52 Ancestors: #2 John Bennet Winters

My 3rd-great-grandfather John Bennet Winters was born on 19 December 1831 in Leith, Midlothian, Scotland. He was the first child of Hugh Winters and Mary Bennet, who were both born in Ireland. On 8 January 1832, he was baptized at St. Mary's Roman Catholic Cathedral in Edinburgh. Leith did not have a Catholic church at that time. He was baptized by John McPherson, and the sponsors were Owen Winters (probably Hugh Winters' brother) and Bridget McMahon. The Winters family lived in the parish of South Leith until 1849, when they immigrated to the United States. John, his father, and most of his siblings sailed from Glasgow to New York City on the Pursuit; they arrived on 12 June 1849. John's mother and his sister Margaret (the youngest child born in Scotland) did not sail with them, but were with the family in 1850, so apparently they traveled separately. The Winters family settled in Brooklyn, New York. At the time of the 1850 United States Census, John was not employed. By 1859 he had left home and was living in Tonawanda, Erie County, New York, where he married Anna "Ann" Walker on 10 October 1859. The couple was enumerated in Tonawanda in the 1860 United States Census. The record indicates that they had married within the year, which is consistent with the marriage date given in the Winters family Bible. John's occupation was "drudger." He was probably working on the first enlargement of the Erie Canal. John and Ann's first child, daughter Catherine Elizabeth (their only child to survive to adulthood) was born in Tonawanda on 12 November 1861. The family had moved to Chicago, Illinois, by 1866. John ran a grocery store at 247 S. Jefferson, in the Conley's Patch neighborhood. Within two years, three of his children passed away. In 1866, his daughter Alice died at the age of two weeks, and his son Hugh died at age 3 years, 8 months. His son David died in 1867 at the age of three weeks. All three children were buried in a single grave at Graceland Cemetery. In 1871, John petitioned for a free peddler's license. His grocery business had failed, and his only chance of making a living was by peddling tea and coffee. His petition was granted by the mayor and Common Council of Chicago in June 1871. A few months later, after the Great Chicago Fire in October 1871, the Winters family probably had to move. They had lived at the edge of the burnt district, and John was not listed in the 1871 Edwards' Chicago Directory, Fire Edition, which was compiled after the fire. On 19 September 1872, John's wife Ann died. By 1878, John had moved to Montreal, Quebec, Canada, where he married Elizabeth Buise on 18 May 1878 at St. Gabriel Street Presbyterian Church. In the 1878 and 1879 Montreal city directories, John was listed as a watchman. He lived at 24 Bronsdon Lane. John died of pneumonia at Montreal General Hospital on 25 December 1879. He was buried in a common grave in Mount Royal Cemetery on 27 December 1879. Robert Campbell of St. Gabriel Street Presbyterian Church was the minister officiating at his burial. W. S. Wright and R. A. Morrison were witnesses. His burial record stated that his occupation was fireman, which had also been his father's occupation when the family lived in Leith.

John B. Winters death notice, Montreal Daily Witness, 27 December 1879

52 Ancestors: #1 James Graham

I have decided to take the "52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks" challenge issued by Amy Johnson Crow of No Story Too Small. I am a bit behind, but I will try to catch up before the year is over. I will probably also include collateral relatives as well as ancestors, because they are part of my family history too.

I will start with my biggest brick wall, my great-great-grandfather James Graham. He was born about 1854, somewhere in the United States. He married Catherine Elizabeth Winters and they had two children, Kathleen (probably born Catherine) and Garfield.

He is listed in the 1881 Census of Canada, living in Hochelaga (now part of Montreal), Quebec, Canada with his wife and daughter (my great-grandmother). He was working as an accountant. I found him in the 1881, 1882, and 1883 Montreal city directories; he was a bookkeeper and lived at 110 Ontario. On 20 November 1885, his wife Elizabeth married James Mapplebeck; her marriage record stated that she was the widow of the late James Graham of Chicago. However, the family story is that James Graham had been a Catholic priest before his marriage, and eventually left his family to return to the priesthood. I am still trying to determine how much, if any, of the family story is true. But it does make me suspect that James Graham may not have been dead in 1885. Many "widows" were really separated or divorced, and people sometimes remarried without divorce.

Before coming to Montreal, his wife Catherine Elizabeth Winters (who was known by her middle name) had lived in Chicago. James and Elizabeth may have been in Canada at the time of the 1880 United States census; I could not find the family. Elizabeth's father John Bennet Winters was in Montreal by 1878 and died there in 1879. Although I do not know if James Graham was in Chicago in 1870, I thought it was a possibility, so I searched the census records for a likely candidate. There were many men named James Graham, but I at least had an approximate age. I found one that struck me as a good possibility in the household of William Graham. The family was in Chicago Ward 9 (the same ward as the Winters family), the mother was born in Canada, and James was born in New York. According to the 1910 United States Census, Garfield Graham's father was born in New York, and according to the 1920 United States Census, Kathleen (Graham) Boe's father was born in New York. Their mother was born in New York, and in at least some censuses the information about their father seems to refer to their stepfather James Mapplebeck, who raised them (he was born in Ontario, Canada). However, it is possible that they may have had some information about their father's place of birth.

I found the Graham household in the 1860 United States Census. They were living in Sandusky, Erie County, Ohio. According to this census record, the mother was born in England. I have not been able to find any earlier records of this family. I also have not found them after 1870. I suspect that this is the family of my James Graham, but I do not feel that I have sufficient evidence yet.

1871 Petition, Chicago

I received John Bennet Winters' 1871 petition for a free peddler's license. I knew that my third-great-grandfather had had a difficult life, and this document told me that he had had even more bad luck. His grocery business had failed, and he needed to peddle tea and coffee to earn a living, but could not afford to pay for a license. Fortunately, his petition was granted.

Chicago City Council Proceedings Files, 1833–1871

As a result of the Great Fire in 1871, most of Chicago's records prior to that time were destroyed. But in 1983, the proceedings of the Chicago City Council from 1833 to 1871 were discovered in a warehouse in southwest Chicago. The Illinois State Archives has made a searchable index to these records available at http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/databases/chicago_proceedings/home.html. I found an entry for the petition of John B. Winters for a free peddler's license. I believe this relates to my 3rd-great-grandfather John Bennet Winters. I called the Illinois Regional Archives Depository (IRAD) at Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago. A copy of the document will be sent to me, and I will be invoiced. I am so lucky that this document still survives!

So many discoveries!

In the last week I have found so much information about my family. I learned more about several of the siblings of my great-great-grandfather Andrew T. Anderson (born Andreas Troedsson in Grevie, Skåne, Sweden). I found the passenger list which documents the arrival of his sister Elna and her son Sven Peter Nilsson/Nelson. They arrived in Boston, Massachusetts on 2 September 1903, and then went to Chicago, Illinois. I found their brother Sven T. Anderson on Find A Grave, and there is a photo of his tombstone. According to the family history compiled by my grandmother's cousin, their oldest brother Ola Petter Troedsson went to Australia. A few days ago I confirmed that he did settle there; he emigrated from Sweden to Brisbane, Queensland.

I also learned more about the family of my 3rd-great-grandfather John Bennet Winters. He was born in Scotland, and was with his parents and siblings in Leith, Midlothian, Scotland in 1841. By 1859 he was in Tonawanda, Erie, New York, where he married Anna Walker. I did not know if he emigrated alone or with family. I could not find his family in Scotland in 1851. I looked for them in England too, but did not find them. According to the 1841 census, his parents, Hugh Winters and Mary Bennet, were born in Ireland. Last night I found out that they emigrated to the United States and lived in Brooklyn, New York; they were there by 1851, when another child of theirs was baptized.

Irish Ancestors

Since it's St. Patrick's Day, it seemed an appropriate time to write about my Irish ancestors.

My 3rd-great-grandmother Mary Nevins was born about 1835 in Ireland. By 1855 she was in Davidson County, Tennessee, where she married William Dow Gatlin. Mary had a very difficult life. She probably left Ireland because of the famine, and her marriage was not a happy one. Her husband physically abused her. She became close to a boarder in the family home, Samuel Haslam, and they had an affair. He was going to help her divorce her husband, but then he was murdered in their home, killed with an ax. William Dow Gatlin was tried for murder but was acquitted due to insufficient evidence. However, based on the newspaper articles, he sounded very guilty, and he had motive and opportunity. Mary remained married to him. Her oldest daughter Florence passed away in 1881 at age 24, which must have been a difficult loss for her. Mary died on September 9, 1888 in Nashville, Tennessee.

My 3rd-great-grandparents Michael and Mary Dyer were also born in Ireland. Michael was born about 1830, and Mary was probably born about 1835 (she kept getting younger in records as the years passed!) By 1860 they were living in St. Louis, Missouri, and by 1863 they were in Nashville, Tennessee. Michael had passed away by 1870. The family ran a saloon in Nashville. Mary married John Cox in 1871, and by 1880 she was widowed again, and raising seven children on her own. Mary died on November 10, 1906 in Nashville, Tennessee.

My 4th-great-grandparents Hugh Winters and Mary Bennet were both born in Ireland. Hugh was born about 1810, and Mary was born about 1814. By January 1831 they were in Leith (now part of Edinburgh), Midlothian, Scotland, where they married. Mary’s father, Peter Bennet, was living in Airdrie, Scotland at that time. Hugh was a clothes broker and fireman. Their son John Bennet Winters (my 3rd-great-grandfather) was living in Tonawanda, Erie County, New York by 1859, where he married Anna “Ann” Walker, who was born on February 28, 1842 in Ireland. They moved to Chicago, Illinois in the mid-1860s. Only one of their children lived to adulthood. Two infants lived for 2-3 weeks, and another child died at age 3. Ann died in Illinois on September 19, 1872.

Patriot Ancestors

On Independence Day, I would like to honor my Revolutionary War ancestors:

My 6th-great-grandfather Francis Hardgrave was born on March 5, 1745 in Augusta County, Virginia, and moved to North Carolina around 1770. He was a major in the Company of Light Horse, Wilkes County, North Carolina. He fought for his country again in the War of 1812. He died on August 7, 1828 in Davidson County, Tennessee.
Francis Hardgrave at Find A Grave
Papers of the War Department: Pay of Robert McClure and Francis Hardgrave

My 5th-great-grandfather Stephen Mayo was born about 1757 in Virginia. He was a private in the 14th Virginia Regiment. He fought in the battles of Brandywine and Germantown, and participated in the siege of Yorktown. He died on March 16, 1847 in Fluvanna County, Virginia. His widow, Rebecca Dawson Mayo, was the second-to-last surviving Revolutionary War widow; she died on March 6, 1904. (I am descended from his first wife, Ann Isbell Mayo.)
History of the Battle of Brandywine
The Battle of Germantown
Chronology of the Siege of Yorktown

My 6th-great-grandfather Lazarus Gatlin was a soldier in the North Carolina Continental Army. He died in Davidson County, Tennessee in July 1808.
Will of Lazarus Gatlin
Estate Inventory of Lazarus Gatlin

Revolutionary War records are available on footnote.com.