SURNAME SATURDAY - BUELL, England to CT

The first BUELL immigrant is William BUELL, born possibly before 17 Feb 1604/5 in Chesterton, Huntingdon, England, according to several records.  He arrived in approximately 1630, apparently settling first at Dorchester MA, then moved to Windsor, settling there in about 1635 or shortly after.  In England, the surname was sometimes seen as Bevil(le). Occasionally the Buell family is considered from Wales, but this may well be an error.  In the link about Chesterton in 1870-1872  HERE, the Bevil name shows up as of the surname of early owners of the Manor in the Parish of Chesterton.  And more information for searching in this region of Huntingdon is found HERE.  

One major source for Buell records is Albert Welles' publication in 1881: The History of The BUELL FAMILY in England, From the Remotest Times Ascertainable from Our Ancient Histories, and in America, from Town, Parish, Church and Family Records.  Illustrated with Portraits and Coat Armorial.  This book is available on  Google Play free.  There are apparently some errors and confusion with some of the details in this book, particularly with the earliest statements of ancestry, but as providing a set of clues for early settlers in America, it has been very helpful in my first steps with the Buell families.  

William BUELL & his wife Mary POST married in Windsor, Connecticut, 18 Nov 1640, and eventually had 7 children, 2 boys and 5 girls, all born in Windsor. William was apparently a skilled cabinet maker, and general carpenter, excellent skills for the new colonies.  

My line goes as follows - # is generation number:

  1. William BUELL, 17 Feb 1604/5 Chesterton, Huntingdon, Eng;  d. 1681 CT;  Mary POST

  2. Samuel William BUELL, 2 Sep 1641, CT;  d. 1720 CT;  Deborah GRISWOLD

  3. Samuel BUELL, 20 Jul 1663 CT;  d. 1732 CT;  Judith STEVENS

  4. Nathaniel BUELL, 29 Sep 1700 CT;  death date not known;  Deborah HORTON

  5. Grover BUELL, 4 Apr 1732 CT;  d. 1818 NY;  Jerusha BUCK

  6. Grover BUELL, 22 Jan 1759 NY;  d. 1811 NY;  Mehitable [unknown]

  7. Grover BUELL, 24 Dec 1794 NY;  d. 1874 NY;  Charlotte BORTLE

  8. Harriet F. BUELL,  27 Jan 1829 NY;  d. 1911 NJ;  James M. TERWILLIGER

  9. James Grover "Grove" TERWILLIGER,  27 May 1856 NY;  d. 1929 NJ;  Clara GRAVES

10.  Marguerite Josephine TERWILLIGER,  19 May 1880 NY;  d. 1973 BC Canada; ChasEK

   -  then, my mother;  JnoG

   -  then, ME    

Do you see all those "Grover Buell" individuals?  Some of their siblings named their sons Grover Buell as well, living in the same region, in the same years. Challenging, very challenging!   Because first names were repeated in each generation of each sibling - making a rather confusing mixture of finding same-named individuals in the same geographic setting at the same time - many records need to be followed with local histories, christenings, birth/marriage/death/burial records, land use, and early census records are essential to follow the lines.  

Early BUELL settlers in the first and 2nd generations married into well-known New England families:  Fenner,  Griswold,  Horton,  Palmer,  Parmalee,  Porter [many marriages], and Welles/Wells.  Mary POST, wife of William BUELL, has listed her mother as Mary Porter Mills... and the Porter intermarriages may be cousins of course.  Both the BUELL and POST families were originally from Chesterton; Mary's parents apparently died at sea on the way over from England to the colonies.

Several wives of these BUELL men [#'s 6, 7] are very difficult to research, and continue to be end points in my family tree. Bit by bit by bit, I hope to start filling in more information.  This is by no means the only information I have on the Buell line, but I'm always happy to find out a bit more, see another land grant, or a record of any kind.  

If you have any information on any of these individuals, please feel free to comment below and/or contact me at calewis at telus dot net.  

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY - James "Grove" Grover TERWILLIGER

Apparently I'm not the only one in our family to struggle with math...

My great-grandfather, James Grover TERWILLIGER, known as "Grove" in the family. Born 27 May 1856, Syracuse, Onondaga NY, died 17 Mar 1929, Englewood, Bergen, NJ.  He is found in the middle of this page of those students needing to pass a Math exam (again).

From files,1873-1874: from Munroe Collegiate Institute, Williams College, Williamstown, MA

Note the names of fathers are given here, providing another source for parentage.

SURNAME SATURDAY: Joseph WHITEHOUSE 1793-1844

Joseph WHITEHOUSE, my 3rd great-grandfather, was born in the Rowley Regis area, Staffordshire, England.  He was apparently born about 1793, according to various Census records, but no parish register has yet been found for his birth. Joseph's parents are unknown at this time.

A marriage has been tentatively used for him, but has not yet been accepted as proven.  For the purposes of future research, his first child Samuel was christened in St. Thomas church in Dudley, Staffordshire; his mother was listed as Mary.  He apparently married 17 March 1822 to Mary GROVES, in Dudley, where the family apparently settled.  Dudley was a large area, and inhabitants often stated Dudley on forms when they actually lived in Rowley Regis and other small hamlets in the surrounding area.

Joseph worked first as a Nailer (nail-maker) and later as a Miner.  This occupation information shows up on baptism records of his first sons, then on the marriage registration of my direct ancestor Thomas WHITEHOUSE, the 4th son of Joseph and Mary, seen above. You will notice his son's marriage register records Joseph as "Dead" at the time, 1856.

The Black Midlands had many mines, iron foundaries, and steel mills in the region, as it was very rich in coal and iron.  The men and older boys experienced amazingly hard unhealthy work here in the mines and in the nail-making industry (the latter often done as a home based job, and others in the family would also help, in order to supplement the family income).

He and his wife, Mary, had 7 boys for whom I have found christening records (all at St. Thomas Church):  ** indicates my direct ancestor
  - Samuel  b. 23 Oct 1822    m. Johana, at least 2 boys
  - Benjamin  b. 11 Aug 1824   no marr. found to date
  - Henry  b. 5 Jul 1827     m. Jane Price, 3 boys, 1 girl
  - **Thomas  b. 10 Jul 1829   m. twice; Sarah PRICE Shutt (wid), 5 boys, 1 girl
  - Eli   b. 18 Mar 1832    m. Mary Ann Homer,  4 boys, 4 girls
  - John  b. 18 Jun 1834   no marr. found to date
  - Enoch  b. 9 Jul 1836  m. Esther Carter,  4 boys, 1 girl

I have not yet been able to find Joseph WHITEHOUSE on the 1841 UK Census for either Staffordshire or Worcestershire.  So far I've checked with all 7 of the children, and there are several possibilities and more ways of searching of course.  Perhaps I'll find him mistranscribed after I go through more Censuses page by page.

Joseph died 16 Mar 1844 in Dudley, Staffordshire, and was buried 21 Mar 1844 through St. Thomas Church (burial record with death date).  Note that St. Thomas Church is in the parish of Worcestershire due to historical decisions.  His wife Mary is shown with various groupings of the younger boys in the following Censuses, living later with her married sons, Eli and then Enoch, after they were married.

My goal for this year is to continue searching in the WHITEHOUSE line.  My research log has many possible records still to check online, as well as possible correspondence to write for additional details.   Maybe I'll find a snippet or two here and there to fill out our history.  25 grandchildren - that I know of - lived to continue Joseph's heritage in Canada, Washington State, and England.

And if you have any information on any of these people, please do not hesitate to contact me by either leaving a comment below, or emailing me at calewis at telus dot net.  Thanks for dropping by.

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY - Last Day at my desk

Almost Wordless... 

Morning of April 30, 2008

Note the X marks on my calendar - which started several months earlier!

I began planning my retirement 36 months before this final date, in order to be ready physically (knee replacement surgery the first week in May 2008), mentally (began focus on Genealogy, and on Creative Writing), and financially (no pension, so saved & prayed!)  

For the final 10 years, I was one of two Provincial Coordinators for a community/home-based rehabilitation programme for children and teens with recent brain injuries.  I wrote their newsletter, handouts, set up teams of therapists as per parents' goals and preferences, funded, oversaw the work, went to various team meetings of all kinds (medical, educational, and more), provided advocacy and educational information and support.  Satisfying work in many ways.

Retirement is great!  (and I'm 60+ pounds lighter!)

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY - My Graduation Days...

Photographs taken on my various Graduation Days in Vancouver BC:  from a simple Grade 6 ceremony and banquet at Renfrew Elementary School, more formal Grade 12 from Vancouver Technical Secondary School (Academic) where I was the Valedictorian;  then to University of BC at Vancouver BC where I first received a BScN in 1966, then a MA (CnslgPsy) in 1987 after separation/divorce.

1955  Grade 6  Graduation Day - taken at north side of our home






1961  Grade 12 Graduation Day - cap and all

1966  Bachelor of Science in Nursing

1987  Masters of Arts (Counselling Psychology)

SCANNING FINDS - 1st COUSINS, 1890ish

Yesterday I managed to scan several dozen photographs and their backs (most had some writing on them from either my mother or her mother).  Some of these photographs I had seen long long ago, and popped them away "for safety", with no index or details, not even how I found them.  Note to self: make notes!

One of the last photos in my "to be scanned" folder was this lovely photograph of 1st cousins taken approximately 1890, in a formal portrait studio in Jordan, Onondaga County, New York.  Not a smile or a moving muscle on either of these young girls!  Too bad, as the taller girl had a great dimple on the left cheek when she smiled.

The younger girl seated on the left with light hair is Florence Ethel Wisner (known as Ethel), b. 1883 in New York state, the only daughter and 2nd of 4 children of Lillian Adele Graves (my greatAunt) and Gabriel W. Wisner (a lawyer).  She was named for her mother's youngest sister, Florence Graves. These two sisters were apparently quite close, as Florence named her only daughter, Lillian.

The older girl with dark hair standing on the right, is Marguerite Josephine "Daisy" TERWILLIGER, my maternal grandmother, b. 19 May 1880 in Syracuse, Onondaga County, New York, the only daughter and 1st child of 3 of Charles Giles GRAVES (investor, businessman) and Harriet "Hattie" Philena ORMSBEE.

Notice they are wearing the same style hat and dress, and are mirroring poses.

If you look closely you may be able to see that the girls have some "tattoos" on their fingers on the joints closest to their knuckles.  I'll assume that they are temporary ones, put on by some means or another.

I wish I'd seen this photo when my grandmother was alive - I'd have had many questions about their relationship, and how it was that they were together in Jordan NY at this time.  How did they have the same clothing to wear, and what about those tattoos?? Perhaps there was a family get-together happening.  There doesn't seem to have been any deaths, births, or marriages in the several families represented in the direct and extended lines in the area.

The center "thing" they are both leaning on is remarkably oddly shaped with something poking out in the middle! Some boxes wrapped in a gorgeous throw? Perhaps someone knows these details of late 1800s photographic studios -?   I haven't been able to find a news item about this Dygert or Dugert Portrait Studio as yet, but I'll keep trying over the next few weeks.

If you wish any further information on either of these two girls or their families, or if you have details to share, do please comment below, or email me at calewis at telus dot com.  Thanks for visiting!