What happened to Mary D Comfort, daughter of Joel ?

Mary, the oldest child of Joel Dubois Comfort and his wife Emeline Ludington, was born 1829 in Catskill, NY. According to church records she married James W Johnston 'of Dubuque, Iowa' in September 1856 at the Leeds RDC.  I have found no subsequent record for either of them. I had expected that James would be in the Greene County 1855 census, but he was not found. Nor have I located him in 1850 in Iowa or elsewhere.

Interestingly, Mary's parents are listed in the Catskill 1865 census with their youngest daughter Josephine and with a 6 year old granddaughter with the surname Johnston. Sadly, this record is almost impossibly hard to read. I cannot decipher the girl's first name nor did I find her with her grandparents in the 1870 census.

Who is she and where are her parents?  I cannot find James and Mary in 1860, when their daughter would have been an infant. I have found no 11 year old female Johnston in Greene County in 1870.
This family group remains a mystery.

Mrs Moseman Barrett nee Ludington

I came across a 1905 death notice for Mrs Barrett in the Putnam County NY Courier newspaper while looking for information on other Ludington family members – and this time I HAD NOT limited my search by year. Interestingly, she is referred to as one of fifteen children born to Frederick Ludington, but her first name is never mentioned …. It is Cornelia, born 1832. I descend from this family line, so I had quite a bit of information already.

Several of her siblings are mentioned and I have added some of what I know about them and about those not listed. It seems that 14 lived to adulthood.

Mrs Barrett was visiting her sisters Harriet and Frances in Danbury, CT at the time of her death. Those sisters were Harriet 1822-1907,  wife of  Solomon Benjamin Denton, and Frances 1836-1922, wife of Rev John L Benedict.

Two other sisters mentioned (though only by their husbands’ names) were Abby 1827-1895, wife of Lyman Birchard, and Anna 1823-1859, wife of John Townsend.

Also mentioned were brothers Joseph and Oliver who “went west to seek gold”. The article indicates that Joseph died there, however I believe it was Oliver (born 1820) who died in Sacramento in 1856. Joseph (born 1829) moved from California to Bloomington, IL, where he married, had 2 daughters and died in 1864. Harrison 1812-1891, the oldest sibling, was mentioned as former Governor of Wisconsin where he lived for over 50 years. He was a very successful lumber merchant and had also served as Mayor of Milwaukee. The article states “another <brother> was mayor of Chicago” – not true.

Those siblings not mentioned above are;

George W. 1814-1874 merchant and banker, Putnam County

Caroline 1816-1898 wife of Rowland Patrick, Dutchess County

Nelson 1818-1883 an extremely wealthy lumber merchant in Milwaukee & Chicago

Samuel 1830-1877 lumberman in Michigan, then Illinois

Frederick 1834-1907 farmer in Putnam County

Lewis 1838-1909 merchant in IL .. .the only CW vet in the lineup

I had been seeking confirmation that the Oliver Ludington born in NY in 1820 and died in California in 1856 was the son of Frederick … and this news item, dated almost 50 years later, certainly helps.  I will continue to seek more formal confirmation. But, don’t confine your searches to just the years in question. You might be surprised by what you’ll find.

Ludington – Comfort marriages in Catskill, NY

Brothers Archibald and Tertullus Ludington were born to Col Henry Ludington and his wife Abigail in Dutchess County.  Both migrated to Catskill in Greene County where they raised their families.  Each had a daughter who married into the Comfort family.  Emeline was born to Archibald and his wife Elizabeth Sears in 1805.  Julia was born in 1807 to Tertullus and his wife Rebecca Brown.

Brothers Hiram and Joel Comfort were born in Montgomery, Orange County, NY to Samuel Comfort and Ana Maria Youngblood in 1791 and 1800 respectively. They both migrated to Catskill in Greene County in early adulthood.  Within a three month time period in 1822 the brothers married the Comfort Cousins – Joel and Emeline in May followed by Hiram and Julia in August. The girls were both quite young (17 and 15) which may have been the custom at the time and/or may have been a necessity in light of their fathers’ deaths a year or so earlier.

Between the 2 couples, they increased the Comfort clan by 11. Five daughters were born to Hiram and Julia and 3 sons and 3 daughters to Joel and Emeline.  The migration continued with only a few of that next generation remaining in Catskill.

Children of Samuel Comfort and Anna Maria Youngblood

Married in 1784 in Montgomery, Orange County, NY, they had 9 known children as follows:

All of their children except son James (who moved to Kentucky) remained in New York State throughout their lives. Elsje, Hiram and Joel lived in Catskill. Moses moved to NYC, the others stayed in Montgomery.

1786-1862 Elsje + Egbert Bogardus, 7 children, Catskill

1786-1839 Moses + Anna Pache, 10 children

1788-1846 Samuel + Fanny Low, 10 children

1791-1839 Hiram + Julia Ludington, 5 children

1792-1881 Mary + Isaac Douglass/Philip Mould, 3 children

1795-1844 James + Jane Smith, 8 children

1797-1874 Martha + Moses Rogers, 4 children

1800–1871Joel D. + Emeline Ludington, 5 children

1802–1892 Catherine + Peter Clearwater, 1 child

DIgitized Newspapers: A Wonderful Resource

I am finding that the more I search old newspapers, the more good information I am finding.  In particular, they can be helpful for that period between 1880 and 1900  -- a missing census, lack of vital records in many areas. What I’ve come to learn is that you should search for your target person but also for their immediate family members.

I had found a reference to the Putnam County, NY family of Lewis Ludington and his wife Polly Townsend indicating that their daughter Emily had married Philip Rountree. In the census records of 1860, 1870 and 1880  she was single, living with family members in Carmel, NY.  In the 1891 Michigan obituary of her brother James. she was listed as: Mrs Philip Rountree, formerly of Milwaukee, now resident of San Francisco.

But what really confused me is that she is buried in the family plot at the Raymond Hill Cemetery as Mrs Victor Tull.  I checked Family Search, websites about the Ludingtons, the Putnam County newspapers, but I found nothing that helped me.

Eventually I decided to search for the second husband, Victor E Tull, and that’s when I found an 1892 Santa Cruz, Calif marriage record for Victor and MRS EMILY ROUNTREE.  That confirmed to me that she was indeed Emily Ludington – and I assumed she had been widowed. I still could not find the elusive Mr Rountree. He was not buried at the Raymond Hill Cemetery.

Were Your Ancestors Good Employers?

While searching old newspapers for a family member’s death notice, I happened upon a long obituary for Irish immigrant William Weir (1826-1921).  Having been the oldest resident of Carmel, NY when he died at age 95, William was given a prominent final story on the front page of the Putnam County Courier.  He was not a member of the family I was searching for -- but had long been their property manager.

What struck me was that he held that position with the family from 1856 until 1913, a span of 57 years !!! That would indicate to me that the Ludingtons treated him well-- and, of course, that William did his job very well.   

When is the last time you heard of anyone keeping one employer for that long?  Another nice way to learn something about ancestors indirectly.

Seeking all grandchildren of Col Henry Ludington

Col Henry Ludington and his wife Abigail of Dutchess County, NY had 12 children between 1761 and 1786.  Many of them stayed in New York State, some of them ventured west to Michigan and Wisconsin where they amassed fortunes in the lumber business.  The town of Ludington, Michigan is named for their grandson James.  Harrison, also a grandson, was Governor of Wisconsin.  I am related to the Tertullus line of Catskill, NY that accounted for 8 of the grandchildren. I would like to find all their cousins. Thus far I have identified 49 grandchildren, but have not determined if daughters Rebecca and Mary had any children to add to this clan.  If you happen to know, please share that information.

The children and their marriages were as follows:

1761    SYBIL  called the "female Paul Revere" + Edmond Ogden, 1 son
            Henry b 1786

1763    REBECCA  +  Henry Pratt     NO FURTHER INFORMATION

1765    MARY
            possibly married 3 times: David Travis, ? Colwell, Asahel Gilbert
            NO INFORMATION ON ANY CHILDREN

1767    ARCHIBALD + Elizabeth Sears, 3 children
            Orin 1796, Eli 1800, Cornelia 1801

1769    HENRY  died young

1771    DERRICK  believe he died unmarried at age 69

1773    TERTULLUS + 1) Rebecca Brown  4 children
                                2) Anna Egbertson, 4 children
            1) Eliza 1805, Julia 1807, Amelia 1808 , Henry 1809
            2) Ira 1814, Robert 1816, Harriet 1817, Tertullus 1820

1776    ABIGAIL believe she died unmarried at age 39

1778    ANNA + Joseph Colwell, 11 children
??? could he be related to Mary's 2nd husband mentioned above?
            Clarissa 1797, Vashita 1799, Sophia 1802, Anna 1804, Julia 1807,
            George 1809,  Warren 1811, Lewis 1814, Eliza 1817,
            Augustus 1819, Joseph 1823

1782    FREDERICK + Susannah Griffeth, 12 children
            Harrison 1812, George 1814, Nelson 1818, Oliver 1820,
            Harriet 1822, Anna 1823, Abby 1827, Joseph 1829,
            Samuel 1830, Cornelia 1832, Frederick 1834, Lewis 1838


1784    SOPHIA + John Caverly, 7 children
            Julia 1810, Esther 1812, Sarah 1814, Rebecca 1817, John 1820,
            Henry 1821, Phillip 1824

1786    LEWIS + Polly Townsend, 7 children
            Laura 1814, Delia 1816, William 1818, Robert 1822,
           Charles 1825, James 1827, Lavinia 1829

That makes 49 ... but I feel there could be more. The search continues.

   

WORTH CHECKING: Unusual first or middle names might be Mother’s Maiden Name

While looking in the newspaper archives for Charles E. Ludington, I happened upon an 1896 marriage announcement for Miss Florence Durand of Lake Forest, IL and Mr Ludington Patton of Milwaukee.  Ludington is one of my family names and some of them did live in Milwaukee, so I wondered if Mr Patton was related to my Ludingtons who originated in New York.  I had not encountered the family name of Patton previously.

Doing more research I found that Ludington Patton was born in Nov 1871 to James E Patton and his wife Sarah E Ludington – yeah, Wisconsin records can be SO helpful!  Then checking census records for the family, I found that his mother Sarah was born in Kentucky in 1839 – and she matched up with someone already in my tree.  She was the oldest daughter of New York born Harrison Ludington,the 13^th Governor of Wisconsin. Like with many females, it can be hard to locate them if they change their name through marriage.

I have many individuals in my tree with their mother’s maiden name used as a first or middle name.  In fact, Ludington Patton’s daughter was named Sarah Ludington Patton. So it's worth checking.

Thomas Edward Ludington, St Paul MN 1900

Thomas was the son of George Washington Ludington and grandson of Col. Henry Ludington, born in NY 1856.  He was with his parents and siblings in Kent County in the 1860 and 1870 census.

In the 1880 census Thomas was a single bookkeeper in St Paul, MN and still single in the 1885 state census.  However, the 1900 census listed him as a widower. Who had he married, when, and what happened to her?

Remembering Civil War Ancestors

 
women were involved too !

Henrietta Peckham Colt

 Wisconsin Soldiers' Aid

Her nephew George Williams Peckham 1845-1914

     Wisconsin Heavy Artillery, 1^st Reg, Co B

Were any of your relatives impacted by the sinking of the Titanic?

Prior to last month, I would have said NO.  But, as I delved into New York Ludington family members who migrated to Wisconsin, I discovered a connection to this terrible event.  Not a close relative by any means, but part of the larger family group.

My ancestor Tertullus Ludington (1773-1821) had several nephews who ventured further west while he remained in New York State. In particular, the sons of his younger brother Frederick (who also spent his entire life in NY) moved west to Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin and beyond.

Know the In-laws: Who was William Austin's wife in Matagorda Texas?

In the Matagorda Texas 1860 census William Austin of New York (who had been living with his maternal aunt Amelia Ludington Hodges) was married to Mary E born 1838 in Virginia.  At the time they had three children under the age of 6. It caught my eye that there were 3 additional people in the household all with the surname Ives, aged 18, 14, and 8: Lucy, Charles and Walter. The older two were born in Virginia and Walter in Texas … could they be Mary’s siblings?

Tertullus Ludington of Catskill, New York

While reviewing my Catskill Village cemetery photos in preparation for uploading them to findagrave.com, I realized that I had stumbled upon information regarding the children of Tertullus Ludington, my 5th great grandfather. His gravestone listed his death as 16 Jul 1821 at age 48. I had forgotten that I'd found other family members buried next to him.