The Caswell / Patton Line, A Narrative — Three

This is Chapter Three of Three, being the last chapter in the history of the Caswell / Patton line. Because she carries the family line forward, the initial portion of the chapter will focus on the daughter Sabina Patton. We met her briefly in chapter one, and then she was mentioned in relation to the 1870 and the 1880 censuses.

To Pull Something Out Of Your Hat

This ancestor liked to be called by many names during her lifetime. We have pondered why she changed her name every so often, and believe that perhaps it was her way of creating a solution to whatever was going on in her life at that time. Think of it as her creative way to produce a surprising solution, idea, or success right when you need it most, especially during a hard time. Americans generally understand this idea as — To Pull Something Out Of Your Hat.

We are organizing each portion of her life with this idea, (generally by Census dates), but first we need to do a brief review of where she has been mentioned previously. (1)

The 1870 Census for Cleveland, Ohio

In chapter two, we learned that there were seven children in the Hugh and Margaret Patton home, five of whom are Syloyna Patton’s siblings. Syloyna is the youngest one on this Census, born in November 1869.

As the youngest, she is noted as being 6/12 months old, adnd her birth month is noted on this Census as the previous November 1869. Her name is recorded as Syloyna Patton, but soon she will be known as Sabina. We wonder if that odd spelling could be a colloquial Irish name, or maybe, the Census enumerator was just trying to puzzle it out as he went along?

Sabina Patton’s birth registration record of January 8, 1870 in Cleveland, Ohio.

Her birthdate is recorded as January 8, 1870, but this is likely when the birth registration was completed. Again, as per the June 1870 Federal Census, her actual birthdate is in November 1869. (2)

The 1880 Census for Cleveland, Ohio

Daughter Syloyna, at the age of 10, is now noted as being named Sabina.

“The name Sabina has roots in ancient history and is derived from the Latin word ‘Sabinus,’ which refers to the Sabines, an ancient Italic tribe that lived in the central Apennines of Italy. The Sabines are known for their role in early Roman history. (Ancestry) “Sabina (feminine)  used in Ireland.  Translates the Irish Saidhbhin, ‘goodness,’ a diminutive of Sadhbh, which is Sive, in English.  Derived from the Latin, ‘Sabine woman.’  Also used to Anglicize Sile, a Gaelic form of Cecilia, Sheila.” (Live Journal)

We know from records in chapter two that the family relocated from Cleveland’s Ward 8, to Ward 18 circa 1874. It is in Ward 18 (also known as the Iron Ward), where she spent most of her childhood. (3)

Binia A. Patton and a Marriage in 1888

Sabina married Charles Perry Caswell on December 16, 1888. She had just turned 19 years old, and now she recorded her name as Binia A. Patton. With this marriage the Patton surname gave way to Caswell.

December 16, 1888 marriage document for C. Perry Caswell and Binia A. Patton, in Cuyahoga County, Ohio. Note that the left portion of this document is their actual marriage date.

We do not know how they met, but we do know that at the time he married, he was living with his brother John Henry Caswell at 105 Clinton in Cleveland. He was from Jefferson County, New York State. He sometimes also changed his name — now and then he went by the nickname Commodore, and he frequently used his middle name Perry, rather than his first name Charles.

Going from the 1890s forward, we have much new information on Binia.

Destruction of the 1890 Census by the Great Fire of 1921 at the Commerce Department Building
in Washington, D.C. (Image courtesy of Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness – raogk.org).

The 1890s Census
Unfortunately, the 1890 Census was destroyed by a fire in 1921 at the Commerce Department Building in Washington, D.C. Actually, there was more than one fire, the first one occurring in 1896. First with these fires, then with the further catastrophic damage from the water used to put out the fires, then improper storage of the tatters that remained — the 1890 Census is considered to be utterly lost.

Through the discovery of this record, we learned that Sabina (Patton) Caswell had decided to change her first name from Sabina, to Myrtle. On July 28, 1890, Perry and Myrtle Patton had their first child and named her Edna. She was born at home as they were living at 1444 Pearl Street. The ages of both parents are incorrect: Myrtle was 20, and Perry had just turned 28 (as per his Find-A-Grave file). Edna eventually carries the family line forward.

July 28, 1890 Birth Record for Edna Caswell.

Sabina’s new first name of Myrtle was a very popular girls name during this period. Comment: We don’t know why she made this abrupt name change, but perhaps she wanted a name that was a bit more fashionable?

“Myrtle has been used as a given name since the late 19th century, particularly in English-speaking countries. It gained popularity during the Victorian era, a time when flower names and nature-inspired names were fashionable among the middle and upper classes. The name Myrtle was often associated with traditional values and femininity, reflecting the social norms of the time. Historically, the name Myrtle saw a peak in popularity in the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. According to United States Social Security Administration data, Myrtle was among the top 100 names for girls from the 1880s until the 1920s.’ (Ancestry)

October 2, 1891 Birth Record for ‘Commodore’ Perry Caswell, Jr.

About fourteen months later the family welcomed another child, a boy who they named in honor of his father, C Perry Caswell, Jr*. He was also born at home, but they had moved, and lived at 315 Washington Street.
*Even though this document does not reflect his full name, this son went by both C. Perry Caswell and Commodore Perry Caswell. To avoid confusion, we are adding Jr. when we write about him, because his records are not clear. On the 1910 Census he is recorded with the nickname Commodore P, and his wife used Commodore Perry Caswell on his death certificate.

An odd discrepancy we saw on this record is that both parents are recorded as being born in New York State. Only father Perry was born in New York State; mother Myrtle was born in Cleveland, Ohio. Myrtle must have liked the perceived distinction of New York, because she insisted for much of her life that she was born in New York, when she was really born in Ohio. (4)

The 1900 Census for Cleveland, Ohio

Around 1900, people were both excited and alarmed by all of the technical and cultural change that had been occurring. The world was ripe for both invention and reinvention…

1900 — Dawn Of The Century “New inventions meant exciting prospects for the 1900s” Sheet music illustration by Edward Taylor Paull, (courtesy of pbs.org).

When the new century was arriving, writers gazed into the future and commented. From PBS.org —“Comparing 1900 to 1800, Americans were reminded that at the beginning of the 19th century there were no railroads, telegraphs, steamboats, electricity, kerosene, telephones, reapers, plumbing, or photography. The world had changed more over those 100 years than ever before. And change was happening at such a rate as to make many people uneasy. Historians speak of people being made to feel small in the face of systems that confounded their intelligence. Opinion varied as to what the most beneficial legacy of the 19th century would be.”

Instead of invention, this family got reinvention.

The 1900 Census for Myrtle Caswell and her family.

On this 1900 Census, we find these people living in their home on Claremont Street: Myrtle (28*), Edna (9), Perry Jr. (8),  Emma Kaufman (26), a boarder. Myrtle is working as a schoolteacher.
*Myrtle is actually 30 years old.

Clearly, husband Perry Sr. is not living in the home. We do not know what happened to this marriage, but Myrtle states that she had been married for 11 years. Since she married Perry Sr. in 1888, that implies that the marriage was finished by 1899 (11 years). She indicates that she is still married, and technically she may still have been. However, we know that Perry was living in Michigan with Edith Whitmarsh.

We also observed that for some reason, she continues to tell people that she was born in New York. As far as we can determine, she had been maintaining this idea in her mind since at least 1891 when Perry Jr. was born. (5)

The 1910 Census for Cleveland, Ohio

There is much to unwrap on this 1910 Census. Myrtle seems to have tired of the name Myrtle, so she now uses the first name of Emma. We do not know why, but we ponder this: 10 years earlier on the 1900 Census, Myrtle had a boarder named Emma Kaufman living with her. (Is this possibly why we see the name Emma in 1910? Did Myrtle take a fancy to this name and was she giving it a trial run?)

Or, was she aggrieved because her husband had remarried in 1908, and she wanted a new identity to show the world? She also reports that she is now a widow. This is odd because Perry was alive and well with a new wife and family in Chicago, Illinois. She was not a widow, BUT A DIVORCEE. (See chapter one.)

The 1910 Census for Emma Caswell and her son ‘Commodore’ Perry Caswell Jr.

‘Emma’ states that her age is 34, but she is actually 40. Her Son Perry Jr. she names as ‘Commodore’ even though he did not use this nickname, and that he is 17, when he is actually 19. She states that she is the mother of 3 children, with 2 now living. (We have not discovered a record for this third child.)

1909 Vintage postcard of a Ball Game in Brookside Park, Cleveland, Ohio. (Image courtesy of the Columbus Metropolitan Library).

Clinging to an idea, she continues to insist that she was born in New York. Finally, it appears that she is no longer a teacher, but a landlord who runs a boarding house. In 1910, she has five male boarders, and one female boarder. (6)

The 1920 Census for Cleveland, Ohio

Ten years later, our ancestor Syloyna / Sabina / Binia / Myrtle / Emma is remarried, to Orwell Fordham, so now she has two new names. Her first name is now Marie, and her married surname is Fordham, so now she is known as Marie Fordham. When she married Orwell, her married surname of Caswell gave way to the new surname of Fordham. Refreshingly, she admits to being born in Ohio.

Thus, if you were to list her names, they would be like this —
First name: Syloyna, Sabina, Binia, Myrtle, Emma, Marie
Family surnames: Patton, Caswell, Fordham

The 1920 Census for Orwell Fordham and his extended family.

We do not know how Marie and Orwell met. He is listed in the Cleveland Business Directories in 1912, 1917, and 1920. In 1922, he is listed again and she is listed as Mrs. Marie G. Fordham in the same directory. (We thought her middle name began with an ‘A’ when she was Binia, so we are not sure what that ‘G’ stands for, or if it is a typesetting error made by the business directory people.)

Orwell Seeley Fordham
There is a long history for a man named Orville Seeley Fordham that exists online where he appears to have lived most of his life in New York State. From 1912 until 1917, we wonder if he had a regional office in Cleveland, Ohio when he was employed as a Railway Postal Clerk? Or did he reside in New York State and travel back-and-forth?

1920 to 1923 —
In 1920, Orwell is residing at 7505 Everett Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio, the address that is reconciled to the 1920 Census. In 1922, he is noted as a clerk, who resides at 1639 E 73rd Street, Cleveland, Ohio. At some point Orwell and Marie are divorced. Unfortunately, we have not yet found a marriage record, nor a divorce record. (Records about them are very scarce). By 1923, he is married to another woman, Adah Louise Widdowson, in New York State.

Marie seems to have been a bit of a dreamer, with a rather elastic approach to her reality. By the time of the 1930 Census, she had certainly reinvented herself much throughout her life — from being born as Syloyna A. Patton, to eventually becoming Marie G. Fordham. Her age was whatever she wanted it to be. Her roles in life were daughter, sister, mother, teacher, landlord, and nurse. She insisted right up to the end that she was born in New York, even if it was only a dream. (7)

Sabina / Myrtle / Marie Fordham’s death

Marie died on June 23, 1935, at 65 years of age. On her death certificate, she is noted as divorced, and that her last husband Orwell Fordham, is listed as William Fordham.

The people attached to her obituary are listed as follows —
Mrs. Harris W. Roberts (daughter Edna), Perry Caswell (son), Mrs. William Rhodecker (sister), Mrs. Kate Boyd (sister), Mrs. Helen Douthitt (sister), Jack [John] Patton (brother), Tom Hart (brother) William Patton (brother).

As we know, Marie had two children, her daughter Edna and her son called (Commodore) C. Perry Caswell Jr. Most of the time he was known simply as Perry. We will learn about Perry Jr. first and then circle back to Edna, who carries the family line forward. (8)

Son Perry Jr.’s Military Service in Yvré-l’Évêque, France

As we learned earlier, he was born at home in 1891. In the 1910 Census, at about the age of 19, he is listed as doing clerical work in a private office . Then…By the time, World War One came around…

1918 Military Transport Document listing for Private Perry Caswell, Jr. as entry 192.

By the time, World War One came around, Perry enlisted as a Private on June 14, 1917 and was part of Company E of the 329th Infantry. Initially, he was assigned to the Medical Department at Fort Benjamin Harrison, Indiana until August 26, 1917; then transferred to the Medical Department at 323 Field Artillery until March 23, 1918. 

He became a Private, First Class October 19, 1917, as part of the American Expeditionary Forces. He sailed June 12, 1918 to France for duty where he was deployed as part of the 83rd Division in the region around Yvré-l’Évêque. This Division was utilized primarily as a depot and training organization — it sorted new troops arriving from America, and sent trained troops to replace casualties in frontline units. Depot division troops could also be assigned to combat positions if its infantry division suffered substantial losses. Privates were stationed in training and staging areas, managing logistics, and area security.

In 1919, the 329th Infantry arrived at the port of New York on February 1, 1919 on the troopship SS Minnekahda and was demobilized on February 15, 1919 at Camp Sherman, Ohio, and then honorably discharged from duty the same day. (See footnotes).

By the 1920 Census, he had changed careers and was no longer a clerk, or a soldier. He was working as a mechanic in theatrical productions, and those connections would change the trajectory of his life. (9)

November 8, 1922 Marriage Record for Perry Caswell Jr. and Mildred Bucy.

Perry Caswell Jr.’s Marriage

In the 1920 Census, Perry Jr. was listed as a mechanic in theatrical productions. By the time he married on November 8, 1922, he was listed as a stage carpenter, and then he became an electrician. Perry Jr. worked at the Loew’s State Theater 1519 Euclid Avenue  for two years, and also at the RKO-Palace Theater at 1615 Euclid Avenue for 9 years. Both theaters are in downtown Cleveland, Ohio and part of the famous Playhouse Square district.

For the credits on these collaged images, please see the footnotes under Various Theater Collage Illustration credits.

His wife is named Mildred Frances Bucy and she was part of a theatrical troupe, so that is quite probably how they met. She grew up in Newark, Ohio, so being in Cleveland when it was America’s 6th largest city, and in show business — everything must have seemed like Bright Lights!, Big City!

Her stage name was Mildred Coziene, which to our thinking sounds just slightly exotic and maybe a little bit French. It was the golden age of vaudeville and silent movies, so naturally it was the style to have slightly foreign-sounding, memorable names. We have seen records that she was a stage actress, dancer, and singer.

Famous 1920s silent film actresses, from left to right: Theda Bara (born in Ohio, Lillian Gish (born in Ohio), Alla Nazimova (born in Russia), Vilma Bánky (born in Hungary), Renée Adorée (born in France). (All images courtesy of IMDB).

Mildred would have been very aware of these Hollywood actresses (shown above), all of whom were very popular during this period. Some of them also had exotic names as this provided a mystique to attract movie-goers. A few made a successful transition to ‘talkies’, but some did not, and their fame just faded away. (See footnotes). (10)

Perry Caswell Jr.’s Death
and Mildred (Bucy) Caswell’s Death

About a year after his mother Marie Fordham died, ‘Commodore’ Perry Caswell Jr. died of a heart attack at his residence, which was compounded by bronchial pneumonia. The date was October 31, 1936, and he was 45 years old. (We took note that the nickname ‘Commodore’ was used on his death certificate, but not on his marriage certificate).

Just four years later, on September 10, 1940, his wife Mildred Bucy Caswell died from anemia. She was near her 39th birthday. Neither one of them lived very long lives. (11)

Reintroducing The Roberts Family

Now we return to the Caswell daughter Edna, who as we wrote earlier, carries the family line forward. We met her when she was born in 1890, and then saw her again in the 1900 Census. (The 1890 Census is lost).

September 28, 1908 Marriage Record for Harris Williams Roberts and Edna C. Caswell.

Edna did not appear in the 1910 Census with her mother ‘Emma’ or her brother ‘Commodore’ Perry Jr. because on September 28, 1908 she married Harris Williams Roberts in Toledo, Lucas County, Ohio.

We do not know why Toledo was chosen as the location, but it was about the halfway point between Cleveland, Ohio where her mother Marie lived, and Chicago, Illinois where her father Charles Perry Caswell Sr. lived with his new wife Edith Whitmarsh. With this marriage, the Caswell surname gave way to the Roberts surname.

Excerpt from the Map of the Burlington Route and Connections by the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad Company, 1907. This map demonstrates a railroad route between Cleveland > Toledo > Chicago, with Toledo as the approximate halfway point.
– – – – –
Please note that this map is not quite accurate, because Cleveland is actually located further east.
(Image courtesy of the David Rumsey Map Collection).

Edna could have been living in Toledo, or just visiting, we really have no way of knowing. But, this location seems to support the idea that perhaps she was able to maintain a relationship with her father Perry even after his marriage to her mother Myrtle / Emma / Marie had ended.

Circa 1910 postcard of Toledo Ohio. (See footnotes).

It is noteworthy that the 1908 marriage record for Edna and Harris, is only nine days after her father married his new wife. (Observation: Could they have attended each other’s weddings?)

The 1900 Census for the Joseph A. Roberts family in Cleveland, Ohio.

We first met Harris Williams Roberts at the end of The Williams / Harris Line, A Narrative — Twelve, when he was adopted and renamed by Joseph A. Roberts and Augusta (Young) Roberts. His original birth name was Benny H. Williams. (12)

Harris Williams Roberts World War One draft registration card, from and back.

World War One Draft Registration for Harris Williams Roberts

It’s not very often that you learn about some of the physical details of one of your ancestors, but draft registration cards sometimes provide a few clues. In 1918, HWR was considered tall, had dark hair, and blue eyes. At 29 years of age, he was able to claim an exemption from the draft, because he was supporting his wife Edna, his mother Augusta, and three children.

Interestingly, he records that his birthday is August 19, 1888. This date varies by being one year earlier from what was recorded on the 1900 Census (it stated August 1889). However, he is consistent with the 1888 date throughout his life. (13)

The Harris Family Children

Harris Williams Roberts made his living for many years working in the advertising departments for the two local Cleveland newspapers, first at the Plain Dealer, and then later at the Cleveland Press. He must have made a good living because he was able to support a large family, and weather the Great Depression of the 1930s fairly well.

At left: A 1930 poster promoting the New Union Terminal Cleveland, (which is also known as the Terminal Tower). At right: The Van Sweringen Brothers were real estate developers in Cleveland, Ohio whose ultimate achievement was the Cleveland Terminal Tower. However, they were also movers-and-shakers behind the development of Shaker Heights. Pun intended!
(Please see the footnotes for credits).

They lived in the community of Shaker Heights, Ohio a suburb in Cleveland renowned for its remarkable homes and urban planning. In earlier decades, it had historically been the home of members of the Shaker religious sect, but eventually the group dispersed and released the property for sale. “In 1905, the land was bought by [the real estate developers, the] brothers M.J. and O.P. Van Sweringen who envisioned the first garden styled suburb in Ohio for the site. The brothers constructed homes, set aside land for churches and schools, and planted trees. Originally referred to as Shaker Village, the community was incorporated in 1912 and reached city status in 1931.” (Wikipedia)

In 1930, the Roberts family was living at 3246 Warrington in Shaker Heights Village as shown by the small blue circle. (Map image courtesy of Looking@Cities).

The family of Harris Williams Roberts and Edna (Caswell) Roberts is shown in its most complete state with the 1930 Census. Joseph A. Roberts, Harris’ adoptive father was living in the home at that time. (14)

  • Harris Williams Roberts (Sr.), August 19, 1888 – April 1968
  • Edna (Caswell) Roberts, July 28, 1890 – July 14, 1963
  • Joseph A. Roberts, c. March 1850 – March 3, 1930
  • Stanley Caswell Roberts, 1910 – July 4, 1964
  • Marian Elvira (Roberts) Dougherty Orris, November 7, 1912 – November 9, 1970
  • Edna M. Roberts, 1917 – unknown date
  • Harris William Roberts (Jr.), January 24, 1919 – September 1, 1985
  • Allan Howard Roberts, January 24, 1926 – January 30, 1990
The 1930 Census for the Harris Williams Roberts family in Shaker Heights Village, Cleveland, Ohio.

The Departures

In this marriage Edna passed away first, on July 14, 1963, at about 72 years of age. She was followed by her husband, Harris Williams Roberts, who died in April 1968, a few months short of 8o years. He was residing in Tampa, Hillsborough, Florida, at the time of his death. (15)

Ancestors (2021), painting by American artist Mia Bergeron, (See footnotes).

Merging With The Stars

We feel that all of us, indeed everyone, is here because of the lives of our ancestors, those who came before us. They had dreams, blessings, sacrifices, tragedies, and triumphs. — These deeper histories we all carry, we choose to celebrate them within this blog. The above painting by artist Mia Bergeron is remarkable in the way that it captures this feeling. At the same time it reminds us of those who have departed fairly recently.

A personal note from Thomas, one of the authors of this blog —
We had a brother who passed away in May 2022, and in April 2023, I moved to Lisbon, Portugal with my husband. After a year of acclimating to living in Europe, we went to the St. John Festival in the city of Porto, north of Lisbon.

Click on the image above to view this short 20 second family movie. The Festa de São João do Porto, in Porto, Portugal from June 2024.

This event, also known in Portuguese as Festa de São João do Porto, features a celebration reminiscent of the Mia Bergeron painting. I took this 20 second home movie, which features the tradition of lighting a lantern (locally called a balão in Portuguese). Then one lets it ascend — the balão ever so slowly disappears by merging with the stars in the evening sky. In this way, you both honor and release, those who have come and gone before you. (16)

Following are the footnotes for the Primary Source Materials,
Notes, and Observations

(1) — one record

The Free Dictionary
Expression: to pull (something) out of (one’s) hat
https://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/pull+out+of+your+hat
Note: For the data.

The 1870 Census for Cleveland, Ohio

(2) — two records

Silhouette artwork(s)
The various black and white portraits created for our ancestor were sourced, and then modified from multiple internet resources.

1870
Hugh Paton
Census – United States, Census, 1870
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M6KL-GLX?lang=en
Ohio, 1870 federal census: population schedules: Cuyahoga. Census 1870 | Cleveland. Census 1870
Book page: 33, Digital page: 57/458, Lines 24 through 30.
Note 1: They are living at 100 Spruce in the 8th Ward.
Note 2: Two individuals, Margaret (age 14), and Bridget (age 11) are recorded in this Census as residing with this family. However, we believe that they are likely related, but not the children of Hugh Patton and Margaret Nicholson.
Note 3: Sabina, as the youngest, is noted as being 6/12 months, additionally, her birth month is noted as the previous November 1869.

1870
Sabina Patten
Birth – Ohio, County Births, 1841-2003
Index to Birth Records: Cuyahoga. Birth Record Indexes 1890–1908 #004016933 > Item 2
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VRM4-MNP?lang=en
Book page: 39, Digital page: 98/345, Entry line 142, near the center of the page.
Note 1: Her birthdate is recorded as January 8, 1870, but this is likely when the birth registration was completed. As per the June 1870 Federal Census, her actual birthdate is in November 1869.
Note 2: Her parents are Hugh Patten and Maggie Nicholson. 

The 1880 Census for Cleveland, Ohio

(3) — four records

1880
Margaret Patton
Census – United States, Census, 1880
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M8MS-SWG?lang=en
Book page: 63, Digital page: 781/799, Lines 5 through 10.
Note 1: Hugh has already passed on by the time of this census.
Note 2: The children are: William, Mary, Sabina, Katherine, and John.
Note 3: Every one of their neighbors on Elizabeth Street are Irish.

The Intervention of the Sabine Women, by Jacques-Louis David, 1799, via:
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:F0440_Louvre_JL_David_Sabines_INV3691_rwk.jpg

Ancestry
Meaning of the First Name Sabina
https://www.ancestry.com/first-name-meaning/sabina
Note: For the text explaining the name Sabina.

Live Journal
Celtic Names—S Chapter (Sabia-Sheenagh)
https://larainefan.livejournal.com/4650.html
Note: For the text explaining the name Sabina.

Binia A Patton and a Marriage in 1888

(4) — eight records

C. Perry Caswell [Sr.]
Marriage – Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-2016
#004016938 > Item 1
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:939K-BPST-NW?view=index&personArk=/ark:/61903/1:1:XD29-KJW&action=view&cc=1614804&lang=en&groupId=M9DC-F1J
Note: For December 16, 1888 marriage to Binia A. Patton.

1890
Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness
Fate of the 1890 Population Census
https://raogk.org/census-records/1890-fire/
Note: For illustration and historical information.

Meaning of the First Name Myrtle
https://www.ancestry.com/first-name-meaning/myrtle
Note: For the text.

1890 (Daughter Edna’s birth)
Perry Caswell
Mentioned in the Record of Caswell (Perry Caswell’s Daughter)
Vital – Ohio, Births and Christenings, 1821-1962
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XDYS-3M7?lang=en
Book page: 189, Digital page: 538/758. Follow Entry #62.
Note: This is a filmstrip > link here: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9R2Y-6VQ?view=fullText&keywords=Caswell&lang=en
and
Cleveland. Birth Records January 1890–September 1890
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-XC6Q-SDP?view=index&personArk=/ark:/61903/1:1:VRMC-LT5&action=view&cc=1932106&lang=en&groupId=Digital page: 5,097/6,616
Digital page: 5097/6166
Note 1: For their daughter Edna, born on July 28, 1890.
Note 2: The family is living at 1444 Pearl Street.

1892 (Son Perry’s birth)
Cadwell
Ohio, U.S., Births and Christenings Index, 1774-1973 
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2541/records/2420191?tid=87760659&pid=392284810852&ssrc=pt
and
Ohio, U.S., Births and Christenings Index, 1774-1973
Cleveland. Birth Records July 1891–March 1892
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-65S9-SWS?view=index&personArk=/ark:/61903/1:1:VNWC-VFL&action=view&cc=1932106&lang=en&groupId=
Digital page: 2,580/6,760
Note: Perry’s birthdate is October 2, 1891.

The 1900 Census for Cleveland, Ohio

(5) — three records

1900
PBS.org
Dawn Of The Century (illustration)
“New inventions meant exciting prospects for the 1900s”
Sheet music illustration by Edward Taylor Paull
From the article: Summing Up, Looking Forward and The Paris Exposition
https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/1900-forward-exposition/
Note: For the illustration and text.

1900
Myrtle Caswell
1900 United States Federal Census
Ohio > Cuyahoga > Cleveland Ward 19 > District 0081
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/7602/records/39395728
Book page: Sheet 16, Digital page: 32/45, Lines 80 through 83.
Note 1: Myrtle states her age as 28, (she is actually 30), she is also a school teacher.
Note 2: Myrtle (28), Edna (9), Perry Jr. (8),  Emma Kaufman (26), a boarder.
Note 3: Myrtle states that she was married for 11 years and has 2 children.
Note 4: Why does she state her birthplace and that of her kids was New York?
Note 5: They live on Claremont Street.

1905
Myrtle Caswell
in the U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2469/records/314565473
Book page: 226, Digital page: 110/976, Left page in the lower right column.
Note: Starting in this 1905 Cleveland Directory, she is listed as being the widow of Commodore P. He was not dead, but out of the picture because he had a relationship with Edith Whitmarsh in Michigan starting before 1902.

The 1910 Census for Cleveland, Ohio

(6) — three records

1910
Emma C Caswell
in the 1910 United States Federal Census
Ohio > Cuyahoga > Cleveland Ward 10 > District 0168
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/7884/records/21409042?tid=&pid=&queryId=9f9679da-f0be-44f8-b139-2cdc4297aac2&_phsrc=kaf12&_phstart=successSource
Book page: 12B, Digital page: 23/25, Lines 84 and 85.
Note 1: 10 years earlier on the 1900 Census, Myrtle had a boarder named Emma Kaufman living with her. (Is this probably why we see the name Emma in 1910?) Was Myrtle giving the name Emma a trial run? Or, was she aggrieved because her husband had remarried (or abandoned her)?
Note 2: Myrtle states her age as 34, (she is actually 40).
Note 3: Myrtle states that she is a widowed.
Note 4: Her son, Commodore Perry is noted as 17, (he is actually 19).
Note 5: Indicates that she is the mother of 3 children, with 2 now living. ???
Note 6: She appears to be running a boarding house. She has five male lodgers and one female lodger.

1910
Myrtle A Caswell
U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995
The Classified Business and Directors’ Directory of Cleveland, Ohio, 1910
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2469/records/1344245482
Book page: 247, Digital page: 829/1,879, Right page, left column center.
Notes: Listed as the widow of ‘C. P.’ and she resides at 1252 Superior av NE.

Columbus Metropolitan Library
Ball Game in Brookside Park, Cleveland, Ohio, circa 1909
Vintage postcard
https://digital-collections.columbuslibrary.org/digital/collection/postcard/id/12550/
Note: For the 1909 postcard image.

The 1920 Census for Cleveland, Ohio

(7) — eight records

1920
Orwell Fordam
Census – United States, Census, 1920 Census for Cleveland Ohio
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MD1X-FF3?lang=en
Book page: Sheet 14A, Digital page: 738/1183, Lines 16 through 24.
Note: They live at 7505 Everett, Cleveland, Ohio, in Ward 20.

1920
Orwell C. Fordham
U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995
Ohio > Cleveland > 1920 > Cleveland, Ohio, City Directory, 1920
https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/2469/images/4165159?ssrc=&queryId=64c75ae3-e3e3-438c-bdbe-75491c3b3832&usePUB=true&pId=315008031
Book page: 582, Digital page: 285/1262, Left column, lower portion.
Note 1: He is residing at 7505 Everett Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio
Note 2: It is reasonable to assume the the C. listed with his name is an error by the person gathering the data. His middle name of Seeley, can be misunderstood phonetically when spoken. This link is proof of his middle name:
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60525/records/67645846

1922
Orwell S Fordham
U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995
Ohio > Cleveland > 1922 > Cleveland, Ohio, City Directory, 1922https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2469/records/290889363?tid=&pid=&queryId=dde4b288-1024-4393-bfc2-0b6ec67fd2e7&_phsrc=mmA10&_phstart=successSource
Book page: 1085, Digital page: 565/1703, Right page, right column, lower portion.
Note 1: He is noted as a clerk, who resides at 1639 E 73rd Street, Cleveland, Ohio.
Note 2: An implied wife named Mrs. Marie G. Fordham is listed at the same address.

Observe that in years other than 1920, the middle initial is written as an ‘S’
Note 1: For the year 1912, he is listed as a postal clerk living at 1532 Payne Avenue NE, Cleveland, Ohio —
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2469/records/1349416459?tid=&pid=&queryId=4946000f-b1a6-4f8f-bdbf-ea695b8a3ab7&_phsrc=mmA6&_phstart=successSource
Note: For the year 1917, he is listed as a postal clerk living at 7504 Lexington Av., Cleveland, Ohio —
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2469/records/315654229?tid=&pid=&queryId=c18f4e16-04ff-4f1f-a736-fd9410851e0e&_phsrc=mmA8&_phstart=successSource

1923
Adah Louise Widdowson
New York, U.S., County Marriage Records, 1847-1849, 1907-1936
Genesee > 1911-1926
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/61377/records/900087380
Note: For the data.

Marie G Fordham
1930 United States Federal Census 
Ohio > Cuyahoga > Cleveland (Districts 251-500) > District 0405
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/6224/records/73767808?tid=&pid=&queryId=4f265682-c23a-40c4-a8ba-fa723a1d5ba6&_phsrc=FIc3&_phstart=successSource
Book page: Sheet 3A, Digital page: 5/42, Line 39.
Note: For the data.

Sabina / Myrtle / Marie Fordham’s death

(8) — three records

1935
Marie Fordham
Death – Ohio, Deaths, 1908-1953
Ohio. Death Certificates 1935
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X8CV-YXM?lang=en
Digital page: 848/3,287
note 1: On her death certificate, she is noted as divorced, and that her last husband Orwell Fordham, is named here as William Fordham.

Marie G Patton Fordham
Obituary – United States, GenealogyBank Historical Newspaper Obituaries, 1815-2013
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:4C1J-WD3Z?lang=en
Note: The people attached to this document are listed as follows —
Mrs. Harris W. Roberts (daughter Edna), Perry Caswell (son), Mrs. William Rhodecker (sister), Mrs. Kate Boyd (sister), Mrs. Helen Douthitt (sister), Jack Patton (brother), Tom Hart (brother) William Patton (brother).

The Genealogist
The Many Faces of Death
by Paul Matthews
https://www.thegenealogist.co.uk/featuredarticles/discover-your-ancestors/bookazine/3/the-many-faces-of-death-7226/?
Note: For the reference.

Son Perry Jr.’s Military Service in Yvré-l’Évêque, France

(9) — five records

This text was synthesized by combining these three sources:
Settimo Sorci

July 4, 1893 – April 28, 1989
World War I
https://www.cem.va.gov/docs/wcag/legacy/UCF-VLP-Packet-Settimo-Sorci.pdf
Note: For the text on page two.
and
329th Infantry Regiment
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/329th_Infantry_Regiment
Note: For the text.
and
Perry Caswell
Ohio, U.S., Roster of Soldiers, Sailors, and Marines in World War I, 1917-1918
The Official Roster of Ohio Soldiers, Sailors, and Marines in the World War 1917-1918
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/7895/records/29356
Book page: 2719, Digital page: 2718/23340, 8th listing from the top.
Notes: As recorded on the Ancestry file, (and being similar to the actual record document) —
– Medical Department Fort Benjamin Harrison Indiana to 26 Aug 1917.
– Medical Department 323 Field Artillery to 23 March 1918.
– Co E 329 Infantry to Discharge Private, First Class 19 Oct 1917.
– American Expeditionary Forces 12 June 1918 to 31 Jan 1919.
– Honorable Discharge

Perry Caswell
U.S., Army Transport Service Arriving and Departing Passenger Lists, 1910-1939
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/61174/records/2427157?tid=87760659&pid=392284810852&ssrc=pt
Book page: Sheet 7, Digital page: 228/733
Note: Prior to his marriage in 1922, he listed his mother as his contact. Her name is now Marie Fordham.

Perry Caswell
U.S., Headstone Applications for Military Veterans, 1861-1985
Perry Caswell in U.S., Headstone Applications for Military Veterans, 1861-1985
1925-1941 > Carter, Tellef E-Chak, Peter
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2375/records/1589831
Note: For the reference.

Document for Perry Caswell Jr.’s headstone marker.

Perry Caswell Jr.’s Marriage

(10) — seventeen records

Mildred Frances Bucy
https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/person/tree/102459736/person/320016879056/facts
Note: For the data.

Mr Perry Caswell
Cuyahoga County, Ohio, U.S., Marriage Records and Indexes, 1810-1973
1901-1925
Reel 070 > Marriage Records 1922 Jun – 1922 Dec
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/1876/records/1326718?tid=87760659&pid=392284810852&ssrc=pt
Book page: 334, Digital page: 853/1019, 4th entry from the top.
Note 1: His bride is named Mildred Bucy.
Note 2: Their marriage date is November 8, 1922.
Note 3: He is employed as a stage carpenter, and she as an actress.

November 17, 1922, The Newark Leader marriage announcement for Miss Mildred Bucy.

Marriage of Bucy/Casewell
Newspapers.com
The Newark Leader, Newark, Ohio
https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-plain-dealer-obituary-for-c-parry-ca/177895793/?xid=637
Note: Published November 17, 1922, page 2.

Newspapers.com
The Newark Advocate
October 9, 1937 issue
https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/collection/1030/tree/102459736/person/320016879056/media/3b3913cb-a8b1-4b8c-9565-e8275f7e95aa?queryId=54ed480c-3aa1-4bb9-878f-406577ca17e1&searchContextTreeId=&searchContextPersonId=&_phsrc=bcy1&_phstart=successSource
Note: On page 3, Mildred (Bucy) Caswell is mentioned.

Various Theater Collage Illustration credits, as follows —________________________
Center Image:
From the 1921 Cleveland Plain Dealer newspaper supplement —
Calameo
The Cleveland Plain Dealer
Loew’s State in Cleveland
https://www.calameo.com/read/0002479289bb200e6c10f
Note: February 5th, 1921 issue celebrating theoopening of the new Loew’s State Theater in Cleveland, Ohio was a 10 page supplement to the Cleveland Plain Dealer newspaper. 
________________________
Top Row One, Banner:
Franks’s Place via Blogspot
Friday, February 5, 2016
Loew’s State Theatre, Loew’s State 1921-2021 – 100th Anniversary – update!
http://frank-dutton.blogspot.com/2016/02/loews-state-theatre.html
Note: For the Loew’s State Theatre graphics banner
Extracted from the advertisement for The Mark of Zorro, starring Douglas Fairbanks, published on in the Cleveland Plain Dealer, on February 13, 1921.
________________________
Row Two, left:
Facebook
Ohio Road Trips
Weekend itinerary for couples in downtown Cleveland
Note: From the comment by reader Ron Nagy — “Cleveland’s Playhouse Square downtown is the nation’s 2nd largest theater district after Kennedy Center in NYC. It has the world’s largest annual broadway play subscription. The State Theater there has the world’s longest theater lobby for a single theater (photo).” (We cropped the photo image).
and
Row Two, center:
Currents
Playhouse Square’s Iconic Palace Theatre As It Was In 1922
by Jeannie Emser Schultz
https://www.currentsneo.com/playhouse-squares-iconic-palace-theatre-as-it-was-in-1922/
Note: For the Keith building image (where the Palace Theater was located), with this caption —“it was the  largest electrical sign in the world (1922) atop the Palace Theatre’s Keith Building.”
and
Row Two, right:
Cleveland Memory.org
Interior of the State Theatre Shortly After Opening
https://clevelandmemory.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/press/id/6240/rec/16
Note: “The interior of the State Theater on February 15, 1921, ten days after it first opened.”
________________________
Row Three, left:
Flickr
Loew’s State Theatre, Cleveland, OH
from the photo collection of Brad Smith.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/brad_smith/7143035531/in/set-72157623906403776
Note: Photo by George Mann of the comedy dance team, Barto and Mann, from January 30, 1931.
and
Row Three, center:
Ebay
Cleveland Ohio Playhouse Square Loew’s State Theatre Postcard (Cropped)
https://ebay.io/m/vJRvDb
From this seller: Postcard-p-Purveyor
and
Row Three, right:
Facebook
Restoration of Palace Theater in Cleveland
Cleveland Streets – Then and Now, News and Nostalgia

Todd Sommerfeld
https://www.facebook.com/groups/ClevelandStreets/posts/1920491875212912/
Note: For the image of the RKO-Palace theater interior.
________________________
Row four, bottom:
Cinema Treasures
Connor Palace Theatre
https://cinematreasures.org/theaters/1114
Note: This is the first photo found at the beginning of the article. We cropped and colored it to suit our purposes for the RKO-Palace graphics.

Click on this image for 5…4…3…2…1… Showtime!

Five Silent Film Actresses
These actresses photos were sourced from:
IMDB
The Internet Movie Database
Theda Bara (born in Ohio)
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000847/?ref_=ls_t_3
and
Lillian Gish (born in Ohio)
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001273/?ref_=ls_t_4
and
Alla Nazimova (born in Russia)
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0623417/mediaviewer/rm1029281792/?ref_=nm_ov_ph
and
Vilma Bánky (born in Hungary)
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0126566/mediaviewer/rm1155945216/?ref_=nm_ov_ph
and
Renée Adorée
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0012395/mediaviewer/rm1567477248/?ref_=nm_ov_ph

Perry Caswell Jr.’s Death
and Mildred (Bucy) Caswell’s Death

(12) — seven records

1936
Deaths: Lucas. Death Certificates October 1936–November 1936
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:9392-G137-6T?view=index&personArk=/ark:/61903/1:1:XZHB-FZZ&action=view&cc=1307272&lang=en&groupId=
Digital page: 2,737/3,203
Note: Son Perry’s death certificate of October 31, 1936.

November 1, 1936, the Cleveland Plain Dealer newspaper obituary for Perry Caswell Jr.

Obituary for C Parry Caswell
newspapers.com
The Plain Dealer, Cleveland, Ohio
https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-plain-dealer-obituary-for-c-parry-ca/177895793/?xid=637
Note: Published November 1, 1936, page 12.

Perry C Caswell
U.S., Find a Grave Index, 1600s-Current
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60525/records/228658374
and
Perry C Caswell
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/257588261/perry-c-caswell?
Notes: Caswell: C. Perry, beloved husband of Mildred Frances Bucy, brother of Edna C. Roberts, son of the late Mrs. Marie G. Fordham, suddenly Saturday. Services at the R. S. Bennett Co. Funeral Home, 11212 Euclid ave., Monday, Nov. 2, at 2:30 p.m.

September 11, 1940, The Newark Advocate newspaper obituary for Mrs. Mildred Caswell

1940
Obituary for Mildred Caswell
The Newark Advocate, Newark, Ohio
https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-newark-advocate-obituary-for-mildred/177895485/?xid=637
Note: Published September 11, 1940, page 15.

Mildred Caswell
U.S., Find a Grave Index, 1600s-Current
Birth: November 20, 1901
Death: September 10, 1940
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60525/records/33592427?tid=87760659&pid=392284809739&ssrc=pt
and
Mildred Bucy Caswell
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/77745987/mildred-caswell
Note: For the data.

Reintroducing The Roberts Family

(13) — eleven records

Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness
Fate of the 1890 Population Census
https://raogk.org/census-records/1890-fire/
Note: For the reference.

1908, Marriage
Edna C. Caswell
in the Ohio, U.S., County Marriage Records, 1774-1993
Lucas > 1906 – 1909
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/61378/records/903394923
Digital page: 614/1,315
Note 1: September 28, 1908 marriage record for Edna C. Caswell and Harris W. Roberts.
Note 2: This marriage record is nine days after her father C. Perry Caswell married Edith Whitmarsh in Michigan.
Observation: Was she living in, or visiting Toledo, Ohio at this point because it was an approximate halfway point between her father and her mother?

1900
Joseph Roberts
Census – United States, Census, 1900
12th Census of Population 1900: Cleveland. Census 1900
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MMZV-V46?lang=en
Book page: 6B, Digital page: 199/619, Lines 58 through 60.
Note 1: Joseph states that his birthplace is in Ohio in March 1850, and that both of his parents were born in Wales.
Note 2: This is the first census son Harris appears in, because the 1890 Census is lost. Harris’s birthdate of August 1889 is noted, and his age is 11.

1900
Ha**s W Roberts

Census – United States, Census, 1900
12th Census of Population 1900: Cleveland. Census 1900
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MMZV-V4F?lang=en
Book page: 6B, Digital page: 199/619, Lines 58 through 60.
Note 1: This is the first census he appears in because the 1890 Census is lost.
Note 2: His birthdate of August 1889 (?) is noted, and his age is 11. However, on his World War One draft registration card, he states that his birthday is August 19, 1888.
See this file below, Harris Williams Roberts
U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918
Ohio > Cleveland City > 18 > Draft Card R —https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/6482/records/19877873
He also recorded the same 1888 birthdate with Social Security —
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/3693/records/52493866?tid=&pid=&queryId=ca2761f1-bfa0-4559-8cec-d1103882d293&_phsrc=vmF13&_phstart=successSource

1910
Harris W Roberts
Census – United States, Census, 1910
1910 population census schedules – Ohio: Ohio. National Population Census 1910
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MLDT-Z7N?lang=en
Book page: 6A, Digital page: 16/1,238, Lines 3 through 5.
Notes: He is living in Cleveland. His mother Augusta is living with them. Harris Sr. reports his occupation as advertising.

1920
Harris W Roberts
Census – United States, Census, 1920
1920 population census schedules – Ohio: Ohio. National Population Census 1910
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MDB6-HGZ?lang=en
Book page: 14A, Digital page: 738/1,183, Lines 3 through 9.
Notes: Harris Sr. 30, Edna 29, Stanley 9, Marian 7, Edna Jr. 4, Harris Jr. 1-6/12s. Edna’s brother Perry Jr. is there too. Augusta is not living there…

1930
Harris W Roberts
Census – United States, Census, 1930
United States. Census 1930 | Ohio. Census 1930
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X4QN-6V3?lang=en
Book page: 13B, Digital page: 727/1,133, Lines 77 through 84.
Note 1: Harris Sr. 41, Edna 39, Stanley 19, Marian 17, Edna M. 13, Harris W.  Jr. 11, Allan H. 4-3/12s, Joseph A. 79. His father Joseph A. is living with them.
Note 2: This is very curious, (Joseph dies in March 1930 and this census was conducted in April.)

David Rumsey Map Collection
Map of the Burlington Route and Connections
by the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad Company, 1907
https://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~24568~900059:Burlington-Route-USA-map-
Note 1: For the map image demonstrating a railroad route between Cleveland > Toledo > Chicago.
Note 2: Cleveland should be located further east.

eBay
Birdseye Aerial View, Toledo, O. (1910 Postcard)
via seller Smiths Castle
https://www.ebay.com/itm/126641891524
Note: For the image; eBay file name is —
Toledo Ohio 1910 Postcard Birdseye Aerial View

WW1 and WW2 Information for Roberts

(14) — two records

Harris Williams Roberts
U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918
Ohio > Cleveland City > 18 > Draft Card R
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/6482/records/19877873
Digital page: 380/642
Note 1: He records that his birthday is August 19, 1888. This date varies by being one year earlier from what was recorded on the 1900 Census (it stated August 1889). However, he is consistent with the 1888 date throughout his life.
Note 2: At 29 years of age, he was able to claim an exemption from the draft, because he was supporting his wife Edna, his mother Augusta, and three children (Stanley, Marian, Edna M. Jr).

Harris Williams Roberts World War Two draft registration card.

Harris Williams Roberts
U.S., World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942
Ohio > Rauh, Charles Michael – Schliepp, Albert Frank > Roberts, Clifford Charles-Rockow, Paul Arthur
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/1002/records/6710247?tid=&pid=&queryId=621e951f-599d-4b1f-aaf1-5e13c63d8c2a&_phsrc=vmF4&_phstart=successSourceDigital page: 495/6329
Note: At 53 years old, he is registered for the draft on a special card that is headlined: Registration Card — (Men born on or after April 28, 1877 and on or before February 16, 1897). Comment: How did they come up with those specific dates?

The Harris Family Children

(15) — thirteen records

Pinterest
Poster Merchant
The New Union Terminal Cleveland Vintage Ad Poster
by Artist Unknown, circa 1930
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/260927372145505233/
Note: For the artwork.

Cleveland Historical, via the Shaker Heights Historical Society
Pamphlet, 1929
by Artist Unknown

https://clevelandhistorical.org/files/show/669
Note: This is a page from a Van Sweringen Company pamphlet put out in 1929 to attract residents to their Shaker Heights development.

Shaker Heights, Ohio
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shaker_Heights,_Ohio
Note: For the text.

Looking@Cities
Looking @ Shaker Heights
by Charles P. Graves
https://lookingatcities.info/2018/05/15/looking-shaker-heights
Note: For the map, Shaker Heights, 1922.

Stanley Caswell Roberts
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/161577882/stanley-caswell-roberts
and
Stanley C Roberts
Vital – Ohio, Death Index, 1908-1932, 1938-1944, and 1958-2007
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VKL6-3MG?lang=en

Marian Elvira (Roberts) Dougherty Orris
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/78109892/marian_elvira-dougherty
> First marriage is to Frederick P Dougherty until his death in 1951:
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/78109887/frederick_p-dougherty
>> Second marriage is to Frank Holmes Orris until her death in 1970:
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KDMH-YBJ?lang=en

Edna M. Roberts
No documents available.

Harris William Roberts (Jr.)
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/2573438/harris-william-roberts

Allan Howard Roberts
Vital – Ohio, Death Index, 1908-1932, 1938-1944, and 1958-2007
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VKGD-9LS?lang=en

1930
Harris W Roberts
Census – United States, Census, 1930
United States. Census 1930 | Ohio. Census 1930
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X4QN-6V3?lang=en
Book page: 13B, Digital page: 727/1,133, Lines 77 through 84.
Note 1: Harris Sr. 41, Edna 39, Stanley 19, Marian 17, Edna M. 13, Harris W.  Jr. 11, Allan H. 4-3/12s, Joseph A. 79. His father Joseph A. is living with them.
Note 2: This is very curious, (Joseph dies in March 1930 and this census was conducted in April.)

The Meteor by Frederic Edwin Church, 1860.
(Image courtesy of the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art via the Wall Street Journal), via
https://www.wsj.com/arts-culture/books/the-meteor-frederic-edwin-churchs-premonitory-painting-09ad2f93

The Departures

(16) — twelve records

1963
Edna C Roberts
in the Ohio, U.S., Death Records, 1908-1932, 1938-2022
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/5763/records/2958370
Note: For the data.

Edna Caswell Roberts
U.S., Find a Grave Index, 1600s-Current
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60525/records/132005926
and
Edna Caswell Roberts
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/161577853/edna-caswell-roberts
Note: For the data.

1968
Harris W Roberts (Sr.)
Florida, U.S., Death Index, 1877-1998
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/7338/records/1273378?tid=&pid=&queryId=a388d0c4-b94d-47f6-864f-5f568b04170a&_phsrc=vmF10&_phstart=successSource
Note: He was residing in Tampa, Hillsborough, Florida, at the time of his death.

Harris W. Roberts (Sr.)
Tampa Bay, Florida, U.S., Obituary Index, 1855-2006
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/63076/records/262184?tid=&pid=&queryId=bb5be011-c958-49f2-824f-3f4353694095&_phsrc=vmF11&_phstart=successSource
Note: He was residing in Tampa, Hillsborough, Florida, at the time of his death.

Harris Williams Roberts
U.S., Find a Grave Index, 1600s-Current
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60525/records/132005927
and
Harris Williams Roberts
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/161577854/harris_williams-roberts
Note: Death in April 1968.

Harris Roberts
U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/3693/records/52493866?tid=&pid=&queryId=ca2761f1-bfa0-4559-8cec-d1103882d293&_phsrc=vmF13&_phstart=successSource
Note: As on his World War One draft registration card, his birthday is recorded as August 19, 1888. See —
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MMZV-V4F?lang=en

Ancestors (2021)
Painting by American artist Mia Bergeron (b. 1979)
https://www.miabergeron.com/
> Portfolio
https://www.miabergeron.com/portfolio.html
Note: This painting is from her portfolio.

Personal Family Movie
MP4
IMG_5105.MOV
2024-06-23T22:01:52+0100
Created in Porto, Portugal
From the chapter: “I took this 20 second home movie, which features the tradition of lighting a lantern (locally called a balão in Portuguese). One then lets it drift up, ascending slowly — the balão slowly disappears by merging with the stars in the evening sky. Thereby, you both honor, and release this ancestor.”

The Caswell / Patton Line, A Narrative — Two

This is Chapter Two of Three where we shit from the Caswell family line to the Patton family line. We have found records for this family that show variations in how the Patton surname was recorded, essentially divided between two spellings: either Patton, or Patten. Either spelling seemed to please our ancestors, (many of whom could neither read, nor write), so we have chosen Patton, based upon most of the records we have located.

What’s In A Name? Quite A Bit, Apparently.

We learned that Patton as a surname is “English, northern Irish, and Scottish: from the Middle English and Older Scottish personal name Patun, Paton, an Old French diminutive of Pat(e), a pet form [diminutive] of Patrick.” (Family Search)

Scenes from the Life of St. Patrick of Ireland, by Adriaen Collaert, 1603. (Image courtesy the National Gallery of Ireland).

Perhaps this surname is a diminutive in some contexts, but some other sources offer greater elaboration — “The surname Patton boasts a rich heritage deeply rooted in both Scottish and English cultures. It traces its origins to the Latin name ‘Patricius,’ which translates to nobleman or patrician. This connection to nobility and esteemed lineage is intrinsic to the name’s identity. Over the centuries, variations of the name have emerged, including Paten, Paton, and Patten, each reflecting the linguistic evolution and regional dialects of the areas where they were used. This historical transformation showcases how names adapt and change, often influenced by cultural shifts and societal circumstances, ultimately leading to the modern spelling we recognize today as Patton.

During the medieval era, the Patton surname flourished particularly in the Scottish lowlands and northern parts of England. Its holders were frequently linked to land ownership, especially in regions like Dumfriesshire and Ayrshire, where the name became synonymous with the local gentry.” (Patpat) (1)

Steerage Immigrants, [print after] Arthur Boyd Houghton, 1870. (Image courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art via Wikimedia Commons).

And Then There Was An Gorta Mór, or The Great Hunger

This family line is distinctly Irish in origin, so let’s discuss what is called the An Gorta Mór, or the Great Hunger, (in America, people generally refer to this time as the Potato Famine). “Between 1845 and 1855 more than 1.5 million adults and children left Ireland to seek refuge in America. Most were desperately poor, and many were suffering from starvation and disease. They left because disease had devastated Ireland’s potato crops, leaving millions without food. The Potato Famine killed more than 1 million people in five years and generated great bitterness and anger at the British for providing too little help to their Irish subjects. The immigrants who reached America settled in Boston, New York, and other cities where they lived in difficult conditions. But most managed to survive, and their descendants have become a vibrant part of American culture.” (Teach Democracy) (2)

Hugh Patton, An Irish Immigrant

The patriarch for this branch of the Patton family is Hugh Patton. We have not been able to discover much about him prior to May 1874, when he then submitted an application for Naturalization to the Probate Court of Cuyahoga County, Ohio. On that document, he stated that he was a native of Ireland, and that he had entered the country in March 1859, a little more than fifteen years earlier.

May 1874 Naturalization document for Hugh Patton. Notice that he signed his name with his mark — an X. (Image courtesy of Family Search).

information about Hugh is quite scarce before he appears in Cleveland, Ohio censuses. Many factors are contributing to this dearth of records:

  • We only know Hugh Patton for about 20 years.
  • Is the date of March 1859 the true date for when Hugh Patton entered the United States?
  • In trying to trace back to exactly where he could have entered the United States, we can only view the information available for different ports of entry. Not all ship passenger manifests have survived.
  • If perhaps, he entered via a land crossing from Canada, there are no records.
  • There are many people with his name — it was a very, very popular name for boys in that era.
  • For years afterward, there was still a large ongoing Irish Diaspora due to the aftermath of the great Potato Famine, and the lingering poverty it precipitated. Hence, to accommodate the continuing flow of immigrants around 1859, some record keeping was lax.
  • (Deep Sigh) These records may exist somewhere, but they have not been made into digital resources for online genealogy researchers. (3)

Did They Live Once in Syracuse, New York?

In genealogy research, sometimes you see a glimmer of something that opens a new door for you, but sometimes that door is only opened to just a tiny little crack of light. There are a couple of records from his two oldest children (after they had grown up), that indicate the family had lived in Syracuse, New York for a period of time, before moving to Cleveland, Ohio.

A Birds Eye View of Syracuse, New York: 1874, by Howard Heston Bailey. (Image courtes of Digital Commonwealth).

His oldest children, William (b. 1865) and Mary (b. 1869), indicate that they were born in Syracuse, New York. William is especially clear about this. On the death certificate for his infant son Hugh Patton (who is named after his grandfather), he indicates that he was born in Syracuse.

Daughter Mary, sometimes seems to be a little bit wily as she grows older. Sometimes she fudges some dates about her true age, and her actual birth location. It appears that she thought that perhaps shaving a few years off from her age, and writing New York City on her marriage document, to a younger man, was a bit more glamorous than her real age and being born in Syracuse. (See footnotes.) (4)

Rivals: Cleveland versus Newburgh!

Before we dive into the detailed history of this family line, it’s rather important that we acquaint everyone with a bit of Cleveland, Ohio history, versus Newburgh, Ohio history. What is Newburgh, you ask? If you look at the map below, you can see how the city of Cleveland and its adjacent areas were designated in the 1870s. The sizable area of Newburgh is situated in the lower right (southeastern) quadrant — this is where our family lived for much of that decade.

Stringer’s Map of Cleveland and Suburbs, circa 1873. (Image courtesy of Ruderman Rare Maps).

From 1796 until 1824
“Cleveland was founded at the intersection of the Cuyahoga River and Lake Erie, primarily because it was thought to be an ideal location for an agricultural center. The site was part of the [Connecticut] Western Reserve, a portion of land extending from the Pennsylvania border 120 miles westward and 80 miles southward, comprising 2.5 million acres, which was sold to the Connecticut Land Co. by the state of Connecticut… many came to the site seeking a good place to live, raise their families, and harvest bountiful crops — they were often disappointed. Throughout the first 30 years, there was no harbor at Cleveland because the entrance to the river was blocked by sandbars that forced goods and passengers to be off-loaded onto smaller vessels in order to land… the floodplain with its numerous swamps produced an environment filled with disease, which claimed the lives of many early settlers and convinced numerous others to move elsewhere.” (Case Western Reserve University)

“Yet, in those early days Cleveland and Newburgh were rivals; and five years later Newburgh had the larger population. This was due to the malarial conditions existing in Cleveland at that time. The marshes bordering the crooked Cuyahoga River were breeding places for fever and ague. Scarcely any of the early settlers escaped the disease. And it is recorded that after a short sojourn in the Cleveland hamlet, many removed to the higher ground of Newburgh, although most of them retained their land holdings in Cleveland.” (Newburgh, B. Ralph, from the 1893 book)

“Originally, the area’s natural resources were significant enough that Newburgh was the leading settlement in Cuyahoga County, causing Cleveland to be referred to as the town on the lake, six miles from Newburgh, although Cleveland’s location on Lake Erie soon led to its dominance. Cleveland first annexed part of Newburgh Township in 1867 and continued to expand through the next several decades, eventually absorbing the village of Newburgh and most of the rest of the township by 1905.” (Wikipedia)

Circa 1873 scenic sketches by artist Otto Bacher of several Cleveland, Ohio neighborhoods.
(Images courtesy of Cleveland Area History).

Eventually, through the building of a canal, the sandbars in the Cuyahoga River were cleared away, and Cleveland as a port city started to very slowly prosper. The rivalry between the two locations was eventually won by Cleveland as it grew in size and importance. Through annexation, [Newburgh] “…became part of Cleveland in 1873. This section of town became Cleveland’s 18th ward, dubbed ‘the iron ward’. The remaining portions of the township were incorporated as the Village of Newburgh in 1874, but additional annexations by Cleveland in 1878, 1893, and 1894 further compressed its size.” (Case Western Reserve University)

In the present day, Newburgh is a Cleveland suburb, called Newburgh Heights village, with a total area of  0.58 square miles, or 1.50  km2. (Wikipedia) (5)

The Only Correct Map of the City of Cleveland, 1879 as published by the Cleveland Directory Company. (Image courtesy of the Cleveland Public Library Digital Collection).
– – – – –
The green oval (upper left) indicates where the Patton family lived in 1870, at 100 Spruce Street. This was adjacent to an Irish settled area known as Whiskey Island.
– – – – –
The yellow oval (lower left) indicates their residence in 1880 at 2021 Elizabeth Street.

Cleveland is a City of Neighborhoods

From the past to the present, Cleveland is a city known for its neighborhoods, with its governance being carried forward by a City Council. “Every Clevelander lives in a ward, and each ward elects a councilperson every four years to represent the ward’s residents on Cleveland City Council.” (The Center For Community Solutions) Put more simply, “A ward is a political boundary used to determine representation on Cleveland City Council.” (Signal Cleveland)

Historically the number of Wards has varied depending upon the fluctuations of borders and overall population (and honestly, politics). The peak number of Wards was once 33, and the least number of wards was 11. (See the footnotes for a historical ward chart from Google).

The 8th Ward of Cleveland, Ohio, circa 1874. (Image courtesy of the David Rumsey Map Collection).

Ward 8
We uncovered a record that someone named Hugh Patton was living in Ward 8 as early as 1867, but we are not sure that this is our ancestor. There were other people with that same name in the area, and one of them lived nearby. Also, we believe that our family was living in Syracuse, New York in 1867 due to the adult records of their two oldest children, William and Margaret. (See footnotes.)

Our ancestor, Hugh Patton is listed in Wiggins and Weaver´s Directory of the City of Cleveland and Adjoining Towns, 1870-71, on page 229.

We know that from the 1870 Census that Hugh Patton, our ancestor, and his family were definitely living in Cleveland’s Ward 8 because he was working on the nearby docks. (6)

What Does That First Cleveland Census Tell Us?

First and foremost, this Census tells us that they are living at 100 Spruce in the 8th Ward, (see map above). We know also that there are seven people living in the household.

We have not been able to locate a marriage document for Hugh Patton and Margaret (Nicholson)* in Ireland, nor the United States, nor Canada. Be that as it may, there is some interesting information recorded here —

  • Hugh is 52 years old. That means that he was born in Ireland circa 1818.
  • His spouse Margaret, is much younger than Hugh, being 25 years old. She was also born in Ireland, circa 1845. Although we don’t have a record of a first marriage for Hugh Patton, it makes sense that he was probably married previously and that Margret Nicholson is his second wife.
  • On this Census below, the two oldest children in the home are Margaret (14) and Bridget (11), both born in Ireland. It does not seem plausible that Margaret (Nicholson) is their mother, because she would have been much too young. Therefore, we believe that Margaret (14) and Bridget (11) are either from a first marriage, or they are family-related in some other manner. (Perhaps nieces, or cousins?) We see no reliable records for them after this Census.
    *We learned the mother Margaret’s original surname from the marriage documents of her adult children.
The June 1870 Federal Census for the Patton family, living in the 8th Ward of Cleveland, Ohio.

In total, Hugh and Margaret Patton had seven children, with their first two children being born in Syracuse, New York.

  • William Patton, born August 26, 1865 — died, date unknown
  • Mary A. (Patton) Roediger, born October 17, 1869 — died, February 3, 1944

The next five children were born in Cleveland, Ohio —

  • Sabina* (Patton) Caswell, born November, 1869 — died, June 23, 1935
    Sabina carries the family line forward.
  • Catherine ‘Kate’ P. (Patton) Boyd, born 1872 — died 1943
  • Owen Patton, born 1873 — died 1875
  • Thomas Patton, born and died 1875
  • John Hugh Patton, born 1876 — died (after 1943)

    *Sabina, as the youngest listed on the 1870 census, is noted as being 6/12 months, additionally, her birth month is noted on this Census as the previous November 1869. Her name is recorded as Syloyna Patton. We wonder if that odd spelling could be a colloquial Irish name, or maybe, the Census enumerator was just trying to puzzle it out as he went along?
This illustration of the Superior Avenue Viaduct from the 1880s shows the full extent of the structure with traffic moving both east and west. (Image courtesy of Case Western Reserve University).

The area where this family lived was a very busy hub of bustling activity. They lived just north of the enormous structure known as the Superior Avenue Viaduct, which ran right through their neighborhood. On the northern boundary of the 8th Ward was Lake Erie, but there also was an ‘island’, then know as Whiskey Island. Many Irish people had settled there, so it makes sense that our family would be near there too. There is definite truth that Immigrants are generally attracted to communities that they already know…

Whiskey Island was actually a peninsula, located on the northern shore of Cleveland’s 8th Ward. At left: A street layout of the neighborhood in the mid-1800s. (Image courtesy of Rotman, via Cleveland Historical). At right: A postcard image showing the same location circa 1915. (Image courtesy of Demarco, via The Plain Dealer).

“Docks and manufacturing plants arrived on Whiskey Island around the same time as the Irish. By the 1850s, railroads — quickly making the canal obsolete — also began running their way across the land. By the late nineteenth century, many of the Irish inhabitants had risen in wealth and status and moved to more attractive neighborhoods. As the Irish moved away and Cleveland’s industrial might grew, Whiskey Island became nearly exclusively an industrial area.” (Rotman, Whiskey Island — It’s Actually a Peninsula)

“Many people left Ireland during this time because of the Great Famine of 1845 to 1849. Once immigrants arrived in the United States, they had to find jobs, which became increasingly difficult due to discrimination against Irish immigrants.”

by Zoe Sizemore
Irishtown Bend, Excavating an Irish Immigrant’s Life

There were so many Irish immigrants, that they spilled over into all areas of the city, but they were quite prominent in the 8th and 9th Wards. Just south of where our family lived was an area known as Irishtown Bend.

Looking south from Irishtown Bend, circa 1885. (Image courtesy of the Cleveland Public Library Photograph Collection).
– – – – –
Just nearby to the south of the Patton family, at the next bend of the Cuyahoga River, was the 9th Ward community known as Irishtown Bend (Image courtesy of Cleveland Historical).

“Irishtown Bend was developed during the 1830s and ’40s by Irish immigrants who came to Cleveland to work on the canal and railways. Irish immigrants — considered outcasts by many other immigrants — began to build shanties on Whiskey Island. Soon, it became home to many of the city’s new Irish immigrants, with homes, saloons and more.” (DeMarco, The Irish in Cleveland: A History in Photos)

Our family relocated to Cleveland’s 18th Ward by 1874. We know this through a discovery in the Cleveland City Directory for 1874. This community (Cleveland’s old rival Newburgh), was then part of the 18th Ward, but known locally as ‘the iron ward’. (7)

Elizabeth Street in Newburgh

We believe that the family’s choice to relocate from Cleveland’s 8th Ward to the 18th Ward in the City’s southeastern section, in all probability was due to Hugh’s employment. If you lived in this section of Cleveland in the late 19th century, you most likely worked at the Cleveland Rolling Mill, or its related industrial operations in the old Newburgh area. We know that he was a laborer and that this employer was enormous and utterly dominated the area.

An 1885 illustration of the Newburgh Works of the Cleveland Rolling Mill. Extracted from a lithograph titled Cleveland, O. (Image courtesy of the New York Public Library, via Wikimedia Commons).

The area was famous for metal mill work. From A History of the City of Cleveland
It’s Settlement, Rise and Progress, 1796-1896
, by James Harrison Kennedy (1896), “…The next mill was built in 1856, by A. J. Smith and others, to re-roll rails. It was called the Railroad Rolling Mill, and is now owned by the Cleveland Rolling Mill Company. At the same time, a man named Jones, with several associates, built a mill at Newburg, six miles from Cleveland, also to re-roll rails. It was afterwards operated by Stone, Chisholm & Jones, and is now owned by the Cleveland Rolling Mill Company.”

The painting The Iron Rolling Mill (Modern Cyclopes) by Adolph Menzel, 1875. (Image courtesy of Alte Nationalgalerie, Berlin, via Wikimedia Commons).

“The township’s most famous industry, the Cleveland Rolling Mill, was started in 1857 by David and John Jones* to re-roll iron rails. The mills changed the ethnic makeup of the community. New England and Manx settlers [people from the Isle of Man] were outnumbered first by Welsh iron puddlers, then by Irish, and finally by Polish and Czech mill laborers. (Case Western Reserve University)
*Both of the Jones brothers were immigrants from Monmouthshire, Wales. (S. J. Kelley, see footnotes).

Owen Patten and Thomas Patten 1876 deaths, from the Cuyahoga. Death Records 1868–1879.

During an era before antibiotics or vaccinations had become standard medical care, epidemics routinely swept through communities with great devastation. A family tragedy unfolded during this decade. Two of the young boys, Owen Patton and Thomas Patton both passed away in 1875. Both children died of Scarlet Fever —  Owen in October 1875; Thomas in December 1875. It must have been terrible for all of those involved. The following year in 1876, Margaret (Nicholson) Patton had another baby boy. His name was John Hugh Patton. (8)

The 1880s, The Late Victorian Era

The 1880s brought much change to this family. The father, Hugh Patton, died in January* 1880 from what was then called lung fever, but which today we know as pneumonia. He was 62 years old. We have found three records that document the end of his life, but one of them*(shown below) disagrees with the other two in an important detail: two documents state that he died on January 21, 1880, and the other states February 1880.

Hugh Patton’s death record erroneously labeled for February 20, 1880. Importantly, we believe that he died on January 21, 1880 as two other records clearly agree on this.. (See footnotes).

Despite having passed away on January 21, 1880, Hugh continued to live on in the Cleveland City Directory 1879-1880, published later that year. In the days before modern databases existed, these guides were created through a very laborious process that took much time —
1) A neighborhood was canvassed door-to-door to gather handwritten information about the household or business.
2) This data was then compiled by an army of clerks.
3) These compilations were then sorted and typeset by people who worked in a printers guild. Graphic artists would craft artwork to be used wherever it was appropriate.
4) If the book was proofed (meaning that it was proofread to correct errors), then it would proceed to the assembly stage. It was probable that only advertisements were proofed, because those clients actually paid money to have their names and products featured in the directory.
5) The new directory would be printed, assembled, bound, and distributed.
6) It would then be placed for sale to consumers.

Considering the long amount of time that went into creating these guides, it’s no wonder that Hugh’s spirit was featured two times on page 388 of the Cleveland City Directory 1879-1880.

About six months after Hugh had passed away, Margaret continued to live at 2021 Elizabeth Street in Cleveland’s 18th Ward. From the 1880 Census, we learn that she is a widow and a Wash Woman, meaning that she was a laundress. Her children who have survived are still present in the home. Notably, son William and daughter Margaret are (again as in 1870) recorded as being born in New York. It is recorded that William “works in iron mill”. (This was quite probably the Cleveland Rolling Mill, and he was only 15 years old).

Daughter Syloyna, at the age of 10, is now noted as being named Sabina. (9)

The June 1880 Federal Census for the Patton family, living on Elizabeth Street in the 18th Ward of Cleveland, Ohio.

Making Ends Meet

Times must have been difficult after Hugh died. Despite son William bringing in a wage while working at The Cleveland Rolling Mill, it likely was not enough in a home that held six people, several of whom were quite young children. So as the mother, Margaret, turned a chore that she normally did into an enterprise — as we learned form the Census, she took in laundry and became a Wash Woman.

Two examples of hard-working 19th century laundresses. (Images courtesy of The Library of Nineteenth-Century Photography, and Pinterest).

From Wikipedia, “A washerwoman or laundress was a person, usually a woman, employed to wash laundry by hand, before the widespread use of washing machines and commercial laundries. The profession existed in many cultures, spanning from antiquity to the early modern period. While the profession has historically been gendered, [and] often associated with women, in some contexts, men also performed laundry labor. It was typically low-paid, physically arduous, and associated with lower social status.” (10)

At left: An example of a Victorian marriage certificate from the 188os. (Image courtesy of Etsy). At right: Owen Hart’s Application for Marriage to Margaret (Nicholson) Patton, on January 23, 1882.

Owen Hart, the Man from County Meath

In January 1882, almost two years exactly since her husband Hugh died, Margaret (Nicholson) Patton, became Mrs. Owen Hart, (or to us, Margaret (Nicholson) Patton Hart). We thought it a bit curious that her maiden name was used on the marriage application, but we are quite sure that it is her and not another person. At the time she would have been about 37 years old.

It was a challenge to sort through data about Owen Hart. Margaret’s new husband had a difficult time recording his age properly, and when we see something that doesn’t quite make sense, we note it. Here are several examples:

Birth and baptism, 1832—1833
We know that Owen was born in Ireland circa 1832, because he was baptized in Bohermeen, County Meath, Ireland on December 13, 1833. The records clearly states an 1832 birth. His parents are Pat Hart and Bridget Fullan

Owen Hart 1833 Baptism record for Bohermeen, Meath, Ireland.

In 1851…
He was imprisoned in May 1851 for the minor crime of vagrancy at age 19, and discharged May 27, 1851. This was during the period of An Gorta Mór. (He was released to the care of the Honorable Richard Hare).
This record gives him an 1832 birth year and lists his age as 19. This record is close to his true age.

The Hibernia ship manifest recording the New York arrival of Hart family from Ireland, in late December 1865.

A December 1865 immigration
On the Passenger Manifest for the ship Hibernia, which anchored in New York harbor on December 6, 1865, he is listed as 40 years old. Although, he should be actually about 33. He is a farmer, and traveling with his wife Mary Fagan (45), and their sons Bryan (7), and William (5). We wonder if Mary was truly about 45 years old?

The 1870 Census
When we review his history in the Cleveland area, the 1870 Census has him living in Ward 18 in Newburgh, and he is married to the same woman named Mary who immigrated with him from Ireland. He is already employed at the Cleveland Rolling Mill. The following people are listed on the Census — Owen (60*), Mary (50), Thomas (28), Bryan (15), and John (10). Thomas (28) and John (10) are two names on this Census that we do not recognize.
*Shouldn’t Owen be about be about 38?

The 1880 Census
He is still working at the Cleveland Rolling Mill.
Owen (50*), Patrick (29), Brian (24), John (20), Michael (6) (whose son?)
* How does he get to be 10 years younger? Thoughts —Wife Mary had likely died by the time of this Census. Patrick (29) and Michael (6), are two names on this Census that we do not recognize. (11)

Two Coming And One Going

This Owen and Margaret Hart family were fortunate to have two more children. We think that Margaret may have named her new son, for her two sons [Thomas and Owen] who had passed away in 1875. The fact that she married a man named Owen who was now the father, made this middle name choice all that much easier.

  • Thomas Owen Hart, born February 14, 1885 — died March 18, 1943
  • Helen M. (Hart) Douthitt, born October 27, 1885 — died, April 27, 1945

We noted that Thomas Owen and Helen M. had only a little over nine months between them, therefore there is that old expression about Irish Twins
“The term Irish twins refers to siblings who are born within 12 months of each other… The phrase Irish twins originated in the late 19th century as a disparaging term associated with Irish immigration to the United States. The implication was that groups of close-in-age siblings were a negative characteristic of large Irish Catholic families… Today, the term is typically not intended as an insult, but rather as a way of classifying siblings born close together.” (Parents, see footnotes).

Owen Hart’s December 1894 death record as found in the Cuyahoga County Death Record Index.

And then when these children were nearly ten years old, their father Owen Hart passed away on December 3 or 5, 1864. (We have two records that record different dates of his death). (12)

Margaret carried on and moved to a new location in Cleveland.

Map of the City of Cleveland for 1899-1900.
(Image courtesy of the Cleveland Public Library Digital Collection). The blue oval indicates the location where Margaret Hart lived in 1907, at 18 Cobden Court, in East Cleveland.

1907 and Cobden Court in East Cleveland

We feel (as most readers can see when looking at our family history chapters), that using maps is essential for providing clarity about where our various ancestors lived during certain historical periods. We believe that these maps must be created as close as possible to the time period when these ancestors lived, because they reflect more clearly how these ancestors experienced their world. And yet.. sometimes city administrators and city planners make our lives more complicated. Such is the case with the city of Cleveland in 1906.

“Cleveland’s street names historically denoted famous persons, Native American words or names, or regional geographic entities to mark routes, thoroughfares, and residential avenues. Examples include St. Clair Ave., named for Northwest Territory governor Arthur St. Clair (1734-1818), and the many downtown streets representing the Great Lakes, such as Erie St. (E. 9th), Superior Ave., Ontario Ave., and Huron Rd. Michigan Ave. was vacated for the Terminal Tower [Transportaion] Complex.

On 6 March 1906, the Cleveland City Council adopted a numerical system for street names, separating the east and west enumerated streets following a line of demarcation through downtown and Public Square, outward to the (1906) city limits. Effective 1 Dec. 1906, the new grid system for Cleveland’s fan-shaped street layout went into effect. Although many roads retained their original names outside of the city limits, some Cuyahoga County municipalities carried over the numeric designations as their own…”

Margaret Hart in the Cleveland, Ohio, City Directory for 1907.

Thus, in more direct terms, this created chaos for future researchers (in our present era). We were able to determine that the location we have circled on the above map, indicates where Margaret lived at the end of her life. It was based upon the above entry found in the Cleveland, Ohio, City Directory for 1907.

Margaret (Nicholson) Patton Hart’s April 30, 1908 death record as found in the Cuyahoga County Death Record Index.

Margaret (Nicholson) Patton Hart died on April 30, 1908. She had lived well into a new century. Like her husband Hugh, she died of lung fever, or now since this was the 20th century, it was recorded as pneumonia. She was about 63 years old.

After a life of much hard work, she had crossed an ocean, raised several children, and out-lived two husbands. She may have occasionally missed the beauty of her Irish homeland, but it is not for us to know. The poem which follows, by William Butler Yeats, captures the peace of the Irish countryside —

The Upper Lake at Killarney [Ireland], Tuck & Sons postcard from 1907. (Image courtesy of Irish Postcards).

The Lake Isle of Innisfree, by William Butler Yeats

I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,
And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made;
Nine bean-rows will I have there, a hive for the honey-bee,
And live alone in the bee-loud glade.

And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow,
Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings;
There midnight’s all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow,
And evening full of the linnet’s wings.

I will arise and go now, for always night and day
I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;
While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey,
I hear it in the deep heart’s core.

In the next chapter, we are going to learn much more about the interesting and complicated daughter named Sabina, because she carries the family line forward. (13)

Following are the footnotes for the Primary Source Materials,
Notes, and Observations

What’s In A Name? Quite A Bit, Apparently.

(1) — three records

Patton Name Meaning
https://www.familysearch.org/en/surname?surname=PATTON
Note: For the text.

The National Gallery of Ireland
Scenes From the Life of Saint Patrick
by Adriaen Collaert, 1603
https://www.nationalgallery.ie/art-and-artists/highlights-collection/scenes-life-saint-patrick
Note: For the St. Patrick artwork. “The Latin inscription, which translates as ‘P.S. greatly wishes an increase of Catholic faith and spiritual grace to the Senate and people of the fair city of Dublin in Ireland’, indicates that it was published to encourage Dublin citizens in their faith. It can be seen as part of a wide cultural movement which aimed to promote and further the aims of Catholic Ireland.”

Pat Pat
Patton Name Meaning and Origin
Home › Blog › Baby Names › Patton
https://www.patpat.com/blogs/baby-names/patton?srsltid=AfmBOoriGrFKBO4cJXeQMqLslIwtgSjJwbzrA4GFmnmUFTNFgnpjuHjg
Note: For the information and text.

And Then There Was An Gorta Mór, or The Great Hunger

(2) — two records

Teach Democracy
The Potato Famine and Irish Immigration to America
https://teachdemocracy.org/online-lesson/the-potato-famine-and-irish-immigration-to-america/
Note: For the text.

Steerage Emigrants,
[print after] Arthur Boyd Houghton, 1870
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steerage#/media/File:”Steerage_Emigrants”_(The_Graphic)_MET_MM15333.jpg
Note: For the illustration of Steerage Immigrants, circa 1870.

Hugh Patton, An Irish Immigrant

(3) — one record

Hugh Patton
Migration – Ohio, County Naturalization Records, 1800-1977
[Declarations of Aliens]: Cuyahoga. Declarations of Intention May 1, 1873–Oct 12, 1874
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QGR2-DSFN?lang=en
Book page: 379, Digital page: 196/294, Right page, lower entry.
Notes: His application date is May 18, 1874. He states that he entered the United States in March 1859. 

Did They Live Once in Syracuse, New York?

(4) — three records

Digital Commonwealth
Boston Public Library > Norman B. Leventhal Map & Education Center Collection > Urban Maps
Birds Eye View of Syracuse, New York: 1874
by Howard Heston Bailey
https://www.digitalcommonwealth.org/search/commonwealth:x633fd56n
Note: For the map image.

Baby Hugh Patton’s birth and death certificate, February 23, 1909.

Hugh Patton, aka Baby Patton
(The grandson of Irish immigrant Hugh Patton)
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/161494979/hugh-patton
Note 1: This death record for the grandson Hugh Patton (born and died on February 23, 1909), was filled out by the boy’s father William H. Patton, the son of Hugh Patton.
Note 2: William H. Patton is probably the oldest son of Irish immigrant Hugh Patton. William states on this document that he/himself was born in Syracuse, New York. Therefore, we find this record valuable for proving that the two older children of this family (Margaret and William), were born in Syracuse, New York.

Mary A. (Patton) Roediger 1911 marriage document.

Mary A Patton [Margaret]
Cuyahoga County, Ohio, U.S., Marriage Records and Indexes, 1810-1973  
1901-1925 >> Reel 043 Marriage Records 1911 Apr – 1911 Nov
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/1876/records/2375369
Book page: 54, Digital page: 554/1000, top entry.
Note 1: Mary has made herself younger on this document than she actually is.
Note 2: For her place of birth she wrote: New York, City — which looks a bit suspicious. The word ‘City’ looks to be an afterthought. We have no evidence that they lived in New York City, so she was likely born in Syracuse.

Rivals: Cleveland versus Newburgh!

(5) — seven records

Ruderman | RareMaps.com
Stringer’s Map of Cleveland and Suburbs, circa 1873
https://raremaps.com/gallery/detail/73942/stringers-map-of-cleveland-and-suburbs-1873
Note: For the hand-colored map image.

Case Western Reserve University
Encyclopedia of Cleveland History
Cleveland: An Historical Overview
https://case.edu/ech/cleveland-historical-overview
Note: For the text.

Case Western Reserve University
Encyclopedia of Cleveland History
Newburgh Township
https://case.edu/ech/articles/n/newburgh-township
Note: For the text.

Newburgh
Transcription by Betty Ralph, from the 1893 book,
Memorial to the Pioneer Women
of the Western Reserve
https://usgenwebsites.org/OHCuyahoga/Cities/NewburghTwpPWWR.pdf
Note: For the text.

Cleveland Area History
Cleveland in the 1870s
Our city through the eyes of Otto Bacher
Edited by Christopher Busta-Peck
http://www.clevelandareahistory.org/2010/08/cleveland-in-1870s.html?m=0
Note: For the scenic sketches by artist Otto Bacher of several 1870s Cleveland, Ohio neighborhoods.

Newburgh Heights, Ohio
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newburgh_Heights,_Ohio
Note: For the data.

Defunct townships of Cuyahoga County, Ohio
Newburgh Township

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defunct_townships_of_Cuyahoga_County,_Ohio
Note: For the reference.

Cleveland is a City of Neighborhoods

(6) — eight records

Cleveland Public Library Digital Collection
Atlases, Maps and Park Plans of Cleveland and Cuyahoga County
The Only Correct Map of the City of Cleveland, 1879
https://cplorg.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p4014coll24/id/51/rec/3
Note: For the map image designating the two Wards [8 and 18] which this family lived in while Hugh Patton was alive.

The Center For Community Solutions
Cleveland is a city of neighborhoods…and of wards
by Alex Dorman
https://www.communitysolutions.com/resources/cleveland-is-a-city-of-neighborhoods-and-of-wards
Note: For the text.
and
Signal Cleveland
Understanding Cleveland’s Ward Boundaries (Explainer)
What is a ward?
https://signalcleveland.org/understanding-clevelands-ward-boundaries-explainer/
Note: For the text.

(via Google inquiry — www.google.com)

1867
Hugh Patten
U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2469/records/293689414
Note 1: In 1867, this Hugh Patton is living near Spruce Street.
Note 2: This could be our ancestor, but, there is another Hugh Patten / Patton living in the area, so we are cautious.

David Rumsey Map Collection
Atlas of Cuyahoga County, Ohio,
from Actual Surveys by and Under the Directions of D. J. Lake (1874)
https://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/view/all/what/Atlas+Map/where/Cleveland+(Ohio)?sort=pub_list_no_initialsort,pub_date,pub_list_no,series_no
and
Plate 33, the 8th Ward of Cleveland
https://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~359127~90125980:8th-Ward-of-Cleveland-?sort=pub_list_no_initialsort,pub_date,pub_list_no,series_no&mi=8&trs=119&qvq=w4s:/what/Atlas+Map/where/Cleveland+(Ohio);sort:pub_list_no_initialsort,pub_date,pub_list_no,series_no;lc:RUMSEY~8~1
Note: For the map image.

Hugh Patton
U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995
Wiggins and Weaver´s Directory of the City of Cleveland
and Adjoining Towns, 1870-71

https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2469/records/1487455067?tid=&pid=&queryId=20af1f19-c07e-4f6c-8a4c-1e62a792c56d&_phsrc=ggn17&_phstart=successSource
Book page: 229, Digital page 239/358, Right column, 10th entry from the bottom.
Note: In 1870, he is listed as a Laborer, and with his residence at 100 Spruce.

What Does That First Cleveland Census Tell Us?

(7) — fifteen records

1870
Hugh Paton
Census – United States, Census, 1870
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M6KL-GLX?lang=en
Ohio, 1870 federal census: population schedules: Cuyahoga. Census 1870 | Cleveland. Census 1870
Book page: 33, Digital page: 57/458, Lines 24 through 30.
Note 1: They are living at 100 Spruce in the 8th Ward.
Note 2: Two individuals, Margaret (age 14), and Bridget (age 11) are recorded in this Census as residing with this family. However, we believe that they are likely related, but not the children of Hugh Patton and Margaret Nicholson.
Note 3: Sabina, as the youngest, is noted as being 6/12 months, additionally, her birth month is noted as the previous November 1869.

William H. Patton
Death – Ohio, Deaths, 1908-1953
Birth: (Likely) August 26, 1865, in Syracuse, New York
Death: October 8, 1933
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X6QX-2GP?lang=en
Digital page: 2,275/3,230
Note 1: William’s birth year on this document is not correct. The 1870 and 1880 Cleveland censuses for him family require an 1865 birth year, since they were already living in Cleveland, Ohio. Therefore, his actual birthdate may be August 26, but not in the year 1871.
Note 2: As per the death record for his infant son Hugh Patton, (who was named after his same-named paternal grandfather, but unnamed on his death certificate), this father William Patton records that he/himself was born in Syracuse, New York.
See this link:
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/161494979/hugh-patton

William H. Patton 1933 Cuyahoga County death certificate.

Mary A. Roediger
U.S., Find a Grave Index, 1600s-Current
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60525/records/139492288
and
Mary A. Patton Roediger
Birth: October 17, 1869
Death: February 3, 1944
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/174621260/mary-a.-roediger
Note: For the data.

John Hugh Patton
U.S., Find a Grave Index, 1600s-Current 
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60525/records/50147419?tid=&pid=&queryId=adf10e2b-e5f2-4de8-8091-69819a4b936e&_phsrc=WPW14&_phstart=successSource
and
John Hugh Patton
Birth: November 18, 1876
Death: July 25, 1960
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/73543143/john-hugh-patton
Note: For the data.

A 20th Century postcard showing the working aspects of the Superior Viaduct circa 1910, long after the Patton family had moved on from the neighborhood. (via Google image search)

Case Western Reserve University
Encyclopedia of Cleveland History
Superior Viaduct
https://case.edu/ech/articles/s/superior-viaduct

The Irish in Cleveland: A History in Photos
by Laura DeMarco, The Plain Dealer
https://www.cleveland.com/entertainment/2016/03/the_irish_in_cleveland_a_visua.html
Note: For the color postcard image.
and
Cleveland Historical
Irishtown Bend, Excavating an Irish Immigrant’s Life
by Zoe Sizemore
https://clevelandhistorical.org/items/show/927
Note: For the text, photo, and map of Irishtown Bend.

Cleveland Historical
Whiskey Island (It’s Actually a Peninsula)
by Michael Rotman
https://clevelandhistorical.org/items/show/68
Note: For the text and the map of Whiskey Island.

Cleveland Historical
Irishtown Bend, Excavating an Irish Immigrant’s Life
by Zoe Sizemore
https://clevelandhistorical.org/items/show/927
Note: For the pull-quote.

The Irish in Cleveland: A History in Photos
by Laura DeMarco, The Plain Dealer
https://www.cleveland.com/entertainment/2016/03/the_irish_in_cleveland_a_visua.html
Note: For the text.

1874
Hugh Patton
U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995
Business Directory, Cleveland City Directory for 1874
Ohio > Cleveland > 1874 > Cleveland, Ohio, City Directory, 1874
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2469/records/336227135?tid=&pid=&queryId=c12b4689-c3dd-45aa-9677-4c2b56d71b8d&_phsrc=tCp74&_phstart=successSource
Book page: 485, Digital page: 270/438, last entry on the right page.
Note 1: The entry reads as — Patton, Hugh, lab. r. Nbgh. This describes him as a laborer who resides in Newburgh (Ward 18).

Elizabeth Street in Newburgh

(8) — seven records

File: Cleveland Rolling Mills — Newburgh.jpg
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cleveland_Rolling_Mills_-_Newburgh.jpg
Notes: Extracted from a lithograph titled Cleveland, O.:
1885 drawing of the Newburgh Works of the Cleveland Rolling Mill 
The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs:
Print Collection, The New York Public Library. (1885).

Wikipedia
Cleveland Rolling Mill
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cleveland_Rolling_Mill
Note: For the reference.

A History of the City of Cleveland
It’s Settlement, Rise and Progress, 1796-1896

by James Harrison Kennedy, 1896
https://archive.org/details/historyofcityofc00kennrich/page/368/mode/2up
Book page: 369, Digital page: 447/685, Right page, lower portion.
Note: For the text.

Case Western Reserve University
Encyclopedia of Cleveland History
Newburgh Township
https://case.edu/ech/articles/n/newburgh-township
Note: For the text.

The Monmouthshire origins of the Jones brothers are found here:
Newburgh In Cleveland Township In Early Years
by S.J. Kelley.
(These articles appeared in the Cleveland Plain Dealer in 1943 and are transcribed here by Laura Hine).
https://usgenwebsites.org/OHCuyahoga/Cities/Newburgh%20SJ%20Kelly%20articles.pdf
Note: For the text and Monmouthshire reference.

Alte Nationalgalerie, Berlin
The Iron Rolling Mill (Modern Cyclopes)
by Adolph Menzel
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Adolph_Menzel_-_Eisenwalzwerk_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg
Note: For the 1875 Rolling Mill painting.

1875
Record of Deaths: Cuyahoga. Death Records 1868–1879
Owen Patten and Thomas Patten 1875 deaths
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89ZR-V6Y9?view=index&personArk=/ark:/61903/1:1:F6VW-MTT&action=view&cc=2128172&lang=en&groupId=
Book page: 213, Digital page: 270/386, Upper portion of the left page, last two entries.
Note: Both children died of Scarlet Fever — Owen in October 1875; Thomas in December 1875.

The 1880s, The Late Victorian Era

(9) — seven records

1880
Hugh Patton
Death – Ohio, County Death Records, 1840-2001
Record of Deaths: Cuyahoga. Death Records 1878–1884
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F6FP-PRC?lang=en
Book page: 44, Digital page: 138/397, Entry 46.
Note 1: This record has an error in it. His death date is recorded as February 20, 1880. The other two records below state that he actually died one month earlier, on January 21, 1880.
Note 2: It records that he died of lung fever (pneumonia).
Note 3: Born in Ireland, his parents are named Mike Patton and Mary.
and
Hugh Patten
Death – Ohio, County Death Records, 1840-2001
Cleveland. Cemetery Records 1865–1873,
Death Certificates 1865–1873, 1880–1884, 1873–1879
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89ZR-L83Q?view=index&personArk=/ark:/61903/1:1:F6NX-4WY&action=view&cc=2128172&lang=en&groupId=
Digital page: 598/1,038, Entry line 180.
Note: His death date is recorded as January 21, 1880.
and
Hugh Patton
Census – United States Census (Mortality Schedule), 1850-1880
Ohio. Census 1850–1880
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:6TMR-BC2Y?lang=en
Digital page: 318/433, Entry line 31.
Note 1: His death date is recorded as January 21, 1880.
Note 2: There is a possible error in this census file —The record indicates that he had only been a resident of the county for 3 years, when actually he had been there many years longer than that. The only way that 3 years residency is plausible, is if his 1874 application for Naturalization took three years to process, and was approved circa 1877. (We do not have a record of the approval). Therefore, 1877 until his death in January 1880 equals approximately three years — which could be this calculation?

1880
Margaret Patton
Census – United States, Census, 1880
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M8MS-SWG?lang=en
Book page: 63, Digital page: 781/799, Lines 5 through 10.
Note 1: Hugh has already passed on by the time of this census.
Note 2: The children are: William, Mary, Sabina, Katherine, and John.
Note 3: Every one of their neighbors on Elizabeth Street are Irish.

1880
Cleveland Public Library Digital Gallery
City Directories of Cleveland
Cleveland City Directory 1879-1880
https://cplorg.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16014coll29/id/72854
and
https://cplorg.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16014coll29/id/73225
Book page: 388, Digital page: 377/688, Left Column, about 20 entries from the bottom of the page.
Note 1: This directory has catalogued data through June 1880, even though Hugh died unexpectedly in January 1880.
Note 2: There are two relevant entries for — Patton, Hugh. He is noted as a laborer, and they are living on the north side of 2021 Elizabeth Street.

1882
Margaret Patton
U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995
Cleveland, Ohio, City Directory, 1882
Ohio > Cleveland > 1882
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2469/records/277223566?tid=&pid=&queryId=47290174-5299-482c-ae97-a5acb45ae92d&_phsrc=ggn25&_phstart=successSource
Book page: 419, Digital page: 204/389, Right column, 14th entry from the page bottom.
Note 1: His wife Margaret is listed twice as being his widow, once as Margeret and once more as Mary, with both names at the same address.
Note 2: Example — Patton, Margaret, wid. Hugh, r. Elizabeth, nr. city limits. These abbreviations mean that she is a widow, she lives on Elizabeth Street, near the Cleveland city limits.

Making Ends Meet

(10) — three records

Washerwoman
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washerwoman
Note: For the text.

The Library of Nineteenth-Century Photography
Washerwoman
http://www.19thcenturyphotos.com/’Washerwoman’-121907.htm
and

Pinterest
Vintage Laundry
https://www.pinterest.com/bonnyrigggal/vintage-laundry/
Note: For the two example images of 19th century laundress photographs.

Owen Hart, the Man from County Meath

(11) — eleven records

Etsy
Antique Original Victorian Marriage Certificate
Lithographic Print with Wisteria, Roses, and Pansies
https://www.etsy.com/listing/1060516216/antique-original-victorian-nos-marriage
Note: For the certificate image.

1882
Owen Hart
Cuyahoga County, Ohio, U.S., Marriage Records and Indexes, 1810-1973
1876-1900 > Reel 012 Marriage Records 1881 Jan – 1882 Nov
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/1876/records/1010227
Book page: 33, Digital page: 604/1,123
Note: January 23,1882 marriage application to Margaret Nicholson.
And
Margaret Nicholson
Marriage – Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-2016
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:ZZ12-CWT2?lang=en
Book page: 33, Digital page: 60/330, Right page, second entry.
Note: It is curious (?) That Margaret used her maiden name.

Owen Hart
https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/person/tree/112198614/person/180098450118/facts
Note: For the data.

1833
Own Hart [Owen Hart]
Meath > Bohermeen > 1832-1880
Ireland, Catholic Parish Registers, 1655-1915
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/61039/records/4353292?tid=&pid=&queryId=4c3ad64c-f26c-4349-9167-5d16f5f7bcbc&_phsrc=yNG1&_phstart=successSource
Digital page: 12/142
Note 1: His baptism date is December 13, 1833, however, other records list his birth year as 1832.
Note 2: His parents are Pat Hart and Bridget Fullan.

1851
Owen Hart
Ireland, Prison Registers, 1790-1924
Cork > Cork County > 1849-1852
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/61943/records/69577
Digital page: 221/394, Entry 2360 (8th from the page top)
Note 1: He was imprisoned in May 1851 for vagrancy at age 19, and discharged May 27, 1851. Released to the care of the Honorable Richard Hare.
Note 2: This records gives him an 1832 birth year and lists his age as 19.

1865
Owen Hart
New York, U.S., Arriving Passenger and Crew Lists (including Castle Garden and Ellis Island), 1820-1957
Date > 1865 > December > 06 > Hibernia
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/7488/records/5831250
Digital page: 6/9, 15th entry from the page bottom.
Note 1: The ship name is the Hibernia.
Note 2: He is listed as 40 years old [should be about 32 or 33?], a farmer, and traveling with: his wife Mary Fagan (45), and their sons Bryan (7), and William (5).
and
Passenger Ships and Images
Hibernia
H > Hibernia > 1865-1868
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/8944/records/152
Note: For the ship image.

1870
Owen Hart
1870 United States Federal Census
Ohio > Cuyahoga > Newburgh
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/7163/records/40632645
Book page: 56, Digital page: 56/157, Lines 12 through 16.
Note 1: There are several people in the household, Owen 60*, Mary 50, Thomas 28, Bryan 15, John 10 (ages =/- to immigration doc)
*He should be listed as 38 to 45?
Note 2: They live in Newburgh and he works ‘the Rolling Mill’.

Own Hart as listed in the Cleveland City Directory for 1876.

1876
Business Directory, Cleveland City Directory for 1876
Ohio > Cleveland > 1876 > Cleveland, Ohio, City Directory, 1876
Owen Hart
U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2469/records/309469046
Book page: 266, Digital page: 134/435, Left page, right column at top.
Note: For the data.

1880
Owen Hart
1880 United States Federal Census
Ohio > Cuyahoga > Cleveland > 053
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/6742/records/23181802
Book page: 56, Digital page: 56/70, Lines 42 through 46.
Note 1: His wife has likely died. 
Note 2: They are boarders in the home of the Hugh Graham family.
Owen 50*, Patrick 29, Brian 24, John 20, Michael 6 (whose son?)
* How does he get to be 10 years younger?

Two Coming And One Going

(12) — five records

Thomas O. Hart
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/158633329/thomas-o.-hart
Note: For the data.

Helen M Hart Douthitt
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/36129019/helen-m-douthitt
Note: For the data.

Parents
What Are Irish Twins?
https://www.parents.com/irish-twins-8605851
Note: For the text.

Owen Hart
Ohio, U.S., Select County Death Records,1840-1908
Death Register > 1892-1898
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/62075/records/169120
Digital page: 388/993, Entry 5621 at page middle.
Note: Owen’s death date is recorded as December 3, 1894.
and
Owen Hart
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/170687837/owen-hart
Note: Owen’s death date is recorded as December 5, 1894.

1907 and Cobden Court in East Cleveland

(13) — thirteen records

Cleveland Public Library Digital Collection
Atlases, Maps and Park Plans of Cleveland and Cuyahoga County
The Only Correct Map of the City of Cleveland, 1879
https://cplorg.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p4014coll24/id/51/rec/3
Note: For the map image designating where Margaret (Nicholson) Patton Hart lived at the end of her life.

Cleveland Public Library Digital Collection
Atlases, Maps and Park Plans of Cleveland and Cuyahoga County
Map of the City of Cleveland for 1899-1900
https://cplorg.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p4014coll24/id/61/rec/1
Note: For the map image.

Margaret Hart
U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995
Ohio > Cleveland > 1907 > Cleveland, Ohio, City Directory, 1907
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2469/records/1112727577
Margaret Hart listing: Book page: 645, Digital page: 332/1127
Index of Abbreviations: Book page: 27. Digital page: 15/1127
Note: wid Owen r 18 Cobdeu ct EC. (This indicates that she is a widow of Owen Hart, and this is her residence — 18 Cobdeu [Cobden] Court in East Cleveland.

Margaret Hart
Ohio, U.S., Select County Death Records,1840-1908
Death Register > 1908
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/62075/records/194540
Digital page: 138/301, Entry 7 from the top of the page.

Greetings From Cleveland postcard, circa 1908

Fresh Water Cleveland Postcard Archives
#PFTL: “Greetings from Cleveland, Ohio” Part 3: The Variants
Greetings From Cleveland, circa 1908
https://www.freshwatercleveland.com/features/PFTL-Greetings-From-Cleveland-Ohio-Part-3-The-Variants_111025.aspx
Note: For the postcard image.

Case Western Reserve University
Encyclopedia of Cleveland History
Street Names
https://case.edu/ech/articles/s/street-names
Note: For the text.

Margaret Hart
U.S., Find a Grave Index, 1600s-Current
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60525/records/136660724
and
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/170687051/margaret-hart
Note: Calvary Cemetary in Cleveland.

The Upper Lake of  Killarney (1907 postcard)
https://www.tuckdbpostcards.org/items/130709-the-upper-lake-killarney
Note: The Tuck Postcard Database is found at: https://www.tuckdbpostcards.org/places It states that this series dates from 1907 and were issued as a set of six.
and this was sourced at:
Irish Postcards
https://irishpostcards.wordpress.com/
Note: For the Tuck & Sons 1907 Postcard image.

William Butler Yeats, circa 1911, by George Charles Beresford.
(Image courtesy of the National Portrait Gallery, London, England via Wikimedia Commons).

W. B. Yeats
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W._B._Yeats
Note: For his portrait and his biography.

The Lake Isle of Innisfree (poem)
by William Butler Yeats
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lake_Isle_of_Innisfree
Note: For the text of the poem. “The Lake Isle of Innisfree exemplifies the style of the Celtic Revival: it is an attempt to create a form of poetry that was Irish in origin rather than one that adhered to the standards set by English poets and critics.”

The Caswell / Patton Line, A Narrative — One

This is Chapter One of Three, where we commence with a new family line descended from immigrants from the United Kingdom. This chapter is about the Caswell family who hail from New York state.

It’s Not Something You Soon Forget — Even Half A Century Later

Sometime in the 1970s, our mother Marguerite (Gore) Bond walked down the hill behind her home in Ohio, and looked out over the meandering streams and tributaries of Silver Creek. Her mother’s farm was the abutting property, and this particular section of the farm was a mosaic of serpentine creeks where water flowed over pebbles which had been there since the end of the last ice age.

As she gazed out over the wetlands, there amongst the crystal clear water, she spied several bright green plants. Surprisingly, she plucked a few leaves from one and popped them into her mouth. It was watercress. (It is not often that one sees their mother forage for some salad fixins’, but here we were). She explained that she had forgotten that these plants were placed here by her mother Lulu (DeVoe) Gore. It was the first time we had tasted this leafy green, and we remarked upon its sharp peppery bite.

Today, those ancient creeks don’t truly exist as they were half a century ago. Soon after our brief foraging adventure, the creek was partially dammed, to create a lake. The stream beds might still be there, but now they are quietly sleeping.

When we observe small coincidences, sometimes they blend to create a more compelling family narrative. There are two aspects of that for this family line. The first aspect is what is considered to be an essential ingredient for British high-tea finger sandwiches (you simply cannot get more British than this…), so you likely guessed it, watercress. (1)

The First Aspect: The Caswell Surname in the United Kingdom

Ancestry.com tells us that Caswell is an English surname, “habitational name from any of the places in Dorset, Northamptonshire, and Somerset named Caswell, from Old English cærse ‘(water)cress’ + well (a) ‘spring, stream’.”

Additionally, we learned from from Surname DB, (The Internet Surname Database), that “During the Middle Ages, when it was becoming more usual for people to migrate from their birthplace to seek work elsewhere, they would often adopt the placename as a means of identification, thus resulting in the wide dispersal of the name. The records of the christenings of two sons of one William Caswell in St. James’, Garlickhythe, London are as follows: Edmond Caswell on May 28th 1570 and Robert Caswell on May 6th 1571. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Basilia de Caswella, which was dated 1165, in the ‘Pipe Rolls of Devonshire’, during the reign of King Henry II, known as ‘The Builder of Churches’, 1154 – 1189. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as [a] Poll Tax.” (2)

The Second Aspect: The Caswell Family of Jefferson County, New York

In all the years we have been researching our family lines, through some serendipity* and a bit of luck, we can come across something remarkable. You may have noticed that our mother Marguerite, had the surname of Gore. We have written extensively about the Gore family, in The Gore Line, A Narrative — One through Eight. Our ancestors, Samuel Gore and Rebeckah (Barney) Gore lived with their family in Jefferson County, New York during the same period that the Caswell family lived there. They could have known each other, or more likely, they passed each other in town, not knowing that their family lines would eventually intersect in a still unfolding future. (*Serendipity means the ability to find valuable or agreeable things not sought for… See footnotes).

Map of New York Exhibiting the Post Offices, Post Roads, Canals, Rail Roads, etc.
by David H. Burr, as found in The American Atlas, 1839.
(Image courtesy of the David Rumsey Map Collection).

We will soon meet the Caswell family of Jefferson County, New York, but first, a short history about where they lived. (3)

Learning About The Thousand Islands

New York State has a northern border much of which it shares with the country of Canada. This border is defined significantly by the St. Lawrence River in an area frequently denoted as the Thousand Island area. The area of Jefferson County where the Caswell family lived, involved the communities of Clayton, Cape Vincent, and Lyme just to the west. The area was long known for agriculture and ship building.

Les Mille-Îles près de Gananoque (The Thousand Islands near Gananoque),
by John Herbert Caddy, 19th century. (Image courtesy of the Library and Archives Canada).
The Thousand Island area of the St. Lawrence River is adjacent to the area of New York where the Caswell family lived.

As pioneers relocated from the New England area, the attractiveness of land and new opportunities pulled people westward. “In 1799 there was a single log hut in the town, at French Creek (Clayton), probably that of some timber thieves, who plundered the frontier without restraint or limit during many years before any one appeared to show title… [The village of Clayton] was formerly called Cornelia, the post-office having been so named in 1823. In 1831 the name was changed to Clayton, which it has since retained. The first permanent settlement made within the present limits of the village was by General William H. Angel, in 1819.” (The History of Jefferson County)

Detail of the communities of Clayton, Cape Vincent, and Lyme in Jefferson County, New York.
As found in a foldout map from the New Topographical Atlas of Jefferson Co. New York
From Actual Surveys By S.N. & D.G. Beers
1864.
(Image courtesy of the David Rumsey Map Collection).

“The business facilities of Clayton are unsurpassed by any other village of like population in the State; and the abundance, cheapness, and quality of its domestic market make it desirable as a place of residence. Its delightful location, in close proximity to the Thousand Islands, on the St. Lawrence, and the reputation of the magnificent scenery surrounding the village on every hand, draw multitudes of tourists and visitors, who pronounce a summer stay at Clayton the height of enjoyment and repose. Here, within sight, are many of the beautiful isles forming that most wondrous of all archipelagos.” (The History of Jefferson County)

This area went through a great transformation during the 19th century, becoming a destination for wealthy New Yorkers who were seeking respite from the summer heat of New York City. “In 1872, George M. Pullman invited President Ulysses S. Grant to visit his small island during the reelection campaign, as well as several Civil War heroes including General Sheridan. When George Pullman originally created this summer residence, it wasn’t much more than a simple frame cottage and dock. But by 1872, he’d expanded his 5-acre island to include a much larger and nicer cottage where they could entertain, a massive boathouse, pumps, and an ice house… When President Grant and his entourage came, the Thousand Islands became a national event. The press touted the Thousand Islands as the place to summer for the rich and famous and common man alike.

19th Century postcard images from Tuck & Sons showing various scenes around Clayton, New York. (Please see the footnotes for details).

From 1872 until 1912 the Thousand Islands Gilded Age brought tens of thousands of visitors to the enchanting summer resort. Grand hotels popped up. The rich scooped up islands and built fancy mansions and castles they called cottages and hunting lodges. The middle class bought small parcels of land along the mainland and built simple cottages.” (Heroes, Heroines & History)

Despite the influx of wealth to the Thousand Island area, for our family, the benefits of the area’s Gilded Age economy didn’t seem to affect their lives as working people very much. It’s intriguing to observe that their lives continue apace, just as they had for many previous decades.

So, now that we know the local history, let’s meet the Anthony Brooks Caswell family. But first, we need to highlight something very important. (4)

Clues — Early in New York State?

Some family lines have many records, and some family lines do not. For the Caswell family, we have records for this generation, but for the generation preceding them — we only have clues. We are seeking some solid evidence, like a Will, a published family history, or perhaps a family bible, which may turn up in the future. Until these appear, we don’t like to speculate. We feel adamantly that it is quite important to find a something concrete and tangible as supporting evidence for the earlier generational lineage.

Let’s look at these clues…
The names of the male children in the Anthony Brooks and Caroline Caswell family have a unique resonance, and this has potential to lead to discoveries about the earlier generation of Caswell(s) that came from Connecticut to New York state. Many researchers online and in family trees have included some of this material, but they provide no evidence for parentage, nor birth records. What we would like to see is something that is more than a hunch, or a well-informed guess.

To that end, we have created a special footnotes section which covers this ‘evidence’ and presents what could end-up being a viable family history path for future research. Please see footnotes section number five, Clues — Early in New York State? (5)

The Family Patriarch, Anthony Brooks Caswell

As we inferred in the previous section, for this family line, we have only been able to verify records that go back to the mid-1840s. This means that this branch of the Caswell family is a bit of an enigma before then.

The life of Anthony Brooks Caswell and his wife Caroline Presley take place almost entirely within Clayton, Jefferson County, New York. Our Caswell ancestor was recorded by many name variations: A.B. Caswell, Anthony B. Caswell, Anthony Brooks Caswell, Brooks Caswell, and Brooks A. Caswell. It seems that he used the name Brooks Caswell as his communicative name for most of his local dealings, and variations of his full name for other, more official records such as this map below.

Clayton, Jefferson County, New York. As found in New Topographical Atlas of Jefferson Co. New York From Actual Surveys By S.N. & D.G. Beers 1864.
(Image courtesy of the David Rumsey Map Collection).

We do not have a record of his marriage to Caroline Presley. The first place we come across a record of their complete family is the 1850 United States Federal Census. Based upon the date of their oldest child (their son Gurdon) and his sister Almira, it is reasonable to assume that they were married circa 1844-1845. Their family continued to grow through the various decades.
*(Caroline’s maiden surname may have been Presbrey).

United States, Censuses for 1850, 1860, and 1870, Jefferson County, New York. (Please see the footnotes for comparative details).

The 1870 Census
This Census is the most complete one in terms of family information.
A.B. Caswell is 48 years old and working as a farmer. His wife Caroline at 47, is keeping house. Their children are Gurdon, a 24 year old school teacher, Mira (Almira) age 23, Florence age 18, Perry age 10, and John age 5.
Important note: Their son Perry, whose full name is actually Charles Perry Caswell, is the one through whom the family line is carried forward.

United States 1880 Census for Jefferson County, New York.

The 1880 Census
By this decade the United States Census was gathering more detailed information that researchers (like ourselves) just love finding. We learn from this document that A.B. Caswell was born in New York State, and that his parents are from Connecticut. Caroline’s parents are from Canada, but she also lists her birthplace as being in New York State.

Early in New York State
It is quite important to draw attention to the fact that A.B. Caswell’s parents were born in Connecticut, and that he was born in New York State. In our research on family lines, we frequently observe naming patterns in older generations, and in the case of the Caswell family, we did see couple of patterns that we have written a special highlight for in the footnotes. We want to capture this pattern / information in a way that may help resolve a mystery about the Caswell family before they lived in New York State. (Please see ______ in the footnotes).

Returning to this generation
Daughter Florence has left the home after the 1870 Federal Census to marry George Hart. Daughter Almira also leaves the home between the New York State Census of 1875, and the Federal Census of 1880 to marry James Gotham. Son Perry leaves the home between the New York State Census of 1875, and the Federal Census of 1880, because at 19, he is working as a farm laborer in the home of Silas Consanl in Clayton, Jefferson County. (See footnotes).

A selection of vintage family silhouettes from the era. Please note: These are not our family members and are for presentation only. (Image courtesy of Homes & Antiques).

A summation for these Caswell family members, both parents and children, follows below, except for the son Charles Perry Caswell, who will be written about separately (since he leads the family line forward).

Anthony Brooks Caswell
and Caroline (Presley) Caswell
He was born, circa 1822 in New York State — died, November 30, 1898 in Clayton, Jefferson County, New York. He married Caroline Presley, circa 1844-1845 most likely in New York. She was born in New York State circa 1823 — died, date and location unknown.

Caroline (Presley) Caswell
Anything we know about Caroline has been gathered from Census records. We believe that she was born circa 1822, or 1823. Her parents are from Canada, and her maiden surname may have been Presbrey. During the Revolutionary War, many residents who were loyal to the British Crown fled to Canada, which would have been somewhat easy to do if her parents lived in New England. (We just don’t know for sure). On the 1880 Census, she states that they are from Canada.

Gurdon Caswell
He was born in 1846, Jefferson County, New York — died, December 31, 1896, same location. It appears that Gurdon never married, and was a schoolteacher starting in the late 1860s. It also seems that he lived with his parents his entire life.

Almira ‘Myra’ (Caswell) Hart
She was born June 29, 1847, in Lyme, Jefferson County, New York — died, June 18, 1935 in Blissfield, Lenawee County, Michigan. She married George Hart.

Florence C. (Caswell) Gotham
She was born in 1853, likely in Jefferson County, New York — died, November 8, 1883, same location. She married James Gotham.

John Henry Caswell
He was born January 1, 1864 in St. Lawrence, Jefferson County, New York — died January 1, 1951 in South Euclid, Cuyahoga County, Ohio. He married two times: First to Lillian P. ‘Lydia’ Caswell, and second to Alice (Twitchell) Caswell. Comment: It is rather remarkable to observe that he was both born on and died on the date of January 1. (6)

Example of a 19th century Limn Kiln. (Image courtesy of Look and Learn History Picture Archive).

Brooks Was a Farmer, a Lime Burner, and a Schoolteacher

The very few records that exist for A.B. Caswell indicate that he was a farmer for most of his life. However, there are a couple of interesting things that emerge during the decade of the 1860s. The first is that he is listed in the Northern New York Business Directory 1867-68 (Waite Brothers & Co. Watertown, New York, Compilers), as: Caswell A.B. lime burner.

Remember that the area of New York where they lived was on the St. Lawrence River. The memory of this area having been heavily attacked by British naval forces during the War of 1812 was not that old. “In June 1863, the nearby Village of Watertown had been attacked, so in response, in 1864, Jefferson County held a draft to create a Civil War roster to fulfill a required quota.” We do not know if Brooks was actually mustered as a soldier, but the fact that he was also a lime burner could have had some importance. He may have had this additional skill available several years before he was listed in the 1867-68 business directory. (nygenweb, See footnotes).

It turns out that being a lime burner was a real thing. From the website, The French Canadian Genealogist, we learned about “The chaufournier, or lime burner, was a lime kiln operator. In French, the lime kiln is called a four à chaux. In the construction of buildings with very thick walls that were meant to be resistant to gunfire or cannonballs, the mason had to bind the stones to each other with a mortar made of sand and cement. 

This mortar made of limestones was baked in a kiln at more than 800°C by the limeburner, day and night, for seven or eight days. The secret to success was producing a progressive fire which would start to make the stones crack. Once that happened, the limeburner would accelerate the fire and maintain it at its maximum to reduce the stones to powder. He knew the baking was done when the stones turned the colour of sulfur. At this stage, the limeburner took the resulting hard cake of quicklime (calcium oxide) and added it to water. It would immediately react producing a shower of caustic specks of slaked lime (calcium hydroxide). The crumbly grains were then crushed into lime powder and that was then added to sand to make mortar.” (The French Canadian Genealogist)

Vintage engraving of a Victorian era school classroom, from Leisure Hour, 1872. (Image courtesy of iStock).

A.B. Caswell is also listed as a school teacher on the 1880 Census. (Probably at that point in life he was tired of the manual labor involved in being a farmer and also a lime burner). His listed profession, and that of his son Gurdon, tells us that we can infer that there was some level of education within this family line. It is not that often that we see the occupation of school teacher being listed on Census forms during this period, or any earlier period for that matter. (7)

How Do You Acquire a Name Like ‘Commodore’?

The son Charles Perry Caswell was known by many names, which required much diligence on our part to sort through his rather complex history. Throughout his lifetime he is recorded as: Perry Caswell, C. Perry Caswell, Com. P. Caswell, Commodore P. Caswell, Commodore Perry Caswell, C. P. Caswell, Charles P. Caswell, and Charles Perry Caswell.

To be very clear right here at the beginning, this ancestor was never a real Commodore. This was an honorific name bestowed upon him (we are not sure exactly how, or by whom at this point), but there was already a tradition to do nicknames like this in that era.

Commodore As A Nickname, i.e. ‘Commodore’ Perry Caswell

“Use of the term commodore dates from 1775 in the then–Continental Navy, the predecessor of the modern U.S. Navy, when it was established (but not used) as a courtesy title reserved for captains in command of a fleet or squadron… Today, it is no longer a specific rank within active-duty or reserve forces or in the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps or NOAA Corps, but it remains in use as an honorary title within the U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard…” (Wikipedia)

Oliver Hazard Perry
Oliver Hazard Perry became a massive national hero and household name in the 19th century due to his decisive victory at the Battle of Lake Erie in 1813. Parents in the 1800s admired his leadership and naval success, leading them to give their sons the title ‘Commodore’ alongside the surname.

Upper right: ‘Commodore’ Cornelius Vanderbilt was an American business magnate who built his wealth in railroads and shipping. He was known as ‘Commodore’, but this nickname was truly a very popular honorific which was bestowed upon him in that era. Center image: C. Vanderbilt, the Hudson River steamer owned by Cornelius Vanderbilt. At bottom: A selection of other businessmen known to have had the same ‘Commodore’ nickname. (Please see the footnotes).

‘Commodore’ was used as a grand, aspirational nickname for boys in the 19th century, alongside others like General, King, and Prince. It gained prominence as a title for, and nickname of, New York business tycoon Cornelius Vanderbilt, who earned it for dominating steamboat and rail industries in the mid-19th century. (Google) (8)

Perry Went From New York to Ohio

We are not sure what the trajectory was that brought him from the farmlands of New York (as shown on the 1880 Census), to the thriving port city of Cleveland, Ohio in the later part of that same decade. We have many records for him during this period.

December 16, 1888 marriage document for C. Perry Caswell and Binia A. Patton, in Cuyahoga County, Ohio. Note that the left portion of this document is their actual marriage date.

Charles Perry Caswell was married two times, with his first marriage being to Binia A. Patton. They married in December 1888 in Cuyahoga County, Ohio. They had a son, whom they gave his same name to, (so now there was a Perry Sr., and a Perry Jr.). We will write about extensively about this marriage when we cover the Caswell family again in chapter three. (9)

The Cleveland Business Directories of the 1880s and 1890s

In the 1880s —
Charles Perry, his brother John Henry, and their father Anthony Brooks Caswell are all found in Cleveland Business directories starting in the late 1880s. From what we can ascertain, it appears that Perry was there first. In 1885, he is listed as a being a Guard at the Work House. Since we know that five years earlier he had been listed in the 1880 Census for Jefferson County, New York as a farm laborer, his relocation to Cleveland and employment as a working class individual makes sense. It appears he was trying to change his life, and trying on different things to see what fits.

By 1888, he was employed as a Clerk, but through 1895 he is also noted for this occupation at several locations. In 1888, we noticed that his younger brother John Henry was listed in the same 1888 Directory, being employed as a clerk at the National Bank of Commerce. This Directory further states that he and his brother both ‘board at 105 Clinton’. This is the address where Perry was living when he married Binia A. Patton.

Antique postcard image of Public Square, Cleveland, Ohio in the late 19th century. (Image courtesy of Facebook).

Records for the 1890 Federal Census were destroyed in a massive fire, so that Census and all of the helpful information it could provide, is just not available. That is why we thank our lucky stars for business directory publications from the 1890s.

Brooks A. Caswell and C. Perry Caswell as listed in the Cleveland City Directory for 1892.

In the 1890s —
A key question for us was, when did the mother Caroline Caswell pass on? We ask this because her husband (and the patriarch for this family) Anthony Brooks Caswell, is found in 1892 to be living in Cleveland at 315 Washington, and working as a Bookkeeper. In 1894, Anthony Brooks is found at 10 Silk, listed as a Teacher, and then in 1895, he is again listed as a Bookkeeper.

During this decade, this family was becoming much less centered on Jefferson County, New York. We do not know if Caroline lived in Cleveland, but likely she did not, because her name was not found in any of these directories. Their son Gurdon continued to live in Jefferson County, but he passed away on December 31, 1896.

Bassett, Presley & Train Company Advertisement in the Marine Record on May 17, 1894.
This is the employer that connects Charles Perry Caswell with the Cleveland Business Directories of 1891, 1892, and 1894.

In the 1890s, Perry Caswell is indicated to be working frequently as a Clerk for the company Bassett, Presley & Train. (They manufactured iron ships components).

By 1896, as Commodores P., he is listed as entry 38, for the address of 45 Eliot. His father Anthony B. Caswell is living with him because he is listed as entry 33 at the same 45 Eliot address. In 1898, he is listed (without his father Anthony) as entry 145 at the address of 36 Cullison. The absence of his father makes sense, because as we know, Anthony passed away on November 30, 1898, in Clayton, Jefferson County, New York. (10)

Perry’s New Life — Enter Edith Milly Whitmarsh, Wife Number Two

We are not sure what happened to the marriage of Charles Perry Caswell and Binia A. Patton (chapter three), but we discovered that by 1902, he was living in Chicago, Cook County, Illinois and in a new relationship with a woman named Edith M. Whitmarsh. Their daughter Edith Annie Caswell was born on July 25, 1902 in that location. Edith Whitmarsh was born in March 1871, in Tottenham, Middlesex, England, the daughter of Frederick and Amelia (Hassock) Whitmarsh.

Antique British postcard. of the Great Eastern Railway No. 11. (Image courtesy of eBay).

We learned from Wikipedia that Tottenham is “a district in north London, within the London Borough of Haringey. In late 1870s, the Great Eastern Railway introduced special workman’s trains and fares on its newly opened Enfield and Walthamstow branch lines. Tottenham’s low-lying fields and market gardens were then rapidly transformed into cheap housing for the lower middle and working classes, who were able to commute cheaply to inner London. The workman’s fare policy stimulated the relatively early development of the area into a London suburb.” This change in their community would have been unfolding during Edith’s childhood in England.

Charles Perry and Edith M. continued to have more children, all born in Chicago, Cook County, Illinois:

  • Edith Annie Caswell, born July 25, 1902 — died, 1973 in Troy, Oakland County, Michigan.
  • Arthur Brooks Caswell, born January 15, 1903 or 1904 — died December 1, 1908 in the same location.
  • Eugene Willard Caswell, born October 5, 1905 — died December 1, 1908 in the same location.

    Tragically, it is sad to note that both sons died on the same date, December 1, 1908, with the cause being recorded as pneumonia and measles.
September 19, 1908 Calhoun County, Michigan Marriage Record
for Perry Caswell Sr. and Edith Whitmarsh.

Their marriage date…
We discovered something rather unusual in our research — that their wedding date was not typical. They started having children in 1902 when Edith Annie was born, but there is no marriage record for them until September 19, 1908. (Less than two months before their sons both died). Why was this? We will never know.

Charles ‘Commodore’ Perry Caswell Sr. was born on July 20, 1862 in Jefferson County, New York — died February 15, 1933 in Detroit, Wayne County, Michigan. He married twice, first to Binia A. Patton, on December 16, 1888 — (Divorced?), date unknown. He married second, Edith M. Whitmarsh, on September 19, 1908. She died in 1958. (11)

In the next chapter, we look at the other family line being profiled here: The Patton Line, from Ireland. Sláinte!

Following are the footnotes for the Primary Source Materials,
Notes, and Observations

It’s Not Something You Soon Forget — Even Half A Century Later

(1) — one record

Pépinère.ca, Boutique en Ligne
Watercress plant image
https://www.pepiniere.ca/en/products/cresson-watercress?srsltid=AfmBOoo92En9cI-G2lgULPVdWClHZWyyfRnFji-EBFUq6FwZm0DXi_A7
Note: For the plant images.

The First Aspect: The Caswell Surname in the United Kingdom

(2) — two records

Ancestry.com
Caswell Surname Meaning
https://www.ancestry.com/last-name-meaning/caswell
Note: For the text.

Surname DB
The Internet Surname Database
Last name: Caswell
https://surnamedb.com/Surname/caswell
Note: For the text.

The Second Aspect: The Caswell Family of Jefferson County, New York

(3) — two records

Merriam-Webster
Serendipity (definition)
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/serendipity
Note: For the text.

David Rumsey Map Collection
Map of New York Exhibiting the Post Offices, Post Roads, Canals,
Rail Roads, etc.

by David H. Burr, as found in The American Atlas, 1839
http://www.davidrumsey.com/maps3252.html
Note: For the map image. “This set was published as a stack of 13 mounted and folded sheets, without a title page or binding. The sheets are nestled into a modern beige canvas covered box 53×37 which opens like a book, with title on the spine reading. Maps have full hand painted color.”

Learning About The Thousand Islands

(4) — twelve records

Les Mille-Îles près de Gananoque
(The Thousand Islands near Gananoque)

by John Herbert Caddy, 19th century
Library and Archives of Canada, from the Dictionary of Canadian Biography
https://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/caddy_john_herbert_11E.html#lg=1&slide=2
Note: For the landscape painting.

History of Jefferson County, New York
with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers
by Samuel W. Durant and Henry B. Pierce
https://archive.org/details/historyofjeffers00dura_0/page/n457/mode/2up
Note: Excerpts from the history of the town of Clayton, which begins on page 343.

David Rumsey Map Collection
New Topographical Atlas of Jefferson Co. New York
From Actual Surveys By S.N. & D.G. Beers
1864
https://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/view/all/who/Beers,+D.G./what/Atlas+Map/Property+Ownership/County+Atlas/where/Jefferson+County+(N.Y.)?sort=Pub_List_No_InitialSort,Pub_Date,Pub_List_No
and
Map of Jefferson County, New York (foldout map, cropped inset detail)
https://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~227588~5507388:Jefferson-County%2C-New-York-?sort=Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No&mi=35&trs=36&qvq=w4s:/who%2FBeers%2C%2BD.G.%2Fwhat%2FAtlas%2BMap%2FProperty%2BOwnership%2FCounty%2BAtlas%2Fwhere%2FJefferson%2BCounty%2B(N.Y.);q:LIMIT%3A%20RUMSEY~8~1;sort:Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No;lc:RUMSEY~8~1
and
Plate 18, Clayton
https://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~227547~5507364:Clayton%2C-Jefferson-County%2C-New-York?sort=Pub_List_No_InitialSort,Pub_Date,Pub_List_No&mi=12&trs=36&qvq=w4s:/who/Beers,+D.G./what/Atlas+Map/Property+Ownership/County+Atlas/where/Jefferson+County+(N.Y.);sort:Pub_List_No_InitialSort,Pub_Date,Pub_List_No;lc:RUMSEY~8~1Note: For the map images.

History of Jefferson County, New York
with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers
by Samuel W. Durant and Henry B. Pierce
https://archive.org/details/historyofjeffers00dura_0/page/n463/mode/2up
Note: Excerpts from the history of the town of Clayton, with this text from page 347.

Heroes, Heroines & History
The Thousand Islands Gilded Age
by Susan G. Mathis
https://www.hhhistory.com/2020/03/the-thousand-islands-gilded-age.html
Note: For the text.

Clayton, N.Y. The Old Stone Bridge vintage postcard from Tuck & Sons:
https://www.tuckdbpostcards.org/items/114185-the-old-stone-bridge

Collage of Various Tuck & Sons Vintage Postcard Images
of Clayton, N.Y. —
https://www.tuckdbpostcards.org/items?q=Clayton,+New+York
– Top left: Docks and Depot in Clayton, N.Y.
– Center left: James Street in Clayton, N.Y.
and of the Thousand Islands —
https://www.tuckdbpostcards.org/items?q=Thousand+Islands&tab=images
– Top Right: The Thousand Islands, Lighthouse Near Alexandria Bay
– Bottom: The Thousand Islands, Bass Fishing in The Lost Channel
Note 1: The Tuck Postcard Database is found at:
https://www.tuckdbpostcards.org/places
Note 2: The center typographic panel is from —
Pinterest
1000 Islands
by Jennifer Gangi
https://www.pinterest.com/kalowaria/1000-islands/

Clues — Early in New York State?

(5)twelve records

The names of A.B. Caswell and Caroline Caswell’s three sons are noted below and may be tied to earlier generations:

  • Gurdon Caswell
  • Charles Perry Caswell
  • John Henry Caswell
Excerpts from the Paper Trade Journal, A History of Paper Manufacturing in the United States
Chapter 8, In Middle and Southern States
August 10, 1916, page 48.

This document offers some tantalizing clues to what could be possibly be an earlier generation of Caswell(s):
Paper Trade Journal, August 10, 1916 issue
A History of Paper Manufacturing in the United States
Chapter 8, In Middle and Southern States
by Lyman Horace Weeks

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/57/Paper_Trade_Journal_1916-08-10-_Vol_63_Iss_6_(IA_sim_paper-trade-journal_1916-08-10_63_6).pdf 
Book page: 38, and various pages after…
> The key section for this history is on page 48.
Notes: Observe the text for the following — Connecticut as the place of origin, the overall timeframe, the New York locations cited, and the family names which may carry over to the another generation.

Anthony Brooks Caswell could possibly be the son of one of these two brothers: Gurdon Caswell, or Henry Caswell. Both are mentioned in the Paper Trade Journal article and are living in the area. The following can support these observations, but note that this early Census material before 1850, does not provide much detail (such as the names of the children).

1820
Gurdon Caswell
1820 United States Federal Census
New York > Jefferson > Watertown
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/7734/records/453139
Notes: When looking at some of the various family tree websites, there are suggestions that Anthony Brooks Caswell’s parents are Gurdon Caswell, born in Connecticut in 1783, and Mary Loomis, born 1784. On the 1820 Census for Watertown, Jefferson, New York Gurdon Caswell is listed with seven children under fifteen: five boys and two girls.

1840
Gordon C Caswell [Gurdon Caswell]
1840 United States Federal Census
New York > Jefferson > Clayton
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/8057/records/2399074
Notes: On the 1840 Census for the same area, he has two boys ages 15-29 and two girls ages 10-29. Anthony Brooks Caswell was born 1822 and would have been 19 or 20 in 1840, and still living at home. We know that he married Caroline Presley (on date unknown) and that they had children by 1846.

Possible tie to Gurdon Caswell (born 1783), his brother Henry A. Caswell —
1830
Henry A Carroll [Henry A. Caswell]
1830 United States Federal Census
New York > Onondaga > Cicero*
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/8058/records/10004?tid=&pid=&queryId=5c78e603-526d-4631-988b-844d0c8c6610&_phsrc=uBb25&_phstart=successSource
Note 1: There is a boy in the house who aged 5-9 who could be Anthony Brooks Caswell.
Note 2: This location is south of Watertown, near Syracuse.

In Jefferson County, New York —
1846 
Anthony Brooks Caswell and his wife Caroline’s first child is born in 1846 and named Gurdon Caswell. He may have been named after Brooks father.
Gurdon B Caswell
Birth: 1846, Jefferson County, New York
Death: December 31, 1896, same location
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/128015595/gurdon-b-caswell
Note 1: He is buried in the Saint Lawrence (Hamlet), Jefferson County, New York.
and
http://jefferson.nygenweb.net/capevin.htm
Note 2: This is an old website, so try to navigate as follows —
Jefferson County, New York >
Bartlett’s Cemetery Inscriptions for the Town of Cape Vincent > 
Town Of Cape Vincent Cemetery Inscriptions >
C (from the table at page bottom) >
Caswell, Gurdin (His first name is misspelled. It should be Gurdon).

From 1850 forward, Censuses provide more detail —

1850
Records tell us that Gurdon Caswell (born 1783), had a son named Perry Caswell. He would have been Anthony Brooks Caswell’s brother.
Perry Caswell
1850 United States Federal Census
New York > Jefferson > Clayton
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/8054/records/12005279?tid=&pid=&queryId=fd2554aa-81f7-4054-a674-8575d8f1df7f&_phsrc=SGZ3&_phstart=successSource
Digital page: 31/102, Lines 37 through 42 at the bottom of the page.
Note: For the evidence of naming, father Gurdon, and son Perry.
and
Perry Caswell
U.S., Find a Grave Index, 1600s-Current
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60525/records/140906138?tid=&pid=&queryId=43ae5e07-781c-4101-9eea-6358ce196053&_phsrc=SGZ1&_phstart=successSource
and
Perry Caswell 
Birth: 1814
Death: June 9, 1900
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/176555357/perry-caswell
Note: For the data.

1862
Charles Perry Caswell
Birth: July 20, 1862, Jefferson County, New York
Death: February 15, 1933, Detroit, Wayne County, Michigan
via Charles P Caswell
Death – Michigan, Death Certificates, 1921-1952
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KFHH-YNQ?lang=en
Note 1: Charles Perry Caswell is the second son of Anthony Brooks Caswell and his wife Caroline.
Note 2: His certificate of death document lists his birth date as July 20, 1862, and his death date as February 15, 1933.

1864
John Henry Caswell Sr.
Birth: January 1, 1864, Jefferson County, New York
Death: January 1, 1951, South Euclid, Cuyahoga County, Ohio
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/73904208/john-henry-caswell
Note: John Henry Caswell is the third son of Anthony Brooks Caswell and his wife Caroline.
and
John Henry Caswell
Death – Ohio, Deaths, 1908-1953
Deaths: Ohio. Death Certificates 1951
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XXM6-WX1?lang=en
Digital page: 2,171/3,178
Notes: John’s birth in St. Lawrence, Jefferson County, New York. This is a small hamlet not far from their family farm. It is sometimes associated with the town of Cape Vincent, (just west of Clayton) Jefferson County, New York.

The Family Patriarch, Anthony Brooks Caswell

(6) — fourteen records

1850
Brooks Caswell
Census – United States, Census, 1850
New York, 1850 federal census: population schedules: Jefferson. Census 1850
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MCYK-4HG?lang=en
Book page: 152(?), Digital page: 633/708, Lines 38 through 42.
Note: Anthony 28, Caroline 28, Gordon 4, Almira 3, Julius Joles (laborer)

1860
Brooks A Caswell
Census – United States, Census, 1860
New York, 1860 federal census: population schedules: United States. Census 1860 | New York. Census 1860
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MC7F-FYR?lang=en
Book page: 467, Digital page: 472/881, Lines 18 through 22.
Note: Anthony 38, Caroline 37, Gordon 14, Almira 13, Florence 7

1870
A B Caswell
Census – United States, Census, 1870
New York, 1870 federal census: population schedules: Jefferson. Census 1870
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M8NW-J36?lang=en
Book page: 47, Digital page: 529/834, Lines 17 through 23.
Note 1: Anthony 48, Caroline 47, Gurdon 24, Mira 13, Florence 18, Perry 10, John 5.
Note 2: On this Census, Brooks states that he was born in New York.

1880
Brooks Caswell
Census – United States, Census, 1880
New York. Census Record Indexes 1880
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MZ8D-KM3?lang=en
Book page: 6, Digital page: 62/777, Lines 12 through 15.
Note 1: Anthony 56, John 15, Gurdon 34, Caroline 56. (Brooks Caswell should be listed as 58 years old).
Note 2: On this Census, he is now a Schoolteacher, and no longer a Farmer.
Note 3: His parents are identified as being from Connecticut. Caroline’s parents are from Canada.

1880
Perry Caswell
in the 1880 United States Federal Census
New York > Jefferson > Clayton > 118
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/6742/records/1795225
Book page: 5, Digital page: 5/30, Entry line 8.
Note 1: At 19, he is working as a farm laborer in the home of Silas Consanl.
Note 2: There is a notation that he spent 5 months of the year unemployed. However, this Census was conducted on June 3, 1880.

United States 1880 Census for Jefferson County, New York. Note that at age 19, Perry Caswell is living outside of the home of his parents.

Homes & Antiques
The 1700s & 1800s – the peak of silhouette production
https://www.homesandantiques.com/antiques/collecting-silhouettes
Note: For the silouette presentation portraits.

1898
Brooks Caswell
in the New York, U.S., Death Index, 1852-1956
New York State Department of Health > 1898
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/61535/records/995068?tid=&pid=&queryId=6fbdd377-b9c7-4fe3-9867-c8448fb15699&_phsrc=wRC12&_phstart=successSource
Digital page: 121/867, Left column at 5th entry from the bottom
Note: His death date is recorded as November 30, 1898 in Clayton, Jefferson County, New York.

Gurdon B Caswell
Birth: 1846, Jefferson County, New York
Death: December 31, 1896, same location
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/128015595/gurdon-b-caswell
Note 1: He is buried in the Saint Lawrence (Hamlet), Jefferson County, New York. Note 2: He was a school teacher his entire life.
and
http://jefferson.nygenweb.net/capevin.htm
Note 3: This is an old website, so try to navigate as follows —
Jefferson County, New York >
Bartlett’s Cemetery Inscriptions for the Town of Cape Vincent > 
Town Of Cape Vincent Cemetery Inscriptions >
C (from the table at page bottom) >
Caswell, Gurdin (His first name is misspelled. It should be Gurdon).

(via Myra Hart)
Almira ‘Myra’ (Caswell) Hart
Birth: June 29, 1847, Birth: 1846, Jefferson County, New York
Death: June 18, 1935 (See the Ancestry link below).
in the Michigan, U.S., Death Records, 1867-1952
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60872/records/2308017
Note: Her death certificate indicates that she married George Hart and that she died in Blissfield, Lenawee County, Michigan.

Vital Records of Jefferson County,
1847, 1848, And 1849
Town Of Lyme
https://jefferson.nygenweb.net/vreclyme.htm
Note: This is the birth record for daughter Almira. (2oth entry in the chart)

Florence C. (Caswell) Gotham
1853 – November 8,1883
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/116173077/florence-c-gotham
Birth: 1853, Jefferson County, New York
Death: November 8, 1883, Jefferson County, New York
Notes: From the Find A Grave link — “She was the first wife of James Gotham. They only had the one daughter, after she died, James remarried & had three more daughters. He moved to Michigan & is buried there with his second.”

John Henry Caswell Sr.
Birth: January 1, 1864, Jefferson County, New York
Death: January 1, 1951, South Euclid, Cuyahoga County, Ohio
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/73904208/john-henry-caswell
Note 1: It is remarkable to observe that he was both born and died on January 1.
Note 2: From the Find A Grave link — “Caswell, John H., Sr., beloved father of William D. and Mrs. Florence Richmond and grandfather. Friends may call at the Joseph C. Schulte Funeral Home, 4092 Mayfield Rd., South Euclid until, 11 a. m. Thursday. Services will be conducted by Dr. Ferdinand Q. Blanchard at Wade Memorial Chapel Thursday, Jan. 4, at 1:30 p. m.”
and
John Henry Caswell
Death – Ohio, Deaths, 1908-1953
Deaths: Ohio. Death Certificates 1951
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XXM6-WX1?lang=en
Digital page: 2,171/3,178
Notes: John’s birth in St. Lawrence, Jefferson County, New York. This is a small hamlet not far from their family farm. It is sometimes associated with the town of Cape Vincent, (just west of Clayton) Jefferson County, New York.

Brooks Was a Farmer, a Lime Burner, and a Schoolteacher

(7) — six records

Jefferson County 1864 Draft
Source: Northern NY Journal, June 28, 1864, p. 4
https://jefferson.nygenweb.net/civilwar/draft1864.htm
Note 1: The Civil War Draft, the following persons were drawn —
Clayton: Brooks Caswell
Note 2: The draft took place on the 20th, 21st and 22nd of June in Watertown. The nearby Village of Watertown, had been attacked in 1863. The town held a draft in June of 1864. Each town had a quota and the quotas were filled from the cards submitted in August 1863.

Business in Jefferson County 1867-1868
Business in Clayton 1867-1868
Northern New York Business Directory 1867-68
Waite Brothers & Co. Watertown, New York, Compilers

https://jefferson.nygenweb.net/busclay1.htm
Note: Caswell A.B. lime burner, (10th entry).

Look and Learn History Picture Archive
Limn Kiln (French, 19th century)
https://www.lookandlearn.com/history-images/M185976/Lime-kiln
Note: For the image.

A lime burner and kiln (sketch in l’Encyclopédie ou dictionnaire raisonné des sciences, des arts et des métiers (1751), L’Histoire de la Chauxhttp://chauxboehm.fr).

The French Canadian Genealogist
Le Chaufournier | The Limeburner
https://www.tfcg.ca/limeburner-old-occupation
Note: For a description of this old occupation.

iStock
Vintage engraving of a Victorian era school classroom, from Leisure Hour, 1872
https://www.istockphoto.com/pt/vetorial/victorian-schoolboys-and-teacher-learning-in-the-classroom-19th-century-gm673563654-123414933
Note: For the illustration.

How Do You Acquire a Name Like ‘Commodore’?
and
Commodore As A Nickname, i.e. ‘Commodore’ Perry Caswell

(8) — seven records

Commodore (United States)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commodore_(United_States)
Note: For the text.

Thought Co.
War of 1812: Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry
https://www.thoughtco.com/commodore-oliver-hazard-perry-2361132
Note: For the history and connection to the honorific name Commodore.

Cornelius Vanderbilt
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornelius_Vanderbilt
Note: For the text and riverboat image.

The Library of Congress
The Great Race for the Western Stakes 1870
https://www.loc.gov/resource/pga.09040/
Note: For the Currier and Ives lithograph of the rivalry between “Commodore” Cornelius Vanderbilt and Jim Frisk of the Erie Railroad. 

Portrait of ‘Commodore’ Cornelius Vanderbilt
by Nathaniel Jocelyn, 1846
The National Portrait Gallery, via Wikimedia Commons.
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nathaniel_Jocelyn_-_Cornelius_Vanderbilt_-_NPG.78.281_-_National_Portrait_Gallery.jpg
Note: For the portrait. File:Nathaniel Jocelyn – Cornelius Vanderbilt – NPG.78.281 – National Portrait Gallery.jpg

C. Vanderbilt
by James Bard, 1847
the Shelburne Museum, via Wikimedia Commons
File:Cornelius Vanderbilt (steamboat).jpg
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cornelius_Vanderbilt_(steamboat).jpg
Note: For the ship image, which is cropped.

These men were actually named Commodore Perry ______, inspired by victory of Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry, in the Battle of Lake Erie. Shown left to right: Commodore Perry Vedder (1838-1910), Commodore Perry Thornhill (1858-1948), Commodore Perry Meek (1851-1943), Commodore Perry Craig (1869-1933), Commodore Bruce Roberts (1875-1941).

Blogger
The Strangest Names in American Political History
https://politicalstrangenames.blogspot.com/2012/07/commodore-perry-vedder-1838-1910.html
Note: For the five ‘Commodore Perry’ portraits.

Perry Went From New York to Ohio

(9) — one record

C. Perry Caswell
Marriage – Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-2016
#004016938 > Item 1
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:939K-BPST-NW?view=index&personArk=/ark:/61903/1:1:XD29-KJW&action=view&cc=1614804&lang=en&groupId=M9DC-F1J
Note: For December 16, 1888 marriage to Binia A. Patton.

The Cleveland Business Directories of the 1880s and 1890s

(10) — eight records

1885
Perry Caswell
in the U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995
Ohio > Cleveland > 1885 > Cleveland, Ohio, City Directory, 1885
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2469/records/278861760?tid=&pid=&queryId=0bb19e50-2dea-4627-b670-25bd04e143cf&_phsrc=Uka6&_phstart=successSourceBook page: 114, Digital page: 75/473, Far left column near the top.
Book page: 114, Digital page: 75/473, Left page, left column near the top.
Note: He is listed as Guard at the Work House.

1888
Perry C Caswell
in the U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995
Ohio > Cleveland > 1888 > Cleveland, Ohio, City Directory, 1888
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2469/records/279789604?tid=&pid=&queryId=46b1bce3-87de-4efc-bc42-1f16b6a65166&_phsrc=CdZ3&_phstart=successSource
Book page: 121, Digital page: 61/533, Far right column near the top.
Note 1: Between 1888 and 1895 he is listed as being a clerk in several directories.
Note 2: In this 1888 Directory, his brother John H. is listed as being employed as a clerk at the National Bank of Commerce.
Note 3: The Directory states that he and his brother both ‘board at 105 Clinton’. This is where he was living when he married Binia A. Patton.

Antique Postcard Image of Public Square, Cleveland, Ohio
Circa 1890s
https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=9561859377265791&set=pcb.1710624326199669
Note: For the image.

Maritime History of The Great Lakes
Bassett, Presley & Train Advertisement in the Marine Record
May 17, 1894, Issue 20, Volume XVII
https://images.maritimehistoryofthegreatlakes.ca/126873/page/3?n=
and the advertisement on page 13:
https://images.maritimehistoryofthegreatlakes.ca/126873/page/13
Note: This company connects to the Caswell entry in the Cleveland Business Directories for 1891, 1892, 1894.

This is what the site of the Bassett, Presley & Train Company looks like in the present day.

Wikimedia Commons
File:1394 E 39th – Asiatown Cleveland.jpg
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:1394_E_39th_-_Asiatown_Cleveland.jpg
Note: “Commercial Steel Treating, located at 1394 E. 39th Street in Cleveland, Ohio, in the United States.

“The structure was built by the Bassett-Presley Co., an iron and steel jobbing company. (It had formed in 1888 as Bassett, Presley & Train.) It purchased lots 13 through 35 on E. 39th Street (then known as Clifton Street) in 1902 and erected this 180 foot deep, 360 foot long warehouse. The local architectural firm of Knox & Elliott designed the 1.836 million square feet building, which had a steel frame and was built of brick. The cost was $50,000 (about $1.4 million in 2016 dollars.) Carnegie Steel purchased Bassett-Presley in 1911, and expanded the warehouse south to Superior Avenue. The warehouse was later occupied by Scully Steel Products Co. (Later known as United States Steel Supply Company).”

1892
C Perry Caswell
in the U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995
Ohio > Cleveland > 1892 > Cleveland, Ohio, City Directory, 1892
https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/2469/images/3840702?queryId=b26d6177-6717-4e39-8b7e-d535228a9c48&usePUB=true&_phsrc=aeC1&_phstart=successSource&usePUBJs=true&pId=280139876
Book page: 153, Digital page: 75/673, Right page, right column lower portion.
Note: His father Brooks A. (Anthony) is listed at 315 Washington as a bookkeeper.

1896
Commodore P Caswell
Vote – Ohio, Voter Records, 1893-1960
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:8T5Y-5ZT2?lang=en
Note 1: As Commodores P., he is listed as entry 38, for the address of 45 Eliot. His father Anthony B. Caswell is listed as entry 33 at the same 45 Eliot address.
Note 2: In 1898, he is listed (without his father Anthony) as entry 145 at the address of 36 Cullison.

Perry’s New Life — Enter Edith Milly Whitmarsh, Wife Number Two

(11) — twenty-one records

Tottenham
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tottenham
Note: For the 1870s text.

eBay UK
Cobbydale Curiosities
Great Eastern Railway No. 11 (postcard)
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/327250789444?chn=ps&_ul=GB&norover=1&mkevt=1&mkrid=710-170020-479971-5&mkcid=2&itemid=327250789444&targetid=325425753764&device=c&mktype=pla&googleloc=1011742&poi=&campaignid=20787991651&mkgroupid=157350414842&rlsatarget=pla-325425753764&abcId=&merchantid=5730654681&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=20787991651&gbraid=0AAAAAD_QDh8Kn2Xiyh1RPkxdlUbcwRkHO&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIjLGw59jylQMVugYGAB16ay9LEAQYBSABEgL2ZfD_BwE
Note: For the postcard image.

1871 – 1958
Edith M Whitmarsh
in the 1871 England Census
Middlesex > Tottenham > ALL > 13
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/7619/records/1484285
Book page: 14, Digital page: 15/36
Note 1: She is from Tottenham, Middlesex, England, and her parents are Frederick and Amelia (Hassock) Whitmarsh.
Note 2: From https://www.thegenealogist.co.uk/census/1871/ — “The United Kingdom Census of 1871 recorded the people residing in every household on the night of 2 April 1871, and was the fourth of the UK censuses to include details of household members.” Edith is recorded as one month old, therefore her birthday is in March 1871.
and
Edith M. Caswell
U.S., Find a Grave Index, 1600s-Current
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60525/records/116463099?tid=&pid=&queryId=6a983f1b-5f4e-4904-820f-a2d15b95e9d1&_phsrc=PTi1&_phstart=successSource
and
Edith M. Caswell
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/141971801/edith-m.-caswell
Note: Her death was in Michigan.

Edith Milly Whitmarsh
London, England, Church of England Births and Baptisms, 1813-1925 
Haringey > All Hallows, Tottenham: Church Lane > 1845-1903
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/8912/records/59805979
Book page: 53, Digital page: 130/357, Right page, third entry from the page bottom.
Note: For her 1873 birth registration, where we learn her middle name is Milly, and that her mother’s maiden surname is Hassock.

1902 – 1973
Edith Annie Caswell
Birth – Illinois, Cook County Birth Registers, 1871-1915
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:N7WK-V4D?lang=en
Note: This daughter was born in Chicago, Cook County, Illinois on July 25, 1902.
and
Edith A. Caswell
Death – Find a Grave Index
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QK1X-S62V?lang=en
and
Edith A. Caswell
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/141971834/edith-a-caswell
Note: Her 1973 death was in Troy, Michigan.

1903 – 1908
Arthur Brooks Caswell
in the Michigan, U.S., Death Records, 1867-1952
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60872/records/3113148
Note: This son is born in Chicago, Cook County, Illinois on January 15, 1903. He died on December 1, 1908. His cause of death was pneumonia and measles. (His brother Eugene died on the same day).
Note: His birth year may be 1904.

This image is from a 19th century guide regarding childhood illnesses.
From Quartz magazine online, A 19th-century disease is on the rise in the UK — and nobody knows why, via this link:
https://qz.com/651644/a-19th-century-disease-is-on-a-dramatic-rise-in-the-uk-what-do-we-know-about-it-so-far

This image is from a 19th century guide regarding childhood illnesses.
From Quartz magazine online, A 19th-century disease is on the rise in the UK—and nobody knows why, via https://qz.com/651644/a-19th-century-disease-is-on-a-dramatic-rise-in-the-uk-what-do-we-know-about-it-so-far

1905 – 1908
Eugene Willard Caswell
in the Cook County, Illinois, U.S., Birth Certificates Index, 1871-1922
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2545/records/812204
Note: This son is born in Chicago, Cook County, Illinois on October 5, 1905.
and
Eugene Willard Caswell
in the Michigan, U.S., Death Records, 1867-1952
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60872/records/3113147
Note: He died on December 1, 1908. His cause of death was pneumonia and measles. His brother Arthur died on the same day.

1908
C. Perry Caswell
in the Michigan, U.S., County Marriage Records, 1822-1940
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/61374/records/154538
Note: Were they having a common law marriage prior to 1908, or could they have thought they were married, when in actuality they were not? They started having children in 1902.
and
C. Perry Caswell
Marriage – Michigan, Marriages, 1868-1925
Marriage records: Michigan. Marriage Records 1908, 1907
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:N3VC-ZZW?lang=en
Book page: 285, Digital page: 531/646, Entry 346
Note: (Same as above). Were they having a common law marriage prior to 1908, or could they have thought they were married, when in actuality they were not?They started having children in 1902.

1862 – 1933
Charles Perry Caswell
Birth: July 20, 1862, Jefferson County, New York
Death: February 15, 1933, Detroit, Wayne County, Michigan
via Charles P Caswell
Death – Michigan, Death Certificates, 1921-1952
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KFHH-YNQ?lang=en
Note 1: His certificate of death document lists his birth date as July 20, 1862, and his death date as February 15, 1933.
Note 2: His parent’s names are recorded.

Charles P. Caswell 1933 death certificate in Detroit, Wayne County, Michigan.

Charles P Caswell
Death – Michigan, Death Certificates, 1921-1952
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KFHH-YNQ?lang=en
Notes: Birth date recorded as July 20, 1862. Death date as February 15, 1933.
and
Charles P Caswell
in the Michigan, U.S., Death Records, 1867-1952
Certificates, 1921-1945 > 647: Wayne (Detroit), 1932-1933
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60872/records/855201?tid=&pid=&queryId=095d58a4-919a-4551-9b07-86ed52a9f7c5&_phsrc=UsZ3&_phstart=successSource

Sláinte
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sláinte
Note: For the expression of this Irish drinking toast, which means ‘Health’.

The Williams / Harris Line, A Narrative — Twelve

This is Chapter Twelve of twelve, the final chapter of the Williams / Harris Line. All of the previous chapters are like intertwined journeys which eventually lead us back to Northeast, Ohio. This chapter brings us to Trumbull County, in the area of the former Connecticut Western Reserve, where we meet the Young family.

Map of the Western Reserve Including the Fire Lands 1826. On this map, Trumbull County is on the eastern border of the Western Reserve, with Farmington township shown in pale blue.
(Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons).

The Connecticut Western Reserve

From Wikipedia: “The Connecticut Western Reserve was a portion of land claimed by the Colony of Connecticut and later by the state of Connecticut in what is now mostly the northeastern region of Ohio. The Reserve had been granted to the Colony under the terms of its charter by King Charles II.

Connecticut relinquished its claim to some of its western lands to the United States in 1786 following the American Revolutionary War and preceding the 1787 establishment of the Northwest Territory. Despite ceding sovereignty to the United States, Connecticut retained ownership of the eastern portion of its cession, south of Lake Erie. It sold much of this ‘Western Reserve’ to a group of speculators who operated as the Connecticut Land Company; they sold it in portions for development by new settlers… The territory was originally named ‘New Connecticut’ (later discarded in favor of ‘Western Reserve’), and settlers began to trickle in during the next few years. Youngstown was founded in 1796, Warren in 1798, Hudson and Ravenna in 1799, Ashtabula in 1803, and Stow in 1804.”

Trumbull County was formed in 1800. On July 10 of that year Governor St. Clair proclaimed that ‘all that territory included in Jefferson County, lying north of the forty-first degree of north latitude and all that part of Wayne County included in the Connecticut Western Reserve’ should constitute a new county to be known by the name of Trumbull and that the seat of justice should be Warren. This made the new county co-extensive with the Western Reserve.” In other words, “Trumbull County comprised the entire Western Reserve until the formation of the state of Ohio in 1803.

The engraving at left is attributed to Peter Parley’s Recollections and is titled “Emigrating to New Conneticut, 1817-1818”. The portrait on the right is Jonathan Trumbull Jr., the Governor of Connecticut, for whom the county was named. (Trumbull image courtesy of wikipedia.com).

“The county was named for Governor Johnathan Trumbull, Jr., then governor of Connecticut. His family was a prominent one. His father, Johnathan Trumbull, Sr., also governor of Connecticut, was the only royal governor at the outbreak of the Revolution who supported the colonists and continued in office.” (Trumbull County OHGenWeb)

This brings us to Farmington Township, designated as a pale blue square on the Western Reserve map shown above at the chapter opening.

“The township, named Henshaw initially after one of its key landowners, Samuel Henshaw, saw its first settlers in 1806 with David Curtis and Captain Lewis Wolcott from Connecticut. Josiah Wolcott also played a notable role by purchasing a large tract of land from Samuel Bond, leading to the construction of a log cabin in the winter of 1806-07. Despite many hardships, including a fatiguing journey, Josiah Wolcott returned to Connecticut to move his family to the Farmington Township… Farmington Township experienced a swift transformation from the humble log cabins of its early settlers to a well-established township. In 1828, residents of Farmington Township began raising funds to establish Farmington Academy, a college. James Greer was the first principal, and the academy flourished, attracting nearly three hundred students.” (West Farmington Village) (1)

The Young Family held land in Farmington township for many decades. The three maps at the top (show in green, from left to right) property held first by Ely Young, and then by his son Stephen Young. The bottom map indicates property that Stephen Young willed to his daughter Augusta M. (Young) Roberts, as shown on this 1899 map. (See footnotes).

The Young Family of Farmington

It was in this time frame that Eli Young and his wife Catherine (Bellesfelt) Young settled in Farmington township to undertake farming. They had married in 1812, and were and an early family in the area. We have records of Eli paying property taxes starting in 1826. He was born circa 1789 and died May 9, 1861. Catherine was born circa 1793 and died July 9, 1853. (Both Eli and Catherine died in West Farmington, Trumbull County, Ohio.) On the 1850 Census, we learned that they came from Pennsylvania.

Censuses prior to 1850 did not list all household members, but we learned of their children’s names through Property Deeds and Wills. The children we know of are:

  • Sarah Ann (Young) Hewitt
  • Stephen Young, January 21, 1816 – February 14, 1898.
    Stephen carries the family line forward.
  • Mary Young
  • Newton Young
The marriage record for Stephen Young and Miranda Stowe
in Trumbull County, Ohio, on March 18, 1846.

Their son named Stephen, continued on as a farmer in the area, and married Miranda Stowe on March 18, 1846, in Trumbull County. She was born October 28, 1823, in nearby Braceville township – died, April 17, 1895. Both Stephen and Miranda, like his parents, died in West Farmington. They had three children:

  • Leora J. (Young) Pixley, born 1847
  • Augusta M. (Young) Roberts, born 1849, Augusta carries the family line forward.
  • Howard Young, born 1859

On the 1870 Census, we noted the sister Leora was teaching at the community school, and Howard, being somewhat younger, was at school. What was interesting to note is this: for 30 years of censuses, Augusta M. Young was only noted for being at home.

This illustration is titled The West Window from The Quiver magazine, which was
a publication for Sunday and General Reading from 1877. We think a better title
would be Augusta At The Window. More than half a century would pass
before Disney would release its famous Snow White movie with the heartfelt song,
Someday, My Prince Will Come…” 🎵

We keep wondering about that… what was she doing for all those years? (2)

What The Censuses Tell Us

We can infer some things about Joseph A. Roberts, Augusta’s future husband: In 1860, his father had a farm in Palmyra township, Portage County. Then his mother Elvira died in 1861 and things shifted for the family. By 1870, we see Joseph working in the home of the David E. Jones, in Paris township, Portage County, as an agricultural laborer. By 1880, he is doing the same work, but living in the home of the Lewis Taft family in West Farmington Village, Farmington Township, Trumbull County.

When we examined the various censuses that came before Joseph and Augusta met, they seem very straightforward. We know that they married in 1881, but no evidence has survived showing how they met. It’s a conjecture on our part that they met through friends, or family members who were acquainted with each other, since they both were living in West Farmington at the time.

Portage County and Trumbull County are adjacent to each other, and these two townships are about 25 miles apart (40 km). (Image courtesy of the David Rumsey Map Collection).

It appears that Joseph was not interested in following the path his father had taken in pursuing mining as a vocation. This makes some sense when you consider that he had spent much of his life surrounded by the cycles of nature, rather than the coal dust of the mines. This connection with the natural environment came to have a big effect on his choice of career.

June 1881 Marriage license and marriage record for
Joseph A. Roberts and Augusta M. Young, in Trumbull County, Ohio. You can see that Joseph had beautiful handwriting by his signature on the marriage license.

When they married in June 1881, Joseph A. Roberts and Augusta M. Young were in their early 30s. The Young surname then gave way to the Roberts surname. We wonder if they chose to marry at this time, because their lives were going to change much in the next few months and they wanted to be together. Very soon, they would be living in Cincinnati, Ohio, on the opposite side of the state. Once there, Joseph would be seeking his medical education to become a general practitioner doctor. He was following his interest in what was then called Eclecticism — a movement about nature-driven principles of medical care, which peaked in the 1880s and 1890s. (3)

Medical Training in the Early 1880s

In the 1880s, a prospective physician in Ohio would likely attend a proprietary medical college, many of which were for-profit and independent from universities. During this era, medical education was in a state of transition.

Most programs required two years of lectures, though the curriculum was often repetitive—students would sometimes attend the exact same set of lectures both years. Instruction was primarily lecture-based rather than clinically-based. Students sat for 6 to 8 hours a day in large amphitheaters. Practical experience was rather rare in the classroom. Students often had to arrange their own private clinical instruction or work as an apprentice to a local doctor to see actual patients. Requirements were minimal; a basic “common school education” was often the only prerequisite for entry.

The Agnew Clinic, by Thomas Eakins, 1889.(Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons).

A student would typically choose between several types of medical institutions based on their philosophy of care. Joseph A. Roberts, being an Ohio resident, received a medical education in Eclectic Medicine. Ohio was then a hub for this type of thinking. Here is a bit of the movement’s history — the Eclectic Medical Institute of Cincinnati was the leading school of this type.

“Eclectic medicine was a branch of American medicine that made use of botanical remedies along with other substances and physical therapy practices, popular in the latter half of the 19th and first half of the 20th centuries.

The Eclectic Medical Institute in Worthington, Ohio graduated its first class in 1833. After local body snatching led to the notorious ‘Resurrection Riot’ of 1839, the school was evicted from Worthington and settled in Cincinnati during the winter of 1842–43. The Cincinnati school, incorporated as the Eclectic Medical Institute (EMI), continued until its last class graduation in 1939, more than a century later. The American School of Medicine (Eclectic) trained physicians in a dozen or so privately funded medical schools, principally located in the midwestern United States. By the 1850s, several ‘regular’ American medical tradespersons… had begun using herbal salves and other preparations.” (Wikipedia)

Advertisent for and description of the Eclectic Medical Institute
from Polk’s Medical Register and Directory of North America, 1890.

The following are excerpts from the History of the Eclectic Medical Institute, Cincinnati, Ohio, 1845-1902. They describe the education Joseph would have received during his tenure at the school.

“The following is a resume of the minimum requirements for graduation… In 1879, the length of the term was increased to twenty weeks, with no holidays, and one week for examinations. This gave nineteen weeks of solid lectures — thirty-six each week (with twelve hours per week additional in hospital) — making a total of 684 lectures per session. Thus, in the two sessions (40 weeks), 1,368 lectures were given the classes. Besides this, dissections were held at night. Under the previous twenty weeks’ course, with holidays out, and one or two weeks for examinations, not more than seventeen weeks were actually consumed in instruction— the lectures numbering from 24 to 28 per week, or from 408 to 476 per session. The old sixteen weeks’ session had thirty-six lectures a week (15 weeks), making 558 lectures.

From 1879 to 1887-8, no change was made in the personnel of the Faculty. However, some additions were made to the duties of some of the teachers. Thus, in 1883-4, Professor Howe was made Lecturer on Forensic Medicine, and Professor Scudder Lecturer on Hygiene, while Pharmacy was added to the chair of Chemistry under Professor Lloyd.”

From Polk’s Medical Register and Directory of North America, 1890.

After he graduated from school in the class of 1884 and received his diploma, Polk’s Registry has him listed as having a practice in Nelson township, Portage County, Ohio. We know that by 1891 he was listed as a physician in the Cleveland Business Directory, and already living in that city. At that point, the Polk Registry may have been a little bit out of date. (4)

Portage County map from the
Combination Atlas Map of Portage County, Ohio, by L.H. Everts, 1874.
(Image courtesy of David Rumsey Map Collection).

The Cleveland Business Directory Records
(Instead of an 1890 Census)

Since we have already learned that there is no US 1890 Census available, we turned to Cleveland Business Directories to tell us what was happening in their lives during that decade. Throughout the decade he worked at various locations in Cleveland, but he always posted his business address in the directory each year.

When we analyzed his address listings for his General Physician practice, it appears that he moved around nearly every year. This probably means that he was renting office space and did not work at a dedicated facility. He was usually listed under occupation, or family name, depending upon the year. Here are the locations during the 1890s:

YearCleveland LocationPHYsician ROBerts
1891106 Euclid Avenuex
1892Hough Avenue near Crawfordx
1894684 Hough Avenuexx
189534 Princetonx
18971568 East Madison Avenuex
1898(same location)x
18992795 Superior Avenuex
1900(same location)x
1910954 Parkwood Drive NEx
The June 1900 Census of the United States for the Joseph A. Roberts family.

In the year 1900, at the start of the 20th century, we have another Census for the Roberts family. Here we see that they have a son named Harris and that he is 11 years old, having been born in August 1889. An important fact about Joseph is that he states on this census that his birthplace is in Ohio, in March 1850. This is the only specific record for that event which we have found.

It appears that advertising in the Cleveland Business Directory was something he viewed as important during the first decade of his medical practice. (Likely, it helped to build awareness and keep his clients aware of his office location). After 1910, we do not see additional entries until 1923 when he is located at 8423 Brookline Avenue, and then again in 1926, when he is located at 1696 Crawford Road. “The Roaring Twenties was a prosperous decade for Cleveland. By 1920, the year in which the Cleveland Indians won their first World Series championship, Cleveland had grown into a densely populated metropolis of 796,841 with a foreign-born population of 30%, making it the fifth largest city in the nation.” (Wikipedia)

Panoramic View of Public Square, Cleveland, O., circa 1900-1927.
(Image courtesy of the Cleveland Memory Project .org).

Records for the period outside of the Cleveland Business Directories are very, very scarce. For some reason, it appears that by circa 1910, Joseph was living separately from Augusta and she was living with their son Harris W Roberts. Ten years later, in 1920, Joseph appears on the Census in the home of the Thomas Anderson family, as one of four lodgers. By 1930, he is living with his son Harris W. We know that Augusta has passed away before the 1930 Census. (5)

William H. Roberts and Mrs. George Stitt

Augusta M. (Young) Roberts died in 1924 from a bout of pneumonia. Her husband Jospeh A. Roberts followed her almost six years later, of the same malady, but he contracted pneumonia as a consequence when recovering from having his stomach resected in surgery. Augusta was buried with her parents and brother in the Hillside Cemetery, West Farmington, Trumbull, Ohio. Joseph was buried in Knollwood Cemetery in Mayfield Heights, Cuyahoga, Ohio.

Joseph had a brother and sister who were mentioned in his obituary (which is located within his Find A Grave file), but none of his other siblings were mentioned. His brother William H. Roberts lived in Indiana for part of his life, and then relocated to the Cleveland area and lived there for nearly 30 years. His sister, known through the censuses as Sarah M. became Mrs. George Stitt, is also mentioned. (6)

The Nightingale

If you recall, at the end of Chapter 6 we wrote about the marriage of Henry and Ann Harris’s daughter Elvira to George Williams. That marriage is where the family lines from two countries, England and Wales, came together. The youthful deaths of Elvira (Harris) Williams in 1889, and her husband George Williams in 1893 were woeful, but… In a figurative sense, those events essentially brought into being our narrative of the Williams / Harris line.

Our narrative on this family line began with a very old map that showed the Bristol Channel and the river Severn. To the north is Wales, and to the south is England. This is the territory of Luscinia megarhynchos, more commonly known as the Nightingale. What a beautiful bird, and what better friend to guide us as we look back at the Williams and Harris family lines.

Nightingale, Luscinia megarhynchos, illustration.
(Image courtesy of Hare and Tabor, via Etsy.com).

Imagine yourself as The Nightingale, flying over the twilight skies of the Bristol Channel, surveying first the bank on one side and then the other. Over time you see the progression of the Harris and Roberts families of Wales as they make their way through time, and cross the Atlantic Ocean to America. Then you cast your glance southward and see the Williams family, as they do the same in England, and then also, make their way to America. Once there they meet, and the Joseph A. Roberts family then creates a new family of their very own, through the adoption of a boy named Benny H. Williams, who then takes the name of each family. In his new life he becomes Harris Williams Roberts, and the intertwined golden braid, is complete.

The complete Williams / Harris / Roberts family lines pedigree flow chart. What is important to understand when viewing this illustration, is that it documents relationships, and it is not the same as a traditional and typical family tree chart.

The above graphic presents an image of two Bristol Channel banks, where the waters flow toward their new beginning in America. Sara (Harris) Roberts was the sister of Evan Harris, and it is through her marriage to Esau Roberts, that the Williams, Harris, Roberts family lines combine.

Let’s explain this more fully, starting with Sara (Harris) Roberts and Evan Harris’s relationships —

  • Sara (Harris) Roberts’s son was Joseph A Roberts.
  • Her brother was Evan Harris.
  • Evan’s son was Henry E. Harris.
  • Therefore, Henry E. Harris was Sara’s nephew, and a 1st cousin of Joseph A. Roberts.
  • Henry E. Harris’s daughter was Elvira (Harris) Williams.
  • Elvira was a first-cousin-once-removed to Joseph A. Roberts because she was the daughter of his 1st cousin Henry E. Harris.
  • Elvira’s son was Benny H. Williams. Therefore Benny, as the child of a first-cousin-once-removed, was a second cousin (or a 1st-cousin-twice-removed) to Joseph A. Roberts.
  • When Joseph A. Roberts adopted Benny H. Williams, he was adopting a second cousin, who was then renamed as his son: Harris Williams Roberts.

    Since some readers may not be used to seeing phrases like “first-cousin-once-removed”… there is an article (with charts) at the end of the footnotes, which explains these cousin relationships more fully.

We hope you have enjoyed the chapters on the William and Harris family lines, as much as we enjoyed creating and writing them. As we said at the beginning, “Both histories enlighten, helping us understand not only the families we are born into, but also the families we create.” (7)

Following are the footnotes for the Primary Source Materials,
Notes, and Observations

The Connecticut Western Reserve

(1) — four records

Western Reserve Including the Fire Lands 1826
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Western_Reserve_Including_the_Fire_Lands_1826.jpg
Note: For the map image and history.

Connecticut Western Reserve
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Connecticut_Western_Reserve
Note: History references and the contemporary map.

Trumbull County OHGenWeb
History & Genealogy
https://trumbull.ohgenweb.org/history/

Jonathan Trumbull Jr.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonathan_Trumbull_Jr.
Note: For his portrait.

The Young Family of Farmington

(2) — twenty-five records

For the maps presented in this section we relied on the:
Trumbull County
Records Center & Archives Department
http://www.archives.co.trumbull.oh.us/archives_maps.html
Farmington, 1830
https://www.co.trumbull.oh.us/archives/Maps%201830/Farmington%20%201830.pdf
Farmington, 1859
https://www.co.trumbull.oh.us/archives/Maps%201859/Farmington%201859.pdf
Farmington, 1870
https://www.co.trumbull.oh.us/archives/Maps%201870/Farmington.pdf

Augusta M Roberts
in the U.S., Indexed County Land Ownership Maps, 1860-1918
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/1127/records/397340
and, here is a better version of the map:
ebay
1899 Map of West Farmington Village Trumbull County Ohio
https://www.ebay.ca/itm/394854290214
Note: For the property labeled Augusta M. Roberts in the lower left corner.

An Image of Cleveland, Ohio in the 1800s, via
https://www.etsy.com/listing/979025989/1800s-panoramic-view-map-cleveland-ohio

West Farmington Village
A Brief History of Our Village, Early Beginnings
https://westfarmingtonvillage.com/history
Note: For the text.

1812
Daughters of The American Revolution
North America, Family Histories, 1500-2000
for Eli Young
D > Daughters of the American Revolution > Lineage Book : NSDAR : Volume 163 : 1921
https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/61157/images/46155_b290465-00125?ssrc=&usePUB=true&pId=3759181
Book page: 124, Digital page: 126/340
Note: Documents the 1812 marriage of Eli Young to Catherine Bellesfelt.

1826 >
Eli Young
Tax – Ohio, Tax Records, 1800-1887
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:J96B-1NB?lang=en
Note: Eli Young is paying property taxes in Farmington township as early as the 1826, and then paying them continuously for many years.

1830
Eli Young
in the 1830 United States Federal Census
Ohio > Trumbull > Farmington
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/8058/records/394289
Digital page: 5/8, Bottom third of the page.

1839
Deed Record: Trumbull. Deeds 1838–1839
#005641221
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89SY-T3DQ?view=explore&lang=en&groupId=TH-1961-29635-4858-23
Digital page: 104/554
Note: Quit claim deed of Eli Young to Stephen Young.

1840
Eli Young
in the 1840 United States Federal Census
Ohio > Trumbull > Farmington
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/8057/records/1752472
Digital page: 7/14, Bottom third of the page.

1853
Deed Record: Trumbull. Deeds 1853–1854
#005756392
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QSQ-G935-2R95?view=explore&lang=en&groupId=TH-1971-30440-21605-74
Digital page: 461/553
Notes: Land transfer from Sarah Young Hewitt to her brother Stephen Young. Land was given by John Young to Eli and Catherine Young and then to their children, including Sarah and Stephen.

1854
Deed Record: Trumbull. Deeds 1853–1854
#005756392
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-L935-2529?view=explore&lang=en&groupId=TH-1971-30440-21605-74
Digital page: 462/553
Note: From the Will of John Young, his father—
He had willed that his land be used by Eli and Catherine Young, and their four children: Sarah Ann, Stephen, Mary, and Newton.

19th Century Agricultural Scene, via
https://www.thoughtco.com/history-of-american-agriculture-farm-machinery-4074385

1850
Eli Young
1850 United States Federal Census
Ohio > Trumbull > Farmington
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/8054/records/14616320
Digital page: 24/31, Lines 12 through 15.
Notes: By the age of 60, he is a shoemaker. His daughter Sarah Hewitt and her husband John live with them. She must have had 2 husbands because of the Trumbull County book entry, and the DAR entry> The second husband is named John Sager.

1853
Catharine Bellesfelt Young
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/81181131/catharine-young
Note: Her dates are 1793 to July 9, 1853.

1860
Eli Young
Census – United States, Census, 1860
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MCGG-XFR?lang=en
Book page: 219, Digital page: 398/405, Lines 18 through 23.
Note: At the end of his life, his wife has already passed on and he is living in the home of his youngest son Newton and his family.

1861
Eli Young
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/81181130/eli-young
Note: His dates are 1789 to May 9, 1861.

1816 – 1898
Stephen Young
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/81181132/stephen-young?
His dates are: January 21, 1816 to February 14, 1898.

1823 – 1895
Miranda A Stowe Young
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/81181133/miranda-a-young
Her dates are October 28, 1823 to April 17, 1895.

1846
Stephen Young
in the Ohio, U.S., County Marriage Records, 1774-1993
Trumbull > 1842 – 1849
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/61378/records/3718218?tid=&pid=&queryId=42394630-5f1e-4ca6-8229-110bfb5cb236&_phsrc=nqI1&_phstart=successSource
Book page: 208, Digital page: 106/179, Right page, second entry.
Note: Their marriage record which recognizes March 18, 1846 as their actual wedding date. (The June 4, 1846 date on the Ancestry file is incorrect).

Stephen Young
Death – Ohio, County Death Records, 1840-2001
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F6LZ-5ZW?lang=en
Book page: 316, Digital page: 166/169, Top third of the page.
Note: His death date is the only entry for 1898.

Leora J Young Pixley
in the U.S., Find aA Grave Index, 1600s-Current
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/73438883/leora-j-pixley
Note: For her data.

Howard C Young
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/81181134/howard_c-young
Note: For his data.

What The Censuses Tell Us

(3) — twelve records

Typical cover for The Quiver magazine, via
https://www.abebooks.com/Quiver-Illustrated-Magazine-Sunday-General-Reading/31815987787/bd

ebay
The Quiver,
An Illustrated Magazine for Sunday and General Reading
The West Window
Illustration by A.J. Prescott, 1877
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/176823928729
Note: For the illustration.

Observation: Going forward, Augusta M. Young is noted on the 1850, 1860, 1870, and 1880 censuses, as being at home.

1850
Augusta Young
in the 1850 United States Federal Census
Ohio > Trumbull > Farmington
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/8054/records/14616316
Digital page: 24/31, Lines 5 through 9.
Note: Stephen 34, Miranda 27, Leora 3, Augusta 1.

1860
Augusta Young
in the 1860 United States Federal Census
Ohio > Trumbull > Farmington
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/7667/records/42510341
Book page: 218, Digital page: 25/30, Lines 11 through 15.
Note: Stephen 44, Miranda 36, Lora 13, Augusta 11, Howard 1.

1860
Esay [Esau] Roberts
in the 1860 United States Federal Census
Ohio > Portage > Palmyra
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/7667/records/41939084?tid=&pid=&queryId=1b5f435d-cb53-481c-ba89-b0848e8e4693&_phsrc=nJE3&_phstart=successSource
Note 1: Joseph is living in the home of his parents.
Note 2: Esau 42, Sarah 17*, Eliza 17, Morris 15, John 13, Ann 10, Joseph 9, Benjamin 6, Henry** 5, Sarah M. 2, Hiram 3/12.
*The mother is mis-labeled? She should be about 43 years old at this point.
** This is William Henry Roberts.

1870
Augusta M Young
in the 1870 United States Federal Census
Ohio > Trumbull > Farmington
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/7163/records/38417787
Book page: 25, Digital page: 25/27, Lines 22 through 26.
Note: Stephen 54, Miranda 47, Lora 23, Augusta 21, Howard 10.

1870
Joseph Roberts
in the 1870 United States Federal Census
Ohio > Portage > Paris
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/7163/records/41005032?tid=&pid=&queryId=0080c454-41cb-4ffb-b2c0-aaacb81f051e&_phsrc=KEb10&_phstart=successSource
Book page: 18, Digital page: 18/18, Line 15.
Note: He is living in the home of the David E. Jones family, and working as an agricultural laborer.

1880
Augusta M Young
in the 1880 United States Federal Census
Ohio > Trumbull > Farmington > 189
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/6742/records/26788128
Book page: 8, Digital page: 8/23, Lines 22 through 26.
Note: Stephen 64, Miranda 57, Augusta 31, Howard 20.

1880
Joseph Roberts
in the 1880 United States Federal Census
Ohio > Trumbull > West Farmington > 189
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/6742/records/25290656?tid=155025192&pid=262048917062&ssrc=pt
Book page: 18, Digital page: 4/6, Line 28.
Note 1: He is living in the home of the Lewis Taft family, and working as an agricultural laborer, (a farmer).
Note 2: Why did he indicate a Pennsylvania birthplace, instead of Ohio?

David Rumsey Map Collection
Ohio
by Samuel Breese and Sidney E. Morse, 1842
https://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~21740~660104
Note: For the map image, as originally published in Morse’s North American Atlas, 1842.

Joseph A. Roberts
Marriage – Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-2016
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Z8MP-3DMM?lang=en
Book page: 3, Digital page: 7/292, Right page middle entry.
and
Marriage Record: Trumbull. Marriage Records 1877–1886
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:939K-BJ3L-TT?view=index&personArk=/ark:/61903/1:1:XZNK-1YM&action=view&cc=1614804&lang=en&groupId=M96N-9ZY
Book page: 28, Digital page: 137/299, Left page middle entry.
Note: For the marriage record of June 11, 1881.

Medical Training in the Early 1880s

(4) — six records

The Agnew Clinic
File:The Agnew Clinic – Thomas Eakins.jpg
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:The_Agnew_Clinic_-_Thomas_Eakins.jpg
Note: For the time period appropriate painting of lecture-based medical training.

Eclectic medicine
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eclectic_medicine
Note: For the text.

History of the Eclectic Medical Institute, Cincinnati, Ohio, 1845-1902
Harvey Wickes Felter, 1902
https://archive.org/details/b24867500/page/n201/mode/2up
Notes: Various reference points throughout as follows —
p.55-56, A description of the school curriculum and syllabus.
p. 146, There are 83 graduates for the Class of 1884.
p. 188-189, A list of the 1884 graduates including Joseph A. Roberts.

Polk’s Medical Register and Directory of North America
by R.L. Polk, 1890
https://archive.org/details/McGillLibrary-103412-265/page/n1549/mode/2up?q=
Notes: Various reference points throughout as follows —
p.889, An advertisement for the Eclectic Medical Institute.
p. 927, Nelson, Portage. 900. Roberts Joseph A (Ecl), 262, ’84. Right page, first column.
p. 1557, Roberts Joseph A 927, His listing is on the right page, third column at center.
Note: For the references and artwork.

Cincinnati Public Library
Cincinnati & Hamilton County Library
History of the Eclectic Medical Institute, Cincinnati, Ohio, 1845-1902: including the Worthington Medical College (1830-1842), the Reformed Medical School of Cincinnati (1842-1845), and the Eclectic College of Medicine (1956-1859), with biographical sketches of members of the various faculties and lists of graduated arranged alphabetically and by classes.
1884. Roberts, Joseph A.
https://digital.cincinnatilibrary.org/digital/collection/p16998coll15/id/215729
Book page: 163, Center column.
Note: For the reference.

David Rumsey Map Collection
Map of Portage County, Ohio
from the Combination Atlas Map of Portage County, Ohio
by L.H. Everts, 1874
https://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~229977~5508293:Portage-County%2C-Ohio-?sort=pub_list_no_initialsort%2Cpub_date%2Cpub_list_no%2Cseries_no&mi=1&trs=11&qvq=q:Nelson%20township;sort:pub_list_no_initialsort%2Cpub_date%2Cpub_list_no%2Cseries_no;lc:RUMSEY~8~1
Book page: 14, Digital page: Follow the link above.
Note: For the 1874 Portage County map.

The Cleveland Business Directory Records
(Instead of an 1890 Census)

(5) —sixteen records

1891
U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995
for Joseph A Roberts
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2469/records/1100175408?tid=&pid=&queryId=50b81a67-b3d9-4f3c-892a-febfd10c7793&_phsrc=aIv1&_phstart=successSource
Book page: 1038, Digital page: 596/667, Left page in the right column.
Note: The page heading is PHY (for Physicians), at 106 Euclid Avenue.

1894
Joseph A Roberts
U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2469/records/1106578783?tid=&pid=&queryId=9a0dbc0c-4fb9-447a-aa6c-336f80ce606f&_phsrc=aIv3&_phstart=successSource
Book page: 1191, Digital page: 662/731, Right page in the right column.
Note: The page heading is PHY (for Physicians), at 684 Hough Avenue.

1895
Joseph A Roberts
U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2469/records/1099606214?tid=&pid=&queryId=9135982e-abae-40f5-8faa-480f4d6a6713&_phsrc=aIv9&_phstart=successSource
Book page: 1226, Digital page: 662/731, Left page in the left column.
Note: The page heading is PHY (for Physicians), at 34 Princeton.

1898
Joseph A Roberts
U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2469/records/1110634942?tid=&pid=&queryId=56938574-6b86-4d48-aff5-89f9febad62c&_phsrc=aIv11&_phstart=successSource
Book page: 1354, Digital page: 703/772, Left page in the left column.
Note: The page heading is PHY (for Physicians), at 1568 East Madison Avenue.

1900
Joseph Roberts
Census – United States, Census, 1900
12th Census of Population 1900: Cleveland. Census 1900
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MMZV-V46?lang=en
Book page: 6B, Digital page: 199/619, Lines 58 through 60.
Note 1: Joseph states that his birthplace is in Ohio in March 1850, and that both of his parents were born in Wales.
Note 2: This is the first census son Harris appears in, because the 1890 Census is lost. Harris’s birthdate of August 1889 is noted, and his age is 11.
and
Joseph A Roberts
U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2469/records/278306625?tid=&pid=&queryId=18d90601-f012-48d5-a846-1c6eda9e2c7f&_phsrc=aIv14&_phstart=successSource
Book page: 1354, Digital page: 716/786, Right page in the right column.
Note: The page heading is PHY (for Physicians), at 2795 Superior.

Vintage Greetings From Cleveland postcard, circa 1908, via https://www.freshwatercleveland.com/features/PFTL-Greetings-From-Cleveland-Ohio-Part-3-The-Variants_111025.aspx

1910
In 1910, Augusta is living with her son Harris W:
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/7884/records/21511720?tid=&pid=&queryId=effb7b42-3fed-4254-a86a-b4513e5373ed&_phsrc=ZPY20&_phstart=successSource
and
Joseph A Roberts-Con [con designates: continued]
in the U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995
Ohio > Cleveland > 1910 > Cleveland, Ohio, City Directory, 1910
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2469/records/1344265383?tid=&pid=&queryId=1ed22da5-3787-4635-b954-471db5ddaa68&_phsrc=ZPY16&_phstart=successSource
Book page: 1291, Digital page: 1424/1879
Notes: Joseph A. and his son Harris W. are listed as living at 954 Parkwood Drive. Augusta is listed at another address, 1474 Addison Road.

1917
Mrs Augusta M Roberts
in the U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995
Ohio > Cleveland > 1917 > Cleveland, Ohio, City Directory, 1917
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2469/records/315763762?tid=&pid=&queryId=febebf43-88e3-4d86-bd79-416f933169d5&_phsrc=ZPY1&_phstart=successSource
Book page: 1503, Digital page: 754/1225
Note: Augusta is living at 12009 Castlewood Dr. Her son Harris W. is also living at the same address, (Book page: 1504). Joseph A Roberts is not listed.

1920
In 1920, Augusta is living with her son Harris W:
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/6061/records/33261605?tid=&pid=&queryId=e7fc4745-ff9e-4776-9fec-2194303f30df&_phsrc=ZPY22&_phstart=successSource
and
1920
Joseph Roberts
in the 1920 United States Federal Census
Ohio > Cuyahoga > Cleveland Ward 20 > District 0396
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/6061/records/112203893?tid=&pid=&queryId=99482ed4-a36d-47f5-be83-4e59935fda41&_phsrc=KEb4&_phstart=successSource
Book page: Digital page: , Line 79.
Note 1: At 69, Joseph appears to be living as one of four lodgers in the home of Thomas Anderson.
Note 2: He seems to be retired? (Profession is None.)
Note 3: Why does he indicate that each of his parents were born in Ohio, when they were born in Wales?

1923
Joseph A Roberts
U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2469/records/292366965?tid=&pid=&queryId=8863e3d5-0b08-4b58-8023-55ca7514d9f9&_phsrc=bEi4&_phstart=successSource
Book page: 2223, Digital page: 1124/1675, Right column at 23rd entry.
Note: Cleveland, Ohio, City Directory, 1923. He worked at several locations over the years.

History of Cleveland
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Cleveland
Note: For the text about the 1920s in Cleveland, Ohio.

Cleveland Memory Project .org
Panoramic View of Public Square, Cleveland, O., circa 1900-1927
https://clevelandmemory.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/postcards/id/3229/rec/2
Note: The postcard verso reads, “The Heart of Cleveland, Ohio. The Public Square is located in the center of the business district. It contains the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument, which rises to a height of 125 feet, also a statute of Moses Cleveland, the founder of the City. It is the starting point of al the street car lines, also the many inter-urban lines that run out of Cleveland and traverse all parts of Ohio. It contains several shelter houses and is divided in four sections, all beautifully kept and arranged. A splendid fountain surrounded by gravel walks and beautiful flower beds, occupies the center of each section.”

1930
Joseph A Roberts
Census – United States, Census, 1930
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X4QN-6VZ?lang=en
Book page: Digital page: 727/1,133, Lines 77 through 84.
Note: He is living in the home of his son Harrison W. Roberts and his family.

William H. Roberts and Mrs. George Stitt

(6) — sixteen records

William Henry Roberts, the brother of Joseph A. Roberts was living in the Cleveland, Ohio area for about 30 years.

1910
William H Roberts
1910 United States Federal Census
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/7884/records/21539401
Book page: 2A, Digital page: 3/9, Line 21.
Notes: Wales is noted for both parents. Birthdate calculates to 1858.

1920
William H Roberts
1920 United States Federal Census
Ohio > Cuyahoga > Cleveland Ward 26 > District 0495
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/6061/records/76442276
Book page: 7A, Digital page: 13/35, Lines 37 through 39.
Notes: He is married and has a daughter. Wales is noted for the father, and England for the mother.
Note 1: William Roberts wife is Frances Thomas.
Note 2: Their daughter is Catherine E. (Roberts) Hallock, born 1912.

Frances M Thomas
in the Indiana, U.S., Marriage Certificates, 1960-201
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/61009/records/94221013
Note 1: Their marriage date is October 19, 1904.

1940
Wm Henry Roberts
Ohio, U.S., Death Records, 1908-1932, 1938-2022
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/5763/records/6451731
Note: William passed on in Cleveland on August 25, 1940.

Sarah M Stitt
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/78161907/sarah_m-stitt
Note: This sister of Joseph A. Roberts, Sarah M. (Roberts) Stitt, was traceable only through his obituary information.

1924
Augusta M Young Roberts
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/81181135/augusta_m-roberts
Note 1: Her dates are October 25, 1849 to May 1, 1924.
Note 2: Her birth year here is recorded as 1849,but some other sources cite 1848.

1924
Augusta Young Roberts
Death – Ohio, Deaths, 1908-1953
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X6MF-Y5C?lang=en
Digital page: 610/3,295 
Notes: Her death certificate. The information was provided by her son Harris Sr. Her birthdate is listed as being October 25, 1849, which is one year later than other records.

Dr Joseph A Roberts
U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/177407157/joseph-a-roberts
Note 1: His birth year is circa 1851, not 1862. His death age should be 79.
Note 2: His obituary information as noted on his Find A Grave file, is as follows —
Name: Roberts, Dr. Joseph, Date: Mar 4 1930, Source: unknown, Reel #69.
“Roberts-Dr. Joseph, father of Harris W., brother of William and Mrs. George Stitt and husband of the late Augusta M., passed away Monday evening. Now at R. S. Bennett Co. Funeral Home, 1940 E. 90th Street, where services will be held Wednesday, March 5, 1930, at 2 p. m. Age 68. Knollwood Cemetery. Cleveland, Ohio.”

Dr Joseph A Roberts
Death – Ohio, Deaths, 1908-1953
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XZX9-SL2?lang=en
Note 1: For his March 3, 1930 death record. His dates are March 1850 to March 3, 1930.
Note 2: He states on the 1900 Census that his birthdate is March 1850, see — https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MMZV-V46?lang=en .
Note 3: The person reporting is death is his daughter-in-law Mrs. W. Roberts, who is Edna (Caswell) Roberts. She probably didn’t know his correct age. He is recorded as being about 68 at death which would make his birth year 1862.
Note 3: His birth year in March 1850. (See this on the 1900 US Census). The person who reported the information clipped about 12 years off of his age.

Elvira Williams
in the U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60525/records/102869719
and
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/12416409/elvira-williams
Note: Her gravestone indicates these dates, February 16, 1863 – October 12, 1889.

George Williams
in the U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60525/records/102869707?tid=&pid=&queryId=4258b3af-1bc6-4dfe-a2cb-04a03c42166b&_phsrc=lFv3&_phstart=successSource
and
George Williams
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/12416396/george-williams
Note 1: His gravestone indicates these dates, August 5, 1856 – March 30, 1893.
Note 2: The citations from the Akron City Directories from Find A Grave. The notes are in error, since these records are for another man named George Williams, and not the man who is from our family. We believe that our ancestor likely worked in agriculture in Paris Township, Portage County, Ohio.

Elmer George Williams
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/12416370/elmer-george-williams
Note: His birth and death dates are, April 3, 1882 – December 2, 1966. From 1955 to 1965, he lived at this address: Elmer G. Williams, (Rose J.), home – 2124 4th St., (Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio). Rose was his wife and is interred near him.
and
Elmer D. Williams
in the Ohio, U.S., Births and Christenings Index, 1774-1973
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2541/records/1383300
Note: For Elmer’s birth confirmation.

The Nightingale

(7) — seven records

Nightingale
https://www.hareandtabor.co.uk/store/p31/Nightingale_greetings_card.html
Note: From the website description, “The nightingale (Luscinia megarhynchos) is a bird of legendary singing abilities, and continues its’ song after dark.  Its’ Old English form, nihtgale, actually means ‘night songstress’, although it is the male that actually sings.”

YouTube.com
Bird sounds – Common nightingale (Luscinia megarhynchos)
> Click on the link below for a short 2:32 minute video and hear the Nightingale sing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gokHFCrYGU8
Notes: Form the YouTube.com video page —
“The common nightingale (Luscinia megarhynchos) is considered the best bird singer in the world. It usually sings in dense vegetation near water where it lives and breeds. Its amazing song can often be heard even during the night. Not many birds can sing so loudly and persistently as a male nightingale. His concert is a true master’s performance because he has a wide variety of chirping, tweeting and shrieking sounds in his repertoire. Enjoy the world’s most beautiful bird song!”

Majestic Mountain Tree
Illustration from Stock Cake
https://stockcake.com/i/majestic-mountain-tree_1765988_1255094
Note: Illustration used for The Williams and Harris Families ancestral chart.

Reader’s Digest
What Is a Second Cousin vs. Second Cousin Once Removed?
by Lambeth Hochwald and Chloë Nannestad
https://www.rd.com/article/second-cousin-once-removed/
Note 1: For the reference and the charts.
Note 2: To our understanding, the phrases ‘second cousin’ and ‘1st-cousin-twice-removed’ are used equally for the same designation.

_____________________________

Since Benny H. Williams and Harris Williams Roberts were the same small boy, we thought that this Calvin and Hobbes comic strip was quite apropos as a closing to these footnotes —

Calvin And Hobbes was a comic strip published by Universal Syndicate from November 18, 1985 to December 31, 1995. Created by Bill Watterson (1958-present), the strip follows six-year-old Calvin and his best friend, a tiger named Hobbes. Calvin and Hobbes draws heavily upon Watterson’s experiences growing up in CHAGRIN FALLS, a neighborhood of Cleveland, Ohio.”
—–
This specific Calvin and Hobbes comic strip by Bill Waterston, featuring their philosophical discussion about life on a sidewalk square, was first published on April 16, 1991. Thanks Bill!

Case Western Reserve University
Encyclopedia of Cleveland History
Calvin and Hobbes
https://case.edu/ech/articles/c/calvin-and-hobbes
Note: For the history.