Thursday, February 26, 2015

Anna Merriman Busby: Who's Your Daddy? (52 Ancestors #8)

Anna Merriman Busby is my 3rd great grandmother. Another female brick wall. A really tough one. There are quite a few people looking for her parents. There is a great deal of confusion surrounding the facts that have been discovered. This will be a short post.

Anna Merriman (or Merryman) was born 28 July 1807 according to her headstone on Find A Grave. Census records indicate she was born in Maryland.


Anna Merriman married John Wisner Busby in Harrison Co OH in April of 1826.


By 1840 the couple was residing in Carroll Co OH, where they remained until death. It is reported that they had 14 children.


Anna is buried in the Palermo Cemetery on the grounds of the former Palermo Methodist Protestant Church in Carroll Co, OH.

Over the years there has been lots of talk, theories, speculation on who Anna's father was. Some say it was Micajah "Cage" Merryman/Merriman. This has been discredited as "Cage" and his wife Sophia Snyder were actually married four years after Anna was born. "Cage" and Sophia did have a daughter named Anna and did live in Ohio in 1820, hence the confusion. There has also been another name bandied about, "Page" Merriman, but I am unclear as to the origin of this line of thought.

I must admit I have been away from this branch of the family for several years. With the Genealogy Do-Over I am jumping back in and working my maternal line once again.

So the questions remain.

Who is Anna Merriman's father?

How did she get from Maryland to Ohio, and why?

When did she arrive in Ohio? Was she an adult or a child?

She's buried in a Methodist cemetery, was she a member of the Methodist church?

To date there are a lot more questions than answers. I hope with time, and as more and more records are being discovered, we will one day know who Anna Merriman Busby's daddy was!

3 comments:

  1. After reviewing old documents and pictures with my great grandma I think her parents are Mericaji and Sophia (Synder) Merryman

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    1. A lot of people think that. BUT, we need to find proof. The evidence doesn't quite line up, the years don't quite jibe. We'd love to prove/disprove this once and for all. Do you have documents that would shed new light on this mystery? Please share! Thanks for taking time to weigh in on this puzzle.

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    2. Follow-up on Reptile Collector's comment: I was prompted to re-look at this and was delighted to discover a widow's pension on Fold3 that shed some light on the mystery! Watch for a follow-up blog post with the new information soon - thanks RC!

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