Showing posts with label Morris County New Jersey. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Morris County New Jersey. Show all posts

Thursday, January 30, 2025

A Tedious Courtship

 In the records of the First Presbyterian Church of Morristown, New Jersey is a curious entry for "a tedious courtship of 24 hours." The short courtship was unusual- maybe that is why it was mentioned? What does "tedious" mean in this context?

By Same [Reverend James Richards] January 17, 1806
David Munn, Orange
Miss Phebe Youngs, Malapardis,
"After a tedious courtship of 24 hours."


David Munn, the groom, was from Orange, Essex County. The bride, Phebe Youngs, was from Malapardis, which is now an area within Hanover, Morris County.

Map of Town of Hanover, Morris County, New Jersey. 1868.

The marriage was also recorded at the county level without mention of the courtship.

Marriages in the County of Morris, State of New Jersey.
These can be viewed from home for free via FamilySearch.org.
Film 1314453.


In spite of this unconventional beginning, the marriage endured for 33 years until the death of David Munn.

This union is mentioned in a book from 1907, Vicar Christopher Yonges. His Ancestors in England and His Descendants in America. A History and Genealogy. Three children are listed for David and Phebe. 

-Alson C Munn (died 1841)

-Ira Youngs Munn (1809-1882), married Mary Matilda Forsyth (1836-1920)

-Ruth Munn (1811-1889) married William Denman (1807-1879)

The family relocated from New Jersey to Missouri.

Excerpt from the Youngs Family Genealogy Book by Selah Youngs, Jr, 1907


David Munn served in the military for five years, from 1812 through 1817. He attained the rank of sergeant. He was in the light artillery of Captain John L Eastman's Company. During the Battle of York, War of 1812, he lost a finger. He died in 1839 in his 50s. A military marker sits atop his grave in Ohio.

Certain parts of David Munn's records relating to his military service are available from Fold3 (behind a paywall). Phebe became eligible for a widow's pension under a federal act passed in 1871. The soldier's service needed to have been at least sixty days and the marriage prior to the end of the War.

Act of 1871
Soldiers who served at least 60 days in the War of 1812 could apply for a pension,
as could their widows- if they married before the end of the War.


Phebe applied for her widow's pension under the Act of 1871. She had to prove that she was married prior to the end of the War in 1815. The clerk of Morris County, Richard Speer, copied by hand the lines from Book A of marriages, page 204- the same image above that we can now view on a computer.

Phebe's application to collect her widow's pension for David's service
in the War of 1812.
Number 4835.

The date of recording also had to be included- November 10, 1806- ten months after the event. The time lapse between events and recording of those events must be remembered when we evaluate the accuracy of records. In this case, we have to recordings- one from the county and one from the church, and they are consistent.

Phebe was awarded $8 per month.

Phebe died in 1875. She was buried with her daughter, Ruth (1811-1889), and son-in-law, William Denman (1807-1879), in Illinois.


Tuesday, January 28, 2025

Related Stepmother on Marriage Record

A marriage record is an excellent way of discovering the names of the parents of the bride and groom. The parties helped create the document and could ensure completeness and accuracy, as opposed to birth and death records in which the subject of the document is of no assistance in providing information.

That said, the information is not always accurate.

This was the case with the marriage record of William Hanford Ocoboc (1872-1941) and Anna Holander (1874-1948). They married December 15, 1894 in Newark, Essex County, New Jersey. William was raised in Rockaway, Morris County, New Jersey, but relocated to Essex County after the marriage. (Hanford is also spelled "Handford." Ocoboc has spelling variants, such as "Ockobock.")

William's parents were Hanford Ocoboc (1844-1918) and Ann Elizabeth Cook (1854-1885); however, on the marriage record, his mother was listed as Clara Lee (1861-1913).

Marriage record.
William Ocoboc and Anna Holander married December 15, 1894
in Newark, Essex County, New Jersey.


Names of William Ocoboc's parents as reported on his 1894 marriage record.
His mother was actually Ann Cook, not Clara Lee.

Clara was William's father's second wife. Clara and Ann were first cousins. Their grandparents were Stephen Cook (1798-1853) and Elizabeth Vanderhoof (1799-1878).

Family tree showing relationship of the two wives of Hanford Ocoboc (1844-1918).
William's marriage record listed Clara, not Ann, as his mother.


William was about thirteen years old when his mother died in 1885. The following year, his father remarried, resulting in another child born into the family. William was old enough to remember these events and know that his mother was Ann, not Clara. Perhaps he named Clara as his mother out of respect to her. Perhaps someone else supplied the information and William did not notice the discrepancy. We may never know. We must verify all information with other records whenever possible.

Hanford was related to both his wives. Through Hanford's paternal side, he was their second cousin, once removed. They shared ancestors Conrad Hopler (1730-1816) and Elizabeth Demuth (1735-1814). Handford's mother was Elizabeth Vanderhoff (1812-1889). Presumably she and the other Elizabeth Vanderhoof (1799-1878) were related.


Relationship of Hanford Ocoboc (1844-1918)
and his two wives

The resulting children of these unions were their own cousins.


Saturday, December 28, 2024

Kip's Castle and Another Bishop

Kip's Castle is a large mansion lying in Verona and Montclair in Essex County, New Jersey. It is remarkable because it was built in the style of a Norman castle, atop First Mountain, with spectacular views of the New York City skyline. The mansion is 9,000 square feet and sits atop eleven acres of land.


I visited in December of 2024. My pictures will not do this marvel justice, so here is a video from YouTube.


Before the castle became part of the Essex County Park System, various people and businesses occupied the structure.

The original occupants were Frederic Ellsworth Kip (1862-1938) and his wife, Charlotte Bishop Williams (1864-1926). They were married in New York City in 1884. They had one son, Ruloff Frederic Kip (1887-1953)

Marriage record page 1
Frederick Ellsworth Kip and Charlotte Bishop Williams
married October 15, 1884 in Manhattan, New York

Marriage record page 2
Frederick Ellsworth Kip and Charlotte Bishop Williams
married October 15, 1884 in Manhattan, New York

Historic vital records for New York City are available online.

By 1910, the family had moved into their new castle, as reflected in the 1910 census, at Crestmount Road in Montclair (now Crestmont Road in Verona). With Frederic and Charlotte was their son, Ruloff, age 22, and Charlotte's maternal aunt, Julia Bishop Ford (1837-1921). Four servants also were listed in this household.


In the 1915 state census, this home was listed at a different address, 66 Highland Avenue. This is still the same structure. Entrances are on Crestmont Road and Highland Avenue.


The property of Kip's Castle touches two streets-
Crestmont Road in Verona and Highland Avenue in Montclair.
This is a modern-day map.


Charlotte's middle name, Bishop, caught my attention. I figured this could be a surname, and since I have Bishop ancestors, I delved into Charlotte's ancestry.

The parents of Charlotte Bishop Williams were Charlotte Louisa Ford (1841-1897) and William White Williams (1838-1893). Charlotte and her parents are buried in Cedar Lawn Cemetery in Paterson, Passaic County, New Jersey.

Charlotte's maternal grandmother was a Bishop- Mary Polly (1807-1867), married to Alfred Ford (1805-1866). They were buried at Evergreen Cemetery in Morristown.

In August 2024 I visited Evergreen Cemetery to visit the resting place of my fourth great grandfather, Reuben Bishop (1805-1856). Transcriptions of stones are available at the Morristown and Morris Township Library. The cemetery, however, will not provide information.

Mary Polly Bishop was a daughter of Susannah Scofield (1773-1852) and William Bishop (1768-1844). This couple and some of their children were buried at First Presbyterian Churchyard, Morristown. They were from Stamford, Fairfield County, Connecticut and moved to Morristown, New Jersey probably in the 1820s.

Bishop family plot
First Presbyterian Churchyard
Morristown, Morris County, New Jersey
Photographed October 20, 2016 by J Lutter



Am I related to William Bishop and Susan Scofield? I do not know yet. I have not found a connection, other than residence in Morristown. 

Wednesday, October 9, 2024

The Elusive Parents of Jane Bell

 As I seek possible records for Reuben Bishop (1804-1855), finding his marriage record to Susan C Bell (1817-1888) would possibly help. Locating young Susan and her parents could help identify Reuben's place of origin. Marriages were between local people.

Family tree of Susan C Bell (1817-1888)
showing parents, spouses, and children

The name's of Susan's parents are from the record filed with the State of New Jersey for her third marriage in 1888 to Edward Prime DeGroot (1819-1884). Her father was listed as John Bell and her mother as Jane Bockover. Edward and Susan were married in the city in which she resided, Newark, Essex County. He resided in Morristown, Morris County, which is where Susan had raised her children.

Marriage record filed with State of New Jersey
Edward P Degroot married Susan C Bell, widow of Whitehead,
February 14, 1881 in Newark.
(Enos Littell Whitehead died February 2, 1880 in Newark.)

In the Morristown and Morris Township Library, while reviewing records for Evergreen Cemetery in Morristown, I checked out the family history books. There is a Bockoven family genealogy book compiled by Mrs R Vanderhoff of Bernardsville, New Jersey. This family lived in Somerset and Morris Counties, New Jersey.

Cover page
Bockoven book by Mrs R Vanderhoff

The Bockoven book lists the original immigrant as George Bockoven (1734-1814) of Alsace. George first married Mary Whitenack (1740-1806). Their children were born from 1759 through 1786.

After Mary Whitenack died, George Bockoven remarried to Jane Bell or Ball- a widow.



George Bockoven and his first wife, Mary, were buried in the Basking Ridge Presbyterian Church Cemetery in Basking Ridge, Somerset County.

Bockoven  Bell of Somerset County, relocated to Morris County, sound like Susan C Bell should fit in with this familial group. But she is not mentioned in the book.

1812 map northern New Jersey
Baskenridge in Somerset County is less than
ten miles south of Morris in Morris county.
(Rutgers Map Collection)

A copy of this bible is also available at the New Jersey State Archives in Trenton via the bible collection of the New Jersey Genealogy Society.

copy of bible entries Bockoven family
Bockoven bible printed in the Bockoven Book by Vanderhoff


Bockoven bible printed in the Bockoven Book by Vanderhoff


More research is needed, this time in Somerset County.


Monday, October 7, 2024

The Unknown Origins of Ruben Bishop 1805-1856

Who are the parents of Reuben Levy Bishop, my fourth great grandfather? He died in Morristown, Morris County, New Jersey in 1856, age 52.


In the prior post I demonstrated why the father of Reuben is likely not Stratton Bishop (1760-1823) of Bridgeton in Cumberland County, New Jersey.

Reuben Bishop married Susan C Bell in the 1830s. Her parents were John Bell and Jane Bockoven- according to her 1881 marriage record to Edward deGroot.

From this union five children have been identified:

1. Mary Jane Bishop, born about 1836, died in 1910. Married Edward Skinner in 1854.

2. Emma Louisa Bishop, born about 1839, died in 1888. Married Silas Totten in 1856.

3. Julia Bishop, born about 1841, died in 1902. Married George Joseph Ward and William Condon.

4. William Reuben Bishop (my third great grandfather), born about 1842, died in 1915. Married Susan Jane Marsh.

5. George F Bishop, born in 1848, died 1919. Married Mary E Frances Garrabrant.


In the 1840 census, "Rheubin" Bishop was enumerated in Morris Township, Morris County, New Jersey. Two adults, one male and one female, resided with two female children under age 5. These were probably Mary Jane, born around 1836, and Emma Louisa, born around 1839. 

1840 United States Federal Census
Morris Township, Morris County, New Jersey

In 1850, Reuben Bishop was enumerated in Morris Township with his wife, Susan Bell, and all five of their children.

Reuben Bishop, age 8, is William Reuben Bishop


Register of Marriages and Deaths, Morris County, New Jersey, 1848-1867.
Volume Z.

When Reuben Bishop died in 1856, New Jersey was not issuing individual certificates. A record of his death was entered as a single line in a ledger book. (This ledger book, Volume Z, appears at Ancestry in the collection titled New Jersey, U.S., Death Index, 1848-1878, 1901-2017.) His occupation was listed as Hostler. This was someone who either tended to horses or transported cargo.

His birthplace could hold the best clue. Reuben was born in "one of the Eastern States." Hmm. So not New Jersey? We will return to this.

Places of burial are not listed on this page in the death ledger. A cemetery is also omitted from the death notice in the local paper. A possible match is in Evergreen Cemetery in Morristown, Morris County, New Jersey.

findagrave.com/memorial/173374681/

The date of death is off by one day. Curiously, the burial date was years later in 1873.

I called and visited Evergreen Cemetery. The records, if any exist, cannot be shown to me. The staff did kindly bring me to this site in Section O. There is no marker for Rueben Bishop.

Site of burial of "Rueben" Bishop in 1873, next to Jane Totten.
Evergreen Cemetery, Morristown, Morris County, New Jersey.
The grounds are beautifully maintained with historical and military sections throughout.
The records, however, are not available to the public.

I wrote to the creator and manager of this memorial on Find A Grave, but have yet to receive responses. How did this person access this record? Where was Reuben from 1856, when he died, until 1873, when he was buried at this location? (I submitted updates to other memorials managed by this person. The changes were made on September 14, 2024. Thus, someone is monitoring the account.)

Materials for Evergreen Cemetery are available for in-person use at the Morristown and Morris Township Library in the Caroline Rose Foster North Jersey History and Genealogy Center. Among the items are maps, section maps, transcriptions of gravestones, and published books.

Section map of Evergreen Cemetery, Morristown, New Jersey
available at the Morristown and Morris Township Library



Section O map, Evergreen Cemetery, Morristown, New Jersey.
Ruben Bishop owned plot 53.


What is lacking in these materials are records of burials. They might only be at Evergreen Cemetery, which forbids access. Because Rueben Bishop has no stone, he does not appear in the transcriptions of stones.

I need to know where he was originally buried. This could reveal family connections. Why was he moved to (or within) Evergreen Cemetery in 1876?



Two other Bishops, William and Reuben, lived in Morris County.

1- William Bishop (1768-1844) and his wife, Susan Scofield (1773-1852), were buried at First Presbyterian Churchyard in Morristown. They were from Connecticut.

Bishop family grave at First Presbyterian Churchyard,
Morristown, Morris County, New Jersey.


William Bishop and Susannah Scofield married March 31, 1796
in Stamford, Fairfield County, Connecticut.
Transcription.
Collection at Ancestry

Was my Reuben from Connecticut also? Is this why his death record listed his birth as "one of the Eastern States?"

My Reuben named a son William.


2- An earlier Reuben Bishop of Morris County.

In 1829 Reuben Bishop sold property in Chatham to Vincent Boisaubin and Dr Henry Prentiss Green.


Reuben Bishop appeared on an 1814 tax list in Chatham. He owned one horse.




3- Levi Bishop and family were enumerated in the 1855 New Jersey State census in Chatham. Only heads of household are named. In this residence were an adult male and female, two female children, and two male children.

I wonder if this is my Reuben Levy Bishop listed by his middle name.





Next research strategies:

---Continue searching for records in Morris County and neighboring counties in New Jersey.

---Research these Bishop families in Connecticut.

---Mine the DNA matches



Sunday, October 6, 2024

Stratton Bishop, father of Reuben, died 1823

Reuben Levy Bishop was my fourth great grandfather. He died in Morristown, Morris County, New Jersey in 1856 at the age of 52.

I have found no documentation about his possible parents.

A father of Reuben Bishop is suggested at Ancestry: Stratton Bishop, who lived in Bridgeton, Cumberland County, New Jersey from about 1760 until 1823, when his will was proven.

Family tree showing Reuben Bishop with possible father named Stratton Bishop.
Possible ancestors appear in yellow boxes in family trees at Ancestry.


In Stratton's will, he left a life estate to his wife, Lydia. He left land in Bridgeton to his two daughters, Ruth, wife of Samuel Souders, and Lorana (1781-1863), wife of Hosea Nichols (1780-1849).

He also left land to the son of his son Reuben, "if he returns from Europe," and the two sons of his other son, John. The first names of these grandsons were not provided in Stratton's will.

Viewable at FamilySearch.org


I do not think that Reuben, the son of Stratton Bishop, is the same person as my fourth great grandfather, Reuben Levy Bishop.

My Reuben was born around 1804/1805. He was likely not old enough to have a son in 1823.

I have not been able to trace the sons of Stratton Bishop, but his daughters appeared in other records, from which we can glean their birth years. Lorana and Ruth were born in the 1780s. We do not know if Stratton's sons were from a subsequent marriage, but they were both old enough to have their own children when Stratton wrote his will. This makes it unlikely that Stratton's sons Reuben and John were born past 1800.

Stratton and Lydia have memorial pages on Find A Grave
at the First Baptist Church Cemetery in Bridgeton, Cumberland County, New Jersey.


Typed transcripts of Cohansey Baptist Church are viewable on Ancestry. Stratton Bishop died March 14, 1823. Lydia, his wife, died a few months later in October, thus ending her life estate and freeing the land to transfer to the grandsons- subject to the ten year time limit extended to Reuben's unnamed son to return from Europe and assert his claim.

"I give and bequeath the said house and lot of land above described at the decease of my wife in the manner following viz to the son of Reuben Bishop my oldest son the back half part of said lot provided he shall within ten years from the death of my said wife come to this country he being at this time in Europe and take possession of the same but if he shall neglect so to take possession of the said premises then it is my will and I do order that the beforementioned back half part of said lot shall go to the sons of my son John Bishop to be equally divided between them share and share alike."


Three of Stratton's grandsons, John, Henry, and Stratton Bishop, inherited the property. A guardian, Daniel M Woodruff, was appointed in 1831 after an action was brought by their uncle, Hosea Nichols. They were under the age of fourteen.

In a deed dated June 5, 1832, their guardian, Daniel M Woodruff, sold the property to Hosea Nichols. It is not clarified if they are sons of Reuben, John, or both. These are probably children of John, not Reuben because of the exception noted in the wording: "subject however to the lawful claim of --- Bishop, if any he has of in or to the same . . ." Most unfortunately this other grandson is not named. It would seem that this grandson of Stratton Bishop either remained in Europe during the ten years following Lydia's death, or he was unaware that he needed to reach out to the Orphan's Court in Cumberland County, New Jersey.

The land conveyed in 1832 is the same piece of land described in Stratton Bishop's will in 1823. There was no division to convey the "back half part" to Reuben's son, residing in Europe.

Sketch of Stratton Bishop's land described in wills and deeds.
1 chain = 100 links = 66 feet


On the west side of Cohansey Creek and bounded as followeth:

Beginning on the south side of main street at the North west corner of Philip Souders lot
thence bounding on the same South twenty degrees west five chains to a corner
thence bounding on George Burgins lot North sixty nine degrees and fifty minutes west fifty seven links to a corner
thence north twenty degrees east four chains and sixty two links to a corner
thence south sixty nine degrees and fifty minutes east seven links to a corner
thence north twenty degrees east thirty eight links to main street aforesaid
thence bounding thereon south sixty nine degrees and fifty minutes east fifty links to the place of beginning containing forty four perches and seventeen hundredths of a square perch of land.


I have not found records on my Reuben Levy Bishop that indicate any ties to Europe. Aside from the name Reuben, the only other similarity is that Reuben Levy Bishop's son, George (1848-1919), named a daughter Lorena (1880-1973).

Thus I do not see, at this point, that Reuben Levy Bishop of Morris County is the same Reuben Bishop, son of Stratton Bishop, of Cumberland County.

The hunt for the parents of Reuben Levy Bishop continues.


Thursday, December 12, 2019

Double John Cook and Jane Peer

John Cook was my sixth great grandfather.

On December 15, 1745 Johannis was baptized at the Pompton Plains First Reformed Dutch Church in Morris County, New Jersey. His parents were listed as Hendrik VanderKoeck and Catrina. Witnesses were Pieter Post and Annaatje.



On October 4, 1772 John Cook and Jane Peer were married at the First Presbyterian Church in Morristown.



On January 3, 1822 the will of John Cook was submitted for probate in Morris County. No wife was mentioned in the will. Jane was deceased when her father, Samuel Peer, wrote his will in 1818.
John Cook named four children in his will:
Catherine (married Easton)
Henry (my fifth great grandfather)
David
John


The son named John Cook (1790-1878) married a woman with the same name as his mother. Jane Peer (1794-1888) and John Cook were married by Reverend Barnabas King in 1812 in Rockaway, Morris County, New Jersey. They may have been first cousins. Jane's father was Jacob Peer, a brother to John's mother.






In the 1830s John and Jane relocated from Morris County, New Jersey to Onondaga County, New York.

John Cook Junior claimed a pension for service in the War of 1812 for substituting for Stephen H Cook (1797-1853). But Elizabeth claimed a widow’s pension through Stephen H Cook (denied because she could not prove the date of their marriage). Stephen was John's nephew (and my fourth great grandfather).





Questions:

How are the two people named Jane Peer related to each other? Was the younger Jane Peer a first cousin of her husband, the younger John Cook?

When did the older Jane Peer die?

Why did both John Cook and Stephen Cook serve in the War of 1812 if John substituted for Stephen?