Finding Faulkner: The Progeny | Nelson Houston {Gen 3}

It started, as good quests always do, with a family tale.

Nelson Houston (Sarah, James, William) was born April 20th 1813 in Middletown, Orange Co, New York to parents Sarah Faulkner and Thomas Houston.

Nelson married Sarah Townsend (born September 22nd 1819) on June 30th 1841 in Orange Co, New York.

The couple had the following children:

• Mary Townsend Houston b. 19 Jul 1842 d. 12 Nov 1923 m. (1)Robert G Steele (2)Walter Case Anthony 
• James Henry Houston b. 5 Jun 1845 d. 28 Jan 1901
• Nelson Townsend Houston b. 3 Aug 1849. d. 11 Mar 1913 m. Katherine A Hines

Seems Nelson got Gold Fever and sailed to California sometime in 1849. His passport is dated March 15th 1849. Here's a good account of what travel from New York to California was like for those following the gold in the mid-1800's. Written first-hand and published in 1882.

At any rate, Nelson was most likely at his destination by mid-summer, just about the time his youngest son was born. 

He was on Mr Norris' ranch (an account can be read in the newspaper article in the link above) in October or November of 1851 when he was taken with 'remittent fever', an actual condition of vague origin.

Nelson died November 15th 1851 in Sacramento, CA, having never met his youngest son.

He is buried in the Sacramento City Cemetery in an unmarked grave.

He never saw his wife and children again.

Sarah lived 35 more years. She never remarried. Sarah is buried in Friends Cemetery in Orange Co, New York with sons James and Nelson.

©Anne Faulkner - AncestorArchaeology.net, All Rights Reserved

Notes From My Grandmother | Busby Lineage and Genealogy, Part 1

Somehow, much of my grandmother's hand written and (badly) typed notes and research wound up in my possession. Traveling from Chicago to Los Angeles and back to Chicago again. It sat, in the dark of my mother's closet, until my dad passed and my mom decided to begin her great purge. Knowing I had picked up the torch, the next generation to pursue the Greatest Hobby on Earth, the papers came to live with me. Unsure for many years on just what to do with them, I have decided to bring them out and share them with you - transcribed, of course - no one can read my grandmother's handwriting! But in her own words; mistakes, rambling sentences, and all. I think she will be pleased her work and her writing are once again out in the light.

The Name and Family of Busby

History:

Busby is a surname of Scandinavian origin, being derived from the word busk (Scottish bus) "a bush, shrub, thicket", combined with the suffix by, "a settlement, village". It is evident that the first to bear the surname assumed it from the place where they were living, possibly Bushby or Busby in Lanarkshire; Great or Little Busby, in Yorkshire; or Bushby, in Leicestershire. Anciently recorded in England as Bushby, Bushbey, Buskeby, Buskby, Busseby, Bushebie, Bushbie, Busbie, Busbye, Busbee, and Busby, the spellings most frequently found in America in modern times are Busby, Busbee, Bushby and Busbey. The last of these four forms is purely an American corruption of the name. Yet other spellings that occur in early American records are Buzby and Buzbee, though both of these are rarely encountered today.

In the year 1275 one John Busseby was a resident in the County of Oxford, England. Other early, though fragmentary, records of the name in England include those of Ricardus or Richard de Busby and Adam de Buskeby, both of whom were living in Yorkshire, England in 1379.

The earliest connected pedigree of the family began with Edmond Busby of Uttoxeter, in the County of Stafford, who was living in the early fourteenth century, if not before. Edmond had a son, Robert Busbye, who married Emme, daughter of John Hallon, had issue by her of Richard and Jane. Of these, Richard Busby married Anne, daughter of John Delves, and had issue by her of three children, John, Robert and Margaret, of whom the first married a daughter of Richard Sedfall but probably died without issue.

Robert, second son of Richard and Anne (nee Delves) Busby, of Staffordshire, married a daughter of William Bassett, of Drayton, and was the father by her of Henry and Isabel. Of these, Henry married a daughter of Sir Richard Egerton. To the last union were born four children, John, Robert, Jane and Margarett.

Busby Pedigree

John,the elder son left issue by his wife Ann, daughter of Rafe Mynar, of three sons, Anthony, Henry and John, of whom the first married Ellen, daughter of John Arblasher, and was the father by her of Richard, and Edmond. Of these, Richard married a daughter of John Chetwin and had issue by her of Galfridus or Geoffrey, Lawrence, Rowland, Emme, and Mary.

Galfridus or Geoffrey Busby, the eldest of the last mentioned brothers, married Cassandra, daughter of Richard Okeover, and was the father of Geffrey or Geoffrey Busby, of Barleythorpe, County Rutland. This Geffrey married Alice, daughter of Richard Holland, toward the end of the sixteenth century and had issue by her of Thomas, Richard, Isabel, Elizabeth, Lucas, George, Robert, Sarah, Anne, and Alice Busby. Of these, Thomas died without issue; while Richard was married before 1616 to Frances, daughter of William Whaley, of Leicestershire and was father by her at Barleythorpe of a son named William.

Humphrey Busby was rector of Bexwell, in the year 1556, but nothing is known concerning his immediate family.

Thomas Busbye or Busby, who was living in Buckinghamshire in the last quarter of the 16th century, was the father of John Busbye, who purchased Addington Manor, in that county, and was buried at Addington in 1635. This John left issue by his wife Joane, daughter of Robert Johnstone, of Robert, John, Judith, Mary, Elizabeth, and Catherine Busby. Of these, Robert married Abigail, daughter of Sir John Gore, of London, and was father by her of Sir John, Hester, and Abigail Busby, of whom the first became Colonel of the Buckinghamshire Militia and died in 1700; having had issue by his wife Judith, daughter of Sir William Manwaring, Governor of Chester, of two children, Thomas and Hester.

GoogleBooks

John the younger son of John and Joane (nee Johnstone) Busby, married Joan, daughter of Ralph Collyer, of Oxfordshire. His children by her were Joan, Charles and Mary.

.......... to be continued ..........


 ***editor's note: this is a transcript of research completed in 1982 based on information available at that time. I have not yet researched this family further, but suspect there is more information/clarification available to us today. I will follow up at a future date with fresh data. ***



©2017 Anne Faulkner - AncestorArchaeology.net, All Rights Reserved
©1980-82 Elizabeth Twining Potwin Thomas - private collection

Anna Elizabeth O'Connell Faulkner: From Lincoln To Kennedy (52 Ancestors #13)

Anna Elizabeth O'Connell Faulkner was my great grandmother. And my namesake. She lived to be 100 1/2. She was born when Lincoln was president and she died a year before Kennedy was shot. Thinking about this just really boggled my mind. Her life straddled two centuries. When I think of all the technology, the inventions, the comforts of life that occurred in her lifetime I'm sort of blown away.

Let me paint a picture, if I may.

Anna was born Sept 4, 1861 in Dutchess County New York. Anna was the youngest of  twelve children born to James and Mary Dempsey O'Connell. James and Mary immigrated to New York from Ireland, with their first three children, about 1842. Their fourth child was born in Kings County New York in 1844.

By the time Anna was born the family was settled in Dutchess County New York.  Abraham Lincoln had just become the 16th President of the United States. Daily life was still pretty primitive. The family was living in an uninsulated wood frame house with an outhouse for life's necessities. The home was most likely heated by a fireplace or wood stove. Candlelight or oil lamps illuminated the evening hours. I imagine baths were taken in the kitchen, once a week, with cool water after the third or fourth bather took their turn.

One of my favorite films, "Streets Of New York", opens with a portrayal of life in New York in 1862.

What was life really like at the start of the civil war? To us it seems such a quaint, far away time, but it was a thoroughly modern world in 1861. Was Anna aware of the times? Was her life any more difficult because of the war? Three of her brothers enlisted, but I imagine she was too small to know what was going on.

Poughkeepsie Female School

Although Anna had 11 brothers and sisters, she was still able to attend school and graduated from the Poughkeepsie Female School. I have not been able to find out much about this school, except that in it's time it was a very impressive institute. I believe they instructed girls through the eighth grade.

After her graduation Anna went on to teach school. I do not know at what grade level she taught.

Anna went "West" to St. Paul, Minnesota in 1881. I do not know why. Her father had died several years prior. Her mother, along with two brothers and two sisters also took the long journey west.

Upon arrival in St. Paul Anna became a bookkeeper for the large wholesale dry goods outfit Lindeke, Schurmeier and Warner.

St Paul MN c. 1893

In 1891 Anna married Dr. Lloyd Anson Faulkner and the couple moved to Duluth MN, where Dr. Faulkner started a Natural Science Establishment called Dr. L. A. Faulkner & Co. Purveyors of gems, iron and copper mined from Lake Superior.

In 1892 the couple had the first of their five children, the artist Raymond Lloyd Faulkner. Dr. Faulkner, naturally, attended to the birth.

By 1900 the young family of five had returned to St. Paul, residing at 165 Forbes Av.

Let's look at life in 1900 America. William McKinley was just elected the 25th President of the United States. Women were not yet allowed to vote. People were enjoying music in their own homes thanks to wind-up phonographs. Indoor plumbing was still just a curiosity. Electricity was beginning to appear and replace the dangerous gas light in many homes. Houses were now being heated centrally with coal and hot water.

Anna must have been amazed at all the technological advances being made at the time!

washing machine ad c.1910

1917. The world was at war. This was Anna's second war. This time she is old enough to remember.  The Faulkner's now had five children. Three boys and two girls. Anna's first born was drafted. Anna's second son lied about his age to enlist. Automobiles were replacing horses, people were listening to the radio in their own homes. Plumbing moved indoors, at least for cold water! Iceboxes helped keep food fresher longer. The washing machine became a wash day savior.

The world had become a rapidly changing place, I wonder what Anna thought of it all?

1920's publicity still

The 1920's arrived and the world, as Anna knew it, was shrinking rapidly. Both of her sons arrived home safely from the Great War. The 18th and the 19th amendments had been ratified in rapid succession. Anna now had the right to vote, to be an equal to her husband in the deciding of the country's direction and rule. Plumbing moved completely indoors. Electricity arrived in the home and new time saving appliances were introduced. Among the explosion of new inventions were the electric refrigerator, stove and vacuum cleaner! The telephone became a new way to communicate with friends and neighbors. Airplanes made it easier than ever before to travel across country. Moving pictures became all the rage.

In 1928 penicillin was discovered, effectively eradicating so many common diseases that previously resulted in certain death.

America was riding high and Anna was right there in the middle of it.

Hooverville of the 30's

Then the world came crashing down.

October 29, 1929. Black Tuesday.

Anna, 68 years old, had raised her children and sent them out into the world. At a point in her life when she should have been preparing to settle in for a quiet retirement with her husband, her life was thrown upside down. Her husband continued to practice medicine, taking payments for services any way he could. I don't know how the Great Depression affected her or her life for certain. I can wonder and imagine as to the struggle it may have been after the decade of living large and easy.

In 1933 Anna's husband died of cancer. Anna, at 72 years old, moved in with her daughter and son in law.

This seems like a good place to end our story, but there was so much more to come!

no caption needed

1942, the world was at war ... again. This was Anna's third war. It was now time for her third son to serve his country. Franklin D. Roosevelt was in office. The 32nd President of the United States. Women were wearing pants in public. There were pay phones on every corner. The atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima.

MLK

The 1950's arrived with a joie de vive not seen since the early 1920's. Television arrived and became a commonplace fixture in the modern home. TV dinners were replacing home cooked meals on weeknights. The civil rights movement was gaining momentum. Air raid and civil defense sirens were now a part of the fabric of life. The pastoral farmland of the nation was rapidly being eaten up by new housing. Air traffic was commonplace.

Jan 20, 1961. John F Kennedy was sworn into office as the 35th President of the United States.

Anna was 99 years old.

In September 1961 she celebrated her 100th birthday.

Anna O'Connell Faulkner on her 100th birthday

Anna Elizabeth O'Connell Faulkner died on April 18, 1962. She lived through 3 wars, 19 Presidents, and an unprecedented technology explosion, the likes of which we may not see again.

Oh, and she had a glass eye ......

Four generations Anne Faulkner holding Anne Faulkner

Brick Wall Ancestor | #2 Margaret "Peggy" Roberts Bass

We all have them! Those stubborn ancestors that refuse to come out of hiding. No matter how much coaxing we do! Well, I think it's time to bring them out of the shadows - put their redacted story out there - another piece of the puzzle could be lurking just around the (cyber) corner, in someone's basement, or closet, or sitting in a box on a book shelf ...... You never, ever know where that loose chink will manifest, the one that allows you to push out one brick, then the next. Food for thought. So without further ado....

Brick Wall Ancestor #2 Margaret "Peggy" Roberts Bass

Margaret "Peggy" Roberts was born April 1st 1803 in Kentucky. Somewhere. To unknown parents. According to her headstone she died November 2nd 1883. She was 80y 7m 1d old. Back calculation of this gives us the April 1st 1803 birth date. There are no actual records of her birth that have been found to date.

Margaret married William Bass, son of Nathan Bass and his wife Ruhama, in 1823. There is a record of a Peggy Roberts marrying a Wm L Bass on July 3rd 1823 in Boone County, Kentucky. This record is only a transcript, the original record being rather elusive, I know of no researcher who has discovered it yet. (Because that would give us all the information we need, right!)

Nathan Bass, William's father, is found on the 1820 census in Barren County, Kentucky. Looking at that county for Roberts, there are four households listed: Ardemas, Isaac, Drury and Thomas. Looking at Boone County there are five Roberts households: Billingsly, Daniel, Phillip, Wesley and William.

How would a girl from Boone county end up with a boy from Barren county? The counties are 200 miles apart. However, looking at William's father Nathan again, it is found that he is buried in Boone County at the Old Salem Baptist Cemetery. Which is part of the Old Salem Predestinarian Baptist Church. Were William and Margaret members? Did they meet and get married there? I have yet to uncover records from this church.

So, Boone county or Barren county, Margaret and William were married sometime before May 1827 when their first child was born. In Kentucky. Or maybe Indiana. By 1830 the couple was living in Bartholomew, Indiana and stayed there for the next 15 or so years. They are listed on the 1830 and 1840 US censuses. Sometime around 1843 the family removed to Iowa, where their youngest child was born  in April of 1844.

I have not been successful at finding the family on the 1850 US census. They are listed on the 1856 Iowa State census, and the 1860/1870/1880 US censuses. That 1850 census would really be helpful at identifying the children!

Margaret and William had at least ten children. There may have been more. If they were the couple that married in 1823 I would suspect there was a child or two born before their oldest known child was born in 1827.


The children:

• Robert b. 1827 Kentucky or Indiana 
• Nathan J b. 1829 Kentucky or Indiana
• Elizabeth J b. 1831 Indiana
• Wm Marion b. 1833 Indiana
• Eliza Ann b. 1836 Indiana
• Thomas b. 1838 Indiana
• Male UNK b. 1838/9 Indiana *counted on the 1840 census, not seen again
• Ruhama F b. 1840 Indiana
• Andrew Jackson b. 1842 Indiana
• Woodford M b. 1844 Iowa

William's obituary speaks of eight children. Not named. Perhaps two died in infancy? "Obituary published in The Gospel Messenger, April 14, 1885, page 239  BASS.—In Middle Creek church, Iowa, Mar. 18, of old age, Bro. Wm. L. Bass, aged 83 years, 2 months and 10 days. Bro. Bass was born in Barren Co., Kentucky, moved to Iowa in 1843, lived in Mahaska county ever since. He was a consistent member of the Brethren church for many years. He leaves eight children, many grandchildren and great-grandchildren to mourn his departure. His companion preceded him about sixteen months. He had been very feeble for years and longed to die, being tired of life. Services by Bro. S. P. Miller assisted by J. Gable, from Heb. 4:9. Jestina Pfoutz." 

Margaret Roberts Bass and her husband William L Bass are buried in the Wymore Cemetery in Mahaska county, Iowa. There are several children and grandchildren buried there as well.

.......... to be continued ..........

©Anne Faulkner - AncestorArchaeology.net, All Rights Reserved

Book Of The Week: The Manual of Statistics

The Manual of Statistics, Volume 8

The Association, 1886 - Corporations

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