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William McNiel (c1760-c1817), Battle of Brandywine Survivor, 52 Ancestors #83
Before we talk about William McNiel, let’s talk about the name McNiel, McNeil or however it’s actually spelled. The family story says that it was originally McNeil in Scotland, but that there were...
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Mary Harrold (c 1750-1826), “Fly Me Back to Sweet Old Ireland,” 52 Ancestors #84
Mary is one of those ancestors whose life, what we know if it, is told mostly through the lives of those around her – specifically, her husband and children. We don’t know who Mary’s parents were and...
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Sallie, Sarah or Mary maybe Coates (c1740 – 1782/1787), Mystery Wives of the...
Sometimes when we get back to these end-of-line females, their genealogy facts become very tenuous, and we find that we are missing more information than we have. Sarah Coates, at least we think that...
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Elizabeth “Probably Not Webb” Estes (1715/1720-1772/1782 ), Wife of Moses, 52...
Moses Estes Sr. did us a huge favor. Both of his wives were named Elizabeth, so when he was an old man, he didn’t have any “jealous wife” memory type issues when he mistakenly used his first wife’s...
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William Crumley the First (c1735 – 1793), Originally a Quaker, 52 Ancestors #87
The Crumley Conundrum…that’s what this line of genealogy has been called for years by researchers. The current generation of researchers named it, but I’m sure all past Crumley researchers would...
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Lydia Brown (c1790-1840/1850), Buried or Attending a Wedding?, 52 Ancestors #78
All I can say is thank heavens for the government. Even back in “the day,” the government had a place in the lives of the citizens, whether they liked it or not, and because of the government, we have...
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James Crumley (c1711–1764), Slave-Owning Quaker Moonshiner, 52 Ancestors #88
In the Beginning… We don’t know where James Crumley was born, but he was born in or before 1711. Some early accounts tell us that James was born in County Monaghan, Ireland and some say Yorkshire,...
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Hannah Mercer (c1740-c1773), Died at 33, 52 Ancestors #89
Hannah Mercer was the daughter of Edward Mercer who made his will on September 25, 1762, although it wasn’t probated until December 1, 1763. In his will, Edward left several items to daughter Hannah....
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Edward Mercer (c1704-1763), Hard-Drinking Quaker, 52 Ancestors #90
Trying to track Edward Mercer has been like trying to follow one hair in a braid. While a surname like Mercer seems fairly unique, it isn’t, or wasn’t in Frederick County, Virginia in the 1700s. Who...
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A Visitation by Sarah Faires Speak (1786 -1865), 52 Ancestors #91
With Lola-Margaret Speak Hall as Sarah Faires Speak Introduction by Roberta Estes Lola-Margaret Speak Hall is the great-great-great-great-granddaughter of Sarah Faires Speak, wife of Nicholas Speak...
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Nora Kirsch (1866-1949), Quilter Extraordinaire!, 52 Ancestors #92
Nora Kirsch on a motorcycle with 3 of her daughters, Eloise, Mildred, Nora and Edith, my grandmother. These women were always up to some sort of mischief! I come by it honestly!!! Nora, or actually,...
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Lady Godiva (c1040-1066/1086), Gift of God, 52 Ancestors #93
You just never know who you’re going to find hanging around in your family tree. In the upper left hand corner of the wonderful royal lineage chart created by Ky White for me, you can see Lady Godiva...
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Catherine Crumley (c1712-c1790), Raised Her Family in a Two Room Cabin, 52...
I had been planning to make my way to Apple Pie Ridge for some time now, when an opportunity presented itself by way of a speaking engagement in Richmond, VA in the fall of 2015. I checked the map,...
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Ann Mercer (1699/1705-c1786/1790), Weaver and Quaker Mother, 52 Ancestors #95
The first actual documentation of Ann’s name is found in a 1760 lease where Ann and her husband, Edward Mercer, are leasing land in Frederick County, Virginia to their son, Moses Mercer. This land was...
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John Combs Wife (c1710-c1749) and The Eagle, 52 Ancestors #96
We don’t know her name. In my genealogy software she is simply listed as “unknown” or “wife 1.” But assuredly, she lived, because she had a daughter named Luremia, my ancestor, a daughter Martha and...
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Johann Michael Mueller the First (1655-1695), Pietist Refugee, 52 Ancestors #97
The Johann Michael Mueller, now Miller, family began in the Germanic area of Europe long before the advent of written records. European Beginnings With the decline of the Roman Empire in the 5th...
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Johann Georg Dorfler (1732-1790), Suicide, 52 Ancestors #98
If you’re cringing already, suicide is an ugly word. It makes us uncomfortable. And it’s shocking when you find a record that says your ancestor died by suicide – and describes how. And of course, the...
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Phebe (c1747-c1803), Is Jotham Brown’s Wife Zopher Johnson’s Daughter?, 52...
I love her name, Phoebe. There have been other Phoebe’s in the family line – her granddaughter, Phoebe Crumley, assuredly named for her. Nine generations later, we have another Phoebe, but her...
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Hans Berchtol (1641/1653-1711), Twice a Godfather, 52 Ancestors #101
We know that Hans Berchtol’s death was recorded in the church in Konken, Germany, the beautiful hamlet shown below, on June 15, 1711. His death record in the church records tells us that he resided in...
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Anna Christina Berchtol (c1666-c1696), Pietist Rabble Rouser, 52 Ancestors #102
Anna Christina Berchtol, with Berchtol (Bechtol, Bechtel, Berchtel, etc.) being her married name, was born sometime before 1666, probably in Switzerland. We don’t know for sure when, or where, but we...
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