Changed my Thinking

        Genealogy has changed my thinking about history.  It’s important to know what is going on in the region that your ancestors are living whether that is in the United States, the Colonies, or in the “Old Country”.

       Have you looked at historical maps?  Checked out when various States were formed?  What about the counties within each state?  Sometimes you think your ancestor moved when in reality they stayed in the same spot but boundaries changed.

       To help put this all together, I create a timeline for each surname.  Since most of my work is US related, I start with my immigrant ancestor.  I indicate when they were born and where, when they immigrated, where did they land, did they have any children born (if so, when and where), when & where married, and when & where they died.  I also indicate land purchases, census entries (both state/territorial and federal), and directories. Then using a different color, I add historical events like the French & Indian War, the Revolutionary War, famous feuds like the Hatfields & McCoys, hurricanes, earthquakes, and famines.  Then using another color, I add the dates of boundary changes or formations.

       Here’s an example from my Kludt family.  I’ve included the country my immigrant ancestor was born and all the areas the family lived.  I document sources as footnotes, especially births, marriages, deaths, newspaper articles, and land documents.

       Here’s another example of a timeline for an individual using various colors to distinguish between historical events, boundary changes, and other family members.

       By doing these timelines, it helps distinguish between persons with the same name – are they the same age, are they living in the same area, was it boundary changes that caused the location changes, does their age appear to be too young or too old (especially if you are trying to determine if they fought in any wars).

Conflicting Clues

        A few years ago, I wanted to do a write-up of one of my patriot ancestors – Thomas Pinson.  However, I hit a roadblock due to conflicting information.  So, I gave up.  Guess it’s time to pick it up again.

       Thomas Pinson was born circa 1745 in Grayson County, Virginia to Aaron Pinson and Delilah Stovall.  He was the oldest of twelve children.  In 1765, Thomas married Mary Denny in Virginia.  He passed away around 1815 in Floyd County (now Pike), Kentucky (KY).

       You’re wondering about the conflicting information.  Well, for Thomas Pinson to become a Patriot Ancestor for the Daughters of the American Revolution, he provided supplies to the troops during the war.  The Virginia Revolutionary Publick Claims stated that he had provided 350 pounds of beef on the 13^th of May 1782 in Mecklenburg County, Virginia.   So, I started looking at various land records between Thomas and his father, Aaron.  That’s where it gets messy.  There are way too many Thomas’ and Aarons’.  And I couldn’t find where my Thomas had land in Mecklenburg but he had an uncle who did.

       So, let’s back up (literally and genealogically).  The first Aaron Pinson was born circa 1700 in Grayson County, Virginia. (other sources say he was born in 1688 in Lunenburg Co, VA to a Thomas Pinson and Elizabeth White).  He married an Elizabeth Rambo circa 1720 in Virginia.  He died around 1 January 1758 in Lunenburg County, Virginia.  (His will was proven in probate in the Spring of 1758).  It is believed they had 5 children.  Two of those children were Aaron (born 1731 in Spotsylvania Co, Virginia) and Thomas, who were the executors of his will.

·      Aaron (Jr) – conflicts on his date of birth, some information has it as 1731 and others have it as 1721 in Lunenburg.  Married circa 1751 in Goochland, Henrico Co, Virginia to Delilah Stovall.  Died 5 April 1801 in Granville Co, North Carolina (NC).  This is my direct line mentioned above with 12 children including a Thomas and an Aaron.

o  Thomas – born c1745 in Grayson Co, VA. (this is my direct ancestor).  Thomas & Mary had 9 children.

§  Aaron – born circa 1775 in Raleigh, Wake Co, North Carolina (NC).  Married Sarah Lycans in Surry Co, NC.  He died in April 1838.  They had 13 children including a Thomas and an Aaron.

·      Thomas – born circa 1810 in Floyd Co, KY.  Married Mary Ward in Vigo, Indiana.  He died in Fayette Township, Vigo, Indiana.  They had 7 children.  No Aaron or Thomas.

·      Aaron – I have no information on him.

§  Thomas – born circa 1792 in Virginia.  Married Rachel Leslie on 29^th Sept 1814 in Floyd Co, KY.  They had at least 3 children.  By 1830, they were living in Edgar, Illinois.  In 1860, they were living in Deepwater, Henry, Missouri with their son, Cornelius.

§  Allen – b 24 Nov 1785 in Grayson, Virginia.  Married Margaret Belcher on 24 Mar 1808 in Floyd Co, KY.  He died 18 Nov 1858 at Bent Branch, Pike Co, KY.  They had 8 children, including an Aaron (b 1809) and a Thomas (born 1828).  I descend from Allen through his daughter, Mary “Polly” Pinson.

o  Aaron – born c 1750. Note:  Will need to do further research on this branch.

·      Thomas – I don’t have a birth date.  He also died in 1801 in Mecklenburg, VA.   He married a Boyd (date unknown).  It appears he had 8 children.  One of them was named Thomas.  Note:  Will need to do further research on this branch.

I indicated I had looked into land records.  Aaron Sr. obtained patents for land in Spotsylvania County in 1727.  He sold it in 1731.  In 1733, he and his family moved to Brunswick County on the Tea-Wahemini Creek (now Aaron’s Creek) just south of the Roanoke River.  Then in August 1751, he received a land grant on the south side of the Roanoke River (this was Lunenburg County in 1746).  This was the land that was distributed between his three sons in 1758.

In 1760, Aaron (probably Jr) received another patent next to the existing acreage.

       I also looked into the timeline of the various counties.

·      Spotsylvania County was established in 1721 from Essex, King & Queen, and King William County

o  Orange County was created from Spotsylvania in 1734.

o  Augusta was officially organized in 1745 but was created in 1738 from part of Orange County (bordering Brunswick Co).

o  Botetourt County was created from part of Augusta County in 1770

o  Fincastle was created from Botetourt County in 1772. 

o  Montgomery County was established from Fincastle in Dec 1776. 

o  Wythe County was formed from Montgomery County in 1790.

o  Grayson County was founded in Dec 1794 from part of Wythe County.

·      Brunswick County was established at the same time as Spotsylvania and was from Prince George County.

o  Lunenburg County was established in 1746 from Brunswick County.

o  Mecklenburg County was established in May 1764 from Lunenburg County.  Became effective March 1765.

·      Henrico County was an original county in 1634 and an original incorporation in 1617.

o  Goochland County was formed from Henrico in 1728.

Creating a timeline of county formations and land patents as well as family residences help solve some of the conflicts.  However, I only did my direct ancestors family and not the collateral lines.

Looks like my next steps are to flush out some of the family branches and double-check them against the county formations to see if they actually moved or just changed counties.  I’m really thinking that there was a mix-up between an uncle and a nephew as to who actually provided supplies during the Revolutionary War.

A Big Decision

           Why did William Kludt move from Iowa to Minnesota then back to Iowa then to Washington State?  All in a span of about five years.  I really don’t know.

William’s parents moved to Iowa from Wisconsin in 1878.  He married his wife, Susan Reisner, in February 1889.  Their three oldest children were all born in Iowa in 1890, 1892, and 1895, respectively.  Their youngest (and fourth) child was born in Minnesota in 1900.

Let’s look at land records.  William purchased land in Sept 1892 in Fayette Co, Iowa.  He later sold it in Feb 1906.  He purchased land (127 ½ acres) in May 1906 in Lewis County, Washington.  This land he sold parcels over the next few years.  He had purchased a town lot in March 1920 (but didn’t move there until the 1940’s).  He also purchased two lots of property in Adna in January 1922.  They sold this land in March 1943 before moving into the house in Chehalis.  No mention of the sale of the first purchase of land in Lewis County as it was leased to his oldest son to farm.

       Ok, what about newspaper articles.  That always gives clues.  West Union Gazette, published October 14, 1892 indicates that William had lived on the farm he purchased for the past three years.  That means, he and Susan were renting the land soon after their marriage.  He paid $2400 for 160 acres.  The Argo newspaper (also published in West Union, Iowa) had an announcement about a public sale being held on the farm in February 1899, selling livestock and crops.  The March 1^st edition indicated that the farm was rented out and the family moved to Minnesota where they rented a farm until 1903, when they returned to the Iowa farm.  In February 1906, an exchange was done between William and a Mr Ostrander of farms in Center Township with William’s land in Auburn (in Iowa).  This article mentioned that William is leaving for Oregon.  Still no mention as to the why.

       Guess we’ll never know why William moved between Iowa, Minnesota, and Washington State.

What the Census Suggests

        I use census records for most of my research.  The most useful are from 1850 to 1950.  A lot of information is available, and some information can be inferred that will require other records to confirm the hypothesis or not.

       So, let’s look at one of my immigrant ancestors – James Stead.  James was born on the 20^th of April 1819 in Ashford, Shropshire, England.  He married Mary Ann Tolson in Yorkshire, England.  They had six children, the two oldest were born in England in 1847 and 1848, with the remaining being born in Seneca Falls, Seneca, New York between 1851 and 1859.  Mary Ann died 21^st of May 1877 in Dundee, Kane, Illinois and James died 21^st of Feb 1882 and is buried in West Dundee, Kane, Illinois.

       1850 Census first listed all in the household giving age, sex, profession, value of real estate owned, place of birth, whether married within the year, attended school within the year, cannot read & write, or if they are deaf and dumb, blind, insane, etc.  My James Stead lived in The Town of Seneca Falls in the County of Seneca State of New York.  The household he was listed with is not family but may have been a boarding house.  His occupation was a moulder and he was born in England and was 30 years old.  This tells me that he immigrated first then sent for his family.  I will need to look for a ship’s passenger list between 1848 and June 1850.

       1860 Census now includes value of personal estate.  So, what does it have for James?  He lives in 4^th Ward Seneca Falls Village in the County of Seneca State of New York.  Now, he lives in a household with family members (assumption).  He is still a moulder and he is age 42. He now has real estate.  That means he owns property.  Mary is 34, a milliner, and was born in England; Elizabeth is 12 and was born in England; William is 8 and was born in New York; Mary Ann is 6 and born in New York, Franses (female) is 4 and born in New York; James is 1 and born in New York.  Another person resides with them by the name of William Tolsen, age 27, a machinist, and born in England.  We can assume that he is Mary’s brother.  This tells me that the rest of the family immigrated between June 1, 1850 and 1852.  Maybe Mary’s brother came with them.  Will need to locate a ship passenger list.  Where is Thomas?  He was born in 1847 so should be with the family.

        So, what can we glean from the 1870 Census.  More information is given – whether parents are of foreign birth; if child was born within the year, which month; if married within the year, which month; and if a US Citizen or if they no longer have the right to vote.  James and his family have moved and are now living in Dundee in the County of Kane, State of Illinois.  Besides Mary and four children, there are ten others living in the residence.  James is 51 and still works as a moulder.  However, he no longer owns real estate.  He is a US Citizen with the right to vote.  His parents as well as Mary’s are foreign born.  Three of the children attended school.  Mary keeps house and the oldest child at home, William, is 18 and works as a moulder.  This census suggests that we need to look for naturalization papers.

       The 1880 Census now adds relationship to the head of household.  Yay! We also learn whether a person is Single, Married, Widowed, or Divorced.  Also new is whether the person has been unemployed.  James is now living with his daughter and son-in-law, Mary & Henry Smith, in Dundee, Kane County, Illinois in an area known as Village of Carpentersville.  He is 61, a widow, and his occupation is a moulder.  It appears he has been unemployed for 8 months.

       So, now I have more research to do based on these Federal census records.

1.  Look for Passenger Lists

2.  Look for Naturalization papers

3.  Look for State Census records

4.  Look for Land records

5.  Look for City Directories 

Favorite Photo - 2026

 

Nathan, Marcy & David
at the Liberty Bell

Our most recent picture of us as a family.  This was taken last Spring (May 2025) when we visited downtown Philadelphia.

This photo was taken while we were visiting the Liberty Bell.  In the background you can see Independence Hall.

My husband & I took a long road trip from our home in Centralia, Washington to Sacramento, California.  In Sacramento, we got onto the Historic Lincoln Highway.  Sometimes, we ended up on current interstates and highways but tried to follow the original route as much as possible.  When we got just outside of Philadelphia, we left the highway and headed to our son’s place in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania.  We spent several days with him.  On one of those days, we took the train to Philly so we could visit the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall.  Unfortunately, the weather wasn’t very cooperative – it rained.  And there was a lot of construction going on around the area.  So, we caught the train back to Conshy.  We also visited Valley Forge while in the area.

A Breakthrough Moment

 Week 5 – A Breakthrough Moment

       Do I have a breakthrough moment?  Hmmm . . . Not quite for this year.  But I did last year!  Oops, make that in 2024.  I was working on a brick wall for my paternal 3x great grandparents.

       I started out using DNA to confirm the parents of my 2x great grandmother, Dorothea Ahrendt, who married Heinrich Johann Ludwig Kludt.  Dorothea was born 4 Jun 1836 in Mecklenburg, Germany.  She died 10 October 1919 in Fruitland, Muscatine Co, Iowa.  She married John Kludt the 27^th of November 1857 in Grafton, Ozaukee Co, Wisconsin.  They had six children but only three survived to adulthood.

       Her death certificate indicated that her father was Christen Arendt but the mother was unknown (the informant was the Reverend who was probably at the Lutheran Old People’s Home where she resided just before her death).

       Their marriage certificate indicated that her father was J. Ahrendt.  No name was given for her mother.

       Well, let’s see if I can find a birth record.  Jackpot!  Found it in the digitized Lutheran Church records from Mecklenburg.  Her full name was Christina Maria Dorothea Ahrend and her parents were Johann Christian Ahrend and Maria Elisabeth Ahrend.  Then I was able to find a passenger list from 1854 that lists Chr. Ahrends with his family Maria, Dorothea, Joh., and Wilhelmina.  With that information, I was able to use online church records and trace the family back two more generations.  I also found out that Johann Christian Ahrend married Maria Elisabeth’s sister first in 1828.  Her name was Maria Dorothea Arndt.

       Now, I have some more questions to be answered.

1.  Are Johann Christian Ahrend and Maria Elisabeth Arndt related?
2. Johann’s maternal grandmother was a Kludt.  Does she tie in to my Kludt family?

Death Certificate - personal copy obtained from State of Iowa

Marriage Registration

  

Germany Lutheran Baptisms, Marriages, and Burials, 1500-1971
Ancestry.com

 

Hamburg Passenger List
31 May 1854

New York Passenger List 
4 Aug 1854

A Theory in Progress

             I’m trying to determine who the parents are of my paternal 2x great grandparents that were from Bavaria.  I am trying to use DNA matches to see if any of the family members have determined the information.

       Roadblock:  Church records, especially Lutheran Evangelical, have not been digitized in Bavaria; unable to determine if there was a church in Wisconsin the family attended.

       Known information:  Location in Bavaria, immigration date, a couple of siblings that also immigrated.

       Currently, I’m working on Henry Reisner (Reissner/Risner).  I’ve written about this in the past – See March 2025 – Brick Walls in Family Research and January 2025 - Challenge.

Henry was born on the 19^th of Sept 1814 in Poppengrun (there’s an umlaut over the u).  He died the 19^th of Dec 1891 in West Union, Fayette Co, Iowa.  According to obituaries, he married Maria Margaret Haueisen circa 1847 in Poppengrun.  He then immigrated to the United States in 1848, arriving in New York.  He rented a place in Stoughton, Dane Co, Wisconsin before moving to Fayette Co, Iowa in 1859.

       Known timeline here in the United States based on Census records found.

·      1855 living in Dunkirk, Dane Co, Wisconsin (State Census)

·      1860 – West Union Twp, Fayette Co, Iowa (Fed Census)

·      1870 – same location

·      1880 – same location

·      1885 – West Union, Fayette Co, Iowa (State Census)

DNA analysis has been focusing on Henry’s known siblings – Christian & Adam.  So, I’ve been doing research and documenting their lives and their descendants here in the US. 

It appears I need to find some more immigration documentation like passenger lists and naturalization papers (except I thought I had that) for all three siblings.