Military Monday - Charles Clark Ormsby

In an effort to get back into blogging, and in honor of the 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War, I am going to write about my 5 ancestors who fought in that war.

I will start with my 2nd-great-grandfather, Charles Clark Ormsby.

C.C. Ormsby was born on 20 August 1838 in Brecksville, Cuyahoga, OH.  His parents were Selah and Diana (Clark) Ormsby.  He moved to Cumberland County, IL with his father and stepmother at the age of 2.   

C.C. married (1) Louisa Ann Shuey, daughter of Ephraim and Matilda (Grass) Shuey, on 22 September 1861 at Greenup, Cumberland, IL.

On 14 August 1864, he enlisted in Company E, 123 IL Volunteer Infantry.  He was discharged from service on 3 July 1865 with the rank of Corporal.

Louisa died on 14 February 1872 and C.C. married (2) Sarah Ann Delp on 9 November 1873 at Casey, Clark, IL.

C.C. and Louisa had 3 children:

1. Francis Ezra Ormsby, born 21 July 1862 at Cumberland Co., IL and married Kate Shoemaker.

2. Edward Arthur Ormsby, born 15 October 1866 at Cumberland Co., IL, and married Lena E. Neeley.

3. Ida Mae Ormsby, born 13 January 1872 at Cumberland Co., IL, and married William Emmet Havens.

C.C. was a charter member of Pleasant Valley United Brethren Church.  Early member, teacher and trustee in that church which was located across the highway from his house.

He applied for military pension for reason of rheumatism, chronic diarrhea and hernia of right side.
Charles Clark Ormsby died on 11 June 1920 at Cumberland Co., IL from Cancer of the Mouth.  He is buried in Washington St. Cemetery at Casey, Clark, IL.

C.A.R. Regional Tour part 2

As I mentioned before, the National Officers and Chairmen of the Children of the American Revolution travel to other regions over the summer to meet C.A.R. members from around the country.

Since Amanda is a National Chairman, and I am a Senior National Chairman, we took advantage of the opportunity and traveled to the South Central Region and the South-Eastern Region.

The South Central Regional meeting was held in New Orleans - right in the middle of the French Quarter.  One of the skits that the National Board did was based on the movie "Tangled".  Here are some of the actors in that skit.  Amanda is the Ruffian/Thug with the hook.

Our tour at this Region was to the National WWII Museum.  I would highly recommend that you visit it if you are ever in New Orleans.  It depicts events leading up to World War II as well as everything that happened during the war and is extremely well done.  The 4-D movie hosted by Tom Hanks is very moving and not to be missed.

The banquet that evening was a Mardi Gras theme, so everyone had a mask.  Here is Amanda with her friend Callah.

After New Orleans, we drove to Pawley's Island, SC for the South-Eastern Regional meeting.  Our first day there we were treated to a beach party hosted by the South Carolina C.A.R.  We all had a good time, although it stormed off and on that day.

The tour for this region was to Brookgreen Gardens to see their sculptures and zoo.  The gardens were quite nice, although the mosquitoes were terrible!

We had fun traveling with the C.A.R. I think that it is a great opportunity for our children to meet others from around the country, to visit historical sites, and learn about other places.  We are already looking forward to next year's Regional tour.

C.A.R. Regional Tour

Every summer, the National Officers of the Children of the American Revolution tour around the country to meet the members and tell them about the theme for the year.  They stop in each of nine Regions and present their program through skits that they have written.

In Illinois, we are part of the Great Lakes Region.  This year, our Regional meeting was in Novi, Michigan.

Here is a skit that my daughter and her friend wrote to help raise money for the C.A.R. Voyager fund.  They were dancing to the tune "Friday".

Each region features a tour to a local attraction.  In Michigan, we went to Greenfield Village, a nationally renowned historic village.

The Regional meeting always ends with a formal banquet and dance.  Here is Amanda with National President Mary Lib Schmidt.

Mary Lib Schmidt is from Virginia.  She is the National President of C.A.R. for 2011-12.  Her theme this year is "Living the American Dream".  She is raising money to support the Fisher House foundation - an organization that provides lodging for family members of injured veterans while they are patients at a military or VA hospital. 

http://www.nscar.org/ 





Hill-Ormsby-Kern Reunion

Last month, we had a reunion of our family.  It represented the descendants of Charles Taylor and Nancy Jane (Wiley) Hill.  Almost 70 of the descendants of their son William Hill and their daughter Jessie (Hill) Ormsby Kern met at the house of my cousin D.J. in Swanton, OH.  She has a large great-room for entertaining, a large yard and a pond with a beach which kept the younger members entertained.

Family members came from across the U.S. - those who came the farthest were Mike and Jane (Watkins) Trefren who drove from Florida, Don and Kathy Hill who drove from North Carolina, Arlene Hill who flew from Washington, D.C., Aunt Shirley Kern who flew from New Orleans, and Chuck and Kathy Ormsby who drove from southern Illinois.

We had a great time visiting with our cousins who we don't see very often.  Of course, there were some younger cousins and some spouses who I hadn't met yet.  Everyone had a great time despite the 90-plus degree heat.  I hope that we have another reunion soon.

The Hill Family - 4 generations of descendants of William and Marguerrie (Spray) Hill

The Ormsby Family - 3 generations of descendants of H. Basil and Jessie (Hill) Ormsby

(her first marriage)

The Kern Family - 4 generations of descendants of James and Jessie (Hill) Kern

(her second marriage)

The "Elder Statesmen" of the Family-

Shirley Kern (daughter of Jim & Jessie)

"Wimp" Hill (son of William)

Ruth Ormsby (widow of Basil & Jessie's son Don)

Mary Kern (widow of Jim & Jessie's son Dick)

Continental Congress

At the end of June, I traveled to Washington, DC for the 120th Continental Congress of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution.  We roomed with our friends (and new-found cousins) Teri and Callah McLeod.

It is always a lot of fun traveling to DC to visit with old friends and to make new friends.  It was beautiful weather - not too hot.

On Tuesday evening we attended the Illinois Supper.  This is always well attended by ladies from all over the country.  The keynote speaker was Tammy Duckworth who spoke about efforts to improve health care for female veterans.

Illinois State Regent Luanne Bruckner, Amanda, Tammy Duckworth, Callah

Wednesday evening was opening night.  There were several speakers from the various 9/11 memorials. 

On Thursday, we attended the Units Overseas luncheon.  There is a bazaar with gift items from the various countries where DAR has chapters outside the USA.  It was a lot of fun to shop.

Thursday afternoon, we had a little free time - we ended up at the National Archives where we toured their exhibits and saw the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.  Not enough time to research, unfortunately.

Friday was business sessions, and Saturday we attended the Junior Membership luncheon.

I worked in the DAR library helping members who were working on their lineage, and my daughter worked at the C.A.R. sales table selling C.A.R. merchandise and promoting C.A.R.  All in all, it was a fun week!

www.dar.org

Children of the American Colonists

Wow, I'm really behind in my blogging, but let me try to catch up.

In June, we attended the General Assembly of the Children of the American Colonists.  Actually, we (Illinois Chapter) hosted the assembly near Chicago.  Members and adult advisors came from all over the country, including Florida, Virginia, Kentucky and Washington State.  For those members who came Thursday, we went to Gino's East Pizzeria for dinner - for Chicago-style deep dish pizza.

On Friday, we traveled to Navy Pier in Chicago for a "Fun Day".  It was a beautiful day to walk along the lake, ride the ferris wheel (invented in Chicago) and dine al fresco at Bubba Gump's restaurant.
After the Adult Board meeting Friday evening, there was a pool party for everyone.

Business was conducted on Saturday morning, then we traveled to Chicago History Museum for a tour and to learn about early Chicago history.  On Saturday evening, everyone enjoyed the candlelight banquet.

National President for 2010-11 was Graham Lerner and he finished a successful year raising money for the Earl Greg Swem Library in Williamsburg, VA.  His adult advisor was President General Melanie Platte.

New officers were sworn in at the Candlelight Dinner.  Our new National President for 2011-12 is Amanda Nagy and her adult advisor is President General Dr. Richard Clouse,

Congratulations to Graham and Melanie for a wonderful year and best wishes to Amanda and Rick for a productive year to come!

Dr. Clouse, Amanda, Mrs. Platte, Graham



 www.nsdac.org/nscac.htm

Inferential Genealogy - connecting Elmina to her parents

According to Dr. Tom Jones, "Inferential Genealogy" is the process of piecing together documents to make conclusions about relationships and identities that no record tells you all by itself.

Elmina (McGowan) and John Johnson Neeley

Here is an excerpt of an analysis I used to connect Elmina McGowan Neeley to her parents:

1850 Federal Census for Auglaize Township, Allen co., OH p.579, dwelling #785:

Joseph McGowen, 30y male farmer, born PA

Melvina McGowen, 28y female, born OH

Elmina McGowen, 7y female, born OH

Clementine McGowen, 4y female, born OH

Seamon McGowen, 2y male, born OH

1860 Federal Census for Auglaize Township, Allen Co., OH p.483, dwelling #1393: 

J.T. Magawin, 39y male farmer, born PA

M. Magawin, 38y female, born VA

E.J. Magawin, 17y female, born OH

M.E. Magawin, 15y female, born OH

S.E. Magawin, 12y male, born OH

Z.A. Magawin, 10y female, born OH

H.A. Magawin, 5y male, born OH

L.A. Magawin, 1y female, born OH

1865 Kansas State Census for Timber Hill Township, Bourbon Co., KS, p.40, dwelling #283:

J.S. McGowan, 45y male Farmer, born PA

M. McGowan, 44y female, born VA

C. McGowan, 19y female teacher, born OH

S. McGowan, 16y male, born OH

Z. McGowan, 14y female, born OH

H. McGowan 10y male, born OH

L. McGowan, 6y female, born OH

F. McGowan, 2y male, born OH

From these census records the following can be deduced:

Joseph T. McGowan was born in Pennsylvania between 1818-1821

Melvina McGowan was born in Ohio or Virginia between 1819-1822 and died between 1875-1880

Elmina J. McGowan was born in Ohio ca 1843 – she does not appear in the household in 1865 (married in March prior to June enumeration)

Clementine (M.E.) McGowan was born in Ohio ca 1845-1846 and leaves the household after  1865

Seamon E. McGowan was born in Ohio ca 1848-1849 and leaves the household after 1865

Z.A. McGowan was born in Ohio ca 1850-1851 and leaves the household before 1875

Henry A. McGowan was born in Ohio ca 1855-1856 and leaves the household after 1880

Louisa A. McGowan was born in Ohio ca 1859-1860 and leaves the household after 1880

Frank E. McGowan was born in Ohio ca 1862-1864

From Land Records we find:

Deed Record dated 3 April 1892 in Bourbon Co., KS from Mary McGowan, widow of J.T. McGowan, granted to J.W. Moore and Semon E. McGowan –

½ interest  in SW ¼ of section 9, Township 24, Range 23

Land Record Index from Bourbon Co., KS showing transactions of

SW ¼ of section 9, Township 24, Range 23 –

Entered by Joseph T. McGowan on 4 Nov. 1860

subsequent transfers:

from  Mary McGowan et al. to John W. Moore on April 2, 1901 (same as above deed)

from Henry O. McGowan to S.E. and D.L. McGowan on April 2, 1901

from F.E. McGowan to H.O. McGowan on April 2, 1901

from L.A. Neeley, et al. to D.L. McGowan on May 10, 1901

from S.E. McGowan to Minnie Huffman on May 10, 1901

from S.E. McGowan to D.L. McGowan on Feb. 24, 1919

from D.L. McGowan to S.E. McGowan on Feb. 24, 1919

from M.A. McGowan and D.L. McGowan to Jas. G. Crocker on Feb. 21, 1924

from M.A. McGowan heirs to Jas. G. Crocker on Dec. 13, 1924

from Ora E. McGowan to Myra Mahaffey, etal. on March 23, 1931

to Janie McGowan, widow of D.L. McGowan on April 14, 1931 (see below for relationships)

As for the family of Henry Miller (father of Melvina Miller McGowan):

In NARA bounty land warrant #86844 (cited above), there is also a copy of the Last Will and Testament of Henry Miller, dated 27 February 1858 at Knox Co., OH.

This names son Avery M. Miller, daughter Malvina McGowan, daughter  Zelpha Phillips, and deceased daughter Elmina Baker.

Marriage Records of Knox County, Ohio 1808-1875 gives:

p.40 – Elmina Miller married Jacob L. Baker on 29 Jan. 1837

p.58 – Malvina Miller married J.T. McGowan on 27 Feb. 1842 (prev. submitted)

p. 105 – Avery M. Miller married Rosa A. Heiple on 28 June 1851

p. 122 – Zilpha Miller married William Phillips on 8 March 1855

From Kansas Marriages 1840-1935 (database at FamilySearch.org)-

S.E. Mcgowan, born 1848 married to Missouri Stewart on 13 Sept. 1872 in Bourbon Co. KS

Zelpha A. Mcgowan, born 1852 married to J.W. Moore on 17 Dec. 1874 in Bourbon Co., KS

Marinda C. Mcgowan, born 1845 married to Joseph B. Wilson on 15 Nov. 1867 in Bourbon Co., KS

Frank E. Mcgowan, born 1868 married to Clementine Stewart on 17 Feb. 1886 in Bourbon Co., KS

NARA Civil War Pension for John J. Neeley-

statement indicates his first wife Elmina McGowan died near Greenup IL on 26 June 1882 and he is currently (15 January 1898) married to Louisa A. McGowan

Decree of Descent from Probate Court of Bourbon Co., KS 13 Feb. 1943 –

gives additional information on Semon E. McGowan (deceased 3 October 1919), leaving widow Missouri Ann McGowan (died 17 December 1930), and children D.L. McGowan, Myra Mahaffey, Bertha Boyd, Emma Feemster, Alice McGowan, Edna Brown and Ora McGowan

Letter from Mildred R. Neeley of Casey, IL to Kimberly Ormsby [Nagy] dated 12 April 1978 (she was the daughter of Charles Hiram Neeley, son of J.J. and Elmina) – she cites information given to her from Orilda Neeley, daughter of J.J. and Elmina) – mentions that the two wives of J.J. Neeley were sisters – Elmina and Louisa McGowan. (I have the original in my possession)

Finally, 

Enclosed are copies of several family letters , originals in possession of Elbert Cassell, descendant of Avery Miller.  He lived in Carthage, MO in 1981  when I received these copies:

1. From Elmina McGowan [in Kansas] to Avery Miller [her uncle] dated 25 Aug. 1863.

2. From Clementine McGowan Wilson (in Bourbon Co) to Uncle Avery Miller her uncle dated Feb. 1867 [1876] – mentions Aunt Zilpha [Phillips] and tells of her mother’s (Melvina Miller McGowan) death

3. From Melvina Miller McGowan to her brother Avery Miller dated 30 March 1873.  Mentions her children Clem and Semon and sister Zilpah .

4. From Melvina Miller McGowan to her brother Avery Miller dated 5 July 1874.  mentions his wife Rosa, her sister Zilpah  and William [Zilpah’s husband].  Mentions daughter Clem.  Asks about daughter Elmina [still in Ohio].

5. From Melvina Miller McGowan to brother Avery Miller [ca 1875].  Mentions sons Henry and Semon, daughters Clem and Zilpah who married John Moore.  Asks about her sister Zilpah and Avery’s wife Rosa

6. From Clementine McGowan Wilson to Uncle Avery Miller dated 24 Feb. 1889 – mentions Aunt Zilpha & Uncle Will [Phillips] and Uncle Avery and Aunt Rosa [Miller].  Also that her father [J.T.] has remarried.  Also mentions brothers Henry, Frank, Semon and sister Zilpha.  She talks about her children Bertie Adelaide, Louisa Josephine, Frank Emmet, Edward Benson, Julia Amelia, Walter Scot, and Ethel May.

I believe that the above references help to substantiate the family as follows:

Henry Miller had the following children:

1. Elmina Miller who married Jacob Baker in 1837 and died before 1858

2.  Melvina Miller who married J.T. McGowan in 1842 (see below)

3.  Avery Miller who married Rosa Heiple in 1851

4.  Zilpha Miller who married William Phillips in 1855.

Henry was a veteran of the War of 1812 and received 160 acres of Bounty Land that passed to his daughter Melvina upon his death.  That land was the SW1/4 of Section 9, township 24, range 23E in Bourbon Co. OH.  Son-in-law J .T. McGowan settled on that land in 1860.  This land was subsequently transferred between J.T.’s  surviving children and grandchildren.

Joseph T. McGowan was born 17 July 1819 in Pennsylvania.  He died 11 Dec. 1890 in Bourbon Co., KS.

He married (1) Melvina Miller in 1842 in Knox Co., OH.  She was born ca 1820 in OH or VA, and died between 1875-80 probably in Bourbon Co., KS.

He married (2) Mary A. Smith in 1887 in Bourbon Co., KS.

J.T. and Melvina had the following children:

1. Elmina J. McGowan, born 21 April 1844 in Ohio who married J.J. Neeley (see below)

2. Marinda Clementine McGowan was born in 1845 in Ohio and married Joseph Wilson in 1867 in Bourbon Co., KS.

3. Seamon E. McGowan was born in 1848 in Ohio and married Missouri Stewart in 1872 in Bourbon Co., KS.  He died in 1919.

4. Zilpha A. McGowan was born in 1852 in Ohio and married J.W. Moore in 1874 in Bourbon Co., KS.

5. Henry A. McGowan was born in Ohio ca 1855-1856 and leaves the household after 1880.  He moves west.

6. Louisa A. McGowan was born in 1859 Ohio and marries her widowed brother-in-law J.J. Neeley (see below)

7. Frank E. McGowan was born in 1868 Ohio and married Clementine Stewart in 1886.

John J. Neeley was born 20 July 1841 and died 17 September 1908.

He married (1) Elmina J. McGowan on 14 March 1865 in Bourbon Co, KS.  She was born 21 April 1844 in Ohio and died 26 June 1882 near Greenup, IL (buried in Clark Co., IL).

He married (2) Louisa A. McGowan, sister of Elmina.  They were married 27 Dec. 1882.  She was born in 1859 in Ohio and died in 1917 (buried in Clark Co., IL).

John J. and Elmina had 9 children including Lena E. Neeley who married Edward A. Ormsby

John J. and Louisa had 5 children.

These records should show that Elmina (McGowan) Neeley was the daughter of Joseph T. and Melvina (Miller) McGowan.  She had siblings Marinda Clementine (McGowan) Wilson, Seamon E. McGowan, Zilpha A. (McGowan) Moore, Henry A. McGowan, Louisa A. (McGowan) Neeley and Frank E. McGowan. In fact, Louisa, Frank and Henry are noted to be children of J.T. McGowan on the 1880 census.

Joseph Thompson and Melvina (Miller) McGowan

The analysis itself is actually much longer and contains more information as I was trying to prove some other dates as well, but it gives an idea of how we can infer a relationship when all we have is indirect evidence to substantiate it.  In other words, I have nothing that states simply "Elmina was the daughter of Joseph and Melvina McGowan", but am fairly certain that she was based on other information.