Grandpa's Ferrets

Last year I transcribed a letter written by my Aunt Tamerson to my grandfather in 1905. Grandpa was traveling "out west" and he saved a few of the letters he received from home. I wasn't at all surprised that he had a hunting dog but I was surprised to learn that he had ferrets. Having cute little pets just seemed out of character from what I'd been told of him. So I asked Mom about it and her response was that she didn't know that but she wasn't surprised. What more was there to say? I filed that little snippet away.

A couple of weeks ago while looking for information on a different branch of the family I found this little article that gave me a place of residence for Cleveland Horner in 1927.

The News-Palladium, Benton Harbor, Michigan, Thursday, December 22, 1927

Today's Live Michigan News

FARMER HUNTS WITH FERRET, IS FINED BY COURT

BUCHANAN, Dec. 22 - John Batten, a prominent farmer residing near Galien, paid a fine of $10 and costs before Justice Al W. Charles __ Buchanan for hunting with a ferret.

Batten, with a gun and ferrett, was scouting in the woods for game yesterday when he was met by Cleveland Horner, a deputy game warden. Horner placed Batten under arrest and took him before Justice Charles. Batten pleaded guilty.

Ferrets were used for hunting?! I always thought they were just pets. So I asked Mom if she thought Grandpa had used his ferrets for hunting. This time, clearly exasperated, she responded "Why else would he have ferrets!?" She'd never heard of having a ferret merely as a pet.

You know how annoying it is when a five year old continually asks why? Since I guess I don't always know when to ask why, I'll just have to pretend I'm five and ask why relentlessly - until she either runs out of answers or shoots me.

Now I'm wondering how many other perfectly reasonable, totally wrong assumptions I've made based on the difference between how things are now and how they were then.

Faces of my mtDNA

Mitochondrial DNA is passed from a mother to her children. While I have passed my mtDNA on to both my son and daughter only my daughter was able to pass it on. These are some of the women with whom I share mitochondrial DNA.

This is my granddaughter, Sprout (M.A.E.) Isn't her first official school picture adorable? Does the fate of our mtDNA line rest soley with her? I have two other equally adorable granddaughters, however my step-son could not pass on mtDNA to them.

Sprout's beautiful mother is Bean (S.J.E.), my only daughter. Fiercely independent and very smart she received a B.S. degree from Wells College in Bio-Chemistry and swore children were not for her. Currently she is married and a full time mother of two. Sprout has a brother, Twig (H.J.E.), who is cute as a button. I couldn't be more proud of my daughter.

That brings us to me (C.A.G.). An old picture and when I look in the mirror I wonder where the years have gone. I married at 17 and stayed married just long enough to have two beautiful children. I've been married to John (F.J.G.) for 26 years now. Bean gets her smarts from me but somehow I wasn't smart enough to figure out how to pay for college and get my teaching degree. I've held an interesting mix of jobs; retail, insurance auditor, travel agent, and ten wonderful years as a full time mother and community volunteer. These days I drive a school bus where I can occasionally be found teaching without the proper degree.

I have "better" pictures of Mom (P.C.B.) but this is one of my favorites because she is smiling. Mom's laugh is contiguous. I get my smarts from her. Salutatorian of Buchanan High School Class of 1943! She went on to the University of Michigan before joining the Navy. She met my father in the service, settled in Syracuse, NY, held several jobs and gave up any hope of ever having children. I was quite a surprise! I was followed by a brother and a sister and Mom spent several years as a full time mother. After my father left us she returned to work as an insurance auditor and later a mortgage clerk. She retired at the age of 70 but likes her independence and lives alone in the house she has been in for more than 45 years.

Here is a picture of all four of us together. 

Mom also passed her mtDNA on to my sister (E.L.D.). This is the only picture in existance of just the three of us together and therefore one of my favorites. Sis has a lovely step-daughter but no children of her own so the line will not continue through her.

Moving back another generation is my maternal grandmother, Pearl Vivian Camfield Carlisle. She was born 14 July 1886 in South Bend, IN. We all inherited our smarts from her. She attended business school there and worked at the Singer Sewing Machine cabinet factory in South Bend working her way up to become the assistant to the President of the factory. She gave up her professional life when she married and settled into life as a housewife. At the time she married she couldn't cook so back to school she went! She raised three children and stuck out a difficult marriage. Alzheimer's disease claimed her final years.

 

Pearl had another daughter, Vivian Ruth Carlisle LaValle. Aunt Vivian also had two daughters and they are shown below with Pearl. Neither of my cousins had a daughter so our mtDNA line did not continue with them.

Moving ever backward we come to the last female ancestor in this line that I have a photograph of, "Rose" Susan Arazina Graham Camfield. This is the only photo of her that I have ever seen. I have previously written about Rose. Her early years were hard and I believe she received little education. She was the mother of five. She and her husband seperated after the children were all grown and she spent the rest of her life living with one or another of her daughters.

Rose had three daughters, Mabel, Pearl and Ruby. The picture below is the one I cropped and she is standing with youngest daughter Ruby in front of their home in South Bend, IN. Ruby never married or had children. I have no picture of Mabel! Mabel Camfield Marsh did have a daughter, Vera Jane Marsh Edmunds. Vera Jane had a daughter, L.E.S. I found a picture of L.E.S. online but rather than violate the copyright you'll have to click here to see it. I asked Mom if L.E.S. had any daughters and she thinks that there were only sons but she isn't 100% certain.

 

Continuing the line further back I have no pictures. Rose was the daughter of Elizabeth Doughty Graham. Elizabeth was abandoned by her husband and left to try and raise five children on her own. The children were sent to live with other families so that she could work, work and work some more. Elizabeth died when she was only 53. Three of the five children were girls. Besides Rose there was Xenia Belle Graham Gallup,who had no children, and Sarah Jane Graham who never married or had any children that we know of.

Elizabeth's mother was Susanna Smith. Susanna was born about 1799 in Virginia. I know of only two children but there may have been others. Besides Elizabeth there was one other daughter, Margaret Sarah Doughty Horner. I have transcribed Margaret's divorce petition in which she mentions children however it does not state how many or of what sex they were. I know there was at least one daughter, Susannah Horner who was born in 1849 in Delaware County, Indiana. At this point I have not researched this line further so perhaps there are others out there with whom I share the same line of mtDNA.

This was written for the 21st edition of Smile for the Carmera: Give Their Face A Place, to be hosted by fM at Shades of the Departed.

My inspiration to use the faces of my mtDNA came from Dr. Blaine Bettinger at The Genetic Genealogist and his post: Visualizing Your Genetic Genealogy.

James Graham etal to Robert S White - 1848

Amanuensis: A person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another.

Amanuensis Monday, hosted by John Newmark at Transylvanian Dutch.

I have been trying to transcribe some records in addition to the letters. This deed was found online in the Munice/Delaware County Digital Resource Library. I found this deed confusing in the way it references Margaret Doughty Horner as being under age and the deed won't be executed until she becomes of age.

I believe the land was part of the estate of Littleton Doughty. Susan Clark had been his wife and was now remarried. Elizabeth Graham and Margaret Horner his daughters.


Know all men by there presents that we, James M. Graham, Elizabeth Ann Graham, Joseph Horner, Margaret Sarah Horner and Susan Clark of (Delaware County and State of Indiana), are held and firmly bound unto Robert S. White of said County in the sum of three hundred and thirty dollars lawful money to be paid to the said Robert White his heirs, executors, administrators, or assigns for the payment where of well and truly to be made, we bind ourselves, our heirs, executors and administrators firmly by these presents sealed with our seals and dated this 10th day of February A. D. 1848.
The condition of the above obligation is such, that if the above bound James M. Graham, Elizabeth Ann Graham, Joseph Horner, Margaret Sarah Horner and Susan Clark, shall as soon as Margaret Sarah Horner is of lawful age make, execute, and acknowledge a deed of conveyance such as will be suffient to convey and confirm to the said Robert S. White, his heirs or assigns in fee simple clear of all incumbrances of any kind, the following described Real Estate wits: the North West quarter of the South __st quarter of Section No Twenty eight in Township No Twenty one North of Range No ten, East. Containing forty acres more or less, and until such deed shal be executed do permit and suffer said Robert S. White his heirs or assigns, peaceably and quietly to hold and enjoy the above described tract of land, then the above obligation is to be void and of none effect, otherwise to be and remain in full force and ____ in __.

Signed, sealed and delivered in the presence of Josiah Williams

James M. Graham (seal)
Elizabeth A Graham x her mark (seal)
Joseph C Horner (seal)
Margaret S Horner (seal)
Susannah Clark (seal)

For value recieved, I, Robert S. White, do hereby assign over and transfer all my right, title, interest and claim in and to the within title bond to John Williams. In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and seal, together with Lovina White, my wife, in testimony that she relinquishes her right and title to Dower in the premises therein named, has also set her hand and seal, this 6th day of March 1848.
Robert S. White (seal)
Lovina White x her mark (seal)

State of Indiana, Delaware County. S.S. I, Job Swain, one of the Justices of the Peace of said County; do hereby certify that the above named Robert S White and Lovina White came personally before me, and acknowledged the forgoing instrument of writing to be their voluntary act and deed for the purposes therein mentioned also, Lovina White the above named wife of the said Robert S White, who being by examined privately, seperate and apart from, and without the hearing of her said husband and the full contents and purport of the foregoing instrument by me made known, she acknowledged that she voluntarily executed the same of her own free will and acord without any coersion and compultion from her husband. In witness of which, I have hereunto set my hand and seal this 7th day of March 1848.
Job Swain J.P. (seal)

Graham - Horner Divorce 1856

Amanuensis: A person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another.

Amanuensis Monday, hosted by John Newmark at Transylvanian Dutch.

I have been trying to transcribe some records in addition to the letters. This is yet another divorce petition found online in the Munice/Delaware County Digital Resource Library.

Margaret Doughty Horner was the daughter of Littleton Doughty. Her sister, Elizabeth Doughty Graham had obtained a divorce in 1855 and was represented by the same attorneys. There are no papers telling the outcome of the suit in the file, however Joseph Horner remarried in 1858 so I assume the divorce was granted.



State of Indiana, Delaware County
In the Delaware Circuit Court
September Term 1856.

Margaret S. Horner, plaintiff
complains of Joseph Horner, defendant, and
says that the parties were in the month of
March, 1847, at the county and State afore-
said, duly and legally married, and for
some time thereafter lived and cohabited
together as husband and wife.
Plaintiff says that ever since their said marriage
defendant has utterly failed and refused to
make any, and sufficient provision for hi
wife and family. She says he has frequently
during said marriage abandoned plaintiff
leaving her and her children entirely u-
provided for: that at one time your the
plaintiff had been confined to her bed in
child birth, and that when the child then
born was two weeks old, said de-
fendant abandoned plaintiff, leaving no
one in or about the house to take care of her,
when she at the time was unable to leave her
bed, and without food or clean clothing
in the house, and no wood about the
house, and that defendant on that occasion
absented himself from his home and

page 2

family for three successive months,
and during that time failed entirely to supply
by himself or others, the wants of his family.
She further says that on the 13th day of July
1856. said defendant abandoned plaint-
iff without any intention of ever returning
and has since lived separate and
apart from plaintiff, and that he has
given out in speeches that he will never
return, and never provide for his said
family. Plaintiff says she is a bonifide
resident of the County and State aforesaid.
Plaintiff further says that there are children
the issue of said marriage, towit:

[several blank lines]

and that she is of right entitled to and best qualified
for the care and custody of said children.
She therefore demands judgment of
divorce and for the care and custody
of said children

Buckles & Shipley, Attys
for plaintiff
August 9, 1856