FOLLOW UP ~ Answering my questions from the blog post about Charles Brown & Cemathe Avery's wedding

 

I published a post, yesterday about another great find in Cora’s scrapbook.  But, that lead to some questions.  Did I get answers to those questions? 

Here are the questions I asked myself:

·   Which Presbyterian Church did John Woodbridge officiate as Pastor?  Was there only one Presbyterian Church in Saratoga Springs at the time?

·   Who are William & Charlotte Ayers?  There are no Ayers in my database/tree.  Were they friends or relatives?

·   Would it be possible to locate the actual church record for this marriage?

·    What other types of records would tell me more about the Pastor?

Here’s what happened………….

The first thing I did was search for a John Woodbridge (the Pastor) on Ancestry in census records from 1850 forward, in Saratoga Springs, NY.  I was rewarded in finding him listed in the 1870 census as a “Dd” living in Saratoga Springs with his wife and children.  I suspected that Dd meant Doctor of Divinity.  In looking on Google I confirmed that suspicion.  Now I know I have probably found Pastor John Woodbridge.

Further searching reveals Pastor Woodbridge in the Presbyterian Ministerial Directory for 1898 as follows.  And this matches up with the census records.

Let’s move on to William & Charlotte Ayers.

I have located them in the 1850 Federal census living in Saratoga Springs, New York and also the 1855 New York state census.  This does not tell me how they are associated with the bride and groom, but it does confirm them in the place and time of the marriage.

Can I use city directories to give me more information?  I entered Charles Brown in the Ancestry U.S. City Directories 1822-1995.  I found him in the 1882 directory on page 66.  His home address is one I’m familiar with 59 Church and I know that Charles was a Cigar Maker (although cigar is misspelled in the directory).

1882 Saratoga directory showing Charles Brown

Knowing that directories also contain lists of businesses, churches, associations etc., I am now going to try and find the Presbyterian Churches listed

In the Table of Contents for this directory from 1882, the churches are listed on page 45.  In reviewing that page I find two Presbyterian churches listed:

Ø First Presbyterian church, Broadway, north of Town Hall.  Rev. Peter Stryker, D.D. pastor and

Ø Second Presbyterian church, Spring street near Regent. Rev. William R. Terrett, pastor.

Neither of these shows a pastor named John Woodbridge, but this is 31 years after the marriage record and he likely had moved on or perhaps died. 

Can I locate a directory closer to the time of the marriage? I need to adjust my search on Ancestry and see if I can bring up other directories for Saratoga Springs.

The best I could do was a directory for Saratoga Springs from 1868.  That’s 17 years after the marriage, but let’s see what I can find in it.

I want you to know that I’m doing a little happy dance here.  On page 31 of the 1868 Saratoga Springs Directory is the list of churches.  And there is the “Presbyterian Church, Broadway, north of Lake avenue.  Rev John Woodbridge, D.D., residence South Broadway, a short distance below Circular street.”

Table of Contents from page 31 of the 1868 Saratoga Springs directory showing John Woodbridge as the Pastor/Reverend of the Presbysterian Church 

I made a couple of phone calls trying to locate the actual marriage record.  Afterall, the letter signed by Pastor Woodbridge states “that record of the same has been made in the Register of the Presbyterian Church.”

I made phone calls to the County Clerk for the County of Saratoga (518) 885-2213, the City of Saratoga Springs (518) 587-3550 and the Presbyterian Church (518) 584-6091 that is located in Saratoga Springs.  I spoke to some very nice ladies. We talked about the weather and had a few laughs about the difficulty in finding old records. 

Unfortunately, none of them could provide any marriage records from 1851.  I made sure to record in my Research Notes in Legacy, what organization I called, who I spoke with and the phone number.  I date all my research notes and going back to them provides me with a record of the things I’ve done in my research for a particular person or event.

When I record a marriage in my Legacy database I always include as much information as I can by using the Events/Facts entry.

Here is what this marriage looks like in my Legacy record.

This is the marriage event for this couple. 
Note the Event entries.

In the end, I did locate more information and answered some of my questions.

Ø I still don’t know how the witnesses, William & Charlotte Ayers were connected with the bride and groom.

Ø There were 2 Presbyterian Churches in Saratoga Springs at one time, but I still don’t know which one the couple was married at.

Ø I was not able to find the original church record of the marriage.

This was a good research session and I enjoyed the process. I hope that I’ve shared some ideas that would be helpful to you in your own research.

If you are related to or connected to anyone in this or any of my other blog posts, please get in touch.

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2010-2023   Diane Gould Hall
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

 

CORA'S SCRAPBOOK ~ The marriage of her parents - Charles H.K. Brown & Cemanthe Avery - 1851 in New York

This is the story of my journey through Cora’s scrapbook.  Cora Emma Brown Hall is my husband's paternal great grandmother.  She created a scrapbook during her life and it was passed down through the generations.  It contains an amazing amount of family and general history.

Here’s that link to the posts I've written so far

 My posts about Cora's Scrapbook

Today's item from Cora’s scrapbook is a letter certifying the marriage of her parents Charles H.K. Brown and Cemanthe Avery.

My husband’s paternal 2^nd great grandparents were married in Saratoga Springs, New York on 12 Jun 1851.

Charles H. K. Brown was 25 years old and Cemanthe Avery was 20 years old.   Her parents were Frederick AVERY (abt 1810-bet 1850 & 1868) & Emeline CASE (abt 1809 to 1889)

I don’t have any information as to who Charles H. K. Brown’s parents were.  I’d certainly like to know, but so far my research has come up empty.  If you happen to uncover any information about his family/parents, please get in touch with me.

Until seeing this letter/record in Cora’s scrapbook, I had not located any other marriage records for Charles & Cemanthe. So, of course, I was excited.

This letter gives me a date and a place.  I also have a clue as to the church this couple may have been affiliated with, the Pastor’s name and names of witnesses.  That’s quite a bundle of good genealogical information.

Transcription of letter:

This certifies that Charles H. K. Brown and Cemanthe Avery were united in marriage at Saratoga Springs on the 12^th day of June A.D. 1851; and that record of the same has been made in the Register of the Presbyterian Church.

Signed

John Woodbridge, Afficiating & Pastor

Given at Saratoga Springs, Sept. 2, 1851

Names of witnesses – William & Charlotte Ayers

What questions does this prompt me to ask?

·   Which Presbyterian Church did John Woodbridge officiate as Pastor?  Was there only one Presbyterian Church in Saratoga Springs at the time?

·   Who are William & Charlotte Ayers?  There are no Ayers in my database/tree.  Were they friends or relatives?

·   Would it be possible to locate the actual church record for this marriage?

·   What other types of records would tell me more about the Pastor?

Of course I will try to find answers for those questions.

Please check back tomorrow for my post about what further information I was able to locate and how many of my questions I got answers for.

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2010-2023   Diane Gould Hall
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

CORA’S SCRAPBOOK ~ The obituary of her Aunt, Caroline Matilda Snyder Avery in 1885

This is the story of my journey through Cora’s scrapbook.  I will give a link to all posts at the beginning of each new post.  Here’s that link My posts about Cora's Scrapbook

Today I’m sharing a death notice and obituary found in the scrapbook.  Cora’s Uncle was Calvin Montgomery AVERY (1833-1891), brother to her mother, Cemanthe M. Avery (1831-1899).

For reference here is how my husband, Ron is related to Caroline Matilda Snyder.

Caroline married his paternal 2nd great granduncle Calvin M. Avery.  Calvin’s sister Cemanthe Avery is Ron’s 2nd great grandmother and her daughter is Cora, the author of the scrapbook I write about.  So, it makes perfect sense that Cora would have newspaper articles such as obituaries in this scrapbook.  I’m so glad she saved these items.

Calvin married Caroline Matilda Snyder sometime between 1860 and 1866.  They had one child, Edith August “Gussie” Avery born about 1866, died 1915.

 Glued on one of the scrapbook pages is the death notice and obituary for Caroline Snyder Avery.  There is no mention of which newspaper published these notices.  I have checked Genealogy Bank, Newspapers.com and Old Fulton Postcards to try and find the publication, but have not been successful…..yet.

Here are the death notice and obituary as they appear in the scrapbook, with no editing or enhancing.

(Please click on any image to enlarge it)

Here is the death notice cropped from the page and below it my transcription.

DIED - AVERY - In Saratoga Springs, at No. 69 Lawrence street, Nov. 23, 1885, of peritonitis, Caroline Matilda Snyder, wife of Calvin M. Avery, in the 46th year of her age. 

Funeral services at Bethesda Episcopal church, Nov. 26 12:30

Here is the obituary cropped from the page in the scrapbook and my transcription below.

Mrs. Caroline Matilda, wife of Calvin M. Avery, died at her residence, No. 69 Lawrence street at an early hour yesterday evening from peritonitis. She was taken ill in August last but had nearly recovered.  On Tuesday afternoon last she was seized with the disease which carried her off.  On Saturday last she was more comfortable, but during the night a change for the worse was observed and she gradually failed until death came to her relief.  Her husband and one child, Miss Gussie, survive her. The funeral will be held on Thursday next at 12:30 o'clock at Bethesda Episcopal church.

Caroline was only 46 when she died of Peritonitis.  Her husband, Calvin Avery died 6 years later in 1891 at age 52.  Caroline’s daughter, Edith Augusta “Gussie” Avery was 19 years old when her mother died. 

Without Cora saving these items, I would not have the death notice or obituary. I’m so grateful for this information.  I have so much more to share from this wonderful resource.

As always, if you are related to anyone mentioned in this post or any of my posts, please get in touch with me, I’d love to exchange information. Additionally, if you have a correction to anything I’ve shared, please let me know.

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2010-2021   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

CORA’S SCRAPBOOK ~ Are you an Avery? This is a query on a page in her scrapbook

This is the story of my journey through Cora’s scrapbook.  I will give a link to all posts at the beginning of each new post.  Here’s that link My posts about Cora's Scrapbook

AVERY is a name I’m more than familiar with from researching my husband, Ron’s family.  In this case, it is Cora’s mother who is an Avery. I’ve been able to find out very little about this branch of Cora’s family.  But here is what I do know.

Cora’s mother was Cemanthe M. Avery (1831 to 26 Mar 1899). She married Charles Henry Brown or as he was also know C.H.K. Brown (1826 – 14 Apr 1903) on 12 Jun 1851 in Saratoga Springs, Saratoga Co., New York.  This couple had 2 known children, Cora Emma Brown, the creator of the scrapbook I write about, and Albert Walton Brown (1856-1937).

Cemanthe Averey’s parents were, Frederick Avery (need confirmation on birth & death dates) and Emeline CASE (about 1809-14 Dec 1889).  I know of 4 children born to this couple – An unknown child, Mary Avery (1826-after 1915) who married a MAYNARD, Cemanthe Avery and Calvin Montgomery Avery (about 1833-22 Dec 1891).

That’s as far as I have been able to trace the AVERY surname back.  I haven’t fared any better on Cora’s surname/maiden name BROWN either. Here’s the pedigree view for Cora from my Legacy program.  I have tried very hard over the past 15 years to track down these families and have obviously not been successful.  I’m hoping information from Cora’s scrapbook will help me with that.

Glued to one of the pages in the scrapbook was this notice.

There is no indication of where this inquiry was posted.  Did it appear in a newspaper or publication of some other kind?  Let’s go over what it says.

ARE YOU AN AVERY?  DID YOU MARRY AN AVERY/  WAS YOUR MOTHER AN AVERY?

If so, please send your name and address to Elroy M. Avery, 657 Woodland Hills Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio.  He is writing a history of the Avery family.  Please give the full names ofyour or your wife’s parents (not initials merely), of grand parents in the Avery line, etc., as far back as you can.  He will be glad to send you a printed blank for the complete record of yourself and family.  Then hand this card to

SOME OTHER AVERY

On each side of this inquiry are the following notations.

On the left side - If you see an Avery marriage or obituary notice, please send a marked copy of the paper containing it.

On the right side – Also send the names and post-office addresses of other Averys and Avery descendants.

My first inclination when reading this is to find out who Elroy M. Avery of 657 Woodland Hills Ave., in Cleveland, Ohio is?  And second, is to try and locate a book about the history of the Avery family.  Those will be my next steps. 

I have no idea what other possible family gems are contained in this scrapbook left to us by Ron’s great grandmother, but you can be assured I will be sharing them all here.

That being said.  If anyone reading this is an Avery or married to an Avery, I’d love to hear from you.

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2010-2021   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

CORA’S SCRAPBOOK ~ Episode 3–The obituary of her Aunt, Caroline Matilda Snyder Avery – 1841-1885

This obituary along with others, appear on various pages of Cora’s scrapbook.  I’m grateful she kept them because some of them are new to me.  I’m a newspaper hound and love to search the various websites for articles.  Some of the ones Cora kept are ones I have not been able to locate.  The only better thing would have been the names of the newspapers and dates.  Cora left that for me to figure out.

Cora’s mother Cemanthe AVERY has a sister named Mary, whom I know very little about and a brother named Calvin Montgomery Avery.  I knew he had married Caroline M. Snyder, and I have one child born to them, a daughter.  I don’t have a date of marriage for Calvin & Carolyn, but based on census records, they married between 1860 & 1865.  Will I find the marriage record in Cora’s scrapbook?  Or will some of her information lead me to finding it?

Here is a portion of the page from Cora's scrapbook, with the obituary toward the bottom.  I believe these were from two different newspapers.  I've tried finding them on newspapers.com, genealogy bank and Fulton postcards website (where I had located her husband's obituary).  No luck so far. As a result I can tell you the source.

Transcription:

AVERY - In Saratoga Springs, at No. 69 Lawrence street, Nov 23, 1885, of peritonitis.  Caroline Matilda Snyder, wife of Calvin M. Avery, in the 44th year of her life.
  Mrs. Caroline Matilda, wife of Calvin M. Avery, died at her residence, No. 69 Lawrence street at an early hour yesterday evening from peritonitis.  She was taken ill in August last but had nearly recovered.  On Tuesday afternoon last she was seized with the disease which carried her off.  On Saturday last she was more comfortable, but during the night a change for the worse, was observed and she gradually failed until death came to her relief.  Her husband and one child, Miss Gussie, survive her.  The funeral will be held on Thursday next at 12:30 o'clock at Bethesda Episcopal church.

I have located another record of Caroline’s death in the NY Death Index

New York, Death Index, 1880-1956
Name:    Caroline M. Avery
Death Date: 23 Nov 1885
Death Place: Saratoga Springs, New York, USA
Certificate Number: 26886

I have ordered other death records from Saratoga Springs, New York.  I expect I could request Caroline’s and may, in fact, do that.  I like to have as much documentation as I can.

Caroline’s life was fairly short, dying at age 44.  I do hope those years she had with her husband and daughter were happy ones.

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright © 2010-2020   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks ~ Week #5–Charles Henry Brown–Cigar Maker ~ about 1826 to 1903

Charles Henry Brown also known as Charles H. K. Brown is my husband’s 

2nd great grandfather

  

What I DON'T know about Charles Brown…

• Who his parents were
• If he had any siblings
• Exactly when he was born
• Where he died and from what

I have gathered quite a bit of information about Charles H. Brown over the years of my research.

The easiest way to present what information I have on him is by sharing an Event Report.  This is a report created in Legacy 8, using the Event/Fact section for each individual.  I use this area extensively on all my ancestors.

(CLICK ON ANY IMAGE TO ENLARGE IT FOR EASIER VIEWING)

The report above tells me each event/fact I have entered and depending on the information I have entered, all the details associated with that event, including the person’s age at the time of the event.

It’s not that I lack information about Charles H. Brown, I just don’t have additional information I would like to have, such as his parent’s names.

I haven’t been able to locate Charles in the 1850 census.  With the name Charles Brown or Charles Henry Brown being so common, this adds to the difficulty. 

• Was he always a Cigar Maker?
• On 3 Aug 1854, the date of birth I have for his first child with Cemanthe, he would have been 28 years old.  When did he and Cemanthe marry?  Was he married prior to marrying her?

 Charles & Cemanthe (Avery) Brown had two children that I know of.
1. Cora E. Brown, born 3 Aug 1854 in Syracuse, Onondaga, New York married Thomas Cornelius Hall and had one son, Charles Schuyler Hall.  Cora moved to San Diego, California after her husband’s death and died there on 9 Sep 1933.
2. Albert Walton Brown, born 24 Oct 1856 in Saratoga Springs, Saratoga, New York.  I don’t believe he ever married.  He too moved to San Diego, where he died on 5 Sep 1937.

Charles is listed in many city directories throughout his life.  He can be found in Syracuse, Troy and Saratoga Springs, New York directories.

Charles enlisted in the army during the Civil War.  His enlistment date was Aug 1862, as a Private in the 9th infantry for a term of 3 years.

I’ve located his enlistment record.


According to the Muster Roll (see image below), Charles deserted and was absent without leave 25 Jan 1863.  This record lists his unit as Company F, 134th Infantry.  What I liked about this muster roll was the personal information it provided.  Prior to finding this record I had no idea where in Pennsylvania Charles was born.  This record, if correct, states he was born in Philadelphia.  I also get a good idea of his physical characteristics.



Did Charles ever return to service?  I have located no other military records for him, including no pension file.  His military unit is engraved on his headstone, so it makes me wonder.

It’s hard to believe that at sometime during Charles’ and Cemanthe’s life, there wasn’t a photo taken of them.  I have yet to find one.

Cemanthe died of Cerebral Apoplexy at age 70, on 26 Mar 1899 in Saratoga Springs, New York and is buried at Greenridge Cemetery. You can visit her memorial here #22149978.
 
According to online cemetery records, Charles died on 14 Apr 1903 and is buried with his wife, Cemanthe, at Greenfield Cemetery.  There is a picture of their headstone, but his portion is impossible to clearly read.  You can see his memorial here #22149991.

Here is the online record I found regarding their burial.  I had lost track of the URL for this cemetery index.  Thanks to reader, Cathy, for finding it and sending it to me.  To view the searchable, alphabetical index please click here.
 


The record above gives me the only reference to Charles Brown’s date of death.  I have not located a death record, yet.  And, I cannot locate Charles in the 1900 census.
 
During the preparation of this post I was able to locate one more piece of evidence referring to Charles as a Cigar Maker.  It’s a news article published in The Saratogian in 1963.
 


Here are a couple of screenshots, courtesy of Google Earth, of the area where Charles worked and lived in Saratoga Springs, New York., as they look today.

Church St - Charles & Cemanthe lived on this street in the 1880's

424 Broadway - location of Brown & Avery Cigars

Lawrence St - Where Charles & Cemanthe lived in the 1890's

If you think you may be related to anyone mentioned in this post, or have additional information or corrections, please contact me.  I’d love to hear from you.

OTHER POSTS THAT MAY BE OF INTEREST
MYSTERY MONDAY ~ Unidentified Family Photos - AVERY, BROWN, BRIGHT, GOODBODY & HALL (Can you help us identify any of these people?)

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2010-2017   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

MYSTERY MONDAY–UNIDENTIFIED FAMILY PHOTOS

HALL   BROWN  AVERY  BRIGHT  GOODBODY

These photos were all in a small album in the possession of one of my husband’s cousins, a 1st cousin once removed.  She too does genealogy.  We cannot figure out who these ladies & gentlemen are.  The folks who might have known are long since gone from us.  These are most probably family members from the Saratoga Springs, New York area, containing the surnames listed at the top of this post.  

See the family group records I have included below.  

This album was in the possession of Dorothy Louise Hall who married Thomas Leavenworth Goodbody, Sr.  We found pictures identified (but only a couple) that were Dorothy’s grandmother, Cora E. Brown.

I’m am placing these photos on here exactly as they were scanned. 

If you recognize anyone, please contact me.

Click on any image to enlarge it

TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA ABOUT THIS FAMILY, HERE ARE SOME SCREEN SHOTS FROM MY DATABASE.  

These are the families we believe are represented in this album. 

BROWN-AVERY FAMILY

 
HALL-BROWN FAMILY


HALL-BRIGHT FAMILY


GOODBODY-HALL FAMILY


None of us ever know when a piece of information we provide might lead to a connection with a family member or someone who knows about the family.  That’s just what I’m doing here.  It’s always worth a try.

I wish you luck in identifying your mystery photos.

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2014   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHT RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION