Vacation Destinations

Yes, it is Sunday, and yes this is a Family Sunday posting.  In my continuing ancestral research, numerous locations pop up, places where different branches of my family originally settled, or called home in the past centuries.  It is my hope to visit a few of these someday, but at the moment it is fairly impossible for me to get away.  Perhaps future years and fortune will give me the opportunity.

Today, I'll share a few of the places I'd like to visit at some point.  Mind you, these aren't liable to be hot tourist destinations, and are only interesting to me because of my familial ties.

Bridgeton, New Jersey:  Really, all of Cumberland County would be on the tour, but Bridgeton is the center of it all.  Hendersons, Ballingers, Robinsons, and other assorted ancestors came from this area, and it would be interesting to have a look around.

Baldwin City, Kansas:  Home of the Counts family.  My great grandfather, George Sylvester Counts, was born and raised with three brothers and two sisters on a farm outside of town, and it would be interesting to drop by for a visit.  I know there have been a few "cousin reunions" held at the old homestead, though I've never had the pleasure of an invitation.  Maybe someday I'll get out there, reunion or otherwise.

Old Saybrook, Connecticut:  It was here that Joseph Ingham the weaver first settled in America around 1640.

Cato, New York:  Another site of Ingham interest, this is where William Ingham set up shop around 1814, and he made a fortune running a general store.  Later on, his sons overextended themselves and lost pretty much everything.  William's youngest son, Albert, was the grandfather of my adopted great-grandfather.

Hagerstown, Maryland:  It was here that the Forthmans first settled in America before the Civil War.  My great-grandfather, William Edward Forthman, was born here in 1863.  His mother, Ann Creager, was also from Hagerstown, and her ancestors settled there before the Revolution.

There are plenty of other locations of note in my family, though these are a few that stand out the most.  It may be little more than a daydream to think of visiting these distant towns and cities, though perhaps I'll go one day.  Only, what ever will I find when I get there?

Caroline Sheppard Henderson

More information on the Henderson lines keeps flowing in.  I am pleased to share the following information concerning Caroline Sheppard Henderson, who was the sister of my 3x great grandmother Rebecca Henderson.  The following comes courtesy of a third cousin, twice removed, who was gracious enough to share it in the first place:

Caroline was the 7th child of the family (out of 15 children, 14 of which lived to adulthood- the family was locally famous for this feat). She was born 09 June 1861 in Deerfield Township, New Jersey.  Her father was a farmer.  Their homestead was called "Love Lane", which was located off of Finley Station Road.  The house is no longer standing.

On 16 Sep 1885 she married Ernst Frederick Kurtz of Philadelphia (son of John George Kurtz and Louisa Young, both of Germany).  Ernst and his father owned a stove store in Philadelphia.  They lived at 2535 Montgomery Ave in Philadelphia until 1918, at which time they built a home at 4901 Monument Road.

After Ernst died on 09 Aug 1930, Caroline sold their house.  Apparently they had lost much in the stock market crash, and their house which was valued at $49,500 the prior year, sold for less than half that amount.  Caroline went to live with her son Ralph and his family in Woodbury, NJ.  She died 13 Jul 1949 and is buried in Eglington Cemetery in Mickleton, NJ.

Caroline and Ernst "Fred" Kurtz had 2 children: Dr. Arthur Daniel Kurtz (05 Jun 1886 - 21 Jan 1939) who married Lucille LaDow Riley from Bridgeton, Cumberland Co, NJ., and Ralph Swain Kurtz (24 Mar 1894 - 17 Nov 1990).

Ralph was married twice- his first wife, Elizabeth Robertson Keach (1897-1931) died suddenly.  They had 3 children: Shirley Adele Kurtz (1918-1997), Roger Sheppard Kurtz (1921-1934) and Edith Harriet Kurtz (1924-2004).

Ralph's second marriage took place in 1935 to Margaret Christine Chew Pitt (1909-2000).  They had 2 children.

Learn more about the Henderson line here.

So, there you have it, another piece of the puzzle.  Caroline's line was one I had been unable to trace through my academic research, so I am very grateful that a fellow Henderson descendant was willing to share this data.  There is much information still out there that we need to piece together for posterity, so I hope more people will step forward.

As it turns out, I knew of Ralph Kurtz for quite a while, through a story my father told me.  This involves his grandmother, Effie K. Robinson, wife of Ned Ingham.

Back in the early 1970's when my father was moving to Maine, Effie tried to bribe him into staying near the family, telling him she would get "Uncle Ralph" to give him a chunk of farm land.  As generous as the offer was, my father declined, as he had his own plans, and they did not involve settling in New Jersey.  While he knew that "Uncle Ralph" was actually a cousin of some sort, he hadn't been privy to the precise connection.   Now we have the answer.  Ralph was actually Effie's first cousin once removed, making him my father's first cousin three times removed.

In conclusion, I'd like to share the following photograph that was graciously given to me along with the valuable data on Caroline's line.  This is a picture of Caroline Henderson Kurtz and six of her brothers, taken around 1930 perhaps.  It is not known which brothers are pictured, though it may be possible that someone else out there might know.  No doubt, a few of these guys had other pictures taken at some point, as well, so that might be of help.  If you have any information to share, let me know.

Family History Update: Ballinger & Henderson

In my ongoing ancestral research, I have uncovered some new cousins through both the Henderson and Ballinger lines.

Hendersons:

Where we left off:  In my Horde of Hendersons column, I listed the children of Robert B. Henderson and Joanna Brooks.  I'm pleased to announce that I've discovered more about Elizabeth Brooks "Lizzie" Henderson (b. September 15, 1876 /Died March 4, 1958).

Elizabeth married Thomas Mason Davis (b. May 27, 1872 in Salem, NJ /Died November 15, 1941) on November 26, 1896, and they had 10 children (generation 6):

Robert Wesley (b. June 27, 1898 /Died May 29, 1979)

Jonathan Bonham (b. April 20, 1900 /Died May 14, 1979)

Sanford Thomas (b. July 31, 1901 /Died August 16, 1901)

Bernice Whitaker (b. January 12, 1903 /Died August 24, 1948)

Mary Henderson (b. December 28, 1904 /Died September 18, 1999)

Lucy Fogg (b. November 3, 1906 /Died May 8, 1996)

Bessie Joanna (b. January 21, 1909 /Died November 13, 1983)

Julia Tomlinson (b. July 22, 1910 /Died November 25, 1982)

Ida Shimp (b. February 17, 1912 /Died February 10, 1981)

Mabel E. (b. 1918)

Robert Wesley Davis married Janet MacDonald Stopani (b. July 1, 1901 in Aberdeen, Scotland /Died July 22, 1969), and they had at least 1 daughter.

Jonathan Bonham Davis married Lucille Ellen Rainear (b. August 7, 1905 /Died May 13, 1982), and they had 5 daughters & 2 sons.

Bernice Whitaker Davis married Elwood S. Ayars (b. May 12, 1900 /Died February 8, 1979) on July 2, 1921, and they had the following children:

Ralph Edward (b. May 7, 1922 /Died 1978)

Ethel (b. 1923)

Arthur (b. 1926)

Kenneth R. (b. March 10, 1929 /Died July 3, 2002)

Mary Henderson Davis married Frank Marion Green (b. July 6, 1905 /Died August 11, 1963).  I don't know if they had any children.

Lucy Fogg Davis married Edward Richard Rainear (b. 1904), and they had 2 daughters & 1 son.

Bessie Joanna Davis married Charles Leonard Van Meter, and they had 2 sons.

Julia Tomlinson Davis married Charles James Heritage, and they had a son.

Ida Shimp Davis married Oliver Wallace Green (b March 1, 1911 /Died February 2, 1972) on March 1, 1932.  They had two sons and a daughter.

That's what I have been able to uncover thus far about this line of cousins.  Much of my knowledge about more recent generations is limited, as the closer you get to modern times, the less public information is readily available.  If you are able to add anything to this, I would welcome it.  Please, don't be afraid to contact me.

Ballinger:

The Ballinger update involves Harriet Ballinger, daughter of William Ballinger & Caroline Facemire.  Harriet is my first cousin five times removed.  I have recently uncovered that Harriet was married twice.

Harriett first married Edward S. Penton (b. August 12, 1855 in Elsinborough, NJ /Died August 5, 1893) on March 31, 1877.  They had at least 2 children:

A son (name not listed on birth certificate) born December 7, 1882.

Blanche Penton (b. June 4, 1886 /Died February 12, 1955), married Warren Saul Langley (b. May 19, 1884 /Died May 13, 1938).

After Edward's death, Harriett married John R. Reeves (b. November 1861 /Died after 1930) on November 11, 1894 in Millville, NJ.  John & Harriett had 2 children:

Frederick G. Reeves (b. November 15, 1899 /Died June 13, 1973 in Lakeland, Florida)

Edna P. Reeves (b. November 15, 1899)

I hope someone finds this data as interesting as I do.  I'm certain there are some living cousins out there who could use this information in their own ancestral searches.

On a concluding note, one thing I'm lacking from the Ballinger & Henderson lines is photographs.  It would be nice to find some eventually.

A Horde of Hendersons

This week's "Family Sunday" will take a look at one of the larger branches of my father's side of the family; the Hendersons of Southern New Jersey. They were a family of farmers, most of whom were born, lived, and died in Cumberland County. There must be hundreds of living descendants, so I hope this information will be of interest to some of them.


The earliest of the Hendersons which I've been able to identify is Joseph Henderson, born circa 1770. His wife may have been Judith Cobb Clark, though I haven't seen conclusive evidence of this. Joseph and his wife had a son, John Bell Henderson (b. January 7, 1803 in Cumberland County, NJ), and John subsequently married Elma Sockwell on June 9, 1822.

John & Elma Henderson had 9 children (Generation 3):
Abram Clark (b. August 1822)
Henry Wharton (b. 1825)
Daniel Woodruff (my 4x great grandfather, b. January 21, 1827)
Joseph Woodruff (b. November 1830)
Martha E. (b. August 1836)
Lucy (b. 1838)
William A. (b. 1842)
Eunice Clark (b. September 23, 1842)
Harriett S. (b. 1845)

I am currently tracing the children of Daniel's siblings, and their offspring may be the subject of another column someday.

Daniel Woodruff Henderson married Caroline Royal Sheppard on September 29, 1849 in Deerfield, NJ, and they certainly did a lot of begetting. I have been able to identify 15 children, though family lore tells they had 20 who lived to adulthood. Either way, those numbers are nothing to laugh at, and it is an ongoing mission of mine to find and identify their many descendants.

The children of Daniel & Caroline Henderson (Generation 4):

Robert (b. March 2, 1851)
Rebecca (my 3x great grandmother, b. 1853)
Martha E. (b. 1855, /Died 1900)
Sarah M. (b. 1857)
John (b. April 15, 1858, /Died August 19, 1858)
Daniel W. Jr. (b. 1859)
Caroline (b. 1861)  -Updated-
Thomas (b. April 13, 1863 /Died June 14, 1896)
Phillip S. (b. 1865)
Edwin "Edward" (b. September 2, 1867)
Lewis J. (b. August 4, 1869)
Harvey Loper Fodell (b. January 14, 1871 /Died December 9, 1926)
William F. (b. May 10, 1873)
Howard C (b. February 7, 1875)
Sherrard "Sherod" (April 10, 1877 /Died August 17, 1955)

Now for their children (Generation 5):

Robert Henderson married Joanna Brooks (b. November 1854) in Bridgeton, NJ on October 25, 1874, and they had 4 daughters:
Hattie (b. 1875), married Harry Blizzard on July 1, 1893.
Elizabeth "Lizzie" (b. September 15, 1876) -UPDATED
Mary P. (b. June 1880)
Ella L. (b. June 1888)

On September 2, 1874, Rebecca Henderson married Charles W. Ballinger (b. August 1853). As far as I've been able to tell, they only had one daughter, Nellie (my 2x great grandmother, b. February 1876). I'll discuss more about Nellie & her line in a later column to appear on April 2.

Martha E. Henderson married Edmond D. Minch (b. 1851) on January 11, 1881. They had a daughter, Edith (b. September 16, 1886) and a son, Roland Leslie (b. March 18, 1891 /Died November 1975).

Sarah M. Henderson married James E. Thompson (b. 1854) on December 27, 1876. They had at least 3 children:
Carrie H. (b. January 9, 1878)
Edward (b. September 6, 1880)
A second daughter (b. September 16, 1888) whose name I haven't been able to find. She may have died young, as she doesn't appear on the 1900 census.

Daniel W. Henderson Jr. married Anna M. West (b. 1862) on December 15, 1883. They had two children; daughter Rena M. (b. December 27, 1884), and son Claud (b. March 24, 1889).

Thomas Henderson married Rebecca J. Ashley (b. March 25, 1866) on December 29, 1883. They had four children:
Unidentified daughter (b. April 25, 1885)
Wilbert M. (b. March 29, 1887)
Mary Dare (b. March 29, 1887)
Gladys S. (b. November 26, 1896)
It is sad that Thomas apparently did not live to see his last daughter's birth, and I believe Rebecca may have died shortly thereafter, as the children were split up and living with different family members by 1900.

Phillip S. Henderson married Emma M. Goutiere (b. June 1869), and they had three children:
Gwyneth (b. May 6, 1893),
Russell Stanger (b. September 14, 1896 /Died August 1967)
Kenneth Phillip (b. June 30, 1909 /Died September 10, 1943)

Edwin "Edward" Henderson married Emma (b. September 1880) sometime before 1900. I haven't discovered if they had any children, but they had none listed on the 1920 census.

Lewis J. Henderson married Abigail G. Sharp (b. June 1868), and they had 5 children:
Allen R. (b. May 27, 1893)
Alice Hazel (b. August 26, 1895)
Bessie (b. May 7, 1899)
Edith M. (b. 1904)
Lois E. (b. 1907).
Abigail died sometime before 1910, and Lewis married Elfrida Spence (b. 1868) sometime thereafter.

Harvey Loper Fodell Henderson married Esther Catherine Wilhelm (b. June 7, 1870 /Died February 10, 1921), and they had two children:
Howard Cortland (b. February 6, 1896 /Died August 15, 1959)
Caroline Beryl (b. February 21, 1897 /Died 1969)

William F. Henderson married Lillian W. Hickman (b. November 1879) on June 12, 1896, and they had six children:
Pearl S. (b. October 29, 1897)
Reba L. (b. 1902)
Anna May (b. 1903)
Edwin F. (b. March 30, 1906 /Died July 1979)
Emma S. (b. 1912)
Mildred B. (b. 1917).

Howard C. Henderson married Clara H. (b. 1878), and they had 3 children:
Johnathan M. (b. 1907)
Frances (b. 1911)
Ruth E. (b. 1915).

Sherrard "Sherod" Henderson married Myrtle Husted (b. September 1875) in 1903, and they had five children:
Seth D. (b.March 16, 1906 /Died August 15, 1983)
Anna M. (b. 1909)
Dorothy (b. 1910)
Rosa T. (b. 1914)
Harry L. (b. September 22, 1915 /Died May 1974).

My knowledge of Generation 6 is limited, but I'll share what I have been able to dig up. If you have any information to add to this, please be sure to let me know, as it would be nice to hear from some living cousins.

The only one of Robert's daughters that I've been able to trace further is Hattie Henderson, who married Harry Blizzard on July 1, 1893. Harry and Hattie Blizzard had four daughters:

Henrietta (b. October 1893 /Died 1967)
Irene (b. February 1898)
Mary C. (b. 1904)
Bertha (b. 1908).

Roland Leslie Minch married Jennie R (b. 1893), and they had at least one daughter, Margaret R. Minch (b. 1917).

Edward Thompson married Myrtle Bardman (b. 1880 in PA), and they had 2 sons:
Walter (b. 1907)
James (b. 1912).

Claud Henderson married Lily (b. 1889), and they had 2 sons:
Osea Merrice (b. 1907)
Claud M (b. 1918).

Wilbert M. Henderson married Elva Parkhill (b. 1887 /Died 1969). They moved to Punxsutawney PA, and they had son Wilbert Jr. (b. December 14, 1908 /Died October 1982) and daughter Yvonne Magdeline (b. 1911 /Died 1990).

Russell Stanger Henderson married Alice G. Rice (b. December 30, 1895 /Died January 2, 1988), and they had a daughter, Louise Henderson (b. February 15, 1930). Louise married Irvin Frank Foster (b. February 5, 1920 /Died February 6, 1995).

Howard Cortland Henderson married Cordelia Cressie Wilson (b. June 25 1897 /Died October 1969), and they had a daughter, Caroline Beryl (b. December 26, 1915 /Died November 20, 2005) who married Winfield Jess, Jr. (b. December 14, 1918 /Died February 20, 1982).

Seth D. Henderson married Laura Bradway (b. 1908), and they had at least 4 children.

Generation 7:

Henrietta Blizzard married Elwood Fisher Bailey, Sr. (b. October 14, 1887 /Died 1941), and they had two sons, one being Elwood Fisher Bailey, Jr.

Yvonne Magdeline Henderson married Darold Joseph Straitiff (b. June 11, 1916 /Died 1970) and they had a son, John King Straitiff (b. 1947).  John King married Linda Ann Porter (b. 1947) and they had at least one son.

There you have it, a veritable horde of Hendersons! It is amazing how expansive a family line can grow, and I'm pleased to research this part of my lineage that has branched out in so many directions. There's no telling what I'll eventually uncover.