52 WEEKS, 52 THEMES: No.3, Tough Woman - Charlotte BORTLE.

This year's challenge by Amy Crow is another weekly blog, but based on Themes. Last week, it was King.  This week, it's on TOUGH WOMAN. A challenging topic, as I've often thought many of my women ancestors past were tough women to survive large numbers of children, settle in new places, often with limited resources. But I decided to write - once again - about my "most-tough-to-find" woman, Charlotte Bortle.  
This will be the third post about her in 3 years... Maybe this year will be the year. You can read more details I've written on my previous two posts, on Feb. 23, 2013, and Aug. 29, 2013. 

Charlotte BORTLE enters my life as the wife of one of the several Grover BUEL(L)s in my line - I keep track of them by their birthdates!  She is shown with her children, on censuses, and as the widow when her husband dies, and then finally, she is buried in the same cemetery.  That's it. Nothing more.  The gravestone photo above at right, is from Lysander Union Cemetery, Lysander, Onondaga NY [photo by permission of BArnold]

There is evidence (The History of the Buells in America, her Gravestone inscription) of her birth month and year, and an indication of place on both the 1850 and 1870 Census. This gives us a likely birthdate of 10 Oct 1797, and a likely birthplace of New York... possibly in Northumberland, Saratoga, New York, or in a neighbouring county.  

Northumberland was settled during the late 1700s, and "Mr. Buel" arrived after 1790, according to a small history of the region.

Charlotte married Grover BUELL 17 Dec 1814 in Northumberland, implying that her family were living in the region at that time or, before that date.  

However in the 1790 Census, I cannot find any Bortles of any spelling in the Northumberland region, although there is an Andrew Bortles living in Hebron, Washington County to the east of Northumberland. And in the 1800 Census, an Andrew Bortle is living in Greenbush, Rensselaer County, about 45 miles south of Northumberland.  A potential name to research.

I have tried to see if the children's names would be clues - she and Grover had 5 children - but the names are common in the Buell line, so this is not much of a clue. 

Here's the only odd clue I have:  when she died a few years after her husband, the mortality schedule shows her age, says she was born in New York, and that her Mother and Father were both born in "N.S." - which would be Nova Scotia, Canada.  

Nice clue, but so far I haven't found any Bortles of any spelling, in the region known as Nova Scotia.  More research to be done.  

Charlotte is my Tough Woman!  But I'm certain that out there somewhere, there is this great little record which gives Charlotte "wife of Grover Buell, born of parents  ____ & ____ Bortle". With many more interesting details about her parents, their occupations, where they came from originally, why they came to North America, and all sorts of fabulous information. 

I'm waiting, Charlotte...  Just sayin'...  

And if Charlotte is a brick wall for you too, or if you have any clues or other details I could use to follow up on, please let me know via calewis at telus dot net, or in the Comments below.  Thanks for stopping by.

52 ANCESTORS in 52 WEEKS: #3 Grover BUELL - Oh dear, which one is which??

I ran into a a series of "Grover BUELL" ancestors not long after I started searching in my mother's family. We knew very little about my maternal grandmother's parents' families - partly because she loved to dramatize her life and her history. How I wish I'd begun researching in our family tree before she died so many years ago so I could ask more questions. What was true and what was ...somewhat jazzed up - that was a challenge.  I learned to use her bits and pieces as possible clues, if at all.

After a year, I figured out that her father - James Grover TERWILLIGER  (yes, that Terwilliger, of my Terwilliger Souvenir Album blog) was known as "Grove" or sometimes "Grover" in the family.

Hmmm, Grover was a great clue, wasn't it? Sounded and looked like a family surname somewhere.  Surely I could find out the source of the Grover, couldn't I? Surely.  Of course. But it took several generations and searches before I finally found the GROVER surname.

Here's the listing travelling in time from the LAST Grover, up to the source:

James "Grove" Grover TERWILLIGER, b.27 May 1856 in NY, d.17 Mar 1929, NJ
       m. 11 Jun 1910 to Clara "Gussie" Augusta GRAVES
James M. TERWILLIGER, b. 30 Jan 1825 in NY, d. 18 Oct 1909, NY
       m. 1851 to Harriet  BUELL
Grover BUELL/Buel, b. 24 Dec 1794 in NY, d. aft 18 Feb 1874, NY
       m. 17 Dec 1814 to Charlotte BORTLE [brick wall]
Grover BUELL/Buel, b. 22 Jan 1759 in NY, d. abt 1811, NY
       m. 1781 to Mehitable HAMLIN?[surname not proven][brick wall]
Grover BUELL/Buel, b. 4 Apr 1732 in CT, d. 14 Sep 1818, NY
       m. 15 Feb 1758 to Jerusha BUCK
Nathaniel BUELL/Buel, b. 29 Sep 1700 in CT, d. ?
       m. 14 Nov 1720/21 to Deborah HORTON
(Rev.) Joshua HORTON, b. abt 1669 in NY, d. 1744, NJ
       m. abt 1690 to Elizabeth GROVER

Whew!  I thought I'd never find that first GROVER surname!  And as I searched, I ran into several brick walls on the female side, which added to my frustration.  I of course suspected that the Grover surname must be further up one of those missing lines.

Then I'd search and find yet another line, and be frustrated, then find another, and so on.  When I reached Nathaniel BUELL and his wife Deborah HORTON, I was sure I must have missed the connection further down.  Nathaniel? Not a Grover? Oh-oh - must be up one of those dead-end lines.  Sigh.  I gave up for some months, I have to say.

However, I eventually persevered looking back a few more steps - and there she was: Elizabeth GROVER!

Elizabeth GROVER, b. 15 Sep 1673 in NY, was one of 3 girls of Simon GROVER & Elizabeth MOORE.
When (Rev.) Joshua HORTON & Elizabeth GROVER married, they had only 2 sons out of 8 children, and both were named Joshua (one died young).  If they'd had more boys, I'm certain they would have named one of them Grover, don't you think?   Their 3rd daughter, Deborah, & husband Nathaniel BUELL, had 9 children with one son dying young (Eliphalet) - 4 girls, 5 boys.  The very first Grover BUELL is their 6th child.

In my searches I found that several of the Grover Buell's siblings had sons they also named Grover - after all, people named their children after family members quite commonly.  So the only way I could keep track of them all was to research everyone.  My direct line Grover BUELLs had to be known by their birth year as part of their name, just to help me keep them all straight.

Grover BUELL 1759 had a brother, Simon (Capt.) Buell, who named his first son Grover Buell as well.

Grover BUELL 1794 & his wife Charlotte, had 4 girls but only one son named Simon, who had no children. Their eldest daughter, Mary Buell, m. John W. Patterson; they had 4 children, and the first boy was named Grover Buell Patterson - repeating the pattern for another generation.

Mary's youngest sister, my 2ndgreat-grandmother Harriet BUELL m. James M. TERWILLIGER, and used the Grover name as a middle name for the first of two living sons. To differentiate him from his father, the family used his middle name, Grover.

If you have more information about any of the individuals listed above, I'd love to hear from you in a comment below, or in an email to calewis at telus dot net - I always appreciate details!  I have much research still to do on these ancestors, and more documentation to find as well.

A SMALL MUD WALL - Charlotte BORTLE

I know very little indeed about my 3rd great-grandmother, Charlotte BORTLE.  However, I'm only calling her a "mud wall" rather than a brick wall in order to keep positive, and to remind me to continue gathering clues.  Just starting to write this blog and I'm already finding several clues, plus ideas of what else to dig through!   

Charlotte BORTLE was born 10 Oct 1797 in New York state, of unknown parents.  She appears on the marriage register, Northumberland, Saratoga, New York, married by a Justice, Reed Lewis, to Grover BUELL - one of my three Grover BUELL direct ancestors. Those three Grovers are another story needing to be told, later.   Marriage date:  17 December 1814.

Her husband, Grover, was born 24 Dec 1794 in Northumberland, Saratoga, New York, so I am making an assumption that her BORTLE parent(s) lived in that area at the time.  Northumberland as a town was formed in 1798, according to their website. 

After they married, they seem to have stayed in Northumberland, as their first 3 girls were born there:  Mary, b. 18 Jan 1816;  Sally, b. 4 Feb 1819;  Ann Janette b. 15 Dec 1822.  The family apparently moved in 1823 to Lysander, Onondaga, New York, and remained there until the parents died there several years apart, in the 1870s.   Both Simon - the only boy - b. 13 Feb 1827, and the final and 4th girl, Harriet (my direct ancestor)  b. 27 Jan 1829, were born in Lysander, Onondaga.  Check out this website for more information on the village of Lysander.

Charlotte died the 22nd September 1879 in Lysander, and is buried in Lysander Union Cemetery.  Her inscription is on her husband's gravestone, and can be found here;  the stone states she was 81 years, 11 months, and 12 days old.  

Grover was a farmer, and Charlotte was listed as "Farmer's wife" on the Federal Census Mortality Schedule for Lysander, Onondaga, New York. She had died in the year prior to the 1880 Census, thus providing a few more clues for me by being recorded. Her listing is in rather small writing, but states (my additions):
Buell, Mrs.   (age) 82  F  W   (b) New York  (fa) N.S.  (mo) N.S.  (occupation) Farmer's Wife   
      (month died)  Sep't (1879)  (cause)  Asthma   (attending physician)  Dr. Leslie Martin

Of course you can see those clues, can't you?  Her father and mother - birthplace listed as N.S.  Nova Scotia, Canada!  Yeah!!  Well, they are only clues, nothing proven at all. But I'm hopeful and will be doing more research as soon as possible.  Bortle is considered to be from a possible Dutch origin, and the name of their 3rd daughter, Ann Janette, implies this origin as well.  Another tiny and interesting clue. 

If you have any of the 3-in-a-row Grover BUELL ancestors in your tree, do contact me; and/or if you have information on Charlotte BORTLE and her family, I'd love to hear from you:  calewis at telus dot net  [you know what to substitute for the words].  

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.  

James M. TERWILLIGER, 1825-1909

   From all the wonderfully helpful links and comments I received from Albert Riezobos in Winnipeg, I decided to add some photos of James M. Terwilliger, and describe him further.  James is the father of James Grover "Grove" Terwilliger, whose Souvenirs Album I am documenting page by page by page over the coming year.  It's big.  And has lots of unusual items, names, calling cards, memorabilia and more.

   There are very few photos of  James Sr. - but since the early Album pages show items about Grove's father and friends/colleagues, it seems reasonable to at least give a smidge of information about him.  These are his "official" Senate photos.

   James Sr. was the eldest son of John S(imon) Terwilliger, b. 16 Sep 1800 in New Scotland, Albany, NY.  John married 3 times, firstly to Margaret Reid from Scotland, with whom he had 5 children:  James M., George, Nancy, Jane R., and Mary E.  Margaret died 11 Dec 1838 in DeWitt, Onondaga, NY, about 19 months after the 5th child, and John married secondly to Jane DeGraff/DeGroff, in 1841.  There were 3 girls born this time, Jane, Sara, and Lida; however both Jane and Lida died before 1850, and John's wife Jane also died in 1849.  John married one more time in 1856 to a widow, Harriet M. Ives, with whom there were no more children.  James Terwilliger and his son, Grove, were quite close with their extended family, and there were numerous social events described about visits, picnics, and more.  Sara, the only living stepsister of James Sr., lived with him and his wife for a time.

   James M. Terwilliger married Harriet F. Buell in 1851; she was the youngest of 5 (4 girls, 1 boy) of Grover Buell & Charlotte Bortle [a brick wall of mine].  They had two living children, James Grover "Grove" Terwilliger, b. 27 May 1856, and 8 years later, Harry Reid Terwilliger b. 9 Apr 1864 [the Reid from James mother's surname].  Both boys were born in Syracuse where the Terwilligers settled by the time of the 1860 Census.

   In 1851, he bought a half-interest in "The Syracuse Journal," as it was known at this time, and was listed as a "publisher" on the 1870 Census for Syracuse.  Although he sold his interest around this time, he repurchased it by 1871.  I am not certain of the reasons for this activity.  The family was relatively wealthy, and enjoyed an active social life, with invitations to social events such as the Ball of the Prince of Wales in October 1860.

   He was an active member of the Odd Fellows, and was Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge from 1884 to 1894.

   James Sr. was active in politics both locally, and state-wide.  For example, he was selected to be secretary at the first Republican Convention in 1856, held in Philadelphia.   Earlier he was elected in DeWitt, Onondaga, NY, on the 1847 "Whig Ticket" as well as on the 1848 "Temperance Ticket".    He was also a Clerk of the State Senate (NY), from 1856 to 1860, and the above 3 photographs show him dressed up for his official photographs.  In 1864 he was acting secretary of the Republican National Committee.  He was Deputy Collector for the Port of New York in 1870-1871.  In addition, from 1860-1870, James Sr. was secretary of the NY State Republican Committee.

   As stated in several obituaries published the day after his death, he retired from business and official activities in 1893.  And in 1905, he and his wife, Harriet, moved to Roselle, New Jersey, to live with their eldest son, Grove [James Grover Terwilliger] and his wife, Gussie.  James Sr. died 18 Oct 1909 at his son's home, and Harriet died 14 months later 4 Jan 1911, also at her son's home.   Both are buried side by side, in Oakwood Cemetery, in Syracuse, Onondaga, NY.  Their son, Grove, is buried nearby.


(Details above are taken from items in the Terwilliger Souvenirs Album filled out by his son Grove, as well as New York state and federal Censuses, plus newspaper articles in Syracuse and New York, NY.  Thank you Albert for your sluething!)

If you wish further information on any of the above, please do contact me, and I'll be happy to provide whatever information or details I may have.  More about the Souvenirs Album may be found by clicking on the link here   Thanks for reading my blog about this interesting ancestor of mine.