A Prayer to the Judge of the Prerogative Court

 

Uncle Peg’s Chronicles

December 8, 2022

“ A Prayer . . . to the Judge of the Prerogative Court”

Number of pages in Outline Descendant Report: 146 (up from 141 last chronicle)

Number of pages in basic Descendant Report: 222 (up from 217 last chronicle)

 

Francis Holmes is # 1. I am now # 320. # 317, where I was last week, is now Anne Marie Holmes Gautreau.

Matthew Williams, Jane William’s grandson, is no longer last at # 458, up from # 449, and his son is # ii.

#449 is now Blake Stephens.

Jonathan Marquez (Frances Anne Holmes Ballantyne line) is now last at #460.

This should change weekly, if I’m doing my job.

 

Something new in stats, just for fun:

 

I put the names of all descendants of Francis Holmes who are either in our Facebook group or on my mailing list for chronicles, in a bag. Spouses and friends are not included as they do not get numbered in the program’s default. Those who have no descendants are also not numbered, but I’ll include them with their parent’s number. I pulled out three names, and will follow them for two weeks. Next week, I’ll draw three more. This is for fun, but the three names I drew were not in my tree that I am using now. I inserted them and updated their families. Win-win exercise.

 

The three I drew last week are:

 

·         Matthew Moore is # iii, son of Paul Moore, # 321, up from #318 last week. 318 is now Mary Jane Holmes Hamilton.

·         Janet Nolte is # 303, up from #300 last week. 300 is now Della Julia Holmes Atkinson.

·         Trevor Oksen is # ii, son of James Oksen, # 365, up from # # 359 last week. 359 is now Paul Worster.

 

New this week are:

 

·         Lyndsay Yee Brady, #368, is in the William N Holmes line. She is the daughter of Patricia Yee, whom many of you know, and many of us met her at the 2016 reunion. She lives in Hawaii. Lyndsay is married to Sean Brady, and is the mother of two elementary school age children, Tiga and Taj.

 

·         Phyllis ‘Phee’ Fogg Hanson, #397, is in the Charles R Holmes line. I was so pleased to meet her and her sister, Jean, and brother, Dana, at the 2016 reunion. I’ve known about her for a long time, as Mum talked to me about her family. And then, Brett told me about them. She is married to Brian Hanson, and has two grown daughters, Elise and Madison. Several of us have DNA connections to one of her daughters.

 

·         Julie Vasseur, #429, of the Charles R Holmes line, is familiar to me! She is my daughter, and she and Marc Ray are the parents of my grandson, wee Winston. She lives in faraway Ontario and misses her Atlantic provinces immensely. She has a variety of interests, including hiking, pole dancing, reading, and needle arts. She worked in conservation for several years, and now works with Alzheimer’s patients in a special care home near her house.

 

FYI, this takes a lot of time, but it’s kind of fun. I do it on Tuesdays rather than Thursdays. Watch for your name.

~

News From Holmes

 

 Our sympathy to Elizabeth Steeves, who lost her dear friend, Harley Sproul, early in the morning of December 3. He passed peacefully in his sleep. This photo is from several years ago.

 

I’m not sure of their whole story, but I do know they have been together since before the 2014 reunion. If I find an obituary, I’ll share it later. Harley had a stroke many years ago, and Elizabeth has been his primary caregiver for most of that time. And care she did, faithfully and lovingly. I know she wanted to attend our reunions, but she would not leave him. She has shared photographs over the years, and although I know there were challenges, he almost always wore a smile. He is missed.

 

~

 

A nudge: I have a few Christmas messages to include in the Christmas newsletter. If you plan to add your greetings, or stories, or whatever, don’t forget!

 

~

 

I have been diligently working on “Where There’s a Will: Uncle Richard and Aunt Sarah Holmes,” my 8^th great grand Uncle and Aunt. If you are of my generation, they are your 8^th as well, but some of you are a generation earlier and a generation later than me, so your relationship could be different. Might be 7^th; might be 9^th. This is one of the most interesting projects I have ever worked on – the more I research, write, and revise, the more I learn about our Uncle Richard and Aunt Sarah, and the more questions arise. It has come along considerably since last week, and I found my conclusion in a court document. Generally, those documents are cut and dry, but this one includes a prayer, not to God, but to the Judge of the Prerogative Court. It clinches my hypothesis, which is to state what problems arose in the execution of this LW and T. It’s emotional and raw. It makes me sad and happy at the same time: sad because they had to include it, and happy that they had friends who cared enough to include it. Justice was not done, but three somebodies cared enough to speak on behalf of Mehitabel Warner, the niece of Sarah Grant Holmes. Perhaps she was Mehitabel Olmstead at the time; the records give her date of marriage to Joseph Olmsted in the index to the town records as married about 1700. However, throughout the execution of the probate of the will of Richard and the inventory of Sarah, Mehitabel is only called by her maiden name. That is not one of the challenges I will address. I could write a book about this particular project. Instead, I will adapt it to fit into CCC.

 

Here is an edited version of the LWT of Richard Holmes, who died 1704 in Norwalk.

 

 

Norwalk, October 31, 1704

In the name of God, Amen. Know ye that I, Richard Holmes of Norwalk, of more than sixty years and unwell, being sensible of my mutability and mortality, and being still of my right reason and perfect memory, see cause and good reason to make my will. To this end, I dispose of my worldly estate before death, so that it may be to God’s glory and my own peace and the comfort of those I shall leave behind. I declare this to be my Last Will and Testament as follows:

Imprimis: I give and bequeath my Soul to God and my body to the dust from whence it came. Give it a decent burial. I dispose my worldly estate as follows:

 

I will and bequeath to my wife, Sarah Holmes, my whole estate, and make her my sole Executrix and Administrator. After paying my just debts, the remainder is to be and remain to her proper use and benefit during her lifetime. At her decease, I will and bequeath unto her near kinswoman (her niece), Mehitabell Warner, who now lives with me - my house, home, lot, barns, orchards, with all privileges, at my wife’s decease. Also, I give to the aforesaid Mehitabell, my ____ and meadow lot below Pine Hill, my Little Salt Meadow lot near Rocky Springs that lies between those of John [Fitch] and Joseph Gregory. Also, I give her annually one load of salt meadow hay of my Half A Mile Island meadow. Also, I give Mehitabell Warner, after my wife’s decease, all of my moveable estate within doors and without, as well as my cattle, horses, sheep, swine, and household goods – my Smith tools excepted. Also, I except some small legacies to be paid out of my moveable estate at my wife’s decease as follows:

 

To Jonathan Stevenson, the son of Jonathan Stevenson, who was my former servant whom I brought up from his childhood, ten pounds; to Samuel Hayes, Sr. of Norwalk, forty shillings in provision to be paid from my moveable estate; to Thomas and Richard Bouton, the two youngest sons now of John Bouton Sr. of Norwalk, twenty shillings apiece. To the aforesaid Mehitabell Warner, I give one half of my cow lot and the remainder of my lands and meadows, either laid out to me or hereafter appertain to me. I give and bequeath to the now living daughters of my brothers, John Holmes Sr. of Bedford, and Stephen Holmes Sr. of Stamford, and their heirs forever, to be equally divided between each of those daughters. I revoke and make void and null all former wills. I make this my last Will, witness my hand and seal set to the day and date above. I give my wearing apparel to my brother John Holmes of Beford, if living; if not then to my brother Stephen Holmes. I leave my Smith’s tools with my wife to dispose of as she sees good.

 

 

Signed Sealed and (delivered)                                                                                    Richard Holmes

In presents of us witnesses                                                                                          his   R   mark

Joseph Gregory

     His (?) mark

John (Copp)

 

Here is the decision of the court, Dec. 23, 1706.

 

The administrator(s) of the estate of Sarah Holmes, late of Norwalk, deceased, after exhibiting an inventory of her estate to the Prerogative Court in Fairfield on Dec. 23, 1706, accept the said inventory and order it to be recorded. The Court finds that the estate’s value is 12 pounds, 10 shillings. The Court is informed that there are sundry children of Robert Warren, late of Middleton, deceased, who are next of kin in equal degree to the aforesaid deceased Sarah Holmes. The Court therefore orders that the said estate shall be divided and distributed to the children of ye aforesaid and ____ in equal proportion. The Court appoints Samuel Hayes and John Bouton to distribute the said estate according to the above order of Court . . .

 

~

 

I put this in the Facebook group, “Descendants of Connecticut Founding Fathers.” There were only two comments, but lots of likes. I’ve told you already about the first book. I thought I might read one of the 250 lectures, just to see if I could, but I haven’t gotten around to it yet.

 

“I read somewhere, and I can't remember where, that colonists of the 1600s and 1700s did not list the titles of books in their wills and inventories. They mentioned Bibles and books, if they had them. It seems to be true.

Therefore, I am pleased when I find mention of titles of books in the old wills and inventories that I come upon, and I thought you might be interested. I also want to keep a record of my finds. Perhaps I need to resurrect my notebook of lists. Some are recent reprints, and probably edited for ease of reading. I went looking for originals, just to see perhaps what their books looked like.

I have found titles for four books so far.

1.       In the will of Richard, born 1690 in Essex, England; died 1748 in Lebanon, CT, I found mention of "Mr. Willards body of Divinity." That led me to "A Compleat Body of Divinity in Two Hundred Fifty Expository Lectures on the Assembly's Shorter Catechism Wherein the Doctrine of the Christian Religion are Unfolded," by Samuel Willard, 1640 - 1707.

https://archive.org/details/compleatbodyofdi00will/page/106/mode/2up

In the inventory of James Olmsted, born 1645 in Hartford, CT, died 1731 in Norwalk, CT, I found mention of three books.

      2. "Precious Remedies" by Brooks. The complete title is "Precious Remedies Against Satan's Devices; or, Salves for Believers and Unbelievers Sores," written by Thomas Brooks, published 1705. It has been updated and is available for sale, and I have not found an original copy to read on line. Here it is for sale: (I won't be buying it.)

https://www.biblio.com/book/precious-remedies-against-satans-devices-salves/d/1354656515

      3. "Heaven Opened;" unfortunately the author is not named. I have found a book by that title written by Rev. Father Collins published in the 1800s, but as Olmsted died in 1731, it had to be written before then.

      4."Foxes Time and End of Time." I think this was written by John Foxe, 1516 - 1587, birth and death in England, and author of the better known "The Book of Martyrs." Perhaps not one of his best-known books, and I'd like to verify that it was written by the same Foxe. I see it at https://books.google.ca/books/about/Time_the_End_of_Time.html?id=NlNHxwEACAAJ&redir_”

 

~

I threw this together and haven’t time for a revision – hope it is okay. I have started to receive Christmas cards and must get at that this week, although I don’t send many anymore. As my cousin, Cindy, said to me recently, she is missing writing notes to Mom and Aunt Phyl. Although my list is much shorter just because, it also grows shorter as loved ones pass on.

 

I’ve been thinking about Dad, Donald Malcolm Moore. Tomorrow would be my dad’s 100^th birthday! He passed on June 4, 2005 at the age of 82. Thankful for good memories – how blessed I am.

They Loved These Two Children, Although Not Equally

 

Uncle Peg’s Chronicles

December 1, 2022

“ . . . They Loved These Two Children, Although Not Equally . . . ”

Number of pages in Outline Descendant Report: 141 (up from 136 last chronicle)

Number of pages in basic Descendant Report: 217 (up from 212 last chronicle)

 

Francis Holmes is # 1. I am now # 317. # 312, where I was last week, is now Ellen Middleton Leaman.

Matthew Williams, Jane William’s grandson, is last at # 449, up from # 440, and his son is # ii.

#440 is now Blake Stephens.

This should change weekly, if I’m doing my job.

 

Something new in stats, just for fun:

 

I put the names of all descendants of Francis Holmes who are either in our Facebook group or on my mailing list for chronicles, in a bag. Spouses and friends are not included as they do not get numbered in the program’s default. Those who have no descendants are also not numbered, but I’ll include them with their parent’s number. I pulled out three names, and will follow them for two weeks. Next week, I’ll draw three more. This is for fun, but the three names I drew were not in my tree that I am using now. I inserted them and updated their families. Win-win exercise.

 

The three I drew last week are:

 

1.       Susan Holmes Holt is # 295, up from 291.

2.       Jeff Yee is # 361, up from 354.

3.       Leanne Ballantyne Gaines is # 439, up from 432.

 

New this week are:

 

·         4. Matthew Moore is # iii, son of Paul Moore, #318. Matt is in the Charles R line, and he is my very own nephew. He grew up in Alaska, lives in Arizona, and visits Tennessee often. He loves to skate and is a fan of the Chicago Blackhawks.

 

·         5. Janet Nolte is # 300. Janet is also in the Charles R line, and I met her first when I was in my late teens, and again at a couple of our early reunions. She’s the Mum of four kids you might know: Brett, Celia, Julia, and Emily.

 

·         6. Trevor Oksen is # ii, son of James Oksen, # 359. He’s in the William line, and although I don’t know him personally, I met his dad, James Oksen, at our 2016 reunion, and I know Jim and Audrey, his parents, are very proud of him.

 

FYI, this takes a lot of time, but it’s kind of fun. I do it on Tuesdays rather than Thursdays. Watch for your name.

~

 

Paula may remember our struggle to find the father for Mabel Ballantyne, daughter of Jessie, granddaughter of James and Frances Holmes Ballantyne.

 

I found her birth record. Although her first name is not listed, the date of birth and her mother’s name is a match with other records. Unfortunately, her father’s name is not. It should be beside Jessie’s name. Major disappointment. Image is at the link.

 

https://www.ancestry.ca/imageviewer/collections/61441/images/61441_b1045667-00186?pId=602563119

~

 

A couple of weeks ago, I posted a list of genealogical things on my current agenda. I am happy to state that I have finished revising John Holmes’ “Where There’s a Will” story, and right up to the end I made corrections. I added to my conclusion, as I needed more specifics. All I had was one sentence stating that the documents showed how difficult her husband’s death was, pertaining to his dying intestate. I added a couple more. I also revised, once again, the endnotes. Oh, the mistakes I caught. Did I catch them all? I sure hope so.

 

I still have a long list. I told Elizabeth that I could easily compile the histories for Louisa, William and Carrie by the end of the year. Maybe not. I have emailed her my copy of the genealogy of Louisa and await her comments about it. I need to finish my blurb – you saw the introduction in last week’s chronicle.

 

But first, however, I must complete Richard Holmes story for News and Notes, due January 1^st. Here’s my introduction, part of it is sort of finished, part is still information dump, slightly revised:

 

Richard Holmes

C. 1637 – C. 1704

His wife, Sarah Grant Holmes

1630 - 1706

Richard Holmes, originally from Yorkshire, England, brought his Norwalk lot on Oct. 12, 1657, from a real estate agent of that day, Alexander Bryan of Milford. He was the home lot successor of one Thomas Smith, and his calling one of the most highly respected occupations. Besides this, he was probably the head of the iron-ware establishment of the period. The Holmes’ of America may be proud of their Norwalk kinsman. He was a brother of the founders of the Stamford and Bedford’ Holmes families, and Col. James Holmes of the Revolution was his grand-nephew.

Where there is a will, as in the case of Richard and Sarah Holmes, there are sometimes complications. Due to several complications, these two wills must be tied together. As I read this will of the youngest child of my immigrant ancestor, Francis Holmes, I thought that it would make a good textbook study of an old, colonial New England Last Will and Testament and Probate. There is so much to this will and probate, and there are so many people mentioned. Let us discover what problems could arise in the probate of an old will? (Purpose statement.)

 

I

Introduction to Richard and Sarah

 

Richard Holmes was the fourth and last child born to Francis Holmes and his unknown wife, about 1637, either in England or New England. Based on all that I have read, I lean towards New England, but I have found no primary source for that information. As an adult, Richard Holmes moved to nearby Norwalk, Connecticut, where he became the second blacksmith in the village, and earned the respect of his fellowman.

 

It is inferred that he (Mr. Holmes) was not actually the first ‘smith,’ but he must have succeeded, by only a short time, that primus artisan. Endnote: Ibid, page 102.

 

Richard and his wife, Sarah, had no children of their own, but they raised two children. One was the niece of his wife. Baby Mehitabell Warner’s mother, Elizabeth Grant Warner, died shortly after the birth of her daughter. Quote here about them going to Middleton to fetch the child. It could be in the conclusion. The other was Jonathan Stevenson, the young son of Jonathan Stevenson, Sr., a soldier who died in 1689. It appears that they loved these two children, although not equally. I believe, from this will, that they loved children in general.

 

Map which follows is from the Norwalk book. The link won’t take you directly, you have to scroll back to page 39.

 

You should be able to find Richard’s lot, but if not, ask. Lots of our ancestors’ names on that map.

 

https://books.google.ca/books?id=FulEAAAAYAAJ&lpg=PA103&ots=fu_EqqLaZQ&dq=richard+holmes+norwalk&pg=PA102&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=richard%20holmes%20norwalk&f=false

 

~

 

Back to Robert and Louisa

 

Take One for the introduction from last week’s post

 

The little house that Robert built about ten years ago, on the Iowa prairie, suited their needs then, but with the addition of four children, they had outgrown it. Robert’s brothers and Louisa’s sister now lived in Brooklyn, which was a considerable drive for the family, and during the winter, it was a challenge to attend church and impossible to get the children to school. In addition to chores and anxiety over crops and markets, Robert had to preach and teach the children. Louisa complained often about the weather, and still worried when wolves howled in the night. Robert pondered the situation, and finally he and Louisa decided to sell the farm and move – west or east – they did not know. But, without a house, they had to do something. “Let us,” he proposed to his wife, “take a trip east to visit our families before we decide.” The big farmhouse that Louisa’s brother William showed them appealed to them; he signed the real estate documents, and the Ballantyne family began putting their roots down in Lincoln, Maine.

 

New: Point I - Journey

 

I – Journey

                A – Robert - Smiths Falls, Lanark, Ontario: Sarah – Petitcodiac, Westmorland, New Brunswick

                B – Madison Township, Poweshiek County, Iowa

                C – Lincoln, Penobscot, Maine

 

Things from the anonymous essay that interested me for this section. Some will need to be verified with stats:

 

·         Robert’s parents, John Ballantyne and Janet Nichol, came to Canada from Roxboroughshire, Scotland after their marriage in 1831, with two children, William and John. (We know from census records that other family members came as well.) They lived in Smiths Falls, Ontario, in a one room house with a hearth and an attic. Robert was the first child born in Canada, as well as two sisters and two younger brothers.

 

·         There is a description of Robert – light curly hair and blue eyes, and darkly tanned from outdoor living.

 

·         Robert, like his brothers, loved athletics, particularly racing and climbing. He did well in school. At fourteen years of age, he joined the Good Templar’s Lodge which he enjoyed.

 

·         He united with the Presbyterian Church when he was twenty-one.

 

·         He met Sarah Louisa Holmes when he was in his early twenties. She came from Petitcodiac, New Brunswick, to visit her sister, and Robert was smitten. (My word.) They became engaged, and she went back home and they exchanged long letters. (Did Fanny have her twin girls by then? Could this be the reason Louisa went to visit Fanny?)

 

·         Wanting to provide a home for Louisa before they married, he joined friends and brothers in Iowa at the close of the civil war. While there, he took a teaching position in a school near Brooklyn, with pupils of various ages. John joined him, and they bought land in Brooklyn, which they divided into 80 acres each. They built a small house. (Census said that R and L lived in Madison Township, a short distance from Brooklyn.)

 

·         H returned to Canada in August, and went to New Brunswick in September, where he and Louisa marred in October. They returned to Ontario for the winter, but Fanny, by then had moved with her husband to Iowa. R and L went to Iowa with R’s brother, William, in February, 1867.

 

·         There is information about their house and property and wild animals. I may include the complete essay with the genealogy; if I do this, I’ll keep that part short.

 

·         They decided that their growing family needed more room, so they sold their house and returned to their homes in Ontario and New Brunswick to visit, stopping in Lincoln, Maine, on their way. It looked promising, so to their families’ disappointment, they chose to move to Maine.

 

·         Before Robert died in Maine, he and Louisa had eight children. Some died in Maine, some stayed in Lincoln, and some moved back to Iowa and Idaho. Grandchildren spread out further, but I won’t include them in this blurb.

 

~

 

Well, folks, it is December. Time for a new header photo so I must head into photo archives. I might do several “around the table” photos. (The photo at the beginning of this chronicle was taken at the house I grew up in, so at least a decade ago.) They might not all be Christmasy, but one of my favourite things about Christmas is gathering around the table with family for the traditional Christmas dinner. We will be three this year. Last year we were four; I miss my Mum this year. I go out shopping and see things to buy her, whereas before, I had to wrack my brain to think of something to get her. I still need to shop – the shopping isn’t the problem as much as the figuring out what to buy. Is there something you do not like about Christmas?

 

I have ideas for next year! And, new books for Bub that I couldn’t resist but were much too old for him. They await in a stack in my closet.

 

How Many of You Like Maps?

 

Uncle Peg’s Chronicles

November 24, 2022

“How Many of You Like Maps?”

Number of pages in Outline Descendant Report: 136 (up from 130 last chronicle)

Number of pages in basic Descendant Report: 212 (up from 201 last chronicle)

 

Francis Holmes is # 1. I am now # 312. # 298, where I was last week, is Cathy Higgins.

Matthew Williams, Jane William’s grandson, is last at # 440, up from # 421, and his son is # ii.

#421 is now Michael A Moore.

This should change weekly, if I’m doing my job.

 

Something new in stats, just for fun:

 

I put the names of all descendants of Francis Holmes who are either in our Facebook group or on my mailing list for chronicles, in a bag. Spouses and friends are not included as they do not get numbered in the program’s default. Those who have no descendants are also not numbered, but I’ll include them with their parent’s number. I pulled out three names, and will follow them for two weeks. Next week, I’ll draw three more. This is for fun, but the three names I drew were not in my tree that I am using now. I inserted them and updated their families. Win-win exercise.

 

The three I drew are:

 

1.     Susan Holmes Holt is # 291. Susie is in the Peter line, and is married to Kevin Holt. She has two daughters, Charlotte and Lillian. Charlotte is in university, and Lillian is looking at universities now.

2.     Jeff Yee is # 354. Jeff is in the William line, and is married to Jennifer MacLean. He has three children, Kyle, Ashley, and Lauren. Kyle is just out of his teens, and the girls are in their teens.

3.   Leanne Ballantyne Gaines is #432. Leanne is in the James Ballantyne line, and is married to Jonathan Gaines. I think she has one grown daughter.

~

 

This sweet, succinct comment from Mary about last week’s chronicle: “You find out the most interesting things, Peg.” So grateful, I am.

 

~

 

Last week, I gave you a challenge. Richard English (1690 – 1748) named a book in his last will and testament. Rarely did people specify what books they owned in their will, nor were they listed in the inventories. They only said “book(s)” and/or “Bible(s).” Your challenge was to find the name of the book, the author, and for bonus kudos, approximately how many pages are in it and how much it would cost to buy it.

 

I think everyone was too busy.

 

Here's the answer: The title (short version) is "A Compleat Body of Divinity." That is what is written on the spine. Inside the book, add "in Two Hundred Fifty Expository Lectures on the Assembly's Shorter Catechism Wherein the Doctrines of the Christian Religion are Unfolded." The author was Samuel Willard, 1640 - 1707. The cost was cheaper than I saw earlier in the week: a sale at $1000 at Abe's Books. It has 914 pages. Not sure how many pages were in the original copies, or if the ones I quickly looked at are original. It is available to read on line, should you like a challenge.

 

~

I took the time to hone my “Where There’s a Will” for John Holmes, for the spring issue of “Generations.” I want to be done with it. It took me about two hours to do my endnotes: I need a kick in the seat of my pants for not doing it as I go. I thought I was done. But, I really need to reread and reread it. Last night I found a big faux-pas, so I worked on fixing that. Glad I spotted it, although I wonder if anyone reads it thoroughly enough to notice.

 

Next on my genealogy agenda:

Write a blurb for Robert and Louisa Ballantyne Holmes. I think the genealogy is done and ready to go to Elizabeth, but it needs. that blurb.

· 

 

Continue working on “Where There’s a Will” for Richard Holmes. I need that for the end of December for “News and Notes” (Readers Digest version) and “Generations” (longer version) for the summer edition of “Generations.”

 

·         In the evenings, continue working on the descendants of Francis Holmes, so I have something to say for myself in the stats at the header.

 

·         Compile a Christmas newsletter, with your help.

 

~

 

Robert and Louisa Blurb

 That is not the title. The title will emerge as I write.

 

I am to host a writing workshop for our genealogy group in April, 2023. I am going to base it on something I learned many years ago. It’s more for essays than books, but it never hurts to start with it. We already had a speaker talk to us about freewrites, so I will review that beforehand and have them come to the meeting prepared with their topic and their freewrite. Wonder how many will bother with that. I have decided to use Robert and Louisa as my practice for this workshop. If called upon again, I might do themes and settings and emotions etc. That, however, would be too much for one workshop.

 My blurb will be based almost entirely on the anonymous article that Elizabeth found at the Lincoln Historical Society. I wish I had such a thing for everyone in our family. As I cannot verify much of it, I will have to say as much. Although it is anonymous, it appears to be written by someone who knew the family well. Do we have anyone in this group who is in the Robert and Sarah line? Indeed, we do: Susan Stephens, who is or was recently travelling in South Africa. Also, Cindy Brignone. She is looking forward to some travel soon, I think to visit her family within the US. Please have a look at my introductory paragraph at the end.

Without further ado:

My own personal first rule of thumb, and you’ve heard me say it before, and it doesn’t apply to my chronicles (my research journal; with them, I am a pantster) is Thom’s advice:

 

“KNOW MUCH MORE THAN YOU WRITE”

 

Introduction – the hook

                Include purpose statement at the end of the introduction

 

I – Point one

II – Point two

III – Point three

 

Conclusion – refer back to the purpose statement in the introduction.

For Robert and Louisa, I am using an essay by an anonymous writer that Elizabeth sent me. She found it in the Lincoln archives. I may print it to include with the genealogy. It puts meat on the bones. The blurbs will vary for the others, depending on what information I have. Maybe.

Introduction: Choose a hook. Develop a hypothesis. Make a purpose statement. (See the almost last paragraph.)

 

I - Journey

II - Contribution

II – Legacy

Then, go to subpoints.

 

I – Journey

                A – Robert - Smiths Falls, Lanark, Ontario: Sarah – Petitcodiac, Westmorland, New Brunswick

                B – Madison Township, Poweshiek County, Iowa

                C – Lincoln, Penobscot, Maine

II – Contribution

                A – Family

                B – Community

III – Legacy

                A – Example

                B – Work ethic

                C – Wisdom

 Conclusion – based on my hook; Answer my purpose statement. How did I accomplish my goal? Did I prove or disprove my hypothesis?

 Perhaps we can best see Robert’s legacy in the lives of his children and grandchildren.

 

~

 How many of you like maps? I can't insert them in my blog, except for the pictures I took myself. Just click on the link, though, or request an email.

This is an enlarged map of Lanark County, where the Ballantyne family settled in Smiths Falls, and where Robert was born and grew up. Click on the link to see it in perspective. Too bad it seems to be on the seam.

https://collections.leventhalmap.org/search/commonwealth:4m90fh65g

 

The next map is dated 1875, when Robert and Louisa lived in Madison Township, Iowa. It is close to the town of Brooklyn, where Robert’s cousin, James Ballantyne, and his wife, Frances Ann Holmes, lived with their family. It was still wilderness in Madison Township.

https://digital.lib.uiowa.edu/islandora/object/ui%3Aatlases_2235

“Poweshiek County is almost a square, 24 miles by 24 miles. It is broken up into 16 townships, most of which are 6 miles by 6 miles. The townships are further broken up into one-square-mile sections, numbered 1 to 36, except for the irregular townships in the southern tier. The northern 3 tiers of townships in Poweshiek county are offset west of the southernmost tier. This is because the ‘1^st line of Correction,’ established by the original surveyors to accommodate the Earth’s curvature, passes through the county along the border between the two southern tiers of townships.”

http://iagenweb.org/poweshiek/map/map.htm

Google maps. Today, you could drive from Madison Township to Brooklyn in fifteen minutes. 1870s?

Map of Lincoln, Penobscot, Maine in 1875. I see lots of familiar names, but not Holmes or Ballantyne. Robert and Louisa might not have been there yet, but by then, the William Nelson Holmes family was there. Robert and Louisa’s son, Kingsley, was born there in 1876. They all attended the Congregational Church, which you can see on the right, in blue. The link –

https://digitalmaine.com/atlas_penobscot_1875/3/

Here is a link to Penobscot County, but doesn’t give names. Look for Lincoln, in yellow. It’s about in the middle. It’s dated 1885.

https://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~33180~1170549:Penobscot-Co-,-Maine-;JSESSIONID=8ab476e5-2888-48c7-8552-0609f17f516c?title=Search+Results%3A+List_No+equal+to+%271537.034%27&thumbnailViewUrlKey=link.view.search.url&fullTextSearchChecked=&annotSearchChecked=&dateRangeSearchChecked=&showShareIIIFLink=true&helpUrl=https%3A%2F%2Fdocumentation.lunaimaging.com%2Fdisplay%2FV75D%2FLUNA%2BViewer%23LUNAViewer-LUNAViewer&showTip=false&showTipAdvancedSearch=false&advancedSearchUrl=https%3A%2F%2Fdocumentation.lunaimaging.com%2Fdisplay%2FV75D%2FSearching%23Searching-Searching

The next is a map dated 1931. Interesting facts on it: must have been printed in Sussex, NB. It was surveyed by Donald Oxley, DLS. The historical data was supplied by J E Humphreys, Esq, Petitcodiac. Scale: 1 inch = 200 paces; 25 paces = 1 chain. (Is that helpful?) I received this copy of the map after it was donated to PANB by my friend, Leslie Gogan. I accompanied her to Fredericton for the donation. The first photo shows the size of it; the second zooms in to the home of Ormand Jones, grandson of Daniel and Charlotte Holmes; he inherited it from Abner and Hattie (Holmes) Jones, who left it to their son, Ormand. It remained, to the best of my knowledge, until it was torn down to make way for the new highway. That date, I forget, but I think it was in the 90s. It is such a fun map to study.

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“The Hook”

Obstacles:

Wolves

Anxiety over the crops and markets

Long work days

Lived far from town, church and school

Growing needs of his family

Climate too intense for Louisa

 

Overcoming these obstacles:

Sold their house – big factor in deciding what to do – go west or east?

Took a trip to visit their families: Ontario to Maine to New Brunswick

Stopover at Lincoln, Maine to visit brother William

Saw a roomy house for sale in Lincoln, Maine that they liked

 

Take One

 

The little house that Robert built about ten years ago, on the Iowa prairie, suited their needs then, but with the addition of four children, they had outgrown it. Robert’s brothers and Louisa’s sister now lived in Brooklyn, which was a considerable drive for the family, and during the winter, it was a challenge to attend church and impossible to get the children to school. In addition to chores and anxiety over crops and markets, Robert had to preach and teach the children. Louisa complained often about the weather, and still worried when wolves howled in the night. Robert pondered the situation, and finally he and Louisa decided to sell the farm and move – west or east – they did not know. But, without a house, they had to do something. “Let us,” he proposed to his wife, “take a trip east to visit our families before we decide.” The big farmhouse that Louisa’s brother William showed them appealed to them; he signed the real estate documents, and the Ballantyne family began putting their roots down in Lincoln, Maine.

The purpose statement can take many forms. It can be a hypothesis. It can be a total unknown in need of discovery. In this case, I want to show that the Robert Ballantyne family became an integral part of the community of Lincoln at the time. Hence, the cliché, “putting their roots down.” My three points will show this, and my conclusion will tie it all together. What I don’t recall at present is if there are still Ballantyne descendants in Lincoln. That will be part of the research and the conclusion as well.

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Happy Thanksgiving to all of my American cousins and friends. Count your blessings, folks. I am grateful that 40 years ago today, I gave birth to my first daughter, Erin.