Lovejoy – Not Just a Surname

On Valentine’s Day, a day filled with Love and Joy, I am reminded of the name Lovejoy, that is repeated in my family tree. The first, Owen Lovejoy Dunbar (1844-1916), was brother of my second gr-grandfather, Perry Commodore Dunbar. Owen was a Civil War veteran – in fact 5 Dunbar brothers served for the North, and all came home alive.

Several men with the middle name Lovejoy descending from Owen. I wondered why his parents, Hiram R. Dunbar and Jemima Wolf gave him that middle name, and suspected that one day, I’d find that their parents or grandparents had the surname Lovejoy.

The Dunbars, my religious Scots-Irish side, (Congregationalists) spent most of their lives in Atkinson, IL, a tiny rural community, raising their 10 children there. My German side, the Smarsty’s had lived near Princeton, IL. Today, it’s a cute historical town. Although the towns are about 40 miles from each other, they are across county lines and in the early and mid-1800’s not an easy ride.

A couple of years ago, I went to the Princeton Public Library, to look up obits for my German relatives. It’s a modern library, with a room dedicated to Princeton history. I spent a delightful morning finding new information on the German side. Just before I left, I decided to walk and browse the bookshelves. That’s when I saw IT!

An entire bookshelf dedicated to “Owen Lovejoy”! I realized my gr-uncle was named after a real person, who did “something”. I couldn’t wait to find out.

Owen Lovejoy (1811-1864) was a lawyer and a Congregational minister. His brother, Elijah Lovejoy, owned a southern Illinois newspaper in the 1830’s filled with articles that supported freeing slaves.  In 1837, while both Owen and Elijah were printing the next edition, the building was ransacked by a gang of pro-slavery men, and Elijah was killed for his beliefs. Owen who managed to live, was determined to continue his brother’s brave legacy. As a Congregational minister, he moved to Princeton, IL in about 1840 and his fiery speeches were well attended. He became known throughout the United States, was a congressman, and a friend of Abraham Lincoln’s and a supporter of Lincoln’s presidential campaign. He died of cancer a year before the Civil War ended, not knowing that his dream for black people freedom came true.

What was he doing in 1844, when Owen Lovejoy Dunbar was born? Besides being a minister in Princeton, IL, he was bravely delivering fiery anti-slavery speeches and he was a conductor in the underground railroad. He assisted fugitive slaves gain their freedom, by hiding them in his own home. The home is a museum in Princeton today.

That day at the Princeton Public Library, I learned a lot about my Dunbar relatives. They lived near Princeton for a short period of time in the 1840’s. In fact, Owen Lovejoy Dunbar was born in Princeton in 1844. My Dunbars were ahead of their time, supported freeing the slaves, and named their son after a famous abolitionist. Almost 20 years later, five of their sons, including Owen, fought for the freedom of slaves. I was inspired.

The power of a small town library!

Are You Part of this 10% Minority?

I am part of the 10% minority.  Ten percent of what?  Here’s a hint.  I’ve been called a southpaw or a leftie.  Yes, I’m part of the small percentage of people who are left handed.  I’ve smeared my way through plenty of handwritten papers, used scissors incorrectly and awkwardly sat in right handed school desks. Luckily, in the 1950’s, I attended in a public school district where I was not forced to change hands, while my Catholic school friends still were. (One left-handed friend was told by a nun that the devil lived in her, frightening her so much, she didn’t even tell her parents for fear of being abandoned. Yikes!) 

There are all sorts of theories not proven about lefties, such as being more creative and musically talented.  Not necessarily true.  But one thing is known for sure, left handedness is inherited. I know from whom I inherited mine.  My maternal grandmother was left handed.  She had 2 children, 6 grandchildren and 19 gr-grandchildren – 27 descendants. How many are lefties?  Four!  Or 15%!     

How was my grandmother, born in 1899, “allowed” to be left-handed?  For years, I thought she was born right handed, but was switched when she was young. Many times, she told me how she had swallowed lye, left out by her mother who was making soap.  This accident, she said, paralyzed her right side, so she was allowed to use her left hand in school. 

Many years later, long after Grandma had passed, I told this story to family, and saw some very quizzical looks.  Some did not seem to believe the story.  Others questioned, that swallowing lye would cause paralysis.  Burns in her mouth and throat yes.  But not the inability to use one side of her body. I realized, that the second group was probably right.   Even if it had happened, it was short lived.  As an adult, Grandma showed no signs of having right side weakness. But then again, the story might not be true at all.

…until a few weeks ago. 

Recently I found library website (geneseo.advantage-preservation.com/search) where you may use OCR and read old newspapers for Henry County, Illinois, for free. I have lots of family history there and I’ve spent many hours locating obituaries and other genealogical information.  Look what I found from May 1903:

 
So the story itself is TRUE!  Grandma did swallow lye and had to recover from her injuries.  But how does this link to her left handedness?  This is my theory.  Her mother used this incident, either because it was plausible in 1903, or because she truly assumed that it caused Grandma to be a leftie.  I feel my grandmother firmly believed that this was the reason.  Whether it was a made-up reason, or not, it worked.  My grandmother was an early member of the 10% minority.

Does left-handedness run in your family?  Any good stories?

 

Rice Dunbar - Family Black Sheep Part 3

Prison Life
The Huntsville Penitentiary was the only prison of the eleven Confederate states still standing at the end of the Civil War, Built in 1849 Huntsville had one brick building surrounded by temporary log buildings. It was strictly a white person’s (for both men and women) prison until the Civil War. Until then, blacks were punished by being hanged or whipped. After the war, Huntsville was the first racially integrated prison. Prisoners were most often housed two to a cell, and the number of inmates serving time fluctuated widely, generally ranging in the neighborhood of 500.

The increase in lawlessness at the end of the war resulted in more persons being sentenced to prison, at a time when state government found itself virtually bankrupt. The public was unwilling to support tax increases to provide for additional prisons to house the larger number of inmates. Looking for a way to support the prison, the state entered into lease arrangements with private individuals who hired state prisoners to work on private farms, on railroads, and in mines and quarries.

Prisoners not leased out remained in the prison where they worked in a variety of shops producing goods for sale on the open market. Inmates also made a number of permanent improvements to the Huntsville facility. Prisoners built workshops, new cellblocks, warehouses, and outbuildings; remodeled existing structures to provide room for a hospital, a chapel, and a library; constructed residences for senior prison officials; and undertook major renovations and expansions of the outside wall.

Rice entered the prison on August 4, 1875 to serve his two year sentence.  He was described as 27 years old, married, a smoker, 175 pounds, dark hair, grey eyes and fair skin.  5”10.  He had a common education, but he was known to have an unpredictable and volatile temper. He arrived with fourteen other convicted felons from Fannin County. Most were for robbery. Half were black. Rice was from Illinois and served as a Union soldier … in a southern prison.

Immediately, Rice Dunbar, as part of the prisoner lease program, was assigned to work on wood chopping crew. There was a large forest near Huntsville where wood was used for many projects.  These prisoners would leave the prison each day to work.

On September 30, 1875, having been in prison for less than two months, while on this wood chopping crew, Rice suddenly died.  Was it a fight with the Southern men?  Was it his volatile anger getting him in trouble?  Or the heat of the Texas sun?  We will never know.  The convict records state “No cause given”. 

So we now know why Rachel was a widow in the 1880 census.  What happened to her, her sons and the other people involved in this case.

Shortly after Dunbar and Vanvickle’s trial on July 27, 1875, the court found that there was no evidence against M.G. Bobbitt. He was free.

In exchange for his testimony, William Truitt’s arrest warrant was dropped on October 30, 1875, as unfounded, by the Sheriff, J.W. Dunn. He appeared before the court several times between 1875 and 1877, each time the sheriff reported the evidence against William Truitt was unfounded. He remained single and live in Texas most of his life.

Thus, all the southerners served no time for the crime.  Dunbar, the only Yankee, was the only one found guilty.

Meridon Gentry Bobbitt – a Confederate Soldier, he married Virginia in 1876.  They raised six children, living in Kaufman County TX most of their lives. Worked as a farmer.  Died in 1917.  He and his wife received a pension for his service as a Confederate soldier.

Winfield Scott Vanvickle – After being found innocent in the trial, no other information could be located.  His parents and siblings lived in Missouri for many years.

Of the 15 prisoners that entered Huntsville with Rice, eleven served their sentence and were released.  Three, including Rice, died on the wood chopping force; two the cause was unknown and one died of typhoid fever.

Rachel, his wife, married Howard Boyer in 1883.  They raised their five children in Leavenworth, Kansas and where Rachel died in 1908 in an accident.  Rice’s son, John married three women and had 12 children.  Luther and Mary Alice never married.  

Amos Emory Gibson married Mary Lake in 1876, Fannin County They raised one son, who gave them three grandsons. Amos worked as a laborer in Texas, then to Oklahoma. In 1897, he was found guilty of theft, but was pardoned in 1898.  Amos was killed in 1900 when a renter named HD Hudson, hit him over the head with a pistol. 

Rice Dunbar - The Family Black Sheep Part 2 of 3

The Crime
Amos Gibson, a 18 year old farm labor, was living with a widow, Mrs. Mary Ann Kinder, in Savoy, Texas. Amos Emory Gibson was born in Illinois, to a large family who frequently moved. Amos lived with his parents in Missouri before the family moved to Texas in about 1870. At a preliminary hearing on May 3^rd, he reported the following incident[1]:

Amos E Gibson being sworn says I am acquainted with Rice Dunbar, Scott Vanvickle and M.G. Bobbitt and recognize the defendants as being present. Mr. Dunbar, Mr. Bobbitt, and Vanvickle come to the house where I was on the 25^th of April. I recollect as if I was there, He (Dunbar) called me out, told me I was his prisoner.  I asked him of what authority I was his prisoner, he Dunbar told me it was none of my business and told the other boys to take me.

They, Dunbar, Vanvickle and Bobbitt took me some fifty or sixty yards from the house.  They asked me where a certain pistol was and told me they knew I had it that day.  Mr. Dunbar said if I did not get the pistol, he would take me out and hang me up.  They gathered me up and rolled me in the mud and rubbed mud in my face.  They told me if I did not get the pistol for them, they would hang me.  I went and got the pistol and gave it to Mr. Dunbar.  I gave the knife to Mr. Bobbitt.  Then they took me out on the Bonham Road and asked me where I had been at work last.  Told them at Mr. Fleming’s.  (William Fleming was a 55 year old farmer from Tennessee.  He and his wife Louise, who was 20 years younger had 8 children occasionally employed Amos as a farm laborer.)

They asked me if I could find the way down there. (about a 10 mile walk.)  I told them I could if it was important.  They told me to take the road and go to Flemings and stay there until they came after me the next morning when they would march me to Bonham.  I got off about ten steps from them, one of them said “Let’s shoot.”  I don’t know which one said so I then went to Mr. Carroll’s, (There are several Carroll families in the area) then to my brother’s. (His brother Cornelius, who is two years older lived in the area.)

I changed clothes.  Next morning went to Flemings and asked if they (the men) had been there.  Fleming told me they had not been there.  All this took place in Fannin County about 10:00 o’clock at night at Mrs. Kinder’s (Mary Ann Kinder, a recent widow from Virginia in her mid-sixties, lived in the area.  Amos was probably a boarder).  The night was dark and cloudy.  I have not told anyone that other than parties connected to the robbery.

I have not seen nor heard of the pistol since I gave it to the parties.  Mrs. Kinder lives in Fannin County. I never told anyone that any other person except Mr. Bobbitt got my knife.  I have not said since (that) Mr. Vanvickle and Dunbar were the parties that committed this offense.

The other men arrested with Rice were all southerners.  Rice was the only Yankee.  This may have been a factor in this trial.  The other named men are:  

Winfield Scott Vanvickle – born in Iowa 1852, and grew up in Missouri.  Oldest of seven children born to Jackson and Eliza Vanvickle.  Jackson was a Confederate soldier.

Meridon Gentry Bobbitt – born in Tennessee 1849, Confederate Soldier

William R. Truitt – probably born about 1848 in Alabama and lived in Texas most of life. 

A second witness came forward to the sheriff on May 3, 1975. Thomas Richardson was a tall slender 25 year old farmer.  Born in Missouri, married for 7 years to his wife Nancy, they had four children including one infant daughter. Thomas was sworn in and gave this information.

I live in Fannin County.  Last Sunday night between nine and ten  o’clock I heard Mr. Dunbar, Vanvickle and Bobbitt come out of Mr. Updegraff’s house which was vacant. (The Dencer Clinton Updegraff family had lived in Savoy for just a couple of years, where D.C. had worked as a laborer. Dencor and his wife, and infant son had recently moved to Hennipen, Putnam, Illinois so the house was vacant.)  I heard Mr. Dunbar holler (I know his voice). These parties went to the Updegraff house about early candle light and stayed there until half past nine or ten o’clock, crossed the fence in the direction of Mr. Dunbar’s house.  I have no time piece, but to the best of my knowledge, I think it was about the time I have stored.” T.J Richardson.

On the same day, May 3, 1875, one of the four men turned confessed. The court papers state: William R. Truitt co-defendant in the above entered cause, who upon his oath says that if the court will protect him from prosecution, he is ready as a witness for the state to tell the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth, that he can and will tall who the parties were and to the best of his knowledge, what said offense was committed.

William R Truitt, co-defendant being duly sworn says there was four persons went to Mrs. Kinder’s last Sunday night one week ago.  These four persons were myself, William Truitt, Rice Dunbar Bobbitt, and Vanvickle.  We called Gibson out, took him down the road, some of the party got from Gibson a pistol and knife.  Mr. Dunbar asked Gibson for the pistol.

While Truitt was given immunity for his testimony, it was determined that there was enough evidence for a trial for Rice Dunbar, Scott Vanvickle, M G Bobbitt. They were accused of having falsely personated themselves as officers of the law and having robbed Amos Gibson. Bond was set at $750 for each defendant. ($17,000 in 2015 dollars) Dunbar was able to pay and be free until he appear in county court in July 1875.  Rice’s bond was probably posted by his wealthy father.  Vanvickle and Bobbitt could not post bond and remained in jail.

The jury trial began on Monday, July 12, 1875, in the Fannin County seat, Bonham, Texas.   The county court house consisted of two log cabins with a breezeway connecting the two. Jurors sat above the courtroom in a loft that could be reached only by an outside ladder. The trial was short.  The charge was robbery and fraudulently taking from Amos E Gibson a crime committed with violence and fear of life or bodily injury. The pistol was valued at $10, ($220 in 2015) and the knife $1. ($22 in 2015).  Dunbar and Vanvickle pleaded not guilty.  Only Amos E Gibson, Thomas Richardson were called as witnesses for the prosecution and they gave the same accounts as they did in May.  The defense tried to discredit Gibson by implying that Gibson had no regular home.

Dunbar came to the stand and testified: Gibson had become to me nuisance and my object in helping to roll him in the mud was to get rid of him.  We took nothing else from him but his arms.  Gibson was accused of stealing horses.

J.T Bradford was the single witness for the defense.  He was a respected, older citizen, (54 years old), and served as Savoy’s doctor. His testimony included: I have heard Amos Gibson to be accused of horse stealing.  I know nothing of my own knowledge only hearsay.  These defendants are industrious, working men.  They live on my farm.   

After the trial, the judge’s instructions were given to the jury on the same day. If convicted the sentence could be 2-10 years in prison. Dunbar was confined to the county jail to wait the jury’s decision.

After hearing the evidence, the jury deliberated for about a day.  On July 15^th, the jury foreman, H. S Randell announced these decisions; We the jury find the defendant Rice Dunbar guilty as charged in the indictment and assess his punishment in the state penitentiary for 2 years.  Scott Vanvickle found not guilty.

This meant Rice O. Dunbar was a convicted felon and going to Huntsville, Texas.  

                                                         Huntsville in the 1870's

---

[1] Information in parenthesis and not italicize were added by the author to clarify.

Rice Dunbar – The Family’s Black Sheep Part 1 of 3

A Surprise Find
Having a little extra time, I type in “Rice Dunbar” into ancestry.com. To my surprise, I find a new entry for a Rice Dunbar, a prisoner, in Huntsville, Texas prison in 1875!  I know of three Rice Dunbars.  The Huntsville record shows age and birthplace.  This Rice Dunbar is my 3x gr-uncle.  Born in 1848, Hennipen, Putnam, Illinois, served for the Union in the Civil War. Why was he in Texas?  And in PRISON?  The short answer is robbery.  Are there more details?  I hunt for Rice’s story.

Up until this revelation, I knew that Rice was the ninth of ten children born in Putnam County, Illinois to Hiram and Jamima (Wolf) Dunbar. His parents were religious and progressive, involved in a church which supported the underground railroad, helping black families come north.   Rice’s father was a wheel maker and farmer.   The family’s fortunes considerable improved when Hiram went to California in 1850, during the gold rush. He came back wealthy. (The family was listed as being the town’s millionaires.)  Clearly, Rice’s childhood was rather easy.

As three of his older brothers did, Rice volunteered to serve in the Civil War.  While his muster papers list him as 18 years old, he was actually only 14 when he enlisted in the company B of Illinois 77^th Infantry in August 1862, and served as a musician.  This position, usually held by younger men, were drummers, buglers, and fifers who regulated every event in camp and served as major source of communication on the battlefield. Between battles, these men also boosted spirits by playing music for the soldiers.  Many popular Civil War songs such as "Dixie" and "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" are still popular today. Rice served mostly in the south, including New Orleans, the Battle of Vicksburg and was in July 1865, discharged from Mobile, Alabama.   In 1866, he was living in Earlville, LaSalle, Illinois.  In 1868, Henry County, Illinois, he married Rachel Griner, and they had two sons, John (1869) and Luther (1872).  This all seems rather normal.  In the 1870 census, Rice, Rachel and their oldest son, John live in with Rice’s brother in Henry County. In the 1880 census, Rachel, a widow, is living with her sons back in Putnam County, Illinois. 

In digging deeper, there may have been early signs of a darker side to Rice. In 1865, Rice was ordered to pay back $18 ($275 in 2015) after he was court martialed in New Orleans.  Probably for stealing. There is a daughter, Mary Alice born in 1866, mother unknown.  All of these acts were ascribed to his young age, until now.

I ordered the files from this court case from Fannin County, Texas.  The writing on the wrappers is serious and reads:

Case Number 1705 – 6^th Judicial District Court of Fannin County

                 The State of Texas VS Rice Dunbar, Scott Vanvickle, M G Bobbitt
                Offense: False personations of officer & robbery from the person of
                                                        Amos Gibson, April 1875
                                 Held at Savoy, Fannin County of May 3, 1875

Savoy, Texas? Why was Rice living so far from his Illinois family?  Savoy is a tiny town established about 1863 by Colonel William Savoy, a pioneer settler and landowner.  The settlement grew slowly until after the Civil War, when hundreds of settlers began arriving in the area. In 1873 a post office opened. About the same year, the Texas and Pacific Railway extended its tracks through the community. With opportunities made possible by the railroad, Savoy became an agricultural shipping center for area farmers, who produced cotton, corn, grain, and numerous other products.  Still, at the time, the town had less than 300 inhabitants.

For as far as the eye can see, there are rolling hills, with grasses up to four feet high.  Most months, the weather was warm. In the winter however, there were intense rain storms with high winds and tornados.  Savoy is located ten miles west of Bonham in extreme west central Texas, in Fannin County, near the boarder of Grayson County to the west, and just eight miles north is the Oklahoma state line.

Why would a Union soldier go to the Confederate south after the war?  Perhaps Rice saw an opportunity to work for the railroad.  Perhaps he liked living or the weather in the south.  We do know that he went there alone, Rachel and the boys were home in Illinois.

Unraveling Rice – Twice!

A quick stop at the local Family History Center.  I wanted use the premium websites only at the center to find information on Rice Dunbar (b1802) who was the captain of a wagon train on the Oregon Trail.  Rice is the brother of my 3^rd gr-grandfather, Hiram Dunbar.  I searched using only the name, no dates. How many Rice Dunbars can there be? In an instant, my research focus changed.  Up popped a Rice E Dunbor who was the father of a groom married in Iowa in 1899.  The handwriting must be horrendous, because the indexing was off, but the possibility existed that I could solve a mystery. 

There was another Rice Dunbar.  Hiram Dunbar had a son named Rice O. Dunbar (b 1848), He was a Civil War veteran, fought in Vicksburg, married with two sons, and died between 1871 -1880.  In 1880, Rice's widow, Rachel Dunbar, lived in Illinois with her two sons, John (1869) and Luther (1871).  I've been able to trace Luther, who never married.  John Dunbar was too common of a name.  I assumed he died between 1880 and 1900.  In the 1900 census, his mother, Rachel, lives in Kansas, remarried and with more children.  Indeed her 1900 census gives the impression, by numbers, that three of her seven children died.

Here is the Iowa marriage certificate indexing information.  I'm giving the corrected information to the right.

Marriage: July 2, 1899 - Sitken Home                Aitken Home

Wife:  Minnie Janett Sitken                                 Minnie Janet Aitken
Born: 1876 Davenport                                        (correct)
Father: Cephas M Sitken                                    Cephas Miller Aitken
Mother: Virginia Edith Gobb                               Virginia Edith Gobin
Husband: Arthur David Dunbor                          John Dunbar?
Birth: Henry County, IL                                       (correct)
Father: Rice E Dunbor                                        Rice O Dunbar
Mother: Rachel Salvina Giver                             Rachel Calinda Griner

Is this our missing John?  Why was his name Arthur David?  I went home, and directly to ancestry.com and familysearch.org, excited to dig up more information on this new find.  Of course, I was looking for Arthur Dunbar, Minnie Sitken, Cephas Sitken, mostly in Iowa.  (Nothing.)  Then using (the more common) Minnie Dunbar, I found a Minnie and Arthur D Dynbas, living in Kansas in 1900.  In the household is son Ralph M. born in 1900 and a sister-in law, Ethel Artken (sic Aitken).  I found them in the 1905 Kansas census, with the additional children of Roy and Bessie (twins born in 1902) and Alice (1904). In the Kansas birth index, I find a male child (no name) born on August 19,1906 (5 children.)

Again, the trail goes cold.  No 1910 census for A D or Minnie Dunbar.  Grrr....

Next I look for the five children. Ralph Dunbar, there he is!  A foster child!  Roy, he is in an orphanage...but wait, another clue.  Remembering 1905 census, I try Arkten/Aikten, and I find a tree that shows Minnie died in 1910, Cheyenne Wells, Cheyenne, Colorado.  On the 1910 census, Cephas and Virginia Aitken (not Artken or Sitken), live in Cheyenne, with their granddaughter, Edith Dunbar who is two years old. (One more children making 6). 

Grandmother) Virginia Aikten died in 1912, so in 1920, Edith is living with her Uncle Frank Aitken, as a niece. I check censuses for all of Minnie's siblings.  Frank is the only one who cared for any of Minnie's children. I find Alice Dunbar, the next youngest, as an adopted daughter of William Kendall. 

What happened to A.D?  Nothing for 1910.  Back to Kansas, in 1920, he is living with a new wife, Maggie, and their two children.  One child's name is named Rachel, his mother's name.  In 1930, there are three more children.  Five total by this marriage.  Using findagrave, I found two of their obits, for Chester, and Anna.  Both are very detailed.  Giving the mother's maiden name as Margaret Edsom Cundell.

 In 1940, our mysterious John Arthur David lives in Crowley Kansas with his wife, children, and brother Luther.   There's the connection, Luther is living with him. 

What happened to the name John listed in the 1870 and 1880 censuses?  Including more searches, the name changes are:

1870 - census - John                              Atkinson, Henry, IL               Child with Rice/Rachel

1880 - census -John                               Granville, Putnam, IL            Child with Rachel who is a widow
1888 - marriage John A                          Leavenworth, KS                  Married to Effie Jester, daughter Eva M born 1891 (?)
1899 - marriage - Arthur David Dunbor Poweshiek, Iowa                   Spelling of index incorrect
1900 - census - Arthur D Dynbas           Shiloh, Neosho, KS              No job, married 1 year to Minnie J, son Ralph 11 mo old
1905 - Kansas census A.D. Dunbar       Montgomery, KS                  Smelter, lives with wife and 4 children
1910 - can't find - wife recently died
1920- census - John A Dunbar               Lincoln, Butler, KS               Grain farmer
1925- Kansas census A.D. Dunbar       Clifford Butler, KS                  Live Stock farmer
1930- Arthur D Dunbar                           Clifford, Butler, KS                Grain farmer, married 18 years to Maggie
1940- John A Dunbar                             Winfield, Cowley, KS             No job probably retired, 3rd grade education, wife Maggie
1945-grave stone - John A Dunbar       Winfield, Cowley, KS             Wife Margaret E

Several trees give Minnie Janet Dunbar’s (nee Aikten), mother of now six known children, death in March 1910, in Cheyenne Wells, Cheyenne, Colorado, her parents’ home town.  Colorado death records not online. (Darn!)  Try newspapers.  Nope!  Findagrave - bingo!  Minnie Dunbar buried in a Cheyenne Wells cemetery.  Who is next to her?  An infant son.  (Add child #7 for Minnie, #12 for John Arthur David).  Child's name?  (Sigh!  A full circle moment.) Rice Dunbar!

 

After 18 Years Hiram Dunbar's Father has been Found - Eureka!

I am jumping for joy!!!!!!  I’m dancing the dance!  For 18 years, I looked for the parents and siblings of my 3^nd gr-grandfather Hiram R Dunbar (1804 Paris, Bourbon, KY-1880 Piper, Wyandotte, KS). Hiram’s life mirrors so much of the U.S. history.  In 1850, he went to the California gold rush and a year later returned rich. He homesteaded in Kansas. Four of his sons served in the Civil War, while he and his wife, Jemima Wolf were actively involved in the underground railroad.  In 1826, he and his wife, Jamima Wolf married in Knox County, Ohio and in about 1835 moved to Illinois, living in Henry, Bureau, Putnam and LaSalle Counties. She bore 10 children; one son had rather unusual name, Rice Dunbar (1848 IL- ca 1875 IL).  There is another Rice Dunbar (1802 OH-1870 Marion, OR) Were Hiram and Rice related? 

If you have looked for someone in this time period, you know how difficult it can be.  Even if you can find them in 1800 census, there are only head of household names.  Is there a will, land record, a Bible?  Some tiny piece of evidence.  Like a needle in a haystack. Two years ago, I found our only photo of Hiram, from a non-family member who lives 20 miles from Paris, Kentucky.  Was family still there?  I hired a genealogist.  He was excellent, thorough. He found as much as he could, but not the link we needed.

Along the way, I’ve connected with others, looking for the same information.  (After all, genealogy is a team sport.)  Amongst our group, several at one time or another hired a genealogist to help.  One member convinced a male Dunbar that he barely knew to take a DNA test.  This same team member also drove from Michigan to Kansas and Nebraska to look for clues. But for 18 years, the clue that could help us was elusive. I am thankful that the team has done much to find the family. 

Last week, 10:00 at night, I checked my email and saw the most amazing news.  One of the “team mates” was sent an 1822 newspaper article, wondering if this might helpful!  He had blind emailed several people he found at genforum and one returned his email with this newspaper article. (Thank you!) Since then, I’ve spent every spare minute checking out the details of this family and I believe we struck gold!!!!  Here is the newspaper article found on genealogybank.com[i]:

Could this be MY Hiram?  My Hiram married Jamima Wolf in Knox County, Ohio in 1826.   They have children named, Rice, Elizabeth and John.  Similar names.  His possible brother Rice (1802) has a son named William…so far so good. 

Next at familysearch.org I located the probate records of William Dunbar, blacksmith, who died in 1804, Ross County, Ohio.  Included are papers naming Duncan McArthur guardian of Elizabeth and Nancy Dunbar, daughters of William Dunbar (deceased).   (Yes, Duncan McArthur, later Governor of Ohio.[ii]) So my guess is that if Elizabeth and Nancy are heirs of William, and also daughters of William, then the other heirs listed in the newspaper are sons of William.  Also at familysearch.org, I find that Nancy married Jonathan Heath in 1813 and Elizabeth married Elijah Bridlove in 1817 both in Ross County, OH.

Dig, dig, dig…every spare moment…here is what I found:

Nancy Dunbar Heath (1791 Hamilton, OH-1880 Pike, IL) She is the first white baby born in Cincinnati.  Her husband, Dr. Jonathan Heath was a surgeon serving in the War of 1812.  He received a land grant for this service and in about 1820, moved to Morgan County, Illinois with wife and 6 children.  He died in 1825 but she stayed in Illinois until her death, Pike County, IL.  This the first of several Dunbars who migrated to Illinois.  She left a biography[iii] stating her parents died young and she was raised by Duncan McArthur, who was a governor of Ohio.

 

Rice Dunbar (1802) named his son William Rice. In 1830, he married Jane Miller Brisbin in Morgan County, IL and also lived in Schuyler County, IL.   He is rather famous for being a wagon train captain of about 100 people who travelled the Oregon Trail in 1848, settling in the area of Salem, Marion, Oregon. A simple obit is at findagrave.com.

Hamilton W. Dunbar (1800 Kentucky) start purchasing land in Mason County, Illinois in the late 1840s.  He married Mary Gurnsey, May 19, 1842 in Schuyler County, IL.  His oldest son is named William. He later removed to Missouri, and last find him in the 1870 census Macon, Missouri.  I’m looking for more information on his family.

As you can see from the map below, Schuyler, Mason, Henry, LaSalle, Morgan counties are rather near each other, even today.

 

I’ve not been able to locate John or Jeremiah.  I suspect that Jeremiah died before 1850.  There are just too many Johns.

Elizabeth!!!!!!!  This is my really truly thrilling moment, (next to getting the newspaper article).  She married Elijah Breedlove and died before 1822.  I see that Mr. Breedlove remarried in 1823.  His first son, in all of the trees is a WILLIAM born 1818, mother unknown (or is wrongly listed as his second wife).  With the newspaper article we know it’s Elizabeth. 

The index of early marriages in Ohio lists Elizabeth Dunbar married to Elijah Bridlove or even Gridlove in 1817.  That’s the reason why no one knows her name, and thus William’s mother’s name.  (Are you following all this?)

So William, Elizabeth Dunbar’s only son marries and has several children.  I have my DNA online at ancestry.com. My DNA matches a descendent of Thomas Breedlove.  Dig, dig, dig… Thomas is the son of William, grandson of Elizabeth!!!!!!!!!!!

So I think we have the right family!!!  I am writing this on MLK’s birthday.  I have today off work, and plenty of snacks.  I will be doing more research and enjoying every minute!

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[i] Sciota Gazette, Chillicothe, Ohio, August 14, 1822, Volume 11, Issue 24, p. 2. (Found at genealogynewsbank.com)

[ii] Duncan McArthur and Nathaniel Massie listed in the newspaper were close friends for many years.

[iii] Jess M. Thompson Pike County History, Pike County (Illinois) Historical Society,1968, p. 258. (Privately published book found at several websites.)

Grandpa Dunbar - Hi!

When I’m in 5^th grade, one day we drive to Moline, IL for Grandpa Dunbar’s funeral. It’s packed standing room only with adults.  I’m surprised because Grandpa Dunbar was really old and I thought he’d out lived almost everyone he knew.  Genealogically thinking, if there was a day I’d like to relive, it would be to returned to 1962 at the DeRoo Funeral Home, with all those people, who were family, including Grandpa’s cousins, now long gone. 

Frank Dunbar (L) Hiram Dunbar (R)

 

Grandpa Dunbar’s real name is Hiram Perry Dunbar, nickname Hi.  Even from my young eyes, I knew he’d been a tall handsome man; my great grandfather.  Born in Piper, Kansas, to Perry Commodore Dunbar, and Catherine Coffey, he grew up in Atkinson, IL.  His father had inherited a large part of an estate, so his family was considered wealthy in this tiny farm town, east of Moline, in Henry County.  He married Florence Knudde, and together they had 4 children, Mary Pearl, Esther, Catherine and Robert.  As a young man, he worked at his father’s livery business.  Next, they farmed for a dozen years near Linwood, Kansas, and when Florence had enough farming, they returned to Moline.  On 16^th Street, Hiram built a beautiful two story Victorian family home complete with a large front porch, a porch swing, stained glass windows, and when you entered you saw a beautiful winding staircase. He first worked at Wilson Body Co.  He was innovative.  He built a hood for a Vely Roadster automobile but didn’t get credit.  He was told he was the best salvage man, a job he worked for years at John Deere. They lived a comfortable life.  Florence his wife died in 1953.   I don’t remember her, only him as a widower.

I spent many vacation weeks with my grandparents.  Every afternoon, Grandma and I would walk the mile to Grandpa Dunbar’s.  She’d straighten up his house, make a little meal, and check to be sure everything was okay.  Even though it was in the late 1950’s neither household had a telephone.  Grandpa Dunbar always gave me a dime to run down to the pharmacy down the street, and I’d buy an ice cream sandwich.  I was never allowed to eat it in the house. I sat on the front steps watching the cars go by, eating my snack.  Across the street was a nice park with swings where I played while waiting for Grandma to finish up her chores.

I wandered the home, it had beautiful four big bedrooms up stairs.  It was furnished with beautiful antique furniture.  A beautiful stain glass lamp hung over the oak table in the dining room.  Downstairs was a cellar, and lots of tools, that Grandpa Dunbar used in his younger days.  Sometimes he would play darts with me in his big kitchen.  He was always sweet and kind to me.

It became apparent in the summer of 1962, Grandpa didn’t have many days left.  He was getting weaker and weaker.  A bed was put in the dining room, so he didn’t have to go upstairs.  Someone started spending the night, my grandma or her sister, Aunt Essie.  When he quietly passed in the night, it was not a surprise.

Now back to the funeral.  I have the book that was signed.  The names are his cousins, and other people I’d love to have known better.  At the funeral were the Coffey sisters.  I’d heard a lot about them.  They lived far away and my grandmother adored them and looked forward to their letters. 

Before I met them, they seemed exotic to me.  In my mind, they were the Coffee sisters, and they wore hats wrapped around their heads, covered in tropical fruits and coffee beans, and they lived far away, like South America.  (Think the singer and dancer, Carmen Miranda.) In actuality, they were the Coffey sisters, my grandmother’s three Irish cousins, who lived in Kansas, and they were hard working farmers.  Pleasant, but rather plain and old like my grandmother.  Grandma’s siblings were there.  I knew Aunt Essie who lived nearby.  Aunt Catherine came from California.  You could tell she’d been a beautiful woman, and still had her long, dark, lush head of hair.  Uncle Bob, who liked just like his dad, also came.  My sister and I were by far the youngest in the room. 

I look back on that day, many times.  So many important people in my family’s history are all in one room, and only a few still living today.  It’s my desire to find some of their stories and share with others.