six half-siblings. Her father lived to a ripe old age of 71.
First Marriage – Roberts
Clora and Hugh Ellis Roberts with Carrie and Harry c. 1901. Photo from the Chris H. Bailey family photo collection.
Clora married Hugh Ellis Roberts on 7 October 1900. She was only 17 years old, and Hugh may have only been 16 years old when they married, but both indicated they were 18 on their marriage license. The families probably didn’t mind that that Clora and Hugh got married because seven months later, their first children, fraternal twins, were born. Harry Ray Roberts and Carrie May Roberts were born on 22 May 1901 in Franklin County, Illinois.
Bert Allen Roberts, my grandfather, was born on 7 September 1903 in Spring Garden, Illinois.
Finally, Mable Ilean Roberts, Clora’s youngest child was born on 2 June 1908.
Tragedy Strikes Again and Then Again.
1908 was a terrible year for Clora. On June 8th, her daughter Carrie died of diphtheria and measles. In 1908, both diseases were very communicable and very deadly. It must have been horrific to try to care for a sick child and be pregnant at the same time. I’m sure the stress of trying to keep newborn Mable away from sick Carrie was difficult. Carrie was buried in Hammond Cemetery in Sesser, Franklin County, Illinois.[5] Two months later, Clora’s husband Hugh died of consumption (a term typically used to describe tuberculosis). Hugh died on 30 August 1908 and is also buried in Hammond Cemetery in Sesser, IL.[6]
Second Marriage – Adams
Adams-Roberts Family c.1916 Bert, Mable, & Harry Roberts Hosea Adams (sitting) Clora Dell Scott Roberts Adams on right. Photo Courtesy: Kenneth Smith
At this point in her life, she appears to have lived in Illinois all of her life. However, something, or someone, convinced her to move to Indiana. It will take more research to figure out why she moved 150 miles away to Graysville, Indiana, where she married Hosea Lee Adams on 1 December 1908[7] only three months after the death of Bert. Hosea was born in 1889 and was six years younger than Clora. He was 19, and she was 25 at the time of the marriage. The couple lived in Sullivan County, Indiana, through 1910[8] and 1920[9] Census records.
Clora’s sons Bert Allen Roberts and Harry Ray Roberts both married in 1922 and Clora was still in Sullivan County. In 1925, Clora’s daughter Mabel Ilean Roberts married, and Clora is listed as living in Terre Haute.[10]
Later Years
With all of the kids grown and married, it appears that it was time to leave Hosea. Sometime between 1925 and 1930, Clora and Hosea divorced and Clora moved to the Detroit, Michigan, area. Again, I don’t know what brought her to Detroit. I have not managed to find Clora in the 1930 or the 1940 Census records. Finding her in those census records may provide insight into her life during those years. With so many siblings it would be easy for her to hide from Hosea if she wanted to. It is also interesting to note that Clora’s name was listed as Clara in November 1942 in contrast to her name in her initial Social Security application in 1936.[11]
Death & Burial
Clora Dell (Scott) Roberts Adams died on 29 June 1945 in Detroit, Michigan at the age of 62. Her death record indicates her name as Clara.[12] Clora is buried at White Chapel Memorial Cemetery in Troy, Michigan.[13] I am currently working to find her grave location, so I may visit her resting place in May.
Further Actions:
· Find Clora’s marker at the White Chapel Memorial Cemetery and visit.
· Further analyze Clora’s siblings and determine if any of them were
o In Sullivan County, Indiana, in 1908 that she may have gone to live with.
o In Wayne County, Michigan, in 1930 that she may have gone to live with.
List of Greats
1. Clora Dell Scott
2. Samuel Vaden Scott
3. William H. Scott
ENDNOTES
[1] Illinois Births and Christenings, 1824-1940; Clara Dell Scott, 06 Feb 1883; Birth, citing Goode, Franklin, Illinois; FHL microfilm 1,005,290; Family Search.
[2] Indiana Marriages, 1811-2007; Hosey L Adams to Clara D. Roberts – License; Family Search.
[3] 1920 Census; Hosey L Adams – Head; Ancestry.Com.
[4] U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007; Clora Dellescott Adams; Ancestry.Com.
[5] Chris H. Baley; The Samuel Vaden Scott Family – Clora Dell Scott.
One of my early atDNA matches was on Family Tree DNA. Family Tree DNA suggested that GV and I were probably 4th cousins. He had some Roberts in his tree, but I figured that there was only a one in 32 chance that our match was on his Roberts ancestor. There was another person, MA, who shared the exact same segment of DNA with GV and me. If I could find the common ancestor between GV and MA, because of triangulation of the same segment matching, we’d know the common ancestor they share with me. I worked to help MA develop his tree further but never found a connection for him to GV and consequently never determined a common ancestor to me.
Then, I did determine who my biological father is, connected with new half-siblings and have been exploring my new family tree. I thought back to my connections with GV and MA and wondered if I could find the link now.
I took a look at the surnames I’ve been researching and compared them with the names in GV’s tree. Sure enough, we both had a John Roberts marrying an Elizabeth Blackwell. We found our common ancestor.
His tree had my “Asa” as “Acy” but otherwise, it fit my ancestors entirely. The generations are:
GV’s Roberts Line
Relationship
My Roberts Line
John Calvin & Elizabeth
3rd Great
John Calvin & Elizabeth
Elijah Josiah Roberts
2nd Great
Asa Ellis Roberts
John Roberts
Great
Hugh Ellis Roberts
Myrtle Roberts
Grandparent
Bert Allen Roberts
[Living]
Parent
[Name Suppressed]
[GV]
Us
Me
Our common ancestors are our third great-grandparents, and we are of the same generation, so we are 4th cousins (sharing 59cM). That fits the amount of DNA we share perfectly.
GV and I have long known we are related genetically. It is just so fulfilling to finally confirm the relationship with a paper trail.
I just can’t express how important I find genetic genealogy. I often hear others talk about learning more about ancestors and finding other living relatives who might have information on your family that you don’t know. But, there is more to it than just that. Recent communications with a distant cousin of my mother-in-law reminded me of the importance of connecting with these distant DNA Cousins.
Claudine Boerner and my mother-in-law are a distant match, 4th to 6th cousins on Ancestry DNA. That means that they are likely to share a common 3rd, 4th, or 5th great grandparent. I often don’t expect much on matches that distant. In my mother-in-law’s case of the 32 possible surnames, she would have among her 3rd great-grandparents, we only know 15 of them. So, the odds of finding a common ancestor between 5th or 6th can be even more daunting. In my case, having only 15 of 64 (4th great) or 15 of 128 (5th great) possible surnames the odds of finding a common ancestor seems very remote.
However, in the case of Claudine, she and my mother-in-law share one common surname that we know of, Darling. We don’t know if that is the genetic connection or not, but we do know that we are both researching the Darlings in upstate New York during the 1700s and early 1800s. As she was doing her research, she came across an individual, Rufus H. Darling, whose name she remembered was in my Darling tree. She sent me a note that she had seen some information that included Rufus in the “Beekman Patent.” She mentioned some material was in a book, Dennis Darling: of Braintree and Mendon and some of his descendants 1662-1800 by William Albert Martin and Lou Ella Johnson Martin. I was able to locate a copy and found the entry where Rufus is mentioned along with his parents, whom I had determined previously (unbeknownst to Claudine). It also had the names of several of Rufus’ siblings, whose names I didn’t have previously. It included the names of Rufus’ father (Abner), siblings and his father’s name. Another Abner, and his father’s name, Ebenezer. The book has a reasonable amount of footnoting (sources) so I am able to use those to validate what I find.
A 1776 map showing the Beekman Patent [i]
I was also able to find a website regarding “The Settlers of the Beekman Patent” Dutchess County, New York. It includes “An Historical & Genealogical Study of all 18th Century Inhabitants of the Patent.” I then contacted the author, Frank J. Doherty, of the material and asked if “The Darling Family – 12 pages” included information regarding Rufus H Darling and his father, Abner Darling (1780-1839). He replied that it did and I ordered a copy of it. I quickly received a copy of it electronically. It too is excellent. It is a 12-page document regarding the Darlings of the Beekman Patent plus another 12 pages indicating the sources of the information. It also indicates that Ebenezer’s name was Benjamin and his father’s name was Dennis. I was a little disappointed that some of the material in the Dennis Darling: of Braintree is verbatim from the Beekman Patent pages, but still, the information provided is well worth the modest fee Mr. Doherty charges.
With the information in the book and Doherty’s Darling Family pages and the sources provided I have hundreds of hours of work to review, analyze, document, and verify the information, but the information, the source suggestions are invaluable.
With me possibly pushing back another two to four generations on my Darling line and Claudine’s continued research, it is possible we will find our shared common ancestor. Then again, maybe that ancestor is one of the other 128 fifth great-grandparents. Either way, one significant benefit of connecting with distant cousins are the important clues they can provide to your research.
