Carnival of Genealogy #100: My Family and a Murderess

This is written for the 100th edition of the Carnival of Genealogy entitled "There's One in Every Family".   My take on this theme is that every family has a sensational story, one that has morphed over time into something juicier than it probably was. It is my heartfelt sentiment that the story I present here absolutely does not happen to every family!

My Family and a Murderess.  That sounds just like a title for a fictional murder mystery.  Alas, this story is very true.  For anyone that lives outside of the state of North Carolina and perhaps more so out of the western North Carolina mountains, you've probably never heard of Frankie Silver, known as one of the few women in the state to be hung for murder.  I know I hadn't.

As I began my Mitchell County, North Carolina research, I tried to gain a general overview of the area, the people, the work they did, and what brought them there.  I don't even recall when I first heard about the story of Charlie and Frankie (Stewart) Silver, but I remember seeing snippets of information here and there alluding to the notorious crime.  Out of morbid curiosity, I searched the internet for information and read some books only to discover a sad story from the 1830s, and much to my surprise, with connections to my own ancestors.

THE MURDER

On a cold December day in 1831, a nineteen year old Charlie Silver was murdered by his wife, eighteen year old Frances "Frankie" Stewart Silver. Charlie was hacked to death with an ax and dismembered in their cabin in the mountains of what was then Burke County, North Carolina (now Mitchell County).  The story goes that Charlie had gone out hunting though Frankie may have suspected drinking and carousing.  He came home, perhaps drunk, an altercation ensued, and the result was the death of Charlie.  The facts are not all clear, but Frankie may have been protecting herself and their toddler from Charlie's violent behavior.  Or perhaps Frankie had just had enough and in a fit of rage attacked her husband.  Apparently aware of the violence she had committed and for the need to dispose of his remains, she cut up his body and burned it in their fireplace.

In any case, it was not disputed that Frankie bundled up her daughter and went to her in-laws home the next day asking for the whereabouts of her husband.  They hadn't seen him for a few days, since he had left on his hunting trip.  Apparently she then went to her parent's home.  The Silvers and other neighbors became worried when Charlie didn't return and a manhunt began.  Perhaps Frankie's story began to unravel then but suspicions were definitely aroused.  His remains were not immediately found, but an oily residue in her fireplace and the fact that a weeks worth of firewood was gone were strong suspicions for something amiss.  The very clean floorboards were lifted up in their small cabin and blood stains were found on the ground beneath. 

THE ARREST

There are a variety of things that cause great speculation even all these 179 years later. It was said that Charlie had a tendency towards alcohol, towards abusing his wife, and towards messing around with other women. There was speculation that Frankie may have acted in self-defense, or to protect their baby, while Charlie was on a drunk. Alas, no one knows what ever happened that night to cause her to ax him to death.

About a week after the murder, Frankie, her mother and her brother were arrested and taken to the jail in Morganton, Burke Co, North Carolina.  An inquest followed and her mother and brother were later released for lack of evidence, but Frankie was held over for trial.  She had a young lawyer who may not have fully explained her rights or what was likely to happen to her.  Since court met infrequently (usually quarterly), she was in jail for some time and quite a distance from her family.

THE TRIAL

A jury of Frankie's peers, all men, was gathered and the evidence presented.  Because of the laws at the time, a defendant was not allowed to testify on his or her behalf.  The conviction came swiftly with the jury never hearing from Frankie. Death by hanging was to be Frankie's fate.  At some point while awaiting execution, Frankie stated that she acted in self-defense.  Seven of the twelve jurors then came forward to petition to overturn the conviction.  An appeal was made to the state's Supreme Court.  Friends and neighbors of the Stewart family came forward on her behalf.  During the time leading up to her hanging, her family helped her to break out of jail.  She was found wearing a man's hat and coat walking behind an uncle's wagon when officials caught up with them.  But all these efforts were to no avail.

THE HANGING

It was a warm July day in 1833 when the hanging occurred.  Legend has it that her father stood in the assembled crowd and yelled up to Frankie as she stood on the gallows.  His supposed words:  "Die with it in you, Frankie."  A lot could be read into that statement and it has probably morphed into more than what ever really occurred that day.  What appears to be fact is her father was there to take her remains home to a final resting place.  Due to the rugged mountain conditions and the summer temperatures, it was a slow trip home.  As a result, she is supposedly buried in an unmarked location on the road outside Morganton.  A memorial has been erected in her memory near where she is believed to have been buried.

MY FAMILY'S CONNECTIONS

So what does this all mean to me?  First, I should begin by saying that at the present time I have not found any direct genealogical connection to either Charlie or Frankie.  However, my ancestors were neighbors of both the Silver and Stewart families.  As I was reading Perry Deane Young's book, The Untold Story of Frankie Silver, I discovered that some of the members of the inquest, a prosecution witness, and petitioners to the governor were my ancestors. 

My fourth great-grandfather, Isaac Grindstaff, appears as a witness for the defense.  According to Young, Isaac later identifies himself as a member of the inquest jury.  It should be noted that there was more than one Isaac Grindstaff in this area, but for this time frame, my ancestor seems to be the likely Isaac.

My fourth great-grandfather, Thomas Howell, served as a witness to the grand jury and later as a witness for the prosecution.  Thomas was a blacksmith and apparently made Charlie Silver's shoe buckles which were identified amongst the burned remains.

My fourth great-grandfather, Hector McNeill, as well as a John McNeill, a Dim McNeill and a Malcolm McNeill all signed an undated petition to Governor Montfort Stokes requesting he pardon the prisoner.  The document states that many of those signers were neighbors of the defendant and knew her to be of good character.

My third great-grandfather, Archibald McNeill, was the son of Hector and son-in-law of Thomas Howell.  Archibald's second marriage was to Sarah Ann Sparks Silver.  Sarah was the widow of Reuben Silver, brother to the murdered Charlie.  According to Cabins in the Laurel by Muriel Earley Sheppard, Arch built a cabin backed up to the same chimney where Frankie committed her crime.  Sheppard writes the original cabin was gone but the chimney and fireplace were in strong condition.  She goes on to state that Arch's wife (Sarah) found one of Charlie's "shoeheel irons jammed into the stones of the fireplace."  The said victim was Sarah's former brother-in-law and were made by Arch's former father-in-law. 

Oh what a tangled web.  And such a sad, sad story.  This month marks the 179th year since this crime occurred.  The truth behind the murder may never be known and speculation still runs rampant.  I hope the victims, for I believe Charlie and Frankie were both victims, rest in peace.

SOURCES AND FURTHER READING:

I know that I have not done justice to the story of Frankie Stewart Silver.  Any errors in the above information are mine.  For further information, please consider reading the following books or visiting these websites.

The Untold Story of Frankie Silver by Perry Deane Young.
Wikipedia's page on Frankie Stewart Silver
Charlie's memorial at Find A Grave
Frankie's memorial at Find A Grave
A summary from the North Carolina Museum of History.
For a fictional account, I recommend The Ballad of Frankie Silver by Sharyn McCrumb
The Burke County Visitor's center has an article
The Frankie Foundation which produced a play describing these tragic events
Cabins in the Laurel by Muriel Earley Sheppard

October Dates in My Family History

6th - death of Eunice Brown, my 3rd great-grandmother, in 1867, in Northfield, Rice Co, Minnesota, just three days shy of her 18th wedding anniversary. 

9th - anniversary of Thomas Arthur and Eunice Brown, my 3rd great-grandparents, in 1849.  They were married in Trumbull Co, Ohio

22nd - death of Robert Nelson McNeill, my 2nd great-grandfather, in Asheville, Buncombe Co, North Carolina

29th - birthday of Robert Nelson McNeill, my 2nd great-grandfather, in 1858

31st - birthday of Isaac Harmon in 1773.  I believe Isaac to be my 5th great-grandfather, through Walter Harmon (1798-1865)

July Dates in My Family History

Only a couple of dates in my family history for July:

10th - anniversary of Absalom Stroud Pitts and Medina Sherer, my 3rd great-grandparents, in 1853

16th - death of Lee McNeill, my grandfather, in 1971 in Sacramento, California

31st - death of  Archibald McNeill, my 3rd great-grandfather, in Mitchell County, North Carolina.  He is buried in what is called McNeill Cemetery in Mitchell Co. with his second wife, Sarah Ann Elizabeth Sparks.

Neel Family.org

Last fall, I was contacted by the webmaster for the Neel Family organization website.  He had found my father's YDNA profile on Ysearch and found many similarities to the Neel research on their website.  For the last several months, they have been putting together a database for their Neel DNA research with particular emphasis on the Southern states.  Even though my YDNA surname is McNeill, they are looking for all Neel derivations that have Southern ancestry from prior to 1900.

For further information, please visit their website:  http://www.neelfamily.org/.  For more information on their published Neel research visit here.

Woodland Cemetery, Ashland, Virginia

Back in early March, I wrote a post on my 3rd great-grandparents, William M. Woody and Marginia M. Thomas.  I was thrilled to receive a comment from Rick Walton, a Historian for the 6th North Carolina Troops, which included the infantry unit that William served in during the Civil War.  At the end of my post, I stated that I did not know where the men from the 6th were buried that had died at the hospital at Ashland, Virginia.  Rick was kind enough to provide that information and so much more.

Grave 198 at Woodland Cemetery in Ashland, Virginia is the final resting place of William.  The graves are unmarked but the roster of those buried at the cemetery lists some familiar names to Mitchell and Yancey county researchers, including my ancestor Archibald McNeill's brother, Daniel, in Grave 194.  It should be noted that the soldiers buried in this cemetery are not just from North Carolina, but also include troops from Virginia, South Carolina, Georgia, Mississippi and a handful from Texas, Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Maryland, and Tennessee.  There are 8 for whom the state is unknown.

Additional information on the 6th North Carolina Troops can be found at their website:  http://www.6ncst.org/.

Many thanks to Rick for sharing this information with me.

52 Weeks to Better Genealogy: Google Maps

Challenge 7 of the 52 Weeks to Better Genealogy is to make a Google map using addresses important to my family's history.

About three weeks ago, I spent some time reviewing the city directories on Ancestry.com for Stockton, California. My grandfather, Lee McNeill, ended up in Stockton by 1937 and was there through the early 1940s.

I found him living at the following street addresses:
635 E. Main
1406 E .Poplar
844 Sierra Nevada (don't know whether this was North or South - I picked North)
443 N. Aurora
825 N. Commerce

What I found most fascinating about this task is that I think that most of the residences are still there, likely without substantial change, assuming that the street numbers haven't changed. The buildings that were photographed by Google appear to be houses or buildings that would be appropriate for the era or earlier. The Main address is currently for a hotel but was likely an old apartment-type building. The Commerce property is by far the best maintained and the surrounding homes look to be as well. The Poplar address and the N. Sierra Nevada address are adjacent to one another. Not sure if the house at N. Sierra Nevada is where he lived or if the Poplar apartment building's current parking lot had a building on it.

Overall, I am very pleased with this feature of Google and will most definitely be using it again.




View Lee's residences in Stockton in a larger map

SNGF - Best 2009 Genealogy Moment

This past Saturday at Genea-Musings, Randy Seaver posed the question of what was our best Genealogy Moment of 2009.

After some contemplation, I have decided my best moment of 2009 was confirmation through Y-DNA that my paternal grandfather, Lee McNeill, is without a doubt, a McNeill. In early postings on this blog, I described how my grandfather changed his name some time during the 1930s. About 25 years ago, my grandmother began to search for his ancestry based upon the scarce facts he had told her before this death in 1971. While she laid the research groundwork, Y-DNA testing proved that my father and the man we believed to be Lee's brother are indeed closely related; in this case, it is nephew and uncle.

I remember waiting for my father's results, which came first. I was worried that we would have no McNeill or similar surnames that were a match. Much to my delight, there were several similar names: Neil, Neely, McNeil and McNeal. I think I was even more worried while waiting for the uncle's test results. I was terrified that a decade of research was all for naught. It was a victory for my family research and was so very thankful that I had a close living relative willing and able to take the test.

A Checkered Past, A Better Future

This is written for the 87th edition of the Carnival of Genealogy.

I have a checkered past with New Year's Resolutions and by checkered I mostly mean unsuccessful. I always think of something I'd like to commit to during the new year and then my busiest work season of the year begins and lasts until April. By the time that slows down, I've long since forgotten my commitments made on January 1!

Therefore, I have been carefully examining what I can resolve to do in 2010 that is actually attainable. I have decided to list some 2010 resolutions as well as some resolutions for the new decade. Hopefully ten years from now I can look back at what I wanted to do in the upcoming decade and feel that I've attained those goals and then some.

For 2010, I resolve to do the following:

1. Continue to improve the sourcing in my database. During 2009, I combined four trees (one for each of my grandparents) into one new database using RootsMagic 4. I have been very slowly working my way through proper source citations for the many census, birth, marriage and death facts, among others, that I have in my tree of over 1,900 people. This is a massive undertaking but one I am very committed to keeping.

2. Complete and submit an application for the Illinois Prairie Pioneer Certificate for my Harmon lineage. My ancestors, Walter and Azubah (Hyde) Harmon, came to Whiteside Co, Illinois in the 1840s, along with three of their adult children and families. Based upon the time frame of their settlement, I am eligible for the middle level for settlers that came between 1819 to 1850.

3. Help my mother and grandmother sort the boxes of old photos, get them into an archival safe albums, label the individuals, location and approximate era. I have been asking for this for several years to no avail. This is a project that would have to be done over several months time, on a once-a-week basis. It would allow time to assemble the photos and for my grandmother to remember who the individuals are in each one.

4. To continue with my "mini bio" blog posts on each of my ancestors in my ahnentafel report. I have been doing this on my paternal grandfather's line by writing about each married couple, listing their children, subsequent spouses, and other known information. I know this is worth doing because I've had three people contact me within the last six weeks due to those posts.

5. To write in a daily journal so that my descendants will have something about me and my daily life in my own handwriting. I found a simple 8.5 x 11 inch day planner-type calendar that has a week spread over two pages. There are about 3 inches available per day with the weekend combined. I intend to write a few sentences daily (or at least I hope daily) about what is happening in our lives including things that my children are doing, saying, playing with or learning. I already have it on my nightstand with a pen so that when I set my alarm clock, I will be reminded to make some notes about the day.

For the upcoming decade, I resolve to do the following:

1. Make a trip to Mitchell Co, North Carolina. This is the birthplace of my paternal grandfather, Lee McNeill, and several generations of his family. I could probably spend a month there and never answer all my family history questions, but I do intend to give it a go. This may be a trip that could be in the works for 2010, but that hasn't been determined yet.

2. To continue to work on determining the ancestry of Hector McNeill, my fourth great-grandfather. I have previously described some of that research here and here.

3. To pursue membership in the Daughters of the American Revolution. I have a couple of options that I described here.

4. To make a trip to Boston to visit the New England Historic and Genealogical Society. I think this goal is very attainable but costly. My husband has some dear friends that live in the Boston area and we'd love to visit with them. The bigger problem is what to do with my husband and children while I spend a day or two at the NEHGS library!

5. To really dig into my husband's maternal line, which includes some Polish research that I find rather intimidating. Also related to these lines, I need to correspond with a couple of cousins to have them document what family history they know. I hope to accomplish this portion in 2010.

6. To continuing transcribing the 200 or so pages of the Civil War pension file of Archibald H. McNeill. I have gone through the first 15 to 20 or so, but the handwriting on some of the pages is so atrocious, not to mention the spelling. My ancestor suffered from "new money" fever. It took me a while to determine he had pneumonia fever and not perhaps a desire to go to the gold fields of California!

I think these goals are realistic but also challenging. I have such a busy life that it will take a while for me to accomplish what I want, but I really intend to be diligent about these. Wish me luck!

Advent Calendar Dec 15th - Holiday Happenings

Besides my sister's birthday that we celebrate each December, there are two other December events that I want to mention.

The first is the wedding anniversary of my second great-grandparents, Robert Nelson McNeill and Margaret Ledford. They were married Christmas Day 1877 in Mitchell Co, North Carolina.

The second is the marriage of my fourth great-grandfather Hector McNeill to his second wife, Martha "Patty" Gouge. They were married either Christmas Eve or Christmas Day some time during the 1860s in Mitchell Co, North Carolina.

The big January events that fall so close to Christmas include my mother's birthday, but also my grandfather Lee McNeill's birthday on 2 January 1912. That is also the date he and my grandmother married. 2010 would have been 65 years of marriage for them.

Thomas Howell and Piety Wilson

Thomas Howell and Piety Wilson are my 4th great-grandparents. I have previously written about their daughter, Jane Howell, who is my 3rd-great grandmother and her husband Archibald McNeill.

Thomas Howell was born about 1805 in Tennessee, the son of James Howell and Martha "Patty" Hill. Piety Wilson was born about 1804-1805 in North Carolina. She may have been the daughter of John Wilson. Thomas and Piety married about 1823 in Burke Co, North Carolina. Thomas and family can be found in the 1850 and 1860 Yancey Co, North Carolina census. In 1870, Thomas and Piety can be found in Snow Creek township, Mitchell Co, North Carolina census. By 1880, Thomas is still in Snow Creek and living with his second wife, Eliza, and his children from that relationship: Saunders, McWilliam, Elmira, Minnie and Melvina.

Piety died in 1874 and Thomas died 22 Jan 1891. Both are buried at Gouge Cemetery, Mitchell Co, North Carolina.

They had the following children:

• Nancy Ann born abt 1824, married Henry Gilbert Silver
• John D born abt 1830, died 19 July 1862 in Richmond while serving in the Civil War. He married Sarah Wilson and had four children.
• James C born abt 1832
• Martha born abt 1833
• Mary born abt 1835
• Elizabeth M born abt 1837
• Jane E (my ancestor) born abt 1841, married Archibald H. McNeill, died Nov 1862.
• Robert Pinkney born abt 1844. He also served in the Civil War.

Thomas is probably my most "colorful" ancestor. He is well-known to have several illegitimate children with more than one woman. Prior to Piety's death, he had several children with Eliza Tolley. whom he married following Piety's death. It is possible that Eliza may have been his niece, her mother possibly being Thomas' sister. However, I have not confirmed that fact.

Besides farming, Thomas was also known to be a blacksmith. I suspect that his grandson, Robert Nelson McNeill, may have learned the blacksmith trade from Thomas. Based upon review of Archibald McNeill's Union pension documents, it appears that Archibald remained close with his first father-in-law after the death of Jane Howell McNeill.

My dear online friend and cousin-in-law, H. McKinney, took the following photos of Thomas and Piety's headstones at Gouge Cemetery, Mitchell Co, North Carolina. As you can see, weather has taken it's toll on them. More recent memorial stones have been placed below the original headstones.

If you are related to Thomas Howell or Piety Wilson, please contact me. I would love to share information.

Sources available upon request.

The Siblings of Hector McNeill

In my last post, I wrote about my 4th great-grandfather, Hector McNeill. After extensive examination of the 1850 to 1880 Yancey County, North Carolina censuses, I have been able to determine the siblings of Hector McNeill. I have hopes this analysis will help me work towards determining Hector's parents.

ANALYSIS

1850 - Hector, age 33, is living in Yancey Co. with his children and John age 45. Next door is Nancy Cox age 32 married to David with several children in the home as well as a Margaret McNeal age 30. All indicate they were born in North Carolina.

1860 - Hector, age 45, is living in Yancey Co. with his children John, Sarah J., and James, as well as John age 60. Another son and my ancestor, Arch McNeal is living next door with wife Jane and son Robert N. Next door to Arch is a widowed Nancy Cox with nine children, seven of which were listed in the 1850 census, Margaret McNeal age 35 and Elizabeth McNeal age 11. This Elizabeth McNeal appears to be the youngest child of Hector and the late wife Betty. Again, it appears all of these individuals were born in North Carolina.

1870 - Hector, age 55, is living in Crabtree Township, Yancey Co. with his second wife Martha Gouge and his daughter Jane, which I think may be Sarah Jane. He is again living next door to Nancy Cox age 55, Margaret age 52, eight children of Nancy's, and Elizabeth McNeill age 21. Part of the problem in this census year is that all members of the Nancy Cox household are listed under the surname Cox. However, it appears evident based upon the ages of Margaret and Elizabeth that they are both the same people as found in 1850 and 1860. Again in this census year all are indicated to have been born in North Carolina.

1880 - This census year focuses on four households with the head of household as follows: Harmon Cox, John Cox, Hector McNeal, and Edmond Cox. It should also be noted that John McNeill does not appear in any of these households and I was unable to locate him in the 1880 census.

First, Harmon Cox is listed in 1850 as a child of David and Nancy McNeill Cox and in Nancy's household in 1860. In 1870, he is married and living adjacent to Hector McNeill. In 1880, Harmon is married with four children. His birthplace is listed as North Carolina, his father born in North Carolina and his mother (the late Nancy McNeill Cox) born in what I think says South Carolina.

Second, John Cox is listed as a child in the household of David and Nancy McNeill Cox in 1850, and in Nancy's household in 1860 and 1870. In 1880, John is age 36 and the head of household. Listed in his household is Margaret McNeal age 66 listed as his aunt. Five of his siblings are listed as such and are the same individuals listed in prior census years living with their mother Nancy. Eliza McNeal, age 26, is listed as a cousin to the head of household, John. John is also listed as born in North Carolina. He contradicts his brother Harmon and says that his mother Nancy was born in North Carolina. Margaret McNeal is listed as born in North Carolina, as well as both her parents. However, because she is just one of the many listed in the household I don't hold much credence to this being completely accurate. The census taker may have just been filling in the ditto marks down the column.

Third, Hector McNeal is listed as age 72 with his second wife Martha, age 50. Hector lists his birth place as North Carolina, his father birth place as Scotland and there is a big smudge over the mother's birth place, but it appears the beginning letters may be Sc which would indicate Scotland. Also, Martha is listed below Hector and rather than ditto marks for her mother's birth place, NC has been written in. That to me indicates that something other than NC was listed as Hector's mother's birth place.

Lastly, Edmond Cox is listed as age 45 with a wife Martha. In 1850, Edmond was listed as a child in the David and Nancy Cox household. He is listed as a child in the 1860 and 1870 households of Nancy Cox. Edmond lists his birth place as North Carolina as well as for his parents, which again contradicts his brother Harmon's listing of South Carolina.

The final piece of evidence for 1880 is the Mortality Schedule from the U.S. Census for Crabtree, Yancey Co, North Carolina. Nancy Cox, age 68, is listed as having died in July 1879 of dropsy. She is listed as born in North Carolina, her father in Scotland, and her mother in North Carolina.

CONCLUSIONS

Based upon the above analysis, I have determined the following McNeill siblings and their children:

John McNeill born 1799-1805 in North Carolina. Either moved away or died by 1870. While I have found no concrete evidence listing him as a sibling to Hector, his living in Hector's household for both the 1850 and 1860 census years leads me to believe they are brothers.

Nancy McNeill born 1815-1818 in North Carolina or possibly in South Carolina, married to David Cox. It is possible that Nancy's father was born in Scotland.

Nancy and David had the following children:
Edmond born abt 1835
Mary born abt 1837
Harmon or Harmond born abt 1839
Sarah A born abt 1841
John born abt 1843
Margaret born abt 1844
Olive or Ollie born abt 1847
Hannah born abt 1850
Isaac born abt 1853

Hector McNeill born between 1808-1817 likely in North Carolina. He died some time after 1880. Both his parents may have been born in Scotland. See this post for information on Hector's children.

Margaret McNeill born between 1814-1825 likely in North Carolina.

Because Margaret is listed as an aunt to Nancy's son John Cox in the 1880 census, I reasonably believe Margaret and Nancy are siblings. Additionally because Elizabeth McNeill is listed as a cousin to John Cox in the 1880 census and she is a known child of Hector, I feel comfortable linking Nancy, Margaret and Hector as siblings.

If you have any connections or further information on the McNeill or Cox families, I would love to hear from you. Please use the contact button on the left side of the blog.



Sources are available upon request.

Hector McNeill and Betty Presnell

Hector McNeill and his wife Betty Presnell (or perhaps Pressley) are my 4th great-grandparents. Hector McNeill was born some time between 1808 and 1817. Alas, he is one of my ancestors that does not age a decade with each census. According to the 1850 Yancey Co, North Carolina census, he would have been born in 1817. Both 1860 and 1870 have him born in 1815 and from out in left field, the 1880 census lists him as 72 years old which equates to 1808. So therefore I use the age range, though I likely suspect it was probably in the 1815-1817 range.

Hector wasn't listed in a Yancey or Burke county census prior to 1850, nor can I find any other McNeill, though it is likely he was there. He is estimated to have married Betty Presnell in the mid-1830s as their first child was born about 1836 and said to have been born in Burke Co. (later Yancey), North Carolina.

Hector and Betty had the following children:

1. Daniel born abt 1836 - died 9 May 1862 Ashland, Virginia while serving in Co E 6th NC Infantry

2. Archibald (my ancestor) born 1838 - died 31 Jul 1886 Mitchell Co, NC

3. John born 3 Jan 1841 - died 26 Nov 1935 South Toe, Yancey Co, NC

4. Alexander L born abt 1842 - died 13 Mar 1924 Asotin Co, Washington

5. Sarah J. born abt 1844

6. James born 1846 - died 21 May 1926 Asotin Co, Washington

7. Elizabeth born 2 Apr 1849 - died abt 1934 in Virginia

A descendant of Elizabeth provided me with her exact birthdate and the information that the day after Elizabeth was born her mother Betty died (3 Apr 1849) presumably as a result of complications related to childbirth.

The book Cabins in the Laurel by Muriel Earley Shephard details a story about Hector's second wedding in a chapter entitled "A Burnt Mountain Wedding". Hector married Martha (Patty) Gouge on Christmas Eve some time during the 1860s. The story recounts his rapid walk over the snow-covered mountain to get there on time as well as the revelry (i.e. imbibing) that took place.

I have no record of Hector's death date, though it occurred sometime after 1880. A dear online friend and cousin-in-law has been kind enough to share some photos of a memorial marker at the Gouge Cemetery in Mitchell Co, North Carolina. Her family, the Gouges, believes that Martha Gouge McNeill is buried at that cemetery and believe that Hector may be with her. To honor their memories, a marker has been installed at that cemetery. She has given me permission to include a photo here and also to allow me to post them at Find-A-Grave.




Additionally I do not know who Hector's parents were. Family lore indicates a McNeill came to Camden, South Carolina in 1760 with a three year old son Neill. That Neill would marry another another passenger on the (as of yet unknown) ship by the name of McMillan or McMillian. The story goes that those are the parents of Hector. So assuming that Hector was born about 1815, it seems more likely that this Neill and wife McMillan may be grandparents to Hector, not his parents. However, I've yet to come across anything to indicate who Hector's parents may have been nor have I found a Neill McNeill that married a McMillan in any online trees. Alas, the hunt continues.

Wordless Wednesday - Silver Chapel Baptist church and cemetery

View of the Silver Chapel Baptist church and cemetery from the old McNeill home place in Bandana, Mitchell Co, North Carolina. Photo taken by my dear online friend and cousin-in-law, H. McKinney in November 2004.

Tombstone Tuesday - Robert and Margaret Ledford McNeill

Headstone of my great-great-grandparents, Robert McNeill and Margaret Ledford. This is the only "evidence" I have that Margaret died in 1927. I have tried unsuccessfully obtaining a death certificate from the State of North Carolina as well as from Mitchell County (where she is buried) and Buncombe County (where the family lived by 1930 but could have been only after her death). Robert and Margaret are buried at Silver Chapel Baptist Cemetery in Bandana, Mitchell Co, North Carolina. This photo was taken by my dear online friend and cousin-in-law, H. McKinney in November 2004.

Tombstone Tuesday - Ben Arvel McNeal

Headstone of Ben Arvel McNeal, my great-uncle. He was only about 3 1/2 months old when he passed away on 12 September 1920. I can't imagine the heartbreak of his parents, Charles and Della Grindstaff McNeill. Ben is buried at Silver Chapel Baptist Cemetery in Bandana, Mitchell Co, North Carolina. My dear online friend and cousin-in-law, H. McKinney, took this photo for me in November 2004.

COG 83: Tone Deaf in a Family of Musicians

This article is written for the 83rd edition of the Carnival of Genealogy. The topic is musical instruments. Do you play a musical instrument or did one of your family members? What instrument did you or they play? If no one in the family played an instrument, tell what is your favorite instrument or band and what is your least favorite one. Hosted By Janet Iles who authors the blog, Janet the Researcher.

I'd like to think that I got all the good genes and none of the bad.

And then reality sinks in.......

The one thing I've always wanted was to be able to sing....and carry a tune while doing it. As it is, I should really only sing while driving or perhaps in the shower. But most especially I should be only singing while alone so as not to offend anyone else's delicate ears. The irony of this situation is that I am descended from many fine folks with musical talents. Apparently that gift did NOT get passed on to me.

Now this isn't to say that I haven't had some musical training. There was a year of piano lessons using the Suzuki method when I was in about the third grade and then there were the four years of clarinet in the school band (grades six through nine). By the time I finished ninth grade and was ready to transfer to the high school (I went to a three year high school), I decided that band was just not for me. I had no desire to march around the football field at halftime or be in the pep band for basketball games. The musical compositions were becoming more difficult and I was not keeping up to that skill level. And frankly I was having a hard time determining when I was sharp or flat. I knew if I was wildly off key but when it came to fine tuning I simply couldn't tell if I was off key. And so ended my not-so-illustrious musical career.

If I consider all the musical talent in my family, I'm almost embarassed by my own lack of skill. My maternal grandmother grew up in a small town in eastern South Dakota, so there were a lot of long cold winters with little activity. To counteract that they would have a house party of sorts. My great-grandparents each came from a family of 7 siblings, so there were many aunts and uncles on both the Hanson and Hiby sides who would gather with their instruments on a Saturday night and play to the wee hours. As a result, my grandma can play the piano by ear but she never really learned to read music. Her brother can play accordian and piano by ear. He still lives in this rural area of South Dakota and plays for a lot of senior citizen groups. I think he owns at least three pianos and nine different accordians.

If they weren't making music, they were listening to it usually by means of the Grand Ole Opry on the radio on Saturday nights. My grandma also remembers her dad driving the family into town one evening and parking on the street next to an auditorium or dance hall. It must have been summertime because the door to the building was opened and out poured the live music of Lawrence Welk. She even remembers catching a glimpse of him. As a child, I remember having to watch reruns of old Lawrence Welk shows which I found to be incredibly boring. The only thing I really enjoyed were the bubbles and the ladies' pretty dresses. Funny what you remember........

And obviously musical talent does run in my grandma's Hiby line (originally spelled Hoiby), because we are related to Lee Hoiby, famous American composer best known for his work on "Summer and Smoke" by Tennessee Williams. Another famous work he is well known for is Shakespeare's "The Tempest". While the Hoiby/Hiby line is Norwegian, Lee Hoiby's mother's line was Danish and apparently very musically talented.

On my paternal grandfather's side, the McNeills were known to have some musical talent. I previously have written about my great-grandfather, Charles McNeill, and his ability to make his own fiddles. I have long known of his talent and it never ceases to amaze me. I recently caught the tail end of a PBS program on the Queen Family of Jackson Co, North Carolina, which is southwest of Mitchell and Yancey counties where my McNeills are from. The Queen Family has a similar Scots-Irish background and are all very musically talented. I can only envision that perhaps my own McNeills, including my great-grandpa Charlie, may have had this type of talent for the old mountain songs and bluegrass.

Even my husband comes from some musical background, including his own stint in the high school band playing saxophone. His father used to sing in a barbershop quarter. His maternal grandfather, Chester Kosinski, played the trumpet in an orchestra and in the 1930 U.S. Census in Bloomfield, Essex Co, New Jersey he listed his occupation as an orchestra musician.

Alas, it appears that even with all this talent coming before me I am destined to sing off-key. But it hasn't deterred my own love of music.

Did I also mention I have two left feet?

Military Records Denied . . . . Again

This past summer I was very busy crossing things off my "to do" list. This is always a good feeling for me because even as crazy as my daily life can be it still makes me feel like I've done something.

One of the tasks on the list was to try to get my Grandpa Lee's military records. In mid-June, I sat down to write a letter to the National Personnel Records Center explaining the name change from McNeill and that I wasn't sure of the exact spelling of the name McNeill though I knew with certainty the name he assumed. I explained he was either born 2 January 1912, as the census records indicate, or 2 January 1915, like he'd told my grandmother. I listed a period of time in which he would have served between April 1930 (the time of the census) to March 1937 (when he applied for a Social Security number under the new name). I listed possible Asheville addresses that he could have used for next of kin (his parents' home). I even went so far as to include copies of his SS-5 application, the 1930 census, and a copy of the SSDI listing his death in 1971.

I mailed the letter and copies. Then I waited....

In early July, I received a somewhat thick envelope from the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis, Missouri. Because it obviously contained more than one piece of paper inside, I nearly skipped from the mailbox to the front door where I promptly dropped all the other mail to open this letter. I remember my hands were even shaking a little.

And the letter said:

"Thank you for contacting the National Personnel Records Center. We have been unsuccessful in identifying a military service record for the above-named individual. This does not mean the subject did not have military service, only that we are unable to identify a record based on the limited information you have provided. To locate a record, we must have the veteran's complete and confirmed name, confirmed date of birth, service number (if applicable), in additional to a social security number, branch of service, and approximate dates of service. We regret our response could not be more positive."

Yep, far from positive. The letter goes on to say if I have questions, I can call or mail a response referencing my Request Number listed on the letter. They even kindly sent me copies of the stuff I had originally sent to them, which explains why the envelope was a little thick.

Talk about absolute deflation. Short of going to St. Louis myself and demanding to dig through their boxes/files/filing cabinets for a Lee McNeill (or McNeil or McNeal) likely born 2 Jan 1912 and living in Asheville prior to his joining the Navy to be a pharmacist's mate, I'm at a loss as to what to do next. Is it because I can't give them a service number that they can't find him? Do they not want to search all the possible Lee McNeill/McNeil/McNeals in their database from that time period? I know he was in the service. I have seen a photo of him in his Naval uniform. I highly doubt he would be photographed in uniform standing next to a ship if he wasn't in the service. And no the ship's number was not visible in the photograph.

So the dilemma continues.

Any and all suggestions are welcomed.

SNGF - A Family's Increase

I have spent several days pondering Randy Seaver's latest edition of Saturday Night Genealogy Fun. This time the task is to calculate the descendants from a set of our great-grandparents, preferably with the most and determine the number in each generation. Here are his instructions.

As I was thinking about this I realized both of my grandmothers each had one sibling who had no children. I always have known this fact, but I never really considered that this was something in common between them. So then I began to think about my each of my grandfathers and it's quite a different story.

My Grandpa Fred's parents, Edward Joseph Harmon and Kate Nellie Arthur, had four boys of which three lived to adulthood. The descendants of Edward and Kate are as follows:

1. Children = 4 (all deceased)
2. Grandchildren = 7 (one deceased)
3. Great-grandchildren = 16 I think. This number includes my sister and me. Besides us, I've met perhaps only two others in this generation.
4. Great-great-grandchildren = I don't even know how many there could be. I know I have two children of my own that fit into this generation. I am aware of at least 5 others, but know there are more.
5. 3rd great-granchildren = I am aware of one baby born in 2008.

So on my Grandpa Lee McNeill's side, his parents Charles Lafayette McNeill and Della Winnie Grindstaff had five children of which four lived to adulthood. The descendants of Charles and Della are as follows:

1. Children = 5 (all deceased)
2. Grandchildren = 11 (3 deceased) I have communicated with two in this generation as well as the husband of another grandchild
3. Great-grandchildren = at least 8 known (me, my sister and my two first cousins plus 4 cousins of which I have emailed with one) I would expect there could be another 5-10 in this generation that I know nothing of. This also excludes any step-great-grandchildren in this generation of which I know of one.
4. Great-great-grandchildren = well again my two girls count here and a first cousin to me has three children. I know there is at least one other. This again excludes any step-relatives in this generation.

So what this tells me is that I have spent a lot of time focusing on the prior generations i.e. the deceased, but haven't focused so much on the living descendants. I have two reasons (read: excuses) for this. First, if you have read any of my prior posts on my McNeill ancestors, you will know that up until a few years ago we didn't know much about Lee's past. So there have been a lot of letters and emails (think of cold calling) done to try to make contact with some of the right descendants. That explains my paternal side, but on my mother's side (Harmons), I think the seven cousins all lived in such different locations around the United States and with limited funds it was difficult to get all of them together. However, it is my hope in the next year or two to have a mini-reunion with those six remaining cousins. Three of the six remaining cousins all live in a close geographic area that makes it easy to get together and we are only a few hours from them by car. So that leaves the two remaining cousins and the widow of the deceased cousin to come from Utah, South Dakota and Arizona. Think it could happen? We'll just have to see how persuasive I can be!

My ancestors in the SSDI

I noticed a post on Rootdig.com that Michael John Neill had noted his ancestors that were listed in the SSDI. I thought this was an interesting exercise and certainly not one I had considered before, so here goes nothing.....

1. Fred Joseph Harmon (1 Jun 1921-25 Apr 1993) - my grandfather
2. Kate Harmon (5 Nov 1889-21 Sept 1974) - my great-grandmother and mother of #1, maiden name was Arthur
3. Helmer Hiby (21 Jan 1895- Jun 1982) - my great-grandfather
4. Bernice Hiby (27 Mar 1903 - 28 Mar 1982) - my great-grandmother, maiden name was Hanson
5. Charles McNeill (18 Feb 1886-12 May 1970) - my great-grandfather
6. Della McNeill (15 Mar 1893-1 Mar 1979) - my great-grandmother, maiden name was Grindstaff
7. Frona Scott (13 Jun 1890-29 Jun 1971) - my great-grandmother, maiden name was Greathouse

It should be noted that both my grandmothers are still living as well as my parents.

The other unusual thing is that my grandfather, Lee McNeill, should be listed in the SSDI. However, the reason he may not be listed is that he died at age 59 before he started receiving benefits so my grandmother may not have needed to report his death to the Social Security Administration. And she was admittedly rather shell-shocked. Her mother Frona died at the end of June and just over two weeks later Lee died suddenly from a heart attack. Frona had lived with my grandparents since her own husband, Bert Scott, had died in 1950 on the day my uncle was born.

This also pointed out a couple of flaws in my recordkeeping. I need to note the dates of my Hiby grandparents' passing. I remember both their funerals fairly well, particularly for my great-grandma Bernice. She either died on the 27th or 28th of March and the funeral was on the 31st, which was their wedding anniversary as well as my birthday. And my great-grandpa Helmer died just three short months later in June. However, that date escapes me completely. I will need to follow up on that.

Regrouping

I've been away....literally and figuratively. I have taken a break from posting for some "me time" in an effort to figure out what I wanted to accomplish with this blog. It was also a time to reflect on how best to manage my precious genealogy time. I'm a mom of two busy girls, a wife, a full-time employee, a chief bottle washer (thank goodness for all that my dear husband is the chief cook), laundress, etc. You get the picture. There are only so many hours in my day to accomplish things and something had to give.

As a result, I've determined that Twitter just isn't for me - I can't figure out all the abbreviations and I wasn't gleaning anything really meaningful that I couldn't get from reading my favorite blog posts. I've continued with Facebook which I primarily use for my personal friends though I do have "friends" that are new (to me) relatives and researchers working on common lines. I don't use it as extensively as other genealogists do and probably won't. I'm ok with that. I've also determined I just can't possibly read any more blogs. I love to read the escapades of another's mysterious ancestor, but time is precious. I do continue to scan the new blogs that Geneabloggers puts out each week in the hope that someone will be researching my lines. I continue to gather my genealogy news in that fashion. And I will continue to read (via Google Reader) those blogs of the few kind folks who follow my random ramblings. I will also remain somewhat active on GenWise. They've had a few missteps, dramas, and some outright plagiarism (that was later corrected and properly attributed to Randy Seaver) that have left a bad taste in my mouth. My time is precious and I don't need to deal with that kind of drama - if I wanted to I'd watch daytime soaps. I was hoping (and still am) that more educational opportunities would come from GenWise rather than "tell me everything you know about XYZ". I realize that everyone starts new and makes mistakes. Heaven knows I've had my share. However, I am going to pick and choose how I participate. I hope my time won't be wasted there.

I recall reading a post (and please forgive me for not remembering where it was) about a fellow geneablogger also frustrated with all the social media opportunities and the lack of time to do them all. After reading that, it truly verbalized the exact feelings I had been going through. Since cloning isn't an option, I have to manage time the best I can.

Since my last post nearly a month ago, I have been very busy checking off some "to-do" items. A few "family history" things that I have done include:
1. Taking a family vacation to my mother-in-law's in coastal North Carolina.
2. Requested my grandfather Lee McNeill's Navy records.
3. Requested and received land record information from Whiteside Co., Illinois on my 3rd great-grandfather, Porter Joseph Harmon, and his father, Walter Harmon. They had land warrants to get the land so now I have to figure out how they acquired the land warrants.
4. Hired a wonderful professional researcher to look into some McNeill records for me at the North Carolina State Archives.
5. Requested and received some Patriot applications from the Daughters of the American Revolution.
6. Requested and received a death certificate for my 2nd great-grandfather, Homer Arthur, from Santa Cruz Co, California.
7. Requested an obituary on Catherine Ellen Struble Myers, my 3rd great-grandmother. The South Dakota Archives were unable to locate an obit but did send a WPA transcription of the cemetery she was buried in.
8. Started researching a new genealogy software. I'm using FTM 2005 and also have trees posted on Ancestry.com for each grandparent. I'd like to have one tree where I can combine all data, have the ability to prepare various reports, and the ability to attach various media files to the individuals. I'm leaning towards RootsMagic 4, but am also curious about the new FTM 2010. Any recommendations?

I hope in some future posts to discuss the findings, or lack thereof, in the 8 items posted above.

This list doesn't include things like school shopping for the soon-to-be kindergartener in our home, assisting with our church's Vacation Bible School program, swimming lessons, and the list goes on. It's no wonder I'm tired.