I really like “descendancy research”—following all the children of a particular
ancestor down through time, rather than just one. It uncovers lots more stories, and gives a
fuller picture of the family.
Robert and Elisabeth Bennet Mosey, my husband’s
great-great-grandparents, had eight children who survived to adulthood. Pictured here
left to right are Jane, Martha, and Sarah Elizabeth; Richard, Frank, John, and
Lewis. Perhaps Maria was living in
Nebraska at the time. (Three more sons—Lesven, Daniel, and
Robert—died in early childhood.) Four sons
and four daughters…
Lewis: Lewis—my husband’s great-grandfather—was
the only one to fight in the Civil War, serving in the Indiana Infantry. Afterwards he married a girl from his
childhood home in Lorain County, Ohio—Hannah Wilkinson—and they settled first
in Allegan County, where his parents lived, and then in Michigan’s “Thumb,”
across the state from the rest of the Moseys, where he was a successful farmer. Hannah died in her forties, and he remarried
twice.
John: John was a farmer and a barrel
maker. Like his brother, he was married
three times, but word in the family has it that none of the marriages were
happy. He had no surviving children and
is buried near his parents with his third wife Helena.
Francis (Frank): Frank was a farmer and a carpenter. He and his wife Jennie had four children, one
of whom died in infancy. He was widowed
at age 43 and lived as a widower until his death at age 89. He was a member of the IOOF (Independent
Order of Odd Fellows), which would be good topic for another blog post.
Jane: Jane had no children of her own, but her
husband William Orr had eight grown children from his previous wife. They were married only eleven years before
William died, leaving her a widow at age 49.
Jane then lived with her widowed brother Frank for a time, helping him
with his home and children, and then her sister Elizabeth.
Maria: Maria is the only one who lived outside of
Michigan for any length of time. She and
her husband Alonzo Brant lived in Banner and Kimball Counties in Nebraska for a
number of years, where he was a farmer and a “stock raiser”—and also a bit of a
hell-raiser, according to some accounts!
They had two children who both died in childhood. After her husband’s death, it is said she
returned to Michigan.
Martha: Martha married Jasper Dennis at age 17 and
was widowed at 33. They had six
children. Her husband died in Tennessee,
and there seems to be some mystery around this fact which no one wanted to talk
about. Later in life she lived with her
sister Elizabeth. She died at age 72 and
is buried near her sister Jane.
Richard: Richard married for the first time at 33, and
he and his wife Jennett had three children.
He seems to have lived the most uneventful life of the entire lot! (But perhaps there are things yet to be
discovered which will spice up his story…
It wouldn’t be the first time that has happened.)
Sarah Elizabeth: Sarah’s husband, John Orr, made his
living as a teamster. (Wikipedia: “a
person who drove a team of draft animals,
usually a wagon drawn
by oxen, horses, or mules.”) In 1910 her widowed older sister Jane lived
with their family, and in 1920 her widowed older sister Martha lived with
them. The 1910 census says that this was
her second marriage—so she may have a past that I haven’t yet discovered. (Either that, or the census taker was
mistaken.)
Genealogy is a journey, and there’s always more to discover.
