Madness Monday - Changing and Adding People to Trees at FamilySearch (Late Post - obviously not a Monday)

 I resolved to not go down the "Madness Monday" path when I reviewed my tree information at FamilySearch. And that's why this is not posted on a Monday. 😏

But I just couldn't help myself. The frustration of having added wives to my ancestors and changing child relationships is - well - just plain ridiculous.

Someone added another wife for my 2nd great-grandfather, John David Baldridge. He was a man who married a lot because every wife died after having children, it seems. 

First, John Baldridge married M.E. Johnson on 7 Nov 1871 in Gonzales, Texas. In the copies of the bible pages I have, she is listed as Margaret Johnson. They had three children, Anna Sue, Lewis Eugene and Edwin Carter Baldridge (all listed in the bible).

Margaret Johnson Baldridge died after 23 Apr 1876 when Edwin Carter Baldridge was born in Waelder, Gonzales, Texas, and before 27 Jun 1877, the marriage date of he and his Second wife, Jemima E. Stroud. She's listed as "Jimima Stroud" in the bible. This is where it gets tricky because Nina re-writes what is in the bible and changes her parents wedding date and her own birthdate to make her look ten years younger than she really was. 

But the records show that Jemima and John David married on 27 Jun 1877 in Lockhart, Caldwell County, Texas; not in 1886 as Nina would have us to believe. NOTE: She always dyed her hair and my mother said there was a joke in the family as to "wonder what her real age is?" Oh, my Nina, who we called Mama Dennis. 

Jemima died after giving birth to John William Baldridge on 4 Aug 1882 at San Marcos, Hayes County, Texas. Nina changed the bible birth date to "August 4 18-90". According to Nina, her baby brother died soon after birth as did her mother. 

Now the Third wife comes along. 14 May 1884 in Waelder, Gonzales County, Texas, John David marries M.A. Johnston. In the bible, she's listed as "Jannie" and the marriage date? You guessed it. Nina re-wrote it as "May 14 18-94". One thing's for sure, Nina was consistent with her dates when adding years to them. 

My cousin who descends from Anna Sue Baldridge (married a Wood) knew that M.A. "Jannie" was called "Janey". No record of Janey's death has been found, but she is believed to have died before 1889 when J.D. Baldridge and Mary Susan Caperton married, according to the 1900 U.S. Federal Census, Justice Precinct 7, Gonzales, Texas, for J. D. Baldridge household. 

Nina lived in the household with Mary "Mollie" Caperton Baldridge and her father, J. D. Baldridge. Stories passed down include Nina leaving the household and going to live with an older brother after "squabbling" with her step-mother. 

Revis

Family Recipe Friday: Drop Cookies (Aunt Ida)

 

I remember making these drop cookies years ago. I admit I haven't made anything but Christmas cutout cookies in the past few years and that's because my grand-daughter's love to decorate cookies.

This Drop Cookies recipe I got from my "Aunt Ida". She was my grandmother's older full sibling in a family made up of "yours, mine and ours" way before The Brady Bunch tv family was streamed into our homes. 

Polly Ida Kolb, my grandaunt, was the daughter of Robert Franklin Kolb (b. 15 Jan 1858-Grapeland, Houston Co., Texas, d. 02 Dec 1957-Sweetwater, Nolan Co., Texas) and Neoma Ida Martin (b. 1873-Webster Parish, Louisiana, d. 07 May 1937-Rotan, Fisher Co., Texas). Polly Ida Kolb married Tom Helm (from original Marriage Certificate #10982 at FamilySearch), on 23 Dec 1924 in Anderson County, Texas. I knew Tommie Coin Helm as "Uncle Tommie" growing up. 

Aunt Ida was about seven years older than my grandmother Cauble. Growing up we joked at how Aunt Ida and the older sister, Aunt Luna, checked up on little sister Neoma as if she was still a little child. 

Today I find it refreshing (is that the right word, not sure) that my grandaunts Ida and Luna still cared for their little sister enough to check on her almost every day if she didn't answer her phone. 

And I have to wonder if Polly Ida Kolb Helm served her Drop Cookies when the sisters got together and chatted about their children and grandchildren. 

Revis

Two Hannahs, One Big Mistake: Clearing Up a Common Mix-Up

 

Hannah JONES Stewart/Stuart lived in Winston and Neshoba Counties, Mississippi. She was married to William Davis STEWART/STUART and never lived in Illinois or Missouri. She’s well documented in Mississippi and was part of that community throughout her life. They are pictured above. 

She is not the same person as Hannah Mariah HOUGHAM, who:

• Married Joseph DELBRIDGE on 1 Jan 1835 in McLean County, IL

• Then Hannah Mariah DELBRIDGE married William STUART on 10 Mar 1850 in Clark County, MO

• And finally married Lewis LOGAN (as “Mrs. Hannah M. STEWART”) on 3 May 1857, also in Clark County, MO

Hannah JONES Stewart, wife of W.D. STEWART, is named in her father, Dudley JONES', will recorded 14 Feb 1863, Neshoba County, MS. Neshoba. Wills 1837-1974, FamilySearch. 

These are two distinct women. Yet many public family trees have merged them into one, which results in a lot of confusion and a loss of accuracy for everyone connected to those trees.

If you have these women combined in your tree, please take a moment to review the sources. Hannah JONES and Hannah HOUGHAM lived in different areas, had different timelines, and followed entirely separate life paths.

This is exactly why I’m writing these posts-to help untangle good people who deserve to be known as themselves, not as a mashup of someone else’s research shortcuts.

Thanks for following along-and if you see this error in your tree, I hope you’ll correct it. Please contact me if you need the source information. HINT: It can be found online at Ancestry and FamilySearch.

Why I’m Back—and What I’m Writing About Now

It’s been about a year since my last post. Life and other responsibilities pulled me away from the blog for a while, but I’ve still been researching-always researching.

Now that I’m back, I’ve decided to take the blog in a more focused direction. Future posts will highlight individuals in my family tree who are well documented-some I even knew personally-but who are being confused or combined with entirely different people in public trees on Ancestry, MyHeritage, and elsewhere.

Too often, I see people copying details from other trees without checking the original records. Two different people-sometimes living in different counties or born decades apart-end up merged into one. It’s frustrating, and it spreads misinformation quickly.

So this blog will now shine a light on those errors. I’ll share the evidence, walk through the records, and show clearly who’s who-and who’s not.

As you read a blog post, and see it relates to someone in your tree, please contact me for more information and sources. 

Let’s bring the focus back to careful, source-based research. It matters.

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks (Week 17): War - Jordan Ham: A Life Etched in History (Civil War)

 By now, you can probably see that I'm jumping around in my 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks posts. This week I'm writing about my second great-grandfather, Jordan Ham. 

This picture is of Jordan, his wife, Fannie Parker Ham, and their grand-daughter, Bertha Teel. Bertha was the youngest child of their daughter, Jennie Ham, and her husband, William Perry Teel. After the birth of Bertha, Jennie died and Bertha eventually lived with her grandparents and her uncle, John D. Ham. 

I mention young Bertha because in this blog post we learn that Jordan Ham was not a financially well-off man in his older life. Family stories passed down tell us that he and his wife cared for Bertha when she was a baby, and as she grew older she went to live with her uncle, John D. Ham. 

This is just a part Jordan's story, a man I heard referred to as "Grandpa and Grandma Ham/Hamm" from Indian Territory, Tishomingo, Johnston County, Oklahoma, as I grew up. 

William Ham, Bertha Teel and Francis "Fannie" Parker Ham

In Alabama's Bibb County, during the spring of May 1844 (some records have him born ca 1839-1840), Jordan Ham took his first breath as a son of William and Charlotte Wheeler Ham. A few years later, in January 1849, Francis A. “Fannie” Parker was born. She was destined to become an integral part of Jordan's life.

As a young man of 18, who was probably filled with the ideals of his time, Jordan enlisted in the Confederate army. It was the 7th of May 1862, in Centreville, Alabama, when he joined Company “H” of the 44th Alabama Infantry. The 44th Regiment, Alabama Infantry, was organized in May 1862 in Selma, Alabama, and by July 1, 1862, had reached Richmond, Virginia. 

The war, unforgiving and brutal, surely tested his resolve and he was probably homesick. By August and September of 1862, Jordan found himself battling not just enemy soldiers but his own health, enduring sickness in Manassas, Virginia, and Sharpsburg, Maryland. His journey through the war also saw him hospitalized in Richmond and Danville, Virginia. Later records, and family stories, indicate he suffered injuries, and not just sickness.

 

Despite the adversities, Jordan was present at key locations during significant battles, stretching from Suffolk, Virginia, to the Battle of Darbytown Road in Virginia on October 13, 1864. His service culminated at Appomattox Court House on April 10, 1865, where he was paroled as a prisoner of war, a testament to his resilience and the tough fibers of his being.

 

Post-war life brought new beginnings. On October 16, 1866, Jordan married Fannie in Bibb County, Alabama. Together, they embarked on a journey of family life, marked by the births of their children: Mary, William, Jennie (my great-great-grandmother), John D., Marvin Clarence, Luther Martin, Minnie Bell, and Lea.

 

Seeking prosperity (which included land and bigger spaces, my opinion here), the Ham family moved westward, first to San Saba County, Texas, and later to the Chickasaw Nation in Indian Territory, now known as Johnston County, Oklahoma. There, Jordan continued his life as a tenant farmer, his days marked by the quiet dignity of hard work.

 

In his later years, Jordan's service to the Confederacy would give him a chance to ask for some financial help. Between 1915 and 1917, he applied multiple times for financial relief due to his deteriorating health and economic hardship, a poignant reminder of the long shadow cast by war. He’d been wounded in the left hip and knee and time had taken its toll on his old body. His three living sons, two in Oklahoma and one in Texas, were not in financial situations to help him and Fannie out. Despite being denied relief, he applied again, and in July 1917 he was approved to receive financial help in the amount of $5.00 (per month).  

Jordan's life journey ended on December 19, 1919, in Tishomingo, Oklahoma, with Fannie passing away eight years later. Their story reflects the resilience and enduring spirit of a family shaped by love, war, and the pursuit of a better future.

- Revis

Sources: 

U.S. Civil War Soldiers, 1861-1865, Ancestry 
Alabama, Select Marriages, 1816-1957, Ancestry
Oklahoma, U.S., Confederate Pension Index, 1915-1955, Ancestry
Board of Pension Commissioners, App #A2282, Pension #P2001, OK State Arch
U.S., Civil War Soldier Records and Profiles, 1861-1865, Ancestry [Index to Compiled Confederate Military Service Records; Southern Historical Society Papers: Appomattox Paroles ANV
NARA
Pastorayres, "William Ham Family Tree," Tree Number 196977914, Public Member Trees, Ancestry, accessed July 22, 2024
RCaubleLeonard, "My DNA Family Tree," Tree Number 53508674, Private Member Trees, Ancestry, accessed July 23, 2024
Census records, Ancestry 

This content was crafted for Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge, focusing on the theme "War" this week. 

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks (Week 21): Nickname

 "Their real name is what?" 

The writing prompt for Week 21 in Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge is titled "Nickname". 

That word brought back a flood of memories for me and the people in my mother's family. It wasn't until I was in college that I knew the real names of some of mother's first cousins. 

It seems that mother's grandmother, Mamie TEEL Stuart, loved to give nicknames to her "kids". Well, at least to a son or two, and most of her grandsons. 

Mamie (TEEL) Stuart, Fisher Co., Texas

I knew these family members as "Chine", "Puggin", "Shorty", "Jug", "Scooter", "Frog", "Jimbo", "Chick", "Pookey", "Tadpole", etc. when I was growing up.

As I got older (college aged), my mother would call them by their birth names, and I often asked, "Wait?? Who are you talking about?" 

I asked more than one time, "Why did she give them nicknames like that?" No one could answer that question.

Years later, I still don't know the answer to "why", but I have learned from my mother, obituaries and genealogy research, what their birth names are/were. 

Was giving nicknames common in your family? My dad's family didn't seem to give nicknames. Was this a tradition in some families and not in other families? 

Let me know if your family gave nicknames, too. 

 - Revis 

This content was crafted for Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge, focusing on the theme "Nickname" this week. 

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks (Week 16): Step - A Step-Parent and DNA

 Step by Step: mtDNA (mitochondrial DNA) and auDNA (autosomal DNA) 

Participating in Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge has been an enlightening journey, and this week's prompt, "Step," brings a multitude of meanings to mind. Whether it's taking a physical step, progressing through tasks, or the steps in musical scales, the concept of "step" resonates in diverse ways. However, for this blog post, I'm exploring a more personal dimension of "step" — my experience as a stepmother.

In late 1986, I married a young widower, and embraced the role of stepmother to his daughter, who was just shy of her fourth birthday, having lost her mother in 1985. Our family included my biological daughter, making our household a blend of laughter, challenges, and sisterly bonds.

As the girls grew up, the advent of DNA testing added a new layer to our family's story. Initially, my interest in DNA testing was sparked by a desire to learn more about my own roots. Through mtDNA testing at Family Tree DNA, I discovered that I belong to the rare Haplogroup I, a group intriguingly nicknamed "Iris".

The real surprise came when we learned that my stepdaughter also belonged to Haplogroup I, though she is Haplogroup I2. Considering we're both this rare mtDNA haplogroup, I couldn't help but wonder about the odds of such a coincidence. 

Though she and I are both I's, there is a difference because my Haplogroup I includes some mutations that aren't found in other "I's". My mtFull Sequence test was completed in July of 2014 at Family Tree DNA, and we had no matches until December of 2014. As of the date of this blog post, that match in December 2014 is the only Genetic Distance - 0 match on our match list.  

Over the years, DNA testing has not only fascinated us with such revelations but also united us in unexpected ways. Our family now boasts several "Irises," including six granddaughters and a grandson, who also carries his mother's mtDNA haplogroup.

Another surprise was in the early days of auDNA (autosomal DNA), she shared small segments of DNA with my father. I believe that I know where the connection is, and one day I will write about it. 

This journey through genetics has redefined what family means to us, blurring the lines between step and biological relations. Our journey is also a testament to the fact that family isn't just about DNA; it's about the steps we take to embrace, love, and understand each other, making every discovery a step toward greater unity.

- Revis 

This content was crafted for Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge, focusing on the theme "Step" this week.