Blog

1770 – Moses Marshall

Moses first wife, Lydia Lamborn, wrote letters that have been preserved. These provide information and details of a kind often missing for those who lived in the frontier regions of North America in the 17th century. On the other hand, the origins of Moses are a bit of a mystery to me. Some family trees have him as the son of a Thomas Marshall (1745-1819 and Ann Cox (1745-1798) who lived in Chester County, PA and were members of the New Garden Quaker Meeting. Other accounts, however, indicate that Moses was born in Germany and spent his early years there.

According to an unverified online source, Moses was present at the Quaker wedding of George Lamborn and Martha Marshal on December 2, 1790, and there there are meeting notes in which Moses is listed in a way that suggests he was considered a family member. Specifically, he is described as being “listed on the right side.” I don’t know whether this refers to a seating arrangement or to the layout of written notes. Be that as it may, it seems he was “on the right side” along with George & Martha Lamborn, Robert Lamborn, Thomas & Ann (Cox) Marshall, Robert Lamborn Jr., Hannah Marshall, Susannah Marshall, David Lamborn, Lydia Lamborn, Ann Pennock, and Pamela Marshall. In 1791, Moses married Lydia Lamborn, and the ceremony was performed by a magistrate rather than in a Quaker meeting. Records of the New Garden Monthly Meeting show that Moses and Lydia were disowned by that meeting on February 4, 1792. [1]

By 1793 (perhaps earlier) Moses and Lydia had moved west and were living near the Monogahela River in what was then Fredericktown, Washington County, PA. They had two sons, James and John Lamborn. According to The Genealogy of the Lamborn Family, “Judging from old sayings and records we have come to the conclusion that Moses was a blacksmith and followed the trade for a living. For when Lydia Lamborn (24) was being talked to by her father before her elopement with Moses, she said ‘Father, I wouild rather live with Moses Marshall in a corner of his blacksmith shop than with Ennion Cook in a palace.’ This saying is vouched for in Mary Ann Dawson’s (116) statement, who had often heard the expression when quite young, which is conclusive that he was a blacksmith; and when Robert (2) cried out in the night ‘David, David, (20) Tid’s gone!’ he was sending one blacksmith to chase another, as David was also a blacksmith.” [2]

This same source includes transcriptions of letters written by Lydia, which I’ve reproduced below with only one change to correct a date that was obviously wrong.

18th of the Sixth month, 1773
 
Dear Father — I may inform thee we unexpectedly received lines by the hand of our neighbor, Lewis, which was a great satisfaction to us, it being the first we had had since we have been so far seperated. I expect in the course of one or towe years more if I live to see you again, I should have come with Jesse Townsen at this time only we are about building and expected if we have good luck to live in it this fawl. I can say with safety, I beleive we have a prospect of doing very well hear if we are industress and careful. We have now got three prentiss and a very great plenty of work. I believe we might have work for as many more. Sister Parmela lives with us and follows the trade, and as for myselfe I never was heartier in my  life than I have been since I came to this contery, and am very well contented, I wish for my brother George hear, for he might doe so much better hear than he will their; dont think it is because I am hear myselfe, far be it from me to even wish for any of you if I did not think it to your advantage. I conclude with my affectionate love to thee and all my friends and relations, and among the rest Old Eve. This from thy daughter,
 
LYDIA MARSHALL
Our little Sune grows finely; he runs about.
 
Frederick Town, Washington Co.
The 4th of the Eighth month, 1793
 
Dear Sister. — I may inform thee I received thy letter by Cousin Samuel, which they live about eight miles off. I have been much confined at home this some time, for my little boy has been very poorly this some time, but is now giting better, and the rest of the famely is all well; as for myselfe I never was heartier in my life than I have been since I came to this contery. We live in a pleasant place close by the river called Monnongahala, and a great number of boats goes to Caintuck and other places on this river; and I may inform thee that Esther Towsen is married to one of the name of Morgan, and lives in this town, and the keep taverin. She was in hear this morning and desired me to send her kind love to thee and famely. Have not much more to ad at this time. I conclude with my affectionate love to thee and brother, with thy little children. This from thy sister.
 
LYDIA MARSHALL
 
Frederick, Eight month 24th, 1793.
 
Respected Sister — I embrace this opportunity to inform thee we got safe to our journey’s end with much less diffeculty then I expected. The child stude the journey admirable, was very good all the way. I may say I never lost one our’s sleep with it since it was born. Not time to write much more at present. I conclude with my kind love to all my relations as if named. Inform Sister Susanna than I heard from the Widow Nicles, and she is well, and likewise David Grave I seen; they live about eight miles of. Give my kind love to unkel Francis and his famely. I conclude with very kind love to thee. I expect to have another opertunity and shall rite more frely.
 
LYDIA MARSHALL

After Lydia died, Moses married Mary Adams. Between 1799 and 1827, the had 15 known children: Moses, Lydia, Joseph, Robert, Albert, Benjamin, Charles, Lewis, Thomas, Gallatin, William, George, Mary, Eliza and Permelia. Sometime around 1810, Moses and Mary moved to Columbiana County, Ohio. [2]

[1] This information is from a message sent on October 14, 2005 by Allan Gillignham to the RootsWeb PABUCKS mailing list. At the time when this post was first written, that message could be seen at http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/PABUCKS/2005-10/1129390536. That URL is no longer valid. However, as of January 2021, that message can be seen at https://mlarchives.rootsweb.com/listindexes/emails?listname=&thread=18453534.

[2] Gladden, Sanford Charles (1969) The Durst and Darst Families of America, Vol II. Original publisher unknown. Republished 2013 by the Boulder Genealogical Society. Preview of p. 679 with information about Moses Marshall at https://books.google.com/books?id=lmCiBQAAQBAJ : accessed September 19, 2015.

1786 – Lazarus Marshall

In 1799, outside the small settlement known as Middletown (now Coraopolis), there were 39 documented households in what then comprised Moon Township in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. One of these was the household of a John Marshal on land that was part of the John Ward grant. Another was the household of a John Marshall on land that was the Henry Bryan grant. [1] Both of these men appear in the 1791 tax rolls for Allegheny County, PA, and I think it very likely that one of them was the father of a Lazarus Marshall, born c. 1786.

By 1824, Lazarus Marshall was residing in Meigs, Muskingum, Ohio, as is evidenced an except from History of Muskingum County regarding the formation of a Methodist Episcopal worship group [2]:

In the year A.D. 1824, Rev. Mordecai Bishop preached in the southeast corner of the township, and formed a class at Lazarus Marshall’s.
 
The members of that class were : Lazarus Marshall and his wife, Mary, David Blackburn and wife, Arthur Ginn and his wife, Mary, James Mitchell and his wife, Mary, James Guy and his wife, Deborah, William and Mary Guy, and Elizabeth Blackburn.

Another source duplicates this information and specifies that Lazarus Marshall’s residence was in the southeast corner of the township. [3]

Looking at the 1820 Census records for Meigs Township, I find nothing that might fit this Lazarus Marshall.

Although I’ve found nothing to connect the ancestry of Lazarus Marshall with that of the Richard Marshall (c. 1757) also living in Muskingum County, they seem to have appeared in Meigs Township around the same time. Marshal Stults, the grandson of Richard Marshall, married Sarah Peirce in 1832. She was the daughter of a Lewellen Peirce who was one of the initial dwellers of Meigs when the township was formed in 1819. The marriage was officiated by John Hammond, who was elected Justice of the Peace (along with Lewellen Peirce) in 1819 and is also listed as a Justice of the Peace (along with Lewellen Peirce) in 1832. [4] Also of interest is that Marshal Stults became a carpenter by trade.

Census records show an Edmund Marshall sometimes living near Lazarus Marshall. A biographical sketch indicates that this Edmund, born in 1817 in Pennsylvania, was the son of Lazarus Marshall, also born in Pennsylvania. This biography also reports that Lazarus was a carpenter who had a family of six children. [5]

There is a record for the grave of Lazarus Marshall at Find A Grave, which gives June 22, 1854 as the date of his death and lists him as buried in Oakland Methodist Church Cemetery. This was the first cemetery in Meigs Township, associated with Hopewell Church 1830-1846, which became a Presbyterian Church 1846-1878, and then several iterations of a Methodist church. In addition to Mary Marshall (wife; b. unknown; d. September 8, 1845), we find in the same cemetery a joint headstone for Albert Marshall (b. August 24, 1842; d. November 27, 1911) and Sarah I Marshall (b. 1844; d. 1913). This suggests that this Albert, son of George Marshall, is a grandson of Lazarus and Mary.

[1] Jockers, Robert A. (2006) Forgotten Past: A History of Moon Township, Pennsylvania. Xlibris Corporation.

[2] Everhart, J. F. (1882). 1794. History of Muskingum County, Ohio: with illustrations and biographical sketches of prominent men and pioneers. Columbus, Ohio: F.J. Everhart & Co.

[3] Biographical and historical memoirs of Muskingum County, Ohio: Embracing an authentic and comprehensive account of the chief events in the history of the county and a record of the lives of many of the most worthy families and individuals. (1892) Chicago: Goodspeed Pub. Co.  Available from Google Books https://books.google.com/books?id=ASBEAQAAMAAJ.

[4] Everhart, ibid.

[5] Commemorative biographical record of the upper Wisconsin counties of Waupaca, Portage, Wood, Marathon, Lincoln, Oneida, Vilas, Langlade, and Shawano. (1895). Chicago: J.H. Beers & Co. Available from Google Books https://books.google.com/books?id=VElEAQAAMAAJ

1811 – Marshall A Stultz

Marshall A. Stultz was born c. 1811, probably in Muskingum County, Ohio. Military pension application records by his grandfather, Richard Marshall, help to establish that his mother was a Frances Keziah “Franky” Marshall who married an Adam Stults in Muskingum County in 1809. Since Ohio census records for 1800 and 1810 were mostly destroyed in a fire, it’s difficult to reconstruct where Marshall’s parents lived before and after their marriage.

Marshall’s father Adam fought in the War of 1812 and was killed in action in 1813, probably at the battle of Ft. Meigs. Since Marshall had a sister born in 1813, it seems likely that Adam was in Ohio during most of his brief military service. Although I have not been able to find any records for Marshall’s mother Frances, I believe she died in or shortly before 1818. Records indicate that Marshall and his sister, Elizabeth, began receiving military pension benefits in this year as heirs of their father.

Early census records listed only the name of the head of each household, so it is difficult to identify the other persons enumerated. However, we often can work backwards from later census records and by inference from other records. Records for a military pension application by Richard Marshall indicate that Marshall and Elizabeth were living with their grandparents in 1820. The 1820 Census report for Meigs, Muskingum, OH includes a Richard Marshall household consistent with this.

The 1830 Census report for Meigs, Muskingum suggests that Marshall’s sister Elizabeth is still living with her grandparents, but Marshall is not. However, I have not been able to find any household that seems to fit Marshall Stults, so I’m assuming that he is living apart from this grandparents but in another household — perhaps as a hired worker of some kind.

On June 7, 1832, Marshall married Sarah Peirce, daughter of Lewellen Peirce and Janet (or Jane) Chambers. [1] Sarah was the widow of John Echelberry and had a son named Lewellen and perhaps two other sons; her parents, Lewellen and Janet, lived in Meigs Township. Philina, the first child of Marshal and Sarah, was born 7 months later.

In 1840 we find a name that’s been indexed as “Marshal States” but looks to me like “Marshal Stults.” It’s on the same page as a Richard Marshall whose approximately 80 years old and living with a woman of similar age. This seems to fit with a Marshall having married and established his own household near that of his grandparents.

Sarah Peirce’s first husband, John Eckhelbery may have been related to the Echelberry’s who lived in Blue Rock, Muskingum, OH. There are quite a few Echelberry graves in Blue Rock Baptist Cemetery where Richard Marshall is buried. More information about this family can be found at the memorial page for the grave of Valentine Echelberry at the Find A Grave website.

[1] Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-2013,” database with images,FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:2QHV-LR6), Marshal Stutts and Sarah Eckhelbery, 07 Jun 1832; citing Muskingum, Ohio, United States, reference ; county courthouses, Ohio; FHL microfilm 865,142.

New Mt. Pleasant, Vinton, OH

1876 Map of New Mt. Pleasant
Courtesy of Hocking County Mapping Department

In southeastern Ohio near the intersection of OH-93 and N. Fairview Road (CR-195), there are a number of houses and other structures, but little to show the history of a town known as New Mt. Pleasant and often referred to simply as Mt. Pleasant.

The earliest reference I’ve seen to residence in New Mt. Pleasant refers to a Zophar Freeman Guerin, M.D. beginning the practice of medicine there in March of 1843. [1] According to History of Hocking Valley Ohio, a church was built at New Mt. Pleasant in 1830 and a post office for Swan Township was established there in 1843, but it was not until June 17, 1844 that the first child, a William Buckley Davis was born in Mt. Pleasant. If these dates are correct, it seems the church was built before there was a town or even a road. According to the History of Hocking Valley Ohio section on Washington Township, “In 1832 a road was cut through the woods by early settlers, from Uriah Little’s place near the center of the township, to the McArthur Road, and at this junction the town of New Mt. Pleasant has since sprung up. A tannery was built here soon after the completion of this road and a store was started a month or so later.” In 1850 an overland mail route was established from Logan to McArthur, passing through New Mt. Pleasant, and mail began to be carried regularly over this line. By 1883, Mt. Pleasant had three stores, a blacksmith shop, a cooper shop, a wagon shop, and a school house. It also had, as described above, a Methodist Episcopal church and a post office. In one of the stores, general merchandise was sold by M. P. Turner. [2]

The History of Hocking Valley Ohio mentions a number of other people who lived in or near Mt. Pleasant: Jacob Reddick was a blacksmith and farmer who in 1829 took up residence (in Washington Township, Hocking County) near what would become Mt. Pleasant. His son Wesley F. Reddick fought in the Civil War, moved around for a bit, and then purchased a farm of 158 acres near Mt. Pleasant in 1872.  Samuel Riggs married Sarah Ann Johnston in 1856 and settled on a farm near Mt. Pleasant; he was a member of the Mt. Pleasant (Methodist) Church. P. J. Green, M.D. practiced medicine in Mt. Pleasant from about 1851-1859. Thomas Swepston, M.D. moved into Mt. Pleasant in 1856 and began practicing medicine there as well. Robert Payne, who brought the first machine for making pins to the United States (from England), moved to Ohio in 1833 and settled in the woods near what would become Mt. Pleasant. His son Henry Payne began engaging in tobacco trade with T. B. Davis at Mt. Pleasant around 1845-1850 (being at McArthur part of this time) and subsequently became County Treasurer for the newly formed Vinton County. [2]

The T. B. Davis mentioned above may be the ancestor of the Fred Davis who operated the Davis General Store in Mt. Pleasant until 1962. Mr. Davis and his wife continued to live in the building that housed the store, and the merchandise that remained after the store closing was not disposed of until an auction in 1992. You can see a clipping from a news article and photos of Davis Store Auction in the archives of a website maintained by auctioneer Ottie Opperman.

The general store’s frame building, which is now gone, was dedicated as a Masonic Lodge in 1871, and the second floor continued to be used until 1904 by Swan Lodge No. 358. That lodge was chartered in 1866, and in June of 1870 Oakley Case was given proxy to lay the cornerstone for Hall of Swan Lodge in New Mt. Pleasant. [3] The new lodge housed a marvelous chair made by John Luker for JHM Houston, who was Master of Swan Lodge from 1867-1873. This was recovered, along with several other artifacts, from the abandoned and dilapidated lodge in 1966. The website for the Scotitsh Rite Masonic Museum & Library has a description and photos of this Masonic Worshipful Master’s Chair and a related posting, Masonic Master’s Chair from Ohio, in their blog. Further details about this chair and its conservation are provided in an article A Masonic Master’s Chair Revealed by Susan Buck which appeared in the 1994 issue of American Furniture, published by the Chipstone foundation and reproduced on their website.

The road that is now OH-93 had its origins in act passed on February 8, 1847 by the Ohio General Assembly “To lay out and establish a free turnpike road, from Logan to New Mt. Pleasant, in Hocking County, and to McArthurston, in Athens County.” Named as commissioners responsible for this project were John Holland, James Gibson and Jacob Byerly (all of Hocking county) and David Evins (of Athens county). These commissioners were organized by the act into a corporation known as the Logan, New Mt. Pleasant, and McArthurston Road Company.[4] At that time, New Mt. Pleasant was located within Washington Township in Hocking County. In 1850, Vinton County was created from parts of Athens, Hocking, Jackson, Ross, Meigs, and Gallia counties.

The map above from 1876 shows that N. Fairview Road was once known as Township Road. Today N. Fairview Road runs along the border between Vinton County and Hocking County. With the creation of Vinton County in 1850, New Mt. Pleasant became part of Hocking County to the north and part of Vinton County to the south.

Along N. Fairview Road, just west of OH-93 is a cemetery where Elizabeth Stultz Steele and Samuel Steele are buried. This cemetery is next to the Mt. Pleasant Methodist Church. I am not sure who is responsible to for the church or the cemetery at present, but according to the Grave Addiction website, Mt. Pleasant Cemetery is still active and well maintained. It’s sometimes referred to as the Fairview Church Cemetery and described as being in Washington Township, Hocking County, Ohio. The confusion is understandable, since the cemetery is located along the border between the two counties and is in an area that was once part of Hocking County. However, this cemetery is presently located in Swan Township, Vinton County, Ohio. The USGENWEB Archives provides a list for the Mt. Pleasant Methodist Church Cemetery.

[1] Historical Publishing Co., Columbus, Ohio. (1901). Franklin County at the beginning of the twentieth century. Franklin County, Ohio: Sheppard & Co., Book and job printers.

[2] History of Hocking valley, Ohio: Together with sketches of its cities, villages and townships, educational, religious, civil, military, and political history, portraits of prominent persons and biographies of representative citizens. (1883). Chicago: Interstate Pub. Co.  Available through Google Books, https://books.google.com/books?id=YdkyAQAAMAAJ.

[3] Cunningham, W. M. and Reeves, John G. (1914) History of Freemasonry in Ohio. Cincinatti, Ohio: Bromwell. The text to this book can be found online. The best source for a current link can probably be obtained from the envisionthepast.com page on Ohio Social History Books and Articles.

[4] Ohio. (1819). Acts of a local nature passed at the session of the General Assembly of the State of Ohio. Columbus: s.n., p. 173.  Available through Google Books, https://books.google.com/books?id=rKA4AAAAIAAJ.

1813 – Elizabeth Stultz Steele

I have not been able to find a record of Elizabeth’s birth in Ohio vital records, but her gravestone has her birth date as February 9, 1813.

On August 28, 1833 she married Samuel Steele in Muskingum County, Ohio.

The 1850 U. S. Census record for Jackson Township, Guernsey, Ohio (p. 659, l. 34-41; p. 660, l. 2-3) lists a household that includes Saml Steel (39), Elizabeth (39), Eliza A (19), James (14), Regiah (12), Margaret (10), Priscilla (9), Marshall (3), Malinda (1), and Isaac Townsend (40). Samuel is shown as born in Maryland; Elizabeth and all children are shown as born in Ohio. Samuel’s occupation is shown as farmer.

The 1870 U. S. Census record for Washington Township, Hocking, Ohio (p. 14, l. 1-5) lists a household that includes Samuel Steel (58), Elizabeth (57), Marshall (22), Melinda (19), and Lucretia (18). Samuel is shown as born in Maryland and Elizabeth born in Ohio. The record also shows Elizabeth having a father of foreign birth. According to column 7, Elizabeth’s occupation is keeping house, and she is helped by Melinda and Lucretia. Samuel is a farmer and Marshall a farm laborer. Lucretia is shown as having attended school within the past year, and Marshall is shown as unable to write. The household of James Steel (son) is listed directly after that of Samuel. This census record has margin notations about the location of households, but these are not entirely legible in the digital image of the census record available to me. As best I can tell, the household of Samuel and Elizabeth was not considered part of the Village of Ilesboro or the Village of New Mt. Pleasant.

Elizabeth and Samuel had 8 known children: Eliza Ann, James C, Keziah Sharon, Margaret, Priscilla, Marshall V, Malinda Elizabeth, and Lucretia.

I have not been able to find a record of Elizabeth’s death in Ohio vital records, but her gravestone has the date of her death as August 27, 1897 at age 84. She shares a gravestone with her husband, Samuel Steele, who died in 1887.

Elizabeth and Samuel are buried in what seems to have been the church graveyard for the Mt. Pleasant Methodist Church. This suggests that they lived in or near Mt. Pleasant at the time of their death, and also that they may have worshiped at the Mt. Pleasant Methodist Church. The Find A Grave website has a memorial page that includes a photo of the gravestone for Samuel and Elizabeth Steele.

1628 – Joshua Marshall

Baptized June 24 1628, in the City of London. Died April 6 1678 in London.

Joshua Marshall was Mastor Mason to the Crown. He took over this office from Edward, who was either his father or his older brother. According to “The Great Fire of London Papers” in the British Museum, Edward Marshall had a parcel of ground, with buildings and yards:

“to the east of Fetter Lane, on the north to the passage called Bond Stables, on the south adjoining to the buildings of one John Dawling, gent., and on the west butting on the garden of the Master of the Rolls” — Addit. MS. Brit. Mus. 5063 fol. 182.” [1]

What was later the workshop of Joshua Marshall was most likely at the same location.  We also know that in 1658 a “Mr. Marshall” obtained for the sum of 20 shillings per annum the right from St. Martin’s-in-the-Fields church  to store marble stones in Hedge Lane, a narrow road between Pall Mall and Coventry Street.

As the proprietor of a successful masonry and construction business, Joshua Marshall worked under Christopher Wren on the reconstruction of a number of churches, including St. Paul’s.  One of the assistants working under Joshua Marshall on some of these projects was Nicholas Hawksmoor, well-known for his later architectural works.

In 1667-71, Joshua Marshall worked as mason on the rebuilding of the Church of St. Sepulchre. (There is nothing connecting Christopher Wren with this project; the designer may have been Joshua Marshall himself.)

In 1669, before Wren provided a design for rebuilding of the main body, Joshua Marshall built the west tower of St. Clement Danes, to which James Gibbs added a spire in 1719.

From 1670-74 Joshua Marshall was responsible for rebuilding the church of St. Mary at Hill.  The Resurrection Relief, one of a number of Last Judgment scenes, may have been produced by Joshua Marshall’s workshop.

Temple Bar, the former west gate into the City of London, was built 1670-72, by Joshua Marshall and Thomas Knight, perhaps from a design provided by Wren.

Christopher Wren selected Joshua Marshall as the main contractor for the rebuilding of St. Bride’s church, of which Joshua was a parishioner. 

For Westminster Abbey, following a design provided by Wren, Joshua Marshall constructed the white marble sarcophagus that contains the bones of two children, presumed to be Edward V and his brother Richard (sons of Edward IV), discovered in the Tower of London in 1674. 

Joshua Marshall had significant responsibility for construction of the Monument to the Great Fire of London (designed by Christopher Wren) as is indicated by his receiving £11,300 of the total cost of  £13,450 11s 9d. for the monument.

Joshua Marshall also has works at Campden in Gloucestershire and Swansea in Cambridgeshire.

REFERENCES

[1] The Builder, Vol. 21, No. 1054, April 18, 1863, p. 270, courtesy of Google Books, downloaded April 3, 2011.

1789 – Frances Keziah Marshall

The first records I discovered concerning Frances Keziah Marshall referred to her children, Marshall and Elizabeth. On November 24, 1820 a Richard Marshall, aged 63 and living in Muskingum County, Ohio stated that there were at that time living with him his wife Keziah and two grandchildren: Marshall and Elizabeth Stutts. [1]

Looking for further information, I discovered a record for the marriage of Adam Stults and Franky Marshall performed by J. K. McCune on March 14, 1809 in Muskingum County, Ohio. In the record, the bride is listed as “Mrs. Franky Marshall,” and I have no explanation for this unusual use of the title “Mrs.” [2]

We can learn a bit more about Frances Keziah by following the records of her children. Looking at census records for 1880, we find a Marshal Stultz with birthplace listed as Pennsylvania for father and Virginia for mother. This is consistent with his grandmother, Keziah saying in her 1847 application for a widow’s pension that she married Richard Marshall in 1784 in Virginia (in the County of Spotslyvania, she thought). Some genealogies show Frances Keziah as born in Spotsylvania, VA; this is a reasonable assumption, but I know of no evidence to verify.

I found a record of military service for Adam Stultz indicating that he enlisted on June 19, 1812, served in the 19th Infantry under Captain (Wilson) Eliott, and died in action on May 5, 1812. This would have been during the Seige of Ft. Meigs, during which the 19th infantry participated in Miller’s charge to capture the British battery near the fort. [3] I then found a military pension record showing Marshall and Elizabeth Stultz as the heirs of Adam Stulz, 19th infantry, death date May 5, 1813. [4] The date of enrollment was April 14, 1818, suggesting that Frances Keziah was dead by that time, since she would otherwise be the one entitled to the pension as a widow. (Note: It was necessary to view the original record to get the correct date of enrollment.) The place of residence for Marshall and Elizabeth was Muskingum County, Ohio, which is consistent with them living with their maternal grandparents, Richard and Keziah Marshall.

Some family trees show Adam Stults born in Pottsville, Schulykill, PA to Henry Jacob Stultz (1770-1836) and Magdalene (1770-1848). It’s difficult to know how much weight to give this, since I’ve seen no citations of supporting evidence.

The spelling of Stults is unsual, but it seems to have been used somewhat consistently in earlier records for Adam Stults and his children. It seems possible, then, that there is some connection between Adam Stults and a few others of that name found in records of the same time period for Ohio. There is a grave record for Henry Jacob Stults at Find A Grave, but this person and his family seem to have lived around Sandusky, which is some distance from Muskingum County.

[1] Pension Application of Richard Marshall, transcribed by Will Graves (http://revwarapps.org/w7391.pdf : accessed 15 September 2015).

[2] “Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-2013,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:2QHJ-PP2 : accessed 15 September 2015), Adam Stults and Franky Marshall, 14 Mar 1809; citing Muskingum, Ohio, United States, reference ; county courthouses, Ohio; FHL microfilm 865,142.

[3] Averill, J. P. (1886). Fort Meigs: A condensed history of the most important military point in the Northwest, together with scenes and incidents connected with the sieges of 1813, and a minute description of the old fort and its surroundings, as they now appear. Toledo: Blade Print. and Paper Co., p. 28. (http://archive.org/stream/cihm_02206#page/n33/mode/2up : accessed 15 September 2015).

[4] Ancestry.com U.S., The Pension Roll of 1835 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014. Original data: United States Senate. The Pension Roll of 1835.4 vols. 1968 Reprint, with index. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1992.

Salmon Cakes

This is a great way to use leftover cooked salmon. In fact, it’s a reason to cook enough salmon to have leftovers.

7-8 oz. salmon
2 slices of bread, diced small
1 egg, slightly beaten with a fork
1 tsp Worchestershire sauce -OR- lemon juice
1/4 cup minced onion
1/2 tsp mustard powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbs oil (for frying)

Flake salmon into a mixing bowl, making sure to remove bones and skin. Add the diced bread and stir to distribute evenly, then add the egg and stir again. Mix in the Worcestershire sauce, onion, mustard powder and salt. Mash with fork or hands (surgical gloves recommended) to further mix the ingredients and break up the bread, then form into patties.

Fry the patties over medium heat until they are golden brown on each side. Drain and serve.

Spring Rolls with Chili Dipping Sauce

Chili Dipping Sauce

2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 c. rice vinegar
1 T. sesame oil
1-2 t. sweet chili sauce (e.g. Mae Ploy)

Mix together all the ingredients and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Spring Rolls

8 spring roll wrappers
24 fresh cilantro leaves
16 large mint leaves
1 medium avocado, thinly sliced
1 green onion, cut into 2″ sections and then thinly sliced lengthwise
1/2 red bell pepper, cut into thin 2″ strips
1/8 cucumber (seeds removed) cut into thin 2″ strips
1/2 medium carrot, cut into thin 2″ strips
32 cooked small shrimp (~2 oz.)
1 T. chopped peanuts

Prepare one roll at a time as follows: Soak one wrapper in warm water (e.g. in a round cake pan or pie plate) until flexible and transparent (about 2-3 minutes). Place wrapper on working surface. Arrange 3 cilantro leaves and 2 mint leaves on half the wrapper, leaving a 1″ border around the edges. Layer on strips of avocado, green onion, bell pepper, cucumber, and carrot. Top with 4 shrimp. Fold the sides of the wrapper over the filling, then roll tightly to enclose the filling completely. Rolls can be kept refrigerated in plastic wrap for up to 2 days.

After all the rolls have been prepared, cut then in half and serve with the dipping sauce and chopped nuts. You can also put out plum sauce and Siracha sauce as additional condiments.

Bentley Snowflakes

The slideshow below features artistic renderings of snowflakes based on photographs that were taken by Wilson A. Bentley, a 19th century Vermont farmer. In 1885, Bentley became the first person ever to capture the detail of a single snowflake in a photograph.

This achievement, which was accomplished by coupling a microscope with a bellows camera, came only after years of patient experimentation.  Having perfected the technique, Bentley went on to capture on photographic plates the images of more than 5000 snowflakes, preserving these “miracles of beauty” for generations to enjoy. 

Bentley also wrote about snowflakes, informing his readers that each complex snow crystal is a unique “masterpiece of design” that is never again repeated.  As it turns out, that’s not the whole story.  Snowflakes start out as simple crystals of ice in the clouds.  In the beginning, one snowflake will look very much like another.  Indeed, weather scientists who’ve collected snow crystals from the clouds have found exact duplicates.  It is only as snowflake grow and tumble towards the earth that they acquire the branches and contours that make each one unique.

There’s a nice book for children titled “Snowflake Bentley” by Jacqueline Briggs Martin (Author) and Mary Azarian (Illustrator).  There’s also a wealth of information about snowflakes at SnowCrystals.com.

This image shows an artistic rendering of a Bentley snowflake in a different style. For both this image and for those in the slideshow above, I began with digital scans of Bentley’s original photos, obtained from online archives. Using a graphics editor, I removed noise and dust, then selectively modified the exposure of the background to make it solid black. This allowed me to overly a color for the background and apply filters to the snowflake, adding translucence and edge enhancement for an “icy” look as seen in the top slideshow, or adding opacity and enhancing surface detail for the “snowy” look as seen to the left.

Also, even though Bentley took care to capture snowflakes on chilled slides, they sometimes suffered from thinning at the edges due to melting before he had a chance to make a photograph. I tried to compensate for this with selective modification of exposure (i.e. burning & dodging). Also, in cases where a bit of a snowflake seemed to have broken off or been cropped in the making of the photograph, I used cloning techniques to make repairs.

In all this, my goal was to show the structure and the beauty of each snowflake in some ways that go beyond what Bentley was able to do with the photographic technology available in his day.