Buffalo and Bears in Athens County?

               Almira/Elvira Bobo (Sprague) was born in 1826 in Lodi Township, Athens County, Ohio to Joseph and Hanna Moore Bobo.  A narrative written by Joseph Bobo is included in the book History of Athens County and Incidentally of the Ohio Land Company and the First Settlement of the State at Marietta (which is available to read online).  In his narrative, Joseph states that his parents, Henry and Sarah Black Bobo, came to Athens County in 1798 (which was then a part of Washington County).  They settled on Margaret Creek, where Joseph was born in 1802, then moved to Lodi Township in 1810 “which was all wilderness then.” Joseph describes taking grain to a mill in a canoe by going to the mouth of the Hockhocking River 40 miles, then 30 miles up the Ohio River to Marietta, and 2 miles up the Muskingum to Belpre.

                Joseph tells about hunting deer, bears, turkey, and even a few elk and buffalo.  He states that the last buffalo was seen in 1815 in Meigs County.  He tells the story of his father Henry going into caves after bears with a torch in one hand and his gun in the other.  One time, the bear came running after him, and he just laid flat as he could and the bear ran over him, tearing his clothes.  Luckily, he had a buddy standing guard outside the opening of the cave who killed the bear.  Supposedly the bear weighed 390 pounds.

                Joseph married Hanna Moore on September 18, 1823.

 

 

                Hannah Moore Bobo died in 1853 and is buried in Williams Cemetery in Lodi Township, Athens County.  Joseph married Mary Wren (or Renn) in 1854.  His house burned to the ground in 1871, according to a newspaper article.  He died in July 1880 and was buried in the Williams Cemetery.

 

 

                Henry Bobo was born in 1771 in Prince William County, VA.  His parents were Gabriel Bobo (1719-1790) and Elizabeth Garner Bobo (1729-1813), also of Prince William County.  There are graves for Gabriel and Elizabeth Bobo in the Elk Cemetery in MacArthur, Vinton County, Ohio.  Research gets very confusing from this point on.  The name is of French origin and is spelled in a variety of ways:  Bubboe, Beaubeau, Baubeau, and many more. I believe Gabriel’s father was also named Gabriel, and was the original Bobo to come to America in about 1700.  That Gabriel married a widow, Elizabeth Spencer White. Some researchers feel that Gabriel and Elizabeth’s son, Spencer, is the father of the second Gabriel (making Gabriel Sr. the grandfather rather than the father of Gabriel Jr.).  Others suggest that Gabriel, Jr. is the son of Gabriel, Sr. and another wife.  Elizabeth Spencer White Bobo was responsible for helping at least five people come to America by paying for their passage in exchange for their land grants.

                The Bobo Family were persecuted in France for their Protestant beliefs.  A Gabriel Baubeau was living in 1691 St. Sauvant, France with three sons. There is a record of two Baubeau brothers being sentenced to death in 1697 for meeting in the woods for an Easter service. They were to be hanged and their bodies displayed on two different main roads to discourage any others from congregating to hear the Protestant teachings.  The French religious refugees became known as Huguenots.  There is an organization known as The National Huguenot Society and we would qualify for membership as descendants of Gabriel Baubeau.  We have another Huguenot ancestor: Andreas Souplis, who I wrote about in a previous blogpost titled “The Sheriff of Germantown.”     

The Hartley Family

               Ada E. Hartley’s father was Samuel Edwin Hartley, born April 12, 1854 in Millersburg, Meigs County, Ohio.  He married Phoebe (Phebe, Pheebe, Feebee) Sprague in 1876 and the Sprague Family is the family I have spent the most time researching……more to come in future posts!

                I do not have a birth record for Samuel (at least, not yet), but we know who his parents are from his death certificate:  Henry Hartley and Elizabeth Hull Hartley.  Clarence and Ada Hartley Goldsberry lived with Samuel for several years, and Clarence and Samuel seem to have had a farming business relationship.  There are several mentions in the local news section of the Athens Messenger of Clarence and Samuel making a business trip to Athens, or taking a load of hay to Athens.  Another mention of Samuel Hartley in the Athens Messenger is not so complimentary.  The February 13, 1902 edition states that Samuel Hartley was indicted upon assault and battery upon Miss Alice Cook, tried before the petit jury, found guilty and fined $25.  I would love to know what happened there! Samuel is buried at Graham Chapel in Lodi Township, Athens County, OH.

 

 

                 We can find Henry Hartley, Samuel’s father, in the 1840 and 1850 Census records in Meigs County, Ohio.  By 1860, he is in Athens Township, Athens County and in 1870, he is in Lodi Township, Athens County.  Earlier census records are less certain.  There are tax records for Henry Hartley in Columbiana County, OH for the years of 1833-1838.  In the 1830 and 1820 Census, I believe Henry is living with his father, Edward Hartley in Columbiana County.  Those census do not name each member of the household, but there is a male child of the right age to be Henry, who was born in 1809 in Pennsylvania .  I know that Edward is the father of Henry because he is named in his father’s will.

 

                Side note: It is important to remember that Ohio’s county boundaries have changed over the years.  In 1803, there were only 17 named counties.  Columbiana County was in northeastern Ohio, adjoining Washington County to the south.  Athens County would have been a part of Washington County at that time.  To add to the confusion in tracing this family, we need to remember county and state boundaries changed in other states as well.  Obviously, West Virginia used to be all Virginia.  Pennsylvania northern boundaries changed.  Connecticut used to claim all of northern Ohio.

 

                Edward Hartley was born in 1781 in Pennsylvania.  Our proof that he was born in PA is found in the 1860 Census, where he is living with his son Abram and states he was born in PA, but then the 1850 Census states that he was born in VA.  However, I found him in the 1810 Census in PA, and found no Edward Hartley in VA in 1810.  He was in PA until at least 1810, where Henry was born.  Edward was in Columbiana County by the 1820 Census. Edward died in 1861 in Columbiana County, OH.

                From here on, I am mostly relying on other researchers.  Several state that Edward’s parents are Roger Hartley III and Dorothy Riley Hartley.   Rodger III was born in PA on March 19, 1733 and is recorded in Society of Friends records, Buckingham Monthly Meeting in Bucks County, PA.  His father was also a Rodger (II), born 1702, who was married to Rebecca Packer on June 21, 1727 in Burlington County, NJ (just across the border from Bucks County, PA). 

               Rodger II purchased 100 acres from William Penn in Solebury, PA.  He also had 50 acres was deeded to him by his father.  Rodger II’s parents were Edward Hartley, born May 16, 1666 in England. He arrived with his brother Henry and Edward’s wife, Sarah Midgley, sometime after their marriage in 1693 in England and before the first record of him purchasing land in 1700. 

           

               Edward’s mother was Alice Vipoint, whose family was well-known in the English Quaker circles.  His father was Rodger Hartley (the first, at least as far as I know).  His birth was recorded in the Hardshire Society of Friends in Lancashire, England. There is not any documentation of Edward joining the Society of Friends when he arrived in America, but his sons later did.  

                Edward outlived his son Rodger, as proven by Edward’s will, dated June 13, 1744.  His property was left to his son Thomas, son John, daughter Jenet, and to his son Roger Hartley’s seven children. 

 

 

One Strong Lady and Her Quaker Ancestors

     Phoebe Lovett was the wife of John Van Buren, and grandmother to Clarence Goldsberry.  She was the daughter of William Lovett and Mary Ann “Polly” Smith, born March 24, 1839 in Racine, Lebanon Township, Meigs County, Ohio.  She married John Van Buren July 27, 1856 in Racine, when she was just 17 years old.  John Van Buren was ten years older than his wife.  She had a son, George, the next year, and another son, William David in 1859. George died as a young child.  John Van Buren left for the Civil War when Phoebe was four or five months pregnant with their daughter, Christine, who died when she was only 15 years old.  After John Van Buren returned from the war in 1865, they had four more children:  Francis Ellsworth (our direct line ancestor), Ella, Eva, and Charles Lewis.  Charles was only 10 years old when his father died.  Phoebe was left with four children to raise by herself, and then took custody of her grandson, Clarence.

Phoebe died February 22, 1925, almost 40 years after John Van Buren.  They are buried in the Zion Cemetery, outside of Shade.

 Phoebe’s father, William Lovett, was born in Ohio on June 4, 1804, the year after Ohio became a state.  He married Mary Smith on September 15, 1826. 

 William and Mary are enumerated in the 1830, 1840, 1850, 1860, and 1870 census records.   Some interesting notes from the census records:  In 1850, they have seven children: Betsey, 17; Sarah, 14; Daniel, 13; Phoeba, 11; William, 9; Mary E.., 4; Eliza A., 2. In the 1860 census, Sarah, Daniel and Phoebe are not listed.  We know that Daniel and Phoebe are married and out on their own.  Sarah would be 24 years old, so is probably married.  Elizabeth is 27 and is marked as “idiotic,” as she is in 1870.  Also in 1860, there are two more children, Hiram, 9, and O. W., 6.  In 1870,  O.W.’s first name is Orange (?) even though in Phoebe’s obituary, he is named Owen.    Also in the 1870 census, we find that Hiram has married someone named Samaria and they are living with William and Mary.  William died on December 4, 1871 and is buried in Meigs County.

     William’s parents Daniel and Phoebe West were married January 1, 1798 in Ohio, one of the oldest recorded marriages in the state.  Daniel Lovett is listed as one of the early settlers of Meigs County in the book The Pioneer History of Meigs County.  He and Phoebe are enumerated in the 1820, 1830, and 1840 census of Letart Township, Meigs County, OH.  Daniel died December 4, 1840 in Meigs County, OH.

    There has been no proof found of who Daniel Lovett's parents are.  There are many Lovetts in Pennsylvania at the time of his birth.  There were Lovetts that came during William Penn's settlement in 1690, and many of them were Quakers.  I hope to find more records to establish more about Daniel's ancestors. 

                 

    

Proving Clarence Goldsberry's Parentage

 

 

 

                                     Clarence Goldsberry and Ada Hartley's Wedding Picture

     My Grandpa Goldsberry was Clarence Frank Goldsberry, born January 4, 1888 in Meigs County, Ohio.  My father had told me the story of Clarence's birth many years ago, but I didn't have any proof of the story until this past year.

     My father told me that Clarence's mother was Mary Ashworth, who got pregnant by Francis (or Frank) Ellsworth "F.E." Goldsberry.  When Mary told F. E. that she was pregnant, he ran off out west.  F.E. returned a couple of years later and asked Mary to marry him, after she had been raising a son all by herself.  She told F.E. it was too late, to get lost, and that is exactly what he did.  I don't believe F.E. ever acknowledged his son, legally or personally.  F.E. and Mary went on to marry other people.  F.E. went on to become a successful businessman in Athens, Ohio.  Mary, on the other hand, married a Civil War veteran, Lewis Jeffers, who was 25 years older than herself.  She was his third wife, and Lewis  had many children from his previous marriages.  Mary and Lewis had seven children together.

     Clarence had a hard life as a young child.  Lewis Jeffers had a 145 acre farm, but many mouths to feed.  Clarence's job was to bring the cows in for milking each morning and evening.  He told my father that he used to jump from "cowpie" to "cowpie" in order to keep his feet warm on the cold days because he had no shoes.  Clarence's paternal grandmother, Phoebe Lovett Goldsberry, was concerned about his welfare.  She talked Mary into letting Clarence live with her.  I don't know exactly when that took place.  Phoebe's husband, John Van Buren Goldsberry, died in 1888, four years after Clarence was born.  There are no census records available for 1890, when Clarence would have been just two years old.  By the 1900 census, Clarence is 12 years old and living with his grandmother.  My father told me that when Phoebe went to pick up Clarence, she asked for his things, and Mary handed her a red bandana handkerchief, tied up on all four corners, which contained everything she had for Clarence.

     The census records were my first proof that the story passed down was accurate.  Phoebe is listed as "head of household" in 1900 and Clarence is listed as her grandson.  Next I started looking for proof that Mary Ashworth was Clarence's mother and F.E. Goldsberry was his father.  I found a birth record by searching by mother's name in Meigs County, Ohio.  It lists a male child, born to Mary Ashworth and father's name is listed as "Illegitimate."  So, how could I prove that F.E. Goldsberry was the father?

     F. E. Goldsberry's obituary does not list Clarence as a survivor.  Articles about his business in Athens never mentions Clarence.  However,  does substantiate the part of the story that he went out west for two years.  Then I found an article about his retirement that says that F.E. worked as a "news butcher" on the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad.

 

          I was excited to find the original marriage license for Clarence and Ada Hartley, knowing that those sometimes contain parents' names.  Disappointment again.  Clarence's parents are listed as Mary Jeffers (her married name) even though it specifically asks for mother's maiden name.  Father's name is left blank.

 

 

 

 

     Finally, on a trip to Athens County with my sister, we obtained a copy of Clarence's death certificate.  Voila!  Finally, a legal document that lists his parents as Mary Ashworth and Frank E. Goldsberry. 

 

 

     As many genealogists have told me, family tradition handed down from generation to generation usually turns out to be mostly accurate.  I look forward to tracking down documentation for some more of the family stories I have been told!

 

     What family stories have you been told?

 

                                                                                                       Teresa