MYSTERY MONDAY Repost with Updates - Who's Your Daddy? John C. Gould (1833-1919)

 

If I could ask for just one thing regarding my genealogy research this year, it would be to find out who John C. Gould’s parents were.

This is an update on my original post from 2015.  I have indicated in Red where new information or discoveries have been made

Gould is my maiden name.  Only being able to take that name back to my 2nd great grandfather and no further is my biggest genealogical brick wall.  And, if I don’t uncover this mystery my youngest brother may never consider my research a success.  He listens to my great finds and revealing stories and then asks “but, have you found out who John’s parents were?”

Here is a brief bio:

JOHN C. GOULD – born Jan 1833 in Michigan, married Sarah M. HART on 7 Oct 1858 in Armada, Macomb, Michigan.  Had one son, William Val Gould (probably born as Vivaldo William Gould) in 1859. Had one daughter, Julene E. Gould who lived 2 years 1861-1863.  Wife Sarah died on 11 Nov 1911 in Detroit, Wayne, Michigan.  John died 19 May 1919, age 86, in Nankin Township, Eloise, Wayne, Michigan.  He is buried at Rose Hill Cemetery, Armada, Macomb, Michigan.

GOULD RD. SIGN - LOCATED IN ARMADA, MACOMB, MICHIGAN

Here’s what I’ve done during the past dozen or so years to find John’s parents:

• Looked at census records for the years 1840-1920 that could possibly contain his name.  Including tracking the Gould heads of household for the census years 1830 and 1840 in Michigan.
• Located him in the 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900 and 1910 census records in Michigan.
• Located his Civil War Draft Registration card
• Located a purchase and sale of land in Macomb County, Michigan in 1863 and 1871.
• Located him on Agriculture census records in 1850 and 1870.
• Ordered and received his marriage record to Sarah M. Hart
• Located him in Detroit City Directory listings beginning in 1878.  With the final City Directory listing I could locate in 1912.
• Researched his wife, Sarah M. Hart’s entire family, including siblings and their spouses.
• Located the death record and obituary for his wife Sarah in 1911.
• Found out everything I could about his son, William V. Gould and his family.
• I’ve hired two professional researchers back in Michigan to assist me.  They added a little bit of information, but found nothing about his parents.
• I’ve gone back to Michigan and gone to the courthouse in Macomb County and researched probate records for a Gould family I have always strongly believed could be connected.  No mention of John in the records.
• I’ve posted inquiries on RootsWeb beginning in 2006.
• Sent emails to Macomb County genealogy group – no records found
• Gone to the Mt. Clemens Library in Macomb County and looked for records, books etc. – Nothing found
• Talked to people in the Armada Village office, asking about the naming of Gould Rd. in the town of Armada.  They could provide no information.
• Checked all Goulds buried in Michigan on the FindAGrave site.  I have entered a memorial for him (burial unknown) #32438846 and was later able to confirm his burial at Rose Hill Cemetery.
• Checked marriage records for the same time frame that he and Sarah were married, looking for possible siblings for John.
• Sent numerous other emails to people I’ve found on mailing lists or websites.
• Located a possible death certificate on seekingmichigan.org.  This John Gould died in Eloise State Hospital.  Much of the information on this certificate fits, but no parents are listed.  I have contacted people who may have information on Eloise Hospital records or burials and come up empty. UPDATE - After finding the article about his burial I am convinced this death certificate is the correct John Gould. (see image below)
• I’ve also read several books about brick walls, hoping for some spark that might lead me to John’s parents.
• Had my brother, direct descendant of John C. Gould, provide DNA.  There are no other known direct male descendants.  He has done both YDNA and Ancestry autosomal with results uploaded to all the sites.   As of 10 Jan 2019 I have not located a good match.  My brother's Gedmatch number is A567536.

QUESTIONS   

1.  What have I missed?

2.  Where should I look next?

Here is a descendant report that shows John & Sarah’s son, William and his children, which includes my grandfather, Harry Whipple Gould.

 

1-John C. GOULD [56]{FindAGrave #32438846 & #125849145}

born: Jan 1833, , , MI

died: After 1910

+Sarah M. HART [130]{FindAGrave #32439008}

born: Dec 1835, , , , Canada

marr: 7 Oct 1858, Armada, Macomb, MI

died: 11 Nov 1911, Detroit, Wayne, MI

parents: Henry HART [143]{FindAGrave #31946503} and Olive Glasier DOTEN [144]{FindAGrave #31946513}

2-William Val GOULD [7]{FindAGrave # 31868691}

born: 31 Aug 1859, Armada, Macomb, MI

died: 24 Feb 1924, Detroit, Wayne, MI

+Mary "Mae" Eve THORP [8]{FindAGrave # 24216381}

born: 4 Apr 1862, Oswego, Oswego, NY

marr: 1881

died: 3 Nov 1946, Detroit, Wayne, MI

parents: Horace Henry THORP [131]{FindAGrave #32025637} and Catherine C. DORSEY [132]{FindAGrave ~

3-Unknown GOULD [2485]

born:

died:

3-Ford Val GOULD [17]{FindAGrave #61960668}

born: 31 Aug 1884, Detroit, Wayne, MI

died: 17 Jun 1947, Detroit, Wayne, MI

3-Harry Whipple GOULD [5]{FindAGrave #14481532}

born: 10 Feb 1886, Detroit, Wayne, MI

died: 17 Feb 1960, Ft. Lauderdale, Broward, FL, United States

3-Roy V. GOULD [16]{FindAGrave #61961339}

born: 26 May 1888, , , MI

died: 18 Jul 1971, Yucaipa, San Bernardino, CA.

3-Gladys Lillian GOULD [19]{FindAGrave#88657246}

born: 11 Jul 1890, Detroit, Wayne, MI

died: 8 Oct 1966, Detroit, Wayne, MI

3-May Adele GOULD [18]{FindAGrave #91531460}

born: 25 Feb 1898, , , MI

died: 28 Sep 1984, , San Bernardino, CA

3-Helen C. GOULD [21]{FindAGrave #32439516}

born: 12 Mar 1901, Detroit, Wayne, MI

died: 17 Feb 1945, Detroit, Wayne, MI

2-Julene E. GOULD [221]{FindAGrave #132128928}

born: 1861, Armada, Macomb, MI

died: 27 Sep 1863, Armada, Macomb, MI

Documents associated with John C. Gould    (Click on any image to enlarge it)

Marriage record - John C. Gould & Sarah Hart 1858	Land Purchase in Macomb Co., Michigan 1863	Civil War Draft Registration for John C. Gould 1863
Sale of land in Macomb Co., Michigan 1871	Death certificate for Mrs. Sara Gould 1911	Death notice for Sarah Gould 1911
	Death certificate for John Gould - 19 May 1919

Newspaper article about John's remains being moved
from Detroit to Rose Hill Cemetery in Armada - 23 May 1919

And here are his direct line male descendants with their relationship to him:

Son - William V. Gould 1859-1924

Grandson - Harry W. Gould 1886-1960

Great grandson - Harry N. Gould 1912-1991

2nd great grandson - H. N. Gould II

3rd great grandson - Joshua J. Gould

There you have him.  My biggest genealogical mystery & brick wall to date. 
  
If you have any ideas, suggestions or strategies to knock down this wall, please contact me. 
 
OTHER POSTS THAT MAY BE OF INTEREST

Breaking Down A Brick Wall - Finding Elizabeth Fitzcharles Parents
Setting Goals, Focusing, Organizing - How Do We Handle These Issues?
 
Happy hunting,

Copyright ©  2010-2023   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

FINALLY~I have figured out the calendar dates in this photo! A great way to end the year

 

This is the original photo as it looked after I scanned it years ago.  This would have been at my great grandmother, Mae Gould's home in Detroit, Michigan

What are the dates on these two calendars?

For many years I have had this photo of my Dad, Harry Norman Gould and his grandma, Mae Eve Thorp Gould, holding calendars.

I have tried to see the month and year on these calendars, but been unable to clear them up enough to do so.  I used my Photo Shop Elements as well as My Heritage photo enhancement, but the month and year were still not clear.

Then today, it suddenly dawned on me.  Why don’t I use the calendar feature in my Legacy program and try to match the calendar configurations with those in the photo? 

My suspicion has always been that these calendars had something to do with 1924, which was the year my great grandfather, William V. Gould (1859-1924) died.  He was the husband of the woman in the photo.  My Dad would have been 11-12 yrs old at the time, depending on the dates.  Based on other photos I have of him, this picture would be about that same time.

Lo and behold, I went to the Legacy calendar feature and started going through 1924, month by month and seeing which one matched either of the calendars.  I use the Legacy calendar feature very often, probably at least once a week. It is quite useful in my research.

FINALLY, I located it – DECEMBER 1924.  Then I looked at JANUARY 1925 and it matches the other calendar perfectly.

December 1924 on the left and January 1925 on the right - they match up perfectly with the images in the photo

So, there it is.  My great grandmother, Mae is holding the December 1924 calendar and my Dad is holding the January 1925 calendar.  Now that I've figured it out, you can zoom in and see the word at the top of my Dad's calendar looks like January. Perhaps they were saying goodbye to 1924, a sad year for the family, and welcoming the new year?  Another thought.  My Dad's 12th birthday would have been December 31, 1924.  Were they commemorating that? 

Happy dance here.

TIP – Never give up on solving photo mysteries.  I cannot tell you how many times I’ve gone back to a photo I’ve looked at over and over again, and finally figured out who was in it.  Or, in this case, what the dates were in the image. 

Do you have mystery photos?  I’d love to see them.

And, Happy Birthday to my Dad who was born 110 years ago tomorrow.

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2010-2022   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

 

A WONDERFUL WAY TO BEGIN 2022 ~ A morsel of new information on my brick wall, John C. Gould

 

All of us have them.  Brick walls.  Genealogical mysteries that we are unable to solve……yet.

In my case I’ve written blog posts about my brick walls and you can read those posts here Mystery Monday - Who's Your Daddy - My Brick Walls

The number ONE most frustrating genealogical brick wall for me, is not knowing my paternal 2nd great grandfather’s parents or siblings.  Who were they? Where did they live?

People don’t just drop out of the sky via the stork, so the answers are out there someplace.  But WHERE????? So, John C. Gould, who is your family?

New information to shed light on this mystery has not been easy to come by. In fact, based on my notes in Legacy, which I date, the last little tid bit was about John Gould being mentioned on a deed for Rose Hill Cemetery in Armada, Michigan.

Here is my note

2/27/16 - Located a website for Armada Township today http://www.armadatwp.org/CommunityInformation/Cemeteries.aspx
The site had cemetery information.  Rose Hill, Hadley and Willow Grove Cemeteries were listed.  I contacted the sexton for Rose Hill, Marv Wolak 586-784-5537 and left a message. He called me back and said that he found no actual burials in either Hadley or Rose Hill for John C. Gould or Sarah Gould.  However, he did find a John Gould mentioned on a deed along with Warren Tibbits (1798-1861) at Rose Hill Cemetery.  Warren Tibbits is buried there.  No record of a burial for John is indicated.

Fast forward to December 2021.  Met a nice woman in a Facebook group.  Her name happens to be Melinda Gould. We began communicating trying to figure out if we are related.  Of course, that meant I had to mention that I had no idea of my Gould line beyond my 2nd great grandfather, John C. Gould. She said she would love to help me figure out who his parents were AND that she knows a lot of great researchers in Michigan.

On New Year’s Eve she posted a request “calling all genealogy researchers, especially those with Michigan roots!”

Within a few hours one of the researchers, Deb, had posted a newspaper article about the burial of John Gould at Rose Hill Cemetery! 

WHAT?! Oh my gosh! I had searched newspapers many times and never found this. Did I miss it? Was the newspaper for the particular year and date recently updated?  I don’t know and don’t care. 

The article reads – ARMADA – The remains of John Gould, of Detroit, were brought to Armada for burial, Wednesday. He left many relatives in this community. Interment was in Rose Hill Cemetery. Rev. R. J. Chase officiated.

First question I asked – Which newspaper and what was the date of the article?

It was The Times Herald, Port Huron, Michigan and the date the article was published was 23 May 1919.  WOW! I have a death certificate that I’ve always believed to be John’s.  Date of death 19 May 1919.  Port Huron is just north of Armada and Detroit. AND, the article states that his remains were transported on Wednesday to Rose Hill Cemetery in Armada.  That Wednesday date would have made it 21 May 1919, two days after his death.

Conclusion – This is DEFINITELY my John Gould.

He, according to Rose Hill cemetery records, co owned a plot there. Many family members are buried there.  I’ve been to Rose Hill three times on visits back to Michigan.  I’ve looked at every headstone in this small cemetery.  There is no Gould headstone.  However, we know that may mean there wasn’t one, or that it has disappeared, or sunk into the earth.  I have many ancestors with no headstones. Next time I visit, I will try to find out which plot was on the deed and use a device that allows me to poke into the ground to locate sunken headstones.

In the meantime, I am seriously happy to have found a new piece of information in my ongoing search.

OTHER POSTS THAT MAY BE OF INTEREST

Those Places Thursday – Armada

Those Placed Thursday - Towns or roads in Michigan using the name Gould

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2010-2022   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

FRIDAY FINDS ~ My Dad’s World War II Draft Registration Card–1940, Detroit, Michigan

My Dad was born on the last day of 1912.  I had always wondered why I couldn’t locate a World War II Draft Registration card for him.  I thought they had all been put online.  After all, I found the registration cards for my grandfather’s, uncles etc.

 

It turns out that all the images for this record set were not online.  Who knew?  Randy Seaver wrote about this in his Genea-Musings blog.

Off I went to see if I could find this record for my Dad.  Sure enough, there it was. U.S. WWII Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947 - Harry Norman Gould

This record gives me a little more information about my Dad and his first wife, Elaine.  The address listed here, 18286 Ferguson, Detroit, Michigan, is different than the address listed in the 1940 census.  The date of this registration is 16 Oct 1940.  The 1940 census is dated 16 Apr 1940 and this couple is living at 12892 Faust Ave., Detroit, Michigan.  They are said to have been at that address in 1935, as well.  So, between April & October 1940, they had moved.

  

What information is available on this record?

Serial Number 3106, Order Number 1217

Harry Norman Gould

18286 Ferguson, Detroit, Wayne, Mich.

Telephone VE 5-7622

Age 27 years

Place of birth – Detroit, Mich.

Date of birth – 12-31-12

Country of citizenship – U.S.

Name of person who will always know your address – Mrs. Elaine Gertrude Gould, wife

Address of that person – 18286 Ferguson, Detroit, Wayne, Michgan

Employer’s name – Wayne County Auditors

Place of employment – County Bldg., Detroit, Wayne, Mich.

Race – white

Height – 6’ 1 1/2”

Weight – 183

Eyes – Blue

Hair – Brown

Complexion – light

Scars – None

If I didn’t already know my Dad’s physical description, this is certainly a wonderful source.

Here is a screenshot courtesy of Google Maps showing the home at 18286 Ferguson.  I wonder what it looked like in 1940?

  

I enjoy collecting signatures from as many ancestors as possible.  I already have my Dad’s from a later record.  How much had it changed over the years?

Left signature from 1940 and right from 1971

What interesting or unknown information have you found in the various draft card registration files?

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2010-2020   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION