Hint: Surname as a Middle Name

Catherine B Dunn (1865-1944) and William Walling Winterton (1863-1932) were my great great grandparents. Catherine's paternal grandfather, Nathan or Nathaniel H Dunn, is a tail in my family tree.

From what I can ascertain, Nathaniel Dunn married Sarah Adams (1796-1882). In 1831, Nathaniel signed a receipt for the estate of Sarah's father, Ezra Adams (1768-1824), in Nottingham, then in Burlington County, New Jersey.

Nathaniel Dunn and Sarah Adams had at least four children:
-Ezra Adams Dunn, born about 1821 (the father of Catherine B Dunn), married Hermoine Dunlop.
-Lucy Ann Dunn, born about 1822, married George P Sweet, then John S Seal.
-Sarah B Dunn, born about 1833, married James Burroughs Keller.
-David T Dunn, born about 1836, married Lucy M Smith.

The first available census for New Jersey is 1830. In Nottingham, Burlington County, is Nathaniel Dunn. He is probably the male "age 30 and under 40," making him born between 1790-1800.  Ezra could be the male "age 5 and under 10," born in 1821. The other male under age 5 could be a son not found yet or someone the family cared for.

The female "age 30 and under 40" is probably the matriarch Sarah Adams, born around 1796. Then we have three females between the ages of 5 and ten. I know of Lucy, born about 1822, but the other two are a mystery (at this point).

Nottingham is probably in Mercer County today.

In the 1840 census, Nathan Dunn likely has moved. He is in Northampton, Burlington County. This is probably now called Mount Holly and is still in Burlington County. Again we try to account for the number of people living in the household.

1 male age 15 and under 20: David born 1836.

1 male age 20 and under 30: Ezra  born 1821.

1 male age 50 and under 60: Nathan born between 1780-1790.

1 female age 10 and under 15: Sarah born 1833.

3 females age 40 and under 50: one is Sarah born around 1796.

Who are the other two older females? We may never know.

Daughter Lucy, born 1822, was married in 1840 to George Sweet. So she may not be in this household.

When viewing the 1840 census, remember to check the second page, which lists number of slaves in the household and occupations. Entries were not numbered until the 1850 census, so you have to count down the page to get to your household of interest. Make sure that the total number of people adds up. Nathan Dunn owned no slaves in 1840. Nobody in his household was employed in any of the named professions.

That's all we have to go on for Nathaniel Dunn.

In 1850, Sarah Adams, the widow of Nathaniel Dunn, appears as head of her household in Trenton, Mercer County, with two of her children, Sarah and David. So Nathaniel Dunn probably died sometime between the 1840 census and the 1850 census. I cannot find a will, death record, or obituary.

In 1850, my third great grandfather, Ezra Dunn, had moved to Raritan (now called Hazlet) in Monmouth County, New Jersey, and started his family.

A cousin sent me family pictures and notes, including estate papers for John Dunlop Dunn (1870-1939), an unmarried brother of Catherine B Dunn. For the first time I saw the middle name of Catherine. BUTTERFOSS. What an unusual middle name. It had to be a family name. But I didn't see it in her ancestors. BUT if I looked for a Butterfoss already entered in my family tree, I would have saved myself time. Instead, we get a longer research story.

After failing to find a Butterfoss ancestor for Catherine B Dunn in my tree, I looked online for a New Jersey marriage between a Butterfoss and a Dunn and found one.

Family Search had an entry for a Catharine A Dunn (I like that name) and John X or M Butterfoss marrying in 1849 in Trenton. My Dunns were from the Trenton area. This could be a big clue. But what is this record? I cannot see it from home.

This "record" is a card index of the newspaper Trenton State Gazette, available at the New Jersey State Archives and digitized by Family Search, though not viewable at home. I viewed the image at a nearby Family History Center.

The Trenton State Gazette is online at Genealogy Bank (subscription required). A textual search for this marriage did not produce any results. Using the information from this card, I found the mention for this marriage. The date of marriage was November 21, 1849.

Unfortunately the marriage notice provided no details such as parentage.


In 1850, John H Butterfoss and Catharine A Dunn lived in Trenton, Mercer County, New Jersey.

In 1860, John and Catherine lived in Lambertville, Hunterdon County.

From 1851 through 1864, they had at least five daughters who lived to adulthood:
-Mary, born about 1851, last seen in (a double enumeration in) the 1880 census.
-Sarah Elizabeth, born about 1853, died in 1923 in Washington, DC.
-Hannah, born about 1857, first married Winfield Broadhurst, then married Charles Dalrymple; had children by both husbands; died in 1924.
-Laura, born about 1859, died in 1917 in Washington, DC.
-Josephine, born about 1864, died in 1911; married Frank McMahon, one-time mayor of Rumson, New Jersey.


I retrieved the marriage records of Hannah to Charles Dalrymple and Josephine to Frank McMahon to make sure that I was indeed dealing with children of Catharine Dunn. That is what the records read, if you saw through the downward F loop of Butterfoss.

This is my line of descent from my earliest known Dunn ancestor. Is there a connection between my Dunns and the Catharine A Dunn, born about 1825, who married John H Butterfoss?

Catharine Dunn died after the birth of Josephine in 1864 and before the 1870 census, when John Butterfoss is remarried to Ann Lake. John created a successful tomato canning business in Lambertville, though neighbors despised the smell and waste products.

Ann Lake, the second wife of John Butterfoss, died in 1907. She was not called a step-mother in her obituary.

John H Butterfoss, his wives, and two daughters, Laura and Sarah, are entered at Find A Grave in Mount Hope Cemetery in Lambertville, Hunterdon County, New Jersey. There was confusion about the wives, but that was cleared up as per my suggestions. There are no pictures of the stones, if there are any.

Online family trees are not sure if John Butterfoss had one or two wives, nevermind who the parents were of Catharine Dunn. (But one has pictures of the family! John, all five children, and probably Ann- not Catharine, based on the age of the youngest child.)

I was going to leave this open for now as a mystery. But I stumbled upon a connection while reviewing the widow of Nathaniel Dunn, Sarah Adams. I was not going to bore you with her census entries of 1860, 1870, and 1880. I reviewed them myself.

You need to see 1880. I already had Mary A Butterfoss, born 1852, in my tree. She is enumerated twice.  Once with Sarah Dunn in Trenton and again with her parents in Lambertville. When entering members of a household from a census into the family tree, my practice is to enter everyone- lodgers, boarders, servants. They are usually family, or become family.

When I looked for a Butterfoss initially, I only looked to the sparse ancestors of my Catherine B Dunn (1865-1944). I should have looked for Butterfoss in my entire tree, not just in the ancestors of Catherine B Dunn.

This is the clue sitting in front of me for years. Darn it. This is the right Mary Butterfoss because "tinning store" is what her father's factory was called.

Mary was a niece of Sarah Keller. Sarah was born around 1833, and was the widow of James Burroughs Keller and the daughter of Nathaniel Dunn (the original tail end of the this story) and Sarah Adams (1796-1882). We know that Mary Butterfoss' mother was Catharine Dunn, born around 1825.

It is plausible that Sarah Dunn, born 1833, and Catharine Dunn, born 1825, were daughters of Nathaniel Dunn and Sarah Adams. Going back to the 1830 census, there is room for another little girl in Catharine's age range in the household, though not in the 1840 census.

I have to revise one of the paragraphs above to read:
Nathaniel Dunn and Sarah Adams had at least four five children:
-Ezra Adams Dunn, born about 1821 (the father of Catherine B Dunn), married Hermoin Dunlop.
-Lucy Ann Dunn, born about 1822, married George P Sweet, then John S Seal.
-Catharine A Dunn, born about 1825, married John H Butterfoss.
-Sarah B Dunn, born about 1833, married James Burroughs Keller.
-David T Dunn, born about 1836, married Lucy M Smith.


Sarah Butterfoss, a daughter of Catharine Dunn (born 1825), had a passport with a photo. She would have been a first cousin to my Catherine B Dunn if the above construct is correct. I think they resemble each other.

Sarah was still traveling the globe in 1922, one year before she died at age 70.


The tail end remains in place but another branch is squeezed in. Welcome to the family, Butterfoss/Dunn descendants.

Marriage Record from Estate Sale

This is a wonderful estate sale find.

It is a marriage record dated August 9, 1905 from Saint Joseph's Church in Washington, Warren County, New Jersey for Thomas Lawrence Murphy and Alice Margaret Senior.

(Note: There are several places in New Jersey named "Washington."  Be mindful when searching for a location bearing this name.)

This family heirloom was behind a painting and was discovered when the painting was brought in for re-framing.  The marriage record was placed in its own glass frame and is so firmly situated that I did not free it for the photographs, hence the reflections in these images.

The writing is fading, but readable.  Seals from the church are still raised.

The officiant was Reverend Joseph A Rigney.  According to the website of Saint Joseph's Parish, Father James Rigney served in the years 1898-1906.

Witnesses were John P Brennan and Elizabeth C Senior.

In the 1910 federal census, Thomas and Alice are living in Phillipsburg, Warren County, New Jersey with two children, Elizabeth, age 4, and Joseph, age 1.  They are enumerated twice, once with Alice's mother, Margaret, and once without her.  Note that one entry lists Thomas' father's place of birth as Massachusetts, while the other lists Ireland.


Find A Grave has entries for the burials of Thomas (died 1945), Alice (died 1953), and their daughter, Elizabeth Ward (died 1988), in Saint Joseph's Catholic Cemetery in Washington.

If someone from the Murphy and/or Senior families would like this document, please let me know.

Double enumeration in the census, part five: Newark, New Jersey 1920

Howard Lutter was listed twice in the 1920 federal census.  When this happens, we call it a Double Enumeration.  The cause of the double count for Howard was marital problems.  He was staying with his mother, Clara Uhl, but was also listed in the household of his wife, Laura Winterton, with his young children.  The hint to check for a second entry was that in his mother's household, Howard was listed as married- but no wife was with him.

Double enumeration in the census, part four: New York City 1870

Your biggest and most obvious hint to check for a double enumeration in the census is when the census was repeated.  This happened in New York City for the 1870 census.

I found a family listed twice in New York City in 1870, but not in the first and second enumeration.  They appeared in the second enumeration as well as their new homes outside of New York City.

This is a household located on Spring Street in New York City, 1870.  First listed is Stephen Duryea, his wife Mary, and some of their children.  Living in this household is also Abraham Brewer (uncle of Mary), Anna [Frances Duryea], Abraham Brewer [nephew of Abraham Brewer], and Anna Flynn.

Both groups are in New York City in 1860, but not in 1880.  1870 seems to be the time this family moved out of New York City, though not together.  Stephen moved to Westchester County.

I typed out the words for easier reading.

Abraham moved to Rockland County and founded the Brewer Engine Fire Company in Monsey.

Double enumeration in the census, part three

Michael Preston has a double enumeration in the 1900 United States census.

How did I find both?  I stumbled across these two records by looking for the census entries for all of his children- not just the one from whom I descend.

He is listed with his wife, Catherine [Donnell], two daughters, and four grandchildren in Hackettstown, Warren County, New Jersey.

Preston, Michael.  Preston, Catharine.  Preston, Hannah.  Preston, Catharine.
Ultcht, John.  Ultcht, Catharine.  [Children of Charles P Ultcht and Anna Preston]
Walsh, Joseph.  Walsh, John.  [Children of Jeremiah Welch and Mary Preston]

He is also listed in the household of his son, John, in neighboring Independence.

Michael is married in one listing and widowed in the other.  This value in this double enumeration is that we can hone in on a death date and location for Michael's wife, Catherine Donnell.  In 1899 or 1900, the family relocated from Dutchess County, New York to Warren County, New Jersey.  Catherine was alive in the 1880 census; finding her husband listed as widowed and married in 1900 in New Jersey should narrow down the search for her death record to one year and one state instead of twenty years and two states.  I have, however, been unable to find a record of Catherine's death in either state.

Michael again moved shortly after the 1900 census.  He died in Bayonne, Hudson County, New Jersey in 1904.

Double enumeration in the census, part two

Some people have written to me, asking how you know to look for someone twice in the same census year.  The short answer is that you don't know, so don't stop with one census entry.  The longer answer is that you need to look for hints or situations that may have given rise to getting counted twice.  In my prior post on double enumerations, my hint was the Adelia Joyce's occupation was "out at service" in her listing at her father's home in 1880.  I looked for her again and found her also listed at the home of her employer.

In this post and in upcoming posts I will feature some more double enumerations in the census and explain the hints pointing to a double count and the ramifications to that family's history.

We'll look at the Bossert family of Newark, Essex County, New Jersey in the year 1900.  Newark was a major city then, as it is now, and its city directories survive. Years ago, I sat in the Newark Public Library to view the directories on microfilm, but you can view them (up to 1923) from home at Fold3.  The city directories provide a year-to-year snapshot of a family, where they moved, their occupations, when women were widowed, and much more.  I am quite fortunate that so many of my lines lived in major cities, appearing in city directories for almost two centuries.

Holbrook's Directory, Newark, Essex County, New Jersey
Year:  1900.  Page: 289.  Fold3.com

We have two men (or do we?) with the same name, Peter Bossert, living in the same neighborhood in the 1900 city directory.  No other information is available, such as their age or spouse.  In 1900, I know of two living men bearing this name:  Peter Bossert, born about 1845, and his son Peter, born about 1880.  An unmarried twenty year old would likely not have his own entry in the city directory.  So are these the same person?  Broome and Prince Streets run parallel to each other, one block apart.  The Broome Street residence is about three blocks south of the Prince street address.

Above is the census entry at 111 Broome Street for the entire family: Peter Bossert, father; Elisabeth [Beck], mother; and seven children.  Peter is 55 years old, working in "day labor."  Peter, the son, is 20, a mattress maker.  Son Freddy is 14 years old and "at school."

Above is the census entry for a few blocks away at 17 Prince Street.  Peter Bossett (not Bossert) is 51 years old, a "fireman stationary."  Only one person is listed with him:  a son, Frederick, age 14, "at school."

I would say that these are the same people, counted twice in the same census year, blocks apart.  I don't know why Peter was counted separate from his family and just with one son.  (The family did shift the spelling of their name from Bossert to Bosset and then Bossett.)  Both of these residences are rentals.  It is possible that the family was in the process of moving when the census was taken.  As a fireman, Peter may have slept apart from the family when on duty; perhaps son Frederick was training with him at this point in time.  In the few birth certificates that I have found for Peter's numerous children, Peter's occupation and address change often.  This double enumeration, in both the city directory and the census, could reflect Peter's multiple occupations and constant relocation.  Fortunately for research purposes, he stayed in the same neighborhood in Newark every time.

Double enumeration in the census

Sometimes people can't be found at all in the census.  Others have two entries for the same census, called a double enumeration.

Adelia "Delia" Joyce was born about 1863 in Pawling, Dutchess County, New York.  Her mother, Margaret Campbell, died in 1870 after a train hit her.  Adelia is listed with her father, Patrick Joyce, and her step-mother, Bridget Cortney, in the 1880 census in Pawling, occupation "out at service."

1880 United States census
Pawling, Dutchess County, New York
Household of Patrick Joyce
Retrieved from Ancestry.com

I looked into this "out at service."  I figured it meant that Delia was working and living somewhere else, probably as a servant.  If she were living elsewhere, she could also be listed on the census at her place of employment.

Indeed I found her again in the 1880 census, still in Pawling, working as a domestic servant for the widow Margaret Craft, age 70.

1880 United States census
Pawling, Dutchess County, New York
Household of Margaret Craft
Retrieved from Ancestry.com

This finding sheds some more light on Delia's early life.  She was sent away from her home- was this a blessing or a curse- to live and work with a nearby family.  We don't know at what age she was sent to start working as a domestic, and if she was able to earn any money to keep for herself.  This also provides us with some more people to explore.  Was Margaret Craft related to the Joyce family?  What about the other worker, Francis Cullum?

To get to this point, I first had to figure out that the name was Craft.  In the 1880 index, Margaret is actually listed as "Carzt."

Index at Ancestry.com for household of Margaret Craft in the 1880 United States census,
Pawling, Dutchess County, New York.
I submitted an alternate spelling.

The name "Carzt" looked bizarre for this time and place so I had to find a more normal-looking spelling.  Neighbors tend to not move much when we're dealing with farmland, so I searched for all the women named Margaret or Mary in the 1870 census in Pawling.  And here she is, this time more clearly as "Craft."

1870 United States census
Pawling, Dutchess County, New York
Household of Margaret Craft
Retrieved from Ancestry.com

Margaret Craft and daughter Mary aged beautifully from 1870 to 1880.  But this is not the only way we know we have the same family.  Look at the neighbors.  You can see that the census taker in 1880 approached in the opposite direction from the route followed in 1870.

With a more reasonable spelling, we can explore the Craft family more easily.  Margaret Toffey Craft's grave was posted on FindAGrave (by a Fallen Graver) and there is so much more to explore.