July 9, 2026
“An Exhaust Leak”
“These
were their settlements. And they kept good family records.”[1]
Don’t
forget to look for the title which is embedded in the chronicle.
FAMILY ALBUM
Happy
213th Birthday to Daniel Holmes today
And I Quote:
Excerpts from my letters to the editor.
Love the name of the children's
choir — Cherub Choir! Thank you for doing all you do. – Cindy.
Good morning, Peg, discovering letters -
always a special surprise! Getting to read two letters from my Grandmother and
seeing her handwriting was a grand beginning to my day! – Julia.
Looking forward to reading this Chronicle tonight. Thank
you! Hope the letters were good ones. – Jeanni.
And later - Best wishes on today's
research and adventures. I'm glad Julia so much enjoyed her grandmother's
letters. - Jeanni
". . . for and in consideration of . . ."
do you think that men of law got paid by the word?
It is good to review your records now and again, not just for dust but
to see them through the lens of what you've learned since you last saw those
documents/ideas. A never-ending story! Glad you're having a good
time with it. – Ami
I find these chronicles so interesting.
I devour each one! -
Ruth
1926
to 1928
1924 to 1928 are the years that our Holmes ancestors spent
renewing relationships that had somehow fallen by the wayside but with
organization, letter writing, and challenging travel – by hook or by crook –
they managed to come together again. They reacquainted and rediscovered their
family ties. And then, one by one, they died, and many of those ties died with
them.
2026
to 2028
I have plans to travel to my roots in Hill
Grove and Portage Vale this summer, but first, I need to correct an exhaust
leak problem in my bright blue Mazda.
An exhaust leak. It was well hidden, under
the heat shield. Hard to find. The noise, however, gave it away; that, and the
orange light. Brian, the mechanic, put it up on the hoist, and back down, and
up again, several times. He blocked the exhaust pipe, and searched for the
exhaust to come out the hole. Then, he recommended me to the muffler shop down
the road. They work well together, sending each other business.
How can I apply that little analogy to my
current research situation?
I am continuing on with my research, writing,
and revision of the James Ballantyne and Frances Holmes family – Fanny was the
first child of Daniel and Charlotte Holmes of Petitcodiac. I had quite a lot of
this family chapter done in 2017. I thought I was finished, and I sent it off
to my editor and beta readers. Then I put it away until 2026. Everything was
going along swimmingly, but when I started verifying and revising, I found
little things I hadn’t noticed before. That’s because they weren’t visible yet.
They still sat on the shelves of archives, waiting to be digitized. They were
shielded from the digitization process; they needed to be brought to the light
of the archives’ collections.
Little things become bigger things, when
brought into the light. I encourage any of you who are researching to go back
and revisit the records from time to time. Who knows, new records are being
digitized all the time. I now have the marriage and divorce record of William
Kilmer and Mabel Ballantyne – that Paula and I couldn’t find for looking back
in 2017. It’s in the divorce record. And, in the family history lesson, I share
what I learned about Mabel’s adultery. What she did almost a century ago has
come to light. It’s a sad story. She didn’t fix the problem, and, unlike my
exhaust problem, I cannot fix it either. I can only share it as a lesson to be
learned from the past.
I guess all I can say is, those little things
can grow into big things if you don’t nip them in the bud. Learn from your own and your ancestors’
mistakes. Because, sure as shootin’, the temptations you yield to now could
follow you for they rest of time if you don’t take care of them right away.
Just ask a genealogist.
One
other thing. Share the business of genealogy. What you find out could help
someone else. Share it with whom? Your family members, privately? Others in a
genealogical website? Your decision, but if you don’t, chances are your
knowledge and hard work will go with you to your grave. Share it carefully. I
don’t share everyone’s adultery or other life choices with everyone – it
depends on what and when it happened and who of their descendants are still
living. But, you can write it in your family history journal for someone who
follows later in your footsteps.
What
would I like to know? When did Mabel die, and where she is buried? All I know
is, she died between 1931 and 1935. I learned that from a probate record of her
aunt. Whoda thunk? A tiny detail in a probate gave me a big clue that may
someday prove useful. Did Mabel have
regrets? What would she tell me? I can only imagine.
FAMILY HISTORY LESSON
Mabel F Ballantyne
Daughter of Jessie Ballantyne
This is my story of Mabel, with one quick revision. More
revisions to come.
Mabel (or Mable)’s story is still somewhat of a mystery. On January 31, 1886, Jessie, aged twenty-two, gave birth to a daughter, Mabel F. Mabel’s name is not mentioned in the record.[1] Mabel’s father is unknown. In the 1900 census of Brooklyn, Iowa, the family lived on Broadway, and included James, Frances, Jessie, Lottie, and Mabell (sic); Jessie, Lottie and Mabel were listed as daughters. Mabel gave birth to her son, Francis Lyle, when she was about seventeen. On the 1905 census,[1] Mrs. Mabel Bever stated that her surname, as well as that of her son, was Bever. I must address the Bever issue. James, in addition to giving the 1900 census taker the surname Bever for his granddaughter and great-grandson, also referred to them as Bever in his will. “I, Jas. W. Ballantyne, of Brooklyn, Iowa . . . thirty dollars (#30.00) to Mabel Bever and Lyle Bever.” In a probate document is this statement: ”. . . to Mabel Kilmer (whom the Court finds is the same person as the Bever named in the said will) . . . and to Lyle Ballantyne (whom the Court finds is the same person as the Lyle Bever named in said will . . .”[1] There was a Bever family in Brooklyn; Paula Holmes and I researched them thoroughly. We could not find evidence that any of John Bever’s four living sons had a relationship with Mabel Ballantyne, although it was possible, given the ages and places of a couple of them. Therefore, we do not know the identity of Lyle’s father, or if a marriage ever took place. In July, 1907, Mabel married William H Kilmer, [1] a widower, who was thirty-two years her senior. His first wife, Mary (Beals) Kilmer, died in 1902. In 1910, William, Mabel, Lyle, and Jessie, William’s mother-in-law, lived in the same household in Brooklyn, Iowa. William and Mabel Kilmer, along with Lyle, now called Kilmer, and Jessie, Mabel’s mother, lived in Brooklyn in 1910; William tended stallions. Later records state that he was a carpenter. The 1915 state census, recorded on index cards, states that William was married; Mabel F Kilmer was married; her son, Lyle, was surnamed Ballantyne. By 1920, Jessie and Mabel were boarding with Minnie Rozelle in Des Moines; William lived nearby.[1] That same year, in the census, William appeared in Newton, Jasper, Iowa, with his daughter, Mary. Their marriage was troubled. On the 23rd of January, 1917, Mable appeared in the District Court for Poweshiek County, and could give “no legal reason to offer why judgment should not be pronounced. The judgment of the Court is that defendant pay a fine of $100.00 and be confined in the County Jail of this County for a period of six months and pay the costs of prosecution.”[1] Three months later, “Mable Kilmer now imprisoned in the County Jail by virtue of a judgment of the District Court of Poweshiek for the offense of adultery, which judgment was suspended the same to take effect on the 25th of April, A.D. 1917.” Why? “This suspension is to remain in force during the pleasure and discretion of the Chief Executive of the State, and is accepted by the above named Mable Kilmer with the full understanding and agreement that in Case the same shall for any cause or at the discretion of the Chief Executive, revoked, she will be thereupon recommitted to serve the remaining period of her original sentence. This suspension of sentence is granted upon the recommendation of Hon. John F. Talbott, presiding Judge; . . . and thereunder the said Mable Kilmer is to return to her husband, William Kilmer, who states that he is willing to receive her into his home . . .
On June 30, 1919, William Kilmer divorced his wife of twelve years; the cause was adultery. William Kilmer died in the hospital at Newton, Jasper, Iowa, on July 7, 1932.
I lose track of Mabel
after this. What little I know about the rest of her life is from her Aunt
Charlotte Ballantyne’s probate. In
March of 1931, Charlotte Ballantyne made her last will and testament. In her will, she bequeathed unto Mrs. Mabel Kimball and the rest of her nieces
and her nephew the sum of $100 each. In the will and the probate of Charlotte,
Mabel is referred to as Mabel Kimball. The probate of Charlotte’s will states
that the Court found that “Mabel Kimball predeceased the testatrix, leaving as
her sole heir at law Lyle Ballantyne. Lyle
received his mother’s portion. This
probate leaves me with an answer and more questions. Although I don’t have a
death record, I know that Mabel died between the date that Charlotte made her
will and the date of the probate – between 1931 and 1935. Her name, in 1931 and
in 1935, was Mabel Kimball. I have searched for a marriage record for Mabel
Ballantyne Kilmer to a Mr. Kimball, and I have searched for a death record for
Mabel Kimball, using both Mabel and Mable, and Ballantyne and Kilmer, to no
avail.
"Poweshiek, Iowa,
United States records," images, FamilySearch
(https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89PC-983Y?view=explore : Jul
9, 2026), image 230 of 673; Poweshiek County (Iowa). County Clerk. Image Group
Number: 100788776
"Poweshiek,
Iowa, United States records," images, FamilySearch
(https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89PC-98SL?view=explore : Jul
9, 2026), image 251 of 673; Poweshiek County (Iowa). County Clerk. Image Group
Number: 10078877
I wish I could find a record that is kindly
towards Mabel. In her defense, she was only sixteen when she gave birth to her
son, little more than a child herself. She married a man who was almost old
enough to be her grandfather. If, perchance, she married again to a Mr.
Kimball, I hope she was happy in that relationship.
This ends
week twenty-eight of our centennial virtual celebration of 1926 – 2026.
